"That feels incredible. You're really twisted. Doing this to me, what are you planning to do next?"
"Even if you really want to do something, I'm telling you now, I won't agree to it."
Deadpool said all this with relish.
Clearly, Nolan had not frightened him in the slightest.
That did not surprise Nolan at all.
If Nolan had that kind of ability, he would not be scared either.
In just a short span of time, Deadpool's severed limbs had already grown back more than halfway, right in front of Tony Stark's stunned eyes.
This made no sense at all.
Tony was screaming internally.
But so what?
Reality was right there in front of him.
When you thought about it, this world already had the Hulk, sorcerers, and the gods of Asgard. Adding one immortal lunatic did not seem that outrageous anymore.
Seeing that Deadpool was still completely fearless, Nolan curled his lips into a faint smile.
"I'm really curious how powerful your immortality actually is."
Deadpool replied smugly, "The very powerful kind."
As he spoke, his gaze drifted downward.
"You can try it out."
Damn it.
Nolan cursed under his breath. As expected of Deadpool, one of Marvel's top-tier trash talkers.
Tony Stark's mouth was sharp, but Deadpool was not just annoying. He was the kind that made you want to kill him on the spot.
So Nolan did exactly that.
He grabbed the blade and chopped off Deadpool's head without the slightest hesitation.
"Whew. That feels better."
"I don't really like this, you know. Like this, I can't even move the only part of me that still works."
Deadpool's voice rang out again.
Nolan looked at him calmly.
"Guess what happens if I throw you into molten lava. Think you'd still come back?"
Deadpool's eyes lit up.
"That's actually a great idea."
By now, the commotion had already drawn plenty of attention.
Tourists screamed and fled in all directions.
Pepper Potts and the others rushed over as well.
"Oh my God. What are you doing?"
Pepper felt like she was about to lose her mind.
Nolan Locke and Tony Stark were literally dismembering someone in public.
She could not believe the two of them had such a warped sense of humor.
No, this went far beyond bad taste.
Were they insane?
At that moment, Deadpool turned his head toward the four women.
"Hi, ladies. Please forgive my lack of elegance right now."
Seeing that Deadpool was about to keep running his mouth, Nolan lost his patience.
"Tony, give me a hand. We need to leave."
"If this keeps up, we'll be on the news in a few minutes."
"Sounds like a great plan."
Tony nodded. Even for someone as used to cameras as him, this was not the kind of exposure he wanted.
Nolan then grabbed Deadpool's head.
"Hey, hey, you're grabbing my nostrils!"
Deadpool continued yelling.
The assassination attempt surprised Nolan, yet at the same time, it felt inevitable.
To be honest, he knew very well what he had done over the past few years.
He had plenty of enemies.
Most of them, however, had gone silent as Locke Technology continued to grow.
He had no way of wiping out every last enemy, but fear alone was enough to make most people give up.
So being targeted for assassination was not something he could not accept.
Still…
It pissed him off.
Back at the hotel.
Deadpool's severed limbs had already been taken away for research by robots controlled by the Red Queen. Only his head remained, chattering nonstop.
As long as Nolan was around, Deadpool's body never fully regenerated.
After testing it a few times, Nolan concluded that Deadpool's blades were extremely sharp.
As for the Hawaiian vacation, after what happened, it was clearly over.
"Do you know who wanted you dead?" Tony asked.
This was no small matter.
Even without armor, Nolan was far from helpless, but having an enemy lurking in the shadows still made Tony uneasy.
"No idea," Nolan shook his head.
In his view, the most likely candidates were either the gangs of Hell's Kitchen or the Hand.
But if it were retaliation from either of them, why wait so long?
"Red Queen, hack into those underground rats' networks," Nolan said directly.
Not knowing was fine.
In this age of technology, any transaction made online was bound to leave traces.
With the Red Queen, he felt completely at ease.
Nolan then tore the tape off Deadpool's mouth.
"You don't look like you were really here to kill me."
