Infinity War

"Okay. So end of day, as long as no one finds all these stones and puts them together, we're in the clear." "Correct. But if someone does attempt to do so, we will need to prepare for the greatest battle this universe has ever seen."

- Doctor Strange and Wong

The Infinity War was the galaxy-wide conflict for the Infinity Stones. The conflict began when the Mad Titan Thanos initiated his plan to gather all of the Infinity Stones to complete his quest for the eradication of half of all life in the universe. Taking advantage of the Destruction of Asgard and division of his enemies, Thanos began a bloody campaign to retrieve the Infinity Stones and gather them into his Infinity Gauntlet.

Facing this universal menace, the divided Avengers, the eldritch Masters of the Mystic Arts, the ragtag Guardians of the Galaxy and the technologically advanced nation of Wakanda challenged Thanos' mad crusade to prevent him from completing the Infinity Gauntlet. Despite their effort, Thanos ultimately emerged as the victor and successfully completed his quest to wipe out half of the universe.

The Six Stones
"Before creation itself, there were six singularities. Then the universe exploded into existence, and the remnants of these systems were forged into concentrated ingots... Infinity Stones."

- Collector Shortly after the Big Bang caused the universe to come into creation, six singularities representing a different aspect of the universe were forged into Infinity Stones. These stones each control essential aspect of the existence. When these stones are combined, almost unlimited power can be unleashed.

Rise of the Mad Titan
"Titan was like most planets; too many mouths, not enough to go around. And when we faced extinction, I offered a solution." "Genocide." "But random. Dispassionate, fair; rich and poor alike. They called me a madman. And what I predicted came to pass."

- Thanos and Doctor Strange The seeds of the conflict were sowed in the technologically advanced world of Titan, the homeworld of the race of Titans and the future Mad Titan, Thanos. Due to the race's immortal lifespan, the world quickly became overpopulated. The overpopulation rapidly depleted the world's limited resources and the Titans faced extinction. Desperate to save his world, Thanos proposed that they kill half of the world's population so the quick consumption of resources can be halted and thus spare their world and race. The Titans dismissed Thanos' drastic plan and called him mad. Not long after, the world fell and Thanos became the last surviving Titan. Deeply impacted by this event, Thanos came to believe that the huge influx of life was rapidly consuming the universe's finite resources. If nothing was done, then the universe will be destroyed. Thanos concluded that life needed correction and wishing to spare other planet's from suffering Titan's fate, resolved to become a galactic world-conquerer. Using his vast intellect and immense superhuman capabilities, Thanos quickly built his army and set out on his quests to stem the tide of life. On every planet he invaded, he would kill off half of their population and take what spoils he gained from his conquest. Thanos quickly began one of the most feared warlords in the galaxy even ruling from his own region of space. During his conquest, he would adopt orphans from the race he conquered from which he formed the Black Order. During an invasion of the world of Zen-Whoberi, he adopted a Zehoberei named Gamora who quickly became his favorite daughter and whom he genuinely grew to love.

The Quest Begins
Eventually, Thanos realized that he would never be able to balance the universe through military strength alone as there were too many lifeforms. He learned about Infinity Stones and learning about their capabilities to control the universe, Thanos decided that he needed to retrieve them to accomplish his lifelong mission. He managed to locate the Mind Stone to which he hid inside a Scepter. He also sent his daughters, Gamora and Nebula to find the Soul Stone but they lied about being unable to find it. Thanos knew that they lied but decided to let them believe that they convinced him.

Chitauri Invasion
"Thanos. He's a plague, Tony. He invades planets, he takes what he wants, he wipes out half the population. He sent Loki. The attack on New York, that's him."

- Bruce Banner to Tony Stark

Thanos managed to locate the Space Stone on Earth which was located inside the artifact called Tesseract. Having retrieved and forged an alliance with the Frost Giant Loki after his defeat by his brother in Asgard, Thanos ordered Loki to help him retrieve the stone in return for making him the ruler of Earth. To assist Loki in his task, he gave him the Scepter with the Mind Stone. Thanos gave him the task to use the Tesseract and summon his armies both to cull half of the Earth's population and to personally retrieve the stone.

At first, Loki proceeded on his task without too much challenge. The organization of S.H.I.E.L.D. proved not to be capable of handling this new threat. Loki quickly used the Scepter to gain skilled followers to finish his mission, among them were Hawkeye and Erik Selvig.

However, S.H.I.E.L.D. responded by reviving the Avengers Initiative. The idea of the Initiative was to bring a group of remarkable people to fight the battles that S.H.I.E.L.D. never could. The team consisted of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk and Black Widow. The newly formed Avengers proved to be a fighting force capable of facing Loki. After releasing Hawkeye from mind control who then subsequently joined the team, the team fought Loki and the Chitauri army in the Battle of New York. The Avengers won the battle when Iron Man successfully launched a nuclear missile on the Chitauri Command Center which consequently disabled the Chitauri army on Earth.

Despite Loki's failure and the defeat of his Chitauri army, Thanos did not falter. He still possessed his vast armies and as long as he knew where the Infinity Stones were located, in time he can retrieve them to complete his quest to exterminate half of the life in the universe.

Quest for the Orb
"I shall honor our agreement, Kree, if you bring me the Orb. But return to me again empty handed... And I will bathe the starways in your blood."

- Thanos to Ronan the Accuser

Sometimes later, Thanos located the Power Stone. Hidden inside the Orb, Thanos brokered a deal with Ronan the Accuser to help him retrieve the artifact in return for lending his army in the Kree's quest to exterminate Xandar. When Ronan's servant Korath the Pursuer failed to retrieve the Orb because of Star-Lord, Thanos sent Gamora to retrieve it. Having long harbored a desire to leave Thanos' service, Gamora used the opportunity to escape.

This led to a chain of events where Gamora joined Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Groot and Drax the Destroyer to form the Guardians of the Galaxy to keep the Orb from Ronan's hands. After Ronan betrayed Thanos and decided to use the Power Stone for himself, Nebula switched allegiance and joined Ronan on his quest to destroy Xandar and afterward fight Thanos himself. Their effort was prevented by the Guardians and the Power Stone was given to the Xandarians for safekeeping.

Into His Own Hands
"Fine. I'll do it myself."

- Thanos Infuriated by the failures of his allies and the betrayals of his daughters, Thanos decided to personally retrieve the stones himself. Thanos forced the dwarves of Nidavellir to build him an artifact called Infinity Gauntlet. The artifact was capable of controlling and harnessing the power of all six of the Infinity Stones. After massacring the dwarves and leaving their king Eitri alive, Thanos donned the gauntlet and prepared to gather all of his stones to finally complete his crusade to kill half of the universe.

The Confederacy was aware of Thanos' intentions and warned HYDRA about him and the threat he posed to humanity.

Massacre of the Xandarians
"Thanos already has the Power Stone because he stole it last week when he decimated Xandar."

