Disciple Author's Note: Sorry for the time it took to get this up. I just became a homeowner so that took a lot of time. We're at it again though.
SOTM-Big delay on my part for work stress, then we had that big ass storm and my shit flooded. House and family okay. Just sucked ass.
So what would you guys think if we did a podcast? Going over out ideas and thought processes as well as answer whatever questions or reviews you guys have.
Cable managed to get out of the Casino in another crowd, trailing blood with every painful limp he took. He was more pissed than he was in pain, damning the name Frank Castle with every fiber of his being. He couldn't understand where he went wrong with her, he was doing everything like he was supposed to. Everything that Mina wanted last time. Time… Cable spit at the ground angrily as he crossed the street again.
Then he lost her again, all because of the fucking Punisher playing hero. He should have seen him coming, that was the part that worried him. The closer he got to Mina, the more out of tune he was with his powers. She was having the opposite effect on him than she was supposed to.
Cable walked into the hotel and punched his bloodied fist against the button for Mina's floor. He didn't have the strength to chase after her, and she had to come back for sleep sometime. He also needed a place to stay, not having a chance to check into a hotel of his own.
After making quick work of the door with his knife and his biotic eye, he entered her room and went straight for the bathroom. He felt around the wall for the light switch, squinting as the bright fluorescent lights came on. He left a bloody trail everywhere he went while he was trying to seal his wound.
He kicked off his boots then his pants, moving to sit at the edge of the tub. He turned on the water and splashed his wound clean as best he could before using one of the towels as a makeshift bandage. Growling in pain, he cursed Frank under his breath and went to the bathroom counter. He fumbled through all of Mina's makeup and personal hygiene bags, looking for something to stop the bleeding and close the wound.
All he found were some small cotton swabs and some rubbing alcohol. Not liking those options, he limped back into the main sitting area of the hotel. Going straight for the mini bar and grabbing a bottle of Everclear and ignoring the price on the small menu sitting above it. He went back to the edge of the tub, grabbed another towel and wedged it into his mouth firmly, biting down to brace from his next actions. He twisted off the cap of the bottle and tossed it somewhere in the tub by his feet. He tipped the bottle carefully, pouring the alcohol over his still bleeding wound.
That's where Mina found him, grunting in pain and bleeding all over her bathroom. "Dude, that's a terrible waste of booze."
Cable looked up at her, with the towel still firmly between his teeth, "Fuck off."
"Fuck you, this is my hotel room." She crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame. "Couldn't you go die in your own room, or Wade's?"
He put the bottle on the floor beside the tub, taking the towel and trying to pat dry his wound, "This is your fault, you know."
"My fault you got stabbed?" she asked defensively.
"How do you know Castle?" he asked frankly.
Wade's muffled voice could be heard through the wall, "I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE!"
Both ignoring his comment, Mina replied, "I don't know what you're talking about."
His head spun so fast that his hair fell into his eyes, "Don't bullshit me, Mina. He knew you and stabbed me because he said you were with him. Tell me what the fuck is going on."
"I ain't gotta tell you shit." She said stubbornly.
He struggled to stand up, stepping out of the tub completely in just his black briefs and his light grey shirt, "Tell me why you were fucking around with the guy that put a bullet in my gut last week. You fucking owe me that much!"
Her jaw dropped slightly, "What- no… really? You're shitting me."
Cable mentally breathed a sigh of relief that she didn't know Frank as well as he thought she did. He needed to get her far away from Frank and his boss. "Look at what he did to my fucking leg!"
"I didn't know." She said honestly, "You sure it was him? He seemed so nice."
"Nice and Frank Castle don't mix." He shook his head and limped closer to her, "Does he know who you are?"
"He knows my name." she shrugged.
He didn't believe her, "Damn it, Mina. Does he know what you can do?"
She cringed a bit and avoided eye contact, "I healed him…"
He balled his fist but clenched his eyes shut and took a deep breath. He didn't want to let his temper show, it seemed to only push her farther away. "Mina, I can't protect you if you don't tell me these things."
She got defensive again, "I don't remember asking you for shit."
"You're too fucking difficult sometimes." He growled. "If Castle tells his boss about you, he's gonna come for you."
Mina blinked twice slowly, "His boss is…"
"A very dangerous arms dealer who would auction you off to the highest bidder in the black-market slave auction." He broke it down for her. "His boss is the one who took out Colossus. They're the wrong people to be involved with, Mina."
