The Writer's Challenge

Woo! Go Zan!

Oh my god! Our first bit of spam! It's unbelievable!

At any rate, sorry to hear that Zal. Are you going to try to finish your piece at all or just try and win this last topic? Which is your decision, remember. The final topic of our meaningless little challenge.

The work I'm posting now, I'm really happy with. I've never finished writing a piece of work. EVER. Not even a short story. So me doing this project all the way through has really been a good experience for me. I also happen to think it's pretty darn good. Granted, there's room for improvement, but I like it a lot! It's something I've never wrote about before either, so that's really cool too, experiencing something new, y'know?

The only problem I have with it, besides a complete lack of description and some other errors, is that the thing is even bigger than my last entry, over twice as big! Nonetheless, I love it. I hope whoever reads this enjoys it as much as I did writing it. Especially the short fight scene, that was so much fun!

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It was a good dream. The kind of dream that you remembered was good, that you didn't want to end, but had trouble remembering sometime later. It was the kind of dream that you enjoyed then and there while you could, where that good feeling of happiness stayed with you right after you woke up and quickly tapered off.

That's why he was less than happy to be woken up, abruptly so, by the shouting of one of his friends. He rubbed at his eyes as he grabbed a mug of coffee and sat down at the table, bleary eyed, the last good feelings of that dream quite gone by now, as he looked at the miserable ghoul that was his friend Matt. Matt had been gone, disappeared, for a couple days now. He'd wondered where Matt had gone, but figured it was nothing too important. Looking at Matt now, he had to reconsider, what with the state the guy was in now. "Alright. So, let's start from the beginning. I didn't really catch it all the first time..."

"It's the Syndicate!" Matt said excitedly, his eyes bearing a strange and terrified look. "Anton, you've got to help me, the Syndicate, they're real bad dudes!"

He raised an eyebrow and gave Matt a look of disbelief. "Syndicate? You got in trouble with some kind of organization then?"

"No man, not just any organization, the one and only Syndicate! They're this group, they're like a gang but worse. Like the Mafia, something like that, y'know? Organized crime, assassins for hire, drug trade, all that shit! And they're after me!"

Anton rolled his eyes. "Come on, you can't be serious. Why would..."

"Don't give me that condescending shit! I'm serious, dead serious! I've been getting shot at for the past three days damn it! It's not paranoia or some shit like that, it's the real freakin' deal!"

Anton drank some more of his coffee and narrowed his eyes, inspecting Matt as best as he could, sizing him up. Matt liked to screw around with him but this time it seemed like the real thing. Still, Anton shook his head. "Someone's just screwing with you. Why would something like this organization be interested in you? No offense, but you're the standard slacker. I've never seen you at a job, much less see you accomplish anything of worth, so what makes you think that these guys would be after you? You throw a good party Matt and you know where the fun's at, but that's about it. I doubt someone would call a hit on you for that. Unless you managed to hook up with one of these Syndicate people's girlfriends!"

Anton laughed and Matt slammed his hands down on the table. "Damn it man! Listen to me!" He put emphasis on each of his words as he knocked his hands against the table. "I-am-get-ting-shot-at! This-is-not-a-joke!" He stopped and got up from the table.  "Please, Anton, I'm serious. I need help man. I don't know who else to go to! You're like the only guy I can count on with this crazy shit going on. You're smart, right? You can figure something out? Come on, please man, I'm begging you!"

"So, you're serious then?" Anton grew grim as Matt nodded. "Why not go to the police?"

"The police are the Syndicate's dogs. They're in their pockets."

Anton nodded. "I see. I should've guessed as much. What about your other friends?"

"The Syndicate's already drilled them for information! I came by to Ferguson's place earlier and it was all torn up and shit.  The guy told me to get the hell out or he'd called the cops!" Matt looked away and bit his lip. "I told you man... you're the only one left." Matt watched as Anton's defenses slowly started to whittle down and then said, "Hey, remember that one time? When everything went to hell that one night at Madison's party? The shit with the dealers?" He saw Anton's face light up with recognition and pushed forward for the kill. "That was some smooth talking you did there man. I thought for sure they were gonna blow poor Duke's head off right then and there. But you pulled all that shit you did and Duke got off, no harm, no foul. This can't be much harder, right man? So come on... I need your help."

Anton put down his mug of coffee and drilled his fingers on the table for a few seconds. His other hand went to his forehead to rub at his temples. He sighed after a moment of this and stopped. "Alright."

Matt shouted in victory and started to jump around the room excitedly as Anton waved it off. "C'mon, it's no big deal. Besides, I wasn't planning on doing anything else today. This is just a fun little diversion."

Matt laughed as tears rimmed his eyes. "Man, you got some strange-ass ideas of fun, and god bless you for it!"

"Yeah, yeah," Anton said, again waving his hands dismissively as he laughed alongside his friend, "just one last thing." He looked over to the clock and shook his head. "If you ever wake me up at two in the morning again, I'll shoot you myself!"

