The Apache warrior was going to kill him.

Jonah Hex stared across the battlefield at his opponent.The warrior was young and muscled.He also supported anger that etched its way across his snarled face.In his fist he held a tomahawk that he planned on burying in Jonah's skull.

Jonah was also equipped with a tomahawk.He'd been stripped of his guns and bowie knife shortly after riding into the Apache camp.

He'd been following the Apache for three months.Each time that he'd get close to them, the tribe would move on.

But now, in the twelfth week, he'd finally been able to make a move.He knew that he could ride into the camp with both guns blazing, and that he would take quite a few warriors with him before dying himself.But he took a quieter route.He rode into the camp under a white flag with the intention of getting his wife back.

He spoke with Chief Rock-A-Ho.And he discovered that the Apache didn't have his wife.If the Apache were to be believed, they had never had his wife to start with.Jonah didn't believe this.He had his mind set that the young warriors had had their way with Sue Lee, and had left her for dead somewhere amidst the rocky cliffs for the buzzards to fight over.

The tribe had managed to lose him more than once.And it was during this time that Jonah believed they had left her dead corpse.

He was willing to take Rock-A-Ho at his word, though.And he planned to ride out of camp.But that was when the chief stopped him.He gestured towards Hex's disfigured face.

"You have the mark of the Demon," said Rock-A-Ho. "You've faced Apache warriors before."

"That's right," said Hex. "And I've left a lot of dead ones while I'm still alive."

Rock-A-Ho nodded.Then he motioned for one of the young bucks to leave the tee pee.

"You do not ride amongst my tribe and make such accusations," Rock-A-Ho said. "You will not be able to just ride out of here on your own free will."

"And what do you suggest?" asked Jonah, already knowing the answer.

"You must fight with our best warrior," said Rock-A-Ho. "You will either become a dead man, or a free man.The ending is up to you."

Jonah didn't have much time to think it over.As soon as the words had left the chief's lips, the young buck returned to the tee-pee.He stood there, glowering at Hex.

"This is Tatanka," said the chief. "He will be your opponent."

"I've heard of you before," said Hex. "You're supposed to be special or something."He spat onto the dirt floor. "We'll just have to see about that."

Tatanka spat on the floor, too. "Yes, white man.We will.I will leave this day with your blood on my hands."

"I don't guess I have much choice," said Jonah, sighing.

"You do not," agreed Rock-A-Ho.

Jonah laughed. He stripped out of his Confederate tunic, revealing the scars and puckered bullet wounds he'd accrued over the years.He smiled at Rock-A-Ho. "I guess smoking the peace pipe is out of the question."

Chief Rock-A-Ho simply stared at him with a deathly expression.

And now here Jonah was.He was surrounded by the men, women, and children of the tribe.He could feel their eyes boring holes through him.They wanted him dead.

"You will die this day," said Tatanka.He raised his tomahawk into the sky and mouthed a silent prayer to the gods.

"It's as good as the next," said Jonah.

And as Tatanka raised his weapon and began to charge towards him, Jonah let his thoughts flood backwards to how he came to be here...

Jonah Hex and Sue Lee were married by the justice of the peace.He had come to love the little Oriental prostitute ever since he'd rescued her from a San Francisco whorehouse.

Taking the money he'd saved as a bounty hunter, Jonah bought them a small cabin in the woods.And to please his new bride, he'd hung up his guns.Hex was through hunting outlaws and living a life of death and bloody money.

He had carried her across the threshold of their new home.And as he set her down, she immediately hugged him.Tears flooded her eyes with enjoyment.

"Oh thank you," she said.She kissed Hex, ignoring his awful scars.She wiped away the gooey mess oozing from his disfigured eye with a handkerchief. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," replied Jonah, smiling.

Sue Lee eyed the bed in the corner. "What are we going to do now?" she asked.

"What say we play stud poker," he told her, winking.

"Only if you can find the ace in the hole," said Sue Lee, giggling.

Hex picked her up, again, and took her to the bed.And there they made passionate love.

And they kept making it over the period of the next two weeks.Finally Jonah, who was bone weary from the experiences, decided he had to get to work.

"I've got to make sure those fields are ripe for plowing," he told her. "We've got to make money somehow."Hex didn't relish the idea of being a farmer, but it was the only thing he knew to do besides killing people.

Sue Lee didn't like the fact that it was time to stop making love.But she understood their financial situation.

So Jonah took to minding the fields.The horses he had bought from town worked steadily on making his new land a farm.And he spent days and nights tending his crops before the blue storms would come in the winter.

And he did this until it all came crashing down on his head.

He was in the fields, plowing, when the first Apache came crossing the stream on horseback.Behind him, three more warriors appeared.

From experience, Jonah knew they weren't coming for a social call.

He saw Sue Lee down by the stream, looking at the newcomers, and he yelled for her to get back in the house.She looked at him, puzzled, but started for the house.

And that's when the Apache attacked.

Hex dodged bullets as he ran to the farmhouse.He rushed inside, grabbing his Winchester rifle.He quickly loaded it and braced himself inside the house's front door.Splinters blew away pieces of wood as he took aim on his first victim.

The bullet kicked the Apache right in the chest.It opened up a geyser of gore that shot into the air as the warrior fell from his pony.He hit the ground in a heap.And his horse, scared, began to trample on top of him.There was nothing left but a bloody puddle of broken bones on the ground when the pony finally took off.

His second shot smashed a warrior directly in the face.Brains blew out the back of his head as his features melted into a disfigured mess of bone and blood.Hex had his sights set on the third warrior before he even fell off his horse.

