Chapter 38-My Vision
He was going to kill them. Tony Stark was literally going to kill them.
Well, that or it just depended on what his definition of “kill” was. If it revolved around scolding the absolute crap out of them for blatantly ignoring not only him but the Captain who had much more experience in the battlefield than any of them, then yes, Tony Stark was going to “kill” them.
He really did lose his touch.
As the Mark 45 quivered around Stark’s body—many parts still in need of desperate repair—Tony acquired as much information as his suit could allow. He scanned a nearby forest below, the freezing temperatures and the powerful snowstorm hitting him full force. Normally, his suit would protect him from such harsh conditions, but his suit was nearly falling apart at the moment.
He felt the wind race across his skin, a coolness shivering in his spine. Stark shouted, “This is where Twilight said she was going?”
Turning his head lightly to the right, Stark first noticed the hammer, then the god it belonged to, then the screaming dragon holding onto said god’s cape for dear life. He bounced up and down as did Thor’s cape in the strong winds, yelping with every new gust sent his way and spewing snow into his face.
Stay with me, Draco. Stark called out to him. “Hey! Did you hear me?!” This time, Spike managed to turn his eyes to the left, still clutching onto Thor’s cape, but listening. Stark asked, “You said Twilight was coming here?”
Spike tightened his grip, nodding slightly and shivering as he did so. It looked like a mixture of both. “A-all she said was that they wouldn’t be long! When I looked out the window I saw them head towards Foal Mountain! Whoa!”
Another gust of wind pushed against Thor, but the God of Thunder was more than strong enough to push back even harder. With his right arm jutted outwards, gripping Mjølnir with only one palm, his left arm was tightly secured around Barton’s chest. To say the ride was uncomfortable was an understatement.
Bow in hand, Barton’s eyes narrowed against the snow particles hitting him in the face, the intense temperatures freezing the man’s arms. That was the least of his worries, and in the back of his mind. He was still wondering how he got the short end of the straw and having to catch a ride with Thor.
“Well,” Barton shouted, “this is awkward.”
Thor only nodded, keeping his gaze centered. “Yes. Yes it is.”
Then again, Clint would rather catch a ride with the God of Thunder than having to try and keep up with the Captain beneath. As for Steve Rogers, the Captain was more than capable of following Stark and Thor from within the frozen forest. He never grew tired, thanking God for the serum pumping through his veins and allowing him to keep up with the group. He leapt over rocks and bushes, dodging and weaving through trees faster than any normal man ever could. He looked up, spotting Stark’s flame trail.
Tony scanned the forest floor beneath them, catching several soft heartbeats and a massive one—possibly from numerous animals and Captain Rogers—but not the ones he was looking for. The storm was picking up and blowing away. An odd combination. It almost made Stark push aside the increasing signatures popping up on his HUD.
Friday’s voice startled Tony for a second, but he relaxed quickly and listened. “Boss, I’ve got some pretty startling readings coming from that mountain directly ahead,” Friday observed. Tony followed her directions, his eyes landing on a towering summit emerging from the snowstorm.
“That’s Foal Mountain?” Stark asked, turning to Spike.
Spike nodded quickly.
“Boss, I insist you take a look at these readings.”
“Then bring ‘em up; we’re on the clock,” Stark ordered, observing his HUD light up with numerous graphs indicating the strange readings Friday had picked up. Tony narrowed his eyes, his mouth opening only slightly.
He turned his head back to the mountain. Then back to the signatures emanating from it.
“Friday,” Stark began, almost sounding a tad quiet, “cross-reference these signatures to previous encounters.”
She did as she was told. New readings popped up, new and old sharing similar qualities, similar attributes. Stark analyzed both readings, coming to the conclusion that the startling signatures were actually the essence of dark magic in play. Psionic. The psionic energy belonging only to…
Tony instantly changed directions straight for Foal Mountain, his team following him.
Seemingly pushing aside the search for the mares, Tony quickly embarked on the quest ahead. His suit stuttered, the repulsors on the feet dying and lighting up once or twice. He needed to get that fixed right away. First thing to do once they got back to the castle.
He landed feet first, smashing against the frozen mountain floor with a fist indented upon the rock. Thor came just as fast, spinning Mjølnir about as he halted to a hover, dropping off Barton by Stark’s side. Clint looked down the mountain, noting how high up they were.