-

He'd spent the next couple hours trying to calm Matt down, talking about what he was doing, where he'd been, real nice and casual stuff. The rest of the time was spent speaking with his contacts. Anton left at six, no reason to put things off. Matt was staying, which Anton was fine with. He would've insisted on going alone if he'd had to. Anton's first stop was Luigi's. If anyone knew what was going on in town, it was Luigi.

"Ah, Anton! My good and dear friend! How are you this fine evening?"

Anton flashed a smile at the overweight man behind the counter of the restaurant. He liked Luigi. He knew what he was doing. The guy knew how to put people at ease. The Italian restaurant, the music and the food, it was all too casual, too clichéd. Anton didn't doubt for a minute that Luigi had planned it like this. Sure, the food was good, but it could be better. No, Luigi just knew how to set up a place where 'business' could be done; business that Luigi no doubt heard all about. It was all just so planned out to be casual, right down to Luigi himself. Anton highly doubted that Luigi was his real name. Hell, he doubted Luigi had even a drop of Italian blood in his veins. Yeah, Anton liked Luigi. He was deceptive and intelligent, a challenge.

But not tonight. No friendly banter or witty dialogue, just information. "Hey, Luigi. I need a favor."

"You need a favor? Since when does 'the great Anton' need a favor," the greasy Italian asked, raising his eyebrows questioningly, a mocking smile on his face. They always went through this kind of thing. But Anton wasn't going with it, not that night. It didn't take Luigi long to figure it out either. "You're serious then?"

Anton chuckled once, finding the situation becoming very familiar. "Yeah. I need some information."

Thinking that the situation had become normal once again, Luigi returned with, "Information? Information isn't cheap, my friend!  Just how, pray tell, do you intend to pay for said information?"

"Oh, I think I know a way," Anton said, slyly, letting the end drag along. "I still have 'that thing'."

Luigi's eyes bulged as he stumbled back in surprise. He caught himself and leaned forward, a smile plastered all over his face. "Now come on, pal, you wouldn't do something like that now, would you?" He leaned even closer as the smile disappeared. "So this is the real thing, huh?" Anton nodded and Luigi sighed. "Alright. What is it you need to know?"

He'd played it like he planned it. The trump card. No fun tonight. Not yet. "I need to know about The Syndicate."

Luigi let out a low whistle that trailed off. "The Sins, eh? You're gonna have to be specific though. Even 'that thing' isn't worth enough when dealing with them." Again Luigi raised an eyebrow as he appraised his opponent.

"I just need to know where some of its members are. I need to speak with them."

Luigi thought a moment and then nodded. "Behind here, that bar on 42nd street. The Rat's Hole. There's gonna be a gathering for a couple of them. That's all I know."

"I see. That should do it then." Anton turned about and started heading for the door. He spared a quick look back, saying, "Thanks Luigi."

"It was a pleasure, my very fine friend." Anton made it to the door just as Luigi began laughing. He paused and waited until the baker spoke. "I just remembered something, that's all," he said. "I just heard a rumor about you boss, that's all."

Anton turned back and smiled. "Nothing good I hope?"

"Oh no, you'd be very surprised. Quite flattering, in the right point of view at any rate." Luigi shrugged, a casual smile still splayed across his face.

"Hah! Must be a lie then, either that or you're fishing for information yourself." Luigi maintained his calm demeanor as Anton turned back.

"Alright, you caught me! Just remember boss, you can't keep using 'that thing' and expect it to work! And tell the corpse I said goodbye!" Anton was out the door not a second later. He couldn't smile after that last bit. No way. Sometimes Luigi knew too much.

-

He could hardly believe it! That sucker had taken the whole bit without a bit of hesitation! Matt threw open the door to Anton's fridge and drank straight from a carton of milk. He could still hardly believe his luck. His last choice, freaky Anton, was the one to actually pull through. His other buddies were smart, they knew better than to get involved with the Sinners. Thank god weird ass Anton didn't know what he knew. Matt knew what the Syndicate did to people who poked their noses around where they didn't belong. It wasn't pretty.

Still, if anyone could pull this miracle off, it was Anton. He'd played off his ego earlier, that shit with Duke and Madison, but that didn't make it any less true. Matt had been damn well sure that Duke was a dead man that night and then there was Anton, strutting up to the drug dealers like their bullets would just bounce off his ass. Then there was the shit he said, stuff like, "No need to ruin a good party", shit like that. Not three minutes later, the music was blasting, Duke was upstairs with Madison and Anton was chumming around with the dealer who decided to stick around like he'd known the guy for years.

Not that that was the only time. How the hell did Anton manage to show up at every party where the shit went down? Sure, that's where Matt always went, that's where all the fun was after all, but what did Anton do at the parties anyway? He didn't hit the tabs, he stayed far and away from the good stuff, the guy did just about nothing but talk. He just said he liked the atmosphere or some shit like that.  Not Matt though, he dived head first into the whole deal. He lived for those parties. Live hard and die young.

