"It is my honor to serve you, my lord!" Thor exclaimed respectfully, unaware that Thanos had momentarily drifted off in thought due to his recent visions.
Thanos snapped back to reality, nodding as he addressed the Black Order. "Now that I've recovered, we should resume our plans. Have you found any new leads on the Power Stone or the Soul Stone?"
"I've received some useful information," Supergiant replied respectfully. "The Collector, one of the Elders of the Universe, has recently taken an interest in an ancient artifact called the Orb. It's said to contain limitless power..."
"The Collector has tasked the Ravagers with retrieving it. I suspect the Orb may hold one of the Infinity Stones—either the Power Stone or the Soul Stone!"
"The Orb, huh? It might just be an Infinity Stone after all..." Thanos' eyes gleamed as he nodded toward Supergiant. "So, what else? Who among the Ravagers has taken on the task? And does the Collector have any further information regarding the Infinity Stones?"
Supergiant froze, unable to answer the follow-up questions. The Black Order had rushed back to this hidden planet as soon as they heard of Thanos' injury, leaving no time to gather more intelligence.
"Father, during your recovery, Ronan reached out to you..." Corvus Glaive interjected, breaking the awkward silence.
"Ronan? What does he want?" Thanos raised an eyebrow. Ronan, the Accuser, was a well-known figure in the galaxy, powerful though not quite at a Skyfather's level. Still, he wasn't someone to be dismissed lightly.
"It's about the peace treaty between the Nova Empire of Xandar and the Kree Empire," Corvus Glaive explained. "Ronan opposes the treaty and seeks our help in destroying Xandar. If we don't agree to that, he at least wants us to cripple the Nova Empire's civilization. He says he'll cover for us..."
"When did the Kree become advocates for peace? Is it because we've slaughtered too many civilizations, and now they're banding together for protection?" Thanos sneered, clearly disdainful.
Thanos had little respect for the Kree. They were a prime example of a civilization following the Dark Forest theory, aggressively expanding and exploiting other worlds once they reached a certain level of development. In fact, the number of planets and civilizations the Kree had destroyed rivaled his own.
The Kree's imperialism was one of the reasons Thanos believed that the universe's resources were finite and that the only way to balance them was through the use of the Infinity Stones to wipe out half of all life.
Of course, Thanos wouldn't mind erasing the Kree Empire entirely, but their strength was formidable. Though the individual Kree weren't exceptionally powerful, their advanced technology made them dangerous. Their military prowess, coupled with their reliance on technology, also made them perfect counters to the shape-shifting Skrulls, whose disguises couldn't replicate Kree technology.
Moreover, the Kree Empire was led by the Supreme Intelligence, a powerful artificial intelligence that made it impossible for the Skrulls to infiltrate their ranks. This had led to the near extinction of the Skrull race until they were saved by Captain Marvel, Carol Danvers.
As for Ronan, he was a staunch nationalist, imperialist, and militarist, unable to accept the idea of peace between the Kree and the Nova Empire. This is why he had sought out Thanos as an ally to crush Xandar.
"That's right. After our previous actions, most advanced civilizations have declared a ceasefire, and many have listed us as criminals, even more dangerous than the Ravagers," Corvus Glaive added with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
"These civilizations can destroy others without hesitation when it benefits them, but now that we've done the same, they're suddenly afraid..."
"Reach out to Ronan. We won't attack Xandar directly, but if he wants to, he's free to do so himself," Thanos said calmly. "However, he'll need to help us by wiping out half the population of a planet as payment. Tell him the Orb could easily destroy Xandar."
"But we still haven't confirmed which Infinity Stone the Orb contains..." Corvus Glaive pointed out hesitantly.
"It doesn't matter. As long as it holds an Infinity Stone, it'll be more than enough to destroy Xandar and the Nova Empire," Thanos responded, his tone indifferent.
"And what if Ronan gains control of the Stone and turns against us?" Supergiant asked, her brows furrowing in concern.
"Who said the Orb would end up in his hands?" Thanos' eyes gleamed with anticipation. "Ronan is nothing more than a pawn, helping us locate the Orb. With his position within the Kree Empire, even if he's at odds with their current policies, he can still assist us in tracking it down."
"Now, let's head to Nidavellir and wipe out the dwarves. This time, I won't leave half of them alive. Thor, I want you to handle them personally. How does that sound?"
"I will carry out your orders, my lord!" Thor responded with unwavering loyalty, showing no emotion at the thought of exterminating the dwarves.
Thanos wasn't motivated by petty vengeance against the dwarves. The reason he wanted them wiped out was their potential threat. If they could forge the Infinity Gauntlet for him, they could create another one for someone else. Such a dangerous ability needed to be in his control, especially after the visions he had experienced.
Thanos wasted no time, soon arriving with Thor and the Black Order at Nidavellir. However, as their ship's scanners swept the area, they found no signs of life.
