This is the second chapter with possible spoilers from Arkham Knight. If you don't want, then don't read. Otherwise go right ahead.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my imagination

Chapter Twenty-one: Faces Of The Past

"We have to stop Hive" Shepard said as everyone arrived at the quinjet finding a bruised Clint and Natasha missing.

"But what about, this Warden? He's got an army and missiles and who knows what else" Rhodes said.

"I know. I don't know who he is, but he seems to know me. A lot more than most people should. I had Coulson check all unaccounted Hydra members from when SHIELD collapsed. None of them match the description. Wherever Hive goes, The Warden seems to be with him. We find Hive, we find him. First priority is to find Natasha and get her out. Tony, did you find anything out while you were captured?"

"Yes, they've been moving their troops through the metro tunnels. They created their own tunnels somehow leading to the Oscorp building"

"That must be where they're keeping Natasha"

"There's no way to reach it without using the tunnels. They've got the rooftops littered with traps for us"

"Then that's where we are going"

"That has to be a trap" Scott concluded.

"it is. I'm going to spring it. I'll need the rest of you ready topside to engage them so they don't notice my infiltration. Scott, Bucky, and Clint will be going in with me while the rest of you are distracting them. If any of the Inhumans come into the fight, incapacitate. Don't kill them"

"Sounds like a plan" Clint said standing up.

"We know they want us dead, so lets make them think they're getting what they want. Don't push yourselves too hard. You're just a distraction for now"

"We'll get the job done" Tony said as his new suit arrived.

"Let's get this done"

Entering the tunnels they found them to be almost completely empty "We're in position, Tony"

"We are ready to move, on your go"

"Alright, keep their attention on you for as long as you can, as soon as we find Natasha we will be joining the fight"

"Let's go" Tony said to the others as they charged the forces guarding the tower.

Shepard and Bucky went first with their rifles drawn, Clint brought up the rear with Scott.

"Looks like he was right" said a loud voice, drawing their attention. They looked at a large man with a buzz cut and a cleft chin and brown eyes.

"Boss said you'd come from here. Looks like I get to have some fun now" he said cracking his knuckles.

"He's an Inhuman" Clint said "I recognize him from the files Natasha brought up while you were in the chemical plant"

"I can take him" Bucky said stepping ahead of them "You guys need to get Natasha and stop Hive. I'll keep him busy"

"Are you sure you can handle him?"

"I know I can"

"Be careful not to take a direct hit. This guy can create explosions with his fists" Clint informed.

"Got it"

"Good luck" Shepard said leading them through the room around them.

"Not so fast-" he began to say before being punched hard in the gut by Bucky's newly constructed arm, knocking him to the floor.

"I'm you opponent. Not them"

"I'm gonna kill you for that, you scrawny punk"

"Take your best shot"

Charging Bucky he tried to grab him with both his arms. Bucky rolled out of the way and started shooting at him with his gun. The bullets were bouncing off his body instantly.

"Looks like your archer friend didn't know everything about me" he said turning to face him with a wide grin on his face. Charging again he swung his large arms at Bucky. He ducked out of the way punching him in the chin with his metal arm, causing him to stumble. Swinging his hand backwards, Bucky blocked with his metal arm as an explosion launched him into the train behind him.

"You're nothing compare to me!"

Arriving on the ground floor of the Oscorp Building they were met by a tall lanky man with short black hair and hazel-green eyes.

"Looks like bulldozer couldn't keep you away for long. Guess it's up to me then" he said upon seeing them.

"Clint?"

"This guy can become invisible on a whim, he can disappear from sight in an instant"

"Won't be a problem for me then" Scott said "I can do this, you two get going"

Shepard nodded, him and Clint went for the elevator.

"I'm not letting you go that easily" said turning to stop them he turned invisible. Scott jumped in front of them miniaturizing as he did landing on the mans shoulder just before he fully vanished. Grabbing him by the chin he threw him to the opposite end of the room.

"I didn't say you could leave yet" he taunted.

"You don't know who you're messing with, Bug-Boy"

"It's Ant-Man"

"I don't care" he said vanishing from sight.

Scott was punched several times from different directions. Becoming smaller he looked around for any indication of where he was. Noticing dust on the floor shifting he ran towards it grabbing him by his legs and slamming him onto the floor. Scott was kicked off him sending him into the wall behind him.

