As promised, a longer chapter for you lovely guys!
The grey mist that was all around them began to swirl and move; forming solid forms. Natasha and Clint scrambled back to their feet as the six of them found themselves in a small, dark cave. Battered and rusting equipment littered the floor and a shoddy looking table under a dimly flickering lamp
"Oh no. Oh no no no" Tony muttered
"What is it?"
"Where are we?"
"My nightmare" Tony muttered, as someone started yelling through the large metal door
"They want you to build a missile?" Natasha translated and Tony nodded
There was gunfire and they all ducked; but not before Clint took a gunshot wound to the shoulder. Natasha tried to apply pressure to his would as it gushed with blood, but Steve pulled her back down as another round of shots rained around them.
The gunmen suddenly disappeared as the ground began to tremble; dust fell from the ceiling as the earthquake grew in strength
Bruce watched Tony closely, knowing his friend suffered from nightmares, but not realising they were so real. Tony was beginning to panic slightly; living his nightmare was very different when he couldn't wake up.
The cave began to shrink; walls closing in and roof coming rapidly closer as Tony's panic level grew
"Wake up, wake up, wake up" he muttered to himself, closing his eyes tightly
"Tony, Tony!" Steve shouted, desperately trying to get his attention while also being forced to shift his position for lack of room
"Tony, calm down; deep breaths, you get out of this, remember? You beat it, you survive" Bruce told him firmly, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder
As Tony's breathing settled and he opened his eyes, the six of them were back in the middle of the grey mist; no cave or terrorists in sight and Clint's gunshot wound disappeared.
"Well, that was... different" Steve commented
XxX
Back at Shield medical bay they doctors and scientists were all milling around various Avengers, confused as to what was happening. Doctor Hart had been stood by Tony when he'd began hyperventilating, he became tachycardic and his blood pressure shot through the roof, it had subsided after a minute or so, before the team of doctors managed to do anything, but it left them concerned as to the unknown cause. At the same time Clint had flinched on his bed and blood gushed from his shoulder. Another team of medics rushed to his side and dressed the wound, but unlike Tony's symptoms Clint's didn't subside.
XxX
The team watched as, barely a minute after it had returned, the dark fog started to disappear; replaced by walls of mirrors. It didn't take long to figure out that they were in a funfair or circus of some kind, leaving everyone certain of whose nightmare they were in this time.
This time they weren't together, but scattered over various point in the maze of mirrors; it was dimly lit and incredibly creepy, but they could at least hear each other if they spoke loud enough
"So bird boy, how do we get out of this one?"
"I have't had this dream in years!" Clint muttered
The six of them strolled back and forth, but the maze seemed impossible, it was growing darker and they'd been there for what seemed like hours
There was suddenly a loud bang as one of the mirrors shattered, then another and another. They cracked and exploded randomly around the maze. Bruce ducked as the ceiling length mirror beside him cracked and showered him with glass, tearing his clothes and cutting his skin.
Soon most of the maze was destroyed and the Avengers were all covered in cuts from the shattered glass.
They were finally able to see the source of the destruction; an older man stood by the entrance of the maze, holding a bow and arrow. It was the man who'd taught Clint to shoot when he'd first joined the circus; he'd told him he had a natural gift and helped him refine his skill, but as Clint got older and better; so good he replaced his mentor in the show, he got jealous, he threatened him; and although he never acted on it, it scared Clint, and he'd often dreamed of the time his mentor would finally snap.
"Clint down!" Natasha shouted, running to throw her partner down as his old mentor raised his bow and took aim at the bewildered Clint. Natasha's body slammed into his as they both went down, the arrow catching Natasha and grazing her cheek as she went
Thor punched the guy, who flew through three mirrors before passing out unconscious as the fog returned.
XxX
Fury was pushing Hart's team to fix this, before something terrible happened; which with the Avengers, was bound to happen sooner or later. Clearly whatever was happening to them while they were asleep was affecting them in reality; Natasha now needed stitches on her face and several others were covered in cuts and grazes, Clint was receiving a blood transfusion as the doctors failed to get his bleeding under control and the team looking after them were carefully watching out for whatever was thrown at them next.
XxX
They were left in the fog slightly longer this time, mostly sat in silence as they reeled from seeing two of the teams nightmares
Natasha and Clint gripped hands; she knew his nightmares, as he knew hers. And if they were all going to relive the dreams that plagued their nights, who knew what'd be thrown at them next.
XxX
The floor began to morph into sand, as far as they could see there was nothing else. That was until the earth began to shake and figures emerged from the ground. The figures were long since dead; skeletal and zombie-like, hundreds of them; all surrounding the six Avengers and closing in fast.
"I apologise friends, my mind had brought us to the wastelands"
"What're the wastelands?" Steve asked, ducking under the arm of one of the figures as it reached out to grab him
Thor punched a few of the zombies back, ripping the arm off one who had grabbed Bruce before answering; "A land of the undead; a place for tortured souls"
"When did you come here?" Clint asked, wishing he had his bow and arrow as he kicked and punched
"I never have, my father told me stories when I was a child. This is what I imagined it to be"
They were surrounded, outnumbered and weaponless. One of the zombies snapped Bruce's arm back while one got a lucky kick to Natasha's stomach; the two of them crumpled to ground as it shook and more zombies appeared
"Thor, how do you kill them?" Natasha managed to ask, her cracked ribs protesting as she struggled back to her feet
"I need Mjolnir"
"You don't have it! How else?" Clint shouted
"We need to get out of here, how do we get out of here?" Tony asked, thinking back to his own nightmare
"Thor, stop fighting"
"But-"
"No, just stop. Close your eyes calm your breathing. Ignore all this, pretend you're not here!"
Thor did as he was told, it was difficult not to intervene when he heard his friends fighting, but the sounds subsided and once again they were back in a sea of grey.
"Three down?" Tony commented, as Natasha, Bruce and Steve looked uneasily at one another.