"Once upon a time, a very long time ago back when the first vamps showed up, there was a man." " Mister." " Yeah, Mister." "Well, Mister was the best hunter that there ever was and he traveled the Stakelands, killing vamps." "And then one day he came upon this boy." "He was in real trouble." "You see there was a big bad vamp that was gonna eat him up." " No." " Yeah, but Mister showed up and they staked that vamp right through his heart." "Yay!" "And after that they came up north and they met a girl..." " Mommy!" " Yeah, it was Mommy." "And the boy and this girl, they fell in love and then... you came along." "What happened to Mister?" "I don't know, baby." "One day, I woke up and, uh, he was gone." "I found this necklace hanging on the side of a car." "He left it so that I'd always remember him." "They're dead." "You're alive." "Act like it." "I'll be right back, baby." "Do you want me to come with you?" "No, not this time." "I want you to stay with her." " All right." " Okay, bye." " Bye." " Bye." "They've got bezerkers!" "They're gonna kills us all!" "Not me." "So you stay close, you understand?" " I want to stay." " Hush, baby." "You have to stay quiet." "Martin?" "Martin?" "Put it away, boy." "We don't do history." "The world didn't die with a bang." "It died with a scream lots of them and I heard 'em all." "There's nothing left." "A dying landscape." "People stopped trying to rebuild a long time ago." "We let it all fall apart and now everything's quiet, empty." "You can go for weeks without finding a soul." "Days come and night falls and we survive or we die." "All you really got are memories and tomorrow, if you're lucky." "New Eden was the only home I had left." "And she she took it from me." "The Brotherhood called her "The Mother."" "Those vamp worshipers finally found their messiah the one sent to wipe the Earth clean of sin." "I was heading south into the Stakelands." "If he was still alive, that's where I'd find him." "Mister." "The closest thing to family I had." "People knew of him of his one-man war against the Brotherhood and the vamps." "He was legend." "He's the last hunter." "If I wanted to get to her I was gonna need his help." "Drop it, son." "They've been coming out earlier, chancing the light getting desperate." "Where are you coming from?" "Up north, New Eden." "You're a long way from home." "What are you doing here?" "I'm looking for someone." "He's called Mister." "Yeah, heard of him." "Thought he was dead." "The poor boy looks hungry." "You try anything, son, I'll cut you in half." "Oh, shush, Karl." "Can't you see he's a nice boy?" "Come on." "She won't be satisfied till you're fed." "It'll be dark soon anyway." "Best get inside." "It's good, ma'am, thank you." "Sorry there's no meat." "We got to make do with what we have." "You, uh... you're not eating?" "We ate already." "Our boy Walter went to Canada had a child up there never came back." "Maybe you know of him." "Walter Armstrong?" "Come on, Jean." "It's been years." "Walter's dead or as good as." "Give up hope, you might as well lay down and die." "The boy's lost and alone in a world of woe and yet here he is looking for something." "That's hope." "Times like these it's all we got to keep us going." "Make up Walter's bed for him, Karl." "Thank you, ma'am." "Bad things happen to good people." "The world ain't fair never will be." "But there's good to be found." "People pass through now and again." "I get what news they have, update my maps, write down their stories." "Why?" "Just a hobby." "Who knows, if this thing ever ends people might want to know what happened." "Yeah, strange times we're living in." "It's the New Dark Ages, that's what this is." " You okay, son?" " Yeah, I just gotta..." "Whoa, you should sit down." "Yeah, strange times." "You seem pretty tired." "Probably best you sleep right here." "Oh, no, Jean!" "Honey!" "Oh, honey, I'm so..." "Brothers, sisters the mother of our blood has risen." "The devout will be saved." "The heretics will die." "Join us." "Join us." "Brothers and sisters we build a world in her image." "You need not be sick, hungry, tired." "The Brotherhood will clothe you, feed you, shelter you." "The Mother's love knows no bounds." "Join us." "The Brotherhood serves her and her alone." "Brothers, sisters the mother of our blood has risen." "The devout will be saved." "The heretics will die." "Join us." "Join us." "Brothers and sisters we build a world in her image." "You need not be sick hungry, tired..." "Hey there." "Shit, man, you scared me." " Where are you coming from?" " Canada." "Whoa." "How's things here?" "Quiet." "What do you got for trade?" "You keep that." "I'm just looking for somebody." "Yeah, nobody here but me." "You... you looking for the hunter." "Yeah, you and them Brotherhood boys." "Oh, they don't