The Choice

Time Travel

"Don't do anything stupid till I get back." Rogers says after embracing his long lost and regained friend. James Barnes embraces him back and replies with the same sentiment they had spoken to each other nearly another life time ago. 

"How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you." Steve chuckles and shakes hands with Sam Wilson before walking to the platform of the new time travel machine. Seeing as Thanos and his army destroyed the Avengers compound with the original portal, Dr. Banner had to create new one.

Bruce Banner goes over the plan one last time before sending Rogers through the new portal. Steve has to put back each stone the exact moment they were taken to not disrupt the time line and set everything back the way it use to be. Steve takes the case with the stones, picks up Thor's hammer, and looks at his friends before his helmet closes and the quantum realm sucks him through time.

His first stop was the time stone. He waited for Bruce to leave before giving back the glowing green gem to the Ancient one. She was surprised how fast it took for it to be returned, but graciously accepted it back. But before he leaves, she gives him a word of advice, she can see his deeper intention. 

"It is not wise to do that which you think you must. Even staying out if sight could have repercussions. Unless your intentions are to start something new." Rogers chuckles and says he'll think it over, but they both know his words are a lie. He's already made up his mind.

The next stop is the reality stone, also known as the Aether. The were able to liquefy the stone back to its original state so he could re-inject Jane with it. It felt wring to do it, but it had to be done. In the end Jane Forster would survive and get through it, so Steve presses the button and allows the red power to reenter her body. She's asleep at the moment so she's unaware of what is happening. After Rocket sucked it out, she passed out. So it made it that much easier to return it. All Rogers had to do was wait for the guards to chase after Thor and Rocket so he could sneak past and return the reality stone; Luckily it went smoothly.

Up next was the power gem, the purple stone was encase in its metallic orb once again. All Steve had to do was wait for Rhode and Nebula to walk away for him to sneak by. Once again, everything goes according to plan. Once the orb is set back in place, Rogers jumps back as a protective shield glows around it, nearly burning his hand. With a groan, Steve stands up and presses the device again to travel back to 2012 and to stash away the Loki's scepter. But first, like all the other times, he has to wait for the Avenger's team to do their part.

Steve stands back and sees 2012  Tony get a heart attack, knowing full well that was 2023 Tony's idea. He chuckles lowly to himself and sighs, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. Pull yourself together, Rogers. He made his choice. He did the right thing. Don't screw this up. With a deep breath and sigh, Steve waits and sneaks by to the elevator. He hands over the case with the scepter to Hydra and the nod their thanks, though still suspicious of him. Steve walks away and smirks before finding a place to hide away and go to the 70's for the tesseract. 

When he does, he notices the building has more security, probably because he and Tony had just left with the tesseract, causing SHIELD to be on high alert. But with skill, and a lot of luck, Roger's is able to avoid contact with other people and make his way to the room where the stone has to go. He opens the case and put's the cube back where it goes in a new case, seeing as Tony ruined the other one. But before Steve can finish what he's doing, voices and heels clicking from behind startle him. He freezes before finding somewhere to hide. After a few moments he recognizes one of the voice, it belongs to the woman in heels. 

"No no, I'll deal with it myself." She says, her British clipped voice unmistakable to his ears. "Send for Thompson, Sousa, and Roberts. Have them sent to my office ASAP. We need to deal with this breach as discreetly as possible."

"Of course, Director."

The agent leaves hurriedly to bring the requested company, leaving his boss to herself. She sighs and grumbles before noticing the familiar glow. 

"What the bloody hell..." She walks swiftly towards it. She's so close to him he can hardly breath. Roger's heart pounds and his lungs constrict, he hasn't been this near to her since her funeral in 2015. Now she's alive and well. She's the Director of SHIELD and making her own way, just like she should be.

Steve sits silently behind the stack of boxes, hoping he's staying quite, and yet the pounding is so loud he's sure she can hear; but she doesn't. Instead she inspects the cube before locking it away and looking around the room. As she steps closer to Steve, he shrinks away in fear. She can't see him yet. As luck would have it, the agent returns to inform her the other's are now waiting for her in the office. Carter sighs and steps away, leaving Rogers to finally breath. That was close.

He stands cautiously and waits for her echoing heels to fade from ear shot. Once gone, Steve leans over and smiles. He knows he's making the right decision. Its been too long since he's seen her, heard her voice before she was in her 90's. He tried to move on, but he never could. Now he has to grab a few things before returning the last stone- the Soul Stone. Steve deliberately saved this one for last. He knew what he would see before returning it, and it only made the heartbreak worse. Quickly he sneaks into Pym's lab before reentering the quantum realm. Once he does, he travels to Vormir and looks up at the large cliff he has to climb. Great... He sighs and starts walking, but stops when he hears voice- it's Natasha and Clint. As if it wasn't hard enough to see Tony alive, now he has to see Nat. Not only see her, but watch her die. Steve closes his eyes and shakes his head. Don't get distracted, you came here for a reason. As he thinks this, he wills the courage to walk the path and keep a distance between himself and his friends. 

The cliff is tall and there are many rough edges and rocks to use for cover. Steve does so and watches from a distance as Nat and Clint talk to a floating figure. Weird... but given his history in the present, seeing a floating cloak was far from the strangest thing he had seen. After a moment they follow the figure and Rogers creeps closer, staying close to the rocks. Nat and Clint start to argue and fight, and that's when he hears it.

"I won't let you sacrifice yourself!" Steve jumps and looks against his better judgment, both are on the edge of the cliff, and yet he can't see Nat. This is how she dies. 

Steve looks away and before he knows it, Clint yells out as she falls. As she does, the sky lights up with with a blinding glow, and then Clint disappears.  Rogers is shocked and moves out of hiding to find him, but sees no one. As he moves around the cliff and starts to look over, a voice appears from behind. 

"Steven Rogers. Son of Joseph and Sarah Rogers." Steve turns around and is met with a face he hasn't seen since 1945. The last person he saw before he went down.

"Red Skull. What the hell are you doing here?"He demands while taking a step forward, and yet Roger's long time enemy does not attempt to defend. 

"I am no longer your enemy, Captain Rogers. I am but nothing but the keeper of the stone." Steve chuckles angrily and holds out his hand. 

"You mean this?"

"Yes." He replies as Steve hands it over. The stone floats int he air between them before zooming upwards into the sky, vanishing before their eyes. As it does, Rogers watches and then looks back at Red Skull, only to find him gone as well.

The mission is done. All of the infinity Stones have been returned to set balance to time, and yet Steve Rogers wasn't finished yet. With a deep heavy sigh, he clicks the buttons on his suit and sets the date to 1949. I'm going home, its time to get back to the love of my life.