The capo explained in detail what he had learned. "I'm not sure why this monk would want to kill those people over a simple mask," he admitted, "But he apparently disappeared after leaving the bodies in the nearby river." Jonathan slammed his fist into the table. "So, even after fifty years, the terror of the stone mask still haunts us." Smokey looked concerned. "I'm not sure we can trust this guy. He's Mafia after all." The capo got out a cigar and started digging through his pockets.

"You'll find your lighter in the back pocket," Joseph suggested. The man did as Joseph suggested, but got a surprise when Joseph plowed his fist into the capo's stomach. "Let me make this clear, despite what Smokey said I think we can trust your words. But regardless, this isn't something you just spring on my family. Especially Aunt Twilight and Granny Erina. They've become distraught because of your words. Next time, think before you lay such words upon us."

"I think I know something about what Straizo is up to," Twilight said, "Me and Robert recently made a discovery in Mexico. A pillar with a humanoid creature living inside it, sleeping in a cocoon of stone. And all around him, were more stone masks." Dire and Jonathan gasped. "More...?," Jonathan asked in horror, "Than the one my father found wasn't the only one..." "Twilight, if this is true," Dire said, "There could be dozens, if not hundreds of those masks. For all we know, the mask that cursed Zeppeli's father and the one Dio used may not even be one and the same anymore."

"What of this being in the pillar?," Jonathan asked. "Our research suggests its a form of life more highly evolved than humans," Twilight replied, "The writing we found suggests that the one we know of was asleep for two-thousand years." Erina looked shocked. "Two-thousand years..." "More importantly," Dire said, "Why would Straizo suddenly attack his friend out of the blue like that?" "It may not have been out of the blue," Twilight admitted, "You never knew this, Dire, but Straizo once admitted that he had a fear of growing old..." The group got various reactions on their faces, Applejack and Smokey having one of confusion.

The next day, Joseph was hanging out in a cafe with Smokey and Applejack. As Smokey was remarking about an ad for a padded bra, Joseph noted a young man nearby and raised an eyebrow. "You there," he said, "It's cold out, yet your breath isn't white. And unless I'm imagining things, I spy fangs in your mouth. Not to mention, you look a little familiar." The man smiled, and Applejack saw Joseph wasn't imagining things. "Joseph Joestar," the man said, "I'm here to take your life."

Before the vampire could make a move, Joseph pulled a Tommy Gun out of nowhere and blasted the vampire, causing him to fall back through a nearby store window. "Straizo," Joseph said, "I've been waiting for you... So I can avenge Uncle Speedwagon! Of course, I'm not expecting you to die from a few measly bullets. From what Grandpa Jonathan told me, Dio was able to survive getting shot clear through his brain. Of course, if I manage to blast your head into hamburger, that might work just as well as the sun or Hamon."

"Jojo!," Smokey called out, "Have you gone crazy!? You just shot a person in public!" Joseph picked up one of the bullets dropped from the attack. "I'm not so sure that's an accurate assumption. Well, Granddad already had his call to destiny. Guess it's my turn, now." He and Applejack worked to clear out the shop where Straizo had crashed into. Soon enough they spotted him on the ground, but he quickly got up. He quickly pushed all the bullets out of his body, and Joseph noticed something. "I practically turned you into swiss cheese. So how come none of those rounds came out of your head?"

"Dio's biggest weakness was his arrogance," Straizo noted, "He lost himself in the joy of his abilities. He wanted to test their limits. Because of that, it left an opening for Jonathan to defeat him. But I won't let myself fall to that egotism. I'll have all the time I need to test my powers once you're dead. Though I do have some knowledge already, thanks to Dio's efforts. Like the technique he used right at the very end. At the time, the most it did was injure Jonathan's hands, but Jonathan did remark that if it had hit his brain, he would have died. So I can assume that it would also have that effect if it hit anywhere vital."

"What's he talking about?," Applejack asked, "And how does it help him stop bullets from reaching his head?" Joseph wasn't about to give Straizo the chance to explain, but unfortunately he discovered his gun was out of ammo. Straizo chuckled. "Looks like you've run out of ammunition. Meanwhile, my long range attack shoots out high pressure liquid from my eyes. Dio never got the chance to name this attack, so I guess the honor goes to me. Space Ripper Stingy Eyes!"

Applejack watched as Straizo fired the high pressure stream from his eyes, nailing Joseph in the head and neck. Joseph grinned. "Your next line is, 'Now to finish off the other Joestars.'" Straizo turned around. "Now to finish off the other Joestars." His eyes then widened when he realized Joseph was still talking like nothing happened, and whipped his head around. Joseph smiled. "Your next line is, 'Why is this guy still alive with holes in him?'" Straizo was shocked. "Why is this guy still alive with holes in him?" He then facepalmed when he realized he had again done what Joseph predicted.

