Ashes of the Titan

"Looks like that's the only way." Captain America nodded solemnly at Thor's determined expression.

"No." At that moment, Bruce Banner, who had already lost the use of one arm, suddenly interrupted. "Let me do it. We've already disrupted the multiverse, and no one knows what will happen next."

"Thor is the strongest among us. His state must remain optimal, at least without suffering irreversible damage from the stones."

Thor, who had been angry at Banner for stopping him from snapping his fingers, fell silent after hearing his reasoning.

"Well..." Thor finally nodded reluctantly. "Then, it's up to you."

"Alright."

"RAHHHHH!!!"

At that moment, a furious roar erupted from the thick smoke in the distance. Suddenly, Thanos' weapon, the double-edged Tyrant Blade, shot out of the smoke, hurtling straight toward the Avengers.

"Ha!"

Thor was unyielding, throwing his Mjolnir to intercept it. With a loud clang, the two weapons collided.

Mjolnir was sent flying away, while the Tyrant Blade, slightly slowed, continued its path toward Hawkeye, who was holding the Infinity Stones.

At the same time, Thanos emerged from the smoke, charging toward the group with maddened fury.

"Not a chance!"

Seeing that Mjolnir couldn't overpower Thanos' weapon, Thor was furious. In a flash, he seemed to see his late father, his one-eyed gaze filled with wisdom and dignity, looking intently at him.

As Thor snapped back to reality, he felt a surge of divine power within him. With a mighty roar, he channeled all his strength and leaped forward wielding Stormbreaker.

Lightning enveloped Thor's entire body. His eyes blazed with electricity, and Stormbreaker unleashed arcs of lightning that reached meters into the air.

"RAHHHHH!!!"

With a deafening battle cry, Thor unleashed the mightiest axe strike he had delivered in the past five years.

BOOM!

With a single strike, Thanos' Tyrant Blade was sent flying, disappearing into the distance.

"Prepare to die!"

With Thanos' weapon disarmed and lightning coursing through his body, Thor was brimming with confidence. He charged at Thanos, axe in hand.

Seeing Thor in this state, Thanos' eyes twitched. He skidded to a halt, his feet plowing deep grooves into the ground from the abrupt stop.

"Die!"

Thor was upon him in an instant. Swinging Stormbreaker with terrifying speed, he aimed directly for Thanos' head.

Though it would have been easier for Thor to strike Thanos' body, he was fixated on one thing—his head.

Thor's attack was ferocious, but his speed, hindered by his weight, was not quite enough. Against an opponent like Thanos, a supreme being of the universe, it was just a bit lacking.

Thanos leaned back slightly, dodging Thor's killing blow.

While dodging, Thanos raised his right hand behind him in a motion reminiscent of Thor summoning Mjolnir. He was clearly calling for the return of his Tyrant Blade.

However, the Tyrant Blade seemed to have been flung too far, and it was nowhere to be seen.

"Ha!"

Seizing the moment, Thor leaped into the air and brought his axe down in another mighty strike. Thanos hastily retreated to evade it.

Thanos' retreat was exactly what Thor had been hoping for. He began spinning rapidly, wielding Stormbreaker like a colossal, electrified top, slashing at Thanos with a flurry of blows.

Zzzzt!

CRASH!

The electrified axe made contact with Thanos' armor, producing sparks. With a loud crack, the armor shattered into fragments, and the blade bit into Thanos' purple flesh.

"AAAHHHHH!!!"

Just as Thanos was about to be cleaved in half, the Tyrant Blade finally returned from the distance, landing in his hand.

"Ha!"

Gripping the weapon tightly, Thanos ignored his pain and swung it upward to disrupt Thor's spinning attack. Yet, he immediately noticed something strange. The moment he grabbed the Tyrant Blade, it felt much lighter than before.

CLANG!

CRACK!

Thanos' desperate swing successfully interrupted Thor's spinning assault. The two were locked in a fierce standoff, with Stormbreaker pressing against the Tyrant Blade. Blood poured from a deep wound on Thanos' abdomen, almost evoking a sense of pity.

At the same time, Thanos realized why the Tyrant Blade felt lighter. Glancing down, he saw that a massive chunk of the once-mighty double-edged blade had been cleaved off. What was once a formidable weapon now resembled a broken, oversized sword.

Thor's earlier strike had turned Thanos' Tyrant Blade into a pathetic, half-destroyed weapon!

Thanos, filled with rage, roared in fury. Thor, whose momentum had been broken, felt his earlier surge of strength begin to wane.

"Ha!"

Thanos let out a furious yell, using his shattered weapon to knock Stormbreaker aside. He then leaped into the air, aiming to impale Thor with a downward strike.

Thor, sprawled on the ground and unable to dodge in time, could only watch as death loomed over him. But just as the Tyrant Blade was about to pierce his chest, Thanos suddenly froze, his expression twisting into one of confusion.

A moment later, his body began to dissolve into ash, scattering into the wind.

Thor, stunned, slowly got to his feet. Looking up, he saw that Thanos' massive warship was also disintegrating into dust.

Realizing what had happened, Thor turned to the others. Sure enough, they were gathered in a circle around Bruce Banner, who lay on the ground, both arms completely ruined, his face contorted in agony as if he'd lost most of his life force.

Tony Stark's armored hand sprayed mist over Banner's mangled arm, trying to cool it down. It was clear that while Thor and Thanos had been locked in battle, Banner had snapped his fingers using the Infinity Gauntlet.

Thor approached them silently, looking down at the wounded Banner, unable to find words to say.

"Cap, on your left."

Suddenly, Falcon's voice came through Captain America's earpiece.

With a zzzt, massive, glowing portals began opening one after another, sparking with energy. Falcon was the first to emerge, followed by all the Avengers and heroes who had vanished in the snap.

From Kamar-Taj to Asgard, reinforcements poured in through the portals. Asgardians, led by Valkyrie, arrived in full force.

Finally, a portal opened, revealing the Guardians of the Galaxy, Spider-Man (Peter Parker), and Doctor Strange from Titan. Strange, however, looked slightly puzzled.

As the reinforcements arrived, Wakandan and Asgardian armies stood side by side, forming a massive, unending wave of warriors.

"Uh... where's the enemy?"

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