A/N
Who makes an appearance: Strange / Peter / Tony / Pepper / Christine / Claire / (Ned?) / Surprise #1
Stephen, still on his knees, tried to re-orient himself. For a few long moments, his mind was focussed on Christine. Her voice. That dreaded, fearful tone. Something… something had happened to her, right behind his back, while he had... while he… He couldn't… while he wanted to lash out in anger, pity himself and simply disappear all at the same time, his slow, drugged mind finally succeeded in flipping the picture around. Christine hadn't screamed because something was happening to her. Christine had screamed because something was going to happen to him.
While the realization dawned on him, that he was in imminent danger, his hazy mind registered the sound of heavy footsteps approaching. They were fast. Running, weren't they? While he could taste fear at the back of his throat and tried to focus his thoughts enough to create a barrier, he heard how something lighter landed right in front of him. Light steps, nearly impossible to hear. A whooshing sound when something heavy moved through the air and then a grunt. A grunt in an effort to something.
"Hey, doc." Peter. Peter was right in front of him, then? His voice sounded strained. Then something growled at them. The sound alone made his heart stop for a second. A growl. That… He heard how, whatever Peter had caught, got moved forcefully, air whooshing as the object moved again. This time, he got his thoughts together and created a shield right in front of where he guessed the boy.
Peter felt how whatever he had caught was ripped from his fingers. Bracing himself to be hit by it with full force, he felt his thrumming heart. His muscles tensed, trying to ease the force of the hit he was going to take. But the impact never came. He heard the weapon their enemy was carrying crash against something, only inches away from his face.
"There is a golden shield right in front of you." His AI informed him.
A glowing… the doc.
"Can you expand the shield?" he asked worried, guessing that their enemy would simply take a step back, walk around the shield and corner them. Without sight, they were in a peculiar situation. At least, he guessed that the doc couldn't see, just like him. He heard how the doc moved, together with those heavy footsteps moving away from them. Frowning, he realized that the sorcerer had been on the ground. Or kneeling or something. Focussing again on the sound of whatever was attacking them, he waited, still tense. Ready for anything.
"The shield expanded." Karen told him, not even a second later he heard how that weapon crashed into the shield again. And again and again and again. He heard the steady breath of the man, who stood beside him by now.
The sole center of Stephen's existence was the shield, he tried to maintain. Huge barriers were flimsy at best, needing so much willpower to be kept stable over a long period, but he understood the need to keep their enemy in front of them. He couldn't see. Peter couldn't most likely either. If whatever it was, that was hammering away at his shield, got behind them while their vision was still gone, they were as good as dead. Something screamed at them in anger, the hits, which rained down on his magical shield, never stopped for a second. Narrowing his eyes, he tried to reinforce the spot, which was hit repeatedly. His hazy mind didn't realize, how the edges of the barrier flickered and turned to golden dust, raining down to the ground before disappearing.
A few moments went by when the hits suddenly stopped. They heard heavy footsteps walking to the right. Then to the left. To the right again. All the while, something scraped at the shield.
Suddenly, the scraping stopped, was exchanged by one massive hit, which broke straight through the golden runes of light. Stephen heard, how his shield broke, was splintered with force. While he heard the swoosh of the weapon moving again, he recreated the broken part of the barrier, this time catching the hit again. He felt, how he started to tremble, how…
While Peter heard, how their enemy started to move along the shield, his vision returned slowly. First it was only contrast. Light and dark and shadows in between. The scraping on the shield nearly drove him mad. Their enemy was teasing them. Mocking them. I'll get through, don't you worry. Blinking, he thought about asking Karen to call Mister Stark, but he guessed disrupting the concentration of a blind wizard, who was currently maintaining a barrier with effort, wasn't that wise. The moment, he heard the weapon being moved, the contrast blurred with color. An eternal second later, he felt how his heart skipped multiple beats, his mouth opened slightly, his breath halted. He felt, how goosebumps ran along his skin, an unspeakable fear… That wasn't possible. It just wasn't possible. His terrified mind repeated the thought for a few times, trying to make him belief in it.
Meanwhile, a sweet voice in the back of his head asked, how impossible exactly it was. Just as impossible as he being in his own past? Impossible like that? Because based on that, it was very, very plausible.
While his head fought a battle of possible impossibilities, Peter Parker watched in horror, how Cull Obsidian smashed his way through the golden barrier. A child of Thanos. The hammer guy. Slowly, in pure horror, he turned his head. Looking around if he could see the other guy. Ebony Maw. Who had disposed of the doc that easily. All he could see where two of the former group of adults. The blond-haired woman he had seen around a week ago. The girlfriend of the doc, wasn't she? Another woman beside her. Ned on the other side of the street, where he had left him.
"Go!" He yelled at all of them in an annoyed tone. What did they think? Oh, cool, an alien. Let's watch?
"Doc?" looking back at an alien, which shouldn't be here, he continued to talk "It's… It's the guy with the hammer."
