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‘For close to eight months since their arrest, the media coined Rogue Avengers trials have been conducted all over the world, and all have concluded in guilty verdicts. Steven Grant Rogers has been found guilty of all charges laid against him and was sentenced to fifty years to life in a maximum security prison built for Enhanced individuals.
Natasha Romanoff was sentenced to forty-five years with no parole for twenty-five years, she will complete her sentence in Scheveningen Prison in the Netherlands; Clinton Frances Barton was extradited to New York to face charges of breaking and entering, property damage, and assault after being found guilty of illegally entering Germany and was convicted of all crimes and sentenced to fifteen to twenty years; Wanda Maximoff was found guilty and will be extradited to her home country of Sokovia where she may face the death penalty for her involvement with HYDRA and creating and aiding and abetting Ultron.
Samuel Wilson was also extradited to the United States and was convicted of theft of U.S. Government property. The charges placed against him by Romania were dropped due to his lack of true involvement in the fight with Counterterrorism officers, though once his sentence in the U.S. is complete he will serve a sentence in Romania for illegally entering their borders.
James Buchanan Barnes has been remanded to a psychiatric facility in Switzerland to receive medical assistance due to the years he spent being brainwashed and controlled by HYDRA; due to his questionable mental state Mr Barnes was found not guilty of crimes laid against him due to diminished responsibility and the charges of the attempted murder of Anthony Stark were dropped by Dr Stark himself.’
‘Dr. Stark released a brief statement shortly after the Rogues trials were concluded via his Twitter account declaring that the council has approved the reforming of the Avengers Initiative. Dr. Stark said that he has already been in talks with several enhanced in New York and San Francisco who have pledged their assistance against world-ending threats.’
‘Dr. Stark has also sold the Compound in Upstate New York he renovated for the former Avengers use to the United Nations, and they have begun forming a chain of command for the New Avengers. Colonel James Rhodes, codename War Machine, has been elected as leader of the Avengers and Major Carol Danvers, codename Captain Marvel, has been elected co-lead.’
***
Tony was grateful that the ICC had allowed him to give testimony over video-link rather than sit in front of the Rogues. Some may say it was cowardly, but Tony just wanted to avoid his former team mates as much as possible. The mere though of coming face to face with Rogers had sent him spiralling into a panic attack, and his lawyers had requested the video link option.
After dredging up all the old pain from his parents deaths and discussing how Rogers had used his money to search for their killer had wrung him dry. He’d always mourned his mum more than Howard, but learning that his father hadn’t been at fault for the crash had made Tony rethink all of his grief.
Howard hadn’t been drunk. He hadn’t drunkenly lost control of the car leading to Maria and his own deaths. They’d been murdered by HYDRA for the super soldier serum Howard had managed to recreate for SHIELD. Tony was pissed about that, because Howard’s obsession with the good Captain had never waned – but it wasn’t his father’s fault HYDRA had infiltrated SHIELD and managed to steal the serum.
Tony and grief didn’t mix well. He’d never liked facing his emotions. That, he knew, was because of his father’s toxic saying that ‘Starks are made of iron.’ But Tony gave himself a few weeks after the Rogues were sentenced to grieve properly since ’91. He grieved for his father, whose friend covered up his assassination. He grieved for his mum, who always tried no matter how difficult Tony was being.
Tony grieved for what could have been. With his parents and with his former team...if said team had just been honest with him. But in a twisted way, he was grateful for how it had all turned out. Because Tony knew he’d have thrown everything he had into finding Barnes and protecting him if it meant making Rogers happy. To his own detriment.
But the trials were over, and the Accords Council had approved for the Avengers to reform with new members and Tony and Rhodey had been put in charge of recruitment.
There was a shocking amount of enhanced people in New York, and many of them had agreed to sign the Accords and join the Avengers. Tony had approached his old MIT peer Reed Richards – he, his wife Susan, Susan’s brother, and their friend Ben Grimm had experienced an accident in space that gave them superpowers – who was on board to assist in protecting the world. The Defenders, a group of supers that mainly worked in Hell’s Kitchen, and were made up of Jessica Jones, Private Eye; Danny Rand, billionaire; Luke Cage, bar owner; and Matt Murdock, lawyer. They had also signed the Accords and joined the new Initiative.
