Thanos sat in the palace of the Dark Quadrant, silently staring at the defense map.
For so many years, this planet, which he once called his base camp and contained countless ambitions and hopes, has been sealed away. In these turbulent decades, there has been no progress, and even the defensive measures have become terribly outdated. The generals who once followed him into battle have let their martial skills waste away.
But now, there are six Magnetos outside the base camp. Six.
Thanos was already contemplating what to say to Death when he meets her again this time.
"Thanos, I believe this isn't the situation any of us wanted to see." Charles's voice sounded in his mind. This meant that the shield of the Dark Quadrant couldn't stop him at all.
Thanos did not respond, only scoffing a bit, "I didn't expect you to think so highly of me, sending this many Magnetos."
Far away in the Andromeda Galaxy, Charles did not respond either. Actually, they weren't sent by him but rather volunteered upon hearing about the plan to attack Thanos.
Initially, they thought just sending Erik would suffice, after all, this Thanos doesn't have the Infinity Gauntlet or those formidable champions, and even the army has mostly dissipated—his base is entirely indefensible, so even one hand could handle him.
But, the Thanos from the other universes indeed has a fearsome reputation, and mutants from other universes thought this was going to be a massive battle, insisting on joining. Not only six Magnetos went, but also many other Scarlet Witches, Phoenixes, Psylockes, Cyclopses, and Fire Gods from other universes.
Also, it was not just one of each; basically, five or six of each went. Put it this way, even if Eternity itself were surrounded in this encirclement, it would have to reconsider its position.
Of course, the mutants didn't have any deep-seated hatred against Thanos. The finger snap incident in the Comic Universe did not cause as much damage considering there are even more outlandish apocalyptic events.
And since time-jumping is so common for mutants in the comics, losing half the population at some point in time isn't considered a major issue to them, not when there's a "No More Mutants" incident.
However, their relationship with Batman was even more distant. Many mutants didn't even know why they were here for the battle; they were mostly there for the excitement. But after waiting at the Andromeda Galaxy for a long time without engaging, they were already a bit impatient.
Finally, a mission came up involving ambushing reinforcements, and it was the young mutants who went for it. This time when they heard about the plan to attack Thanos, most people used this mission as an excuse to get some fresh air.
Which made Thanos quite pitiful. Even when that monkey violated the heavenly law, the pursuer lineup wasn't this extravagant. To deal with a mere administrative chief like him, the Omega-Level Mutant list was practically utilized in full. Even if he were dead and buried with weeds three meters high on his grave, he would rise from the grave to yell, "Was that necessary?!"
The mutants didn't care about such things. Although they weren't sure why they had to fight Thanos, since they were already there, today they must claim Thanos' head!
And far on the Apocalypse Star in the Prime Universe, Batman also received this news. He knew for sure that Shiller and the others were manipulating things, making the other side mistakenly think this was a conspiracy by Thanos, hence preparing to eliminate this internal traitor first.
Sure enough, before long, Arkham Batman and Shiller returned to headquarters with three Infinity Gems.
One is the Eye of Agomoto, another comes from the High Lord's place, and the other was snatched from the Main Universe Doctor Strange, meaning it was taken from the Collector's place.
So now, they have three while the other side has only two. If they find the missing Soul Gem, it would be four against two.
Moreover, the two gems that the other side possesses are both in Asgard. Providing Asgard can be breached, there's a hope of obtaining them. As Asgard is presently fending off direct attacks from two major enemies, the pressure is immense; a little push might bring it down. This means that now, they have the chance to collect all the gems.
"Soul Gem…" murmured the Prime Universe Batman softly. The Holy Sanctuary had such an edge in finding gems, perhaps they had already locked in on its whereabouts. But should he try to find it or wait to snatch it once they got it?
After some hesitation, Prime Universe Batman chose the latter. Seeking a gem across an entire universe is like finding a needle in a haystack, better to wait until the other side gets it then snatch it.
But who would the other side send to find the gem?
It's unlikely to be the Mutants; part of them are held up by Superman near Centaurus, and another part is dealing with Thanos. Plus, the magical properties of the Infinity Gems do not really align with mutants.
Thus, the most likely candidates are the mages from this universe, or more specifically, the Supreme Magician of this universe.
Prime Universe Batman did not know that the Eye of Agomoto was voluntarily handed over by Strange. Constantine sensed something was odd but didn't tell Batman. Thus, Batman thought they must be eager to acquire the Infinity Gems, making the Supreme Magician the most reliable choice.
Therefore, they only needed to keep an eye on Strange, track his movements, and they might find the Soul Gem's whereabouts.
As for how to track him, there are ways. The Flash is the best candidate for spying, and the mind network of the Martian Manhunter enables instant communication. As soon as they spot Strange anywhere, immediate reporting would significantly increase their chances of intercepting him.
Of course, other mages shouldn't be overlooked either, or they might end up pulling a stealthy maneuver.
After assigning tasks, Prime Universe Batman began contemplating: should he intervene in the mutants' siege of Thanos?
