Confessions of a Liar
3
"Tony."
Tony looked up the plate of food before him, a pastrami sandwich he'd barely touched and six handfuls of sweet potato fries that had also gone lukewarm. In Pepper's eyes, he saw her accusing stare laced with bits of concern here and there, but mainly, he saw confusion.
"I feel like I'm having this conversation with myself. What's wrong with you today?"
He sat back a little into his seat and shrugged, looking around the traditional New York deli full of funny jackass signs and a bunch of loud noisy people. They both loved this place even though they always complained about how terrible the crowd was.
"New co-worker." He rubbed the back of his neck and let a puff of air out.
Pepper analyzed Tony's less than satisfied expression, "You don't like them?"
"I don't know. I just-...He seems alright, I guess. A little out there..., I mean, He started singing Jackson 5 in the middle of a serious discussion."
"Sounds very similar to another person I know..." Pepper murmured, rolling her eyes and stirring her straw around in her lime water.
"Fury knows where Bruce is."
Pepper looked up, eyes suddenly intensely watching his every move looking for some sign that he was joking, "Really?"
"Yeah. Taiwan. And supposedly, this guy Wade has been in on this for a while. He's the one who found him."
"Well, that's great, Tony, I don't understand-"
"No. See... " Tony wiped his hand beneath his nose and blinked a few times that Pepper instantly recognized as a sign of aggravation. He leaned in closer and locked eyes with her, "...there's all kind of things wrong with this picture. First of all, I don't get why it was his mission. It should've been ours, he's our teammate. And second of all, why is he volunteering for this? Why does he care anything about Bruce?"
"Did he say he was volunteering?" Tony's mouth opened to respond and his expression turned reflective, "Maybe he doesn't have a choice, Tony."
"Well, ok, but there's something else bothering me about it too. We have.." Tony used his fingers to count, hands extending across the classic black and white checkerboard diner-stye table top, "...two spies, a God, a superhuman, and me and my suits. Why do we need him?"
"Well, you're the one who met him. I don't know anything about him."
"Exactly. Neither do I. He said he was in the army..." Tony attempted to recall he specifics of the conversation, but it didn't take a lot of effort, he'd hung onto every little word, "...special forces. That's it, all I know. Fury says: He can take a punch. Well, to catch a hulk, you need to be able to take a whole lot more than a punch. I do know that much.
Tony took out his wallet, taking out a fifty and ten dollar bill, setting them both on the table.
Pepper grabbed her bag as Tony stood and shoved his wallet back into his pocket. They made their way to the exit, Tony holding the door for her, his face still deep in thought.
"You had Jarvis do a background on me without my consent... do a background on him."
"Tried. There's only a couple files to begin with and all of them are old SHIELD files that're sealed. Locked with no key."
"Well...Ok,..." Pepper attempted to maintain that professional air about her, "That does seem a little weird. But I'm sure you're overreacting as usual. Have you tried..I don't know? Talking to him? Like a human?"
"We're ordering a pizza. All of us are having dinner together. Kinda like a: Welcome to our exclusive club kinda deal, but... I'm just gonna interrogate him." Tony shrugged, knowing Pepper's face would be one of complete disapproval, "I just want some answers before I let him take us to an undisclosed location and kill us all. Otherwise, I'll have an obituary that reads: If only, if only.."
"Fine. Fine, Tony. Interrogate him away. But don't cry to me when you've gained another enemy. Meanwhile, I have the night off. Guess I'll just spend it...alone..."
Tony looked to her, eyebrows furrowed: "I thought you had to be on a plane to Chicago for a conf-"
"Cancelled, actually. That's what I was telling you over lunch but...you missed every word." Pepper rolled her eyes as Tony stretched his arm across her shoulders, making a turn at the corner of the sidewalk as they headed towards the car garage two blocks down.
"Sorry, Pep." He hung his head low in a dramatic fashion, "I'm a terrible terrible human being and I promise to devout every moment to you from now on. And I'd invite you to our pizza party but it's boys only, we couldn't risk giving the newbie cooties."
