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THIRTY FOUR | A PRICE TO PAY

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"OKAY, CAP, LET'S try not to stir too much trouble, alright?" declared Cassandra, clicking her tongue as she handed a piece of ripped paper to him that had a scribbled telephone number. Brushing the lints off of her stolen uniform, she checked her appearance using the reflection of a glass pane. The woman grumbled when she noticed her tousled hair and fading red lips. Fishing out her matte lipstick, she swiftly reapplied some and smiled brightly. Thank goodness, she decided to carry a lip rouge or else, she would look like a shit stain.

That would've been a total nightmare.

She didn't know why, but after her brief yet inspiring talks with her father and mystical mentor, she felt emboldened more than ever. It brought the former Cassandra, the one from five years ago, back to life. She didn't only feel hopeful, but also powerful.

"Where did you get this?"

Cassandra incredulously glanced at him with an arched eyebrow. When he still got an idea, she sighed, "You'd be surprised what a few fluttering eyelashes and smiling can get." She winked.

Steve shook his head, releasing a small laugh before dialing Dr. Hank Pym's office telephone number. "You're like Natasha."

"Think I got what it takes to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Cap?" The Sorceress Supreme then struck a pose, smirking.

Cassandra thought once before to become an intelligence officer or a spy. After her college graduation, a colleague of hers encouraged her to submit a resume to the Central Intelligence Agency since she felt like she would be an asset there, but she respectfully declined after a short deliberation. She found more purpose in being a Master of the Mystic Arts and event planning.

"I highly wouldn't recommend S.H.I.E.L.D. to be the intelligence agency you work in, Cass."

Of course, the Sorceress Supreme learned from Natasha and Steve how HYDRA infested S.H.I.E.L.D. like a virus. They orchestrated many crises and planted roots worldwide; establishing a clandestine network of operatives engaged in political engineering and scientific research. They also revealed that she was among the twenty million people who were supposed to be eliminated back in 2014. She shook her head slightly. To think that for many years, people like Clint, Natasha, and Steve thought they were working for an organization that aimed to protect humanity, only to find out it was rotten from within and the beginning.

"This is Captain Stevens from shipping. We have a package for you." He paused, waiting for the other person in line. "Well, that's the thing, sir. We can't." Steve then glanced at Cassandra as he feigned an anxious expression, impressing the woman currently with him. "Well, it's just - Sir, the box is glowing and, to be honest, some of our mail guys aren't feeling that great. Yeah, they did. You better get down here."

Not even a minute later, Cassandra caught the glimpse of a sprinting Dr. Pym down the hallway, pushing several people away from his path. "Excuse me! Out of the way!"

"Coast is clear, Captain."

"Let's move."

Sneaking inside the laboratory, Cassandra observed her surroundings with keen eyes. As expected, several glass boxes and machineries covered the entirety of the area. Her companion wasted no time in gathering the red dust-like particles they were aiming to snatch so they could return to their present time. They have no intention of staying here for long. With Steve placing his hand on her shoulder, they left the laboratory only to hear the elevator lady they all met earlier discussing loudly to some security officers about them.

"And you've never seen these people before?"

"No, I've got an eye for this. The three of them looked fishy."

"Can you describe them?"

"Well, one of them had a hippie beard and the lady's lips were as red as Director Carter's lips. It's as if she was imitating the Director. Shameless."

Cassandra's ears tingled at the description. Excuse me? She thought to herself in disbelief. First of all, I am -

Her rambling thoughts were then interrupted by Steve who dragged her towards a dim-lit office.

"Hippie? Like Bee Gees or Mungo Jerry?"

"Definitely Mungo Jerry."

"Yeah, this is Chesler." reported the officer in his walkie-talkie. "I need every available MPs on sub-level 6. We have a potential breach."

The brunette heard her companion sigh in relief and looked around to see where they ended up. That's when the two of them shared a surprised glance when they caught sight of his framed picture atop a desk. Before them, they heard two people loudly conversing. The woman seemed to be very familiar to Steve since he paused in his tracks, seemingly shocked, like his world had just stopped revolving and everything ceased to exist.

