A/N:I apologize for putting the author's note at the beginning of the chapter. HOWEVER, I have to put one up to warn newcomers that this is a continuation—the fifth installment, truth be told—of a series I have been calling the Of Time series. They are stories in the Captain America/Avengers sections of movies on FF (and can be found in the My Stories tab on my profile page). Because it is a continuation, I have to warn you also that the character of Holly Rogers (née Martin) and her actions and interactions in this story, as well additional original characters, are not going to make any sense if you haven't read the previous installments. Therefore, I am going to suggest you read them, as this is AU from the MCU continuity—from near the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron on—and I have made a few changes that may catch you by surprise later on in the text. I know, it's a lot to ask you to read four additional stories before this one, but I don't want you to get too lost.

And along with that, this will definitely be AU from the continuity of the films and the connected television series (plural), as Avengers: Infinity Wars and its subsequent sequel will not even be in theaters until 2018, to start with. So, to anybody reading this, know that:
-It will not match perfectly to all that has come before, or what will come after, in the MCU.
-Some things have been altered intentionally in this storyline.
-I am doing my best to keep all characters I write as in-character as possible, despite the changes made.

That being said, allow me to throw in one more disclaimer before we get started: I don't own anything from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Honestly, nothing. I also don't own any other pop culture references made in the text, either.

I believe that covers everything. Now, if you're ready to read, please continue...

Fire. It burned, it cleansed, it wiped away all in its path, removing what was and replacing it with ash. Slowly, methodically, it would catch and bloom, renewing the process every few moments, another spark of light blazing in the darkness. The city was aflame, scorched and devoid of any life upon it. In the plumes of smoke and ash, a small starcraft descended. It was rusty and barely held together, but had survived its push to the planet. The pilot, all dark eyes and clicking fingers, eyed her scanners, scrubbing once at the framework around her left eye before tapping at the holopads before her, thrusters prepped and ready for the next command.

Over the last three cycles, she had seen its like across the galaxies, the carnage and terror left behind spoken of in hushed whispers in fleet bars and back alleys of those that were spared. Her personal journey had led her to this place, her latest clues a leads followed after she'd returned to a place she'd once called home, the desolate rock and stone devoid of all. The only thing left was the throne, the seat cold and the carvings meaningless. Undeterred, she went on, determined that it would only be a matter of time before she found the right lead, the right path that would bring her the ultimate satisfaction she craved.

This latest lead, though, had cut her to the core, as she knew exactly who the carnage had been intended for.

The Collector, after all, had found too much, and had seen too much, to escape the notice of those with great power. And if the rumors were true, someone had come to collect from him. The same someone who had burned and destroyed another settlement less than a jump away.

Knowhere had been leveled, broken nearly into nothingness. Few survivors had managed to escape, but she was grateful for those who had. Else, she would not have known to go there.

The lone traveler circling the ashen city tapped at the console of her craft, readying it for landing. After a few minutes of searching, the landing gear touched the ground, a cleared patch at the center of the chaos serving her needs. Donning a cloak atop her suit and gear, she stepped out as the hatch opened, wide eyes scanning the terrain. Something deep within twisted at the destruction; homes were torn asunder, blaster marks peppering the sides where flames did not touch, smoke in the atmosphere and rising higher. Ashes rained down, dotting her clothes and freckling her exposed blue skin as she began to walk. The smell, a horrifying combination of burning flesh, choking smoke, and death, caught in her throat, and she had to take a few moments to attempt to adjust to it. The carnage ringing her made her grimace; it did not look as though much of a fight was had there, as if the citizens were taken by surprise. Likely they were, like the last settlement was. Forcing her gaze away from them, she stalked between buildings, breaking into a jog to the point of interest. The one she knew would draw the attention of the attacks.

The towering, spherical top (bearing the marks of expansion and rebuilding in some places) flamed still, smoldering as the sun for the planet began to set. Undeterred, she went to the door, half-opened still and bent as if shoved in with great force. Over the threshold she went, and she found herself blinking. Drawing her hood back, she registered the heat of the remaining flames, but she could not tear her eyes away. The Collector's home, the very shelter he created for all the beings and things of the universe he had taken for his own, were gone. Remnants of cages and compartments stood still, twisted and melted brackets falling from walls and standing jagged from perches in the floor. Her blue skin nearly crawled as she strode forward, pieces of bodies and artifacts no more than unidentifiable lumps. Eyes focused, contracted, sheathed fingers reaching out and touching one broken case. The heat from it bled through, and she let go soon afterward. In the center of the room, rancid smoke and acrid burning emanated, and she blinked against it. Near the bottom of the stack, a set of goggles were broken and nearly melted. Something within her knew those were the Collector's, that he had not survived the encounter. Rage filled her gut as she glanced around the room again, knowing she had been too late to catch the attacker. Yet again, she had been too late, and it ate at her, ground her down as she gritted her teeth.