Things were looking up, and Tony was hopeful for the first time in a long time that thr Avengers were becoming what he’d always dreamed they would. The council had purchased the compound from him and gutted the kitchen to make it into a cafeteria, the rooms were renovated into dorms that people had to rent, and there was a clear chain of command everyone had to follow. Tony was no longer expected to fix gear and weapons for free or pay for everyone’s food and board.
It was great.
So, of course, that’s when a ship full of Asgardians had to arrive with the news of a genocidal warlord heading for earth.
***
‘And in much more recent news, a spaceship was discovered entering Earth’s atmosphere early this morning over New York City, and President Ellis urges everyone to remain calm. Those on board the ship are Thor, God of Thunder, and Dr Bruce Banner, who went missing shortly after the Ultron incident in Sokovia. King Thor has entered discussions with the United Nations for asylum after the cataclysmic destruction of Asgard. Also on board the ship are over four hundred Asgardian refugees begging for assistance. The Norwegian government has offered assistance due to their shared history with the Norse Gods.’
Controversially, Loki is also with King Thor and has informed the Accords Council that his actions were not entirely his own during the Invasion of New York in twenty-twelve. He claims that a mad, intergalactic warlord called Thanos gifted him a mind-controlling sceptre that greatly influenced and monitored him. Prior to Loki showing up on earth, he told the Council this afternoon, he was held captive by the Mad Titan, as he’s known to the wider universe, and tortured into agreeing to invade earth. Loki has agreed to comply with any punishment the Council deems necessary.’
***
Tony managed to avoid Bruce, Thor, and Loki for four days while they were caught up with lawyers and the Accords Council legal issues with what was left of an alien race seeking asylum and would-be invader clearing their name on grounds of mind-control.
Tony wasn’t surprised to learn that Loki had been mind-controlled. Reindeer Games had been all over the place during his attempted invasion, and his grand master plan had been quite...lacklustre and outright terrible, but he had thrown Tony out a window.
Tony had repurchased Stark Tower and renovated the penthouse and spent most days between his personal lab and R&D, so it was easy to avoid Bruce and Thor; but he knew his luck would run out.
After nearly twelve hours straight bogged down in working on his Bleeding Edge armour between updates on the Starkphones, tablets, laptops, and arguing with people on contracts for Pepper the last thing Tony wanted was a confrontation, but that’s what he knew was going to happen when he arrived in the kitchen of the penthouse to find Bruce nervously wringing his hands and Thor and Loki peering around curiously.
“Tony,” Bruce said, smiling anxiously.
“Banner,” he said blandly, coolly. “Rock of Ages, Point Break. To what do I owe the honour?”
“I am merely here for the drink you owe me,” Loki said, smiling innocently as he raised his hand.
Tony raised a brow, amused despite the situation. “Sorry to disappoint, Loki-Dokes, but there’s no alcohol in the house.”
Loki smiled and shrugged elegantly. “I am partial to the Midgardian beverage coffee.”
“That I can do,” Tony said, making a beeline for the coffee machine.
“Tony,” Bruce said again, “I just – I want to apologise –”
Tony turned and faced Bruce, eyes narrow. “Apologise? For what?”
Bruce winced. “Everything. Leaving. Letting you take the blame for Ultron...”
“Oh, yeah,” Tony remarked, a look of false surprise on his face. “You were part of that, weren’t you? Huh. I mean, I don’t blame you for bolting because of what the HYDRA witch did to you, but, you know, leaving me to explain to an irate court and public alone wasn’t great.”
Bruce winced, opening his mouth to respond, but Tony was on a roll, now, and barrelled on. “And when Thor decided it was okay to lift a baseline human team mate by his throat while the team stood around with their fingers up their ass, yeah, that was great, too.” Loki shot Thor a sour look, and the thunder God grimace, shamed. Tony went on relentlessly. “My throat was bruised for weeks. Make-up does wonders, however, and no one but Rhodey asked how I was – even when I started losing my voice. Even you fucked off afterwards, Thor, when you were mind raped by the witch, too, and everyone ignored my concerns of adding a HYDRA volunteer to the team. But your apology fixes everything.”
