Mercy
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Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 4, 2006 15:48:45 GMT -5
(Location: New York City)
They were still in her city, the city she knew like the back of her hand because it was the only place she'd ever been. She knew exactly where they were, and how to get home five different ways.
But she didn't. She sat in the chair at the table, her elbows on the table and her head propped on her hands, and she watched Wade Wilson. She'd intended to write, and had filled up three pages from the notepad the hotel provided. But she found herself distracted, and she kept stopping and staring at Wade. She was starting to worry that maybe he wasn't going to come back like William said he would, that maybe this time he'd really died.
She didn't want him to die. Rot in jail, yes. But she didn't want him to die. And she didn't want anything to happen to him before he could tell her what he knew about her family. Where he'd kidnapped her from, for starters. And anything else that might lead her to any remaining relatives, or at least the memories.
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Post by deadpool on Sept 4, 2006 15:55:12 GMT -5
Deadpool's eyes fluttered open, and his head was afire with a splitting headache. “Ohhh... ouch. Wicked hangover.”
Then he spotted Mercy, and his memory returned to him en force. He sighed heavily, and pulled his legs over the side of the bed, resting his booted feet on the carpet.
“Why are you still here? I figured you'd have put the grenade in my mouth and taken a walk.” He still didn't feel the urge to look her in the eyes. Rather, they remained pointedly fixed on his own red and black boots.
“I mean... what do you want from me? I can't fix it. I screwed up.”
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Mercy
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Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 4, 2006 16:16:05 GMT -5
Mercy watched him anxiously as he started to stir. She didn't speak until he sat up and spoke to her first. "You're the only person who can tell me anything about me. If I'm going to find where I came from, I'm going to have to work backwards. Starting with where I was when you...Kidnapped me."
She spoke very matter-of-factly, but it was clear she was finding it hard to keep a handle on her emotions. There was no sparkle in her eyes, only vulnerable pain.
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Post by deadpool on Sept 4, 2006 16:39:00 GMT -5
He looked up at her, and nodded. "Well, I remember your last name is Burke. I never for the name of a... person."
Smooth, Wade, Smooth.
"I'm sure it couldn't be terribly hard to backtrack your family. In fact, I can do it for you. Were were presumed dead by the government. Killed in New York City... we can back track the year, look up death certificates for Mercy Burke in that time, and track the family from there."
He stood, feeling the little hole in the side of his mask where the bullet punctured.
"It'll probably take me all of a day. Is that what you want? Go back to suburbia?"
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Mercy
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Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 4, 2006 16:49:50 GMT -5
"Is that what you want? Go back to suburbia?"
Mercy found herself feeling defensive at the way he said what he did. "Well, I want to know who my family is," she said with a hint of sharpness to her tone. 'Was,' she corrected herself in her mind, but couldn't bring herself to say it out loud.
"I wanted to go with you before I found out you...What you did," she said, drawing her legs up into the chair with her and staring at her feet, for some reason avoiding his gaze. "Look...If I can just find them, see if anyone's left..." The conflicting thoughts in her head made her cut herself off. "I meant what I said. I want to know how to fight. The next guy who tries to take advantage of me in any way is going to regret it."
"But I can't go anywhere 'till I know about my past."
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Post by deadpool on Sept 4, 2006 18:18:56 GMT -5
He nodded to her. “Fair enough.” Then he looked to William. “Order us a pizza, whatever she wants on it. Get me some cinni-sticks or something with it too. Two-liter of Mountain Dew.”
Wade stood, strode to his gear with purpose, and drew out his lap-top. A moment later it was set up on the table, plugged in, and hooked to cyberspace via wireless connection. The background wallpaper was apparently Princess Leia in her slave outfit, with Bea Arthur's head superimposed over the real one.
“Okay... let's see here... Inbox 345 messages? Damn, I really need a better spam filter... hmm... New York City... Death Certificates...”
He looked up at Mercy. “Alright, before I go on, I need to get comfortable. So the mask's comin' off. I'll show you what happened when I went through Stryker's little experimentation camp.”
