Deadpool realized something the moment the force field trapped him.
He had walked straight into a trap.
It all made sense now.
The United States Government had originally wanted custody of Magneto from S.H.I.E.L.D.
But they had failed.
Which meant the real Magneto should still be locked inside a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, not this prison.
So instead of imprisoning him here…
They had built something else.
A trap.
A carefully designed cage meant to capture anyone foolish enough to attempt rescuing Magneto.
And Deadpool had walked right into it.
Suddenly all the strange details from earlier made perfect sense.
The prison captain.
His suspicious tone.
The strange half-sentences.
The way he seemed to know something Deadpool didn't.
Clearly the man had been aware that the "Magneto" in the cell below was a fake.
That explained the cryptic remarks he had made earlier.
Deadpool sighed heavily.
"Damn it."
"I should've noticed sooner."
He lowered his head and pressed the button on his teleportation belt.
Nothing happened.
No flash of light.
No sudden escape.
No body parts left behind on the floor.
Just silence.
Deadpool stared at the device.
"…Of course."
The government had anticipated that too.
The entire area must have been filled with space-interference technology designed to prevent teleportation.
Which made sense.
If teleportation were allowed, the Brotherhood could simply invite Nightcrawler or some random sorcerer from Kamar-Taj, and they would break into the prison in five minutes.
Deadpool rubbed his temples.
Now the situation had reversed.
He had come here to rescue someone.
Instead…
He was the one trapped.
He only hoped Raven had managed to rescue Magneto somewhere else.
Because if she hadn't…
Then the best outcome from this mission would only be 250,000 dollars.
And honestly, that felt like a terrible deal.
Deadpool pulled out his pistol.
BANG! BANG!
Two shots struck the force field.
The barrier rippled like water disturbed by stones.
Then the bullets fell harmlessly to the floor.
Deadpool immediately drew his dual swords and lunged forward.
Steel flashed.
He slashed again and again.
But the force field remained untouched.
It rippled slightly with each strike, then returned to its original smooth surface.
The blades might as well have been slicing through air.
Deadpool stopped and stared at the barrier.
"…What the hell?"
"How did they build such a ridiculous turtle shell?"
"This thing is harder than France's national defense strategy."
He stepped back.
Then calmly pulled out an RPG rocket launcher from his system storage.
"Alright."
"Let's see how you like this."
BOOM!
The explosion shook the chamber.
Smoke filled the air.
But when the smoke cleared…
The barrier was still there.
Perfectly intact.
Only gentle ripples moved across its surface before fading away.
Deadpool dropped the empty launcher.
"…Damn."
He sighed loudly and shouted toward the ceiling.
"HELLO?"
"Is anyone there?"
"Because there's two hundred and fifty thousand dollars of Brotherhood dirty money sitting right here!"
"All you have to do is open this force field!"
"Limited offer!"
"First come, first served!"
"No refunds!"
For a moment, the prison remained silent.
Then—
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Slow applause echoed through the chamber.
Real applause.
One person clapping their own hands.
Deadpool turned toward the elevator.
A man stepped out.
He wore a black suit.
His hair was white.
His build was sturdy.
He looked about fifty years old.
Deadpool groaned.
"Oh, for f***'s sake."
"You again."
"William Stryker."
William Stryker was infamous.
The sworn enemy of the X-Men.
Or more accurately—
The enemy of all mutants.
A man driven by hatred after his mutant son accidentally caused the death of his wife.
Since then, Stryker had dedicated his entire life to eradicating mutants.
Stryker tilted his head thoughtfully.
"You've changed, Raven."
"You didn't swear so much before."
He smiled faintly.
"Perhaps it's because you've been spending time around Wade Wilson."
"Maybe you've been… influenced."
He circled the force field slowly.
"I do wonder why you chose his appearance."
"To surprise Erik?"
He chuckled.
"No… perhaps it was meant to frighten him."
Then his expression turned colder.
"But it doesn't matter."
"You should never have come here."
"For us…"
He paused.
"…you are a million times more valuable than Erik."
For years, Mystique had been a nightmare for governments.
Her ability to shapeshift allowed her to impersonate officials, steal secrets, and expose classified information.
Stryker had been furious about it.
But powerless.
Now, however…
If Mystique was truly trapped here…
That problem would finally be solved.
Even better—
If he could study her mutation…
If he could reproduce that ability…
He could infiltrate mutant organizations himself.
The X-Men.
The Hellfire Club.
The Brotherhood.
The future suddenly looked incredibly promising.
Deadpool raised a finger.
"Uh… excuse me?"
Stryker waved magnanimously.
"Go ahead."
"I'm in no hurry."
"We have plenty of time."
Deadpool cleared his throat.
"So…"
"Is there any chance…"
"…that I'm actually Deadpool and not Raven?"
Stryker immediately laughed.
"Impossible."
"Absolutely impossible."
"Raven, stop joking."
"Before coming here, I reviewed the surveillance footage."
"You clearly used shapeshifting abilities during your infiltration."
Deadpool rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Well… since you checked the footage…"
"Aren't you curious about something?"
Stryker frowned.
"Curious about what?"
Deadpool grinned.
"If I were Raven…"
"How exactly did I manage to defeat Lady Deathstrike?"
Stryker froze.
Mystique was skilled.
Fast.
Dangerous.
But Lady Deathstrike was a completely different level.
She fought Wolverine regularly.
If Raven had truly defeated her…
Something didn't add up.
Stryker's confident smile slowly disappeared.
Then his face turned red.
"Impossible!"
"You're lying!"
Deadpool pointed at him smugly.
Ha.
He's getting nervous.
Deadpool shrugged.
"Fine."
"Let's pretend I'm lying."
Stryker took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.
His expression hardened again.
"Whether you are Raven or Wade…"
"You clearly possess shapeshifting abilities."
"In that sense…"
"My plan has already succeeded halfway."
"As for your real identity…"
"We'll find out once you're strapped to an operating table."
Deadpool laughed.
"Capture me?"
He drew his swords again.
The blades flashed as he slashed the ground twice, leaving deep marks in the floor.
"Come on."
"Step inside."
"I'll let you try."
Then he glanced at his watch.
"Let's see…"
"Because I copied Raven's ability through… special means…"
He tapped the screen.
"You've got about thirty-five minutes before the power runs out."
"Plenty of time to catch me and draw some blood samples."
Stryker's expression darkened.
If this really was Deadpool…
Capturing him quickly would be almost impossible.
Especially since Lady Deathstrike was currently out of action.
But Stryker quickly smiled again.
"Do you really think I have no solution?"
His eyes turned cold.
"Your self-healing ability…"
"You will regret having it."
He pressed the communicator on his ear.
"Bring down Experimental Weapon Number Twelve."
If normal methods couldn't capture Deadpool…
Then they would simply destroy him first.
Half-kill him.
Then drag the remains into the laboratory later.
After all…
Deadpool wouldn't die anyway.
But before the order could finish echoing…
Deadpool's body suddenly rippled again.
His form shifted.
His skin turned blue.
His hair became red.
Within seconds…
He had transformed into Mystique.
The blue-skinned beauty raised one eyebrow and smiled playfully.
"Are you really so sure…"
"…that I'm Wade?"
She crossed her arms.
"Because honestly…"
"I'm actually Raven."
"My powers just evolved."
"Now I can copy other people's abilities too."
She tilted her head.
Then asked softly—
"Do you… believe it?"
Stryker stared.
His brain stopped working.
Then he shouted:
"DAMN IT!!!"
-------------------------------------
Free readers see the storm coming.
Patrons are already inside it. 😏
patreon.com/Dragonscribe31