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ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
xi. SATAN'S BACKYARD

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   ESSENTIALLY, ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE. At least, to a child that is. Children are the foundation of the future, and constituted upon that future exists the building blocks of their minds. Their dreams are their reality. They learn how to imagine before they can formulate words. Hand-drawn pictures display their dreams in physical form, and when they fall asleep, their dreams live on. Fantasies don't exist to children, for anything is possible.

   But at some point, children wake up. They discover the truth about the world around them and learn to locate the line between what is and isn't real. Magical realms aren't hidden in the back of wardrobes. There isn't a magical fairy that steals your lost teeth and rewards you with gifts. Horrific monsters don't live under your bed, nor do unicorns exist.

   Riley Stark, on the other hand, was one of those rare cases in children who found it more and more difficult to determine the truth between reality and fantasy.

   She had always been convinced that fantasies were for little kids and that they were nothing close to reality until she proceeded to work her way up in S.H.I.E.L.D. and learned more about the world she resided in. Magic, superheroes, Norse Gods — they're all real. Fantasies become reality.

   But if there was one thing she would have never believed until she saw it herself, it was that aliens were real. Time and time again, she fought against gruesome aliens and other various beings from outer space. However, this time was different. Why?

   Because Riley Stark had never been kidnapped off of Earth by an alien before until about one week ago.

   "I really hope this works."

   She sat with her legs crossed on the grass. Where she was, she didn't know. It certainly wasn't Earth or any planet in the near Solar System. Her arm was propped up against a rock with one of her silver cuffs emitting a blinking light, indicating that it was recording.

   "It's been, uh, I think a week since I arrived here. I've been trying to keep track of the days by making marks on that tree over there." Riley moved her arm to show the tree behind her with seven tally marks carved into the bark. "It doesn't sound like very long, but I swear it feels like it's been forever."

   She glimpsed away from the camera that always seemed to be recording footage due to the protocols Tony put in her suit. She plucked the blades of grass beneath her with her free hand.

   "I wanted to make this for myself... to remind myself of what's happening in case I start losing it or something," Riley lightly admitted. She glanced back up at her silver cuff. "A week ago, Thanos acquired all six Infinity Stones and annihilated... uh, 50% of all life. I watched a lot of people turn to dust. I thought I would join them in death, too, but I didn't. Actually, I just passed out from blood loss. I wish I could say I was relieved, but... I'm not."

   Swallowing her own saliva, Riley's throat screamed at the heavenly lubricating sensation. She swiped her tongue across her chapped lips. "After I passed out, I was taken from Wakanda to... um..." Riley trailed off, glimpsing around at her surroundings. "Thanos called it Titan II. Sometimes he calls it the Garden. I, uh, I haven't exactly been in the mood to give it a new name. Maybe the Garden of Evil would work? Satan's backyard? I dunno."

   She shook her head. She couldn't pretend to be herself. She was miserable. "Thanos transported me from Wakanda to this planet shortly after I passed out. He healed some of my more worrying wounds, actually. Said something about using the Time Stone to speed up the healing process. I'm not sure about the logistics, not that any of that matters. I was unconscious for... I think it was only for a day, but it could've been longer."

   Riley frowned, a flashback playing in her mind as she went on to tell her first conversation with Thanos upon regaining consciousness.

   "Where are we?" Riley had wondered after getting over her initial shock of being alive and anywhere near Thanos. She didn't know Wakanda very well, but she knew for a fact that she wasn't on Earth. If she was, Thanos wouldn't be loitering in a mystical garden without a care in the world. "Answer me!"

   Thanos seemed indifferent to the wrathful girl. "I've decided to call it Titan II. The Garden is my new home. My mission is over, and now I can rest," Thanos had calmly explained. Riley remembered how he looked around at the empty world with pride in his beady eyes.

   "Right..." Riley had trailed off. "Why am I here?"

   "Well, I healed you because I need you here."

   She had to fight rolling her eyes. "Why?" Riley had asked a second time. Then, Thanos answered her question so casually that Riley didn't process it at first. After all, what he was asking for seemed next to impossible.

  "Because I need you to destroy the Infinity Stones."

   Riley remembered how her eyes widened. "Huh? What? Why? I don't understand."

   Thanos sighed like she was the crazy one. "I've only used the stones once altogether... to complete my Decimation. In order to avoid personal temptations of using them again, I need the stones to be destroyed. I can't risk the stones continuing to exist in perfect harmony knowing that someone could come and attempt to reverse my life's work."

