Avengers
Ant-Man/Scott Lang - Played by Paul Rudd (X)
Black Panther/T'Challa - Played by Chadwick Boseman
Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff - Played by Scarlett Johansson (X)
Captain America/Steve Rogers - Played by Chris Evans (X)
Doctor Strange/Stephen Strange - Played by Benedict Cumberbatch
Falcon/Sam Wilson - Played by Anthony Mackie
Hawkeye/Clint Barton - Played by Jeremy Renner (X)
Hulk/Bruce Banner - Played by Mark Ruffalo (X)
Iron Man/Tony Stark - Played by Robert Downey, Jr. (X)
Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff - Played by Elizabeth Olsen
Spider-Man/Peter Parker - Played by Tom Holland
Thor - Played by Chris Hemsworth (X)
Vision - Played by Paul Bettany (X)
War Machine/James "Rhodey" Rhodes - Played by Don Cheadle (X)
Wasp/Hope Van Dyne - Played by Evangeline Lilly
White Wolf/Bucky Barnes - Played by Sebastian Stan
…
Champions of Xandar
Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers - Played by Brie Larson (X)
Hadari Yao - Played by Karen Pittman
Howard the Duck - Played by Seth Green (X)
Korg - Played by Taika Waititi (X)
Lady Sif - Played by Jaimie Alexander
Miek - Played by Carly Rees (X)
Valkyrie/Brunnhilde - Played by Tessa Thompson (X)
…
Guardians of the Galaxy
Drax the Destroyer - Played by Dave Bautista
Gamora - Played by Zoe Saldaña (X)
Groot - Played by Vin Diesel
Mantis - Played by Pom Klementieff
Nebula - Played by Karen Gillan (X)
Rocket Raccoon - Played by Bradley Cooper (X)
Star-Lord/Peter Quill - Played by Chris Pratt
…
Supporting Cast
Annie Ghazikanian - Played by Natalia Tena (X)
Balder the Brave - Played by Kenneth Branagh (X)
Betty Ross - Played by Liv Tyler
Cassie Lang - Played by Abby Ryder-Fortson (X)
Christine Palmer - Played by Rachel McAdams (X)
Cooper Barton - Played by Ben Sakamoto
Danika Hart - Played by Ashly Burch (X)
Darcy Lewis - Played by Kat Dennings (X)
Everett Ross - Played by Martin Freeman (X)
Goose - Played by Herself
Hank Pym - Played by Michael Douglas
Happy Hogan - Played by Jon Favreau (X)
Jane Foster - Played by Natalie Portman
Janet Van Dyne - Played by Michelle Pfeiffer
Jimmy Woo - Played by Randall Park (X)
Kamala Khan - Played by Iman Vellani (X)
Laura Barton - Played by Linda Cardellini
Lila Barton - Played by Ava Russo
M'Baku - Played by Winston Duke (X)
Maria Hill - Played by Cobie Smulders
Maria Rambeau - Played by Lashana Lynch (X)
Monica Rambeau - Played by Teyonah Parris (?)
Nakia - Played by Lupita Nyong'o (X)
Nathaniel Barton - Played by Cade Woodward
Ned Leeds - Played by Jacob Batalon
Nick Fury - Played by Samuel L. Jackson
Okoye - Played by Danai Gurira (X)
Pepper Potts - Played by Gwyneth Paltrow (X)
Ramonda - Played by Angela Bassett (X)
Rhomann Dey - Played by John C. Reilly (X)
Shuri - Played by Letitia Wright
Soren - Played by Sharon Blynn
Talos - Played by Ben Mendehlson
Thunderbolt Ross - Played by William Hurt
Wong - Played by Benedict Wong (X)
…
Villains
Baron Mordo/Karl Mordo - Played by Chiwetel Eijofor
Josh Brolin as Thanos (X)
Xolo Maridueña as Space Phantom # IH1 (?)
…
Younger Actors
Gamora (Young) - Played by Ariana Greenblatt
Monica Rambeau (Young) - Played by Akira Akbar
…
Presents
A Mr. Cobrah Thunderer Production
Avengers: Infinity Trilogy (Part 1 of 3): "Gauntlet"
…
"I told you this would happen, mate."