“You might wanna help out Cap on this one!” Barton called to Thor who nodded in agreement. Swinging his hammer back, Thor shot up before Spike could jump off. The screaming dragon held on to the edges of Thor’s cape as he flew down the mountainside.
A few seconds had passed before Thor returned with Captain America holding his left arm. The two landed on Stark’s left, Spike scurrying forward and kissing the snow-covered, rocky mountain ground. He looked up, instantly scurrying away from the dark cave’s mouth resting in front of the group.
As Spike used Thor’s cape as a protective shield, the Captain removed his own from the magnet on his backside, sticking it to his right forearm. He took a precautious step forward, eyeing the cave’s mouth up and down, listening intently.
“Did your scanners pick them up?” Steve asked, his breath heavy in the cool temperatures.
Tony came up by his side, his metallic feet crunching the snow beneath him. His piercing, blue gaze observed the mountain cave. He bit his lip under the mask, stepping into the entrance.
“No, but…” he paused, stopped, then looked back at them, “…I got something else.”
“Like what?” Barton pushed forward.
Stark stood silent for a moment longer, his gaze lingering on the darkness within. He said, “Guess we’re about to find that out.”
With Captain America following silently, Thor and Clint exchanged a curious glance before following as well. As the three moved past him and into the cave, Stark twisted his neck back for short moment, pointing at the small dragon.
“Stay,” Tony ordered.
Spike nodded, leaning against the nearest wall and crossing his arms. “I’m not a dog, but okay,” he muttered under his frozen breath, a shiver racing across his body as a cold chill hit the alp.
With Spike staying behind, Tony quickly caught up with the others, almost losing them in the darkness from about ten or so feet ahead. Yeah, it was that dark. Despite this, Stark managed to keep up, still taking his time in observing the cave’s walls, the floor, anything. He scanned again. The psionic energy was off the charts.
And he was so focused on that that he nearly knocked over Thor. Hell, who was he kidding? He almost fell back from the impact, even in his suit.
“Hey, guys, what’s the rush?” Stark asked, pushing past Thor and approaching the Captain’s side. He didn’t even get more than a foot by Rogers before he halted on his own.
The silence that plagued them all was almost too difficult for Stark to handle. The light bursting from the mouth of the cave was dimmed down by the large shadows of the four Avengers blocking the path. Even with minimal light, Stark could still see what was happening. He felt like the others could too. From where he stood, he could see the remnants of psionic energy in its average form, swirling around the darkness like flying serpents.
He activated his helmet’s flashlight anyway.
And faced the ferocious glare of Wanda Maximoff.
She stood shaking, teeth clenched, hands outstretched, spewing out nearly endless torrents of her hatred-fueled dark magic into the foreheads of the six missing ponies. Their bodies lied separated amongst the cave’s floor, nearly all of them shivering and whimpering words of fearful emotion.
Wanda didn’t even flinch once the light hit her. She saw them coming once they first stepped forward into the cave’s entrance, and—after noticing Stark’s glowing eyes—grew a horrific stare filled with every bit of pain and malice she could offer for the man that ruined her life. Every moment they stood fighting together back in Sokovia, the home she grew up in, was immediately flushed away when the previous situation tore apart the back of her mind.
Her breaths grew heavier, chest rising up and down, eyes burning brighter and brighter after remembering such an event, only fueling her hatred. It all increased the moment Stark stepped forth, holding out his hand to her.
“Maximoff,” Stark began, already offending her, “let them go. They’re not of your concern.”
“Were we of any of your concern?” she immediately shot back, nearly spitting out venom.
“Wanda…” Rogers stepped forward, lowering his guard the best he could and offering her a pleading stare. “Please…” Another step, instantly hit in the chest from a projected blast of Wanda’s energy.
Stark was next, slammed against the cave’s wall from Pietro tearing quickly past Wanda’s right. Thor spun around, meeting the heated stare of the second Maximoff twin near the entrance of the cave. Pietro cracked his neck, taking off once again.
“Cease this aggression!” Thor shouted, barely spotting Pietro closing in. He swung his hammer outwards in hopes of striking the blur, but not too hard. He didn’t want to injure him. As for Pietro, he didn’t care. He just wanted to hurt them. Hurt them like they hurt him and his sister.
So he ducked, easily dodging Thor’s swing and punching the god directly across the face in half a second. From the sudden burst, Thor fell to the right, his shoulder impacting the cave’s wall. He fell with a painful grunt, the Maximoff twin staring him down. Pietro smirked, turned around to face the last one, and was met with an arrow aimed directly between his eyes.
