Chapter 37 Avengers Endgame
Pepper's point of view
"OK folks, this is it, this is the film we wanted to get to. Avengers Endgame, quickly get a drink and a snack and use the restroom. We will start the film as soon as everyone is situated." said Rufus.
Tony sat down and pulled me onto his lap. Around the room, other couples were doing the same.
In 2018, Clint Barton, who is under house arrest following his actions during the Avengers Civil War, guides his daughter Lila in archery at his homestead while his wife Laura and his two sons prepare a picnic. Suddenly, everyone, except Clint, vanishes into dust.
"WHAT?" Clint yells "I know we aren't married but… this version of me is married to her, and she gave Nat and I the gift of 3 beautiful children. This is not OK."
"We will fix this"
Twenty-three days later, Tony Stark and Nebula are adrift in space on the Benatar, their fuel and supplies dwindling. As Stark, still injured from his fight with Thanos and close to starving to death, records a message for his fiancée Pepper Potts in preparation for his demise, Carol Danvers locates the spaceship and brings them back to Earth.
"Thank you, Carol"
"My pleasure"
Stark reunites with Potts, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Bruce Banner and James Rhodes; Rocket joins Nebula as they mourn the fall of their fellow Guardians of the Galaxy.
"It doesn't matter if you are biologically related to your family or if they are your found family. Family is still family, and it still comes first either way." said Constance.
It has been three weeks since Thanos decimated half the universe's population with a snap of his fingers. Stark furiously confronts Rogers, accusing him of being the one who broke apart the Avengers and as a result, they were unable to stand united during their conflict with the Mad Titan. He questions why the Avengers only do their best after the worst has already come to pass before passing out due to exhaustion.
"Tony, stop being belligerent" I scolded, "The mission and your participation in it are not more important than your health"
With a tip from Nebula about her father's location, along with a Snap-like energy signature from two days prior, the team head into space for the Garden, intending to take the Infinity Stones back and reverse the destruction.
"Ugh, this guy again"
They discover Thanos, now horribly scarred, alone and undefended cooking a meal when they launch an ambush, quickly pinning him down and cutting off the arm wearing the Infinity Gauntlet only to find it emptied of its Stones. Thanos revealed that he had destroyed them using their own powers, which nearly killed him, as he considered his work done and wanted to remove the temptation of using them again.
"Yeah, that would have been the flaw in the plan… or at least one of them" said Harry.
Although suspected of lying by Rhodes, Nebula vouches for her father, as he is never a liar. Surprised with the affirmation, Thanos reconsiders his torturous treatment of his daughter, but he is then immediately beheaded by Thor. Although the Mad Titan is dead, they failed to accomplish their mission of resurrecting his victims and have no choice but to accept defeat.
"We really should have beaten him the first time round"
"We will get the son of a bitch the first time around this time, don't worry"
Five years later, the surviving population has yet to cope with their losses. Rogers now runs a support group for people to try to help them come to terms with what happened. Stark and Potts are now married and are living in a remote cabin with their daughter Morgan.
"We have a kid?"
"Yeah… you were already expecting her when Tony went into space. You found out that morning and put yourself on full bed rest. Her full name is Morgan Antonia Stark."
"That means I was right when we were jogging in the park and… oh dear…"
In San Francisco, Scott Lang escapes from the Quantum Realm when a rat activates controls left behind by the van Dyne family before they vanished. Lang wanders through the dishevelled city and realizes something terrible has happened.
"I had been in the Quantum Realm and was saved by that rat," said Scott.
"Rats are ironic, fickle evil little fuckers" Harry growled.
He approaches the Wall of the Vanished, a massive memorial containing the names of everyone in the city who was killed in the Snap. He frantically searches it, hoping to not find Cassie's name, only to find his own (as no-one remaining knew what happened to him). Scott rushes to Cassie's house and finds that she is now a teenager. Father and daughter tearfully reunite.
"Obviously, I am thoroughly flummoxed, and I need to find people who might be able to help me figure out what happened… Cassie and I went to Upstate New York, to the Avengers Compound."
At the Avengers Compound, Romanoff now commands the team as they perform various assignments. Rhodes informs her of a recent cartel massacre carried out by Barton, expressing his concern over how far their former comrade had fallen.
"Why, what did I do?"
"You will see, Clint, and I don't think you will be pleasantly surprised."
Lang arrives at the compound and reveals to Romanoff and Rogers that although five years had passed, he spent five hours in the realm. He proposes that they could find a way to exploit the realm's time-bending nature to travel into the past and retrieve the Stones from different times. But since the three have no knowledge of the handling with quantum physics, they seek out Stark.
"Future me has a wife and a daughter and a farm, with alpacas, two cats, goats, a rabbit, bats, chickens, ducks, and horses…"
"Tony"
"Yes dear?"
"Are you done being Iron Man in the future, do you think?"
