When Dallas finally found Steve, she was surprised to find him in the corner of the room, facing the wall. She approached cautiously, unsure what he was doing, until a glimpse of bleached hair came into view and Dallas realized he had Natasha Romanoff pinned into the corner.

The super-soldier raised his head quickly at the sound of her footsteps and turned, meeting Dallas's surprised gaze as his cheeks began to redden beneath his beard. Unphased by aliens, robots, and war, Dallas knew she'd walked in on something intimate to get a reaction from the man, and the thing became terribly clear: Steve and Nat were together, and they were in love.

"Dallas?" His voice broke, and she snorted as she crossed her arms, "Denver is with Yelena and Pietro, but I'd like you there too in case she has any questions."

"Mmhm," she hummed, smirking up at the rugged man. Beneath his rough exterior, Dallas caught a glimpse of the Steve Rogers she first met six years ago in New York City. That shy, uncertain artist that stole her sister's heart had died along with her, replaced by an overwhelmed, desperate father who's only goal was to protect the world Brooklyn helped destroy. Seeing a glimpse of him with Nat both warmed Dallas's heart and made her stomach drop. She didn't want her sister replaced, but if she had been, at least it was Natasha.

"I'm going to check in with Wanda," Nat told Steve, and Dallas saw the way her hand lingered on his bare forearm before walking away. A silent conversation passed between them as Natasha left.

Instead of addressing the elephant in the room, Steve followed Natasha towards the massive windows overlooking the grasslands. He stayed a ways away, looking out over the endless wilderness beyond the palace until Dallas came up beside him. "I'm hoping we can get that stone out and destroy it. In theory it should be easy, but I also need to be a realist. These aren't Chitauri. They are more evolved, and more dangerous."

A bird flew past the window, holding Dallas's attention as she chewed over what Steve was trying to tell her. She didn't want to consider his death, but he was right, they had to be realistic. "As long as we win. Whatever it takes."

Steve pulled Dallas in for a hug before kissing her on the cheek, "I've made so many mistakes. I've hurt you more than anybody, and I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me, and do this one last thing."

"I forgive you, and you know I would, but it won't come to that. You're going to survive. You always do."

"Nobody wins forever. Brooklyn knew that."

"And she was an idiot." Dallas snarled back, but Steve shook his head, opening his mouth to argue but he cut him off, "No. She thought Hydra would kill you. She didn't want it, but she believed it. I don't. You're gonna be just fine. For Denver's sake, I need you to believe that, okay?"

"Okay." Steve answered, looking over his shoulder to see Natasha wrap Wanda in a hug, "If I don't make it though, let Nat be in her life. She'd be devastated to lose her."

Dallas watched the two women interacting, deciding this was the in she needed to ask Steve what she wanted to know, "So, are you two…"

"Yeah." Steve said bluntly. His lips curled to the side in a soft smile, "I didn't think I'd find it again. But it's so easy with her. We need each other, and we complement each other."

"And she's honest with you." Dallas smiled through the pain in her heart, "Brooklyn couldn't do that. And Nat's pretty special. You deserve someone like that in your life."

Steve rubbed the back of his neck beneath his shaggy hair, "Thank you."

Even though she didn't know if it was true, Dallas added, "It's what Brooklyn would have wanted."

"Captain!"

Steve and Dallas turned when T'Challa beckoned him, seeing Okoye with a hologram in her palm, "Something has entered the atmosphere."

Outside, Sam, Rhodey, and Bucky stood together with their eyes on the sky, seeing something hurtling towards them from space. "Hey Cap, we got a situation here." He looked to Bucky, but the soldier kept his eyes upward to gauge the threat as the ball of fire hurtled towards Wakanda.

It smashed against the shield, exploding as the shattered pieces fell over the dome. Bucky smiled, thankful his friends and long-gone family would be safe, "God, I love this place."

"Well, don't start celebrating yet guys," Rhodey warned, "we got more incoming outside the dome."

