Chapter Text
A Snap Of His Fingers
“...leaving Charm City trailing Nashville by four points at halftime. And now to the news with Ryan Mitchell and Mike Reynolds.”
Peedee stood at the counter at Beach Citywalk Fries, cheek resting on his hand as he gazed boredly out at the Boardwalk. On the other side of the room, Ronaldo was sitting by the radio, waiting excitedly for the news to come on. Ever since that UFO had appeared in New York, he'd been desperate for any information he could get - and even less focused on helping with work than ever before.
“Welcome to Delmarva News On The Hour, I'm Ryan Mitchell. Reports of alien craft hanging over Africa have not been confirmed by NASA, despite rampant speculation about a second invasion. Mike?”
“Thanks Ryan. The Wakandan Ambassador to the United States was observed entering the White House at about lunch time, but the State Department claims it is a routine visit. President Ellis…”
“Hey Peedee.”
Peedee looked up. Jane had arrived at the counter, carrying a book bag over her shoulder. Ronaldo grinned and stood up.
“Jane-sama!” he exclaimed, running over, “Did you bring the book?”
Jane smiled at him and handed him the bag.
“UFOs and You by Barney and Betty Wells?” she replied.
Ronaldo beamed, taking the bag.
“Yes!” he exclaimed, “This book’s gonna contain all the answers! Come on, Jane - we’re gonna expose the truth!”
“How about you expose those potatoes to the fryer?” grunted Peedee, pointing to a sack of peeled potatoes.
“Peedee! There are more important things at stake!” declared Ronaldo, “Besides, you can do it, right?”
“Ugh, you're impossible,” grunted Peedee, rolling his eyes.
He tuned Ronaldo out as he went to let Jane in, focusing instead on the radio again.
“...elections in the country to be held in September. And now for local news, Senator...ah, sorry, lost focus for a moment…"
“Looks like you shouldn't have skipped your coffee, Mike, heh heh...wait...Mike?”
Peedee glanced at the radio, eyebrow raised. The reporter’s tone sounded odd to him, as if he was surprised by something.
“Mike, you've got a bit of...oh god, oh god, Mike! What the hell-somebody get security in here! He's just - oh my god, get help!”
“What in the name of…” mused Peedee.
There was a sudden loud crash. Peedee jumped, watching in horror as a car sped onto the boardwalk and slammed into a pole. A second later, he heard a scream from down the road, although he couldn't tell who it was.
“What the hell?” spluttered Peedee.
He clutched his head, his thoughts racing - don't panic, there's been town meetings, we just need to get to shelter. Grab Dad and Ronaldo and get to shelter, everything will be fine.
He turned around.
Ronaldo stood near the door, gazing at his hands. He was shaking visibly, his eyes wide.
“Ronaldo, get dad, we gotta go!” exclaimed Peedee.
“Peedee,” replied Ronaldo shakily, “I…”
“Ronaldo, shut up and -”
His shout was caught in his throat.
Like dust caught in the wind, Ronaldo’s hands began to flow apart into small particles - they looked and smelt like ash. It quickly spread up his arms, consuming his body.
He looked up at his brother - his eyes were glassy and Peedee could sense a deep, primal fear in them.
“Peedee,” he whimpered, “Help.”
Jane tried to grab hold of her boyfriend’s shoulder for support, but her hands simply ran through a cloud of dark, sickly ash. Peedee watched, shaking, as his brother's face disappeared like dust in the wind, and all traces of his body vanished into nothing.
Jane stared at her hands, now covered in ashes. She had turned a sickly pale.
Peedee stammered, his throat dry.
“Dah…dah...DAAAAAAAAD!”
The back door flew open. Mr. Fryman stumbled in, falling to his knees in front of Peedee. He clutched his son’s shoulder’s, squeezing so tightly on them that it stung.
“You're alright,” he wheezed, almost deliriously, “Thank god, you're alright…”
“Dad, something happened to Ronaldo, we have to - NO!”
Peedee yelped as his father’s body disintegrated right before his eyes.
He stepped back, feet unsteady. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an old phone, stabilising himself against the sink with the other hand. He glanced briefly at Jane - she was catatonic but at least she seemed intact - before speed-dialling a number.
The phone rang twice.
“H-hello?”
“Jeff! It's Peedee. I-I-I need to know you're alright, okay!”
There was a long silence.
“Come on, Jeff, say something!” Peedee shouted.
