CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE—December 2039

"It was the only way."

Stephen Strange held Tony's gaze through the glass even as Bucky fell to the floor, arms empty.

Tony, face hot with rage, squeezed himself through the broken door, charging at the sorcerer. "Bullshit," he croaked, "you—"

Strange slammed a palm against Tony's sternum, looking down at Barnes. "You might wanna catch him."

Bucky scrambled to match Tony's fall. Stark was completely unconscious, but Bucky stopped his head from cracking down on the cold tile floor.

"He's fine," Strange said, "he's in astral form. To calm down."

"What did you do?" Bucky lowered Stark to the cold floor, retrieved his gun from the floor and aimed it at Strange's head. "Bring her back."

"Ah—" scarred hands raised slowly into the air "—I can't."

Bucky stepped closer, the muzzle within inches of its target.

"What I mean to say is…Samantha is currently doing…what she's always done."

Bucky's face pinched together. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"James," Natasha barked through the door. "Weapons down. Stark? Hill get medical." She crouched by Tony's side, checking his pulse. "James! Lower your weapon."

"He'll be fine," Strange repeated.

Nat stood back up as Bruce took over evaluating Tony. Bucky could see Maria Hill on comms through the window.

"Ok, doc," Nat started cooly, hand moving to her own holstered weapon, a short blade visible in her other hand. Bucky knew the sheath in her boot where she kept it. "Perhaps you'd care to explain—no cryptic shit."

"I'm afraid…it is complicated."

"We've been around that block a few times," Nat allowed. "Bruce?"

"Quite literally," Strange mumbled just as Bruce announced, "I think he's in a coma."

"He's in astral form, still screaming at me, by the way—"

Nat unholstered her weapon, and Bucky took the opportunity to return his to aim.

Maria Hill finally came in. "Nope, stand down." Hill stood between Nat and Strange, physically lowering Bucky's arm for him. "This—" Maria held up her tablet with a photo enlarged "—is Mistress, isn't it?"

Strange lowered his hands. "That is correct."

"She's Samantha's suit, isn't she?"

"Yes."

Tony jerked upright.

"Oh good, he figured it out," Strange mumbled.

Revived from the dead, Tony started mid sentence. "—given us a warning. Twenty years you sat on this inform—"

"I didn't know it was her—" Strange put his hands back up "—until I saw a picture."

"You knew someone was there," Tony barked back.

"So did you."

"Dammit, we've got a whole room full of enhanced kids here with Maximoff standing by. Why would you bring another sto—" Maria shook her head, letting her neck go limp, then she lowered the tablet and pointed to Stark on the floor. "Is he her only jump?"

Tony went sheet white before the word came out.

"No." This time, Strange's voice lowered in a hint of sympathy.

"Of course," Tony whispered, standing, "because you wouldn't have done it for just me."

"Please don't say," Maria began, biting her lip. "Where else does she go?"

"The garden."

"Wait," Bruce croaked, "Lil'Sam goes to Thanos." His voice shook at the mention of the Titan.

Tony swiveled around. "Keep up or get lost. And you—" he turned back to Bucky "—had the right idea." He lifted Bucky's weapon, turning back to Strange.

The Sorcerer Supreme seemed undeterred by the threat.

"I'm not gonna tell you again. Tell me everything or Bucko—" Tony motioned to the gun "—points this at Christine Palmer next."

That spurred cooperation. "That won't be necessary," Strange dropped his hands, following a bizarre pattern.

Both Bucky and Natasha's guns dissolved to sand.

"I assure you, Stark, I had no idea it was your daughter when I set this in motion."

"So how long—exactly—have you known?"

Without warning, Bruce snatched Hill's tablet from her.

Strange's eyes followed him but he continued."Laura Barton and Wong are email pals. He showed me a photo from a wedding. The son's, I think. He said Laura was worried when Samantha returned, altered, from Wakanda."

"That was nine months ago," Bucky growled, grabbing Strange by his robes. "Why wouldn't you tell us?"

"You're on the nice list for Christmas," Tony muttered.

Bucky didn't let go.

Strange's face remained soft, unlined. "Her…newfound abilities meant that she would indeed…handle an Infinity Stone and survive."

"Two! Two stones." Tony began ranting. "So it's happened—you chose it—and without allowing it, I die and thus Sam doesn't…Are you telling me she kills the big grape soda?"

"Did she know," Bucky grunted, wrapping more cloth through his knuckles.

Strange's cape peeled away from his back to break Bucky's grip, pinning his arms against his sides.

"In a way, but I kept my interference as minimal as—"

Tony pushed against Bucky's shoulder to get closer. "Potter—Thanos?"

The sorcerer's expression flattened. "No. Captain Marvel, as we always knew—"

"We didn't know shit. You did! Then in what way did you need to send her there?"

"I—Mistress needed to go. The suit—android—"

"—really more of an adaptoid at this po—"

"Banner, not now," Tony barked.

"Mistress," Strange continued with little patience, "broadcasts Thanos's location to Captain Marvel."

"Does Sam come back?!"

Strange went quiet, but his eyes remained fixed on Tony who exhaled loudly.

"But no other remains were found," he said to no one in particular, wondering in a twitchy circle, "so she gets away, right? She's coming back."

"Unless," Natasha added, a shadow darkening her features, "Danvers thought Sam was part of Thanos's army and dusted her, too." Her reluctance to voice the possibility physically shrank her compact form.

"She doesn't," Bruce breathed in the silence that followed, lowering the tablet with a pained expression. "I'm sorry, Tony, I'm so sorry. I should have seen it earlier."

Tony baulked, blinking. He couldn't form any words this time.

The cape released Bucky as soon as he turned away, and he rushed to Banner's side. "What do you mean? She doesn't survive Marvel's snap?"

"No—I mean, yes—I mean, Sam does get off the planet—"

"You need to work on your communications skills."

"But Tony, she doesn't—didn't come back here…"

Tony took three awkward steps to take the outstretch tablet Bruce offered. In red at the top blinked: DNA match.

"What is this?"

Bruce was almost inaudible. "Sam's altered DNA after Extremis…and the samples from Containment."

Bucky looked back and forth between them. Natasha pushed her hands over her mouth.

"Shit," Hill whispered.

"It wasn't a corrupted sample. It was Sam's future DNA. She went after Pepper."

"She's going after Pepper," Tony corrected.

"And she got hurt," Bruce added.


Easter Egg: "adaptoid" and "super-adaptoid" are the Marvel Comics terms for entities like Mistress has become in this fic, so...well, I thought that was fun. I've used the term before but wanted to let everyone know it's legit!

What's gonna happen?! Any bold predictions? All comments welcome, although, please do not post distinct spoilers.

Thank you for reading!