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THIRTY THREE | NO SHIT, SHERLOCK

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THE JOURNEY BACK to the past totally discombobulated the sorceress supreme.

Fractals of every colour imaginable and more stretched into infinity consumed her field of view as she materialized. It was like she took a powerful hallucinogenic drug that left her wobbling when their atoms reformed and their feet landed on hard concrete. Her body swayed to the right and if Steve's arm wasn't there, she would've already collapsed. Her stomach lurched and gurgled, waves of nausea adding to her misery. But, the woman held her head up high, placing her hands on her hips to make it seem she was still in control of herself. She, Tony, Steve, Bruce, and Scott were formed around in a circle as they examined their surroundings.

Sounds of laser beams and furious roars of otherworldly beasts passed over their heads, alerting them that they successfully arrived in their destination. They were now back in the 2012 alien invasion in New York city.

"Cassandra? You okay? You look sick."

The sorceress perked up. "Yeah? Uh, yeah. I'm - I'm good, yeah." She assured Bruce, ruffling her hair. "This isn't my first weird trip. So, this is..."

The putrid smell of vomit hit her nostrils and covering her mouth, she gagged and made a run for the nearest trash bin. She emptied her stomach's content into the bin, tightly gripping its sides as she trembled like a leaf. "Dear fucking Agamotto..." she mumbled, panting and cringing at the bitter taste the puke left in her tongue. Steve offered her a handkerchief and she cocked an eyebrow. "You brought a hanky with you?"

"I always bring one with me."

"Oh." Cassandra prolonged her stare at him, her interest piqued with his answer before smirking. "Thanks, Cap."

Tony then clapped hisnhands, catching her attention. "Okay, planner, quick recap."

"Right. Tony, Steve, and Scott will handle stealing the tesseract and the scepter while Bruce and I will talk to the Ancient One to get the time stone."

Steve nodded. "Got that. All right, we all have our assignments. Two Stones uptown, one Stone, down. Stay low. Keep an eye on the clock." He briefly commanded like a true team captain. It was then that the 2012 version Hulk passed by them, smashing everything in his way and Cassandra caught Bruce putting his hand on his face, seemingly embarrassed. "Feel free to smash a few things along the way."

Bruce shrugged. "I think it's gratuitous, but whatever." He proceeded to pretend to smash things in a sardonic way that the sorceress almost scratched her head. So much for trying to fit in. She thought, following closely behind with her arms spread out in defense just as Steve, Tony, and Scott entered an alleyway and disappeared from their sight. Tearing his shirt off, the present time Hulk walked over to a car and lightly punched it, making a small dent, all the while making growling noises.

A loud screech behind them caught her attention and she swiftly swiped her hand to the right, conjuring a mandala that she used to decapitate the charging alien. This might have attracted more aliens towards her and Bruce since several of them attacked.

One of them lunged, and she sidestepped. Hurling another blast of amber energy, it disintegrated into dust. Another Chitauri bellowed in rage. He charged, and swung her leg over the alien's back and slid off, landing much harder than she anticipated. Folding her arms up, Cassandra thrusted her hands forward, delivering a powerful surge of eldritch magic that brought forth the crumble of her enemies. Breathing hard, she turned to the Hulk who had just tore an alien in half. Picking up a motorbike, he threw it at a wall, wincing as it hit the surface.

"Come on, Bruce," the sorceress supreme invited, jogging out of the alleyway they were in. "We can't get more involved here. This is not our fight. My sling ring will - "

"Dad, there's a family trapped in that car! I need to help them!"

The former Guardian watched as her past self zoomed past an angry horde of aliens, dodging a horizontal sword cut aimed at her head by bending over backward as the scepter passed over her body. In quick retaliation, the 2012 Cassandra Mason sliced their bodies in half with her flaming sword, blasting the rest of her opponents with magic borrowed from the gods. She continued to move past her enemies with tenacity, determined to save the trapped family.

"Cassandra, wait!"

