The First Shall Be Last

Above Blackwater

After Americans at Rest, Dutch sent Charles, Javier and Trelawny to find out what they could about Sean. Javier and Charles are watching Blackwater from the edge of a clifftop. "How many?", asks Javier. "A lot. Uniforms everywhere", answers Charles. Neither of them can see Sean, and nobody knows where Trelawny is.

Arthur joins them: "Where is that little Irish bastard?" Charles answers that Trelawny is off trying to find out. Asked whether anyone has been into town, Javier reports: "Place is crawling with Pinkertons... bounty hunters... pictures of Dutch and Hosea." Arthur points out that the gang has a lot of money sitting in Blackwater. "And that's where it's gonna remain, for now", says Javier.

Looking at the town through binoculars, Arthur wonders why they have not hanged Sean. Charles answers: "I think he's bait... or they want to trial him publicly."

Trelawny's news

Trelawny arrives: "Gentlemen. Sean is being moved up the Upper Montana... then to a federal prison out west." Arthur says they cannot rescue anyone from a federal prison: "We either rescue him now or... cut him loose." Charles answers: "We're not cutting anyone loose." "Of course not", says Arthur.

Trelawny adds that Ike Skelding's boys are moving Sean to a camp nearby before handing him over to the government. Arthur decides to stop them before they reach it: Charles is to head up the north side, while Arthur, Javier and Trelawny take the other side of the valley, "that way we have them either direction." Charles leaves first. On the way to the horses, Trelawny remarks that the government, or people the government likes, seem very angry.

Following the boat

Arthur leads the way upriver to find the boat. Trelawny remarks that south of the river, West Elizabeth is not a very welcoming place right now. On the ride, Trelawny says he keeps hearing about a woman, Heidi McCourt, a young mother people say Dutch murdered on the boat. Arthur answers that he does not know about that: he was not there. Trelawny hopes Arthur at least knows where the money is; Arthur says Dutch and Hosea claim they do, but it is trapped in the town. Trelawny answers that it must be wonderful to have such trust in one's parents: his own would have sold him for a hogshead of ale, and he believes they tried.

Arthur spots a boat below the cliff: "Down there, reckon those might be our boys." Trelawny now leads, and asks them to follow the boat "nice and easy" and make sure it is Sean "before you go starting another war."

Arthur asks where Trelawny has been. "Much as I love dodging the law and sleeping in the dirt with you derelicts, I do have other business to attend to." Asked about New York, he answers: "You know how life is, never a straight road anywhere." "Especially with you", says Arthur. Trelawny asks whether they have run out of people to rob, then adds: "But without me you'll not find the caliber of victim that I find." When Arthur asks Javier why he is so quiet, Javier answers: "He hasn't stopped talking since we left you in Valentine. It's the longest ride of my life."

Trelawny has heard that the bounty hunters meet at a camp somewhere in the area and make their transfers before continuing west. When the boat stops, he tells Arthur to get his binoculars out.

Sean on the riverbank

Javier asks who these bounty hunters are. Arthur: "Don't know too much about Ike Skelding's boys, but I hear they're a big crew and wild. Built some reputation in the last year or two." On the bank, the bounty hunters bring a prisoner off the boat. "That looks like Sean to me...", says Javier. Arthur: "Certainly kicking up enough of a fuss. Yep, that's definitely Sean." Javier notes that they are giving him a decent kicking.

"They're taking him up the canyon", says Trelawny. Arthur spots Charles on the cliff on the other side. Two bounty hunters stay behind by the river. Trelawny has an idea, and the three men ride down to the water.

Trelawny's distraction

The two guards stand on the far bank. Javier says they should do this quietly if they can. Trelawny: "Leave it to me, gentlemen. I'll go around and create a distraction, then you two sneak across and do the dirty on them." Javier has Arthur get his knife ready and keep his head down, then the two men wade into the river and wait for Trelawny to catch the guards off guard.

Trelawny goes around to the guards and begs for help: his wife has taken gravely ill, and if he loses Bessie, he loses everything. Javier tells Arthur to take the one on the left. Trelawny then fakes a fit and drops to the ground, and Arthur and Javier come up behind the two men and kill them silently with their knives. "A pleasure as always, gentlemen. I think you have it from here", says Trelawny, who leaves and takes no further part in the mission.

Up the canyon

Javier: "We got two halfway up the canyon to deal with." Once they are down, he says they will have to shoot their way up. Arthur and Javier fight their way through the bounty hunters, among them riders; on the way, Javier spots Charles up on the cliff. At the top they meet Charles, who asks whether all is good. "Wouldn't go that far", answers Arthur. Charles leads them on: "Their camp's up this way, come on."

The bounty hunters' camp

Javier takes the left side and Charles the right. In the camp, Sean hangs upside down by his legs from a tree. As the shooting goes on, Arthur asks: "Goddamn army of these bastards. How much is Sean's bounty?" Charles: "Maybe we should turn him in ourselves." Arthur: "Still time." A man fires from a watchtower, another comes out of a cabin, and more arrive down the hill and on a cliff to the left.

Still hanging from the tree, Sean calls out: "Takes an army of bounty hunters to bring in Sean Macguire." When the last bounty hunters run away, Javier says it is time to get Sean.

