"So the ship hasn't moved since you contacted us?" The main Avengers were seated in the conference room, having been summoned by Nick Fury. It turned out that SHIELD had noticed the alien ship around the same time Tony had.

Fury nodded to Steve. "That is correct. As soon as it came within range of our sensors, it stopped. We have no idea what it's intentions are, and it is not responding to any of our attempts at communication. We've been fortunate that no amateur astronomer with a twenty buck telescope has noticed them yet."

"So we've only tried transmissions so far? No physical contact?" Natasha always liked having all the facts.

"Trust me when I say that no one is going to be sending any astronauts up there. Potentially, this is where you guys come in. If need be, your next mission will be to board the vessel and find out anything you can."

Tony was intrigued by the notion of getting to explore an alien spaceship, but kept an air of nonchalance. "Well, I have been meaning to test out my new deep space armor. I wonder if we should bring food as a peace offering. Well, if we do, it probably shouldn't be McDonald's."

Hawkeye looked insulted. "I happen to think McDonald's is pretty good stuff." Noticing everyone staring at him, he threw his hands up defensively. "Look, when you guys have kids who demand McDonald's every day, you get used to it."

"Hey, I never said I disliked McDonald's. I just think that, if we want a really good first impression, fancier food might be a better idea. Just saying."

Nick Fury had that look, the one that meant he was getting a migraine. "Can we focus? If they make a move, I want you all to be ready."

Hawkeye leaned back in his chair, and tossed a crumpled piece of paper towards a small garbage can in the corner of the room. To no one's surprise, he made the shot. "Do you guys think Thanos is involved? Fury, you told us that he was living on some remote island. How do we know he isn't summoning his army from there?"

"Trust me, that has been considered, but we haven't noticed any strange signals coming from his location, which we have under surveillance. In fact, we have let him know that he is under surveillance, practically daring him to try something along these lines." Everyone gaped at Fury.

"And he didn't react violently?" Steve sounded skeptical, something Tony felt as well. Fury shrugged.

"I believe Warlock may have been correct when he claimed that Thanos had…different interests now. Still, I'm not stupid. SHIELD will be keeping Thanos under surveillance for the near future."

It was a small comfort, and Tony wasn't always a very trusting person in the first place, but for the moment, he didn't have much choice but to trust that Fury knew what he was doing.

Thanos was in a pleasant mood. He had gotten things off his chest, spent some…quality time with Layla, and woke up to the smell of bacon, which was startlingly delectable.

The alien craft hovering over Earth did nothing to dampen his spirits. In fact, he truly didn't care. If they were benevolent, all the better. And if they had violent aims against the planet, he presumed the Avengers or another such group could handle it. Frankly, unless these unknown beings did something to specifically place Layla in harm's way, he didn't plan on involving himself.

And if SHIELD had any competency, they would have already spotted the ship. And if not, well, he didn't feel any obligation to warn them. On a more guilty note, he had also decided not to inform Layla. She would most likely pressure him into, at the very least, informing Nick Fury. At most, she might ask him to get directly involved. No, it was best that she didn't know.

"You seem deep in thought," Layla idly noted as she handed him his black, no sugar coffee. He smiled at her.

"An idle mind is a wasted mind." Coffee was the single human drink that he enjoyed every day. It was honestly easy to understand why humans thought of it as addictive.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Layla sat down at the table, prepared to dig into her pancakes and bacon. Thanos felt guilty again (an emotion that he still hadn't completely gotten used to). But why cause her concern unnecessarily?

"Nothing of great importance." He justified this answer to himself. He wasn't strictly lying; he truly believed that the ship was nothing important. He had an inkling that Layla wouldn't see things that way, however.

"So, what's on the agenda for today? I don't have anything to do, so I'm open to suggestions." Thanos thought about it, and decided that some activity was in order after a whole day of laying in bed.

"We have yet to properly explore the island. There is a rather expansive forest area behind the house." Layla gave a mock shiver.

"Oh dear, I hope there aren't any scary, wild monsters living there." He grinned at her.

