"I told you...you'd die for that."

"You should have..."

"You should..."

"You should have gone for the head."

"No!"

THUNDER RUMBLED ABOVE the skies of Titan. Peter helped Tony to his feet but the billionaire still stumbled a bit. Y/N ran over and helped him stay balanced. Behind them stood Mantis, who was keeping up a hobbled Starlord as well. The empath felt something.

"Something's happening." She warned.

They all stood around in silence, some looking around to see if she was sensing another threat looming. Suddenly, Mantis's body started to dissipate and the dust-like matter flew away. She vanished from Quill's side and he looked on in shock.

Suddenly, Drax started to pant. He also felt something going on within him. His right hand started to turn into dust and it moved along the rest of his arm.

"Quill?" He called out but vanished entirely before he can get a response.

Starlord looked on in despair after witnessing his two close friends dust away. Along with his sadness was a panic he felt within his body. He turned to Tony and the Avenger could tell he was feeling it.

"Steady, Quill."

"Oh, man." Starlord breathed out, then quickly turned into a flurry of dust. The matter flew with the wind and the remaining heroes looked on in shock.

"Tony." Strange called out to him. Stark turned around and saw the sorcerer staring at him, a stoic look on his face.

"There was no other way." He added, then his body dissipated into a flurry of ash as well.

Tony, Peter, Y/N, and Nebula were all that stood.

"Y/N..." Peter weakly said.

The teenager looked at his best friend, whose fingers were forming into dust as well. His eyes widened and he went over to Peter, but the rest of his body was quickly dissipating as well.

"Peter..." He called out. "Peter, no. Pete!"

Peter tried to grab onto Y/N's hand, but his arm quickly vanished and so did the rest of his body. His armor was also taken with him...leaving no sign or evidence of Parker. Y/N looked at the empty space Peter was once at in shock. Tony stood behind him, also in despair at the vanishing of his protégé.

Y/N panted, looking down at the floor as he tried to keep it all together. He wanted to yell. He wanted to cry. He wanted to punch a hole through Thanos's face, knowing this was happening because of him...

But all those emotions were quickly replaced with a sense of danger. His senses blared louder than ever before to the point where not only his head hurt...but his body hurt as well. Y/N looked at his hands...and saw faint specks of dust slowly coming out of them. He knew what was happening...and his body was trying to alert him beforehand.

"No..." He breathed out.

Tony looked at Y/N, seeing him in the state of distress that he was in. Y/N turned around and stared at him, a look of terror on his face.

"Tony...I—"

Stark didn't want to believe that both teenagers that he had under his wing were going to be gone. Peter didn't really have much time to react to the situation before he was dusted. But in Y/N's case, his superhuman regenerative abilities were keeping him alive for as long as it could. Unfortunately, this made the teenager experience the fear of knowing he was going to die.

"You're all right." Tony reassured him despite not believing it himself.

"It's happening...it's happening. It's—" Y/N stumbled toward Stark, who held him up before he could fall. He embraced him and could feel his body getting lighter because of his matter changing.

"Tony, I don't wanna go. I can't go. I can't go." He pleaded as he held onto Tony.

The billionaire knew he not only was scared of dying at that moment, but he was also thinking of his father. If by any chance Michael survived what was happening, he'd be left alone. First, his wife perished...and now his son. Both of the people he loved would be gone.

Y/N fell to the floor and Tony knelt over him. The boy panted as he laid on the ground, now expecting to vanish soon. He couldn't do anything to stop it. This was something out of the hands of Spider-Man...and he accepted that for the last moments of his life. Although it saddened him to think his father would be grieving for him, there was a slight glimmer of contentment he thought about...being able to see his mother again.

The boy looked at Tony, who was in despair and going through what to do in his head. He couldn't think of anything. There was nothing he can do to stop it. Y/N also thought about how things could've been different if they acted on a different plan, or if there even was one where they could've used to win. Maybe he could've tried harder. But it was too late to correct such things. He let out one final breath and spoke to him.

