Chapter 120: Battle of New York (Conclusion)

"Thanos."

Hearing the name, Thor's brows immediately furrowed. Before the events of the first Thor movie, he might not have known who Thanos was. However, after Loki's betrayal, Thor had changed. Recently, aside from mourning Loki's death, he had been studying, something he once despised.

Thor had appeared on Earth so quickly because the Bifrost had been repaired and Heimdall had informed him that Loki was still alive. Because of Loki, Thor temporarily forgot about Jane Foster.

"What does he have to do with this?" Thor asked after a moment of silence.

"Why not ask your brother? The people he brought this time are all Thanos' subordinates. Perhaps Thanos sent him to take the Space Stone." To obtain the Space Stone, Daniel Davis had to reveal more information.

"What?" Thor immediately turned to look at Loki. In the universe, Thanos was infamous, a top terrorist who slaughtered entire planets. If not for his overwhelming power, other forces would have eliminated him long ago.

Thanos' strength made other major forces in the universe turn a blind eye to his actions, as long as he didn't target their planets.

Seeing Thor's expression, Loki averted his gaze. Being associated with Thanos was not something to be proud of, akin to being connected to terrorists on Earth. Secretly, it was one thing, but being exposed was different.

"Who is Thanos?" Fury asked from the side.

"An overlord in the universe, extremely powerful, someone not to be provoked lightly," Daniel explained.

"Even Thanos can't scare Asgard," Thor said, raising Mjolnir. Sif and the others echoed his confidence.

"Do you really want to provoke Thanos to come to Asgard for this Space Stone? I know Odin is powerful, but Thanos isn't weak. If you fight, regardless of the outcome, Asgard will suffer heavy casualties. This isn't a choice a wise king would make."

Odin had hidden the Space Stone on Earth for a reason. He didn't fear Thanos but saw no point in a meaningless war.

"Uh..." Thor hesitated. Before his time on Earth and Loki's betrayal, he would have fought without a second thought, just as he had once attacked the Frost Giants with only a few companions.

"Thanos is determined to get the Space Stone. Even against Odin, he would go to Asgard."

Thanos likely supported Odin to obtain the Space Stone first, but Loki's actions had complicated things.

Thanos hadn't started collecting the Infinity Stones yet because of Odin and the Ancient One. Thanos was committed to his ideals, and if he could get all six Infinity Stones, he would act despite their strength.

Thanos hadn't acted yet because he hadn't located all the stones. He knew the whereabouts of the Space, Time, and Mind Stones, but the Power, Reality, and most mysterious Soul Stones were still missing.

Thanos was strategic, moving with precision. In the original story, he gathered all six stones in less than a day, showing his mastery of swift action.

Seeing Thor's hesitation, Daniel continued, "Thanos' actions are driven by his belief in balancing the universe. Do you know why he does what he does?"

"Excuse me, what has Thanos done that frightens you so?" Stark suddenly asked from the side.

Stark's question earned him a glare from Sif and the others, as Asgard feared nothing.

"Thanos' actions are simple: he massacres half the population of entire planets," Daniel said, looking at Stark.

"What?" Stark, Fury, and the others were shocked. Killing half the population of a planet was monstrous.

"Thanos isn't a mere killer. He believes he's doing good."

"Killing half is good?" Stark shouted.

"Yes, Thanos sees himself as the universe's population control officer. He believes the universe's resources are finite and aims to maintain balance by killing half the population. He used to do this planet by planet but now wants the Space Stone to move faster."

Daniel revealed Thanos' background and ideals, though he didn't mention Thanos' ultimate plan to snap half the universe's population out of existence.

Even without that detail, Daniel's words caused a stir among the listeners, shaking them deeply.

"This is madness," someone finally said.

"Madness? If Thanos is mad, so is Hydra. At least Thanos has a misguided belief. Hydra plans to use millions of lives to secure their rule," Daniel countered.

"Maybe he's mad, but he's a powerful madman. We mustn't let him get the Space Stone. Compared to Asgard, we can better hide it from him." Daniel looked firmly at Thor.

If Thor still refused to hand over the Space Stone, Daniel would have to wait until Hela appeared, which he didn't want to do.

