Disbelief blazed to life on your face like a newly struck match.
You choked on your drink, spitting.
"What in the name of-"
You were interrupted as a crash sounded on your left. Splinters of wood flew into your vision and you groaned as you ducked and saw people rising from the rubble. Dark, probably mean people. No, definitely mean people. And they definitely, most definitely, weren't about to leave you alone. "Can't you clean up your own messes, man?" You asked, frowning. "All I wanted was a drink." Deadpool pulled out one of his guns, promptly shot down three of the pursuers and faced you, feigning shock. "Come on, (your name), don't you have a shucking brain? I always bring along my messes."
. . . He did have a point. But you weren't about to admit it to him here and now.
"Listen here you little-" Once again, you were cut off as bullets flew by your head; you tossed some ice that direction and someone screamed. Throwing up you hands in frustration, you narrowed your eyes. "Fine! I'll help! Thanks for asking how I've been."
Your 'friend', if you could even call Deadpool your friend, raised an eyebrow. More figures rushed out of the dust; you shot one in the head with ice and the fifth crumbled with a well-placed bullet to the chest. "Oh, it's been that bad, huh? Well, screw you too. There's work to be done, you son of biscuit, and so: no surprise! This is different kind of day."
You sighed.
Both of you went to work, freezing, shooting, slicing and swearing. It didn't take long to defeat most of the attackers since they were normal enough, but even with your new-found power, strength and agility, you found yourself drained. Your body, it seemed, simply wasn't ready for the strain that you required of it. A second groan escaped your mouth through gritted teeth and you tossed Wade a glance. Thanks for dragging me into this, your glance said. He missed it, however, and shot someone in the stomach. They collapsed, moving no more.
And that was it. Over in a matter of minutes.
You took a very deep breath. It was all coming in a rush, now. Frowning, you closed your eyes. "I am done with your bullshit." Another breath. "Just done with your bullshit." Silence. You held up a finger. "Your bullshit--" Deadpool snickered, hopping onto a bar chair he'd righted while you ranted, "--done with it."
"That's all nice and fricking well, Ice Box. You done?" Deadpool's legs swung back and forth as he looked down the barrel of his gun for-who-knows-what and he glanced up at you, his expression rather blank. Though, all things considered, he was wearing a mask.
Surveying the wreckage of the bar, you sighed again. There wasn't much you could do now to tidy the place up; it was practically a dump. (And in the back of your mind you thought about leaving a note to the poor owner, but you dismissed it.) The piano had been frozen and crashed into smithereens, broken glass littered the tiles and seven to ten wounded or dead bodies lay across the floor. Destruction really was your middle name, wasn't it? Yeah, that about sums it up.
"Yes." You rubbed your eyes, wishing for sleep. Some deep, restful, restoring sleep would be so very cherished if you ever did manage to get your hands on it. "Yes. I'm done."
According to your friendly neighborhood Deadpool, Hydra had gotten wind of every connection you'd had in the previous years. That meant your connections and chances of staying in this complicated chess game had become nil to zero. This of course caused many attacks to those resources, one being Deadpool, and the result was a bloodbath. To Deadpool or to the attackers, you never really figured out. Then again, you weren't sure you cared. At this point, survivors were rare and so were your connections. You were indeed done with his bullcrap, but the reality was you needed his help.
"Alright. What-" Like lighting you remembered an important piece of information. Maybe . . . just maybe, he'd been overlooked. After all, he wasn't much of anything when glanced over. Besides, he wasn't that well known, was he? "Hey, Wade?"
"'Sup?"
"You know Spider-Man, right?"
"Sure do, Ice Box."
"Think we can get his help?"
"We can find out."
"Great." You smiled slightly. One thing better than usual. "Keep him in mind, alright? This is getting to be a gigantic mess and I need everyone on my side that I can get." Your gaze shifted to look Wilson in the eye - as much as you could - and you became deadly serious. "You're . . . with me on this, right? I mean, you're not gonna . . . ditch me or anything?"
Deadpool held a hand over his chest, put his guns away in rapid succession and fell to the floor, as if hurt. "Me? I would never!"