The guy with the hammer? The… Stephen frowned while trying to not lose his concentration. Yet, of course, his hazy mind jumped at the topic like a starving man would jump at food. How could the…
And with his thoughts slipping away, the barrier did so too. The entire thing turned to golden dust in an instant.
Staring at the dissolving shield in horror, Peter took a step forward, placing himself in front of the doc. He could survive a hit with that hammer. He wasn't that sure if the sorcerer would be able to do that too. He watched tense, how the hammer guy launched himself forward, ready to attack.
Succeeding in getting his scattered thoughts together once more, he created a shield right in front of them, feeling how the alien impacted with it within seconds. How could…
"Peter? Can you give me, like, 20 seconds?" he couldn't fight like this. Not with the very certain possibility of his thoughts slipping away at any second. To be able to fight he had to concentrate.
Peter watched baffled, how Cull Obsidian wanted to jump at them and crashed into golden runes midway. The alien growled at them in what had to be an annoyed tone and took a few steps back. The doc's voice ripped him out of his astonishment. Twenty seconds? For what?
Tony Stark blinked annoyed. Why was his vision not returning? He felt Pepper's hand cupping his face. As far as he could tell, she stood in front of him, the movie still playing in the background. He let his Iron-Man glove retreat into the wristband and placed his hand on Pepper's.
"What was that light?" he asked aloud, even though he knew somehow, that she hadn't seen it. He had felt his old, not yet happened, injuries. It had to be the same light, which had brought all of them here. Then again, nothing had happened, nothing had changed, hence…
"Sir?" Friday interrupted his train of thoughts. "I know you didn't want to be interrupted, but I have located an alien."
That much to nothing had happened. He felt how Pepper tensed. Pulling her closer, he placed his hands on either side of her head (to be able to know where exactly her head was) and pressed his lips against hers in a gentle kiss.
"Don't worry." He whispered against her lips. Don't worry. Who was he kidding? There was a fucking alien which shouldn't be here!
"Friday? Get my suit up and ready." He ordered his AI, letting his hands slip from Pepper's face and walked past her. Not like he usually walked. Slower and more careful. He was blind, after all.
Watching how Tony moved, Pepper frowned. He walked that caref… "Tony? Are you blind?" the way he had kissed her too…
"Temporary, I guess." He stated, trying to get onto the terrace of the tower, where his suit would be waiting for him.
Pepper stared at him for a long second. Partly, she knew it was just who he was. Whatever had happened, it had shaken him. Now that alien… He just wanted to help. He…
"You will not leave this place without eye sight." She stated firmly, hurrying past him and blocking his way. She would not allow him to go. Fighting without vision was as good as suicide. She couldn't take it to be responsible for his death.
"Pepper, I…" he hesitated, stopping when he realized she was blocking his way. "I guess it's only for a short time. Don't worry, I will soon be able to see again. I have to -"
"Wait until then." She cut into his words, only realizing now that her voice was on the verge of panic. She couldn't let him walk out of this building without sight. She couldn't allow him to fight without sight. She couldn't…
Tony had wanted to scold her for interrupting him if she didn't know what was at stake after all a fucking alien which shouldn't be here was here, but the tone of her voice… she was close to freaking out, wasn't she? He… Raising his hand, he moved it slowly, until he felt his fingertips hit her skin.
"Okay." He stated slowly. He couldn't leave her here, completely freaking out. Feeling, how she pulled him into an embrace, he sighed softly, hugging her back. For a moment, he tried to relax, placing his lips on her throat. Getting aware of her accelerated pulse, of her thrumming heart. She… she really was afraid because of him. And in an instant, he felt guilty. He had only thought of him and what he had to do, not considering how she felt.
"Can we at least go outside, for me to be able to jump into the suit as soon as I can see again?"
He felt, how she nodded, and carefully guided him towards the door to the terrace. He had to admit, that getting out was easier that way.
"Sir? I have Karen calling."
Tony, having reached the door, stopped instantly. Karen. Peter.
"Put her through."
"Mister Stark?" Peter's voice filled the room. He sounded a bit… stressed. That was it.
"We have a – fuck!" he grunted the last word. Was he fighting? "I'm trying to make a call here, man." Peter stated, in the way he always babbled about everything.
"Karen. Taser net." For one second there was silence. Then grunts and heavy breathing followed. He was definitely…
"That ain't working." Karen commented.
"No, really? I see tha-" the rest of the sentence was swallowed by what sounded like a surprised scream.
Returning to his senses, Stephen Strange blinked. He had used a spell to clear his mind, collapsing in the process, like he had expected. The first image, that he saw (while meanwhile registering, that he could see again), was Christine's face taking up a huge part of his vision. She looked terrified. In the same moment, he heard a surprised scream, Peter flying past them overhead. And additionally, he heard heavy footsteps approaching rapidly. Flicking his wrist, he created a piece of barrier somewhere close to where Peter had to fly past any second now, grabbed Christine by her shoulders, spun them around in a way that she was lying beneath him, he wouldn't ever be able to take it watching her getting hurt, and raised his hand, creating a barrier in the last possible second to catch the impact of the hammer before it crushed them.