The woman gulped. Standing not far away from her was Harry Mason, alive and well in the year 2012. She never expected to run into him here, feeling heartbroken when she recalled a few years from this time, he would die. She missed her father so much that this moment before her felt like a second chance in life.

There was not a day where she didn't miss her father. He was her rock and resting place throughout her gruelling early training days. He guided her in learning the mystic arts, and supported her in her decisions. Both he and her mother put her welfare first by constantly reminding her that she doesn't have to push herself too much into training to become the Guardian of the Sorcerer Supreme.

Harry was catching his breath and bent forward with his hands on his knees. His eyebrows were furrowed in confusion as he turned his gaze back to the other Cassandra. "Wha - is that you? Oh! Why are you with the Hulk? I told you to stay away!"

Eyes widening in shock and heart beating wildly, the sorceress supreme spun around her heel in order to avoid running into him, but luck was not on her side since her living father retrained Bruce to the wall with his magic. In an effort to not get the both of them stranded in one place and waste time, Cassandra slipped her fingers into her Sling Ring and opened a gateway, the entrance of the New York Sanctum appearing on the other side. "Let's go!"

That was when a double edged blade, whizzed past her head, making her stop in her tracks. She knew better not to move after that because just then, a very thin thread of fire appeared before her, almost singeing her hair. She swallowed. "Bruce, the Ancient One is on the roof of the building. Talk to her about the time stone."

"What about you?"

"I'll catch up as soon as I deal with this."

He promptly nodded and entered the portal just as it disappeared and Cassandra's father sprinted over, raising an eyebrow as he examined her being.

"That was not the Hulk," he declared, suspicion visible in his eyes as he flicked his eyes towards Cassandra. "and you... you are not my daughter." Raising his hand, the double edged blade flew towards his hold and he pointed it at the sorceress supreme's neck. "State your true name and purpose, doppelgänger. Why do you have my daughter's face?"

"I am not a doppelgänger. I am..." Cassandra swallowed, contemplating whether to state her and Bruce's true purpose. "From the future."

Harry tsked, unbelieving. "You should know well not to lie to a sorcerer, you cursed being. Are you a shapeshifter?"

The sorceress supreme shut her eyes, carefully lifting her right hand to move away the blade from her skin. "Dad, it's me, Cassandra. We travelled back in time to retrieve the infinity stones."

"Retrieve the infinity stones?" He scoffed. "Bull - "

"I come from a future where everyone has lost their loved ones and me, along with the other Avengers, are trying to undo the damage that has been inflicted." She cautiously explained, careful to not slip any clue that might lead to this timeline creating an alternate path. "Dad, I lost almost everyone."

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Because I am the Sorceress Supreme."

Her father's lips hung open, seemingly surprised.

Cassandra hastily presented her time space GPS bracelet and immediately, her father's demeanor changed. Nanotechnology was not yet introduced during their time, no matter how rapid Stark industries was in inventing new technologies. She pointed to her past self that was attacking several aliens at the moment. "You still don't believe me? Alright, watch, ten seconds from now, I will slice off that alien's head."

Ten seconds passed and what she predicted happened. The Chitauri's beaming head rolled off of its shoulders and across the road. Cassandra cocked an eyebrow, as if to say, what now?

Stepping back, her father bowed his head in respect and in awe, as if welcoming her presence. "Sorceress Supreme," he acknowledged before engulfing her in a tight hug. "Time travel was made possible?"

She nodded, feeling Harry's embrace which she missed so much. To Cassandra, no hug in the world can compare to her father's. She doesn't know how he does it, but his embraces always give warmth and comfort to her weary soul. He backed away, then grasped her chin, tilting her head up. His eyes then softened. "Your eyes..." he began, pained. "They have seen so much."

At that, Cassandra's chin wobbled, her eyes starting to water. "I missed you so much, dad."

Harry shut his eyes, tearing up and then embracing her again. "I'm sorry." He brushed her hair down, soothing her as she released her grief. A small painful cry came out of her lips as she remembered how she was not able to say goodbye to her father. "I'm sorry I was not there, little flower. I'm sorry daddy was not there to help you."

