Samantha hesitated as she arrived at the foot of the tower, Chris had told her she would need to climb up and repel down, she just didn't expect the next safe platform to be twenty feet off the ground.

"I guess I signed up for this…" and with that, she hooked herself onto the harness and began her ascent, at the first platform she could see the entire valley, at the top she could see over the lower mountain nearby into Missoula, the cars looked like ants scurrying around their nest and she breathed in the fresh air. She squinted looking around for anything he told her about but all that was up there was a note.

This is what we're fighting for. -C

She smiled, shaking her head, she couldn't deny, it was damn beautiful up there. She took one last breath of the air before pushing herself over the edge again and making her way to the lower platform.

She smirked as she walked to the four wheeler she took up there, she hesitated turning back, a rustling in the woods caught her attention. A white dog with markings on its face and foam trickling from its mouth raced forwards, out of instinct she pulled her gun out and fired into it. It fell to the ground as an arrow planted itself in a nearby tree, she growled, putting the body of the wolf on the vehicle and getting on before leaving that area behind.

When she arrived at his cabin, a few miles down the mountain, she was greeted by the two highly agitated.

"What's wrong?"

"Those fucking assholes attacked the F.A.N.G Center! My sister ran off, can't get a hold of her, not that big a problem, but no one's seen Cheeseburger!"

Samantha sighed leaving the wild on the back of the vehicle, "so, we take it back, find your sister, and find Cheeseburger."

"Easier said than done, they've got a fucking army there, Lycan said they're taking captured wolves out there, amping them up on Faith's Bliss." Samantha paused before pointing to the wolf that attacked her.

"Like this?" The wolf's body twitched before it jumped up, she fell back as it ran at her but a long blade sliced through it.

"Holy shit!" Catalyst cried as the wolf's head slammed into her legs, Chris groaned, putting his sword away.

"That's what they're making. He called them Judge Wolves, and said they roam the woods with a master." Samantha hesitated, all these coincidences added up to make her look, well, not the best in this situation.

"Before I got outta there I was shot at by someone in the woods with a bow, maybe that was the dog's master." Chris nodded looking at Catalyst.

"Hey Cat, any word from your girlfriend?"

"Jess? No, no not yet. Last we spoke she was headed towards that new lumber yard, Baron."

"Just outside Lolo? Got it, so we find Jess and make our way to the F.A.N.G Center, if we don't then they'll just keep training more dogs."

Samantha nodded and followed the pair through the house, and towards the clearing in the back, "so, where exactly are we going?"

"Do you, by any chance, know how to skydive?" Samantha hesitated before nodding, "good, because air traffic in the Bitterroot is uncontested for a reason, Peggie's have full control of damn near every airfield in the valley." They neared a large barn and Samantha caught on. "Key word, near."

He slid the door open and revealed a Cessna 172, N99A720. "This is how we're getting there. I'll fly most of the way, once we're over the dropsite Catalyst will take control and fly to Missoula to pick up my jet." Samantha coughed.

"Your what?"

"When the military decommission planes they don't leave them there to rot, ok sometimes they do. They demilitarize them and let private buyers purchase them." Samantha nodded and the group, minus Chris, climbed into the plane.

"Dad, we already did a check when you landed last time!" He sighed finishing up the walk around before climbing in and running the preflight checklist.

"Alright, let's go." The plane pulled onto the dirt runway and with a start took off leaving a trail of dust behind them.

Samantha looked down as they flew over Lolo, Chris's scowl evident as he looked a a church with a large parking lot, behind the lot was a large field with the logo of Eden's Gate and in front of the church was another large fields

"What's up with the scowl? Did you go to that church?"

"Oh no, they hated me, almost called the cops on me once for sledding when the plows made a hill in their back field, no I lived in the house next door." Samantha nodded glancing back as they continued to gain altitude. "Hey Cat, want me to turn so we're facing Runway Two or do you want me to just leave as is?"

"Leave it as is, are you going?"

Chris smirked, passing Samantha a parachute and strapping his own on, "transferring controls to co-pilot." He grinned looking back at her, "ready?" Sam didn't get a chance to respond because by the time she had registered what he said he was already out the door.