"I'm sorry."

Y/N fully turned into dust and the specks flew away. Tony, who has holding onto the web-slinger, fell to his side after the body vanished. He looked at his hands, with feelings of anguish and guilt coursing through his body. The two young men he brought into the fold...the ones he knew would be the future of their society and the Avengers...the boys he let join him in confronting Thanos...his spiritual sons as he once said...they were gone.

All that were left were Nebula and Tony.

"He did it." Nebula said with no emotion.

Tony didn't reply. He sat down on the rocky floor and placed both his hands at his mouth. He closed his eyes and lowered his head. As he would soon find out, the heroes on Earth lost the battle there too. And there Tony sat...having lost the battle in space and in turn, resulting in the defeat of the entire universe.

• • •

ALMOST A MONTH went by since 50% of all life was decimated. Tony and Nebula were rescued from the powered-down Benatar by Carol Danvers, also known as Captain Marvel, who had been working with the surviving Avengers on Earth. While Stark recovered from malnutrition, the heroes, consisting of Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Bruce Banner, Thor, Rocket Racoon, James Rhodes, Nebula, and Carol Danvers, traveled to a planet where they suspected Thanos to be at.

Their mission would turn out fruitless, unfortunately, as Thanos had atomized the Infinity Stones and rendered the gauntlet useless. In a fit of rage, Thor beheaded the Mad Titan. With the last know user of the Infinity Stones now dead, there was nothing they could do...but move on.

Tony's recovery lasted a few days until he could walk on his own. Once he was up and able, there was one thing he wanted to do...something he needed to do. With his friend, Rhodey, joining him, they traveled to Queens, New York.

Michael answered the door after hearing the knock. He leaped off the couch quickly, hoping it was who he thought at the door. It's been over a month and he hadn't heard any news of his missing son. He began to fear the worst.

On the other side were Tony Stark and James Rhodes. Michael expected a policeman to be there with news of his son, but to see Stark himself, a member of the Avengers and a hero like Y/N, gave him a sense of relief.

"Mr. Stark!" He greeted rather breathlessly. "Uh, come on in."

He gave a nod and entered the residence with Rhodey following close behind. As they entered, they noticed May Parker in the living room. She stood up from the sofa and writhed her hands. The lady had also been worried about her nephew and the two adults practically worked together to try and track them down for the last month.

"Have..." Michael began. "Have you found them? Y/N and Peter?"

They stood in the living room. Tony was silent as he glanced at Rhodey, not knowing what to say initially. Rhodes was ready to speak for him, but Stark decided to muster up the courage and talk.

"Mr. L/N...Ms. Parker..." Tony exhaled. "I'm sorry."

May glanced at Michael for a moment, and all the dread came at her at once. He knew what news he was going to give them. She had experienced this before...with the cop who told her about Ben's death using the same tone and words. May covered her mouth with her hands and held back a sob.

On the other hand, it took a brief moment for the revelation to dawn on Michael. Once he did, he refused to believe it. He didn't want to. It was as if his head didn't want to accept it. Denial. Denial. Denial.

"What do you mean I'm sorry?" He asked.

Rhodey chose to speak. "You should sit—"

"No!" He exclaimed. "What did he mean by that? What's there to be sorry for? Where's her nephew? Where's my son?"

"Michael, I want you to listen—" Tony interjected as he stepped closer.

"Stay away from me! Just tell me where they are! Where are the boys?"

May eased toward Michael and spoke. "Michael...what happened to everybody else...they..."

Michael shook his head, still trying to use denial to keep him from feeling the pain he once felt.

"No..." He looked at Tony. "Tell me...tell me that's not true. Where are they?"

Tony sighed. "They joined me in fighting the threat that caused all this. Even in the face of adversity they didn't back down. Unfortunately, it didn't turn out the way we hoped. It's my fault they followed me...it's my fault they..." He inhaled. "I could've done better."

Michael's grief-stricken face turned into one of anger. He glared at Tony.

