A game of chess cannot be played by only one person.
Yet from beginning to end, Thanos had only seen the gods making moves, laying out schemes within schemes. The board was crowded with players… except for one.
The God of Death had never made a move.
Had she abandoned him?
Impossible.
If she had truly given up, why would she have contacted him earlier and injected him with that terrifying surge of energy?
Was it simply too much power to waste?
No. That explanation didn't hold water.
Which meant there was only one remaining possibility: this was the God of Death's scheme, one he hadn't uncovered yet.
Thanos's gaze shifted to the so-called rubber man standing in front of him. Mr. Fantastic was… odd. Almost suspiciously so. He kept blurting out the abilities of others, like a walking encyclopedia with stage fright, as if he were afraid Thanos might miss some crucial detail.
If Thanos wasn't mistaken, this man was the God of Death's backup plan.
He hadn't expected her to plant pieces among the celestial chessboard itself. Subtle. Annoyingly clever. And worst of all—easy to overlook.
Because of that realization, Thanos hadn't rushed to kill Mr. Fantastic.
At the same time, Doctor Strange—casting spells from the rear—felt a sharp ripple of unease as he watched Mr. Fantastic get sent flying.
In the futures he had seen through the Time Stone, Reed Richards didn't survive. He wasn't swatted away like a fly—he was killed.
That discrepancy made Strange's heart skip.
It reminded him of the message the Ancient One had passed to him through Thor.
But he shook his head hard.
Now wasn't the time.
Thinking wouldn't save them. Fighting might.
Refocusing, Doctor Strange's fingers blurred into a series of precise, elegant gestures. Arcane symbols flared, and another large-scale spell snapped into place.
A translucent shield of magic wrapped around every hero on the battlefield.
Then it happened.
Black Bolt and Ghost Rider were killed instantly.
No buildup. No dramatic struggle. Just—gone.
The shock hit especially hard for Professor X and Captain America.
They knew exactly how terrifying Black Bolt was. Calling him top-tier on Earth wasn't exaggeration—it was understatement.
And yet… he hadn't even had time to react.
One moment he was there. The next, he was dead.
As the heroes faltered, Thanos noticed immediately.
Fear spreads faster than fire.
He casually raised his hand and issued an order.
He wasn't fighting alone, after all. Behind him stood an army numbering over a million.
The next second, surrounding warships lit up as laser cannons charged and fired in unison.
A storm of energy rained down.
Fortunately, Doctor Strange's group defense spell held firm. Lasers crashed against the shields like waves against a cliff, leaving the heroes shaken but largely unharmed.
Seeing this, Captain Marvel didn't hesitate.
She shot straight toward the enemy fleet.
It was obvious—she was still carrying the trauma of her last encounter with Thanos. Facing him head-on wasn't something she was ready for yet.
Doctor Strange continued weaving spell after spell, sweat forming on his brow as he shouted, "Heroes! Now is the time! We fight Thanos to the death!"
The response was immediate.
"For Earth! For justice!"
"For Wakanda!"
"Justice will prevail! Evil will be defeated!"
"HULK! DESTRUCTION!"
Thanos watched the charging heroes with mild interest.
Then he lifted his left hand and waved it—almost lazily.
Laufey and Hela, along with the Black Order behind him, surged forward.
Seven against hundreds.
And yet, the gap in quality was absurd.
Hela and Laufey stood at true Celestial-level power—not like Black Bolt, whose strength was all offense and no foundation.
Without Doctor Strange's shields, the heroes would have been slaughtered in seconds.
Even the members of the Black Order were pressing their opponents hard.
This highlighted a fundamental flaw in Earth's superheroes.
They were painfully unbalanced.
Take Black Bolt, for example.
If he unleashed his full sonic power, his destructive force could reach godlike levels—enough to crack a planet apart.
But physically? His strength, durability, and speed were pitiful.
He hadn't even had time to register Thanos's presence before dying. His defenses were as fragile as tofu.
And Thanos had sliced him up accordingly.
This weakness wasn't unique.