"I believe I'll be able to keep you safe from any creature that views you as a morsel…"

"I'd bet money that this is Gamora's home planet." Peter wouldn't take Rocket up on that bet, since it was obvious to everyone there, despite the fact that none of them had ever seen so much as a photo of the place.

But unlike Rocket and Drax's planets, this one was completely quiet. Peter strained his ears for any familiar sounds, but nothing. Even something simple, like the singing from a bird, was gone. Despite the sun shining high in the sky, Peter got goosebumps. He wasn't a coward, but the silence had an eerie effect.

"Perhaps the people of this planet are nocturnal," Drax offered. Peter shook his head.

"Gamora always seemed to have normal sleeping hours." His teammates gawked at him, and he blushed. "I mean, I'm just guessing. It's not like I know her sleeping schedule or anything."

"Uh-huh," Rocket deadpanned.

Peter was just about to make an epic retort when "I am Groot!" interrupted him.

Rocket scratched his ear. "What do ya mean you see Gamora?" He climbed up Groot's back. "I don't - oh!" Hearing this, Peter quickly climbed up Groot's shoulder to see for himself, and lo and behold, Gamora was in the distance, striding in their directions. Peter jumped off Groot and ran in her direction. The other Guardians weren't far behind.

"You guys took your time," were the first words she said when they reached her. The cool delivery stopped Peter from outright hugging her, tempting as it was. Groot had no such inhibition though. But then, he hugged everyone.

"Wait, you remember us?" Peter was happy, of course, but he hadn't thought it would be this easy.

"Gamora, we feared that Quill would be forced to dance once again to free your mind," Drax explained.

"...What exactly have you guys been doing? When I came to, I was surrounded by my family. At first, I was overjoyed. But the more I thought about it, the more unlikely it seemed. Then it hit me that this was the work of the Reality Stone. Hard as it was, I accepted that my family was still dead, and I left, figuring that you all could be in similar situations. But…what's this about dancing?"

Peter stepped in front of Rocket and Drax before they could say anything incriminating. "I'm just glad that we're all together again. That's the important thing. Well, that and the Reality Stone, which must be around here somewhere."

"Perhaps closer than you realize." Peter jumped as Warlock once again seemingly materialized out of nowhere.

"I'm tired of this vague mumbo-jumbo," Rocket growled. "If the stone is nearby, and if you know where it is, just tell us." Warlock gave a half-smile before turning to Gamora. Peter kicked himself mentally, because he only just now noticed that Gamora was holding a thick cloth in one of her fists.

"I think Gamora knows as well," Adam softly replied. Gamora held his stare as she slowly unclenched her fist and then began to unwrap the cloth. After a few layers, a familiar yellow glow could be glimpsed.

"I knew better than to touch the stone with my bare hands. I suppose I can thank Thanos for that much, if nothing else." As Warlock reached for it, she moved back. "When I realized that my family were still dead, this stone appeared. I suppose accepting that this wasn't my true reality did it. But before I hand this over, I have some questions for you."

"Of course," Adam replied. "That is your right."

"Before, you said you were the only person searching for all the stones. But that can't be true. Thanos has spent countless years trying to locate them." She began to sound hopeful, though there was something else in her voice. "Could it be that he's perished?"

Adam paused. "I - no, he isn't dead, Gamora. But I can assure you, the stones are no longer of any interest to him."

"What? How can you expect me to believe that?"

"I'm afraid I have no proof. You will have to speak with him yourself. He is currently on Earth." Gamora scowled at the suggestion.

"If I never see him again, it'll be too soon. But fine, I'll take your word for it…for now. But my second question is, what do you intend to do with the stones?" Peter wished he had thought to ask that question.

"That is unfortunately a hard question to answer. The truth is, I don't completely know why I need them."

Drax scoffed. "That sounds like a lie to me. How can one want something, and not know why they want it?"

If Warlock was bothered by the comment, he didn't show it. "My Soul Stone spoke to me, in a certain sense. It told me that the rest of the stones would need to be found and brought together."