"I would say so Pepsicle"
I can't help but giggle at Tony's newest nickname for me.
"What flavour Pepsicle am I?"
"Strawberry… obviously"
"Tony, I can't be… I am anaphylactically allergic to Strawberries"
He leans over and whispers something very saucy into my right ear. I blush violently and slap him on the arm
"Anthony Edward Stark! There are children present"
"Why do you think I whispered it to you, Virginia Anne Potts?"
"You are incorrigible and if you teach our kid swear words, you'll be sleeping on the couch for a month!"
"If you teach our children to tell you everything that I do while you are at the office, I will have Peter build a web hammock, and you can sleep on that!"
"And If you do that, I will conjure your least favourite critters and put them in your side of our bed!"
"And if you do that, I will fill your office with mice and hide Pinky and the brain in the Avengers compound!"
"If you do that, I will turn you into a mouse and chase you with the broom!"
"I think that's enough, don't you, Pep?"
"Yeah maybe."
Initially declining to help them, as he believes it would mean putting Morgan in danger of being erased from existence, Stark later decides to spring into action after coming across an old photo of him and Peter Parker. He successfully develops a Time-Space GPS based on an inverted Möbius strip. Stark consults with Potts on his new discovery, who encourages him to do what's right for everyone else.
"I am guessing Future You haven't told future me how dangerous messing with time travel is."
Meanwhile, the other Avengers recruit Banner, who merged his intellect with Hulk's physique, to run time travel tests on Lang using his van. The experiment does not turn out as expected, as Lang constantly shifts between different ages. Afterwards, Stark arrives at the facility with the GPS and returns Rogers' shield to him, signifying their reconciliation, but makes it clear he won't sacrifice his daughter to undo what Thanos did. Rogers agrees.
"She is four and a half years old. Pepper and I haven't been married long, let us enjoy our kid"
"Yeah OK Tony."
The remaining Avengers begin to regroup. As Nebula returns to New York, Banner and Rocket travel to New Asgard and recruit Thor, who has become an overweight drunkard traumatized with his perceived failure to stop Thanos. Romanoff goes to Tokyo and finds Barton, who massacred a group of Yakuza as part of his vengeful crusade against criminals who survived the Snap. Rocket and Stark build a time machine, while Barton volunteers to submit himself for a test run into the past. Grabbing a baseball mitt from his homestead, he successfully carries it back to the present as evidence that their plan works.
"Clint… why?"
"Future me seems to be tired of the bullshit"
"In case you are wondering why I am now an overweight drunken slob, I think it's because I can't live with my own guilt and failure." Thor snapped.
The Avengers plan out their Time Heist, using points from their past to pinpoint locations for the Infinity Stones: the Space, Mind, and Time Stones are found in 2012 New York, the Reality Stone in 2013 Asgard, and the Power and Soul Stones on Morag and Vormir respectively in 2014. They split into three teams and travel back in time to begin their missions, mindful that they only have a finite amount of Pym Particles since Hank Pym also perished in the Snap.
"Oops"
"Yeah, oops!"
Rogers, Stark, Banner, and Lang arrive in an alternate 2012 in the midst of the Battle of New York. Banner approaches the New York Sanctum and finds the Ancient One, who refuses to lend the Time Stone to him. However, she relents after learning that Doctor Strange had given it away to Thanos in the future, fearing that it was done for a reason. At Stark Tower, Lang, and Stark attempt to steal the Tesseract, but lose it to Loki, who uses it to teleport away.
"Yeah… we really should have secured 2012 me before we started the mission," Bruce grumbles sheepishly.
Rogers obtains the Sceptre from STRIKE possession by feigning HYDRA affiliation, but is forced to fight his 2012 self who confuses him for Loki. After defeating his past self, Rogers rendezvous with Stark and Lang.
"Would you have turned to the dark side?"
"Maybe"
With only enough Pym Particles for one more trip each, Stark and Rogers decide to go back further to Camp Lehigh to an alternate 1970, where they have another shot to grab the Tesseract and more Pym Particles. Lang is left with the Sceptre to return to the present day.
"But what if you get stuck in 1970?"
"We will be fine Pepper"
At the S.H.I.E.L.D. base, Rogers stealthily obtains the Particles from Hank Pym, but runs into Peggy Carter's office while evading security. He tearfully observes as she works in her office.
"You need to move on and let me go, Steve, I let you go and got on with my life."
Meanwhile, Stark encounters his father Howard after obtaining the Tesseract. With the latter's wife Maria expecting a baby, Tony (under the guise of "Howard Potts") offers parenting advice, saying that the good times he had with his father is what all that mattered. Before they part ways, Tony hugs his alternate father, having finally obtained his closure.
I give Tony one of my 'I am the CEO of this company and I will have your job before you can blink glares'
"Howard Potts eh?" Harry asks
"Vernon Dudley?" said Severus.
