Everyone stared, utterly dumbfounded.
Sobbing uncontrollably, Ebony Maw rushed towards the petrified form of his master. His display of heart-wrenching grief was so dramatic, it almost made Saiki look like the villain who had committed some heinous, unforgivable crime.
The other members of the Black Order shuffled uncertainly, their expressions bewildered.
Blinded by sorrow, Ebony Maw didn't properly gauge his momentum as he flung himself at the statue. There was a sickening CRACK. The petrified body of Thanos wobbled precariously for a moment, and then—his head snapped clean off, tumbling from his shoulders and hitting the ground with a dull thud.
The remaining four members of the Black Order (yes, four – the author hereby declares Ebony Maw expelled): "..."
Ebony Maw, frozen mid-grief: "..."
Gamora, watching from the side: "..."
Nebula, equally stunned: "..."
Saiki Kusuo: "..."
Thanos, decapitated by his own subordinate immediately after being turned to stone: (Are you guys sore losers or what?!)
Saiki cleared his throat pointedly. "Everyone saw that, right?" he announced, gesturing towards Maw. "He did it. Nothing to do with me."
Ebony Maw clapped his hands over his mouth, his face a perfect mask of horror, resembling Munch's 'The Scream'. "AAAAAAAAAHHH, Master! I didn't mean to!!"
While Thanos was indisposed (and headless) and the Black Order was momentarily incapacitated by shock and grief, Saiki acted quickly. He teleported Nebula, Gamora, and War Machine back to Earth (in the past timeline). Before leaving, he casually plucked the Power Stone from Thanos's discarded Infinity Gauntlet.
The Power Stone seemed to possess the ability to amplify the other stones and Saiki's own inherent powers. The moment it merged with him, Saiki felt another tremendous surge across all his psychic abilities. His telepathy range instantly expanded to encompass the entire universe. His teleportation cooldown dropped to a mere thirty seconds, and he could now instantaneously travel anywhere simply by knowing its name, no prior visual contact required. His other powers were likely enhanced as well, but there was no time to test them now; dealing with the Thanos situation was paramount.
Back on Earth (in the past), Saiki instructed Nebula to take the unconscious War Machine back to their proper future timeline. He himself then returned to his own "correct" world line—the future, six years after the initial Snap.
He arrived to find the climactic battle between the assembled Avengers and Thanos already nearing its conclusion. As he feared, Thanos was present—presumably the past version, having traveled forward despite his future self's... predicament—and his Infinity Gauntlet blazed with the light of all six Infinity Stones.
Saiki's eyes darkened. Just as I suspected. Someone is manipulating events behind the scenes.
Thanos had already snapped his fingers. Across Earth, and indeed the universe, half of all life was turning to dust.
Peter Parker lay on the ravaged battlefield, his face contorted in pain. Tony Stark knelt beside him, cradling his head, watching helplessly as the young man began to disintegrate.
"Mr. Stark," Peter choked out, forcing the words past the pain. "I'm sorry... I couldn't help much..."
Tony wiped away a tear, his voice thick with emotion. "Don't... don't say sorry, kid. You did great. You did so great."
A faint smile touched Peter's lips despite the agony. "Do you think... do you think I could be called a hero?"
Tony nodded emphatically. "Definitely. You're a hero in my eyes, Pete."
Peter's eyes lit up, a spark of hope shining through the despair. "Then... does that mean I'm an Avenger now?"
Tony hesitated. "..." Technically, membership applications aren't really my department...
Seeing Tony's hesitation, Peter's face fell. "Right," he whispered, dejected. "Of course... how could a failure like me ever deserve to be called an Avenger?"
"No!" Tony said quickly, forcefully. "No, kid. I'm approving your membership. Right here, right now. You're an Avenger."
"But..." Peter started.
"No buts!" Tony insisted, his voice firm. "If that Fury guy gives us any trouble about it, I'll dump billions into S.H.I.E.L.D. just to get him fired."
Peter beamed, his whole face radiating pure joy. "Really? Thank you so much, Mr. Stark!" The dusting stopped. In fact, it reversed. Peter felt a surge of energy, good as new—fully restored, like hitting max health in a video game. He leaped to his feet. Leaped?!
