'He's just a kid.'
When the fog dissipated America left Dutch's island. Leaving it in the care of Both Dutch and Jesse.
Her first destination was going to be Holland Valley. After that commercial by John Seed, she couldn't leave her fellow Deputy in that man's hands. Before leaving she asked Dutch to keep an ear out for the rest of her law-enforcing allies, as well as any other distress signals.
The destination she was originally heading to was the small town of Fall's End. A good place to set up a base of operations and from what she heard already had resistance leaders there. Though they were apparently under attack.
But before getting there Dutch asked her to check in on the Rae-Rae Pumpkin Farm across from the Gardenview Plantation. He had friends there and it was close by.
But when she had gotten there, it was too late. The cultists murdered everyone, leaving only the family dog. After killing the three stooges who murdered the family, she freed the dog and he led her toward three bodies, clutching each other in a deathly embrace.
A mom . . . a dad . . . and a son. No older then thirteen he looked like. A gunshot in his back. The mother got shot in the throat . . . choked on her own blood, holding her son. The father was on top of them both, the back of his head was blown open by a bullet.
The dog, Boomer she figured out, was whining sadly as he watched over their chilling bodies.
'A whole family . . . dead. And for what?!' The sight sickened her more than anything she'd seen from the cult so far.
"Joseph Seed . . . fucker claims to care about the people but look at this." She said to no one but herself. "Where's the decency here? Where's the justice? Where's the humanity? A man of God?! Fucker is the devil himself!" America kicked a potted plant, knocking it over and shattering it.
Her breathing was heavy as she glared at the scattered dirt. Her hand tightened around Judgment. Her finger twitched, eager to deliver her gun's namesake on other peggies and avenge this family.
She felt something wet on her gun hand. Looking down it was Boomer. He was still whining, but now more in concern for her. His wet tongue licked her again.
America calmed down, taking a deep breath. She bent down and pet the dog, making him bark in happiness.
"You're a good boy." She smiled and activated her radio. "Dutch, it's me. I'm sorry. Rae-Rae is . . . Rae-Rae and her family are dead. Everyone but their dog, Boomer."
"Fuck! Fucking—Fuckin' Seed family!" America stayed silent, letting Dutch have his moment to rant and grieve. It would be a good two minutes before the old prepper calmed down enough to talk. "Did ya get the bastards who did it?"
"Yeah."
"Thank you. Thanks for avenging them at least. I'm glad you rescued ol' Boomer though . . . that dog'll sniff out trouble and watch your back better then you can believe. He's a great tracker, hunter, and spotter. I remember he once defended Rae-Rae from a grizzly. Now that he's . . . orphaned . . . ya mind watching him?"
She looked down at the dog. He was just sitting and staring up at her curiously with his tongue hanging out.
"Be glad to, Dutch."
"Thanks . . . stay safe now."
She put down her radio and scratched the hound's head. As she did, she also looked at the three bodies. Gunfire grabbed her attention next. It was coming from the Packing Facility across the street. The peggies had set up an outpost there.
They'll help her work off the rage.
America entered the garage. Inside was a bunch of tools, a quad-bike and a compound bow resting on a workbench. Interestingly, the last two items were painted a bright green and yellow and had "Big Game Hunter" painted on them. She took the bow and grabbed an aluminum bat that was just leaning in a corner.
Boomer barked. America strapped a quiver full of arrows to her back and looked out into the direction of the packing plant.
"Let's go boy."
"Bark! Bark!"
It was barely even a walk to the plant. America was looking through her binoculars scoping out the place. It wasn't heavily defended. In fact, the cultists just seemed to be loading crates full of apples into trucks.
Peering through her binoculars she could see three cultists. One standing guard near the driveway, another guarding the trucks, and the last one on top of the roof. But she knew there were more then what she could see and if she wasn't careful they could call in more on the radio they had set up.
She put down her binoculars. "How do I figure out how many are left?"
"Bark! Bark! Bark!"