"Natasha won't be joining?"
"Natasha's kinda..more of a...guy..."
Pepper snorted and closed her eyes, attempting to refrain from smiling but she knew it was spreading across her face like a child, "More of a guy than you."
"You know what? You're right about that one. You can come."
Pepper gave a frilly sort of laugh, the kind the required you to open your whole mouth and lean your head back and let the it come up from your heart and out. Tony smiled and laughed a little to himself, watching her business sleek ponytail flounce behind her. She regained herself enough to smile at him, still high off the residual giggle left in her chest. Tony leaned in, smiling, and kissed her.
And if it didn't solve anything, at least it made him feel just a little more relaxed. Even if only for the moment.
"Soups on!" Tony carried three large pizza boxes into the middle of the living room, passing by the bar and entered into the kitchen. Pepper held the last one along with a two liter of Pepsi as she closed the door behind herself and followed Tony's footsteps into the kitchen.
They set all four out on the island as the others begun to come into the kitchen. They'd been sitting in the living room, discussing little bits of nothing.
"And the pizza bearer comes forth!" Thor yelled with hooting laughter as looked over the four identical pepperoni pizzas, "Oh, how I love these puny earth pies."
Pepper looked over those entering the kitchen. Natasha came in beside Steve, still deep in what appeared to be a serious conversation. Thor was busy watching Tony take out a stack of paper plates and solo cups. Clint came in last, looking around the kitchen from behind, smiling when he made eye contact with Pepper and offered a small half-wave.
She returned it with a smile and looked back to the empty doorway. No sign of the 'newbie' as Tony called him.
"I heard you guys got a new guy?" Pepper said casually, moving to help Tony put slices of pizza on plates.
"Oh, yeah. Wade." Clint murmured, taking up a plate casually after Thor got his three pieces. (He was, of course, the reason they needed no less than four pizzas).
"Where is he?" Pepper looked from Clint to Natasha, "Is he a little...shy?"
Natasha gave half a smile, "Not...exactly.." She grabbed a plate and looked to Steve. She debated leaking the bit about catching him mid-disco dance on the couch with a bottle of rum in his hand or not. Then decided against it. It could be a good story for later.. was no telling when Wade might burst into the room. "He went wandering a couple hours ago. Not sure where he is."
Tony looked up to Natasha and then back to the pizza box, moving another slice onto a plate, "Jarvis."
"He's in his bedroom, sir. Currently cleaning a rifle and listening to music."
Pepper raised an eyebrow.
"Tell him the pizza's here." Tony said, grabbing two plates and moving into the living room. Pepper grabbed her own plate and the two liter, following behind the others
They found their seats around the ottoman and Tony flipped a switch, turning the soft pillow top into a hard wooden surface that he set his cup of ice onto. He poured his own drink and the others followed this idea.
Tony leaned forward, taking a bite out of the grease-ladden slice as the others sipped and bit off their slices quietly. There was a thick and intense air around them.
"Tony. Don't be too rough."
"I won't damage your war buddy too much, Cap, calm down."
Steve scoffed, shaking his head and dropping his pizza onto the plate, "He's offering his help, Stark."
"He's a suspicious stranger. I know back in the happy good old days soldiers were saints in fatigues, but that's not necessarily true anymore."
"You're way outta line, Stark."
"No, you're out of line, oh so saintly one. I'm not letting a complete stranger lead me-"
"Tony." Pepper warned sternly.
Pepper. Please. -or lead my team into a death trap."
"Tony."
"Am I a bad person for that? I mean, really?"
"I wouldn't say so." Tony mouth clicked shut at the sound of those words and looked to Pepper's defeated face. he gave half a smile and turned back towards the origin of the voice.
Wade stood there at the doorway to the hall, walking in casually to the last empty seat where a slice of pizza rested.
Pepper's face displayed complete and utter exhaustion. She sighed, resting her head into one of her hands and after a moment, she lifted herself up from the hand and looked to Wade.
