Dark Matter

“Let’s start from the beginning,” Natasha says, watching Constatine closely. She leans forward, idly toying with the stylus in her hands, watching Constantine closely.

“Oh, I know that tone of voice,” Constantine says with a sigh. “Interrogation.”

“Just an interview for now,” Natasha says pleasantly. “You don’t want me to move into interrogation. Let’s start from the beginning.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right about that. Right. Okay. So, from the top,” Constantine says, ashing out his cigarette on the floor in front of himself. “I’m John Constantine. I’m from a universe that’s a bit to the left of this one, cosmically speaking, and I came here because your Dr. Strange is the most annoying ghost I’ve ever had the displeasure of dealing with.”

“How did you get here from your universe?” Wong asks. “That shouldn’t be possible. Not without one of the Infinity Stones.”

“I had to prepare a special ritual Dr. Strange showed me, drain almost every bit of magic I have, and follow a spirit over here. Tearing open a hole in my reality wasn’t hard, but finding the spirit and walking the tree was pretty damn difficult,” Constantine says.

“Tree?” Okoye asks, quirking a brow.

“Yeah. I climbed Yggdrasil," Constantine says, idly waving his hand. He doesn’t pronounce it correctly; his accent all but butchers the word, and it takes a moment for Thor to recognize it. He goes stock still. “The doc said a serpent would lead me here, I just had to stay out of his sight while he walked the tree.”

Thor stares at him. “You walked Yggdrasil.”

“What, like it’s hard? Simple walk in the park, mate,” Constantine says. He’s pale, weak, and most of his skin seems to be made of bruises and cuts that have turned an ugly shade of green-yellow as they heal.

Thor gapes at him. Clint slowly raises his hand, catching Thor’s attention.

“Hi. What’s Yggdrasil?” Clink asks when Thor glances at him.

“Yggdrasil is the Tree of Life that rests at the center of the cosmos. It connects all nine realms through its roots and branches. It’s a font of creation and life itself, and therefore as dangerous as the void between stars. Not even the gods dare walk Yggdrasil,” Thor says. “Only my father, Odin, was brave enough to approach it. It’s where he gained his wisdom of the nine realms and powerful runes that fueled his magic. He hanged himself from Yggdrasil for nine days and nine nights.”

“Yeah, Odin as the Gallows God. I ran into him while he was hanging from it. Literally. Once I was done screaming my bloody head off, he gave me directions and a message for you,” Constantine says, gesturing with his cigarette.

"My father is dead," Thor says. His tone is carefully neutral, a calm that belies how much pain and grief he still carries over the loss of his family. "You met his spirit or a memory--”

Constantine shakes his head. “No, I met him. The Allfather. Time doesn't exactly follow rules there, so it might have been him while he was first hanging from the tree. Listen, mate, it's a really bloody big magic tree. Weird things are supposed to happen there. Work with me here."

Thor stares at him in disbelief for a long moment. "What did he say?"

"He said to keep the hammer with you at all times."

"The hammer is broken," Thor says after a long moment. “Shattered. I only have the pieces.”

Constantine shrugs. "Keep ‘em in your pocket then, I guess. I promised him I’d pass along the message if he’d point me in the direction I needed to go, and I’d rather not piss off Odin, if it’s all the same to you.”

Thor goes quiet, staring past Constantine, thoughtful and mildly overwhelmed by everyone Cosntantine’s told him. He walked Yggdrasil. He followed a serpent--and he only knows of one serpent brave and clever enough to walk the world tree--here. Which means Loki led him here. Something close to hope sparks within Thor, and he can feel his grief and shame melt away. Just a bit.

“Yggdrasil can be used like that?” Wong asks Constantine.

"Yggdrasil is huge. Its branches and roots reach Midgard. Every version of Midgard, in fact, which is why I needed Odin’s help. I took a bloody beating from the void storms that shake its branches, which is why I dropped in on you lot the way I did.”

“That explains the how. Why did Dr. Strange come to you?” Natasha asks.

“Convenience. I’m a magic worker like him--though he’s a bit stronger, I think--which means I was one of the only people capable of seeing him. And I’m an occasional member of the Justice League.”