like him much." " No, sir." " What about you?" "You seen him?" "Yeah, yeah." " Yeah, I seen him." " Where?" "A few months back." " Where was he headed?" " Lockdown." "West... towards, uh, Donnersville." "Donnersville?" "Where is that?" "How do I get there?" "The quickest way is up 71, past the old brick plant." "Good folk, yeah." "That's the only safe place around these parts." "Okay, all right." "Well, thank you very much for your help." "See you around, Canada." "Hi." "Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm not gonna hurt you." "I'm Martin." "What's your name?" "Most of the good in the world is gone." "Hate hate seems to be the only thing that grows anymore." "You don't need fangs to be monster." "They're worse than the vamps." "They chose this." "Ladies and gentlemen feast your eyes on the Behemoth!" "But first, an appetizer of mayhem a mano-a-mano no-rules death match!" "And now, the bane of bezerkers the viceroy of violence the undefeated... the Stakelander!" "Mister?" "Mister." "Mister, it's me." "It's me, you fucking idiot." "Martin?" "Yes!" "Fight or die!" "Whoa, whoa, whoa." " What?" " Back up." "It's a precaution." "Was it Brotherhood?" "It was a she-vamp." "She was working with the Brotherhood." "They ambushed us came out of nowhere." "She had other vamps with her, bezerkers and they were organized like an army like she had some kind of control over them." "I've never seen anything like it." "I tried to save them, but..." "Can we kill her?" "You've got your whole life to die, kid." "No point in rushing it." "Let it go." "I can't." "A man spends his life on revenge he might as well dig two graves." "I did." "We named our daughter Belle." "You remember Belle?" "I remember everybody, kid." "Most of them are dead." "Hey I want to be on the road in about an hour." "I don't know what the hurry is, kid." "What is with her?" "She's feral." "Probably raised herself up in the wilds." "I've seen it before." "Hey." "Come here." "Come here." "It's okay." "That's it, now..." "There you go." "It's music." "It's good." "That's it." "Yeah." "Martin, move the table!" " In there?" "And the weapons!" " Yep, in the hole." "No, in the hole!" "Girl, come on, come on!" "Move!" "That a girl, down there." "Down there!" "Martin, here." "No, no, no, wait!" "Wait, what are you doing?" "He's in here!" "Get that motherfucker!" "Brothers, sisters..." "Goddamn it!" "No." "No, no, no, no, no." "Don't worry." "Mister ain't easy to kill and they haven't seen us." "We'll get him back." "Come on." "Oh, shit." "You motherfucker." "I hate vampires." "Are there any more?" "I hope not." "Oh, nice shot, kid." "She put a claw in me." " All right, we got to get it out." " No." " It's plugging a hole." " Yeah, but you're gonna bleed to death." "You're gonna have to cauterize it." "There's a lockdown north of here." "They got a doctor." "Oh, stop your crying." "I ain't dead yet, woman." "I'm ready, kid." "Slap iron to it." "Find him." "Bring that heathen son of a bitch back." "Yes, sir." "Sir!" "I'm sorry, Mother." "He escaped." "I don't know how." "He, uh..." "He had help." "He won't get far." "I've sent men after him." "My humblest apologies, mother of our blood." "Please forgive me." "You ought to leave me here, kid." "I'm slowing you down." "All right, shut up." "I got your back, pappy." "I ain't going anywhere." "I got your pappy swinging." "I saw a willow tree a little ways back." "Try to cut some bark, maybe it'll help with your pain." "Hey, girl." "I'm Mister." "Mister." "Your name is Lady." "Mister, Lady." "You understand?" "Well, now, isn't this sweet?" "Move and you die, Hunter." "I see you got yourself a squaw doggie." "He's a little old for you, no?" "Whoo." "Ooh, I never had a feral brat before." "I bet you she bites." "You little bitch!" "Oh, now you're gonna pay." "Drop it." "I said drop it or meet Jesus." "Martin!" "No." "He's just a boy." "You!" "Come here." "That's enough." "How many behind you?" "It's just us." "Me and the men you killed." "I'm not one of them." "I don't want to do any of this." " I..." "I really am not." " You're wearing the fucking robe." "They made me." "Said they'd feed me to the vamps." "I swear." "I'll do anything." "Please, I just don't want to die." "You better not be lying, boy because I'm in a dick-shooting mood today." "Yes, sir." "Ten years ago, you'd have shot him already." " I don't like it." " You don't have to like it." "Over there." "Come on." "I want him closer." "Okay, here." "Here, here." "You, on the ground." "Hey, hey, on him." "Whoa, whoa, whoa." "What's the..." "Hey!" " You sure about that, boy?" " That's up to you." " Where'd you find a holy roller?" " We killed two of them." "He surrendered." "Why is he still alive?" "Because he wouldn't let me kill him." "What's with him?" "He's got a vamp claw