Guardian: My city, my protectorate

By Xenomorph666

Disclaimer: I own Vile, HOMe and the Angel twins. Everything else is owned by Marvel or Disney. Mike Harrigan is owned by FOX as well as Aliens

Summary: 1 year after his defeat by HOMe and acceptance from the Morlocks, Vile has found his way to LA and adopted it as his home after a fateful night full of tragedy.

Booyah: in a way yes, because they both have similar goals and personalities they would get along. Hell their sense of humor is pretty much in synch too. Mostly though it's respect for each other.

Subtle fixations

In a dingy cave south of Hollywood a cage constructed of the strongest metal known to man was being used to house the most dangerous beast unknown to it. The cage held the monstrous form of the predalien, the alien offspring produced from Xenomorphs when they attach to the hunter species known as yautja, or to humans the "Predator". Beside the cage was a conveyer belt that loaded into a large red machine, that gave off a faint crimson light. What ever was in the machine set the beast on edge and commanded the attention of the only other being in the room; Nathaniel Essex, Mr. Sinister.

"Calm yourself beast, for soon you will serve a new master with a far grander plan than simple reproduction. Do you want power?" The mutated man stuck his face close to the bars and the beast took a swipe, clawing his face off. The man was un-phased as his face squirmed back into place, like water filling a glass. "I know you're angry and soon you're anger will be expressed in words of hate."

"they had better be words of hate for humans. Tell me will he possess the lacing as well?" The self-titled lord of mutants, Magneto entered the room.

"Ah, Magneto. I am afraid not, however I have managed to make small pellets of adamantium which will flow through his blood, allowing you control." Sinister smiled as he approached a control panel. "Shall we get started?"

"Indeed. But how will you control him." Magneto asked.

"He will be 'conditioned' to respond to me above all else." Sinister smiled wickedly as he flipped a switch causing the cage to be put on the conveyer. His manic laughter filled the air but was soon cut off by Magneto's groaning.

"Sinister, this isn't a horror movie we don't laugh like that because our goals are seen as 'evil' by the world." His face was covered by his hand.

"Oh, but I do so enjoy the laughing. It's the only thing not sinister about me." Sinister pouted.

"Oh and what about your 'lounge wear'?" Magneto arched an eyebrow as Sinister froze.

"That's none of your business." He said, while crossing his arms.

The two then stared at the giant machine in the middle of the room it's whirring had clamed down and now a light from the center intensified. This caused Sinister to smile happily, Magneto though was holding back the light from his eyes.

"He's ready…" Sinister said as he came to the other side of the machine, Magneto followed and smiled at the sight that greeted him.

"Who is first to teach a lesson to."

"V-i-i-ile." The beast croaked out in a strange alien voice. "Vi-i-ile…"

"Apparently he has a grudge to settle." Sinister smiled.

"Then let him settle it, we can't risk distractions." Magneto promptly turned on his heel and walked out.

"My pet, soon the world will fear your mere presence." Sinister said as he lead the creature to the entrance. "Now, settle your score and return." He pointed the beast a path to follow and it was gone.

===

I had been waiting for Harrigan to arrive. A week ago I had sent a scared boy to him with a message, when I returned to the church the next day Father Horn had a message for me. Harrigan wanted to meet me in private, today. The whole thing stunk of a trap, but I was willing to listen to him if it wasn't. I was also willing to place him head first into hell if he planned on trying to kill me.

After an hour of waiting the officer's tan car pulled up into the abandoned crime scene. A few weeks ago I and another had given it quite a shake down. I looked around as he got out of his car, I saw where I had fallen. Something inside of me told that not only was I luck, but so was anyone who didn't get touched by my blood.

"Admiring you're handy work I see." Harrigan said as he came in. "What's you're deal?" He looked confused, I couldn't blame him much. He was human after all.

"She was in trouble, like the kids here." I broke off a piece of rotting wood.

"So, you could have called the cops." He said simply.

"I've seen what cops do, both with mutants and those they consider worthless." I jumped onto a beam and hung there. "They need help, not just a warning to the offenders or an apology for the ones they lost. There are devils and there are monsters Harrigan. Man is the subtle definition, each person becomes either a devil or a monster. The devil's are irredeemable evils, the monsters are those twisted by the hands of the fates they have made. The monsters can break free of their evils and possibly become more."

"And what do you want to become, or are you a devil?" Harrigan lit a cigarette.

"I'm a monster, change is not in my future though." Out of the corner of my eye I spotted movement. I leapt to the fourth floor to get a better view.

