Dark Universe(2) MARVEL

Chapter 1:

2024...

Losing someone close to you can cause different reactions, and different stages of grief, and some close themselves off from the world. Others may change themselves to be better. In Avalon Stark's case, she forced herself to mourn for a short period of time and continue on in life. She had to be there for her younger sister. Morgan was still a young child attempting to process that her daddy sacrificed himself for the better of the world.

To make things easier for Morgan, Pepper suggested that Avalon use her powers to help the young girl feel better. She enjoyed seeing the energizing whisps move around the room. It brought comfort and joy to her. This was something that helped them bond. It was always simple if Morgan called Avalon or even if Pepper did, she would always rush to their side.

Avalon owned her own penthouse now. It stood tall, looking over upper Manhattan. She was proud of herself. She had been there for 5 years now. Before, it used to be where she and Steve called home. She never told her friends that he lived there with her. It was too painful to talk about, even though the relationship ended on good terms.

It had been months since her father; Tony Stark had died. She had to deal with the aftermath of a clean-up with the former Avengers Compound. She stood by and was forced to watch the place she loved be cleaned up. Pieces of the building were scattered everywhere. Some of the items were considered too heavy to lift, and there was no time to get a crane rushed out to the site. Avalon used her powers to lift the items with ease.

At one point during this, she got so upset that she vaporized half of the area. She would blink, realizing what she did, then walk away. At first, those around her feared her, but they knew she was grieving. They felt pity for her, and she hated it. She participated in a battle that left her father dead. After his funeral, she was summoned back to the place where the battle happened to clean up the mess.

Not to mention, the former Director of Shield had suggested to Avalon that she should transfer to Sword instead. A woman of such power and strength always had a spot on his team, no matter what name it was under. The knowledge she held of Shield was great, but she would be a beautiful assist for Sword. It was more fitting for someone with her power. She wasn't overly fond of the other agency, but she understood why. Avalon was much more powerful than she ever had been before. She was no longer your typical shield agent. Avalon was a force to reckon with. She could easily take out anyone of her choosing, but she didn't because she knew it was wrong, even if they deserved it.

Director Hayward of Sword had annoyed the Stark very much. And she annoyed him. The man was too controlling and unable to compromise situations with Avalon. He didn't think highly of the young woman unlike others did. Much like Secretary Ross, he thought of her as a ticking time bomb that should be locked away on the Raft and never let go. He believed that she shouldn't have the freedom to walk among others. He believed she should've been kept from others due to the potential danger of losing control.

After 2 months of Thanos causing half the universe to disappear, Avalon tried to return to her normal life. Unknowing to her father, Steve had moved in with Avalon. He needed a place to stay other than the Avengers Compound. He seemed to find his way to her apartment too many times previously. Calling it a place of comfort, or was it a person he comforted? After all, he thought the young woman needed some protection, but one may argue that Avalon thought he needed protection instead.

One night, walking back to her penthouse, she was stopped by two cops on the corner. She was curious why they wanted her identification. It was unusual and none of their business. Her biggest suspicion was how close they kept their hands to their guns. At first, she wanted to argue and fight with them so they had no right to randomly stop her and ask for an I.D. They claimed it was for the safety of others around them.