“I-I'm scared,” Jeff sobbed, “I can't...I don't want to...I don't wanna leave y…”
His voice cut off, and Peedee heard a sickening crack on the other end of the line.
His strength left him, and he dropped the phone. Shaking, sweating and tearing up, he leaned over the sink and threw up.
They were sitting at Fish Stew Pizza when they first realised something had gone horribly wrong.
The Cool Kids had been sitting around their table, cheerfully talking about whatever came to mind, when a scream split the air. Jenny turned her head just in time to see Suitcase Sam finish fading away.
“...what?” quizzed Sour Cream, confused.
There was another scream. Next to the counter, Mr. Smiley clutched the counter in terror as his body slowly evaporated. He turned to Kiki and reached out for her in desperation - Kiki screamed as his body vanished.
“Kiki!” Jenny heard Kofi shout from the kitchen, “What's going on out there?”
Kiki ran to the kitchen as a few other customers, none of whom Jenny recognised, disintegrated into nothing. By now, screams were filling the air, not only from inside the restaurant but outside as well.
Buck ran outside - Jenny and Sour Cream exchanged a worried glance before following him.
The boardwalk was a scene of pandemonium. A light wind blew fragments of ash through the air, and car alarms sounded in the distance. Far out to sea, Jenny could see a seaplane hurtling down towards the water.
Something knocked into her, nearly sending her sprawling. She turned…
...and yelped at the sight of a slowly crumbling Barb, panic and confusion in her eyes.
“Sadie!” she exclaimed, “I've gotta find my…”
Her face collapsed and her ashes blew away.
The door behind them burst open. Kiki emerged, her eyes wide.
“Dad’s gone!” she exclaimed, “It...it's taken Dad!”
Immediately, Sour Cream took out his phone, frantically calling home. Buck began to do the same, but quite suddenly he stopped.
“Oh no,” he said.
Then, like a cloud slowly drifting away in the breeze, he fell apart and vanished.
“What the hell is this?” exclaimed Jenny, stepping back in shock.
“They're not answering,” said Sour Cream, his voice shaking, “Mom and Yellowdad, they won't pick up…”
Jenny swallowed, shaking her head.
“What is this?” she asked hoarsely, “What is going on?”
Sadie was sitting on a park bench in the town square, reading a magazine. It was a sunny afternoon, and she felt more relaxed than she had in a long while.
Quite suddenly, she heard a frantic mumbling. She looked up - Onion was pointing frantically down the footpath.
“Onion? What is it?” she asked.
She looked where he was pointing - just in time to see a man (Ian, she thought his name was?) vanish into dust.
“Oh,” she said.
She got up, grabbing Onion’s hand as her fight-or-flight instinct kicked in. She had to get somewhere safe - she had to get home. She began to scroll briskly down the path.
Not far away, she saw Nanefua and her bodyguards climbing onto a park bench. The mayor had her megaphone out.
“Everybody stay calm,” she ordered, “Get to shelter immediately. I…”
Her megaphone toppled to the ground as her arm faded away. As she and the guard to her left began to disappear, she began to shout.
“Do not panic! Get to safe…”
And then she was gone. The other bodyguard screamed and bolted, and Sadie could hear pandemonium from the boardwalk.
She didn't remember how she got home - she had just about gone into autopilot. But she soon did, and turned to Onion to reassure him.
“Okay, we’re safe, it's gonna be…”
Onion was gone. Sadie opened her hand and looked numbly at the small coating of ash that covered it.
Doug winced as another car smashed into the back of his, but paid it no mind as he leapt out of his car. He was outside the hospital, and it seemed the world was collapsing all around him.
He had been on his way to the hospital to check in on Priyanka in his lunch break - two of his co-workers, Frank and Maggie, had hitched a lift with him, as they were on shift at the building that afternoon.
It had all happened at once. Maggie had disintegrated, and then the road had turned to chaos as cars suddenly lost their drivers. Frank was staying in the car, desperately radioing for help, as Doug raced to check on his wife.
He burst into reception, wincing as the receptionist disappeared in front of him. He bolted in the direction of Priyanka’s office, shoving past another doctor on the way.
“Mr. Maheswaran, wait! You’re…”
Doug ignored him, turning a corner and seeing her office just a head of him. He picked up the pace, reaching for the knob.
He never made it, his body exploding like a clod of dirt as it hit the door.
It was probably for the best. For inside the office, Priyanka had already faded into nothing.
“...who’s a good pumpkin? You are!”