"It's her." he breathed, still taken aback as he progressed towards the blinds to get a better look. "It's Peggy."

"Wow, shit."

Who would've even thought they would end up hiding in Margaret Carter - Steve's one true love's office?

Cassandra didn't listen to whatever the curly-haired brunette on the other side was stressing about and opened the office door once again to check the hallway. "Cap - "

"Did you ever regret it? Being one of the people who have the ability to save the world?"

The woman was taken aback with the question, but she collected herself and sauntered over to him, observing Peggy behind the blinds. From her position, she noticed how the woman on the other side was somewhere Steve couldn't reach or return to, the past. The man beside her can only look back, wondering what could've been his life if only he returned to her.

"Sometimes." confessed Cassandra, inserting her hands inside her beige trousers. "There have been a few times in my life where I said to myself, I never should have done this. I never should've chosen this path. My life would've been peaceful and I would be safe from harm. But then, whenever I look around and see all these people, I ask myself, if not me, then who? Who will protect them? Who will keep these people safe so they can continue complaining and rambling about how miserable their life is? Or how much they appreciate it?"

Steve licked his lips, as if choosing his next words properly. "I know Bruce already explained it to all of us, but..."

Cassandra faced the super soldier, interrupting before he could finish, already having an idea what he wanted to ask. "Everything we want in life has a price connected to it, Rogers. I know you know this better than me." She implied. "There's a price to pay if you want to make things better, a price to pay just for leaving things as they are, a price for everything and you know that... we heroes don't get the reward. We often pay the price of our choice to save others."

The man out of time was silent, perhaps processing the words she uttered.

"Changing the past doesn't change the future, Cap." The woman emphasized, gently placing her hand above his bicep. "I know this may be difficult to hear, but," she sighed. "Peggy Carter has moved on, why don't you too?"

"What would you do if you were in my position, Cassandra?"

Cassandra thought long and hard about her answer. What would she do if she were in Steve's place? Then, as she watched the curly haired woman on the other side of the office pick up Steve's picture, she was reminded how five years ago, she probed every magical library that was available, desperate to find a spell that could turn back time, kill Thanos in Titan, and save Stephen and everyone on Earth. She really felt responsible for the decimation of half of all life on Earth. Her judgement was so clouded to the point she attempted to open every dark and cursed grimoire - even the Darkhold - that there was just to achieve her desire. If she had to sell her soul to the devil, she would, just to get everyone back. She wasn't afraid of the consequences during that time until she stumbled across the accounts of the past Guardians of the Sorcerer Supreme that she came to her senses. It was her wake up call and the reason why she left Kamar-Taj.

Because she felt unworthy.

"You don't need my opinion, Cap. I believe you'll choose to do the right thing."

A couple of seconds may have passed before Steve's lips curled into a fond smile. "Whoever chose you to be the Guardian of the Sorcerer Supreme, they certainly made the right decision."

Cassandra shook her head hearing that. "Come on, Cap. Let's return to where we belong."

AS SOON AS Cassandra's body reverted back to its original size and her Quantum suit deactivated, she let out a sigh of relief and threw a fist up in the air, grinning wildly. Everyone around her seemed to have recovered the rest of the stones based on the joyous smiles plastered on their faces, which meant they are only steps away from getting the rest of the population back.

"Did we get them all?"

"You telling me this'll actually work?" quipped Rhodey, smirking as he held up the silver orb that contained the Power Stone.

Then, the sorceress heard a loud thud not far from her and she turned to see a devastated Paul, kneeling on the ground. Clint stood beside him, dazed and trembling. His eyes were directed on the glass platform, almost brimming with tears.

The two of them returned without Natasha.

Cassandra swallowed, padding slowly over to Apollos and placing her hand on his shoulder. "What happened, Paul?"

He kept his silence, seemingly traumatized by something he witnessed with his own eyes.

"Clint, where's Nat?"

The silence between the two men was so deafening that Cassandra once again asked Paul. With his eyes glistening, he looked up at her, finally revealing what was in his hand, causing the former Guardian to close her eyes and take a step back.