- Thor

Thanos and the Black Order traveled to Xandar and soon invaded the planet, effortlessly destroying the Nova Corps protecting it. Thanos would retrieve the Power Stone as he and the Black Order massacred half of the Xandarians as part of Thanos' quest to balance the universe.

Attack on the Statesman
"Dread it. Run from it. Destiny arrives all the same. And now it's here. Or should I say, I am."

- Thanos

After the destruction of Asgard, Thor along with the rest of the Asgardian refugees were travelling on a vessel towards Earth, but were soon intercepted by a massive warship. Thanos and the Black Order would go to retrieve the Tesseract by executing half of the ship's population while Valkyrie led the other half to safety, Thor confronted Thanos which led to him to be easily defeated by Thanos. Thanos then threatened to use the Power Stone, which he extracted from the Orb following his assault on Xandar, to kill Thor unless Loki surrendered the Tesseract.

Loki initially concealed the fact that the Tesseract was in his possession, expressing an initial lack of empathy towards Thor, but acceded to Thanos' demands after he activated the Power Stone and began using it to painfully torture Thor. As Thor claimed the Tesseract had been destroyed on Asgard during Ragnarök, Loki reluctantly revealed the Tesseract in his hand, much to Thor's dismay. As Loki began to reassure Thor that they would survive the ordeal, Thanos derided his misplaced optimism as he reached for the Tesseract, calling him an Asgardian. Reminding Thanos that he wasn't an Asgardian, Loki also reminded him that they had the Hulk on their side. This remark signaled the Avenger to immediately spring from hiding and ambushing Thanos, tackling him to the ground before he could retrieve the Tesseract. Although Hulk initially gained the upper hand, Thanos was quickly able to overpower and defeat the Avenger alone in hand-to-hand without any aid from the Power Stone or his Children, rendering the Hulk unconscious. A freed Thor attempted to attack Thanos, only to be restrained telekinetically by Ebony Maw. However, his attack provided a momentary distraction, allowing the injured Heimdall to channel the Bifrost using the last of his Dark Magic. The Bridge managed to send the Hulk to Earth before Thanos could kill him. Remaining calm despite this, the Titan took Corvus' glaive and chose to kill Heimdall instead by impaling him through the heart, enraging Thor further. Telekinetically muffling Thor, Maw retrieved the fallen Tesseract and presented it to Thanos. The Titan took the cube, crushing it in his bare hand to reveal the Space Stone, and placing it in the next slot of the Infinity Gauntlet. Admiring the Stone, Thanos proceeded to task his Children with retrieving the Mind and Time Stones from Earth, before rendezvousing with him on Titan. Loki, having remained hidden, offered to aid Thanos and act as a guide on their attack on Earth. However, as he pretended to worship the skeptical Titan, Loki attempted a last-ditch improvised attack to assassinate Thanos with a hidden knife. His attack was unsuccessful, and was anticipated and immediately thwarted by Thanos, who used the Space Stone to freeze Loki mid-attack. In retribution, Thanos held Loki up in the air by the neck, choking him with the Gauntlet. As Loki taunted him one final time, Thanos killed him by snapping his neck, before tossing his corpse down to a vengeful and heartbroken Thor, who could do nothing to stop him. With his job now complete, Thanos used the Power Stone to overload the Statesman with energy, before leaving with his Children with the use of the Space Stone to continue their quest. A weakened and badly wounded Thor held his brother's corpse before the ship violently detonated, leaving Thor and the dead Asgardians floating adrift in space.

Attack on Greenwich Village
"Uh, what is this guy's problem, Mr. Stark?" "Uh, he's from space, he came here to steal a necklace from a wizard."

- Spider-Man and Iron Man

Bruce Banner would crash into the New York Sanctum, just as Doctor Strange and Wong were leaving. Banner would tell them about what happen at the Statesman, Strange would take Banner to find Tony Stark who was in the park with Pepper Potts. Once Stark was brought up to date about the threat of Thanos and the Infinity Stones, the group realized that the android Vision, who had the Mind Stone embedded in his head, would be another target. However, Stark explained that Vision had disappeared two weeks earlier, and that only the fugitive Captain America could possibly find him. Banner insisted that Stark call Rogers, only for Stark to explain to Banner that him and Rogers had fallen out. Banner continued to insist, and convinced Stark to call Rogers by telling him that Thanos would have killed his teammate Thor. However, before Stark could place the call, they were interrupted by the sound of agitation in the streets and debris flying through the air. Leaving the Sanctum to investigate, the four found people fleeing and screaming in panic, as a Q-Ship sent by Thanos had arrived, devastating the surrounding city with powerful winds.

From the inside of a Midtown School of Science and Technology bus leaving for a field trip, Peter Parker saw the Q-Ship from afar. While his friend Ned Leeds provided a distraction, Parker covertly left the vehicle and donned the Spider-Man Suit, swinging back to Manhattan to face the arriving invaders. The Q-Ship was confronted by Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Doctor Strange and Wong. As Stark commanded F.R.I.D.A.Y. to evacuate the surrounding area and mobilize emergency response teams, Doctor Strange cast the Winds of Watoomb, neutralizing the powerful winds created by the Q-Ship.

This action against the craft drew out the Ship's inhabitants, Ebony Maw and Cull Obsidian, members of the Black Order, who descended from the Ship in a tractor beam, confronting the four heroes on the street. The Children of Thanos demanded the Time Stone, kept in the Eye of Agamotto, from Strange, only to be rudely rebuffed and commanded to leave by both Strange and Stark. Frustrated, Maw commanded Obsidian to attack and retrieve the Stone, while Banner unsuccessfully attempted to release the Hulk to aid in the fight at Stark's insistence. Realizing the Hulk would be of no assistance, Stark donned his nanotech Mark L armor, and blasted away Obsidian, astonishing Banner. With Obsidian incapacitated, Maw moved on the offensive, sending the distracted Iron Man flying into the air and directly assaulting Strange and Wong with his telekinetic powers, throwing debris at the Masters. While Wong defended against Maw's attacks, Strange used his Sling Ring to send Banner to safety in the nearby Washington Square Park. Iron Man returned, commanding Strange to also flee and get the Time Stone away from the city, who refused. The Avenger attempted to assault Maw, only to be engaged by Obsidian, who sent Iron Man flying into Washington Square Park, encountering Banner. While Iron Man held off Obsidian to protect Banner, eventually joined by an arriving Spider-Man, Banner continued to attempt to unleash the Hulk, only for the Hulk to directly refuse his commands. On the streets, Maw engaged Strange and Wong, telekinetically throwing a swarm of brick spikes at them. The Masters managed to redirect the attack with their Sling Rings, injuring Maw. Infuriated, Maw incapacitated Wong by bursting a nearby fire hydrant. Strange attempted to restrain Maw with an Eldritch Whip, only for the latter to tackle Strange, telekinetically trapping him in the side of a nearby building. Attempting to directly remove the Time Stone from the Eye, Maw was quickly rebuffed, burned by a magical seal protecting the Relic. Breaking free, Strange attempted to use the Stone against Maw, but was quickly restrained again by cables. Before Maw could kill Strange, he warned that his death would not remove the seal, causing Maw to choke him unconscious instead, choosing to bring him back to the Q-Ship alive. However, the Cloak of Levitation managed to escape the restraints with the unconscious Strange, with an enraged Maw in hot pursuit. As the Cloak fled past the combatants in the park, chased by Maw, Iron Man tasked Spider-Man with rescuing the unconscious Strange as he held off Obsidian. Despite Maw's efforts, Spider-Man managed to grab Strange, only for the both of them, as well as the Cloak, to be caught in the Q-Ship's tractor beam. Maw boarded the Q-Ship with Strange, and immediately prepared to leave Earth's atmosphere. The Cloak managed to stow away aboard the Ship while Spider-Man was left clinging outside the Ship's hull as it ascended. Back on the surface, Obsidian managed to overpower Iron Man, only to be sent through a portal to a barren snowy mountain by Wong before he could finish the downed Avenger. As Obsidian attempted to return, Wong managed to close the portal, severing the former's left arm. In gratitude, Iron Man personally invited Wong to his wedding, before giving chase to the escaping Q-Ship to rescue the captive Strange.

