No-One But You (The Star Child's Eclipse)
Chapter 30: The Futurist (Part 10)
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Sofia Strange was allowed to send a version of herself to the Surveillant Council meeting with her aunt.
…
She didn't have to beg either, because her parents approved pretty quickly.
Well, no, that's not true. Sofia was too excited to notice the gap in time, but her parents actually deliberated for quite a while.
Her father seemed to have a lot on his mind, but Sofia was too involved with distracting herself to notice.
Stephen Strange gave his precious "Star Child" the final okay within the Realm of Light, and she happily tapped back into the version of herself that was walking beside her aunt.
They were holding hands as they reached the room that was labeled for deliberation.
Sofia looked at that as she walked in, then her eyes started scanning around the room for someone familiar.
Tony Stark was supposed to be running that meeting, according to her aunt, so Sofia was looking around for him with a sense of excitement.
She was a big fan of Tony, and she couldn't wait to tell him that she gathered more "Doom Bots" for him to inspect.
…
Speaking of Doom, the man of the hour wasn't present at this point in the story… but a number of others were present in the room.
Sofia's young eyes located Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, and the funny man named Wade Wilson.
They all looked so big and bulky, and truth be told… Sofia Strange heard their names being dropped all the time.
Her family basically "deliberated" about all of them on a daily basis, so she felt like she actually knew them.
They were gathered around a long table, and Sofia smiled at the three of them as her aunt relocated a couple chairs.
The funny man made a loud noise when he saw Sofia Strange enter that space, and he said something about seeing a "cute little pipsqueak."
What's a, pipsqueak? Sofia had to wonder.
The forever-curious daughter of Stephen and Clea Strange made a mental note to ask her parents about the word she heard, later.
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"Have a seat beside me, Sofia. We'll listen to this Surveillant Council business together."
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Donna Strange gave some of the individuals in the room a gentle greeting, but her focus was pointed specifically toward her adorable niece.
Sofia heard what her aunt Donna said, then she rushed her way over to the chair that was put there just for her.
Her body was naturally tiny, so Donna had to adjust the office chair for her…
It didn't take long, and Sofia's smile widened once she could actually see everyone over the table.
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People were migrating their way in, talking, and making room for one another… all except for one person.
Oh? Her young eyes suddenly stopped at a young man who wasn't interacting with anyone.
He wasn't sitting anywhere near the table either, and it looked like he wanted to leave.
Ezekiel Stane was there in the flesh.
Sofia knew of him mainly because she used to see him around her uncle Victor. That didn't happen anymore, and now Sofia could sense a great deal of sadness.
His soul couldn't be any further removed from the room as well…and the young man was concealing his eyes with a pair of sunglasses.
…
Ezekiel was wearing sunglasses because he didn't want to make eye contact with anyone there… and because he was barely sober…
The bullshit meeting was very unexpected, and the somber Jackal was annoyed to read that his presence there "wasn't necessary."
Go fuck yourself, Tony Stark.
He made his own presence there an absolute necessity, and the thought of boiling them all alive genuinely crossed his mind.
Wade was close to the table. He was chatting it up with Steve, as expected, and seeing that managed to stir some warmth around Ezekiel's broken soul.
…
Sofia studied the young man who was sometimes referred to as a "Jackal."
Her young mind made a shift toward her aunt, then it made another shift when someone interesting entered the room.
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Charles Xavier was another name that was mentioned within her family all the time, and Sofia's eyes began to inspect his yellow "hoverchair" as it made its way across the room.
There was even talk going on in her family about Sofia beginning something called "school" with him?
Down the road?
She remembered that her parents were discussing that, and they planned to send her to a school that belonged to Charles Xavier very soon.
The excited feelings Sofia had in her soul started going haywire as everyone made their way toward their seats.
Nick Fury entered the deliberation room behind Charles. Sofia didn't know him as much as the others, but he gave her a kind smile as soon as he saw her.
Her presence was very unexpected, but her aunt Donna told all the men in the room that they needed to "deal with it."
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A very thick silence filled the space after a while, because the man of the hour wasn't there.
Victor Von Doom's presence was "mandatory"… remember? But all the Surveillant Council got at this point was an empty friggen chair.
Tony planned to question Doom right there in front of everyone, and he knew that asshole was going to show up at some point.
Victor Von Doom's ego was off the charts, so of course he'd make some sort of grand entrance.
Oh, and side note… Tony didn't care that Ezekiel fucking Stane decided to show his face either.
He didn't give the prince of darkness the time of day after he watched him walk in with Wade, because Tony felt as if he had bigger fish to fry….
Chapter: END
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