Christine, having run to Stephen, when he fainted a few seconds ago, watched in horror, how that hammer thing was stopped inches away from Stephen's raised hand. Only that thin, golden shield between him and death. It had smashed its way through his barrier before… she… she couldn't watch him die right in front of her eyes! A strangled sob escaped her lips, making him, who had stared at the hammer for a few moments, turn his head. "Hey…" he started softly.
While Peter was flying away, he had caught a hard punch, he saw how something golden materialized itself above him. While he was losing altitude, he raised one arm, focusing enough to… hitting the shield-thing with one of his webs, he used the energy of the punch to swing back, hitting the alien, who was busy trying to get through the doc's shield, which in turn was the only thing between the hammer and imminent death, in the chest, throwing it off balance. Watching, how the alien was flinging away, he landed in front of the doc, scowling at their enemy.
"Hands off of my wizard, man!" he yelled at it.
"Be right back." He heard the doc's voice and heard something like a rustle. Seeing, how the alien had gripped the asphalt of the street to stop its recoil, he dared to throw a look over his shoulder. The doc wasn't right behind him anymore but instead stood close to the other woman, seemingly talking with his girl. Turning his head again, he raised his arms and aimed at the alien's face. Peter allowed himself a smile when he heard their enemy scream annoyed. He had hit its eyes, taking its vision for a time. Instantly, he took the initiative and webbed its hands to the concrete, buying them a few moments.
Christine blinked disoriented when the place and her orientation within it changed in a heartbeat. She had been sitting before, now she was standing. She had been on the street before, now she was on the sidewalk a few meters away.
"I appreciate you being worried about me, but right now keeping your distance is best." Stephen told her in a low and gentle voice. She realized a bit amazed, that the slur of his words was gone. Looking at him dumbfounded, she realized that the clouded expression in his eyes was gone, too. He wasn't drunk anymore. Her mind was too slow to process anything but the soft kiss, he pressed against her lips. "Get Claire and Peter's friend a bit away." He told her, before taking a step away and disappearing.
While the alien had succeeded in getting its webbed hands free, Stephen appeared on the other side of it, their enemy between him and Peter now.
"Come on, moron. You want me, don't you?" Stephen taunted the thing, waiting for it to rip the web from its eyes, turn its head and scream at him.
Peter watched, how Cull Obsidian took after the doc, who was teleporting a short distance away again. What was he… luring him away. They were standing in a street, after all. Houses towering on either side. But there was nothing close with fewer people. Only more crowded streets.
Watching, how the alien ran at him again, he took the hit of its hammer with his shield, suddenly very aware of how much he missed his sling ring. Dropping it in Antarctica would be so sweet. Dissolving the shield, he dodged the attack by side stepping, struggling to dodge the second swing, he lost balance and fell. Ripping his hands up, he caught the hammer with his shield again. Well. He missed his cloak even more. It would have pulled him out of reach of the hammer easily. Closing his eyes for a second, he concentrated, teleporting away again. He hated using that spell in battle. It was that hard to only move himself.
Finally arriving at the place, where Friday had located Peter's suit, Tony stopped in mid-air, staring at the battle scene below him. That was… that… the hammer guy… but… that shouldn't be… That light, a voice whispered in the back of his head. That light had to have something to… He watched, how the alien ensnared Peter with the head of his weird alien-tech hammer and tossed him away. There wasn't any other way to say it. Peter was simply tossed away as if he was nothing, still ensnared in the head of the hammer. The alien turned around, screaming at Strange, who seemingly tried to do something. Thin golden runes wrapped themselves around the alien, which only grunted, tensed his body and broke the runes after a few moments.
Watching, how Cull Obsidian launched himself at him yet again, Stephen conjured his shield, waiting for… at the last second, right before he would have hit the shield, the alien changed the grip of his hammer into a sword, simply crashing his weapon through his barrier. If it wasn't for his magic, which had moved him by some inches in the last second, Stephen knew he would be dead. He felt his trembling body, his thrumming heart. He stared at the blade in fear, only inches away from his face. That… that had… he saw, how the alien growled. Backing away, he dodged the moving sword, which ripped through his barrier as if it was nothing. Why hadn't he used the sword from… a cold knowledge caught him off guard. The alien had waited for them to be exhausted, knowing it would kill them anyway. Watching horrified, how the alien pressed itself against the shield, enlarging the broken edges where his sword had smashed through, he… he… Suddenly, it screamed in pain, swirling around while ripping through his barrier yet again.
Watching, how the alien swirled around, Tony braced himself. Getting its attention with a laser blast to its back had definitely worked. He was standing in the middle of the street, close to Peter. The alien grunted something and started to run towards him, sword raised. If that thing had smashed through Strange's barrier that easily, it would probably do the same with his suit. Not letting it get close seemed to be the best choice he had. Upping the energy level of the repulsors in his hands, he fired a massive energy blast at the approaching alien, sending it flying back along the street.