"They went with you?" He asked, to which Tony simply nodded.

Michael stared at him for a while, thinking of how his son's last moments were not even on this Earth but far away in a battle with Stark. It gave him memories of the Battle of New York, how he wasn't with his wife, and how she was in the middle of the chaos before she died. He didn't even get to say goodbye to her. Now he thought about Y/N, who was amidst all the chaos and battling as well...and he perished too. He didn't get to say goodbye to his son either.

"Again..." Tony said. "I wish I could've—"

Stark was suddenly punched in the face by Michael. The billionaire stumbled back after the surprise jab and Rhodey caught him before he could fall. May held Michael back before he can wail another hit, but the father was still angry.

"First my wife! Then my son! They're gone because of you! You....you Avengers never think about the people you hurt after your deeds are done. The casualties...the damage...the damage to our hearts! And now...you not only hurt me...May...but everybody else in the world. You failed all of us!"

Tony looked at Michael dejectedly, not having a word to say. Rhodey stood beside him, understanding the father's anger and also stricken with grief at the boys' deaths. Like Tony, he thought maybe they could've done better.

Michael calmed down a bit as he looked at May. He faced Tony again and continued.

"Our boys...they were the best the world had to offer. They were better heroes...better men than most. But now they're gone...and we're stuck with people like you."

The billionaire stayed silent. Michael left May's side and stormed over to the door, opening it as he stared at Tony and Rhodey.

"Get out. Both of you."

They didn't argue. Tony and Rhodey walked toward the door, with the latter giving a solemn nod to May Parker. They left the apartment and Michael slammed the door shut.

Michael exhaled as he stood by the door. He rested his forehead against it. May walked up to him and the man's eyes met hers. They were both upset and grief-stricken with the knowledge of their respective boys being gone. The man immediately teared up and cried in which May embraced him. He sobbed into her shoulder as the lady cried too, the two being the only ones left to console one another.

• • October 9, 2023 • •

TONY WALKED OUT of his cabin and into the yard. There was a tent put up by the garden and he clapped his hands to alert the person inside. He crouched in front of it.

"Chow time!" He called out. "Magnuna."

He sat down. There was no response and he called out again.

"Morgan H. Stark, you want some lunch?"

His four-year-old daughter came out of the tent. She had a blue iron helmet on, which belonged to her mother, and had a makeshift gauntlet made from her knit glove.

"Define lunch or be disintegrated." She playfully threatened.

"Okay." Tony put a hand up. "You should not be wearing that. That is part of a special anniversary gift I'm making for Mom."

He planted a kiss on the helmet and took it off of her. He started fixing her hair. "There you go. You thinking about lunch? I can give you a handful of crickets on a bed of lettuce."

"No." She replied.

"That's what you want." He lifted the helmet. "How did you find this?"

"Garage."

"Really? Were you looking for it?"

"No. I found it, though."

"Hm. You like going in the garage, huh?" He picked her up and carried her. "So does Daddy. It's fine, actually, Mom never wears anything I buy her."

They walked back to the cabin. Suddenly, he heard a car roll up and saw three people come out of out. Steve Rogers closed the door and looked at Tony. Natasha Romanoff gave a nod and Scott Lang simply stood idly by with his arms crossed. Stark internally sighed, before turning back around to ask his wife for an impromptu lemonade to be made.

Tony poured them a drink. They all stood on the porch as Scott explained what he endured and their current circumstances.

"No. We know what it sounds like." Scott said with a stammer.

"Tony, after everything you've seen, is anything really impossible?" Steve chimed in.

"Quantum fluctuation messes with the Planck scale..." Tony replied once he put the pitcher down. "...which then triggers the Deutsch Proposition. Can we agree on that?"

He handed Steve a glass of lemonade and then turned to Scott as he continued. "In layman's terms, it means you're not coming home."

"I did." Scott butted.

"No. You accidentally survived. It's a billion-to-one cosmic fluke. And now you wanna pull a...what do you call it?"

