INFERNO │ Marvel

10.5 turn back time

The team were ready. Standing on a platform, quantum realm GPSs on their wrists and dressed in their time heist suits, the Avengers gave their friends final determined nods and smiles while Steve gave one of his encouraging speeches.

"Five years ago, we lost," he started. "All of us. We lost friends... We lost family... We lost a part of ourselves. Today, we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. Get the stones, get them back. One round trip each. No mistakes. No do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know. But it doesn't mean we should know what to expect. Be careful. Look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives. And we're gonna win. Whatever it takes. Good luck."

"He's pretty good at that," Rocket commented.

"Right?" Scott agreed.

"Alright," Tony called out. He gave his sister a glance and a small smile. They would do this, and then they would come back to their family. "You heard the man. Stroke those keys, jolly green."

"Tractors engaged," Bruce announced from his place at the control panel. Meanwhile, the Vormir trio was looking down at the tiny ship in Clint's hand, their transport to the dominion of death, as Nebula called it.

"You promise to bring that back in one piece, right?" Rocket asked.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, Clint agreed. "Okay. I'll do my best."

"As promises go, that was pretty lame."

Bruce rejoined the circle while the whole team looked around one more time. Amelia could imagine it at that moment: all the people they had lost stood amongst them again.

"See you in a minute," Nat said with a smirk on her face. With that, the reflective panels above them began to spin, and the whole team was sent into the quantum realm.

Going through the quantum realm was a strange experience. Amelia could compare it to, perhaps, swimming through veins in a body... not that she'd done that either. She, Nat, Clint, Rhodey and Nebula followed the same path, navigating them to Morag, 2014. There, the Vormir trio waited while the other two prepared the ship. Tiny alien creatures kept running at them, but either Nat would kick them away or Amelia would just fry them.

"Hey, can we hurry it up?" Clint called over, looking down at the creatures in disgust.

"Guys, chop-chop," Nat added. "Come on. We're on the clock."

"All that is really helpful," Rhodey snarked just as they finished. The trio made their way over, ready to board and fly off. Amelia gave him a hug first.

"Don't die, metal man," she instructed with a smile.

"You too, firebird," he chuckled.

"Oh, did Sam teach you that one?" she laughed. A short silence passed over the two. "We'll get him back."

Rhodey gave her a nod and pat on the back before the woman entered the ship, allowing the others to say goodbye to each other. She took a position in the pilot seat, considering she had more experience with alien spaceships than the other two. They soon joined her, taking seats of their own.

They were basically travelling at the speed of light, the stars around them blurring into long streaks that made it look like they were flying through a tunnel. Clint, having never been to space before, was in awe. He turned to Nat with a smile.

"We're a long way from Budapest."

"You know, you guys still haven't told me that story," Amelia commented. Both of them gave her a smirk.

"And we never will."

The trio landed on Vormir feeling a little nervous. The planet was quiet, which was both fitting and unfitting for a supposed dominion of death. Everything was painted in a dark-purple hue, vast sand dunes covering the landscape. It felt more peaceful than deadly. At the centre of it all stood a large mountain that they began to ascend.