Nekrosis
Active member
Thanos held the final Stone over his Gauntlet, both the gem and the glove humming as if in anticipation. The moment his fingers released their hold, the Infinity Stone zipped straight to its designated spot. This time, the entire golden glove surged with unbelievable power, six different colors seeming to embed themselves into Thanos' veins as the energy crawled up his arm, causing the Mad Titan to exclaim in what had to be pain, but surely victory as well.Moments later, the power surge calmed, and Thanos exhaled as his tensed muscles relaxed somewhat. He took a few deep breaths, then smiled. Now confident his destiny had been realized, Thanos raised his gloved hand once more, the Infinity Stones glowing bright as his fingers shifted, seconds away from decimating half of all living creatures. All in a simple snap of his fingers…
Ping. BOOM!!!
Thanos was thrown from his feet as a massive tunnel of sound suddenly erupted above him. At first, it seemed to be some kind of large sonic attack, but when dozens upon dozens of winged insect-like creatures emerged in swarms from the tunnel, it's function as a kind of portal became apparent. As Thanos rose to his feet, he took a closer look at the seemingly unending hoard of aliens and found himself comparing them to his legions of Chitauri and Outriders. They appeared to be a similar kind of mindless beings clad in high-tech armor and bred for one single purpose: war.
Thanos watched in bewilderment as these flying creatures attacked not only his armies, but his enemies as well. They seemed to have no discrimination against what they fought, so long as they could kill.
When Thanos turned to face the portal again, he saw a very different kind of being begin to emerge. At first, it seemed similar to himself, at least in silhouette; very tall with a broad and heavily muscled build protected by armor. But as it stepped out of the portal, Thanos saw that it was very different from him indeed.
The armor this being wore was minimal, perhaps meant to impose more than protect. The color scheme favored dark shades of blue and grey, with a red circular emblem adorning the belt. His hands were gloved, but his arms and face were left bare, the skin appearing to be made of cracked black stone instead of flesh. His eyes burned like malevolent embers under a heavy brow, and a seemingly permanent frown was etched into his face. This being strode forward with divine confidence, as if everyone and everything around him was a plaything for his temporary amusement. He looked at Thanos with an especially unimpressed expression.
When he spoke, his voice was impossibly deep, with a strange echo that seemed to vibrate the air around him with power and might. "Kneel, insignificant imitation."
"I don't even know who you are!" Thanos protested.
"I am entropy," the being answered, his dimly glowing eyes beginning to brighten. "I am death. I am… Darkseid."
Sensing an attack, Thanos raised his Gauntlet in front of him like a shield and closed his fist, willing the Power and Reality Stones to form a protective barrier.
Twin red lasers fired from Darkseid's eyes, and Thanos braced himself for a potentially rough impact. He was unprepared and completely caught by surprise when the crimson beams zigzagged around his body and slammed into his spine. The moment they made contact, his body exploded in agony.
Thanos thought he knew pain. He had been in countless battles and had suffered many injuries. The worst of it had been when he had united the sixth Infinity Stone with his Gauntlet, and his body had struggled to adjust to the power now surging through his veins. The Gauntlet took most of the strain, but Thanos knew that once he used all six Stones at once, there was a good chance it would destroy his arm. Probably most if not all of his body along with it.
But Darkseid's eye beams… This searing pain filled all his senses, affected every nerve, every cell. He felt like he was being destroyed over and over again, atomized repeatedly and mercilessly.
The attack abruptly ceased, and Thanos dropped to his knees. His throat felt especially sore. He must have been screaming. His armor was also smoking now, some of the plates seemingly melted together where they should have been separate. Moving snapped those connections, but it was now uneven and jagged.
His breath ragged, Thanos looked up at Darkseid with as much hate as he could muster. Darkseid stared right back with no discernable emotion. His eyes still blazed with energy, but remained dormant. For now.
"Surrender the Gauntlet to me," Darkseid commanded, "and I will end your meaningless life without further torment."
