The Thin Line Never Crossed.

Brooklyn, New York
11:49 P.M.

Victor had been wandering the streets now making sure that nothing was going on. He kept his mask tucked into his jacket pocket because the shadows usually covered his face. It had been a few days since he shot that man, and he still could not shake the feeling of comitting murder, but then again who cared what he did. Vigilantes lived by their own rules and rarely abided the law. Victor stopped by a hotdog vendor who was still on the streets this late at night, he grabbed him two hotdogs and told the man to hurry home quickly to his family before something bad happened. He turned and walked down the street taking his time eating the hotdogs, enjoying the flavor of each bite that he took. As he walked down the street he heard a scream coming from down the alley, he shoved the other hotdog down his throat quickly and began speed walking towards the scream. Once Victor got there he saw a man in a suit standing over a women in a short skirt and high black heels. "Pimps..." Victor said quietly as he kept walking by them. "Don't get into a business where you know the consequences can be malo for you." He thought to himself as he gathered his strength in his legs and jumped up to a building. Once he got to the top of the building he began running from building to building burning off the food he just ate.

As he jumped to the next building a series of screams caught his attention. Victor turned around and looked down from the edge of the building and saw two females surrounded by four men. He knew where this was going to go, Victor pulled out one of his pistols and shot it into the air causing the action below to cease. "Now lets end this before I have to hurt you all." Victor laughed at one of the men reply who was kind of high judging by the rubber band wrapped around his arm. Two of the men grabbed a knife and pulled the girls to them and held a knife to each one of their throats. Victor just shook his head and pulled out another gun. "Now I have two guns, and you two have two knives. Lets see who gets the kill first." The two men went to pull the knife over the girls throat and almost did but was stopped by two bullets going straight through their skull. The girls made a break for it with only little cuts on their necks. Before the other two could run away, Victor jumped down and caught one by the back of his shirt and slammed him into the ground. He could hear the other one trying to get away, He slammed his right fist onto the ground causing a small shockwave making the men lose his footing on the ground causing him to fall on his butt.

Victor dragged the man with him as he went and got the other man. "Now we can do one of two things. One I can let you go and try to rape more girls. Dos I can kill you now so this mess won't be running around the streets anymore. Then there is a tres option but Jail is not going to do any good for you two. After all your two friends chose option number two." The two men began to plead with Victor asking them to spare them, but he was contemplating on what he should do. Victor reached into his pocket and pulled out his mask as the two men still sat there pleading with him. He placed his mask on his face and pulled out two guns from his pockets. "I am thinking of a number between uno y diez. Guess correctly and you two get to go free and will not end up like your amigos over there." The two men whispered to each other before saying two out loud confidently. "Dos....dos....dos...that my friends is wrong...just kidding but that is the right number. Go free but if I see you two again this will happen...." Victor shot them both in the knee before putting his guns up. He left the men howling out in pain as he got up and dragged the two bodies down the alleyway looking for a place to dump the bodies. This had been the second time he had killed somebody and could tell that it might not be his last.

Zalmon found himself wondering through the city, bored out of his mind. Things weren't ready yet and he had decided to visit New York while they were being sorted out... All he had to do was wait. Waiting, doing nothing, annoyed him. He wanted to start on his campaign for power that would never end until everything was within his grasp... He looked down at his clenched fists, his perpetual smile growing across his face, when he heard the sound of gunshots.

Curiosity got the better of him.

He walked slowly, silently, towards the source of the gunshots and saw two girls running off with little cuts on their necks, which he eyed carefully. Now now now... Who was sick enough to hold something that could cut to a defenceless girl's neck? Certainly someone was sick enough, he already knew that. People who had let the horrors of the world get to their minds, pathetic little creatures. Worthless, meaningless, annoying. Pests that were to be exterminated. He looked at Victor, hiding behind a wall, to observe what he was doing. It was quite interesting, intruiging... Wonderful in his eyes. He assumed, seeing as how the girls were running off, that he was a vigilante that stopped the men from attacking them.

As Victor dragged the bodies off Zalmon followed him, raising his hood up over his head to hide his face in shadow. It wasn't perfect, he didn't have his costume, though it would certainly do for now. He had no intention of letting this apparent vigilante get close to him, so the shadow of the hood would suffice. He passed the two men on the ground and looked down at them, spitting on them before he continued to follow Victor till he reached the entrance to the alleyway he had dragged the bodies.