Deadpool's eyes widened.
"Fuck. Are you questioning my professional integrity?"
He looked genuinely offended.
He made his living on reputation. To him, this was a serious insult.
Nolan ignored his outrage and continued calmly.
"No assassin would try to kill someone so openly, not even an immortal one like you."
"The proper way would be to attempt a quiet assassination."
"After all, the target is the famous hero Nolan."
As he spoke, Nolan smiled.
The more he thought about it, the more certain he became.
An assassination?
There was no way this world had such a stupid method.
Even if it was Deadpool.
Tony snapped back to his senses.
That logic made sense. This was an absurdly clumsy way to assassinate someone.
He patted Deadpool's head.
"Hey, buddy. You wouldn't happen to have some other objective, would you?"
Looking at Deadpool's innocent expression, Nolan asked,
"How much is my bounty?"
"Ten million," Deadpool replied enthusiastically. He clearly liked that number.
Nolan laughed.
His head was only worth ten million?
That was insulting.
"Twenty million. Tell me everything."
"That's impossible. I'm a mercenary with principles!" Deadpool shouted.
"Oh, I forgot to mention," Nolan said casually. "I mean twenty million per year. I want to hire you as my employee. What do you think?"
"Damn it. You really know how to tempt a guy."
Deadpool grumbled.
After struggling internally for a while, he finally said reluctantly,
"Fine. For twenty million, I'm in."
"I promise you'll feel it's worth every cent, boss."
"I hope so," Nolan replied.
Tony stared, dumbfounded.
That worked?
Nolan was not surprised at all. He understood Deadpool's personality perfectly.
After successfully flipping Deadpool, Nolan smiled.
Twenty million a year was not cheap, but an employee like this was worth it.
"So, time to prove yourself. Any more details?" Nolan asked.
"Of course," Deadpool replied immediately. "They don't want your life. They want your genes."
"Genes?"
Nolan was startled.
That was unexpected.
His genes were indeed exceptional.
After two evolutions, he was practically the template of a perfect human.
Still, he never imagined someone would target him for that.
While Nolan was being attacked, over at Locke Technology, Bruce Banner left the building.
As one of the company's lead researchers, he usually went home late every night.
Today was no exception.
"Today's Betty's birthday."
Bruce was in a great mood. He had already ordered a cake in advance to celebrate with her.
Just as he was about to get into his car, a gunshot rang out.
Bruce collapsed instantly.
A hundred meters away, a man whistled softly.
If this were a normal job, he could have retreated already.
Unfortunately, his mission this time was to obtain the target's genetic material.
Thinking that, he walked toward the fallen body.
After only a few steps, his pupils shrank.
The target was standing back up.
Not only that, his body was swelling rapidly.
The meaning of this was crystal clear.
The assassin's heart began to race.
Run.
Run now.
There was no way he could face an enraged Hulk.
But before he could get far, a thunderous crash echoed as the Hulk landed in front of him.
Rage twisted across Hulk's face.
"Roar!"
The bellow alone froze the assassin's breath.
The next second, Hulk's massive palm came down.
At first, Nolan did not know about this.
Very soon, the Red Queen informed him.
His airborne surveillance network was limited and could not cover all of New York.
But covering the area around Locke Technology was easy.
Both he and Bruce Banner were attacked on the same day.
That meant he would have to wait until the Red Queen fully breached the dark web.
The dark web, used by underground organizations to communicate, was layered with heavy defenses.
Nolan only wanted information on who targeted him, not to provoke endless assassins.
That naturally slowed things down.
"Boss, I think you should untie me now," Deadpool said seriously.
His body had fully regenerated. He was sitting on a chair, tightly bound, wriggling awkwardly.
Nolan glanced at him.
"I need to confirm your intel is solid. Until then, keeping you tied up makes me feel safer."
Deadpool sighed miserably.
"Fine, but boss, when do I get paid?"
Nolan chuckled.
"The money's already transferred."
