Harley felt his stomach flip as they emerged from the swirling portal, the magical light fading into eerie darkness. The air was thick with the acrid stench of smoke and burning metal. Around them, the remnants of the Asgardian ship lay shattered, its once-majestic halls reduced to twisted wreckage. Sparks flickered from broken conduits, and the faint sound of groans and cries echoed in the distance.
Deadpool landed with a thud, dusting off his suit. "Whoa. Did someone throw an intergalactic rager and forget to invite us?"
Logan sniffed the air, his brow furrowing. "This place reeks of death."
Before anyone could respond, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed down the corridor. The group instinctively moved toward the source, cautiously weaving through the wreckage until they reached a massive chamber.
There, at the heart of the destruction, stood Thanos. The Mad Titan loomed over Thor, who was pinned beneath a pile of debris, bloodied and struggling to move. Loki stood nearby, his usual arrogance replaced with palpable fear.
"...the Tesseract, Loki," Thanos growled, his voice calm yet menacing. In his massive hand, he already held the Power Stone, its purple glow pulsing with raw energy.
Harley's heart sank as he realized where they were. "This… this is the start of Infinity War," he whispered.
Deadpool leaned over, stage-whispering back. "Yeah, no kidding. Spoiler alert: it doesn't end well for Thor's bro."
Doctor Strange stepped forward, his expression grim. "We need to stay out of this. If we intervene now, the timeline could—"
But before he could finish, Deadpool unsheathed his katanas. "Stay out of it? Are you kidding? That guy's got a Magic Rock Collection Starter Kit and a thirst for world domination. Let's do this!"
Harley grabbed Deadpool's arm. "Wade, this is Thanos. Thanos. He's got Infinity Stones!"
"And I've got a mouth that never shuts up. Let's see which is more powerful!" Deadpool charged forward, his battle cry a mix of enthusiasm and poor judgment.
Logan sighed. "Damn idiot's gonna get himself killed." With a snarl, he extended his claws and followed.
Doctor Strange turned to Harley. "Stay back. This is about to get dangerous."
"No kidding," Harley muttered, clutching the timepad as if it could shield him.
Thanos barely reacted as Deadpool leaped at him, swords flashing. The Titan caught both blades with one hand, snapping them like twigs before hurling Deadpool into a nearby wall.
"Ha!" Deadpool wheezed, crumpled in a heap. "Joke's on you. My swords were on sale anyway!"
Logan lunged next, his claws slashing at Thanos's armored torso. Sparks flew as the adamantium blades skidded across the dense metal, but Thanos barely flinched. With a backhanded swipe, he sent Logan sprawling.
"You are out of your depth," Thanos rumbled, stepping forward with terrifying calm.
Thor groaned, his voice weak. "Strange… stop him…"
Doctor Strange summoned a barrage of magical constructs, golden mandalas spinning into existence around him. "You will not touch the Time Stone," he declared, sending a wave of fiery energy toward Thanos.
Thanos raised the Power Stone, absorbing the attack with ease before retaliating with a blast that sent Strange skidding across the floor.
Harley crouched behind a chunk of debris, heart pounding. This was insane. He wasn't supposed to be here—none of them were. And yet, here they were, witnessing one of the most pivotal moments in Marvel history.
Then it happened. Loki, ever the opportunist, approached Thanos with a sly smile, offering the Tesseract in a desperate ploy to save his brother.
Harley watched in horror as the scene unfolded exactly as he remembered: Thanos crushing the Tesseract to extract the Space Stone, then gripping Loki's neck in a deadly vice.
"No resurrections this time," Thanos said coldly.
Loki gasped, his eyes bulging, and Harley couldn't look away as—
"Nope!" Deadpool shouted, suddenly leaping between them. "Not today, Grimace!" He swung his broken katana like a maniac, forcing Thanos to release Loki.
Thanos turned, his eyes narrowing in annoyance. "You again."
"Yep, me again!" Deadpool quipped. "The gift that keeps on giving—and by gift, I mean headache."
Thanos swatted him aside like an insect, and Loki collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.
Logan rejoined the fray, his claws finally finding a weak point in Thanos's armor. The Mad Titan grunted as Logan slashed at his exposed arm, drawing a small amount of blood.
"Not so invincible now, huh?" Logan snarled.
Thanos growled, grabbing Logan by the neck and slamming him into the floor. The force sent cracks spiderwebbing through the metal.
Doctor Strange appeared again, casting a binding spell that momentarily immobilized Thanos. "Harley, now would be a good time to use that timepad!"
Harley fumbled with the device, panic making his fingers clumsy. "Where am I supposed to send us?"
"Anywhere but here!" Strange shouted, his spell beginning to falter under Thanos's strength.
Harley punched in random coordinates as Deadpool staggered back to his feet. "Quick, Harley! Before Big Purple figures out he's too OP for this fight!"
The timepad beeped, the portal swirling to life. Logan staggered toward it, hauling Deadpool with him.
Thor, still pinned under debris, looked at them with desperation. "Take him down… or everything is lost."
Harley hesitated, guilt twisting in his gut. But the portal was already pulling them in, the swirling light swallowing them one by one.
As the Sanctum-bound quartet disappeared, they left the Asgardian ship to its grim fate—just as the story demanded.