in his lung." "Are you gonna shoot us or are you gonna help us?" "What's his name?" "They call him Mister." "Hey, whoa." "It's Bat." "You son of a bitch." " I thought you were dead." " I look dead to you?" "Yeah, you look a little dead." "How you doing, old timer?" "You call me old timer again, you're gonna find out." "Oh, I know." "I'm so glad to see you." "Don't worry." "We'll get you fixed up." "There aren't a lot of lockdowns left." "And the ones that are still around they ain't places you'd want to be." "There's still good out there." "I believe that." "But it always finds you too late." "They had walls, weapons." "I should have been hopeful." "For the first time in a long time, something felt safe." "But I couldn't rest... not while she was still out there." "We brought you something to eat." "Just push it back out when you're done." "Oh, thank you." "Wait." "What's your name?" "Billie." "It's Billie?" "They named me after my uncle." "It's nice." "I like it." "I'm Juda." "I've got to go." "It was nice to meet you." "Bye." "Whoa, whoa." "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa." "Easy, girl." "He needs to rest now." " Hey, I'm Earl." " How is he?" "He's..." "Well, he's mostly mean and ugly, but I think he'll make it." "He should be up and on his feet in a couple of days." " So you're a doctor?" " Yeah, that I am." "Well, I was a veterinarian, but since the fall, I fix people up mostly." "Flesh, blood, bone, it's all the same shit." "Mister said that you'd..." "you'd patched him up before." "That I did." "Bat and I were with him in Mexico back in the beginning." "Come on, come with me." "I'll show you to your room." "Hey, Lady." "Lady, come on." "Come on, come on." "Juda?" "They ain't gonna let me out." " What are they gonna..." " are they gonna kill me?" "Hey, come on." "Hey." "Hi." "You're gonna be okay." "Just gotta give 'em some time to soften up." "Can't you... can't you just let me out?" "I mean, I don't want any trouble." "I'll just run off, please." "I can't." "Please!" "Billie, don't go." "Well, it's an old... it's an old convent." "The Brotherhood took it from the nuns." "We took it from the Brotherhood." "Now this was a ways back, before they got so fucking organized." "Everybody pulls their weight here." "We got... we got teachers." "We got a couple of carpenters." "We got ex-military men." "They're all good people." "There's a barbed-wire fence, surrounds the perimeter." "It doesn't look like much, but it's electrified, so that makes it fun." "Yeah, we had a couple solar cells in New Eden, but never could've drawn this much power." "I got my twin girls for that." "See these two genys?" "They power the whole damn fandango but you ain't even seen my favorite part." " The shower's free." " All right, Lady." "It's your turn." "Come on." "Come on." "Up you go." "There's some clean clothes there for you." "There you go." "Go in." "Go ahead, Lady." "All right, all right." "Take it easy, goddamn it." "How you feeling, old buddy?" "Oh, like a bucket of shit." " I could use a drink." "You carrying?" " It's a little early, isn't it?" " Not in China." " Yup." "You know me too well." " Here you go." " Mexico." "Méjico." " How long do I have to lay here?" " Oh, I'd say just about a day or two." " Give me that." " Why?" "This is for medicinal purposes only." "Here, kid, you try it." "Go ahead." "Bat makes this stuff himself." " Make your balls bounce." " Oh, yeah, that stuff's nasty." "Nasty, nasty." " Let's the man rest a bit." " Yeah." " Real good to see you again." " Good to see you, Bat." "Yeah." " Come on, you too, little girl." " Nah, leave her." "Thanks, Doc." "Yeah." "Let me know if you need anything for the pain." "Yeah." "Juda?" "You feeling all right?" "Juda?" "Oh, my God!" "Juda!" "When, uh, Mexico went vamp shit, we pulled out." "We headed north." "Mister had a wife and a child close to the border." "It wasn't pretty down south." "It was bad bad as it gets." "So bad that something snapped inside that man." "It's like a like a switch." "All he wanted to do was kill." "Well, he never got the one that killed his family." "So the way I figure it if he couldn't get the one he'd get 'em all." "Oh, we stayed together for a while and then we split." "He wanted to check on his folks up in Maryland and..." " ..." "Bat and I, we headed north..." " That's right." "...with everybody else who was running away." "Yeah, and then the shit hit the fan in the States." "The whole fucking enchilada fell apart." "And on that note..." " ...how about we get another drink?" " Yeah, bubba." "Man, I got ten o'clock watch." "I got to head up." "Now you knock back a couple for me, young buck." "Yeah." " Hi." " Hi." "Thanks." "Come on, honey." "Come on." "Boy!" "Son of a bitch." " Is Helios ready?" " Almost!" " Who's Helios?" " Sunshine