Always Fight | Bucky Barnes |

11

The end of the world has become somewhat of a common topic over the last decade.

What used to only be present in science fiction and fantasy novels is now a very real and constant threat. People no longer have to go to the bookstore to read about heroes and villains, aliens and invasions, apocalypses and salvations. It's all real and happening. Never before, though, has something held the gravity that this situation does. It rests heavily on my shoulders the more we speak on it, weighting me to the floor.

The entire universe is counting on us.

"So those two aliens from Scotland, they came for the mind stone" I announce, beginning to work out some of the enigma of this entire situation. Bruce nods.

"Thanos already has two, and he sent his goons out to find the two on Earth" Bruce responds.

We all stay silent for a moment, letting the information sink in.

"So we gotta assume they're coming back, right?" Rhodey asks, looking over to us.

"They can clearly find us" Wanda points out, looking towards Vision.

"We need all hands on deck, where's Clint?" Bruce asks, referring to Hawkeye.

My heart drops slightly at the mention of him, my mind going directly to the security anklet around his leg that keeps him confined to his home.

"After the whole Accords situation, him and Scott took a deal. It was too tough on their families" Nat responds, nodding to Bruce, "They're on house arrest"

"Who's Scott?" Bruce asks.

"Ant-Man" Steve responds.

Silence rests over the room for a moment.

"There's an Ant-Man and a Spider-Man?" Bruce exclaims.

The strings of my heart tug for Bruce, who is helplessly out of the loop. His confusion is evident in the deep frown lines of his face and the way his anxiety makes him jumpy. I can only imagine how hard this must all be to take in at once.

"Look, Thanos has the biggest army in the universe and he is not going to stop until he..." Bruce pauses, looking down and swallowing slightly before looking back up and directly at Vision, "Until he gets Vision's stone"

"Well then we have to protect it" Natasha states simply, shrugging slightly at the words. It should be a simple task, but Vision must not think so.

"No, we have to destroy it" Vision interjects, making the entire room pause.

"I'm sorry, what?" Sam asks, looking over to Vision.

"I've been doing a great deal of thinking about this entity in my head, about its nature and composition," He begins, changing his gaze over to a very hesitant-looking Wanda, "I think if it were exposed to an energy very similar to its nature, similar to its signature, it's molecular integrity would fail"

"And you with it," Wanda breathes, her eyes wide and locked onto Vision, "We're not having this conversation"

Steve and I share a grave look, both of our eyes displaying clearly the sympathy for Wanda. I can't even begin to imagine forcing myself to kill Bucky, yet here Wanda is being given this responsibility.

"Eliminating the stone is the only way to ensure Thanos can't get it" Vision whispers, bringing his hand to Wanda's cheek.

"That's too high a price"

There's a heartbreaking pause where Vision runs his hand down Wanda's hair lovingly, almost in a way I recognize as a goodbye. It makes my stomach churn and my heart break for her.