Author's Chapter Notes:
Let me make this clear- I am NOT recapping this storyline detail to detail. Some is abbreviated, and a few tiny details of the stuff going on with Daisy now is my work. Other than that, if you are looking for an alternative to actually going out and watching the movie, I suggest you don't go by this.
PLEASE go watch the original film before reading this, if you can.
Now with one more to round out the team, together they set out on their journey across the desert.
Right away it was clear it wouldn't be easy.
Jack brought them to an abandoned mining yard, insisting they'd find spare ammunition from a stash that had been left there. After splitting up to search the place, there was an unexpected ambush of copperheads straight from the tunnels.
With everyone else scattered Billy and Daisy were cornered by two of the creatures, one going after each.
Despite her condition, Daisy was fast and easily shot down her target, but Billy was knocked down. She reached them just as the copperhead was about to take a bite out of his neck and blew off its skull.
"Thanks, baby," Billy caught his breath as she knelt over his head to kiss him, relieved he was alright.
But this attack was far from over as more copperheads kept coming. Together Billy and Daisy fled for the jeep, hoping to round everyone back up and make a break for it.
Only Jack was able to escape his fight, along with a mysterious woman, whom they realized was the warrior priestess that the Komodo had been talking about.
They sped out of the invaded yard, heading back out beyond the fence as the copperheads were left in their dust.
"Where's everyone else?" Daisy called out.
"We'll meet up," Jack replied as they drove out back onto the road towards the mountain.
"We're just leaving them?!" Billy argued.
"We'll send them our location."
...
The car was soon heading into the hills, towards the desolated forest that was resting beneath the summit.
Eventually they stopped for a moment to give Daisy a chance to rest from being behind the wheel, and Billy soon nodded off with her.
Their time was cut short after a sudden loud combustion appeared ahead of them from what they had thought was an abandoned truck. Apparently it was a trap set by one of Apocalypta's goons and Jack had walked into it, but luckily Sirene wasn't far behind and cut down the would-be killer.
The four continued on the road upwards, passing through and eliminating a small cluster of copperheads feeding off a body.
Sirene went up close to the corpse and examined it as she proclaimed it was a sky burial, and that as wolves and crows would come to feed off the deceased his spirit would return to the circle. Whatever that meant.
"We're getting close," she determined.
Not close enough to arrive before the sunset, though. Just as it was starting to get dark, Sirene halted them again and pointed out a cave hidden in the trees. "It's a difficult hike from here," she said. "You should all rest. We head out at dawn."
Billy, Daisy, and Jack looked ahead, then followed her to their new shelter.
Lighting a fire, they sat quietly examining the cave, which was really an entrance to an abandoned mine.
"So these sky burials, someone teach you this?" Jack looked over asking Sirene.
She went on to tell of her grandmother and how she had taught her all she knew. Even more surprising was that it had been her grandfather, a copper miner, who had been one of the first victims of the epidemic.
"He turned first, then his crew," she said solemnly. "She had to kill him herself."
Daisy looked over at Billy, putting her hand over his as she cradled her belly over her arm. How could anyone bare having to destroy the person they loved?
As they fell asleep that night, she prayed for safety, both for the four of them and their child.
...
The next morning they drove on. After a short time, they came to an open plain with ratcheted fencing around it. Struggling to break free was an entire copperhead army.
"Let's wipe 'em all out! What are we waiting for?" Billy said, reaching for his gun.
Jack held back his brother. "We don't have enough ammo for all of them."
"To slay a dragon," Sirene murmured, "you don't cut off its claw..."
"You cut off its head." Billy understood, nodding.
The main path up the mountain stood beyond the corral, cutting off the road for the jeep to take them any further.
Now they would have to go on foot.
Following Sirene's lead, they began their hike along the cliffs going up the mountain.
As Jack trekked ahead following their guide, Billy kept Daisy close next to him offering her his hand when there were some steps that could throw her off balance.
At one point before they got any deeper into the trail, Sirene stopped them.
"Step where I step," she instructed. "Expect traps up here."
Suddenly a roamer appeared out of nowhere right beside her. Jack acted fast and shoved his boot into it, knocking it off the cliff and down to the canyon below.
"And copperheads." Sirene finished. "There will be copperheads."
They shoved on, climbing up further and reaching some level ground on the edge near the next peak.
Billy had Daisy walk ahead of him, watching her footing closely as they followed behind his brother.
At one point she stopped, pressing her hand beneath her bulging stomach.
"Hey, you okay?" Billy came up next to her. "Fine, I'm fine." She said quickly, clearing her throat.
Her boyfriend glanced up ahead, watching his brother following Sirene's lead. "I still don't trust her." He muttered.
"Well, Jack does." Daisy looked over at him.
"Yeah, well for all we know, she could be delivering us to Apocolypta herself."
She scoffed. "Good plan. Try to turn a bunch of gunslingers into pet copperheads?" Daisy wrapped her arms around his shoulders, kissing him. "They're never gonna get us."
She smiled. "Come on." She started onward, and Billy sighed going after her.
He didn't get far, though.
As his foot stepped into the broken twigs and leaves, his ankle was caught in a snare that pulled hard and flipped him onto his back, striking his head and dragging him into the woods.
Billy's brain was pounding as he squinted up at the blurry figure looming over him. He strained to get a better look at his captor, but effort was too much for his possibly concussioned skull.
"Go to sleep." a rough voice hissed.
Everything went black.