"Can you guarantee the Space Stone's safety?" Thor asked after staring at Daniel for a while.

"Absolutely," Daniel nodded solemnly.

"Alright, it's yours. But if you fail, contact me," Thor said, handing the Tesseract to Daniel.

"That won't happen." Seeing Thor's straightforwardness, Daniel decided to prevent Ragnarok if possible.

Ragnarok might not have happened so quickly without Loki. Thor might still have a chance to prevent it.

Hela, the Goddess of Death, would be less of a threat if kept away from Asgard. Once Thor fully mastered his powers, he might defeat her.

In some ways, Hela was more like a god than Thor, as Asgard couldn't amplify Thor's power.

"Heimdall." Thor then called, and he, Loki, Sif, and the others were transported back via the Bifrost.

"I should go too. This needs to be delivered," Daniel said, leaving as well. The remaining matters didn't concern him; he wanted to study the Space Stone.

"How convenient. If a Captain appeared now and shouted 'Hail Hydra,' it would be perfect," Daniel thought, noticing the S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives around him, including a grinning bald man and a titanium alloy box. In S.H.I.E.L.D.'s elevator, he smiled to himself.

As Fury handled the aftermath, Alexander Pierce secured Loki's scepter, likely to end up with Baron Strucker soon.

"Baron Strucker, huh? He's a talented man, might be useful." Strucker's experiments with the Mind Stone created Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, a feat despite the high casualty rate. His research on superpowers could be valuable.

With this thought, Daniel glanced at Loki's securely guarded scepter before leaving S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters. Opening a portal, he returned to his villa.

"Too bad I don't have a suitable vessel. Breaking the Tesseract would be easy." Back at his villa, Daniel used his Ant-Man suit to enter the Giant's World, studying the Space Stone with his Op-Op Fruit powers.

Kamar-Taj's magic excelled in spatial manipulation. Combining it with the Space Stone, Daniel felt empowered.

"Did the Ancient One develop Kamar-Taj's magic system using the Space and Time Stones?" As he analyzed the Space Stone, Daniel pondered this.

Odin had left the Tesseract on Earth, and the Ancient One might have been tempted.

"The Space Stone is truly amazing." Even a rough study deepened Daniel's spatial understanding. In a mythical world, this would be a primordial treasure.

Few could fully master the Space Stone. The Dark Elves nearly turned the universe into darkness with just the Reality Stone, showing the Infinity Stones' power.

"Replicating Captain Marvel's experience would require many live experiments." Daniel resisted human experimentation, which had limited his progress.

Baron Strucker's Mind Stone experiments created Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch but at a high cost in lives.

While Daniel studied the Space Stone, Odin heard about the events from Thor. Odin had no opinion on Thor not bringing back the Space Stone, and Loki was imprisoned.

After Thor took Loki to see their mother and then prepared to take him to the dungeon, Odin approached Heimdall, directing his gaze to Earth.

"Not there? A good resolution." After Heimdall's report, Odin put the matter aside.

On Earth, the alien attack on New York shook the world. This event was far more significant than the Twin Towers. Manhattan, home to the rich and powerful, saw many casualties among the elite.

The government seized the opportunity to regain lost credibility, boosting approval ratings and military funding due to public fear of alien invasions.

Amid this, a video surfaced, putting the government under fire again. It showed Stark carrying the nuclear bomb to the portal and exposed the military's delayed response and false claims of credit.

Protests erupted, especially from unaffected New Yorkers, demanding an explanation for the nuclear bomb.

The government faced a crisis, with many officials and generals resigning.

"Hydra is impressive," Daniel remarked, receiving intel from Sunil. Hydra and Alexander Pierce orchestrated the video's release.

The opposition and the Rising Tide also played roles, creating the current chaos.

Hydra aimed to cover up the nuclear bomb incident and push forward the Insight Plan. Alexander had submitted the plan multiple times but faced rejections from the Security Council.

Without unanimous approval, the plan couldn't proceed.

"Tony is emotionally unstable now. Revealing Howard's truth isn't wise. But Baron Strucker needs dealing with."

With Daniel's presence, Ultron wouldn't emerge, nor would Vision.

___________________

Read Ahead

P@treon.com/Mutter