-Broadcast-
Doctor Strange floated into the air, his Cloak of Levitation spreading wide. His hands moved through intricate patterns, weaving magic that glowed crimson in Titan's dim light. When he thrust both palms forward, the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak erupted from his fingertips—ancient binding magic that had restrained beings of cosmic power.
The magical bands shot toward Thanos like living serpents, wrapping around his left arm and the Infinity Gauntlet. They coiled tight, constricting with impossible strength.
Strange made a twisting gesture with his fingers, and the bands began to glow with intense white light. The magic worked its way into Thanos's body, sapping his strength, draining the vitality from his Titan physiology. The effect manifested as pulses of white energy that rippled across his purple skin.
For the first time in the battle, Thanos felt his immense strength falter. His muscles went slack. The sensation of weakness—something he hadn't experienced in decades—spread through his limbs. He tried to pull his left hand free and found he couldn't. The arm simply wouldn't respond.
Recognizing the danger, Thanos reached across with his right hand to tear away the magical restraints—
Drax came sliding in low, his boots-first attack striking the back of Thanos's knee with precision. Already weakened by Strange's magic, Thanos dropped to one knee, unable to maintain his balance.
Star-Lord landed on a piece of rubble nearby, his quad blasters reconfiguring with mechanical clicks. He switched to tether mode and fired. Electromagnetic cables shot out, wrapping around Thanos's right arm and adhering to the metal surface behind him. The cables went taut, pulling Thanos's arm away from his body and preventing him from reaching the bands on his left.
Spider-Man swung in from above, firing web-lines that stuck to Thanos's chest. Peter dug his enhanced legs into the ground and pulled backward with everything he had, adding his strength to keep the Titan off-balance.
"Got him!" Peter grunted, muscles straining.
Tony Stark descended from above and grabbed the Infinity Gauntlet with both armored hands. He planted his feet against Thanos's arm and pulled, trying to wrench the artifact free. The gauntlet shifted slightly—
But Tony's interference broke Strange's line of sight. The Crimson Bands flickered and dissolved, their magic disrupted.
Without the weakening effect, Thanos's full strength returned in an instant. He flexed his left arm, and even Spider-Man's enhanced muscles couldn't hold him. Peter was dragged forward, his boots carving furrows in the ground despite his best efforts.
"Mr. Stark! He's too strong!" Peter deployed the spider-legs from his suit's back, driving them into the ground like anchors. The added friction barely managed to stop his forward momentum.
"I got him!" Mantis's voice called from above.
Strange had drawn another portal in the air directly over Thanos's head. Mantis dropped through it, landing perfectly on the kneeling Titan's shoulders. Her hands pressed against his temples, her antennae beginning to glow with empathic power.
Doctor Strange immediately reformed the Crimson Bands, this time wrapping them around Thanos's right arm. The white energy pulsed again, sapping his strength, making him weak and sluggish.
"RAAAAGH!" Thanos roared, every muscle in his body straining against the combined restraints. His will was immense, his rage apocalyptic, but with everyone working in perfect coordination, they managed to hold him down.
Mantis poured everything she had into her abilities. The antennae on her forehead blazed with brilliant light as she reached into the depths of Thanos's mind, past his fury, past his determination, seeking the off-switch for his consciousness.
Gradually, terribly slowly, Thanos's eyes began to glaze over. The rage faded, replaced by a distant, unfocused stare. His struggles weakened.
"Is he under? Don't let up!" Tony kept his grip on the gauntlet, ready to rip it free the moment they had an opening.
"Be quick," Mantis said through gritted teeth, her voice strained. Sweat ran down her face. "He is very strong. I don't know how long I can hold him."
Controlling Thanos was harder than controlling Ego. With her father, Mantis had had years of practice, knew exactly which emotional pathways to suppress to put him under. This was her first time with Thanos, and his willpower was tremendous—a mountain she was trying to move with her mind alone.
-Real World-
"Yes! They've got him!" Second Generation Spider-Man pumped his fist excitedly. "Now that arrogant bastard can't do anything!"
The Second Generation Gwen clasped her hands together. "Mantis is incredible! She can control Ego and now Thanos too!"
Second Generation Harry Osborn smiled optimistically. "So they just need to get the gauntlet off, right? Then they can turn this whole thing around! Everything's going according to Strange's plan!"
But Doctor Connors shook his head slowly, his expression troubled. "No. It won't be that simple. Even without the Infinity Gauntlet, Thanos isn't someone they can easily defeat. He's essentially a more powerful Hulk with combat training and intelligence."
-Broadcast-
Tony knew their window was closing. Mantis couldn't hold Thanos forever. "Spider-Man! Get over here! She's not gonna be able to hold him much longer!"