Not too young though. Like hell he was ready just yet. Matt drained the rest of the milk, popped the lid to the trashcan, and dropped the carton in. He took a look around him and shook his head. Anton had a nice place, nicer than any shack he'd lived in. What'd Anton do again? Business consultant or some shit like that. Why he hung around with guys like Matt was beyond him, but he guessed that even straight shooters like Anton needed a party now and then.

There was a sound outside the door and Matt jumped towards it. Footsteps, coming up the stairs, they were coming here, Matt knew it! It was a Sinner! One of their assassins, come over to do him! He cringed as he heard the footsteps stop, as the doorknob started to move. It was unlocked? He looked around for his options, saw a side-room he might be able to dive into, but it was too late! He watched as the door opened, painfully slow, like his fate had gone to all fours and was crawling towards him.

"Shit!" He yelled a moment later. "Anton, you just about scared the piss out of me! Christ man, what're you doing back here already?" Matt suddenly smiled and started moving towards the door. "No shit, you took care of it already?"

Anton, still surprised at his reception, shook his head. "Not quite." Matt hung his head and cursed again as Anton continued. "I just went out for a bit. Grabbed something to eat, got some stuff for you."

"Stuff for me?"

"Yeah. This could last a while, right?"

Matt shook his head. "Listen man, whatever's gonna happen, it's gonna happen soon. Good or bad, this shit has to be wrapped up fast." Matt looked at the bag of groceries in Anton's hands and laughed. "Besides, I've seen your fridge, the kind of shit you eat would kill me!"

Anton chuckled a moment, sharing in the moment of levity, and nodded. "I have made some progress though. I've arranged a meeting with a few of their members."

"No shit? How'd you manage that?"

"Hard work and dedication, how else? The meeting is tonight though, so I need all the information on the Syndicate that you can give me."

Anton motioned towards the table and Matt took a seat. "Shit man, where do I start? There's a lot to tell." Anton sat directly across from his friend and folded his hands together as he listened. "Okay, so these guys, they're this organization, right? Gang stuff, but real hardcore. They've got their fingers in everything man, it's crazy. Anyway, they like red and black. It's like the Bloods wearing red, that kind of thing. But they don't wear it all the time. They don't want to get caught that easy, right? The thing is, they're real crazy about secrecy. Most of them don't even know who's one of them or not until they get some kind of message from their handler. Oh yeah, handlers are kind of like the lieutenants or something, they handle the lowest guys. They've got bosses too, but I don't know much about them."

"At any rate, they're secretive, right? So the only way they know about each other is if their boss tells them or if they see the symbol." Matt reached inside his jacket and threw out a small metal object. "Killer huh? They must be expensive as hell to make. I got this one from one of the guys chasing me. I figure I'll sell it once this is all over and done with." Matt saw Anton's face and knew that his impression was right on. The icon really must be expensive! It was a simple thing, a red cross on a black background, all metal, with two red orbs stuck between each of the arms of the cross and with one last orb at the center. He'd thought they were rubies or some shit like that at first, but they turned out to be metal, like the rest of the thing. "Remember how I said I don't know much about those bosses? Well, this shit here paired up with what I do know tells me something. The big boss, he's probably real biblical and shit. I call these guys the Sins, right? Well they call themselves that too, Sins or Sinners. Then there are those seven dots. I figure that they got this shit all centered on the Seven Deadly Sins. That's from the bible, right? I never was into all that bible shit."

Anton picked up the icon and studied it a moment before setting it back down. "Sounds like these guys have a pretty high opinion of themselves."

"Man, it's not just shooting shit, these guys are the real freakin' deal. They're not just in the city dude, they're out there. Way out there! Like, cross state, cross country! That's scary as hell! You think I wouldn't have high-tailed it out of here if I could? I hear it's so bad, the FBI and CIA did some kind of joint operation to take the Syndicate down! The thing is, they couldn't get past the bottom ranks because of all the secrecy and how spread out they were, so they just gave up and went back to other business!"

Anton was silent a while and Matt thought that he might be reconsidering his offer to help. He was about to say something when Anton beat him to it. "Hey, Matt? Just how do you know all of this?"

"Man, if I didn't I'd be dead by now! It's that whole thing of necessity, I found out 'cause I'd be dead otherwise!"

"I see. Can you tell me anything else?"

Matt thought a moment and shook his head. "I don't think so. I've told you just about everything I can think of. They're secret, y'know, that whole, the left hand doesn't know what the right hand's doing, thing, and they've got a lot of power behind 'em." He looked Anton over and began to wonder if his friend was even capable of taking on the challenge. Thinking of it himself, it damn near seemed impossible.

"Okay."

Matt nearly jumped out of his chair in surprise. Anton had responded so quickly, so firmly without doubt. The idiot must be out of his mind!

