The tides of darkness were rolling in. Some how, he had lost Kylie again, for good this time. His anger was boiling inside him, festering like a demon child, as he stared intently at what was left of the television, which he had just shattered with the remote. He closed his eyes as tight as they could close, and then opened them, hoping to see that he hadn't had a reason to shatter the television, that it was all just a horribly bad dream. No matter how many times he winked, there was just no escaping the cold, empty, and bitter reality that Kylie was dead, and there was nothing he or anyone else could do to bring her back.

Try as he might, he couldn't fight back the tears, and they continued their descent down his cheek. It was almost midnight, as he forced himself out of bed. He wiped his eyes, which were now red from crying, as he trudged towards the shower. Anthoni was tempted to end it all, his career, his suffering, and his life, to be with Kylie again, a la Romeo and Juliet, but nevertheless, he instead turned the cold water on in the shower, and stepped into the chilling stream, without getting out of his clothes.

He let his head hang, as the water flowed freely down over his body. He sat down, and leaned back against the wall, allowing himself to take in the water is it spray downs upon him, and also as it flows towards the drain. As he begins to doze off, Anthoni awakens to the sound of someone banging loudly at his door. He carefully gets to his feet, and turns off the shower, and stepping out. He takes a few moments to get into some dry clothes, and walks slowly into the living room, where he unlocks the door and opens it, finding himself face to face with his brother Jeff.

[+]Jeff[+] Anthoni, man, are you alright?

[+]Anthoni[+] Does it look like I'm alright?

[+]Jeff[+] I'm sorry man, that was a stupid question to ask...

[+]Anthoni[+] You're damn right it was.

Anthoni's hands tighten into a fist, as he glares angrily at Jeff. He swings, but just as his fist is about to slam into Jeff's face, it drops to his side, as Anthoni begins to break down.

[+]Jeff[+] Anthoni...get a hold of yourself man, you've got a title defense coming soon, you can't allow Kronik to see you vulnerable like this.

[+]Anthoni[+] My fiance is dead, and all you're worried about is my match with Kronik? What the hell man?

[+]Jeff[+] I know it seems fucked up right now, but do you really want him to take away all that you have left, the World Heavyweight Title?

[+]Anthoni[+] That's not something I'm worried about, Jeff. Charles doesn't have his mother anymore...I'm all that he has.

[+]Jeff[+] I understand, and even though I know we haven't always gotten along, I'll be glad to lend you a hand anytime.

[+]Anthoni[+] Thanks bro, I really appreciate that. But right now, I need to find out what exactly happened. I need to go talk to Malcolm and Josh and see if they know anything about this.

[+]Jeff[+] What makes you think that they will know something?

[+]Anthoni[+] Josh is my dealer, and Malcolm is his bodyguard. Both Kylie and I made some purchases from them recently, and I think she was going to see them tonight.

Jeff nods in acknowledgment, as his cell phone starts to ring.

[+]Jeff[+] Look, I need to take this. I'll see you in the morning. Give me a call if you need anything.

[+]Anthoni[+] Look man, since you came all this way, why don't you just crash here? You can sleep on the couch.

[+]Jeff[+] Sounds good to me. Where are you headed off to?

[+]Anthoni[+] Don't worry about that. I'll be back in a little while.

[+]Jeff[+] You're not going to see Josh and Malcolm are you?

[+]Anthoni[+] Like I said, don't worry about that.

[+]Jeff[+] Just be careful man. Don't go getting yourself killed like...

Anthoni was almost out the door, when Jeff had caught himself. As Anthoni began to walk toward him, he knew he was going to get knocked the fuck out. At the same time though, he knew he deserved it after that completely insensitive comment he had just made. But when Anthoni approached him, what happened next caught him completely off guard. Anthoni hugged him tightly, and patted him on the back, before making his way out of the condo. Anthoni walked hastily and with a purpose down the street towards the slum. As he rounded the corner, Josh and Malcolm met him at the entrance to the alley.

[+]Josh[+] We've been expecting you, Anthoni.

[+]Anthoni[+] I'm sure you were. I'm also sure that you're aware of the fact that I won't be buying from you now, or anytime soon.

[+]Josh[+] I know what you're going through man, and its fucked up, but that's no reason to stop doing business with your boys...

[+]Anthoni[+] Tell me something, Josh. Did Kylie come see you earlier tonight, looking to buy from you?

[+]Josh[+] Yeah, she did. She wanted to get some shit for you.

[+]Anthoni[+] So how the hell did she get shot?

Josh attempted to swallow the lump in his throat, but it was pointless. It just kept coming back up a stubborn erection.

[+]Josh[+] Look man, we only took her to our apartment to get the best stuff we had. The cops showed up and we ran...

[+]Anthoni[+] So what you're telling me is that you and Malcolm ditched her.

[+]Josh[+] Hey man, we were just...

Before Josh could finish, Anthoni's fist collided with his face, sending him to the ground in a heap. Malcolm swung a pipe at Anthoni, but he ducked, and kneed Malcolm in the gut, and hit him over the head with the pipe. Anthoni then focused on Josh again, and kicked him in the face as he was trying to recover. Now bleeding from the nose, Josh backed himself up against the wall, and tried to beg, but that too was pointless. Anthoni swung the pipe, and connected with Josh's face. Anthoni kicked at the unconscious body of Josh a few more times, and then reached into Josh's pocket, and retrieved a large roll of money, and stuffed it into his pocket, and walked off back towards his condo, with the blood stained pipe still in his hand.