"Yeah whatever, just stop killin' people ok." He gave me an order, I couldn't help but laugh. "What's so damn funny?"

"I don't kill them lightly, life is a precious thing, but those who harm, must be harmed. It's a simple equation."

"So's this. Two wrong's don't make a right." He waved his cigarette at me as I felt movement from behind.

I reached my arm into the darkness slowly. There I felt the biting sensation of a knife sliding across my hand, followed by the hissing of my blood as it spattered on something and someone,

"Aw, shit!" It was a man. I looked into the darkness now, my view unobstructed. It was the same man I had seen here before. I picked him up with out much trouble as he was concentrating on trying to block the pain from the burn on his leg.

"What's your deal Harrigan?" I asked as I leapt to the ground floor with the man in between my arms.

"Yeah what's your deal man?" The man grimaced in pain. I finally got tired of his looks and pulled his boot off and coughed up the secretions of my kind that stop the blood's burning. "Ew." He said as I applied it. From there we both looked at Harrigan, "You told me some freak killer wanted to meet you here, said you needed my help."

"Why am I not surprised." I said as I grabbed a chair for the man to sit in and one for Harrigan as well, he refused it. Then I placed him in the chair. "Start talking." I stared at him straight in the eyes.

"Kid said he thought you two would kill each other. Two birds with one stone." Harrigan said as though he was finally getting tired of dealing with me.

"Well now, that's odd. Considering we're in the same line of work." The man said. "Call me Punisher, by the way." He extended his hand for a shake, something I dreaded.

"Vile." I shook his hand lightly, unfortunately it still hurt him some. "What line of work is that?"

"Punishment. Not justice or revenge. Plain natural punishment." He looked at Harrigan. "And he's tryin' to make it harder for us apparently."

"Oh please you're both psychotic raving vigilantes. Only difference is one of you needs a cell the other needs to be shot."

"Who's who?" I asked curiously.

"Well one to settle that, one of you is an insane anti-social psychopath with fantasies of killing people, the other is Vile." He said disgruntled.

"Aw, he complimented you. I think you two will make good friends." He mocked as he rubbed his foot.

"The pain will be gone by morning." I said then it dawned on me, I had no clue as to why he did what he did and had no idea why I did it. "May I venture to ask why you do this?" His face suddenly took on the look of a thousand deaths all at once.

"It seems I say this a lot but…" From there he trailed into the tale of how his family, his ENTIRE family was killed and nearly so was he. His story moved something in me, this man had a lot of courage to go on after his family's death. He had my respect.

"And what about you?" He looked at med dead on. It was a fair question so I answered, the whole tale, up until tonight. Both Harrigan and himself look stunned from the beginning.

"Jesus, so you're an alien human?" Harrigan asked.

"In a sense yes. I'm actually surprised their aren't documentations on the ancient human abductions." That had always been a curiosity of mine.

"Damn and I thought my life was screwed up. I mean no offense, but isn't living sort of hard knowing what you did?" The Punisher looked saddened as he pulled out a flask and sipped.

"Living is my own punishment. If I live I can never meet my family in the after life."

"Sounds more like runnin' to me." Harrigan said as he took the flask. "Runnin' from your fears."

"And the ones I loved. There in lies the punishment." I felt my head sink as I closed my eyes. "Your turn Harrigan. Why the hate act?"

There was a pause, but he answered. "1997, it was a bad year. Gangs were killing each other and we were losin' the war on drugs. The these alien badass hunters showed up and it turned into the slaughter house from hell." My eyes went wide when he mentioned hunters. "What?"

"They know of this planet?" I swallowed, before I had assumed it was logical, but I never thought they really did make it here.

"Glad to know I'm not the only one who knows about them. Conformation I'm not insane." He looked at me, I knew my face was pale. "What's wrong sit on a nail?"

"No, those hunters. The have a severe, dislike for me." I tried to word it nicely, but how do you word "want to rend me into thousands of tiny particles" nicely?

"What'd you do?" Punisher asked.

"Oh, you know killed a pack or two.. thousand of them." The two men just stared at me. I think I had at least earned Harrigan's respect.

"Well, I gotta get goin." Punisher said as he got up and wobbled away. Then we heard it all of us, but only two of us knew what it was. It was the natural cackling of a hunter. I had been found as easy prey.

"What the hell is that?" Punisher asked, I could only look at him, my eyes wide with fear. He got the message, though a few minute later all hell broke loose.

===

AN: You know who it really is right? Well do you?