Bucky and Sam followed his gaze to see a half dozen more fireballs decimate the tree line beyond the shield. The explosions rocked the edge of the city, and Bucky felt the ground tremble beneath his feet. He stared at the massive structures beyond the trees, then looked up at the tower he knew held Shuri's new lab.

Steve stared down at the spaceships with disdain. Thanos would not get the Mind Stone. He would not wipe out half of all life, and he sure as hell wouldn't let the Mad Titan near his daughter and girlfriend. He turned to look at Natasha, who held her hand to her lips nervously as she studied the ships. Beyond her was T'Challa, and Steve could see the king was pensive, as if he wasn't sure the shields would be enough. They had to buy Shuri more time.

"It's too late, we need to destroy the stone." Vision said as he stood from the table, and his words caused Nat to whip around and snap, "Vision, get your ass back on that table."

"We will hold them off." T'Challa told the android, and that was enough of a sign to send the room into motion. The Wakandans started filing out as Steve approached Wanda. She looked from him to Dallas nervously, then towards the door, "Where is Pietro?"

"He's with Denver, he'll stay here with you." Steve told her, "As soon as that stones out of his head, you blow it to hell."

She raised her head, feeling all the hopes and dreams of her Avengers family on her shoulders. If she failed, it would be catastrophic, "I will."

Wanda turned her attention back to Vision and Steve studied the battlefield, making plans in his head. Natasha sidled up beside him, but didn't reach out for him. She knew the man she loved was a soldier today. She just gazed at him, trying to figure out what ran through his head beneath his furrowed brows.

Behind them, T'Challa shouted orders to his guards, sending them on tasks to protect the people and prepare for the attack, before turning to Steve, "And get this man a shield."

At that, Steve turned to him and gave a firm nod before T'Challa retreated out of the room. Dallas cleared her throat and gestured to the door, "Where's Denny?"

"I'll have Pietro bring her here. You'll be safer all together." Natasha told her, gesturing towards Wanda, "You'll be safer with her."

Dallas nodded, then pulled Nat into a tight hug, "Be careful, okay?"

"Nobody is getting near here…" Nat promised as she looked back at Steve, hearing him on the comm asking Yelena and Pietro to bring Denver into the lab. "If they do though," she grabbed Dallas's hand, and she was shaking, "you take Denny, and you hide. Don't let her know what's happening, okay? She's a very smart little girl, and we can't let her know what kind of danger we are all in."

The taller woman sniffled and looked up and over Nat's head at the sound of Steve arguing with someone just outside the door, "We don't have time-"

"I don't care, I just need a minute." Bucky snapped as he shoved Steve's chest and stormed towards her. Nat passed Bucky as Pietro sped into the room, depositing Denver in her father's arms. Dallas felt her lower lip quiver as Bucky grabbed her forearms. He'd come to say goodbye. "Dallas, I need you to have something."

She shook her head, trying to pull away as she looked over her shoulder to see the Wakandan army preparing to ship out, "No. I don't wanna do this. I'm not gonna do this."

Bucky released her and grabbed her hand, peeling it open and placing a folded, tattered piece of paper in it, "Read this, please, after I go." She continued shaking her head as tears began to roll down her cheeks, so Bucky used his right hand to wipe them away, "Don't cry. Just do this for me. I wanted to see you one last time."

"This isn't the end. James, we're gonna win." Dallas grabbed his cheeks, and he turned his face to kiss her palm, "We're gonna talk about this later." Dallas whispered, and Bucky ducked his head to kiss her, but she pushed him away gently, "I'll see you when it's over."

He pulled away, looking down at her hand wrapped around his letter, "You'll read it, won't you?"

"Yeah, sure." She said casually, trying to hide her fear, "I'll read it while you guys defeat Thanos."

"Is Thanos the bad guy?" Denver asked her father. He clenched his eyes closed, knowing he had to say goodbye. He felt her small fingers in his beard, holding his face, "Daddy?"

"Yes, Pumpkin?"

"What's wrong?"

