“Okay, now this, this right here is a boat!” Deadpool exclaimed as he marveled at the massive vessel pulling into the dock.
The boat was well over 200 feet, the hull towering over the dock Cable and Deadpool both stood on. Compared to the ship they had just removed a pile of bodies from, this craft was in a near pristine condition.
“This baby wasn’t cheap to get my hands on so, please take care of her,” The Shaman of the Seas shouted down from the deck.
“I’ll treat it just like I would my own child,” Deadpool attempted to reassure the man with no luck, given the unimpressed expression on his face.
“I’ll make sure he doesn’t destroy it.” Cable dead-panned to a more relaxed grin from the Shaman.
“See, I believe him,” the boat owner joked before lowering the ladder for the duo.
“You first, big man. I want to be able to jump off the ladder if we get attacked again.” The masked merc teased as he followed Cable.
At the other end of the dock, away from the eyes of the would-be seafarers, a figure watched them through a pair of high-tech binoculars.
“Well, this makes things much more interesting.” The figure, wearing a skeleton mask and white cloak, pocketed the binoculars and produced a phone. “Yeah, tell Declun that we’re gonna need a boat. See if we can get one of those big-ass harpoon guns, that’d be fun. Then, get the whole crew together and meet me at the docks.” The mercenary known as Taskmaster looked back to the ship as Cable and Deadpool climbed onto the deck. “I’m really gonna enjoy this one.”
The boat was well over 200 feet, the hull towering over the dock Cable and Deadpool both stood on. Compared to the ship they had just removed a pile of bodies from, this craft was in a near pristine condition.
“This baby wasn’t cheap to get my hands on so, please take care of her,” The Shaman of the Seas shouted down from the deck.
“I’ll treat it just like I would my own child,” Deadpool attempted to reassure the man with no luck, given the unimpressed expression on his face.
“I’ll make sure he doesn’t destroy it.” Cable dead-panned to a more relaxed grin from the Shaman.
“See, I believe him,” the boat owner joked before lowering the ladder for the duo.
“You first, big man. I want to be able to jump off the ladder if we get attacked again.” The masked merc teased as he followed Cable.
At the other end of the dock, away from the eyes of the would-be seafarers, a figure watched them through a pair of high-tech binoculars.
“Well, this makes things much more interesting.” The figure, wearing a skeleton mask and white cloak, pocketed the binoculars and produced a phone. “Yeah, tell Declun that we’re gonna need a boat. See if we can get one of those big-ass harpoon guns, that’d be fun. Then, get the whole crew together and meet me at the docks.” The mercenary known as Taskmaster looked back to the ship as Cable and Deadpool climbed onto the deck. “I’m really gonna enjoy this one.”
Issue #8 by
Liam Goncet December 2018 Deadpool
Cable
Weasel
Peepers
Peter Wisdom
Siryn
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"Between Here and Antarctica"“And that’s pretty much all the basics of running a ship like this.” The Shaman finished, looking incredulously at the scroll-like list Deadpool had written during his speech. “You two sure you got this?”
