The "he" Hela mentioned—Thor got it loud and clear—was their father, Odin.
Oh no, scratch that, he was the father of both of them.
"So, you're Hela?"
Thor didn't back down an inch. After all, he hadn't yet tasted how brutal his sister's iron fist could be.
So, he still looked pretty confident.
"Kind of a shame, really. I was hoping to watch him die with my own eyes."
Hela flashed a slight smile, her tone genuinely dripping with a hint of regret.
To an outsider in the know, it'd seriously look like they weren't father and daughter, but sworn enemies.
And honestly, that's exactly what they were.
"Then you're Hela."
"I'm Thor, son of Odin."
What Thor meant by that was, I'm your little brother.
Saying it straight out? Yeah, he'd feel too awkward. Right now, it seemed like he still wanted to talk Hela into turning back.
"Really?"
"You don't look anything like him."
Hela, on the other hand, was totally chill, even sizing the two of them up.
Of course, it wasn't about looks—more like she was reading their vibes.
"Kneel."
"To your Queen of Asgard."
After her little critique of Thor, what had been a laid-back chat vibe turned tense as hell with that one line from Hela.
Yup, she was telling Thor to kneel.
Because in Hela's mind, she was the true ruler of Asgard.
"Looks like Father was right."
Thor didn't snap back impulsively—he'd grown up a bit, after all.
"Oh?"
"I underestimated you. Right now, you do kinda remind me of him a little."
"So, what's your answer?"
Hela casually opened her left hand, and a black longsword just popped into existence right there.
Over in Kamar-Taj, Ronan couldn't help but twitch his mouth.
He'd seen it crystal clear with his magic.
That move Hela just pulled? It was straight out of the legends—creating something from nothing.
Sure, if it was just an energy sword, fine—Ronan could pull that off too.
But if it was a real sword? Now that was interesting.
"My answer is—"
"NO!"
With Thor bellowing that out like a total badass, Mjolnir flew from his right hand.
That ultra-cool move had Ronan sucking in a sharp breath.
Mjolnir, oh Mjolnir—he dared to throw you, and you actually went for it.
It started off all tough, only to get casually grabbed by this mature woman and shattered in a heartbeat.
What's the difference between you and a random nobody now?!
With a buzzing hum, Mjolnir zipped right up to Hela's face in a flash.
But then Hela raised her right hand, grabbing Mjolnir's core like it was nothing.
And under Thor's disbelieving stare, the two of them locked in a midair standoff.
"This can't be!"
Thor blurted it out without thinking.
For one, he'd never seen anyone besides himself lift Mjolnir—not once.
Oh, except that one big green guy, but he doesn't count.
Plus, with Mjolnir's weight, it could flatten an enemy to the ground in a split second.
No matter how tough the opponent, that rule had never been broken.
In his head, Hela should've been down for the count right away.
But now, his go-to move—the one that never failed—had crapped out!
On top of that, when Hela grabbed Mjolnir, Thor quickly tried to summon it back.
But the result? It blew his mind all over again.
He could feel Mjolnir desperately wanting to return to him.
But it was stopped cold by a massive force.
No question about it—the source of that power was Hela!
"Nothing's impossible!"
"My dear… little brother."
The second she said "little brother," Hela cranked up the pressure in her fingers.
Crack.
The sound of breaking was loud and clear.
Next thing you know, Mjolnir was covered in a web of cracks!
Boom!
With a deafening roar and a flash of lightning, Mjolnir shattered into pieces and hit the dirt.
The sight had Ronan's eyelids twitching like crazy.
Originally, he'd been thinking about "saving" Mjolnir.
After all, back in the day, he could lift that hammer too—call it fate.
But Odin's plan had stopped him.
According to Odin, his death was meant to be the key to Thor's growth.
And step one of that? Thor had to ditch Mjolnir.
Ever since Thor started wielding Mjolnir as his weapon, he'd used it all the time—depended on it, even.
Over time, Odin clocked the problem.
The hammer was too strong, so Thor leaned on its power every fight.
When an enemy outmatched him, he'd shamelessly use Mjolnir's weight to pin them down and win.
Sure, it looked like Thor came out on top, but in reality, he wasn't growing at all.
If Thor ever lost the hammer, how would he beat anyone then?
So, the first step to making Thor grow was to smash that hammer.
Turn him from the God of Hammers into the God of Thunder for real!
Buzz.
While Ronan was still gasping, Hela opened her right hand again.
Another black longsword appeared.
Dual blades—no, dual swords style!
While Thor was still dazed, Hela charged at him with insane speed, already right in his face.
The twin swords in her hands went straight for Thor's throat.
She was going for a one-shot kill!
Of course, Thor had been through enough battles to have some reflexes.
Facing those wicked sword edges, he thought fast, pulling two daggers from his waist and blocking right in front of him.
Clang!
A harsh metallic clash rang out as the swords slammed into the daggers.
The sheer force sent Thor flying back!
He crashed hard into the grass, but rolled quick and got back up, facing Hela again.
At the same time, he couldn't help feeling a little lucky.
Those two daggers? They were Loki's.
Ever since Loki vanished, Thor had kept them on him.
The reason? No need to spell it out—everyone gets it.
But he never thought that habit would end up saving his life today!
Otherwise, if he'd tried blocking Hela's twin swords with his arms or anything else, the outcome would've been ugly.
Bang!
But before Thor could savor that relief, his vision blurred, and a long leg swung into view.
Thor threw up both hands, guarding his face.
Still couldn't dodge getting kicked airborne again.
The massive force slammed him into the grass once more.
Only this time, Thor didn't bounce back.
Because that hit was way too strong—his hands couldn't even hold onto the daggers anymore!
"Heh."
"Looks like he didn't teach you much."
Hela strolled up to Thor, planting one foot right on his head.
She raised her longsword high, no hesitation, and stabbed down hard.
Not a shred of sibling bond in sight.
But right then, a golden light flashed.
Hela snapped her right hand up, black energy forming a shield on her right side.
Bang!
Next second, the huge force knocked her back two steps.
"Hela…"
"Here on Earth, you don't get to run wild."