Tony swirled around, kneeling beside Peter and tried to get the snare off him. With a bit of effort, the snare moved enough for Peter to slip free. In the same second, Strange was standing beside them.
"How did you get rid of it in the first place?" the sorcerer asked.
"Wong sent it to the Arctic or something." Tony stated, frowning when he heard the sorcerer groan.
"He can't do portals." Peter explained the moment Tony wanted to ask what was wrong, standing between the adults by then.
Tony turned his head, lowering his mask. "What do you mean by he can't do portals?"
"Well, that…" Peter tried to start, but Strange snapped at him faster.
"What does the sentence 'I can't do portals' mean in your head?"
Meanwhile, they had to scatter, when the head of the hammer flew past them, back to its owner. The weapon setting itself back together. The alien, getting back on its feet, growled at them annoyed.
Tony scoffed at the growl, raising his hands again and firing a constant laser beam at the alien. It growled in pain, turning its hammer into a shield to reflect the beam. It hit a startled Peter, who yelped in surprise while flying backward. Tacking the moment of surprise as its advantage, Cull Obsidian ran towards them, swinging the hammer at Strange, who was forced to dodge away. With faster movements, than should be possible for its body size, it threw the hammer at Peter, ensnaring him again and ripping the weapon, including Peter in it, back towards it. In one swift motion, it threw the snare at Stark, formed the handle of the hammer back into a sword and stepped on Peter's chest.
Peter snapped for air when the alien stepped on his chest. He felt its weight bearing down on him. He couldn't breathe. Frantically, trying to get a grip on its foot, he tried to push it away, but it wouldn't move.
Stephen had gotten a bit of distance between himself and the alien, staring at the scene in front of his eyes. It would kill Peter. Simply smash his rip cage. Or stab him to death. He… he… he took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment. Focus. How did the rest of the Avengers kill it? He knew he had seen the other children of Thanos die during the battle of Wakanda in various visions. That… that… Succeeding in calming down, he was instantly ripped out of his thoughts.
"Give me the stone, human." The alien growled at him, increasing the weight which pressed on Peter by changing its stance. Something, like a terrified groan, escaped Peter's lips, making him press his lips together.
Feeling, how the pressure on his chest increased every second now, Peter tried once again to frantically push the alien off of him. He tried to kick at its other leg, web it and… but to no avail. It simply wouldn't move. He… He…
Still ensnared by the head of the hammer, Tony stared at the scene in front of him in sheer panic. Peter. He… he couldn't watch him die. Not right in front of him. He… he had to… Meanwhile, Friday was sweet as ever, calculating how much weight was left until the Spider-Man suit would simply give in. Watching how that number decreased every second, he…
Strange stared at Cull Obsidian calmly. Come on, head. How had it been killed? His eyes flickered to Peter, who was frantically trying to move the alien on his chest. And then stopped just that. Couldn't be much… The energy shield. Banner had fired him into Wakanda's energy shield. But they didn't have a strong enough energy sou…
In utter panic, Tony had somehow gotten one of his hands free, aimed and shot a blast of energy at the alien's chest. When Peter had stopped moving, something within him snapped. He wouldn't have Peter die on his watch. He simply…
The alien, surprised by the attack, lost its balance and took its weight off Peter. It threw a short glance at the little spider and jolted itself forward, ramming its sword into the Iron-Man suit.
As soon as the alien was running towards him, Tony opened the back of the suit, ducked below the snare and let himself drop onto the street below. Rolling onto his side, he watched the sword crash through his armor and burry itself in the concrete. That thing was a hand away if at all.
"Hey, moron!" Strange's voice cut in. The alien stopped its movements, ripped the sword out of the street and took a solid stance, staring at the sorcerer. Crawling away from his suit, Tony got back to his feet, wanting to… but his thoughts scattered, when he saw Strange yet again offering the levitating green gem to one of their enemies. That insane idiot couldn't be serious.
The alien eyed the sorcerer suspiciously, but walked toward the stone, grabbing it.
At the moment the alien grabbed the stone, Stephen summoned his energy rope, letting it coil around Cull Obsidian's fist and keeping it closed. A second later, the alien started to scream in agony.
"Get away!" he yelled at Stark, who still stared at him perplexed. What did he think? Had he forgotten how to move? Being screamed at, got him out of his stupor and he swirled around, running towards Peter.
Keeping the rope stable despite the ever-growing pain in his hand, Stephen watched both, calmly and in sheer horror, how the alien started to glow green from within. A darker green rippled along its skin like tendrils. Dissolving the rope, he punched the air in front of him, watching reality splinter away. Moving the opening into the mirror dimension by will, he caught the alien within, watching how the darker green tendrils gave way to searing bright green light, which ripped him open from the inside. A heartbeat later, the alien disintegrated in a flash of green, only a few flakes of dust remaining. Watching, how the opening to the mirror dimension closed itself, the green gem starting to fall down, Stephen closed his eyes and sighed. Exactly that was what he expected to happen when he touched the stone. Get killed by it.