“What’s the Justice League?” Rhodey asks.

“You guys, basically. Or close to it, I suppose. You know. Earth’s greatest defenders,” Constantine says, with exaggerated hand gestures, his expression caught somewhere between embarrassment and sheepishness. “A bit corny if you ask me, but they’ve proven themselves more often than not. I suppose you guys have the same motto?”

“Earth’s mightiest heroes,” Thor says. He watches Constantine closely, his mind racing. No wonder this mortal had been hurt when he arrived. Even the gods don’t dare travel between realms without reason. Even Odin would balk at that journey.

“Sure, if you like,” Constantine says. “End of the day, it evens out to the same thing: I'm from a different universe. Normally, we wouldn't have anything to do with each other. We wouldn't even know about each other. There’s a vast void between our universes, keeping us separate so we don’t muddle around in each other’s existence. But someone in this universe is poking holes into mine. Sneaking people over and taking them out, building bridges between the two that don’t last very long, but work long enough to stir up trouble."

Wong looks alarmed. "You're certain of this?”

"Very. It's playing merry hell with the void beasties between realities. Your Doctor is damn good at his job. Most were still asleep when I snuck over. That’s not going to last forever. It probably won’t last the next few months, in fact,” Constantine says. “Which is one of the reasons why I’m here.”

“Interdimensional travel isn’t meant to happen,” Wong says, half to himself. “It’s dangerous. The trip is deadly for all but the most powerful beings. Even taking into account your walk through Yggdrasil’s branches, the experience should have killed you from thirst and hunger due to the metaphysical distance.”

“Normally, you’d be right, but your universe is closer than it should be. According to the good doctor, Thanos is using your universe to drag everyone else’s towards it like a black hole. Ours was closest, cosmically speaking, and he’s dragging it closer.”

Wong looks horrified. “Why?”

“He’s been trying to break through the interdimensional barrier between our universes, but he can’t pull it off, so he's bringing us here,” Constantine replies.

“He’s that strong?” Banner asks.

“He has that bloody Infinity Gauntlet. As long as he’s here, he’s the most powerful thing in the multiverse,” Constantine remarks.

"Which means he can force the two realities to collide," Wong says numbly.

"What happens if he manages that?" Natasha asks, looking between Wong and Constantine.

"No idea, but it won't be very bloody pleasant, I can promise you that. Plus the things that live between our realities will find it easier to wiggle their way into both universes, weakening the barriers further.”

"And that’s also bad, I’m guessing," Rhodey says. He looks lost; Thor knows that Rhodey is a man of science, and doesn’t easily accept explanations of magic. He adapts well, but the talk of power that he doesn’t understand irks him the same way it does Tony Stark.

"Depends on your definition of bad, I suppose,” Constantine drawls, turning to face Rhodey with a shrug. “Do you fancy slap fighting the Dweller-In-Darkness on the way to the pub?"

Rhodey pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. “That makes no sense. He has the Infinity Gauntlet. He has all of the Infinity Stones. If he thinks it, he can make it happen. If he wanted to get into your universe, he’d already be there.”

“It’s a bit more complicated than that,” Wong says. He looks at Constantine with less suspicion. “Stephen knows what’s happening?”

“Does he ever,” Constantine replies. He plucks the cigarette out of his mouth and taps the side of his head. “He shared his memories with me. Not the most pleasant experience I’ve ever had. He used the Eye to see how the timeline was going to play out back on Titan and planted that knowledge, plus his last few living memories, right inside my brain while I was asleep.”

Wong nods, going quiet and thoughtful. The Avengers shift, bristling with questions. Clint is the first to break the silence.

“So, Thanos is in your universe right now?” Clint asks. “Going in and out of it? Building an army?”

“Not him, but he is trying to get there. He’s drilled holes into it. He’s slipped in a few of his stronger people and minions, if what the doc says is true.”

"Why can't Thanos break into your universe?" Natasha asks.

