"Sterilization!"
They reached White Castle in Denver at devilish speed.
So fast that it seemed if they went a little further, they would break through the very fabric of spacetime.
"Sterilization!"
Before reaching Denver, they had to break through a mechanized army the size of an entire corps. Moreover, since they were going into the enemy's lair, the troop density should only increase as they advanced.
"Sterilization!"
Extreme caution was necessary: Vice President Blavatsky or General Karna could stand in their way to the King-President.
"Sterilization!"
Nightingale, without a moment's pause, crushed mechanized units with her bare hands. The invasion of Denver Castle was swift, but the enemy was not caught off guard: despite the surprise, the machines coolly deployed their forces, blocking Ritsuka's group's path.
"Ha! The lion-headed guy cobbled these iron pieces together haphazardly. He's unworthy of controlling electricity!"
Tesla struck the ground with his golden gloves charged with alternating current. The earth trembled from powerful discharges that caused engine overloads and a series of explosions.
However, White Castle lived up to its status as the King-President's residence: the flow of mechanized troops did not cease. Delay could jeopardize the entire operation.
"I'll take the rear!" Tesla stepped forward, crushing robots with alternating current.
"If it were up to me, I, as a true genius, would have thoroughly toyed with this cat-like misunderstanding, but the head nurse is right – this guy needs treatment. So, give it to his 'source of illness' for me too."
"Understood. But we have no insurance, so the bills will be sent to your name."
Leaving the army to Tesla, Ritsuka's group rushed forward. When the vehicles painted in the colors of the American flag tried to pursue them, Tesla blocked their path, creating a field of incandescent current around himself.
"The future belongs to alternating current! How dare you, pathetic slaves of direct current, resist? Although… you are current, so you are obliged to 'resist.' Ha! I do have a brilliant sense of humor after all. I should remember this and tell it to the cat face."
Tesla, accumulating energy in both hands, shouted at the machines surrounding him:
"If Babbage knew about this – he'd be green with envy! Pieces of scrap metal, worse than steam engines… Behold the power of alternating current!"
Meanwhile, Ritsuka's group, hurrying to the King-President's chambers, was stopped by a beam of light. As expected, Vice President Blavatsky appeared before them, looking at them with clear irritation.
"The front line reported that something electric is rushing towards us at breakneck speed… And it turned out to be you? How audacious. Escaped from prison, and now you've come to kill the King-President?"
Blavatsky opened a book, preparing to strike, but Nightingale stepped forward, blocking her path.
"Not to kill. To save. He, the King-President, is ill. Severe mental disorder. The obsession of past presidents has merged into one, depriving him of his sanity. He requires treatment. I am proceeding with the amputation."
Upon hearing this, the Vice President averted her gaze. Her face showed that she understood what was being said.
"It seems you know yourself," Nightingale seized her reaction. "You know he is ill."
Blavatsky lowered her hand and spoke with a sigh:
"Yes. The King-President's plans are insane. Honestly, I don't like the idea of only America prospering either. I saw his fanatical obsession, but I didn't have the strength to stop it. However… it's too late. The King-President will win this war and take the Holy Grail."
Unable to interfere, she was forced to protect him. Nightingale, not accepting such excuses, took out her pepperbox revolver.
"Do you really consider this saving the world? 'As long as we are well'? You are also ill. Life is harmony and symbiosis. No one can survive in isolation."
The debate on bioethics threatened to drag on.
"Hey, sister! We don't have time! It'll be Karna soon!" Deadpool shouted, having figured out Blavatsky's maneuver to stall for time, but only received a warning in response: be quiet, or I'll sew your mouth shut.
"It's not too late. I'm a nurse, I heal people. I can cure him. You yourself remember how this country, America, was founded."
These words made Blavatsky think. She pulled a rolled-up piece of paper from her chest and handed it to them.
"I can't stop him. But perhaps you can. Take this. I kept it to show him when he came to his senses… But perhaps you need it more."
The Vice President stepped aside.
"Let's consider that you have defeated me. Cruelly and mercilessly. Now go."
She pretended not to notice, watching them with her gaze. Deep down, she also hoped that the King-President would regain his sanity.
Thanks to Nightingale's persuasion, they saved time and finally reached Edison's chambers. The heavy doors swung open. Inside, in a whirlwind of roaring direct current, a formidable white lion sat on a throne.