"Shh. Yeah Boomer, three. But I need to know the total."
Without warning Boomer ran off into the complex.
"Boomer! No! Come back!" She yelled in a hushed tone.
But Boomer didn't listen and casually entered the outpost. Amazingly, the cultists didn't mind him. With his scruffy grey coat and rope collar, they must have thought he was a stray. Boomer approached a cultist, a shirtless tattooed man, who wore a crown of thorns and white flowers on his head.
Boomer barked at him once, before leaving him alone to bark again at the closest cultist.
'Wait.' America realized. 'Is he . . .'
Boomer barked at a cultist again. Then again. And again. Every cultist he came across he barked only once.
'Boomer's letting me know how many enemies are in the area through his barks. That's incredible!'
She knew police dogs that weren't that smart. When Boomer had returned he had barked a total of seven times. Seven enemies. And she guessed their positions based on how far Boomer was when he barked.
"Still quite a bit, but doable. Now how to go about it? Hmm, if only I could get a better look." She turned her head and saw a water tower she could climb. "That'll do."
After shimmying her way up the water tower, she got a better look at the terrain and the men in the area.
"First things first." She pulled an arrow on the string of her new bow. Aiming it at the cultist who was sitting relaxingly on the roof. The arrow was loosened and found its mark in the cultist's chest.
Pulling out her binoculars, America saw that they weren't only packing up apples.
A massive bear pounded on its cage in a ferocious fury. Its cage rattled from its immense strength but held firm. Another roar, but this time from a second caged bear. And then another.
Three bears roared and snapped at anything in sight, but their anger intensified seeing something living like one of the peggies. America quirked an eyebrow when she saw the look of these bears.
Their fur was an unnatural, sickly white. Their noses and eyes were pinkish, like they were sick, but they had enough energy in them to exude rage.
"Albinos?" She wondered. "No. One maybe, but three? Did the cultists do something to those things?" She looked back through her binoculars. "Hmm, the locks on those things look flimsy. One good shot and maybe those beasts can do my job for me. Course, if they win, then I have to kill them."
After giving it some thought she shrugged. "Fuck it." She pulled on her bowstring and released the arrow. The locks broke off, releasing the bear inside.
It charged out of its cage like a bear out of hell and started tearing into the cultists. The area was now on high alert.
"One down." She released another arrow. "Two down." The second bear was released. "One to go."
A third arrow later and three bears were destroying the cultists. America was actually surprised how resilient the animals were. Bullets were piercing their bodies, but they still charged like they felt nothing. She saw a cultist get ripped to shreds by a bear's teeth. A woman got her head crunched in a set of jaws. A man's chest cavity torn open by claws. Gunshots and screams were all over the place. One bear finally fell, but not before crushing to death a cultist it was chewing on.
There was a loud, resounding boom suddenly. America followed the noise and saw the weird shirtless cultist with the thorn-crown holding a unique looking double-barrel shotgun.
A bear charged the tattooed man, but he turned his gun and fired. The bear fell dead, its corpse skidding across the dirt. The remaining cultists cheered.
The odds were turning to the cultists favor, surprisingly. There was only one bear left and no doubt it would fall like the others. The tattooed man went off to get the last bear, leaving the two others behind.
America pointed at one of the cultists with her bow and then whistled. Boomer charged right in fearlessly. She let loose an arrow and struck the neck of the farthest cultist. He dropped spooking the second and causing him to reel, but before he could spot America, Boomer pounced on him and snapped his teeth around the cultist's neck. The last thing out of the man's mouth was a dying gasp.
"Good boy Boomer!" America praised, coming down the water tower.
A gun went off and bullets sparked off the water tower, spooking America and making her fall to the ground.
She groaned in pain from the landing but shook it off quickly when she realized that the tattooed cultist spotted her. But before she could get away the last weird bear charged at her, roaring.
America tried getting to her feet, but the bear was on her before she could get her footing. It roared in her face, she kicked it and punched its snout, but it was too hardy. She grabbed an arrow that fell out of her quiver and stabbed the beast in the eye before it could bite her neck.
