Title: Nature Versus Nature: Episode 2 "Vendetta"
Featuring: The Sentinel
Date: A day before the JITC
Location: Someplace close to the site

I should have known from the start. I should have realized that he was one push away from completely melting down. But I didn't. I ignored all the signs. I remember Angela vaguely mentioning to be about Harvey being an only child, how he had been forced to take care of himself and his mother. I remember her saying that Harvey never had a life, that he did only what was expected of him, as if he had lived all this time without any choices to make. But as I look back on those conversations, I begin to realize that there was something else I ignored: his eyes. You can always tell where a person might be going just by looking into his eyes. Harvey was no different. His eyes were always very intense, as if he had this underlying power that he was trying to keep down that was seeping through his eyes. Later, I realized what it was: tragedy. Some people can take their shots and roll with the punches, but some people have their limits. Harvey found his. I can't ever understand how hard it was for him to watch his mother laying on that mattress unconscious in front of her attackers. I can't imagine what that must have felt like. But I can imagine that it was the event that finally broke him. I should have known that from the start.

But it wasn't the first time I had misjudged someone like that. Many years earlier, I met this woman who was extremely beautiful. She was incredibly intelligent, beautiful, had a unique and seductive fashion sense, and was quiet well accomplished. She was, to put it frankly, too good to be true. And I'm sure you know that's exactly what happened. She was Karla Segur. I'll spare you the details of our brief romances together during our college years. On the outside, Karla looked to be the perfect woman who had everything she needed. But she had one underlying weakness that completely changed her, and made her what she is today. In her own eyes, she was never good enough. She always had to have the right answers, be first on everyone's list, and always had to get what she wanted. For the most part, she did extremely well. But there was always something she could not have: A family.

I've mentioned before that she was incredibly intelligent. As a testament to that, she became one of the leading, if not the leading, fertility doctors in the entire United States. She received many accolades and recognition for her advanced research into the miracle of life and reproduction, but also received many criticisms from her colleagues who claimed her methods were very dangerous and unethical. That kind of stuff never mattered to Karla, only success did. Eventually, she invented a process that would allow sterile women to be able to give birth. She could not test it on herself so she used women who volunteered for the procedure, although none knew they were being experimented on. These so called placebo guinea pigs were subjected to constant experimentation, believing they were undergoing the actual process. My late wife was one of them. But unlike the others, the procedure actually worked. That was what eventually broke Karla. Of all the women she had experimented on to get the procedure perfected so she could use it on herself, the one woman that the procedure had worked on turned out to be my wife. Fate is a fickle mistress.

Nature Versus Nurture: Episode 2 "Vendetta"

"I have no idea what the hell you are talking about," Wolfgang said on the phone.

Angela was in the kitchen making herself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and pouring herself some orange juice, while pretending not to be listening to her father talk on the phone to one of his business partners.

"Look, I have no idea what the hell you are talking about. If this is some kind of reverse psychological shit to get me back to wrestling, it's not fucking working. I'm a stay at home dad now, that's what I am."

Angela washed the knife clean and put it away and cleaned the counter top like a good daughter is supposed to do and carried her food to her room. She walked through the living silently in her baby blue socks and was at the bottom of the stairs before she realized that her father had been watching her the entire time while listening to whatever it was he was listening to on the phone. Angela pretended not to see her father and began to walk up the stairs.

"Angela."

Nevermind.

"Yes, daddy?" Angela answered. She never spoke in that tone or sounded that politely unless she was hiding something. They both knew this.

"Hang on a sec," Wolfgang said as he picked up the remote control and turned the television on. "Yeah, I'm watching it now."

On the television was the match between the Sentinel and Boda being replayed in summary format. Wolfgang watched the match with intrigue and with a bit of anger. He glanced over to Angela and the look told her that she had some explaining to do. Angela took a deep breath and sat on the stairs. She began to think of how she was going to get out of this one.