As he pursued the Ship to outer space, he deployed the Iron Spider Armor from the New Avengers Facility to rescue Spider-Man, who was beginning to lose consciousness due to the lack of air. As Spider-Man fell unconscious from the Ship, the Armor managed to catch and surround him, allowing him to regain consciousness. With a final farewell from Iron Man, F.R.I.D.A.Y activated the Armor's in-built parachute to return him safely to the surface, much to Parker's dismay.

As Iron Man boarded the alien craft, he received a desperate call from Pepper Potts, who demanded his whereabouts. Potts became distressed upon learning he was currently on the departing Q-Ship, and beckoned him to return home. However, as the Ship left Earth's atmosphere, the call was lost, and Iron Man's connection with F.R.I.D.A.Y. was severed. Unknown to Stark, Spider-Man had also managed to remain on and stow away aboard the Q-Ship, mere moments before Ebony Maw sent the Ship on an automated route towards Titan to rendezvous with Thanos, unaware that the Ship carried three stowaways.

Back on Earth, Banner managed to find the discarded burner phone left for Stark by Steve Rogers. While Wong returned to the Sanctum to guard it in Strange's stead, Banner decided to call Rogers to notify him of the coming threat on Vision's life.

Attack on Vision
"Give up the stone and she lives."

- Corvus Glaive to Vision

While Ebony Maw and Cull Obsidian attempted to retrieve the Time Stone in New York, Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight went to retrieve the Mind Stone. The current wielder of the Mind Stone, Vision went undercover in Scotland to be with his lover, Scarlet Witch. Both planned to stay together and leave their duties behind. They then learned about the Attack on Greenwich Village but before they could act on it, they were ambushed by Glaive and Midnight. Vision was grievously injured by Glaive which prevented him from fully utilizing his powers. A fierce fight ensued in the streets of Edinburgh as Scarlet Witch and Vision tried to fight off their attacker. Despite the vast powers that both Vision and Scarlet Witch possessed, the Black Order proved to be dangerous fighters and unrelenting foes. Their fight took them to the nearby train station where they were cornered by Glaive and Midnight. Before the Black Order could capture Vision, Captain America, Black Widow and Falcon, having previously been warned by Bruce Banner to find and protect Vision, came to the rescue of their teammates. Glaive and Midnight attempted to fight off the new arrivals but their teamwork and being experienced fighters quickly overwhelmed them. Now outnumbered and Glaive injured during the fight, Midnight quickly retreated with her brother but not before vowing vengeance.

Retrieving Vision and Scarlet Witch, the team headed back to New Avengers Facility to attempt to heal him and figure out how to deal with this new threat. Reuniting with War Machine and Banner and defying Thaddeus Ross' attempts to arrest them, the Avengers decided to try and find a way to remove the Mind Stone without killing Vision. In order to accomplish this task, the team decided to take him to Wakanda where the country's advanced technology and army can assist them.

Ambush in Knowhere
"Reality is often disappointing. That is, it was. Now, reality can be whatever I want." "You knew I would come." "I counted on it. There's something we need to discuss, little one."

- Thanos and Gamora

In Space, Thor managed to survive Thanos' attack and was rescued by the Guardians of the Galaxy, who answered the Statesman’s distress call. Thor informed them of Thanos's plans, deducing that Thanos was headed to Knowhere next to retrieve the Reality Stone, which was entrusted to the Collector after the conclusion of the Second Dark Elf Conflict.

While Thor, Rocket and Groot left for Nidavellir to forge a weapon capable of stopping Thanos, Star-Lord, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora and Mantis decided to track Thanos to Knowhere in an attempt to find and stop him. During the journey, Gamora, who secretly knew the location of the Soul Stone, asked Star-Lord to kill her should she be captured by Thanos to prevent the knowledge she carried from falling into his hands.

Upon arriving at Knowhere, the Guardians of the Galaxy found the entire colony almost completely deserted and untouched. Detecting movement in the third quadrant of the colony, the Guardians landed their ship nearby and began to investigate. As they approached, the Guardians found Thanos brutally interrogating the Collector for the whereabouts of the Reality Stone. Despite Star-Lord's attempts to command the Guardians to hold position, they continued to close in on Thanos, hiding behind the remnants of the Collector's museum to spy on the Mad Titan. Unaware of their presence, Thanos continued to question the Collector, who swore that he had sold the Reality Stone, being unaware of its true nature, although Thanos did not believe him. However, due to having lost his wife Hovat and his daughter Kamaria at the hands of Thanos's campaign, Drax the Destroyer almost compromised the Guardians' position due to his anger, preparing to attack Thanos head-on. Star-Lord attempted to convince him to wait, noting that Thanos did not have the Stone yet, thus they could still take it from him before he noticed. His attempt was unsuccessful, however, with Drax ignoring Quill, prompting Mantis to force him to sleep in order to prevent him blowing their cover.

