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Now in this chapter, we finally reach the flashforward from the start of this story.
Thank you to Bl4ckHunter for a suggestion which I have used in the start of this chapter.
Chapter 10- The Takagi Building
Frank's base, New York
Frank and Slade tied the thug they had just captured to an electric chair which Natasha and Clint had given him to help in his job.
"So tell us, where is Viggo?" Frank asked him.
"Who the hell is Viggo?" the thug asked, though they were not fooled.
Slade stepped on the pedal and the man screamed as the electric shock passed through him while his body convulsed violently.
"Do you mind?" Frank asked Slade and he removed his foot.
"You don't have to do things to me to make me talk", the thug said, "I will tell you everything you need to know. You won't be able to stop him. He is incarcerated at Ryker's Island and has a plan to escape."
"What about Takagi?" Slade asked.
"Oh! He has too many guards", the thug said, "You won't be able to get to him."
Slade stepped on the pedal and the man screamed again as the electric shock passed through him and he convulsed violently.
Frank knew Slade was frustrated over Joe and said, "Don't kick yourself. I was also fooled by someone who I thought of as my best friend."
"It's not the same", Slade said before stepping on the pedal again but nothing happened this time.
He tried to step again numerous times but nothing happened and Frank said, "Looks like this thing has a glitch."
"Then it needs fixing", Slade said as he knelt down and started looking at the wires.
"Wait! Please don't!" the man said.
"Are any Yakuza still loyal to Takagi?" Frank asked.
"Yes", the thug said.
"Have they done anything about Tarasov?" Slade asked as he looked at the wires.
"They can't", the thug said, making both of them look at him, "The Eternal Sun got an old Iron Man suit for him. And he will be way beyond any of them. Though they will protect Takagi till their last breath."
"Will you give us a minute?" Frank asked the thug and the two walked out of the room.
"What do you think we should do?" Frank asked Slade.
"We have to take down Takagi and get to Ryker's Island to stop Tarasov", Slade said.
"What do you think we should do about him?" Frank asked, referring to the thug.
Inside the room, the machine had suddenly started working by itself and was shocking the man who screamed but they didn't hear him because of sound proof glass in the middle.
"It's your call", Slade said, "You are the one who operates on this world."
"On one hand, I want to just kill him", Frank said, "On the other hand, I might make him an informant. He can supply me info on black market dealings and if he steps out of line, I will put him down. Basically, I am giving him a job. It's kind of like that Suicide Squad on your Earth you told me about. Except no bombs in his head."
"So what will you do?" Slade asked.
"Just give me a minute", Frank said as he started thinking.
"Is something cooking?" Logan asked as he arrived.
The two looked at each other, puzzled.
They then turned around and saw that the chair had malfunctioned and had burnt the thug to death. The room was on fire.
"The chair is burning", Nuke said.
"Looks like the glitch is fixed", Slade said dryly.
"Damn!" Frank said, "I left my jacket in there."
Takagi Building, New York
Frank, Slade, Logan and Nuke had then finally decided to attack the Takagi Building. Viggo was at Ryker's Island but like the thug had said, the Eternal Sun was planning to bust him out.
As the four entered the bar area, the bartender, who was slowly reaching for a gun under the table tried to say, "You all shouldn't be he-"
Frank shot him in the throat, killing him. As other thugs arrived, Slade cut off the hand of one before stabbing him in the throat, killing him. Logan kicked one on the knee, making him fall down before stabbing him in the mouth. Nuke picked up one and snapped his neck.
Another arrived but Frank grabbed him and dragged him to the shutter. He was then about to slam his face with the shutter, "You can either be helpful or you can be dead."
"Stop!" he said, "Yasuke is in the bathroom. I can distract him."
Frank then dragged him away and made him run towards the bathroom at gunpoint. The thug went inside and said to Yasuke, "Hey, Yasuke. Who would win in a fight, Captain America or Captain Japan?"
At that moment, Slade leapt at them, bringing his sword down on the thug before stabbing Yasuke in the heart in a rotatory motion, killing him.
They then heard someone talking, "We apologize, Takagi-San. The plan has failed."
Nuke kicked that door open and Frank started firing around, killing the thugs. Slade rushed Takagi but some thugs stepped in the way. Slade cut off the hand of one of them in a rotatory motion before stabbing him and another one behind him through the throat before retracting his blade while Logan jumped and stabbed two thugs in the chests, killing them.