"I'll do it," he said again.

Matt just shook his head as he smiled helplessly. If anybody was gonna pull this off, it was this freak.

"The meeting starts early, at about eight. They've got something big planned tonight, or at least they're planning on something big happening."

"You're gonna try and screw around with 'em? You sure that's a good idea?"

"I'll find something to do at any rate." Anton shrugged and got up from his chair. "Six p.m. now. I figure I've got enough time to check up on a few things. Things are going to have to be perfect tonight."

Matt nodded and stood up from the chair. He moved towards Anton and stuck out his hand as he smiled. Anton returned the smile and shook the man's hand. No words were exchanged as the pair stood in silence.

Anton broke away after a moment and made his way for the door when Matt stopped him a last time. "Hey, are you going to tell me why you're doing this now? For real?"

Anton laughed. "I told you! It's just for fun!"

-

Seven thirty. Anton was sitting inside The Rat's Hole with an untouched mug of beer in front of him. Occasionally a patron shot him an angry glare, but that was it. The bar really was a hole where the skum of the town drained down in. It was the opposite of Luigi's place, although just as successful at doing what it did. You expected dirty business to go on in a place like this.  There were just so many others like it that there was nothing to be done about it. He looked back to a grime-covered door next to the bar and looked back to the bartender. The bartender returned the look and shook his head. Not yet.

Anton still couldn't help but be impressed with what he'd done. The whole day had been spent in preparation, save for those few times where he'd spoken with Matt. From what he'd been told, it wasn't going to be easy, not in the slightest. But that made it a challenge. Anton enjoyed a challenge.

Seven thirty-five. Why did time always travel so very slowly when you wanted it to move quickly, and yet when you needed more time there was never enough? Anton was getting anxious. He held the item in his jacket close to his heart as he ran his fingers over it.

Seven forty. Luigi's words still troubled him all this time later. He could have been right, that the man was simply trying to get a reaction out of him to see if he truly did have something to hide, or perhaps the man truly did know something about him. Then there was what he had said concerning Matt. The Corpse.

Seven forty-five. There was suddenly a movement from the bartender, an almost unnoticeable move of his filthy washrag off of the table and onto the floor. A fight immediately broke out some three tables away as two men started pounding each other. This was the diversion, not only to let Anton in to the backroom, but to make the other's entrances easy as well. Or were they already there? He ducked a punch and slid through the unlocked door.

The dark room was lit by a single light, a naked bulb emitting a dim and gloomy light. Situated underneath that light was a bare table and around it three individuals. One wore nothing but black and red whereas the other two seemed casually dressed. The one in color stood quickly and made a grab for an item at his side.

Anton raised one hand to placate the group. "Please, gentlemen, sit down. There is much to discuss this night," he said, as his other hand tightly grasped the smooth object under his jacket.

-

Anton was dead. He knew it.  He just knew it! It was stupid to even try to make a move against the Syndicate.  What had he been thinking! Matt quickly cycled through his options as images of his own death blurred through his head. He couldn't leave town, but maybe he could go into hiding? Go into a witness protection program, some shit like that? Yeah, the FBI would kill to have him testify or some shit like that, they'd find something for him. That's if he could live long enough to even get that far though. Or assuming the FBI wasn't in the payroll.

He shook his head. The Syndicate was strong, but that strong? No way. But still, trying to go into hiding definitely had its risks. What other options were there? There must be something he was overlooking. What time was it? A little after midnight? That wasn't so bad. Maybe Anton wasn't dead. Maybe he was just getting hung up, or he was still talking with the Sinners, or whatever the hell he was doing. Yeah, he could still be doing something, no worries!

Not sooner than Matt had started to calm himself down did he hear footsteps coming up the stairs. Anton! He thought excitedly. That must be him! Yeah, it figures, leave it to that son of a bitch to keep him on edge! The doorknob twisted and Matt started moving towards the door. "Hey, Anton! What's-"

Through the door stepped a woman. A woman dressed head to toe in red. Matt's spirits quickly dropped and he started to shuffle backwards, like he could simply get away if he moved quietly enough. She turned towards him, her eyes blocked by a pair of expensive sunglasses. Black. This is it, he thought. There's the Syndicate. They've caught up after all of this trouble. He shook his head and cursed. "Shit..." he whispered, "Well, I guess there are worse ways to go." He lifted his chin, deciding to look death in the eye as he looked over at his executioner--your regular femme fatale. Yeah, there were definitely worse ways to go than getting wasted by a babe. Matt briefly wondered if he'd get a last request. Hell, he thought, he'd ask anyway. What'd he have to lose?

It was only then that he noticed the questioning look on her face. "Where is Anton?" she said, a light Russian accent detectable in her voice. "I thought he would be here? And here I was so looking forward to celebrating our victory together." She pouted and looked around the room.

