Frank Castle stepped out of the Gotham Ritz Club into the cold night. The
press had all but left, and the bouncer's stood idle. Castle walked a
couple of blocks through the chill wind into a deserted street, before
pulling something out of his tuxedo pockets. It was a car key attached to a
key ring. He pressed the red button on the key ring and it responded with a
click and a small beeping noise. Soon, a large van could be seen driving up
the main street. It moved quietly but with purpose towards Castle. As it
pulled up alongside him, it slowed to a halt. He approached it, opening the
back and stepping inside.
Once inside the Battle Van, Castle changed into his action gear. After peeling his fake moustache from his upper lip, Castle removed his tux to reveal a huge skull on a blue top beneath. He stocked up on his usual weaponry from the Battle Van's racks, attaching it to his belt and to a strap around his massive chest. He pulled on his usual white gloves and black boots and undid the ponytail at the back of his head, un-slicking his hair.
The transformation was complete. Where Frank Castle, born Franklyn Castiglione, had stood now was The Punisher.
The Punisher stood still for a moment before speaking a verbal command seemingly to an unseen person. "Battle Van." A quiet humming began, like a computer booting up. "Mission log for Castle, Frank."
"Castle, Frank, also called The Punisher," the Van's computer replied in The Punisher's own voice. It was reciting a recording. "Mission log," it continued, "found lead on gang's supplier. Status of gang: eliminated. Followed lead to Gotham City. Suspected targets: Dee, Bill; Brennan, Johnathan Andrew; Fox, Lucius. Objective: attend Wayne Gala and acquire information on security measures for weapons manufacturing branches in New York, Metropolis, Gotham City, Washington D.C." There was a pause. "Mission status?" the computer enquired.
"Mission completed." The Punisher spoke. The Battle Van echoed him. "New objective: assassination."
"Assassination," the Van spoke back.
"Target," The Punisher spoke again. "Bruce Wayne."
The computer whirred, before repeating The Punisher's words.
"Target tagged. Access tracking signal for electronic tag 144657."
"Accessing," the computer crackled again. The Punisher left the van from the back, walked around the side on the pavement and entered the van by the driver's door. Sitting at the driver's seat, The Punisher could see the computer's screen. Soon a map materialised on the monitor. A blue dot showed up immediately, a red dot a few seconds after. The red dot was labelled 144657. "Target locked."
"Manual control," The Punisher spoke again. The engine once again growled into life as Castle took the wheel. "Mission in progress."
Once inside the Battle Van, Castle changed into his action gear. After peeling his fake moustache from his upper lip, Castle removed his tux to reveal a huge skull on a blue top beneath. He stocked up on his usual weaponry from the Battle Van's racks, attaching it to his belt and to a strap around his massive chest. He pulled on his usual white gloves and black boots and undid the ponytail at the back of his head, un-slicking his hair.
The transformation was complete. Where Frank Castle, born Franklyn Castiglione, had stood now was The Punisher.
The Punisher stood still for a moment before speaking a verbal command seemingly to an unseen person. "Battle Van." A quiet humming began, like a computer booting up. "Mission log for Castle, Frank."
"Castle, Frank, also called The Punisher," the Van's computer replied in The Punisher's own voice. It was reciting a recording. "Mission log," it continued, "found lead on gang's supplier. Status of gang: eliminated. Followed lead to Gotham City. Suspected targets: Dee, Bill; Brennan, Johnathan Andrew; Fox, Lucius. Objective: attend Wayne Gala and acquire information on security measures for weapons manufacturing branches in New York, Metropolis, Gotham City, Washington D.C." There was a pause. "Mission status?" the computer enquired.
"Mission completed." The Punisher spoke. The Battle Van echoed him. "New objective: assassination."
"Assassination," the Van spoke back.
"Target," The Punisher spoke again. "Bruce Wayne."
The computer whirred, before repeating The Punisher's words.
"Target tagged. Access tracking signal for electronic tag 144657."
"Accessing," the computer crackled again. The Punisher left the van from the back, walked around the side on the pavement and entered the van by the driver's door. Sitting at the driver's seat, The Punisher could see the computer's screen. Soon a map materialised on the monitor. A blue dot showed up immediately, a red dot a few seconds after. The red dot was labelled 144657. "Target locked."
"Manual control," The Punisher spoke again. The engine once again growled into life as Castle took the wheel. "Mission in progress."