During this time, Takagi had taken the elevator and fled the scene.
Frank picked up a bottle and smashed a thug's head, making him fall down in pain before he shot him dead. Nuke threw one down hard and stomped on his chest, killing him. It then shot down two more.
Frank saw a bottle and did the same thing he had done in Central Zoo. Picking it up, he threw it into the air at three thugs before firing at it. The bottle burst into pieces, blinding the three men as the glass and liquid hit their eyes. Using the opportunity, Frank shot down two of them while Slade chopped off the head of the third.
Another man fired at Slade but his armor deflected the gunshots. He grabbed the man by the throat and threw him down before shooting him dead.
Frank walked towards the elevator but on trying to operate it, saw that it needed a retinal scan. One of the thugs who wore a white suit fired at Logan who healed but before he could kill the man, Frank said, "Wait! We need a retinal scan!"
Logan grabbed the man and the Demons of Death dragged him to the elevator where his retinal scan activated it. He was a high ranking thug, signified by his suit which was why his scan worked.
Nuke then shot him point blank on the face, killing him as his face turned into a bloody mess.
The four went into the elevator and it went up. The doors opened. They heard loud music coming from a room and Frank kicked it open. It was a disco area.
The song was "Innocence" by heavy metal band "Disturbed."
"They have good taste in music", Frank commented, "Almost makes me not want to kill them."
"And?" Slade asked.
"I said almost", Frank said.
"We'll slaughter first, enjoy the music after", Logan said.
"Come on", Nuke said.
Frank grabbed a thug from behind and choked him to death with his gun while the song played in the background-
Who is innocent?
No one is innocent?
Who is innocent?
Who is innocent?
No one is innocent?
Who is innocent?
"The song really suits what we do", Logan muttered.
As three men tried to fire at them, Frank and Nuke fired back and managed to kill them instead.
Who is innocent?
Is it relevant in the world today?
I shake my head in disbelief
The killer walks again
Freed by evil men
And their dark charade
This can't be happening
Logan elbowed a man in a rotatory motion before stabbing him in the face, killing him. Slade gave a brutal uppercut to a man, making him stagger back, holding his jaw, before slicing his throat. Logan stabbed a man in the chin and the claws protruded from his head.
Your corruption is like a cancer growing inside
You owe the world an apology
A thug attacked Frank but he grabbed and twisted his hand before stabbing him there, making him yell in pain. Frank then stabbed his chin with another knife and it protruded from his head.
You've been taught all your life
That truth is easy to hide
You face your judgment another day
And suffer eternally
The Demons of Death then made their way to a kitchen.
As some thugs tried to fire, Nuke picked up a frying pan and smashed two of them in the head hard, killing them.
Slade chopped off one's head while Logan stabbed another with his claws. Frank grabbed a thug and shoved his head into some boiling water, killing him brutally as blisters formed on his face and he screamed before finally dying.
The four then went into another room which had a large table and many chairs surrounding.
"This is probably where he holds his meetings", Logan said.
"Right", Frank said before the four crossed that room and ended up in another room which had two statues, wearing samurai outfits.
The four crossed that room and reached the last one. As they walked inside, they saw a Japanese man wearing robes standing there along with two female samurais.
"Greetings", the man, who was none other than Takagi, said as he walked towards them, "I have much to tell you all before I depart."
"Don't plan a long trip", Frank said.
"You have reached the heart of my empire", Takagi said, "But it is mine no longer. The man known as Viggo Tarasov has taken it away from me. Tarasov has used us all. He has used the four of you to weaken Damon Dran's criminal empire. Me, he has used the power I foolishly granted him to advance within my organization, winning over my employees to his purposes. And this Kane Wolfman has helped him even more and both of them have formed their own faction which is larger and stronger than mine."
"What are their purposes?" Slade asked.
"To control all crime within New York City", Takagi revealed, "And to kill the four of you and John Wick, at all costs."
"Good luck with that", Logan said with a smirk.
"I am machine", Nuke said, "They cannot kill me."
"Tarasov is imprisoned at Ryker's Island", Frank said.
"So tell us where Kane is right now?" Slade asked.
"On his way to Ryker's Island Prison", Takagi revealed, "He has plans to free Tarasov."
With a sad sigh, Takagi said, "Tarasov and Wolfman have won. The Eternal Sun is theirs", he gestured to the two female samurais, "I have a few loyal employees left", he then pointed at them, "But it is your help I seek."