Your laugh was anything but dark and sinister as you stood to your feet and grinned, bigger than you had in about a week. "Then let's get this party started."
Which meant, of course, finding a place to lie low and then taking a long, long nap.
***
Your eyes flickered open and you found yourself crouching in the safety of the shadows.
A voice reached your ears; it sounded eerily familiar . . . and if your hunches were correct . . . well. You were in some trouble. That was the plan.
"I started this company. I am the sole leader, the entire rule and commander of this operation. I hope you realize what happens if you . . . mess up."
There was hasty apology, muttering about 'no further failure will happen, sir' and a door that was shut so quietly you almost hadn't heard them leave. Backing further into the shadows, you felt your hand brush against the wall and that's when you froze, literally, in shock. Were you wrong? The wall certainly felt real. You mouthed, a frown forming. This place was unnatural, not like anything you remembered. Worse still, you felt particularly shady, the way you were acting. And yet, you knew standing up would mean something dire.
However, you didn't even need to stand up before the first voice spoke again, sounding more than a bit angry. Ticked. Pissed. Frustrated. And still very familiar. Were you right after all? "You know, (your name), eavesdropping is quite rude, especially when you're not invited." A black, stretchy net landed over your form and you immediately began to struggle as fear set in, but you calmed yourself. No time to panic. In and out, you thought. Everything was going according to plan.
Your ice shot the net into tiny bitty pieces and you stood, triumphant, defiant of your captor. "Fight me," you said, snickering and summoning an ice shield. You made the ground shake slightly, warning the figure of your power. "I wouldn't, if I were you." He needed to know who was boss.
"Wouldn't you, though?" The lights flickered and with a mechanical grin he stepped forward. Your frown turned into a growl. "I'll take your offer, by the way. What better way to subdue you in fear - make you swear your allegiance to me - then here and now?"
You were right. He was exactly were you wanted him, and you were exactly were he wanted you.
Checkmate, you thought. On the outside, you replied: "Bring it on, Devil," came your sneer. Ice sparked at your fingertips and for once, you felt alive. It was like a day ago at the train tracks, where you'd been practically dead and yet living. It felt great. Hot blood rushed through your veins and your heart raced faster than you could ever remember it beating. You grinned at him, cracked your knuckles and fire lit in your eyes because you remembered your promise and made sure he would too. Brief fear flashed in his own. Then a smirk.
"Show me what you got," he replied, and then he stood. Or, at least, you thought he was standing. No, he was rising into the air. He was shucking flying. That was not according to plan. Dark, black, wings like his nonexistent soul shimmered in the dying light. A sword from out of nowhere appeared in his hand and he slashed the air in front of him. The blade glinted evilly, just like his eyes. A shiver spiralled up your spine.
Rest in pieces, me.
He dove at you, his sword slicing into your shield. It cracked; you winced. Tossing it to the side, you formed another and stood your ground.
He came at you again. "Friends of mine taught me to play with my prey before I kill it," came his hiss. He taunted you, daring you to move and make a mistake in this impressive fight. You snapped, angry, refusing to bend under his pressure.
"I'm not your prey, Converse!" Following him into the rafters and air of . . . wherever this was, you leapt behind him and shot ice into his shoulder. And instead of a groan, or a cry, which you were expecting, he laughed.
He laughed. It was empty, void of emotion and there was certainly no traces of pain.
Blue pricks of energy shone on the place where ice was and in moments, it shot back at you and you knew then, this was not a battle you could win. Somehow, he had healing properties. Otherworldly ones too, like Wade or Wolverine.
Shaking your hand, you dropped to the ground and shrugged, just as he came behind you and stabbed you in your own shoulder. Regret flooded your mind. This was a bad idea. No, no it wasn't. Almost there. Pull yourself together! "Fool me once," The Devil seethed, "shame on me. Fool me twice, same on you." The sword was pulled out so abruptly you gasped. Blood formed at the wound and you fell away, staggering for a middle ground. You had to keep fighting. This wasn't a battle you could afford to lose.