Sean

Arthur cuts or shoots the rope. Sean: "You know... you're a lot less ugly from that other angle, Arthur." Sean asks for a hug, "a warm embrace for a lost brother, now found". Arthur answers: "You know... nothing means more to me than this gang. The bond we share... it's the most real thing to me. I would kill for it, I would happily die for it... but in spite of all that... I would have easily left you here to rot... if Charles hadn't stopped me." Sean: "I don't believe a word of that, Arthur."

"Get him out of here", says Arthur. Sean adds: "You're a great man, Arthur Morgan... the kind a young whippersnapper can really admire." "Oh shut up", answers Arthur. He splits the group: Javier escorts Sean back to camp, and Charles rides separately, because there are patrols everywhere. Arthur stays behind to see what is worth taking. As they leave, Sean promises: "Have I got stories for you..." Javier: "Yeah... I can't wait." Sean rides back to Horseshoe Overlook with Javier on his horse, Boaz.

The party at Horseshoe Overlook

When Arthur gets back to camp that night, the gang is holding a party for Sean's return. Among its scenes:

• Sean goes off with Karen Jones.
• Javier accompanies the songs on his guitar and sings "El Coyotito" for Tilly Jackson by the women's tents.
• Dutch dances with Molly O'Shea to his gramophone, and Arthur can dance with Mary-Beth Gaskill.
• John and Bill get drunk together at the poker table until Abigail calls John pathetic.
• Charles stays on watch all night and says he will leave the partying to the professionals.
• Sadie Adler stays away from the party, Strauss stays at his desk, and Jack tells Arthur how happy he is that Uncle Sean is back.

Deaths

• Numerous members of Ike Skelding's gang, killed by Arthur, Javier and Charles.

Freeing Sean

Arthur can cut the rope or shoot it. The cutscene that follows changes slightly depending on whether the rope was shot. If Arthur takes too long, Javier hurries him and Sean complains from the tree.

In the canyon

• If the player takes time before dealing with the two bounty hunters halfway up the canyon, the two men talk: one admires the other's boots and asks whether the man he got them from is still alive, then says he cannot wait to get back home and wants to make enough money to retire and maybe marry again; the other says the travel wears him out and wishes for a small farm and a good woman.
• The left one of these two carries a Bolt Action Rifle and drops it if Arthur kills him first, without alerting the pair beforehand. Otherwise he uses a Carbine Repeater and drops no Bolt Action Rifle.
• A machete can be taken from a bounty hunter who attacks Charles before the climb to the camp.

Looting the camp

Arthur stays behind to search the camp, but soon after the mission ends he becomes wanted and lawmen arrive to investigate. The bodies and the camp are best looted before Sean is freed.

Riding south of the river

• Normally, Arthur gets an immediate Dead or Alive wanted level if he rides south of the Upper Montana River into Tall Trees or the Great Plains, and lawmen swarm him if he does not turn back.
• Until this mission is complete, he gets no wanted level there and there are fewer lawmen, so that the player can reach the start safely. The law still pursues him if he goes too close to Blackwater or keeps riding south toward New Austin.
• Two Pinkertons guard the most direct river crossing, next to a broken footbridge. If they spot Arthur loitering there, they recognize him and he becomes wanted in Big Valley.

For the first objective, Arthur should move slowly and only go for the bounty hunter on the left once Trelawny has dropped to the ground. Javier kills enemies quickly, so Dead Eye helps to reach the ten headshots.

• Sure, well... we'll rescue Sean and then we'll get ourselves lost, good and proper. It's a big country.

  Arthur, to Trelawny, on the way to the horses

• Keep your eyes open for Pinkertons. They've got patrols out all over this area.

  Javier, as they ride upriver

• If they can, we're just three fellers out on the trail. Act natural, we'll be fine.

  Trelawny, when Arthur asks whether the boat can see them

• Oh, we'll never run out of people to rob.

  Arthur, when Trelawny asks whether they have run out of people to rob

• Well, you can only imagine the shit he's been giving them.

  Arthur, watching the bounty hunters beat Sean

• I imagine you all missed me a lot... but fear not, the joy's back in your lives now.

  Sean, riding off with Javier

• The title comes from the Bible: Matthew 19:30 and 20:16, Mark 10:31 and Luke 13:30.
• It is the only mission of Arthur's story set in territory that comes from Red Dead Redemption. The rest of his story takes place in the regions created for Red Dead Redemption 2.
• The tent and fire set up by Javier, Charles and Trelawny on the clifftop work like any other camp: it is the only time Arthur can sleep in southern West Elizabeth.
• Trelawny rides his horse, Gwydion, in this mission.
• Charles is absent from the Horseshoe Overlook camp until this mission is complete. Sean's camp scenes start after it.
• Micah Bell is the only member of the gang who misses the party for Sean's return: his own return mission, An American Pastoral Scene, cannot unlock before it, even if Arthur has already freed him from Strawberry.
• Using exploits to reach Tumbleweed after the mission, the player can hear townspeople talk about the shootout on the Upper Montana River; the gunsmith says that an army of bounty hunters got killed up the river from Blackwater.