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As soon as he was gone, the whole world felt it. That uneasy feeling that something wasn't right. The first to truly feel it, however, was Nat. Tony had brought her back and whilst she was passing back into the realm of the living, she felt his soul move in the other direction. Her throat went dry as her heart shattered into a million tiny pieces. Pieces too broken to ever put back together the right way. He was gone. Her love was gone. Finally, when she arrived back to the living world, the sight before her was incomprehensible. Peter and Rhodey on either side of him as they held him. Pete's face was buried in Tony's neck and he was begging between broken cries for him to wake up. To move. But he didn't. Rhodey looked up when he realised Nat was there. His face was filled with sorrow and pain. The pain of losing a brother. "He did it... We won." Rhodey's voice was no more than a gravelly whisper. The words were bitter. They hadn't won. Everyone else had slowly moved towards them. Trying to comprehend what had happened. For a while, Nat felt like she couldn't move. She just stood in front of him. She tried to fathom this was real. It can't be. She's dreaming. Nat became light-headed as she tried and failed to understand. Why? Why did it have to be Tony? Why did she have to lose him? "Nat?" The voice she identified to be Clint's brought her back to reality. Finally, she could move. Nat dropped down in front of Tony, wrapped her arms around him, and buried her face in his chest. The reactor was out. No warm blue hue. There was no erratic heartbeat that usually followed when he'd take the reactor off. No sign of life. He was gone. Tony was gone. She held back sobs as she clutched onto him desperately. Rhodey wrapped his free arm around her and Peter did the same. They stayed that way for a long time. No sounds but the muffled sobs coming from the three of them. Then a thud could be heard from behind them. They didn't have the energy to look. They stayed where they were. Clint had dropped to one knee behind Nat. T'challa then Carol followed suit. Soon everyone was kneeling before Tony. To honour him. He'd sacrificed himself again, this time fatally. Stephen was the last one to kneel. Overwhelmed with guilt and shame as he bowed his head. A quiet, broken sorry fell from his lips. He knew that would mean nothing but he still had to say it. It was still his fault. Nobody made a move to stand again. Nobody tried to say anything because there was nothing they could say. Nothing that could be said would change what had happened. Earth just lost its best defender.