Roger New Life

Above the sky, Roger hovered in the atmosphere, gazing at the sun as it was about to dip below the Earth's horizon, lost in thought. While the Avengers were still making their preparations, Roger found an excuse to leave the camp and ascend into the sky, chasing the sun's glow.

When he first crossed into this world, Roger noticed something different. The sunlight here gave him a warm, comforting sensation, as if something was gathering within him. However, because everything happened so quickly and then he encountered the Zombie Avengers, Roger pushed this feeling aside. It wasn't until after sunset, when he felt a sense of discomfort, that he began to pay attention to it again.

Roger started to wonder if he had gained the ability to absorb sunlight and strengthen himself, like Superman. But now, standing in the sky and bathed in the sun's last rays, he didn't feel any stronger. The only sensation was an itch in his eyes, perhaps from staring at the sun for too long.

"Is it just my imagination? Hmm…"

Not feeling any noticeable physical enhancement, Roger began to doubt himself. After all, if absorbing sunlight could strengthen him, he should have felt something in the world of "The Boys" as well. It didn't make sense that his body would strengthen just because he crossed worlds, especially since the information provided by the point of crossing didn't include anything about this.

"Hey? Roger, where are you? We're ready."

Sharon's voice came through Roger's earpiece, interrupting his thoughts.

"I'll be there in a moment."

Glancing at the sinking sun, Roger turned and flew back to the ground. There wasn't enough time for Roger to study this any further; whatever effect sunlight had on him would have to wait until after this incident.

It took Roger less than a minute to descend from the sky to the ground. The Avengers were already prepared, having brought out two aircraft. Vision, Happy, Peter, Agent Sharon, and Banner were heading to Stark Tower to find the various means Tony Stark had left behind, including the Hulkbuster armor. The rest of the team was going to Wakanda to assess the situation and confirm whether Thanos was there.

Rocket had already contacted the Guardians of the Galaxy. At this moment, Star-Lord didn't yet know that his girlfriend, Gamora, had been killed by Thanos in exchange for the Soul Stone. Upon hearing that Thanos might be on Earth, he mistakenly assumed that Gamora was with him and immediately decided to jump through a wormhole to Earth. Fortunately, before jumping, he notified Xandar to broadcast a message across the universe, searching for Captain Marvel. He didn't let his emotions cloud his judgment entirely.

"Vision, keep in constant contact. Thanos could show up at any moment, so if you spot him, notify us immediately. We'll get to you as quickly as possible."

Before departure, Roger cautioned Vision. He knew that, given Thanos' current state, the Titan probably wasn't focused enough to remember what he needed to do, much less seek out Vision to take the Mind Stone. However, this didn't stop him from warning Vision.

In fact, if Thor weren't so eager to confront Thanos, Roger would have preferred to go with Vision to Stark Tower first before proceeding with anything else.

Before they set off, Roger seriously reminded Vision once more, "Finally, if you see Thanos, don't think about anything, just run. The Mind Stone is our hope to save the world, and so are you. Whatever you do, don't let yourself fall into Thanos' hands."

"Don't worry," Vision replied, glancing back at the base where Zombie Wanda was being held. "Even for Wanda's sake, I won't let Thanos succeed."

After speaking with Vision, Roger turned to the others and asked, "So, shall we… head out?"

"Let's move!"

Thor, gripping his axe, boarded the aircraft with Rocket and Groot. The other Avengers followed suit. Both aircraft took off simultaneously, heading in different directions. As soon as they were airborne, the zombies that had been kept at bay by the Mind Stone began to advance, swarming into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Caspian camp. However, aside from Zombie Wanda, the camp was empty. Wanda's containment area remained intact since it hadn't been damaged by the Winter Soldier like in the original storyline, so she was still safely locked inside, with no risk of escape.

Vision's group was heading to Stark Tower while Roger's team was en route to Wakanda. Due to the distance, Vision's group would reach Stark Tower first. If all went well, Vision's group might even finish their tasks and catch up with Roger's team near Wakanda.

By then, reinforcements from Xandar and possibly Captain Marvel would arrive on Earth, making the fight against Zombie Thanos slightly easier.

The journey to Wakanda was silent, with everyone feeling the weight of what lay ahead. Rocket tried to lighten the mood, but seeing the somber faces of his comrades, he couldn't bring himself to make a joke. After all, this battle was a fight for the survival of Earth, and possibly the entire universe. After much thought, Rocket finally muttered a form of consolation:

"Guys, don't be so gloomy. Look on the bright side, if we lose, at least we'll just lose to Thanos. We won't turn into those disgusting zombies, right?"

"…"

Hearing Rocket's words, Roger turned to look at him. Rocket, noticing Roger's gaze, asked in surprise:

"What? Did I say something wrong?"

Roger didn't answer, just shook his head.

Hope, who had gone ahead to scout Wakanda, broke the silence with even worse news:

"… Sorry, everyone, but I've got some bad news, no, two bad news. Wakanda has indeed fallen, and I did see the Thanos you described, but… this Thanos has already turned into a zombie!"

"What?!"

The group gasped in shock, except for Roger.

Thor, unable to believe it, asked for confirmation, "Did you say Thanos has turned into a zombie? How is that possible?!"

"I'm sending the footage back to you now. If that big guy standing in the middle of Wakanda is Thanos, then yes, he's already a zombie."

Hope had her ant drone move closer to Wakanda's shield to faithfully record everything inside. The footage quickly reached the group on the aircraft, and Roger and the others saw the figure of the purple titan standing among the zombie horde, like a king of the undead.

While the others focused on the shocking sight of Zombie Thanos, Roger's attention was on the gauntlet on Thanos' left hand. The Infinity Gauntlet had all five stones glowing brightly. This confirmed Roger's worst fear, Thanos had somehow acquired the Time Stone and embedded it into his gauntlet.

Now, they were facing a Zombie Thanos with five Infinity Stones!

"No… this can't be. How could he have turned into a zombie?! Those zombies shouldn't even be able to break his skin!"

Thor, struggling to accept the truth, insisted.

He couldn't believe that his nemesis had turned into a zombie before he had the chance to personally kill him. Even harder to accept was the fact that zombies, which he could easily dispatch with a single swing of his axe, could bite through Thanos' skin!

Because if they could infect Thanos, it meant they could infect Thor and Hulk too, a reality that terrified the group.

While everyone was shocked by the revelation of Zombie Thanos, Roger spoke up:

"Guys, isn't this actually good news?"

"?"

"Thanos is a zombie now, which means he's lost the intelligence of a living being and only has basic instincts. Isn't that kind of enemy easier to deal with than a cunning Thanos?"

Although Roger didn't believe that a Zombie Thanos would be significantly weaker, otherwise, he wouldn't have advised everyone not to come, he knew when and how to motivate the team. Now that they were committed to this path, he couldn't afford to dampen their spirits.