Ever since Luke arrived in this world, the timeline had shifted like a river forced from its course. He had tried, at least in the beginning, not to disturb the current too much. But despite his efforts, many things had already gone off-script.
Vision never came into existence.
Hela, instead of being defeated, still walked freely. Dormammu's incursion through Kaecilius never happened.
And now, most startling of all, Thanos had come personally.
In the original story, the Mad Titan sent his lieutenants first, testing the Earth before revealing himself. But here, there was no prelude, no cautious probing. He had skipped straight to the finale and had come himself.
Luke, Fury, and Hela suddenly lifted their heads in unison.
The sky above New York told its own story. A colossal shape loomed in the clouds, descending slowly, its sheer presence blotting out the sun.
From the ground, the craft seemed deceptively modest, a dark silhouette hidden by distance. But Luke recognized it immediately.
The Sanctuary II.
It wasn't just a ship, it was a whole empire in motion. The vessel's true size spanned as far as Manhattan itself. Within it, Thanos carried everything he owned: the Black Order, legions of Chitauri soldiers, and enough firepower to turn Earth into ash.
This time, Luke thought grimly, the planet would face a war unlike any it had ever seen.
Once Thanos made a move, he would not stop until his will was carved into the universe.
Fury broke the silence first. His usual composure faltered, and his voice carried an edge of fear. "Luke… do you know who's in that ship?"
The weight of Asgard's destruction was already forgotten. Compared to the fate of Earth, distant grudges didn't matter.
Hela's gaze also shifted to Luke. Her expression was calm, but her green eyes narrowed slightly with curiosity. She had roamed the realms for a long time, but the name Thanos had never crossed her ears in that time.
Luke's smile vanished. His tone darkened. "Thanos," he said quietly, as if the word itself carried power.
In the movies, Thanos had been the endgame, the monster behind the curtain. In this reality, Luke knew that description still held true. Thanos wasn't the strongest being in existence, not compared to certain ancient monsters scattered through the cosmos, but he was still terrifying, and his strength was undeniable.
"The last Titan," Luke explained, his eyes narrowing at the ship. "He wanders from planet to planet. Whenever he arrives, he slaughters half the population. He claims it's to keep balance in the universe."
Fury swallowed hard. "And now he's here… to kill half the people on Earth?"
But Luke shook his head. "No. He's here for the Infinity Stones."
The words hung in the air.
At once, Hela stirred. She lifted her hand, and in her palm shimmered a familiar blue cube. Its glow illuminated her pale fingers.
"Master," she said, her voice almost reverent, "do you mean… this?"
The Tesseract.
Luke nodded. He had known all along that the cube rested in Asgard, and now, in Hela's possession. He had never bothered to take it from her, it was safer in her hands than in most vaults. And besides, with his system, he had little need for its power.
Still, seeing the cube now sparked a thought.
If Hela is on Earth… That meant the planet already held four Stones.
The Reality Stone rested with Bumblebee.
The Time Stone hung from the Ancient One's neck.
And the Mind Stone…
Luke turned his head toward Fury. "Tell me," he asked evenly, "is Loki's scepter still in S.H.I.E.L.D. hands?"
Fury blinked, caught off guard. "Yes. We've secured it, why?"
"That scepter," Luke said, "houses the Mind Stone."
Fury's breath caught. His mind was racing. He had carried that weapon before, even put it under lock and key personally, never realizing he'd been holding a cosmic artifact.
"What exactly do these Stones do?" he asked finally, his voice a mixture of curiosity and dread.
Luke's gaze turned distant, almost grim. "There are six in total. Each one controls a fundamental force of existence: space, reality, mind, soul, time, power. Alone, they're dangerous. Together…" He let the pause hang, letting the weight of the truth settle. "…together, if Thanos unites them, a single snap of his fingers could erase half of all life in the universe and immediately accomplish his life-long goal."
The silence that followed was suffocating. Fury's fingers tightened around the armrest of his chair, his knuckles pale. He had faced wars, alien invasions, gods, monsters, but never had he heard of a weapon so absolute.
He leaned forward, voice raw with urgency. "If Thanos comes, tell me you'll stop him."
His words weren't a command. They were a plea.
For all his fear, for all the nightmare Luke had just painted, Fury still believed one thing: that Luke was stronger. Strong enough to face even this.
Luke nodded once. "Of course. Earth is my home too. I won't let him take what he wants here."
There was no demand for payment this time, no smirk, no negotiation. Only quiet determination.
Yet beneath it, Luke felt a flicker of unease. If Thanos truly gathered all six, even he, with his system, might not be enough.
Thankfully, the odds were slim. By Luke's count, three Stones were already in his reach. Four, if he considered the Time Stone under the Ancient One's care, given that she now served Gul'dan.
That left Thanos at a disadvantage, for now.
Overhead, the Sanctuary II began to pierce the atmosphere. Flames licked its hull as it entered, casting streaks of crimson light across the clouds.
Fury stood abruptly, his instincts screaming at him. "I need to return. S.H.I.E.L.D. must prepare, and the Avengers need to know what's coming."
Luke inclined his head in agreement.
Without another word, Fury hurried toward his transport. The roar of engines soon followed as his jet lifted, banking toward S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.
Back at the poolside, the mood shifted. Hela remained, a faint smile tugging at her lips. She seemed utterly unbothered by the looming threat, as though Thanos was nothing more than an insect buzzing outside the window.
Luke leaned back, matching her calmness, and the two began to talk as if the end of the world weren't hanging over them. Hela laughed softly at something he said, her tone light, almost playful.
To any outsider, it would have looked surreal: the Goddess of Death and Earth's strongest consultant chatting leisurely while a titan descended upon their skies.
…
S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters.
The moment Fury returned, the building shifted into chaos. Orders were shouted, agents scrambled. Evacuation plans were activated across New York. Defensive positions were drawn up, and government hotlines rang without pause.
And above all, the Avengers were summoned.
One by one, they arrived: Iron Man, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Captain America, Hulk, Black Panther, Spider-Man, War Machine, Falcon, Quicksilver, Ant-Man.
Even Thor stood among them, his wounds nearly healed. The eyepatch did nothing to dim the weight of his presence. If anything, it sharpened him, gave him a hardened edge.
Except for Luke, the roster was complete.
At the front of the briefing room, Fury laid it out. The truth of Thanos, what he heard about the Stones, and the unthinkable risk.
His words echoed over and over, heavier each time. Half the universe's population would be gone if they didn't stop it. Half of humanity erased with a snap.
The room fell into stunned silence. Even these hardened fighters, veterans of battles beyond comprehension, felt their blood run cold.
Only Thor seemed unmoved. When Fury finished, the Asgardian prince rose slowly, his jaw tight.
"I know the name," he said gravely. His voice carried weight, the kind that filled the entire chamber. "Thanos. I have heard of him before."
Every eye turned to him.
Thor's gaze swept across his comrades, his expression as grim as stone. "Make no mistake. He is unlike any foe you have faced. Strong, cunning, relentless." He paused, his hand tightening into a fist. "And he will not stop until he has what he seeks."
The Avengers exchanged uneasy looks. The shadow of what was coming pressed down on them all.
And far above, the ship continued its descent.
…