Ready, Aim, Fire
With our backs to the wall, the darkness will fall
Floating in the vast nothingness, slowly suffocating, he watches as his sacrifice- thank god- pays off, watches at the Chitauri mothership explodes in a gorgeous catastrophe of flames and destruction.
We never quite thought we could lose it all
He hadn’t realized the nightmares that sight would bring- hadn’t realized just how tiny he was, in comparison to the vastness of the universe they thought they knew. But once he knew- the second he became aware of just how bigthis really was, he got to work. He worked tirelessly, aiming to protect the world from something they didn’t even know about. They called him crazy. Maybe he was.
Ready, aim, fire- ready, aim, fire
Ultron was primarily his idea. He’d just wanted something to rely on, to protect the world while his back was turned. A suit of armor around the world. Ultron failed- almost destroyed the world, instead of saving it. The Avengers, of course, saved it- but at what cost?
An empire’s fall in just one day, you close your eyes and the glory fades
The Sokovia Accords. He was so close- Steve had almost signed. But then he opened his big mouth, and Steve threw the pen down. He still thinks about the airport, and when he closes his eyes, he can still see the iconic red, white, and blue shield coming down at him, lodging itself in his chest, can still feel the pain. He can still hear Steve’s words, ‘He’s my friend.’He can feel them cut into his heart, and sometimes, when he’s alone with his thoughts, he replies, ‘So was I.’He was chasing something that didn’t exist, he supposes.
Ready, aim, fire- ready, aim, fire away
He’s fighting tooth and nail, like it’s life or death- because it is. If they fail- if hefails, then it’s not just his life. It’s his, the kid’s, Pep’s, Rhodey’s, half the Earth’s, half the universe’s. Billions upon billions of people are waiting on bated breath, depending on them to win this fight. This is what he was terrified of. This is why the world needed a suit of armor around it. Unfortunately, he was one man, and one man was not enough to save Earth- the universe, alone. And that’s what he was, wasn’t he? Alone.
Ready, aim, fire- ready, aim, fire away
Turns out he was wrong. While, no, one lone man can’t save the universe, he didn’t do it alone. He wasn’t alone. He settles back against some debris, fading quickly. The suit wasn’t built for him to survive in. He’d served his purpose, and so did it. But he’s struggling to hold on, just a little longer, because maybe he was wrong again, maybe this wasn’t the endgame, maybe-
“You can rest, now.”
He can rest? She was always right, wasn’t she? A weight is lifted from his tired shoulders, and he smiles, surrounded by his family.
He can rest.