Tony stared blankly at Peter, who should have been a pile of dust but was now standing before him, perfectly solid and unharmed.
Peter, however, was too ecstatic to notice anything amiss. It wasn't until Tony cleared his throat pointedly and said, "Uh, Parker... aren't you feeling... you know... any change in your body?" that Peter paused.
"We're teammates now, Mr. Stark! Call me Peter, no need to be so formal!" Peter chirped happily, before finally looking down at himself. Realization dawned, slow then sudden. "Whoa! I... I'm not dead!"
And it wasn't just him. Across the battlefield, everyone who had begun to fade away was reforming, solidifying back into existence.
Natasha finished a quick comms call with Nick Fury, her face alight with bewildered joy. "Director Fury just radioed in!" she announced to her stunned companions. "He says the civilians in the city who were dusting... they're back too! Everyone's coming back!"
It was undoubtedly news worth celebrating. But the question remained: why? Had Thanos suddenly had a change of heart? (The thought, Natasha mused internally, was about as likely as finding out Captain America was secretly Hydra, or that she herself would renounce her past, settle down, and get married.)
It was Doctor Strange who provided the answer, his gaze fixed on Saiki Kusuo, who had just materialized nearby. A weary but relieved smile touched Strange's lips. "You finally did it," he said, his voice filled with quiet gratitude. "It must have been incredibly difficult for you, all this time."
Having foreseen countless futures, Strange knew of Saiki's recent ordeals. He knew that after Thanos's devastating snap, it was Saiki who had wielded the stones and snapped everyone back. As he spoke, Strange's gaze flickered briefly towards Saiki's chest, where the power of the six Infinity Stones now resided. "I knew I wasn't wrong about you." He let out a long breath, slumping slightly onto a nearby rock, the expression of someone who had survived a great ordeal.
Almost immediately, however, his face hardened again, his expression turning grim. "Unfortunately," Strange said gravely, "the core problem hasn't been resolved. Saiki... I believe it's time you went to find him."
Saiki knew exactly who Strange meant.
Thanos, having just executed his snap, was signaling his forces to withdraw. Suddenly, gasps and murmurs arose from the ranks below. He turned, frowning, and saw it too – everyone who had been disintegrating was reforming, returning.
One of his lieutenants approached hesitantly. "Master, what should we do?"
Thanos's eyes narrowed, remembering the defiant pink-haired boy who had inexplicably turned him to stone earlier. A cold sneer spread across his face. He raised the gauntlet again and, with grim determination, snapped his fingers a second time.
Peter Parker, who had still been celebrating his miraculous return, felt the horrifying sensation begin anew. His spider-sense screamed danger as his body started to dissolve again. "Mr. Stark!" he cried out, the pain returning. "I..."
Tony, whose relief had lasted mere seconds, yelped in alarm and rushed back to Peter's side.
Peter's voice trembled. "Mr. Stark... you... you weren't lying before, right? About me joining the Avengers?"
Tony choked back another sob, nodding fiercely. "Of course not, kid. You're in."
Peter closed his eyes, a peaceful expression settling on his face. "That's good... I can finally... rest in peace..."
"NO!!" Tony roared in anguish.
Saiki, who had been scanning the battlefield searching for Thanos, saw people dusting again. "..." Seriously?
SNAP. He snapped his fingers again.
Once more, everyone returned to normal.
Peter leaped up, ecstatic. "Look, Mr. Stark! I'm alive again!"
Tony stared, utterly exasperated: "..."
Thanos, starting to seriously question the fundamental laws of reality: "..." Impossible. Refusing to accept defeat, he snapped his fingers again.
Peter, who had been bouncing excitedly, collapsed again. "Mr. Stark..." he gasped dramatically. "...after I die... tell Aunt May... bury me... right across from the Avengers Compound... I lived as an Avenger... I'll die... an Avenger ghost!"
Tony finally snapped. "...OH, GET LOST, PARKER!!"
Just then, Saiki snapped his fingers again.
All the people who had just died, then revived, then died again, then revived again, shared a single, collective, universe-weary thought:
...You know what? Forget it. I choose death.
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