The Final Battle
The four Infinity Stones shone in unison.
But before Thanos could unleash their power...
A massive green figure slammed into him.
"BOOOOOOOOOOM!!"
Hulk shot forward like a bullet, smashing into the Titan's chest and dragging him through several streets before crashing him into the remains of a building.
The impact raised a massive cloud of dust.
"Hulk waited too long!" he roared as he drove a second punch down.
Thanos raised the Gauntlet to block it.
The Power Stone began to glow.
However, before he could use it, scarlet energy wrapped around his fingers and forced them apart.
Thanos turned his head.
Wanda floated above the battlefield, both hands outstretched, her eyes blazing with an intense crimson light.
"This time, you're not closing it," she said coldly.
Thanos tried to move his fingers.
Wanda's magic tightened around the Gauntlet.
The metal began to creak.
For an instant, even the Stones flickered.
But Thanos gritted his teeth and forced his arm forward, shattering part of the scarlet energy restraining him.
Still...
That had been enough.
Hulk drove another punch into his face.
"BOOOM!!"
Thanos's head snapped violently to the side.
And before he could regain his balance, Wonder Man appeared from the flank, surrounded by an enormous amount of ionic energy.
"I think it's my turn to step into the spotlight," he said as he threw a punch straight into the Titan's abdomen.
The violet energy exploded.
Thanos was blasted upward.
Monica Rambeau was already waiting for him there.
Her body had become pure radiant energy.
"Let's see how much that Gauntlet can really take."
Monica shot downward, passing through Thanos's body like a beam of light.
For a fraction of a second, the Titan was engulfed in such an intense white light that his silhouette disappeared completely.
The Gauntlet's systems began releasing small bursts of energy.
The Infinity Stones flickered once again.
Thanos let out a growl and swung his arm.
The Power Stone unleashed a purple explosion that swept across the sky.
Monica became light before the attack could touch her and reappeared several meters away.
But Thanos didn't have time to pursue her.
Jean Grey raised one hand.
The Titan's entire body froze in midair.
An invisible telekinetic force closed around him from every direction, compressing his armor.
Thanos slowly descended toward the ground as he struggled to break free.
Jean frowned.
The pressure began cracking the asphalt beneath the Titan's feet.
"He's... incredibly strong," she admitted as she extended her other hand as well.
Thanos raised his eyes toward the redhead.
"But not enough."
The Reality Stone began to shine.
Jean watched as the city around her transformed.
The buildings disappeared.
The sky turned completely black.
And beneath her feet, an ocean of fire opened.
For a brief instant, she lost her concentration.
But before that reality could fully envelop her, a scarlet wave of energy tore through the illusion, shattering it as though it were glass.
Wanda appeared beside her.
"It's not real."
Jean took a deep breath and focused her power on Thanos once more.
The telekinetic pressure returned.
But this time it was fused with Wanda's Chaos Magic.
Two different forces closed around the Titan.
Thanos tried to raise the Gauntlet.
His fingers barely managed to move.
The Space Stone glowed faintly.
But his body didn't disappear.
"I can't let you do that," Wanda said as she stopped him.
Thanos's expression shifted slightly.
"Keep his hand open!" Steve shouted from the distance.
His shield flew through the ranks of heroes.
Thanos turned his head.
The shield struck one of his fingers directly.
"CLANG!"
It wasn't enough to injure him.
But it kept him from closing his hand.
The shield bounced away and returned to Steve.
Then dozens of attacks began pouring in from every direction.
War Machine's cannons opened fire on Thanos's arm.
Cyclops fired an optic blast straight at the Gauntlet.
Pietro appeared, struck the Titan's fingers twice with his metal staff, and vanished again before Thanos could react.
Nicolás fired from his flying motorcycle.
The antimatter round struck one of the Gauntlet's metal joints directly.
"BOOOOM!!"
One of the armored fingers bent slightly out of shape.
Thanos let out a furious growl.
For the first time since arriving on Earth...
He no longer seemed to be enjoying the battle.
"Enough!"
The Power Stone flared with monstrous intensity.
A purple explosion erupted from his body.
Wanda and Jean were hurled backward.
Wonder Man crashed into the ground.
Hulk was dragged back hundreds of meters, carving a long trench through the rubble.
Even Monica lost her energy form for an instant and had to retreat.
Thanos landed in the middle of the battlefield.
His breathing had grown heavier.
Part of his armor was destroyed.
The Gauntlet was covered in cracks.
But all four Stones were still in his possession.
And now his expression was completely consumed by rage.
"You think you've won because you destroyed my army," he said as he looked at the thousands of heroes surrounding him. "You think your numbers can make any difference."
The Space Stone began to glow.
The sky warped.
Enormous blue fractures spread across the city.
