Agents of Shield season 5 spoilers ahead, folks. I still don't own Marvel or any of these amazing characters.
3 Years, 4 Months, 1 Week, 5 days, and 9 Hours post Snap (29,697 Hours post Snap)
Fitz looked over everything for the next several weeks. If Daisy hadn't reminded him to eat or sleep, he probably wouldn't have stopped long enough to even do that. Learning about the time loop and his marriage to Jemma made the loss he felt even more profound. There had to be another way, because, as far as he could tell, the monoliths were not the solution this time. He really wished he had the memories his future self had, if for no other reason than to have the firsthand knowledge he acquired in the alternative future. Time wasn't set. That was a bit of a shock to Fitz, but it was also his only hope.
Finally, certain he wasn't going to find the answers in the others' research, Fitz started looking for other potential solutions. He was taking a break from researching the scientist who developed the Antman technology, at Daisy's insistence, and eating a sandwich when Cassie returned from school.
Cassie took one look at Hank Pym's picture on Fitz's laptop and sighed. "I always wondered if my dad was with the Pyms when the snap happened."
"Dr. Pym and his daughter were pretty close to your dad, weren't they?" Fitz replied, more for the sake of making conversation than anything else.
"Yes," Cassie replied, "Daddy even helped rescue Ms. Hope's mom. She was stuck for a long time."
"This says she died," Fitz replied, "but then it's not the first time we encountered a dead person. Where was she for all those years?"
"I was just a little girl, so I don't know much about it. But, Dad said she got really small, smaller than she was supposed to, during a battle and it got her stuck somewhere else. Dad said it was like time stood still in there. She didn't even age. Weird, huh? Dad was there once, too. That's how he was able to help. She had only been home a few weeks when the snap happened, but she was really nice. I liked her."
"Time stood still," Fitz repeated, "those were your dad's exact words?"
Cassie nodded. "That's what he said."
"Have you ever told the others what you just told me?"
"I don't think so. Aunt Nat would ask about my parents, but she was just trying to help me deal with losing them. Why?"
"Because, if Dr. Vandyne was stuck where I think she was, we might have our other way," Fitz said excitedly. "We need to talk to the others and I need to know everything your dad told you about his work with Dr. Pym."
Cassie smiled. "I'll tell you everything I remember. Do you really think it could help?"
"I know we can't use a broken monolith, and Dr. Pym was a brilliant scientist. I just really need to get my hands on his work."
Soon, everyone except Shuri was seated in the conference room. Shuri was present via video call, and Fitz gave Cassie a small smile before sharing his theory. "I believe Janet Vandyne was trapped in something called the Quantum Realm. Jemma and I had the opportunity to look over some documents of Dr. Pym's. He obviously didn't know Shield had acquired them, but Jemma and I hypothesized that there was at least the remote possibility that the Quantum Realm could hold the key to many of the universe's secrets, including time travel."
"And, we've had the kid here with us for all this time and didn't even think to ask the right questions," Tony said with a shake of his head. "We need to get our hands on Pym's tech."
"The lab disappeared before the snap," Rhodey reminded them. "It really baffled the defense department."
"It didn't disappear," Tony said with conviction. "He obviously shrunk the entire building and took it with him."
"That still doesn't do us much good, Tony," Steve replied.
"Sure it does," Tony smiled, "Fitz, you have at least a little more knowledge of the Quantum Realm than the rest of us. I'm sending you and Bruce to Wakanda to work with Shuri. Build something that can detect pim particles. We need that lab."
"I want go with them," Cassie said firmly. "Maybe I'll remember something else that's useful."
"I wouldn't have come to this conclusion without her," Fitz agreed.
"What do you say, Red?" Tony asked. "It might be good for the kid to get a look at the world."
Natasha sighed and looked at Steve. He gave a small nod. "It is summer time, so you can go for a few weeks. But, you stay at the palace the whole time. I mean it, no heroics or I cut off your training, Cassie."
Cassie leapt into Natasha's arms and hugged her. "Thanks, Aunt Nat. I promise I'll be careful."
"Bruce is in charge. Listen to him. Wakanda isn't the same place it was before the snap. It's not as safe. There are people who blame Wakanda for what happened."
Steve slid in beside them. "There are people who blame us, too, and we've managed to keep her safe."
"We being the keyword, Steve. She's never been away like this before."
