"I say, are you alright?" Thor casually flicked his axe and smirked at Loki. "It seems my little brother almost wet his pants this time. Don't worry, your big brother is here."
"To hell with you! What are you doing here?" Loki blinked, glancing first at Thor, then at Thanos's corpse, which still stood upright even in death.
Loki exhaled in relief, then stood, face full of grievances. "Damn it! I was about to kill him myself! Why did you have to interfere?"
"Is that so?" Thor gave an incredulous look, then shrugged at the decapitated Thanos. "Fine, fine. I believe you could have finished him. Truly, I swear."
Thor often acted foolish around his brother, but at this moment, he was tactful. He knew exactly what Loki was feeling-it was pride. Thor didn't intend to crush Loki's ego now.
Still, his expression carried a subtle sense of patronizing dismissal, which immediately irritated Loki.
"Next time, try to make your tone and gestures more convincing," Loki grumbled, rubbing his aching back. "How are you supposed to be a King? How will you face leaders and kings from other planets? You have no clue about diplomacy!"
"Yes, yes, I know nothing," Thor sighed, then grinned, patting Loki on the shoulder. "But I have you, don't I? My dear brother, the Regent of Asgard."
"Stop talking nonsense." Loki shoved Thor's hand away and scanned the battlefield. "What's the status? All those damned Thanoses..."
"They've been mostly dealt with," Thor said with a smile, gesturing toward the Kree and Thanos's remaining armies, largely held in check by the sorcerers and Tony's aerial fleet. "Only the stragglers remain. It should be over soon."
Indeed, the end was near. Thanos's subordinates were no match for the Archmages. Even multiplied in number, forces like Wong and Mordo were overwhelming.
Elsewhere, portly Thor charged into the fray with Hela. Nearby, Noah held an exhausted girl, while Stephen Strange approached, his clothes torn from battle.
Tony and his group finished their fight. At the front walked a woman with long golden hair, wearing a blue and red combat suit.
"Seems we arrived just in time."
Iron Man Tony, in his red armor emitting a synthesized mechanical voice, glanced at the alternate Tony and Steve with a teasing grin. "I didn't expect to run into this the moment I got here. Is this your Endgame? Trust me, with me here, you won't snap that gauntlet. By the way, Natasha, welcome back. Well, you're the Natasha of our universe."
"Tony? You guys..." Natasha rubbed her head. She had taken a hard hit from Thanos earlier. "How did you get here?"
"Tony planned this long ago but wanted to see how the final battle in this universe would play out," Colonel Rhodey, as War Machine, explained. "So we moved the timeline forward. That's why we're only arriving now."
"By the way, why does the 'me' in this universe look so young?" Iron Man Tony asked. "And why does your armor look so bizarre? Magic?"
"Of course. Not something your pile of scrap metal can compare to," the alternate Tony said sharply. Habit never left him, especially facing a version of himself.
Tony fell silent, gazing at the woman he had never seen before.
She wore a blue and red combat suit, her golden hair long, radiating a terrifying aura. Tony recognized it-he had only felt something like this from Noah.
More importantly, this was the one who had blocked Thanos's attack moments ago. Thanos hadn't moved because of her.
"Who are you?" Tony asked, curious. "Have we met? Why do I feel a familiar aura?"
"Don't recognize her?" the alternate Tony said, confused. "She's Captain Marvel, Carol Danvers!"
"I don't know her." Tony shook his head. "This is the first time I've seen her, but she feels... familiar. Like seeing my friend."
Tony wasn't lying. It was indeed their first meeting. But there was a strange energy about her-just like Noah's.
Tony realized it was likely the unique energy extracted from the Space Stone using his father's method.
"Your friend?" Carol looked at him curiously. "What's your friend's name?"
"Noah," Tony said firmly. "Noah Fenrir. He's my mentor and good friend."
"Noah? That little brat?" Carol tilted her head, recalling the boy who had impressed her twenty or thirty years ago. "You're his apprentice? Time flies. And these people? They look exactly like you. What's happening?"
"Allow me to explain, Ms. Danvers. Though, is this your first time returning to Earth? I envy your experiences in your universe," Captain America added. He had been observing his counterpart, especially the golden glow emanating from him.
He assumed it was a unique trait of this universe-Tony had become a sorcerer here.
Sighing, he continued, "We come from a parallel universe. Lord Fenrir helped us before, so we..."
Carol nodded. She was curious but didn't press. For years, she had kept peace in other sectors. When she learned the Kree were attacking Asgard with Thanos, she realized things were dire.
Arriving, she noticed the number of Thanoses seemed unusually high. Now, she understood.
Blue and gold light suddenly erupted from Carol's body. "Thank you for coming, but I'll handle this."
In an instant, Carol vanished. The force she radiated nearly knocked the newcomers off their feet.
In a blink, she was trading blows with Thanos. Her raw power stunned the Avengers-but in their universe, her extraordinary abilities made it seem logical.
"What is that power?" Captain America asked his counterpart. "Did you... learn magic?"
"Magic?" Steve blinked, realizing the misunderstanding. "No. This is Holy Light. Lord Fenrir taught it. I assume you've met him?"
"Of course. A powerful, eccentric sorcerer. But reliable, isn't he?"
"He is." Steve nodded, watching Carol pummel Thanos. Remembering how Noah once became a dragon to protect Earth, he smiled. "He's reliable, even if his temper is... unique."
The Avengers felt redundant. With Carol there, there was little left for them to do.
Indeed, this Thanos struggled under Carol's assault, which even she found odd. She could feel his power matched hers, but he seemed restricted. Even with the Stones, his performance was disappointing.
"Maybe fighting across universes limits him," Carol wondered-but she didn't hold back.
Her power exploded again. In the next instant, her fist struck toward Thanos's head, and he couldn't keep up.