Samantha sighed jumping out her door and meeting Chris dangling from the foothold, "you don't have a gun." The man across from her smirked.

"1911 Under my shirt, Karambit on my back. Ready?" Samantha nodded and the pair let go as they passed over the lumber yard, the plane above them turned to face Missoula.

The pair spread their arms joining their hands to keep close together, below them the ground got larger, Chris looked up at the woman in front of him and shouted. "On the count of three I need you to push with all your might, we need to be separated before we open our chutes or we'll be tangled up! Then open immediately!" Samantha nodded

"One!"

"Two!"

"Three!" The pair forced their hands out, throwing themselves apart before each reaching up and opening their parachutes, as they slowed Samantha noticed a nearby water tower gesturing to land on its peak, Chris nodded and together they landed safely.

Sam quickly grabbed the sniper rifle left on the tower and Chris shook his head as she offered it to him before climbing onto the ladder. "I do things close." She nodded watching him run through the brush towards the building at the far end before setting her sights on the Peggie on the snipers post.

Chris paused waiting for the man to walk to the other end of the hall, his patience didn't disappoint and as the man walked Chris slipped out and snapped his neck carrying the body to the restroom. He turned to the nearest other enemy before dropping a can to the ground, the man turned quickly walking over, however he didn't check his corners, that was his mistake as Chris slipped his knife into the man's jugular.

He ran to the nearest ladder quickly ascending it and arriving at the roof where he radioed Samantha, letting her know of a nearby truck closing on the yard, the truck rolled to the side and the passages climbed out before dropping.

Chris quickly raced towards the nearby barn sliding over the edge and under a conveyor belt. He glanced through the window noting the position of another before running towards the building opposite him, he quickly climbed the ladder waiting for the moment to strike and when no one was looking he ran forwards and dispatched the scumbag on the rooftop.

As he slid back down the ladder another rooftop guard noticed the corpse and ran over, Chris growled as he heard the man talking to himself before climbing back up and snapping the man's neck from behind. The sniper Samantha was watching noticed what had happened but before she could fire Chris drew his weapon, fired two shots off, and slid over the edge five meters (16 feet) down to the ground. He grunted as he watched a heavily armored guard climb the ladder on the side of the building, he limped over climbing the same ladder and grabbing the man by his foot, throwing him to the ground before dropping in home and crushing his windpipe.

"Sam, I need a count. How many can you see?"

"All I can see are the front two guards, where did Sam come from?"

Chris paused as he watched a guard slide down the other ladder before moving towards the corner he was at, it seems that no one taught the Peggie's how to check their corners as the man walked into an ambush where he got his throat slit.

"Take em out!" Chris growled running at the last Peggie who he threw to the ground and shot in the head. The two met near the cages and Chris looked around locking eyes on the inhabitants of one of them.

"Jess," he smirked, opening the door. "Thought you never got caught."

"I don't. I was on The Cook's trail when I was caught by a Peggie patrol."

"Why call them Peggie's? Not just assholes, or cunts, or scumbags. All easier options, some of them are even more fun to call them, have you ever called someone shitbreath? Pretty fun." The two women stared at him and he sighed. "Fine, you two can call them Peggie's."

"Anyway," Samantha looked over, "The Cook?" Chris and Jess shared a look before the man mock zipped his mouth shut and Jess stitched hers. "Ok, bad topic I guess."

Chris looked at Jess, "still have his trail?"

"Yep, ready to get to it?" Samantha paused, it was likely that after they dealt with the cook she would be willing to help them out, so she nodded.

"Alright, let's go put this evil mother fucker in the grave. Follow me."

They passed a pile of burnt corpses and Chris and Jess shared a look before nodding. Further up the trail in another clearing was a cage and a bonfire, they dispatched two Peggie's with Chris throwing one of them into the flames.

They arrived at another smaller lumber yard, this one also full of cages, however unlike the last there was no lumber. They quickly got onto a ledge and Jess looked over, "no Cook, must've gone further up."

