"Don't you believe me?"
"Don't you believe I can save her, Fenris?"
Thor wanted to say something, but he had never been good with words. For a moment, he could think of no better way to stop his friend from throwing his life away.
As far as Thor was concerned, Fenris might already stand among the strongest of the strong on Midgard, but his perspective was still too limited. He had no idea just how powerful the gods of Asgard truly were, nor did he understand the weight carried by titles such as Ruler of the Nine Realms, King of the Gods, and All-Father.
"I may have been banished, but—"
"Thank you, Thor."
Seeing that Thor was about to continue, his face riddled with anxiety, Fenris pulled himself free of his grip and interrupted him.
"I know what you mean. But what if I told you your brother lied to you? That Odin isn't dead, that your mother doesn't hate you, and that she never said she didn't want to see you?"
"What?"
The instant those words left Fenris's mouth, every trace of emotion froze on Thor's face. The words he had been about to say lodged in his throat.
After a moment of stunned silence, joy flashed through his eyes.
"Fenris, is that true?"
"My father really…"
"Come with me." Fenris nodded and led him outside.
After the recent battle with Loki, their temporary shelter had already been razed to the ground by the violent energies unleashed during the fight. Fortunately, no one had been killed.
As they rounded a corner, an ocher-skinned giant nearly sixteen feet tall entered Thor's sight.
The giant stood with his back to everyone, his enormous frame having shielded them from the full force of the energy blast. Hearing Fenris's voice, Emil—still transformed into the Abomination—slowly turned around, revealing the people he had protected.
Johnny remained deeply unconscious after overtaxing his power. He had no idea what had happened outside.
The sight of the other four, however, instantly made Thor's eyes light up.
"Fandral! Hogun! Volstagg! Sif!"
Seeing the four comrades who had fought at his side for centuries, Thor's eyes widened. He strode forward with an incredulous laugh.
"I thought I would never see any of you again!"
After pulling each of them into a crushing embrace, Thor broke into a broad grin.
"Fandral, what are you doing here?"
"We came looking for you, of course."
A smile uglier than a grimace appeared on Fandral's face. He pointed to the conspicuous burn marks covering their bodies.
"We simply didn't expect to encounter such a powerful enemy the moment we arrived."
"If your friend hadn't appeared when he did, none of us would have survived."
"What?"
Only then did Thor notice how pale Sif and the others were. When he saw the horrific wounds covering their bodies, his heart lurched.
"Who could possibly have injured all of you this badly?"
The famed Warriors Three—Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg—might not be as powerful as Thor, but they were still among Asgard's finest warriors. Together with Sif, their flawless teamwork meant that few beings across the Nine Realms could pose a threat to them.
As long as they did not encounter an enemy like Fenris, they should at least have been capable of putting up a fight. How could someone have reduced them to this state in a single encounter?
"Heh…"
Fandral said nothing, merely offering a bitter laugh.
They had thought the same thing at first.
Reality, however, had taught them that there was always someone stronger. Even on Midgard, the least remarkable of the Nine Realms in their eyes, there were still plenty of people more powerful than they were.
From the corner of her eye, Sif glanced at Johnny, who lay quietly unconscious nearby, then discreetly changed the subject.
"Thor, forget about that for now. We came to find you because there is something extremely important you need to know."
"Tell me." Thor's expression immediately turned grave.
"Asgard is in mortal danger…"
Sif's very first sentence left Thor frozen in place.
"The All-Father has fallen into the Odinsleep, and Queen Frigga is personally tending to him. The throne of Asgard has temporarily been entrusted to Loki."
"Loki is consumed by ambition. The moment he gained power, he began planning to mobilize all of Asgard's forces against Jotunheim. He even intends to use the Bifrost to wage a war of extermination."
"If he succeeds, Asgard will inevitably be dragged back into an endless cycle of war. The peace Odin has maintained for so long will be shattered, and every living being across the Nine Realms will suffer…"
Sif spoke faster and faster.
As the bride Queen Frigga had personally chosen for Thor and an incarnation of the goddess of earth and harvest, Sif possessed insight far beyond that of ordinary people. She understood with painful clarity what the consequences would be.
"Thor, we had no other choice. We could only come to Midgard and find you. You're the only one who can stop Loki now!"
One revelation after another struck Thor.
The joy of learning that Odin was still alive and had merely entered the Odinsleep quickly passed. When he heard of Loki's insane plan, Thor's expression darkened at once.
"A war against Jotunheim would also be a war against Asgard. I cannot sit idly by and allow it to happen."
After a moment of contemplation, Thor abruptly rose to his feet.
Sif's eyes flashed with surprise when she heard those words coming from him.
Not long ago, Thor had recklessly led them into Jotunheim to punish the Frost Giants for their defiance. He had wanted to secure another thousand years of peace for Asgard through battle while spreading his own fame throughout the Nine Realms.
Yet now, after everything that had happened, he was capable of saying something like this?
"Sif, you have nothing to fear. I may no longer have my hammer or my divine power, but I am still Thor, Prince of Asgard. I will not stand by while Loki does as he pleases. Stopping him is my responsibility."
Thor looked at the four of them, his heart aching at the sight of their grievous injuries, then gave them a reassuring smile.
"Remain on Midgard and recover. Once I've stopped Loki, I'll come back and take you home."
Thor might have looked somewhat battered, but his confidence remained exactly as they remembered it.
Sif and the others exchanged glances, feeling as though they were meeting Thor, the invincible God of Thunder, for the first time all over again.
"Home?"
Sincere, trusting smiles appeared on their faces.
"All right."
Thor gave them another confident smile. But as they lay back down in pain and gradually drifted into sleep, his expression became terribly grim.
He turned toward Fenris, only to discover that Fenris was staring directly at him, an unreadable look in his eyes.
"What do we do, Fenris?"
The succession of terrible news weighed heavily upon Thor's heart. He drew a deep breath, feeling truly lost for the first time in his life.
"There's nothing to discuss."
Fenris slowly turned his head.
Nearby, Emma stood with reddened eyes, silently watching Wanda through the thick layer of ice imprisoning her.
Elsewhere, Johnny, the Warriors Three, and Sif lay gravely wounded amid a deathly silence.
Fenris pressed his lips together, then slowly raised his head and looked toward the sky.
"It's simple."
"We fight."
(End of Chapter)
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