Gamble

In the heart of the besieged city, two towering figures faced each other, their gazes locked in a contest of wills. The Mad Titan, Thanos, stood amidst the decimated Swarm, his eyes appraising, attempting to discern any weaknesses. His gaze was analytical, cold, like a surgeon observing a challenging procedure.

In contrast, Black Bolt, the Silent King of Attilan, glared at Thanos with an intensity that could scorch suns. His gaze was a physical entity, a manifestation of his wrath, directed wholly at the perpetrator of the massacre before him.

The air between them was thick with tension, an invisible barrier that hummed with the anticipation of the coming conflict. The battlefield held its breath as these titans prepared for their showdown.

Black Bolt, his wrath reaching its zenith, moved. His lips parted slightly, prepared to unleash a whisper that could annihilate worlds. He was about to pronounce the death sentence for the invader, to enact the divine justice for his fallen kins. But then...

"Blackagar Boltagon."

These simple words echoed across the battlefield, freezing the Silent King in his tracks. A sense of disbelief colored his features as he stared at Thanos. The Mad Titan, battered and bruised, merely smiled. His eyes gleamed with an uncanny mixture of amusement and challenge.

"You are probably wondering why I know this name," Thanos continued, his voice light and casual, a stark contrast to the grim reality of their situation.

Beneath his exterior calm, his mind was anything but. His mental gears were turning at an alarming rate, trying to maintain the delicate balance between outward confidence and internal panic. The voice in his head, his perpetual companion in this strange world, was less composed.

"Holy Shit! He was about to blast us!" it shrieked, but Thanos ignored the voice. There were more pressing matters at hand.

"I can't read his mind, and he doesn't hide his emotions either," Thanos muttered under his breath. The fact that Black Bolt's telepathy was beyond his reach frustrated him. He had counted on this advantage, but now he was forced to play a dangerous guessing game.

"Are you not curious to know how I managed to invade your oh so mighty and impenetrable kingdom?" Thanos asked, a mockingly dramatic gesture accompanying his words. His tone was laden with derision, adding an extra sting to his words.

Black Bolt, enraged yet undeniably curious, could not deny the rising tide of confusion. Thanos continued his leisurely stroll, his amethyst blood creating a trail of his march, adding an eerie beauty to the horrifying spectacle of war.

"Did your isolation blind you so much into thinking that there wouldn't be any rotten apples willing to burn down the whole tree?"

Thanos's insinuations started to fall into place for Black Bolt. Understanding dawned on his face, but it was not a comforting realization. Betrayal was a bitter pill to swallow, especially when the culprit was one of your own.

As this realization sank in, the Swarm converged on them in large numbers. Their monstrous forms surrounded Black Bolt, a grotesque ring of impending doom. Yet, Black Bolt paid them little heed. His primary focus was the Mad Titan, and he had faith in his own strength to deal with the Swarm.

Thanos continued his theatrics, raising his arms towards the sky like a preacher addressing his congregation. "Really, who would have thought that the king would be betrayed," he mused aloud, adding more salt to Black Bolt's fresh wound.

His amusement was palpable, as if he derived some twisted pleasure from revealing this bitter truth. His heart, however, pounded with adrenaline. He was threading on a thin line, making a gamble that could cost him his life.

Seeing his tormentor's smug face, Black Bolt's patience ran out. The wrathful king was ready to end it all, to unleash the destructive force of his voice and obliterate Thanos. However, his fatal utterance was halted by an unexpected scene. Two figures emerged from the rubble of a nearby building, swiftly approaching the Mad Titan.

A woman and a child, held aloft by an invisible force, appeared before Thanos. The woman, with her raven hair and fair skin, had a prominent buldge coming out of her belly. The fear in her eyes was matched by the child next to her. They bore a striking resemblance to each other, like mother and son.

Seeing these new arrivals, Black Bolt's fury wavered, replaced by a flash of shock and then a surge of rage. These were his people, innocent civilians.

"Oh my, were you about to do something right now?" Thanos' tone dripped with feigned innocence as he held the terrified woman and child in a gentle but firm grip. His grin was wide and wicked, and he seemed to relish the moment, drawing out the tension as if it were a play, and he was the master performer.

"Now why don't we play a game?" His grin widened, and he gestured to the Swarm, who had become eerily silent, watching their master's performance with chilling patience. "While I and our new friend learn to know each other," he paused, turning to the weeping woman and the frightened child, "you can play a little with my 'friends.'"

As if his words were a command, the Swarm stirred, an undulating wave of monstrous forms approaching Black Bolt. The nightmarish creatures surged forward fearlessly, disregarding their own survival, a collective embodiment of their master's will. They were relentless, their monstrous forms moving in unison, creating an overwhelming tide of death and destruction.

Black Bolt, overwhelmed with desperation, fought against the Swarm, his heart filled with rage and despair. He felt helpless, watching his people suffer and his kingdom in ruins.

As Black Bolt struggled against the Swarm, Thanos casually strolled towards the royal palace. He held his new 'acquaintances' close, each step echoing the rhythm of his beating heart, a reminder of the imminent threat of death. He was battered, bleeding, but unbowed. His body was a testament to his resilience, a monument to his defiance.

"I guess he asked his remaining people to guard and protect the civilians. That makes my task easier." Thanos murmured, a playful grin tugging at the corners of his lips. His eyes scanned the horizon, taking in the apocalyptic tableau that his invasion had created.

Even as Thanos reveled in his apparent victory, a voice in his head cackled, taking perverse joy in the chaos unfolding around them. The titan's heart pounded with adrenaline, his thoughts running wild, but his resolve to survive and conquer was stronger than ever.

Black Bolt could only watch as Thanos and his people disappeared into the distance, his wrathful gaze filled with a storm of emotions. His fists clenched tight, his body ached from countless injuries, and his heart bled for his fallen kingdom. But he wasn't ready to give up. He was a king, a warrior, and he would fight till his last breath to reclaim his kingdom from this mad titan.