Maya Stark

Chapter 38: The plan

The plan was a good one and if I could get my head to focus and stop spinning, I'd be good. Dad said I would be more useful and powerful. Therefore, I was chilling with Mantis somewhere from a portal, waiting for our cue. I was pacing and Mantis seemed to feel my anxiety.

'You are very stressed,' she said.

I stopped pacing and looked at her. 'Uhm, yeah, I guess.'

'Is it about the boy?'

'Err, sorta?' I said, pacing again.

'He likes you,' she said simply.

Yeah, she was not helpful. It felt like an eternity waiting for them, but it was probably only five minutes. Two portals open up and I jumped through the one on the right, landing right in front of who I assumed was Thanos. Mantis lands on his shoulders. I immediately wrap energy around him, preventing him from moving as he hovers an inch or so off the ground. I grit my teeth at how strong he was as Mantis tries to put him to sleep. After a couple seconds, he goes slack, indicating he was asleep.

'Is he under? Don't let up,' dad told us as he tries to get the gauntlet out.

'Be quick,' Mantis said. 'He is very strong.'

'Yeah,' I breathe out.

'Parker, help! Get over here,' dad said. Peter hurries over and helps pull at the gauntlet. 'They can't hold on much longer.'

Quill flies over and stands next to me. 'I thought you'd be harder to catch. For the record, this was my plan. Not so strong now, huh? Where is Gamora?'

'My Gamora...?' Thanos said, painfully.

'No bullshit. Where is she?'

'He is in anguish,' Mantis said.

'Good,' Quill said.

Mantis was crying. 'He...he mourns.'

'What does this monster have to mourn?' Drax asked. I was getting a bad feeling.

'Gamora.' She's new. A robot, maybe?

'What?' Quill asked.

'He took her to Vormir,' the new girl said. 'He came back with the Soul Stone...but she didn't.'

'Okay, Quill, you gotta cool it right now, you understand?' dad said. Quill turned to Thanos. 'Don't, don't, don't engage, we've almost got this off!'

'Tell me she's lying.' He was angry. 'Asshole! Tell me you didn't do it!'

'I...had...to,' Thanos said.

'No, you didn't...' Quill said quietly. He surges in front of me, and I let my magic drop, not wanting to hurt him. 'No, you didn't!' he hits Thanos in the face twice before I can stop him, making Mantis let go in pain.

'Quill!' I said as dad leaps for his arm.

Everything else happens so fast. Thanos wakes up furiously and head butts Mantis, grabbing the gauntlet back and causing Peter to stumble. Thanos throws Mantis over his head and Peter goes after to catch her. I quickly unfreeze my body and wrap energy around him again, making him unable to move. I held it for about five seconds before he managed to get his fist closed and fires at me with the purple stone. I quickly move my hands in front of me, stopping it from hitting me, and release Thanos from my grip. He kicks Drax into both Quill and the new girl, knocking all three of them down. I go to use my powers again, but he kicks me, sending me flying back with the breath wiped out of me. I land harshly and hold onto my stomach for a second.

I get back up, stumbling slightly as I try to get my bearings. I quickly fly back over to where my dad is, who was standing up. No one else was in sight. We watch, aghast, as Thanos uses a combination of the blue and purple stones to shatter a moon's surface. He then brings the debris down onto us. Dad and I take off, swerving to not get hit, going separate ways. A medium sized stone skims my leg enough to make me go off balance. I land and quickly make a force field around me with my hands. I kept it strong as more and more bounced off of it. When it calmed down, I got rid of the force field and went searching for my dad in the rubble. I found him getting out of a huge ditch thing and wince slightly.

'You have to hold his hand open for a couple seconds,' he said as I got to him.

We flew over to find Thanos and a hopefully alive Strange. I land in front of Thanos quickly, throwing my hands up and wrapping his gauntlet hand in purple energy. In the next instant, a red and gold device slaps into the palm of the gauntlet and my dad flies in as I let the power drop. I back up quickly to stand next to my dad.

'You throw another moon at us, and I'm going to lose it,' dad said.

'Starks,' Thanos said in mild interest.

'You know us?' asked dad.

'I do,' said Thanos. 'You're not the only one cursed with knowledge.'

'Our only curse is you,' said dad. Small rockets pop out of the back of his suit and launch at Thanos.

The rockets all explode on target, bombarding him in smoke. Before the smoke clears, dad drives into Thanos using his single super-jet boot configuration thing. His new suits keep getting better and better. When he lands, his glove turns into a rocket-driven battering ram, and he punches Thanos into a ruined wall. I waited back until he needed my help, ready to jump in. Thanos shakes off the punch quickly and tears off my dad's helmet. I race forward as my dad's suit re-forms the helmet. Thanos took the delay of dad's shock and punched him. I run in front of dad as Thanos lifts up the gauntlet. I make another force field as he uses the purple stone. I scream out slightly when the power touches the force field, pushing me back. I keep my footing, collecting the energy of the stone into the force field and, painfully, blast it back towards Thanos who moves out of the way.

My dad whips back to Thanos with full thrusters, and kicks him with his left foot, turning the boot into a ground clamp at the same time to pin the gauntlet. He keeps twisting while his left glove becomes a ram again, slamming into Thanos' face, cutting his cheek in a matter of seconds.

Thanos brings his hand up to his cheek, rubbing some of the blood off. 'All that for a drop of blood.'

His smile is brief before he punches my dad, making him fall back. I quickly throw a force field above my dad to protect him, which lowers to the ground from the two punches Thanos makes to it. He looks at me briefly before shooting me with the purple stone. I roll out of the way, wide eyes, but it catches my foot which is enough to send me flying back. I land on the ground hard and gasp for breath. I shakily tap my ring, removing my mask. I stagger up, knowing my dad is alone with Thanos. I take off back towards where my dad and Thanos were. I get there in time to watch Thanos stab him in the stomach. Thanos walks my dad back until he sits, and I land at my dad's side, assessing the wound while trying to keep panic out of my voice and face.

'It's going to be okay,' I mumble, kneeling next to him.