"Still gotta get these people out." Samantha added and Jess agreed, Chris nodded.

"I'll stay here and let you two have fun."

The women nodded, splitting apart, Jess jumped out as one of them passed by snapping their neck and Samantha stabbed one in the temple, and that's when everything went downhill. A Peggie noticed what had happened and fired a round into one of the hostages before being gunned down by Samantha before she took his assault rifle.

Chris came into view as he was pursued by an armored Peggie, he grunted pulling out a block of homemade c4 and tossing it to the guy's feet before detonating. Chris flew back as an arrow lodged in the man behind him, Jess quickly helped him up as Samantha fired her pistol into the last guard.

They quickly freed the other two before beginning to ascend the mountain after The Cook. About halfway up the hill they came across an opening where a small stream, Squaw Creek, flowed through. Five Peggie's held a few captive, Samantha snuck behind the sniper snapping his neck before dropping cover all together and opening fire into the remaining five, Chris leapt onto one of them with a groan before firing into their mouth, Jess took two out with eye shots before Sam finished off the group with a shot to the throat. Chris got up leaning on a rock as he looked down at his leg.

"I didn't know what it was then, I think I do now." Jess looked over at his leg and groaned.

"Dislocated, probably from a fall."

"No shit, I jumped off a roof. Help me pop it back into place." Jess nodded, grabbing his leg at the ankle and pulling, Chris screamed out a loud pop rang through the creek bed. "Alright… that's better."

They repeated the last occurrence, freed the prisoners, and continued across the creek and up the hill, as they ascended the hill screams grew louder, finally they burst into a clearing. Chris and Jess blindly attacked when they locked eyes on a man wielding a flamethrower, Samantha tried to pull them back but they were swiftly backed into a corner. As Chris fired blindly a shot went into one of the Peggie's chest but that was their only success.

Samantha groaned as an overwhelming heat grew nearer. A loud boom sounded overhead and an object landed fifty feet away. "Hey dad, miss me?" Samantha turned to see a crater in place of the Peggie's, an F-15 flying overhead. "I'll meet you at home."

The trio looked at each other and nodded making their way to a nearby white truck leftover by the Peggie's. "When we get back you two owe me an explanation on whatever happened with that guy." The pair nodded and off they went, they made it back to 93 and, ironically, the bridge over Lolo Creek, same place Samantha went down originally, when it happened.

Hunters blew the tires off the truck, Chris shouted at Jess to run as the hunters fired bliss arrows into their sides. The road went black and the last thing each of them saw was pure black.

——————————————————————————

Samantha awoke as Pratt was tying her down to a chair, on the other side of the projector Chris sat, wide awake.

"Shouldn't have come for me…"

"Somebody once told me the world was macaroni! My sister ate it and they were wrong!" Samantha looked at the projector for the source of the noise as Chris sang his twisted All Stars parody.

"Will you shut the fuck up!" Pratt knelt back down and finished securing her to her seat, "you should've run."

Pratt scurried aside as the projector lit the wall in front of them, the image of a decaying elk covered the screen as a voice behind them began to speak.

"The world is weak. Soft. We have forgotten what it is to be strong." A man in a camo shirt stepped in front of the projector as it flickered showing a wolf tearing into flesh. "You know our heroes used to be gods. And now our heroes are godless, weak, feeble, diseased." It changed to a zombie like elk as Pratt stepped into the light. "We let the weak dictate to the powerful and then we are shocked to find ourselves adrift." A white wolf tearing a leg off the carcass.

"But history knows the value of sacrifice. Of culling the herd, so that it stays strong. Over and over the lives of the many have outweighed the few. This is how we survived. And we've forgotten… and now, the bill has come due." He stepped in front of Samantha. "Now the Collapse is upon us, it is time for the lives of the few to outweigh the lives of the many. And when a nation that's never known hunger or desperation descends into madness, we'll be ready."

He stepped back winding up a music box. "We will cull the herd. We will do what needs to be done." The box opened and the inhabitants of the room began to shake and seize.