Because nestled carefully in the palm of her friend's hand was a ring. Natasha's engagement ring.

Paul lost Natasha, just like how Cassandra lost Stephen years ago.

Only this time, he might not get her back.

Sorrow overtook everyone even further just as Cassandra dealt with her own miserable memories flashing before her eyes like they just occurred yesterday. Paul's feeling of grief and loss was all too familiar with her that it triggered a lot of unpleasant feelings, tightening her chest. Her hand flew to her chest and she attempted to regain her normal breathing.

"What do I do now?" asked the grieving man when Vesper wrapped her arms around him. Alona, on the other hand, comforted Cassandra by placing her hands gently on her arms. "I-I... I should've died out there. It should've been me."

"Shhh, Paul, listen..."

"It's okay, Cass." advised Alona to Cassandra. "Just breathe in, and breathe out. I'm here. You're okay."

A second later, Bruce fell to his knees and pounded the floor in grief.

They indeed completed the mission, but at a dire cost. They had been too hopeful that everything would turn out fine and perfect. They failed to consider the possibility of any of them getting harmed during the mission.

We heroes don't get the reward. We often pay the price of our choice to save others.

Cassandra swallowed.

So, this is the price of their choice.

Natasha Romanoff, your sacrifice will never be forgotten.

Sniffing, Paul stood up from his position; albeit wobbly he stared at each of them before walking away and punching a hole through a wall. Some of their team members followed him outside, perhaps in an attempt to console him. Cassandra only stood at the side as they all mourned their fallen teammate by the lakeside. There was a heaviness hanging in the air that made it so difficult to talk, but not for Tony.

"Do we know if she had a family?"

"Yeah. Us."

Thor, baffled, asked. "What?"

"I just asked him a question - "

"Yeah, you're acting like she's dead. Why are we acting like she's dead? We have the stones, right?" Thor reasoned out, shrugging. "As long as we have the stones, Cap, we can bring her back, isn't that right?" He growled, as if getting irritated with their useless grief. "So stop this shit. We're the Avengers, get it together."

Clint concluded, "We can't get her back.

"Wha - what?"

"It can't be undone. It can't."

Thor dryly laughed, as if he heard something very absurd. "I'm sorry. No offense, but you're a very earthly being, okay? We're talking about space magic. And "can't" seems very definitive don't you think? Cassandra, help me out a bit here. Magic is reversible, right? You cast a spell and you can undo it? We have the stones now. Can-can you find a loophole in this space magic and use that to bring Natasha back? I mean, you sorcerers can do that, right?"

"Having the stones is not a guarantee to do that. We didn't lose Natasha in the Snap. She sacrificed herself for us to get the Soul stone." Cassandra glimpsed at Thor.

Clint finally countered, perhaps reaching his limit. "Look, I know that I'm way outside my paygrade here, Thor. But, Nat's still not here, is she?"

"No, that's my point - "

"It was a bargain, dipshit." Paul's voice echoed among them, haunting and irked. "A soul for a soul." He stood up from the bench, his hand still tightly holding the only piece he had left of his beloved. "It can't be undone even when we put the stone back. She's gone. She's dead! So, if you still don't believe us, Thor of Asgard, son of Odin, why don't you GO GRAB YOUR HAMMER, FLY AND TALK TO HIM!"

This was the first time Paul ever displayed rage and Cassandra understood why some of their team members were intimidated. His eyes burned with blazing inferno. With his cheeks flushed, and his facial muscles rigid, he stomped towards him. Grabbing him by his collar, Paul jerked him close to her face, gritting his teeth as he said, "Because that's what you're good at, right? Grabbing your hammer and attacking your enemy?" his voice slowly grew louder, "If only you had killed him. If only you had gone for the head," Now she was close to screaming, "THEN, WE ALL WOULDN'T BE HERE RIGHT NOW! EVERYONE IS SUFFERING BECAUSE YOU FAILED TO DO ONE THING, THOR! YOU FAILED TO KILL THANOS!"