But instead of finding a place to stand he flew in and delivered a sharp blow to your right arm. Red liquid flowed to the floor and as much as it hurt, your froze your arm and shoulder. Could tend to those later. Or could you? You knew that you could heal too, slowly, though, and yet here nothing seemed to be working. The pain was as real as it had ever been. Something was wrong.
Or so you believed, for the briefest of moments.
Not long after you stopped the bleeding, you swayed and dropped to your knees, dazed. Your body was still so . . . blurry? No. Fading. You were fading. You weren't losing it in the head. You were broken, yes. Bruised. You'd been through too much and couldn't handle much of any fighting, especially this sort. But it was almost over. You had almost all the information you'd come to get.
Your shield clattered to the floor and your enemy laughed again.
He flew directly in front of you, towering above your vision so you had to look up into his face which you did with a loud moan. "Yeah," a long sigh and a heaving breath from you, "that'll 'bout do it."
"Keep quiet, (your name)." A punch smashed into your jaw and you hit the floor, a real groan leaving your lips. You rubbed the sore spot, a remark coming out before you knew it or could stop it.
"You know," you muttered, raising your head, "I could be on my deathbed and I'd still crack a joke. It's my best quality, I'm told. In fact," you coughed. "Say, that's a nice right hook you got there; throw another one. Maybe I'll dodge it this time."
The Devil in Converse rolled his eyes, but anger flared up inside because when you raised your head. He roared at you and slugged you in the jaw with his left hand this time. "STAY. DOWN."
You found yourself pinned to the cold cement floor as his foot pressed against your chest and grinned down at you. "Sorry, (your name), looks at if you still have a very, very long way to go."
But instead of cracking a joke, like you really wanted to do, you gave him a worn out smile and shrugged. "Maybe you're right. But thanks to you-"
Your form shimmered. You knew it. Just as you'd suspected. The plan had worked.
"-I now have a perfect mental image of your hideout. I was disoriented the first time, I admit. Cheers to you for that. But, here we are and here I am."
You smiled again.
You shimmered.
And as you faded away, you made a peace sign, laughing as you clutched your burning shoulder.
"Later you little shit."
***
Wade was leaning over you, shaking you awake.
You spit, frowned and closed your eyes in pain but managed to sit up.
"Did you get it? Did it work?" His voice rang in your ears, and your head pounded. You held up a hand, asking him silently to give you a minute to situate yourself. He relented, standing back.
A pause. A breath. "Yeah," you finally murmured, shaking out of your stupor. "I got it. If I ever come across the place, or Converse in this realm of life," you gave a small grin. "I'll know. I know it like the back of my hand, I'm sure of it."
Deadpool seemed to grin back, but as he did so, he opened his mouth to say something.
You stopped smiling. "Wade," you said, confused, sitting up straighter and staring at his eyes directly. He kept talking. Except that was the thing. You couldn't hear a word he was saying. It was like he'd been drowned out by silence. "I can't hear you! Speak up!"
Is something wrong with me? You wondered, eyes growing wide. Did Converse do this?
Nothing. Then:
Maybe.
You bit your tongue, you were so startled and shocked. He was back! In your head, like those few other times. He could do it at will, of course, but so soon after your encounter? Why? You frowned for the fourth time that day in under a few hours, tasting the blood that seeped from your tongue into your throat as you swallowed it, the bitter sweetness leaving a nasty flavor. Bugger off, you told him. We just talked. I got what I wanted, you got to beat me up. Fairs fair, skinflint.
Make me.
I don't have time to deal with you, alright? Listen to me, goddammit: I'm done. We're done. You heard what I said before. I meant it, understand? One loss is another man's gain so learn to live with losing a few rounds.
What a stupid thing to say. Well you go ahead and dance in your rainbows where winning is a friendly delusion of yours, hmm? But keep in mind, you took my shard. That was mine. I'm not going to let it slide. You sent your threat, now I give one to you as well. I owe you, (your name), and I won't forget it.
Get out of my head, hotshot!
Why should I?
Because. I said so!