"You can't keep this up forever, you have to return to normal size at some point"

The elevator rose up several stories before Shepard and Clint appeared above the building suddenly "Shit!" Clint yelled firing an arrow with a tether attached to it allowing him to swing onto one of the lower floors. Shepard used the repulsors in his boots to fly into the window Clint went into "You alright, Barton?"

"Yeah"

The blonde teleporter from before appeared in front of them "You're better than I thought" she said crossing her arms over her chest.

"I know her, she's able to teleport somehow"

"Anywhere I want to, as long as I can picture it in my mind"

"Well, I never miss. So let's see who is better than the other" Clint taunted firing an arrow at her. She teleported to the left "I honestly expected Mr. Obscure to stop you guys. Guess I should stop calling him that since it doesn't seem to suit him"

"Ya? Who are you supposed to be?"

"My friends call me Bolt. I suppose it'll do"

"Natasha is three floors above us. With another woman" Shepard said scanning as much as he could.

"Go. Get Nat. I can take care of speedster over here"

"You really think so?" she said appearing behind him. Clint kicked backwards as she vanished again appearing in front of them "Door is over there, Commander. I don't care if you want to try and save her on your own. You'll never get to her"

Shepard nodded to Clint before heading through the door.

"Let's get started then" Clint said firing three arrows as quickly as he could. She punched him in the gut then kicked him in the back and swept his legs out from under him, teleporting to different spots around him as she did.

"C'mon old man. Try and keep up"

Shepard slowly entered the next room with his rifle up he surveyed the room noticing it to be empty. Three gunshots rang out impacting in the floor in front of him. Turning he fired his gun once before getting shot in his shoulders weak point causing him to stumble before being punched in the face by The Warden who was hiding above the doorway.

"No, no. You're not going anywhere" he said placing his boot onto his chest "Tri-weave Vibranium coated armor plating. Nice" he said lifting his foot off him "Unless you know exactly where to shoot" he added placing the barrel of his gun where the plates meet and firing, he hit Shepard through the armor causing him to groan in pain.

"You're good, Commander. Even better than I remember. Which is going to make it even more satisfying when I kill you. Oh and Don't worry about Ms. Romanoff. I'll take good care of her" he said walking out of the room laughing as he went. "Commander Shepard is in there" he said pointing "Show him the door will you?"

Daisy Johnson walked into the room and using here powers launched him out of the window. Catching himself on the edge he swung back into the building kicking her backwards into the room.

"I'm surprised you can still stand" she said picking herself up as Shepard stood slightly hunched in pain.

"I've had worse"

Bucky pulled himself out of the train shaking off debris from his shoulders "That all you got big guy?"

"I'm just getting started!" he yelled charging again. Bucky rolled out of the way as he slammed into the train. Turning he saw an electrical circuit. Pulling a pistol out he shot it as Bulldozer tried to dislodge himself from the train he got shocked from the electricity coming through the train, knocking him out.

"Nighty, night"

Back with Scott he was trying to figure out a way to find his opponent again as he appeared to not be moving at all. Coming to a realization he started calling forth all the ants he could to him. Thousands of ants came into the room quickly running up his invisible legs. The man screamed in terror "Get them off me!" he yelled tripping and falling being completely covered by them.

Scott walked over to hid and punched him hard in the face rendering him unconscious.

"Good job guys" he said giving a thumbs up as they all quickly returned to their homes.

Clint was being hit on every side as she teleported around him constantly punching him left and right then back, then left again. Smirking he moved his head right then left avoiding her punches then stabbing an arrow into her leg from behind and slamming her head down onto the floor.

"That too fast for you?"

Shepard and Daisy were trading punches, each one blocking the other's. Daisy extended he right arm sending shockwaves at him causing him to shift to the left to avoid it. Following suit with her left arm he rolled under it and swept her legs out from under here trapping her in a headlock. Shepard choked her until she passed out. Releasing her he tied her hands and legs together so she couldn't escape.

"Shepard, the big guy is down" Bucky reported.

"Same goes for twinkle toes" Scott added.

"Excellent work. Call Coulson. We need agents down here to help cleanup this mess. Make sure he brings those pods for Inhuman extraction, I have Agent Johnson here. How you doing, Barton?"

"I'm...doing...great...girl is...down" came his exhausted reply.

"Good job. Take a minute, you sound like your about to drop. Tony, how's everything going down there?"

"Wrapping things up as we speak"

"Good. I'm heading up top after The Warden and Hive to get Natasha back"

"We'll meet you up there"

Shepard used his grappling hook to pull himself up three floors grabbing the guard closest to him and slamming him into the floor before shooting another two with his pistol and grabbing the third by the throat

"Warden! Shepard's here-" he yelled before being head-butted.

