INFERNO │ Marvel

10.1 a fate worse than death

Amelia's friends were concerned for her. She had been outside the compound for hours, sitting in a roaring fire four times the size of the last one she had made. It wasn't just about recharging her powers, it was also about being alone. This way, nobody could reach her. No one at all.

It had been nine days since the team had returned from fighting Thanos. Amelia preferred to call it getting obliterated by Thanos because that was exactly what it was. Even when she thought about the fact that both she and Thor had nearly killed him, at the very least critically injured him, it was always followed by the crushing defeat.

Amelia was ripped from her thoughts when a rock hit her cheek. Her protective fire made it bounce off, but it still caught her attention. The woman huffed. She was growing tired of this. Every day that she would sit in these flames, either Nat or Steve would come and bother her. They had started to throw stones to gain her attention on the second day, considering she couldn't see or hear them through the flames. She knew they meant well, but they ruined her peace. It was like being consumed by fire was the only time when she wasn't thinking about her brother, either dead or stranded in space.

Another rock hit her cheek. Then another hit her shoulder. Amelia groaned at the continuous assault. She flared the flames in mock warning, but the person wouldn't let up. It was definitely Nat. Steve was too nice to throw so many and so quickly. He would usually just throw one and wait patiently. If she didn't talk, he would just leave her alone for a while and try again later.

"Tasha, stop!" she yelled out. A larger rock bounced off of her head. She stared down at it in shock before finally letting the flames recede. She looked up to see her friend about to pummel her with an even bigger rock. She held up her finger. "That is extremely violent."

"Can you please stop making fires on our front lawn?" Nat asked, dropping the rock. "It's ruining the landscape."

"I didn't know you cared about that kind of thing."

"Well, after watching half of my friends die, it calms me," she replied. Amelia scoffed and laid down in the flames.

"Thanks for the reminder," she said sarcastically.

"You're welcome," Nat replied dryly. She was pissed, and she had every right to be. "You know we're all dealing with this, not just you. You should come and talk to us. We're a team for a reason."

Amelia closed her eyes for a second and let the flames around her vanish completely. The spot of the bonfire was charred and warm, but that didn't bother Nat much as she kicked away some sticks with her foot and sat down next to her friend. The Stark woman sat up to be at her level.

"I'm sorry," she sighed. "I don't mean to be selfish. I just feel..."

"Guilty?" Nat finished for her. "Because it was them and not you?"

"Yeah."

The women sat in silence for a while, watching the landscape. Even with all life cut in half, the sounds of birds could be heard from the nearby trees. Natasha was right. It was calming, more so than the roaring of fire. But it also made things quieter and forced Amelia to have to think about everything she had been trying to forget.

"I don't know how to live with this, Tasha," she whispered. She had cried all the tears she could already, so she didn't shed any now. Her voice was just tired. Soaking herself in fire made her feel physically back up to speed, but mentally she had never been more exhausted. "If he really is dead-"

"But he might not be," Nat cut her off. "Amy... she'll find him."

Amelia gave a nod, mostly to reassure herself than Nat. After Nick Fury had got dusted like everyone else, what remained of the Avengers had found an old pager outside his car. They had set it up at the compound to continuously send whatever signal it was transmitting. A few days later, Carol Danvers had shown up. Now, she was back off in space searching for Tony, Strange and Peter. Amelia knew she had to hold onto hope. It had only been a day since the woman had left.