A gleam of silver caught her eye, and she turned toward it, questions blooming in her mind as she stepped away from the ashes. The gleam of a handle beneath the burns drew her attention and she crossed quickly to grab it. Wrenching it back, she shoved it open, revealing the tiny room's contents. Screens and holopads littered the walls and the wide desk, data streams and holographic keyboards in place. Sitting down in the single, uncomfortable chair, she tapped quickly at the keys, breaking past the walls and codes to access the information in the system. There was not much left upon it, but she was able to recover a decent amount.

Tapping quickly, she easily accessed the security feeds from earlier and dialed them back to when the attack had reached the conservatory. Sitting back in her seat, she stared as she began the sequence, watching as the Collector pivoted on his heel. The outer doors had sprung open and he squared his shoulders, one palm along the holster at his hip. As the dust settled and the flood of armored warriors stormed in (a mix of enhanced Chitauri and even some defecting Kree, she noted with no real amusement), he let his hand drop, goggles pushed up and his sweeping coat of white and brown furs floating as he stepped forward.

"Lord Thanos," he greeted the shadow in the door, an elaborate bow made as the shadow stepped forward. She barely blinked at his mode of address; the creature he greeted, a Titan of the moon of Saturn, had been alive for so long. It was unsurprising that he would know of him. Golden armor liberally decorated the creature's body, the thick suit beneath it just as strong. He towered over them all, the glow of the fires outside outlining the deep grooves set into the purple skin peeking out. The helmet cut down and around his jaw, the massive figure inspiring awe and fear—of that, she was all too aware, an old ache in her gut sparking briefly before she shoved it away.

He'd always sparked that in her, that Titan she had called father once.

Focusing on the screen, she watched as the jaw of the colossus, the Titan, twitched. His red eyes were drawn to the smaller being in the center of the room, and narrowed accordingly. The distant screams and shouts of the people of Knowhere echoed in the background, but neither the Titan nor the Collector paid them any mind. The smaller creature ran his hands along the lapels of his coat, his head tipping to one side as he stared on Thanos.

"Word across the cosmos was that you have been on quest, though rampage would more accurate, would it not?"

Discontent grumbles filtered around him, the warriors gripping their blasters and rifles as the strange fellow dared to stand up to their leader. For his part, Thanos merely stepped forward, the light reflecting sharply off him. The female watching the recorded encounter took in a sharp breath, fury and sorrow warring with the hatred she carried for him.

"You know what I have come for, Collector," Thanos imparted to the Collector, raising a hand into the air. A golden, plated gauntlet rested there, snug on his fingers and gleaming in the light. The settings upon the knuckles were empty, as they were the last time she had seen it; the feeling in her gut sharpened, knowing full well why he had arrived, too. The past Thanos leaned forward, glaring down at the white-haired being before him. "I will not leave without it."

For a moment, it looked as though the Collector would have refused him, but when faced with the towering, purple wall of strength before him—as well as the ring of warriors waiting to do his bidding—he did not hold onto the gumption for long. Flicking his gaze down, he turned, tapping a panel atop the nearby table. The center panels of it slid away, a case rising from within it. Electrobeams held the treasure in place, the fluid red aether swirling and forming into a large, crimson stone. When it stopped rising, the Collector went to tap another button on the digital pad, but Thanos stopped him. Instead, he slid his gauntleted hand past the security beams, the reinforced armor protecting him as he guided it directly beneath the stone. Carefully, he raised it, allowing it to be seated in one of the settings. The stone took to its new home, the sinister aether around it dissipating as he withdrew it from the case. He raised it, proudly, into the light, a smirk playing along his mouth.

The Collector's eyes had widened in awe, but that had not stopped him from furrowing his brow.

"As great as you are, what makes you think you can wield it?" he asked the Titan, lines cutting deeper into his skin. Thanos flicked his gaze to him swiftly, his jaw tightening slightly.

"That is not your concern," the Titan stated, his tone purposefully demeaning. She thought, even with the quality of the recording, she could see the glimmer of pleasure in his irises, the red of the stone perfectly matching. However, his gaze was drawn back to the binding case, a frown crossing his lips. "Where are the others? I was informed that the second had been returned here."

The Collector snorted hard at that, not even bothering to hide his amusement.

"Your information is incorrect," he told him, an eyebrow spiking and all but calling the Titan out on the issue. He had to have known that would not be the case, not after the entire debacle with Ronan. The creases in the smaller creature's face deepened, and a slight tremor racked his body. The female watching the recorded feed realized that he knew exactly what the purpose of bringing up the second stone was: punishment. Thanos was going to punish him for letting it out of his grasp, and he knew it. The placidity of the fellow's demeanor melted away, something close to scorn in it as he faced the Titan fully. "The rest are scattered. As they should be. You are all but ensuring your ruin if you continue your search."

His warning was left hanging in the air for some time, the camera lens contracting and widening as Thanos continued to look away from him, over his head. Inhaling deeply, the Titan rolled his shoulders back, the gauntlet clenched into a fist at his side.

"And, once more, that is not your concern," he retorted softly. "Nothing shall concern you anymore."