Clint stood silent for the longest time, breathing sporadically as his finger itched against the string. The tiniest of gasps emerged from the twin whose eyes were on fire, landing cautiously on the arrow aimed for her brother’s head. Pietro didn’t move, his eyes shifting from the arrow and back to Clint’s hardened gaze.
Instead of helping, seemingly frozen in place, Thor and Stark watched from the ground, waiting for what could happen. Captain America was already up, but stopped once he spotted the confrontation…and how close the arrow was to Pietro’s head.
The Hawk shook his head, breathing out, “Don’t make me do it, kid.”
“How fast can you relax your fingers?” Pietro asked.
“Faster than you can get away.”
“Wanna bet?”
“Punk’s getting cocky,” Tony called out. “Show him who’s in charge, Barton.”
“Stark!” The Captain warned, earning the man’s attention from behind the mask. Steve stepped forward once more, still leaving plenty of room between him and Pietro. He calmingly began, his tone cool and collective. “Pietro, stop. You’re one of us now. You’re an Avenger.”
“If being an Avenger means leaving each other behind,” Wanda interrupted, earning everyone’s attention. Her magic still kept the mares trapped, but she was staring head-on, fearful for her brother, angered from the Captain’s thoughts, “…then consider us out.”
“We were going to find you,” Rogers told her.
“When? After we starved to death? After we were mauled by some other hell-beast?” Pietro offered, slightly turning his head away from the arrow.
Thor and Stark got back up to their feet, Tony pointing his palm directly towards Pietro. Wanda shot out her hand, fully intending on sending another projected energy blast right between Stark’s eyes, maybe let him fall into another nightmare, this time never waking up. Stark jutted his other hand towards Wanda, his palm glowing bright.
“Don’t even think about it, witch,” Stark growled.
“If you hurt my sister I’ll tear you to shreds,” threatened Pietro, twisting his head back only slightly.
Stark replied, just as threatening, “Wanna bet?”
“Back off, Stark!” Rogers shouted.
“There is no need for this meaningless conflict!” Thor added.
“Get away from him!” Wanda screamed at Stark, her fingers twirling and gathering energy. Stark’s palm lit up even brighter.
“Let the arrow go, Barton,” Tony muttered, fury evident in his tone, “Let’s see how fast this kid really is.”
“Clint, you hold that arrow still!”
“Do not release that arrow, Barton!”
“He does it and he’s dead,” Wanda hissed.
“Why does everything have to fall on me?” Clint muttered to himself, loud enough still for everyone to hear him.
Pietro nodded at him, taunting him. “Come on; let it fly.”
“Punk’s right for once.”
“Stark, I’m warning you...”
“Can it, Cap.”
“Stand down, Tony! You must not fuel this quarrel!”
“Your move, Barton!” Stark said, ignoring Thor.
Steve shouted, “Clint!”
“Do it!” Pietro urged.
“Enough!”
The voice caught everyone by surprise, ceasing their actions and holding them all to a standstill. Moments away from firing the arrow, from dodging, from exchanging blasts ranging from energy to repulsor, and from a hammer permanently indented in Tony’s chest, in just moments away from making a terrible mistake…the voice stopped them.
Everyone caught in the feud slowly brought their attention to the edge of blackness, to where they could not see any farther into the mountain’s cave. Exiting the shadows, a cape blew softly in the gentle, cool breeze that managed to enter from the outside.
Tony lowered both of his hands.
Barton dropped the arrowhead.
Wanda finally relaxed, but still held her grip on the ponies’ minds.
Each and every one of them turned their eyes onto him.
He was calm. He was exact. In all that he did, despite the rising conflict, he walked amongst warriors in silence, in collective peace and knowledge. He stepped forward to the woman, noticing the red in her eyes, the mist overcoming her victims. He looked into her eyes, his demeanor, just by glance, lowering the woman’s adrenaline.
He placed his hand gently on her shoulder. Almost instantly, Wanda finally relaxed, truly relaxed, and fell to her knees, breathing softly and staring at her work, at the ponies slowly shaking fearfully.
Pietro was already by her side before anyone could blink. He wrapped his arm around her, bringing her in for a quick but comforting embrace. She returned it, lowering her head deep into Pietro’s chest. Together, locked in arms, the twins stared up at him as he slowly moved on by and approached the shivering mares.