Peridot cheerfully gave Pumpkin a rub in the Burning Room, while Garnet and Amethyst checked the status of a corrupted gem they had bubbled earlier.
“Yep, she’s looking good to me,” said Amethyst, looking over the bubble, “Nice and snug in her…”
She trailed off as the gem faded, replaced by a small cloud of black dust.
“...okay, that’s new,” she said, “This some kind of dirt gem, Garnet?”
Garnet didn’t reply. She was looking up at the bubbled gems - watching as roughly half of them fell apart in the same away. Amethyst swallowed as she saw the same thing.
“Uh, Garnet?” she asked, “Is this some kind of Homeworld thing? Are they taking…”
“Pumpkin! ”
Peridot jumped back, clutching her head as Pumpkin disintegrated in front of her. There was a high-pitched, distressed yelp, and then she was gone.
“Where’d she go?” demanded Peridot, “Where’d she go?! ”
Garnet shook her head, covering her mouth with her hand.
“Peridot,” she replied, “I’m sorry, she’s…”
She clutched her head, and with a flash of light, Ruby and Sapphire were lying on the ground.
“Geez, Sapphire,” grunted Ruby, “You’ve gotta warn me before…”
Sapphire was gazing at Ruby, her hair parted way from her eyes. She was shuddering violently.
“No, not like this,” she was saying, “Please, not like this…”
“Sapphy?” Ruby asked worriedly, “What’s wrong?”
She gasped as Sapphire’s arms began to flow apart - just like the bubbled gems.
“Wait, no!” she exclaimed, “I’m not letting them take you! Whoever’s doing this Sapphy, I’m gonna find…”
“There’ll be nothing to find.”
Ruby trailed off, her eyes wide.
“What? No, you can’t mean … ”
“Ruby, I lo…”
She faded away.
“Ruby? Amethyst? What’s going on?” Peridot shouted, running over to them.
“Okay, calm down, Peri, it’s gonna be okay,” said Amethyst, pulling her into a hug, “I’m here, I’m not going anywhere.”
Peridot closed her eyes and held Amethyst tight.
“It’s gonna be okay, Peri, just breathe for me, alright? Just br...:”
Peridot felt her grip slacken. She opened her eyes, just in time to see the faintest afterimage of Amethyst disappear like a black cloud.
“Amethyst! ”
She looked around, desperately searching for any trace of her. Her eyes locked with Ruby’s - the look of confusion, horror and despair in her face probably matched her own.
“...this is an emergency broadcast for all persons in the Beach City area! We have confirmed reports of mass disappearances throughout the region and the nation. The phone lines are overwhelmed, so do not use your phone. Please stay indoors until told otherwise. I repeat, this is an emergency broadcast…”
The phone didn’t even ring this time. An automated voice simply told her that she couldn’t connect.
Pearl pulled the phone down again, pressing the green button under Sheena’s name once more. She was alone in the Beach House - Garnet, Amethyst and Peridot hadn’t come out yet. Cat Steven was resting on her lap, as if nothing bad was happening.
“Come on, please pick up,” muttered Pearl, lifting the phone up again.
This time, the phone connected. And not far away, a cracked, abandoned cell phone on a deserted apartment floor rang.
“What the heck is Knowhere and why are we getting distress calls from them?” asked Lars.
“I don’t know, Captain,” replied left-Rutile.
“The signal’s old, though,” added right-Rutile, “It’s probably too late to help them.”
“Well, it’s probably for the best, right?” shrugged Rhodonite, “I mean, it would’ve been dangerous , right?”
“Yeah, probab...whoa.”
“Twins? What does ‘ whoa’ mean?” asked Lars, concerned.
“We’re getting distress calls from all over the Empire,” replied right-Rutile.
“I mean, every single planet ,” added left-Rutile.
“What? ”
“Captain!” an unfamiliar voice yelled.
Two small gems that Lars didn’t recognise (Peridots, weren’t they?) raced out of the engine room in a state of panic.
“Who are you?” demanded Lars, “Where’s Fluorite?”
“We are Fluorite!” exclaimed one of the Peridots.
“The others, they...they turned into dust!” shouted the other.
“C-Captain?”
Lars turned to Rhodonite, just in time to see her split into her two component gems - a Ruby and a Pearl. The Pearl screeched as the Ruby began to disintegrate.
“Captain!”
Lars turned again. Now the right-hand Rutile was flaking apart, although the left twin seemed fine. He watched in horror as both she and the Ruby disappeared into a cloud of ash.