Slowly walking towards the others, Stephen realized how badly his hand hurt. It had gone from a pain at the back of his head, thanks to his adrenaline levels, to a throbbing, painful thought consuming monster. There wasn't much space left in his head except for pain.
"Are you okay?" Tony asked slowly, watching relieved how Peter opened his eyes and looked around bewildered. Peter's gaze focused on him for a moment, then he nodded slowly. "Will work out." He stated before trying to get up. Tony grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet, supporting him for a few moments until he seemed to be able to stand alone.
Meanwhile, Stephen had reached the two, watching Peter with a calm gaze. He had to have fainted due to a lack of oxygen. Beside that… he was probably trying to act as if it hadn't been that bad.
"What's wrong with you? Can you stop handing Infinity Stones to our enemies?" Tony snapped at him instantly, watching him with a cold gaze. Stephen only sighed. "I will not discuss this on a street." Turning around, he looked at the houses. Some windows were illuminated, people staring down at them.
"I will turn time back for them. We can't have anyone know of this. Else it could reach the ears of the wrong person." Whoever was watching them for Thanos would surely recognize a child of Thanos in a Twitter message. And then… well… he didn't know what then. He was afraid of what then. "Get away, together with the others. I'll join you soon. Can't be seen using the Time Stone." He stated, turning around and eying the windows. Stark seemed to want to say something for a moment before he nodded.
Tony looked at Peter for a moment, before he let go of him, walking towards his suit and eyeing the damage. That damn alien had rammed its sword right through the arc reactor, rendering it useless. Awesome. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he activated his ear-piece, connecting with Friday again.
"Friday? Get my suit away asap. And send me a new one later." He wasn't sure how Strange wanted to reverse time, but it had sounded as if he would only target the people in the houses, however that worked. His suit laying around would be considered odd, then.
Turning around, he joined the others, the two women he didn't know, and Ned, who supported Peter. Strange had kept his distance, obviously not wanting to join the others yet. "Let's go. He'll find us." He wasn't sure about that. He would, in fact, be happy, if he didn't find them. That maniac had just offered up the stone. Again.
Christine nodded, throwing a gaze at Stephen. Originally, she had wanted to run to him the moment he had talked with Stark and Spider-Man. She had been terrified of losing him. Watching him fight and dodge that alien… its sword crashing through his barrier... She… she had to… But he had turned away after he had talked with the others, kept his distance. Obviously, he didn't want to join them just then.
Claire had staid silent for the entire… well… whatever. When the alien first appeared, Hellen had freaked out completely and ran away. She, being the always responsible one, had sent John after her to make sure she was okay. She had wanted to drag Christine and Stephen away and join the others as soon as possible, but… well… she had watched astonished, how Spider-Man swung right in front of that monster and had blocked its attack. That little spider was a real lifesaver. And from there, things had just gotten odder and odder. She had wondered, who had created that glowing shield until she had realized that it had to be Stephen. How… When… How… the rest of the fight was even odder if that was possible at all. She had watched Stephen teleport, for god's sake. And then Iron-Man. And then an exploding alien. Yet, there had not been a piece of evidence that it had exploded. No wave of energy pushing them away, no destruction of the street or houses nearby. It had been as if nothing had happened! Following Tony Stark, she finally raised her voice to a whisper, looking at her friend.
"Have you forgotten to tell me something, Christine?"
She seemed to be beside her and terrified for her boyfriend. But she had the feeling, that it didn't surprise her as much as it had surprised herself, that her lover threw glowing shields around as if it was nothing.
Christine needed a moment before she said anything. "It's ah… complicated?" she offered weakly. Complicated? She didn't say! Claire frowned hearing that word, but couldn't finish her thought, when she heard a rustling sound. Christine nearly jumped at it. A moment later, Claire realized, that Stephen was with them now. How the hell?!
"Did it work?" Tony said lowly to Stephen, who was walking beside him suddenly.
"Yeah." The sorcerer stated softly, throwing a gaze over his shoulder. Christine and Claire, Ned and Peter, who was walking beside his friend, still wearing his mask.
The moment, Peter saw the sorcerer suddenly being in front of them, he hurried up and joined the two men. "What happened?" he asked, not specifying anything because he guessed the two would know what he meant. That light. A child of Thanos. How was any of that possible?
"I don't know." The doc answered softly, making Mister Stark snap at him instantly.
"What do you mean, you don't know?" Tony asked him coldly. What was a future-seeing wizard worth, if he didn't know what was happening?
"Why didn't you warn us, that that would happen anyway?" he added immediately.
"I didn't know… well, I knew about the light, but not about the alien." Tony frowned. He didn't know and then again did know? That was a bullshit excuse.
"Why didn't you tell us?" snapping at him again, he slowed his walking, focussing more on watching Strange.
"I didn't think it was important." Strange pointed out in an annoyed tone, once again sounding as if he was talking with a dumb child. God, that tone. He wanted to hit that guy. Badly.
"Then, check the future if there are more flashes of light with the possibility to kill us all." He pressed through gritted teeth, trying to control his anger.
