//------------------------------// // Chapter 162 – Seis Amigos // Story: Infinity Era // by JDPrime22 //------------------------------// 162 Upstate New York Remains of the New Avengers Facility 5:48 p.m. It was only the soft breeze on the Earthen front that made some form of noise or movement within the small group of Avengers. It gently brushed across the fires consuming the edges of the wasteland and the facility, tugging at Thor’s unkempt beard and hair but keeping the Allfather unmoving. It washed across each mare and they felt the heat in that wind, the fire-laced air washing through their manes and blowing them softly against it. Despite such wind, they remained where they stood. Unshaken. Perhaps on the outside. Within, each Avenger felt a personal sense of dread and foreboding just gazing out down below to the devastation of their base of operations. For there he was, sitting within the heart of all he had wrought. He did not see them. He did not bother, his focus far too preoccupied with the object he toyed with. Regardless, he was there. He was alive. Thanos had returned. Captain America took the center, standing tall on the highest slab of rubble amongst them. Iron Man stood on his left, slightly beneath Rogers but elevated above the King of Asgard. As for Thor, he stood on the lowest ground compared to the others. His black armor was scratched and filthy, beard and hair even more so, and arms scraped from the initial surprise attack. Tony shared his appearance, his armor dust-covered and scratched. Same for Steve, for the scales on his suit. Same for all of them. As for the ponies, they fared slightly better in terms of physical prowess. Rainbow Dash hovered beside Stark, armor-plated wings flapping to keep the Pegasus airborne. Twilight took her stance directly on Steve’s right, gazing out all the same with the Avengers she stood with. And finally, Rarity kept close to Thor’s right, casting each of them a quick and uncertain glance before inevitably falling back to the earth down below. Where he waited. It almost didn’t seem real. Five years, and he had all but become a wretched memory, a curse only by name but never by image. Twilight had done so much just to forget about him and move on, but in a way… he never left her. His face, his voice, all of him forever stained in her memory and heart and unable to be released. Maybe it was the fact that he had lived after all that she found no closure, coupled with the fact that half of everything she knew and loved had been taken away by his hand. In reality, Twilight could never forget about him. She could never forget what he did. She could never forget Thanos. Not knowing how the others must have truly felt, but knowing Thor had been staring at him for quite some time, the Alicorn asked, “What’s he been doing?” The silence was broken and the wind had found a worthy opponent to its sound. Thor, not even turning but knowing the questioned was directed at him, simply shook his head. He answered, “Absolutely nothing.” None of them found even a pinch of comfort with that response, every eye turning back to lock with the Mad Titan. He sat while donning his golden and black armor, a massive and terrifying blade resting by his side. A sickening moment of silence followed where the wind dominated all sound. “Guess we’re all that’s left,” Rainbow murmured, finally breaking flight and landing on a piece of concrete erected upwards by some rebar. The Pegasus stood tall and intimidating as she stared down to the Titan. “Well, we’re the only ones active,” Tony replied, the Pegasus on his left turning to the Iron Man. “Homer gave me the specs; everyone else is stuck down below and coming to. They’ll be fine for now. But yeah… as of right now… all that’s left.” The tone of his voice—especially on those final three words mirroring Rainbow’s own—filled each one of them with an overbearing weight that none could truly carry alone. That was why they stood together, just six lone Avengers against the weight of the universe tipping dangerously out of their favor. The wind blew. The fire burned. The skies blackened. They stood. “Where are the Stones?” Steve finally asked. “Well, he’s still here… and we’re not dead… so probably somewhere under all this,” Tony answered, hands shooting out before flopping back by his sides. Twilight gave a soft sigh of relief, knowing one of the biggest brains among them shared her theory and mindset on the state of the Infinity Stones. With that in mind, Twilight felt a little more at ease knowing that Thanos did not have the Stones nor knew where they were. Another thing less to worry about. All that really remained was… him. Going about it, however, was a little more difficult. Rarity made that known when she stamped