Chapter Text
Tony was sitting in the gaming room he’d built for the kids. He sat on one of the couches, watching as Peter and Kamala, who had just finished a school day, taught Rocket and Groot how to play Mario Kart.
Tony raised an eyebrow as he listened to the four of them arguing.
“I am Groot,” the teenage tree said in resignation.
Kamala giggled. “Sorry, buddy, but that’s not enough when you’re up against Kamala Khan!” she finished proudly.
Peter grinned, pressing the buttons on his controller harder as he said, “Well, I hope Kamala Khan is ready to lose to Peter Parker.”
Tony smirked until he noticed Peter pressing the buttons a little too hard and called out, “Hey, Underoos, go easy there. The controllers aren’t built for superhuman strength.”
Peter shot him a sheepish look and called back, “Sorry, Uncle Tony.”
The distraction was all Kamala needed, as a moment later, she jumped in her seat and screamed giddily, “Aha! Ms. Marvel for the win!”
Peter pouted. “Not fair, Uncle Tony distracted me.”
Kamala stretched her neck with her powers so she could look back at Tony without turning, then said cheerfully, “Thanks, Uncle Tony. You’re the best.”
Tony’s eye twitched. Why was he always getting pulled into their arguments?
Rocket threw his controller aside, yelling, “This game is rigged! I’m Rocket, the best pilot in the universe! I can’t lose a speed match to a little human like that!”
Tony glared at the alien and said, outraged, “Hey, Raccoon, break your own stuff, not mine.”
At the same time, Kamala yelled, offended, “I’m not small!”
Peter chuckled, “Ummm…”
Before Peter could make another comment, Kamala glared at him and said dangerously, “Remember that I can call MJ anytime and tell her you canceled your last date because you forgot to do your homework.”
Peter’s jaw clicked shut, and he silently raised his hands in surrender.
Tony had to admit this was a little amusing. These days, he spent more and more time with the kids in rooms like this, ever since Carol, Rhodey, and Friday set a time limit on his lab work.
He could admit he had a tendency to overwork himself, especially with all the recent projects—finishing touches on the Earth defense system, Stephen’s wedding, the entire Maximoff mess, and relocating the Mind Stone to a newly built safe house.
Just as Rocket was about to launch himself forward, Friday’s distressed voice came through the speakers. “Boss, we have an emergency code descent!”
Tony jumped up from the couch. Before he could ask anything, the screen, which had shown Kamala’s victory, was suddenly filled with T’Challa’s face.
Tony walked closer to the screen and asked, “What’s the situation, Simba?”
Ignoring the nickname, the king of Wakanda went straight to business. “Ten minutes ago, a spaceship was detected by our furthest sensors. We tried to establish communication, and after five minutes of attempts, we received only one message in return: Hand over the stone, or pay a heavy price.”
The door to the room opened, and Nebula walked in, but Tony focused on the screen and thought out loud. “They said ‘stone,’ which means they’re not aware there’s more than one on Earth. That’s good. But how are they here so soon?”
“It’s not Thanos who’s coming,” Nebula informed him in her usual flat tone. Tony turned to look at her questioningly, so the blue space warrior elaborated. “Thanos would have sent a force to scout the planet first, and considering how afraid he is of Earth, it would probably be two of his Black Order.”
T’Challa frowned. “If their purpose is to scout the planet, the threat would be counterproductive to their efforts.”
Nebula just shrugged and commented dryly, “The Black Order are idiots. Why do you think Thanos mostly relied on me and Gamora? They expected to find a backwater planet they could infiltrate unnoticed. When they received our transmission, they probably saw it as an opportunity to grab the stone easily, so they sent the threat.”
Tony hummed and asked, “Any idea which ones?”
Nebula shrugged again. “They’re all stupid enough.”
Tony looked at the nearest camera and asked, “Fri, who’s available?”
A moment later, Friday’s response came through the speakers. “The Defenders are all in the tower and gearing up; Mom and Colonel Man are getting ready as well. Valkyrie, Hulk, Loki, Hope, and Scott are available Avengers. The Guardians are present and battle-ready, too. The Rogues are waiting for some action as well.”
T’Challa then followed up. “I already sent Okoye to gather a force for the coming battle. The guards at the safe house are already preparing the field to our advantage, as per the plan.”
Tony nodded, but before he could reply, Friday spoke again. “Mom just passed on the orders. Stranger Danger is in the tower and prepared to open a portal for everyone going to fight. All available fighters in the tower are to join except the Young Avengers, who will remain here, guarded by Loki and Groot.”
The tree looked dejected and said, “I am Groot.”
Rocket nodded and grumbled, “Groot’s a member of our team! Your captain can’t keep him here!”
Tony sighed. “Look, she has her reasons. Thanos doesn’t know we have Loki on our side, and it’s better to keep it that way until the Titan himself comes around. Groot’s still a teenager—do you really want him out there against two of the galaxy’s worst beings?”
Rocket grumbled, conceding that Tony had a point.
T’Challa cleared his throat, reminding Tony he was still on the screen. When Tony returned his attention, the king said, “I must join my forces and make our way to the battle location. I will see you there, Tony.”
“Good flight, Simba,” Tony replied before the screen returned to Princess Peach dancing in victory.
“Boss, those leaving for the fight are gathering on practice level 16,” Friday informed him.
Tony glanced at Rocket, and the raccoon started following him out of the room. Tony was honestly surprised neither Peter nor Kamala protested about not being included.