"I'm just scared."

She kissed him and he opened his eyes, smiling sadly at his little girl, "Don't be scared. You're gonna be okay. You're Captain America."

Steve let out a quiet sob, burying his face into his daughter's neck. He felt Natasha's hand rubbing his back, and heard her murmur, "We have to go."

Suddenly, Denver was being pulled away, and Steve realized Dallas had her. He sniffled and raised his head, smiling down at his daughter bravely, "I love you, more than anyone on this Earth."

"More than Aunt Nat?"

Steve chuckled and looked down at Natasha as she stroked Denver's cheek, "Yeah, but just a little bit more."

"We'll see you after." Dallas assured Steve, and he cleared his throat and nodded, "Yeah, I'll be back soon." He leaned in and kissed Denver's forehead, then gave Dallas's arm a squeeze, "Take care of her."

"I will, you know I will. Good luck, Steve." Dallas watched them walk out the door of the lab, seeing Bucky in the distance. She felt her heart pounding and wanted him to go. Not die but go. She wanted him to go so she could dwell on her feelings, but she wanted him to come back in one piece. She didn't want to read his letter. She didn't want to read whatever words he'd penned for her and then lose him forever.

She sat Denver down, and the little girl ran to Pietro and Wanda to watch Shuri work, intrigued by the laser working on Vision's face. Dallas watched from a distance for a while, then walked to the window in time to see Steve, Nat, and Bucky walk out onto the field and load onto a vehicle. Steve paused and looked up at the windows, and Bucky followed his lead. She pulled the letter out and held it tightly, as if it were her lifeline.

"Stop thinking about her, Steve. You won't be able to think straight." Natasha told him, and he looked ahead with steely blue eyes. He could see two figures ahead, and he doubted this would be sorted out by talking.

He grunted and adjusted the shields strapped to both his forearms, "I know. I can't help it."

Natasha reached for his hand, giving it a supportive squeeze low enough for nobody to notice, "Listen, if you go back, nobody is gonna judge you. If you go back and take care of Denny, we'll take care of this. You know that, right?"

"If I go back, you won't stop. And I'm not letting you fight Thanos alone." Steve lulled his head to the side to look at Nat from the corner of his eye, "We're gonna win."

"You really think that?" Bucky grumbled, earning disdainful glares from both Steve and Nat. He shrugged as the vehicle slowed to a stop, "Being a realist. Somebody has to be."

Steve grunted, "Stay here. We'll be back." He walked towards the shield with Natasha and T'Challa. Bucky clenched his machine gun tightly, not wanting to fight. He was tired of war. He'd never asked for any of this, yet here he was again, fighting somebody else's war.

"So you and Denny's aunt, huh?" Bucky looked to his left, seeing the blonde widow with her arms crossed and her eyes locked onto her sister, "She seems like a handful. Beautiful though. Have you two, you know?"

Bucky looked ahead, wondering what he had to say to get this Yelena person to stop talking to him, "Don't think this is the appropriate time for this conversation."

"I just want to make sure you aren't distracted," she gestured towards the edge of the dome as Steve and the others came walking back, "big fight and everything. Clearly there's some sexual tension between you and what's her name, I just think you should talk about it. Might help clear your head."

"Dallas is my ex-girlfriend. I almost killed her and haven't seen her since. When Steve inevitably gets himself killed, she'll be Denver's guardian." Bucky lowered his voice and added, "I killed Denver's mother. I don't want her to lose her father, too."

Yelena gasped as Steve and Natasha approached, and Bucky asked, "Did they surrender?"

"Not exactly."

"You can't just drop that bomb and not explain it!" Yelena exclaimed as Natasha rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I wanna know!"

"Not the time Yelena."

"Sestra," Yelena whined, but she was cut off by the thundering of footsteps as an endless number of aliens came charging through the trees. "What the hell?"

"My thoughts exactly." Bucky grunted as he glared ahead, "Steve?"

