After Vision helped clear the nearby swarms of zombies to ensure Madam Herta remained undisturbed, the group moved out with practiced speed.
Two aircraft roared to life simultaneously, peeling away into the sky and streaking toward different horizons.
Wakanda.
The shimmering blue energy shield that once stood as an impenetrable line of defense for the nation was nowhere to be seen.
In stark contrast to the vibrant, sun-drenched landscapes of the past, the earth below was now a grisly mosaic of blood and shredded flesh. Across this wasteland, the undead shuffled with aimless, hollow steps.
"What... what happened here?" T'Challa stammered, staring down at his kingdom from the clouds in sheer disbelief.
"Wakanda..." Okoye's gaze went vacant. She couldn't wrap her mind around it; she had been away from home for a single day, and in that heartbeat, her world had withered into this. And it wasn't just the dead—there were uninvited guests among the ruins.
"We must restore the status quo first," Vision said, turning to the group.
"Only then can we muster the strength to repel these invaders. However, we must consider the possibility that our enemies will also be restored to their full senses."
He remained unnervingly calm.
As long as Wanda wasn't in the equation, Vision was the most reliable teammate one could ask for.
"That purple-skinned individual," Vision added, "the stones on his gauntlet share the same primal origin as the Mind Stone."
"Those are the Infinity Stones," Bruce Banner said, a chill running down his spine despite the Hulk's presence within him.
Even seeing Thanos in a state of decay made his blood run cold. "Each one holds unfathomable power. If Thanos regains his mind, we're looking at a threat beyond comprehension."
"But we have to do it," the Winter Soldier said flatly.
Sharon nodded beside him. "Most people on Earth can't survive long without food or water. There are children and the elderly to think about. Every second we wait to reverse the zombification, the worse the fallout becomes."
The thought of zombies actively hunting for water was a nightmare; as long as they were carbon-based organisms with such high activity levels, their biological needs wouldn't just vanish.
"Besides, facing that alien... it gives me the creeps," Peter Parker muttered. Though no one could see his face behind the mask, the strain in his voice was obvious.
"Peter's instincts are never wrong," Happy added, his expression a mask of unease.
Compared to the others, Happy's only real claim to fame was his stint as a bodyguard—a resume that felt worthless on a battlefield like this.
He didn't have the death-defying resolve of a hero; his words were half-validation for Peter and half-terror for his own skin. If there was an exit strategy, he'd have taken it in a heartbeat.
"Then let's fix the world first." The consensus was reached. It was a gamble that might make their enemies more dangerous, but if they failed to cure humanity just to win a fight, they might as well let Thanos win.
With that, they banked the ship toward the heart of Wakanda, aiming for the communications hub.
However, their approach was far from the ghost-run they intended.
From below, despite the throbbing, split-skull agony of his infected mind, Thanos looked up.
Driven by a vestigial instinct, he reached out. A violent flare of purple light from the Power Stone tore through space, lashing around the aircraft like a titan's whip.
"We're caught!" Peter yelled.
Happy and Kurt, the most "human" of the lot, barely had time to process the words before the world tilted. The rest of the team realized the gravity of the situation instantly.
Realizing it, however, didn't mean they could fix it.
They were hundreds of meters up with no leverage; if the engines died, they were looking at a terminal freefall. Only Vision and the Hulk stood a chance of walking away from that impact.
Vision didn't hesitate. He funneled the energy of the Mind Stone to counter the Power Stone's grip.
Golden radiance surged, desperately trying to burn away the purple veins crawling across the fuselage, but the struggle was lopsided.
"I cannot save the plane," Vision declared with clinical speed. "But I will ensure your safety to the best of my ability."
"Buddy, I always knew you were the man!" Scott, currently being carried by the Cloak, shouted, his previous grievances forgotten.
Vision's expression didn't lighten. "I have alerted Mr. Stark. But until they arrive, I do not know how long we can hold out."
"I guess I should congratulate you on learning how to be tactful..." Banner managed a stiff, jagged laugh. 'I don't know how long' was a polite lie. Why wouldn't he say? Because according to Vision's calculations, they wouldn't last until reinforcements arrived.
"Splitting up really is the kiss of death in a horror movie, isn't it?" Peter quipped, the same grim realization sinking in.
Then, a shroud of golden light enveloped them all.
--+--
"Hmm? A new message?"
Back at the Avengers base, Tony Stark was busy devouring new data when a notification from FRIDAY caught his eye.
In a world with almost no one left alive, a message could only come from the other Banner's team.
As he read Vision's report, Tony's face went stone-cold. He stepped out of the lab and looked at the assembled team. "They've run into Thanos."
The atmosphere, which had been relatively relaxed as the Avengers toyed with future tech and waited for Tony to finish his study, turned brittle in an instant.
"What?" At a time like this?
"And it looks like Thanos has five of the Stones," Tony continued. "He's only missing one."
"So he's basically won?" Banner's eyes widened.
Even though this was a world simulated by the Simulated Universe, the emotions they felt were real. Fake world or not, they wanted the friends they'd met on this strange journey to have a happy ending.
"He's missing Vision's stone," Rogers said, his voice steady and resolute. "We move, now. Tony, what's the word on the suit?"
In response, red and gold nanites surged from the housing on Tony's chest. In less than two seconds, the liquid metal had cascaded over his body, forming a sleek, high-tech suit of armor.
Rogers smiled. "How do we get there?"
"There happens to be a fighter jet here I haven't seen before," Tony said, his voice tinged with both curiosity and confidence.
"Judging by the specs and the signature on the blueprints, I think we can trust it to perform."
The signature, naturally, bore the name Tony Stark—perhaps exclusively so.
They couldn't take a helicopter; Wakanda was across the ocean, and they didn't have time for a scenic flight.
"Good," Rogers said. "Let's go."
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.