Clap... Clap... Clap... "Well done... Well done indeed..." Zalmon spoke, his voice sounding refined and excellent with a hint of malicious intent. It was the kind of voice men would envy and women would adore, every single word sounding like it was cleverly thought out despite the simplicity of what he had said. "Men such as them are vermin, you did the world a favour by... Removing them. Though... Was it really necessary? Could you have not preserved their lives? Even as disgusting as they were... Is not all life precious?"

Underneath the shadow of his hood Zalmon's smirk grew. He wondered what kind of man stood before him, whether he was a man who truly thought out the consequences of his actions or a fool who would jump into action without thinking. Unless he was a man deprived so much Zalmon believed that surely he would feel some... Remorse of a kind for killing two men. "... Or maybe you're just as bad as them? Did you enjoy doing that, did you enjoy ripping their lives from them? Did you enjoy standing above those two men back there and making them plead, beg, for you to spare them? Did you like the power that you felt?" He raised his finger and pointed it at Victor. "I think you're a monster to think you could take their lives, just as bad as they are."

Victor heard somebody clapping behind him catching him off guard almost. He dropped the bodies and spun on his heels drawing his staff and extending it to full length; he spun it around in a large circle before setting it on the ground in his right hand. His eyes scanned the cloaked figure before speaking; Victor looked up and down his body trying to see if the guy or girl had any weapons on him. As the person spoke up he could tell it was a guy by the amount of bass in his voice."I could have let them live, but for what to let the same thing happen over again. I think not; it was either the girls or them. Simple as that I think." Victor shifted on his feet trying to gain balance in case this guy charged at him. "I am a vigilante, I follow some rules of the law not all of them. My motives are not always known by others. Yes I stood above them but that was because they held a knife to each of the young girl's throat. Do I like killing no but sometimes it happens." Victor placed his staff beside him as the guy pointed to him. "I keep these streets clean one way or another. Being a monster is something that will never happen."

Zalmon laughed maliciously, noticing with his trained eyes that Victor was preparing himself for a fight. He shook his head side to side slowly, in the manner one would expect a father would do to his naughty child. It was very patronizing, or at least was intended to be as such.

"Then you are a precog then? You can see the future, saw them doing the same again?" Zalmon sighed solemly, though his shadow-hidden smirk remained ever-present. "I call bullshit. Who are you to say anything about the future, especially that which isn't your own. This could've been the only time they'd commit a crime, or they could have been pushed to the psychological edge and driven to this... These are dark times remember, though I suppose now we'll never know." He crossed his arms, unthreatened by the man before him. His eyes scanned mercilessly, taking in what he could from what he saw. "Even now you ready yourself for a battle, a battle with me. A random onlooker with an opinion. You don't care, as long as you get to fight. Pathetic... I will gladly oblige. Thee who think thyself the judge of man, show me the strength you believe gives you the right to be as such..."

Zalmon raised his fists and turned his body to the side. On the side closesf to Victor he kept his fisf forward, while on the other he raised his fist to be beside his head. A fight would be good for him, he thought, as he needed to be ready for them for his plans. Though it wasn't as if he was unskilled... He knew for a fact the he was an excellent fighter.

Suddenly he broke his stance and ran for Victor, trailing alongside the wall before jumping of it to swing his foot at his opponent's head. His form was excellent, his kick well aimed and strong for a typical man. Though it was clear he was human, and had limits, it was obvious that he had skill.

"No, I only see the present. But I find it weird that you question my motives but have yet to stop me for what I did wrong. We have been here arguing over criminals instead of the real criminal staring in your face. My strength was given to me by God himself." Victor watched as the hooded figure got ready to fight him. He swung his staff around in a circle as the guy charged towards him. He was ready to fight since the moment he had first got here, now this guy was going to see the strength that he possessed. Victor charged forward and spun on his heels swinging his staff upwards to meet the foot of the hooded figure. "Me llamo Nightraven."

Zalmon felt the staff hit his leg, pain raising up it sharply which he tried to ignore, and pushed himself away from it to land on his other foot, raising the hit leg in a position that made it look like he was going to kick forward. However this was not the intention, the true one being to lessen the weight upon it for the pain to ease away. His teeth were clenched under the shadow of his hood, but he gave no hints that made it seem like he was in any pain at all. He did not think it smart to show his opponent any weakness.