in the nighttime, baby." "They're gonna run the fucking gate!" "Coming up quick!" "Coming up quick!" "Somebody cover me!" "Helios, now!" "Burn, baby burn." "That's Helios for your ass!" "Get away from the goddamned window." "Shit." "You stay here and don't you move." "You hear me?" "You better move!" "Oh, yeah, take your asses home." " Let me go." "Let me go!" " It's not worth it, kid." "She'll kill you." "I don't care!" "I do." "Helios held them back, but we still lost six." "Hey, look who we found." "Oh, whoa... whoa, whoa, whoa." "Put him in the basement!" "Don't worry." "We're gonna squeeze him, slow." "You were right." "We should have killed that holy roller when we had the chance." "Amen." "How many of you Jesus junkies are out there?" "Plenty more." "More than you could count." "Huh?" "Where you camping?" "You're out of time." " What does it matter?" " Look, Juda." "We can do this fast or we can do it slow." "It's totally up to you." "Everyone of you is gonna die and you can't win not while we've got God on our side." "You know, it's the small nerves that hurt the most." "You know what I'm saying?" "And do you realize just how many small nerves you've got in your fingertips?" "Hm?" "You got lots." "God has sent them!" "God is great." "God is in me." "And she is his sword." "Now, now, now, now." "Who is this fang twat?" "And what does she want with us anyway?" "She's after me." "I wasn't sure last night." "She's something new... a breeder." "I killed her squirt a while back." "I took her eye out." "She used you to find me." "I'm sorry, kid." "That ain't worth shit, is it?" "Remind you of someone?" "You better get your people up the mountain before they get here." "Code one, code one." "All personnel will evacuate at 1900 hours." "Pack only what is necessary." "Meet in the courtyard for further instructions." "This is an evacuation..." " You got a plan?" " Yup." "I'm gonna wait until that bitch shows up, then I'm gonna take it to her." "Dying ain't much of a plan, boy." "I really don't give a shit." "Dead's dead, so long as I take her with me." "She wants to hurt me like I hurt her." "Yup, and you're leaving." "Yeah, maybe not." "If I stay, we stake her ass or we die trying." "Either way, we buy these folks some time to make it up the mountain." "Okay." "Okay." "You and me." "No, no, no, no, no, no, no." "You Stakelanders think you're gonna do this on your own, just the two of you have all the fun?" "You got another thing coming." "Yeah." "We've been running ever since Mexico." " Personally, I'm a little tired of it." " This ain't your fight, Doc." "Odds are, all four of us are going to die." "Yeah, well, I hear that's gonna happen anyway so why don't we make it count?" "Cheer up." "Easy, easy." "Okay." "I'm sorry." "We got it all wired up." "It's good to go." "The blood bags won't know what hit 'em." "If anybody's left when it's over, head for the mountains." "Yeah." "Let's kill some goddamned bloodsuckers, eh?" "Watch your back." "Is she gonna be all right?" "My daughter's name was Rose." "Are you sure you're gonna be able to shoot straight?" "Couldn't shoot straight without it." "What the hell?" " They're coming from the back." " Jeez, it's moving through here." "Come on, move it!" "Stay here, watch the gear." "Okay." "She's gonna pull a fast one on us." "Yeah, well, they can come and get it anyway they want." "Let's wait till they're close." "We don't want to waste ammo." "What the hell are they doing?" "Why are they stopping?" "I don't give a shit." "Let's light 'em up." "We got a runner!" "Up front!" "Hey!" "He's heading for the geny!" "Hey!" "Get your ass..." "Well, shit." "Okay." "Get up front." "Get up front!" "Hey!" "Come on!" "Come on, get up!" "Lead 'em this way!" "Come on, you bitch!" "You want me?" "Come and get some!" "Keep going, this way." "You missed her heart, goddamn it!" " Shit!" " Damn!" " We're pinned down, man." " If we get out..." " We're not getting out of this one." " No, we ain't." "You got to do it." " I got to do it." " You have to do it." "I'm over here, bitch." "Finish her, kid." "You feel better?" "No." "But I don't feel worse." "I feel like shit." "You look like shit." "It's been a great ride, Bat." "It's been a great ride." "I love you." "I love you." "Now let's take these bloodsuckers to hell." "Come on, old man." "She's gone." " She's gone." " No." "Lady, it's me." "It's Mister." "You know me." "Easy, girl." "No, girl." "No, no, no, no, no." "No." "Mm..." "Mister..." "No." "I can't do this anymore, kid." "Don't even think about it." " I'll buy you as much time as I can." " No." "No, I'm gonna stay, and we'll fight." "A man wants his son to be better than he is." "Get." "I don't know what happened to him." "I guess it doesn't matter." "But I know I'll see him again in this hell or the next."