"I'm so sorry for how much of a complete ass Tony's being. He's really not usually so bad." Pepper said quickly with a pleasant smile to Wade, and then turned to give a perturbed glare towards Tony, "I'm Pepper."
"I'm Wade." He leaned over, extending his "un-gauzed" hand in greeting, "And it's not a problem, seriously." He looked up to Tony, "I'm this weird dude you know nothing about: but you do know three things by now. My name and both my music and food preferences. Well, actually, if we're talking about absolute favorite food of all time, it'd be chimichangas, but that's not really the point: sorry, I'm a rambler. Point is...I know you think I'm kinda weird. I do too. And I'm fully prepared..." He lifted his slice of pizza and took an abnormally large bite out of it, chewing for a moment before continuing, "...to explain what I can. I'm not trying to be mystery guy."
"Great. This'll be smooth then." Tony gave a fake smile, sipping from his cup. Steve was sure he'd seen him slip something else into the cup near the bar. He knew Tony would say it was seltzer water, but he knew better by this point.
"Sure."
"First of all: I did a background check."
Wade gave a genuine laugh, one very similar to Pepper's, but it was a lot less attractive and a little more maniacal on him. He wiped his mouth and shook his head, waving his hands in front of him. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's just: That reminded me of a job interview when I fifteen for Taco Shack. Sorry." He picked up his solo cup again, "Ok, so background checks. That's cool. Find anything good?" He smiled a little as he took a drink from his cup, the kind of smile that said he knew what the answer was already going to be.
He took a bite of pizza.
"There were only three files."
"What'd they say?" Another bite of pizza.
"They were sealed."
"Hm."
"Why would those files be sealed, Wade?"
He set the pizza back on the plate, it was near the crust by this point. He wiped his hands off on a stray paper towel and shrugged.
"I thought this was gonna be smooth, Wade."
Wade shook his head, usually, he'd say: Hey, fuck you pal, I don't have to explain shit to you, ok, bub? But Fury's words rang in his ears a little too clearly. He needed them to like him.
"No, ok, look," He laughed a little and wiped beneath his nose with the bottom of his hand, "I'll explain a little better: I knew my files would all be gone. Those have been gone since I was twenty and they put me in special forces. They literally burned anything paper and trashed anything digital. Any other files since then...I don't even know what they'd be about. I don't know what anyone could have on me...I-..." He thought for a moment about the question Tony had faced him with: Why would those files be sealed? He shook his head and shrugged again.
"They were old SHIELD files," Tony leaned back in the chair, crossing one leg over the other, watching Wade's face carefully, "does that give you any hints?"
"Uh..." Wade looked distant for a moment, "Well. For a little while, I was in the database as an emergency contact."
"Emergency contact?" Steve reiterated, looking a little confused.
"It's like a last result." Natasha replied, "It's people SHIELD would use if they had no one else. Usually, they owed SHIELD and in return, they got put on the list."
"So that's what this is? You owe Fury a favor?" Tony asked and then gave a little ironic laugh, "And Fury thinks we're not good enough to get back our own friend?"
"No, not really." Wade shook his head and smiled, "Look. You're getting a little confused here. I used to be an emergency contact for every government branch and department, ok? I'm not anymore. I mean, not officially. But, hey, maybe that's what some of those files were about, I...I dunno." He shrugged again, "...I've done so many missions, I'm not 100% sure on what would be in those files."
Tony found himself falling further and further down a hole of ultimate confusion, and deeper her fell, the angrier the pit of hate was rising, the more suspicion clouded around this character in front of him, the more distrust built up inside of his gut. He narrowed his eyes accusingly.
"You're wrong, I'm not a little confused. I'm very confused." Tony replied, his eyes were blinking again and again. Pepper watched it with dread as his eyes turned over to that sarcastic little glint, and his lips took on that signature 'I'm getting pissed off' smile. "If you're so willing to tell us everything, Wade, why is it that you haven't said a single thing that makes any sense yet?"