"How do you know about that?"
"I was there, under Dumbledore's spare invisibility cloak"
Arriving on Asgard in an alternate 2013, Thor experiences a panic attack after seeing his mother Frigga, recalling this is the day of her demise. Rocket attempts to encourage him to settle his grief and help him extract the Aether from Jane Foster's body, but Thor runs away, leaving the raccoon to do it himself. Thor unsuccessfully attempts to hide from Frigga and runs into her, who knows that her alternate son is from the future.
Sharing a talk, Frigga lectures her son on the importance of failure, advising him to follow his own path rather than try to live up to what he was supposed to be. Thor attempts to warn his mother about her impending death, but she silences him. As Rocket returns with the Aether in hand, Thor shares one last hug with Frigga before reaching out to retrieve Mjølnir, finding that he remains worthy of wielding the hammer.
"I think even though we grew up as brothers, you still feel like an only child"
In an alternate 2014, Barton and Romanoff board the Benatar for Vormir, while Nebula and Rhodes remain on Morag and wait for Peter Quill to arrive and lead them to the Orb's chamber.
"Jay, this isn't Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark!"
"That's the film that made me realize that hidden caves and secret rooms are very very VERY dangerous.
They knock Quill out and collect the Stone, but when the two attempt to travel back, Nebula is left behind when her memories are entangled with those of her past self. The Thanos of that time uses the link to see into the future, learning that the same humans who had foiled his 2012 invasion are returning to reverse his ultimate victory. Determined to know more, Thanos captures Nebula as she attempts to warn Barton and Romanoff of his newfound involvement. Past Nebula confronts her future self and collects her GPS and Pym Particles, handing it over to her father.
"OK, there's the second flaw in the plan. Don't trust space girl"
Meanwhile, Barton and Romanoff arrive on Vormir. They meet Red Skull, who informs them that the sacrifice of a loved one must be carried out in order for one to retrieve the stone. Barton laughs at the concept, but Romanoff deduces that it is indeed the truth, as Thanos had murdered his daughter Gamora there in their time. Understanding the severity of the situation, the two struggle to decide who should give their life for the cause; while Barton insists he should do it due to the carnage he left behind in the wake of his grief, Romanoff declares that her life's work has led her to this moment.
As they dash to the cliff, they wrestle to keep each other away from sacrificing themselves. Ultimately, Romanoff makes the jump and dies, leaving the Soul Stone with Barton.
"Why Nat? Why?"
"I had to, Clint. If I hadn't Thanos would have won again"
"It should have been me"
"No, it shouldn't have"
"Yes it should have, you have a purpose in this world, I don't… You are a product of the Red Room, which OK, wasn't a bed of roses, but you turned out OK. Ruthless and scary, sure, whereas I am just a product of abuse, ridicule, neglect and bad management. 53 years old by the time this film takes place, and I bet you I am still unable to read properly. My mother should have been forced into termination."
"If she had been, I wouldn't have my soulmate"
"You would have had a better soulmate than an illiterate wastrel"
The Avengers return to the present day. Stricken with the loss of one of their own, they realize that her death cannot be undone, and that their efforts to save the universe must not leave her death in vain. They construct a new gauntlet and load the six stones onto it. Thor attempts to volunteer to perform the snap, but Banner steps in due to the Stones' gamma radiation.
"The accident that created the Hulk should have ended my life, but it didn't, and now we know why."
While severely scarring his arm, he successfully snaps his fingers and brings the victims of the Snap back to life. Elsewhere, Past Nebula — who travelled to the present in place of her future self — opens a time portal, allowing Thanos to bring Sanctuary II forward from 2014. The Avengers barely have time to celebrate their success when the ship abruptly opens fire on the compound with a barrage of missiles, levelling the facility to a pile of rubble.
"Rats! That'll be the third thing that has gone wrong" Jay exclaimed.
As Thanos sends Past Nebula to retrieve the Stones, her future self reveals to Gamora their improved relationship in the future. Gamora decides to join Nebula to stop her father. Meanwhile, Rhodes, Rocket and Banner are trapped in a flooding area, forcing Lang to come and save them. Barton lands next to the gauntlet in the sewers, which is infested with Outriders.
"Dammit!"
After escaping them, he unknowingly passes the apparatus to Past Nebula, who is then confronted by Gamora and Nebula; the latter kills her past self once she threatens her sister. Stark, Rogers, and Thor confront Thanos on the ground, who intends to rebuild the entire universe using the Stones. After Stark and Thor are overpowered and knocked aside in the ensuing fight, Rogers wields Mjölnir against the time-displaced Titan.
However, Thanos severely injures him and nearly destroys his shield with his sword.