He pulled the leather cap and mask off, revealing the bald, scarred up tissue beneath. His face seemed scabrous, the skin thick and scarred looking. He didn't look quite like a burn victim, but came awfully close.
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Mercy
Restored
Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 4, 2006 18:30:31 GMT -5
When Mercy first glimpsed his skin as the mask came off, she stared in surprise, trying to discern what she was looking at. As he revealed his face, her shock drained away, replaced by a strong urge to vomit. She whipped her head to the side, her hair making a curtain and blocking him from her periphoral vision. Her hand covered the side of her face, then moved to press over her mouth until the urge to puke had passed.
She immediately felt ashamed of her actions, and she lifted her head, though she still stared at the wall beside her. "I'm sorry," she apologized awkwardly for her rude reaction.
"If he experimented on you...Why did you give him other people to experiment on? And wasn't supposed to cure you?"
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Post by deadpool on Sept 4, 2006 18:35:59 GMT -5
He raised his brows, and looked at her. "Geez, I didn't think it was that bad. I mean, I'd have never gotten the haircut if I thought it'd look so..." He ran his hands along his head, and shouted: "Oh my god! What happened to my skin!!?!!"
He stared shocked at her, then laughed out loud.
"Kidding. Yeah, this is what happened... No, no, you and I happened before the experiment. See, after this, Stryker and I were done. He ditched me anyway, claiming me a failure... the process took, but my cancer fought with it some. So, I'm alive... but now I've got burger-face. You think I'd have kidnapped you and turned you over to Stryker if I honestly thought they'd do THIS to you? Hell, if I thought they'd do THAT to you. I had no idea how fucked up that jergoff was."
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Mercy
Restored
Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 4, 2006 18:56:22 GMT -5
"How is killing three people any less awful than condemning one to a life of experiments?" Mercy asked, saying it more to point out his tragic flaw than to make him feel any worse. Though he deserved to feel worse.
After she spoke, she slowly moved her head to look at him. She could only glance at him for a moment at first, faintly flinching, before she looked down at the table. She'd almost been tempted to laugh at his initial response to her response to his destroyed face, but what he'd done to her and the sick sight of his skin kept her from appreciating the humor.
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Post by deadpool on Sept 4, 2006 19:16:49 GMT -5
Deadpool looked sidelong at her, and decided to continue his Internet research. His fingers moved deftly across the keyboard, creating a hum of clacking noises.
“Considering we're all going to die some day, I'd say the life of misery is much worse..." Not that that would help her any. "Okay, so I'm digging through the archives now, seeing what I can unravel."
He clacked along a bit more.
"So you want to learn to fight, eh? It's a good skill to have. It's not going to be easy... and if you're going to be tagging along with me on this wacky adventure, we're going to need to settle with the fact that you have to do what I say, when I say it. Alright?"
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Mercy
Restored
Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 4, 2006 20:42:39 GMT -5
Mercy supressed a laugh at his order. "I'm not going to kill people," she answered staunchly, her indignance making her able to look him in the eye. "And I might not want to be there when you kill people."
She started to take on an offensive tone. "You know, if you're going to let people hire you, couldn't you at least work for the good guys? At least kill off bad people? I mean, sure, maybe you had a little glimmer of an excuse back then, because you were trying to save your life, but you're not dying anymore."
She sat back heavily in her seat, looking down at the table. Her tone softened somewhat when she spoke again. "I'll help you with whatever you need, but I stop at the point when innocent people are your victims."
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Post by deadpool on Sept 4, 2006 22:59:01 GMT -5
He paused his typing enough to look over at her, his solid white eyes scanning her despite their lack of pupils.
"If it matters that much to you, I guess I should tell you that I generally don't just go offing ... innocent people. Since I've been a merc, my jobs generally only target military or corporate military targets. I've only ever assassinated three people, all of which you'd probably categorize as 'bad guys'. Honestly? I'm high-profile. That means my targets can generally defend themselves - and more importantly, have killed themselves. Well, not killed themselves, but they themselves have killed."
He caught his breath.
"My last job was to set explosives in the Novatex building, which would be vacated before it blew... I think the last thing I ever did that could be categorized as truly 'evil' was the time I was hired to put up advertisement posters for Good Charlotte." He shuddered. "I've never forgiven myself."