"You know, at first I thought you were jerking off in here." She ignored his comment, but she did take his words to heart. "All the whining and crying going on."
"I ain't fucking crying. I'm sweating because it's so fucking hot in here." He wiped his forehead on his bicep and looked back down at his wound.
"Or it's the blood loss."
"That too." He agreed nonchalantly, "Go get my pack, will ya?"
Mina rolled her eyes dramatically, tilting her head back and sighing loudly, "Ugh…. Just fucking ask me already."
He finally looked up at her, "Savior, will you hurry the fuck up and heal me already?" scowling as he added, "Please."
She narrowed her eyes right back at him, "Give me a reason why I should. You've been nothing but a dick to me this whole trip."
He stood up straight and looked dead at her, "I'm the only one here ain't I? The only one not to run out on you."
Quirking a brow, the corner of her mouth turned up, "So, you're saying it's because of lack of options."
"Don't forget lack of blood." He added sarcastically. Seeing that she wasn't making the move to heal him, he took a deep breath and spoke with a softer tone, "As much as you hate it, I'm all you got left. You don't want to go back to New York, and I ain't gonna make you. I'm the only one that's able to keep your daddy and Castle off your back."
She perked up, "You mean… you won't let my dad find me?"
Sighing, he motioned his head, "Come here." When she stepped up to him and looked up, he spoke again, "I promise I'll keep you hidden. You can come with me, Vegas ain't gotta be our last stop."
"Why would you…" Mina's words trailed off as she watched his droop as he lost his balance.
The blood loss finally caught up to him. He was pale and covered in sweat, she grabbed him around the middle and stepped by his side. She slung his fleshed arm over her shoulder and led him out of the bathroom.
"Oh shit, my bad." She apologized when he ran into the doorframe.
"Less talk. More healing." He groaned and fell onto the bed awkwardly.
Mina took a knee in front of him, extending his leg out and twisting it inward to see the wound on the side of his knee. "Damn, Cable." Mina's hands carefully touched the area around the wound. "Brace yourself."
He was sitting up awkwardly on the bed, leaning back on one hand while toasting the half bottle of Everclear he brought with him from the bathroom. Tilting his head back, he took several large drinks from it and let out a loud exhale, "Ready."
When the dull white light glowed under her cupped hands, she watched as the wound began to close. Unlike last time, the wound didn't heal with flesh. Instead, it healed with the metallic skin like his arm and neck.
"I may be a doctor, and a mutant, and a mutant doctor, but I have no idea what the fuck just happened." she admitted.
He looked down at his leg and saw what she was talking about. He cursed violently and threw the bottle of liquor at the wall opposite of him, "FUCK!"
That startled Mina, causing her to jump and fall on her ass, "What the fuck, Cable?!"
He had his hands covering his face, elbows resting on his knees. "I thought I had more time…"
Sensing this was a difficult topic, she scrambled off the carpeted floor and put a hand on his shoulder, "Talk to me."
"The virus… it's taking over faster when I'm injured. Every time I get hurt it kicks in to heal me, but it leaves it's mark on me." He explained. "I'm dying with every breath I take."
"If you think that-"
"I know it. That's why I'm sticking around you, Mina." He finally looked up at her, "I just wanted to spend the little time I got left with you. My last moments as a man to be with you."
"So I can heal you." She stated
"I'm not expecting you to clear me of this shit." He lied. "I've had this coming a long time."
The guilt hit her hard. "Cable… I didn't know." This was a lot to put on her shoulders.
"Could be a year or two. Idunno," he shrugged and looked away, "That's why I'm always jumping around everywhere. Thought you would wanna come with me next time I jump." He was talking about going through time. "Your daddy can't find you if he doesn't know when to look for you."
It finally clicked for her, "Oh you can jump through time? Shit could have saved me from my last fucked up relationship. Can we to back to then?" she laughed.
"That a yes, then?" he sat up straight, reaching out to her waist and pulling her in between his legs. "Give a dying merc his last wish?"
Mina leaned into him, bowing her head down and kissing him willingly.
