Empty Chairs at Empty Tables

14

"I'm sorry. What, we're just sitting around waiting for the right opportunity?" Thor questioned.

"We should at least discuss it," Scott suggested.

"No, no, sitting here staring at that thing is not gonna bring everybody back. I'm the strongest Avenger, okay? So this responsibility falls upon me. It's my duty."

"It's not about that–" Tony was cut off.

Thor hushed everyone up. "It's not that– Stop it! Just let me!" He teared up. "Just let me do it. Just let me do something good. Something right."

"Look– It's not just the fact that that glove is channeling enough energy to light up a continent, I'm telling you, you're in no condition."

"What do you–" He pinned Tony to the wall, a hand to his throat. "What do you think is coursing through my veins right now?"

"Cheez Whiz?" Rhodey guessed.

"Lightning."

"Yeah," Tony agreed.

"Lightning won't help you, pal," Bruce said. "It's gotta be me." Thor let go of Tony. "You saw what those Stones did to Thanos. It almost killed him. None of you could survive."

"How do we know you will?" Steve asked.

"We don't. But the radiation's mostly gamma." He took a good look at the gauntlet. "It's like... I was made for this."

2014!Nebula snuck off to the Quantum portal and activated it.

"Good to go, yeah?" Tony asked.

"Let's do it," Bruce replied.

"You remember– everyone Thanos snapped away five years ago and just bringing them back to now, today. Don't change anything from the last five years."

"Got it."

Everyone got ready and suited up.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y., do me a favor and activate Barn Door Protocol," Tony said. "Will you?"

"Yes, boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. answered.

The Avengers facility went into lockdown.

"Everybody comes home," Bruce told the group before putting on the gauntlet, which nanobotically expanded to fit his hand, and the power surge overwhelmed him. He grunted in pain.

"Take it off!" Thor cried. "Take it off!"

"No, wait. Bruce, are you okay?" Steve asked.

"Talk to me, Banner," Tony said.

"I'm okay," Bruce reassured. "I'm okay."

Thor gave a double thumbs up.

2014!Nebula opened the Quantum Tunnel and brought the Sanctuary II to the present.

---

Bruce screamed, fighting through the intense pain coursing through his body courtesy of the gauntlet, and managed to snap his fingers. He fainted and the gauntlet slid off his arm. Clint kicked it away.

"Bruce!" Steve called.

"Don't move him," Tony said.

Bruce held onto Steve's arm and asked, "Did it work?"

"Worth a shot," Thor replied. "It's over. It's okay."

Scott walked towards the outside windows and saw plants and birds. Clint heard his phone ringing and saw it was his wife calling.

Clint, struggling to speak from sheer happiness, said, "Honey."

"Clint?" Laura asked.

"Honey."

"Guys– I think it worked!" Scott exclaimed.

Bruce opened his eyes and saw the Sanctuary II up in the sky and a single missile heading towards the base blowing away Scott away. A continuous array of missiles destroyed the base completely and everyone sank below to the underground. Alpine meowed loudly and found a safe place to hide.

Bruce was holding up tons of debris from collapsing on top of the other Avengers with his one good arm. Some debris was stuck on top of Rocket.

"I can't breathe," Rocket said. "I can't breathe! I can't breathe."

"Canopy. Canopy. Canopy," Rhodey repeated as he got out of his damaged suit.

"Rhodey, Rocket, get outta here!" Bruce ordered.

Rhodey crawled over to help Rocket while taking a rebar as leverage to lift the debris off Rocket.

"Hurry up!" Rocket demanded. "Hurry up! Come on!"

Rhodey got Rocket out and they both sighed in relief.

"Rhodey!" Bruce called as a flood engulfed Rhodey and Rocket.

Scott survived the blast by shrinking.

"Mayday, mayday!" Rhodey called. "Does anybody copy? We're in the lower level, it's flooding!"

"What?" Scott asked.

"We're drowning! Does anybody copy? Mayday!"

"Wait! I'm here! I'm here, can you hear me?"

Clint was in the sewer system, trying to get their bearings. He flashed a light upwards to see what happened.

"Cap?" Clint called.

He found the Gauntlet was with them but sensed he wasn't alone down there. He shot an arrow with light towards the dark tunnel and found hordes of Outriders.

Clint, under his breath, muttered, "Damn."

He took the Gauntlet and ran towards the opposite direction while the Outriders chased after him.