"Paul, stop! You've gone too far." Alona stepped in, wrapping her hands around his wrists to pry him off of Thor. "Hindi na tama ang mga sinasabi mo." What you're saying isn't right anymore.

"It was supposed to be me." admitted Clint, mourning. "She sacrificed her life for that goddamn stone. She bet her life on it."

"No, Clint. Natasha... and I, we would never allow you to give up your life in that damned place." Paul explained, jabbing a finger at his own chest then afterwards. "I should've been the one dead on that ground. I should've made that jump, but I couldn't." The towering man growled. "Why? Because I had no soul to offer. I am an empty vessel. A human with no soul to bargain at that moment." He dryly chuckled.

Cassandra listened intently, only watching him from afar. She wondered why he mentioned he had no soul. Did he mean that literally? What happened for him to lose his soul? He was so broken inside and it reminded her so much of her state after losing Stephen and the rest of her family.

"Family, you ask, Stark? Natasha had a family before she met you all. She had an adoptive mother and father, and a sister. A sister she never thought she would see again seven years ago. Her name was Yelena and I failed my promise that I would keep her sister safe from harm." In a burst of anger, he grabbed a bench and hurled it clear across the lake.

"Where are they now?"

His anger spent, he turned to the others with a resigned look on his face. "We don't know where Melina and Alexis are. We never received any news about them, but Yelena... she was among the casualties of the Snap." He sighed. "This is my fault. It's my fault why Natasha died."

"Alright, all of you, listen, this self-blaming needs to stop. Thanos winning five years ago wasn't your fault. Wala kayong kasalanan dun." voiced Alona, standing now in the middle of the wooden shed. You all don't have any fault in that. "It isn't Thor's, Cassandra's, Tony's fault, no one. You all have suffered enough. We have another chance to undo what that maniac had done. We have lost one of ours. We must see this to the end to honor her memory."

At that moment, Cassandra understood why Alona was a Queen and rightfully so. She was a leader and a warrior. A figure one can look up to. Her words alone can strike a match and reignite fire in a hopeless man's heart. She was gentle, but also firm. Alona was someone who people would follow in a battle and die for.

Bruce spun around, his big green hands curled into fists. "Natasha's not coming back, guys. Alona's right. We have to make it worth it. We have to."

"We will."

"For Natasha and for those we lost."

PAUL VERNON LOCKED himself in his room all evening as the engineers and scientists of their team pulled all-nighters in building a gauntlet that could hold and harness the power of the stones without fail. He had also contacted Magnus from the orphanage, delivering the devastating news of Natasha's demise. The young man wanted to travel to their facility and accompany Paul at this time, but Tony advised against it for now, saying the building may become unsafe after they gathered the stones together. Meanwhile, Cassandra scanned the accounts of the past Guardians of the Sorcerer Supreme, searching if any of them had a similar story with her. To her dismay, she found none.

Her eyes fluttered over to Nebula who she noticed had been different ever since they came back. She was edgy and very wary, making the sorceress feel uneasy about her unusual behavior. Yet, she dismissed this. She couldn't fathom the idea of Nebula betraying them when she had been nothing but helpful to them.

She hoped to the gods she made the right decision.

An hour before dusk, Tony had them all gathered in the external part of the laboratory., claiming that they had finished assembling the gauntlet. Cassandra stood beside Alona and Vesper just as Rocket checked the hovering glove. Blue beaming lights held it up in the air and its cosmic energy could be felt in the atmosphere easily. "All right. The glove's ready." The raccoon engineer furnished the glove. "Question is, who's gonna snap their freaking fingers?"

Vesper raised her hand, meekly. "I don't know if my half-Celestial physiology can take the toll, but I guess it's worth a try."

Thor volunteered almost enthusiastically as if he had been waiting for this moment all his life. "I'll do it."

"Excuse me?"

The god of thunder dismissed Scott and continued to stride towards the gauntlet. "It's okay."

"No, no, no, whoa. Stop. Stop. Wait a sec. Hey, hey - "

Almost everyone blocked his way to stop him from reaching the gauntlet. "Wait, wait, Thor, just wait. We haven't decided who's gonna put that on yet." Steve explained carefully to calm him down.