"I could cast this entire continent into the heart of a star."
The Reality Stone lit up.
The ruined buildings began rebuilding themselves around him.
But they weren't returning to their original form.
Their walls twisted.
Concrete became flesh.
Windows turned into enormous eyes that watched the heroes.
"I could turn this world into something you wouldn't even recognize."
The Power Stone glowed.
The pressure increased once again.
Several lower-ranked heroes dropped to their knees.
"I could reduce this planet to dust."
Finally, the Soul Stone emitted a deep orange glow.
For a second, everyone felt something being torn from inside their bodies.
As if an invisible hand were trying to separate their souls.
"And I could make sure none of you ever had the chance to return."
Thanos slowly closed his fist.
This time Wanda tried to stop him again.
Jean used all of her telekinesis.
Strange created dozens of golden chains.
But the energy of the four Stones shattered their powers before they could reach him.
"You have understood nothing," Thanos said with contempt. "This battle ended the moment I arrived on this planet."
The fractures in the sky continued expanding.
The deformed buildings began to move.
Purple energy spread across the ground, destroying everything in its path.
However...
Owen didn't seem worried.
He stood several meters farther back, still recovering from the injuries of the previous battle.
The crimson flames surrounding his body had weakened, but his expression remained completely calm, with a faint smile.
"Why are you smiling?" Thanos asked, fixing his gaze on him.
Owen first looked at the Gauntlet, then at the fractures in the sky. Finally, he looked back at the Titan.
"I already told you. We were only buying time."
Thanos narrowed his eyes.
At the same time, Strange slowly raised one hand and began drawing circles through the air.
Thanos looked at the circle and then raised his head toward the sky.
A gigantic bolt of lightning tore through the clouds.
Thor was descending from the highest reaches of the atmosphere.
Stormbreaker shone, wrapped in a storm of lightning.
But he wasn't descending alone.
Hercules held one of his arms while the two of them fell toward Earth.
"Let's see if the great Titan can stop this!" Hercules shouted with a laugh as he spun while holding Thor, building more and more momentum.
Thanos quickly raised the Gauntlet.
The Space Stone glowed.
He tried to open a portal in front of them.
But Strange closed both hands.
The magical circles he had created around the battlefield lit up at the same time.
Space was locked.
Thanos's portal flickered.
And disappeared.
The Reality Stone began to glow.
Wanda extended both hands.
Her scarlet magic wrapped around the Stone.
Reality began to distort again.
But this time, it didn't completely obey Thanos.
"Now, Jean!"
Jean Grey focused all of her telekinetic power on the arm wearing the Gauntlet.
Hulk appeared from behind and grabbed Thanos around the waist.
Wonder Man restrained his other arm.
Monica turned into energy and passed through the Gauntlet once again, interfering with the flow of power between the Stones.
Thanos roared.
The Power Stone released an explosion.
Hulk felt several bones in his arms break.
Wonder Man began losing his physical form.
Blood ran from Jean's nose.
Wanda was pushed several meters backward.
But none of them let go.
"You cannot stop me!" Thanos roared as he began closing his fist.
One of his fingers moved.
Then another.
The energy of the Stones began intensifying again.
Owen disappeared.
He reappeared directly in front of the Titan.
Thanos threw a headbutt.
Owen didn't dodge.
"CRACK!"
His nose broke. He didn't even have time to redirect the energy from the impact. Blood covered his face.
But at the same time, he drove both crimson daggers between the joints of the Gauntlet.
Repulsion energy spread through the metal.
"We only need to stop you long enough," Owen said with difficulty.
Thanos's eyes widened.
Hercules released Thor.
And using all of his strength, he hurled the god toward the ground.
Thor became a bolt of lightning.
Stormbreaker descended directly toward the arm wearing the Gauntlet.
Thanos tried to move it.
Wanda screamed as she used all of her power.
Jean did the same.
Hulk tightened his grip even more.
Owen released all of his repulsion energy into the joints of the Gauntlet.
For a fraction of a second...
Thanos's arm became completely still.
Stormbreaker descended.
"NO!!"
"BOOOOOOOOOOM!!"
The axe cut through the Titan's arm.
Flesh, bone, and metal were severed at the same time.
The Gauntlet was sent flying, still attached to Thanos's hand.
For a second, everyone froze.
The fractures in the sky disappeared.
The deformed buildings returned to rubble.
The pressure from the Stones vanished.
The Gauntlet fell toward the ground.
But before it could touch it, Strange opened a portal beneath it.
The severed hand disappeared.
And the portal immediately closed.
Thanos stared at the empty space where his arm had been.
His expression was one of absolute disbelief.
As if his mind were incapable of accepting what had just happened.
He had lost the Stones.