"I'm on my way Lieutenant. He's mine" he said back. Shepard quickly hid in the vent above him.

The Warden kicked the door open with several men behind him "Where'd he go?" one asked looking around.

"Raise the defense shields. Keep all access points covered so none of the others can get in"

"There's no way he got out. We had the doors and windows covered" one of them said annoyed.

"There are ways. And trust me, he knows them all"

"Perimeter clear, no sign of the target" came from the sniper outside.

"He's gone sir"

"Is he?" The Warden asked looking straight up at the vents.

"Looks like he scares easily. I was looking forward to putting a bullet in his head"

"He can take you all without even so much as a scratch. Remember that. Widen the search, he couldn't have gone far"

Shepard broke through the vent slamming one of them into the floor using his rifle he shot the sniper across the street then everyone else in the room before The Warden could turn around. Swinging his fist at him, The Warden turned quickly and blocked his strike with his right forearm. Raising his left arm he blocked another strike Shepard threw at him grabbing his arm and twisting it. Shepard grabbed him by the throat. The Warden did the same seconds later.

"Who...are...you?"

"Not yet...Commander" He placed his foot on Shepard's chest kicking him away before dropping a smoke bomb to cover his escape.

"Shepard" Tony said entering the room with the rest of the team.

"Good to see you all made it"

"What happened in here?" Wanda asked.

"This Warden seems to be able to anticipate my attacks before I make them. I don't know who he is but he holds a serious grudge against me. And he's a lot stronger than he looks"

"Then let's get Nat so we can stop tip toeing around this"

"She's in the next room, Commander" Sam said as Redwing scanned the floor.

"Then let's go" Shepard said opening the door.

Natasha sat tied to a chair bolted to the ground and chained. She had duct tape over her mouth as she kept shaking her head at them.

"Be careful" Shepard said walking ahead of them and taking the tape off of her mouth.

"It's a trap" Natasha said looking behind them.

"Turn...Around" The Warden said holding a gun to Sam's head.

"Who are you?" he asked again.

"You really have no idea, do you?" he asked.

"It appears you didn't mean as much to him as you thought" Hive said entering the room.

"I guess not" he said throwing Sam onto the floor and taking his helmet off.

Shepard took a step back in shock "Schmidt?"

"At a loss for words are you?"

"I saw you. You died aboard that plain"

"No, I was transported. My master saved me. All I needed to do was get him an infinity stone. In return I get to kill you"

"Hive? Is he your master?"

"No, just another pawn. Like me, You, The Avengers. We're nothing compared to him"

"Who is he?"

"I'll never tell you. Before the war, you used to tell me if I focus enough on what I want, I'll eventually achieve it. You know what I want now?" he asked slowly approaching him with his gun pointed at him "You...dead" he said pointing the gun into his chin.

Shepard knocked it away and head-butted him. Schmidt pulled two pistols out and fired them at him. Tony broke the shackles around Natasha leaping from the chair she rushed him, kicking his weapons out of his hands. Turning to her he swung his leg towards her head. Ducking she kicked him in the knee and the chest causing him to fall to one knee. Shepard punched him in the face knocking him onto his back.

"Stop this, Schmidt! You're better than this. I've seen it in you before. You can be that again"

"Don't act like you understand!" he yelled kicking Shepard off of him.

Bucky grabbed him from behind and threw him onto his back. Tony and Rhodes blasted him with their repulsors knocking him back down as he tried to stand up. Scott was miniaturized underneath him as he fell and threw him towards Shepard. Catching him he pressed him against a wall.

"I know what it's like to lose faith in people! You can beat this, Schmidt! I know you can! Don't be what Hydra made you!"

"Stop talking to me!" he yelled placing his foot on his chest kicking him away.

Vision rammed him with his shoulder causing him to stumble. Wanda lifted him up with her powers and slammed him into the ground. T'Challa picked him up and kicked him into the air with a backflip, Sam flew into him feet first knocking him down. Schmidt rolled into the landing standing as he did. Clint fired an arrow that exploded tossing him onto his back.

"You're wrong, Shepard. I can't go back!" he yelled pulling a pistol out and pointing it at him from his spot on the ground.

"It's not too late" he said holding his arm out to him.

Schmidt looked shocked at his offer. He pointed the gun at Natasha and she didn't flinch "He's right. You could've killed me instead of capturing me. There's still some good left in you" she said holding her hand out to him as well. Schmidt had a look of confusion directed at her.