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Mercy
Restored
Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 6, 2006 10:07:41 GMT -5
Mercy held back the urge to remind him of her mother and brother, and the taxi driver, all of whom he'd killed and would up his total to six. Instead, she pursed her lips and exhaled slowly. "Alright. Are you finding anything?" She leaned forward, putting her elbows on the table and craning her neck to see the screen from the side.
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Post by deadpool on Sept 6, 2006 20:03:49 GMT -5
For the sake of the viewing audience, I, the editor, will clarify what our once-not-a-hero-hero meant. He said 'since he was a merc' - meaning since he'd escaped the experiment and stopped working for the government as a spook. He wasn't talking about all the stuff he did before that, including offin' Mercy's Mom-n-Bro. He also said he'd only assassinated three guys, and that they basically had it coming - though that didn't mean he hasn't KILLED more than that, all the others were just never planned out, like an assassination, and were killed in combat. Thank you, - The editor.
Deadpool shrugged, completely unaware of the editor's quasi-defense in his cause, which will be basically useless since Mercy couldn't hear it either. He, DP, went back to typing.
"I'm getting some stuff... just try and relax for a minute. Give me a few."
In truth, it took Deadpool to the time the pizza boy showed up bearing two large pizzas to get what he needed.
DP held open the box of pizza for Mercy. "I insist ya eat, though, slim. If you're going to learn to ninja the Deadpool way, you'll need to beef up some. Oh, and if you're on any drugs, they stop today too. Those are my two conditions for showing you what I've found right now."
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Mercy
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Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 7, 2006 10:14:41 GMT -5
"I'm getting some stuff... just try and relax for a minute. Give me a few."
Mercy found herself mellowed out as he spoke. She nodded slowly, casually, and sat back in her chair. As the minutes passed, mercy doodled on the notepad in front of her. She let her mind wander, not thinking about anything upsetting.
When the pizza arrived and Deadpool offered it to her, Mercy gladly took a slice. She’d gotten some food from the continental breakfast that morning, but was too anxious to eat much.
"I insist ya eat, though, slim. If you're going to learn to ninja the Deadpool way, you'll need to beef up some.”
Mercy glanced down at her arms as she chewed. ‘I’m not weak…’ she mused. She had some muscle in her arms and legs. It was a requirement of her job to be slim and well-shaped, not necessarily muscular.
Deadpool’s second condition seized Mercy’s attention, and she stared at him like a deer in headlights. Her face was like a clear glass pane, showing straight into her emotions, and Mercy felt the vulnerability.
The devil on her right shoulder made cunning plans instantly. ‘Just tell him ‘okay’. He’ll never know.’ But she knew Wade would; and besides, where would she get drugs on their travels?
So she forced herself to be straight with him. Her look was down-trodden as she tried to explain. “You can’t just…stop.” She hated letting people know she was addicted. She tried to defend herself. “I’ve tried, okay? It doesn’t just happen. I don’t…think I can do it.”
She cast her eyes on the table, bending the paper edge of the notepad. Here was a young woman who was a prisoner in her own skin, hooked on drugs and losing the confidence that she could take control of her life.
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Post by deadpool on Sept 7, 2006 11:37:54 GMT -5
Deadpool smashed two pieces of pizza together, toppings facing each other, and began to eat. He tried to keep himself mostly away from her, so she wouldn’t have to watch him do so, considering how really ugly he was.
He glanced over his shoulder. “Well, then I’ll leave you here when I go, and not give you this rad stuff I just pulled up on your history.”
Swallowing the pizza down, he turned to face her.
“Not like you can get any drugs where we’re going anyway, but if you’re going to stop doing it, you need to make the choice, not me. If you tell me right now that you want to stop, that you’ll try to stop, then I’ll make sure you stop. We can tackle the logistics of kicking your habit as we go, I’m not worried about it. But you need to choose it.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“So is it your family history, and the possibility of one day killing me with the training I get you, not to mention protecting yourself and maybe learning to control the sensory circus? Or is it that bullshit you put in your body?”