Unfortunately, the sound of Drax collapsing on the ground drew Thanos's attention anyway, and he threw the Collector into a tank before advancing towards the Guardians. Before Star-Lord could give combat instructions to Gamora and Mantis, Gamora swiftly attacked Thanos without waiting, engaging in melee combat with her sword Godslayer. However, while Thanos managed to destroy Godslayer, Gamora quickly fatally stabbed him with the remains of Godslayer and the switchblade Thanos had offered her as a child. Thanos appeared to quickly bleed out from his injuries, astonishing the other Guardians and the Collector. The Titan pleaded with Gamora, heartbroken that she would murder him with his own gift to her, before succumbing anticlimactically to his injuries, as Gamora cried for his death. Nevertheless, Thanos's voice was still heard in spite of the Titan's apparent death, noting that Gamora's tears indicated she still cared for him to an extent. As the dead Titan and the surrounding Knowhere began to dissolve in a red mist, revealing a burning wasteland, Thanos's trickery was finally revealed: The Titan had already laid waste to Knowhere and retrieved the Reality Stone, conjuring an elaborate illusion using the Stone to lure in his adopted daughter. Thanos soon appeared himself, commenting that while reality was often disappointing, with the power of the Reality Stone, this no longer held true. Indeed, Thanos needed Gamora to disclose the location of the Soul Stone, being the only one who knew its whereabouts, telling her that he counted on their arrival and that they needed to discuss something.

Gamora immediately attempted to attack Thanos, but was quickly restrained. Enraged, Drax broke his cover, attempting to attack Thanos, only for Thanos to simply smirk at Drax and immediately incapacitate him with the Reality Stone, turning him into lifeless bricks. Terrified, Mantis inadvertently revealed herself, causing Thanos to transform her with the Stone as well, cutting her into still-conscious ribbons of flesh, before being confronted by Quill. Thanos recognized Quill as Gamora's lover, who fruitlessly demanded that Thanos release Gamora, threatening to kill him. However, Gamora reminded him of his promise to kill her if she was captured by Thanos. Reluctantly, Quill pointed his Quad Blaster at Gamora, though Thanos was skeptical that Quill would have the courage to follow through on his promise. But, as they confessed their love to each other, Quill finally pulled the trigger. However, the Blaster only fired harmless bubbles - Thanos had preemptively transmuted the blaster's ammunition using the Stone, before transmuting the blaster itself into bubbles. Impressed with Quill for having the courage to do what was necessary, Thanos teleported himself and Gamora away with the Space Stone, leaving an astonished Quill behind with the broken Godslayer, as Drax and Mantis reconstituted themselves in the absence of the Reality Stone's effects.

Rescue of Doctor Strange
"I want to protect the stone." "And I want you to thank me now. Go ahead, I'm listening." "For what? For blasting me into space?" "Who just saved your magical ass?"

- Doctor Strange and Iron Man

Doctor Strange found himself in the captivity of Ebony Maw, aboard a Q-Ship bound to rendezvous with his father Thanos on Titan, while telekinetically immobilized and surrounded by hundreds of alien microsurgery needles. Noticing that Strange is awake, Maw approached him, preparing to begin the torture. He informed Strange that he would be judged harshly by Thanos for bringing Strange to him alive, and so requires Strange to remove the magical seal protecting the Time Stone in the Eye of Agamotto, to allow Maw to retrieve it. With this remark, Maw began to telekinetically stab the microsurgery needles one by one into Strange's body, each inducing terrible pain, while commanding that Strange release the Stone, to no avail. Unbeknownst to Maw, Iron Man and the Cloak of Levitation had stowed away aboard the Q-Ship to rescue Strange and the Time Stone. As they prepared their next move, observing from above, they were surprised by the appearance of Spider-Man, who had also stowed away, much to Stark's horror. As Stark berated the young hero for leaping into a battle way above his level of preparation despite trying to send him home, Parker reasoned that he could not act as a neighborhood defender without a neighborhood to defend, which Thanos threatens to destroy. Giving in to Parker's reasoning, Stark called the young hero in to assess the situation. Thinking quickly, Parker immediately called to mind the movie , and prepared a plan to rescue Strange. Down below on the bridge, Maw continued to torture Strange, who, while under immense pain and duress, remained unyielding to Maw's demands. Before Maw could continue, he was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Iron Man. Maw casually threatened to kill Strange, boasting of the sheer difference in power between them. Iron Man was unfazed, and as part of Parker's plan, fired a missile past Maw, into the wall of the Q-Ship. The missile caused a hull breach, instantly sucking a screaming Maw into the vacuum of space to his death. However, Strange himself was inadvertently caught in the vacuum, and the Cloak unsuccessfully attempted to rescue him. Leaping in, Spider-Man managed to grab Strange, and with aid from his new armor's artificial spider limbs, was able to narrowly pull him to safety, allowing Iron Man to seal the breach using his nanobots.

With the death of Ebony Maw, Stark noted that the Ship was on an automated course bound for an unknown location. Strange insisted that Stark commandeer the Ship to return them and the Time Stone to Earth, although Stark was reluctant. Instead, he suggested continuing on their current course to Thanos, proposing they ambush him on his territory, where he would not be expecting an attack, and to keep his attention away from Earth.

Although initially at odds, Strange reluctantly agreed with Stark's plan, but reminded him that he would prioritize saving the Time Stone over either Stark or Parker's lives, asserting he would easily let either of them die if it means keeping the Stone from Thanos's hands. Satisfied that Strange concurred with his plan, even if reluctantly, Stark prepared for the long journey to Thanos, and officially recruited Parker into the Avengers.

Sacrifice of Gamora
"In order to take the stone, you must lose that which you love. A soul for a soul."

- Stonekeeper to Thanos

After having captured Gamora on Knowhere, Thanos brought her back to Sanctuary II. After having an argument about Thanos' quest with Thanos defending and justifying his crusade and Gamora vehemently opposing it, Thanos revealed to his daughter that he knew that she lied about not finding the Soul Stone. He proved his suspicion true when he showed her the captured Nebula who attempted to assassinate him. Displaying the recorded conversation between them in the past about Gamora's knowledge of the location of the stone, Thanos tortured Nebula and forced Gamora to reveal where the stone was located. Learning that the stone was located in Vormir, Thanos brought Gamora with him to the planet. There they encountered the Stonekeeper, formerly known as the leader of HYDRA, Red Skull. Having abused the Tesseract in past, he was banished to Vormir to keep guard of the Soul Stone as punishment. He explained to the new arrivals that in order to extract the stone, it required a sacrifice; the soul of a loved one. At first, Gamora believed that Thanos has failed that he will never get the stone because he hated everyone. To her surprise and shock, Thanos shred tears in front of Gamora. Having genuinely grown to love her as his daughter, Thanos tearfully apologized to his daughter. Gamora attempted to commit suicide but Thanos turned her knife into bubbles through the use of the Reality Stone. The Titan grabbed his daughter and threw her off the cliff. Having satisfied the demands of the Soul Stone, Thanos was briefly knocked out by the energy of the ritual and woke up to find the Soul Stone in his hands. After inserting the stone into his gauntlet, he left Vormir for his ruined homeworld Titan.

Battle of Titan
"With all six Stones, I could simply snap my fingers. They would all cease to exist. I call that mercy." "And then what?" "I finally rest. And watch the sun rise on a grateful universe. The hardest choices require the strongest wills." "I think you'll find our will equal to yours."