“Okay, what is going on here?” demanded Lars, “Who’s taking my friends?”
“C...Captain…”
He turned to Padparadscha. She was shaking, and tears were flowing from her covered eye.
“Padparadscha? Wh...what can you see?” asked Lars.
“A being called Thanos,” replied Padparadscha, “Is about to destroy half the population of the universe. S...so many people...Rhodonite, Flourite, Rutile...”
Silence fell on the bridge of the Sun Incinerator, and Lars released his hands were shaking.
“He’s completely beneath our concern,” scoffed Yellow Diamond, crossing her arms as she regarded Blue Diamond through the Diamond Communication Network, “This ‘mad titan’ can’t possibly hope to match the power of our empire and our fleets. Even if we lost a couple of low caste gems, they’re expendable.”
“If he really does have the Infinity Gauntlet, Yellow…”
“It’s a myth, Blue,” snorted Yellow Diamond, “A tale designed to give would-be emperors like this Thanos ideas above their stations. I wouldn't be worried. Now, is there anything important…”
“M-my Diamond!”
“Pearl, are you speaking out of line?” demanded Yellow Diamond.
She looked down at her Pearl. Her lips pursed as she watched her flow apart, staring in utter horror at her disappearing body.
“My Diamond, please, help!” she exclaimed.
Not even a second later, she was gone. Through the communication link, Yellow Diamond saw Blue Pearl cover her mouth and step back, but neither Diamond regarded the incident with much horror themselves.
“Huh,” grunted Yellow Diamond, “That’s annoying.”
“It’s clear, then,” snapped Blue Diamond, “Thanos has gotten what he wants. We need to…”
She trailed off, lifting her arm. Just like Yellow Pearl, it was flaking away like dust in the wind.
“Blue? ” asked Yellow Diamond, her tone dangerous.
“Well,” said Blue Diamond, “It seems we are not above Thanos after all.”
She closed her eyes and sighed as she began at vanish.
“Perhaps now I can have peace…”
Yellow Diamond’s eyes widened as her fellow diamond disappeared, leaving her Pearl standing alone in a quickly vanishing black cloud.
For a long time, she said nothing.
“Pearl,” she said, her voice dangerously even, “Get me your ship’s captain. I want your ship here now. I need it to crush Thanos like the insect he is.”
Sirens rang out. From the town, Steven could hear people screaming. He could hear a helicopter spinning out in the distance, and the radio played the harsh, ear-piercing tones of the Emergency Broadcast System.
He huddled in the back of the van, head buried in his knees. Connie rubbed his shoulder with one hand, holding her sword at the ready with the other. Greg stood at the back door, watching the panic. He called to ex-Mayor Dewey as he ran by.
“Bill? What’s going on?”
“No time, Universe, I need to find Buck!”
Greg nodded and turned around, closing the van doors behind him.
“Okay, Steven,” he said, kneeling down, “Look at me.”
Steven looked up, still shaking.
“It’s gonna be okay,” he said, “I won’t let anything happen to you, Stu-ball, I promise.”
Steven swallowed and nodded.
“I just wish I knew what was going on,” he said, “I mean, the radio said mass disappearances? Is it Homeworld? Is it Aqua-”
“Uh, Mr. Universe?” interrupted Connie.
She pointed at the bottom of his hair. It was collapsing into nothing - and the effect soon spread to his body. His eyes widened as he watched his arms start to disappear, but he quickly swallowed and turned back to Steven.
“Dad…” croaked Steven.
“It’s gonna be okay, Steven,” assured Greg, “It’s gonna...it’s gonna be okay! Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, they’re gonna look after you! It’s gonna be okay…”
His face disintegrated and he was gone. A small coating of ash sprinkled Steven’s face - he rubbed some of it off with a finger and gazed at it.
“No,” he said, starting to sob, “Not Dad...not Dad… ”
“Steven?”
She pulled Steven into a hug, rubbing his back as he began to sob.
“I’m here,” Connie whispered, “I’m here…”
It was a while before either was confident that she would stay there.
It took hours for people to work out the significance of what had happened, and days to truly appreciate the scale. A great hole was ripped in the very heart of the cosmos, from Earth to Homeworld, Sakaar to what remained of Xandar, the Jungle Moon to the Human Zoo, and nothing would ever be the same.
For in a small forest on Earth, a madman with the Infinity Gauntlet had snapped his fingers. And just like that, half the universe died.