Beyond
Natasha
Tony flicked at the hangar wall, noting the resulting sound with approval. “Nice place you got here, Thor. I never knew there was so much common ground between ‘rustic’ and ‘futuristic.’”
We all knew the carefree banter was a mask for Tony to hide behind as a team of medical staff rushed Bruce off the jet by stretcher. The more Tony pretended not to care, the closer he was to breaking. I glanced at Pepper and gave a nearly imperceptible jerk of the head in Tony’s direction, but I was relieved to see in her eyes that she had already been thinking the same thing.
“Someone needs to go with Bruce, just in case. If all goes well, waking up in medical is likely to trigger intense flashbacks. If Hulk decides to come out… at this point he’s a wild card. Bruce says he’s on strike, but that’s unusual and could precede more unpredictable behavior. We have to protect Dr. Cho’s team and New Asgard should the need arise.” Even to my own ears, my assessment of the situation sounded callous, but we had to prioritize at the moment. Feelings had to wait.
Thor nodded. “I’ll follow them. I am the most likely to be able to restrain the Hulk should the situation call for it, and I’ve already met our guests. Korg and Lady Pepper will bring you to them for debriefing.”
Tony
Pepper appeared at my elbow.
“Hi honey,” I said, giving her a quick kiss.
“Can we talk for a moment?” she asked. “Before we head over the hall. Korg, would you please go on ahead with Natasha?”
“Sure.” I allowed myself to be pulled around the corner of the hangar. “What is it?” I ran my fingers along her cheek, reminding myself that she was there. “I’ve missed you.”
She smiled. “I’ve missed you too. How was your flight?”
“It was my jet; of course the flight was good.”
“Tony—”
I sighed. “Fine. It’s been a long day, and I could really use a drink. Or seven.” I changed the subject abruptly. “So who are these guests Thor wants us to meet, anyway?”
“A group of rogue space travelers that you are not going to believe.”
“Aliens don’t faze me, hon.”
Pepper raised her eyebrows, but didn’t comment. “Be careful. I know Iron Man is important to you, but I don’t want to lose you. We have a wedding to plan.”
“You’re not going to lose me.”
“Good.” She frowned, examining a stain on the wrist of my jacket. I had changed on the jet, but must have thrown back on the same jacket anyway. “How’s Bruce? Is he going to be okay?”
The weight I’d been carrying all evening suddenly seemed ten times heavier. “Okay? He slit his wrists, dammit. Of course he’s not going to be okay!”
Even as the words boiled forth in anger, they crumbled into grief. Pepper caught me as I sank to the ground.
“How I am going to save the world if I can’t even save the people I care about? Bruce has wounds none of us know how to heal. Come to find out, he’s been trying off himself for years now, years, Pepper, and none of us noticed. Not one of us on a team of superheroes could tell that one of our own was hurting. I always thought the Sokovia Accords fallout was the moment the Avengers failed as a team, but it turns out we failed before we even got started. I failed before we even got started.”
Pepper rubbed my back until the tears slowed and I could breathe again. “Tony, what do I always tell you?” she prompted gently.
“That I’ve got a sexy ass?” I quipped, clinging to humor as a lifeline out of the chasm of emotion I had accidentally fallen into.
She rolled her eyes. “No. That some things are bigger than you, beyond your control. And those things aren’t your fault. You aren’t that powerful.”
I tried to look wounded by the change in subject, but the truth was that being reminded I couldn’t control everything was surprisingly comforting. Pepper helped me to my feet.
“C’mon. You have a meeting to go to.”
Thor
Asgardian healers in traditional robes bustled around alongside nurses in scrub tops. The room itself was a blend of Midgardian and Asgardian technologies, holograms and magic existing side-by-side and intertwined in a fusion unique to the New Asgard xenobiology lab. If anyone could help, these were the people.
Loki pulled up an image, a magical projection of Banner, and separated it in two with a flick of his hands. On one side, the Hulk appeared, laying dormant with his life force strong and bright in the projection. On the other, however, Banner’s was flickering and weakening, a dimming purple light beside the brilliant green.
“Good, you’re here,” Helen said. “Your brother is attempting to bring out the Hulk.”
I nodded. “I’ll just… be over here until you need him contained.” This was Loki’s world, not mine. I stepped to the side where I would be out of the way, but close enough to intervene if the Hulk went on a rampage.
Loki’s face was furrowed with concentration and effort. “Come out, damn you,” he hissed through gritted teeth, pressing harder at his projection with the rays of magical energy emanating from his palms.
The green projection let out a roar.
Loki flew across the room and hit the wall with a resounding thunk. I rushed to his side.
“Loki?”