- Thanos and Doctor Strange

The Guardians, acting on a tip from the escaped Nebula, landed on Titan with the aim to ambush Thanos there. Shortly after, the Q-Ship carrying Strange, Iron Man and Spider-Man crash-landed on the barren planet. The Guardians raided the Ship and attacked the Avengers, each believing the other to be working for Thanos. However, after a tense standoff, both parties realized they shared the same goal, before deciding to work together to ambush Thanos, who they expected to be arriving soon. Awaiting Thanos' arrival, Iron Man, Spider-Man and the Guardians attempted to formulate a plan of attack, while Strange activated the Time Stone to view all possible outcomes and futures of the coming battle. Having seen exactly 14,000,605 possible timelines, Strange gravely informed the others that only one timeline ended in Thanos' defeat. Striding through a portal conjured by the Space Stone, Thanos finally arrived on Titan, only to find the barren ruins of Ebony Maw's Q-Ship. The Power, Space, Reality and Soul Stone's gleaming on his Infinity Gauntlet, the warlord was instead greeted by a lone Doctor Strange, sitting on a faraway hill, carrying the Eye of Agamotto. Deducing that Maw had been killed, Thanos resignedly lamented the heavy losses he suffered, saying that his quest extracted a heavy toll but did note that his son had still accomplished his mission of bringing the Time Stone to him. Strange countered, warning Thanos that he may regret that Maw had, in the process, also brought him face-to-face with a Master of the Mystic Arts. Choosing to remain civil with the sorcerer, Thanos ignored the threat, simply asking Strange where he believed Maw had brought him. As Thanos slowly approached, Strange calmly guessed that Titan was his former home. Nodding wistfully in affirmation to Strange, Thanos stopped, and began to reminisce. Using the Reality Stone to craft an illusion of Titan's former beauty to Strange, Thanos explained Titan's fall from grace: Once a beautiful paradise, over time, overpopulation threatened to consume the planet's finite resources and wipe out its entire civilization. Realizing that his people were faced with extinction, Thanos proposed a random, fair genocide to lower the population to safe levels, in order to save those that lived. However, the immorality of his "solution" caused his own people to cast him out, branding him a madman. Nonetheless, Thanos' predictions came to pass, and Titan became the dead, inhospitable graveyard it was now. Sarcastically, Strange hailed Thanos as a prophet, but Thanos retorted, claiming himself instead to be a lone survivor. Strange remained skeptical, continuing to condemn the Titan's motivations as but a mass murder of trillions. Thanos, unwavering, assured Strange that his plan was necessary, asserting that with all six Infinity Stones, a single finger snap would only cause a painless and merciful cessation of existence for half of all life in the universe. Scoffing, Strange stood and questioned the Titan as to his intentions after completing his goal. Thanos smiled mournfully, and voiced his desire to simply retire in peace, while watching the sun rise on a grateful universe. With resignation, the Titan noted that the hardest choices required the strongest wills. Strange countered, entering a combat stance, warning Thanos that their wills would be equal to his.

At this moment, Thanos realized too late that Strange wasn't alone, and had lured the Titan into an ambush. Before he could react, he was immediately crushed underneath a massive piece of a spaceship hull, dropped on him by Iron Man. With a few seconds of respite, the heroes began to emerge from hiding and move into their pre-planned positions, with Star-Lord warning that Thanos would only be infuriated by the initial attack. Using the Power and Reality Stones, the Titan freed himself by violently detonating the debris, before instantly transforming the rubble into an enormous swarm of bats. The swarm quickly set upon Iron Man, forcing the Avenger to flee. However, Thanos' fury was short-lived, and he quickly found himself under a coordinated assault from all sides. Swinging out of reach, Spider-Man fired webbing into Thanos' eyes, blinding him. Leaping from behind, Drax the Destroyer emerged, slashing the Titan's legs with his knives while Doctor Strange closed in. Conjuring a sword from Eldritch Magic, Strange engaged the half-blinded Thanos in brief close combat alongside Drax, buying time for Star-Lord to fly into position. However, Thanos swiftly gained the upper hand, downing Drax with a single punch and disarming Strange, while removing the webbing that blinded him. Nonetheless, Star-Lord quickly took position behind Thanos and began to close in, shooting him with his Quad Blasters to gain his attention. Running on energy platforms conjured by Strange to dodge blasts from the Power Stone, Star-Lord managed to discreetly plant an explosive on Thanos' back. Taking a moment to quickly insult Thanos and escape through a portal conjured by Strange, the Guardian detonated the explosive, briefly stunning the Titan. The distraction allowed the Cloak of Levitation to swoop in, wrapping itself around the Infinity Gauntlet and preventing Thanos from activating it. Using his Sling Ring, Strange summoned Spider-Man to attack Thanos, leaping through conjured portals to repeatedly attack the Titan from all sides and preventing him from removing the Cloak. However, the assault was short-lived, as the angered Thanos grabbed and furiously pinned Spider-Man to the ground, before hurling the Avenger at Strange, knocking them both to the ground.

As Thanos forcefully ripped the Cloak from the Gauntlet unimpeded, he was bombarded by a renewed assault from Iron Man, who rained missiles down on the Titan. Unfazed, and with the Gauntlet freed, Thanos activated the Power and Space Stones. In a second, the explosive energy of Stark's missiles was absorbed by the Gauntlet and redirected at Iron Man in a concentrated beam of fire, blasting the Avenger far away into a spaceship husk. Recovered, Spider-Man swung in, attempting to pull the Gauntlet away from Thanos using a web, only to be pulled in and struck once again. Suddenly, before Thanos could react, he was rammed from behind by a Necrocraft, piloted by Nebula, who had escaped her captivity. Unfazed, Thanos coldly greeted Nebula, who angrily reproached him for not killing her. As Thanos coldly dismissed the act as being a "waste of parts", Nebula furiously attacked Thanos with her electric baton. Demanding he reveal Gamora's whereabouts, Nebula managed to briefly hold her ground against Thanos in close combat, but was quickly beaten down. However, Nebula's arrival proved to be a major turning point in favor of the heroes, buying time for the group to mobilize. Taking advantage of the opening Nebula created, Doctor Strange quickly cast a binding spell on Thanos, restraining the Gauntlet with crimson bands of energy. Drax ran in, tackling and pinning Thanos' legs, forcing the Titan to his knees. Flying back into the field, Star-Lord launched a Gravity Mine at Thanos using his Blasters, ensnaring his right arm. As Spider-Man anchored Thanos' shoulders back using his webbing and his armor's spider-limbs, a recovered Iron Man swooped in, taking Strange's place to hold the Gauntlet. With his hands freed and Thanos barely immobilized, Strange used his Sling Ring to open a portal and drop the waiting Mantis on Thanos' head, before casting the Bands to restrain his right arm. Using her empathic powers, Mantis briefly struggled with Thanos, before managing to barely force the Titan into a subdued, trance-like state.

