Heroine ϟ Marvel [3]

10.1

CHAPTER ONE

A New Hope

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AVENGERS FACILITY
ONE WEEK LATER

Ana had allowed Steve to manage her physical therapy. Ever since she returned to Earth, her health and strength had deteriorated. She was taking the time to slow down and build herself back up. There was still so much to do. He was still out there. Thanos needed to face the consequences of what he had done. Half of all life in the universe was gone with a snap. That much power on a scale that wide had unfathomable side effects. Governments were down. Countries were divided. Planets were in chaos. Galaxies were at war. The remaining Avengers just didn't know where to begin, though they found it was important that they healed. That they gathered information and allies for what came next.

Steve's eyes were on the stopwatch in his hand as it passed five minutes. At the same time, he counted out loud the number of times his right leg would raise from the ground as Ana performed pushups next to him. The grey mat underneath Ana was getting slippery from the sweat that dripped onto it. She was struggling. Not because of Steve's foot on her back, but the fact that her left arm was still healing. And it wasn't just the arm. Bruce had done a full physical exam, pointing out that Ana had sustained a number of injuries and conditions. Cracked ribs, damaged spinal column, rips in her trapezius muscles, acute organ failure, anaemia, hypoxemia, impaired hearing and vision among other things. Ana didn't think any of it would effect her healing process, but as it turned out, being trapped on a planet without water or food or proper oxygen for three weeks would do that to her.

"One hundred ninety seven, one hundred ninety eight..." Steve counted, glancing at Ana when he noticed her pace slow a fraction of a second. "Almost there." He reminded softly.

Ana powered through the last two. By now her arms were a shaking mess. The brace on her left arm was too stiff for her, and she went to remove it like she had done to the ones before. Steve's hand settled on top of her wrist before she could undo the metal clasps. "That's there to help you heal. Stop dismantling every single one Bruce makes for you."

"Sorry. Bad habit." Ana muttered. "What's next?"

Steve went to tell her to start on the gymnastic rings, but the sound of her heavy breathing stopped him. They had been at it for hours. Running. Sparring. Weights. And seeing as none of them barely slept most nights, he considered taking a break. "That's it. I've got to take over the global monitoring so that Natasha can focus on other things. She's trying to get in contact with Clint. He's still missing."

Ana reached up to place her palm flat against her forehead. "I don't understand why he would go off the grid. We're here. We're waiting for him to come home. He should know that much."

"His wife and kids..." Steve shook his head, still shaken by the fact that their names were among those who had disappeared off the face of the Earth. Nathaniel Pietro Barton, the youngest, was only three years old. "God, I can't imagine what he's going through."

"He's going through what no one should." Ana weaved her good arm with Steve's and leaned her head against his shoulder as they walked out of the training room. She was sore all over and her eyelids drooped heavily. Since their reunion, Ana found it hard to leave their sides. She wanted to see them everyday to make sure they were still alive. It was a nauseating feeling. Worsened her anxiety. She didn't want to lose anybody else.

A few days ago, Ana had used the computer linked to one of Tony's satellites to search for the people she knew, to see if they were victims of the Snap. Danny Rand. Luke Cage. Jessica Jones. Frank Castle. May Parker. Ned Leeds. Sharon Carter. Groot. They were among those who had faded from existence. More names added to the long list of people who needed avenging. Then there were those with question marks next to them. Tony Stark. Stephen Strange. Peter Parker. Gamora. Peter Quill. Drax. Mantis. Nebula. Matt Murdock. And more.