   Riley shook her head, wondering, "Why don't you just do it yourself? Why do you need me?" Riley was puzzled. "Why didn't you just save Wanda and bring her here instead? Her powers were given to her by an Infinity Stone. If there's anyone who can do it without fail, it's her. She's the one you're looking for—not me."

  And Riley wholeheartedly meant that. She wasn't strong like Wanda was. She would never be that strong.

   "I don't save anyone," firmly declared Thanos. "I'm not your average hero. I told you that should you survive, we would be in touch. The same would go for anyone else who I knew could destroy the stones. I needed to see if you were worthy enough. Wanda died from the snap. She didn't survive. She wasn't worthy. But you, however, you survived. You are worthy."

   She remembered how his words echoed in her head as he spoke them. Thanos added, "You are the only being in the galaxy to possess powers of the sun. Now that I've seen you unlock your potential, I know you can destroy the stones."

   Riley was silent, causing Thanos to continue, "Destroy the stones and I'll make sure you return home safely."

   The thought of their conversation caused Riley to sigh. She stared at the cuff on her wrist, moving on from the memory. "I told Thanos I'd have to think about it," she explained. "As much as I want to go home..." She shook her head. "If I destroy the stones, we can't reverse what's happened. I have no idea who did and didn't survive besides a few people." Riley felt her eyes water upon remembering seeing the people she once knew turn to dust. "I... I don't even know if my mom survived... or if any of my family did..."

   She looked down again. "Two days later, Thanos confronted me and demanded an answer. I refused to help him." She looked back up at the camera again. "It's probably a stupid thing I did, right? Oh well. If Thanos doesn't get what he wants, then he hasn't completely won, right? Is that how it works?" She sighed again. "I'm not sure, but that's what I've been telling myself."

   She adjusted her sitting position. The sun shined down on her body, a gentle wind kissing her cheeks. This world seemed to be Thanos's personal heaven. It was beautiful, but she knew it wasn't home. It could never be her home, no matter how long she was stuck here.

   "Because I refused Thanos, he cut off my food and water supply completely. He was just... stringing me along so that I'd be completely dependent on him, I think," Riley elaborated. "Even attempting to hunt is a suicide mission. The first time I tried, he punched me halfway across the planet. Literally. I haven't tried again since... But... that was four days ago."

   Riley winced as her stomach growled at the thought of food. Now that she was talking about it, her stomach rumbled. It continued to gnaw away at itself more and more. If you looked close enough, you could see that Riley's face had begun to hollow out just a bit. The bags beneath her eyes had grown more prominent, along with the scars all over her body from the past fight. Dried blood was still stuck to her face.

   "As much as I hate admitting it, I'm not sure how long I'm gonna last. I've... I've never been, um, put in this kind of situation before," she confessed. "I'm-I'm tired. I'm so tired. And I'm weak. I've tried to keep up my muscle, but there's only so much movement I can do without food or water."

   She swallowed the knot in her throat. "It's weird though because the sun seems to be giving me some form of strength. I know my powers reflect the sun respectively, but... I didn't think I could gain so much energy from it. That's what's been keeping me going for the past week. I've managed to work up just enough strength to execute my next plan."

   Riley lowered her voice to a whisper, leaning closer to the camera. "I don't know if Thanos is listening, but you can never be too paranoid around here," she softly said. "I haven't seen him in a few days, but he's been rather peaceful... you know, after punching me in the face. I've figured out where he's been camped out with the stones. I think if I sneak up on him, I can take him by surprise."

   Biting the inside of her cheek, Riley added, "It's a suicide mission, but I've been sitting around for days. No one's coming for me. I know it. I don't know why anyone would come for me when he's our priority. By taking him out, I can bring the stones back to Earth. I can reverse everything he's done. I just have to... knock him off his feet first. I think I can do it."

   She leaned back from the camera again. She raised her voice to a normal speaking volume once more. "Like I said, I can't just sit around waiting for an opportunity to strike. I was raised by S.H.I.E.L.D., remember?" reiterated Valor with a faint smile on her face. "History can't happen until you make the first move. How else do you think I became the youngest Avenger? Besides, I'm all that Earth has left."

   Riley sat up straight, her smile dropping again. "If... If anyone somehow finds this though, I wanna leave a message, especially if I die. I don't think I'll be all that surprised if I do because this is the dumbest suicide mission I've ever thought of. I guess that's what I get for being friends with Steve Rogers, right?" Riley quietly laughed at her comment. "But if I've learned anything from Captain Marvel's story, it's that someone's got to keep fighting, right?"

