Nightingale | An Avengers Tale

Epilogue

Tony Stark fidgeted as he stared out into the Pacific Ocean. The cries of seagulls and the crash of oncoming waves hitting against the pier did nothing to alleviate his concern.

"Stark." A female voice pulled him back to the present.

"Agent Johnson." He coolly responded without glancing at the dark haired agent who stood next to him. "Nice of you to meet me on such short notice."

"You said it was an urgent matter concerning your eldest daughter." Her head tilted as she gazed intently at him. "What is it?"

"I need a third party. Someone who can assess her without letting their emotions get in the way." He turned away from the ocean to finally face her.

"And you called me?" Daisy's brown eyes raised, but her face remained placid as she waited for him to continue.

"Let's face it. She's a Stark." Tony shrugged. "We have a history of needing S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents around to limit the amount of trouble we get ourselves into."

"My dad, he had Peggy Carter. I had Coulson for a while." He ignored the flash of pain in her eyes at that comment and continued, "Lily needs someone who can help curb the creative and destructive impulses."

His father had created the Midnight Oil and Nitramene. He had apparently created Ultron. It was only a matter of time before her abilities led her to creating something too dangerous for her to control.

"I hardly think I'm the right person."

"She's already created an arc reactor the size of a dime. She's discovered new elements with tools she found while scavenging through New York's dumpsters." He paused as his mind raced with something he could say to change her mind. "I read your case file. I want you. I'll double, no triple your salary. Anything you want, you've got it."

"You do realize that my previous mission sent me to space, right? This is glorified babysitting." She shook her head. "Why me?"

"You're enhanced. You offer a unique point of view to the situation."

"Have her powers resurfaced?" Daisy questioned as they began walking down the pier.

"No." Tony slid his sunglasses onto his face. "But the statistics of someone having powers like that for just a short period of time. I did the math. I don't think that's what we're looking at."

"What do you want me to do?"

"Keep an eye on her. Be her friend. If her powers come out again, she'll need someone she can confide in. I don't think I would be that person." He stammered. "Let's face it, I'm just some old, rich guy who's been absent her entire life. It's not the start to a great father daughter relationship."

"And if her powers come out, and she doesn't come to me, what then?" Daisy paused to glance out at the ocean.

"Monitor her. If she spins out of control, I have a failsafe in place."

•••

She was racing through a burning forest. The roar of the oncoming fire drowned out her frantic calls. She couldn't be too late. After everything that had happened, she couldn't lose anyone else.

Tears blurred her vision as she stumbled to her knees. Ignoring the sharp pines needles that pierced her skin, she jumped back to her feet and continued running. Smoke burned her lungs as she struggled to breath. She had to find them. They couldn't all be dead. He couldn't have killed them all that quickly.

But she knew what he was capable of. He deemed her his greatest nemesis, while she didn't have the slightest idea on how to stop him. And this time, she really was going to lose everyone she cared about.

Dread filled her as the frantic search proved futile. He had won. He'd done exactly what he'd promised. He had destroyed everyone and everything. An entire universe was gone. And this wouldn't be his last. He wouldn't stop until they were all gone.

"Bucky!" She shrieked. "Buck." Her search was cut short by a fierce coughing fit. She gripped her chest in agony as she stumbled to the ground. This was it. She was dying here. Alone. Unable to save the people she cared about.

It was all her fault. Annihilation had come. And he'd won.

"She's having a nightmare." A dark haired man began as he removed his hand from the sleeping girl's forehead. He turned to face the woman who stood behind him.

"We should wake her up." She frantically whispered.

"She didn't recognize you in the train. Do you really think she'll suddenly know who you are?" He shook his head as he again gently laid his hand against her forehead.

"What are you doing?"

"Inserting myself in her dream. I can't change it, but I might be able to distract and help her let go of whatever is terrifying her." He shook his head. It couldn't hurt to try.

"Why can't we just wake her up and take her home?"

"For starters." He angrily turned to face her. "Your precious little portal isn't scheduled is open for another three weeks. We both know what's she capable of." He motioned down to her as small purple sparks sprang out of her hands.

"Do you honestly believe you can control her for that long? Secondly, she doesn't have memories of any of us. You can't be sure you've even found the right variant. I'm not kidnapping a random variant just so you can have your precious little family all back together again."

"She's my sister. We haven't found any other variants in any other universes. You have to admit that it's possible for her to be Nexus level."

"I want to find her just as much as you, but I'm not taking the chance of nabbing the wrong one and ending up stuck here." He loudly hissed. "Now if you're going to babble endlessly, do it somewhere else." He returned his focus to the girl and released his magic.

She was running again, but this time she wasn't alone. "Do I know you?" Her voice was timid as the chaos around her subsided.

"It's been a long time, little one." A small smile flickered on his face. He was confident they had finally found her. "How about we go create some mischief?"

•••

Nightingale will return.