“Hulk says no.” Loki grimaced, and cracked his joints. “He’s not coming out.”
“Are you hurt?”
He waved off the concern quickly. “Nothing but bruises.”
Behind us, Banner’s life force was dimming even to my untrained eye.
“He needs blood,” one of the Midgardians insisted.
“We’ve prompted his body to replace the blood faster, but it’s still going to take longer than we have,” an Asgardian added.
“Any luck synthesizing a compound that will be compatible?”
One of the other technicians shook his head, looking harried. “No such luck. As it is, his own blood shouldn’t function under the radiation and physiological changes he’s got in him. We can’t synthesize what theoretically shouldn’t have been possible. No human blood would be compatible unless we could replicate the exact conditions of his unique mutation.”
I cleared my throat awkwardly. “Dr. Cho, if I may?” The room went quiet as if suddenly remembering the presence of a medical outsider. “I know very little of the science of what you are attempting to accomplish, but would the blood of a god be of use?”
Helen Cho looked at the Asgardian healers. “What is the radiation tolerance of the royal family?”
“My lady, King Thor’s immune system is impervious to many exogenous threats, and his body is highly tolerant of different environments,” the man offered respectfully. “His blood would be much more likely to be compatible with Banner’s than that of a Midgardian.”
She nodded, coming to a decision. “Get a blood sample and check the type for compatibility. If it’s a match, set up a transfusion immediately. We don’t have time to get it wrong.”
Loki approached me with a sanitizing wipe. “If I may do the honors.”
I rolled up my sleeve with a sigh. “Go ahead. I know you’ve been dying for an excuse to stab me for weeks now.”
He chuckled under his breath.
“Is this going to work?” I prodded.
The somber lines returned to my brother’s face. “It should.” Loki passed the thin glass slide to a Midgardian with hasty instructions I didn’t quite understand.
“What is that?” I demanded as he pulled out a second needle.
“Your blood hardly does Banner any good while still within your body. Now shut up, I’m trying to concentrate.”
I sat in silence and let Loki carry out his task, setting up what the medical staff seemed to be referring to as an IV while waiting for the hurried confirmation that the plan was a go.
“If you feel lightheaded,” Loki instructed, “stick your head between your knees. I don’t particularly care if you pass out, but working around you while unconscious would be most inconvenient.”
Tony
We reached the end of the hallway, marked with elaborately carved double doors. The Asgardians clearly had wasted no time in plying their crafts to make their new home beautiful.
“Here we are,” Korg said cheerfully.
“Thank you, Korg,” Natasha smiled at him.
Nothing could have prepared me for the other side of those doors.
Natasha
Tony was the first to break the silence.
“Is that a raccoon?”
“Is he blind or just stupid?” the creature in question demanded.
“Natasha Romanoff,” I offered in way of greeting, ignoring the animal’s sarcasm and hoping Tony would have the sense to do the same. “And you are?”
“Rocket. This here’s Starlord, Drax, Gamora, Mantis.”
“I am GROOT,” the tree announced to no one in particular.
This was going to be interesting.
Tony
The guardians had just finished laying out the details on Thanos when Thor re-entered the council room. All eyes in the room turned to the powerful warrior as he strode in, sporting what, under any other circumstances, would be a humorously small bandaid.
“Bruce?” Natasha asked, breaking the silence.
“Banner will pull through,” Thor proclaimed. Relief from all parties who knew of the situation was palpable in the room.
“Is that a Hulk bandaid?” I demanded incredulously.
“My brother has a strange sense of humor.” Thor pulled up a chair. “How goes the war council?”
“We’ve plotted the last known points of the various infinity stones on our star charts,” the Valkyrie offered. “So far it seems like the newcomers are right. Midgard is the most promising target, especially if he’s already potentially acquired at least one of the stones.”
“Has he?” Thor questioned. “Do we know that with certainty?”
Quill spoke up. “It’s a good bet.”
“We heard distress calls from Xandar two days ago,” Gamora explained, “But by the time we received them… too late to do any good. And if Xandar’s gone, he’s got the power stone. He can’t be allowed to get any of the others.”
"I say we kill him as soon as possible." Rocket rubbed his hands (paws?) together gleefully. "This planet has nukes, right? With a few modifications..."
"Nukes aren't an option." Gamora was adamant. "He has an infinity stone. That alone makes him more powerful than any of us can be. Our only chance is to out-plan him. If it comes down to a contest of raw strength, we will lose. And half the universe loses with us."
Natasha shook her head. "If we lose, everyone loses with us. There are no survivors in a situation like that. Only those who die, and those who are left behind."
"Then let's not lose," I said grimly. "Whatever it takes."