   She inhaled slowly. It seemed that she was attempting to gather herself before saying her final message to anyone who might find this recording in the future.

   "To Pepper, Nat, all of the Avengers, the uncompromised agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury... To all of my friends I've made in Queens... Thank you. All of you. Thank you for accepting me into your lives and making me the person I've become today. I don't know what I'd do or who I'd be without you. I'm not exactly great with words, but..." Riley could feel a single tear stream down her face. "Thank you for being the village I can always come back to."

   She shut her eyes tightly. She cleared her throat. "Um, I don't actually know what came of Tony and... uh, Spider-Man." Riley wasn't sure if it was her place to expose Peter for being Spider-Man. She decided not to. "I assume that Thanos... um... that Thanos killed them since he managed to get the Time Stone from Doctor Strange. But it wouldn't be right if I didn't leave a message for them, too."

   Riley paused. It was like she didn't know where to begin. "Bug-Boy, you've been one of my best friends for the past year now. I know we got off on the wrong foot, but you taught me what being normal feels like. I am forever grateful for you," she said with a soft smile. "I'm gonna miss you a lot."

   "And Tony... I... I... Um..." She inhaled and exhaled audibly. "You were the first person to look at me like I was just another person. I wasn't just a broken child or a murderer or a humanized weapon to you. To you, I was just Riley. The Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. were and always will be the village I can come home to, but you, Pepper, and Happy are the family I never got to have. The Stark-Potts family was my second chance, and I will never know how to properly thank you for that."

   With another sigh, she reached out and wiped the tears from her face. "This is my first and probably my last message before I confront Thanos," she declared. "I don't want to say goodbye, but who knows? Maybe I should..." She paused before shaking her head. "No, you know what? I'll try something else."

   Riley pulled her lips into a small smile.

   "Until another day. This is Riley Stark, signing off."

○ ○ ○

   'I am an absolute idiot,' was all that seemed to be rolling through Riley's mind. Well, that and the very stupid plan she formed just a few hours ago.

  Adorned in her suit, she peered out from behind a tree to see Thanos. He was out farming. It was all he did nowadays, which was odd considering he just committed a mass murder not too long ago. Riley always wondered what villains did to celebrate their success should it ever arise, but she never stopped to consider that all they might want to do is take up something simple like farming.

   Adrenaline had already begun to soak her veins before Riley had even made her first move. She took an extra moment to internally prepare herself for what was about to come. Riley didn't know what she had up her sleeve, but she had always been a fantastic bullshitter. Maybe if Riley just acted like she knew what she was doing, she would make it out alright?

  Turning invisible, she inched forward. She warily watched Thanos, taking note of how he hung his armor on a wooden post, reminding her of a scarecrow. He had no armor, no other weapons. That meant she had the upper hand, right?

   Wrong.

   Attached to Thanos's dominant hand was a scorched gauntlet. Riley had been secretly hoping it would be with his armor, but it wasn't. The Infinity Stones were still in it, but using the stones seemed to damage the gauntlet greatly. She questioned if it was even possible for Thanos to use them without further destroying the gauntlet and himself in the process.

   She held her breath as she approached him. He stood still, looking over his personalized heaven with a smile on his face. Riley wondered how often he did this.

   Disregarding the thought, she reached out once she was close enough to him. Her hands trembled as she tried to grasp onto one of the stones in hopes of being able to pull it out. This was her terrible plan: attempting to steal the stones one after another until she got caught and was forced to fight. Hopefully, if she didn't screw this up, she could avoid that altogether.

   However, once Riley was close enough, the stones seemed to react to Riley and the natural energy her body gave off. The stones twinkled and shined bright, almost yearning to be held by someone of Riley's nature.

   She hoped that maybe Thanos wouldn't notice, but judging by the way he spun around and blindly swung his fist, she figured he definitely noticed. Riley went flying backward, turning visible again out of surprise.

   "You!" Thanos angrily yelled. "What are you doing!? Stealing is a crime!"

   "A crime?" Riley repeated. She was rather flabbergasted. "There are no rules or law on this stupid planet!" She forced herself to stand up again. "Who's gonna arrest me?" She gulped when she noticed Thanos raise his fist, closing it tightly. "Bad question. Definitely a terrible question."

   Thanos marched forward, throwing a punch her way. She barely managed to duck in time. His fist became lodged in the tree behind her, giving her enough time to bold out of the way. She took the opportunity to conjure her strength and strike his back with a hard punch, coating her hands with energy. Thanos arched his back in pain, shouting miserably.