Wade's smile fell, and his voice was lost in his throat for a moment, "Um. Ok, I'll start at the beginning here...Fury asked me a while back, like...I don't know, fifteen, sixteen months ago, to go search Fiji for a guy named Bruce Banner. I had some other stuff going on and...I just couldn't. So a couple months back, I didn't have anything going on and I accepted his uh...'request'. Long story short, I ended up finding him in Taiwan, and since the mission was to locate him and report back I didn't even get close enough to say hi. Fury asked me when I got back to then retrieve him. With you guys. Chain of command, ya' know?"
"So why would you agree to this?" Tony continued, "It's not exactly volunteer work. First, you were too busy, and now you're spending months on a rescue mission for a person you don't even know."
"..Well, uh..." He could feel everyone's eyes on him, this was big question number one and it was time to answer it. No more avoiding. " The...uh, payout, is high. I'm a gun for hire. Sooo...I'm being paid for the job."
But it didn't mean he had to tell the truth.
Tony went quiet for only a second, his features were hard and his eyes were unmerciful. No one moved. "You must be pretty good if Fury's putting you on a payroll. What makes you think you can take on a raging hulk if we can't?"
At this, Wade finally became silent, and he looked down into his solo cup full of Pepsi. This was big question number 2 and there were a lot of ways to go about answering it.
"Ok, good point. You're right. I can't take him on. I'm not as strong as your God friend, Thor. I don't have a cool ass suit or the stealth of ninja or any of that shit. I know how to work a gun...I'm a well-trained operative soldier... and I know how to use a sword...but I can't take a hulk on. To be honest with you...I'm being paid to be a human shield."
Tony snorted and shook his head, "Well, I don't know what exactly the job description said, man of steel, but you realize you'll die if you go through with this. Right?"
Natasha studied Wade's half-smile carefully: it showed he clearly wasn't worried, but it wasn't a fact he was proud of. There wasn't even a trace of arrogance in his expression. She thought back of the bottle of rum he'd had in his hands and the fact it was half empty. At 151 proof, he should've been at least slurring his words. He seemed giddy at most and it was already gone.
The facts were adding up quickly in her head.
"You were given the serum too."
Wade looked up, confusion now evident on his face, "What now?"
"Sir," The voice was electrifying, "...there's foreign activity coming directly towards Avengers Tower." Jarvis severed the conversation in half, Tony looking towards the drawn curtains and then back to Wade.
"This conversation isn't over. Curtains, Jarvis."
The curtains pulled back, sucking back up into the walls like a fleeing woman in a long ball gown. Tony looked at the sunset sky and in that spread of orange was an oncoming plane. Tony looked just slightly to the left and saw another.
Steve stood from his chair, coming up beside Tony, his mouth taut and fists tight by his side.
"Avengers..." Steve's eyes remained on the two planes, "Assemble."
Tony turned from his position, running quickly to the minibar, grabbing three of his wrist bands, slapping one on his own wrist as he threw the second to Pepper. They pressed the buttons almost simultaneously.
"Pepper, you need to get out of here as soon as you're in a suit." Pepper looked to him, panic stricken, "Ok?"
"Ok!" She nodded quickly, standing from her seat, and swallowed, "Ok." Her face became flushed as she turned back around to see the two jets still charging at full speed towards the tower, becoming larger and larger by every moment.
"Wade." Tony threw a band to him, Wade caught and looked down at it with intrigue, "Put this on and press the button."
Wade's curiosity was satisfied when he watched as two suits, piece by piece, entered the room, slapping themselves onto Tony and Pepper's bodies like a jigsaw puzzle.
Wade smiled a little and threw it back to him, "Thanks for the offer, but I don't need this." He threw it back towards Tony who caught it in his hands, a look of confusion on his face, "Remember? Human shield."
"Wade this isn't a joke-"
"I'm not joking."
"...Alright Rocky." Tony shook his head, throwing the bracelet back up onto the bar. The mask smacked onto the head piece,"You get 'em fighter."
