Avengers: Infinity War's Soul Stone Location Explained

WARNING: This article contains SPOILERS for Avengers: Infinity War

Finally Avengers: Infinity War has revealed where the Soul Stone was hiding - the last riddle of Marvel's Infinity Stone mystery. Fans had spun theories about the many places the final Infinity Stone could be hiding, ready to be acquired as the master stroke of the Mad Titan, Thanos. The final piece of the puzzle that, once revealed, would let him change the MCU and its living heroes forever.

That time has finally come, and Thanos has shown the power of the Soul Stone in Infinity War... but in a twist few saw coming, it wasn't actually finding the Stone that was ever the hard part. The true mystery was what had to be sacrificed by the one to claim it.

It's a heartbreaking task, but we're here to see that the final location and sacrifice of the MCU's Soul Stone is explained.

This Page: Where The Soul Stone Was Hidden

Where The Soul Stone Was Hiding

After so many years spent wondering where it could be, what clue was being missed, or what twist Marvel had in mind, the actual reveal is a bit of a relief. As it turns out, the Soul Stone's location was also one of the sought after mysteries of Marvel's fictional universe, as well. A riddle not even known to Thanos - but one he entrusted to nobody other than his favorite daughter, Gamora. A mystery she solved by finding a map to the Soul Stone's location, and a mystery she made sure wouldn't be solved by Thanos, by burning the map and pretending she has found no answers.

Nebula is the first to pay for that deception, as Thanos tortures his cybernetic daughter to get Gamora to offer up the name he needs: Vormir. A planet pulled from the pages of Marvel's history, but as little more than an Easter Egg for fans. The planet itself isn't important, only the strange ritual sacrifice put in place to keep it out of evil hands... and the strange hidden figure left to guard it.

The Soul Stone is Guarded By Red Skull

Red Skull has evolved into Thanos MCU fan theory

In what has to be one of the most shocking twists of a movie filled with them, the robed, hovering, ghostlike figure standing as gatekeeper to the Soul Stone is Johan Schmidt a.k.a. Red Skull, villain of Captain America: The First Avenger. Last seen trying to wield the Tesseract with his bare hand in Steve Rogers's origin film, Red Skull explains that his attempt to use the Stones has led to his current fate. Now, it seems, he is cursed with the knowledge offered by the Soul Stone... but will never be able to claim it for himself.

That may be due to his own evil past, or the strange metaphysical state he now seems to be trapped within (defying gravity, and partly phasing in and out of tangibility). Either way, Red Skull has been on that Vormir mountaintop since the 1940s when he seemed to be killed, shortly before his nemesis shared the same fate. He's been waiting for someone like Thanos, but even he may not have guessed the villain's overall plan.

Thanos and Gamora are led out to the very edge of the highest cliff where they discover the truth. The Soul Stone is not waiting to be found at all. Instead, unlike all other Infinity Stones before it, it will present itself to the one who claims it... by first making a terrible sacrifice.

The Soul Stone's Sacrifice is a Killer

Some might take issue with the level of security reserved for only this one of the Infinity Stones, since the magic explained by Red Skull suggests the Stone exists... outside of the normal universe, in one sense or another. The Soul Stone requires a test to both prove the worthiness of the person coming to claim it - and its power over the souls of all living things - and to demand an exchange. That final detail is, once again, a unique feature of this Stone alone.

To claim the Stone of Souls, a single soul must be sacrificed. Not that of the prospective master (this isn't a story of devils or bargaining), but of someone that person truly loves. From there, the process seems simple enough: shove that person off the edge of the cliff, wait until they reach the bottom and offer up their soul (lose it? Send it into the Stone? It's unclear) and the Souls Stone is yours.

Now, the wording of that bargain - that you are effectively trading one soul for another - raises some questions about the meaning of the loved one's death immediately. The final scenes of the movie may shed some light on this, but that's for future movies to reveal.

Once Thanos drops his loved one to their death, a bright light erupts, the storm overhead parts, and a sudden rush of cosmic energy forces even Thanos to lower his head and close his eyes. In an instant he awakens far below the heights of the mountain in a shallow pool of water. Sacrifice made, Soul Stone in hand.

Why The Soul Stone Was The Last To Be Found

Some fans will certainly be disappointed or underwhelmed to find that the Soul Stone wasn't really hidden anywhere in the known Marvel Universe. Not hiding in Heimdall's chest, not hiding in Odin's eye socket, not hiding in the heart of Wakanda's vibranium meteor. But fans didn't know before now that the final Infinity Stone would make demands of Thanos, composing a major part of his character in the movie. Not just what he was willing to do to see his plan through... but the kind of villain that he is NOT.

Presumably, whoever left the Soul Stone in this location chose the requirements of its passing to a new master carefully. Fans can debate just what is proven by someone willing to murder a loved one for power over the dead (if anything) but it seems the more important part of the challenge is the same one Gamora first misjudges.

The Soul Stone will never be offered to someone who has not loved, or does not have the capacity or willingness to love. Which explains why Red Skull was forced only to guard it. But by revealing that he truly does love Gamora - a fact doubly proven when killing her works - the retrieval of the Soul Stone cements Thanos as the only kind of character who can sell his master plan to the audience.

The desire to wipe out half of the universe may seem purely evil. Paying such a price so that the universe may blossom anew (once the grief wears off) wouldn't be worth it for most, or any hero. But regardless of whether you think Thanos a madman or a prophet, the Soul Stone twist proves that he has belief.

He loves, has loved, and is willing to sacrifice that to better the universe instead. Compare that to the satisfaction of Odin plucking the Stone from his eye socket, or Heimdall popping it out of his chest plate, and it's hard to say the filmmakers didn't make the right call.

So much for the T-H-A-N-O-S theory.