"Please, come in." Soren said with a small smile.
Everyone was here… Avengers, Sorcerers, X-Men, the Brotherhood.
At a moment like this, he would turn no one away, power was exactly what Earth needed.
Professor X glanced toward Magneto, emotion flickering through his eyes.
After decades of philosophical conflict, different paths, and bitter battles… fate had brought them to the same side once more.
For a moment, Charles and Erik shared a complicated understanding.
"Since everyone is here, I'll speak plainly." Soren began.
"Thanos has five Generals. According to new intel, they will depart the Sanctuary in three days, burning immense energy to perform a direct spatial leap to Earth."
A faint hum of unease rippled through the hall.
"They are his vanguard," Soren continued. "Their mission is simple, cleanse the Earth. Wipe out all resistance… except for me."
"Once they and their legions are destroyed, Thanos will be isolated. And at that point, I'll deal with him myself."
With a wave of his hand, Soren projected the intel the Collector had sent… profiles, statistics, battle logs, visual recordings.
He tossed a data panel toward Tony. "Take a look."
Tony caught it effortlessly and began scanning through the files.
"These are the Black Order," Soren said. "Corvus Glaive is the most troublesome. Leave him to me."
"I'll cut down Thanos' right hand first and make him regret ever setting foot near this planet."
A deep, rumbling voice spoke up. "Hulk will smash the big one!"
All eyes turned. Hulk was pointing a massive finger at Black Dwarf's image, eyes shining.
Soren chuckled. "Alright, Hulk. He's yours."
The Hulk had only grown stronger since gaining control of himself. Soren had no worries there.
Ancient One stepped closer, studying Supergiant's profile. "Mind control. Telepathy. Psychic devouring…"
"These abilities suit me. Leave this one to us." A faint smile touched her lips.
As Sorcerer Supreme, she had her own pride. A telepathic manipulator from space was a challenge she welcomed.
Soren nodded. That made three generals accounted for.
Tony tapped the holo-screen, enlarging Proxima Midnight's profile.
He let out a low whistle. "Well, well… tall, deadly, and looks like she could bench a tank."
"Team Stark will take her." He flipped his visor down with a grin.
"She throws spears, I throw guided lasers. We'll see whose toys are better."
War Machine and a few others groaned, but no one objected.
"And that leaves…" Tony pulled up the last profile and wrinkled his nose.
"This wrinkled raisin in a bathrobe. Ebony Maw. Master of manipulation and mental whispering. Creepy."
Professor X stepped forward.
"We will handle him," he said, Magneto standing at his side like a dark shadow.
"His telepathic influence can be countered, and his forces are best matched by our mutants."
A cheer rose from the gathered mutants, X-Men and Brotherhood alike.
Even those who normally scowled at each other now stood shoulder-to-shoulder, emboldened by the idea of fighting as one.
They slammed their fists to their chests, roaring with confidence.
Soren looked around the hall and felt something powerful… Unity.
Soren hadn't expected this outcome.
He'd originally worried that the Five Generals and their accompanying forces would overwhelm his side, that the sheer numbers alone would make the upcoming battle a desperate struggle.
Yet before he could even voice those concerns, everyone had already stepped forward, choosing their own opponents without hesitation.
The corner of his mouth lifted. A flash of heat surged through his veins…
The Black Order were no ordinary enemies. They had followed Thanos across galaxies, crushing civilizations.
Their reputations alone were the stuff of nightmares. Even though Soren trusted everyone's strength, he refused to see needless casualties.
"All right," Soren finally said. "Since you've each chosen an opponent, I'll make sure you're ready."
"For the next three days, I'll help raise your combat power as much as possible. If we push our limits, your strength will leap forward."
A ripple of anticipation passed through the group.
"This place is too small." A broad grin spread across Soren's face. "Let's move somewhere more suitable."
Space warped around him. In an instant, the entire group was swept up by the dimensional energy, and the medical hall vanished behind them.
They reappeared a heartbeat later.
The blurred landscape stabilized, colors sharpening into view.
One by one, the group caught their breath, marveling at the ease with which Soren had teleported hundreds of people at once, without even a hint of strain.
"ROAR!"
The earth-shaking bellow tore through the forest, instinctively forcing everyone into defensive stances. The roar carried a crushing aura, primal and electrifying.
"Zilant! They're with me," Soren called out casually.
The terrifying roar abruptly stopped.
A moment later, the trees ahead snapped and toppled like toothpicks as something massive forced its way through the forest.
The ground trembled beneath its weight. Leaves whipped through the air.
Then the creature emerged, coiled its body crackling with alternating threads of frost and lightning.
Zilant.
He lowered his huge head beside Soren, allowing the man to rest a hand on his snout in a gesture more affectionate than intimidating.
Jean and Freyja instinctively stepped closer to Soren.
"He's grown so much…" Jean whispered. The last time she had seen Zilant was before entering Kamar-Taj for training.
She had expected him to grow, but not to this extent. His aura now felt majestic.
Soren sighed, half exasperated, half proud.
"He can transform into a Lightning Wyvern now, but he still loves making an entrance," He muttered. "Look at this mess… half the forest flattened."
Zilant flicked his tongue, unbothered.
The enormous Frost-Thunder Python had thrived on Macaluso Island.
Soren had cultivated vast fields of magical medicinal herbs there, accelerated by both the herb garden's enchantments and Soren's manipulation of temporal laws.
The plants matured at impossible speeds, some within a day, others in at most a month.
Zilant helped harvest most of them… and ate the rest.
Which explained the size… and the aura… and the utter destruction of half the clearing.