With Thanos barely restrained, the group began to execute the final step of their plan. As Mantis beckoned the others to hurry before Thanos broke her hold, Iron Man and Spider-Man moved to forcefully pull the Gauntlet from the Titan's hand. Flying in, Star-Lord approached and taunted the half-conscious Thanos, before demanding the location of Gamora. At this remark, Thanos began to react in anguish, with Mantis sensing that he was mourning. Nebula began to realize in horror and sadness that he was in fact, mourning Gamora - having sacrificed her for the Soul Stone. In denial, Star-Lord angrily asked Thanos to tell him that Gamora was alive, only for Thanos to lament that he had no choice but to kill her, confirming Nebula's suspicions. Enraged, and despite Iron Man's attempts to restrain him, Star-Lord began to ruthlessly attack Thanos without thinking, inadvertently breaking Mantis' control over the Titan. Freed from his trance and now truly furious, Thanos quickly escaped his restraints, throwing Mantis and Strange away, and brutally overpowering the group. Spider-Man moved to rescue Mantis, while Thanos instantly knocked out Star-Lord, Drax and Nebula with a single wild shockwave from the Power Stone. Rebuffing a desperate assault from Iron Man, Thanos then turned to Titan's nearby moon. Using the Power and Space Stones, Thanos immediately pulverized the moon's surface, before furiously hurling its fragments down on his opponents as a hail of meteors. Spider-Man successfully saved the unconscious Guardians from the falling fragments, but Iron Man was quickly crushed under an oncoming meteor, briefly incapacitating him. Thanos soon confronted a recovered Doctor Strange, who had managed to dodge the debris with the Cloak of Levitation. The two began a ferocious duel, with Strange launching the first strike, casting the Bolts of Balthakk at Thanos. Leaping into the air to avoid them, Thanos retaliated with a blast of energy from the Power Stone. Strange countered, opening a gateway to the Mirror Dimension to absorb the beam, before pushing the gateway at Thanos in a bid to trap him. Thanos responded by destroying the gateway with the Power Stone, before throwing the remnants back at Strange in the form of a destructive black hole with the Space Stone. Thinking quickly, Strange cast a spell to transmute the singularity into a swarm of blue butterflies, briefly confusing Thanos. Taking advantage of the opening, Strange cast duplicates of himself, splitting into an army of magical clones of himself to restrain Thanos with hundreds of Eldritch Whips. However, Thanos immediately regained the upper hand, activating the Soul and Power Stones to instantly destroy the false Images and briefly sunder Strange's Astral Form from his body. With his opponent staggered, Thanos activated the Space and Reality Stones, pulling Strange to his hand before he could react, winning the duel. Admitting that while he was impressed by Strange's mastery over Magic, Thanos deduced that, as the sorcerer had never once attempted to use the Time Stone to his advantage, Strange had hidden the Stone, using the Eye as a decoy. Confirming his suspicions, Thanos took and crushed the Eye of Agamotto, revealing it to be empty, before throwing Strange away. However, before Thanos could finish Strange and look for the Time Stone, Iron Man, being the final Avenger standing, restrained the Gauntlet using a nanotech clamp, before confronting the Titan. To the Avenger's surprise, Thanos recognized and called him by his name of Stark, before noting that they were both "cursed with knowledge." Unfazed, Iron Man blamed Thanos himself as his curse, and attacked him first, blasting him with missiles. With Thanos distracted, Iron Man began attacking him relentlessly with his nanotech suit, kicking the Titan with his enhanced boosters before he could recover. Anchoring his feet to the ground, Iron Man immediately struck Thanos again with repulsor-boosted hammers, beating him back into a wall. However, Thanos was unfettered, using his bare hand to tear apart Iron Man's helmet by surprise and punch him to the ground, with the Avenger being barely able to construct a new helmet to block the strike. With Iron Man dazed, Thanos quickly ripped the clamp from the Gauntlet, and immediately blasted the downed Avenger with a concentrated beam from the Power Stone. Barely recovering, Iron Man managed to block and sidestep the blast by forming a shield. Boosting towards Thanos in a renewed assault, the Avenger swiftly pinned the Gauntlet to the ground using a foot clamp, before twisting to strike him with a repulsor-empowered fist, hard enough to make the Titan bleed for the first time in the entire battle. Unfazed, Thanos simply taunted the Avenger, for giving so much labor and struggle only to shed a single drop of blood. Immediately, Thanos effortlessly ripped the Gauntlet free from Iron Man's hold, flipping the Avenger onto his back. With Iron Man on the ground, Thanos began to brutally beat the downed Avenger with his fists, breaking off more and more of his armor with each strike. With Iron Man helpless to resist, Thanos followed with a point-blank blast with the Power Stone to the Avenger's abdomen, sending him flying and heavily damaging his armor. Desperate and missing much of the upper half of his armor, Iron Man attempted to hold off the advancing Thanos with his repulsors, relocating the nanites in his leg armor to form new arm repulsors, to no avail. Closing in, Thanos began beating the Avenger once again, destroying his helmet. Stark attempted to defend and counterattack with a left punch, only for Thanos to grab and trap his left hand. In a last-ditch attempt to fight back, Stark immediately shifted the nanites in his left arm to his other arm to form a sword, and wildly stabbed at the Titan. However, Thanos simply tore the sword from Stark's hand, and ruthlessly stabbed him in the abdomen with it, ending the fight. Cradling the injured Stark's head in his hand, Thanos revealed his respect for the Avenger, genuinely impressed by his fearlessness and determination. Nevertheless, he prepared to kill him, only for Doctor Strange to intervene, offering the Time Stone in exchange for Stark's life, much to Stark's surprise. Though initially skeptical, Thanos agreed after warning Strange not to double-cross him. Despite Stark's pleas to not give in, Strange revealed the Time Stone, having disguised it as a star in Titan's sky, and surrendered it to Thanos.

Taking the Stone, Thanos inserted it into the thumb slot of the Gauntlet, leaving him with only one more to collect: the Mind Stone. Suddenly, his respite was interrupted by an awakened and enraged Star-Lord, who began to wildly fire at him, but Thanos remained unfazed and activated the Space Stone and vanished through a portal. A horrified Star-Lord, realizing the gravity of the situation, asked if they had just lost the battle, while a resigned Stark, healing his wound using the last of his nanites, asked Strange why he would give up the Stone. As they awaited the inevitable, Strange could only inform Stark that they were now in the endgame.

Battle of Wakanda
"Thanos will have that stone." "That's not gonna happen." "You are in Wakanda now. Thanos will have nothing but dust and blood." "We... have blood to spare."