Tony gave Scott his glass as the ex-convict thought of a cool name to give their plan.

"A time heist?" Scott asked.

"Yeah, a time heist. Of course." Tony scoffed. "Why didn't we think of this before? Oh, because it's laughable. Because it's a pipe dream."

"The stones are in the past. We could go back, we could get them." Steve cut in.

"We can snap our own fingers. We can bring everybody back." Natasha added.

"Or screw it up worse than he already has, right?" Tony interjected.

"I don't believe we would." Rogers retorted.

"Gotta say it. I sometimes miss that giddy optimism. However, high hopes won't help if there's no logical, tangible way for me to safely execute said time heist." Tony sat down. "I believe the most likely outcome will be our collective demise."

"Not if we strictly follow the rules of time travel." Scott sat on the seat in front of Tony. "All right? It means no talking to our past selves...no betting on sports events."

"I'm going to stop you right there, Scott." He leaned closer to Lang. "Are you seriously telling me that your plan to save the universe is based on Back to the Future? Is it?"

Scott let out a soft chuckle. "No."

"Good. You had me worried there. 'Cause that would be horseshit. That's not how quantum physics works."

"Tony." Natasha chose to speak up. "We have to take a stand."

"We did stand." Tony replied, taking a moment of pause to think back at the battle on Titan. Flashes of Y/N and Peter's demise filled his head. "And yet, here we are."

"I know you got a lot on the line. You got a wife, a daughter. But I lost someone very important to me. A lot of people did." Scott's voice broke and his tone was raised. "And now, now we have a chance to bring her back, to bring everyone back, and you're telling me that you won't even—"

"That's right, Scott." Tony interrupted. "I won't even. I can't."

The front door opened and Morgan ran out onto the porch. She went to Tony and he carried her.

"Mommy told me to come and save you." She said.

Tony smiled and hugged her. "Good job. I'm saved."

He held her and stood up from his seat, looking at his friends before making his way to the front door.

"I wish you would've come and asked me anything else. Anything else. I'm honestly happy to see you guys, I just...look our tables set—"

Steve stopped him. "Tony, I get it. And I'm happy for you, I really am. But this is a second chance."

"I got my second chance right here, Cap. Can't roll the dice on it." He replied. He glanced at the other two and sighed. "If you don't talk shop you can stay for lunch."

The billionaire entered his cabin. He put Morgan down and she ran back into the kitchen where her mother was. Tony looked out the window, seeing Steve, Natasha, and Scott walking back to their car. For a moment, he wondered if what Scott explained was possible. And if it was...was it worth the risk?

The man exhaled and looked down before walking back into the living room.

Later that night, Tony stayed up to wash the dishes. The hose he was working with went awry for a second and wet his immediate surroundings. He turned off the water and peeked over his shoulder, hoping Pepper wasn't around to witness the fumbling.

He dried the plate he was holding with a towel and put it on the rack with the rest. He wiped the counter dry and then moved up the shelf in front of him. As he was cleaning, a framed photo that was on it caught his eye.

Tony reached over and grabbed it. He cleaned the droplets that were on the glass with the rag before looking at the picture. He exhaled through his nose.

It was of him, Y/N L/N, and Peter Parker at Avengers Compound the day he invited them there together. The boys held their Stark Internship certificates as Stark stood behind them giving them bunny ears with his fingers. He remembered that day. It was when Tony offered the web-slinger the armor and a spot on the Avengers, which he humbly declined. He also recalled how the armor was mostly developed by Peter.

Tony held the frame and raised his head. He looked around the kitchen, thinking of how he'd always tell the boys how special they were and that they were the future. Them being gone meant the world lost two great minds, and in turn, it made it a worse world. Along with trillions of others, they were lost...and they were lost doing what they did best...being heroes. And they put their lives on the line to protect not only the world but...

"The little guy." Tony muttered to himself.

He put the rag down and placed the frame back on the shelf. With a look of determination, he walked to his office...ready to work with Friday and develop what Scott Lang told him about.

Time Travel.