"I'll tag along, too," Darcy promised. "I'll make sure Cassie has an absolutely boring summer." Cassie gave Darcy a look, but Darcy just winked at the girl. "Not too boring. We'll sunbathe and check out the cool tech. It'll be fine."
Wakanda
The science team plus Cassie had been in Wakanda a week and a half, and they were making very slow progress. True to her word, Darcy had kept an eye on Cassie. Cassie felt like she'd actually kept a little too good of an eye on her honestly.
Darcy was usually like the fun older sister, but she hadn't been much fun this trip. Cassie desperately wanted to train with the Dora Milaje, but Darcy didn't think Natasha would approve. Instead, she kept Cassie busy doing summer 'fun'. That wouldn't have mattered to most teenage girls, but Cassie was not a normal teenager. She was bored.
"At least at home I could keep training," the girl murmured to herself after Darcy had dropped her off in her room one night. "If I could just get one day on my own, I could watch from a distance." Cassie started formulating a plan.
When Darcy came to get her for breakfast the next morning, Cassie was still in bed. "Wake up, sleepy head. Let's eat breakfast by the pool," Darcy said with a smile.
"I don't feel so good. I think I need to rest today," Cassie replied.
"Okay, I'll just go get us some breakfast and come hang with you."
"I think my stomach is upset. I'm just going to rest. Go to the pool. Have fun. I'll call if I need you. I promise."
Darcy looked at Cassie and crinkled her nose. "Are you sure?"
"I'm not a baby. I'll be fine."
"Okay, but call me and I can come right back."
Once Darcy was gone, Cassie quickly got ready. It was Monday, so she knew the Dora Milaje would be training about a quarter mile behind the palace. She snuck out of her room, thankful there was no Friday to tattle on her, and quietly made her way to the tree line. From there, she had an amazing view of the women practicing their formations. She watched intently, trying to memorize as much as she could before she would need to sneak back to her room.
Their fighting style was different from Aunt Nat's, not necessarily better or worse, but Cassie was sure she could add a few of their things to her own style. She desperately wanted to be the best. If she could just beat her aunt Nat in hand-to-hand, the Avengers would have to agree she belonged in the field with them. She was fourteen. Peter Parker had only been fifteen when he joined Uncle Tony and Aunt Nat against her Dad and Uncle Steve. Aunt Nat didn't seem to have a problem with him fighting at her side.
At the thought of Aunt Natasha, Cassie felt a little guilty. She had never outright defied her before today. She loved her surrogate aunt, but this was about honoring her dad's memory. Being an Avenger meant everything to her.
Cassie was just about to head back to the palace when she heard a loud noise. It was coming from the shield, and by the look on the Dora Milaje's faces, it was not expected. She watched with baited breath as the powerful women quickly entered battle formation and ran headlong towards the sound.
Cassie was about to run back to the palace to tell the others something was happening when the first missile hit. Oddly, it didn't hit the warriors directly, and that seemed intentional. As soon as the missile hit the ground, a purple gas oozed out of the hole it had made and formed a cloud over all of them. The Dora Milaje immediately fell. They were unconscious.
Knowing they needed help, Cassie started running towards the palace to warn the others. She hadn't gone far, when she heard the sound of engines roaring. She turned her head, transport vehicles were gathering the sleeping warriors. Time wasn't on her side. If she returned to the palace on foot, the whole group would be lost. With a sigh, Cassie rushed towards the fallen Dora Milaje.
The invading army laughed as she ran toward them. They didn't seem the least bit concerned about an unarmed girl. That gave Cassie an advantage. She grabbed one of the fallen women's weapons and went to work. She knocked three men down before she really had their attention.
Okoye was still on the ground, but she was beginning to shake off the affects of the gas by the time the men started coming at Cassie in groups rather than one at a time. Still unable to move, Okoye used the soldiers' distraction to call for help, while Cassie continued to hit anyone who got near her.
As soon as the invading soldiers realized help was coming, they ran for their transports. They were evacuating, but Cassie knew at least four of the Dora Milaje were already aboard. She rushed the first van and hit one of the soldiers as he attempted to climb inside. Unfortunately, she didn't hit him quite hard enough because he turned and grabbed her before she could move away. The last sight Okoye saw before help arrived was Cassie being stuffed into the van and driven away.