Thanos raised a hand, the one lacking the gauntlet, and swirled a finger. All at once, the gathered warriors pivoted their weapons at the Collector, extinguishing his light and life in a matter of seconds. The creature fell into a slump upon the floor, his massive coat sprawling and hiding his body despite the holes riddling it. As smoke filtered in from the outside, and the screams continued, Thanos maintained focus on a distant point for a minute or two. The warriors gathered shifted in their formation, darting glances to one another as the time ticked by.

"Is that all, sir?" asked one armored fellow, palming his weapon as his leader approached a case at the far end. He had been eyeing it curiously since claiming the stone, fingers tapping against the wrist of the gauntlet for a few seconds. Striding forward, the camera turned with him, hovering out of sight still as he approached the case of interest. Frost coated the inside, the form of the being within no more than a deep, black shadow at that moment. Cocking his head to the left, Thanos drew himself to his full height before dipping his chin.

"Take this to the ship, burn the rest."

Harsh, guttural words spewed forth, gestures and grunts given between warriors to begin hauling away the case. The ice within seemed to crackle and thaw as it was pulled from its spot, previous scorch marks littering the shell. As it was carted away, a few more items were selected, including one of their own who had been held hostage within the place for far too long. Everything else, though, was left to burn. Manuscripts, literally woven parchment and papers were heaped with data files, cloth and combustibles pushed to the center of the room. As they went about their work, she spied Thanos deviating from his path, slipping toward the wall and the very room she was seated within at that moment. The warriors jerked to a stop when their leader cried for them to hold, more minutes lost as they waited. Eventually, he emerged, data disks and pods in hand before he nodded for them to continue. Once they were finished, he commanded they return to the ship, and they obliged him, completing the pile shortly after his departure. All it took was a single spark, and the fire grew, little by little. Within in a matter of minutes, the flicker of flames licked along the screen's edge, the Collector's body heaped into the center of an impromptu pyre with derisive laughter and shrieks of amusement. Screams erupted from those still trapped within their cages, all perishing as the fire engulfed the room. All save for this single room had been turned to ash, and it made her furious to think about it.

The blatant disregard Thanos had shown for all the treasures within, the ignorance of what those captured could do, struck her as much as the carelessness of the lives lost. They were not of use, and so they would be turned to ash, forgotten.

Nothing there was meant to be forgotten, as it was with the last four settlements he had destroyed in his quest for the stones. One hand curled into a fist as the screen went dark, her resolve hardening all the more as her metal fingers clicked.

"...This will end," murmured the cyborg female at the console. Swiftly she stood, tapping several of the keys to eject the surveillance pods from the drive. Once a tray on the side was released, she fetched them up, tucking them into a pocket on her belt. "This must end."

Before she moved away, before she could take a step and leave behind the carnage that been wrought, something on the monitor caught her eye. Most, if not all, the files on the drive had been destroyed after the menace and his army had blown through the city, the recorded surveillance left as a warning to any who would come and investigate. However, she found an innocuous file that had been left behind. She knew Thanos would not leave that behind without a purpose as well. Carefully, she tapped at the screen, summoning up a plethora of files, mostly conjectures and theories passed on between the trade routes and interstellar travelers. However, the Collector had taken note of their words, literally, due to the nature of the information provided. The first files were dated from several cycles ago, and she blinked as it showed recovered data from those who had been involved in the first battle of Earth. The creature whom Thanos had entrusted with the Staff had led them, but they were defeated. One of Asgard had been in their number, but the others had been given a fair amount of attention as well. All humans, save for the one. All fighting to protect the planet, six of them...and they had won.

Those humans were meant to be fodder for Loki, the earth a stepping stone for Thanos, but in the end, the humans came away the victors. And she could theorize, on her own, that they had not been idle in the cycles following the attack.

Neither had her father, but it was known now that those of Earth stood up for themselves, and would fight to the last breath. She had seen it firsthand as well.

Nebula knew what she was looking at. She was looking at her father's greatest targets, drawing him in after all those years. His quest for the Infinity Stones tied in with them, and she knew it. A light smirk played upon her lips.

It would end, and she would see to it. Tapping at the keys once again, she centered on one of the number in particular, knowing that contact must be made if her desires were to be met. Through him, and through others, would her task be complete. Finally, completely.

All she had to do was find him.

A/N 2: And so begins Darkest Before Dawn. This chapter is more like a prologue, a set-up of things to come in this story. In the next chapter, I intend to touch back on Earth, meet up with a certain super-soldier and all that he is involved in. Trust me, if you haven't gone back to read the other stories yet, do so now. There will be alterations there right off the bat, so definitely get that done.

Get ready, y'all. We're in for a ride, here.

I will warn you: the next chapter may be a little late, since this weekend and the following week are going to be busy for me. However, I will do my best to keep to my weekly update.

Lastly, I do have a Twitter (PhanProTweets) where I do post story updates. I'm doing self-promo just because the site sometimes has issues, and I'd rather not have you guys miss an update.

Thanks for reading, please review, and I'll see you all for the next one!