"Welcome, enemies of the great American empire. I have been waiting for you."
Thousands of light bulbs flashed everywhere. The light was so bright it hurt the eyes. Deadpool, who had somehow acquired sunglasses, unfolded a piece of foil and settled down to sunbathe, even though he barely had any skin.
"King-President Edison! You are ill. As the head nurse, I diagnose: you require treatment. Refusal is not accepted. The prescription has already been written. You have no insurance, so the bill will be sent to your name!"
Nightingale rushed forward, reaching out her hand, but Edison didn't even flinch. As her fingers almost touched his face, direct current discharges created an impenetrable electromagnetic shield.
"A little more… Just a little more, and I will take the first step in realizing my great plan. This is just the step of one insignificant man, but a giant leap for the prosperity of great America."
"Typical 'T.' Exactly 'T.' Or some president with 'T' mannerisms…"
Edison slowly rose, emitting streams of electricity. As he spoke, spreading his arms, Deadpool grumbled under his breath, hinting at the initials of whoever might be behind this pathological obsession.
"Don't think I rely only on current!"
Edison's lion head let out a thunderous roar, and everything around plunged into darkness. This was not a normal power outage – it was the deployment of a Reality Marble, an innate barrier manifested by Caster's magic.
"The light granted to all – only for the glory of America!"
Edison appeared somewhere high above. Two spotlights crossed on him, and then their beams slowly descended. The light illuminated a giant statue on which he stood, and solemn orchestral music began to play.
"Oh no! Wait, this is…!"
Deadpool seemed to recognize something. But it was too late: a powerful wave of direct current, generated by Edison's barrier, engulfed Ritsuka's group.
World – Domination – Faith.
"World Faith Domination."
"Aaaah, no, not this…!"
Deadpool covered his ears.
To the sounds and solemn fanfares all too familiar to him, Edison's barrier effect concluded.
"My body…"
Ritsuka, Mash, Nightingale, and Saber Alter found themselves trapped. Light bulbs and wires, arranged around them as conductors for Edison's Noble Phantasm, shot out discharges of current, firmly binding their arms and legs.
"Hmm, to withstand my Phantasm, 'World Faith Domination'… Impressive," Edison mused, stroking his lion's mane. "It seems it affected that red Servant. But it's strange. This Phantasm casts down human faith in the Age of Gods, in Mysteries. The older the Servant's origin, the more fatal the compatibility should be. Why is it so…?"
The situation escalated, but Edison merely observed Deadpool, who was writhing in indescribable agony, with bewilderment.
"Wade! What's wrong with you? Did the Phantasm affect you?" Ritsuka exclaimed.
Ritsuka himself, who barely believed in mysticism, perceived the attack only as a special effect from a movie company's intro. But with Deadpool, it was different.
"Aaaah! This is…! Ugh…! That is…! My bread and butter…!"
It seemed the blow landed not on his body, but on his psyche. And it wasn't about "Mysteries" or "Faith," as Edison reasoned, but something deeply personal.
"No, this is ridiculous! This game… it's from Sony! Sony has Sony Columbia Pictures! So why the hell is the 20th Century FOX logo here?!"
Shouting these incoherent curses, Deadpool, contorted with rage, finally managed to recover from the mental shock.
"Listen, Mr. President T! You're the first one who made me suffer like this. And over copyright and movie studios… And such a handsome and sex symbol as myself is very sensitive to movie matters!"
Enraged, Deadpool drew his swords and shot towards Edison.
"Tie him up too!" Edison shouted, thrusting his hands forward, spewing direct current.
Deadpool swung his sword and simply cut through the electrical discharges.
"Wait. Cut through current? With physical force? How?!"
"Kung-fu-fiesta-motherf***er!"
While Edison was stunned by the severed electricity, Deadpool spun around and slammed his rear end into Edison's face.
"So, how does my posterior taste, Mufasa?!"
Edison couldn't believe his eyes. You can't cut water, and you certainly can't cut electricity with a sword, neither logically nor scientifically. But why?!
"Hey! Do you think we're on a show called 'Fun Science with Bill Nye'? This is fiction! Pure fabrication and fakery!"
