Marvel: Starting as a Time Criminal, Stealing Powers

The space twisted and collapsed. From the dark blue vortex, a tall, imposing figure stepped out.

Thanos emerged, scanning the battlefield. His gaze passed over his fallen spaceship, then landed on the man sitting casually atop the wreckage, calmly looking down at him.

With a hint of emotion in his voice, Thanos said:

"It seems Ebony Maw has failed. Today… is truly a heavy loss."

He paused. A glimmer of curiosity flashed in his eyes as he continued:

"Still… he completed his task. You must be the one guarding the Time Stone—one of the Keepers."

But before he could continue, Russell raised a hand and interrupted with a grin:

"Nope. You're mistaken. I'm not the Time Stone's guardian."

"I'm just here for something else."

Thanos was momentarily stunned.

According to Ebony Maw's report, the sorcerer guarding the Time Stone had already been captured.

Could it be this man?

Or… did the sorcerer escape?

The second possibility felt more likely. Kamar-Taj's magicians were notorious for their portal-based escapes.

Thanos' expression darkened.

It seemed he would have to intervene personally.

He looked up toward the distant figure and said coldly:

"So, you saved him?"

After all, the magician Ebony Maw captured had already lost the will to resist—it was impossible for him to escape on his own.

Russell tilted his head, then shrugged:

"You're not wrong. If I hadn't shown up, he definitely would've died."

Inside the mirror dimension, Doctor Strange frowned.

That sentence implied Russell had come to save him.

And in the timeline just a few minutes ahead… he really would die.

But—

How did that man know?

Back in the real world.

Thanos closed his eyes, inhaling deeply. When he opened them, murderous intent burned within.

"Hide. Run. Pray you're part of the half that survives… and thank me for my mercy."

"Why not just accept fate?"

"Now, prepare to—"

Pfft~

Thanos was interrupted mid-sentence.

He looked up, visibly irritated.

Russell was covering his mouth, snickering.

"Hahaha… Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh, but I couldn't help it."

"I thought your lines would be different this time, but nope—you still say the same recycled speech over and over again."

He sat up straighter, clearly amused.

"You know, threats need variety. The first time you said it, it was pretty impactful. The second time? Maybe still intimidating. But after hearing it a dozen times… it's just comedic."

"You really should've let Ebony Maw write you some new material. He was the most literate one in your army."

Russell paused for dramatic effect, then added:

"Oh… he's dead? Well, that explains it."

Thanos' face twisted in anger, turning a deeper shade of purple.

"Where did this lunatic come from?" he growled.

"Maybe death will shut you up."

Russell clapped in amusement.

"Now that's a better line! Nicely done."

Inside the mirror dimension.

Nebula stood frozen, completely stunned. She had never seen anyone talk to Thanos like that—let alone mock him to his face.

It was like watching a cosmic Joker toy with the Mad Titan.

Star-Lord sneered from the side:

"If I weren't trapped here, I'd show him what the Element Gun can do."

But before his bravado could finish, Thanos lifted his hand toward the sky.

BOOM!

Blue energy surged from the Space Stone. A distant satellite shimmered with power as chunks of it disintegrated and were teleported toward the battlefield—

Hundreds of massive meteorites, blazing like comets, came crashing down in a flaming barrage.

Star-Lord's cocky expression vanished. His face turned ghost-pale.

This wasn't a battle.

This was a cataclysm.

Even a hundred Element Guns couldn't stop this.

For the first time, he truly felt Thanos' power.

And with it came the painful realization:

Not only would his team stand no chance…

Even the man outside—Russell—might die.

But just as despair began to creep in…

Russell lifted a single finger and pointed to the sky.

And then—

Everything stopped.

The flaming meteors—each large enough to level a city block—froze midair as if time itself had paused.

It was like looking into a museum of destruction.

Doctor Strange's eyes widened.

He'd seen something similar once—when Thanos hurled debris at Iron Man in the one victorious timeline.

But those rocks weren't even one-tenth the size of these.

And still… Russell had stopped them.

The sheer spatial manipulation was on a level Strange couldn't begin to comprehend.

Tony, watching from inside the mirror dimension, turned to Friday.

"Calculate my chances of surviving that meteor storm."

"Analyzing… Conclusion: Nano armor will be destroyed after 12 seconds. Probability of survival: 0%."

Back in the real world.

Thanos had braced himself for the impact. Even he—protected by the Power and Space Stones—would've taken some damage.

But the meteors never fell.

Instead, he watched in shock as they hovered mid-air—motionless.

Russell hadn't used magic. He hadn't used the Time Stone.

Yet somehow, he stopped the storm of destruction with raw spatial control.

Thanos could feel it now.

It was the power of space—but unlike anything he had encountered.

This was the first time he'd ever seen someone control space like this.

At that moment, a faint voice echoed through the air:

"If you like meteorites so much, then the courtyard pig can keep you company."

Russell sat casually on the edge of the wrecked spaceship and flicked his finger downward.

All the meteorites shattered instantly, transforming into countless black blades of death energy, raining down like a violent storm!

Thanos felt his scalp tingle. For the first time in a long time, he sensed the aura of death.

Without hesitation, he activated the Infinity Gauntlet!

The blue glow of the Space Stone and the red glow of the Reality Stone erupted together.

Space demanded a price, and Reality rewrote the rules.

Instantly, the countless deadly black blades halted just ten meters from his head… then dissolved into red autumn leaves, drifting harmlessly in the air.

Even so, sweat beaded on Thanos's forehead.

Despite wielding two Infinity Stones, the pressure was immense. The power Russell had unleashed wasn't something even the Gauntlet could nullify lightly.