"You're not the villain you used to be" Bucky said extending his hand towards him as well. The rest of the team looked between each other for a short period before following suit.

Schmidt dropped the gun shaking his head "I...can't. I'm not like you. I'm no hero"

Hive angrily turned to him"Don't let them confuse you. You are better than this riffraff"

"No...I am not"

"Remember who you are! What you are! You are the Red Skull! The Skull waits for nothing. Do what you swore and take the vengeance you were promised!"

"The Red Skull is a monster. Just like you"

"You're weak!"

Shepard removed his helmet "I know you can be the man you were before"

"Your faith in humanity is meaningless!" Hive said pointing a gun at Shepard's head. Turning in surprise as Hive cocked the sidearm.

"No!" Natasha yelled stepping in front of him. A bullet rang out causing Hive to grab his hand in pain as he dropped the gun. Schmidt held his pistol with smoke still coming out of the barrel.

"No... I will not fail here. Not after coming so far" Hive desperately grabbed a knife from his hip and attempted to stab Shepard with his face exposed. Schmidt, grabbed his arm and his throat. Hive chuckled in amusement.

"You're not the only one here with combat training" he said kicking him away and charging Shepard again. Shepard threw his helmet at him causing him to duck to avoid it, receiving a strong kick to his face knocking him back a few steps. Quickly recovering her grabbed Shepard with his right hand and threw him behind him. Natasha swung her legs around his neck attempting to flip him over. Grabbing her arms as she did this he slammed her into the floor.

"Tony!" Shepard yelled out.

"Got it!" he yelled using a laser from his right arm and slicing Hive in half. Hive flipped himself over and grabbing his lower half, he quickly reattached himself as if it was nothing.

"You need something stronger than that! He's able to heal incredibly fast. Don't engage him in close combat either, he's got years of combat experience from previous hosts and incredible strength because of his parasites" Schmidt warned.

"Parasites?" Sam asked disgusted.

"That's why they call him Hive. His whole body is just a nest for thousands of parasites"

"Is that how he takes control of Inhumans?" Natasha asked having retreated back to the rest of them.

"Yes. He unleashes parasites that attach themselves to their nervous system. Regular people just get completely consumed by them"

"Why do our enemies have to get more disgusting every time?" Clint asked.

"Knowing my abilities won't help you. None of you could possibly defeat me"

"I'd like to test that theory" Shepard said standing up from the wall he was stuck in.

"Be my guest!" Hive yelled charging him.

Shepard jumped over him, twisting in the air he grabbed the tentacles on his head and pulled up on them swinging him over his head as he landed slamming him on the ground. Hive stood back up swinging his legs knocking Shepard onto his back. Stomping his foot towards his chest Shepard rolled backwards avoiding it.

"The Kree created us both, Shepard. We are both weapons of destruction. Nothing you do will ever change that, I was human before they changed me. You have only ever been the product of a syringe" Hive taunted slowly walking towards him.

"Your wrong about me. I have something that you never will"

"How do you figure that?" Hive asked his eyebrows furrowing.

"I have my friends at my back"

"Your friends?" Hive asked confused.

"Now!" Shepard yelled diving to his left and rolling away from Hive.

"Vision!" Wanda yelled as she threw a wave of Psionic energy at Hive, knocking him over. Vision fired an energy beam from the stone in his forehead forcing Hive to stay planted on the ground. Hive lay flat on his back groaning in pain with most of his skin missing from the blast.

"Most of the parasites were killed. We must act quickly before they regenerate" Schmidt said drawing his gun and pointing it at him.

"Schmidt, you don't need to kill him"

"If I don't then no Inhuman will ever be free of his control. This has to be done" he said firing the gun multiple times killing Hive. Holstering his weapon he turned to him "I'm sorry if you disagree, Shepard. But you will have to face opponents greater than Hive. You may not be able to win if you're not willing to kill them" he said holding both his hands out "Do what you have to do"

With a shake of his head, Shepard placed cuffs onto him and they all walked outside to find SHIELD troops clearing the city of Hydra agents and transporting Inhumans to the Helicarrier.

"Commander Shepard" Coulson greeted stepping off a quinjet with Agent May behind him "Congratulations, on a job well done. Let's get you onto the carrier so we can debrief you" he said gesturing towards the quinjet.

"Red Skull certainly wasn't who I was expecting under that mask" Coulson said as he and Shepard walked down the Helicarrier corridor.

