Whatever It Takes [Wanda Maximoff AU]

16- As The Dust Settled

Steve immediately ran over to Thor.

Carter slowly got up and helped a distraught Wanda to her feet, and held her fatigued body up.

"Where'd he go?" Cap asked. "Thor. Where'd he go."

"Steve." Bucky said walking towards Cap as his body slowly disintegrated into dust.

Cap was in shock as he knelt down to what remained just a pile of dust.

One by one Wakandan warriors began to disappear.

"Up. General. Up. This is no place to die." T'Challa was the next hero to go.

Rocket Raccoon stared at his best friend Groot in disbelief as his bark began to disappear and float into the wind. "I am Groot." He said weakly.

"No, no, no!" Rocket yelled. "Groot! No."

Sam struggled to get up while Rhodey was looking for him everywhere. The only thing left of him that remained was a pile of dust.

"Sam!" Rhodey called. "Sam, where you at?"

***
Meanwhile on Titan...

"Somethings happening." Mantis said as Thunder rumbled in the distance and just like that Mantis disappeared in a cloud of dust.

Everyone looked around in shock.

"Quill?" Drax asked as he felt his body disappearing.

Tony and Quill shared a look. "Steady Quill." Tony said to him.

It clicked in Peter's mind what was happening as he started to disappear. "Oh man."

Doctor Strange sat against rock and metal defeated. "Tony." He said getting Stark's attention. "There was no other way." He said as his body crumbled into nothing.

Tony watched in horror as everyone around him began to disappear.

Then it happened, his worst nightmare.

"Mr. Stark." The young boy behind him said.

Tony spun around and almost lost it right there.

"I don't feel so good." Peter stumbled around dizzily.

"You're alright." Tony said trying to stay optimistic.

"I don't... I don't know what's happening." Peter said stumbling towards him. "I don't know." He said falling into Tony's arms. Peter held him tight as flakes of his skin began to disappear. "I don't want to go." Peter pleaded. "I don't want to go, sir. Please. Please. I don't want to go. I don't want to go." Peter cried out.

Tony pulled him to the ground and laid next to him looking at Peters disappearing body.

Peter stared at Tony from the corner of his eyes as he was taking one last look at his mentor and father figure that had helped him through so much over the past two years.

"I'm sorry." Peter whispered to him as he finally disappeared for good.

Tony was speechless and in shock. He couldn't create words and he just looked at his hands not knowing what to do.

The survivors guilt began to set in.

"He did it." The only other person remaining said quietly.

Tony hurled over as he began to cry, his hands came to his face as Nebula finally defeated, took a seat on the ground.

***
Carter and Wanda slowly limped back to Vision's grey body where the rest of the remaining team stood over him.

Natasha came running around the corner to Steve.

Steve fell backwards in shock and guilt.

Natasha held her stomach as she suddenly felt sick.

"What is this? What the hell is happening?" Rhodey asked looking around terrified.

Steve took deep breaths as he realized what had just happened. "Oh god."

Carter stumbled quickly as his body began to feel like he was sick.

Wanda was too weak to hold him up as Carter's body fell to the ground.

"Carter?" She asked.

Natasha immediately came over and fell onto her knees staring at one of her best friends as his face became pale.

Steve looked over, frozen in place his face as pale as Carters. He couldn't move, he couldn't speak. He was just numb.

Wanda dropped to her knees and began to cry.

"Nat. What's happening. Help me." Carter cried grabbing her hand.

She squeezed it tight as a tear fell from her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Carter."

"I can't feel my legs. Nat, I can't feel my legs."

Natasha cried and pulled Carter's hair out of his eyes before stumbling backwards into Steve who wrapped his arms around her. She closed her eyes.

She couldn't watch.

It was too hard.

"Carter." Wanda pleaded. "Carter look at me."

Carter turned his head, his white face stained with blood and tears.

"Wanda, where are my legs."

Wanda looked down and gasped as his legs had disappeared leaving a trail of dust on the ground where his legs had once been.

This feeling was all too familiar.

The feeling of losing someone she had an incredibly close connection with. She didn't feel it when Vision had died.

She had felt it where Pietro died four years ago.

Wanda's guilt set in as she recalled how much she had taken Carter for granted over the years.

They had built a lasting relationship from the first time they met after Sokovia at the Avengers Facility, then alongside each other in Germany. She promised she'd keep in touch and she hadn't.

Yet he still waited.

The fact that it had taken until she was on his death bed to figure out how she felt for him made her sick. She felt selfish.

"Wanda." Carter said weakly bringing his hand to her face. "Wanda... I."

Wanda held his hand to her face as the other side of his body began to disappear.

She nodded as her tears rolled down her face. "I know, Carter. I know."

He gave a small smile as his body silently disappeared as his hand fell off her face.

She kept her hand against her face still feeling his hand there.

Then she broke.

An explosion of red energy burst off her killing every plant within a five foot radius.

It was over.

The team was gone.

Vision was gone.

Carter was gone.

And Wanda felt helpless to save him.

For the rest of the day the remaining Avengers didn't move, didn't speak. They just sat there and cried.

Mourning the death of their late heroes.

Friends.

Family.