"God himself, eh? ... How stupid. God is a shield the weak-minded hide behind. An invention of man, perhaps even our most devastating..." He chuckled deeply, the sound of his voice showing off confidence. It was as if he already had won, and was standing over the unconscious body of Victor.

Feeling the pain in his leg ease he placed it back down again, slowly, watching the one before him carefully. With a quick step towards his enemy his fist flew towards his neck, hoping to cause some kind of temporary stun to his enemy. Regardless of whether or not it hit he followed up with a rising kick, aimed toward Victor's chin. "Fall before me, fool, you only succeed in stalling the inevitable."

"I do not repeat myself. Some say what you say others tend to disagree like me." Nightraven took a step back and spun his staff around again. Being very religious he was offended by what the hooded figure had just said; but Nightraven had to keep his head under cool or else it could get him into trouble during this fight. He dropped his staff on the ground as the hooded figure charged back towards him. Victor grabbed his fist inches before it met his neck with his right hand then took his left palm and thrust it upwards towards the arm's elbow on which the punch flew from.

"... So you ignore the obvious? Typical for one such as you." With his free hand Zalmon moved Nightraven's hand to the side as it thrusted towards his arm, causing it to miss. "You're a brute, a blind and dumb brute." He said, thrusting his palm towards his opponents face. He moved his body with his his hand in order to give it more momentum, pushing his grabbed hand forward too in order to throw the one before him off guard. If he was to reach his opponent's face he would push downwards, hoping to slam his opponent onto the ground. He expected such an attack to deal considerable damage, though with his opponents powers he knew it would not be as effective as it would be for most people.

"Eh not ignore, but just do not care about it. A lot of things are typical for me." Nightraven watched his strike miss the point of which it was trying to hit. "Brutes are reckless in a fight, my movements are very controlled and I think I can still see." NIghtraven watched as the hooded figure thrust a palm towards his face, and hit its target. Nightraven stumbled back then felt himself being slammed in the ground. He hit the ground with a thud but it did very little damage to him, not wanting to lie on his back to long he placed his hands on the ground underneath him and pushed away from the hooded figure grabbing his staff in the process. Nightraven stood to his feet dusting himself off, he cracked his neck and put his staff in his side pocket on his pants at the same time. "You pack a punch there." Nightraven had a challenge now and he liked fighting somebody who was on the same terms with him. Fights like these made Nightraven think constantly and kept him on his toes.

Zalmon chuckled as he stepped back several times. He raised his foot into the air, keeping perfect balance as he did. Maybe his opponent had the physical upper hand... But he had the skilled upper hand. "... And I must say, you can take one too..." He lowered his foot back to the ground, and rushed forward with the greatest speed he could muster. While it was most certainly speed attainable by a normal human it was at the very peak. "It's not often I meet someone who can keep up with me! Let's see if you can..." He suddenly jumped to the side when he got close to Nightraven, quickly getting behind him. "You almost had me back then, with my arm like that... A typical person would of lost right then." He raised his hand and went to tap the back of his opponent's head playfully before he quickly took a few quick steps backward, deciding to mess around with Nightraven for a bit.

"Come at me, show me your greatest strength! I will reply with greater, skill unrivaled!" He stood in a stance that did not seem like any fighting stance, his arms crossed and standing up completely straight. He seemed to look down at Nightraven, like he was something lower. Despite his stance, however, he was fully prepared for what Nightraven could bring. His intention was to dodge, knowing that his reflexes were superior to most. He expected as much of this opponent too.

"Gracias." Nightraven watched as the hooded figure charged back towards him again running higher than the average speed of humans. "Well I am not just anybody." Nightraven tracked his movements all the way till he tapped him on the back of the head making him wonder why he was doing that. "My strength huh?" Nightraven was stunned by this man's fighting stance, it was not even a fighting stance he was just standing there almost taunting Nightraven to attack. He turned his back to the hooded figure and pulled out both of his guns. Seems like playing games is what this guy is good at, lets see if he is up for the most dangerous game of all. Nightraven emptied both guns leaving one loaded with one bullet. He turned back around to face the hooded figure. "Lets see if you like to play this game. In my hand I have two guns, one loaded and one not loaded. Both guns are the same color and take the same bullet for both. Now you get one gun and I get the other gun, on the count of three we shoot at each other." Nightraven tossed him the loaded gun and kept the unloaded gun; he was about to find out could his body take a bullet.