The remaining Avengers stood silent, side-to-side, watching as he slowly dipped down to one knee, his red palm gently grazing the forehead of a certain apple-bucker. He closed his eyes. He tightened his jaw.
The stone between his eyes glowed softly.
And Applejack was awake, gasping for air and coughing.
As his eyes opened once more—the orange-colored mare fearfully scanning the cave and bringing her attention onto him—he stood up, walked over to the next pony, and repeated his actions. Rarity was next to wake up, followed by Pinkie Pie, both ponies panting furiously, shocked to have escape the nightmare.
Thor was down and next to the two mares, asking if they were alright. They nodded together, rubbed their heads, and turned their attention to the one who saved them. He was on one knee again, gently caressing Rainbow Dash’s forehead.
She awoke with a startled gasp, almost shooting up to her hooves and flapping her wings furiously. Steve was by her side quickly, placing his palm against her and holding the mare down.
“Dash, calm down!” Rogers ordered her, to which the mare replied with a frightened stare. Their eyes connected, her chest heaving, uncontrolled. But the longer she stared into his comforting gaze, the quicker she felt calm. However, flashes of the nightmare returned, causing her to flinch.
“It’s me…” he told her, gripping her hoof. “Are you okay?”
Dash only nodded, looking away. Steve didn’t believe it for a second. The power of Wanda’s magic left some lasting effects, some Rogers knew personally. But he nodded either way.
Once Fluttershy awoke, she cried out, looking around like a frightened animal. She ignored him walking past her and instead brought her attention onto Clint Barton falling to one knee, asking if she was alright. Her eyes felt wet, her mind replaying the events she experienced firsthoof. Fluttershy reached forward and slammed her head into Barton’s chest, her forelegs wrapped around his body.
Clint flinched, feeling the wetness of the pony’s eyes soak his chest. She concealed her cries by muffling them into his chest, tightening her grip around him. Barton’s heart almost broke after hearing her whimper, that soft, delicate cry…almost like a child waking up from a bad dream.
A child.
He didn’t realize he was holding the shivering Pegasus and gently rubbing her mane before it was too late, and he still didn’t even care.
Both Pietro and Wanda watched the heartbreaking scene from the shadows, suddenly feeling a weight of guilt wash over them. Pietro held his little sister close. She held him back, closing her eyes and remembering the nights when her brother would hold him just like that, keeping her safe in the remnants of their fallen household, the missile staring at them, threatening to blow at any second.
Tony waited for him to finish on Twilight. When he did, when he stood up and stumbled over to the cave’s wall, Stark’s helmet shot open, revealing the face beneath, and he approached the Alicorn that was finally awake.
“Twilight,” Tony said to her, falling to one knee as the others had. She groggily looked at him, pressed a hoof to her forehead, and groaned. Stark managed a weak smile, nodding to her. “I know you just woke up from a pretty traumatic experience and all but…I wanted you to know that I pretty much drank all of your coffee.”
Twilight groaned even louder, rubbing her temples. “Shut up.”
“Wrong time, got it.” Stark nodded, turning to see the other mares come to. He asked, “So, you good? Didn’t see anything too bad, I hope.”
She really wanted to tell Stark to shut up again, but found no power in herself to do so. The pain in her forehead had subsided for now, leaving a pulsating irritability that came and gone. She could deal with that, but the dreams…the nightmares…that would take some overcoming. She could still see the smoke and fire, the burning red eyes and the crushed skull whenever she shut her eyes, but at least when she opened them she saw her friends alive and well, a complete opposite to the world she was previously trapped in.
Speaking of which…somepony or someone deserved a thank you.
She was still pretty sore, definitely shaken, but in the far corner of her eye she witnessed the one who awakened her and her friends fall to the ground, passed out.
Oh my gosh! Was that...? 
I think it was! 
Anyway, now that we're out of possibly the darkest parts of the story, I gotta ask, what was your favorite nightmare/vision?
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Whoa, plot twist! Was not expecting the Vision to pop up! Awesome chapter as always, and I'll keep on observing from The Rock!
Wanda deserves a buck in the rump. Really.
