Captain Uni

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

And now, Frank's story arc is finished.

Hope you all enjoyed my spin on the Punisher, I know I had a lot of fun writing him.

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

Midnight
A mostly destroyed autoshop; Lynwood, California

---

ISSUE #16
WAR PIGS
FINALE

---

"It's funny," he said as he reached into his jacket pocket. "You don't look like any of those nutters who wear capes. But I want to thank you for your help."

@Byrd Man

I gave a chuckle at his comment about the caped crusaders that've been popping up these last few months. "Doubt you'd see many of those costumed guys toting guns, either. I'm not exactly Captain America material," I replied. "And no need for thanks. I'm just doing what I usually do on Wednesday nights: sending crooked bastards like these to the grave."

"That's the man who made me come here today. He did so by threatening my friends and family. You'll find he's an even bigger fish than Garcia, the undisputed kingpin of Los Angeles."

John made eye contact with Castle before smirking.

"Long live the king, right?"

@Byrd Man

The man passed me the card, and as I held it in between my fingers I looked it over. The name didn't ring a bell, but what reason this guy have to lie to me? We'd only just met, and he probably did something to help get that demon or whatever out of me. Least I could do was humor him. I shoved the card into my pocket, then shook the Brit's hand. "Well 'Sam', it was a pleasure meeting you. I'll go handle this the only way I know how."

I picked up my twin pistols and stuck them in my holsters. I walked out of the garage, giving a thumbs up to the mysterious Brit, before heading into my van and starting up. As I drove away from the autoshop with a destination in mind, I mulled over all I had been through these last couple of months. I'd gone from a boy scout cop with a wife and kids to a cold-hearted killing machine that thrives off of making crooks sweat.

Was I already a bomb waiting to go off back then, looking for an excuse to cut loose and deliver my own brand of justice? Maybe I'm just a psychopath letting out his violent tendencies and masking it as a crusade for justice? Perhaps I really am as good as I like to think I am, and I'm just doing what the others won't? I don't even know anymore. To be honest, I don't even care.

I've been a good man when I can be. I've spared lives when I could. That cook in Fredericksburg, the white supremacists in Hobcaw Point, that assassin in Roscoe Street Station. Maybe I haven't kept in control too well, maybe there were times when I could've picked a better path. But I've done my best. And that's what counts.

By the time I was done reflecting on everything I had done, I had already reached Hidalgo's home in Malibu. It was a glimmering mansion, post modern style. All sharp corners and white paint and glass walls. It had a view of the ocean, and a few guards were posted around the perimeter, looking for people like me who meant their boss harm. They wouldn't stand a chance.

I slipped the suppressor on my Glock and pulled out my knife. I cased the place for alternative entrances while taking out guards as I went, while also being sure to cut the power. There was a wall that wasn't made of glass leading up to a third story window, with a pipe running up to the roof and some other foot and handholds I could use to make my way up there. I began to climb, slowly but surely, and found myself in a dark hallway.

I went down the stairs, heading through every room in the house and taking out the remaining guards. Once I was done, I climbed back up to the top floor, back into the hallway I came in from. There was only one place to go after this. I headed to the end of the hall, towards the master bedroom, and opened the door.

Hidalgo was there, sleeping. I pulled out my pistol and walked up to the foot of his bed, before letting out a whistle. He woke up groggily, blinking his eyes a few times, before they finally adjusted to the darkness and set on me. He reached over to his nightstand, presumably to grab a gun. "Don't even think about it."

"Who are you?"

"I'm the criminal underworld's own bogey-man. You can call me the Punisher." I walked around to the nightstand, taking the little .32 revolver from it and sticking it into one of my vest's pockets. "You're Martin Hidalgo. Biggest, baddest guy in LA. Lucky for you, lots of guys are smart enough to know that trying to go after you is a death sentence." I leveled the pistol at his head. "Unlucky for you, I'm not too smart."

"You don't scare me. I have men all around this house, and I have them check up on my room every five minu-"

"Don't worry about them," I cut him off, "They're already dead." I pressed the gun against his temple. "Do you know the difference between justice and punishment?"

"What the hell are you on about?"

"Good question. Even I don't know." I tensed my finger on the trigger. "The Brit in the trenchcoat sends his regards."

*BANG!*

THE END

Heroes Reborn: Year Six (OPEN)

8:36 AM; January 31st, 2026
David's Apartment; Gotham City, New Jersey
'Sometimes there will be nothing. Sometimes I'm back in the desert. Most of the time? I just wish these bullshit dreams would stop.'
"Not a damn thing to do with the numbers. Keep going."