In the eyes of Prime Universe Batman, Thanos from the central universe is comprehensively inferior to Darkseid. The Dark Quadrant lacks the power of the Apocalypse Domain, Thanos himself doesn't have a killer move like the Omega Ray, and although he achieved notable victories in other universes, it seems this universe hasn't developed much, and thus doesn't have significant strategic value.
But as they say, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, Thanos at least holds the position of the head of the Star Security Council's executive department, akin to a police chief, making him a local bigwig. The various intelligence he holds is significantly valuable.
On Batman's side, as the visiting force, the greatest disadvantage is the lack of intelligence. Prime Universe Batman arranged for Constantine to gather intelligence on the Market Star to remedy that shortcoming.
But now the planet filled with black markets has exploded directly, causing panic among the Centaurus people, and various intelligence dealers have scattered like clouds and smoke. Even if you spend money, you can't buy any decent intelligence. This is very detrimental to subsequent operations.
As long as Thanos has not been dismissed, his official status is still very useful. At present, it seems that his management during his term is still very good, and the Intergalactic Alliance should not be planning to dismiss him.
Should he be rescued? The Primary Universe Batman pondered.
Before he could come to a conclusion, he had already received a distress message from Thanos.
In the palace of the Dark Quadrant, Thanos closed his eyes after sending the message. Anyway, if Batman doesn't come, he doesn't have any room to struggle. With that huge group outside, he could brag to the Goddess of Death about dying at their hands — being besieged by Multiverse Mutants, it could truly be called a grand funeral.
However, Thanos was confident that Batman would rescue him. His years of operation were not in vain, and the status of the Director of the Cosmic Federation Bureau of Investigation carried significant weight. Moreover, he was a suspect in the Market Star battle, and Batman couldn't escape either. Once he's taken down, it would be Batman's turn. So many mutants, even the Apocalypse Star would shake thrice.
It seems that to eliminate the threat of mutants, one still needs the Infinity Gems. And since Batman doesn't have a local intelligence system, who else can he rely on to find the Infinity Gems?
As Thanos was thinking, a figure landed in front of the grand hall, it was Magneto from the Central Universe.
"Long time no see, Thanos."
Thanos sneered and said, "Long time no see, you damn robber."
"You are really resisting stubbornly."
"I should be saying that to you." Thanos stood up, looked at him, and said, "Killing me won't change your essential nature as a robber endangering galactic security. Justice may be delayed, but it will never fail to arrive."
"Then go and die with your naive ideas." Erik sneered coldly, "From now on, no one will be able to stop me."
The two stared coldly at each other, neither willing to give in, neither's aura weaker than the other's.
Although mutants from other universes might not have deep enmity with Thanos, this was not the case with the Central Universe.
The Brotherhood from the Central Universe was known as cosmic terrorists. In the early days of the Andromeda Galaxy's development, they were engaged in robbery.
And Thanos had always followed the path of maintaining interstellar security. Although he wasn't a high-ranking official at that time, he exerted every effort to climb up the ranks by formulating various policies to crack down on the Brotherhood.
Thanos was a very capable person, and the various security policies he formulated, as well as the organized grassroots defense line, created significant trouble for the Brotherhood.
And when Thanos rose to a high position, their conflict escalated to life-and-death, both wanting to step over each other's heads to advance, even developing into military conflict. Although Thanos's individual combat ability wasn't strong, he had the backing of the Three Great Empires. Both sides suffered casualties, a situation of irreconcilable enmity.
"No matter what, today is your death day." Magneto said, extending One Hand.
"I am the last Titan, but I won't be the last defender of interstellar security. You will surely fail, Magneto." Thanos's eyes also brimmed with the light of ion energy.
Their conversation left the mutants outside the door confused.
Wait, isn't there something wrong with this character? Wasn't it us who came to fight the evil Big devil Thanos? So why does it sound like the demon is myself?
Not only them, but Professor X stationed in the Andromeda Galaxy also had a head full of question marks. They were more puzzled than the other mutants because they could tell Thanos wasn't lying, nor was he being stubborn. What he said was true.
But he was using all our lines!
What do you mean "Justice may be delayed, but it will never fail to arrive"? What do you mean "I won't be the last defender of interstellar security"? Why does it sound a bit tragic?
They couldn't help but cast frequent glances at Charles, really wanting to ask: What have you all done to make Thanos come across as a positive character?
The problem is, if he dies like this, won't he genuinely become a martyr for a noble cause?!
But even if the Professor X wanted to stop it, it was too late. As the Magnetic Storm and ion energy collided, the sky of the Dark Quadrant changed color. And when The power of Scarlet was also mixed in, Thanos had no chance of winning anymore.
The tall Titan half-knelt, blood flowing from his mouth and nose. He stared intently at the figure mid-air and said, "History will remember my choice and also yours."
"History will only remember my greatness."
Erik walked up to him, extended One Hand, controlling Thanos to float into the air, then with a blast from his Electromagnetic Cannon, directly pierced through Thanos's chest.
But at that moment, a red light suddenly flashed, and Erik and Thanos disappeared without a trace.