"I won't use the stone at any of our places." Strange answered coldly, eyeing him. They had come to a stop by then, only staring at each other darkly.
"Where then?" Tony asked, trying… trying so desperately to not scream at that guy.
He watched, how Strange shrugged, raised his left hand, and pointed towards a bar which was still illuminated. "How about in there?" Two sets of heads moved, eyeing the place across the street.
Allen Pangborn was busy watching his last customer. He had wanted to throw him out five minutes ago, but he seemed to be done with his beer any minute, so why not wait and have a happier customer, who would return. Hopefully. Hearing, how the door opened, he turned his head, already wanting to start his usual words at this time of the day.
Sorry, we are closing. I have to ask you to leave.
Yet, the words never came out. They stuck in his throat when he saw who had entered. Iron-Man himself, Tony Stark by name, Spider-Man, a man he didn't know, two women and a teenager. What the fucking hell? Stark approached his counter, leaning against the wood leisurely.
"How much money do you make a week?" the billionaire asked in a casual tone.
Allen blinked. 2000, if he was lucky. Currently, more like 1000. He could barely pay for anything. He had already thought about moving out of his flat and sleeping in the storeroom to save money. Desperate times… his friends all told him, to finally let his stupid idea with the bar be over and done. Find a good job. Where he earned some money. Yet, he really loved what he did…
"3k." he answered without hesitation, watching his greatest hero up close. He saw how Stark frowned but didn't say a word for a moment. Then his gaze went to the last customer in the room. "Throw him out, lock down the place, leave the keys for me, forget that you've seen us and I'll give you 30 for the night."
Allen tried to look casual, but he guessed he failed miserably. 30k? For him keeping silent? His eyes switched to the other people of this weird group. What was going on? Eyeing the other man, he thought he looked close to fainting on closer inspection. Had something happened? But no, he would know if something had happened. One of his friends was working for CNN and always pushed the latest news to him if it was close by. A sign of gratitude, after saving his wife during that fateful day in 2012. One of the reasons, why he couldn't take a cooperate job anymore. He nearly died working that day.
"Could you come back another day and I can take a selfie with you?" he asked, fearing he overstretched his chance. Stark would surely walk out and find himself another place. He felt how the billionaire scanned his face for a very long moment.
"Sure." He stated. "Friday? You heard me?" Stark added, seemingly talking with his ear-piece.
Allen went to work within the same second, asking his last customer if he wanted to leave. He even helped the drunkard out the door, locking it afterward. Hurrying through his little bar, he finished everything that needed to be done, finally standing before Stark and handing him the keys.
"You can leave through the back door, just, lock it, please. I have some spare keys. Just hand the others back to me when you come by during the next days, okay?"
He just wanted to leave, when the poor guy who looked close to fainting, asked if he could get some ice. Eyeing the man, he nodded, disappearing behind the counter for a moment and produced a bucket of ice cubes after some rummaging. The guy looked as if he could need them. Placing the bucket on the counter, he left, having just experienced the weirdest day of his life. Well. Except for maybe that day in 2012. But that had just been horrifying. Tonight had been weird.
Sitting down at one of the chairs at the counter, Stephen buried his right hand in the ice-filled bucket. A moan escaped from his lips, his eyes fluttering shut. He whispered something like "Ohmygodyes." while his head zoned out. Leaving only his throbbing hand and the soothing coldness. The pain went down from Insanity to… to… who was he kidding, it was still unbearable. Feeling how Christine cupped his face pulled him back from nowhere to reality. Seeing her, after having opened his eyes again, made him smile involuntarily.
"How are you?" she asked in a gentle voice, looking at him concerned.
Stephen looked at her for a long moment, not sure how to describe his current state. Besides the hand, everything was okay. Better than some other days. Smirking, he answered "Alive."
He saw how she rolled her eyes but started to smile. God. Her smile. It was enough… wait, was he on drugs? His head felt like that. Probably only his body trying to dim the pain. He could see, how Christine's eyes went towards his hand. Knowing, what she would want to ask, he stated: "Eleven."
The frown on her face was obvious. He knew she knew, that 11 as an answer to 'how bad is the pain on a scale from 1 to 10' was absolutely awesome.
Christine watched Stephen for a long moment. He had tried to be funny, even though he looked close to fainting. He hadn't looked that bad after the fight. Most likely adrenaline levels falling and the body getting aware of the pain. Seemingly, only his hand was his problem, though. His hand. His carefully reconstructed hand. She went closer, only planning on pecking his lips, after all she was aware of the others in the small bar. When her lips met his though, she felt all those emotions rush through her. The utter fear of losing him. That alien… it could have killed him so many times. It could have killed all of them so many times. The… the day… all she wanted… deepening the kiss, she lost herself in it, ignoring her crazy worries for a moment.