"I'm sorry. What, we're just sitting around waiting for the right opportunity?"

Scott implied. "We should at least discuss it."

"No, no," disagreed Thor, confronting them. "Sitting here staring at that thing is not gonna bring everybody back. I'm the strongest Avenger, okay? So, this responsibility falls upon me." He emphasized and Cassandra felt pity for him. Just like her, he blamed himself for failing. "It's my duty."

"It's not about that - "

Thor hushed everyone up. "Stop it! Just let me!" Drops of hot grief and desperation welled up in his eyes as his lips trembled. "Just let me do it. Just let me do something good. Something right."

"You would be doing good and right if you shut your mouth and leave it to the stable ones to think whoever of us can handle these damned stones." retorted Paul, finally joining them in the lab. Instead of his usual suits, this time, he was donning a blue metallic skin tight suit with silver accents.

"Look - It's not just the fact that that glove is channeling enough energy to light up a continent, I'm telling you, you're in no condition." The genius inventor expounded the situation in a way that Thor would understand easily and not get offended.

"No, no. Let me have it."

Just as the Norse god of thunder's hands were inches away from the glove, Cassandra immediately casted an impenetrable shield around it. An glowing amber mandala circled the red and gold gauntlet, preventing him from reaching it. "Thor, it will do you good to listen."

"Lady - "

"I will not let you touch that glove too, Thor." Paul towered over the god, his eyes displaying a simmering rage. "Natasha did not die for this to mess up. I am not letting her sacrifice go to waste just because you couldn't move on from the past so if you wanna get that glove, you'll have to kill me."

"Okay, okay. You both need a time out." Vesper snapped her fingers to cut them off, getting in between them. "This behavior you two are displaying isn't helping."

"What do you - what do you think is coursing through my veins right now?"

Rhodey quipped, "Cheez Whiz?"

"Lightning."

Tony clenched his jaw and turned away as if trying his best not to roll his eyes. "Yeah."

"I'm sorry, but lightning won't help you, pal. It's gotta be me." claimed Bruce who looked like he had finally resigned to his fate. Everyone's attention flipped over to him. Actually, Cassandra already had an idea that the right person to wield the power of the stones was Bruce. She just didn't want to make it seem like she was forcing him because she got the feeling that he knew about it already.

Alona croaked, her voice breaking up. "What?" She seemed to have been praying that the responsibility won't fall in her friend's hands. The royalty instantly stepped in his way, preventing him from getting closer to the group and the ominous gauntlet. "No, I am not allowing it. You stay there, Bruce."

"You saw what those stones did to Thanos, Lons. It almost killed him. None of you could survive."

Steve asked the question everyone wanted to ask then. "How do we know you will?"

The Hulk kept his eyes trained on Alona, almost apologetic. The shorter woman put her small hand on his forearm, her gaze pleading. The green-skinned individual sighed. "We don't. But the radiation's mostly gamma." He took a good look at the gauntlet again. "It's like... I was made for this."

A minute later, Tony handed the glove to the tall green guy. Alona was absolutely agitated and out of her wits as she stood at the side. Cassandra knew the other brunette wanted Bruce to pull out even at the last minute. It was evident in how she bit her nails in frustration.

"Good to go, yeah?"

"Let's do it."

"You remember - everyone Thanos snapped away five years ago and just bringing them back to now, today." reminded Tony. "Don't change anything from the last five years."

"Got it."

"Be careful. Kung hindi, susuntukin kita." Or else, I will punch you. Alona declared, swinging her sword.

"I will be, Alona. I promise."

As soon as Tony joined them, everyone got themselves ready from whatever impact the reversing of the Snap may bring. Tony tapped his arc reactor twice, causing nanoparticles of his advanced suit to spread out and engulf his entire being. He then projected a holographic shield for him and his companion. Clint was at his left, his hands steadily holding his notched bow, prepared for any attack. Steve was wearing his blue uniform and had the shield Tony returned to him attached on his arm. Scott and Rhodey equipped themselves with their own armors, just as Thor lifted his arm in front of Rocket who wore his lab goggles to protect him. Alona and Paul stood beside each other, their armor plates ready to absorb any assault. Vesper and Cassandra exchanged glances when the latter siphoned eldritch energy and gesticulated her arms widely, casting a large protective bubble around them. Her eyes flashed an amber color as her clothes transfigured into her beige robes. The shield pulsed with magical power and it all emanated from the Sorceress Supreme.