"And I don't suppose it gave a reason? Great." Rocket shook his head, exasperated.

"I'm sorry, but I'll need a far better reason than that to hand this over." Gamora wrapped the stone back up in the cloth, and placed it in a pocket. "This stone is obviously too powerful to fall into the wrong hands."

Peter was expecting Warlock to object and maybe even get physical, but Warlock merely nodded. "If you believe that is best, then I won't object. Now, I must be going."

Peter blinked. When had they returned to the Skrull ship? The other Guardians also seemed disoriented. There was also a body on the floor; closer inspection reminded Peter that it was Veranke.

"So, uh, do we just leave her here?" Rocket shrugged, and Groot presumably scolded him.

"No, I will take her back to the Skrull homeworld. It is only right," Warlock murmured as he picked her up bridal style. With his back to the team, Warlock had some final words. "Watch yourselves. The stones are magnets for trouble."

"We can handle it," was Gamora's response. Warlock flew off into the depths of space, and Peter was reminded that they had to return to the Milano. Fortunately, it was still parked outside the Skrull ship.

Once aboard, Peter felt an immense relief, though he had a suspicion it wouldn't last once the word spread. But then again, who would tell? Oh, right, Veranke.

"That Warlock was a strange man, but not a malicious one. Perhaps we should have given him the Reality Stone?" Rocket disagreed with Drax.

"What? Can you imagine how much this would sell for?"

Peter decided to pull rank. "No way. We are not selling this to anyone. Can you imagine what would happen if the wrong people got it? It stays with us." Gamora gave him an approving glance. Yup, the events of the day had been worth it.

Layla couldn't remember a time where she felt better. The day had gone perfectly. Exploring the island with Thanos had actually been a lot of fun, especially considering that she had never really been a nature girl herself. It turned out the wildlife on the island was really vibrant; she had never seen flamingos in person before. She needed to invite her parents one of these days.

Now, as the afternoon sun began descending, Layla was using the final hour of sunlight to finish reading a book that would be used in the curriculum next semester, but truth be told, she was feeling so relaxed that she was on the verge of nodding off.

She had to say, this was a contender for her favorite summer vacation ever - and she didn't even have to spend any money. She idly wondered if she would be able to convince Thanos to take a trip with her next year, to some exotic location. She wasn't even sure if he had any interest in jungles or mountains, but she knew she would feel safer if he came along.

She had just about fallen asleep when a buzzing sensation in her body brought her back to full alertness in seconds. It wasn't painful, but it was freaky. It felt like a mild electric current was pulsating in her veins. Nothing like that had ever happened to her before, and she was considering her options when a final pulse suddenly became painful. She didn't remember it, but the quick pain must have caused her to yelp, because Thanos was suddenly kneeling next to her, his face featuring the concern that he rarely showed.

"Is it the tesseract again?" She hadn't even thought of that, but in hindsight, that was probably it. She smiled, trying to downplay the fear she had felt.

"Maybe, but it's fine. I'm fine. I was feeling weird for a second there, but I'm feeling fine now."

"Hmm." She didn't think that would convince him, and she was right. "We agreed that as long as the tesseract didn't cause you any harm, there was no need to rush to find a solution to remove it. But if it has begun to cause you pain…"

She absolutely hated causing anyone trouble, and she hated having to be a damsel in distress (once was enough), and above everything else, she hated being poked and prodded. So she stood up and announced her intention to finish reading upstairs. Unfortunately, Thanos followed her to their room.

"Perhaps if I run some more tests-" Layla flung herself on her bed, sighing loudly enough that he paused.

"Please, no. I'm not in the mood for any experiments. I think I'm done with that whole thing. If I'm destined to stick with the tesseract for the rest of my life, well, so be it."

Thanos frowned for a few moments, before grounding out, almost painfully, "If you don't trust my methods, there are surely other scientists who you could turn to." Layla realized that he had completely misread what she had been saying.

