Chapter 136: CHAPTER 134 - DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOOD AND BAD, HERO AND VILLAIN
You can find +15 chapters ahead on my patreøn
Patreøn.com/QuackVader
########################
Ebony Maw, mostly called The Maw by those who could say his name, snarled in anger as his body shook in profound fear as he understood what was happening just a second after the explosions took place.
It wasn't the thought of someone infiltrating the Sanctuary that terrified him to no end, no. While that was an unimaginable failure on his part, what shook him to the core however was…
"Maw." -
The Maw immediately fell on his knees as the face of his sire was projected up. If he could sweat, he would have been drenched in it as soon as the projection came on.
His lord, master, and the true chosen, Thanos – The Mad Titan.
"My imperial sire, this one has become unworthy in his negligence a-and… barbarians have infiltrated your castle. I am ashamed by the magnitude of my inefficaciousness, regret-filled as I plead your magnanimity to allow me eviscerate these infidels before I carry out any punishment you deem right. I will lay down my life just to be graced with the chance to correct my mistakes…"
The temperature in the room dropped several degrees below zero at the defeating silence as Thanos' eyes looked down on Ebony Maw.
"… This will be your last disappointment, Maw."
The projection flickered off with those last words of Thanos but to Maw it felt as if he just lost his life's purpose as his greatest fears were materialized.
His father's disappointment.
To Ebony Maw whose entire being was dedicated to faithfully serving Thanos and perfectly carrying out every order that left his mouth, the very act of earning his father's disappointment was the same as being thrown into an abyss of despair.
Not just his mind, but his sense of self that worshiped Thanos with his very being shook in great rage, regret and fear.
He stood up while grinding his teeth so hard that they would have sparked otherwise. Raising his head, he saw the shaking guards who were diligently carrying out their task and the hollowing void he was feeling in his soil grew larger.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
A flick of his hands severed the heads of the six guards from their body and only after that could he take a breath, although a very labored one.
His eyes were bloodshot as he swiped the screen in front of him to identify those daring intruders and his anger peaked over the threshold when he saw that they were only two of them.
The actions of two blind monkeys caused his father to express his disappointment for him.
-
"Listen, all you wastrels. Two intruders dared sully our lord's sanctuary while you wallowed lazily in your negligence. Bring those intruders to the father's feet in the next ten minutes or lose your heads alongside them." Though he spoke softly, his voice was carried to every corner of the ship, filling the hearts of tens of thousands of aliens and monsters with dreadful trepidation, and so they pounced towards where the intruders were, not caring if they stepped on one another.
°°°°°°°
[Vision POV]
Cull Obsidian was currently brandishing two axes against Sif who was expertly parrying and counterattacking the monster's greater strength without losing any ground or momentum.
Dealing with a Black Order and also with the increasing horde of Outriders and footsoldiers at the same time was no longer a show of strength but of pure skill.
"Take care of that guy fast! There are more skillful warriors heading this way." I said as I punched a soundwave that blew the bodies of those in front of me apart.
Cull Obsidian's only advantage over Sif was his greater strength that were easily leagues above her own, which means she's more likely to expend more energy when fighting him than she should have.
I waved my hand and the path behind Sif that was now crawling with crazed monsters was sealed up. For however long it holds up that is.
I left Sif there, a sumptuous bait for the crazed monsters that were now crawling in every corner of the ship.
[Initiating standby task: Assimilation and override of foreign system's mainnet]
[Notice Task progression slowed down due to an unidentified external influence]
[Manual action is needed to complete the ongoing task: Assimilation and Override]
'The layout is shifting. Talk about upping the difficulty.'
Throwing away the live kebab I made, my telekinetic hold briefly halted Cull Obsidian's movements which Sif capitalized on and cleanly severed his head with a clean arc that also killed those too close behind her.
"Thank you." She said after making quick work of the remaining Outriders and footmen.
'So she noticed.' I nodded at her while also taking note of the tiny invisible steam her body was releasing.