As the final black blade vanished, Thanos let out a roar, and the Power Stone lit up next—its purple energy flashing violently.

A barrage of ten purple blasts shot out like a rain of destruction!

Russell remained unmoved.

But his eyes lit up—literally.

In the next instant, searing heat vision exploded from his gaze, clashing head-on with the Power Stone's energy.

The collision triggered a terrifying energy shockwave, vaporizing everything within dozens of meters.

Inside the mirror dimension, the Avengers instinctively flinched.

Then they remembered: this wasn't the real world. They were safe... for now.

Still, just watching the exchange made their spines crawl. The sheer scale of destruction was beyond anything they had faced before.

The heat vision alone looked like it came straight from a hellish god.

Spider-Man shouted in disbelief:

"Thanos is losing!"

The two energies weren't evenly matched for long.

Russell's heat vision began overpowering the purple lightning, steadily pushing forward.

Thanos saw it, too.

He didn't hesitate.

He couldn't afford to.

The blazing heat already stung his skin just by proximity.

Suddenly, the Soul Stone on the Gauntlet activated.

An orange storm of spiritual energy erupted and surged toward Russell!

But Russell vanished before it could hit.

With just a thought, he had warped space and disappeared from sight.

The storm of soul energy and Power Stone blasts struck nothing but empty air.

Yet Thanos felt no relief.

He looked up and froze.

A massive arcane magic circle spun overhead, gathering terrifying magical energy.

Inside the mirror dimension, Doctor Strange's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Impossible…"

"That's Vishanti's Holy Sword Circle!"

"How is he using one of the Ancient One's most sacred spells?!"

This completely shattered Strange's understanding of magic.

Even he couldn't use this spell without direct permission from the Vishanti.

In the sky, the circle completed its formation.

A gigantic transparent sword forged of pure magic began descending. It glowed with divine flame, inscribed with sacred runes, and radiated intense white heat that made space itself warp and curl around it.

Russell's Flaming Holy Sword, now fused with powerful runes.

On the battlefield, Thanos reacted quickly.

The Soul Stone flared again, releasing another orange storm to intercept the sword.

Russell smirked coldly.

With a single hand gesture, the flaming sword pierced the storm, cutting straight through and continuing downward!

Russell tried to teleport again, but something felt off.

The space around him had solidified, like a prison.

Thanos had reactivated both the Space and Reality Stones.

The sword began twisting under the Reality Stone's effect, warping as though being rewritten.

But Thanos was struggling.

His entire right arm trembled violently under the strain of using three Infinity Stones at once.

He could lose his grip on the Gauntlet at any moment.

Inside the mirror dimension, Tony was silent.

The power of the Infinity Stones… was truly overwhelming.

Even someone as powerful as Russell—who had so easily dominated them all—was now being suppressed.

And Thanos hadn't even used all six Stones.

How did we win? Tony thought.

Strange must've said that "one chance" just to keep morale from collapsing.

The team inside the mirror space now feared the worst.

They watched the battle unfold, fully expecting Russell to be crushed.

If Thanos activated that red storm again, no one could stop him.

But then…

Russell spoke, calm as ever.

"Do you really think I'm afraid of your soul energy?"

"Naive."

He raised his head and added coldly:

"By the way, you'll be the third Thanos I've killed."

Lightning began to flicker from his eyes.

Thunder roared in the skies.

Arc after arc of lightning erupted from Russell's body, shaping themselves into glowing armor plates. They wrapped around him like sacred armor—Thor's armor, crackling with power.

The essence of death floated in the air and wove itself into a black cloak that fluttered ominously behind him.

Inside the mirror dimension, Tony and Strange looked on in horror.

This was power far beyond Thor.

It wasn't even a comparison.

This was the difference between a false god and a true god.

BOOM!

Thunder shook the entire dimension—deep, primal thunder that echoed in their very souls.

Above them, the clouds turned black.

In the center of the vortex, a colossal amount of lightning converged and plunged down—all into Russell.

The entire space trembled.

Russell, now wreathed in divine thunder, held Mjolnir, and descended like a comet into the red storm below.

The storm that could corrode souls was instantly neutralized by divine power.

Thanos's face turned pale.

Panicking, he canceled the Soul Stone's power and poured everything into the Space Stone.

A shimmering spatial fold formed between him and the hammer—intended to teleport or deflect the attack.

But it shattered the moment it formed.

Thanos didn't stop there.

He reached for the Reality Stone, aiming to distort the hammer and turn his opponent into rubber.

But—

Nothing happened.

Thanos looked down and saw the Reality Stone floating in the air, no longer attached to the Gauntlet.

As if plucked by an invisible hand.

"Telekinesis…?"

Suddenly, Thanos remembered how Russell had redirected meteorites earlier.

He'd thought it was space manipulation. But now—

He has telekinesis, too?!

How?! Why does he have so many powers?!

It was too late to retrieve the stone.

Desperate, Thanos activated the Power Stone again, blasting purple lightning upward.

But it was useless.

Inside the mirror dimension, the Avengers watched in awe and horror.

Thunder-wrapped meteors crashed through the Power Stone's lightning and smashed into Thanos like divine judgment.

The battlefield shattered.

The ground collapsed inward, creating a deep crater.

Shockwaves spread outward, turning into a raging storm that swept across the entire landscape.

The quake lasted nearly 30 seconds.

When the dust finally settled, everything was gone.

Only a massive, bottomless pit remained, etched into the barren plain with cracks spreading like a spider web.

Inside the mirror dimension—

Dead silence.

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