"It certainly was a surprise" Shepard agreed.

"Well, he's in chains. All Hydra agents have been incarcerated or terminated. None of the Inhumans were killed, including agent Daisy Johnson. Thank you, by the way. We also know for sure that Hive is dead this time. Overall, the mission was a complete success"

"Indeed, I just hope we are prepared for what comes next"

"Agreed" Coulson said turning around to face him as they came to a stop "I'll let you handle his interrogation. You know him a lot better than anyone else here does" Coulson said stopping in front of the door.

"Thank you. I'll find out what he knows"

Entering the room Schmidt looked up at him ruefully before turning his gaze back to the table in front of him "Ask your questions so we can get this over with"

"Tell me what you know about the Infinity Stones" He asked taking a seat.

"There are six of them. Power, Mind, Time, Space, Reality, Soul. Each of them were locked away in some protective barrier to ensure that nothing happened to them"

"Why would your boss want them?"

"Only extremely powerful beings could even touch the stones. With something called the Infinity Gauntlet, he intends to use all of them to conquer all worlds"

"Who is he? Where are the stones hidden? Does he already posses any?"

"His name is Thanos. Those that know him refer to him as the Mad Titan. I don't know where all the stones are. I only know about the Mind Stone which sits in the forehead of your ally, and was my mission when I was sent here. As for any he possesses, He only has one currently. The Soul Stone. I know that the Tesseract houses the Space Stone and the Reality Stone was trapped in something called Aether. He is also aware of the location of the Power Stone on a planet called Xandar in the Andromeda Galaxy"

"Where is Thanos? How can I stop him?"

"Thanos is far beyond the rim of our galaxy. Stopping him will be incredibly difficult. He is already powerful enough to conquer entire systems"

"Why did you call yourself The Warden Of The Void?"

"It was a title Thanos gave me when I suddenly appeared before him many decades ago. The Tesseract teleported me with the Space Stone encased inside it and he decided I was going to help him find the Infinity Stones, in return for revenge upon you. It stuck with the troops when they first heard Hive address me as such"

"Thank you. For doing what you did today. I know it wasn't easy" Shepard said standing up from the table.

"I will spend the rest of my wretched life trying to make up for what I've done. Even if that means rotting in a jail cell. You had faith in me, when no one else did. Your team had faith in you even though they wanted me dead. I wish I inspired such loyalty myself. But I don't deserve it. You do. I know you can stop Thanos, I don't think anyone else can"

Shepard exited the room meeting Coulson outside the door "I take it you heard all of that"

"Indeed, although I honestly wish I hadn't. Some malevolent being is coming to try and conquer Earth and all of these Infinity Stones. It's not exactly good news"

"No, but now we know. We can at the very least prepare for what's coming"

"True enough. I should get back to it. I believe Stark wanted to see you when you were done with the interrogation"

"Thank you. I'll go see what he wants" Shepard said shaking his hand. Walking towards the hanger where he knew Tony would be waiting he bumped into someone coming out of the lab.

"I'm terribly sorry-" he started to apologize before seeing who it was "Daisy? I'm sorry I ran into you like that. Wasn't paying attention" he said as he helped her off the floor.

"It's no trouble. I ran into you anyway, I should've watched where I was going"

"Are you feeling alright? We fought pretty roughly earlier"

"I'm fine, or at least I will be now that Hive isn't in my head anymore"

"Something bothering you, Agent Johnson?"

"It's nothing. I was just wondering how Hive escaped the explosion in the Quinjet with Lincoln"

"I was sorry to hear about what happened to him. It's my understanding he had an Inhuman that could teleport that got him out of that particular situation. The only one we fought today actually that wasn't being controlled completely by Hive"

"That makes sense. I... I wanted to say thank you. I know you didn't have to save me when your partner was in trouble. You could've just blown me away without a second thought"

"I'd never-"

"The fact that you didn't speaks volumes about you. I can see why Coulson is such a fanboy when you show up" she added with a smirk.

"Coulson is a good man. Take care of him for me"

"I will. As long as you promise to never change from the good man you are today"

"I think I can do that"

"Good. I should go help with the disposal of Hive's body. Have to make sure he's really dead this time"

Entering the hanger he approached Tony who stood with a silver case in his hand "You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah, I just got a call from the President. Apparently he doesn't have your number. He would like to thank you for your courageous work today stopping Hydra"

"I suppose I can make that meeting, before I head back off to the Raft"

"There's one more thing" he said opening the case "I believe this belongs to you" he said handing him his sword back.

