No-One But You (The Zephyr Endeavor)
Chapter 21: (s)AINT (Part 1)
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So, it seemed like the super nerds were taking a break from all their… nerd stuff.
Wade noticed that Tony and Ezekiel stopped working. Oh wait, someone named "Rae-Ann" stopped working with Tony Stark for a moment, not Ezekiel. They stopped talking about their nerd work as well. Maybe… it was lunch time?
The mercenary wasn't sure what time it was. He pondered the time, and he stopped hopping up toward the ceiling with his pogo stick.
Tony Stark looked over in Wade's direction, then his eyes migrated back over toward the White Jackal. The dodging of glances between them was more than obvious, and the brunette understood why it was happening…
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"Hey there. Why is that one called Minerva, and why is this one called…Arachne?"
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What was with the names of the Gundam Wing suits? The infamous Deadpool wanted to learn a thing or two, so he asked the quietest person in the room a random question. He also grew bored of all the sulking and jumping around. The mercenary was in need of a good conversation, or maybe something else. He felt lonely.
Ezekiel took his time before responding to anything Wade said to him. He was stuck on something as he built "Arachne", and the Jackal didn't want to seem interested in anything the mercenary had to say.
Why did he behave that way? Well, Ezekiel felt at odds about a number of things in that moment, so the young man did his best to distract himself.
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"OH YEAH, and this one, what does Sevgili mean?"
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What friggen language was that? Sevgili? Wade didn't have a clue what any of it meant, and he was more than curious. Tony Stark heard the merc say something random to Ezekiel, so the brunette stepped away from his portion of the work for a sec.
His eyes followed along as Wade walked a little more in Ezekiel's direction. It seemed like Deadpool was on a mission for someone's affection, and Tony decided to give the gesture all of his attention.
Wade really was on a mission, because the quiet coyote had disguised himself once again. He was more of a mute now than ever before. SO, the mercenary wanted to convince Ezekiel to end the Stalker Council's hold on his mind.
They suppressed Ezekiel's thoughts and feelings, remember, but only BECAUSE EZEKIEL wanted them to do that. Wade planned to make him change his mind. Consider it a protest. His gut instinct was also telling him that starting a conversation with him about his nerd work was a good start. Duh. It wasn't rocket science.
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"There's an old myth about a God named Minerva, and an arrogant mortal named Arachne. The story is about arrogance, rivalry, and about mortals challenging the Gods.."
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Oh? Really now? Rivals, Gods and arrogance? Why oh why did Ezekiel Stane think of such things? Wade wondered. It was a very important conversation for the mercenary.
Think of it as the foundation for something bigger, down the road. He was standing pretty close to Ezekiel at that point too, and he looked over all his plans for "Minerva" and "Arachne".
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"So, is this suit designed for Natasha Romanov? Is she, Arachne?"
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Arachne seemed short for "Arachnophobia" in Wade's mind. He only knew of the word arachnophobia because of a cheese-ball old movie about killer spiders. Spiders, Black Widow, so Natasha Romanov. Ezekiel glanced over in Tony's direction for just a moment, then he brought a small smile up in Wade's direction.
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"Yes. Agent Romanov is the arrogant mortal who challenges the Gods. Arachne begins the story as a weaver of thread, then, later on she becomes a spider…"
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Ezekiel's thoughts on Natasha Romanov were complicated. He truly despised the Black Widow, and he always found her presence to be a bit hypocritical.
Wade kept on looking at "Rae-Ann" as "she" answered his question. Wade couldn't really pull his eyes away, because he actually wanted to understand what was in front of him.
The sudden attention from Wade made Ezekiel feel a little nervous. Not nervous enough to send off any red flags to the Surveillant Council, but nervous enough to add some heat to his skin, and to fumble up his words.
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"Minerva disguised herself as a mortal, before their duel. So, Minerva, the suit is something I've designed for Natasha's adoptive sister, Yelena. It's a long story…"
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Ezekiel didn't want to talk out all the details, but Minerva was meant for Yelena Belova. When he saw her there in Milwaukee, the Jackal had a feeling she would be joining their team. He forgot about Tony's presence in the room for a moment, and Ezekiel looked a little more in Wade's direction.
The mercenary felt closer to him than he actually was, and the Jackal started looking at his suit. He looked it over for a short while, then he had to look away. His eyes returned to Arachne, because his mind almost settled on thoughts about what was hiding beneath that red suit. Wade's body was…..
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Uhh, thought suppression was a must. Wade asked him about three names, and so far Ezekiel had explained only two of them. The third name didn't help the Jackal's nerves at all. He didn't want to explain what that one meant.
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"Ok, Arachne is a spider diva and Minerva seems cool. So, Sevgili? What does that one mean, and those look like my measurements on your little chart there.."
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Wade pointed at the blueprints for the armor named Sevgili, then someone's hand suddenly brushed the plans out of sight. Ezekiel didn't want to work on that suit with Deadpool right there, or…
Well, it was ok if Wade was there, but the Jackal didn't know how to explain what Sevgili meant. He knew what it meant, but explaining it was …
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"It means…"
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Those pesky nerves started picking up as Ezekiel looked up at Wade's mask. Tony's eyebrows arched up tall, cuz of course he used his tech to look up the word of choice. "Sevgili" was Turkish. It was a word meant to convey something sincere to a loved one. It was a very intimate word.
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"It's sort of a word for, friendship. That suit is a work in progress. I'm not sure if I will complete it.."
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Holy friggen smokes boys and girls. Tony Stark looked over what the word actually meant, and it definitely didn't mean friendship. No no no… it meant something more, and it looked like Ezekiel had a mini panic attack right there in real time. You see, Wade Wilson was correct, because Sevgili was designed with his measurements in mind.
Oh, ok. Ezekiel didn't plan to finish that suit? Deadpool kind of missed the mark on that response, mainly because he wasn't sure how to interpret the look on "Rae-Ann's" face.
She looked nervous, maybe? The mercenary wasn't sure. He swallowed down a thought or two, after he heard something about friendship. Was that a friend-zone reference? Wade started thinking he was being moved into the friend-zone, or the land of no return.
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"Then, what about… Chima, Kheema, or wait Kheima? What does that one mean?"
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"Kheima" felt like a safer conversation, and Wade managed to look over the plans for that suit without it disappearing. Ezekiel's mood and nerves softened up after the subject changed, but the warmth on his skin remained the same.
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"Kheima means winter. I know that we'll be getting one version of the Winter Soldier on our team, but I'm not sure which one at this point."
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There were two versions of Bucky Barnes in Earth Dimension 3000-21, and Ezekiel was keeping tabs on both of them right there in that moment. One of them was in Nebraska, drowning in farm work with Steve Rogers by his side.
But, what about the other version of Bucky? He actually belonged there in that dimension, and Ezekiel knew that the true Winter Soldier was somewhere near the Maldives Islands, with Natasha Romanov.
"Arachne" was always out there spinning and weaving her clever little webs.
So, Kheima was designed for the "good" version of Bucky Barnes, or the bad one. Truthfully speaking, the Jackal didn't care which one of them joined the team…
Chapter: END
Thanks for reading.