“Two reasons. The first being that your Infinity Stones need to acclimate to my universe. There’s a whole energy thing involved in all this,” Constantine says, waving his hand impatiently. “Your stones can become infinitely powerful in my universe, but only if they’re allowed time to adjust to it. Once a stone gets that new energy signature, it can be used in both universes freely."

"That sounds too simple," Steve says after a moment.

"Well, it is the simplified version. The problem is that the stones need to adjust to the new universe. The stones are more of a curse than anything else when they’re taken to a different universe," Constantine says, shrugging. "For awhile, whoever has a stone is weakened by it. It draws on the only energy source it's used to, and that's usually the stone bearer's life force. It can be fatal if you’re not careful, and it’ll definitely weaken you."

“So, if he has all of the stones, then hopping next door would probably kill him outright,” Clint says. “There’s a nice thought.”

“If only he were that foolish,” Okoye remarks.

“Thanos has to give up each stone to acclimate them,” Wong says slowly. “He has to trust his minions with the stones, send them into a universe completely free of his control, and wait for them to return. And they have to survive the attempt, since the stones will harm them until they adjust to their new universe. That limits the people he can use.”

“Trust does not come easily to a warlord as bloody as Thanos,” Okoye notes. “He would not dare give up all of the stones or a way to recall his minions if necessary.”

“The Black Order worships him as a god,” Thor says. “He doesn’t need to worry about their loyalty.”

“Oh, that son of a bitch. He’s recreating the Battle of New York,” Clint says, his tone flat. The others look at him and he sighs. “Think of it. He sends one of his most trusted people into Constantine’s universe with the Tesseract--the space stone--which lets them pull through more and more people as the stone adjusts to this new universe.”

“Got it in one. Good job, Ollie,” Constantine says, sticking his cigarette back into his mouth. He talks around it easily. Clint sends him an utterly baffled look at the nickname. Constantine points at the picture of Peter Parker hovering among the holograms. “The thing of it is, it won’t work the way he wants. Not really. Your Thanos has a problem, and it’s in the shape of that kid on the screen.”

Thor looks between Constantine and Peter’s image on the holoscreen. Rhodey is the first to speak, to no one’s surprise.

“How?” Rhodey asks.

Constantine blows out a wall of cigarette smoke and waves his hands. An image of Tony and Peter appears in the smoke, hauling against Thanos’s arm with all of their might. The Guardians of the Galaxy and Dr. Strange have Thanos pinned. The Avengers stare at the image, transfixed.

"Oh, holy shit," Rhodey says quietly. "They trapped him."

"Right, welcome to Dr. Strange’s memories from before his death. Give me a moment, I haven’t done spell work like this in awhile,” Constantine says. The image fades in, then out, then turns sharp again as he concentrates. After a few moments of struggle, he stabilizes the image.

“I’ll be damned,” Rocket says quietly. “Mantis managed to knock the bastard unconscious. Look at ‘em. They could’ve pulled it off if Groot and I were there.”

“If you’d been there, you’d have been killed,” Constantine says. “I saw the same timelines as Dr. Strange. Trust me, this is the kindest one by far.”

The gets a wide range of reactions from the Avengers, from Natasha’s puzzled but steady frown to Clint’s scowling fury. Rhodey gets them back on track.

“What does this have to do with Peter?” Rhodey asks.

“Thanos doesn’t know it, but the kid swiped the Soul Stone right out of that glove of his while he was trapped. Well, most of it. There was a piece left, and that piece had enough power to kill half your universe," Constantine explains. He waves his hands, the image moves. Peter suddenly stumbles back from Thanos and Tony both, looking at his hands in blatant confusion until Tony grits out a plea for help. He scrambles back into position, but keeps glancing at his own hand.

"Clever kid," Clint murmurs.

“Lucky kid,” Natasha says. “Infinity stones aren’t meant to be held like that from what I’ve researched.”

“Not unless the stone chooses you,” Constantine says. “Your Dr. Strange gave me a crash course on the buggers.”

“Now he has the oldest and most powerful stone in creation,” Wong says.

“You’re telling me a sixteen year old boy has an Infinity stone, and this is a good thing?” Clint asks. “Someone used the Tesseract to invade our planet, and they weren’t even using it at its full power. The kid is basically carrying around a multidimensional nuke.”