Shepard stared at it in surprise "Tony, I... Thank you. What made you change your mind?" he asked picking the blade up.

"I was wrong back in Siberia. I shouldn't have attacked Barnes or you for protecting him. I just wanted to thank you for stopping me from killing him. I didn't know it then, but I would've regretted that for the rest of my life"

"I'll always be here for you, Tony. I won't allow you to become who you were that day"

"That's another thing I realized. I am that person. Whether I choose to believe it or not, I knew what I was doing that day. That's why I think you should lead the Avengers again. I'm not the right man for the job"

"One problem. I am serving a prison sentence"

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say I think we'll both be disappointing Secretary Ross today"

"I can't believe the President awarded you a Presidential Medal Of Freedom" Rhodes said as Shepard entered the Avengers compound.

"I'm just glad to be back home" he said looking around the place with a small smile on his face.

"I heard Ross wasn't too happy about letting you go"

"No he was not. I'm sure he'll get over it. He does have the Red Skull in custody after all" he said walking towards where he used to train.

"Shepard!" Wanda yelled seeing him from the training yard, causing the rest of them to crowd around him.

"Whoa, whoa. It's good to see you all but really It's no big deal"

"You've been gone for a year man. That's a pretty big deal" Sam said clamping his hand down on his shoulder.

"I saw the ceremony on the TV earlier. I can't believe they forced Ross to give a speech about your 'Courageous actions in Chicago" Tony laughed out.

"It's a pleasure to welcome you back, Commander" Vision said walking descending in front of him.

"Good to be back"

"Hey, old man. Nice to see your still able to walk all the way from your car without breaking a hip" Clint said slinging his bow over his shoulder.

"I'm still fast enough to keep up with you, Katniss"

"Care to test that theory?"

"Maybe later. I have someone I need some personal time with"

"Ah. Nat's up in her... I mean your room. Probably dolling herself up for your arrival"

"Thanks, Barton"

Shepard walked back inside the building walking upstairs until he entered his old room. Nothing had been changed since he had left "Natasha" he called out walking in further. The door closed behind him making him turn around quickly in surprise, Natasha stood there locking the door with her right hand.

"We have a lot of time to catch up on" she tackled him onto the bed.

"That was well worth the wait" Natasha said laying on her back.

"I love you. I missed you more than I ever thought possible while at the Raft"

"I know. I visited you every week"

"Thank you, for that. Without you I think Ross would've finally drove me insane"

"As if you weren't already?"

Shepard laughed "I suppose that's true"

"I love you too. You know that don't you?" she asked laying onto her side.

"I do"

"It wasn't easy for me watching you rot in there for something I did. Knowing I could've stopped you"

"There was nothing that was going to stop me from making sure you had the freedom you deserved. Besides, I think it worked out for the best"

"I agree. What do you plan to do now?"

"Prepare for Thanos. There's no way for us to move against him without something to travel into space with. We can't even begin to guess where the other Infinity Stones are without Thor. I think we are going to need Banner back for this too"

"I hope you leave some time in there for me with your busy schedule"

"I'll always leave time for you" he said pulling her into a passionate kiss. After several minutes they separated for air.

"What about the Avengers? We need more people if we are going to be able to take him on"

"I know. I invited T'Challa to become an Avenger. He agreed on the condition that we do not call upon him unless it's an emergency. I've also allowed Bucky a place here with us. I know that kid that Tony has been mentoring will fight with us if it comes down to it. We also have SHIELD and any of the Inhumans working with them"

"Not a bad lineup"

"We've had worse. New York for instance"

"That was a shit storm if I've ever seen one"

"I hope Thor and Banner come back soon. I know we are going to need their help if we are ever going to be able to face Thanos. According to Schmidt he's already taken hundreds of planets without the Infinity Stones. Imagine what he could do with them"

"Something else is bothering you. I can tell. Mind telling me what it is?"

Shepard sighed deeply "It's nothing important"

"You can trust me"

"I know, I just... Thanos is a Titan. He's the last surviving member of their species. The Kree made me to exterminate them. If I kill Thanos, I will have done what they built me to do"

"You're not some mindless tool that would kill him just because of what he is. If you do end up killing him. He will have brought it on himself"

"Thank you, that... really helps"

"Anytime" she said kissing him on the cheek "We should get some rest"

"Sounds like a good idea to me" he said placing his arm around her waist.

"Thank you. For coming back to me"

"I promised I'd never leave. Didn't I?" he said earning a small smile from her in response.