Frank walked into the basement office/hotel room and walked up to the sink. Ulysses was pouring himself a drink. Frank didn't know or really care if Ulysses noticed his blood-stained hands. His boss walked up to the counter and set down a glass of whiskey in front of him with a smile and a nod. Frank nodded in thanks but kept his focus on cleaning his hands. He then noticed Ulysses still standing in front of him staring.
"What?" he asked impatiently.
His boss smirked. "You should use a touch of Peroxide. It will be better for getting the blood off."
Frank rolled his eyes with a frustrated grunt. "Hey, Lekan! Bring me some Peroxide!" There was no response. "Lekan?" Still no answer. "Where is that worthless Puerto Rican?"
Ulysses laughed. "He's at his other job."
Frank scoffed. "Other job. Just say that he's helping upstairs."
Ulysses chuckled. "So, tell me," he began to change the subject. "Where did the blood come from? Seems you had an eventful night."
Frank sighed, "I was going to bring that up just now. I was helping a girl who was being accosted. I did what I usually do and got involved."
"What is the point?" Ulysses asked, wanting Frank to hurry up with it.
"The man I wound up fighting was the mutant known as Cable." Watching the other man out of the corner of his eye.
Ulysses eyes narrowed in anger. "What is he doing here? Do you think he found us and tracked us down?"
Frank shook his head. "I don't think so, but he knows we're here no-"
Frank was cut off when Ulysses grabbed him by throat with his mechanical arm and slammed him into the nearest wall. "Now he knows we're here and will come for us again! You told me he is psychic so now our entire operation is at risk!"
Franks face turned red as he struggled for air, "I don't... I don't think he... knows everything. He... was focused on the girl," he said through struggled breaths.
Ulysses let him go when he threw him to the floor. "For your sake I hope so. Tell me about this girl." He took the moment to check his hair and suit in the mirror. His drastic change of personality wild as ever.
While Ulysses put a cigar in his mouth and lit it, Frank thought carefully about Mina. He didn't want to incur his bosses temper again so he decided to omit a few details and change some others if needed.
"I'm not sure who she was, and I didn't get a name. Just saw that he was hurting her, so I stepped in. He recognized me and said he was here with her. One thing lead to another and I stabbed him. I am certain he doesn't know anything more. He was too distracted."
Ulysses exhaled the smoke in his mouth. "For your sake, I hope you're right. Now if you'll excuse, I need to go upstairs and see if Lekan can hack security footage and find someone for me."
The ringing of the hotel phone woke Mina up. She was tangled naked in the sheets with Cable. She stretched out her back and arms, yawning as she blindly felt around the nightstand for the loud intrusion.
"Whutchu want?" she said groggily through the mouthpiece she had smushed to her face.
"Come have breakfast with me downstairs. They have an omelet bar." The perky voice replied.
Mina scrunched her nose, "Why, so you can just ignore me and ditch me again? Fuck off, Dom."
Still drunk, she slammed the phone down on the receiver and buried her head back into the pillow. Cable rolled closer and draped his arm over her. Humming in approval, "Fuck 'em."
Mina woke up again a few hours unsure of where she was at first. There was an arm wrapped around her that she didn't recognize either. Once she rubbed her eyes clear, she realized it was Cable's arm. She moved it away and quickly slid up and out of the bed. Cringing with each article of clothing she picked up then her phone started going off again.
Mina answered, "What do you want?"
"Please meet me for breakfast. I want to explain what happened."
Mina gritted her teeth and replied, "Didn't you get my first 'Fuck you'?"
"Bitch, I know you're hungry." Dom clicked her tongue.
"Fine. I'm on my way." Mina rolled her eyes and looked back over her shoulder at a sleeping naked Cable. "I need an exit stage right, anyway."
Mina slipped out the room quietly after using her powers to keep Cable asleep, just like she did to Colossus back at the Mansion. She didn't want to go through the awkward morning after bullshit. Her plan was to leave for a bit and give him time to get his shit and get out. Mina knew guys like Cable would understand the protocol.
Domino greeted her with a smile, "Hey there sunshine"
"Eat a dick." Mina flipped her off as they both got on the elevator.
They just missed a group of men who got off the elevator next to them. Neither party seeing the other. The group of men proceeded towards Mina's room.
Mina kept her head down, with her sunglasses and hair covering most of her face. She was wearing a pair of light blue tight fitted jeans, a white tank top and a loose but faded hoodie.
"Why don't you just sober yourself up?" Domino suggested from across the table.