"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Spider-Man released his web-lines and scrambled over, grabbing onto the gauntlet alongside Iron Man. Together they pulled, their combined strength finally creating real leverage.
Spider-Man braced himself and yanked harder. The gauntlet shifted, but Thanos's fingers were curled into a fist. "His fingers are in the way! We have to open them up to get it off!"
While Tony and Peter struggled with the gauntlet, Star-Lord walked over slowly, his boots crunching on debris. He looked down at the dazed, helpless Thanos—the monster who had terrorized the galaxy for decades—and smiled coldly.
"I thought you'd be harder to catch," he said, his voice dripping with satisfaction. "For the record, this was my plan. Not hers. Not his. Mine."
He leaned in closer, studying Thanos's unfocused expression. The mighty Titan, reduced to a puppet. It felt good. "Where's Gamora?"
Thanos's head lolled slightly, his voice a distant murmur. "My Gamora..."
The possessive pronoun struck Star-Lord like a physical blow. "No, bullshit! Where is she?"
Mantis's face suddenly contorted with the emotions she was sensing through her connection to Thanos's mind. Her voice cracked. "He... he is in anguish."
"Good," Star-Lord said flatly, still not understanding.
"He mourns!" Mantis said, and now tears were forming in her eyes, the grief she was feeling through Thanos too immense to contain.
Drax looked confused, his literal mind struggling to process this. "What does this monster have to mourn?"
Nebula stared at Thanos's face, at the pain written there even through Mantis's control. Understanding crashed over her like ice water. Her cybernetic eye focused, confirming what her gut already knew. "Gamora."
Star-Lord's head snapped toward her. "What?"
Nebula's voice was hollow, each word carefully controlled to avoid shattering completely. "He took her to Vormir. He returned with the Soul Stone. She did not."
Tony's head whipped around, his tactical mind immediately calculating the implications. This was bad. This was very bad. He retracted his helmet so Star-Lord could see his face, see how serious he was. "Okay, Quill, you gotta cool it right now, you understand?" His voice was firm but not unkind. "Don't. Don't engage. We almost got this off!"
But Star-Lord wasn't listening anymore. He turned back to Thanos, staring into that distant, pained expression. His voice shook. "Tell me she's lying."
Silence.
"ASSHOLE!" Star-Lord's voice broke. "Tell me you didn't do it!"
Thanos's head moved slowly, painfully. His words came out slurred, distant, but clear enough. "I... had... to."
"No!" The word came out strangled. Star-Lord's hands began to shake. "No, you didn't! No, you— No!"
Then his hands came up, the butt of his blaster raised, and he struck Thanos across the face. Once. Twice. Blind rage overriding every other thought in his mind.
"Quill!" Tony shouted. "Quill, no!"
The third strike hit Mantis's hand, knocking it away from Thanos's temple. The empathic connection severed instantly.
"STOP! STOP!" Tony lunged for Star-Lord, trying to grab his arms, but it was already too late.
-Real World-
"Oh God, what are you doing?!" Rocket Raccoon stared at the screen in horror, watching his friend destroy their only chance. "Quill, you idiot!"
Star-Lord's face had gone ashen. The elation he'd been feeling from his growing powers—from finally becoming someone who could matter in a fight—evaporated in an instant. His own stupidity, broadcast for everyone to see. His own rage costing them everything.
"I..." He opened his mouth, but what could he possibly say? How could he justify what he'd just watched himself do?
Doctor Strange, standing nearby, looked completely unsurprised. His expression was the same neutral calm he'd maintained throughout. "I knew it wouldn't be that easy."
Everyone turned to look at him.
Strange continued, his voice matter-of-fact. "Don't blame Quill. Even if he hadn't woken Thanos, I suspect we would have lost anyway. The moment we got the gauntlet off, Thanos would have simply taken it back."
"What do you mean?" Drax asked, his brow furrowed.
Tony Stark took a deep breath, understanding dawning. "He means Thanos could defeat all of us even without the Infinity Gauntlet. What we're seeing now—" He gestured at the screen. "—this is what Stephen determined was the best possible outcome."
Captain America's eyes widened with realization. "Strange saw this moment. He saw fourteen million futures, and he saw Star-Lord lose control. But he didn't try to stop it because..."
"Because it doesn't matter," Strange finished quietly. "Whether Quill wakes Thanos or not changes nothing about the ending. Only the path we take to get there."
Star-Lord stared at Strange, then at the screen where his future self had just doomed them all. "So what you're saying is... we were always going to lose this fight?"
Strange's silence was answer enough.