"Yes, that's me" Wolfgang lied. "Of course that's me. You don't think someone else was trying to masquerade as me, do you? That's just ridiculous. Look, I didn't want to say anything because I didn't want anyone to make a big deal out of this, especially you. I have to go now, but I promise you I'll explain everything to you tomorrow morning."

Wolfgang hung up his Android phone, safeguarding it into his pocket.

"You want half of my sandwich, dad?" Angela asked, quickly taking a bite to keep her mouth full.

"Skip the bullshit and tell me what the hell is going on here." Wolfgang bellowed.

Angela quickly swallowed her mouthful and replied, "I had no idea he was going to do that."

"Are you going to sit there and lie to me and think it's okay because somehow you think you've earned that right?"

Angela shook her head. "I'm being totally serious. I had no idea he was going to do that. But, I should have told you what was going on as soon as I found out."

"You're damned right you should have told me," Wolfgang yelled. "It's bad enough he's doing something he shouldn't be doing; he's in with professional athletes who don't give a shit about what happens to him or themselves."

"I know, I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it, Angela." Wolfgang said. "You let this poor kid endanger himself and you did nothing about it."

Angela gasped. "That's not true. I warned you! I asked you to speak to him!"

It was true. Angela had noticed that Harvey was turning ultra violent and that he needed help. It was true that she asked her father to speak to Harvey and that her father had refused. But now her father was going to tell her another truth: that she only did the minimum of what was expected of her.

Wolfgang sighed and calmed himself down. "You should have told me this from the start. And now you not only endangered this boy's life, but you also endanger our well being."

Angela didn't understand. "What are you talking about?"

"Do you think the concept of being the Sentinel is just some kind of Halloween costume, something I use to do my job? It's a life source. Every salary I make, every endorsement deal I get, even the mortgage on this house, everything I've gotten was because of that concept. That's why it was licensed. In the business, it's not just a mask, it's a way of life, it's my license. And if anyone finds out that the guy wrestling in the mask isn't me, then it creates an avalanche of problems for me. People will think I've committed fraud. And if your boyfriend, Harvey, ever does anything stupid, it's going to reflect back on me. There's a possibility I could lose everything I've earned while performing as 'The Sentinel', including our money and this house."

"I didn't know."

Wolfgang sat down next to Angela. He was very stern with her and he could see that she understood his message. Now it was time for him to play the role of understanding and compassionate father, something that is difficult for single parents to do.

Wolfgang said, "I'm sorry, Angela, but you have to understand that sometimes you have to say something, sometimes it's not okay to just keep quiet. Now, I have to go find Harvey and convince him to stop this charade, and then have to make an another press conference announcing my retirement again. So, where is Harvey."

Angela looked away from her father to avoid making eye contact. "I don't know."

A shady, makeshift underground fighting gym

Harvey did not wear his, or rather Wolfgang's, Sentinel outfit. He was not that stupid. Besides, there was no need for extravagant showmanship in this shoddy gym. The only thing that mattered here was survival. You had to fight to feed your family, fight to stay alive, and fight to keep going. It was a lesson that Harvey learned not too long ago, and while it was under extreme circumstances, he was grateful for the lesson. He felt freer now. No longer was he forced to live a life based solely on what was expected of him. No longer was he asked to just roll with the punches and to be patient that something good was going to happen to him. He learned what very few people learn that his age: that life is all about taking control and caring only about yourself. It was that first part that he liked now: taking control. Harvey used to be too weak to take control. But that was not the case anymore. It was not just about physical strength, it was also about courage, about self esteem, about not being a coward. Harvey no longer was afraid of pain, of being hurt, or of being careful with what he was supposed to say or do. He did and said whatever came to mind. And these days what came to his mind mostly was just to fight. He loved it. To him, there was no greater thrill, no greater sense of self worth than to know you could beat someone else up.