Pepper swallowed. She could make out the windows on the jets, the writing across it's body, the metallic sleek shine off it's wings. The planes would be crashing the building any second. She looked back to Tony, he made eye contact and the message was clear. He examined her armor: she was missing just a couple arm pieces, but it could mean the difference between life and death. He rushed forward. Gunfire sent the windows shattering in a million pieces of crystal.
"Tony!"
"Hold on!" Wade sang, his run turning into a full sprint, "I'm comin'!...Hold on..." Wade jumped over the couch and on top of Pepper, pressing her and the few pieces of armor attached to her body, to the ground. "I'm comin'!"
Tony, using his boosters fell in front of Pepper, protecting her from the bullets, and just as he did, the remaining armor pieces clicked into place. Wade jumped from his position on the floor, making his way to the bare window. The glass littered the floor, sparkling in the setting sun's dying rays. The jet was close enough to crash into the building, and it begun to bank to the right, he stepped back three steps.
"One...two...here we go.." He started to run forward.
"Are you suicidal?" Steve screamed, running from his former position behind the sofa towards Wade, grabbing him by the arm, "We need a plan!"
"I've got one!" He said, rolling his shoulder out from his grip.
"Wilson!"
He rushed forward, leaping from the window, feet positioned into a perfect pencil jump. The way down was long and felt like forever as Steve watched with a slack jaw. He just admitted to being powerless. How could he-?
Wade crashed through the windshield, into the cockpit as Tony ran forward, thrusting his boosters to maximum speed and went after the jet at full speed.
"When you feel down and out...Sing a song," Wade sang as his foot connected with the pilot's head. His neck made a crack and his head did a full 180 before his hands dropped from the yoke. " it'll make your day..."
The co-pilot yelled in a language Wade didn't recognize and he simply cocked an eyebrow and smiled as he blocked his oncoming punch, "Here's a time to shout...Sing a song, it'll make a way." His fist connected with his cheekbone, "Sing a soooong..." He grabbed his hand and threw him out the gaping hole where the windshield had once been, " ...sing a sooong...bada...ba bada..."
Wade jumped into the pilot's seat when he noticed something shining attached to the co-pilot. He looked a little harder and roled his eyes as realization came to him. He snatched the gun attached to the co-pilot's hip and shook his head, "What the fu-...Dude, why'd you try to punch me if you had a gun? Confucius say, he who partakes in dumbassery, not live long life. " He wedged it between his hip and pant's waist band, "Well, guess he was smart guy, wasn't he? Look at you: you're dead. But, anyway, Mr. Dumbass, I never was much of a pilot. But there's another saying here: Any landing you can walk away from..." He laughed out loud into the vacant air, "That saying probably doesn't apply to me. Right, dumbass?"
He made a sharp turn, it's nose pointed directly at the other oncoming jet, positioning it as he hovered above the thousands of fleeing civilians.
"First day on the job... good warm up I guess."
Tony, in full suit, suddenly appeared before him, looking in through the windshield. "Alright Evel Knievil, you've earned enough street cred, let's get you out of there. I'll take it from here."
Wade cocked an eyebrow, "And what're you gonna do?"
Tony hoovered silently for a moment, before coming to the conclusion Wade seriously wanted an answer, "Throw this fighter jet..." He pointed, "...into the other fighter jet. Did you want to be in the front row for the ride?"
"You can lift this?"
"If it's in autopilot, I can steer it from the outside." Wade met his helmet's eyes with a look of disbelief. "Yeah, tough guy? What's your great plan? Play chicken with guys on a suicide mission?"
"Yup. Just try and catch me when I jump, alright?"
"Thor can lift this, Wilson. Let me get you out of there before you kill yourself, Captain Moron."
"No can do! No time! Hasta la pizza, man!"
Wade pulled forward again, throwing the jets into full power, his eyes locked with determination on the jet ahead. The speedometer was increasing in exponential numbers and the jet didn't waver from it's path. They were inching closer and closer together, within thirty seconds, both metallic and organic debris would spread across the city's roads in a fiery storm.
"Do do do doo...do do do doo...ahha ahha! I need a hero! I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night! He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast and he's gotta be fresh from the fight!"