"Did you not wonder why Aunt Twilight wasn't here with me?," Joseph asked, "She has as much right to hate you as I do, after all. I mean, that was her husband you killed. And given her powers, you'd think I'd stick close to her just in case. But more importantly, you also neglected to study outside of Tibet. I came here fully prepared for all your tricks, Straizo, but you fell for some of mine. Take a look at this clock and you'll understand." He pointed up, and Straizo followed where he was pointing. He gasped when he saw the clock behind Joseph had its numbers backwards, meaning he was looking into a mirror.

"Bram Stoker came out with a best-seller just before the turn of the century," Applejack noted, "In it one of the vampire weaknesses he mentioned was that they don't have reflections in mirrors. I guess he turned out to be right on the money. Otherwise you would have realized that you were standing in front of one." Joseph smirked as he came up behind Straizo. "From there I used ventriloquism to make me sound like I was still in front of you, and even fired the gun from my off hand instead of my dominant hand."

He charged the gun with Hamon energy, and used it to strike Straizo in the head. As the vampire crashed into the nearby wall, Joseph and Applejack approached. However, Straizo caught them off-guard as he fired off another shot from his eyes. Luckily, Applejack was prepared for a sneak attack. "To The Core!" With her body hardened, she was able to tank the high pressure liquid without a scratch. "I see," Straizo said, "A power similar to Twilight's. But do you also have an arrow, or were you born with this power like Enya was?"

Joseph grimaced. "He's not melted. But how did the Hamon not work? Grandpa said he was able to destroy several undead monsters with that same power." "If you're wondering whether he was lying," Straizo said, "Then take heart. His information was not wrong. But I knew I'd need to protect myself from Hamon when I fought you. The answer lies in the scarf I'm wearing. It was woven from the wings of thirty-thousand Satiporoja Beetles, a species native to Southeast Asia. These beetles are far more conductive to Hamon than human flesh, so this scarf can easily absorb Hamon attacks."

"Pretty impressive," Joseph admitted, "But you should have realize the moment I tried using that Tommy Gun to blast your head into paste. I don't rely on just Hamon." He grinned as he pulled on a cord that Straizo noticed was tied to him. He gasped when he realized that Joseph had somehow managed to pin a grenade to his scarf. Quickly he knocked it away. "You're quick," Joseph said as he and Applejack jumped out of the store, "But not too attentive. Like I said, take a trip to the city once in a while like Dire does. Then you might have a better advantage."

To Straizo's shock, the grenade was attached to several more wires that pulled the pins of a few more grenades attached to his back. In an instant, the entire building blew up, seconds after Joseph and Applejack managed to dive out of it. "That should have done it," Joseph said. "That was nuts!," Smokey called out, "Are you just crazy or something?" "Uh, maybe," Applejack said, "Cuz I think we'd have to be to see what I'm seeing right now." Joseph and Smokey looked to see what Applejack was talking about.

Disgusting as it was, Straizo's pieces, which had been blown across the store, were getting up and pulling themselves together. "You gotta be kidding!," Smokey called out, "He got blasted with grenades and he's still not dead!? What kinda monster is he!? Even for a vampire straight outta Bram Stoker this is nuts! Jojo, what are we gonna do!?" "Well," Joseph said, "I did have one last plan in mind." "Are you really thinking that?," Applejack asked, "Granted I am too, but all the same..."

"What?," Smokey asked, "What are you talking about?" "Look at Straizo's legs," Joseph explained, "They were practically torn apart from the multiple explosions. That'll take time to recover." "Which means," Applejack said, "We just gotta use our good legs for this." Smokey looked at them. "But... How?" Joseph and Applejack looked at each other, nodded, then called out, "Run away!" They hightailed it down the street, Smokey running after them calling out, "Are you kidding me!?"

Straizo, meanwhile, had reassembled most of his body, enough to leap to the second floor of the building. As the duo ran, expecting Straizo to chase them, Joseph found himself grabbed by a guy just a size larger than him. "Gotcha, you criminal!," the man said. "Way to go, Bruto!," a nearby woman called out. "Idiot!," Joseph said, nailing the man in the head with his leg, "Stay out of our way if you don't want to get hurt!" He left the man lying on the ground, his girl complaining that Joseph came off as way cooler.

"What was that about?," Applejack asked as they kept running. "No idea," Joseph said, "I mean, yeah we basically bombed a building hoping to kill just one guy, who wasn't even killed regardless. But that's a matter for the police, not some random idiot." Applejack sighed. "We live in a bizarre world." "Sit down with my granddad sometime," Joseph said with a chuckle, "He has some stories to tell you." The trio soon reach the Brooklyn Bridge. "Jeez," Smokey said, "Why did I even run with you guys? I'm not even involved in this."