Cassandra retracted, wiping her salty tears from her cheeks. "It's okay, dad. I just missed you so much." She sniffed. "It's been so long since I saw you and heard your voice. I'm so happy to see you again."

He patted her back. "It's been tough, isn't it?"

She nodded.

"Now, I don't know exactly what you have been through or what your eyes have seen, but I can assure you," he then cradled her face in his hands like how he always does when she is in need of advice. "Whatever you have conquered, it shines through your mind." He clutched her hands together. "You, my daughter, are a fighter. You always either find a way, or you make one. Make sure you make the person who took everyone from you regret they kept you alive."

He gently touched her cheek again as an explosion occurred behind them, tearing them back to reality. "Daddy has to go, Cassandra. Be careful, okay?"

"Bye, dad. I'll miss you."

Cassandra let herself watch her father leave her side and fought hard not to shed another tear in the middle of the heist. She swallowed, shaking her head to refocus. Digging her fingernails in her palm, she bent her knees and lifted her arms, tearing open a dimensional gateway with her sling ring. Entering through the portal, she was greeted with the sight of the Ancient One conversing with Bruce's astral form.

"Of course, you did, Ancient One." She pouted, crossing her arms as her eyes strayed to glance at the glowing soul and the physical body of the Hulk sleeping with a hat covering his face. "Of course, you did."

"Did you all disrupt the multiverse?"

"Ancient One," Cassandra acknowledged, bowing her head in respect. "No, we didn't. Trust me, I can explain - "

The Ancient One approached her, her wise eyes studying her. As always, it was as if she knew something they all didn't. Then, the mischievous glint in her eye vanished and was replaced by sympathy. "You have lost a lot," she voiced out, reaching out to touch her forehead. Cassandra flinched as her illusion dissipated and a symbol of the dark dimension etched between her eyebrows. It wasn't a question, she knew. The Ancient One knew. "Sorceress Supreme."

"Ancient One, we need that time stone."

"I'm sorry, but I can't help you. If I give up the Time Stone to help your reality, I'm dooming my own."

"With all due respect, I'm not sure the science really supports that."

The Ancient One instantaneously created a projection with a long ray that simulates the flow of time. "The Infinity Stones create what you experience as the flow of time. Remove one stone and that flow splits." She flicked the Time Stone projection away and it showed a black stream indicating a point of divergence. "Now, this may benefit your reality, but my new one, not so much. In this new branched reality, without our chief weapon against the forces of darkness, our world will be overrun. Millions will suffer." She expounded, implying a dark and desolate future for them. "So, tell me, Doctor, can your science prevent all that?"

"No, but we can erase it." Bruce argued, gilding over. "Because once we are done with the stones, we can return each one to its own timeline at the moment it was taken. So, chronologically," his hand held the time stone projection. "in that reality," then put it back to its spot, replacing it back amongst the other five infinity stones. "it never left." The black stream that indicated a doomed alternate dimension faded away, illustrating his point.

"But you are leaving out the most important part." The Ancient One left their side, stubborn and unrelenting. "In order to return the stones, you have to survive."

"We will. I will. I promise."

"You can be sure we will return them, Ancient One. I will make sure that it happens. You have my word." begged the former Guardian, desperate. This was their only chance to undo the Snap. Cassandra was going to make sure this mission succeeds, come hell or high water.

"I can't risk this reality on a promise. It is the duty of the Sorcerer Supreme to protect the time stone. You, more than anyone, know this, Cassandra. So, why are you asking me to compromise? Why should I risk my reality for yours?"

The woman bellowed, "Because Stephen gave the time stone away! He fucking gave it away and sacrificed half of the population to save me!" She whimpered, her eyes stinging from how much tears she already shed.

"What did you say?"

"Stephen," she gulped. "he willingly handed the time stone even when he saw millions of possibilities that day!"

"Willingly?" She emphasized. "What happened?"

