Play Your Cards

Deja Vu

(this isn't an episode, I'm making it up)

The group walks through dry grass that has been flattened over time. No one really knows where they are at this point. Ace feels her legs sting with each step she takes. Her head pounds from the headache she is getting. They follow Warren into an abandoned town.

Dry mold crawls up the sides of the cracked buildings. Sand lines the cracked roads that weave around buildings. Clearly, this town hasn't been touched for a while.

They stop for a quick break but Warren wanders off without them noticing.

"Great. Now where'd she go?" Murphy asks as he thrashes her hands around and peers around the town.

Ace sits on top of a dusty car. "Who knows at this point? Does anyone actually know why were traveling across America for the second time?" She asks

No one answers, clearly not knowing the answer to her questions.

"All right, lets split up and look for her." Ace finally suggests after a few moments of silence. "Doc and Murphy, 10k with Sarge and 5k, I'll go alone." She says

"Don't you think you should go with someone?" Sarge suggests

"I can handle a zombie or two." She says tiredly. "Besides, I have a headache. I need some quiet."

With that, everyone parts ways and walks through the sickly quiet town. Ace carries her ax tight in her hand as she mindlessly wanders through the streets.

Her long hair drops in her face and the lack of sleep is clearly shown on her face. Forgetting the fact that her team is without her, she stops to rest. She lays her tired body on top of a cargo truck stoped on the side of the road.

..

The sound of moans and groans wakes Ace from her deep sleep. She springs up and immediately grabs the gun next to her. She fires at all the zombies surrounding the truck without hesitation. The sound of bullets echo around the town and leave the place silent as she stops.

Ace rubs the sleep from her eyes and jumps to the ground. In the pile of scattered bodies, a gold crown catches her eye. It rolled from a zombies head as it was shot down. That crown, was the crown Ace wore back at the Mexican border.

She picks it off the ground and rolls it around in her hands, studying everything about it. Then she sound of distant footsteps grab her attention.

She drops the crown and the metal clatters against the asphalt. She points her gun towards the sound and spots a familiar face.

-flash back-

"Mi Reina, may I?" Ace asks politely as she gestures to the party

"Yes, yes of course. This is your party after all." La Reina answers

Ace gets up and walks over to 10k and Doc. Her overskirt trails behind her and flows in the wind.

She flips around as a gunshot rings around the room. A man with a puppet falls from his chair with a bullet in his head.

"Get that mess out of here. Rápido. And no zombie mimes either! La Reina hates zombie mimes!" Escorpion says

Ace turns around but collided with a solid object. She trips and falls back but someone catches her.

She opens her eyes to reveal a stranger. He has a skeleton mask on but has a dazzling smile. He helps Ace up and places the crown back on her head.