Shit, Matt thought, relieved. The woman wasn't a Sinner. She was just some woman, maybe Anton's girlfriend, maybe even a hooker. Leave it to the freak to plan his celebration before he'd even won. "He's not here. Might not be coming back either."

"What do you mean? Of course he'll be back you silly little man. What are you talking about?"

"Beat it lady." Matt turned around and shook his head.

"Your no fun at all," was her response. "Leave it to that man to keep a girl waiting. How very rude!" She turned about and left through the door. There was a steady clack-clack-clack as her high heels hit the ground. Again Matt cursed himself, he'd thought the footsteps had sounded odd earlier. The door closed shut and he listened intently as the footsteps grew quieter and quieter.

"So, it's back to waiting is it? Shit," Matt cursed yet again, "bitch nearly scared me to death. Still, there's always-" He stopped as he heard a shriek from downstairs. That woman!

He made a move to the side-room, to grab his pistol and get ready for the Sins no doubt downstairs, when he was stopped by the woman's voice once again. "Anton!" She shouted in a joyful tone.

"Anton!" Matt repeated. A smile spread across his face and he moved to the door. The son of a bitch had done it!

"Really darling, you should know better than to sneak up on me like that! And what took you, I was expecting you to be home by now."

The doorknob turned and Anton stepped through, the woman in red following him. "Not tonight," he said with a weak smile and a weary look about him.

"What? Oh come now, don't be like that! It's been a while you know! And our celebration, you can't just-"

"Not tonight," he repeated as he turned around and put a hand on the door, barring her entrance. "Maybe next time, okay?"

The woman fumed a moment before turning her back on him and pouting. "Fine! Be that way! Enjoy the company of your sweaty little friend rather than your lovely female companion! I see how it is!"

Anton shook his head again and closed the door ever so slightly. "Goodnight, Alexia."

"Hmph!" The woman turned about and stepped away, determination evident in her every step. Anton shut the door soon after.

He slowly slumped down to the ground, his smile no longer weak but wide and genuine. Anton looked like hell though. Matt couldn't help but notice that as soon as the man walked in, the room began to stink of gunpowder. He stepped forward towards Anton and spoke. "So... it's done then?"

Anton nodded and struggled to get to his feet, but seemed too worn out to even stand. "Yeah. It's been taken care of." He absentmindedly put a hand to his jacket and fingered a hole in it, the edges of the small space surrounded by black. A bullet-hole? "You mind giving me a hand? I don't think I've even got the energy to stand right now."

Matt nodded and moved towards him, allowing Anton to drape an arm around his shoulder as he helped him up. "So, that's it, huh? How'd you do it?"

Anton groaned and shook his head again. "Not now. I'll tell you later. I just need some sleep, that's all." He laughed bitterly. "This is all your fault, you know?"

Matt helped him along to Anton's room and shrugged. "I guess. But you took this on yourself. Said it'd be fun." He tried to laugh but it came out sounding weak and hollow.

Anton's reaction was more enthusiastic. He laughed with all the strength left in him as they stepped into his room. "You're right. And it was!" He laughed again until tears started to rim his eyes. "Right. Drop me off here. A couple hours sleep and I'll be fine."

Matt did so and stepped back, looking at the sorry state his friend was in. "You're sure?"

He nodded. "I've seen worse. It's just an old case of crash and burn, nothing big. Like I said-," Anton stopped and yawned. "Like I said, a couple hours sleep and I'll be fine."

"But what did you do to-"

"Tomorrow Matt, tomorrow, I'll tell you everything then." He laughed again. "Or I guess it's today, huh? The midnight run always has done something to my head!" Again Anton laughed until it turned into a yawn. "Go to sleep Matt. You look pretty bad yourself. I'll tell you in the morning about the whole thing, not that there's much to tell." He made a shooing movement with his right hand and then closed his eyes, still wearing even his jacket.

A jacket, Matt noticed, that was nearly riddled with bullet holes. No story to tell? He sincerely doubted that as he stepped away and went back to the living room, contemplating his next move.

-

Anton was awoken by a crash. He woke up quickly and headed for the door. What was going on? Had he been followed back home? No, he'd been careful, real careful. Or he thought he had been at any rate.

He burst out of his doorway to find the living room still lit, with empty spaces found along his shelves and walls. Standing next to a broken, and once expensive, vase, was Matt, a pistol in his left hand and a bundle of things in his right.

-

It was unavoidable! There was no way what Anton had done could have prevented what was coming! He might have slowed the inevitable, but that was it! No, he had to run, that was all he could do! Matt had decided on this not long after his conversation with Anton. But he didn't have the money. His habits were too expensive to save up any serious amount of cash. But Anton, Anton was loaded. Expensive art and electronics were practically strewn across his house. He could afford to let go of some of it. It was for a friend after all!

That's how Matt had decided to take what was open to him and to get the hell out of dodge.  To board a plane and leave the city, the state, hell the whole damn country. Sure, the Syndicate operated overseas, but would they really waste all that time and manpower to hunt him down? After all, it had been such a tiny little transgression!