Steve didn't have any answers. If they didn't get that stone out of Vision's head, they wouldn't stand a chance. Forget Thanos, they wouldn't live long enough to battle him anyway. Natasha surveyed the scene, "Looks like we pissed her off."

The aliens tried to break through the barrier, slicing themselves in half in a desperate attempt to get to the Wakandan armies. Bucky hid his feelings behind a cold expression, forcing himself away from the memories of home and the hopes and dreams of finding it again. If that dome fell, they'd be ripped to shreds.

A few dozen of the aliens managed to rip through unscathed and were easily taken out by Bucky's machine gun. When one got particularly close on his left, he turned to shoot only to have the alien seize and fall to the ground as red wrapped around its chest. Bucky looked to Yelena, who just shrugged, "You weren't sharing in the fun."

The army seemed to split and try to go around the side of the shield, "Cap, if these things circle the perimeter and get in behind us... there's nothing between them and Vision."

And Denver.

"Then we better keep them in front of us." Steve said as he kept his gaze straight. He heard T'Challa give the order to open up the barrier. The soldier took a deep breath in through his nose, then opened up the shield on his right arm. "We'll hold them off, give them more time to get that stone out."

T'Challa pushed his way through the soldiers to give the signal, and Steve steeled his nerves to prepare for battle. Bucky said a prayer and Natasha shared a look with Yelena as the assassin pulled out her guns. From high in the lab, Dallas knelt beside Denver, holding the child tightly as they watched while Pietro tapped his foot anxiously behind them. Wanda gazed down at Vision while Shuri worked, not daring to look out the window and see the fight that would occur to save the man she loved.

"What are they doing?" Dallas asked Shuri, but the princess didn't answer as she worked diligently on her task. Dallas sucked in a shaky breath and hugged Denver tighter, "Why don't we go play over there? You don't wanna watch, it might get scary."

"But I can see Dad from here." Denver told her aunt, and Dallas quickly scooped her up and took her to the other side of the room. The girl squirmed and yelled, "No! I told you, I wanna see!"

Pietro appeared in an instant to grab the child, easily stronger than Dallas, "Hey, hey kiddo." Dallas looked out the window to see the alien army charging towards them, and she gasped as she turned back to Denver, seeing the child was trying to look over their shoulders. Pietro smoothed back Denver's hair, forcing a broad smile, "We need to stay away from Wanda and Vision, okay? They are working really hard to save Vision's life, and we have to make sure we give them space, okay? Will you stay with me?"

Denver looked at Pietro, then Dallas before staring up at Shuri on the level above them working. "Okay. I stay with you."

From the level above, they heard Shuri yell, "I've barely begun brother!" as she frantically worked on her screens. Pietro, Dallas, and Denver all looked out the windows at the same time to see the massacre happening in the field below. Denver bolted towards it, but Pietro sped around her and grabbed her. She began kicking and screaming, but Pietro held her back, "No, Denny. Don't watch."

"But my dad is down there!" She sobbed, and Dallas clenched her eyes closed. She wasn't strong enough to face the devastated expression on her niece's face. Denny didn't remember Brooklyn, but she'd remember Steve. She'd understand who he was when they buried him. She continued to cry loudly, "My dad and my family are down there!"

"Baby, listen to me." Dallas told the child as she grabbed her face, "You need to focus on me, okay? Focus on me! You can't do anything to stop what's happening. We just have to be brave and hope for the best, okay?"

Denver moved her eyes up to Pietro, who pushed his white hair away from his eyes and looked at the field beyond with a grim expression. Denver knew that look. He was worried. "He said he'd come back."

"And he will. I promise, he will." Dallas lied, "Stay with me until he comes back, okay? Please?"

The little girl nodded, wrapping her arms around Dallas as Pietro held the two of them and looked back, seeing a portal of lighting brighten up the sky. "They'll be okay. They've got help."

"Pietro."

He sped away when his sister called, then looked at what she was pointing at. Three massive wheels came up and under the shields, destroying everything in their path. Wanda gasped and looked up at her brother, "I don't think we're fast enough."

