No-One But You (The Zephyr Endeavor)
Chapter 83: Sunshine (Part 3)
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"You can say my mind went through a collapse after I was taken to Seagate, and Charles Xavier has been repairing the damage ever since…"
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Seagate was a giant prison, and Ezekiel was explaining the circumstances of his disappearance. He spoke softly, as usual, and the man before him simply listened to what was being said.
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"I understand Xavier's cavalier attitude, because a number of us are trying to guide you. But, now there are how many names? I think the names have doubled since we last spoke.."
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Z, Zeta, Zero, Zephyr, Zeke, Jackal, The White Jackal, Rae-Ann, Shiny, Quiet Coyote, and hopefully Ezekiel Stane. Doom did a calculation to himself, then he made a quiet move on the chessboard that was beneath his hand.
Ezekiel kept his eyes on Doom's right hand. He remembered the metal, and the sounds of it when his fingers would clink together. The "Jackal" pressed his thought back toward the chess board, then he silently moved his second rook.
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"And now I find you taking all these clever names, and you're using them to build something that hides in the shadow of S.H.I.E.L.D? That sounds like a move only your father would make…"
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Another move was made on the table, and Ezekiel decided to slow himself down to actually listen and take in Doom's perspective.
He wasn't upset with Xavier at all, and the mutant's decision to filter out Doctor Doom made a lot of sense. The "quiet coyote" thought over what was asked of him and what was said, then his mind ventured off toward all the things he wanted to accomplish.
S.H.A.D.O.W. was his idea, and his alone, so he glanced up at Doom's mask, then he gave the entire conversation a bit more thought. Ultimately, he wanted to experience elements of what he's learned from everyone. They all had something to pull from, even his father…
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"All I want is freedom, and I'm searching for some sort of liberation from the box that I grew up in. S.H.A.D.O.W. is only one spoke of the wheel…"
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And with that said, Ezekiel made another move on the board. His eyes kept looking up, and there were moments when he'd see Victor Von Doom looking at him in the same manner.
The "Doctor" put himself in a place to guide Ezekiel Stane because he wanted to, and he didn't intend to tell anyone his reasons. Doom did not explain himself to anyone, and that behavior was never going to change.
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"Kings do not move, Ezekiel Stane. The basic principle of a king is to be a rock for others to hold onto, and the only way you can achieve what you want is to become unshakable."
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Right now, Ezekiel Stane was shaking. He was movable in his current state, and the people around him were orchestrating every move that he had to make.
Doctor Doom considered himself to be unshakable, unmovable and unwavering in the game of life, and he wanted someone else to understand what that meant.
His eyes were set on Ezekiel's face in that moment, and he could see that the young man understood everything that he said.
Of course he did, that's why Doom took the time to teach him and to develop his mind into something that would never be breached.
Chapter: END
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