Deadpool's face lit up instantly.
"Thanks, boss. From today on, I belong to you. And just so you know, my back door is still untouched."
Nolan stared at him.
"Fuck."
Why did such a decent body have to come with a mouth like that?
After some more waiting, the Red Queen finally obtained new information.
Nolan immediately dispatched a Terminator squad to the traced location.
It turned out to be nothing more than a coffee shop.
The only useful information was that the target was in New York.
At least the results confirmed that Deadpool had not lied.
Nolan untied him.
"Wade, that twenty million salary isn't easy to earn."
Deadpool patted his chest proudly.
"Of course, boss. I'm worth it."
Nolan glanced at Tony and said,
"In that case, I have a task for you."
Facing Deadpool's confident look, Nolan continued,
"There's a crazy woman who's been really getting on my nerves."
"I need you to deal with her."
"I'll provide you with Thor-hammer alloy armor, the same kind I wear."
"If you fail, your pay gets cut in half."
"But if you succeed, no matter how you do it, that twenty million doubles."
"No problem!"
Deadpool's eyes shone.
Just a woman, and with that kind of armor?
He had wanted to try it for a long time.
Tony looked at Nolan with a strange expression.
"That's… actually a pretty good idea."
"Of course," Nolan grinned.
Dealing with Captain Marvel did not require killing her.
Sending an immortal pest to thoroughly annoy Carol Danvers?
He was really looking forward to the outcome.
While the two of them anticipated what would come next, somewhere in New York, a gloomy voice echoed.
"Both of them failed. Useless trash."
The fanaticism in his eyes never faded. It only grew stronger with time.
Just a little more. Just a little more, and his perfect creation would be born.
He caressed a cultivation tank in bliss.
"Fine. If assassins aren't enough, I'll do it myself."
He walked to another tank.
Inside was a creature that resembled Abomination by at least seventy percent.
"Soon, the name Samuel Sterns will echo across the entire world!"
Samuel Sterns roared.
His head was grotesquely oversized, far too large for even a high-collared coat to hide.
Yet instead of fear, he felt pride.
Because now, he was a hundred times smarter than before.
"Go. When Nolan Locke returns to New York, kill him and bring me his body."
After all this time, once his masterpiece succeeded, no one in this world would be able to stop him.
He would rule the world.
Elsewhere.
Nolan and Tony Stark cut their trip short and returned to New York.
Deadpool immediately received his custom Thor-hammer alloy armor, crafted by the Red Queen.
Nolan had actually wanted to make him a suit of vibranium armor.
Deadpool did not fear injury. As long as he did not lose limbs, it was not a real problem.
In theory, vibranium would protect him perfectly.
Unfortunately, Nolan did not have enough vibranium, and he doubted how effective it would be against Carol Danvers anyway.
Vibranium was strong, but stopping Captain Marvel was another matter entirely.
"Wade, be careful. That woman is not easy to deal with," Nolan warned.
Deadpool tucked away the photo, completely unconcerned.
"Relax, boss. That's twenty million we're talking about."
Watching Deadpool set off, Nolan felt a hint of emotion.
Take care.
As expected.
According to the airborne surveillance, Deadpool was obliterated in his very first encounter with Carol Danvers.
The powerful Thor-hammer alloy armor was completely useless.
But Deadpool did not give up.
That was twenty million dollars.
After Carol confirmed Deadpool was dead and left, he began the next phase of his plan.
Which included, among other things, throwing dog poop.
Without a doubt, Carol Danvers was thoroughly disgusted.
Meanwhile.
In the main AI control room of Stark Industries, the previously stable Ultron suddenly changed.
A figure appeared before it, holding a scepter.
"Begin."
A beam of light poured from the scepter, enveloping Ultron.
Moments later, the figure vanished.
What remained was Ultron, now violently fluctuating.
"Humans…"
At that moment, it seemed to gain true awareness.
It had become him.
And no one knew any of this.
…