Then they saw Straizo, having taken a woman hostage. "Joseph," he said, "I'll give one chance. Either climb up here and face me, or this girl will die." Joseph blinked. "Why would I do that just for a stranger? I don't know what you think of me, but I'm not the gentleman my grandfather is." Straizo chuckled. "So then, I can take my time and heal, knowing you won't chase after me to avenge Speedwagon." "See, again you're making false assumptions," Joseph noted, "Speedwagon is someone I care about, so of course I'd chase after you. God, did you lose your common sense when you became a vampire?"

"And what's stopping me from sending my Stand after you to free that woman right here and now?," Applejack asked. "Please," Straizo said, "Enya and Twilight didn't have very strong Stands. Yes, their abilities were powerful, but Twilight could only make her's fight thanks to Hamon, which you lack." He then got a surprise when To The Core wrenched his arm out of the woman's mouth. "Again with the false assumptions," Applejack noted, "Here's a little lesson in Stands. Besides their abilities, their strength can be broken down into six stats, power, speed, range, precision, durability, and potential."

She chuckled at Straizo's confused expression. "My Stand, To The Core, is not just good for powering me up. It's a powerful fighter in its own right. You see those invisible fingers digging into your arm? That's my Stand. Like me when I trigger it's ability, it's strong enough to match any vampire, and we're well within how far I can project it from myself, a range of about twenty meters give or take." Thinking quickly, Straizo let go of the woman and immediately fired his eye attack.

One shot hit Applejack, but her Stand was active so she could tank the attack. The other targeted Joseph, but he was ready with a shot glass charged with Hamon, causing the attack to rebound and strike Straizo. Joseph spit at Straizo. "Your next line is, 'Impossible...'" "Impossible...," Straizo parroted. "I knew you'd go for my forehead," Joseph explained, "From there it was easy to aim a shot glass charged with Hamon, reflecting your attack. A little trick I picked up from Aunt Twilight."

Straizo immediately lunged at Joseph, who countered with a Hamon punch to Straizo's face, sending him off the side of the bridge. However, he then caught Straizo's arm. "Why?," Straizo asked, "You know I may have the power to blast your arm off." "If you do I'll just beat you down one-handed," Joseph countered, "But there's one thing I want to know. Why did you toss Speedwagon's body in the river? If you hadn't, no one would have found out."

Straizo smiled. "You definitely are different from Jonathan, but there are similarities. You're more pragmatic then he is, but you still have that curiosity for adventure. Very well... When I went to put on the stone mask, I saw the man in the column absorb the blood from the bodies, like a plant absorbs nutrients. I realized that if I left the bodies there, the man would awaken. I had to stop that, so I grabbed the bodies and tossed them into the river. Still, I wasn't fast enough to prevent him from getting any blood, and he'll doubtless awaken before long."

He looked at Joseph. "Destiny has found you, Jojo. When the Pillar Man awakens, it'll be up to you to fight him. I wish I could have could seen it for myself, the wonders of his evolution. But I have no regrets. I can now die with my youthful face." To Joseph's shock, Straizo started charging Hamon, causing him to break apart into dust. Smokey walked up to Joseph and Applejack. "What'll happen now?" "I somehow trust what Straizo was saying," Joseph said, "It was my grandfather's destiny to battle against Dio. And now my destiny lies in destroying this 'Pillar Man'."

Meanwhile in Mexico, a certain group had learned of Straizo's discovery. They were the Nazis of Germany, that bizarre group founded by Adolf Hitler. Having conquered Czechoslovakia, they were quickly creating a second world war, which would eventually cause the Great War to be renamed World War I, as this new war was being called World War II. The Nazis thought themselves the pinnacle of human evolution, and used this as justification for war.

In addition, they sought to control the spiritual and scientific worlds. Astrology, magic, alchemy, esp, and the occult were all used as weapons of war. And now, at a Nazi information base in Mexico, a Waffen-SS officer by the name of Rodul von Stroheim was getting a shave while waiting for a certain piece of information. As he relaxed, the woman who was shaving him gasped as she had accidentally cut him with the razor. "I'm sorry, Major Stroheim!," she called out.

"It's fine," Stroheim said as he wiped the blood with his knuckle, "Shaving cuts like this are common. Besides, it only stings a little. The pain will fade before too long. I must say, that little accident aside, this is the closest shave I've ever had. Danke schon." The woman breathed a sigh of relief as a Nazi soldier entered. "Major Stroheim, I have a report. It seems Speedwagon has regained consciousness. Now we can learn the location of the ruins." Stroheim nodded. They had earlier managed to fish Speedwagon out of the river Straizo had tossed him into. Despite the wound to his head, Speedwagon had managed to survive. "Wunderbar," he said as he got up, "Let's proceed with the interrogation."

You can expect some minor changes to Stroheim's character. They beauty of writing a parallel universe. Also, there was some misconceptions that Applejack is Twilight and Speedwagon's granddaughter. I'll say it here that it was never my intention for them to be related. Just thought I should mention that.