Eighteen - The Infinity Gauntlet

The Depths of the Universe - Space

Long Ago

"I know how we can defeat Thanos..."

They had one chance. Everything hanging on one single moment. No do-overs, no going back.

Long before she disclosed her plan to Stephen Strange, Adonia's plot was centuries in the making.

This intricately-woven plot was truly one last desperate attempt to save the entirety of the universe and reality from the combined destructiveness of the Stones' power and Thanos's drive to complete his mission.

She knew Thanos. She knew how driven and determined he was, always seeing a mission through, never leaving one incomplete. Deep down, she knew he would one day succeed in gaining all the Stones. And so she would separate the Stones to delay him.

But what of when he succeeded? Saw the universe balanced? It would not all end there.

They would fail, those working together to fight against Thanos and his mission, on a mission of their own to stop the destructive outcome, but in vain. They were on a mission to stop the inevitable. Only then would they find a way to succeed, only to fail entirely.

For after using the Stones to wipe out half of all life in the universe, Thanos would, in the end, go further, and use the Stones to destroy the Stones themselves, shredding the universe down to nothing, to a fate worse than the legacy of failure they were already living, to a point of no return. And she could not let that happen. Perhaps she could only delay the Snap to balance the universe, but she had to prevent the ending of the universe itself.

Had to.

If a piece of each Stone's power could remain intact post their destruction, they might just have a chance...

Six Stones.

The Time Stone was for all of time. She used it to cast them throughout the timeline.

The Space Stone was for all of space. She used it to cast them throughout the universe, some on Earth, but not all.

The Reality Stone was for all of reality. She used it to give them a strong foundation in reality.

The Power Stone was for all types of power, giving them each their own unique strengths.

The Soul Stone was for all of the souls throughout the universe and multiverse, throughout time, space, and reality itself.

The Mind Stone was for each and every unique, individual mind. She used it to ensure that they were each characters in their own stories - they had families, lives, pasts, presents, and futures, personality traits of their own, not knowing their destiny of playing a part in the bigger picture someday.

This was her plan. This was their one and final chance.


Avengers Facility, Upstate New York - Earth

2023

What remained of the Avengers Facility lay in ruins. And, at the centre of it, of all the destruction, sat him, the one who had started it all: Thanos.

You mess with time, time will mess back...

The Mad Titan sat in amongst the rubble, dressed in full battle armour.

"You know it's a trap, right?" said Thor to his two fellow Avengers, Tony and Cap, who stood at his sides, watching the Titan.

"Yeah, but I don't much care," replied Tony.

"Good. Just so long as we're all in agreement... Now, let's kill him properly this time."

Thor took the first plunge, diving at Thanos with both weapons. Three against once. Pretty soon, however, it was one against one, with Cap facing Thanos on his own, the Titan having knocked down both the God of Thunder and Iron Man.

Adonia chose her moment carefully, appearing through the smoke, dressed in full black cloak and battle armour, including an eye mask in the shape of the infinity symbol.

"My Love," Thanos gasped. "I never figured out what happened that day," he admitted. "We left for a moment, and you were gone."

"I did it."

"No."

"Yes. I cut the Stones from my very being, as one last desperate attempt at stopping you from fulfilling your ultimate mission. I did not know where they would end up, only that they would be separated."

"Oh, My Love, what have you done?"

"This is the beginning of the end, Thanos." She raised her hand and snapped her fingers.

After returning from the brief venture to the Soul Realm, Thanos sighed. "I would have given you the stars had you asked."

"I didn't want the stars, I already had them. What I wanted was much simpler, but still too much to ask for, it would seem." She chuckled half-heartedly. "You know, I shouldn't be surprised it has gone this way, for it always does. People getting close to me solely for the Stones. That is to be my legacy, I suppose, valued for only my power." Her expression darkened. "Always the Stonekeeper, Lady Infinity. You accomplished your mission, your life-long goal. You collected the Stones, balanced the universe, brought me back-"

"They seek to undo all of that." He gestured to the Avengers. "All I did was for you-" She scoffed and turned away. "For us, for our family. For a more promising future."

"Tell that to Gamora." The mission had extracted a heavy toll that he wasn't even aware of yet. "I had to make a decision, and that decision led me to creating the ultimate weapon: the Infinity Gauntlet. Dividing up the power of each Stone, each figure channeling the power of one Stone, in case the worst did happen. It is how we are all here right now. What you seek is not the Infinity Gauntlet. This is-"

Reality

Space

Time

Power

Soul

Mind

And,

Ego

and Rhythm

The one who cheated time... Karen, Spark, her eyes glowing green.

The one who commands reality... Kat, Master of the Mystic Arts, her eyes glowing red.

The one with the expanded mind... Sascha, Black Widow, her eyes glowing yellow.

The soul that keeps them together... Sigyn, Goddess of Fertility and Fidelity, her eyes glowing orange.

The warrior of space... Envie, her eyes glowing blue.

The one gifted with great power... Kalyna, the Firebird, her eyes glowing purple.

And each with the same coloured aura surrounding them.

Six Stones, six women.

And,

The one with the strong personality... Kass.

The one carrying on to her own rhythm... Nora.

The Infinity Gauntlet.

"Tony."

Tony staggered to his feet at the voice from the radio. "Kass? Honey, where are you? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry."

"Do you hear that? Is that music?" asked Cap as he helped Tony to his feet.

"Hey Babe, I'm bringing the party to you."

This chapter summarized the last few chapters of 'For Eternity'. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter ! :)