Then There Was One
TEASPOON TRIES TO FIND OUT WHO IS KILLING THE SURVIVORS OF THE ALAMO BEFORE HIS OWN NUMBER IS UP...
Teaspoon wakes up in the middle of a storm, haunted by recurring nightmares of a siege. Somewhere in another town, another man -- about Teaspoon's age -- gets ready to call it a night only to find a poisonous snake in his bed. Lou is on her way home from a run and meets a man who says he is looking for Teaspoon. Lou tells him to follow. At the stationhouse, Teaspoon repairs the window which was shattered during the storm. Buck comes up to him and tries to engage in small talk but Teaspoon uncharacteristically rebuffs him. Lou returns from her run and hands the mochilla to Ike, while the man she met goes directly to Teaspoon.
It
turns out that Erastus Hawkins was a good friend of Teaspoon and the reason
for his sudden visit has something to do with an approaching 25th anniversary.
Erastus says he began thinking about "it" heavily and decided
to visit "the others." When Teaspoon asked how they were, Erastus
answered "dead." Apparently, their friends were murdered -- including
the man who found a snake in his bed. So the two decided to go down to
Texas and warn "the others."
Teaspoon, Erastus and the riders go into town to pick some supplies. After gathering the stuff for the way station, Teaspoon and Erastus leave the boys behind while they get more items. Once alone, Cody asks the others if they've noticed Teaspoon's peculiar behavior; the way he's been keeping to himself, his yelling at Buck. As they walk, the riders encounter an army man who tries to recruit them but Teaspoon abruptly shows up and accuses the man of trying to sell war as an adventure. That night, Teaspoon tells the boys that he is going with Erastus to Texas. He doesn't tell them where he is going, and leaves strict orders not to follow him.
The following morning, Jimmy receives the surprise of his life when Teaspoon draws on him. Wearing a custom holster, Teaspoon spun around and with lightning reflexes already had a gun pointed towards the young man even before Jimmy realized what happened. Teaspoon apologized and left without saying good-bye to the rest of the boys. Jimmy continued to wonder about what he witnessed inside the barn. He tells the riders Teaspoon was wearing a gunfighter's rig and how he drew down on him. Cody said just because Teaspoon was fast didn't mean he was a gunfighter but Jimmy points out that the notches in his gun says otherwise. He decided to follow Teaspoon despite his orders. Buck said they should go together since Teaspoon needed to be tracked most of the way.
At camp that night, Teaspoon and Erastus talk about the past. Erastus asked what was wrong with them. How he, Teaspoon and their friends never seemed to have a life. He mentioned the "others," saying one became alcoholic, the other one a hermit while he (Erastus) became a drifter. Teaspoon said he thought about what happened, even asked the Lord 10,000 times why survived and others didn't. Teaspoon added that he gave God many chances to take him in case his surviving was a mistake on HIS part. But the fact that he was still alive meant, it wasn't.
The next morning, three men tried to hold him and Teaspoon up. But a dangerous mix of quick thinking and quick punches, turned the tables on the robbers. As they continued their trip, Erastus tells Teaspoon he feels someone is dogging them. Teaspoon says he knows two of the riders are following them and he doesn't intend to make things easier for them since they didn't follow his instructions. Taking some of his horse's manure, Teaspoon leaves a false trail for Buck and Jimmy to follow. Teaspoon and Erastus arrive for the wedding of their friend Stanton's daughter. But they were late and found their old friend dead inside a church.
When Jimmy and Buck ride into town and ask about the commotion, a man told them that Zachary Stanton was killed. The man also mentioned how odd it was for Stanton to get killed in church considering he was able to survive the Alamo -- which was also once a church. Apparently, Zachary was one of the riders who were sent out to get help.
Teaspoon realizes that the man who was killing the survivors of the Alamo has got to be one of them, since they are the only ones who knew each other. Who else couldn't forget, he asked Erastus. The two boys, on the other hand, talk about Alamo. Jimmy asked Buck if he thought Teaspoon was a survivor but Buck said Teaspoon would never have deserted. While Jimmy continued to talk, Buck began to sense somebody's presence. Jimmy reminded him, though that they were the ones doing the following.
Teaspoon
and his friend stop by a cantina were, according to Teaspoon, he had some
good time. They go inside and Teaspoon meets with the woman he romanced
some twenty or so odd years ago. For a while he thought the woman's daughter
was his. But their joyful reunion is interrupted by a man whose gang Teaspoon
apparently busted when he was a Texas Ranger. A gunfight ensues and Buck
and Jimmy arrive just in time to lend Teaspoon a hand. Although he was
grateful for their help. Teaspoon still orders the boys to go home. They
don't obey, of course, and continue to follow Teaspoon and Erastus.
The older duo proceed to the Goliad Asylum where they think their old friend John Eberly is staying but the man at the place says the man is no longer inside the asylum. He gives them an address which turns out to be a graveyard. There, Erastus and Teaspoon find a headstone with Eberly's name etched on it. Left with one more survivor (except the two of them) Teaspoon and Erastus visit Ewell but he was hostile and ignored them. The duo start to leave suspecting Ewell as the killer but they hear a shrill cry and they find him dead. On the wall of his barn was a painted cross.
Teaspoon leads Erastus back to Eberly's grave. He also finds Buck and Jimmy spying on him. As punishment for their disobedience, he forces them to dig Eberly's grave. Buck gets off easily on account of his "religious beliefs" but Jimmy has no excuse. They all find the grave empty. By now everybody know Eberly is the killer and they go to the Alamo but once again Teaspoon tells the boys not to follow him and Erastus. This time, they obey him.
As Teaspoon and Erastus approach the place, Eberly starts shooting. He later kills Erastus with a Mexican lance. Teaspoon goes inside the church alone with Eberly still shooting. Inside, he finds hundreds of candles which his friend says are for all the "good men who died that day." Apparently, Eberly felt guilty about surviving and it drove him crazy. They shoot it out and Eberly dies in Teaspoon's arms. Teaspoon lights one of the two unlit candles for Eberly and leaves the church.
IN THEIR WORDS Cody to the other riders: Is it me or strike anyone else Teaspoon's been acting a bit peculiar lately. I mean even for Teaspoon?
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