her hooves nervously against the concrete below her, the unicorn muttering, “What are we going to do?” “Keep him occupied,” Steve said, earning the unicorn’s eyes. Everyone’s eyes minus Thor. His grip on his shield’s strap tightened subtly, Captain America narrowing his eyes to the lone Titan. “As long as he doesn’t have the Stones.” Rarity was afraid of that. In a way, they all were. Nevertheless, they fell in line and faced the trials and tribulations ahead as one. Even in her shimmering purple Iron Mare, Rarity found a reason to tremble. She gulped, but never turned away. Kept standing right alongside her friends. “Right,” she whispered. Thor hadn’t moved since Twilight spoke to him. He hadn’t spoken for what felt like an eternity, the simple barrier between them and Thanos filling the air with unnerving silence and uncertainty. Thor stared on with his remaining pupil, saw no reason to turn away, and asked, “You know it’s a trap, right?” “Yeah… I don’t much care,” Tony said, shrugging his shoulders and turning to them. After all the confrontations she had with the Mad Titan, Rainbow Dash had plenty to lose. Had plenty to sacrifice, her own life being one. Her friends… being another. She knew exactly what Thanos was capable of, yet seeing the lack of an Infinity Gauntlet on his hand and no Stones within his reach, added with her friends right by her side and through it all, Rainbow had reasons to doubt… but more to believe. With the fires glowing against her jet-black and sky blue Iron Mare armor, Rainbow Dash turned alongside Tony Stark, nodding their way. “Same here,” the Element of Loyalty boldly declared. Twilight had faced far more treacherous storms whenever she had confronted the likes of Thanos. After nearly losing her life by his hands in the Badlands five years ago, seeing the type of power he was truly capable of, and added to all the suffering, torment, and pain he had enacted not only upon her, but her friends and family over the years… Twilight knew there was nothing more that could hold her back. For every life that had suffered from Thanos’ tyranny, they would finally be avenged. She was scared, yes, but knowing there were friends beside her through every step made it matter. It mattered to her, to Twilight Sparkle. The violet, pink, and black armor gracing her body reacted as her wings slowly unfurled in a display of intimidation, the mare’s horn glowing fiercely against the dark. Her expression was illuminated under the violet warmth, showcasing the rage, the determination, and everything Twilight was and ever would be. The Element of Magic said, “We face him together.” Rarity was silent. Terrified. Bold. Determined. So many different emotions and feelings flushing through the unicorn that it made it difficult for Rarity to know how she truly felt. Perhaps she had suffered more than any of her friends at the hands of the Mad Titan, having known his image even before five years ago. For she saw only the Titan, only the wretched conqueror hovering over the burning remains of her home and everyone she knew and loved. For so long, she saw that. She knew Thanos before any of them did. She had kept silent about it and it cost them everything. “For every life,” the Element of Generosity muttered. Never again. Her expression hardened into a bold declaration of perseverance. As it did all of them. Thor felt Rarity’s declaration mirror his own, showing it in his own expression. In his voice as he said, “Good… just as long as we’re all in agreement.” His left eye began to glow a heavenly blue, the crack of thunder shooting off across the soon-to-be battlefield and filling it in a shroud of a deeper, more terrifying darkness. The clouds swarmed above, calling out to the God of Thunder and supplying him with what he desired. Thor raised his arms directly out in front of him, a flurry of electricity coating his forearms and preparing him for the bolt of lightning striking down from the heavens. Once the lightning made contact with Thor, he took on a stark but intimidating shift of attire. His black armor was repaired and covered him from neck to toe, his right arm armored up while his left remained barren. The Uru prosthetic didn’t need it. All it needed was his hammer. Mjølnir and Stormbreaker flew into his grasp, the hammer gripped in his left hand and the axe in his right. His beard and hair were braided according to the Allfather’s will, a flowing red cape joining his armor. Once the light in his eye died down, Thor stood tall and bright amongst his friends. They didn’t even cast him a glance to know what he had become. They all just focused on Thanos. Thor’s expression was cold and murderous, a shaking inhale entering his nostrils as he growled, “Let’s kill him properly this time.”