Crack, crack, crack, crack!
Above their heads, the sound of bricks shattering, accompanied by the violent shaking of the space where the trio research team was located, was incessant. It was like the buzzing of mosquitoes flapping their wings while one tries to sleep, disturbing the peace of dreams.
However, at this moment, the research team was not the slightest bit irritated instead, they were incredibly exhilarated.
Noise was a good sign!
It meant there was a chance they could be rescued.
If there was no noise, wouldn't it mean they were doomed to die in this sealed stone chamber?
Amid their excitement, the faint light shining down from above became increasingly evident.
Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack!
The sound of stones breaking was clearer than ever.
The trio saw that the ceiling of the stone chamber, initially only cracked, suddenly burst open as if exploding.
Their faces changed in an instant.
"This is bad!"
Erik Selvig exclaimed in terror, "Move! It going to collapse!"
"Damn, stop it, it falling apart!"
"What do we do?"
"Are we destined to die here today?"
The other two felt utterly hopeless.
Although they saw the light, if the ceiling crumbled into stones, they would still be buried under the rubble.
Their words, however, clearly didn't reach the ears of those outside.
Bang!!
Another loud collision sounded.
Crack, crack, crack!
The ceiling of the stone chamber finally gave way, breaking into unevenly sized stones and crashing down.
Though the trio was in a corner, it was not a perfect hiding spot many stones still fell straight towards them.
"Damn it!"
In complete despair, they watched as the stones came crashing down towards them.
However, just as they were about to be overwhelmed by the stones, a strong gust of wind, coming from the outside through the now-opened ceiling, surged into the chamber.
For a moment, time seemed to stop.
Before they could even grasp what was happening, they saw the falling stones above them shatter into debris, and at the same moment, turn into powder.
The stones were gone, but the fine, sand-like powder overwhelmed their faces, choking them.
"Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough!"
The stones turned into a white powder, covering them in mess.
Their faces still showed extreme terror, their eyes slightly vacant as they coughed continuously from the powder, watching the hero who appeared seemingly out of nowhere, as if a deity had descended to save them...
Superman!
His iconic attire and image, already familiar from countless news broadcasts, now stood before them.
The trio pupils dilated again, utterly shocked that Superman was their savior.
Wayne Enterprises had actually brought Superman to rescue them.
What a relief!
They were both shocked and delighted.
However, before they could speak, they saw Superman eyes emit an indescribable holy light.
It seemed as if his eyes released X-rays, scanning their bodies.
A chill ran down their spines, feeling as if they were stripped bare under his gaze, their scalps tingling.
The one who felt it most profoundly was Jane Foster, whose body was possessed by the Ether particles.
Then, with a swift motion, Superman summoned a gust of wind with a simple gesture, blowing away the powder on their bodies and sending them tumbling.
The two women hair was disheveled, and the only man, the sixty-something Erik Selvig, was grateful he had no hair, or else he would have been more disheveled than them.
"Come out with me..."
Superman spoke softly, "You three are in big trouble now."
"Hmm?"
The three exchanged glances.
The situation was simple.
After Anton became Superman, using Superman perceptive powers, he instantly saw through the entire dark world.
Of course, it was fortunate that this world had been abandoned by the dark elves. Not many lives remained on this planet, and Jane Foster research team was quite close to him otherwise, finding them instantly, though not troublesome, would not have been so straightforward.
After finding the trio, rescuing them was naturally the next step.
Using Superman X-ray vision, he could see the special energy inside Jane Foster, which was the Ether, or the Reality Stone.
However, it seemed that Jane Foster did not have the ability to activate the Ether particles.
The Infinity Stones are quite peculiar.
Not just anyone can wield an Infinity Stone.
There have been several characters who have suffered because of the Infinity Stones. The most obvious case is Captain America first enemy, the Red Skull.
When the Red Skull came into contact with the Tesseract, which contains the Space Stone, he was severely punished and transported to Vormir, the location of the Soul Stone.
He became the guardian of the Soul Stone, doomed to never leave its side for eternity.
It also worth mentioning the storyline that hasn't happened yet but is about to unfold.
In the Guardians of the Galaxy, it clearly stated that the Power Stone cannot be touched by just anyone.
However, in the climax of the movie, Star-Lord, in a bid to stall for time, touches the Power Stone with his bare hands, causing shock among many and attracting the attention of his biological father, Ego, a member of the Celestial race and a living planet.
These examples illustrate that not everyone is qualified to touch and control the Infinity Stones.
Similarly, Star-Lord ability to handle the stone due to his Celestial lineage also proves that only those with power and noble lineage are qualified to handle and control the Infinity Stones.
Generally, besides Star-Lord, the Tesseract can also be handled barehanded by Loki, Captain America, and Captain Marvel. Additionally, the Reality Stone, Power Stone, Mind Stone, and other Infinity Stones have been pinched between Thanos fingers and placed into the Infinity Gauntlet.
This suggests that the Infinity Stones might favor those who are strong and intimidating.
As for why an ordinary person like Jane Foster could be possessed by the Ether particles, it seems it just fate, or destiny.
After thousands of years, the Ether particles, the Reality Stone itself having been sealed for millennia, it was Jane Foster contact with the seal of the Ether particles that allowed the power of the Reality Stone to reemerge.
This was a destined encounter set by the cosmic timeline, irrefutable and not considered a bug.
Indeed, it just like this, favoring the strong over the weak.
And in some corner of the universe, the sleeping Dark Elves are just waiting for this fated day.
With these thoughts flashing through his mind, Anton looked calmly at the three he had rescued.
"I will take you away from here."