Tony paced through the room as soon as the owner left. Had he literally just paid 30k for… for what exactly? Well, it wasn't as if he did not tend to throw money out of the window, but… watching, how the blonde-haired woman approached Strange, who had buried his hand in the ice-bucket, he watched startled, how those two seemed to enter a private conversation. However private could be in front of them. Even more startled, he watched, how Strange's expression softened while he talked with her. As if he was a completely different man. Not that shitty ass he had to fight with. Finally, being grossed out, when those two started to kiss sloppily, with what seemed to be incredible much tongue, he raised his voice.
"Get a room, you two."
He watched with a piece of glee, how the woman broke away instantly, blushing softly. Strange seemed to need a bit longer to return to the land of the wake. When his eyes finally focussed on him, Tony stared at him calmly.
"Why do you throw Infinity Stones at our enemies?" he forced himself to use a calm voice, picking up the dropped topic again. It made him that angry! This stupid insolent maniac handing away one of the only things standing between life and death. Twice.
He could see Strange sigh. "There was no other way." He stated.
There was no other way. There was no…
Hearing that sentence again, yes, again, in connection with that stupid green stone, made him flip.
"There was no other way?! That seems to be the only answer you are capable of!" he yelled at him, angrier than ever.
"I don't know what's wrong with you, but you seem to have an incredible big interest in getting us all killed! And forgetting to mention this light to us. Oh, yeah, of course. Wanted the alien to dispose of us along the way, didn't you?"
Christine had gracefully disappeared from Stephen's side. She couldn't handle being screamed at right now. Besides, she felt as if she didn't know a lot. Ending beside Spider-Man, she watched how her boyfriend and Tony Stark seemed to enter a yelling contest.
Spider-Man just groaned, lowering his head along the way. The two men had started to yell something about Wakanda in the meantime.
"You are right." Stated the only teenager in the group, making Christine look at him slowly. She hadn't heard him talk before. "They really act like a married couple." Spider-Man barked into laughter at his words.
"Yes, damn it, aren't they?" pulling his mask from his face, Christine had to blink a few times. Peter Parker? That made two teenagers. "They start screaming about everything, not willing to even listen to one another."
Christine blinked. Married couple? "Are they always like that?" she asked Peter, who turned his head, looking at her. "Yeah." He stated as an answer. "Whenever they are not fighting together, they hack at each other." He added slowly, letting his head drop for a moment. He should really send them to counseling.
Christine stared at the two for a very long moment. Those two screaming at another irritated her. It just felt… There was something… them acting like a married couple, how Peter had stated… blinking, she slipped out of her lovely-dovely phase for a moment and saw them for who they were. Two grown-up men, close to one another in height, appearance and obviously ego too, screaming at each other. Like a married couple… the line ghosted through her head like a broken record. If only one of them was narcissistic, she could imagine them making out instead of screaming. Her alcohol-induced brain jumped at the thought and served an image of her boyfriend and Tony Stark. Pressed against a wall. Kissing heavily. And… other things… she blinked the thought away, realizing how she got jealous. Like, really jealous. Stephen was her's. Stupid alcohol. Stupid imagination.
"Guys!" Peter barked in, making both of them stop, turn their head and ask "What?!" at the same time.
Christine blinked. What the hell had that been?
Even Peter seemed a bit startled but caught himself after a moment. "Could we just do, what we came in here for? Check the timelines?" he suggested gently, hoping that they wouldn't start to scream at one another again. He knew that they could work together. If they wanted to.
The doc sighed softly. "I'll need a bit of preparation." He stated.
Mister Stark shrugged. "Go on. Take your time." His voice was still tense. Ready to freak out at any second. Having a watchful eye on them, Peter approached, staying close. Mister Stark was back to pacing through the room, while the doc had closed his eyes, whispering words in a language he didn't understand. After they kept silent for a few more minutes, he finally turned around, starting to pick ice cubes from the bucket, making sure he didn't touch the doc's hand in the process. He had heard the conversation between him and his girl, after all. After he had a bunch together, he sat down, gently tapping on the spider on his chest. His suit loosened itself instantly, slipping down to his waist. Revealing a gruesome, black-purple bruise, which covered his entire chest. The area where the alien had stepped on him. He knew how close he had been to dying. Only a few seconds more, and his rib cage would have given in. Awkwardly pressing the cubes against his chest, he webbed them in place. Sighing in relief after he had cool ice pressing against his skin, he leaned his head against the wood of the counter. That was better.
Tony, having seen Peter's chest, stopped with his pacing and stared at the boy. That… that bruise… joining him, he sat beside him casually, trying to hide his worry.
"Why didn't you say something earlier?" he asked gently. That bruise had to be terribly painful. He saw how a weak smile flashed over the boy's face.
"There were more important things." He stated softly, barely audible.
Tony felt, how he got angry again. There was barely anything more important than Peter's life. Pepper's for sure, but she hadn't been here. And he wouldn't ever allow her to clash with an alien. Not even while wearing one of his suits. He guessed he would die a worrisome death otherwise.
"You heal faster, don't you?" he asked, trying to ease his worries. Peter was in this mess because of him. Because he hadn't gotten him off that stupid spaceship.
