Avengers: Re-Assembled

"As they always say; where the sun sets, it rises elsewhere."

---

"Mr. Stark, I don't feel so good."

"You're alright."

"I don't know what's happening. I don't want to go... Please... I don't want to go Mr. Stark."

"..."

"I'm sorry."

---

Location: ???

Time: Moments After the Snap

Peter sat up, his heart beating wildly as every hair on his body stood up. Sweat ran down his face as he rubbed his eyes. He should be dead. Was he? Everything was hot. No, not hot. Uncomfortably warm. He slowly stood up, only to have his knees buckle as he fell back towards the ground. A pair of hands grabbed him, pulling him back up. Peter looked behind him fearfully, but relaxed quickly.

"Doctor Strange? Where are we? What happened? Are we still dust? Where's Mr. S-"

"Talk slower kid. I may be a sorcerer, but that doesn't mean I can keep up with every one of your questions." Stephen's voice was flat and quiet, as he let go of Peter and stepped back.

"Sorry, Doc. I'm just. I don't know," Peter's voice cracked as he hugged himself. Even though he felt whole, he still had the same uncomfortable feeling in his gut, one he had moments before he turned into dust.

"It's okay, Peter. This is something no one should ever experience, especially someone as young as you."

"What about Mr. Stark? And the people back on Earth? Are we dead?"

"No, we're not dead yet. We can still save them."

"How?" Peter was getting anxious, every hair on his body standing up. His senses were going wild, probably because he didn't know where he was.

"Well, look around you."

Peter looked up, seeing many familiar faces. T'Challa, the three people who were with him on Titan, Wanda, Sam, and a few others that he recognized but couldn't name. He made a silent obligation to remember everyone's name.

"We are most likely within the Soul Stone," Stephen said as the people around him shifted restlessly.

"So we're on the gauntlet?" Peter asked, feeling a little sick now.

"Yes."

"Is there a way for us to get out?"

"Yes, and no."

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean, is that there is a way to get out of here. However, it is only possible if we have an outside source who gets us out of the stone."

"So what is this plan you have?" T'Challa asked as he stepped forward, crossing his arms.

"When I had possession of the time stone, I went and viewed all the alternate outcomes. All required the snap to happen, even for us to win. The reason being, Thanos has fulfilled his goal. He sought nothing other than wiping out half of the universe. This will give those who survived the snap time to come up with a plan to retrieve the gauntlet and reverse the damage. If things had gone differently and we succeeded in taking the gauntlet, we still wouldn’t have been able to defeat Thanos since it was incomplete.”

“So you let half the universe die, Thanos complete the gauntlet, and now expect him to sit back and relax?” Quill asked.

“Yes,” Stephen said in response.

“Couldn’t things have happened differently?”

“There was no other way.”

---

Location: Titan

Time: Moments After the Snap

Tony walked around the remains of the spaceship, kicking over metal scraps and testing every bit of machinery to see if it worked. Frustrated, he kicked an old control panel over. Nebula sat on a table, watching Tony walk around in circles.

"You know, we'll have a much better chance of making it out of here if you didn't break everything," Nebula said as she hopped off the table.

"Well what do you have in mind?" Tony asked, his voice bitter.

"Well we have three options. One, we somehow fix or get a ship to return to Earth. Two, we wait it out. Three, Thanos has a change of heart and comes back to save us. Giving you the benefit of the doubt, three doesn't sound like it's going to work."

"Well thanks for that. You think if I found any working mechanisms that would help us, I would have broken it?"

"Yes."

Tony sighed, rubbing his eyes before forcing a smile. He was unbelievably pissed, but he'd rather be allies with the only other person on the planet with him.

"Alright, let's get to work."

He began to collect equipment, stacking those that worked and scrapping those that didn't. Despite how hard he was working, he wasn’t concentrated. Whenever he closed his eyes, he could only see the moments before those around him turned to dust. He shook his head, focusing back on his work.

“Remember Tony, we’re in the endgame now.”

---

Location: Wakanda

Time: Moments After the Snap

The remaining Wakandian warriors stood in their ranks, standing in attention as Ramonda, Shuri, and the remaining Avengers lined up in front of them. Silence hung in the air as Ramonda finally gave them the signal to relax.

"My fellow Wakandians. You have fought bravely, risking everything to defend our country. I cannot express my gratitude for your assistance. Near the end of the battle, something unspeakable happened. Our brothers and sisters vanished into dust right in front of our eyes, including King T'Challa." Her voice cracked with emotion as the warriors in front of her lowered their heads in respect and mourning.

"But we will remain strong. Through these dark times, we shall find a light. What seems like the end, is only the beginning. We will thrive, despite the challenges," Shuri said, standing up, giving her mother time to recover from her small breakdown. M'Baku nodded in approval, standing tall. His people followed, or at least the remains of them.

"T'Challa may be gone, but his spirit lives on within us. With his guidance, we will continue to live as we have done before." Shuri looked among the mass of warriors, her voice strong and hopeful.

"What about Thanos? Do we have any idea where he is?" Bruce asked. Steve gave Thor a look, but was ignored.

"We don't know where he is. With the space stone, he could be anywhere," Thor muttered, his eyes full of lightning. Every muscle in his body was tense, Stormbreaker resting on his shoulder.

"We will search for him. It isn't a guarantee that we'll find him, but we can promise that we'll try." Steve stepped up, his voice full of reassurance. Murmurs began to spread amongst the crowd, some agreeing, and others, not.

"Silence!" Ramonda yelled, the talking dispersing immediately. "I know there is confusion, mixed with despair and anger, but we cannot let that divide us. If anything, we must be unified in a time like this. We must stand together, if we would want any chance of succeeding."

The tension eased away as the warriors banged their weapons against the ground, then kneeling as Ramonda formed an X with her arms, across her chest.

"Wakanda forever!”

---

Location: United States

Time: Moments After the Snap

Clint had been at the grocery store when the snap happened. He heard a scream at one end, turning around to see the old lady in front of him turn to dust. He didn't know what was happening, but his first thought was his family. Dropping everything in his hands, he sprinted to his truck, hopping in and pulling out into the road. Cars crashed into others, those with people still in them driving crazily. Clint slammed on the brakes as a car in front of him crashed into the rear of the one in front of it. Getting out, he got a good look of the chaotic crashes in front of him. Hopping over the concrete barrier, he sprinted down the road, towards his home.

Thirty minutes later, Clint ran up the porch, bursting into his house.

"Laura?! Cooper?! Nathaniel?! Lila?!" He called, somehow still having energy the energy to sprint around the house. No one. He paused when he stumbled into the kitchen, seeing four chairs pulled out, and four small piles of dust. Collapsing to his knees, he stared at the dust, not believing what was happening.

"No. No. No, no, no," he mumbled, standing up, rage now boiling inside him. He grabbed the bottom of the table, about to flip it, before letting go. Taking a few deep breaths, he took his cell phone out, scrolling through his contacts. Pressing a few buttons, he raised the phone to his ear.

"Hey Steve, this is Clint. Tell me what the hell is going on."