Cracking his neck, Pietro grabbed her hand, "But I am."

He sped out of the room with Wanda yelling his name as she followed a few steps, then turned to look out the windows as he sped through the battlefield, pulling their people out of the way of danger, but even he couldn't be everywhere at once.

Another nine of the wheels erupted from the border, and Wanda turned to Vision before sprinting away to help. Dallas watched her go, realizing they were unprotected, "Wanda?"

"They're going to die if we don't help. They need me to protect the stone."

"Yes! Protect it here! You can't destroy it from down there!" Dallas yelped, then realized Denver was creeping towards the door, "Not another step-" When she turned back to Wanda, the Scarlet Witch was gone. She stared down at the battlefield to see Wanda landing in time to stop the wheels in mid-air, then throw them onto the alien army.

"Whoa." Denver gawked and pressed her face against the glass, "That's so cool."

The sound of yelling, followed by slicing reached Dallas and Denver from up above, and the woman grabbed her niece and pulled her under the walkway leading down from where Shuri was working. The fighting intensified, and Dallas covered Denver's mouth, shushing her as the sound of one of the Dora Milaje fought, followed by blasters until glass shattered above them and sent Shuri and the Dora flying over the edge to the lower level.

Dallas panted, keeping her hand tight against Denver's mouth to silence her. Shuri didn't move. She was knocked out cold, and Dallas realized Vision wasn't on his table. She looked around, feeling her heart beating in her ears until the attacker leapt to the ground in front of her. Her breath was stolen from her lungs and Denver let out a hushed scream beneath her hand, causing the creature to turn and look at them. He studied Dallas and Denver for a long moment, shifting his glaive towards them, "Where is he?"

From the other side of the table came Vision, grabbing Glaive at the base of the neck and shoving him towards the glass and out the window. As they fell, Dallas scrambled to her feet to get a better look. She thrust her hand out as Denver appeared to look out the broken glass with her, seeing Vision tumbling to the ground.

"She didn't get the stone out." Dallas whimpered as she pulled the letter from Bucky out of her pocket, thinking she might need to read it after all, "And now she's not going to."

With Wanda on the field, Bucky looked up at the lab and asked, "If she's here, who is with Vision?"

Steve followed his train of thought, realizing his daughter was unprotected, "Pietro, get back to the lab."

"On it."

Before he could get very far though, Steve saw Vision hurtling out the window with the alien they'd fought in Edinburgh. "Shit!" He yelled, "Somebody get to Vision!" before being pummeled into the Earth by two aliens trying to rip his face off. He tried to pierce them with his shields, but their incessant scratching and biting made it hard to get a decent hit in until Bucky shot the creature in the head, causing it to slump against Steve until he threw it to the side. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." Bucky said as he helped Steve up, "Go. Get to Vision, I'll be right behind you. The fight isn't with them," he motioned to the aliens, whose numbers were getting smaller and smaller as the war waged on.

Steve nodded and took off running towards the trees below the lab, pushing himself as fast as humanly possible. If he couldn't save Vision- if Thanos's men got the Mind Stone, he could wipe out half of all life. He'd have a fifty percent chance of losing his daughter, his friends, and everyone else on the planet, and those weren't odds he was willing to take.

He broke into the clearing in time to see Glaive hovering over Vision, about to remove the stone from his head. Steve knocked into him, sending them both flying away from Vision. He pushed himself to his knees and yelled, "Get out of here!" As he stood, Glaive tried to attack, but Steve knocked him back. When he saw Vision was struggling to stand, he screamed, "Go!"

Steve struggled to keep him down and fought blindly in an attempt to buy Vision enough time to escape. He was able to use his shields to fling Glaive's weapon away, but that freed up his hand to grab Steve's neck, squeezing the life out of him for a moment before chucking him forward to the ground.

Disoriented from landing on his back, Steve stared at the bright sky for a moment until Glaive appeared to choke him again, seeing that as the most efficient way to end the super soldier.