"Yeah." Peter ghosted. He was slipping away gradually, just as Strange had. For the tiniest of a second, he felt guilty for how he had acted towards Strange. That guy had probably grilled his hand by using that rope and he snapped at him. A second later his guilt dissolved, when he remembered how he had reacted. There was no other way. As if. He frowned softly, trying to remember anything from their screaming contest besides being angry. Strange had said something about Wakanda and Banner, but what…? Trying to remember, he got the feeling that the sorcerer knew a lot more, then he had told them. They would have to sort that out. Right after checking the timelines.
"Okay." Strange's voice got him out of his thoughts, looking at the man. He saw, how the sorcerer let the green gem appear in front of him again. Floating motionless like always. As if it was just a simple, green stone. Yet, the reaction of one of the women wasn't lost on him. The blonde one hurried to them, trying to grab Strange. He got up, catching her gently before she could reach the damn wizard.
"Calm down." He said softly.
The woman looked at him venomously. "He said that thing… that's how you made that alien explode, didn't you?" Tony hadn't been sure if any of their viewers had seen what exactly had killed the alien, but obviously, at least she was able to piece the story together.
"Calm down." He repeated again. "He knows what he is doing." he thought that at least.
Stephen's eyes flickered to Christine when he made the stone appear. Of course, she would be worried. He had told her, that that thing would kill her, after all. Letting his gaze slip back to the room, he watched the spells he had placed on it. He hoped, that they would delay the localization of time magic for long enough, to keep the other sorcerers off his trail. He really didn't want a bunch of them bursting in and attacking them. Wouldn't be… closing his eyes again, he gripped the Time Stone, feeling how its vast energy rushed into him. Feeling, how it allowed him to control time. This was one Sorcerer Supreme against the other, wasn't it? Seeing, whose spells failed first. His would, he guessed. He couldn't hide time magic, after all. He could only delay it being found.
A moment later, he forwarded time, glimpsing into the future.
Christine watched in horror, how the love of her life started to glow green, just like that alien had. He would be turned to nothing right in front of her eyes, wouldn't he?! Why… why…?! Closing her eyes, she waited for the inevitable, feeling how tears started to run down her face. She… losing him that fast again. It just… she blinked when Stark finally let go of her. Opening her eyes again, she looked at Stephen. All he did was glow green. Around the wrist, which held the bright, glowing gem, was a band of runes. Moving on themselves slowly. He… wouldn't explode? She felt how relief flooded her being. Together with a myriad of questions. This man had a lot of explaining to do. Her eyes flickered to his hand, still in the ice-bucket. Not today though, she guessed. Today… whenever they were at home, she wanted to hold him close, be certain he was really still alive.
Slowly walking towards Claire, she joined her best friend, whose eyes were transfixed on her boyfriend. Leaning against the wall beside her, she looked at the room. Peter leaning against the counter, most likely sleeping. His friend sitting beside him by now. Stark standing around, not sure what he could do. Just then, she really realized how close they had slipped away from death. All of them.
Finally facing Claire, she raised her voice. "Could you not tell anyone anything about this?" her voice was soft but weak.
Claire laughed softly in response. "Who would believe me? That's insane." She stated, bursting into laughter a moment later again. Christine joined in. Yeah. Laughing at this insanity was the only thing anyone could do.
Some fifteen minutes later, Stephen opened his eyes again, refocussing his gaze on this current time. Letting the stone disappear again, he flicked his wrist, dissolving his spells.
"3 to 26 flashes of light, depending on the timeline." He finally stated, making Stark turn around and stare at him.
"Did you… see anything about what comes after that light?" Stark asked slowly, for a change of tone completely calm.
Stephen only shook his head. No. The stone had only shown him that it would happen not what would come afterward.
Mordo stopped by the Ancient One's room, originally wanting to talk with her. Knocking at the door towards her chamber, he entered. Realizing too late, that she wasn't here. She was watching over their apprentices again, wasn't she? Shaking his head, he wanted to close the door again, when his gaze… The surveillance rune was glowing again. He knew, that she had checked it only a little time ago, finding nothing but traces of magic at the place the rune had found. Whoever had used the Eye was already gone. Seeing the rune glow again…
Sighing in the safety of his head, Mordo entered the room, touching the rune. Its magic jumped onto him instantly. With a softly glowing hand, he picked up his sling ring, opening a portal to wherever the rune wanted him to go and jumped right through. He was standing outside of a closed bar, the cold night surrounding him. Where the hell was he?
Entering the mirror dimension to be invisible to others, he looked around for a bit. After a little, he entered the closed bar, finding an odd collection of people inside. The only one he knew was Iron-Man. Watching the group, he realized, that they were leaving. His eyes flickered from one pair of people to the next. Two teenagers. A couple. Iron-Man and a lone woman. Who could have… praying to all gods that he was right, he chose the couple, following them without being seen.
A/N
Thank you all for reading! And thank you for your support, I really appreciate it!
And yes, I know that Ned hasn't done much this chapter. He'll be all talkative in the next one. This incident was just too much for the poor guy.