"Impending crash! Impending crash!" A robotic voice screamed over the intercom into Wade's ears over and over until it decided a countdown was best, "Collision in...nineteen...eighteen...seventeen..."
The jet before him wavered slightly.
Wade's brow furrowed, "What're you about to-?"
The jet moved to his immediate left and Wade quickly followed suit, "No, no!...Not today, dickenheimers! Nein, nein, nein!"
His jet was positioned into a perfect t-bone; it was travelling fast. He grabbed the gun from his lap and positioned it at the plane's jets, three shots and fire erupted from a small hole. It's speed decreased to an almost sluggish pace in comparison to his own. That would do the job. The crash was imminent without a chance of escape unless they jumped. Like he was about to. But unlike them, he had a rescue team ready...well, hopefully. And if not, the fall to the New York sidewalk would be filled with carnage and pain.
"This was the best summer ever! To think: me a big city kid, could fit in with you hillbilly hicks and win your respect and your skanky woman?" Wade jumped from the seat and made it to the cockpit's door, "I mean...disgustingly malnourished! I mean...well, no that's what I meant." He pulled the handle and shoved against the door, "Send Lori Singer a fruit basket for me, will y-?"
The door wasn't budging.
"Hm..Well. This is a game changer."
He tried again with the same result and frowned. The plane's thrusters were failing. "Ooh big ol' jet airliner, don't carry me too far awaay..." He looked to the broken windshield. It was his only other option, but at the rate he was going, the plane would be crashing within just seconds.
"Readysetgo!" He jumped onto the chair onto the control dash, and out onto the nose. He made the quickest running start he could and launched himself into the air. He was falling, falling, fast.
"I refuse to sing free falling. What a cliche." Wade said to himself, falling straight to the Earth's hard, cold, crust, back first and limbs reaching up to the sky as if by their own choice. His stomach sank, touching his spine as the acids built up into his esophagus.
His eyes were fixated on the plane, watching with anticipation as it crashed into the mid-section of the other, ripping and tearing the metal apart like a piece of wet paper. The plane was nothing but fiery debris as it begun to fall back down to the Earth. Whatever passengers had been on it were now nothing more than a part of all the fire and smoke that filled the air.
"It's just the start and this is something good." Wade murmured the lyrics, nodding his head and snapping his fingers on one hand, but the voice was distracted. His eyes darted around the smoky sky, looking for his evac. Gold and yellow. "...something good, something good, something good, this is something good..."
A metallic blur smashed into his body, and for a moment he was confident that it was the infallible Iron Man, but instead, it was a piece of airplane debris burning down layers of skin and cracking his clavicle. He hissed and pushed it away from himself.
"Fuck! Mother O'Neill and sons of O'Hara!" He closed his eyes. He knew the impact was soon and it was going to hurt like a son of a bitch.
"...this is something...bad..."
Metal slammed against him again, and his only good arm instinctively shot out to push it away from himself.
"Gotcha."
Wade re-opened his eyes looking up to the metal mask and then back up at the sky, watching as electricity danced around the Norse god who attempted to collect as much of the debris as possible with net-like electrical fields.
"Oh, hey. Yeah, I knew you'd get here at some point, buckaroo."
"Sure, sure, daredevil."
"Never call me that again: that guys a jerk."
"What?"
"Nevermind. Thanks for the lift...even if it is a little late."
"Yeah, well if you'd let me do it my way you'd of been just fine. We'll get you checked out in the infirmary."
"I don't think that'll be totally necessary-"
"Hah. With the hit you just took?"
"Okie dokie. If wasting resources and time is your forte, we'll play it that way." Wade replied, "Meanwhile, the ol' reliable healing factor will kick in."
"The what?"
I won't bite! Reviews are welcome! (Please?)
Sorry for the long wait to the update. ugh. Summer classes. Microbiology and any online courses do NOT mix well kiddies. (For anyone who is in college or about to go into their first year of college, I'll let you know now. Micro isn't all that hard, but ANY online course mixed with it? HELLISH... Take Micro by itself and accelerated!)
