---
Location: Ural Mountains, Russia — Midnight
The sky above the ruined steel mill crackled with unnatural static. Hann stood among the ruins, the Nine Rings orbiting his forearm like quiet moons. Snow whispered across scorched concrete. His wound from Master Ren had begun to scab over, though his muscles still throbbed with dull pain.
Then, the air split.
Not like thunder. Worse.
It folded in on itself—warping space like a sheet being twisted by invisible hands. Hann turned sharply, staff expanding in an instant.
From the rift dropped three dark figures.
They were wrong. Not human. Elongated bodies, twisted armor of obsidian, purple eyes like dying stars.
Children of Thanos.
The leader stepped forward—Cull Obsidian, eight feet of brute muscle, grinning with menace. Behind him floated Proxima Midnight, spinning her twin-bladed spear. Beside her, Corvus Glaive twirled his curved blade as if time itself feared it.
Cull cracked his neck. "You woke something ancient, little monkey."
Proxima's voice was smooth and sharp. "And now… we claim it."
---
Hann didn't hesitate.
The rings flared, choosing their own formations. One drew the staff into his grip with lightning speed. Another amplified his reflexes—just in time to duck beneath Corvus's blade.
Hann rolled sideways, staff slamming into the frozen ground. A wave of kinetic force exploded outward, tossing Cull off his feet.
But Proxima was already mid-air.
Her spear grazed his shoulder, and the rings responded. One pulsed with lightbending, refracting her next strike mid-thrust.
Hann grunted. "Ngiyaxolisa… kodwa ngizokulwa kuze kube sekugcineni."
("I'm sorry… but I will fight to the end.")
The third ring shimmered—he activated it instinctively. Time slowed. Not completely, but just enough. Enough for him to see Cull charging like a boulder through water.
Hann twisted, leapt, and brought the staff down in a crushing arc onto Cull's skull.
The giant roared and hit the ground—ice fracturing beneath him.
---
Above them all, time fractured.
A gold ring of sparks bloomed behind Hann. The Children of Thanos halted, wary.
From the swirling circle stepped a figure in yellow and saffron robes—bald, glowing faintly, with eyes like the wind.
The Ancient One.
---
She raised a hand. The battlefield paused.
Literally. Cull's fist froze mid-swing. Corvus, locked in his next step. Snow hung suspended like silver confetti.
Only Hann could move. Barely.
"What… is this?" he asked, chest heaving.
"You are at a crossroads," she replied calmly. "And the multiverse trembles with your next step."
She stepped closer. "Hann Weihan Xu. Son of Wenwu. Wielder of the Heavenbreaker staff. Bearer of the Nine Rings. The universe… has waited for you."
Hann stood slowly. "Why? What am I?"
"You are the Balance."
---
Scene shifts — Astral Plane
In a breath, the landscape dissolved. They now stood in a vast, starry expanse. Planets drifted like thoughts. Galaxies spiraled beyond comprehension. Hann looked down—there was no floor, just shimmering cosmos beneath his feet.
The Ancient One waved her hand.
A vision unfolded:
Earth—flourishing, alive.
Then Earth—cracked in half. Burning. Covered in dark web-like tendrils.
A massive figure stood above it all. Not Thanos. Not yet.
"Who is that?" Hann asked.
"Kang," she whispered. "He comes after the Titan. And his wrath spans timelines."
---
She continued:
"The Titan has begun his game. His agents scoured this world for the Infinity Stones. But your awakening disrupted the pattern. Now they fear what you might become."
Hann swallowed. "So I'm just some… cosmic glitch to them?"
"You are a potential. A thread that could tip the scale."
She touched his forehead.
A glowing map spread out—names and images burned into his mind:
A girl who manipulates chaos with her hands (Wanda).
A man who rides fire like a blade (Johnny Storm).
A speedster who outruns bullets (Eli Bradley).
A warrior who commands insect-kind (Bug, an old legend).
A witch, locked in ice (Morgan Le Fay's descendant).
"Find them. Unite them. The calamity is coming. And Earth will fall unless you lead."
Hann shook his head. "I'm fifteen. I sleep in abandoned buildings. How do you expect me to—"
The Ancient One smiled. "Then start with what every young revolutionary needs…"
---
"Money."
---
Moments Later — Back in Reality
Time resumed. Hann exhaled sharply.
But something had changed.
The staff now burned with celestial markings. The rings orbited tighter. Faster. More in sync with him.
Cull Obsidian lunged again, but Hann was already moving.
He ducked, used a phase ring to shift through the ice itself, and reappeared behind Proxima.
With one strike, he disarmed her—then turned and embedded the staff into the earth.
A seismic pulse shattered the ground.
The Children of Thanos were flung backward—harder this time. Hann leapt high, spinning with momentum, and delivered a strike imbued with all nine rings.
It sent Cull flying across the landscape, crashing into a glacier.
Proxima vanished in retreat, pulling Corvus with her into a dark rift.
---
Silence returned.
Hann stood alone, breathing heavily.
He looked to the sky.
And for the first time… he felt the burden of destiny.
---
One Day Later — Johannesburg
In a tucked-away café lit by sunbeams and jazz music, Hann sipped a soda. He had borrowed a secondhand jacket, worn his hood low.
His rings were now tucked away beneath leather bands, and the staff had shrunk to the size of a baton.
Across from him sat Naledi, her eyes fierce.
"So," she said. "You can bend time, summon star fire, and break planets."
He scratched his neck. "Not all at once."
She leaned forward. "And you wanna… start a team?"
Hann nodded. "But I need something first."
Naledi raised a brow.
---
"Cash," he said. "A lot of it."
---
She snorted. "And what are you gonna do, knock over a bank?"
Hann grinned. "I was thinking something more old-school."
He tapped the table.
"Start a business."
---
Post-Credit Scene – Unknown Location, Space
Nebula knelt before Thanos.
"The boy survived. The Ancient One interfered."
Thanos stared at a swirling orb in his palm—showing Hann.
His voice rumbled.
"Then let the game begin."
---
End of Chapter 3