Not only were there no signs of life, but most of the buildings were gone, including the device that harnessed the power of a neutron star.
"Have the dwarves fled? Have you heard any news of them in the universe?" Thanos asked, his frown deepening. He wasn't just angry; he was now more determined than ever to eliminate them. The possibility that another powerful figure had taken them under their wing worried him.
After all, Thanos wasn't the only one in the universe who knew about the Infinity Stones or the Gauntlet. Others, like the Collector, had their own ambitions. If someone else had saved the dwarves, it could lead to a dangerous power shift.
"I'm looking into it..." Supergiant responded quickly, her body trembling slightly as she rushed to gather information.
Thor, meanwhile, leapt from the ship and flew over Nidavellir, thoroughly searching the planet.
"Father, according to the information I've found, the Collector has captured a dwarf in the past, but that was long ago. It's unrelated to your recent visit to Nidavellir," Supergiant reported cautiously. "As for the rest of the dwarves, I haven't found anything yet."
"I know where the dwarves went!" Thor suddenly reappeared, flying back to the ship with excitement.
"Oh? Where are they?" Thanos asked, his eyes gleaming with interest.
"Asgard!" Thor declared confidently. "I found numerous marks left by the Bifrost on the ground of Nidavellir. This means the dwarves were transported to Asgard through the Rainbow Bridge."
"Asgard?" Thanos frowned, falling silent. He stared at Thor, seemingly hesitating.
Even though Odin, the All-Father, had grown old, Thanos wasn't certain of his current state. Thor was, after all, Odin's son. If they did go to Asgard, there was a chance Odin might have a way to break Thor free from the Mind Stone's control.
Moreover, Asgard was Odin's domain. Even with the Mind Stone and the Gauntlet, Thanos wasn't confident he could defeat the All-Father in his own realm.
What concerned Thanos the most was what he had learned from the dwarf king, Eitri. Odin himself had once created an Infinity Gauntlet. If all of this was part of Odin's plan, Thanos could be walking into a trap.
"My lord? I know how to reach Asgard. All we need to do is summon the Rainbow Bridge..." Thor, misunderstanding Thanos' hesitation, confidently assured him, then shouted, "Heimdall! Open the Bifrost!"
"Wait!" Thanos' expression changed immediately. He hadn't expected Thor to be so reckless. His impulsiveness made Thanos question if Thor was still under his control, or if he was about to lead them all into a trap in Asgard.
However, despite Thor's command, the Bifrost didn't activate. Heimdall wasn't foolish. Knowing Thor was under Thanos' control, there was no way he would transport the Mad Titan to Asgard, not when doing so could lead to another catastrophic invasion, similar to what had happened with Robert and Clark.
Heimdall had no way of knowing that Thanos, at this moment, was just as cautious of Asgard as they were of him. Both sides, fearing the other's power, were caught in a situation of mutual apprehension—a classic case of "caught between a rock and a hard place."
Ultimately, Thanos wasn't confident he could defeat Odin and the other Asgardians. Meanwhile, the weakened Asgardians knew they couldn't handle Thanos, so neither party was eager to engage.
"Why didn't it work?" Thor muttered, confused as he looked at Mjolnir. "Is it another issue of worthiness? But Mjolnir is still in my hand..."
"Forget it. If the dwarves are in Asgard, we'll leave them alone for now. Let's
focus on tracking down the Infinity Stones!" Thanos waved his hand, quickly changing the subject, fearing that Thor might shout for Heimdall again and accidentally bring them to Asgard.
"Even if the Orb contains an Infinity Stone, that still leaves one more unaccounted for. Only by securing both can we safely head to Earth to collect the remaining three Stones."
"Yes, father!"
"Yes, my lord!"
With that, the Black Order and Thor set off from Nidavellir aboard their ship. Meanwhile, Heimdall relayed the scene he had witnessed to King Eitri, informing him that had Asgard not intervened, the dwarves would have been wiped out by Thanos.
Upon hearing this, King Eitri was overwhelmed with gratitude toward Heimdall. Though he understood that Asgard may have its own motives, the fact remained that they had saved the dwarves, granting them a safe haven where they could rebuild. This was a great favor to the dwarves, and Eitri vowed never to forget it.
Elsewhere, Ronan received the message from Corvus Glaive about the Orb's potential power to destroy Xandar.
Ronan frowned, displeased. "They won't help me attack Xandar, and instead, they try to placate me with a vague rumor? And they want me to kill half the population of some planet?"
As Ronan's frustration grew, his energy surged, making it clear he was deeply dissatisfied. But in the end, he sighed in resignation.
"Sigh... Fine. I may not be as powerful as that mad Titan, so for now, I'll play along. If the Orb doesn't work, I can always make them intervene later..."
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]