Thanos summons the rest of his army, which includes the Chitauri and the Black Order, to lay siege on Earth. Just as Rogers prepares to face them alone, a series of portals appear behind him. The Masters of the Mystic Arts have arrived with reinforcements from Kamar-Taj, Wakanda, Contraxia and New Asgard, along with the Avengers' resurrected allies from Wakanda, Titan, and San Francisco. Lang, growing to giant size, retrieves Banner, Rhodes, and Rocket from the flooded depths. With the scales now balanced, Rogers calls for the Avengers to assemble and leads his allies into the battle for the fate of the universe.
"And there's the fourth thing to go wrong. You guys HAVE to be more careful."
Banner tells Barton that they must get the stones back to their respective times and away from Thanos. With their main time machine destroyed in the initial attack, their only other option is the van; Ant-Man and Wasp jump to hot-wire the dead vehicle. As Thanos' forces close in on Barton. he passes the gauntlet onto Black Panther. As Thanos prepares to charge at T'Challa, he suddenly finds his path blocked by a vengeful Wanda Maximoff, seeking revenge for his 2018 self's murder of Vision.
"Karma"
As Wanda engages Thanos, T'Challa runs, only to become entrapped by Ebony Maw. Seeing T'Challa's predicament, Spider-Man swoops in and snatches the gauntlet.
Meanwhile, Maximoff's attacks leave Thanos at her mercy, as she effortlessly breaks his sword and lifts him into the air, the whole time ripping chunks of armour from his body. In order to escape her grasp, Thanos orders another missile barrage from Sanctuary II (against Corvus Glaive's protests) that deals great damage to both sides. One of the missiles takes out a dam, forcing Doctor Strange out of the fight to prevent the battlefield from flooding.
"Why would you fire on your own people?"
"Desperation"
Suddenly, Sanctuary II redirects its fire to an object arriving from outer space. It was Carol Danvers, who single-handedly destroys the warship. Retrieving the gauntlet from Parker, she enlists the aid of her fellow female combatants as she dashes to the now-activated van.
"Way to show us guys how it's done"
However, Thanos uses his sword to destroy the vehicle and the quantum portal. With the gauntlet in Thanos' reach, Stark, Rogers, Thor, and Danvers make their last stand to keep it out of his hands. However, he manages to shake all of his opposition aside and equip the gauntlet.
"You dirty low down no good son of a motherless goat! How dare you."
Strange informs Stark that this is the one future that ends in their victory. Determined, Stark dashes at Thanos one last time, but he is knocked aside as the Titan snaps his fingers. Nothing happens, as the Stones have been stolen by Stark and transferred onto his suit. With the very being that has haunted him for the past eleven years now at his mercy, Stark snaps his own fingers.
"WHAT? Tony, what are you doing?"
"What I have to"
"But… but…NO!"
"I am sorry, Pepper, but in this version of the final battle it was the only way"
"It didn't happen that way, though"
"Yeah because a certain web slinger who should have been in class at Military School sneaked out and came to the battle and put the stones in his own gauntlet glove!"
"Which I did because it was right, not because it was easy."
Thanos watches in horror as his own forces crumble to dust in front of him, only to meet that same fate soon after. Stark is mortally wounded from his usage of the Stones, and is greeted by Rhodes, Parker and Potts as he lays dying. Potts assures her husband that they are going to be alright, and allows him to rest. Stark's Arc Reactor then permanently shuts off, Potts giving him one last kiss. Rogers and Thor mournfully watch at a distance.
"Scared are we?"
"You wish!"
The Mad Titan's final defeat and the return of the Vanished calls for celebrations all around the world, including in Wakanda and San Francisco. At Stark's funeral, he leaves a final holographic message for his family and closest friends, including a heartfelt goodbye for Morgan.
"I am the CEO of a Fortune 500 company and a single parent… Tony, you can't do this…"
"You won't have to… I will do it"
Stark's original Arc Reactor is set adrift in the lake outside their cabin, with the Avengers and their allies in attendance, including those who had past grievances with Stark, such as the Pym family, Wanda, and Bucky Barnes.
"The piece of music in the background is called The Real Hero"
Outside New Asgard, Thor names Valkyrie as Asgard's new ruler while he abdicates to join the Guardians of the Galaxy, following his mother's advice. Meanwhile, Rogers prepares to go back in time to return the Stones and Mjølnir, bidding goodbye to Barnes.
"Because you knew you weren't fit to rule and therefore decided it was better to go on an adventure with your friends?"
"Yes"
As Banner is unable to bring him back when prompted, Barnes alerts Sam Wilson to the presence of an elderly man nearby. It is an aged up Rogers, who had chosen to remain in the past and live out a full life with Peggy Carter. He presents Wilson with a new shield, passing the mantle of Captain America on to him.
"I am not sure if I will come back this time… or if Bucky and I will… well, you know"
"Live in secret harmony?"
"Yes"
"You should go and be happy"
"You know what? I think I will."