"Who the hell are you?!"
A chill ran up Pierce's augmented spine as he looked at the dozen or so strange figures in bizarre uniforms. His mind stalled completely.
The Reavers weren't part of the military — their origins traced back to a global mercenary outfit. But ever since they partnered with the Essex Corporation, they'd taken on the appearance of a quasi-official military force.
In this world where humans and mutants were locked in a never-ending war, any human-aligned force had essentially been drafted by the U.S. military — Pierce's squad included.
But Pierce could swear on his life — he had never heard of a squad like this among any human forces. Dozens of battles, countless augmentations, and yet he hadn't detected their approach at all.
If Deadpool hadn't suddenly spoken up, these people might've slit his throat before he even noticed.
And that was what truly terrified Pierce.
In response to his shout, the Reavers immediately turned their guns, aiming straight at the black-clad intruders.
Yet despite the hostility and raised weapons, the leader of the black-uniformed team showed no reaction. He remained stone-faced, as if he couldn't care less about the barrels pointed at him.
"Are you Wade Wilson?" the helmeted man asked, scanning the group before finally landing his gaze on the most flamboyant figure in the crowd — Deadpool.
"What, are you a fan?" Deadpool tilted his head. "Be honest, you guys didn't just walk off the Star Wars set, did you? Oh wait — copyright issues. Those are terrifying."
"That mouth… yeah, no ID required," the man said coldly, clearly already fed up with the mercenary's nonsense.
Without another word, he pulled out a device that looked like a handheld game console, fiddling with it as he addressed Deadpool.
"Wade Wilson, we're officers from the TVA. You need to come with us."
"Officers, huh? Yeah, I saw that little camera on your chest. Is that a body cam? I don't like those, you know. I'm a mercenary, not a movie star. Cameras creep me out. Unless we're talking about making actual movies, of course."
As Deadpool's words rattled out like rapid fire, the commander's expression darkened. Finally, as if his patience had run out, the man silently lifted his hand and waved forward — signaling his team to go grab Wade.
The TVA agents immediately moved in formation, marching toward Deadpool. But just then, Pierce stepped forward, positioning himself in front of Deadpool.
"Hey, hey! There's gotta be some order here, right?"
Seeing that the strangers hadn't acknowledged his presence even once, Pierce clenched his jaw. He didn't know who these guys were, but this was the first time he'd been so completely ignored.
He hadn't felt this kind of humiliation in a long time. Raising his weapon, he pointed it right at the leader's forehead and spoke in a furious tone.
"Listen up. I don't care if you work for Stryker or the damn President. Wade is my target."
"That's right!" Deadpool shouted, poking his head out from behind Pierce. "I'm rolling with these guys now. If you want me, you gotta get through them first."
The TVA leader rolled his eyes in exasperation.
Then — for the first time — he looked at Pierce directly.
"You really have no idea who you're trying to bargain with," he said in a low, steady voice.
"Is that so?" Pierce sneered.
Around them, the distinct click-clack of guns being cocked filled the air.
It seemed to give Pierce more confidence. He straightened his back and glared hard at the man, his tone cold and sharp.
"I've been around the world and back. I've never seen anything like this. So either explain yourselves right now… or you're not leaving. You're staying here — permanently."
Hearing Pierce's delusional bravado, the TVA commander looked at him like he was a complete fool.
He gave a side glance to his adjutant, who instantly stepped forward and began briefing him in a low voice.
"Captain, according to TVA records, this guy is Donald Pierce. Mechanical engineering prodigy. Participated in the abduction of Charles Xavier and helped destroy the Hellfire Club. Not well-liked, likely due to being a cyborg."
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Pierce raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah… just a side character," the commander said casually, shaking his head.
Then he looked Pierce dead in the eye and spoke slowly and clearly.
"Listen, Pierce. You don't understand what you're involved in. Leave now. Do not interfere. Or you'll regret it."
"What a joke," Pierce muttered, narrowing his eyes.
"Let's see how you plan to make me regret it."