He could've swore a moment ago it was Alkhatu all over again, the constant whirr of the helicopter blades, the blaring music, the beat of the machine gun as he delivered fiery justice onto the city. He jolted up, expecting to find himself still there. Instead all he found was himself in bed, the sheets over his naked form. "Hmmm... Something wrong?" the man next to him asked.

"No... No, just a bad dream. Sorry I woke you." David pulled himself out of bed, massaging his temples and grabbing the bottle of whiskey he kept on his nightstand for occasions like this. 'Just your past sins screaming at you to pay attention to 'em, Dave, nothing to be scared of.' He allowed himself a little chuckle at that. These dreams stopped being traumatizing months ago. Now it was just routine.

"You sure, Dave? You sounded spooked," the man, Alan, insisted, rolling over and picking himself up. Alan was a few years older than him, just another hookup in a bar. Most days he'd forget he even went to a bar last night, but David was getting better; he even remembered his hookup's name this time.

"I'm fine. Was just one of those falling dreams. I get 'em every now and again."

Alan quirked an eyebrow and for a moment Dave almost swore that he was a long lost relative of Zoey. "That's why you're drinking?"

David laughed. "No, this is just step one of my usual morning routine."

Seemed that didn't appease Alan, judging by the frown he wore now. "Listen, my last boyfriend was a vet. He used to have nightmares and he'd pull this tactic all the time. If you need to talk, I'm here."

David twitched a bit at that. A vet, eh? He was sort of one. Fought in an armed conflict, was willing to die for his cause (even if his was fairly bullshit), watched a few buddies bite the dust. If he had to be honest, he should have stopped mourning them a year ago. It was about time he moved on with his life. Stopped moping over dead men. But at this point, moping over his past failures was about as routine as brushing his teeth. No point in changing a part of your life if you're comfortable with it. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm serious, I'm fine."

David took another drink, then quirked an eyebrow. "... So, uh, boyfriend? Now, I don't mean to be rude, but I wouldn't go that far... Not... Not, uh, yet, anyway. We can... I dunno... See how it goes...? If you want, of course."

"I'm flattered, Dave, but... I don't think I could be with another man like my last boyfriend again."

"Oh... Okay. I understand."

It was a bit awkward after that. Alan gathered his clothes up and put them on, before heading out the door. David sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation.

'Ha! You just cockblocked yourself! Nice!'

"... Yep."

There was something wrong with him. He knew there was.

'Don't think about why people don't like you, Dave. They don't. Live with it. It's gonna piss you off but you know what? Fuck 'em. The angrier you are, the more damage you can do to Anarkee and all the criminals in this city. Speaking of, we should go do that, eh? Ehhhhh?'

"Fuck off." With those words, David pulled himself out of bed and got dressed. Hood continued to nag him, but he just ignored it. After brushing his teeth, he went into his living room, where he was promptly ambushed by Max, who jumped up and attempt to lick David's face. In response, the young man knelt down with a smile, stroking the dog's back as Max licked him. "Yeah, who's a good boy? You're a good boy, yes you are. You wanna go for a walk?" Max's response to that was a bark and a wag of his tail. "Alright, lemme get the leash."

A few minutes later, David was leading Max down the sidewalk. It had snowed the night before, casting a white sheet over the street. A few children were playing, building snowmen, having snowball fights, the usual. David cast a few looks at the scenes, finding himself smiling a bit. It felt good to know that even after all the pain in the world, from the One Week War to all that had happened after it, that people could still find something to be happy about.

Maybe that's what he was missing. He'd been such a downer these last few years, he had almost forgotten what it was like to be happy. Maybe that was Hood's doing. Maybe he was just naturally a depressive asshole. Whatever it was, he was sick of feeling like a buzzkill all the time.

He was so caught up in his thoughts that his reflexes didn't even kick in when he noticed a snowball soaring towards his face; it struck him, bits of snow covering his left cheek. The children across the street laughed, though it didn't sound mean spirited. Then, it hit him, how he could remedy this predicament he was in. David turned to the kids, a scowl on his face. "Oh, so it's gonna be like that, huh? Not even gonna give me a heads-up?"

The children stopped laughing. David tied Max's leash around his arm, before reaching down to scoop up some snow, and then throwing it in the direction of the children. One of them was struck in the chest. They all realized what was about to happen, and rushed to grab more snowballs, laughing all the way.

It was on.

David scooped up another handful of snow, running across the street with Max in tow and throwing the snowball at the children while they responded in kind. He managed to duck out of the way of a few of them, but some hit him. The scene in the street was a typical one on a day like this, snowballs flying and laughter filling the air. A young man who figures the world has taken all it can from him, and children who couldn't care less about what the world has in store for them, all joining together to have a snowball fight.

This really was what he was missing, wasn't it?