"Meaningless?" Thanos rasped. His strength slowly returning, the Titan slowly rose to his feet and gritted his teeth in defiance. "I am inevitable. This universe requires correction, and it is my destiny to balance the scales."
"Then you are as blind as the rest," Darkseid told him. "You cannot see the full potential of godlike power, therefore you do not deserve to wield it."
"I'm the only one who deserves it," Thanos insisted.
And before Darkseid could launch another attack, the Great Titan closed his fist and thrust his arm forward. The Gauntlet glowed an intense violet and fired a beam of its own at Darkseid. The purple energy slammed into Darkseid's torso, actually forcing him backwards several yards. But the New God was hardly phased by the attack. He raised one arm to shield his face and planted his feet, digging into the dirt as he grinded into a halt. Once his stance was solid, he lowered his arm and fired his omega beams a second time, using them to compete with Thanos' attack.
The two energy beams fought against one another, neither seeming to relent or tire. Darkseid bared his teeth in determination, while Thanos furrowed his brow in defiance.
One of Darkseid's eye beams suddenly separated from its twin and angled around Thanos' power blast to collide with the Gauntlet itself. This caused a small explosion that sent the Mad Titan backwards a few feet, severing his concentration and thus ending his first attack.
Darkseid ceased his own attack and rushed forward, the ground quaking under his steps. Thanos barely had time to recover before a massive fist suddenly impacted the side of his face, shattering his helmet. A small shockwave fired from the punch, splintering the ground beneath them as Thanos staggered backwards. It was all he could do to remain upright. His head throbbed with pain, and he could already feel his cheek bleeding and swelling.
Thanos suddenly seemed to recall a faint memory, perhaps from another timeline or his own future. A human man named Stark fighting alongside two other warriors from Earth as well as the Guardians of the Galaxy. All they could manage was a small cut on his face that produced a mere single drop of blood. But Darkseid created a full wound with his first hit.
Growling, Thanos willed the Reality Stone to discharge a torrent of lava and aimed it at Darkseid, who cried out in what Thanos hoped was pain. His opponent merely rose into the air unscathed, however, his armor barely blackened. Darkseid remained airborne, proving he could fly. To counter his evasion, Thanos mentally commanded some of the lava to cool into stone and threw a volley of boulders at his new enemy.
Darkseid once again called upon his eye beams, and Thanos could only watch as they appeared to move independently, quickly vaporizing each rock before any could strike Darkseid.
"I could end your life within an infinitesimal moment," Darkseid declared. "I only allow this fight to continue because your defiance amuses me. If you wish to live a little longer, continue to humor me and I may just let you exist as my jester."
"Or," Thanos shot back, "you can simply cease to exist altogether!" And with that, he raised his gloved hand and brought his thumb and finger together.
Snap!
CRACK!!!
Before Thanos could blink, Darkseid was suddenly in front of him, gripping his finger and thumb in his hands and bending them in the wrong direction. Thanos felt his bones break and shouted in pain once again.
"Pathetic," Darkseid scoffed before repositioning his hands, one at Thanos' shoulder, the other at his wrist. Then he pulled, hard.
Thanos screamed as his arm was completely torn from its socket, falling to his knees and clutching at the bleeding stump. Darkseid casually removed the severed arm from the Gauntlet, dropping the now useless limb and examining the golden glove with no discernable emotion.
"I can feel the matrices of power within the gems," Darkseid remarked. "I will bring them to Apokolips to be analyzed by my servants to determine what use they may be to be. You, however, have exhausted my amusement. Begone."
Still finding the will to act, Thanos rose upright, raising his still attached fist to strike Darkseid. The New God barely looked at the Great Titan as he backhanded him, sending Thanos sprawling backwards.
"In most universes," Darkseid told Thanos, doubting he could hear him now, "the old gods defeated the Titans. And the old gods died. I am Darkseid, New God and Ruler of Apokolips. You do not even qualify as a Titan. You, Thanos, are nothing."
And with that, Darkseid hovered back to the Boom Tube, not once glancing at the battle still raging below him.