But he was too hasty. Could he be blamed? The Sinners could step through that door any minute and just blow the shit out of the whole damn place! Matt had just been a little too eager after he'd nabbed that laptop, and the data assistant, and the painting, so was it hardly any surprise when he knocked over that ugly vase in the corner?

Well, maybe a surprise to Anton, he thought, as he looked over towards his friend. It took him all of two seconds to get his pistol out and aimed at freaky Anton's face.

"Matt... what's going on?"

Matt laughed after seeing his expression, that stupid look that said he didn't know what was going on. So much for being the smart guy!

But Matt really did feel sorry. He stopped laughing as soon as he got a second look. This idiot had been so willing to go and give him a helping hand. It really was a shitty feeling he got when Matt thought about what he was doing. But that was life. "I'm looking out for number one. It's a shame things have to be this way, but they have to. You really think that anything you could have done could stop the Syndicate? Man, you don't have a freakin' clue!"

"Matt, listen..."

"No, you listen! I told you man, these guys are the real deal! You can't just go and spend a single day working on this shit and expect it to be over with! Come on! Use a little sense smart guy! I'm just doing what I should've done in the first place, to just get some money and get out of here!" He saw the look on Anton's face, that stupid look replaced by something else. He was planning something. Matt knew it. What was freaky Anton thinking now? He had his hand inside his jacket, fiddling around with something and... "Shit! Drop the-"

He stopped talking and started shooting as soon as Anton moved. The idiot ducked and whipped off his coat, then the thing came flying at Matt. He threw himself back and shot dead center at the coat before he realized that Anton wasn't behind it, wasn't charging towards him at a dead run. He was going for the kitchen counter! Anton was leaning over it now, reaching for something.

A bullet shot right next to Anton's head and he stopped. "Stop it right there man. Cut the shit and get away from the counter. Now!" Anton did so and Matt shook his head. "Stupid. That was some real stupid shit you pulled there. Do anything like it again and I'll kill you, fool!" He noticed that he'd nicked Anton's shoulder in the encounter. Good, that'd teach the smart-ass a lesson. Matt could hardly believe this guy! Straight shooter Anton had a gun hidden under his counter! Even better, he'd gotten the balls to go and run off with a gun pointed at him! Just what had gone down with the Sinners in the first place, Matt had to wonder.

But that little time was over and gone. He shook his head and motioned with his gun someplace in front of the couch. "Step away from the counter Anton. You might not think it, but all I want to do is rob your ass and go. I've got no reason to kill you, right?" Anton nodded and started moving away, a grim look on his face. What was that look? Matt didn't like that look, it sent off warnings and alarms all through his head that something wasn't right. He considered asking, "What the hell's your problem?" but then he remembered what he was doing. He'd be pretty pissed if one of his buddies was robbing him too. Of course, he would've expected this kind of shit from one of his buddies. He kicked at the coat that Anton had thrown at him and an object tumbled out. Light flashed off of the black and red object and Matt laughed. "So that's how you got a meeting, huh? You jacked that icon I had and used it to get close? Not bad! But it doesn't do us a damn bit of good. I'm telling you, the Sins just don't operate that way." He shook his head, distressed. It sucked that it had to be this way. He'd miss the parties.

"Okay, now, move a little more, away from the counter. You're still too close. I'll be picking up your little toy back there." Anton nodded and slowly started backing off as Matt made his way forward. There wasn't going to be any more surprises. He'd get out of here and find a pawnshop.  Then he'd find a plane going anywhere and ditch this shit-hole city once and for all. Maybe Canada. Yeah, some lonely ass place in Canada, that's where'd go. Be a freakin' ice fisher or something. Matt chuckled and shook his head. Maybe something a little more realistic. He didn't have the patience for that kind of shit.

There was a sudden ringing and Matt threw his head towards the site of the noise. "What the-" he stopped, suddenly realizing it's source. He'd just about left his cell phone behind! Still, that might've been for the best. He motioned towards the couch, where he'd left his coat, saying, "Answer it."

-

Anton moved over, making sure not to make any movement too sudden, too strange. After a few moments of this, he ruffled through Matt's stuff and found his cell phone. He opened it up and listened to the raspy voice that whispered to him from the other side. "Sixteen?"

"It's for you." Anton said as he motioned to toss the object. He didn't want Matt flying off the handle. It must've been too much on him. Matt was talking like a maniac. How could he do something like this! It had all been worked out, it was all going to be okay! It must've been the pressure. When was the last time Matt had had some sleep? Anton winced as he felt the pain in his shoulder. It was a small wound, but with Matt standing there, a gun aimed at him, he didn't feel so inclined to make a move to correct it.

"Yeah, no shit it's for me. It's my cell phone. Put it on the ground and kick it over. I don't need you throwing it at me or some shit like that. Nice and easy."