Zalmon caught the gun and inspected it, carefully taking it apart with his eyes. Guns... He disliked using guns. Guns killed people, obviously, and killing people was for a last resort. He was reminded of the incident with his father... The coward. He raised the gun and pointed it at Nightraven. Zalmon knew how to handle a gun. Knew what it felt like, the weight and the recoil... Yet still he detested them. His hand moved into the air and he pulled the trigger, the bullet flying out with a loud bang. He tossed the gun to the side. "Guns are for last resorts and cowards, this is no time for last resorts... And I am no coward." He raised his hand and pointed at Nightraven. "You call yourself a vigilante, a hero of the people. But yet you use a gun..."

He crossed his arms and shook his head. "Just admit you are not so right and true as you act like. You are just as corrupt and selfish as those two you killed, to say anything else is a lie." He raised his hands in the air. "I'll admit it first. I am a corrupt individual. I want only for myself, for power. I care little for those below me." He lowered his hands again. "... That said I am not without morals. You'll not find me killing without reason, and torture is unforgivable." He looked up at the sky. "Get off your high horse and admit... You are not so different to those who you fight... To first know a monster, you must be a monster yourself."

Nightraven grinned as the hooded figure examined the gun from the barrel to the handle. "Whats wrong?" Victor watched as the hooded figure fired the gun into the air stunning him. "Eh I wanted to test you, I knew the gun was loaded. I could have easily dodged the bullet but I wanted to see what you would choose. I am a vigilante, a hero of the people but people don't give us the respect we deserve. Yes I do use a gun or guns but only when this staff can not reach for me." Nightraven walked towards the hooded figure with his hands to his side not wanting to fight now. "After my father died I went on a path of vengeance,one I am still on today. Have I been wrong yes, I have made mistakes I am not proud of. Did I kill them yes why because I thought it was right but its not what my parents would have wanted out of me." Nightraven picked his gun up off the ground and placed it into his pocket. "I have no horse to ride on, I am not different but there is a line that all of us face whether or not we choose to cross it is up to us. Lets go catch a drink,standing in this alleyway can be bad and your leg could take some rest off of it."

Zalmon chuckled as Nightraven talked about his father, being reminded yet again of his own. "Ha! My father was an ass. When I took his company from him he nearly shot people because of it, luckily I stopped him." Zalmon pulled his hood down to reveal his face. He looked of Japanese descent, which didn't quite suit his accent or the way he held himself. Most would assume he was entirely English, he wouldn't blame them. "Suprised?" He asked with a chuckled. "My name is Zalmon Aleck, perhaps you have heard of me... Or at least my company Aleck Tech." He shrugged, not being suprised if Nightraven didn't know. Most people, especially those who didn't keep tabs on the business world, wouldn't of heard of him.

He looked down at his leg. "I wouldn't be worried about it, I've had worse before. Nothing a good walk won't fix..." He said as he put his hands in his hoodie's pockets. "And a drink... A drink sounds good." Zalmon said with a light chuckle. Experience had taught him... Alcahol made everything better. He walked out of the alleyway. "Come... Tell me your name, your real name. I have no use for it, I'm not the kind to rat people out to the police... Nor am I some kind of super villain." ... At least not yet, he almost added at the end. Plans... Plans were everything. Perhaps the one who stood beside him could be brought to his cause, if he twisted him to think it just. "... Even if I was you already know mine, fair trade is fair trade no?"

"That is funny. I have to say that." Nightraven let out a small laugh as the hooded figure pulled down his hood. He would have been surprised, but he had seen some weird things already in New York and this was another one. "Nah not really, I have seen something about that company on a business channel. Not really anything more than that." Nightraven was telling the truth it was a late night right before he headed out and boom Aleck Tech was on television then he turned the television off and headed out. "Yeah my shift is almost coming to an end anyway. My name is Victor Shaw, super villains hardly scare people now and days anyway." Victor turned around from Zalmon and began walking towards the main sidewalk, he knew which way to get to the bar it was not hard, after all it was New York. "Fair is fair and now you know my name."