96. John VS Thanos 1

Looking at the furious Thanos standing before him, John could feel the murderous aura radiating from the Titan's body. The ground beneath him trembled, dust dancing in the air as if even nature feared the coming clash.

"Well, this guy's angry now. But who cares?" John thought, shaking his head with a slight grin. With a whoosh, he soared into the sky, leaving behind a gust of wind that sent debris flying.

John wasn't planning on engaging head-on anymore. The first thing he did was tap his finger on his chest and calmly mutter,

"Recovery."

A brilliant green light flared around him, wrapping his body in warmth and energy. Within seconds, every wound vanished, scratches closed, and the fatigue that weighed down his muscles lifted as if it were never there.

Flexing his arms, he felt completely renewed.

"Nice," he murmured. Then, a spark of an idea crossed his mind.

The battlefield had fallen silent for a brief moment. The Avengers, the Wakandan army, the sorcerers—all were catching their breath. A golden opportunity.

"Targets" " Multiple."

Dozens of small, circular portals opened above the heads of every ally, like glowing halos. John raised a hand and called out,

"Recovery."

Green light cascaded from each portal like rain, enveloping the tired and wounded warriors below. In seconds, they all felt rejuvenated, their injuries gone, strength returning. Murmurs of awe and hope spread across the field. All eyes looked upward to the man floating in midair—John.

Down below, the fight reignited—but now, with renewed fire.

Two versions of Thor—the original and the alternate timeline's "Big Thor"—fought side by side. The slimmer Thor swung Mjolnir with the grace of a dancer, lightning crackling in elegant arcs, while the heavier Thor wielded both Stormbreaker and Mjolnir with brutal, earth-shaking power.

"Try to keep up, younger me!" Fat Thor bellowed, his laughter booming like thunder.

Slim Thor smirked, "You're slower, but I'll admit, you hit hard."

Together, the two gods of thunder created a storm within the battlefield, lightning tearing through the alien sky, enemies turning to ash beneath their power.

Not far off, Iron Man and Pepper, suited up in her Rescue armor, flew side by side. They moved in sync—an iron duo. Tony blasted enemies with repulsor beams, while Pepper's precise missiles exploded mid-air, taking down Chitauri gliders.

"Not bad for a CEO," Tony quipped, dodging a plasma blast.

Pepper replied with a smirk, "Not bad for a genius billionaire."

Meanwhile, the two Hawkeyes—Clint Barton and his alternate self, Ronin—stood back-to-back, arrows flying in all directions. Clint's explosive arrows took down clusters of enemies, while Ronin's shots were cleaner, deadlier—each bolt finding a neck, an eye, a heart.

"You always this serious?" Clint asked between shots.

Ronin replied coolly, "Only when the world's ending."

Natasha darted across the battlefield like a shadow. Her batons crackled with energy as she flipped over a fallen Chitauri beast, then slammed both into a smaller alien soldier's chest. Without stopping, she rolled forward and jammed a blade into another. Her movements were fluid, lethal—unstoppable.

Back in the sky, John focused again on Thanos.

The Mad Titan had recovered from the fall caused by "Slip", glaring up at him with eyes full of cold fury. But John didn't give him time to think.

"Sword of Judgment!"

A massive sword made of golden light materialized above John's head, its radiance blinding. With a wave of his hand, the sword plunged toward Thanos.

Thanos grunted and barely raised his blade in time, deflecting it to the side. The impact shook the earth, creating a deep crater nearby.

Without giving him a second to breathe, John followed up with a blazing fireball, its heat so intense the very air shimmered around it. It flew like a comet—fast, deadly.

But Thanos was ready this time. He roared and sliced through the fireball with a powerful swing, the heat dissipating in a shockwave.

John narrowed his eyes.

"Slow attacks won't work… Fine."

Thanos steadied himself, planting his massive sword into the ground. But John had no intention of getting close again.

Hovering high above like a divine force, John extended his hands toward the sky.

"Call of the Storm."

Dark clouds gathered with unnatural speed above Thanos. A second later, a colossal bolt of lightning—thicker than a tree trunk—crashed down with a deafening crack. The Titan raised his blade just in time, absorbing the strike, but the sheer force still sent him sliding back.

John didn't stop.

"Hand of Earth."

The ground around Thanos shook. A giant hand made of solid rock erupted from beneath, fingers like columns, wrapping around Thanos's legs and waist in a crushing grip. The Titan roared and tried to tear free, but the earth held firm.

Before he could react further, the space around him began to ripple—twisting unnaturally.

"Spatial Twist."

A pulse of warped energy expanded from John's outstretched palm. The air around Thanos shimmered, like glass bending and folding on itself. His movements slowed, his perception disrupted. Every step he tried to take inside the twisted zone felt like wading through tar.

John's eyes narrowed.

"Nova Arrows."

Hundreds of arrows made of pure origin energy formed in a halo around him. With a flick of his wrist, they shot down like a meteor shower, all targeting the immobilized Thanos. Each arrow exploded on impact, lighting the battlefield in brief flashes of brilliant gold.

Smoke and dust clouded the area.

But John wasn't done.

He raised both arms, gathering elemental power into a sphere. First, he summoned a large amount of earth, then fire. Together they created a low-version comet.

"Elemental Comet."

A massive ball of condensed earth and fire formed, pulsing with destructive power. John sent it hurtling down—too fast, too powerful to dodge.

BOOM!

The comet slammed into the ground, erupting in a column of flames and shockwaves. The battlefield trembled, and even the Avengers momentarily paused, glancing toward the explosion in awe.

From within the smoke, Thanos emerged, armor scorched, breathing heavily. The earth-hand had been shattered, and the space around him had returned to normal—but his strength was visibly diminished.

And John… was still floating above, untouched.

"You're strong, Titan. But today's not your day."

The battlefield below echoed with shouts, blasts, and thunder. The tide was turning. Hope was rising.

And in the skies, the real battle had just begun.