And it was quiet. Had he listened for once? Even after you two had practically just bickered like an old married couple, (regrettably), he seemed to have actually gone. (Finally.) You tipped your head, then realized that you'd closed your eyes to focus. Now, you could probably hear Wade who was probably worried about you in some form or another. But when you did open your eyes, instead of Wade there was darkness.
Pure shadows. Unforgiving black void.
And laughter.
"Abracadabra," you muttered and stood, fear setting in. "Where the hell did he go?"
This wasn't the Devil. He'd never shown anything under his power to come close to this sort of shadowy magic. No. Someone else had though. You narrowed your eyes. "You can come out now," you growled.
A hand landed on your shoulder. His breath breathed down you neck, his words whispering into you soul. "I find over the course of our human existence, one thing consists of consistence. And it's that we're all battling fear, oh dear . . ."
"Stop!" You found yourself shouting, slamming his hand away. "You won't cripple me again! I'm stronger than when we last met, believe me." When you turned, however, he wasn't there. Only darkness, still.
More laughter. His voice seemed to vanish, then appear near your other ear. "Cripple you? Oh, my, how like you that is. No, no, my dear (your name). I am only here to request a deal. I made him stop, and now you repay me. Simple. I mean, how many months has it been? Too many, to be sure. Look, I know you hate my very existence. But you have questions and I have answers. You're weak, and I'm strong. I don't need you to kneel because nothing could convince you to ever do so. All I need is your word. If you want a proper checkmate; if you want to win then you'd better start taking some much needed advice, hmm? I have the resources you desperately are needing access to. And don't you dare think about double crossing me because I'll bring you pain you've never felt before." He stopped and you could feel his smile in the air. He knew he had you in his grasp, for the second time within the span of a few months. "Now, what do you say?"
In his shining, grand, golden and green armor Loki appeared. No disguise, no tricks. As much as he said you needed him, it was clear he needed you. Things were starting to get complicated indeed.
He stuck his hand out.
You frowned. No time to think. Double cross? Of course. But when?
Your hand slowly raised. This wasn't Bill, (a clear moment of insane hallucinations and that had been awful). It wasn't Fury. It wasn't Converse either. But you knew their motives. You knew what they wanted. What did Loki want? Why was he here? The only way to find out was to dig yourself in as deep as you possibly could.
You sucked up the fears. The doubts. You matched him step for step as both of you met halfway in the darkness of his magic.
You spoke and you regretted everything. But this was it.
You had to. You gritted your teeth and addressed him.
"Let's take back our side of the chessboard."
And you shook on it.
And before Wade knew what had happened, he was gone and you had collapsed to your knees on the ground.
____________________________________
A/N:
Sup guys.
I came to apologize...for never updating consistently; I mean I tried really hard but it wasn't meant to be. I'm stressed...I'm hard pressed to find inspiration and it's really a sensation I find hard to describe but I promise I will be better than I was before. And I promise I will try really really hard this time to update more. And I know I disappoint and I know I let you down and I know I'm not in line when I said I'd be around but I'm trying super hard to get my act together. I've been...sad. I'm getting really mad at myself but you all keep me grounded 'cause I'm surrounded by your love. And you're sweet. You keep me on my feet. And if it wasn't for you I wouldn't be able to do all the things I've wanted to. 'Cause I know I'm not the best and I always fail the test but no matter what I fear you guys are always here and I've never really found a good enough way to say thank you.
Anyways, hey everyone! Obviously I haven't been on a consistent updating schedule and I am sincerely sorry. (apology above feat Jake Edwards on YT)
Please forgive me, I really am working on getting a formal plot line but school is really kicking my ass this year and my other fanfiction, the crossover, is a lot of work. I write double what these chapters are in one of those and so yeah. Lots of writing, kill me.
My point is, I'm back, I'll continue to be back (updates Saturday nights every two weeks and wow I killed that fast), and I hope you'll accept this slightly longer chapter as my apology and please enjoy it! CoMmEnT, VoTe, ShArE~
Jesus said chill (wheeze) Jesus said chill,
Styx