In Part 1 of 3, the Rangers track a notorious horse thief, and Gus and Woodrow are promoted to captains after their leader, Capt. Scull (Val Kilmer), abandons his men to search for his beloved horse that is stolen. Also: Gus courts Clara, a local Austin beauty, and Scull's wife takes up with Jake Spoon, a young Ranger.

Gus and Woodrow are ordered by the governor to rescue Capt. Scull from a Mexican bandit who is holding him for ransom; Comanches raid Austin and burn much of it to the ground; Woodrow worries that Maggie's baby doesn't belong to him; and Gus becomes convinced that Clara is going to marry another man.