The rain outside splattered onto the hard ground and thunder boomed in the distant ocean as Basch laid on the ground of the cabin, he rolled around in his sleep, but it wasn't the thunder sending him into distress.
"HELP!"
Basch groaned in his sleep, rolling onto his side and squeezing his hand.
"You would rather a cop than me? This oughta teach ya bitch!"
Suddenly Basch slipped into the past, the sounds and feels around him slipping away as he remembered everything.
Basch sat at the long table, a very rare smile across his face as he looked to his newly wed wife, her chocolate hair, those mysterious purple eyes, and best of all was the music she played, it was the only thing that calmed him, and one of the few things that made him smile.
It had been a sunny day on the warm beach, his wedding day, one of the only days he allowed himself to wear a suit, and the day he was surrounded by his loved ones. He sighed, watching as everyone around them raised their glasses in a toast to the two of them, it was beautiful, and he was happy.
Then the scene in his mind changed.
There were screams everywhere and the sound of gunfire was heard over everything. Held the hand of his newly wed bride as he sprinted towards their cabin, but the sound of gunfire was getting closer, and they were after them. Once they made it inside Basch grabbed the assault shotgun and ran outside, closing the door behind him with Anneliese inside.
Another flash of thunder and the scene changed again.
All Basch could see was his cabin, burning and crumpled to the ground as it was blown to smithereens, the gas tank lit aflame and his wife… dead… He stood there on the pier, screaming in rage, shooting everyone he could see through the tears. Only to be caught in explosion himself, and then the world went black.
Basch bolted up and let out a loud scream of anguish, tears streaming from his eyes as he took deep breaths. He was in a small cabin out on an island in the bay and he had only been awake a few times before, and gotten a single look at his savior, and he was safe here. Though when he closed his eyes all he could see was the death of his loved ones… the murder of those around him. He only saw flashes of the worst moments and they jumped around, but they were terrifying, worse than anything he'd seen in his line of work, and worse than anything he could imagine.
Despite the bandages on his arm, he painfully lifted it to his face to wipe away the tears, his body shaking in emotional and physical agony as he let out wails that far overpowered the thunder. He had never cried before now, not even as a small child, but now, the pain was too hard to bare, he finally had something to lose, and it had been stripped from him.
Basch was so distraught by his thoughts that he didn't notice the quiet man who saved him nearby until he felt something small and fluffy rub against him, and then another. He originally wanted to whack them away, but he was shaking so much from anger and sadness all he could do was continue to weep in pain as the kittens rubbed against him in order to possibly cheer him up.
Their owner looked down at the young man, a blank expression on his face as he sighed and shook his head, he held a piece of clothing in his hands and once Basch was calm enough he began to speak, a baby kitten climbing his shoulder. "I went back earlier today…. I found this…" and he placed the black shirt on the ground with a sigh before backing up, picking up another cat and stroking it gently.
Once Basch could see past his tears he wiped his face off he looked down at the article of clothing placed before him, blinking as he flashed back again.
Erika stood in front of Basch, a smile on her face as she held out a black shirt with a curved red cross on the chest. Every point on the cross was an identical length and each side curved inward with no straight lines. The red was bright and vibrant as she spoke "It's supposed to stand for goodwill and justice!"
Basch smiled and took the shirt from his little sister, observing the ring on her own finger, her fiance was not fortunate enough to come to Basch's wedding, but he was forgiven. Besides, now he had time with his little sister and she even had a present just for him "Thanks Erika, this is wonderful, I'll wear it as soon as I can get out of these formal attires," and he patted her hair, seeing the smile on her face.
Now she's dead.
Now the colors were faded and spots of red dripped down the shirt, but it was from her… the last thing his sister had ever presented to him. He held it close, sobbing to himself for a few more minutes before looking up to the Greek man in front of him. "I'll be leaving soon…" he said, wiping his eyes, a new fit of determination upon them after seeing this shirt. "Thank you for helping me, and risking yourself."
The man nodded slowly and stepped away from him, from the violence in his eyes, he could already see that he wasn't going to be questioned "Any time you want to head out I'll take you back to shore on my boat, until then, take your time," and he walked out of the room, leaving the man behind with his thoughts.
Basch stared at the shirt and despite the pain that went along with it he lifted it above his head, sliding it over his head and placing it on his body. It was warm… he must had dried it somehow, or perhaps that was a trick of his mind to try and tell him that he wasn't alone. No matter what he felt, he was alone now… and to the rest of the world he was dead…
He could have gone to the FBI, attempted to get reinstated and hunt down the men who did this, but that would take too long. Too many rules, too much regulation, he didn't need justice… he needed revenge… He couldn't be weighed down by what he had before, he had to kill each and every man who had taken a part in this, and for that, he would become a punisher, no… he would become their executioner.
