"Wanda, Skye—protect everyone with everything you've got. All sorcerers, deploy the Rings of Raggadorr. T'Challa, have your soldiers raise their shields to maximum output. Everyone else, get behind them. It's time to clear the field."
Karl's voice echoed through every Avenger's communicator.
Wanda and Skye immediately converged. Wanda unleashed her Chaos Magic at full power, the nine crimson orbs behind her transforming into a solid barrier. At the same time, Skye continuously poured out seismic energy from both hands, forming a rippling shield behind Wanda's crimson wall.
Everyone began gathering behind them.
Tony raised a magical shield. Pepper and Rhodey each deployed their own barriers. The rest of the heroes took shelter behind the protective layers.
T'Challa and Erik regrouped with the Wakandan warriors. The soldiers formed a circle around the two kings, their cloaks unfolding simultaneously into a solid blue energy barrier.
After joining the Kamar-Taj sorcerers, Strange unleashed his full power and erected the first Ring of Raggadorr. Wong followed immediately with a second. These two enormous magical formations shielded all the sorcerers, while beneath them countless smaller shields sprang up from the other mages.
No one paid any further attention to Thanos or his alien army.
They all knew what Karl was about to do.
He was about to unleash a battlefield-clearing ultimate attack.
---
High in the sky, only Karl and Carol remained.
Carol was still carrying Thanos's Infinity Gauntlet while dodging pursuit from the alien forces.
Karl knew exactly how capable Carol was, so he wasn't worried in the slightest. He patted Onion gently.
"Go hide with Wanda."
With a flap of its wings, Onion crossed the battlefield in moments and landed behind Wanda, settling obediently beside her while letting out a soft coo.
Meanwhile, silver light slowly ignited within Karl's eyes.
His body rose into the air.
---
In the heavens above, silver energy gathered without end.
A pillar of light shot straight into the sky.
An ancient, primordial aura instantly spread across the battlefield.
Its pressure was no weaker than the darkness Karl had wielded earlier.
The storm clouds that had gathered because of that darkness were instantly blasted apart by the towering silver beam.
Brilliant sunlight poured across the desert once more.
Not a single cloud remained.
Within the pillar of light, a pair of enormous dragon wings slowly unfurled.
Countless silver motes drifted downward like starlight.
ROOOAAARRR—!!!
The next moment, a heaven-shaking roar echoed across the sky.
The dragon-like cry caused the air itself to tremble violently.
Shockwaves rippled outward from the pillar, spreading throughout the desert.
The massive wings beat once.
The pillar of light vanished instantly.
In its place appeared a colossal dragon-like beast.
The strongest summon—
Bahamut.
---
Thanos stared at Bahamut in astonishment.
Moments ago, he'd watched that young Earthling transform into a black-armored knight.
Now he had become a giant dragon-like creature.
For a brief moment, Thanos genuinely wondered whether Karl was actually an alien.
Before he could think further, Bahamut ascended even higher into the sky.
Then its wings spread wide.
ROAR—!!!
Behind Bahamut, a gigantic silver magic circle suddenly appeared.
At the same time, countless smaller magic circles materialized around it like stars orbiting a sun.
There were over a thousand of them.
They surrounded the central formation like a celestial constellation.
---
Megaflare.
The instant afterward, every magic circle lit up.
Beams of light emerged from them, descending like meteors or a rain of falling stars.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM—!!!
A scene worthy of the apocalypse unfolded before everyone's eyes.
Countless silver beams slammed into the ground and detonated.
Each explosion rivaled a small tactical nuclear weapon.
Perhaps this was what the end of the world truly looked like.
The Avengers, the Kamar-Taj sorcerers, and the Wakandan warriors all poured more power into their shields to withstand the devastating bombardment.
Fortunately, the nine mountain-sized shields that Odin had previously placed around the battlefield remained intact despite the endless explosions, containing the destructive force within the battlefield.
Otherwise, the shockwaves alone might have spread for hundreds of miles.
---
Silver trails carved brilliant paths across the sky before crashing into the earth.
Yet Bahamut wasn't finished.
With another beat of its wings, it swooped downward around the perimeter of the battlefield.
Countless silver trails followed in its wake.
Thanos's army didn't even have time to look up.
They simply vanished from existence.
Within mere moments, the vast alien horde collapsed completely.
Even the soldiers enhanced by the Power Stone were annihilated so thoroughly that not even dust remained.
---
After circling the battlefield once, Bahamut soared into the sky again.
This time, the countless smaller magic circles disappeared.
Only the enormous central formation remained.
It shone like a newly risen sun.
The gigantic circle measured nearly a hundred meters across.
To everyone below, it looked as though there were now two suns hanging in the sky.
Suddenly, the air itself seemed to freeze.
A point of light began gathering at Bahamut's chest.
Meanwhile, the enormous magic circle behind it grew even brighter.
Then—
BOOOOOOM—!!!
A colossal beam of light, nearly a hundred meters wide, erupted from Bahamut's chest.
It struck the earth in an instant.
The entire desert trembled violently.
The ground split apart.
The landscape shattered into pieces.
The beam seemed intent on destroying an entire continent.
Silver light flooded every corner protected by the shields.
The attack was so overwhelming that no dust was even kicked up.
Every grain of sand had simply been vaporized.
---
When the light finally faded, the battlefield was gone.
In its place was an enormous crater.
It resembled a gigantic meteor impact scar on the moon—only larger.
Far larger.
Bahamut hovered proudly in the sky, the great magic circle behind it slowly fading away.
Its vertical pupils gazed down upon the earth below.
---
Inside the crater, the Avengers, the Wakandan warriors, and the Kamar-Taj sorcerers stared blankly at their surroundings.
The endless alien army that had swarmed across the battlefield like locusts was gone.
Completely gone.
Erased from existence beneath Bahamut's Megaflare.
Had everyone not maintained their shields with every ounce of strength they possessed, they would have shared the same fate.
Before anyone could fully process what had happened, Bahamut suddenly dove from the heavens at incredible speed.
Its enormous shadow rapidly expanded beneath the sunlight.
Just before reaching the ground, Bahamut's body dissolved into a mass of silver light.
When the radiance touched the earth, Karl calmly stepped out from within it.
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