The man who had once claimed to be the Mandarin was being held in place by two members of the Ten Rings he had once boasted to command. He was straining at the chains around his arms and legs, but to no avail. At one point, the most powerful people in the world had held onto his every word. He was now in the presence of the man he had merely pretended to be.
Xu Wenwu was sitting on his throne, lost in his own machinations. Another one of his followers was fanning him. He was wearing blue armor, and had been shaved as recently as this morning. It had been one week since the Annihilation Wave had washed over his planet.
"That you did, Trevor." Wenwu said. Decades of hiding from the outside world, keeping the biggest of secrets from all save his most devoted of followers, had left him starved for recognition. That is what Trevor did for Wenwu, give him someone to talk to that he knew was utterly powerless to stop him. Someone that could be easily outwitted and yet would never stop fighting for his freedom.
"Someday, a bigger bully would come to the playground and be too much for you." Trevor had decided to push his luck. "That you'd bloody pay for all you've done. All those lives, ruined like you ruined mine. Locked away for half a decade, doing tricks to survive your little magic act. You can go ahead and kill me now, you know. I know no one is coming. No one is sad I'm not out there versus in here, with a rat bastard like you. I've made me peace with it."
"I would very much like to kill you, Trevor." Wenwu sighed. How could anyone, even the Americans, have thought this man was actually him? Trevor's threats were as hollow as the inside of his skull. Whenever Wenwu deigned to make a threat, it was never an empty one. "It is a cruel thing, taunting a man who is mourning the death of his children. However, I think it is far crueller to keep you right where you are. Your foolishness amuses me."
"Bugger. Should have tried reverse psychology."
"However, you were right about one thing." Wenwu continued. "Like any false fortune-teller, you have made so many predictions over so many years through careful observation. Much like those fortune cookies you Westerners enjoy so much, your choice of words are so vague, yet so full of meaning to whomever happens to be served them. One of your prophecies was bound to come true eventually. Albeit by complete accident (that was to be expected), but let it be said that I will always acknowledge and reward competence. I didn't believe you then, but I believe you now."
"You were correct in your guess that eventually, a bigger bully would come around to put me in my place. I didn't see Thanos coming, despite ample signs that the galaxy was set on taking over my planet, that we were but a tiny grain of sand in the oyster of the universe. I was so sure of myself. I never thought I had to take an active role in the protection of Earth. That someone else would do the job for me, and I could divert my attention to other matters. Take the Avengers, for instance."
"I never concerned myself with them before now. Even after the Iron Man spat in my face by ending my attempt to liberate Afghanistan from Western influence, I wrote off the first major defeat I've had in decades as dumb luck, and that the demons in Stark's bottle would kill him on my behalf."
"Even as his little friends began to come out of the woodworks, I did not lift a finger to stop them. The red, white, and blue attack dog. The god of hammers. The muscle-bound infant. Ivan Dreykov's daughter. Even that absurd archer, whom I could dispatch with but one blow, I let them all think they had saved the world. That they could make a difference by melting a frostbitten runt playing god or unplugging that glorified smartphone. Child's play. They never understood, as I do, that as long as I take breath, the world is already safe."
Wenwu sighed once more, closing his eyes and shaking his head.
"I was too arrogant. I see that now. Too complacent. Much like they were," Wenwu continued. "I thought that eventually, Shang-Chi and Xialing would come back to me. That they would understand that everything I do as their father is to prepare them to be strong as I am strong. To ensure that they would not perish pointlessly as their mother had. Because of my failure to protect her. But the universe recognized that I hadn't learned that lesson yet, and took my children through me with its avatar, Thanos."