It was such that he constantly sought fight after fight. It was his purpose for joining PRIME and to compete in the Jewel in the Crown Tournament. He knew that the best fighters from all over the world would be competing. What better rush than to fight someone who has beaten up hundreds of other people before? Harvey had no clue what the JITC was supposed to be about, and he had never seen or heard of names such as Violence Jack, Eddie O'Neal, and Desade. But he knew they were supposed to be the best at what they do. Desade, especially, was supposed to be very, very good. Apparently, she had won some kind of tournament. He was both intrigued and a little put off that Desade was not quite a man. He wasn't sure how he felt about fighting a woman, if he ever had to fight a woman. But before he could look ahead to Desade, he had to worry about Eddie O'Neal. But that match was not for another day, and the thirst was too much for Harvey to overcome.

There was no wrestling ring in that gym, nor were there mats laid on the ground in a sort of feeble attempt to provide some sense of safety. The fighters all fought on the bare marble floor. They were not allowed to wear shoes, jewelry, or use any weapons during the matches. Even so, the once white marble floor was now stained with the bloodstains of many fighters. Currently, the dozen or so fighters there who all pretty much came from the same paths in life gathered in a circle around Harvey and his opponent. The match had once started out as an even affair with the gym split in half on their support. Now the match had evolved into a slaughter with only Harvey's side of the gym cheering him on. The other side asked him to stop the match.

"What the fuck you doing man? He can't fight anymore!" Someone yelled from the crowd.

"Get that fucking nigga off him," another yelled.

Harvey kneed down on one knee and towered over his victim. He grasped his throat with a fierce grip and pulled back and swung mightily with all his force. It punch made a sickening thud as blood spewed forth from the poor guy's mouth. His nose was broken, lip busted, and he was missing a tooth now. Harvey did not stop with one punch. He did not stop with two either. Harvey did not stop at all.

"This is fucking sick."

Harvey paused for a moment and looked down at the bloody face had made. The guy was trying to say something. It came out as a barely audible whisper. It sounded as if he was begging Harvey to stop.

Didn't I tell you to shut the fuck up?

"Didn't I tell you to shut the fuck up?" Harvey demanded to know. He pulled back and struck with another fierce punch.

By this time one of the onlookers had developed enough courage or rather had most likely reached his limit of grotesque and stepped forward. He grabbed Harvey from behind and held him in a headlock as he dragged him off of the other guy with all his strength. All it takes is one person to lead and everyone will follow. And sure enough, the rest of the onlookers were now brave enough to pull Harvey off of his victim.

The guy who was the bravest to stop the slaughter in the first place was called Dave. He was a blond man, not much older than Harvey himself, who always had a five o'clock shadow. Dave never liked to shave completely; it seemed like he just enjoyed that rugged look it gave him.

"You gotta leave." Dave said. For his part, Dave was a very capable fighter. Many say he could have been world champion if he ever wanted to, but Dave never wanted to. At least, that's what he told everyone. Dave had the skill to be the best fighter in the world, many people do. But what Dave also had was the strength of awareness. He knew how far his fighting skills alone would take him, and he knew it was going to be far enough. It was how he knew that he did not want any trouble with Harvey. Harvey wasn't a fighter. At least, not in the sense that Dave was. Harvey was something else. He was possessed. And to fight a man like Harvey, even if you're sure you're stronger than him, is to commit suicide. Harvey didn't care about wins or losses, only about who's left standing.

Dave looked at Harvey again who was being held by two other fighters. "You gotta go now, man. And you aren't welcomed here anymore."

What's the matter you didn't enjoy the show?

Harvey smiled. "What's the matter, you didn't enjoy the show?"

"Get him out of here."

Harvey was dragged out of the gym.

I can go again if you want another show.

Harvey looked back and yelled. "I can go again if you want another show."

They tossed Harvey out into the sidewalk in the brisk December night. The weather was about 30 degrees with a wind chill factor of 15 degrees. However, the sky was clear so there was no snow or rain to worry about, just frigid wind cutting the skin.