"It is better than Thanos having it," Okoye points out. Clint stops to consider that and nods, conceding the point.

"Peter’s responsible. He can be trusted with a stone," Rhodey says, eyes focusing on Tony and Peter in the small image.

“What’s the most responsible thing you can do with a stone of infinite power?” Steve asks.

“You don't use it,” Clint answers.

"Exactly," Wong says. "Or use it sparingly. The Eye of Agamotto--the Time stone--gave the Sorcerer Supreme absolute control over time. Using it required precision and supreme discipline. More often than not, the best course of action is to not use it."

"The kid hasn't used it much from what Dr. Strange told me," Constantine says.

“Which would explain why Thanos hasn’t found him. Peter hasn’t used the stone yet,” Thor says.

“He hasn’t used it in a big way, at least,” Constantine counters. “He’s using it a bit, but only a little at a time. I’m not sure how he’s managing that. It’s like opening up a dam against a river.”

“Stephen could be helping him restrain the stone’s power. Limiting it,” Wong adds, his expression thoughtful.

“Like easing off pressure in a steam engine,” Rhodey says.

Constantine nods, digging out yet another cigarette. Wong frowns at him.

“It shouldn’t have been possible for him to steal a stone. They aren’t things. They’re almost sentient,” Wong says.

“He’s right,” Clint says quietly, eyes going distant. “The Space stone spoke to me when Loki had me under his spell. There is a kind of intelligence there. I mostly just saw images. Things. And apparently had very blue eyes for awhile.”

“He passed some kind of judgement test for the Soul stone and it hopped over to him, according to Dr. Strange.” At the Avengers’ curious looks, he simply shrugs. “Intelligence cuts both ways, mates.”

"I am so lost," Banner says after a moment.

"Right, well, to simplify it: Thanos is trying to get to my universe. He can't do it because your Spider-Man stole the Soul stone out of his fancy glove during their boxing match. There was enough residual energy for Thanos to pull off the Snap, but he can’t make the jump to other universes to pull off that same trick without it. So, now he’s trying to get one of his people to sneak over with one of the stones while simultaneously yanking our two universes together. Got it?”

Banner blinks, then nods. “Okay, yeah. That makes sense.”

“You probably should’ve led with that,” Rhodey remarks dryly.

Constantine shrugs, pulling another drag off of his cigarette and adding smoke to the floating image of the battle on Titan.

Steve stares at the image, hard. "What happened to Tony?"

“Sorry?” Constantine asks, turning to face Steve. His confusion is genuine. “Ah, which one---listen, I’m going to count myself lucky remembering your names, I don’t know everyone in Dr. Strange’s memories. I hate thinking in someone else’s voice.”

“The man in the red and gold suit next to Peter,” Steve says, pointing at the frozen image of Tony straining against the Gauntlet. “We don’t know what’s happened to any of the people in that image, except for Peter and Dr. Strange. You have Dr. Strange’s memories, right?”

“Yes,” Constantine says. “Of Titan, at least. That’s as much of his brain as I’m comfortable having inside my head, personally.”

“Did he see what happened to Tony? Or the rest of the people in that image?” Steve asks.

Constantine hesitates for a very long moment, squinting into the air above Steve’s head. His eyes become unfocused, as if he’s watching some internal image. After a long moment, he pales and grimaces.

“Yeah. He did,” Constantine says, glancing away and rubbing the back of his neck. “Bloody hell.”

“Can you show us?” Natasha asks, her tone even and gentle.

Constantine hesitates, glancing around at the Avengers, as if suddenly realizing he’s outnumbered and, for all intents and purposes, trapped with them. “You won’t kill the messenger, right?”

“Would your Superman kill you if you gave him bad news?” Steve asks.

“No,” Constantine answers. “The man’s the ultimate boy scout.”

“Then you're more right about Steve than you know,” Clint says. He jerks his chin to the image suspended in smoke. “Show us. We can take it.”