Clenching his shields in an attempt to loosen the creature's grip, Steve wondered what would happen to his daughter when he was gone. If Thanos won, would she survive? Or would he see her on the other side? As he grit his teeth and pushed, Steve wondered if Brooklyn would be disappointed in him for leaving their child an orphan, or if she'd be surprised he survived as long as he did.

Suddenly, Glaive was lifted off of Steve, causing the soldier to gag as his throat was released. He focused on what was happening above him, seeing Glaive's weapon embedded in his chest, killing him, until he was eventually discarded by Vision behind him.

Vision fell as Steve managed to get up, catching him and helping him to his feet, "I thought I told you to go."

"We don't trade lives Captain." Vision tried to catch his breath, "And if we did, I'd say yours is worth more than mine"

Steve shook his head as he helped Vision stand, "My life doesn't ensure half the universe survives, but I appreciate you saving it anyway." He studied the gash in Vision's chest, unsure how far the android would be able to get, but clearly it wasn't safe to go back to the lab. Steve looked up worriedly, then asked, "When he attacked you- did- is Denver-"

"He was going after them, but I knocked him out of play. There was nobody else." Vision assured Steve as Wanda landed nearby, "They should be safe."

"Are you alright?" Wanda asked as Vision sat and she knelt next to him. Steve gave them some space, watching curiously out of the corner of his eye as Wanda checked over Vision. He looked past them to see Natasha approaching with Bucky and sighed in relief. The fight was almost over. They were okay.

Sam landed near Nat and he patted her on the back as they approached, but suddenly Vision doubled over in pain, "He's here."

Steve met Natasha's eyes, seeing all the life drain out of them and he raised his hand to his ear, "Everyone on my position. We've got incoming." The only sound around them was the rustling of the trees, and the breeze picked up, sending a shiver straight to Steve's bones. They'd been so close to winning. Maybe they still could. He promised Denver he'd be back. He couldn't break his promise.

Bruce turned in the Hulkbuster armor to see a blue light open up from dark smoke, and from it, a massive purple monster appeared. At least fifteen feet tall with a golden gauntlet on his left hand. Steve counted the stones and realized the Mind Stone was the only one missing. They were the only thing standing between Thanos and victory.

Natasha gasped lightly, then clenched her jaw tightly as they stared ahead at Thanos to see what he'd do first. He didn't speak. He seemed unalarmed by the humans in his way, but it wasn't lost on Steve that he stood at the base of the lab, literally between him and his daughter. Thanos was sure he would win. Steve had to make sure he was wrong.

"Eyes up. Stay sharp." Steve ordered as he started jogging forward, leading the attack. Thanos took this as a sign to stride forward, easily using the stones to phase Bruce right through him and into the rocks at the base of the mountain. Steve was easily flung to the side, getting the wind knocked out of him. He rolled over and watched as Thanos disarmed T'Challa, then Sam, then Rhodey, then Bucky.

When Natasha got close to the Titan, he pulled the Earth from below her, trapping her as she squirmed to get free. Steve saw the desperation in her eyes as Yelena sprinted forward, but Thanos used the power stone to blast her back too, sending her hurtling onto Bucky as he tried to stand. Nat shook her head at Steve, as if she herself couldn't believe they had a chance at winning, but he wasn't giving up so easily.

With nobody else between Thanos and the stone, Wanda began using both of her hands to destroy it, using all of her might to end the life of the man she loved. Steve shoved himself to his feet, then slid beneath Thanos's arm to block him. He hit his knee, then his forearm, earning nothing but an annoyed glare from Thanos until he upper cut his chin. Finally tired of Steve, Thanos thrust the glove forward, but Steve caught it with both hands, holding him back with all his might as he let out a yell.

For a brief moment, Thanos looked impressed. But he had a mission to complete, and the mortal in front of him wouldn't hold him up any longer. He wound up his right fist, then landed a deafening blow against Steve's skull, and everything went black.