Harvey gathered himself up and began to rub his knuckles. The pain he ignored so far that night could no longer be ignored. He also felt as if he had been asleep for a long time and that everything that had happened was just an illusion, a dream. He tried to remember everything that happened so far, and he found that he could not. He found that he had pieces of the time line that he could not put together. He thought it odd, but did not linger on it.

Then unexpectedly an image of Angela being raped appeared in his mind's eye.

"What the fuck," Harvey mumbled, and rubbed his eyes trying to clear his head.

Harvey saw his mother laying unconscious on the bloody mattress.

"What the fuck is going on here?" Harvey whispered loudly. He stumbled on the sidewalk, rubbing his eyes frantically and trying to shake his mind of such images.

Harvey saw himself bludgeoning another man with no remorse. He heard the sickening thud of every punch he landed, and saw the blood spewed forth from the man's mouth. He saw the atrocities he committed just minutes before.

"Why can't I stop seeing this shit?" Harvey wondered. He began to wonder why he couldn't stop fighting, why he couldn't stop hurting other people.

Only the strong survive.

"Only the strong survive," Harvey reminded himself.

Wolfgang's House. The Next Day

The business partner that Wolfgang referred to while he was talking on the phone yesterday was a good friend of his who had ten years of experience in the wrestling business. He was an Australian man by the name of Will. Normally, Will would not be outside the circle of information of what Wolfgang was doing under the guise of the Sentinel, but this was not a normal occasion. As Wolfgang waited for Angela to come downstairs, he tried to conjure up the most convincing lie he could think of. But it was hard to focus when his mind constantly lingered on Harvey. He felt guilty. He would never admit it to his daughter, Angela, but Wolfgang felt guilty about ignoring her pleas to talk to Harvey about his condition.

"Do you have any idea how you're going to explain this?" Angela asked, walking down the stairs.

Wolfgang shook his head. "I think just saying that I wanted to do this on my own sounds good enough. Plus, it's believable."

"I'm sorry," Angela said. "I didn't want any of this to happen. None of this."

Wolfgang nodded with her. He knew exactly what she was referring to. There a reason Harvey went from a calm,polite stock boy to a steroid, fighting addict. "I know, honey."

Wolfgang gave his daughter a hug. His phone buzzed. He looked at the number. This was the reason he had just thought about.

Angela looked at him. She could tell it was something serious. "Who is it?"

Wolfgang paused for a moment, listening to the other voice on the phone. "It's Detective McKenzie. He says they might have some information on the identities of those people and he wants us to come down to the precinct."

Angela backed up. She started to labor her breathing. She stammered, "You mean I have to go look at those...those monsters again? I-I can't do that!"

"No, no, no..." Wolfgang tried to reassure her. "He wants us to look at a video. You're not going to be looking at a lineup."

"II don't know."

"I know you're stronger than this, Angela. Come on."

"All right."

The 718 Precinct

Everyone was in awe of the transformation that Harvey had undergone. Angela more than anyone was a bit frightened. She then noticed Harvey and her father exchange glances. Harvey and Wolfgang looked at each other. They both instantly knew what the other one knew. They both knew who was under the Sentinel mask.

Detective McKenzie looked at the trio standing side by side near the front wall of his office. His gaze fell upon Harvey. "I hope you haven't been getting into any trouble, son."

"You know me, detective. I'm just a good stock boy," Harvey said, rather cheeky.

"Let's get to the point," Wolfgang pushed on. "You said you had some information. Does that mean you are ready to make an arrest?"

"Not yet," McKenzie replied. He then walked to his computer and waved everyone to follow him. He sat down at his computer and the trio formed a semicircle behind him looking over his shoulder. After several programs, McKenzie stopped at what appeared to be still images from a security camera.

McKenzie explained. "According to the details we received from Ms. Moriarty here and Mr. Harvey, we found the same matching descriptions on this video we received about a week ago. We were not too sure about the closeness of the two cases, until we were able to speak to the owner of this video."