It roared in pain, but amazingly did not die. She twisted the arrow, hoping the pain would get it to back off. It did, but the bear just seemed more determined to get her after. Before she could unholster Judgement from her hip, Boomer lept on top of the animal. Biting it and distracting it.
Boomer growled as he ripped a chunk of hair and flesh off the bear's back. The bear roared in pain and shook furiously trying to get the hound off. Boomer moved around the animal like water, biting its arms and back legs, and neck. But he would not be quick enough as the pale beast grabbed Boomer in its jaws and tossed the hound into the field. America could hear the poor dogs high-pitched squeal.
The bear, finally rid of the mutt, started to approach America again. Angered that the animal hurt her new companion, America was about ready to blow its arrow filled brains out with Judgement.
*BOOM!*
And that's what happened. Half its head exploded in a burst of blood, meat and bone. But it did not come from America's gun.
She turned her head and saw the tattooed cultist, reloading shotgun.
"Hello, Deputy." He said coolly. His gun snapped back into place after loading two shells in it. "The Father's been looking for you."
America finally managed to pull out Judgement and fired. Three shots. Each impacted the cultist, causing him to stumble back, but to the Deputy's surprise, he did not die.
He stood as straight as a pole, with three holes bleeding from his torso. America's brain could not process what she was seeing. Thankfully her instincts saved her by rolling away from the blasts of the cultist's weapon.
"You can't run forever, girl! The Father will have you among his flock." The cultists said, reloading his gun again.
"Over my dead body!" She managed to take cover behind some apple crates as the man reloaded. Turning the corner, she fired her pistol again, but the man dodged them and got behind crates of apples.
"The father just wants to save your soul! Like everyone else." He fired twice again, this time splintering the box she was hiding behind and splattering the apples into juice.
"He's got a funny way of "saving" people!" she fired back. Her shots just grazed the man's head.
"The ends justify the means. When the Collapse arrives, all will thank the Father for his actions."
"Somehow, I doubt it." She spat. The man didn't fire back again. She peered from her hiding spot and didn't see him.
Then all of a sudden, he came from around the other side and flanked her. He knocked Judgement from her hand and then hit her in the head with the butt of his gun.
America fell, clutching her head in a daze. She back tracked trying to get away, but she was caught when he leveled his gun on her.
"You will accept the Father, God's Chosen Prophet. It is His will."
America spat on the man's face. "The Father is no chosen of God's. He's a fraud and you're his mindless sheep."
*BOOM!*
His round impacted the ground between her legs, causing the girl to go deathly silent.
"One more blasphemous word out of you and I'll—ARGH!"
"Boomer!"
The grey-haired dog lept at the cultist's gun. Growling as he yanked the weapon from the man's clutches. The hound then tossed it to America's side.
"No!" The man tried to lunge for his gun, but Boomer bit his ankle holding him in place.
America took the black double-barrel, pointed it at the man's head, and blew it to hell.
America fell back onto the green grass and tried to catch her breath. "Thank God." She sighed in relief.
Boomer approached her face, giving her that cute look that all dogs are known for. He whined a little, apparently worried about her health. She scratched him on the head to show she was fine.
"Good boy."
After picking herself up, the deputy found a key on the crazy cultist's body. She explored the place and heard many voices screaming in the back-room office.
"Is everyone alright in there?" The Deputy asked through the locked door.
"Who's out there?!" A man shouted.
"My named Deputy Jones, I'm from the sheriff's department."
"You the one that's been makin' all that racket?"
"That's right. I took care of all the cultists."
"All of them?!"
"Yeah. Where's the key to this door?"
"Jimmy's got it! That tattooed fuck that you probably killed."
"Oh!" She perked. She took the key she got from the one called Jimmy and unlocked the door. "Open sesame." She smiled as she saw the group of people on the other side.
An older couple in their forties stepped out first. They were holding each other like a scared couple would.
