The Punisher MAX #2

"I'm gonna fuck you!! I'm gonna kill you! Then I'm gonna fuck you!!! Then I'm gonna kill you again, mother fucker!" Tombstone growled.

CLICK-CHAK!

The sawed off shot-gun was pressed against Tombstone's skull. The bartender's finger was twitchy. She was ready to blow Tombstone's head clean off.

"Maria?" Frank said confused.

"Get. The. Fuck. Out." The woman growled pushing the sawed off shot-gun harder against Tombstone's temple.

"Bitch, if you don't lower that gun," Tombstone whispered, smiling, "RIGHT THE FUCK NOW....I'm gonna cram in down your throat right after--"

Frank swung his leg, sweeping the woman's legs, dropping her. The shot-gun fell to the floor. The crowd was parted as Tombstone barreled through it heading for the exit. Frank grabbed the woman by the hair and pulled her up to her feet.

"Ow fuck! Let go asshole! Ow!" she yelled in protest.


The door burst open and the woman stumbled through it into the alley. Frank followed her out, slamming the door behind him.

"What the fuck--" she yelled in anger.

"Who are you?" Frank asked walking up to her, angry.

"Kiss my ass! Get the fuck out of here right now or I call the cops!" she said back, pointing a finger.

SNAP!

Frank grabbed her index, bending it and breaking it, dropping the woman to her knees.

"I won't ask again. Who the fuck are you?!" he demanded.

The woman looked up at him, tears welling up in her eyes. "Fuck you." she said in defiant tones. The last thing she saw was the black gloved fist barreling full speed into her nose.


"Sir, if I may be of assistance," the small rotund man said, using a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his brow, as he held the door open for Tombstone.

Tombstone glanced at the short, fat balding man with a mustache who was wearing nothing but a black leather thong and a Spider-Man t-shirt.

"Wait in the bedroom. I'll be in, in a moment," Tombstone replied walking through the luxurious penthouse apartment to the bar. He poured himself a glass of aged scotch and downed it, then poured a second.

The penthouse was lush and large with fine marble flooring and a view of Manhattan that would make even Mayor Bloomberg jealous. Tombstone made his way to a large oak desk and sat in the llama leather backed chair. He picked up a phone on the desk and quickly dialed a number.

"We have a problem," his harsh gravel like whisper came. "Yes, I understand the twins are dead. No, I do not give a flying shit pretzel. I was paid to protect them. They're dead. End of fucking story. What? Yes. Yes, I know I didn't protect them. So I failed at my job, that happens sometimes. What? Excuse me? Are you fucking threatening me? Do you know who the fuck I am? It was Frank Castle, The Punisher, what the fuck did you expect to happ- WHAT?! I'm warning you, if you step one foot into my city, I will--Hello? HELLO?! FUCK!" he growled, slamming the phone down in anger.

Tombstone sat for a moment, seething. He downed the last of his scotch and stood up, removing his sports coat and walked to the bedroom opening the door.

"Petey, get on all fours," he whispered, clearly upset and angry.

"Already there sir," said the short fat man in the black leather thong and Spider-Man t-shirt, on the bed.


"Wake up," came the voice.

The woman's eyes slowly fluttered open. Glancing around she saw herself in a dirty one-room apartment. Weapons were everywhere. On the small kitchen table. Hanging on the walls. One the floor. Every manner of gun, blade and club. Frank sat on an old musty couch across from her, a small M26-C Taser in his hand.

"Every time you don't answer me, I'm going to fill your body with fifty thousand volts of--"

"Wh-where am I?" the woman asked, groggy.

"That's not important. Who are you?" Frank asked, not liking being interrupted.

"I think-what the?! What the hell is this?" the woman said startled finding herself handcuffed to an old radiator heating unit against the wall.

"You didn't answer my question," Frank said, glancing at the tazer.

"Please....oh fuck, please, don't rape me. Oh god, please--"

"Who are you?" he asked again, this time slower and cutting her off.

"Ray Anne. Ray Anne Hansel. Look, please don't hurt me. I-I'll give you a blowjob, whatever, just please don't rape me or kill--"

"Why do you look just like this woman?" Frank interrupted, frowning at her insinuation and tossing an old newspaper at her feet.

The woman took the newspaper in hand, which showed a a photo of Maria Castle, who had been dead for many years. She stared silently for a moment, her hands shaking, tears falling down her cheeks.