"You mean the guys on this video are the ones who hurt my daughter?" Wolfgang asked, angrily.

"You've had this for a week?" Angela yelled.

"Please, bear with me here." McKenzie explained himself, noticing that Harvey was very fixated on the images. "At the time, the tape was bought to us as nothing more than evidence in a breaking and entering case. There was nothing to suggest it was any different than the hundreds that occur each week."

"So what was different about this one?" Wolfgang asked.

"The owner of the house came to us. He explained that his two daughters had been bound in the basement and raped repeatedly. They were only 14 and 15 years old each. We saw no signs of breaking or entering in the house. And as far as the father could tell, nothing was stolen."

"Just like at my house," Harvey said, breaking his own silence.

McKenzie nodded. "Five masked men all break into a house without leaving any evidence of it. Their only goal seems to rape any women at home without taking anything of materialistic value."

"And you are sure these are the same guys?" Wolfgang asked.

McKenzie turned around in this chair. "It's the same M. O. for sure, but we need eye witness confirmation it's them. That's why I called you here. Are these the same guys."

Wolfgang turned to his daughter. "Take your time, honey. We want you to be 100% sure."

Angela started biting her fingernail. "I'm not too sure. Everything is such a blur."

"Take your time young lady," McKenzie said. "I need you to really concentrate on this."

That scar looks very familiar.

"Did the father say if his daughters mentioned any markings on the attackers body?" Harvey asked.

McKenzie's eyes lit up. "Yes. Actually, he did say that one of the attackers had a scar on his right hand just below his thumb."

"Then I don't think these are the same guys," Harvey said. "I don't recall any of the guys at my house having such a marking."

"Are you sure?" McKenzie asked.

"I don't remember any scars, detective." Harvey said. He turned to Angela. "What about you?"

Angela stared at the screen very intently. There was something very familiar about the men in the image. She knew what it was. It was them. She was sure of it. "No, I don't remember a scar either."

"Honey, you have to be really sure about this." Wolfgang told her, grabbing her shoulders.

"I am," She lied.

"Where was this taken at?" Harvey asked.

"In Canarsie," McKenzie answered. "Thank you for coming down here. I'm sorry we didn't get any farther."

Outside the precinct, Wolfgang, Angela, and Harvey stood around somewhat enjoying the silence.

"Are you completely sure of what you said in there?" Wolfgang asked.

"Why don't you ask Angela," Harvey answered.

"I just couldn't remember," Angela said.

Wolfgang turned back to Harvey. "There's something else we have to discuss. You need to give it up."

I have no idea what you are talking about.

"I have no idea what you are talking about," Harvey said, cheekily.

"This isn't like you, Harvey." Angela said. She approached him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"You keep going down this road and you won't like where it ends," Wolfgang said.

Harvey stepped away from Angela, pushing her hand aside from his shoulder. "That's the second time someone's said that to me. You know what? I've seen the end, and there really is no coming back from this."

"But it doesn't have to be like this," Wolfgang said. "You don't have to be like this."

Harvey was already walking away from them when he stopped. He turned around and they could see the anger in his eyes brimming at the top. "You watch helplessly as the people you love are tortured and abused. You watch your everyday life be nothing more than a routine of doing what is expected of you. You watch the only person in your life who loved you enough to take care of you be raped repeatedly over and over again. You watch there helplessly and you tell me what the fuck matters in this world than your own strength. You tell me what the fuck is more important than survival."

"Harvey..."

"You have no answers for me. You will never know."

No one said anything. Everyone just watched Harvey walk away. Angela and Wolfgang both looked at each other. They realized then that the Harvey they knew was gone.

