A/N: So this my take on what might happen in the Avengers 4. I want to explore theories that I find most interesting and have some fun with writing this fic. I hope you like it.

PROLOGUE

Nebula's eyes were focused on the man curled on the ground, a pathetic little creature that resembled nothing more than the failure weighting on her shoulders. Her hands were clenched into fists as her focus shifted to the filthy land that had given life to Thanos.

She almost wished she could vanish along with half of the universe just so she didn't have to deal with all the emotions overriding her being. Nebula had a hard time imagining what they could possibly do to reverse everything – or at least make things better but the anger running through her was enough to give her a motivation to form any kind of plan – even seemingly impossible.

She wanted to treat her so called father the way she had been treated by him so many times, but while his torments had always been subtle and mostly demonstrated by silence, she wanted to do the opposite. She wanted to unleash her rage, punch, kick and stab with all she had, no matter how fruitless it would turn out to be.

Nebula needed to get back to their ship, figure out a plan and execute it in the cruelest way she could find. But as she was about to walk away her eyes once again landed on the man. The man who was just staring straight ahead and mumbling something to himself.

She didn't even know him and she didn't care to remember his name. There was no reason for Nebula not to leave him on the Titan and set out on her own, the way she liked it best. But they had one thing in common that she just couldn't ignore.

He had lost someone, just like Nebula. Watching the boy evaporate in his arms had stirred some nonexistent part of her that she would never acknowledge. "Get off the ground." Nebula said at last, her eyes lingering on the almost completely still figure.

But he wouldn't flinch, wouldn't even meet her eyes. He would be of no use, Nebula concluded. That wasn't a great loss, she could surely handle the situation on her own if she focused hard enough. "Get up." She repeated nonetheless hoping to get any kind of response out of him.

But it was to no avail. He was in his own world, probably far away from her and Titan.

Which left Nebula with a choice that was in reality far too easy to make. This man wasn't her responsibility and in his current state he wouldn't be any help at all.

It wasn't in Nebula's nature to help him.

And yet, she found herself unable to make her feet move towards the ship. The whole universe was different, the laws had changed and maybe, just maybe saving the man was the way to go. Just because it was completely against what Nebula believed in.

Without any more attempts to talk sense into him, she grabbed his shirt and started dragging his body across the ground. "Fear not, I will make him pain for everything he had done to us…to me." She said confidently despite the fact that the man was clearly not listening to her banter. "And you will get the revenge for your boy, at least." The last two words were softer.

Because what if revenge was all they had left?

Bruce's chest kept falling and raising steadily - a perfect lullaby for a restless heart. And yet, Natasha's eyes were wide open as she tried to listen to the deafening sound of their jet flying through air. But she couldn't even focus on that. The sounds of their battle were still echoing in her mind.

Natasha wanted nothing more than to fall asleep and get lost in dreams, even the worst of nightmares but she couldn't let herself close her eyes. Because each time she did so a clear picture would appear in her mind. A picture so painful that she wanted to spare herself from it.

As silently as she could Natasha untangled herself from Bruce's arms and raised from the floor. Looking down at his strained face – even during sleep she couldn't help but be thankful that at least he was still there. Even if he hadn't been there for them for so long.

She walked carefully through the jet, wary of sleeping people and surely she found Steve with his hands gripping firmly the rudder and eyes focused on the dark sky ahead. Natasha wished she could say something reassuring but she wasn't very good at that, so she just stood in the cabin for some time, silently, hoping that her mere presence was making a difference.

"You should get some sleep." She spoke up finally, her voice cracking despite her best efforts to prevent it. "Turn on the autopilot and come."

Steve titled his head slightly, just enough to lock his gaze with Natasha's. "I'm fine. I need to…think." He said slowly, as if weighting every word. As if with each spoken sentence he was getting weaker and weaker and closer to a mental breakdown.

He would never admit that he was weak just like them though. As long as the universe was in crisis he would clench his teeth and push through it without manifesting his feelings to the outside world. At least it had been this way ever since his argument with Tony Stark along with the rest of the country he had sacrificed himself for.

Even after nearly two years of him being this way Natasha still couldn't get used to seeing him just as a shadow of his former self. The longer hair and beard were clearly just a camouflage, a way to mask his facial expressions as best as he could in case he would accidentally show something he didn't want anyone to know.

"Do you want me to stay with you?" Natasha asked despite knowing full well the answer she was going to get.

"No, I need to check if the rest of the world…if they don't need help." Steve said calmly.

"Okay." Natasha said nodding her head even though they both knew that they couldn't help anyone in any way.

The sky looked much different from what Thor could remember. Despite all the galaxies remaining in the same exact places there was one small light that wasn't there anymore no matter how hard Thor searched for it.

Asgard along with its people was gone. All his friends and family – forever gracing the halls of Hel. He was truly alone in the universe that was now far too damaged to offer Thor anything that would heal him.

All that was left was a sea of anger and a burning desire to avenge his people – and Loki. Thanos had first taken his mind but then he came back for his soul and the souls of many others. It was all happening so fast that the moment Thor stopped fighting back, the moment he realized they had lost possibly everything that there could ever be to lose, something inside of him broke and he found himself with no purpose.

So he refused Steve's offer to go back with them to their hiding spot, nor he set out for his own journey into the cosmos. No, he stayed in Wakanda and stared at the sky hoping that one day his Stormbreaker will cut Thanos' head in half and he will squish his still beating heart. Just as the giant had done to him.