Hey ya'll… just watched Endgame like a couple of days ago. Had pretty much everything spoiled like a week earlier, but still wasn't prepared for the actual movie. Anyway, just thought I'd cook up a short story based on the ending. Might make you cry, probably, I don't know. Just review your thoughts so I know how you liked it.
I could see them all dressed in black by the lake behind my cabin. I could tell a few of them were shedding tears silently, others just trying to stay strong. I could make out a few individuals, Cap, Rhodes, Harley- god, I haven't seen that kid in forever, wonder how he's doing?-, Banner, the Guardians… Peter, his Aunt Milf… Happy, Morgan… Pep…
Wiping my eyes, I ignored the logic behind my… spectral form? Ghost? Whatever it was, somehow I could shed tears even with no actual tear ducts for them to form. Whatever, give me a break, it's been a really weird week. I invented time travel and took down an evil purple Homer Simpson. Sorry, getting side tracked. Probably should just start over from the beginning.
Right so, the snap. Well MY snap, not the one Thanos did to wipe out half the universe. I remember right before it happened, I could see Strange gesture with his index finger. At first I thought he was pointing upward, but then in a split second it clicked. THIS was why he let me live on Titan, sacrificing his stone for me. THIS is why he wouldn't tell me if this was the one where we won. THIS was it.
Knowing what I had to do, I forced my aching limbs to move as fast as they could, gauntlet covered hands grasping at the stones on the mad titan's hand. Getting a good hold of them, I let him swat me away, knowing full well that we were going to win, the stones safely in my hands. Lying in a heap, I heard him say he was inevitable, and a metallic sound that must have been him trying to snap his gauntlet covered fingers. Kneeling up to face him, I stared his shocked purple face down as I had my own gauntlet form six separate spots for each of the stones, which they accepted. God, the fucking power those things had. It was like my entire arm was simultaneously on fire and being electrocuted at once. And it was starting to spread to the rest of me. Knowing I didn't have much time, I stared down Thanos even harder as my life flashed before my eyes. My parents, Jarvis, Stane, Rhodes, Pep, Morgan, the kid, Cap, the Avengers, god was I gonna miss them. But enough was enough. Thanos wasn't going to hurt anyone ever again. Trying to be as cocky as possible, given the pain, I mustered up one last smart-aleck reply;
"And I… am… Iron Man…"
With that, I snapped my fingers, willing Thanos and his entire army to dust away, and a bright flash of light, and that was it. I recalled a few faces as I lied there on the battle field, my entire right side feeling like burnt shawarma. Rhodey, the kid, and of coarse Pepper. But I knew that my time had come. My journey had come to an end, and before I knew it, I drifted off.
"It's a beautiful sight really"
Snapping out of it, I turned to see an elderly man with white hair and a mustache who must have been the same… spirit, ghost, whatever thing I was because he was standing right next to me as if I were actually there. The older man took a second to glance at me out of the corner of his eye before gesturing back to the crowd of people behind the cabin.
"Funerals that is. Everyone seems to think of them as a sad event, but all I see is the great amount of people who come together because they care about someone who has fallen. And to me, that seems pretty beautiful.
Despite the strangeness of this, I couldn't help but agree with him.
"Thanks for the words of wisdom Larry King"
"Nah, the names Stan, Stan Lee. I've been looking for you wise guy, we gotta go"
"Depends what you mean by go, are we going someplace warm and sunny or some place that has fire and pitch forks?"
"Jeez la weeze, you saved the entire universe and you still think you're going to hell? Come on now, I've let you stay this long, but I'm gonna get in trouble with the big guy if you don't hurry up!"
"But what about-"
I gesture behind me towards the crowd. Stan sighs.
"Tony, I'm sorry, but you're gone. They'll meet up with you again someday, but not today. Ok?"
My gaze lingers on the group, specifically Pepper and Morgan, before I sigh and give in
"Ok, but I better not have to wear a stupid halo and strum a harp"
The old man chuckled
"Nah, but you'll have to talk to your red head friend when you get there. She almost yanked my arm off trying to get me to tell her where you were"
"Nat? She's there?
"Yup, also a green chick, a red robot guy, and some guy who claims he's the "God of Mischief" and then he tried to kill me. Which is pretty funny considering I was already dead"
"Huh, that's… that's great"
Walking away from the cabin, I could feel myself getting lighter. Looking at my hands, they were starting to look transparent, which only grew more intense as I walked further away with Stan leading the way. Looking ahead, I could see a bright light start to shine, getting brighter the closer I walked to it. Turning towards Stan, I saw a warm smile spread across his face at the light, his eyes lighting up inside his tinted glasses.
"You ready for this?"
Turning towards the cabin one last time, I could see Pepper walking Morgan towards the front yard for something when she paused and I swear for a second we locked eyes. A small smile grew on my face, and I waved briefly before I turned back towards the now blinding light.
"Yeah, I'm ready Stan"
"Excelsior!"
And with that final word and a blinding light, my journey had finally reached its end.
Author's note
Please review