Anton nodded and placed it on the ground, then slid the phone over with his foot. Matt bent over, slowly, carefully, all the while with his deadly weapon pointed at Anton. "Yo... What!" All the color in his face drained away as his aim dropped slightly. Anton considered making a move when Matt raised the gun again, a smile on his face. "No shit! I mean, you're serious, right? It's all been cleared up? Hell yeah I'm ready for work!" He laughed, maniacally Anton noted, as he pressed a button on his phone and placed it in his pocket. "Looks like I'll be needing this after all! And I won't have to miss out on the parties either!" He frowned and stepped closer to Anton. "You though... you're gonna have to disappear."

Anton gulped as he took a step back. Matt cocked his gun and stepped even closer. He wasn't smiling anymore, just a set frown on his strained face. "Looks like I have to snuff you after all." Anton cringed slightly and Matt smiled, if but a moment. "Yeah man, it's a hard life. You've got to get through life however you can. Sometimes you even do that hard shit, get it all taken care of." He bent down and picked up the crest of the Syndicate and put it his front pocket. "I'll be needing this." Anton's eyes went wide and Matt laughed again. "Yup! Sorry to break it to you man, but you know, things aren't always what they seem, right? You were right, you ain't never seen me work, but that doesn't mean I don't! It's just not the kind of work that you and your straight-laced buddies should be doing. Hardcore shit, y'know? I'm a Sinner. Through and through baby, I'm a Sinner."

"You've been right all along you know. They were after me because of some real trivial shit, but that's all it takes with them. I plugged a dealer the other day because he was giving me shit, man, the guy was charging the whole damn wallet for just a pinch of the good shit, and the Syndicate got angry. Then I kind of screwed up on a little robbery, you know, nothing serious, just a little taking from Uncle Sam. Weapons ain't cheap, y'know? I think that's what got 'em pissed, me leaving a trail. The Syndicate doesn't like screw-ups. They decided to take me out."

Matt shrugged. "But the boss says it's cool! Turns out it was someone else on the run who messed everything up, and he's sittin' pretty in an alley with a bullet in his fool head! Yeah! Everything's hunky fuckin' dory." Again he moved forward, closing that last bit of distance. "Just one problem. If the Syndicate figures out that I told you what I did, that I let you in on even the little secrets I did, they'd plug my ass anyway. So I can't leave a trail. I learned that lesson. I can't have any witnesses, y'know?" He closed the distance again and wasn't even three feet away. "So you have to die. Sorry man. Thems the brakes."

Bang.

-

Matt stumbled away, screaming, grabbing at the huge hole that had suddenly appeared in his arm. His pistol fell harmlessly to the floor and Anton rushed forward, kneeing his companion in the crotch. "You stupid bastard!" Anton shouted, putting his hands together and knocking them against his back in a vicious haymaker. Matt crumpled to the ground and his head slammed into the floor. He felt a foot collide with his stomach and he rolled over, looking up. Matt winced as Anton spit in his eyes. Matt struck out with his only good arm left. He missed and Anton kicked him again. "You stupid, worthless piece of trash!" He looked around him and groaned; only then noticing that the door had opened. There was a guy coming through, a big guy.

Matt tried shouting something but it came out in an incoherent jumble. His arm! How had Anton shot him? He didn't even have a gun and the angle was all wrong! But there was a hole in the window of the living room, a nice bullet-sized hole with cobwebs of broken glass splintering out from it! "What the hell is going on?" He shouted angrily. It wasn't fair! Things were going good, things were going the way they should have gone, then this shit had to happen!

"Pride, are you all right?" The big guy was talking, Matt saw it, but what was that shit he was talking?

Anton nodded. "Yeah. How did things turn out at the operation?"

"Flawlessly," the big guy replied. "But you signaled for us, surely there's some kind of issue?"

Anton shook his head. "It's nothing Wrath. Nothing anymore. Just a small fish in a big pond who thinks he's a whale."

Matt was scuttling backwards now, away from the pair. But they were in between him and his gun! These shits didn't know who they were dealing with! He let his injured arm dangle to the side as he reached into his back pants pocket. The big guy started moving towards him, but Anton stopped him. Matt revealed his icon with all the flair of a magician on his final act. "You guys are dead meat, you know that right? I'm a Sinner! A member of the Syndicate! You think they're just gonna look the other way while you stupid shits kill off one of their own? They'll want payback!" He laughed, but was perturbed to find that the big guy was laughing as well.

"I see what you mean," the huge guy responded.

"What the hell's so funny?" Matt shouted, looking at the big stupid looking guy next to Anton. The big guy in black.

Anton kneeled in front of him and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. The little freak didn't look that strong, but those eyes, those eyes stopped him! It was that stupid look again, what the hell was that look? Anton reached inside his front shirt pocket and pulled an item out of it. Matt gasped.

"Two icons." Anton confirmed. "You really are some kind of an idiot, you know that Matt? Look closely, do you see anything different?"