“I’m so sorry, Tony,” Bruce said softly, earnestly. “I really am.”
“I, too, apologise for my actions, Tony,” Thor said solemnly.
Tony slammed Loki’s coffee down before the god, staring coolly at his former teammates. He would forgive them, he knew he would. But he’d never forget what they’d done. Thor choking him had been terrifying; Bruce abandoning him to the vultures had been a startling wakeup call. He should have known the man wasn’t reliable when he’d fallen asleep during Tony pouring his heart out to him, a friend, after the Mandarin incident.
“I’ll forgive you,” Tony said aloud, ignoring Loki’s bewildered look. “Not right now, but eventually. Though I don’t know if I’ll trust either of you again. Not now, not after everything else has happened. I’ve had a gut full of betrayals and lies lately. I’m sure the Accords Council explained why the rest of the gang aren’t around.”
“Y-Yeah,” Bruce stammered, crossing his arms uncomfortably.
“I could have never imagined that the Captain would be so dishonourable,” Thor rumbled, frowning severely. His missing eye and shorter hair gave him an odd air of gravitas Tony wasn’t sure of. It somehow made the man more intimidating.
Loki scoffed. “The good Captain was hilariously easy to manipulate. Did he truly believe he was getting the better of me in Germany? I truly had to feign incompetence. I am glad you turned up when you did, Anthony.”
Tony snorted, shooting the mischief maker a look. “I was always suspicious of your actions during the Invasion.”
Loki smiled, pleased. “Yes, you were one of my greatest threats during my failed invasion.”
“I’m flattered,” Tony said dryly. He glanced at Thor and Bruce’s dejected expressions and pursed his lips. “Did the Council explain how things work around here now?”
“Yeah, they’ve caught us up on everything. We have rooms at the Compound if we want them, but I offered to help Thor with getting his people settled...” Bruce trailed off awkwardly. “Norway has allocated some unused land on the coast for the Asgardians to rebuild.”
“Huh,” Tony hummed, sipping his coffee. “Have you met the new team members?”
Bruce nodded and crossed his arms, looking supremely awkward and uncomfortable. “Yeah, they all seem...nice.”
“Yeah, they are; a lot nicer than the others,” Tony said sarcastically. “Rhodey and Carol have the team working well together. More and more Enhanced are crawling out of the woodwork now the Accords are in place and amended to protect them.”
“I’ve read the accords,” Bruce said, blinking rapidly in confusion. “I don’t know why Steve disagreed with them. I mean, I understand his hesitance with Ross involved but...he had oversight in the Army didn’t he?”
Tony huffed and rolled his eyes. “Apparently not. Christine Everhart, everyone’s favourite reporter, dug deep into the Rogues pasts and blasted their reputations to shreds in the press while they were on trial. Romanoff’s past with the Red Room and SHIELDRA, Rogers Army days, Barton’s missions for SHIELDRA, all of it was aired. Their own fault, I suppose, dumping SHIELD files on the net for the world to see.”
Thor looked puzzled. “I, too, read these documents, Anthony, and I find no fault in them. It is quite the norm for soldiers to have generals, is it not?”
“Earth is different to Asgard, Thor,” Loki said, rolling his eyes. “It is not usual for Earth to have...these enhanced people’s. Only recently – ever since Anthony became Iron Man – have they openly admitted to their presence. And the public was not very well receptive. Quite like how Odin and yourself reacted to my affinity for seiðr.”
Thor grimaced. “Ah, I understand.”
“Yeah, and after Rogers and his merry band of innocents waltzed into Lagos illegally and the HYDRA witch ‘accidently’ blew up a building full of people, after Ultron –” Bruce winced and looked down at Tony’s tone of voice. “ – the world wanted the Avengers to have some sort of oversight and chain of command. Before I retired I would contact the countries we’d be going to and make it all legal and kosher, but after I left Rogers and Romanoff neglected to do so...so, the Accords.”