“Of course, but just so we’re clear, the stern is what end of the boat?” Deadpool replied, attempting to roll up his list, but mostly wrapping it into a big ball. “I’ve piloted highly-advanced, future vessels before. I’ve got this covered,” Cable responded. The Shaman paused as he took in the time-traveling mutant’s words before giving a simple, “Okay,” and preparing to leave. “Let me know when you get back. I’m heading out before someone tries to murder me again.” The duo gave a quick wave of goodbye to their benefactor and turned to face the wheelhouse. “So…erm…what’s the first step you wrote down?” Cable asked with an awkward cough. The sound of rustling papers followed as Deadpool searched for the beginning of his list. “I’ve got ‘boats do not have on/off switches.’ That was more of a personal note though.” Cable sighed, “well, how hard could it possibly be? I’ve had to deal with older technology before. Domino used to use a flip phone, after all.” “Oy,” a, distinctly British, voice shouted from the docks, “About time I found you two. I was almost worried you’d set sail before we could make it to you.” On the edge of the dock, cigarette loosely hanging from his lips, stood Pete Wisdom. “What the-“ Deadpool began before noticing Weasel and Peepers standing behind the well-dressed mutant. “I mean, is that the debonair and stylish mutant known as Pete Wisdom? I’ve only read about you in textbooks and men’s health magazines.” He nervously lied before signaling for Cable to keep his gun holstered. “Wade, he already told us you guys work together.” Weasel replied, a mixture of pity and disappointment in his words. “Men’s health magazines?” the bewildered British mutant asked with a chuckle. “So, you guys already know my shameful secret.” Deadpool hung his masked head in supposed shame. “I’ve been tutoring this man in the ways of seduction for months now. As you can see, it has backfired, and he is now out of his head, hopelessly devoted to me.” “Is that true, Mr. Wisdom?” Peepers obliviously questioned. “Wade, we don’t have time for this.” Cable interjected, reaching for his gun. “He’s right, Wade, we need to get moving.” Wisdom added in, making eye contact with the grey-haired gunman. “So, let me expedite this. The name is Pete Wisdom, your friend here made a deal with me months ago to get out of jail. In exchange, he has agreed to help me take down Walter Declun, a high-ranking Roxxon official with ties to Mutant Growth Hormone. This is where our interests intersect, Summers. See, I have it on good authority that Declun is after the very same artifact you are pursuing. I’d rather not see it fall into the hands of that corrupt knob and I’m hoping you feel the same way?” Cable mused over this information before responding, “And when we retrieve the artifact, you’re going to let me just take it and go. That doesn’t seem very likely.” “Honestly, I don’t care what happens to the object as long as Declun isn’t in possession of it. Besides, going against you would be a surefire way to lose and I don’t like losing.” “Look, I love seeing two badass mutants have a tense back and forth conversation as much as any reader, but none of this explains why the hell Peepers and Weasel are here? I thought our whole thing was discretion, Petey?” Deadpool interposed. “I threw that out the window when your friends here got kidnapped and almost murdered by some loonies in gasmasks.” Wisdom snapped back. “Also, he totally had our whole place bugged,” Weasel chimed in. “Which is pretty annoying to have never noticed.” “It did come in handy in us not dying horribly though,” Peepers added. “You bugged my apartment?! I really should have seen that coming. I mean, it only makes sense after I blew up that warehouse.” Wade rambled. “You said something about people in gasmasks?” Cable inquired, “We got attacked by some of those men too.” “We should get going now then, before more of them show up.” The British mutant responded, ushering Weasel and Peepers to climb the boat’s ladder. Just then, a screeching sound approached the group as the scarlet-haired mutant known as Siryn appeared, floating down to land next to Wisdom. “The docks are clear, we should be safe to leave. I take it you explained everything?” She said, glancing up at the ship. “Theresa,” Deadpool muttered in disbelief, the woman of his dreams had walked back into his life yet again and Wade couldn’t help but see this as a sign. “Siryn, long time no see.” He said, nearly falling off the ship as he clung to the railing, making sure he could hear every word she’d say in reply. “Hey Wade,” she replied cheerfully. “I didn’t realize you also work with Pete, that’s pretty cool.” If not for Cable holding onto the back of his suit, Deadpool would have toppled off the boat in overjoyed affection. “I guess we’ll be seeing a lot of each other, what with this boat trip to the Antarctic and all.” Cable