Anthony had never really believed in not an afterlife, not since he was a kid, but he always figured that if there was something, he wouldn't be heading towards angel-and-harp territory. Maybe he hadn't, but this is worse than fire and brimstone, somehow. Being forced to watch as the world kept moving on without him.

Death doesn't hurt as much as he expected, somehow. The worst pain was before, when feeling his jaw break at Dominic's man's assault had been the least of his worries. The explosion had been a split second of burning, like unwittingly stepping under the shower when it was on full heat. It had cleansed him of the other pain.

He's in the same place he'd been before when he wakes up, but all that's around him is the burned and blackened walls and ash. There's barely so much as a scrap of furniture left, never mind any bodies. Anthony grins at that. Taking them down with him had been his main goal.

He looks down at his hands and flexes, seeing the floor through them. Not part of the plan. He walks down the half-destroyed stairs, not noticing the missing steps, just gravitating towards where they're keeping the Boss, and does what he always has. Follows him.

He's there on the boardwalk that evening, watching Bruce and Elias talk about the past and the future, talk about him. He doesn't get a funeral; they never find enough of him for that, but he's there at the memorial service, stood at Carl's shoulder, close as he always was, not that he feels it and he's there, shaking with anger when Carl is working out his revenge on Dominic. Worse, he's there their first Christmas truly apart, trying in vain to comfort Elias as he falls to pieces in their apartment.

He's there, struggling futilely to stop the bleeding from the sniper's bullet with his incorporeal hands after Elias's plan nearly succeeds. Anthony stays by his side the whole time, sends a shiver down the spine of the unfortunate surgeon chosen to save his Boss every time she passes through him, stands guard by the hospital bed in Harold's safe house, only seen by that dog of theirs who tries to lick him and he tries to pat before they both realise it's pointless. He's there when they finally reveal their secret to the Boss, their war, their machine, and he doesn't like that, not at all. He's there when Bruce's murder is discovered, when Elias keeps his composure until the second the detective leaves the apartment, only able to watch as something important inside Carl snaps as he practically collapses onto the sofa.

Bruce never joins him.

Throughout all that time alone, he thinks his presence by Elias's side is his punishment for a life lived badly, a fighter who can't fight, a protector who can no longer protect.

He sees the shooter outside the Double Bs before Harold and Elias, yells, shouts, screams, louder than he has in years for them to watch out, tries to end the bastards himself, but only succeeds in making one of them shudder. The final bullet hits Carl Elias where his involvement with the Machine had started, puncturing his forehead and killing him before he has time to fall, not even enough time to shut his eyes.

The Boss's translucent form stays standing, and Anthony finally realises why he's really still around. As long as Carl is here, Anthony has to be too. He'd made that promise years ago, that he'd always be there, of course at the time he hadn't realised exactly what 'always' meant. Elias tries to raise a gun he no longer has, not realising he's been hit. Anthony takes a step closer to him and rests a hand on his forearm.

Carl whirls around, confused but ready to fight, but his gaze lands on his own cooling body before he sees Anthony.

"Oh."

"It's okay, Boss," he says gently, and Elias freezes.

"If I look up now, what will I see?" Carl says, shutting his eyes tightly.

"Me."

"Just you?"

"Just me, Boss," Anthony takes Carl's hands in his, traces the scars across his palms with his thumb like he used to and repeats "It's okay."

Carl opens his eyes, then pulls his hands away. "You waited for me."

It's not a question, but Anthony nods. "Course I did."

He half expects a dry comment in return, but Carl is quiet, just looking at him, taking him in until Anthony almost can't stand it anymore, then he speaks.

"I'm sorry."

"What?"

"I killed you, Anthony. I gave them the code."

It's Anthony's turn to stare, speechless. He sees that look in Carl's eyes, like he's expecting some retribution. Instead Anthony drags him close, holding him tightly like he's wanted to do for months, but hasn't been able to. Elias is tense for a moment, then buries his face in his chest, and somehow Anthony can feel tears leaking into his shirt. The might both be dead, not much more than whispers on the morning breeze and memories, but this feels real, somehow, like they're the same as they always were.

"Idiot," Anthony murmurs in his ear.

"I didn't think anything good would be waiting for me here," he says.

"Nothing good. Just me."

There's a flash of light and they finally pull apart enough to look for the source. There's a door at the edge of the parking lot now, red with peeling paint, the light leaking around the edges of the frame. Anthony is sure he's never seen it before, but it feels familiar, like coming home after a long day.

"I think that's for us," Carl says quietly. He slides his arm around Anthony's waist, something he'd never have done while they were alive, too scared about what could happen if someone found out about them, how they might hurt one of them to get at the other. "Are you ready?"

"Long as you're with me, I'm ready for anything."