"Thank God, you are a deputy." The wife said relieved.
"Names Doug Gardner. This here's my wife, Debbie. And these are the workers at Gardenview. What's left at least."
"Deputy Jones." She nodded.
"Hey! You got the "Farmhand" from Jimmy too. That's great!" Doug referred to the unique double-barrel in her hands. The weapon was silver and black, with a gold trim and the seal of Hope County on it, which was the image of a peaking mountain.
America looked at the weapon. She offered the weapon back, but the Gardner's refused it.
"You hold onto it. That thing can stop a charging buffalo with one shot. Lord knows these peggies need to be put down like the mad dogs they are."
Boomer whined from that analogy, gathering the attention of everyone around.
"Boomer?" Debbie said happily. "It's so good to see you boy! I'm surprised Rae-Rae would let you out of her sight."
America frowned. And though Boomer was being pat on the head, the reminder of his old master caused him to whine sadly.
"Rae-Rae and her family are dead. Cult killed them a while ago. I'm sorry." America explained.
Everyone gasped. Some cursed, some cried, and some punched the nearest object
"No." Debbie sobbed into her husband's shoulder, who tried comforting her to the best of his abilities.
"Did you at least get the bastards who did it?" Doug asked.
"Yes."
"Good. Good."
Everyone got to work on cleaning up the place and fortifying it against the cult. They took back all the supplies, set fire to Eden's Gate property, and piled up the corpses of the cultists to burn. No one thought they deserved a proper burial and no one wanted to just leave them out in the sun to rot and stink.
Doug and Debbie saw to everything. While everyone was cleaning up, America was crouched down examining the body of the one called Jimmy.
Five-foot-ten, black greying hair, temple was scarred up from the crown of thorns. Multiple tattoos on his body, most ranging from symbolic and biblical. Three bullet holes in his chest and one giant crater in his face. The man should have died from the first three bullets.
"Hey Doug!" She called over. "What can you tell me about this guy?"
"That's Jimmy Ward." Doug Gardner said coming up behind her. "He used to work for us, but little did we know he was a spy actin' for the cult." He spat on the corpse. "Soon as the peggies got angsty, he offered up this place to John and the Father. Took the "Farmhand" and converted anyone who was too scared to refuse. The rest—us—he locked up for later conversion. Can't thank you enough for that, Deputy."
"He took three shots to the chest and shrugged it off . . ."
"What do you expect from VIPs?" She leveled him a confused look. "VIPs are important individuals that bring the most to the cult. Talent, skills, goods, wealth, if the cult can use it and you can supply a surplus of it you are a "Very Important Person." You know who these fuckers are based off the thorn crowns they wear."
"That still doesn't explain how he shrugged off bullets and excruciating pain."
"Same way that happened to those poor bears." Doug shrugged.
America looked up at the bodies of the three bears. She had never seen anything of their like in all her years and she lived growing up near wild animals like these bears. What amazed her was the fact they were black bears and somehow their coats had turned completely white.
She had deduced that they were somehow connected to Jimmy. Their invulnerability to pain was eerily similar and they shrugged off bullets like they were walking Kevlar.
"These were just your typical black bears, before the cult experimented on them. Drugged them up until they were meaner and tougher than regular bears. And it's all because of that Bliss."
"Bliss?"
"You've seen the crates the cult's been lugging around. That's bliss. A drug that's manufactured by Faith Seed and used to control their followers. Too much of that stuff can make you brain dead or tough as nails like Jimmy there. That's not all."
He motioned for her to follow. He led her several yards away from the packing facility to a red silo with the cult's symbol on it.
"The cult's been buying a lot of farm land for years and producing this bliss infused fertilizer. John's set up a whole bunch of these silos all over Holland Valley."
"What's the point of adding bliss to the fertilizer?"
"No idea. Maybe it makes their bliss plants grow better or maybe it can infect other plants with its hypnotizing properties. Or maybe the cult just likes fucking with other people's shit."
"Literally."