audibly cleared his throat and attempted to redirect the topic of conversation as the newcomers made their way onto the deck. “Theresa, it’s been too long. I’m glad you’re well.” “It’s good to see you, Nathan. I assumed you were dead, but I guess I should know better by now.” She replied, surprising the bigger mutant with a quick hug. “It’s…kind of a long story.” Cable gave her shoulders a sheepish pat, “Maybe I’ll bore you with it on the trip. For now, we need to get going. I take it this is everyone?” Wisdom gave a curt nod, “You’re the one who got this boat, I assume you know how to pilot us where we need to go?” “Of course,” Nathan stammered, “I’ve piloted future vessels, a boat is no problem.” “I know a few things about piloting boats,” Peepers spoke up, “If you want any help?” “Well, I suppose it couldn’t hurt.” Cable said, attempting to hide his relief with a nervous laugh that caused everyone to stare. “Erm…follow me to the wheelhouse and we can set sail.” “Smooth,” Deadpool muttered to his friend as they passed each other. He was making a beeline for Siryn, who was currently chatting with Wisdom, when he was stopped by Weasel. “The Antarctic?” He asked in the annoyed tone that Wade had come to dread. “It’s bad enough that we got wrapped up in this insane mission of yours, but we’re going to a literal frozen wasteland?” “Hey, can this wait?” Wade attempted to walk past Weasel, but the bespectacled man stepped back in front of him. “Look man, you can try to ignore shit for as long as possible. Sooner or later, we need to talk about all of this.” Weasel pleaded, the annoyance in his voice turning to a genuine appeal. An appeal that did not go completely unheard. Deadpool sighed and looked to his roommate. “Okay, I lied about some stuff, but you have to understand, my intention was never to drag you into this, Weaz. You told me you wanted nothing to do with this type of life and I understood.” “You…understood?” Weasel was almost confused by the combination of those words and the person saying them. “I think so,” Deadpool said with a shrug. “After getting you to help me track down that Bushwhacker guy, I decided to try and keep you out of my superheroics. I figured sleeping on your couch and eating all your cereal was enough. By the way, we’re out of Crunch Ball Deluxe so, maybe get on that when we get back.” “You’re an asshole, you know that?” Weasel chuckled, “I guess you must have actually learned something in prison. So, Wisdom got you out? Do you trust him?” “Petey? Yeah, about as much as I trust any guy who works for an unknown government organization, but he did save you. He’s a good guy from what I can tell.” Deadpool looked past Weasel again, to his dismay Siryn was gone. A quick look around proved that she was no longer on deck. “Ah well, plenty of time to talk.” Deadpool muttered. “You’re doing that thing where you talk to yourself in front of me. So, I’m gonna leave before this gets weird, try and find something to do on this ship. It’s a long trip.” “Hey Weaz,” Wade called out before Weasel left. “I’m sorry you got involved in this. It’s dangerous and it was stupid of me to not think about your safety. I screwed up and I’m gonna make sure that doesn’t happen again.” Weasel was silent, taking in what he had just heard. Apologies weren’t something the two had ever actually given to each other, even when they probably should have. “Wade…” Weasel began, before deciding against the emotional response racing through his mind. “You should really apologize to Peepers. He’s going to miss ‘Young Sheldon’ because of this.” Deadpool watched his oldest friend leave, “A job well done. I am kicking this being responsible thing in the asshole.” He celebrated before looking around the dock and noticing he was the only one still out there. “Now, I just have to find something to do for the next…week?” At the utterance of the last word, it began to dawn on the mercenary just how long this trip would be and just how bored he had already become. Approximately six hours had past since they first set sail, although it had only been five minutes since Wade last checked the clock. In that time, everyone had settled into their places on the ship. Weasel had taken a trip below deck and stumbled upon the engine room. Since then, he had been working on various ways to make the ship faster while not sacrificing fuel. Peepers remained in the wheelhouse for the most part, along with Cable, the duo had formed an odd bond. Peepers piloted the boat and Cable navigated, during this time occasionally sharing stories with one another. Cable would recount an epic battle with Apocalypse and Peepers would reveal the tragic story of the time he tried to make a home garden. Wisdom mostly patrolled around the ship, making sure that nobody had tried to board. Also, keeping an eye on Wade and his business, which mostly consisted of reading