Mina quickly grabbed the pot of coffee from the waiter who had just walked up. "S'not hangover."
Domino's brows went up as she slowly nodded, "Ah, just the lack of coffee bitch this morning."
Once her large dose of creamer and sweet n low was added, she took a slow yet lengthy sip from her cup. Exhaling all the tension from her body, "I could have ordered room service. Then I wouldn't have to put up with this."
"So how are you liking Vegas so far?" Domino changed the topic and sipped her lemon water.
"I've seen nothing but violence and hookers. It's been great." She said sarcastically.
Domino looked around for their waiter, doing a double take at a man she swore was just looking at them. He wasn't looking at her anymore but she thought he kept glancing.
"…and then Cable stayed the night."
Domino snapped out if it, spinning her head to look at Mina, "Cable what?"
"Did you invite me here to ignore me face to face?" Mina crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat.
"Mina, it's not like that. I had some shit to sort out for our stay here in Vegas. I don't want Xavier catching up to us and ruining the party." She tried to explain.
Mina wasn't buying it, "You couldn't have just told me that? Instead of leaving an ominous note like that. I didn't come here to play an RPG. I came to get wasted and have a good time with my mom while also avoiding my horrible break up and daddy issues."
"I fucked up. Can we start over?" Domino begged.
"Fuck it. Sure." Mina was tired of being upset and hoped they could start enjoying their vacation.
Domini smiled at her, "So what were you saying? You met a guy last night?"
Mina continued her story, "So yeah, this guy totally helped me kick ass in this bar fight. Then Cable caught up to me, he was hella pissed we left him in the van B-T-DUBS."
"So, tell me about this guy. Was he a good lay?"
"What guy?"
"The one from the bar. You hooked up with him, right?" Domino asked as she bit into her toast.
Mina gave her a look, half hidden behind her sunglasses, "My night wasn't that busy."
Domino mirrored her concerned expression, "But you said he spent the night."
"I said Cable spent the night. Are you hung over?"
Domino dropped her toast, luckily it landed butter side up, "YOU SLEPT WITH CABLE?!"
Mina cringed, "Why are you yelling? It's too early for that."
"Answer the question, Mina." She demanded.
"What's it to you? You're not jealous, are you? Dude, you said you weren't into him." Mina was invoking bro code laws.
She made a face, "Hell no I don't want Cable! Mina, you just got out of a really…. Uh…. Really… good relationship, actually. You can't just go jumping into another relationship-"
"Whoa! I never said I was dating Cable. Let's just make that clear."
"But you're fucking him. It's just as bad- no, it's worse." Domino pointed a finger at her.
Mina rolled her eyes, "Never said I was fucking him either."
She scowled, "I find it hard to believe that after spending the whole trip trying to get into your pants, that Cable 'just spent the night.' Come on."
"Well he did get in my pants." Mina giggled, wiggling her eyes brows at Domino.
"Mina!" Domino scolded.
She shrugged, "Dude, I swear we didn't fuck." Mina's eyes traveled over Domino's shoulder, looking at a man who was staring at her. She kept talking, waiting for him to acknowledge her. Maybe he wasn't looking at her, just near her. "We just messed around a bit. We're just having fun."
"Messed around? Like second base and that's it?" Domino pried.
"A finger bang and some oral," Mina waved to the guy looking at her, "Dude, you know that guy?"
Turning to see what she was talking about, "What guy?"
"The dude in the hat keeps looking over here." Mina pointed at him.
It was the same man that Domino saw. "Don't look. Eyes at me."
"Oh great, another stalker."
"Mina, on three I am using my luck and we're heading out," Domino advised.
"But my food…"
Once Domino counted three, they stood up and headed out when a pot of coffee was spilled on the man after he moved over by the payphone. They were halfway down the street when he reemerged. His pace quickened when theirs did. Eventually they were at a run and so was he. Keeping up with them while they ran down every alleyway they could find.
When Domino saw the taco shop they were passing, she grabbed Minas arm and pulled her to the left with her. As they were approaching the back of the green and black building, a door opened and an angry looking, stout Puerto Rican man waved frantically waved them over.
Once they were through the door, he flipped off the man chasing them with his thumb and middle finger sticking out before slamming the door shut. There were a few bangs before everything went silent.
After another moment he turned to the two women. "We've been expecting you."