She sat up and faced him. "What? No, of course I trust you! I trust you more than any random scientist. I just don't care to try any tests or experiments, no matter who is doing them. That's all." She couldn't tell if he was relieved or not, his expression hadn't really changed.

"You put me in a tricky position." He sat down on the bed next to her. "You know I always respect your wishes. But I also hold your health in high regard. If I had to choose between the two, I think I would want you to be healthy, even if it led to you resenting me."

"But I need you to understand that I am healthy! At least, I feel healthy, and I don't want you to waste so much time worrying about me. I don't like having people worry about me. It makes me feel guilty that I'm causing them to stress out about my problems." She hadn't meant to say that last part. She had never told anyone, even her parents.

Thanos was silent for a few moments as he stared at her. His eyes bore into hers, and not for the first time, she noted how intimidating they could be, but in her case? They were intelligent eyes, and that was what appealed to her.

"I've already made it known that this…romance isn't something I have much experience with. However, and you may correct me if I'm wrong, I believe that one appeal of being in a relationship with a significant other is that together, they can more easily shoulder a burden then either one could alone."

Layla looked away, slightly embarrassed. "I know that, but it still bothers me. I don't want to cause anyone any problems." Thanos lifted her head back up with a large finger.

"You could never be a bother to me," was his firm response. "And if we get down to technicalities, it is because of my actions that the tesseract was embedded into your body. This makes it my responsibility." He gave her a rueful smile. "Did you think you were the only one with feelings of guilt?"

Layla supposed she hadn't really been taking Thanos' feelings into consideration as much as she would have liked. Was it fair to keep this problem to herself if Thanos believes he could ease his own guilt by helping her? She didn't think so.

She opened her mouth with the intention of saying something, but instead ended up kissing the Titan. He wasn't shy about kissing her back, and seeing as how they were already on a bed, she wasn't surprised when the clothes began to come off.

As they started, he whispered one last thing in her ear. "Once again, you could never be a bother to me, my dearest. You are precious to me. I'll kill anyone who says otherwise." Well. Coming from Thanos, it was romantic.

The Supreme Intelligence watched the monitors with a sense of satisfaction. So far, phase one of his plan was working perfectly. Not that he had expected any other outcome, but confirmation was always enjoyable.

The electronic doors swished open, but he didn't even need to turn around to know who who had entered his security room.

"Hala, I assume my ship is ready for departure, just as I commanded?" Hala nodded sharply.

"Of course. You may leave whenever you so choose." Pausing ever so slightly, she then asked the question that was no doubt weighing heavily on her mind.

"But, if I may ask, why did you place that dummy ship in Earth's upper atmosphere? That ship is set on autopilot, and has no crew. I don't see how this helps you in any way."

Truthfully, the Supreme Intelligence had been hoping that someone would ask him that question, but his subordinates were all spineless cowards who never dared to question his plans. Fortunately, Hala was an exception.

"That ship is serving it's purpose - as a distraction for the humans to investigate. They have already wasted precious time attempting to create a line of communication with the ship. Predictably, they will soon attempt to board it. But while they are on their fruitless quest, I will already be far along on my own mission."

Hala frowned. "Mission? I was told that I was preparing your ship so that you could return to the Council and apologize." The Intelligence inwardly thought her foolish for believing that cover story.

"That was merely a ruse to avoid any information leaks. In actuality, I have discovered the location of an Infinity Stone. Once I have it in my possession, I will return to Earth to exact my revenge on Thanos. Once he is dead, the Council will be the next to feel my wrath."

Hala made the wise choice of silent, though the Intelligence could tell from the way she was staring at him that she certainly had strong opinions about his plan. But no matter, he hadn't a care about what his minions thought about him or his plans.

As two of his minions arrived to wheel him out of the security room, he gave one last command. "I leave you in charge while I am away. I trust that I won't return to find everything destroyed or misplaced." He didn't notice her hateful glare as he exited the room.

Author's Notes:

That's one more stone down.

For those who missed Thanos and Layla, they should go back to being the main characters in the next chapter.