Editing Thanos (Marvel Cinematic Universe) (section)

====Into His Own Hands====
With Loki and Ronan the Accuser failing to retrieve the Infinity Stones and conquer worlds, Thanos decided to take matters into his own hands. In 2015, he forced the Dwarves of Nidavellir to forge the Infinity Gauntlet, a powerful artifact capable of harnessing the power of all six Infinity Stones. After the Gauntlet was completed, Thanos massacred the Dwarves, sparing only [[Eitri (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Eitri]], whom he crippled to prevent him from forging anything else. Thanos believed that only he was capable of collecting the Infinity Stones and bringing balance to the universe.

By 2018, Thanos' adopted daughter, Nebula, attempted to assassinate him aboard the Sanctuary II but was captured. Accessing her memory files, Thanos discovered that Gamora had memorized the map to the Soul Stone before destroying it, realizing that she could lead him to the last missing Infinity Stone. Thanos then thoroughly investigated the locations and keepers of the Infinity Stones, which were scattered across the universe under the protection of various groups: the Asgardians, the Masters of the Mystic Arts, the Tivan Group, Vision, and the Nova Corps.

Armed with this knowledge, Thanos launched his campaign to gather the Infinity Stones, known as the Infinity War. His first target was Xandar, where the Power Stone was kept under the protection of the Nova Corps following Ronan the Accuser's defeat. Thanos infiltrated the Nova Corps Headquarters, acquired the Orb containing the Power Stone, and placed it into the Infinity Gauntlet. He then proceeded to decimate half of Xandar's population, furthering his goal of universal balance.

As Thanos' attacks became known, the Confederacy, a group of alien species, warned HYDRA about the threat Thanos posed to Earth and offered protection. However, HYDRA, aware that they were no match for Thanos, only exploited the Confederacy's offer to gain access to Earth's resources, particularly Inhumans and Gravitonium.