So....they found Vision......Ultron
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Stark, Thor, Barton and Cap have caught up with the Mane 6 and the Twins, just as the mares continue to suffer the effects of Wanda's powers. And just when things are about to escalate, The Vision himself steps in and breaks up the conflict in an instant and using the Mind Stone, he frees the mares from their horrible nightmares. But clearly the mares have been shaken up by what they've seen and experienced and the Twins are not fully on good terms with the Avengers right now. Wanda's got a lot of explaining to do for her rash actions.
I'd say Rainbow's nightmare was my favourite, it's because of her that she and her friends are suffering from Wanda's mind tricks because she went off selfishly by herself out of pride and just to prove a needless point to the Avengers. Her nightmare is basically Karma dropping right by and giving her a big slap in the face for her actions. If she hadn't 'abandoned' her friends and the Avengers and instead stayed together with them, none of this would've happened.
Top favourite nightmares in order.
1. Rainbow
2. Applejack
3. Twilight
4. Fluttershy
5. Rarity
6. Pinkie
And, of course, a simple mental correction makes Vision pass out like a drunkard whose had one too many.
Bet Scarlet Witch feels like a Total Bitch now, and why the Hell did the Twins think the Avengers abandon them when in fact they were just separated?
Once again the Vision has saved the day! I liked Twilight's nightmare the best with Dash second because I got to make the "language" joke.
7062542 Thanks for all the support! I appreciate it!
7062543 Truly. Great explanation!
7062588 We'll see.
7062613 Has he truly found someone who can best him? I guess we'll find out!
7062730 I had a lot of fun writing Rainbow's nightmare. Glad you enjoyed it the most!
7062741 Lightweight.
7063065 They could have found them sooner.
7063188 Of course. Never waste an opportunity to pull out one of the best jokes in the film.
7065008
Now, if Thor put his hammer in the train from Ponyville to Canterlot, would the train be worthy to climb all the way to the capital with it?
7065072 Android's worthy. Luna's worthy. Now...train's worthy?
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F*cking kill me.
And he finally appears.
Yeah, Wanda, you got a hell of a long way to go before any of the Mane Six can trust you, especially after what you put them through.
What a really excellent chapter you've written, JD!
“Twilight,” Tony said to her, falling to one knee as the others had. She groggily looked at him, pressed a hoof to her forehead, and groaned. Stark managed a weak smile, nodding to her. “I know you just woke up from a pretty traumatic experience and all but…I wanted you to know that I pretty much drank all of your coffee.”
Best line in the chapter.
7066488 Thanks! I appreciate the support!
7067246 That's awesome to hear! I'm so glad my work was able to get that kind of reaction out of the readers!
7069677 No problem.
When will the next chapter come?
7071292 I usually post during the weekends.
7072295
Take the time you need.
I see Vision and yep, Rainbow won.
Really they think they abandoned them? Considering you guys are stuck on a totally different planet having absolutely know ideas where you guys could have ended up I would give them a little bit of slack.
I guess Rainbow was my favourite nightmare.
So the guy called Vision is the one that ends the visions.
Huh.
Well, if anybody had to do it, it had to be him, I guess.
Also, loved the tense moment when the Avengers met up with the twins. You sure do know how to make a moment intense!
Good thing The Avengers showed up even if they were intent on giving the Mane Six one-for after rushing out like that. But unfortunately, given the trust issues Quicksilver and Scarlett Witch have, that wasn't going to be easy. Course, if I were part of a pair of siblings left to fend for ourselves in the wilderness and no help arrived for an uncertain amount of time I wouldn't know who to trust either. Fortunately, The Vision arrived just in time to get the two to calm down and in doing so freed the ponies (Though there is bound to be some mental scarring from that experience). I just hope once The Avengers explain about those twins, hopefully they'll be as forgiving as they've been for everything else.
My favourite "vision" was Fluttershy's. I'd be shitting bricks, too.
...no. No, Wanda does not get to simply feel guilty for torturing six Innocents. She does not get to get off scottfree.
That's like her being a detective who was told that they arrested the wrong person in a murder trial and releasing them from death row with a "My bad!"
No, she needs to work for forgiveness. And I don't think she deserves it.
Hundred percent, don't care, the Scarlett Witch better get a verbal or physical lashing for that. She's just traumatised the Elements of Harmony. HARD.
Oh thank god Vision showed up when he did. They were just about to kill each other.
You know, Wanda might be a fan favorite now, but stuff like this reminds me that she wasn’t very popular when Age of Ultron first came out. She and her brother had major trust issues. I hope she does something to make amends to the Mane 6 for torturing them for no good reason.