The next warrior took a brutal shot to the knee.He crumpled over in his saddle and fell from his horse.He screamed bloody murder as he laid there, hands swimming through the gory mush of his leg.

Hex looked around for the fourth warrior, but he was already gone.He scanned the tree line for any possible sight of him, but there was no use.The warrior had disappeared as fast as he'd come.

Jonah walked over to the wounded Indian.He stood there, looking down at him as the warrior nursed his wound.

"All white men must die," the warrior said. "Tatanka will come."

And that's when Hex dropped the rifle butt onto the Indian's head.It cracked bone and brain as he slammed the Winchester into his skull.

Hex took a quick look around.He saw that one of the warriors had gotten off a fire arrow during the attack.The farm house was burning to the ground.

He rushed inside looking for Sue Lee, but she was nowhere to be found.And he looked outside, but she was still missing.

Quickly, Hex grabbed his guns.He shrugged into his Confederate tunic and ran outside.He pulled his best horse from his plow team and took off in search of the Indian warrior.

And through his excellent tracking ability, Hex had gotten on his tail.

It'd taken three long months for him to find the tribe, but the deed was finally done.

And now he was facing imminent death...

Tatanka raced forward with his tomahawk overhead.He screamed bloody murder as he set Hex in his sights.

Jonah turned away.As Tatanka drew over top of him, he landed an elbow into the warrior's stomach.The crowd hushed as Tatanka scuttled away, holding his mid-section.

Then it was time for Jonah to strike.

He rushed over to the winded Indian and grabbed him by his shock of long hair.And then he brought up a knee.It smashed into Tatanka's face with a smash.Hex could feel broken nose and teeth as his knee ground into the warrior's face.

"You're almost as ugly as me," said Hex.He took a few steps back, raising his own weapon, when Tatanka rushed forward.He drove a shoulder into Hex, dropping him backwards.

Jonah dropped down onto the ground.Even against the pain, he rolled over.He put up his tomahawk as Tatanka slowly made his way towards him.

Hex did his best to step up.He wobbled a bit, and that was the direction that Tatanka wanted.

Jonah turned in time to avoid the tomahawk.But it still captured his shoulder.Hot blood pulsed from the wound as he ran around the crowd.

The throng of Indians whooped and hollered at the blood that Jonah spilled.

Suddenly, from the loss of blood, Jonah began to feel his head swirl.This fight, or his life, was going to have to end soon.

Tatanka let loose with another swoop of his tomahawk.Jonah moved to escape it.But the blow came so close that he could feel the breeze it created.

Ducking down, Jonah came up with a blow that caught Tatanka between the legs.The warrior dropped his tomahawk.He fell down to his knees as he grasped at the dark stain protruding from his groin.His testicles dropped onto the ground from the wound.His balls rolled around like bloody meaty marbles.

The crowd fell silent.

"I've had about enough of your bullshit," said Jonah.

And then he dropped his tomahawk directly onto Tatanka's skull.Blood, bone and grey matter exploded from the Apache warrior's skull.

Chief Rock-A-Ho silently nodded his head as two young bucks came out to drag away Tatanka's corpse.

"You have done good, white man," said Rock-A-Ho. "You are free to go."

Jonah just looked at him.His hand was up to his shoulder wound.Blood seeped through his fingers.He began to make his way through the hushed crowd.He picked up his tunic and did his best to push his wounded shoulder through the arms.

"Stop," said Rock-A-Ho.He motioned towards his tee pee. "Come inside.We will share the peace pipe."

Slowly, Jonah pulled out a cigar from his front breast pocket.He put it between his lips.He pulled out a match and blew a smoke ring in Rock-A-Ho's direction.

"Sorry," said Hex. "But I don't smoke."

The sun was a bloody orb at Jonah's back as he made his way towards his burned out home.

He reigned up his horse at the torched structure and climbed down from the saddle.He couldn't help himself.A tear streamed down his disfigured face.He wiped it away with the back of a forearm.

And that's when he caught the glitter.

Jonah walked amidst the burned out timbers as he followed the sparkling object in the wreckage.The sun played off it, sending a beautiful gleam out amongst the ugly remains of the house.

When he got to the source of the dazzle, Jonah felt his stomach drop.He dropped down to his knees.Fresh tears began to squeeze out of his eyes as he looked at the scene before him.

The torched remains of Sue Lee were strewn out before him.He didn't know how it happened, but she must have gotten herself caught in the closet while the house burned down around her.

Her burnt out eyes stared at him.

Jonah looked away from her corpse.Then he steeled himself.He turned back around and took her burned skeletal hand into his.Her diamond wedding ring still glistened in the dying sun.

Jonah Hex cursed himself.

If he hadn't been so hell fire rushed to carry out vengeance against the Apaches, he would have been able to save Sue Lee.The thought tugged at him furiously; pounding down onto his wounded heart.

Gently, Hex picked up Sue Lee's remains.He took them down to the creek bed and dug a fresh grave.He placed her bones deep into the earth and buried her.

Then he returned to his horse.

He accepted the fact that he would never be happy.A good life was something he'd never be able to obtain.

And as he galloped away from his once happy homestead, Hex did not look back.All he could think about now was his next bounty and staring into the face of death.

For it was true:

He was a hero to some, a villain to others...And wherever he rode, people spoke his name in whispers.He had no friends, this Jonah Hex, but he did have two companions: one was death itself... the other the smell of acrid gunsmoke...