With Thor's furious roar, the battle officially began.
Blazing blue lightning lit up the dark sky. Thor, now fully charged with lightning, was the first to rush forward.
In his right hand was Stormbreaker, and in his left, Mjolnir.
He looked like a real powerhouse.
At the same time, Tony Stark took to the skies. His right arm transformed into a massive blade, which he swung down at Thanos with all his might.
Thanos dodged Thor's attack, grabbed Thor's right hand, and used Stormbreaker to block Tony's incoming blade.
Then, with a single kick, he sent Steve Rogers flying.
Round one: Thanos gained the upper hand.
But this battle wasn't turn-based, and after their initial attacks, the trio quickly coordinated for another assault.
Tony Stark's laser beams were blocked by Thanos's arms, but soon after, Steve Rogers hurled his shield at the back of Thanos's head.
Thor charged in again, and although Thanos kicked Stormbreaker out of Thor's hand, Mjolnir in Thor's left hand struck Thanos square in the chest.
Thanos was sent flying.
Round two: The trio gained a small advantage.
Meanwhile, Ronan was no longer as relaxed as before.
The reason was simple—Thanos's weapon continued to assault his Mirror Dimension, and Ronan was on the verge of losing control.
Weapons, unlike people, couldn't be deceived by illusions or sensory tricks.
So, even though his Mirror Dimension had been upgraded, Ronan had only just learned it a few days ago.
He was still a newbie!
At least, that's how it was now.
Though he didn't want to admit it, this was the hard truth.
"Dear superheroes, I can hold out for maybe twenty more seconds."
"In twenty seconds, you'll be fighting a Thanos with his weapon back!" Ronan's voice echoed in the ears of the trio.
As an ally of the Avengers, Ronan naturally had an earpiece, allowing him to communicate with them.
And of course, Tony Stark's wealth knew no bounds.
Even with their base blown to pieces, they still had a signal.
"Twenty seconds?"
"You're so young, and yet your stamina is so weak?" Tony's voice came through the earpiece almost immediately.
Ronan rolled his eyes, not needing to guess who had said that—it could only be Tony Stark.
That guy still held a grudge!
Back when they were about to time-travel to this timeline, Ronan had mocked him with, "Old men always finish fast."
But he hadn't expected Tony to remember it all this time.
"My speed is due to the machine needing to activate for the first time."
"Yours is because your machine's past its expiry date." Ronan shot back without hesitation.
In the realm of banter, Ronan never backed down.
But before Tony could respond, Scott Lang's voice cut through the earpiece.
"Guys, save the humor."
"We're about to drown here!"
From Scott's side, the sound of rushing water could be heard in the background.
It was clear they were already submerged and struggling to cope.
"Ronan, go save them."
"We'll handle Thanos," Steve Rogers's voice came through next.
As the battle's commander, even Tony Stark acknowledged Steve as their team leader.
At that moment, Ronan's Mirror Dimension finally shattered, right in front of his eyes.
Thanos's weapon flew back into his hand.
"Fine, just remember to pay me for the rescue." Ronan muttered, jumping backward as a Portal swallowed him up.
Though the epic battle between the trio and Thanos was momentarily put on hold for Ronan, he didn't mind.
When he reappeared, he was floating above Scott and the others.
"Scott, I'm above you."
"All you need to do is protect your heads. I'll handle the rest." Ronan instructed over the earpiece.
"Can't you just use your circles and pull us all out?" Scott replied, knowing of Ronan's abilities.
"I can, but you'd better be ready for it."
Without waiting for a response, Ronan's hands formed two Rings of Raggadorr.
The next second, a Portal opened above Ronan.
Bruce Banner's massive frame fell through immediately.
Thanks to Ronan's Observation Haki, he dodged to the side just in time, and Bruce slammed into the ground.
Rocket and Scott followed closely behind.
Oh, and there was War Machine, still a bit in the background as always.
The next second, a rush of water poured down on them again, soaking everyone to the bone.
"Ugh!"
Bruce Banner spat out a mouthful of water, looking gratefully at Ronan.
But then he saw something else.
Ronan was holding up the two magic rings above his head, diverting all the water away. Not a drop had touched him.
After ensuring the Mystic Gateway was completely closed, Ronan finally dismissed his magic shields.
?????
Was this how they taught magic at Kamar-Taj?
"Well… thanks, I guess," War Machine said as he opened his faceplate.
He had witnessed the whole thing.
Though he didn't say the rest, the meaning was clear.
Ronan simply nodded, opening another Portal.
The real show was happening elsewhere, and he didn't want to miss it.
Sure enough, when Ronan returned to the battlefield, Thor was being pinned down by Thanos and getting pummeled.
Ronan arrived just in time to see Thanos wailing on Thor!
Thanos, you claimed you didn't know how to fight?
Then, an iconic scene for every Marvel fan unfolded.
Captain America, Steve Rogers, picked up Mjolnir!
Ohhhhhhhhhhh!
If there had been someone nearby, they would've screamed in excitement.
Steve Rogers then unleashed a flurry of attacks, almost catching Thanos off guard.
Especially when he slammed Mjolnir into his shield.
Who knew how many times Steve had practiced that move in secret?
"Nice work, Cap!"
Scott Lang couldn't help but shout.
However, the moment his jinxed words left his mouth, the battle turned.
Now it was Steve Rogers's turn to get beaten down.
Thanos struck Steve over and over, until his iconic round shield was shattered into a semi-circle.
Finally, Steve was kicked away.
"Ohhh…"
Ronan made a strange noise, while the others shot accusatory looks at Scott Lang.
The awkwardness in the air was palpable.
But Ronan's focus wasn't on Scott.
His gaze was fixed on Thanos's weapon.
A weapon capable of cutting vibranium like that wasn't something you saw every day on Earth.
After all, Mjolnir and Cap's shield were almost equally matched in durability.
So, that weapon was definitely something special!
Since Thanos's fate was sealed, why not claim the weapon for himself?
Every Sorcerer Supreme had their own collection, after all.
The Tesseract was already stored in Ronan's vault.
The next addition would be this blade!