Samantha opened her eyes in a burning room, a wolf on the wall and a revolver on the middle table. The other two people in the room stood aiming weapons at her and she fired before running into the next room and grabbing an Uzi, she fired as she ran through the doors. The next room presented her a shotgun and a maze, she quickly raced through killing the people in her way, the fourth room was a large gateway, she picked up the assault rifle and fired with efficiency killing the five inhabitants before they even got a shot off. The last room was the most different. The second floor floated and the walls hovered two feet off the ground, she raced through killing the two people inside before sliding down a corridor.

"What a mess." She awoke to the light of the projector on the wall, shadowy footsteps walked in front of them, one of the men gestured to the fallen chairs. "Wheaty check the chairs." The boy walked over as the commander walked to where Chris's chair was and sliding open a window, Samantha tried to speak but nothing would come out.

"Christ it's sully. When did they get him," they stood walking back. "What's the point? They're all dead anyways."

"Check them anyways!"

"Why am I always stuck on corpse duty…" the boy lifted her chair and her eyes locked on his. "Holy shit!" His hands slipped as he stumbled back and the man in charge shouted questioningly.

"What? Live one!" The man kneeled, "Walker go get the truck, Wheaty check the other." The boy nodded.

"He's alive but out, looks like the boss's friend."

The man quickly righted her chair, cut her free, and slung her over his shoulder. "Don't worry Deputy, the Whitetails got you now."

——————————————————————————

Samantha awoke to a canteen pressed against her chapped lips, she swallowed the water greedily as it was pulled away, a woman walking into the room, looking at Chris and Sam before storming over to the bearded man.

"Are you out of your fucking mind!"

"Now hold on Wheaty and I agreed-"

She turned to the man next to Samantha, "oh you agreed!"

"Woah, woah, woah. I was at best an impartial observer." He raised his hands and she sighed, gesturing to the pair.

"This is stupid and this is dangerous. You both know better."

"What was I supposed to do?"

She spread her arms calmly, like her answer was the best answer. "Leave 'em to die."

"Finley."

"They've been in that room for god knows how long. I've seen what it does to people. You haven't. You can't trust these two. Especially not that one." Samantha turned to Chris as Finley pointed at him.

"That's what everyone said about you! But luckily I didn't listen. This is not up for discussion. We need 'em, that's all there is to it. Understand." The woman walked away with a huff and the man turned back to them.

"Get some rest." Samantha groaned, nodding and passing out once again.

She awoke a few hours later and walked down the hall leaving Chris behind, the man who rescued her, now identified as Eli, smiled.

"Been trying to track you down Deputy, Jess speaks highly."

"Is she here?"

"Not at the moment, she's with her girlfriend somewhere. Look, I'll get right to it, I know a good soldier when I see one. We're bleedin' bodies up here no two ways about it. I don't know if we'll be able to hold out more than a week at this rate. Times are desperate to say the least." He pointed to a spot on his map. "We need a few footholds so I sent people out to sabotage the Travelers Rest visitors center, Peggie's were using it as a stop for their Bliss shipments, but our guys walked right into a trap, they were taken hostage and were up against the clock."

"So you want me to rescue them?"

"Exactly, you and-" Chris groaned entering the room.

"Did you kidnap me from being kidnapped or am I just really fucking high?"

"Well, speak of the devil." Chris looked up, "I need you two to go rescue my men from the visitors center."

Chris groaned, "I'm busy looking for my sister."

"Do you want Finley to trust you again?"

"No. No I don't," Chris smirked as though he had just played a winning hand.

"Well you're still going." He sighed but nodded, "go in quiet, if the cult finds out they'll kill our people, there's a bow on the table if you need it. Get our people back."

Samantha nodded, taking the bow and racing out followed quickly by Chris, who stole the four wheelers driver's seat. "Hold on." And with that they shot off like a rocket towards the visitors center down the mountain. Chris passed the gate to the Travelers Rest as he rode down Mormon Creek Road, he growled, throwing a brick of C4 onto the wall of the church and detonating it before spinning back towards the state park.

