Chapter 196: Disaster Always Comes a Step Behind Me
Thus, the Chitauri general remained unperturbed. While this battle would incur some losses for the Chitauri forces, it only fueled his desire for Earth to pay in blood.
The firepower of a dozen massive warships was sufficient to cleanse the surface of Earth, erasing vast swathes of its terrain.
"Kill! Kill! No one will escape," the Chitauri general sneered, observing the chaotic frenzy of the purple armored figures and the swordsman through the shared vision of his soldiers.
The Chitauri had encountered many superhumans across various civilizations. These beings, capable of fighting one against thousands, had often proved too formidable for the Chitauri to handle. Yet, they had ultimately been defeated.
What was the secret? The overwhelming, catastrophic weapons at their disposal, are capable of erasing entire environments.
While these weapons were strictly forbidden in the major empires, the vastness of the universe meant that not every race or planet adhered to the laws of Xandar.
And with Earth so far from Xandar, normal travel would take three days; even a reckless jump through a wormhole would require at least half a day to arrive.
At such a distance, even Xandar couldn't maintain oversight.
The Chitauri knew Earth was under the domain of King Odin, yet they too had a powerful ally who rivaled Odin. Thus, they felt no fear.
Even if Odin himself absorbed the full force of their firepower, he would suffer greatly.
Unfortunately for them, these superhumans were the protectors of Earth, so even if they sought to recruit them into Thanos's ranks, the opportunity would never arise.
Yet, if they achieved their goal of securing the Tesseract and reclaiming the Mind Stone, it would all be worth it.
The Seer noticed that the Chitauri's attacking speed and numbers were not decreasing; if anything, they were increasing, which he had anticipated.
After joining the Void, his foresight had become more potent, and his physical strength enhanced. Now, in the face of impending doom, he felt even more equipped with strategies and was thus unafraid.
He had confidence that no matter the disaster he faced, it would always be a step behind him.
"Blind ants, unable to see the future, prepare to be obliterated," the Seer murmured, glimpsing a distant future.
In just over a minute, Tony and Reno had taken down thousands of Chitauri soldiers.
Despite their formidable strength, facing this relentless tide of advancing soldiers felt like an unstoppable flood.
After over a minute of intense combat, both Tony and Reno felt numb, but the Chitauri continued to charge forward as if undeterred by death.
A moment of carelessness, and this vast army could descend upon the surface, causing unimaginable disaster.
So their minds remained sharp, tense as a bowstring; despite their fatigue, they dared not relax.
However, while they fought valiantly, the Chitauri's energy blasts rained down upon New York, causing destruction.
Looking up at the seemingly endless hordes of Chitauri, those still on the ground felt a flicker of hope.
Fortunately, Earth was not without its own defenses, including powerful protectors willing to charge into battle.
Time ticked by, second by second; two minutes had passed.
Neither Tony nor Reno knew just how many lives had been lost beneath their hands, but both were now stained with blood.
Suddenly, they noticed the Chitauri forces shifting direction toward the spatial vortex.
"Thor shut down the spatial portal immediately!"
"JARVIS, go!"
Seeing this, Tony glanced at the countdown clock showing one hundred seventy-eight seconds, marveling at the Seer's terrifying powers and promptly issued the command.
As the order echoed, the twenty concealed Iron Man suits launched skyward, each clutching a nuclear bomb, racing toward the vortex.
In the task of shutting down the portal, Tony only trusted Thor besides Reno and the others.
This battle was as much a war between civilizations as it was Thor's fight to defend the Nine Realms, making him the perfect choice to seal the portal.
Upon receiving the order, Thor wasted no time in initiating the shutdown.
With the Tesseract deactivated, the towering energy beam began to retract, and the spatial vortex shrank as well.
"Why are they choosing this moment to close?"
"Logically, they should be pursuing victory," the Chitauri general pondered, confusion washing over him.
"Could they have seen through our plans?"
"No! That's impossible."
"Those ants of Earth could never grasp the true might of our Chitauri forces."
As the Chitauri general witnessed the shrinking spatial portal, his expression shifted from astonishment to self-doubt, then to contempt, finally erupting in rage.
What shocked him further was the sight of the twenty Iron Man suits racing toward them, clutching a dangerous payload.
"Fall back! Activate the shields!" he commanded, his mind struggling to process the situation.
Yet just a few seconds of delayed reaction proved fatal. The Iron Man suits raced into the closing vortex, positioning themselves before the Chitauri fleet.
As the Ark reactors spun up to maximum speed, they activated self-destruct mode.
"Boom!" The blast erupted, turning the universe's edge into a dazzling fireworks display.
Accompanying the explosion were twenty colossal shockwaves that engulfed the Chitauri fleet.
Despite their powerful shields, the Chitauri could only withstand the onslaught for twenty seconds before they shattered.
When the chaos subsided, the once-formidable fleet of Chitauri warships was reduced to just four barely escaping vessels.
The Chitauri general, tucked into his escape pod at the forefront, survived the blast but was left battered and bloodied.
"If I get another chance, I won't underestimate these insects again. I'll use my weapons to obliterate you all."
If he could have been rescued, the general might have lived.
But the nuclear explosion had catapulted his escape pod far into the cosmos.
One hour later, shaken and suffering from radiation, the Chitauri general's breath ceased; he met his end among the stars.