"I was fatally injured and Stephen was forced to trade the time stone so that Thanos spares my life." Cassandra grabbed her mentor's hands, holding them tight like it was her lifeline. "I am the reason why a lot of people died, why Stephen's dead, Ancient One! And everyday, I-I can't stop thinking about how in some way it's my fault that millions of people died that day, all because he chose my life over millions!"

The mystical mentor tilted her head to the side, looking far ahead at the horizon as if she was remembering something. Cassandra begged, "Stephen made a mistake that day. Please, we need to fix that."

"No, I did. I made a mistake." The other female mumbled, her eyes fluttering close for a moment. Upon opening, she immediately returned Bruce's soul to his Hulk body and opened the Eye of Agamotto with no hesitation, revealing the Time Stone. "Cassandra and Strange are meant to be the best of us, you should know that."

"So Strange must have done it for a reason." Bruce theorized, glancing at Cassandra who was still holding onto her teacher.

"I fear you might be right."

Cassandra cupped her hands to receive the time stone and she swore she felt a burden inside of her chest get lifted. They were one step away from fixing everything. "Thank you, Ancient One."

"I'm counting on you, Cassandra, Bruce. We all are." The teacher drew closer to her pupil, her eyes focused on hers now. She was staring right into her eyes as if she was unveiling a curtain to reveal a hidden truth. "The wielder of light, the warrior of darkness... why are you still so afraid of this power inside of you?"

"I fear it may overwhelm me and I'll lose control."

"Darkness does not always equate to evil. Did it not ever occur to you that encountering the Darkhold was an absolute point in time?"

The former Guardian was taken aback. She has never thought of it that way. She had always kept in mind that it was a mistake and if she could go back to that time and change things, she would do everything for her younger self to not cross paths with the Book of the Damned. However, hearing this from the Ancient One, who had seen her possibilities made her rethink. "You were always meant to wield that magic, Cassandra."

"I - "

"You'll understand why at that moment."

The brunette flicked her gaze down to her feet. Fingers trembling, she fisted her hand. Fear crawled in her thoughts like a poison killing all signs of life. "I'm scared." She admitted, her voice soft. Suddenly, she was the twelve year old Cassandra Mason who stood on the temple grounds, asking those who have her life in their hands why they chose her to be a Guardian. She felt like a child yearning for her teacher's guidance and assurance. "I'm scared, I will fail again. I failed once to prevent Stephen's death. What if it happens again?"

"What do we say when the voice of doubt comes in?"

The corner of Cassandra's lips lifted as she recalled what she would recite whenever she was not certain in her decisions during her training days. "Not today, dubs."

At that moment, the clouds above them seemed to have separated and reformed, morphing into one another. An intense connectedness was felt, like her body had become the waves controlled by the light of the sun. Tranquility came over her as she felt the presence of each tree, each blade of grass connected with her own being. She didn't know what exactly was happening, but something within her changed after that. She felt it.

"All the paths you took have led you here, to this moment. Remember that. Now, go. Return the stone once you have everyone back."

Cassandra nodded, turning to Bruce. "Go. I have to meet up with the others to check on them."

"You sure you'll be alright?"

"Bruce," The woman smirked as she opened a portal that showed her the street near the meeting place for Steve, Tony, and Scott. "I am Cassandra Mason. Of course, I'll be alright."

"Right. See you back there."

And with that, he was off to return to their present time while Cassandra bid her mentor goodbye. Stepping foot inside the gateway, she raced over to the alleyway, avoiding the aliens around her. After her talk with her father and the Ancient One, the sorceress supreme felt empowered, revived, and enlightened. All roads lead somewhere. She just had to see where hers ended. As soon as she got to the area, she was greeted by the sullen faces of Scott and Tony. Steve was standing near them as well, catching his breath with Loki's scepter in his right hand.

Tony leaned his head against his fist. "Sorry, madame. We have a... problem."

"Huh. Yeah, we do."