- Proxima Midnight, Captain America, and Black Panther

Meanwhile, the Avengers led by Steve Rogers arrived in Wakanda and were greeted by T'Challa. Bringing the wounded Vision to T'Challa's sister, Shuri, she figured out a way to remove the stone without killing him. Unfortunately, before they could begin extracting the stone, Thanos' army led by Midnight and Obsidian arrived near Wakanda's borders. Towering spaceships landed at the nearby forest. T'Challa ordered for the city to be evacuated, the preparation of the city's defenses and for Captain America to be given a vibranium shield. While Scarlet Witch stayed behind to guard Vision, the rest of the Avengers joined Black Panther and the Wakandan army to face the approaching invaders. The Wakandan army consisted of the Dora Milaje, the Jabari Tribe and the Border Tribe. Bruce Banner joined the battle by donning the Hulkbuster Armor. They were also joined by Winter Soldier who have since recovered from his condition. After some brief confrontation and negotiation between Black Panther and the Black Order, the commanders returned to their respective armies where the battle immediately commenced. At first, the force field around the city prevented the monstrous Outriders from entering in mass. The Avengers and their allies quickly dispatched the few who managed to force their way through the force field. However, the situation changed when they began circling the force field. Knowing that they risk getting flanked and risking the safety of Vision, Black Panther ordered for the opening of their section of the force field and funneling the mass of Outriders against them. With the opening of their section of the force field, the numerous Outriders charged to face the allied army. Making a charge of their own, the Avengers and their allies faced the alien army in battle. Although they managed to stall them for a time, the outnumbered allied army and the ferocity of the Outriders began to overwhelm them. The situation grew more desperate as Captain America, Black Panther, White Wolf and Banner found themselves mobbed and forced to the ground by the attacker.

However, the tide of the battle was turned by the timely arrival of Thor. Joined by Rocket Raccoon and Groot as well with a newly forged weapon, Stormbreaker, Thor immediately unleashed his powers against the Outriders and destroying vast swamp of the army. However, the defenders' relief was short-lived - to turn the tide back in their favor, the Outrider dropships suddenly released a force of Threshers - bladed war machines resembling enormous circular sawblades. Burrowing underneath the Wakandan barrier, the Threshers wreaked havoc across the Wakandan army, forcing T'Challa to order a retreat. Observing from Shuri's lab, Scarlet Witch realized that the defenders were once again outmatched. Abandoning her post in the lab to assist on the battlefield, the Avenger used her powers to stop and disable a wave of Threshers, rescuing Black Widow and Okoye. Spotting an approaching force of Outriders, Scarlet Witch threw the Threshers into the Outriders, crushing them instantly. Despite Maximoff's reinforcement bolstering the defenders, her intervention proved to be a crucial blunder - unbeknownst to the defenders, Corvus Glaive was in fact alive and well. The entire battle and the Thresher reinforcements were merely a diversion to draw out Maximoff, leaving Vision unguarded. Once informed by Proxima Midnight that Maximoff was on the battlefield, Glaive launched his attack, having covertly infiltrated Shuri's lab. Despite Ayo and Shuri's attempts to hold Glaive off, they were quickly incapacitated. Vision then furiously tackled Glaive, both falling out into the surrounding forests near the battlefield. Realizing that Vision was compromised, Falcon notified the Avengers before being downed by an Outrider, with Banner and Maximoff moving to assist Vision. Maximoff was ambushed and nearly killed by Midnight, but was rescued by Widow and Okoye, who engaged Midnight in a lengthy two-on-one melee battle. Midnight began to gain the upper hand, preparing to kill a downed Widow. Maximoff, however, managed to grab Midnight and throw her into the path of a passing Thresher overhead, causing Midnight to be gruesomely shredded. Meanwhile, Glaive continued to assault the weakened Vision, joined by Cull Obsidian. Banner quickly arrived to assist, engaging Obsidian in a ferocious duel. Falling into a nearby waterfall, Banner called for reinforcements to stop Glaive as he fought. However, Obsidian began to gain the upper hand, severing the Hulkbuster's left arm. In response, Banner attempted to bring out the Hulk to turn the tables, to no avail. Frustrated, Banner resolved to handle Obsidian himself, managing to trap the latter's arm in the severed Hulkbuster arm. Activating the arm's repulsor thrusters, Banner sent Obsidian flying into the Wakandan energy barrier, where he violently exploded and was killed. In the forests above, Glaive continued to torment Vision, stabbing and further crippling the android. However, Vision was saved by the sudden arrival of Steve Rogers, who beckoned Vision to run while he held off Glaive. Rogers managed to disarm Glaive, but was quickly overpowered. Before Glaive could kill the Avenger, however, he was suddenly impaled from behind and killed by Vision, having taken and used Glaive's own weapon against him.

With the remaining members of the Black Order defeated, the leaderless Outriders were routed, fleeing back to their dropships in a desperate attempt to escape. However, Thor and the Wakandan air force gave pursuit, destroying the dropships one by one as they attempted to flee to space. With the Outrider army utterly defeated, Maximoff arrived at Vision's location, who suddenly felt a piercing pain from the Mind Stone - their respite was short-lived, as Thanos was coming for the Stone himself. As unnatural winds began to blow, signalling Thanos' arrival, Rogers sensed the incoming threat, and ordered the other Avengers to converge on his position to assist. Suddenly, a portal opened, and Thanos himself stepped through it, arriving on Wakanda. With the Power, Space, Reality, Soul and Time Stones mounted on the Infinity Gauntlet, the warlord stared at the Mind Stone, his final objective, and at the heroes that stood between him and his goal. As Banner realized and confirmed his identity, Thanos began slowly advancing towards Vision. Rogers, with only a final reminder to stay sharp, rallied the Avengers to hold Thanos off for as long as they could. Banner made the first strike, leaping furiously at Thanos, only for him to casually phase Banner out of space using the Space Stone. The Avenger tumbled helplessly through Thanos into a solid rock cliff, where he became imprisoned. As Thanos blasted Rogers aside with a shockwave from the Power Stone, T'Challa leaped for Thanos' throat. However, Thanos merely grabbed the King in mid-air by the throat, brutally punching him into the ground. Falcon attempted to provide air support, only to be incapacitated and grounded by the Space Stone. Knowing that the Avengers were no match for Thanos, Vision pleaded with Maximoff to destroy the Mind Stone, who refused. Vision desperately insisted and reasoned with her, stressing that they had run out of time and that destroying the Mind Stone immediately was the only way to thwart Thanos' plans. As Vision reassured her that he would feel no pain from its destruction, Maximoff reluctantly complied, and began pooling her energy directly into the stone.

