The Ancient One observed Thor's bewildered expression and couldn't help asking, "Is something wrong?"
"Yes," Thor replied frankly. "You just told me about your duty to protect the timeline, yet you've chosen to let me continue down this path. I thought you'd insist on bringing this timeline back on track." He hadn't expected her to relent so easily. Part of him had even braced for a fight to the death.
It wasn't that he doubted her motives. The Ancient One's strength and integrity were legendary; she wouldn't resort to subterfuge or delay tactics. The truly powerful, after all, had their pride. Even Thanos, for all his cosmic crimes, had never resorted to lies.
The Ancient One sighed, pouring tea into his cup. "What's done is done, Thor. Not even the Eye of Agamotto can undo the past. At best, I could intervene now to prevent further shifts. But even that's risky."
"Then… why didn't you?" Thor asked, his confusion deepening.
She held his gaze. "Because the future has already changed," she replied. "Before you arrived, I used the Eye of Agamotto to observe thousands of possible futures, some better, some worse."
She paused, watching his reaction carefully. "In every branch where I tried to stop you, there was no good outcome. And if I tried to force you, you became even more dangerous than Dormammu."
With a flick of her hand, a golden ring of energy appeared in the air. Within it, scenes began to play like a silent film.
"This is already one of the better outcomes."
In the vision, Thor saw himself bound in the Mirror Dimension, his memory of the time-traveling knowledge sealed by the Ancient One. She used the Time Stone to reverse his strength to what it had been in 1995. Just as she was about to reset his memories, a faint orange glow flashed—the final use of his Soul Stone experience coupon.
The Soul Stone's last burst of power created a duplicate of his soul, identical in essence, bound to appear at a specific location and time, for exactly one minute.
The vision continued. As it moved through familiar events, Thor watched the return of the Dark Elves, Ragnarök, and the eventual Infinity War—all unfolding in sync with the history he remembered. The soul created by the Soul Stone had long since disappeared, seemingly irrelevant… until now.
The scene shifted to a world of rolling hills and sunsets, a place where Thanos, his body weary and scarred, carefully picked fruit, his heavy footsteps dragging across the earth. He limped to a simple home, boiled a pot of soup, and drank it in one exhausted gulp. Standing in the doorway, he gazed at the sunrise, finally at rest, his heart swelling with a sense of fulfillment.
He raised his left hand, gazing at the six Infinity Stones embedded in the Gauntlet. The universe is saved now, he thought. The Stones are nothing but temptation now… they must be destroyed.
Suddenly, a figure appeared before him, the faint outline of an Avenger who had once fought against him. Thanos didn't look up. "You're here to finish it, I suppose," he murmured. "Go ahead."
But the figure didn't strike. Instead, in a cool, emotionless voice, it said, "Wiping out half of life will not bring prosperity to the other half. That's impossible."
The figure continued, "As long as people remember the past, they will never fully accept this new world. Rebellion is inevitable."
"If you truly want a universe without suffering," it said, "you must destroy it completely. Reduce it to dust, then create a new universe. One that knows only gratitude, not loss."
With that, the figure disappeared, leaving Thanos alone, deep in thought.
The vision lingered on Thanos's silent contemplation, until finally, he stood tall again. Determination etched across his face, he raised his hand high and, with a heavy heart, snapped his fingers.
"I am destiny," he murmured to the empty universe.
[Read up to 60+ chapter more on p@treon.com/goldengaruda]