Cassandra released a sigh as she began to connect the dots. "You two didn't get the tesseract, did you?"

No answer.

"Well, what are we gonna do now?" Steve asked, remaining hopeful and calm even when they lost their chance to steal the tesseract from this point in time.

"You know what?" The billionaire genius brushed him off. He was sitting in the driver's seat, his arms crossed. "Give me a break, Steve. I just got hit in the head with the Hulk."

"You said that we had one shot." lectured Scott outside of the car. He was furious and freaking out at how they failed to obtain the one thing they came for. "This - this was our shot. We shot it. It's shot. Six stones or nothing. Six stones or nothing - "

"You're repeating yourself, you know that? You're repeating yourself."

"You're repeating yourself. You're repeating yourself." sarcastically retaliated Scott. "You know - no, no!"

"Dude, come on."

Cassandra pinched her nose as she tried to figure out what to do next. She didn't expect this kind of setback. She was ready for any compromisations, but not this one. According to them, Loki grabbed the tesseract and disappeared along with it, presumably teleporting himself somewhere very far. Scott and Tony arguing didn't help at all with her planning process. It only distracted her even more.

"You never wanted a time heist, you went on board with the time heist - "

"I dropped the ball."

"You ruined the time heist."

"Is that what I did?"

"Yeah!"

The woman clapped her hands to shut them both up. "Okay, okay, stop it, children! Stop it! I don't wanna hear any other words coming from the both of you!"

"But - "

"One more word, Stark, and you can be sure I will hurl you into another dimension."

Steve sighed, asking, "Are there any other options with the Tesseract?"

"No, no, no! There's no other option. There's no do-overs." elaborated Scott. "We're not going anywhere else. We have one particle left. Each. That's it, alright? We use that - Bye, bye. You're not going home."

"Yeah, well if we don't try, then no one else is going home, either."

Cassandra bit the inside of her cheek for a moment. "Well, is there even a point in time where the tesseract and the Pym particles were in the same place or even close to one another?"

"No, I don't think - "

"I got it!" enthusiastically butted Tony, getting out of the vehicle. "To retake the Tesseract and acquire new particles, we'll stroll down memory lane." He approached Steve, his eyes set on him. "Military installation, Garden State."

"When were they both there?"

"They were there at a - I've a vaguely exact idea."

Steve frowned, "How vague?"

"What are you talking about? Where are we going?"

"I know for a fact they were there - "

"Who's they? What are we doing?"

"And I know how I know."

"Guys, what's up? What is it?" Scott implied, making sure he wasn't cast aside.

"Well, it looks like we're improvising."

Cassandra nodded, pushing her feet to walk over to them. Raising her arm, she looked at her wristband and tapped a few buttons. She caught on easily to what Tony was implying. "I'm going with you, guys." She stated, unhesitantly. The brunette wanted to make sure that nothing came between their aim to steal the tesseract again. "Where are we going, Stark?"

"New Jersey."

"Right," Scott vocalized. "What are we improvising, people?"

Steve passed the scepter over to him. "Scott, get this back to the compound." He turned back to Cassandra and Steve. "Suit up."

"What's in New Jersey?"

Cassandra continued talking, not minding Scott's question for a moment. "Point in time, Tony."

"0-4,"

She hummed.

"Uhh, 0-7."

"Excuse me..."

"1-9-7-0."

"Are you sure?"

"Cap. Captain. Steve, sorry, America. Rogers." Ant-Man rambled in his attempt to catch their attention. "Look, if you do this, and this doesn't work, you're not coming back."

"Thanks for the pep talk, pissant." Tony barked. "Do you two trust me?"

Steve went silent for a moment and then, "I do."

The genius billionaire glanced at Cassandra, waiting for her answer. "Well, I don't have a choice now, do I?"

"Your call."

"Here we go." Tony exchanged words with the woman again as the sorceress supreme waited for them all to shrink down to quantum size. "We're getting that stone, planner."

"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock."

closing gif by Raichia
i'm so happy i got to update again, yay!