   Thanos took a moment to think, recovering from the hit. He glanced between his gauntlet and the girl, a plan forming. "Fine," he said. "If a fight is what you want, then a fight is what you'll get." What that, he spun around and landed another hit. Riley went tumbling to the ground. It was no use. She was too weak. "Come on, Valor! Get up!"

   Riley rolled to the side when he swung again. His knuckles went through the ground. She grabbed the nearest object she could reach — a large gardening tool — and chucked it at Thanos. It pierced straight through his arm, but he seemed to pull it out without even reacting.

   Scoffing, Riley grumbled under her breath, "This is a ridiculously unfair fight."

   But despite every time Riley was knocked down, she forced herself to stand up again. Over and over and over again, Riley was beaten down. However, over and over and over again, Riley would rise. She couldn't give up. She was so close to saving not only herself but everyone who had been affected by Thanos. Riley was so close to saving everyone and making this nightmare go away.

   "Why do you keep fighting?" charged Thanos. He stared down pitifully at Riley, who seemed to have reopened many of her old wounds. She was positive she had even broken a rib in the process. "I offered you everything you want, yet you continue to disobey me. Why don't you just quit?"

   "I..." Valor spat out, struggling to stand on her two feet. She wavered as she attempted to balance herself. "I will never stop fighting you! I'm all Earth has left. It might... It... It might be a sad attempt at winning, but I will continue to fight for them. Because as long as I'm alive, as long as those stones are... are in your possession, I will keep... rising, and I will avenge the Earth.

   Thanos rolled his eyes. "You talk too much," he grumbled whilst reaching out to punch her down again.

   Nevertheless, he was taken aback when the impact between his fist and Riley never came. Instead, he was being pushed back. When Thanos looked down, he had expected a forcefield to be the barrier between them. He was astounded to be greeted by a bright light being generated from her hands.

   A single beam of UV rays surged out of Valor's hands, practically blinding the two between the line of fire. It slowly grew as it pushed against Thanos. Riley had been so focused on maintaining her concentration that she didn't even seem to notice the small smirk on Thanos's face. Instead, she continued to push the UV rays out of her hands, whereas Thanos shielded himself by sticking the gauntlet in front of him.

   The contact between the UV rays and the six Infinity Stones caused the stones to light up, almost as though they were being charged. They burned in Thanos's gauntlet, scorching through the already damaged glove. Thanos shouted in pain as his skin started to become scarred. Riley grunted as her eyes fell tightly shut, her jaw clenched. Everything was riding on the hopes that Riley could stay on her feet.

   Without warning, an explosion was produced between Thanos and Riley. The enemies were sent flying in opposing directions. Riley breathed heavily, but once again, she found a way to stand up. Her chest moved up and down as she panted. Riley stumbled forward, one of the cuffs on her wrist falling onto the ground in a charred mess. Her other cuff just barely managed to stay put on her wrist. Half of Riley's suit seemed to materialize away.

   Smoke danced into the air, partly blinding them. Riley squinted through the screen, her heart dropping when she realized what she was looking at.

   "What... What the hell...?" she breathlessly said. "What happened!?" She moved closer. On the ground where the explosion had occurred, six blackened rocks from the gauntlet laid. The Infinity Stones were destroyed. "No... No! You... You tricked me!"

   Thanos looked exhausted. "You... You fell right into my trap," Thanos spewed.

  Riley kneeled beside the six stones, staring at them helplessly. They couldn't be destroyed. They couldn't! She wasn't even strong enough to do something like that. This should've never happened.

  Maybe she could fix them. If she could break them, she could fix them, right? Or maybe there was still some juice left in them? There had to be something she could do!

   So, she reached out toward the black rocks, fingers buzzing with ultraviolet energy. They trembled as she grazed them. Suddenly, there was a jolt of light. A spark. The stones twitched, vibrating unusually. A hole opened up from beneath Riley.

   "What the—?" 

   She gasped as the hole expanded, growing at lightning speed. The next thing Thanos knew, Riley Stark was swallowed by the hole. Once she was gone, the wormhole closed.

   Thanos stared in a mixture of shock and relief. Thanks to Riley, the Infinity Stones were dead and useless, as well as the gauntlet. Thanos had still won. The last bit of energy the stones had was used to create some kind of wormhole, taking Riley far away from his personal haven. Riley was gone and so were the universe's hopes in reversing Thanos's fatal Decimation. Thanos had still won.

   If only Riley had stuck it out just a bit longer, for two weeks later, the Avengers would arrive to defeat Thanos once and for all.