While speaking, he turned his gaze back to Jane Foster.
Suddenly, all three sensed something was amiss.
"What do you mean?"
Darcy Lewis was astonished, "You're not planning to leave with us, and you want to take Jane?"
"What are you trying to do?"
Erik Selvig, thinking for a moment about the changes in Jane Foster, asked, "Is it because of that thing inside her… Superman, what exactly is it?"
"That hard to explain."
Anton replied calmly, "But what I can tell you is that it called Ether particles. If it stays inside her, she will encounter many dangers, in various senses."
Hearing this, the trio looked at each other.
They knew Superman had no reason to deceive them otherwise, he wouldn't have needed to rescue them.
Moreover, the Justice League is the most trusted organization on Earth.
As a member of the Justice League, people naturally extend their trust to Superman.
With the Daily Bugle under Anton control, along with various media outlets, this trust was further justified when Superman first appeared and resolved the secret invasion incident caused by the Skrulls, who had been hiding on Earth for years.
So, the three did not doubt Superman words.
Instead, Jane Foster expression changed, questioning her future.
"Where will you take me?"
Her face showed a complex mix of emotions, a hint of fear: "Will I be in danger?"
Even though she trusted Superman, it didn't mean she was willing to let him have his way without knowing anything.
"Asgard."
Anton didn't mind explaining to Jane Foster.
At this point, although the situation was somewhat unexpected, it was still within his control.
"You should be familiar with that place."
Anton said, "Thousands of years ago, it was Asgard king, the Allfather Odin, who took the Ether particles from the Dark Elves and sealed them. So, they have the capability to help you, to extract the Ether particles from you."
"Asgard? Dark Elves?"
The three lit up at these key words, recalling someone they had once met.
"Thor."
Jane Foster breathed a sigh of relief: "You're taking me to Thor?"
"Correct."
Anton nodded: "Now you should feel reassured, right?"
"Okay."
Jane Foster nodded without hesitation: "I'll go with you."
"Since that settled, I'll take you back first."
After speaking, he took the three of them to the location of the spatial portal, looking towards Daisy Louise and Eric Schavig, and gestured,
"Someone is waiting for you on the other side. If they ask about Anton news, just say that he has already teleported to the Justice League base and will return soon."
"Understood."
The two nodded, passed through the spatial portal, and returned to Earth.
"What should we do now?"
Jane Foster watched her companions leave and looked at Superman beside her.
"It simple, through teleportation."
Anton placed his hand on Jane Foster shoulder, activated the teleportation, and in a flash, the two disappeared into the dark world.
Meanwhile.
In the vast, boundless universe, a huge spaceship was approaching the dark world at high speed.
However, after Anton and Jane Foster left the dark world, the spaceship suddenly stopped moving forward, floating in the universe without any intention of moving.
"Asgard..."
In the spaceship, the leader of the Dark Elves, Malekith, with a pale face, showed an expression of ferocity and hatred.
"Odin..."
His face grew stern, and his piercing eyes suddenly turned towards a few subordinates holding weapons, standing straight and motionless.
"Change of plans."
The Dark Elf leader suddenly spoke: "Go to Asgard, this time, we not only need to wash away our past humiliation, but also make Asgard pay the price."
"Understood."
His subordinates nodded, energized.
They had been in slumber for thousands of years, waiting for this day, Ether particles were originally the treasure of the Dark Elves.
However, thousands of years ago, the Ether particles were taken away by the Asgardians and sealed.
The entire race of Dark Elves abandoned the dark world, wandered into the universe, and fell into slumber, waiting for the day the Ether particles would be unsealed.
Their awakened mission was to take back the Ether particles and dominate the Nine Realms.
They intended to pull Odin down from his high throne.
This universe should not be dictated by the Asgardians.
Asgard.
Rainbow Bridge.
Heimdall, the guardian of the Rainbow Bridge, monitoring the Nine Realms, suddenly felt an intense sensation.
His pupils contracted as he sensed a strong spatial fluctuation.
Someone was invading Asgard.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, Heimdall drew the godly sword from the control center of the Rainbow Bridge, facing the area with intense spatial fluctuations, his expression stern.
Two figures emerged.
Heimdall frowned slightly, recognizing the two.
However, he did not let down his guard.
"Earthlings, why have you come here?"
Heimdall tone was low, but not overly hostile, just slightly cautious.
"For the Ether particles."
Anton looked at the man in front of him and said lightly, "Heimdall, you have failed your duty."
"Hmm?"
Heimdall was stunned.
He had never seen someone invade his own country territory and still dare to criticize him.
"Failed your duty?"
Of course, Heimdall was not a boastful person although proud, he was more willing to adhere to his duty.
After a moment of silence, his gaze fell on Jane Foster, who was beside Anton.
As one of the first humans Thor met on Earth, he knew Jane Foster somewhat.
At this moment, there was indeed something off about Jane Foster. Heimdall pupils contracted as he realized something.
"You... went to the dark world, Vanaheim, unsealed the Ether particles..."
As one of the twelve chief gods of Asgard, his eyes could see through many things.
For instance, the power flowing within Jane Foster.
As a deity who had once accompanied Odin in battles thousands of years ago, he was certainly familiar with the power of the Ether particles.
Indeed, he had been a main force in the battle that drove out the Dark Elves.
"At this point, I need to immediately separate the Ether particles from her body, otherwise it will be very dangerous."
Anton said, "Earth is unfamiliar with the Ether particles, and within the Nine Realms, only Asgard possesses this power, which is why I came."
With things explained to this extent, Heimdall could of course understand.
He sheathed his great sword and nodded:
"Come with me."