Explaining the next step

"Have you finished yet?" Fury asked.

"More or less," Reed answered, tinkering with the new contraption he'd built with Tony Stark and Victor Von Doom -- a machine to harness the power of the Reality Stone to shield them from the effects of reality changing. "The Stone's energy readings are weak, especially compared to its usual levels, but it's more than strong enough to shield us from whatever's happening."

"Good," Fury nodded approvingly. "This will give us some room to maneuver, and we won't have to rely on Natasha as much."

"So what's the plan, Cap?" asked Tony.

"We find others who can help us. Men who haven't been assimilated, and women who haven't lost their memories. The Stone should be able to protect them... if we can find them in time."

After Steve explained his plan and the rest of the group agreed to it, Fury pulled aside both Tony and Strange. "I trust you've both put measures in place to ensure Doom doesn't take off with the stone?"

"I've placed runes surrounding the stone, yes," Strange answered.

"And I've added safeguards to our new toy," Tony added. "But it seems like overkill. If the shield powered down, Doom's existence would be in serious jeopardy, and he knows it."

"Come on, Tony. You know Doom just as well as I do. As soon as he sees an opportunity, he'll take it."

"Fair point," Tony nodded. Fury always covered as many bases as possible. "But if he comes into contact with his female counterpart at any point, stealing the stone won't matter."

"That doesn't mean he won't try. And if he does, we're all screwed."

"Either way, we took the necessary precautions," Tony reassured Fury. "And I was planning on keeping an eye on Doom anyway."

"Good. Make sure you do."

The group spent the next few hours attempting to recall where and how reality began to change -- by filling in the gaps, they remembered that they were fighting... someone, and they reasoned that the Cosmic Cube was the source of these changes. Tony, Strange, Reed & Doom began to try and locate the cube through various means, while the rest of the group agreed to try and seek out anyone who might remember reality as it once was.

"Nat, can you think of anyone out there who might remember our old reality?" Steve asked.

"Rogue, the X-Woman... I have faint memories of fighting alongside her before waking up in Avengers Tower," Natasha recalled. "I can't remember any more than that, though."

"I see. Well, that's as good a lead as any we have -- you'll need to go speak to her, see if her memories are intact."

"On my own?" Natasha asked. Visiting the Grey-Frost campus surely meant meeting up with Jean & Emma, both of whom Natasha knew were seriously interested in getting her into bed.

"Unfortunately, yes," Steve answered. "Our resources are spread too thin, and we'll have to split up to cover more ground. They won't let any men on the grounds, so it falls to you -- I know it's risky, Nat, but you're our only shot."

"...Fine. But it might be a good idea to do some recon first," Natasha suggested. "And I should be able to dig up some info on this world and its metahumans at Avengers Tower that should be able to help us."

"You sure you'll be OK going back there?" Tony asked. "You did mention how the others were aggressively hitting on you..."

"Tony, please. I know every inch of that tower," reassured Natasha. "I can spend days there without anyone even noticing."

"Fair point. Still, be careful -- you never know who you'll run into there."

Grey-Frost University Dorms"Oh yes, right there, sugah," Rogue moaned as Kitty's tongue teased her clit. The attraction between the two had been building since they'd become roommates, and now, finally, the two had given into their urges, entangled in a sideways 69 on Kitty's bed -- and they were approaching orgasm fast.

All Rogue's vague memories of her previous reality were the farthest thing from her mind at the moment, especially since she was focusing on Kitty's pussy, while Kitty's eager tongue lashed around in her own sex. Focusing her efforts on making Kitty climax, she gripped the brunette's ass tightly and plunged her tongue deeply into her cunt, her wiggling tongue soon getting the results it was looking for as Kitty came hard. Anna couldn't hold on much longer after that, and as the orgasm rocked her body, the vague memories of her previous life, and the mysterious man with the playing cards and staff, faded completely from her mind...