Rewriting Endgame (Part 2)

The idea about Black Widow and the orphans are something that the filmmakers had in mind, and apparently even shot scenes for, but had to cut out due to an already long movie. I just want to make sure credit goes where it's due.

Five years later.

The Avengers now search less for Thanos, but more for Tony and for ways to reverse the Snap.

Steve Rogers is almost Captain America again, and thus is shaved, trying to maintain the morale in a hopeless world. The only thing he needs is his shield. He leads support groups for those traumatized by the Snap, helping others move on while he stubbornly holds on. Clint Barton is reported to have gone rogue and is on murdering rampages around the world under the name Ronin. Natasha tries to locate him and get him back home. In addition, she is now in charge of maintaining contact between all the different members of the team, some of who are in very far-off places. Natasha Romanoff is also leading and taking care of all those rendered orphans by the Snap. She tries to make things work with Bruce Banner, with some progress, but he has his own internal demons to deal with. His victory without the Hulk in the Wakanda battle has given him newfound confidence in himself, but he is somber as well. He continues to struggle with Hulk, but now he can occasionally talk with the Hulk inside his head. Bruce spends a lot of time in his own lab, working on finding other solutions. War Machine travels to different places, often cooperating with governments that are trying to rebuild the world.

Rocket, Nebula and Carol roam space. Rocket and Nebula, make a good pair as they are both excellent fighters, and Rocket is a pretty good strategist. They are also very familiar with the many dark corners of inter-galactic trade, owing to their past occupations. So, their mission is to scout the inter-galactic underworld for information on the stones and on Tony. They continue to witness the effects of the Snap on every planet they visit. The fighting and other heavy work in space is Captain Marvel's realm. She too travels the galaxy, trying to calm the different planets, and scouring for any information she can find. All these members regularly return to Earth, to maintain their connection with ground zero.

Thor, however, is an exception. After failing thrice at Thanos’ hands and still surviving to see the damage, he decided on some radical changes. Collecting those who survived Thanos’ attack on his ship (beginning of Infinity War), he established New Asgard. These survivors include Valkyrie, Korg and Miek. He decides to continue on the path he was on just after the destruction of Asgard by taking up the position of King. He becomes a recluse, and New Asgard too remains separate from the world it inhabits. Though it has occasional visitors, usually someone from the Avengers, Thor does not always greet them. His appearance too has changed, and in a way that somewhat reflects Odin, Thor is now larger (he eats and drinks a lot) and his hair and beard has grown long. His throne room is a simple one, a contrast to that of his father’s – the throne is not large and the room is adorned with just Stormbreaker – which also has the condition that requires worthiness to hold.

Tony, meanwhile, also roams in space, not unlike Ronin, hiding and making a living. He is also creating more suits, as his PTSD often worsens – when threatened he resorts to his cocoon, the Iron Man suits. Perhaps, he operates under an alias. His health is not ideal and he looks thinner and increasingly starved. His primary occupation is fighting the rogue Outriders and the Chitauri that no longer have Thanos to lead them. He prevents them from wreaking havoc in the galaxy and in the process earns a reputation for being a hero. The Avengers who are in space begin to follow the mention of this mysterious hero. He also continues to record occasional messages for Pepper, though he doesn’t know if she is alive or not.

Scott Lang, had gone into the quantum realm on an expedition, and was supposed to be pulled out in a few minutes. However, when he realizes that it has been too long, he fears that something has happened to Hope and Pym. And so, he attempts to escape the Quantum Realm by adjusting his regulator (how he did so in his first movie). Though Hank Pym had removed the regulators in the new suit, he made sure to include it again, as it has previously saved his life. He eventually succeeds and is horrified to find out about the Snap when he re-emerges. Unsure of where to go, and devastated by the news of his whole family's disappearance (Hope, Pym, Cassie etc.), he sets out to New York to see the Avengers. He learns the whole story from them. Scott then tells them about the distortion of time in the quantum realm. He proposes time travel, as a way to reverse the effects of Thanos’ snap. He is desperate to get Cassie and Hope back. The Avengers, unsure of who to turn to, bring this proposal to Bruce Banner.

Bruce Banner is not an expert in this field, but agrees to try and perfect time travel anyway.