At the top of Stark Tower, the Avengers were gathered. They felt relieved, as if a massive weight had been lifted off their shoulders.
From the moment they learned of the invasion, they did everything they could to prepare. But no plan, no amount of experience, could erase the fear of what was coming. Because they knew many things… but not everything. And the worst kind of fear is that: the fear of the unknown.
Wanda, however, didn't share in their calm. With the scepter still in hand, she stepped toward Tony and pointed it at him.
Tension flared instantly. The team jumped into alert, voices rising—confused and concerned. But she paid them no mind. Her eyes were locked on Tony, and her voice was sharp as a blade.
"Tony Stark. Your weapons have caused immense harm. I'll give you the chance to prove who you are now. I'll look into your mind, and if you've truly changed… I'll forgive you."
"And if I haven't?" Tony asked, his smile meant to be casual, but weighed with unease.
"Then you'll die" Wanda answered, her tone unchanging.
The others tried to stop her, talk her down, dissuade her. But Tony raised a hand, cutting them off. He stood still, meeting her eyes with a mix of resolve and acceptance.
"Do it."
Wanda didn't hesitate. She connected to his mind… and saw everything. His past. His mistakes. The pressure. The guilt. The transformation. It was all there, bare, without defenses.
Only a second passed on the outside. But when she came back to herself, she met his gaze.
"I won't forgive what your weapons caused. But I won't kill you either. You save lives now… and killing you would mean condemning those you still have time to save."
Without another word, she turned around and began walking down the stairs.
Tony let out a breath and murmured with a half-smile:
"I guess I passed the test, huh?"
---
Wanda was already in the corridors when Natasha intercepted her.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, just… a bit weaker."
"A bit? You dove into the hive mind of an alien without flinching, but need a cosmic weapon to get into a human's? Call me crazy, but I don't think Tony's mind is that resilient."
Wanda averted her gaze and sighed.
"It wasn't because of him… I lost my powers. There's still something left, like a spark. It's as if, after that external magic entered me, I can now reach what was always there… inside."
"As long as you're okay," Natasha said gently. "I thought you'd kill him, no matter what you saw."
"I don't care if he's seeking redemption. I saw it… deep inside. Guilt. So much it could drive anyone mad. But he turned it into his engine, into his way of helping."
Natasha frowned.
"That doesn't sound like enough of a reason to spare him. This is about Laplace, isn't it?"
Wanda looked at her, surprised… and smiled.
"I knew you'd notice. Yes, Laplace spoke to me about Tony's importance. I didn't care at first, but he promised to help me… to recover what I lost."
Natasha's face tensed. 'Recover what she lost' could mean many things. But now wasn't the time to ask. Instead, she pulled Wanda into a firm hug.
"Maybe I can't replace what you lost, but you can count me as family."
Wanda stood still for a moment… then smiled. A single tear escaped her eye without permission.
"I know. I trust you. That's why… I'm doing this."
Natasha barely had time to look up when she felt something cold and metallic brush the back of her neck. The scepter. It had been there the whole time, but somehow, she hadn't noticed it.
Then she felt it.
A blink.
A fraction of a second.
Thousands of presences in her mind, like hundreds of thousands of consciousnesses brushing against her… and then vanishing. Though the connection remained. It wasn't control, not exactly. But yes… there was an order. A single command she could now execute.
Suicide.
Her blood ran cold.
"What is this?"
"They're HYDRA agents," Wanda replied. "All that remain. Now… they're completely loyal to SHIELD. I don't trust SHIELD, but I trust you, Natasha. They're embedded in positions of power across many countries. With this, SHIELD will be untouchable. And if they ever slip up… I know you'll do what's necessary."
Natasha stared at her. Her mind raced to process it all. In the end, she could only muster a faint smile.
"You can count on me."
Still… deep in her mind, something whispered that she had forgotten something important.
---
Once the area was secured, SHIELD agents arrived. Fury was at the front.
They recovered the remains of Cull Obsidian and what was left of Hive's body. They knew there was nothing to be gained from the latter. His body was just a shell, a tool. His true essence had been completely erased by Wanda.
But Cull… Cull was a different story. An alien with unknown biology was a gift to science.
"What will you use him for?" Steve asked, watchful.
"We don't know yet. But rest assured, it'll be for something good"
Fury replied. Then he changed the subject.
"Where are the cube and the scepter?"
He'd heard everything through intercepted comms. He knew what those weapons truly were: Infinity Stones. Thor had said he'd take them, so he didn't have much hope… but still, he wanted to try.
To his surprise, Steve frowned.
"The cube and the scepter?... I don't remember."
"You don't remember?"
Fury repeated gravely. He immediately ordered the rest of the team to be questioned.
The answer was the same. No one knew what had happened to them. As if… they'd never been there at all.
Full alert. SHIELD scanned the entire building, the surroundings… nothing.
Fury returned to base, frustrated. And ordered an investigation to be opened.
---
In his studio, Leonardo stared at the canvas in front of him. Remembering when he'd painted the Battle of New York… and then he noticed it. There, in the middle of the chaos, between explosions and lightning… was Gwen.
At first, he didn't think much of it. In the "films" playing in his mind, Gwen had been present, so it made sense he'd painted her too. But then he remembered: Gwen wasn't supposed to be there. She was an anomaly. A presence that didn't belong to this world.
He remembered his arguments with the system about Gwen's existence in this world. He remembered his own thoughts about how her presence could affect the course of events. And he reached a conclusion.
His memories didn't change. The movies did. They seemed to adapt… to the new timeline.
'So… I really can see the future'
he thought.
That was good. He could paint what was coming, even if the future had already shifted. But there was a condition: the movies only changed after he acted. They didn't anticipate his choices. They reacted to them.
And that… that was also a warning.
Now, as he painted, he felt fear. For the first time, real fear. That didn't happen when he painted the films before, which could only mean one thing.
It meant that the new future… was far darker than the last.
And he had to prepare.
The door opened. Wanda stepped in.
"Wanda. Welcome" he greeted, without looking away from the canvas. "I imagine everything went well."
"Everything went exactly as you said."
"That's good."
Their eyes met. There was a question in the air. Wanda voiced it.
"Can you really do it? Can you bring them back?"
Leonardo smiled.
"Not now. But I will. I promise you."
Then, as if remembering something amusing, he added:
"You know… you're lucky. Most people would be hunted down for breaking the rules like that."
Wanda raised an eyebrow.
"And you wouldn't?"
"Turns out the one who watches over those things… is kind of my boss."
He ended it with a smile. Then he focused.
"Did you bring them?"
Wanda raised her hand. Where before there was nothing, now two objects floated.
The scepter and the cube.
"Perfect" Leonardo said, taking them gently. And his smile deepened.
______________________________________
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