When it was over, David found himself slumped up against a wall, an ear-to-ear grin on his face and his gut hurting from laughing so hard. "Hey mister!" David looked up just in time to notice the snowball soaring towards his face. He chuckled as he wiped it off. The young boy gave him a goofy grin. "Thanks for playing with us."

"Don't mention it, kid."

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

RIP Retired, gone but not forgotten.

Anyhow, gonna be wrapping up my crossover with Byrd and then I'll see this season off. I plan on playing Frank for another crossover with Doc at the beginning of Season Two, and then I'll be retiring him so I can focus on another character...

Did someone order a faceless conspiracy theorist?

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

Midnight
A mostly destroyed autoshop; Lynwood, California

---

ISSUE #16
WAR PIGS
PART FOUR

---

"Names have power," he said to the man. "And even the unholy angel of death has a real name. And that gives me power. You're a curious one, you know? You don't look like one of Garica's guys, and you sure as fuck aren't rolling with the white power boys bleeding out on the ground. So, what's your story, squire? Who the fuck are you?"

@Byrd Man

I blinked my eyes a few times to adjust to the bright light, looking around. The autoshop was in shambles, Garcia and his boys were all dead. Before me was the blond man in the ratty trenchcoat, alongside a cowboy who had his sixgun trained on me. I figured I wouldn't be seeing many cowboys after Warpath. Guess they were more in style here than there, surprisingly.

The blond man spoke with a British accent, and I quirked an eyebrow as I slowly raised my hands to show the cowboy I wasn't a threat. "Isn't it obvious? I'm the pizza guy. Took me a bit long to get here though, looks like these guys get their order free." I paused to chuckle. The Brit didn't seem amused, or at least not amused enough to laugh with me.

I sighed, looking between the man and the cowboy who was starting to look less human and more otherworldly by the second. "Not sure if the name means anything to you unless you've been catching yourself up with the news, but I'm Frank Castle, the Punisher. I've been traveling the country, delivering vigilante justice. I ran into a drug den in Fredericksburg Texas, the trail led me here, to Garcia. I'm guessing that's him?" I pointed towards what remained of the suited Hispanic man. The Brit nodded in confirmation.

I paused, recollecting what had just happened, and how I managed to lose my sense for what seemed like hours. "Judging by what just happened to me, and the way your, uh, friend here looks... I'm guessing there's something of the supernatural sort going on. Before you ask how I can tell, because I know you will, I've got a buddy in Warpath who had a bit of a demon problem a few days back. I wouldn't be able to tell you just what exactly is going on, but I know it's not of this world as it were."

Now that I had finished up my little spiel, I nodded to the Brit, cracking a wry grin. "And what'd your name be? Sam Spade?"

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

Time Is An Illusion
The Inner Workings of A Twisted Mind

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ISSUE #16
WAR PIGS
PART THREE

---

I don't know where I am. Maybe I'm not supposed to know. It's familiar yet foreign. A strange comfort, and a known danger all at once. It feels wrong, yet right.

"It's almost time."

I can... Feel something, controlling my every move. Using my thirst for retribution to kill callously, without remorse, without purpose. I didn't like its attitude, and the fact that it hijacked my body was another mark against it.

"Don't worry anymore."

I kill with purpose. I do, honestly. At least... I think. I'm not too sure anymore. Good, bad, black, white, it all blends together into one mushy grey mess after a while. Maybe I'm not as good as I like to think I am... Maybe I'm only a step above the people who kill for pleasure, or profit.

"Stop fighting."

Snap out of it, Frank! Now's not the time to doubt yourself. The easiest way to fail is to give up before you even start trying, and Ling Chu didn't raise a quitter! You gotta find a way to fix this, maybe... Maybe... God, I don't know what I can do...

"Please."

... It sounds like Maria, calling to me. I don't want to listen, I try my hardest to block it out, cover my ears, shake my head, I even try singing Yankee fucking Doodle just to get it to stop... But still, it sounds clear as day.

"It's over, Frank. Just relax."

I can see her. Blonde hair framing her delicate face. A small smile and blue eyes pleading with me. She reaches out a hand, stroking my face, then opens her mouth to speak...

"Come home."

But it's not her. It's a soulless reflection of what she was, trying to seduce me into giving into this beast's demands. I won't let it use me to cause chaos and destruction. I'm a hero, much as the rest say I'm not. And I know evil when I see it. But while I know it's not her, I can't help but hurt, knowing I'm about to push my wife away for good.

With a heavy heart, I reply, "You know I can't. But I wish that I could."

Her smile becomes melancholic. Tears prick at my eyes. She reaches her thumb up to brush them away. "I wish you could, too."

I lean into her touch, but her hand falls away. I watch silently as she walks away into the pitch black. I'm alone. Nothing to keep me company but my own thoughts. The darkness and silence washes over me like a wave of guilt washes over a remorseful killer.