"Sorry, they were assails and it needed to be done. Besides, their Peggie's now, they used to be just Mormons." The steel gate flew off its hinges as the drove down the driveway to the back entry for the trail.

"Alright, off we go, stealth and respect." Samantha nodded and they climbed off setting off down the trail, they went the short way finding a nook in the trees at the trail's edge. "This is where they found copper fragments, it's how we know Lewis and Clark came through here, thus the name Travelers Rest." Samantha nodded.

"How do you know that? I doubt schools teach about it."

"Mine did, Lolo Middle School, it's also the town elementary, kindergarten and preschool. Small town, all funding for the town went to the bar." They set off once more, stopping at the bridge over the Lolo Creek.

"I found you about a mile downstream from here, out like a light. I had no clue how you even got that far down."

"What were you doing there?"

"I was looking for land, wanted to build a house, not be stuck crashing in my friend's house while he lived off the land. C'mon gotta get these people out." Samantha nodded and they finished walking the trail, ahead of them three Peggie's waited, Chris grinned pulling a bow from a cover neither of them had noticed until they were right there. They split up with the man walking around the building, Samantha took the front and once he radioed she let an arrow fly, another arrow fired from his position and the final Peggie ran towards the bushes, Chris raced after time grabbing him by the neck and choking him to death.

"I saw three more Peggie's in the main building and one that I forgot the name of and it's not labeled." Samantha grinned.

"I know what you're trying to say, you take him out and see about getting in the back entrance, we'll crush them in the main building."

Chris nodded, pulling out his Karambit and opening the door, a gun flew out the door and gargled breaths cried for help, a few seconds later two people left, one of which being Chris.

"Hey, why aren't you in there?"

"What did you do there?"

Chris shrugged, "cut his throat, did shit at it cause he drowned in his own blood. Not that bad." Samantha shivered, at the front desk a woman stood wearing a uniform.

"They've got an employee hostage." Chris nodded and Samantha quietly opened the door, the man quickly walked behind the Peggie pointing his weapon at the cashier and snapped his neck before walking further into the gift shop.

"What are you doing?" Samantha whispered as she noted the other two's positions guarding three hostages.

"Buying a Bison plush." He smiled walking to the cashier, the cashier paused before shakily scanning the toy's tag.

"That'll be eleven fifty three." Chris nodded, swiping his card in the reader, the receipt printed and the woman picked it up, "would you like your receipt?" Chris nodded, taking it and the plush.

"Thank you ma'am, have a nice day." He turned and Samantha snorted as he placed it atop his head. "This is Tyson, Tyson the Bison."

"Alright kiddo, now, do you want to actually finish doing our job?" He sighed but nodded nonetheless, together they drew their bows and, in sync, took out the two remaining guards freeing the hostages.

"The river, they took them to the river!" Chris nodded leaving Samantha in his wake as he ran to one of their vans, she caught up as he began to pull away leaping into the back and attempting to climb into the front.

"Nope, Tyson called shotgun, I don't make the rules." She sighed, sitting back down.

"You are a literal child." He laughed as they went back onto highway 93, "this road again? Aren't there any other roads to get through the valley?"

"They're called the interstates for a reason. They take you between states, that includes Idaho at the end of this valley. It's easiest to use the interstate so there's no road other than it to get around." She sighed.

"I'm not a kindergartner, could've just said no." She groaned as the car began to bump up and down as they went down the road, Samantha looked out the windshield seeing the road ending ahead.

"Read?" Chris grinned.

"Always." And with that they burst from the car onto the riverside, luckily this was one of the only places with river access so they were able to find the Peggie's fast, however unluckily there was a helicopter overhead. Chris drew his pistol, firing what was left of his ammo into the crowd and dispatching most of them before tossing his last C4 into them.

"Get down! I've always wanted to say that." The crowd exploded and Samantha's eye caught on a long metal pipe. She ran over and lifted the RPG onto her shoulder and Chris sighed, "how is that legal?"

The helicopter spiraled out of control as Chris cut the prisoners loose, once they got back to the van the man smirked. "Time to head back home."