"I-I don't know," she said, looking up at Frank.

"I need to know," Frank replied.

"Please! Just please let me go! I won't tell anyone! I won't--" she began to cry out loud, pulling on the handcuffs and panicking.

Frank sat the tazer on the arm of the couch, and held up a small silver key for her view and spoke, "This is your handcuff key. I need answers. I need to know why you look exactly like this woman. She's been dead for several years. I don't want to hurt you, but I need to know why you look like her. Do you know who I am?"

"No," she said softly, confused, looking from the paper to Frank.

"My name is Frank Castle. The media calls me The Punisher. I kill people. A lot of people. Bad people--"

"Why would I help you then? You're a killer! Let me go, plea--"

"Because she was my wife. I need to know why you look just like her," Frank finished.

"Y-you're wife?" Ray Anne said looking down at the paper in shock.

"Why do you look like her?" Frank asked again.

"I--I don't know," she said shocked.

Frank stared at her silently for a moment. She stared back, sniffing and using her free hand to wipe away the snot and tears on her face. He then stood and walked toward her and unlocked the handcuffs. Ray Anne sat for a moment, quiet, staring from her freed wrist and back to Frank again. She slowly stood and took a few small steps toward the door. Frank silently stared back. The woman ran for the door and out of it. Frank didn't stop her.


"Sing it!" Tombstone voice could be heard, growling.

"Nff. Nff. Yeah, YES! YES! HARDER! YES!" Petey yelled, being heard through the bedroom door.

"SING IT!" Tombstone growled louder.

"Spder-NFF! YES! Spider-man! Spider-Man! Does whatever a NFF! GOD YES! Spider can!"

"Sir, there's a phone call for you on line two," the woman dressed in a french maid's outfit said softly through the door.

"Dammit", Tombstone could be heard.

Tombstone walked out of the bedroom wearing a white robe, and headed to his desk. The woman dressed as the french maid went back to her duties.

"This better be good," Tombstone whispered violently into the phone.

"He knows? So. I don't give a shit. Look, you paid me to protect those twin mobster wanna-bes. You paid a deposit. half up front. The second half I didn't get until Castle was dead and they were both alive. I failed. They're dead and Castle is alive. So I don't get my second half of the money. I don't really fucking care. I have plenty of money as it is. Yes. So? That's twice you've threatened me today. Really? Kill me? You bring your boys here and I will skullfuck every last one of--what? The window?"

CRASH!

The glass windows shattered as four men in black suits rappeled in, firing AK-47's into the room. Bullets tore through the body of the woman in the French maid outfit and Tombstone hit the floor under the desk for cover. The four men slowly stalked into the room, guns aimed. The wind, from being up so high in the building, howled into the penthouse, blowing papers all around. One of the men slowly approached the desk.

Tombstone popped up, grabbing the barrel of the AK-47 aimed his way and pulled it from the soldier's hands. He spun the rifle and jammed the barrel of it into the soldier's mouth, firing and blowing out the back of his head, shooting a second solider. The two left standing spun and fired their weapons. Tombstone used the first dead soldier as a shield and continued to fire the weapon, killing the other two. The only sound left was the howling wind.

Tombstone picked up the phone.

"You there? Good. Your boys are dead. You threaten my life, now you are," he said softly into the phone then hung it up.

Tombstone stared for a moment at the wrecked room.

"Fuck," he whispered.

He then walked to the door of the bedroom and opened it. "Petey, get dressed. We have to find Frank Castle."

TO BE CONTINUED!

I think you found your voice with this one, my friend. There's a certain brutality to it that isn't so over the top it becomes comical, which would ruin it. That's not to say it isn't funny when it's supposed to be. Is it wrong I was worried about Petey? Good job.

I was and still am a huge fan Garth Ennis' run on Preacher. When he took over on Punisher for Marvel, I had hoped we would see elements of Preacher find themselves in Punisher but we really didn't, and to me, while Ennis' run on Punisher was the best ever done, that was sort of disappointing to me. Granted his first run on the series wasn't a MAX run so he couldn't really go all out. So that's my plan here is to write what I would have liked to see as well as add my own two cents in.

Oh and if you like Petey, have no fear. He's going to be around for a good while.

It's a good plan so far.

These are likes Lays potato chips, I can't stop at one, good job once again.