the pile of “For Boaters Only” magazines he had found in the bathroom. There was, however, one passenger who Wade had been unable to track down for long. Siryn had remained elusive, which Wade might have taken personally, if he had given himself the time to dwell on the possibility of being rejected by his greatest love. Still, outside of the occasional glance of her entering a room or seeing her chatting with someone else, usually Wisdom, she had been impossible for the merc to find alone. Still, Wade decided to make another trip to the deck in search. It didn’t take long to find the Irish mutant. Theresa Cassidy leaned against one of the railings, watching the sun slowly set, it’s orange hues mixing with the blue of the sea. Wade took a moment to capture how perfect the entire scene felt before gathering his courage and heading towards her. “I was starting to worry that I hallucinated you showing up.” Wade said, immediately regretting how desperate that sounded. “Oh, hey Wade,” she smiled, brushing some of her hair away from her face. “Sorry if I’ve seemed…distant. I’ve been on edge since we got on board. Pete says it’s just jitters, but I can’t shake this feeling that we’re sitting ducks for an attack.” “Well, you’re not wrong.” Immediately realizing this wasn’t the reassuring comment he thought it was, Wade continued. “I mean, we’re bound to get attacked. I mean, it’s fine though.” He stammered, “We’ve got four powerful mutants on this ship, they’d have to be pretty strong to take us all on.” “Yeah, you’re probably right,” Siryn wistfully sighed. “Look, nothing bad is gonna happen to you, not on my watch.” Deadpool added. Siryn simply nodded and silence overtook the two as they watched the sun begin to dip out of view. “So, how did you start working for Wisdom?” Deadpool asked, “I hope you got a better deal than I did.” Siryn sighed again, “Wade, I should probably tell you now, Wisdom and I…” She was cut off by the shot of a gun as Deadpool took a bullet into the shoulder. The regenerating mutant whirled around only to be fired upon by over a dozen soldiers in gasmasks. Siryn quickly scattered the gunmen with a barrage of sound, but it wasn’t long before she needed to head for cover. Another dozen soldiers had arrived, seemingly out of nowhere, and opened fire. “Stay low,” Cable said to Peepers as he grabbed his, obscenely large, gun, “don’t make any moves and they won’t notice you.” The one-time mutant savior kicked open the door to the wheelhouse, immediately taking out the nearest solider with a shot to the back of the head. He took out a few more with potshots before the rest of the soldiers pinned him down and sent him to cover. Deadpool regained his composure, having healed from the multiple gunshot wounds. The mercenary jumped to his feet, taking out his guns and opening fire. Clearing out the enemies in front of him was not enough, however, as more soldiers appeared not long after. Wade noticed the familiar blur of reality being altered around them as they approached. “Well, fuck me,” Deadpool remarked, preparing for another hail of bullets. Before that could happen, a hail of knives of pure energy shot into the backs of the soldiers. Those not hit turned around only to be pounced by Wisdom, who quickly dispatched them as he moved towards Wade. “Petey, thank god. These assholes have got some sort of dimensional teleporter. We need to find out where their leader is.” “Splendid, where’s Siryn?” Wisdom asked, blades of pure energy protruding out of his hands. A new batch of soldiers began to appear before them only to be sent flying backwards by the screech of the sonically-powered mutant. “Heads up boys, there’s more coming.” Siryn warned, motioning to the gunmen who had begun to march toward them. “Well team, who’s ready to kick some ass?” Wisdom asked, lighting a cigarette and grinning. “I thought you’d never ask.” Deadpool unsheathed his katanas as the trio moved to meet their foes. Elsewhere, Cable remained pinned down behind the wheelhouse as the gunmen who surrounded him continued to open fire. He had already been hit a few times, the advantage of his half-metallic body keeping him from take too much damage. “Looks like you’re in quite the predicament, solider.” A voice called out from behind him, their accent a vague blend of European flavors. Cable turned around to find a man in a familiar golden gasmask. He immediately opened fire before the man disappeared. “I’m not the idiot my other counterpart was,” the man appeared into view next to Cable and delivered a blow to his ribs. “For one, I don’t intend to underestimate you and your friends.” Another blow, this time to the stomach, doubled the mutant over. “The name’s Steinhoff and it’ll be my personal pleasure to kill you.” Cable grunted, “That was the last guy’s name too.” He shifted to all fours as he caught his breath. “Of course, we’re all the