Outside of a nightclub in Brooklyn that night

Harvey lied about not recognizing the men in the picture. He was almost sure that Angela lied to. Of course, there was a chance that she really did not remember, because her mind was devastated. There was also a small chance that Harvey could be mistaken. No. Never. Harvey immediately dismissed such thoughts. There was no way he could be mistaken. Not about this. He knew exactly who the men in the security photos were, and he knew this is where he could find them.

Now he waited. He had been doing his own vigilante police work during the months after the incident. Even when it seemed like his behavior was erratic, especially the constant addiction to fighting, it was all for a greater purpose. Harvey was hellbent on finding the guys that invaded his home and killed his mother. But for all his efforts, he could get no closer to solving the case. Then fate finally went in his favor when McKenzie called him saying he had some information. As it turned out, the information was pretty big, but he did not let McKenzie know. After a bit more research, Harvey knew where to find one of the men. He would be here, outside of this nightclub. The same nightclub he goes to every Saturday.

It was now almost four in the morning and Harvey waited patiently. He needed to wait for the man with the scar on his hand to come out, and he would wait as long as it took. He had the patience for it, but he also knew that he could not wait much longer. After all, he had a match with Eddie O'Neal later that night in the second round of the Jewel in the Crown tournament. It was not as if he had totally forgotten about the match, nor about Eddie, but he had more important things to worry about right now. Of course, Eddie would probably not be much of a challenge. Still, it was something he had to look forward to. But as the saying goes: First thing's first.

Just as he was about to walk away and check another nightclub, a black man of about medium build walked out of the nightclub. He seemed drunk and continued walking towards a barely lit place filled with alleys. Harvey followed the man, trying to keep as silent as possible. Although, he could have done anything as the man seemed completely oblivious to everything around him. When the man walked in front of an alley, Harvey rushed him and pushed him into the alley.

"The fuck you think you is nigga," Harvey said mocking him. It was the same thing that was said to him during that incident."

The man on the floor turned over and looked back at Harvey. "What the hell do you want man?"

Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. I swear I will blow your shit.

"Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. I swear I will blow your shit."

The man reached into his pocket. Harvey saw the scar just below his thumb. If the man was getting out a gun, he did not know. If Harvey was afraid of being shot, he did not show it. It was not a gun the man pulled out, but a wallet."

"Take it man," the man cried out. "Take it."

Harvey never even looked at the wallet.

You missed a good show, dawg. But I can go again.

Harvey kicked the man in the face, snapping his head back. He followed it up with a kick to his ribs. He got down on one knee, towering over the man. He stared down at the bloody face. "You missed a good show, dawg. But I can go again."

What followed was to gruesome for anyone to witness. It is fortunate that no one was near enough to hear the sickening thuds of punches landed on a bruised face. No one was around to hear the poor man's screams muffled by his own blood. Constantly he begged Harvey to stop, and constantly Harvey ignored him. Harvey knew that if he kept this up he would kill the man. He did not care. He was not afraid of anything anymore. Harvey continued bludgeoning the man until something made him stop. Something scared him. It was not the fact that he was about to kill a man; It was not the rage he was under; it was not seeing the damage he had done. What scared him was that he could no longer see a scar on the man's hand.

"What the fuck?" Harvey stammered, stumbling back and falling on his ass. "What the fuck is going on here?"

Suddenly, the man's face appeared to be changing. No, it wasn't changing. Harvey was beginning to see clearly who the man really was. It was a just kid, probably around Harvey's age. He was just a kid trying to have some fun at a nightclub. Harvey looked at the kid's hands. They had no scars. Harvey had been hallucinating this entire time. Harvey got up and ran as fast as he could.

"What the fuck is happening to me," Harvey whispered to himself.

At that point, he finally heard the voice in his head clearly for the first time. He finally heard the voice that kept suggesting, kept pushing him to the brink of madness. But there was no longer a brink. He had crossed the line over to madness. And that was what scared him. He knew he was no longer in control, and he began to doubt if he ever was.

"Who are you?" Harvey asked no one in particular.

Only the strong survive, Harvey. Only the strong survive.
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