They both got a laugh out of that.
"Well, whatever it's used for," America said, "it's important to them and that's enough reason for me to destroy it." Out of her pocket she pulled out a stick of dynamite.
Doug smiled. "I like the way you think, Deputy."
They lit the wick, dropped the stick and ran for cover. The combined explosion of the TNT and the silo contents was enough to shake the earth beneath their feet and even make their ears ring. But both agreed that it was a fine sight to see something of John Seed's go.
As the two walked back they discussed a very important topic that involved them all.
"You're heading to liberate Fall's End?"
"That's right." She confirmed. "I could use you and your crew's help on that matter."
"Listen Deputy, we'd love to help ya, but a lot of these people aren't fighters. The majority of my workforce that put up a fight was either taken or already joined up with the cult." He spat on the dirt for those traitors.
"I know and wouldn't be askin' if I could do it myself. But in times like these we have to rely on each other."
Doug took off his cap and scratched his head. "I'll tell you what, you get a few more fighters to join us and I'll convince these people to take up arms with ya. Right now, it's do or die and these people can definitely do."
"More people? I'm sure there are plenty that need help around the county, but where do I start?"
"Funny you should ask. Over yonder, bout a mile, is the Silver Lake Trailer Park. There you'll find a man by the name of Merle Briggs. He's been fighting the cult since they first showed up. No doubt the bastard's rubbing it in everyone's faces how right he was." He mumbled that last bit. "Anyway, I overheard the cult saying that they sent a contingent of men to apprehend Briggs and the other trailer park residences. You help them and I'm sure they'll help you. And then you'll have yourself a ragtag army."
America gave it some thought before nodding. "Okay. I can do that." She put two fingers in her mouth and whistled. Boomer immediately sprinted to her side. "You get your people ready Doug. I'll get Briggs and the others."
"Godspeed, Deputy."
After collecting some ammo, it was a trek from the plant to the trailer park. She cut through the woods avoiding any peggies on the road.
"Ya'know I used to take my boy apple picking at Gardenview every fall when he was little . . ." Dutch said nostalgically. "Lot of good memories there for me—for everyone. Thanks for getting something of ours back, Deputy. We owe you one this time."
"I'm just doing my job, Dutch."
"You're way to modest, Dep. I was a soldier once, Army, 82nd Airborne, I know what it means to do your duty. But you're a Jr. deputy, a cop. Round these parts the only things you have to worry about are speeders and drunks. You're going beyond the call of duty, takin' on the cult, building a resistance, fighting a war . . . Jesus, Deputy." There was a pause from the old man, then a long sigh. "Forget it. Just accept my fucking compliment."
". . . thanks . . ." America didn't know why, but she smiled.
After about a half an hour walk she and Boomer finally arrived at the trailer park.
The peggies had already taken over it. They had rounded up the remaining residences of the trailer park and were getting them ready to transport. Looking through her binoculars, America could instantly tell which one was Merle. The tubby guy, wearing a mullet, shooting his mouth off.
"They won't bring the army here. I am the army! OOF!" A peggie socked him in the gut to shut him up.
"Who wears a mullet in this day and age?" She muttered.
From the looks of all the bodies lying around a recent battle had taken place, with more casualties on the peggies side. Looks like the trailer owners gave the cult quite a fight, which meant that all of them would be valuable in the fight for Fall's End. Even if they weren't it was still her duty to protect the innocent.
"Alright." She said getting ready. She reached into her bag for a certain item. A cylindrical container with a pin on top. "Let's hope this works."
She tossed the can-like object. It clanked against the ground, garnering the attention of the cultists. Before they could process what landed by their feet, it burst, blinding everyone and engulfing them in white smoke.
There was coughing now. Lots of coughing. The smoke grenade had caught them all off guard. Their ears were ringing from the non-lethal explosion and their mouths and eyes stung from the smoke. Suddenly, one of the cultists were taken out by a baseball bat. Dead upon impact. Boomer had lept onto a cultist, tearing out their throat. America swung left and right, cracking two skulls. One cultist was getting her bearings, but America threw her melee weapon at their head, disorienting her. As the smoke cleared, the deputy took out her revolver and fired on the last three cultists while Boomer killed the final one.