As Maximoff began the process of destroying the Stone, Thanos continued to steadily advance, defeating the Avengers one by one. Using the Space Stone to deflect War Machine's shots, the Titan simply crushed the Avenger's armor telekinetically, flinging him aside. Barnes arrived to reinforce, firing on Thanos, who simply blasted him aside with the Power Stone. Black Widow and Okoye moved to replace Barnes, with the latter throwing her spear at Thanos' head. Blasting the spear and Okoye aside with the Power Stone, Thanos used the Reality Stone to trap Black Widow in a cage of rock before she could react. Groot attempted to restrain Thanos using his vines, to no avail. As Maximoff continued to pool energy into the Stone, Thanos was engaged once again by Rogers, who managed to briefly stall Thanos in close combat. Despite managing to briefly hold back the Infinity Gauntlet, Rogers was finally downed with a direct punch to the head, leaving only Maximoff to defend Vision. Desperately, Maximoff held Thanos back with a beam of energy to stall him further, who continued to slowly advance while blocking the beam with the Space Stone. However, he was too late - with a final confession of love to Maximoff, Vision peacefully shut his eyes as the Stone's structure began to destabilize, and finally shatter in a violent explosion, disintegrating itself and Vision completely. Maximoff had succeeded, and the Mind Stone was finally destroyed. As Maximoff lay on the ground, heartbroken, Thanos could only stare at the barren crater where Vision had once remained. However, remaining calm, he comforted Maximoff, sympathizing with her pain at having to sacrifice what she loved most, having previously sacrificed his dearest daughter, Gamora, for the Soul Stone. Maximoff bitterly retorted, claiming he knew nothing of her pain, to which Thanos replied that he had lost more than she could ever know. However, noting that there was no time to mourn, Thanos activated the Time Stone, using its powers to reverse Vision's destruction, restoring the Mind Stone and rendering Maximoff's actions moot. Before she could stop him, Thanos easily flung her aside, taking Vision by the throat and ripping the Mind Stone from his head, killing him a second time. Flinging his lifeless corpse aside, Thanos inserted the Stone into the Gauntlet. As the Stones' combined energies flowed through his body, Thanos admired the Gauntlet, having finally completed his quest. However, before he could activate it, he was immediately attacked by a vengeful Thor, in a last-ditch attempt to stop him and avenge Loki, Heimdall, and everyone else Thanos had killed, driving him into the ground with a powerful lightning blast. Regaining his footing, Thanos unleashed an energy blast using all six Stones on Thor, who powered Stormbreaker with all his electrical power and then hurled it with all his might at Thanos' torso. The power of the fully enchanted axe quickly overwhelmed the beam, and Thanos could do nothing to stop Stormbreaker from burying itself deep in his chest. Landing in front of the severely injured Thanos, Thor proceeded to vengefully gloat to the Titan, reminding Thanos of his promise to kill him while forcing Stormbreaker deeper into his chest, causing him further pain and injury. However, despite being grievously wounded and in severe pain, the Mad Titan weakly taunted Thor for not aiming for the head for an instantaneous kill. Thor, realizing his mistake too late, could do nothing but yell in horror as Thanos mustered the strength to simply snap his fingers anyway. The Gauntlet was activated in a blinding flash of energy, and Thanos' goal of killing half of all life in the universe was finally achieved.

Aftermath
"Did you do it?" "Yes." "What did it cost?" "...Everything."

- Gamora and Thanos

Thanos briefly passed out, and to his great surprise, reawakened in a vast orange void, a world conjured by the Soul Stone, without the Gauntlet or his fatal injury. Turning to find a lone Zen-Whoberi archway, Thanos found a reflection of Gamora's spirit standing underneath, as the child he had first met many years ago. Gamora calmly asked if he accomplished his mission, to which a resigned Thanos replied yes. Realizing with horror that he had finally succeeded but resigned to having been defeated, Gamora asked what his actions had cost. Smiling sadly, Thanos solemnly admitted that his quest had cost him everything. Regaining consciousness, Thanos returned to his body in Wakanda, the Gauntlet and his left arm scorched and burned by the immense release of energy. Seeing no apparent change, Thor furiously questioned Thanos about what he had done. Thanos, astonished but nevertheless knowing that his goal was completed anyway, teleported away with the Space Stone without a word, leaving only a confused Thor and a bloody Stormbreaker falling to the ground.

Decimation
The consequences of Thanos' actions quickly became apparent, as slowly, half of all life in the universe disintegrated into ashes: As Rogers questioned Thor as to Thanos' whereabouts, Barnes suddenly crumbled into dust in front of Rogers. M'Baku could only watch with horror as Wakandan soldiers around him began to fade. T'Challa, attempting to help Okoye up and encourage her to fight, fell into ashes before her eyes. As Okoye desperately yelled for her King, Rocket tearfully watched Groot fade away, weakly calling for his father to help him. Kneeling over Vision's lifeless body, Maximoff peacefully vanished into dust. Hidden in the long grass, Falcon disintegrated as Rhodes called out to him, not realizing his companion was already gone. The remaining survivors could do nothing but stand in shock, unable to do anything but accept the reality of Thanos' victory and the consequences it had for them and the rest of the universe. On Titan, in the aftermath of their defeat by Thanos, the battered combatants were regrouping. Mantis suddenly disintegrated after sensing the coming danger, only to be followed by Drax, Star-Lord, and Strange, who informed Stark that there was “no other way”. Parker, upon realizing that he was fading away as well, clutched onto Stark and tearfully pleaded to live, only to eventually disintegrate in Stark’s arms. As a distraught Stark sat down and mourned the loss of his allies, Nebula, the only other survivor on Titan, could only tell him that Thanos has finally achieved his goal. In Atlanta, Nick Fury and Maria Hill witnessed the power of the Gauntlet claim the lives of the civilians around them, plunging the city into chaos. As Hill disintegrated before Fury's eyes, the former Director hurried to retrieve his last resort, an intergalactic transmitter. Realizing he was disintegrating as well, Fury managed to transmit a last-ditch distress call to a distant Captain Marvel before crumbling to dust. Elsewhere, many prominent others, including Betty Ross and Sif became victims of the snap, fading away as well. In San Francisco, Scott Lang, Hank Pym, Janet van Dyne and Hope van Dyne are testing a new portable Quantum Realm teleporter to collect Quantum healing materials to help Ava Starr with her treatment. After Scott finishes collecting the healing material inside the Quantum Realm, he requests to be pulled back. However, Scott gets no response, as Hank, Janet and Hope are disintegrated by Thanos' actions, leaving Scott stranded in the Quantum Realm.

As a result of Thanos' actions, a State of National Emergency was declared. As the effects of his mass genocide took hold across the universe, Thanos returned to a tranquil farm on a distant planet, his wounds healed, and his armor hung up on a nearby scarecrow. Finally at peace, he smiled to himself in relief, having finally succeeded in his goal, and calmly watched the sun rise on what he saw as a grateful universe.

Appearances
In chronological order:
 * Avengers: Infinity War
 * Avengers: Endgame Prelude (concurrent events)
 * Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * Season Five
 * The One Who Will Save Us All (concurrent events; mentioned)
 * Ant-Man and the Wasp (mid-credits scene)