"Impossible..." he murmured.
Thor landed in front of him.
Stormbreaker returned to his hand.
Thanos slowly raised his gaze.
The disbelief disappeared.
Only hatred remained.
With a roar, he struck Hulk with his remaining arm and managed to break free from his grip.
Then he threw a punch at Wonder Man, sending him flying.
Even without the Stones...
He was still Thanos.
The Mad Titan.
One of the strongest beings in the universe.
Thanos charged directly toward Thor.
His fist collided with Stormbreaker.
"BOOOM!!"
The ground sank.
Thor staggered back several steps.
Thanos struck him again.
And again.
Every blow was filled with savage fury.
There was no technique anymore.
No calm.
No speech about saving the universe.
Only a monster refusing to accept his defeat.
Thor blocked another punch with the handle of the axe.
The metal creaked.
Thanos headbutted him.
Thor dropped to one knee.
Then the Titan raised his fist to deliver the final blow.
But a hand grabbed his wrist.
Hercules appeared beside him.
"We're not finished yet."
Thanos tried to pull away.
Hercules smiled and tightened his grip on the Titan's arm.
Hulk appeared on the other side and grabbed Thanos around the waist again.
Blue Marvel descended from the sky and struck Thanos directly in the legs, forcing him down onto one knee.
Owen reappeared in front of him.
His face was still covered in blood.
His body was at its limit.
But his daggers still remained in his hands.
Thanos looked at him with hatred.
"I could have saved this universe."
Owen slowly shook his head.
"No. You only wanted to prove that you were right."
Thanos tried to stand.
Hulk and Hercules kept him pinned to the ground.
"All of you will die anyway," the Titan spat. "Your resources will run out. Your wars will continue. You will destroy yourselves."
"Maybe," Owen replied calmly. "But that will be our choice. Not yours."
Owen took a step to the side.
Clearing the path in front of Thor.
The god of thunder slowly rose.
His eyes glowed with electricity.
Stormbreaker returned fully to his hands.
Thanos watched him approach.
For a second, neither of them said anything.
Thor tightened his grip on the axe's handle.
"This is for Asgard."
Lightning descended upon Stormbreaker.
"For Heimdall."
Thanos tried to break free again.
"For Loki."
Thor raised the axe.
"And for everyone you took the chance to fight away from."
Stormbreaker descended.
"BOOOOOOOOOOM!!"
The lightning split the sky.
The blade tore through Thanos's neck.
His head was sent flying and landed several meters away, rolling through the remains of the avenue.
The body remained motionless for an instant.
Then it fell forward.
The impact against the ground barely made a sound.
After everything that had happened...
After all the explosions capable of destroying cities.
The lunar meteors.
The Stones warping reality.
Thanos's end was surprisingly quiet.
No one moved.
Thousands of heroes stared at the Titan's decapitated body.
As though they were still waiting for him to stand back up.
Tony slowly descended.
His armor was destroyed in several places.
He looked at Thanos's body.
Then he looked toward Strange.
"Tell me his head isn't about to start talking."
Strange kept his gaze fixed on the corpse for several seconds.
"I don't sense any alterations to reality."
Tony let out the breath he had been holding.
"That didn't completely answer my question."
"No," Strange finally said. "He won't get back up."
For several more seconds...
The battlefield remained silent.
Then Hercules raised his mace toward the sky.
"VICTORY!!"
His voice thundered across the entire city.
And as if that single word had broken something...
The heroes began to shout.
Thousands of voices rose at the same time.
Some raised their weapons.
Others embraced each other.
The most heavily wounded simply collapsed onto the rubble, unable to remain standing any longer.
Steve slowly lowered his shield.
Wanda closed her eyes and let out a sigh of relief.
Pietro appeared beside her.
Peter removed his mask, still staring at Thanos's body as though he couldn't quite believe it was truly over.
Tony looked around.
New York was destroyed.
A portion of the Moon was gone.
Several ships were still burning in the sky.
But Earth was still there.
And so were most of its heroes.
Thor remained standing in front of Thanos's body.
He only stared silently at the Titan's head.
Owen slowly approached until he stood beside him.
"We did it," he said.
Thor took several seconds to respond.
"It won't bring back those we lost."
"No."
"Nor will it repair everything he destroyed."
"No."
Thor tightened his grip on Stormbreaker.
"Then it doesn't feel like a victory."
Owen looked at the thousands of heroes who were still celebrating.
At the doctors and healers who were already beginning to treat the wounded.
At those clearing away rubble in search of survivors.
At the lower-ranked heroes who, even after everything, were still there helping until the very end.
"Maybe not," Owen said. "But we're still here to rebuild it."
Thor raised his gaze.
A small smile appeared on Owen's face.
"That will have to be enough."