-||-Scene: Flight of the Vigilante-||-

Despite how cool it was outside that night, Anthoni was dripping with sweat as he entered the condo, slamming the door so loudly, that it woke his brother Jeff who had been sound asleep on the sofa. Anthoni quickly locked the door, before walking into the kitchen, still holding the pipe, which was dripping blood on the marble tile floor. Anthoni turned the cold water on in the kitchen sink, and washed his hands with some dish washing soap, and then turned the faucet off, choosing to wipe his hands on his shirt, as Jeff got up off the couch and met him in the kitchen.

[+]Jeff[+] Anthoni, tell me you didn't do what I think you did...

[+]Anthoni[+] If by that you mean did I kill Josh? No, that would be letting him off too easily.

[+]Jeff[+] Then why the hell are there blood stains on the floor, not to mention on that pipe you brought in?

[+]Anthoni[+] I roughed him up a bit. Jeff, he left Kylie to fend for herself at the mercy of the police!

[+]Jeff[+] You do realize the police will be looking for you soon enough, right?

[+]Anthoni[+] I doubt that, seriously. Josh and Malcolm tend to have as little to do with them as possible.Nevertheless, I think it would be a good idea for us to get out of here.

Jeff nods, grabbing his leather jacket from the end of the couch, and slipping it on.

[+]Jeff[+] Where do you suppose we should go?

[+]Anthoni[+] I was hoping you knew the answer to that. I know you have connections in the mafia, and I figured you had some place in mind.

[+]Jeff[+] Now that you mention it, I do know of a place we can go. You'll need to pack only the necessities.

Anthoni chuckles, smiling for the first time all night, albeit half-heartedly.

[+]Anthoni[+] I'm not a woman, you know. Just give me a few minutes, and I'll have my clothes packed.

Jeff nods as Anthoni makes his way across the living room, and into his bedroom. He retrieves a small suitcase from his closet, and begins to pack his clothing in it. As he finishes gathering his things, the door to his bedroom opens, and Jeff walks in, twirling his car keys on his finger.

[+]Jeff[+] Are you ready yet, slow poke?

[+]Anthoni[+] Yeah man, but before we go, I've got some things to get off of my chest...I'll need to get online again, and post a blog on myspace...

Jeff shakes his head, as he returns to the living room, shutting the bedroom door behind him. Anthoni sits down at his computer, and logs on to the official WWA myspace, and proceeds to the blog area, and begins typing.

[+]Anthoni[+] To point out the obvious, it appears to me that Kronik is confident in his abilities, so much so that he actually believes that he will defeat me for the World Heavyweight Championship at Revenge. He believes that he will capitalize on an opportunity that he hasn't proven himself worthy of, and walk out with a win over one of the WWA's most dominant champions to date. My advice to him is simply this. Don't get your hopes up just yet. Talk is cheap, Kronik, and at Revenge, when we are in that ring, doing battle for the most prestigious prize in this business, your actions will speak louder than your words. You really think you're going to beat me, Kronik?

Anthoni chuckles slightly, before opening a can of Copenhagen Snuff, and putting a large pinch of the tobacco into his lip, and spitting into the trash can next to his desk.

[+]Anthoni[+] And you said that I was naive. It must be nice to live in such a perfect world. A world where you can have anything you desire, merely because you, and you alone feel that it should be yours. Well, congratulations. By a stroke of luck, you've landed yourself in a World Heavyweight Title match. Too bad for you, it won't be nearly as easy as you'd like to think. Kronik, I've fought and beaten the best this company has to offer to become champion. I've endured your mind games, the kidnapping of my son, and your incessant attacks, and come back for more. Have you not noticed a pattern, Kronik? I am a glutton for punishment. I take everything that any given adversary throws at me, and I throw it right back at them, ten fold, and ultimately, I emerge victorious. Will this match with you be any different? I think not.

Anthoni spits a stream of brown spit into the trashcan, and wipes the remaining bits of loose tobacco from his lip with the sleeve of his shirt.

[+]Anthoni[+] You're a big guy, Kronik. You may think that your size advantage will help out when you take me on, but when it comes right down to it, all it means is that you'll be slower. It will be easier for me to capitalize on your mistakes. Capitalizing on mistakes is something that I do very, very well Kronik, and my suggestion to you is to not make any. However, I know you. I know how people like you work, and the cold hard truth of the matter is this...you'll make a mistake. It's inevitable. To tell you truth though, Kronik, it doesn't really matter what mistakes you make in that ring. You've already made the most costly mistake of them all. You made the very same mistake that your brother made. You've attacked me time after time, and still, I've come back for more. So, my question for you is this. If you couldn't get the job done then, what makes you think you can get the job done at Revenge? The simple fact is that you can't, and at Revenge, I will be walking out victorious...and still...World Heavyweight Champion.

Anthoni hits the submit button on the webpage, and posts the blog with a confident smile on his face. As he shuts down the computer, he grabs a photo of himself with Kylie and Charles and looks at it for a moment, a brief tear rolling down his cheek as he makes his way towards the living room, where Jeff is waiting for him. With a nod to his brother, Anthoni leads the way out of the apartment, and locks the door for the final time as Jeff joins him outside.