As the four looked at him, he said, "I have lost. I know this. The Eternal Sun is decimated. My grip is weak on what is left. Viggo Tarasov and Kane Wolfman control the Eternal Sun now. Now when we are done here, the remaining Yakuza will attack you. Unless you do the deed."
Slade saw a samurai sword and picked it up respectfully. Walking towards Takagi, he stabbed him in the abdomen before yanking the sword out and chopping off his head.
He then put the sword back where he had picked it up from.
The two female samurais got down on their knees and committed Seppuku.
One unarmed thug was watching the scene from a corner, cowering in fear. Frank grabbed him and punched him multiple times on the face, breaking his nose and some teeth, "How do we get out of here?"
"Secret passage in Takagi's office", the man said in pain as he cried, "But office is locked."
Frank punched him a few times on the throat and ribs hard, killing him.
Some thugs in suits arrived, holding flamethrowers. As one fired, Logan jumped in the way. He got injured but healed. With a roar, he drove his claws into the throat of one of them.
Frank stabbed one in the chest with a knife before uppercutting him with the other one, killing him brutally.
Slade cut off one's head while Nuke picked one up and snapped his neck.
Frank then picked up the flamethrower of one of them, deciding to use it.
As another arrived, Nuke threw him at a shelf, breaking it and killing him. Some keys fell down from the broken shelf.
"They must be the keys to Takagi's office", Frank said and Slade picked them up.
Suddenly, Logan heard some sirens down below.
"The cops are here", he said.
Seeing Frank's troubled expression, Slade asked, "Isn't that-"
"Part of the plan? Yes, it is", Frank said, "But they are before schedule. We need to get to the office and out of this place."
"You sure this will work?" Logan asked.
"I am pretty sure", Frank said.
"The plan is smart", Nuke said, "And Soap is a good cop."
As the four walked out of the room, they saw the door to his office but some thugs were guarding it. Before they could do a thing, Frank fired with his flamethrower. The thugs were set on fire and ran around, screaming, before falling down, dead.
The four ran towards the door and Slade unlocked it.
As some thugs attacked, Slade sliced down three of them simultaneously in a rotatory motion while Logan sliced two of them in a rotatory motion. Nuke picked up two and crushed their throats.
"I got an appointment with the cops", Frank said.
"You go", Slade said, "We will catch up later."
"Don't worry, bub", Logan said, "We will bring backup."
"Go", Nuke said as it shot a thug point blank.
Frank nodded at them and ran into the elevator which went down.
He then took out the empty cartridge and threw it down before looking at the door in front of him. Some Yakuza were coming. He hid.
The 7 Yakuza members walked through the door, pistols raised as they looked around for their enemies.
One of them felt his foot step on something hard and looked down to see the empty cartridge Frank had dropped.
As soon as he looked back up, he was shot on the face by a MAC-10 and fell back by many feet, dead.
It was Frank. The others backed off as he pointed it at them. Suddenly, he threw it. The one in the front ended up dropping his gun and caught his gun instead, looking at it in confusion.
That mistake was fatal for the entire group. Frank punched him hard on the face, making him fall down as he brandished a knife and sliced another's throat with it.
He then brandished twin pistols and shot two of them down simultaneously. He then shot down another one before shooting the one he had punched.
The remaining one had taken cover during the fight. He started running away in fear but Frank shot him in the back of the head, killing him.
He then walked into the elevator and reached the bottom floor. As he walked out of the elevator, he saw flashes of red and heard blaring sirens. The police were there.
As he walked towards the glass door, he saw many of them outside. They had surrounded the place. There were helicopters too.
As Frank walked out, he emptied the cartridges of the two pistols.
"Put your hands in the air!" one of the cops commanded as they all pointed at him, "Hands in the air!"
Frank raised his hands, surrendering to them.
"Let me through!" Detective Martin Soap said as he came forth, "I am in the Punisher Task Force."
He took out his cuffs and walked towards Frank, who had still not dropped his pistols.
"Come on, please!" Soap whispered, "You are embarrassing me here."
Frank lowered his hands and dropped the pistols, letting Soap cuff him.
"Remember our plan!" Frank said roughly, "Ryker's Island."
"Yeah, I remember", Soap said as he led Frank away.
Now one more chapter left before the end. We will see a lot of familiar faces there.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. In case there is any confusion, Soap is an ally of Frank and is in on his plan.
Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.