CyberPool 20XX (Male!Deadpool Reader )

Chapter6: MYSELF

Proving a point—that's what life in Night City boiled down to. Not because you needed to show something's worth, but because it was inevitable. Sooner or later, you had to make that point. To survive, to preserve your sanity, to stake your claim in the chaos. If you were a survivor, you fought. If you were a quitter, you gave up. Either way, you acted for the sake of your pride.

Another argument. Another fight. Another day of frustration between a mother and her son. Another day in Night City...

It was no secret that Gloria and David had clashed over the kids' new profession, and despite his frustration, David took his mother's warnings to heart. He understood the dangers all too well—after all, you and James had shared countless harsh stories of jobs gone wrong. Wendy, on the other hand, focused on the positives, offering him a more hopeful perspective. Caught between these two opposing views, David was fully aware of the risks and knew he had to tread carefully.

(James Pov) - Years Ago

I remember my first year in this hellhole. Everything felt both dull and too vibrant at once. I didn't bother looking back at my friends, even as they broke down, realizing where we were. I was too focused, too aware. This wasn't the shop. I scanned the area.
It reeked. Stairs led me to the street, littered with trash and bodies—some alive, some not. Soldiers patrolled, armed with unfamiliar weapons. Walking robots stood at nearly every corner.

"Hey!" a voice called. I turned. A soldier.

"You're in a restricted zone," he said. "Gonna have to pay a fee."

He just wanted trouble. I wasn't in the mood. Y/N and Wendy were still below.

James: "I don't have time for this."

"What'd you say? You must be new here. You know who I am?"

A dead man.

"This is Pacifica, shitheel. You either follow the rules, or you deal with the consequences. You get me?"

I didn't get it. Didn't care. I turned to head back.

A hand gripped my shoulder, the barrel of a rifle pressed into my back.

Pain. Blinding pain.

I hit the ground before I even realized what happened. The world blurred.

It hurt.

It fucking hurt.

That was my second death.

Then, like before, I woke up. But I wasn't where I'd been. The air reeked of metal. When my vision cleared, I was in some dark place—

I can't remember exactly. But what I do remember is the pain. And the three bone claws protruding from between my knuckles.
After that? More pain.

(James POV) - Even more years ago

Y/N: "I'm telling you! For Halloween, we should go as Luigi and Bowser."

James: "Why Luigi? Isn't everybody more or less a Mario stan or whatever?"

Y/N: "Luigi doesn't get enough love in this world."

James rolled his eyes, taking another sip from his beer. Y/N had this habit of starting the dumbest conversations, but for some reason, I could never resist getting sucked into them. Maybe it was because I've never been the type to back down from an argument, even the pointless ones.

James: "Come on, everyone knows Mario's the guy. He's the hero. Luigi just follows along like a sidekick. Bowser at least gets to be the badass."

Y/N leaned forward, eyes lighting up like they always did when he was about to launch into some ridiculous justification.