As they waited for Bruce to gather the courage, the former Guardian examined her surroundings, noticing that they were missing one member of their team.

"Where's Nebula?" She asked. "I haven't seen her since earlier."

"Last time I checked up on her, she was resting because the Time Heist exhausted her so much." Rhodey answered her question.

"Are you sure? Because my gut feeling is telling me she's up to something." Paul cocked an eyebrow, glaring.

"Come on, guys. Are you seriously doubting Nebula right now? At this time?" The dark skinned man pointed at Bruce.

"I'll go check up on her. You guys go ahead and do it without me." Vesper volunteered, retracting her sword. Walking away, she raised her arms and cheered for them, "You can do this, big guy!"

"F.R.I.D.A.Y., do me a favor and activate the Barn Door Protocol. Will you?"

"Yes, boss."

The facility went into total lockdown. Strong walls Cassandra can only assume made of Vibranium occluded the whole laboratory from the rest of the building, securing them inside.

"Everybody comes home."

Cassandra shut her eyes, whispering under her breath a soft, "I will see you again, Stephen."

The Hulk finally inserted his hand inside the gauntlet, which nanobotically expanded to fit his hand. It was then that the power surge overwhelmed him and he grunted in pain, collapsing on his knees. All of the stones lit up and branches of its power sprung up in his body, appearing to extend to his mind.

"Take it off! Take it off!"

Alona reacted by pushing her feet to move forward, but Paul obstructed her path. "No."

The royalty's lips turned into a deadly frown and her eyes emanated a bright blue light. "Ivi kuntirunte, Paul. Avira. voya. uste." I am ordering you. Let. me. pass.

"He can do it, Alona. Rogers?"

Steve nodded. "Bruce, are you okay?"

"Talk to us, Banner!"

"I'm okay. I'm okay." assured the big green guy though still in pain.

Thor gave a double thumbs up in support and soon, Bruce screamed, fighting through the intense pain coursing through his body courtesy of the gauntlet. Lifting his hand, he managed to snap his fingers. When he fainted from exhaustion and collapsed on the ground, the gauntlet slid off his arm, and Clint kicked it away. His whole right arm was charred and its outer layer of skin and the entire layer beneath was destroyed. It was as if a little more movement and his limb would disintegrate to ashes.

"Bruce!"

"Don't move him." Tony sprayed antibiotics, to cool down the Hulk's arm easily since the antibiotics have temperature pressure. He also added a healing gel to protect his injury and prevent even more damage.

Bruce held onto Steve then to Alona's arm. "Did it work?"

Thor claimed, "Worth a shot. It's over. It's okay."

The vibranium walls around their lab opened and Scott walked towards the outside windows and saw plants and birds. Cassandra slowly drew her magic back in, dispersing the mystical shield she conjured. Gasping, she steadied herself to a nearby table, watching everyone assist Bruce in his injuries. A phone not far away from her buzzed and the woman knew it was Clint's. The caller ID displayed his wife's name and Cassandra felt a sense of relief, almost tearing up in joy. It worked. They reversed the effects of the Snap. The archer snatched his device off the table, struggling to speak from sheer happiness. "Honey. Honey!"

Scott exclaimed near the glass window. "Guys - I think it worked!"

It was then that a frantic and bruised Vesper came into their view, yelling, "Guys! It's Nebula! She - "

"Thanos." concluded Paul, horrified as he pushed his feet up to stand, glancing at Cassandra. "He's here."

The next thing they knew a continuous array of missiles obliterated their base completely and everyone sank below to the underground.

And Cassandra succumbed to the black behind her eyes, the oblivion.

hope y'all are doing fine! the battle of earth is up next