Most of Earth's heroes gained power through accidents, mutations, or absurd strokes of luck—not through disciplined cultivation.
Which brings us to the Hulk, now charging straight at Thanos.
In raw strength, Hulk truly was god-tier.
But speed? Mental resistance?
Laughable.
The Mind Stone embedded in Thanos's Infinity Gauntlet flashed.
In an instant, Hulk's mind was seized.
He froze, turned around—
—and attacked his own teammates.
That was the price of power gained without mastery.
Using the Hulk as an example… the problem became painfully clear.
The opponent's strength came entirely from an experiment. Although he possessed the ability to grow stronger the angrier he became, the price was the birth of the Hulk personality itself.
Once the transformation occurred, all reason vanished.
Sure, the power was overwhelming—but it came with glaring flaws. Hulk could only leap and rebound between planets like an out-of-control meteor. Forget flying. Steering wasn't really on the menu either.
From a distance, Doctor Strange saw Hulk completely lose control. His expression tightened as his fingers moved in a series of precise, almost delicate gestures.
A magical prison snapped shut around Hulk in an instant.
Trapped in the vacuum of space with nothing to push against, Hulk could only flail wildly, roaring in frustration as his massive body drifted uselessly.
Meanwhile, the battlefield burned.
In the far distance, fireworks bloomed across the stars—not the celebratory kind. Captain Marvel had turned herself into a living cannonball, tearing through enemy ships one after another. She didn't even slow down, slamming straight into an interstellar fortress and blowing straight through it like it was made of tin foil.
Seeing this, Thanos's eyes narrowed. He immediately prepared to fly over and stop her.
If someone like her continued attacking unchecked, this entire unit could be wiped out by a single person.
Just then, several mini-missiles streaked toward him.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The explosions swallowed him whole—but when the smoke cleared, Thanos emerged completely unscathed, not even a scratch on his armor.
Iron Man didn't hesitate.
His anti-Thanos armor roared to life as he rocketed forward, repulsors glowing.
"Stop right there!"
Thanos merely turned his head and glanced at him, utterly indifferent. The Mind Stone embedded in his left hand flashed once more.
A blue light flickered across Iron Man's eyes.
Then he turned around abruptly and shouted, voice full of fanatical zeal, "Join the glorious evolution!"
In the next instant, he unleashed his full firepower—on his former teammates.
The sudden betrayal threw the battlefield into chaos.
Before things could spiral further, Professor X acted.
He placed two fingers against his temples, his brow furrowing as he invaded Iron Man's mental world. With practiced ease, he shattered Thanos's control and restored Iron Man's consciousness.
Immediately after, he released Hulk from his restraint.
Then, without pause, Professor X turned his attention to Thanos and unleashed his mental power once more.
It was like slamming into solid steel.
No matter how hard he pushed, he couldn't break into Thanos's mental world.
Just then, Thanos smiled.
And then—he opened it.
In an instant, he and Professor X were locked in a direct mental confrontation.
Professor X found himself standing in an endless void, darkness stretching infinitely in all directions.
Then, a towering figure emerged.
Thanos stood before him, Infinity Stones embedded across his armor, radiating an ominous orange glow.
"Don't want—!"
Professor X roared as he resisted, but his expression twisted violently. His face shifted between blue and purple, agony flashing across his features—until, little by little, his struggle faded.
Silence followed.
His eyes softened, filling with boundless admiration as he gazed at Thanos.
The Soul Stone was at work.
This wasn't simple mind control—it was a change at the soul level. Slower. More costly. But far more absolute.
Though what felt like an eternity passed in the spiritual world, only a single second elapsed in reality.
Thanos withdrew from the mental realm and immediately flew toward Captain Marvel.
Behind him, Professor X suddenly curled his lips into a sinister smile.
But before he could act, Doctor Strange stopped casting spells on the heroes. He turned sharply toward Professor X, forming hand seals once more.
Professor X collapsed instantly, falling into a deep coma.
Doctor Strange lowered his hands slowly.
It was clear—he had already seen this outcome within the Time Stone.
.....
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