When Tony and Rocket reached the 16th floor, everyone else was already there. To be fair, Rocket had needed to grab his jetpack and upgraded weapon from his lab, while Tony changed into a new track suit.
As soon as the Rogues noticed him, Barton sneered and called out, “Forget your suit, Stark, or are you finally doing everyone the favor of dying today?”
His sneer turned to a scowl when Tony ignored him and Rhodey began speaking. “Everyone here? The plan is clear: our goal is to protect the safe house and the stone inside at all costs. Take down any alien threats you encounter. We’ll be fighting on uninhabited land, so you can go all out, but keep in mind your allies’ positions so you don’t injure them by accident.”
Carol also looked around and added, “Once the enemy starts attacking, keep an ear out for the comms and be ready to follow orders and act on any information War Machine and I provide.” Her gaze lingered a little longer on three people in particular.
Barton and Rogers frowned, while Romanoff kept a blank face.
Rhodey turned to Stephen and said, “Dr. Strange, the portal, please.”
The Sorcerer nodded and opened a portal that stretched the entire length of the wall.
Through it, they could see a large clearing at the edge of a forest. Soon enough, they all stepped through, with Strange the last to cross before he closed the portal leading back to the tower.
Still facing the group, Stephen sighed and grumbled loudly, “I wish I could have brought a couple more sorcerers with me, but most of the order refused to sign the Accords, and those who did are still dealing with the Maximoff issue.”
Stephen missed the glares from Rogers and Barton at the mention of the witch.
Before an argument could break out, a voice called, “My friends, welcome to our neck of the woods, as they say in your home country.”
Tony turned to see T’Challa in his Black Panther suit walking toward them, General Okoye at his side, clenching her battle spear.
When the general locked eyes with Tony, she crossed her arms in Wakanda’s usual salute and bowed slightly. Tony returned the greeting easily.
Rhodey stepped forward and shook hands with T’Challa, saying, “Good to see you, your highness. What’s our status?”
T’Challa replied, “Today, I’m not a king but a warrior fighting for his planet. According to Friday, the enemy ship will be upon us in the next few minutes. The force field has already been set up around the safe house. I brought twenty-four of my best warriors to aid us.”
Rhodey was about to reply when a shadow began blocking the sun. Looking up, they saw a donut-shaped spaceship descending.
Carol sighed and said confidently, “I suppose we should go ahead and greet them, War Machine.”
Rhodey paused. “We don’t want to give ourselves away as the ones directing everyone, so maybe if we send someone else, they won’t notice us at first.”
Carol considered it and nodded. Gamora pointed at Strange and added, “Their equipment will probably pick up the second stone by now, so you might as well send him.”
Stephen nodded, willing to take on the task. After all, he’d bargained with some of the worst demons out there. (Tony missed the days when his biggest problems were enhanced megalomaniacs pretending to be terrorists.)
Then Rhodey spoke up. “And since they’re already familiar with Iron Man, Tony should join you.”
Sure, what the hell. Tony had dealt with a corrupt board of directors using his company to sell weapons under the table—this should be a piece of cake by comparison.
A beam of light descended from the ship, creating a tunnel from the sky to the ground. When it retracted, two figures appeared at the edge of the clearing, right on the beach, with the water behind them.
The first figure was Hulk-sized, but unlike the Hulk, this monster had no human facial features. With no nose, ruby eyes, and skin that looked like it was made of stone, the thing really did look like a monster from stories and films. The creature was slightly bent, likely due to the massive weapon it carried, resting it on the ground.
The second figure was smaller, about as tall as Tony, but he was floating, making him appear taller than the monster beside him. The man had a smooth face with pale white skin, no nose, and long arms and fingers that he kept moving.
Gamora quickly explained, “Ebony Maw has no physical prowess and is useless in hand-to-hand combat, but he has powerful telekinetic abilities that have defeated opponents much stronger than him. He’s the voice of the Black Order. The monster next to him is Cull Obsidian. His skin is impenetrable, and his strength is almost equal to your green monster’s. He never talks or thinks for himself; he just follows orders.”
There was a pause on the heroes’ side before Carol commented dryly, “Bruce goes with them; the Hulk will be useful here.”
Bruce stood straight and nodded.
The three of them stepped forward. Before they could leave, Rogers called out, “Wait. Tony still hasn’t put his armor on; you can’t send him out.”
He was ignored, and the trio began walking toward the two Black Order members. As they walked, the floating alien clasped his hands together as if praying and began to speak dramatically. “Hear me and rejoice! You have had the privilege of being saved by the great Titan. You may think this is suffering. No—it is salvation. Smile, for even in death, you have become children of…”
Tony had had enough of this nonsense and cut Maw off with his usual snark. “I’m sorry, but Earth is closed today.”
Maw seemed to frown, though it was hard to tell on his face. He looked at Stephen and asked, “Stone Keeper, does this chattering monkey speak for you?”
Strange took another step forward, making a complicated motion with his hands so that two magical circles appeared in front of his fists. With a frown, the sorcerer retorted, “He’s my friend, and while his words are simple, they are correct. You are trespassing on this planet.”
Tony smirked and pointed toward their ship with his thumb, adding mockingly, “That means screw off, Squidward.”
Maw growled. Tony doubted he’d actually seen SpongeBob to understand the insult, but he clearly knew it was an insult. The alien turned to his companion and said, anger in his voice, “The insolent one—dispose of him.”