"If I had known his ships were landing in Wakanda, would I have sent my armies to crush them? Would I have put aside my disdain for the so-called mightiest heroes of Earth and allow them to help defeat The Mad Titan? Could we even have won that battle? That question will haunt me for the rest of my days. These rings on my arms, I believed fully to be the ultimate weapon. A gift from the cosmos to its rightful heir. But that Gauntlet, I don't know if I could have beaten it, even with the Avengers' help, and my children would have been orphaned…"
"But I have already wasted enough time on self-pity." Wenwu opened his eyes. "Pity and mercy are the same poison. Both weaken one's resolve; they are merely labeled in different bottles. And now is not the time for hesitation. The Avengers have finally proved themselves unworthy of taking on my sacred mission. Now is the time for me to show everyone from the stretches of infinity and beyond that after years of irritation that my planet is not a grain of yellow sand anymore. It is a precious, blue and green pearl. It will be recognized as such. And when my children are returned to me, only then will I remove these rings and allow the rest of my life to slip away, adventuring to that uncharted territory finally at peace with myself."
"That is why I have spared your life time and time again, Trevor. It is why your heart continues to beat. It is at my command, for your life is more valuable to me than your death. You are my comedian. You point out the absurdity of my past actions, and remind me of what I must do going forward."
"Besides, we're expecting guests." Wenwu added suddenly, appearing to have just thought of something he hadn't considered before. "They'll be weary after the great distance they have traveled to kiss my rings. You will provide them ample entertainment in the coming days to celebrate their arrival, I think."
"Guests?" Trevor sputtered. "What are you going on about, mate? Who are they? Where are they? And how do you know they'll be ready to take on the Avengers?"
"Oh, they have experience killing superheroes. They're also comedians in a fashion in that they understand the value of tragedy plus timing in order to teach a lesson." Wenwu grinned. "And if my calculations are correct, they should be here right… about… NOW.
*Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv-fsssssssssssssshhhhhhhhhh*
An orange portal opened, sending sparks flying and five supervillains from Earth-120703 stepped out of it. This was an organization created specifically to hunt down and kill Spider-Man. The Daily Bugle of their universe had referred to them as the Sinister Six. They were noticeably down a member, but that would soon change.
Their magician, Mysterio, who appeared to have created the portal, had her face obscured by what looked like a fishbowl full of silvery mist, with a green, gold and purple set of armor and overlarge gloves with pointed edges.
Their brains, Doctor Octopus, had curly brown hair, had goggles over her eyes and wore a green jumpsuit. Her tentacles had been created using soft robotics, and each one seemed to have a mind of their own when they weren't answering to her orders.
Their muscle, Rhino, couldn't be seen at all, because he was piloting a robotic armor that greatly resembled his namesake. It alternated between all-fours to standing on its hind legs as its pilot now faced their master.
Their tracker, Kraven the Hunter, was a short but stocky woman, whose outfit greatly resembled Black Panther only it was desert camouflage tan. She also wore a brown vest over it that greatly resembled a lion's face down to the mane on the shoulders that may very well have been taken from an actual male lion at some point. And crucially, unlike Black Panther, there was no vibranium whatsoever on her outfit unless you count the bandolier slung over her shoulder that contained vibranium bullets. Her identity was hidden by a tribal mask that resembled a roaring lioness.
And finally, their leader, the Green Goblin, was wearing green and purple chainmail armor similar to Mysterio's, although he also wore a bulletproof N.Y.P.D. vest and an extremely malleable rubber mask that had green skin, pointy ears and yellow eyes with a purple phrygian cap. His goblin glider was strapped to his back, and was inscribed with a message that was lost on anyone in this dimension save for his comrades. She Fell For Me.
All five of the supervillains stood before Wenwu impressively, then bowed before Wenwu.
"All hail the Mandarin. King of kings." They recited in perfect unison.
"To answer your questions, I must steal a few of your own words, Trevor," The Mandarin grinned wickedly, "Our enemies don't know who we are. They don't know where we are. And the Avengers will never see us coming."
Also Starring
The Mandarin/Xu Wenwu - Played by Tony Leung
Trevor Slattery - Played by Ben Kingsley
The Sinister Six
Doctor Octopus/Liv Octavius - Played by Kathryn Hahn
Green Goblin/Harry Osborn - Played by Dane DeHaan
Kraven the Hunter/*Spoiler* - Played by *Spoiler*
Mysterio/Frances Klum - Played by Maggie Gyllenhaal
Rhino/Aleksei Sytsevich - Played by Paul Giamatti
…
Thank you for reading! If you're so inclined, I would really appreciate follows, favorites and especially feedback.
The Mandarin will return.