“Right, okay,” Constantine says, taking a deep breath. He stretches out a hand lined in golden power, and sends out a tendril of magic towards the floating image. “We’ll just watch one of the good doctor’s memories, yeah? I’m sure no one will be upset by this.”

Thor can feel the magic tickle his skin as Constantine reaches out, grabs the smoke, and expands it. Suddenly, they aren’t looking at a small image hovering within cigarette smoke; the spell functions like one of Stark’s holograms, covering the room with a simulation of Titans. It’s as if the Avengers are there, on Titan, while the Guardians and Tony and Peter struggle against Thanos. Thor can smell the dust, feel the wind, and the persistent empty heat of the long dead planet. With a flick of Constantine’s wrist, the memory begins.

“Hurry,” Mantis grits out. “He is very strong--”

“We’ll have to pry his fingers back to get the glove off,” Peter mutters to Tony. Tony nods.

Steve stands at the head of the crowd, eyes taking in every detail. Thor paces restlessly, like a caged lion, eyeing Thanos with deadly intent. Clint and Natasha stand beside one another, grim looks on their faces. Rhodey stares at Tony and Peter. Okoye keeps separate from the others, watching events play out with a tactician’s eye.

They watch Quill’s breakdown. Thanos shaking off the trance. Nebula’s arrival. The moon.

“He had to pull a moon down to stop them,” Bruce mutters.

“And all that did was piss off Tony,” Natasha says.

Peter swings after the Guardians, catching and saving their lives, suspending them from his webs as he dances around flaming rock and debris. Tony faces off against Thanos. His suit changes on a whim, defending, attacking, the nanites reshaping themselves at his command. The suit is no match for Thanos. The fight is lost when Tony is forced to sacrifice his armor for offense. When Thanos drives the nanite blade through Tony’s stomach, the Avengers wince or glance away. Constantine freezes the memory.

“It really doesn’t get much better after this,” he says in the sudden silence. “I’m not sure you lot want to see--”

“Show us,” Steve says.

“Right,” Constantine says.

The memory begins again. Thanos mocking Tony, preparing to obliterate him with the Gauntlet, Strange interrupting the deathblow by surrendering the stone. Thanos disappears. Tony stares at Strange, betrayed, as Peter drops down and runs to Tony’s side.

For a long moment, nothing happens.

And then the Snap. The Guardians collapse into ash first. Dr. Strange begins to fall apart after them. His vision flakes apart; he’s fighting against death just long enough to trigger a spell. Before he collapses completely, he gets one last look at Peter staggering towards Tony, trails of ash rising from his shoulders as he stumbles.

“I don’t feel so good--”

Darkness falls. Constantine flicks his hand, ending the spell, before grabbing another cigarette and lighting it. He takes in a long drag and lets out the smoke slowly.

“I hate that part,” he says, looking as sick and miserable as he did the moment he popped into their universe. “I keep seeing it when I sleep. It’s no fun being inside someone else’s head when they die.”

A long silence follows the memory. Rocket, who’s been silent until now, curses quietly. “He killed all of them.”

“At least we know where to find Tony,” Rhodey says numbly. “Rocket, I know you’re--”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll swing by Titan when I can,” he mutters. “I’ll probably find the Benatar there, too. Might as well get my ship back.”

Rhodey nods, satisfied, though he looks like he’s fighting back a wave of grief. The rest of the room goes silent, rattled by the vision of Titan that Constantine showed them. Thor lets his mind wander, impressed by the sorcerer, and worried for the man’s home. He’s equally worried about Peter. There’s a sense of urgency now that the realization that the Infinity War hasn’t ended occurs to each of the Avengers. Thanos won his war against the Avengers here, but there are gods know how many other universes, and he clearly intends to take the fight to them. And right now, the only Avenger capable of countering him is Tony Stark’s apprentice.

Constantine sits down heavily, snuffling out his cigarette with a long sigh. “I don’t suppose someone could bring me a drink? Or food. I’ll eat anything at this point.”

His voice is weary, and he looks almost as pale as he did when he first appeared in their midst. Steve clears his throat.