same, essentially, pulled from different dimensions but all Steinhoff. A unique mercenary force brought together to find the artifact.” “You guys sure do love talking,” Cable said, rushing forward to tackle the futuristic mercenary while his guard was down. The duo tumbled to the ground before Steinhoff hit a switch on the palm of his right glove, teleporting him back behind Cable. “Enough of this,” producing a futuristic pistol, the man prepared to open fire before Cable rolled onto his back and kicked the mercenary’s leg, causing him to buckle. “Teleporting won’t help you for long,” Cable roared as he mounted the smaller man and rained down blows on his face, denting his gasmask. Out on the deck, Deadpool, Wisdom and Siryn valiantly repelled the continuing waves of soldiers. Eventually arriving at a point where they were prepared for each oncoming burst of new arrivals. Cleaning the blood from his blades, Wade looked around at the pile of bodies, most dead, some unconscious, that littered the deck of the ship. “How many of these guys can there possibly be?” “At least two dozen more,” Wisdom motioned as the latest batch of gunmen arrived. Siryn opened with a scream that sent them all flying across the deck and left them easy prey for the trio of mutants. Deadpool ran his katana through one of the nearby soldiers and turned to face another who was heading toward him. Before the gunman could reach him, however, a harpoon shot through the soldier’s chest and into the deck of the ship. Unable to react in time, Deadpool received a swift kick to the face and crashed to the floor. “Sup, loser,” the skeleton mask of Taskmaster grinned as he greeted his foe. His white cloak billowing in the wind as he moved onto the deck and drew his sword. “Quite the party you got here, mind if we crash it?” Behind the master assassin were over twenty of his students, already in the process of boarding the boat. The group had their own boat, slightly smaller in size, but with a harpoon gun attached to the side that was currently allowing the two vessels to remain side by side. Taskmaster’s men made short work of the remaining soldiers and began to battle with Wisdom and Siryn as the man himself turned back to Deadpool. “You know, I was sent here to kill you. Then, I heard you blabbering on about this artifact and I couldn’t pass that up. Turns out whatever this thing is, it was enough for my employer to triple my pay for this gig. I’ll be sure to buy you a nice grave, somewhere classy.” Deadpool got to his feet and quickly closed the gap between himself and the hitman. Taskmaster produced his shield and blocked the slash aimed for his face, blocking the other katana with his own sword. He pushed the mutant backward and delivered a slash to Deadpool’s chest. “You son of a bitch,” Deadpool looked down at his, already healing, wound and the tear in his costume. “This was the only outfit I packed for the trip.” “That was always your problem, ‘Pool, never prepared.” Taskmaster attempted another slash with his blade only to be surprised as Deadpool sidestepped and slid between the assassin’s legs. “I make do with what I’ve got,” Deadpool quipped delivering a strike to the back of Taskmaster before he could turn around. “You’re fighting is erratic, but I don’t need to memorize your every move to take you down.” Taskmaster blocked another katana strike with his shield before sweeping his opponent’s legs and sending him crashing to the floor. As Taskmaster prepared to stab his downed opponent through the chest, the boat was rocked by a sudden force. Confused, Taskmaster turned to see what caused this commotion. Using the momentary slip from the master swordsman, Deadpool jumped on the back of Taskmaster, applying a chokehold. “Nighty night, Task-failure,” he quipped before being grabbed and thrown off the assassin. Deadpool skittered across the deck, coming to a stop right up against one of the railings. “Task-failure, really? I’d be disappointed if I wasn’t already about to kill you.” Taskmaster lumbered towards his foe before stopping in his tracks. Deadpool pulled himself to his feet with the help of the railing and, noticing Taskmaster’s gaze, looked out to the sea. In the far distance, he could make out an island, a small little tract of land that was most likely unclaimed. On the island, a large cannon had been set up and shooting out of it, hurtling toward them at incredible speed, was a cannonball. “Bea Arthur, help me.” Deadpool said in panic as the cannonball hit the deck of the ship. Crashing through the floor and sending the mercenary flying off the boat and into the water. Before hitting the water, he caught a glimpse of the ship. The previous cannonball had created a massive hole in the side of the vessel and it was beginning to slowly sink. Crashing into the ocean, Wade heard the cannon firing again before passing out. To Be Continued… |