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Mercy
Restored
Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 7, 2006 18:05:05 GMT -5
Mercy was surprised at how easily he read her. It had crossed her mind that she might be able to beat him someday, perhaps even kill him, once he taught her everything. She didn't deny it when he laid it out in the open.
"I want to quit. More than anything. I swear to God."
Little did she know, she would have no choice in the matter. With Deadpool's words, 'and if you're on any drugs, that stops today, too', her decision had been made for her.
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Post by deadpool on Sept 8, 2006 2:23:42 GMT -5
To Deadpool, the idea that she was planning on killing him for what he'd done was simply par for the course. Naturally she'd want to - it was the game he played. He had plenty of enemies that wanted him dead.
Besides, He'd seen Kill Bill like five hundred times.
So he nodded, scarfed more pizza, and slid the lap-top to where she could see it. Listed there was her next of kin - a man named Carter Burke. It listed all the others of her family as deceased, including her father and oldest brother, killed during the twin towers disaster on Sept. 11th. (ooc editor's note: Contact Ghola for more information on him.)
He watched her carefully, interested in her take.
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Mercy
Restored
Deadpool's Intern
Posts: 99
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Post by Mercy on Sept 8, 2006 14:49:45 GMT -5
As Mercy pulled up death certificate after death certificate, she felt her stomach churn and her heart squeezed in her chest, making way for a hollow feeling that overtook her as she read all of the information.
Charles Kirk was her father. Born in 1964, died in 2002. There was an article mentioning his name along with the name of her brother, the third oldest of the children, Robert. Robert had been 23 when he'd died. Wade had found certificates of NYPD officers C.K. Burke and Robert Burke somewhere. It was ironic; Mercy had avoided cops for as long as she could remember, afraid of being thrown in jail for prostitution.
Her only sister, Charlotte Kay, had died at Coney Island in 1995. She was fourteen. Her brother Thomas had a death certificate, but there was no article about his death, and no mention of a cause in the obituary. He'd died in '94, at nineteen.
Her mother was Rena Sara Beckar, who had become Rena Burke in '73. She was a teacher in Brooklyn City Schools. There was an article about the taxi accident that had killed them, which included a picture of the mangled car surrounded by caution tape, and small photos of Rena, Benjamin (who had been seventeen), and--
Mercy realized with an odd jolt that the third picture was of her. She couldn't have been older than five, grinning at the camera with her hair in pigtails and a tooth missing.
Mercy minimized the page shakily. She didn't want to read it at all, let alone with the very man responsible for it sitting right there. Underneath it she found a 1984 birth certificate for Carter Burke. After reading the information, she minimized it, expecting to see a death certificate like all the others. But there wasn't one. That was it.
"Wait--Where's his death certificate?" Mercy asked quietly, turning and looking at Deadpool as though he had all the answers. She felt a small prick of hope begin to grow inside her chest. "Is there one?"
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Post by deadpool on Sept 8, 2006 15:02:47 GMT -5
Wade leaned back in his chair, finishing off another two-slice chunk of pizza. Across the room, William was silently eating breadsticks, nearly invisible. He was particularly good at that trick – blending into the background could’ve been a mutant power of his.
Deadpool shook his head, swallowing. “Nope. Carter’s alive.” He said simply, and brought up another page, it had information on Carter. “He’s out there alright. Still alive and kickin’.”
He looked sidelong at her. “Here’s a memorandum… no, wait, that’s not right. A Memorex? No… damn, whatever it means – oh! Addendum! Here’s an addendum to my initial request. You’re coming with me to train, right? If so, you can’t tell Carter about my involvement with your mother’s death. You can when we’re done, when we split, but if you find this guy before then – I don’t need him trying track me down and play hero. It would seriously hamper my quest for the swords I lost, my ability to help and train you, AND it’d just be tacky and irrelevant.”
He watched her. Wade really had been duped, though he had blinders on, when he killed her mother and brother. Secretly he hoped the girl wouldn’t one day come for him – but he seriously believed she would.
It’d be a shame if she did. Wade didn’t want to die… but he thought he’d like killing her even less.
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