"Fakery?" Edison was completely bewildered. Ritsuka and the others also froze, looking at Deadpool, who was spouting nonsense – though perhaps it was better not to delve into this nonsense to preserve their sanity.
"Actually, I'm the main character here! Can't I be a little overpowered?! In other stories, main characters use super-cheats to their heart's content, and they're fine!"
Well, that's because it's conveyor belt fantasy about isekai… Ah, better keep quiet.
"I am Deadpool! Just add the phrase 'Because I am Deadpool,' and any magic will work!"
While the enemy was distracted by this nonsense, Deadpool drew his twin pistols and with one precise burst shot out the light bulbs on the walls. The restraints fell away. Nightingale, freed, immediately rushed to the back of Edison's head.
"The finishing blow is yours, Madam Nurse. I cede the stage."
Deadpool elegantly ducked, letting her pass, and she attacked Edison in a whirlwind.
"Sterilization!"
Her sharp blow knocked Edison off his feet. In an instant, she straddled his chest and, concentrating all her magical energy, clasped his head with her palms.
"Proceeding with the operation! Patient, do not move! If you twitch, I'll kill you! Then I'll revive you and kill you again!"
Emerald mana erupted around her, taking the form of a giant spectral nurse. Nightingale looked Edison directly in the eyes and proclaimed:
"We will destroy all that brings poison and harm."
"Nightingale Pledge!"
The colossal phantom nurse plunged her hands into Edison's head and pulled out a lump of black tumor – a clot of obsessive ideas. The tumor writhed horribly, spewing incoherent words:
"America… great… once again… we will make… great… make… America… great again…!"
These were the spectral voices of former presidents tormenting Edison's mind.
"Please burn this!"
She threw the clot towards Saber Alter. As if waiting for the moment, she swung her sword, turning the tumor into ashes. Then Deadpool approached Edison and handed him the long scroll he had received from Blavatsky.
"Farewell, Mr. T. Someday you will be a great president. Or already are? Heh heh, these timelines always get mixed up…"
Deadpool waved goodbye to the disappearing wisps of darkness.
"Your America is the complete opposite of your nightmares. Remember what this country is founded upon!"
Nightingale stepped back. Edison's face cleared, and he looked at the paper in his hands.
"Declaration of Independence."
The document that embodied the ideals on which America was founded after defeating the British forces in the original history.
"E pluribus unum," Nightingale said.
Edison, as if in a trance, repeated after her:
"E pluribus unum. Out of many – one. One out of many."
The motto of the United States, symbolizing the union of states into a single federation. As his eyes, clouded by madness, began to clear, Tesla appeared in the doorway, delayed by the battle with the mechanized army.
"I'm here! Cat head, are you still alive? Come on, let me see your face, clouded by delirium! Let me admire the face of a stubborn loser who can't take a single step because of his complexes! Direct current!"
"This voice… Alternating current!"
The clarity in Edison's eyes was instantly replaced by a flash of fury.
"Direct current!"
"Alternating current!"
The touching reunion of the lion's head and golden armor was short-lived: both simultaneously landed perfect counter-blows on each other.
"Still the same childish slaps! Direct current!"
"And you, did you abandon the gym? You've gotten weak! Alternating current!"
The next second, they locked in a ridiculous brawl: punches, kicks, neck grabs, pinches, and bites – a real catfight.
"Uh…"
Ritsuka and the others were stunned, watching this sudden change in atmosphere and fierce brawl.
"Alright, come on, choose! Who will win: Tesla or Edison? Let's start the 'Electro-Lottery'! Place your bets, gentlemen, place your bets!"
Deadpool, who had somehow acquired bookmaker attributes, was already enthusiastically taking bets on the outcome of the battle between the two currents.
"I bet a hundred dollars on Edison!" Roman was the first to respond via comms.
"One hundred fifty on Tesla," Saber Alter decided to participate for some reason.
"Oh… then I… a hundred dollars on Mr. Tesla!" Mash too?
"Well, then I… Four dollars on Edison!" Ritsuka, succumbing to the general excitement, dug out his last few coins.
"Gambling is harmful. And everything harmful is subject to excision. Sterilization!"
The betting ended when Nightingale made an indentation on Deadpool's head with the edge of her palm.
Later, Blavatsky and the arrived Karna had to sweat profusely to pull the two enraged inventors apart.