Inside Charles's base-
After listening to Thor's explanation, everyone present showed worried expressions.
Tsunade spoke up, "I will go with you tomorrow morning."
At that moment, Ginny said, "Red Queen, display the situation in Greenwich."
"Yes, Miss Secretary!" the AI responded.
In the next second, a panoramic image appeared in front of everyone, showing a large square surrounded by four tall buildings, with a river running along one side.
Seeing this, Ginny remarked, "If we're going to fight here tomorrow morning, we'll need to evacuate the civilians in advance."
"Should we notify the British government and the local S.H.I.E.L.D. office?"
Thor added, "Malekith's mothership still has many Dark Elf soldiers. We need to evacuate the crowd beforehand."
Charles thought for a moment, then said, "Let's send our people there and lock down the area in advance."
"As for the enemy, leave Malekith to me."
Thor frowned and responded, "Charles, let's fight him together. After all, Malekith already has the Aether."
Charles replied, "Thor, Malekith may still have a cursed warrior with him, and I'll need you to hold them off."
Although Charles was confident that Algrim was the last of the Dark Elf cursed warriors, he decided to prepare for any surprises.
Charles didn't deploy any ninjas to take on Malekith, knowing that the Aether gave Malekith immense power, and most ninjas, despite their high attack power, had low defenses.
This could easily result in casualties, so he didn't want to waste valuable ninja resources.
Turning to Ginny, Charles said, "Ginny, mobilize our forces to secure the battle site."
"As for S.H.I.E.L.D. and the British government, there is no need to inform them."
Charles knew that Malekith's plan would unfold quickly once he arrived and that he wouldn't waste time on large-scale attacks before activating the Aether.
There simply wouldn't be enough time to negotiate deals or request assistance.
By the time any formalities were sorted out, Malekith would either be dead or the universe destroyed. Besides, Charles had already obtained what he wanted from Odin.
Ginny immediately mobilized the werewolf army, and Charles used the Space Stone to open a portal, sending them all to Greenwich to secure the area.
…
The next day-
Greenwich was quiet. As the designated battleground, it had already been locked down by Ginny's werewolf forces.
Thor and Charles stood in the center of the square. Thor swung his Mjolnir and asked, "When will the enemy arrive?"
Charles looked up at the sky, noticing strange phenomena forming, and said, "They're coming."
Just as he finished speaking, the massive mothership of the Dark Elves appeared from the riverbank, moving toward the center of the square. It only stopped when it had fully occupied the area.
On the outskirts, Ginny watched the enormous T-shaped ship, stunned.
"It's so huge," she exclaimed.
John Wick shook his head, "Their sense of aesthetics is awful. It's hideous."
Wesley agreed, "That design is completely impractical."
The ship finally came to a halt, and its doors opened. Malekith, accompanied by his soldiers, descended from the vessel.
Malekith looked at Thor and Charles standing before him and sneered, "Asgardians, why did you come all this way? Death is already knocking at your door."
Clearly, Malekith had mistaken Charles for an Asgardian. As he spoke, more and more Dark Elf soldiers poured out of the mothership.
Charles looked at Malekith and said, "I've come to send you to meet Death."
Malekith, still walking toward Charles and Thor, replied, "Your universe should never have existed..."
Just as Malekith was about to continue his monologue, Charles instantly activated his Mangekyō Sharingan: "Tsukuyomi!"
In an instant, Malekith was pulled into a strange, unfamiliar space. He looked around, only to realize that he was completely immobilized.
"Where is this place?" he asked in shock.
Charles appeared before him, his gaze cold as he said, "I hope your willpower is as strong as the cursed warrior's body."
"Moonfall!" Charles declared, forming a single-hand seal.
A red moon hanging in the sky began to descend toward Malekith. He tried to summon the Aether to defend himself, but he found he couldn't react; his entire body was paralyzed.
"Ahhh!" Malekith screamed as the red moon rapidly fell, bringing with it a fiery glow and an overwhelming pressure.
In the Tsukuyomi world, Malekith's spirit was crushed again and again, each time being reformed, only to be shattered once more.
He endured 36 hours of relentless mental torment under the crushing moon.
Even with his long lifespan, Malekith's spirit was severely damaged by the experience.
Though 36 hours had passed in the illusion, in the real world, it was only an instant.
As Malekith's mind returned to his body, his legs buckled, and he nearly collapsed.
"Amaterasu!" Charles unleashed his right eye's power, summoning the black, unquenchable flames of Amaterasu. The black fire instantly engulfed Malekith.
Thor, standing nearby with his hammer, was stunned for a moment. Just seconds ago, Malekith had been confidently boasting, but now he was crumpling to the ground, engulfed in black flames.
Realizing that Charles had initiated the attack, Thor swung Mjolnir and hurled it toward the Dark Elf soldiers behind Malekith.
"Aaahh!" Malekith screamed in agony as the black flames burned him relentlessly.
"AHHH!" he roared, and the Aether surged out from within him, creating a barrier that separated him from the black flames.
With a wave of his hand, the flames were dispersed onto the ground.
"You treacherous attacker, die!" Malekith shouted in rage, hurling the Aether, now shaped into black spikes, toward Charles and Thor.
"Earth Style: Mud Wall!" Charles quickly summoned a defensive wall.
"Boom!" The mud wall shattered instantly, and Thor was sent flying by the impact. Charles, however, managed to dodge the attack.
"Your power is even weaker than I thought," Charles mocked.
"The Aether is wasted in your hands..."
Though his words were taunting, they were also true.
The Aether, one of the Infinity Stones, could have easily nullified Amaterasu, just as Thanos had done by converting the flames into harmless intangible matter.
Malekith's crude usage of the Reality Stone was glaringly inefficient, making the battle easier than Charles had anticipated.
Infuriated by Charles's words, Malekith crossed his hands and unleashed a swarm of crystalline shards, which scattered like a rain of deadly projectiles, covering the area and aiming at both Charles and Thor.