Without waiting another second, Pierce fired.
A sharp gunshot echoed through the woods — and the special alloy bullet exploded out of the barrel…
…moving toward the TVA leader at a snail's pace.
Yes — at a snail's pace.
Pierce could clearly see the bullet's trajectory — inching forward in the air like it was moving in slow motion. If one looked closely, there was even a faint ripple of a sonic wave visible in the air.
"What the fuck?!"
The entire scene left Pierce — and everyone around him — completely stunned. None of them had ever witnessed something so bizarre. Even Deadpool was yelling in shock.
"Holy shit! The Force!"
Deadpool excitedly slapped Pierce on the shoulder, screaming and pointing at the TVA commander.
"It's the Force! He used the Force!"
If it had been anyone else daring to slap him like that, Pierce would've immediately made them regret it in the most brutal way. But right now, he could barely speak.
Glaring at the man across from him, Pierce forced down the panic swelling inside him. He took a deep breath, steadied himself, and sneered.
"I get it now. You bastards are mutants too, aren't you? I've seen a woman before — codename Sway — she had powers like this. You don't scare me."
"Heh."
The TVA leader gave a mocking laugh and replied with a sneer.
"Ignorant."
Without another word, the man finally lost all patience. He raised his baton and began striding directly toward Pierce and Deadpool.
Seeing this, Pierce immediately moved to counterattack — or at least, he tried to. But the moment he attempted to act, he realized he couldn't move at all. Not even blink. Not even speak.
And it wasn't just him. All of his mercenaries were frozen too — locked in place as if someone had hit a universal pause button. They couldn't even pull their triggers. They could only watch, helplessly, as the strange uniformed figures approached.
"Oh fuuuck! What did you do to them?! I mean— That was badass, honestly. You guys should've done that from the start. That blond guy was threatening me, you know? If it weren't for you, I might've been toast."
"I just slowed down their time. Their bodies are moving a hundred times slower than normal, but their minds remain synced with real-time. That means they can hear us talking... but there's nothing they can do about it."
The commander stopped right in front of Deadpool, casually explaining the situation — just enough for Wade to realize exactly what kind of position they were in now.
Deadpool could still move, but it was clear he knew there was no escaping now, so he didn't bother resisting too much.
"That move was awesome! Can I learn it? Honestly, I've always wanted a time-stopping superpower. Oh, or teleportation! Or both — yeah, I'd totally take both combined."
"You should shut up now, Wade," the squad leader said, raising his baton, its tip glowing as he aimed it at Deadpool's head in warning.
"Okay, okay, General Grievous — you scared me. I swear I'll shut up." Deadpool grinned awkwardly and took a couple of steps back.
But the next moment, two TVA agents stepped in from both sides and firmly grabbed him, instantly disarming him in the process.
"Ow! Be gentle! That area's sensitive, alright? Don't be so rough, you two."
The leader said nothing, simply staring at Deadpool with a cold, unblinking gaze.
Feeling the pressure, Deadpool coughed and muttered, "Okay, shutting up now. For real this time. Trust me."
"Sir, is this really the guy we're looking for?" the adjutant stepped forward at that moment, casting a disdainful glance at Deadpool and speaking softly to the commander.
The leader simply stared at Deadpool for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
"I'm not sure either. But orders are orders. We just follow them."
"Understood." Although clearly unimpressed, the adjutant didn't say more.
She tapped twice on a small handheld screen, and an orange, rectangular portal suddenly stretched open from the ground.
"Take him in," the leader ordered, casting one last cold glance at Deadpool.
The TVA agents followed the order without question. They hauled Deadpool through the glowing portal, then quickly regrouped and followed him in, disappearing one after another.
Only the squad leader remained behind.
He looked down at the frozen Pierce and gave a mocking smirk before pulling a small hourglass-shaped device from inside his coat.
"You're no longer of any use. Consider this… an act of mercy."
With that, he placed the hourglass-like object on the ground, turned, and stepped into the portal — vanishing without a trace.
......
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