“We do. Just sit tight, Mr. Constantine,” Steve says. He looks at Natasha for a moment, then the others. “In fact, I think we should take a breather after that. I’m sure we could all use the fresh air.”

“Good idea. Let’s take a break,” Natasha says, slowly standing up from her seat. “When we get back, I think we’d better start making plans.”

Murmured agreement follows that. Rhodey mutters something about calling Pepper and Happy. Banner nods, rubbing the back of his head, his earlier good cheer gone. Clint says nothing; he never saw his family collapse into ash, and Dr. Strange’s memory of Titan has rattled him. Wong has already left, presumably to get some of his famous tea. Okoye merely nods.

Thor watches the others leave, looks to Constantine, and then walks past the wizard, briefly clapping him on the shoulder he moves past. The man jumps in his skin, but offers a weak, if confused, grin to Thor. Thor returns to his room to grab the remains of his hammer. The pieces are little more than shattered steel and wood, but if Odin asks that he carry it, then he will.

* * *

Peter doesn’t stay awake long enough to join in on Tim and Duke’s games. In fact, he pretty much passes out in the back seat once Dick drives out of Crime Alley. He doesn’t stir for most of the ride back to the manor. Dick watches him through the rearview mirror and can’t help but think he looks painfully small and thin. A part of him wonders if he looked that small and lost the night Bruce took him in.

“As much as I appreciate your concern for Master Peter,” Alfred says. “I’d appreciate it if you kept your eyes on the road a bit more, sir.”

“Right, sorry, Alfred,” Dick replies, focusing on the road again. The highway is busy, but not terribly so; if he needed to, he could drive home blindfolded. That probably wouldn’t make him very popular with Alfred, however. “Did Jason say where he was headed?”

“No, he did not,” Alfred replies. “But I believe you know where he’ll be.”

Dick sighs. He does know. Ever since Spider-Man’s death, Dick and Jason have been watching over the part of Crime Alley that Spider-Man cleaned up. Primarily the playground and surrounding neighborhood, but a few other spots, too. Lately, they’ve been watching over candlelight vigils and small memorials set up in Spidey’s honor.

“I should be there,” Dick says after a moment.

“You have other responsibilities now, Master Richard,” Alfred says gently.

Dick glances up at the rearview mirror. Peter is asleep, head resting against the window, bundled up in a coat and hat that look too big for him. Alfred’s right, of course; he can’t let his grief for Spider-Man prevent him from helping Peter. He’s Peter’s guardian now, after all. Even if the legality of that is questionable.

The rest of the drive passes in silence. Dick parks inside the manor’s massive garage and carries Peter up to his room. Alfred follows, carrying Peter’s things with them. They pass Duke and Tim in the family room on the second floor, who both look up with alarm when they see Peter.

"Sorry, guys, but I don’t think Peter’s going to join in tonight," Dick says. “I think moving took it out of him.”

“I wondered how long he’d stay awake,” Duke says, standing up and walking over to Alfred to help him with the boxes.

“How bad was it?” Tim asks quietly.

“Bad,” Dick says with a sigh. “Come on, get the door for us.”

Tim hurries ahead of the group, opening Peter’s room for them. The room has changed a bit since Peter last slept here. The closet is filled with clothes and shoes, the small living area in the corner has new recliners and a small sofa tucked into the corner, and a new laptop rests in the middle of the desk. It doesn’t have any of the personal touches of the other bedrooms like Tim’s photography wall, or Duke’s puzzle games and card collections, but that should change soon enough. Dick sets Peter onto the bed and tucks him in while Duke sets down the boxes. Something tumbles out of the box, rolling across the floor. Dick bends down to pick it up. He lifts it up and stops.

In his hand is a tiny version of himself in his old Nightwing suit.

"He got that at Batburger with us awhile back," Duke says at his questioning look. "He said it was his good luck charm."

He isn’t sure how to feel about that. He stares at himself for a long moment before setting the Nightwing figurine on the nightstand and standing up from the bed. A thought occurs to him as he leaves Peter’s bedroom with Duke, Tim, and Alfred.

He hasn’t told Starfire that he’s technically a father now.