1883 Season 2 Opening Scene “Elsa Is Alive And Can Survive” A short story showing how Elsa Can Survive

James Dutton had immediately concluded the injury was fatal. He had examined the “filthy” arrow and was informed of the darkness of the blood, which was evidence it had punctured the liver. He had been a captain in the Confederate Army. He was a survivor of several battles. One of which was the battle of Antietam, which is to this modern-day the deadliest battle in American military history. He had knowledge of what happened to many men with bullet wounds to the liver. He knew that there was nothing they could do for Elsa. James had held his daughter in his arms at the base of the tree for countless hours. Elsa initially appeared to have died. Elsa then began to breathe again, sweat, and at times even incoherently speak. There was a repeated cycle of Elsa exhibiting signs of life, and then signs of certain death.

James had not had the opportunity to fully grieve for Elsa when he first concluded she was going to die. The wagon train and his family were in danger. They had killed Cattlemen Association “Deputies” who had committed a massacre of the Lakota. The Fort Casper whites were going to pursue the wagon train to exact revenge. His immediate concern was the safety of his family. A soldier does not grieve until the battle is over. Now in the relative safety of Paradise, Montana his grieving process had begun. He had at times misinterpreted Elsa’s signs of life as signs of recovery. He had desperately pleaded to God to save her. He also blamed himself for her condition. Thinking that if he had not brought her to the West, she would not be dying. He also deeply regretted the decision to leave the wagon train unprotected to pursue the perpetrators of the massacre.  He had anticipated that the wagon train would have been able to explain to the Lakota warriors that they were not responsible for the massacre. He was wrong, and now Elsa was going to die. The experience of witnessing his daughter’s life coming to a slow end, caused repressed memories and experiences of horrific battles to resurface. James Dutton now had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He was in an intense state of anger.

JAMES NARRATION:

What kind of men kill innocent women and children? Why didn’t the Lakota find out what happened before they started killing? If they had, my little girl wouldn’t be dying. They didn’t know for sure who had killed their women and children. Fort Casper was nearby. They musta known the “Deputies” were around too. Were they crazy, fools, or just scared?

These Indians call themselves “Warriors”. They’re no F***ng “Warriors”. I’m a warrior. Me and my men killed more men than these “Prairie Maggots” have ever even seen. We never killed women and children though. If one of my men had ever killed a woman, or a child, I’da killed him. Now I am not gonna kill the man that killed my daughter?
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The Motherf***ing Lakota are  gonna find out what a warrior is. They didn’t know for sure who killed their families. I don’t exactly know which one of them prairie maggot Mother***s killed my daughter. Guess I’m gonna have to kill them all. Before I die there isn’t gonna be a F***ing Lakota “Warrior” left in this country.

Sam rides up from a fast gallop and quickly descends his mount. He immediately takes a small pot and a small pouch from his saddlebag. He fills the pot with water from his canteen and places it on the fire to boil. News of the Lakota massacre, Elsa’s injury, the killing of the murderers, and the Fort Casper White man’s pursuit of the wagon train had reached Sam’s village quickly. Sam knew that James Dutton was a soldier adept at military strategy. As a warrior, he recreated James’s thought process. He surmised that James would abandon the trip to Oregon and travel north to get them off his trail. Sam rode directly to Montana north of Fort Casper, where he encountered the Crow. They told him that James and Elsa Dutton would be in Paradise, Montana. They also told him that Elsa would be dead by the time he got there.

JAMES: (distraught and barely able to speak)
“What are you doing here…? How did you know we were here…?”

SAM: “Elsa is Alive! The Crow told me she would be dead. I have brought powerful medicine.”

JAMES: “She just about is dead. I thought she had died about a dozen times since we’ve been here. She’s real bad off. She’s got a real bad fever; she’s going to die soon. She was shot in the liver with a dirty arrow. There is nothing we can do for her. I brought her here to die in peace.”