"I'm going straight for Maw. Do you-"
"Leave this to me, Simons. Unless Thanos himself comes, I promise you that no one will get past me to the control center even if it costs me my last breath." Her voice was laced with a heavy conviction that I decided against saying anything to it.
I started ripping apart metals and stones that stood in my way to Maw, while Sif followed closely behind by using the rubbles I left in my wake as platforms to support her balance while her sword weaved erratically and dissected any straggler unfortunate enough to come near her.
Even while flying, I could feel the tremors that got slightly stronger with every passing second as a literal sea of blood-starved monsters continued making their way towards us.
'First, take care of Maw and acquire the ship's mainnet control. Second, face a Time Stone-wielding Thanos and win.'
I increased my speed towards the control center, leaving Sif in the dust until she disappeared, while blasting through anything that came in between my straight-pathed trajectory.
Energy blasters and turrets tried slowing me down but they had zero effects on me and exploded into bits as I zoomed past them towards the control center finally in my sights only for some long strange crystals to fly at me.
They easily pierced through my magnetic and hard light barrier when I tried flying past them, forcing me to slow down a bit to dodge them but never fully stopping.
I felt Maw's telekinetic wave burst out from the room; he slowly started making his way outside in calm gated steps.
"Hear me, mongrel-"
BOOOOOM!
A terrifying explosion engulfed the live action Squidward, effectively ending his life before he could give any of his crazed fanatic speech.
I stepped inside the control center and looked at what remained of Thanos' most dangerous child – less than 15% of his body was still anatomically attached, with most of it being his head – and lifted him towards me and grabbed his head that I specifically tried leaving intact.
Unlike what I normally do, i.e copying the memories I need, I completely swallowed Maw's mind, ego, memories and all, and locked it inside the Mind Stone until everything was over.
"I don't know if I should be impressed or livid at what you've done to my home." I heard a deep calm voice behind me and turned to welcome my guest after flinging Maw's remains to the side.
"Thanos." It was more of a definitive observation than actually observing the giant of a titan that was well over a head taller than the Hulk, and just as muscular.
"Hmm. You know me, but I don't know you." He was decked in armor and his hand held the same double-ended blade u remember him using in the cinematics.
"Vision." I said.
"Vision huh? How ironic." He chuckled as if hearing a joke no one else did. "I reckon they call you a hero where you are from. Vision – fate's foretelling of a promised future, good and bad alike, all in equal measure. But I guess they call you 'Vision' because they feel you're the good part, almost as if believing that there is no bad part in their poorly delusional need to hold up a righteous hero above their heads, only to then turn around and martyr him when he grows to big to control… and yet, they call me-"
"A Tyrant." I said, both of us taking our time as we sized up the other.
The laugh he gave at that almost sounded like a sad one. Almost.
"The Mad Titan they called me." He looked at me as if he wanted my genuine answer on the question he asked next. "Tell me, why do they call you a hero, and me a villain, when all you do is what they want for calling you a hero, to please them, while they call me mad and a tyrant when I only do what is necessary, to ensure they continue surviving? Tell me, why?"
Regular Thanos issues? I absolutely have no idea but maybe it wouldn't hurt figuring out what this version's deal is.
But even if I wanted to answer the question, it wasn't like it was an easy one. Thanos on the other hand, patiently waited for me to arrive at my own well thought out answer.
And mine was this;
"Good and bad – both exist in a very delicate balance, easily swayed by the slightest action we make. With that in mind, I think it ultimately boils down to perception. Since everyone is intrinsically capable of good and bad and can tell the difference between the two of them, the defining point becomes how people react to your actions, tipping the scale."
"Since everyone knows a good act and a bad act, if more people accept your actions, calling it good and tilting the scales heavily to the 'good' side, I think it's then safe to say that your actions are good ones – the correct ones."
We both remained silent after that until a soft whisper from Thanos broke the tender quiet. "I see."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone