Workin' 9 to 5,
What a way to make a livin'
Barely gettin' by
It's all takin' and no givin'
They just use your mind
And they never give you credit
It's enough to drive you crazy
If you let it

-9 to 5; by Dolly Parton


"You look tense."

Turning her head slightly, Ava was greeted with the solemn presence of her sister, Proxima. The two women grew up together, trained together. They underwent numerous enhancements under Thanos' orders. In Ava's eyes, she had a closer bond with Proxima than any of her other siblings. Sure, there were moments where the sisters fought — all matters of what Thanos wanted aside — and it almost felt like something normal siblings would do. But, of course, Ava was quite aware of how not normal her life had become.

"I'm just thinking," Ava responded, keeping her tone civil. "This mission seems very last minute."

"Father caught wind that an Infinity Stone might reside on the planet," Proxima stated, planting her spear firmly in both hands. "Collecting all six is essential for the completion of his mission."

"I'm aware." Ava's shoulders tensed. Thanos' plan was to collect all six Infinity Stones to restore balance. He believed he was the only one strong enough to change the galaxy, to change the lives of billions of living beings. He'd send his children on a wild goose chase to any planet that had even a rumor about an Infinity Stone residing there. All Thanos' children could do was hope the rumors were true. Their father didn't tolerate failure; he was very much against it. Failure meant torture, it meant being forced to undergo cybernetic enhancements as punishment. Due to a past failure in Ava's journey under Thanos' command, she lost her entire left arm, having it replaced with a robotic one. That was a milder form of punishment. The more severe ones involved a lot more physical and psychological torture.

"What is the real issue, sister?" Proxima asked, her voice becoming slightly hesitant. It was rare for hesitation to make its way into her voice. Being the eldest of Thanos' children, Proxima underwent the most abuse and experimentation from their father. As a result, she became the most hardened of Thanos' children, rarely expressing emotions, if ever.

"The probability of finding an Infinity Stone is low," Ava said. "How will father react when we return empty handed?"

"He will understand."

-0-0-0-0-

Ava stood anxiously beside the purple man. After their little discussion, he took her to his spaceship, where he claimed she would learn everything needed about life and balance. For the young girl, she was curious to know more, but she was also unsure. Ava's mother was still out there, probably wondering what had happened. It was a very heartbreaking thought. Despite all the chaos that previously ensued, what would Bianca think knowing her daughter was nowhere in sight? That was one of the reasons why Ava was so anxious. There was a chance she was leaving her mother behind.

The second reason why Ava was so anxious was because of the purple man's spaceship. It was gigantic. The ship was big and black, having blue lights flickering on different areas. Ava couldn't make heads or tails of it, and she wasn't sure how she was supposed to survive on something so massive. In her mind, it seemed almost impossible. Ava was just a child, after all. Everything she was experiencing was new to her.

"What is this?" she asked, looking up at the purple man. Her blue eyes were wide and glossy. The emotions swirling inside her were openly displayed in those blue eyes.

"This will be your new home," the purple man responded. He glanced down at Ava for a moment, his eyes narrowing just a fraction. "This is where you'll be taught, where you'll learn to adapt."

"I don't understand." Ava's body started trembling again, her red hair falling around her face. "Will I be able to see my mama again if I do this?"

"You'll be able to see much more."*

-0-0-0-0-

Looking at her hands, Ava felt something stir deep in her belly. Sometimes she looked at those hands to compare just how different they were. One made of flesh, the other metal. Ava's left arm used to be decorated with the writings of her people, prayers that she could barely decipher anymore. Having spent so long outside of Elara meant she forgot nearly everything on her home-planet. While some may see it as sad, Ava could've cared less. Thanos took her for a reason. It was to restore balance to the galaxy, not ponder over the loss of her cultural identity.

Turning her hands over, Ava took a moment to observe her knuckles, the overall structure of her hands and arms. So many innocent lives had ended because of those hands. All because Thanos deemed it necessary. Those hands also inflicted pain on Ava's siblings. She had trained her entire life to be a capable fighter, to be worthy of entering her father's Black Order. Brutality was absolutely necessary. Her hands had to have plenty of blood on them if Thanos would deem her worthy. Dropping her arms at her side, the young woman let out a silent sigh. How much longer would she and her siblings be expected to hunt Infinity Stones? They were scattered around the galaxy for a reason. Thanos already had one of the Stones, but he didn't find them under his own searching. Over the years, he'd have others do the searching for him. It was infuriating. Ava felt she could be using her skills for other things, not hunting down ancient rocks.

Looking up, the young woman felt a heaviness fall on her chest. It was a familiar feeling, one that often rested on Ava for days, if not weeks. Was that heaviness an emotion? Or was it something else entirely? Thanos trained all his children to not feel. Less emotions meant it would be easier to kill. There'd be no guilt, no remorse, no feelings of hesitation or sadness. Years of intense training, torture, and conditioning meant that all of Thanos' children would be fearless murdering machines. The Mad Titan would refer to them as assassins, but Ava felt as though that was an inaccurate description. In the young woman's mind, assassins could still feel remorse for what they do, Thanos' children could not display any kind of emotion at all. Doing so would equate to weakness, and weakness was not allowed.

"Weakness," Ava whispered, the word sounding almost foreign on her lips. The young woman made an effort to all but ban the word from her vocabulary. She believed that such a word was disgraceful, bringing bad luck to anyone who uttered it.

Wrapping her arms around herself, the young Elarian woman couldn't help but hunch her shoulders a little bit. The heaviness in her chest seemed to intensify. What could it possibly mean? Was it some kind of message? Was her body trying to tell her something? If so, it's been years since her body attempted to do so. It was a very strange thing to have to endure again.

Taking a brief look at her surroundings, Ava felt a frown spread across her lips. She was in the control room in one of Thanos' ships. Ava and Proxima were traveling to a distant planet on the hunch that an Infinity Stone might be there. It was a bit frustrating to go on hunches and rumors, but Thanos was desperate to get his hands on all six of those Stones. Anything even remotely hinting them was a good enough lead for him. For Ava, though, the control room was very familiar. The holo-screens and controls; the beeps and lights and signals that filled the room with life. They were things the young Elarian felt comfortable in the control room. The simplicity of it, thanks to the enhancements Thanos saw as acceptable, allowed Ava time to think. She didn't have to worry about piloting or navigation, all anyone would have to do is say the coordinates and the ship would autopilot its way there. It was convenient, a welcome addition.

-0-0-0-0-

It felt like hours before the purple man's forces returned. The grey-skinned monsters were saying something in a different language, one Ava couldn't understand. It made her a bit uneasy, knowing that such savage looking creatures could be under the purple man's control. How could he control them? What was the secret to getting them to behave, or even listen? From what Ava could tell, back on Elara, those creatures just killed for the fun of it. They were completely fearless, doing whatever they saw fit in taking down those who didn't want to listen. Ava was just grateful she'd been spared.

When the noseless creature came on-board next, his arms still folded behind his back, Ava felt her eyes widen a little. Her childish wonder took over, temporarily overshadowing any anxieties she was previously feeling. When the noseless creature took notice of Ava, the disdainful look reappeared on his face. He obviously saw himself as above Ava's race, but she couldn't see it in the moment. She was just wondering how someone could even look like he did. When he came up to the purple man, he knelt down and bowed, as if he were standing in the presence of royalty.

"Father, I must ask," he exclaimed, sounding almost irritated, "why did you bring this. . .creature aboard the Sanctuary II? Does her existence not tip the scale away from balance?"

"Ebony, this is your new sister." The purple man nudged Ava forward, but she could see the noseless creature — Ebony — flinch a little. "Her name is Ava. She will be a great addition to our family."

"Father, if I must. . .," Ebony said, hoping to at least reason with his adoptive father.

"No." The sharpness in that one word was enough to render everyone quiet. Not even a single breath could be heard. For Ava, it was frightening. It had her blood running cold and her heart hammering painfully in her chest. "She has become a new addition, Ebony," the purple man exclaimed, his voice maintaining that sharpness. But Ava also caught onto a hidden undertone in his voice, as well. It sounded almost threatening. "I have high hopes for this one. You and your siblings will train her, you'll become her guides in our conquest."

Raising his head slightly, Ebony glanced at his father before looking at Ava. She could see the hostility in his face. It was very apparent how the idea of a new "sibling" was not a welcome one. Ava couldn't say how many other "children" the purple man had, but she could only hope they weren't as bad as Ebony.


(A/N):

Heya, everyone. Hopefully you guys liked this chapter! If there's anything in here that came off as confusing, unclear, or just in desperate need of improvement, don't hesitate to let me know, okay? Constructive criticism is always welcome.

Nothing in the MCU belongs to me. All I own are my OCs, my subplots, and the socks on my feet. If you've got ideas for OCs or subplots, PM me or leave your thoughts in the review section. I'll add them in as soon as possible.

So, how many of you have seen Ant-Man and the Wasp? I've seen it once already, and I think it's a pretty good movie! The first Ant-Man movie has to be my favorite, though. At least to me, it felt like the first movie had a nice pace. Maybe I'm just looking too deeply into it all. I don't know. For those of you who've seen Ant-Man and the Wasp, tell me your thoughts on the movie!

"Love is like a brick. You can build a house, or you can sink a dead body."

-Lady Gaga

Like I mentioned before, constructive criticism is always welcome! Don't be afraid to let me know what needs improvement. It'll help me become a better writer and it'll help me make the story better, too.

I mentioned this in the previous author's note, too, but this story does take place in the first Thor movie. It'll take a bit to build up to that movie's plot, so please bear with me in that area.

Be sure to leave a random fact in the review section! It can be on something you've learned recently or something you've known for quite some time. I'm a curious person and I love learning new things.

Thanks, you guys!

Susannah Cruz