As they are talking, the water begins to boil. Sam places the peyote that he had brought with him in the water. He is making a peyote tea. The Commanche used peyote for both religious and medicinal purposes in the 19th century. James is looking at Sam while he is preparing the tea. Sam, a Comanche warrior, looks a lot like a Lakota “Warrior”. Sam fills a cup with the tea and approaches Elsa to administer it. Elsa, who is now unconscious, does not initially respond. Sam begins to aggressively shake her.

JAMES:(angrily)
“What the F**k are you doing? Get the F***k away from her. Motherf***er I will kill you. Let her die in peace. There’s nothing that will help her. Men who are shot in the liver by clean bullets do not even survive. She was shot with a filthy arrow. She is going to die. Let it be in peace. She deserves at least that.”

SAM: “She will Live”

JAMES:” Your F***ing tea is gonna save her?”

SAM:” God will save her. The medicine will help. God has saved Comanche warriors with the same kind of injury. We must get her to drink the tea. And we must both pray and ask God to save her.”

JAMES: “Pray to your god? I do not know your F***ng god.”

SAM: “My God is your God. There is only One God. Pray in your own way. But you must pray. The bible tells us that when two or more people pray together, God will be there. Elsa will take the medicine, we will both pray to God, and Elsa will Live. Elsa will not leave this earth until after I do.”

James, who was a Christian, was shocked that Sam had accurately referenced the words of Christ. This disrupted his state of anger. He simply leans back and accepts what Sam is doing. He does not say another word.
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Sam kneels at Elsa’s right side with both knees on the ground. He begins to shake her. She opens her eyes for an instant then quickly closes them again. He places the cup to her lips and gets her to drink. Now semi-conscious, Elsa ultimately ingests the tea as if doing so was instinctive. Sam then drinks peyote tea himself. Still kneeling at her right side, he takes hold of her right hand with both of his hands. He kisses Elsa on her right cheek. The camera zooms in for a closeup of Sam’s face. He leans back, licks his lips, and swallows. Consuming a combination of Elsa’s sweat and tears. Tears are now streaming uncontrollably from his eyes. He then rests his head on Elsa’s chest and waits for the tea to take effect. When it does Sam gently kisses her on her cheek and then on the lips.

SAM: “Lightning With The Yellowhair you will live; everywhere you go there is a blessing.”

Elsa is still in her father’s arms. Sam is kneeling beside her and holding her right hand with both of his hands. He closes his eyes, bows his head over her, and silently begins to pray. James closes his eyes and begins to silently pray as well.

SAM NARRATION:
I must pray in English. So that if Elsa’s soul can hear my words, it will know them.

SAM’S PRAYER ASKING GOD TO SAVE ELSA:

For Elsa, I have no tears and no requests,
She has no sorrow, no pain, no tears,
Lighting With The Yellowhair is with You now,
But my time has not yet come,
And now my earth knows nothing but sorrow pain and tears,
A sorrow like I have never seen, and pain like I have never felt,
Tears that will remain, and tears that I will never defeat,
The arrow that missed its true mark, brought a fever that my earth cannot defeat,
Like Elsa and Lightning With The Yellowhair are one,
The White Man, Comanche, Lakota, Crow, and all other Gods of the earth are One,
The Father, Holy Ghost, and the Son,
They are all One and they are You,
On Heaven and earth, Your will be done,
You are the creator of everything on Heaven and earth
You are in everything on Heaven and earth
The tears I have are for myself,
The requests I make are for my earth,
Elsa Is with You now in Heaven
Let Your will defeat the fever that my earth cannot,
Until my time comes,
Let Your will be that You are with Elsa on my earth
For my earth to live it needs its sun,
Lightning with The Yellow Hair is its one and only sun

The camera fades to a scene of the same bird that appeared in the Season 1 Finale “Near Death Experience Scene”. The audio of Elsa playing Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, which appeared in Season 1 Episode 4 is playing. The camera slowly pans out to an aerial view of Paradise, Montana. Then we see a planet traveling towards a Black Hole. The instrumental introduction from Pink Floyd’s song Time (Intro only, which includes the sound of a ticking clock), is playing as the planet approaches the black hole. The planet stops before entering the black hole. The Pink Floyd Song The Great Gig In The Sky is played in its entirety, as the Planet remains motionless.