But I can feel it peeling away. Revealing the light... And a cacophony of gunfire. Just my luck, I suppose.

I guess it's time to see what's waiting for me on the other side.

I step out of the darkness and into the light.

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

A Day Later; Noon
The streets of Los Angeles, California

---

ISSUE #16
WAR PIGS
PART TWO

---

Los Angeles.

I was a fish out of water here, thousands of miles from home. All my life, I had never gone farther than Gotham where I grew up. I was so used to the gloomy, snowy atmosphere of Jersey and New York, tight alleys and brick buildings and long, dark shadows; now that I was in LA where it was all open streets and polished buildings and a bright sun it was jarring. Thank God I had driven and gradually gotten used to the lack of dread that hung to you in the Big Apple, because if I'd taken a plane I'd have died of a heart attack from the culture shock... Or a third degree burn because dear God, I was missing the mild summers of New York right about now.

I wiped the sweat from my brow as I continued to drive down the street. Really wish I had gotten an address out of that guy, but I had my ways of finding out what I wanted to know. I could already tell you one thing for certain: today was gonna be a bad day to be a pusher.

---

Several Hours Later; Midnight
An autoshop; Lynwood, California

It was probably dumb luck that one of the pushers I roughed up was connected to Garcia. Told me about an autoshop in Lynwood, the place where Garcia usually meets his associates. Said that there wasn't a meet going on tonight, but I might still find him there. Guess now I had a place to go.

The autoshop was heralded by a dented and faded sign in Spanish. The garage door was open, a squad car parked in front. There were a few gangbangers, a Hispanic guy in a suit, another guy looking like he was about to win a Mr. Rogers look-a-like contest, three cops, and a blond guy in a ratty trench coat on the ground. That last guy was definitely out of place in the room.

I parked my van and stepped out, hearing the faint voices from the garage about thirty feet ahead. The voices got louder, and angrier. Whatever was going on in there, it wasn't going well. I'd say I was concerned it was gonna escalate into violence, but that was a load of shit. Not even those cops had me worried; they were obviously in bed with Garcia or one of his rivals to be meeting him without trying to arrest him. If they killed each other it'd just make my job easier.

Then I heard the gunshots. Pulling out my pistols, I ran as fast as I could and jumped into the fray.

Bullets penetrated flesh.

Blood gushed from wounds.

Bodies fell to the ground.

This...

This was...

Perfect...

Blood and fear and pain and death death death DEATH DEATH DEATH DEATH DEATH ITS SWEETNESS KISSES ME AND SETS ME FREE IN THE NIGHT THE SCREAMS OF THE DYING AND THE SILENCE OF THE DEAD MINGLING IN PERFECT HARMONY IT WAS D̨̛͟E͞͝͏̷҉L̵̨̛͞͝I̧͘͘͟C̵͘͜I̸͘Ǫ̷͏̷U͢S̡̀͢

I blinked.

What the hell was th-

T̡HIN̕K NO͜THI͡N͟G OF I͝T҉ Y̢ÓU A̕R̛E ҉ǪNE ̢WI̕TH̢ M̷È ͜THE ͝BRIN͝GE̵R͡ ̢O͠F̕ PA͞I͘N AN҉D͡ ̡DE̸A̸TH ̵GIVE̢ ͞M͜E҉ ̶D͝E͏ATH͟ ̸SÌNG̶ ́Y͟OU̧R ̕SON̡G̛ ͏AG͘E̷N͝T̨ ÒF ͏VE͠N͡G͠EAN҉C̀E͘

ŢH͞IS ̶VES͜S͠EĹ

S̸͠UI̶̵҉TS̸̡͟ ̶̡M͏҉E

Ẃ̧E͜͜͞L̵̕͡L͘

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

Gwen waiting for the Surfer like



:-p

EDIT: Apparently the picture doesn’t want to post

@HenryJonesJr

You're Welcome

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

<Snipped quote by Simple Unicycle>
I think I know your preference of what I should do, then.

@Inkarnate

Now I'm not gonna try and convince you to play Huntress, but... You should play Huntress.

CLOSED - Ultimate One Universe: Season One

Were we discussing season 2 plans?

Because boy-howdy do I have those.

Anyway I'm pretty happy with where Frank's arc has ended up so I'm probably gonna end up just playing him for a bit at the beginning of season two to do another crossover with Doc, and then I'll retire him because I've honestly kinda lost that special something I tapped into to write up those posts of high octane gunplay all the time. Gonna end up either doing a version of the Question who's a mishmash of the different versions of the character or a semi-reimagined Jimmy Woo.

Spoiler alert: I'm 110% going with the Question.

Also, gonna try and get another post up to progress my crossover with Byrd. Hopefully we'll be able to wrap that up before the season ends.