The White Phoenix 10: An Avengers: Endgame Fanfiction

Chapter 14: Time Fights Back

One minute, we were celebrating the joyful return of our loved ones and the fact that all of our pain and heartache over the past five years was for something, indeed.

Then the Avengers facility blew up.

Several moments later, the Sanctuary II, Thanos' ship, was in the air and he came down in a beam of light, fully armoured. Nebula (2014) came out to meet him. She had activated the portal to bring Thanos (2014) and his ship to the present while everyone was messing around with the gauntlet. Thanos had captured Nebula (2023) and disguised her past self as her future self so she could infiltrate to bring Thanos to the present so he could stop the Avengers.

'Daughter,' he said gravely.

'Yes, Father,' she replied.

'So, this is the future. Well done.' She removed the orange plate that she had used to disguise herself as future Nebula and threw it away.

'Thank you, Father. They suspected nothing.' Taking off his helmet, he embedded his sword in the ground and placed the helmet on the blade's edge.

'The arrogant never do.' Then he sat down on a rock. 'Go. Find the stones. Bring them to me.'

'What will you do?'

'Wait.' She walked away from her.

I was unconscious on the ground. Suddenly, I felt someone gently nudge me and then a pair of strong hands pulling me. My eyes fluttered open. It felt like they were sown shut and when they opened, my head began to pound in agony. I fully opened my eyes to see Steve and Tony above me. Steve had his shield on him and Tony was standing over me, with his helmet retracted.

'Hey kid. Wake up.' I grabbed Steve's forearm and he pulled me up gently. I stumbled slightly.

'You're bleeding,' Steve noted. I put my hand up to my head and touched my temple. There was blood coming from a small gash.

'What happened?' I asked uneasily.

'You messed with time. It tends to mess back. You'll see.' I limped out to where Thor was waiting. The four of us amassed on a rock overlooking a wasteland of what once was the Avengers facility. In front of us was a blade embedded upright, on it a helmet and right next to the helmet... was Thanos.

'What's he been doing?' I asked Thor.

'Absolutely nothing.'

'Where are the stones?' Steve asked.

'Somewhere under all this,' Tony replied. 'All I know is he doesn't have them.'

'So we keep it that way,' Steve shot back.

'You know it's a trap, right?' I asked.

'Yeah. And I don't much care.' Suddenly Thor spoke.

'Good. Just as long as we're all in agreement.' He outstretched his hands and his casual outfit turned into his cape and trademark armour. I smiled as his hammers Storm-breaker and Mjolnir (from Asgard 2013) flew into his hands. The lightning crackled and fired as the light faded from his eyes.

'Let's kill him properly this time,' I snapped, withdrawing my sword and readying it.

We walked on the ground, my wings fully extended, laying across my back gently, the metal shining in the dull light. Thanos looked up to see the four of us approaching him, with Thor's cape swinging, Tony's suit battle-ready and Steve's shield also shining. Then Thanos spoke.

'You could not live with your own failure. Where did that bring you? Back to me. I thought by eliminating half of life, the other half would thrive. But you've shown me that's impossible. And as long as there are those that remember what was, there will always be those that are unable to accept what can be. They will resist.'

'Yeah, we'll all kinds of stubborn,' Tony snapped out. We formed a small semi-circle around the Titan.

'I'm thankful. Because now, I know what I must do.' He stood. Taking his helmet, he put it on. 'I will shred this universe down to its last atom. And then - with the stones you've collected for me, I will create a new one. Teeming with life, that knows not what it has lost but only what it has been given.' Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Thor light up with lightning. 'A grateful universe.'

'Born out of blood,' Steve snapped.

'They'll never know it. Because you won't be alive to tell them,' he replied, getting into a battle stance. Readying ourselves for the fight to come, I made the first charge at the Titan.

And the final war began.

We continued to fight, trading blows with the Mad Titan.

'Okay, Thor. Hit me,' Tony yelled out. Combining his lightning with his two hammers, Thor fired a blast of strong lightning at Tony, who absorbed it within his suit, then fired it at Thanos. Grabbing Storm-breaker and ending the burst of lightning, he tossed up Mjolnir and slammed it, sending it flying into Thanos. Instead of hitting Thanos, he used me as a shield and it hit me full on into the chest, sending me into a rock. I groaned, feeling my ribs breaking and cracking. Steve ran up to fight Thanos, but Thanos instead grabbed Thor and began to punch him. Groaning, I got up and began to fight again. He relentlessly pounded Thor, but there was no help coming. As Thanos grabbed Storm-breaker and started digging it into Thor's chest, I saw the 2013 hammer move slowly off the ground. Slowly but surely, it flew, hitting Thanos in the head. Tony, Thanos and I spun around and Thor looked right through Thanos as the hammer flew into the outstretched hand of none other than Steve Rogers.

'I knew it!' I heard Thor say, beaming from ear to ear. But as long as the thrill lasted, it wasn't very long at all. Soon, Thanos gained the upper hand again and began to overpower Steve. Taking his blade, he proceeded to destroy Steve's shield, mangling it to bits, slicing Steve's leg and arm. I tried to help him, but his blade sliced into my side and I fell down next to the already collapsed Steve. Steve attempted to get up, but collapsed next to me again. Finding my hand, he grasped it.

'In all my years of conquest - violence -slaughter - It was never personal. But I'll tell you now, what I'm going to do to your stubborn, annoying little planet... I'm gonna enjoy it. Very, very much.' Suddenly, Steve and I struggled to stand. Snapping the buckle of his broken shield down on his arm, with us both broken and bleeding, he and I walked out together onto the field, alone, as thousands of Outriders, along with Thanos' Black Order, walked out onto the field. So little against so many, I thought. As we stood there, on our earpieces, there was a loud crackling.

'Hey, Cap, Lehnsherr, you read me?' I looked around for the source of the voice. 'Cap, Lehnsherr, it's Sam. Can you hear me?' I gasped. Just then, next to us, a portal opened and Black Panther, with his sister Shuri and general Okoye, stepped through.