He did. The one Anton held, the icon that had been in his jacket when Anton threw it at Matt, the center orb wasn't red. It was black. "What's it mean?" He said, trying to sound strong, determined, but it came out weak and whimpered.

"You really do have bad taste in company Pride." The big guy laughed again as a ring came from him. He patted himself down until he found a cell phone and flicked it out. "Yeah? Yeah. It's normal. Under control. You can go home Greed." He closed it back up and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

Anton laughed. "You were right too. You surprised me with your little bit of insight. Not bad." The young man shook his head and continued. "Imagine my surprise when I find out that one of my friends knows a considerable amount of information about the Syndicate! I was fairly disturbed by it all. I was certain there was some kind of information leak. I have to admit, I was kind of relieved to find out that you were one of us."

"You're a Sinner!" Matt shouted as he fell further back. How far had he crawled? Was he at the door yet? Maybe he could run! Shit, Anton was a Sinner!

The huge guy, Wrath, laughed again. Anton just stood there, shaking his head. "I told you. It was all finished and done. You were safe and in the clear! I was more than happy to take care of that little business for a friend. After all, it's not that hard to call off a little assassination when you're... Well, I'm sure you've figured it out by now." He sighed. "I still can hardly believe it though. I heard we'd been picking up some real losers to fill up the lowest ranks, but you? We must've really hit a new low to pick up the human wasteland, burned-out drugged-up one-word Matt. Christ, just how many times have you said 'shit' today alone?"

Matt kept crawling until he felt his back against the wall. He was there! Now all he had to do was turn around, find the door and leave! But Anton was stooping over, picking something up, whispering something. Oh Christ! It was his gun, the pistol he'd dropped! "I'm sorry Matt," he heard as he turned and looked for the door. "You really were a bit of fun." Matt turned back thinking that maybe, just maybe, Anton might find something, some reason not blow the shit out of him there and then! There was no way he'd make it to the door in time, not with that freak so close! But when he turned back, all he saw was the pistol pointed at him and Anton with that look on his face. "But nobody points a gun at me."

His eyes dilated as he saw the trigger depress and saw the hammer of the gun pull back. Shit! "Anton! Nuh-"

Bang.

-

Anton shook his head as he considered the bloody mess in front of him. He was going to have a hell of a time cleaning this up, top to bottom. But there were important things at hand. Matt was just a tiny matter after all. "How much did we make?"

"With all of the goods we stole from that freighter? We're looking at quite a bit of money." Wrath smiled and nodded. "It was quite the unexpected surprise to see you at the raid."

"The Columbians put up a better fight than I thought. I had more than a couple close calls back there. I knew I shouldn't have worn my good jacket." Anton sighed and waited a moment before continuing. "How many casualties?"

"Our side or theirs? I would say it was a massacre but that doesn't properly explain the situation. It was all just too quiet. I told you Pride, it went flawlessly."

Anton allowed himself to smile. "So my visit to The Rat's Hole was well spent. I'm glad to hear it. Remember Wrath, a good leader leads by example." He stopped again and looked to the window. "What does Sin think?"

"No one's heard from Sin in weeks."

Anton cursed. "I was hoping this little incident would bring him out of his silence! Damn it!"

"You realize that his position might be open, that the old man might have finally gone to the other side? You could-"

"No." Anton cut his large friend off. "I won't be taking that spot anytime soon. If anyone will, it'll be Envy."

Wrath laughed. "No kidding. I heard she dropped by earlier. She's really mad at you, you know?"

Anton smiled as well. "I expected as much. She's just upset that I wouldn't play along. It just means I'll get to have a bit of fun later. I really do enjoy a challenge."

The two shared another laugh as Wrath moved towards the door, past the corpse. "I'll have Gluttony take care of that. You get some sleep. You look like hell."

Anton nodded and Wrath left through the door. He sighed and looked over to the clock. It was 0215. Anton chuckled as he remembered a promise and looked at Matt. Yeah, life sure was strange sometimes.

"Yeah Matt," he said to that ghoul slumping lifelessly against the wall, "it never was about you. You thought I did all of this for fun? You really were some kind of moron. It was just business. And you were just a little diversion." Anton turned away and started heading towards his room. In a few hours, he'd have to see to it that his contacts were informed. Tonight had been a good night, but there was always work to be done. The Syndicate wasn't going to run itself after all. He might check up on Luigi too. He knew a little too much and this 'boss' business he was going on about was more than a little disturbing.

He sat down in his bed and thought about all the business he'd have to deal with today in just a few hours. Anton went to sleep not long after. He had a good dream, the kind of dream you didn't want to wake up from, the kind of dream you just wanted to sit back, relax and enjoy. Anton did.

Jumping Jesus on a Pogo Stick! What length! I...Highly doubt that I shall have the time to read all of that today...

Happy pi day everyone, I just want to appear and say that I wish to challenge teh winnar AS SOON AS I RETURN...kk?

thank you