“That makes sense to me,” Thor muttered, frowning – especially when Loki muttered something that suspiciously sounded like ‘a miracle’ – “So why did the Captain go against these accords?”
“Because he believed, and I quote, “The safest hands are our own.”” Tony rolled his eyes, a grimace on his face.
“That is quite arrogant and egotistical of the good Captain to say, especially when over one hundred countries say otherwise,” Loki remarked, a moue of distaste on his face.
Tony tipped his coffee at the trickster. “Yep, and they say my ego gets in the way. Anyway, tell me about this Thanos guy.”
Loki grimaced, looking less than pleased. “If you insist.”
Tony nodded, sympathetic. “Sorry, Lokes; if we could make planetary defences without knowing Thanos’ MO we would, so you didn’t have to dredge up bad memories, but...”
“I understand,” Loki murmured, dipping his dead. “I shall inform you of all I know about the Mad Titan, Anthony.”
Tony stifled the urge to turn to Bruce and say, ‘I told you so.’
***
‘Dr Stark is working with fellow renowned scientists for planetary defence and is in talks with King T’Challa of Wakanda, Dr Elizabeth Ross, Dr Jane Foster, Dr Eric Selvig, and many more who have offered their assistance to protect our world.’
‘Despite all of this, world leaders have urged the general public to not panic. Many governments are meeting in the Netherlands to coordinate a plan with their militaries to ensure the public’s protection. We have known since King Thor’s arrival that there was other life out there, but now it has become very real. But our governments and the New Avengers will protect us.’
***
Two months after Thor, Loki, and Bruce returned to earth, Tony and his fellow scientists slash doctor turned Magican had worked out a fledgling defence of the earth: satellites that were scrawled with protective runes from Loki and spells done by Dr Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme, that wouldn’t interfere with the tech Tony and Princess Shuri had poured into it; the shielding effect was similar to that which laid around Wakanda.
Seven satellites built by Tony and Shuri with the assistance of quite a few others were sent into orbit to quite a bit of fanfare; not all of it positive, but global protection was more important than bruised ego’s and personal opinions.
The satellites worked well, and Carol even flew up into space to test them – and she was blasted back several miles until Tony and Shuri accessed the mainframe of the satellites from their labs and identified Carol as an ally of earth. Anyone not approved by them or FRIDAY – who’d been cleared by the UN council – would have quite a hard time getting into Earth.
Of course, the satellites weren’t foolproof. They could be blown to shreds, but the protective spells and runes would give possible attackers a run for their money. Carol also tested those before the satellites were sent into orbit, and the magical mumbo-jumbo shields hadn’t even buckled under her considerable power. Thor had blasted them with lightening, and they’d merely flickered and somehow ended up stronger.
With the satellites in orbit, Tony’s shoulders lost some of their tension. The world was protected – as he’d fought for, for years – and he didn’t have to worry about enemy aliens rocking up and destroying everything while earth’s protectors sat around with their thumbs up their asses.
The Compound, whenever Tony got time to visit between SI meetings and time in the workshop for R&D, was full of nervous energy and determination. Rhodey and Carol were pumping three or four training sessions a week out of the team, to which they all agreed unless seriously unable to make it, and still more and more Enhanced were joining the new Avengers team.
Wade Wilson, more commonly known as Deadpool, had appeared one day and ended up with a broken jaw after Jessica punched him – he’d winged and complained about broken jaws taking hours to heal – but apologised for scaring everyone – and spent some time ranting at nothing – before explaining who he was and dragging a tired, somewhat messy man from the woods surrounding the Compound and introducing him as Eddie Brock.
Tony had blinked and stared as he met Venom, who was oddly adorable for a genderless, amorphous symbiote that was nearly as big as Hulk with teeth the length as Tony’s entire hand that craved brains.
Tony had truly seen it all after meeting Venom.
Well, so he’d thought.
He hadn’t met the Guardian’s of the Galaxy yet.