Scanning, there were no more enemies in sight and Boomer wasn't growling, which meant all was clear. She looked down and saw the hostages, groaning and moaning from being caught in the blast. Merle though was cussing up a storm. It was a risky move, and no doubt she'd get a complaint or two, but it was her best approach given what she had to work with.
America untied them all. Each gave her their own form of gratitude, before embracing their loved ones or neighbors. As soon as Merle was loose, he went to spit and kick every Peggie corpse in his sight.
"Finally! Someone I can depend on. Hello, Deputy."
"You know me?"
"Dutch called ahead and informed me you'd be coming soon. Told me all about your plan for a resistance and liberatin' Fall's End."
He gave another kick to a corpse. "I regret the day I eased up on these sons of bitches. I fuckin' knew this would happen!"
"We know Merle!" Everyone around them yelled at once.
"Well I did, and hardly any of you listened!"
"Well all of Hope County's listening now, Merle." America said. "And right now, we have people to protect."
"Couldn't agree more, Deputy. Before you showed up, we were kickin' ass and taking names. Everyone here's ready to step up and help their fellow man."
"Hmmhmm!" An old lady with a shotgun grunted.
"And fellow woman, whatever." He motioned for America to follow him. As they walked through the trailer park, America saw just how armed everyone was. She saw them carrying weapons ranging from baseball bats, to assault rifles, to one guy coming out of his shed with a fucking flamethrower.
"You guys sure were prepared for a war."
"You bet your fine ass we are! I wasn't the only one in Hope County that was expecting trouble from the cult to come to a head and the cult's gonna be real sorry they fucked with us."
"What am I looking at fighters wise?"
"Everyone here can use the basic pistol, rifle, and shotgun. Kathy's our regular sniper. Phil and Lenny've gotten us some explosives. Grenades, dynamite, pipe-bombs and C4. They even got us some rocket launchers." He whispered that last bit. "And uh, Georgie's rigged up his plane down by the docks with guns, cluster bombs and rockets."
"You've armed a civilian plane?" She said shocked.
"Oh, don't give me that look. The peggies got their air support and we need our own. Nick Rye was the first to do so and Georgie just copied him. The Clusterduck is one badass plane!"
"The Clusterduck?" She couldn't hold back the chuckle.
"I think it's a great name. But nothing will ever beat my baby in names." They came up to a makeshift wooden garage. Inside was a vehicle with a tarp covering it. Every residence in the trailer park joined them, surrounding the vehicle.
"I give you, Deputy, the one thing that the cult is just begging for." He gripped the tarp and yanked it off. "I give you: the Death Wish."
America's eyes sparkled in excitement. It was a truck, heavy duty, and armed with an M-60 on the back. It had a green and black paintjob, with flames on the hood, and a dreadful skull sitting in front of the moon, surrounded by wisps of fog on the side.
"That is goddamn beautiful, Briggs." America complimented.
"Ain't she now."
The two turned around and saw the remaining trailer park residences around them. Armed and ready for payback.
America and Merle stood in front of the Death Wish and addressed the crowd.
"Okay everyone, listen up!" Briggs started. "The fucking cult's gone and done the one thing it shouldn't have: piss us off!"
"Yeah!"
"The cult thinks the people of Hope County are just gonna roll over and take their shit? Well, they're wrong. We're Montanans! We're the toughest people in this whole country and we don't take shit from nobody!"
America stepped forward. "Fall's End is in trouble. It's people and its leaders, Mary May Fairgrave and Pastor Jerome Jeffries, are on the brink and only we can save them. It's time to rally and come together!"
"What do you say folks? You ready to take the fight to the cult?"
The crowd cheered in approval. Merle and Deputy Jones began setting up plans for the assault and rescue of Falls' End.