The portal spat them out with little grace, depositing Harley, Deadpool, Wolverine, and Doctor Strange onto the hard ground. The air was sharp and cold, the horizon aglow with twilight. Around them loomed the towering cliffs of a desolate alien landscape, the sky painted with swirling hues of red and purple.
Harley groaned as he pushed himself up. His head pounded, his muscles ached, and his mind was still reeling from what they had just witnessed. Loki's near-death. Thor's helplessness. The overwhelming power of Thanos.
"This isn't Miami," Deadpool quipped, brushing dust off his tattered suit. "I was promised sunshine, mojitos, and maybe a friendly lizard or two. Instead, I get this." He gestured to the barren expanse. "What even is this place? The color palette looks like a 90s grunge album cover."
Doctor Strange adjusted his cloak, his expression grim. "This is Titan," he said quietly. "Thanos's homeworld. Or what remains of it."
"Great. From the frying pan into the incinerator," Logan muttered, rolling his shoulders. He still bore fresh bruises from the encounter with Thanos, but the worst of his injuries were already healing. "What's the plan, Doc? Are we running again, or are we actually going to start fighting back?"
Strange glared at him. "You think this is a game? We're not just running; we're trying to minimize the damage your reckless actions have caused."
"Oh, here we go," Logan snapped. "Blame me for the cosmic mess we're in. Maybe if you'd spoken up sooner, we wouldn't have half the universe on our backs."
"Both of you, stop," Harley interjected, his voice trembling. "This isn't helping."
Deadpool clapped his hands. "Yeah, let's save the bickering for the daytime soap opera spinoff. I can see it now: Days of Our Anomalous Lives." He turned to Harley. "And you, Sunshine—what's with the serious face? You're usually the guy who says something awkwardly optimistic right about now."
Harley didn't respond. His gaze was fixed on the timepad in his hands, the glowing screen mocking him with its options. "We shouldn't have left them," he finally said, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Kid, we didn't have a choice," Logan said, his tone softening.
Harley's hands trembled. "But they're going to die. Loki, Thor, all those Asgardians… And we just left."
Strange placed a hand on Harley's shoulder. "The timeline had to remain intact. If we'd intervened, we could've jeopardized everything. It's not easy, but it's necessary."
"Necessary?" Harley's voice rose. "How is letting people die 'necessary'? Isn't the whole point of all this to fix things?"
Deadpool interjected, his tone uncharacteristically subdued. "Kid, this whole 'saving the timeline' gig isn't exactly black and white. Sometimes, you've gotta let the bad stuff happen to stop worse stuff from happening."
Harley shook his head, his frustration boiling over. "So what's the point? Why are we even doing this if we can't actually help anyone?"
The group fell silent, the weight of Harley's words settling over them like a suffocating fog.
As they debated, the ground beneath them began to rumble. Strange's eyes narrowed, his senses immediately on alert. "Something's coming."
Logan sniffed the air and growled. "Whatever it is, it's not friendly."
In the distance, a shadow emerged from the swirling dust. It was massive, its hulking form glinting faintly in the dim light. As it drew closer, they could make out the details: a hulking, mechanized figure adorned with advanced technology. It was a TVA enforcer, larger and more heavily armed than any they had faced before.
Deadpool tilted his head. "Okay, who ordered the robot Terminator from hell? Because I did not sign up for this."
The enforcer's mechanical voice boomed. "Harley Davis. Logan Howlett. Wade Wilson. Doctor Stephen Strange. By order of the TVA, you are to cease your interference and surrender immediately."
"Or what?" Logan snarled, claws at the ready.
The enforcer raised a massive cannon, the barrel glowing with energy.
"Ah," Deadpool said, raising a finger. "That. That's 'or what.'"
Strange conjured his shields as the enforcer fired, a beam of searing light slicing through the ground where they had just been standing. The group scattered, each taking cover behind the jagged rocks.
"Plan?" Harley shouted, ducking as another blast shook the earth.
"Survive," Logan growled, launching himself at the enforcer. His claws found purchase in the metal, but the enforcer swatted him away like a fly.
"Not a fan of that plan!" Harley yelled, fumbling with the timepad.
Deadpool charged in next, leaping onto the enforcer's back. "Time for some freelance surgery!" he declared, plunging his broken katana into a joint. Sparks flew, but the enforcer remained unfazed, grabbing Deadpool and hurling him into a boulder.
"Ow," Deadpool groaned, his limbs splayed awkwardly. "I'll just lie here for a minute."
Doctor Strange created a series of portals around the enforcer, confusing its targeting systems. "Harley, find us a way out of here!"
Harley's hands flew over the timepad. His heart pounded as he input coordinates, praying they would take them somewhere—anywhere—safe. The portal swirled to life just as the enforcer fired another blast, narrowly missing them.
"Go!" Strange shouted, ushering Harley and Deadpool through. Logan followed, bloodied but alive.
Strange was the last to step through, closing the portal just as the enforcer lunged for them.
They landed in yet another unfamiliar landscape, the air thick and humid. Strange looked around, his expression wary. "Where are we now?"
Harley checked the timepad, his hands still shaking. "I… I don't know."
Deadpool sat up, patting himself down. "Still in one piece. That's a win."
Logan scanned the surroundings, his claws still extended. "Let's hope we didn't just jump into another death trap."
Strange sighed. "At this rate, death traps are becoming the norm."
Harley sank to the ground, clutching the timepad like a lifeline. The weight of their journey, the sacrifices they'd seen, and the lives they couldn't save bore down on him.
But as the group caught their breath, one thing became clear: their journey was far from over.