Thor lay on the ground, gasping for air, his earlier arrogance completely gone. Garus suddenly thought of Odin, the cunning old fox. There had to be a reason Odin sent Thor to Earth—perhaps to use Garus's strength to force his son to shed the Asgardian pride.
Garus handed Mjolnir back to Thor. "You're supposed to be the God of Thunder, right? Why do I feel like you're just the God of Hammers? Without your weapon, you're nothing but a lamb waiting for slaughter."
Thor froze, Garus's words hitting a nerve. Upon reflection, he realized there was some truth to it. His strength had always come from Mjolnir. Only after obtaining the hammer had he gained such immense power.
"Thank you for the reminder." If it had been the old Thor, he might have lashed out in anger.
"Wait." Watching Garus walk away with Loki in tow, Thor sat up. "I'll go with you."
"What for?" Tony Stark still hadn't lowered his guard against Thor.
"I'll help you deal with the mess Loki has caused. It's my responsibility."
"Let's go," Steve Rogers nodded, agreeing without hesitation. With no objections from the others, Tony had little choice but to follow.
The transport jet ascended into the sky, flying for a while before Steve opened the aircraft's communication channel. "Director Fury, we've arrived."
The previously empty sky began to shimmer. As the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier disengaged its cloaking mode, a massive warship slowly emerged before them.
For Thor, whose last visit to Earth had left him with the impression of a primitive world, the sight of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s advanced helicarrier was surprising. The last time he was here, humanity had been limited to walking or using horse-drawn carriages. Now, they were flying in the skies.
The jet landed on the deck, where Coulson was already waiting. He greeted the Avengers as they disembarked.
"Thor, God of Thunder! What are you doing here?" Coulson was visibly surprised to see Thor.
"Just call me Thor."
"Alright, Thor. Have you given any more thought to my earlier suggestion?" Coulson was referring to his invitation for Thor to join the Avengers, extended before Thor's last departure from Earth.
"We'll talk about it later." Thor remembered his father asking him about the Avengers before he left Asgard. Could it be that Odin wanted him to join this mortal group?
Nick Fury emerged from the helicarrier's command tower, his gaze fixed on the bound Loki. He instructed his agents, "Take him to the specialized containment chamber. I'll interrogate him personally."
Noticing the absence of Hawkeye and Dr. Selvig, Fury asked, "Where are Agent Barton and Dr. Selvig?"
"They've been sent by Loki to complete his plan—to open the portal," Steve replied grimly.
Fury frowned, recalling Loki's scepter, which had the power to control minds. "Where's Loki's weapon?"
"Here." Peter Parker handed the scepter to Fury. "I think there's something off about this weapon."
Fury, knowing Spider-Man's sharp instincts, nodded. However, the priority was to find a way to free Barton and Selvig from its control. After examining the scepter for a moment, Fury handed it to Bruce Banner. "Dr. Banner, can you analyze this? Figure out if we can break Loki's hold over Barton and Selvig."
"Sure, I'll take a look," Banner replied, accepting the scepter.
None of them realized that the scepter housed an Infinity Stone as significant as the Tesseract. They simply saw it as an advanced alien weapon.
Watching the scepter being taken away, Garus hesitated. He'd briefly considered keeping it for himself, but since his mission required the scepter to open the portal, he decided to wait for a better opportunity to claim it.
"I'll come too." Garus felt a strange resonance from the Mind Stone at the scepter's tip. Its psychic energy seemed to stir the Reality Stone within him, as if they were connected.
Tony Stark followed them. "Wait up! I think I can help."
"Fine," Banner shrugged, indifferent.
In the helicarrier's laboratory, Banner placed the scepter on a stand. However, holding the weapon made his head throb. Inside, the Hulk stirred, threatening to emerge—a sensation that made Banner uneasy.
"Dr. Banner, are you alright?" Tony asked, noticing his distress.
"I'm fine," Banner replied, bracing himself against the table. "Just tired."
Garus realized Loki was playing tricks. The scepter's psychic energy was spreading through the helicarrier, subtly influencing everyone's minds.
In Asgard, Odin stood in the control chamber of the Bifrost alongside Heimdall.
"What do you think of Garus?" Odin asked. Despite his vast power, he lacked Heimdall's omniscient sight and knew little about Garus.
Heimdall's glowing eyes seemed to pierce through everything. "He wields many powers—frost, death, blood, and more. His potential is limitless. Haven't you already made up your mind?"
Understanding Odin's thoughts well, Heimdall knew the king wasn't simply curious.
Odin sighed. "My daughter, Hela, will soon break free of her seal. Asgard's strength has waned too much, and I'm no longer a match for her. In all the Nine Realms, only our ancient enemy Surtur might stand a chance against her."
"Are you hoping for Garus's help?"
"I believe Thor can save his people. But I want to minimize the casualties. On Midgard, Thor will find strong allies."
Ragnarok was inevitable, and Odin's life was nearing its end. He'd once considered seeking help from the Ancient One but knew the Sorcerer Supreme was already weary, searching for a successor.
"The Avengers on Midgard are powerful, especially Dr. Banner, who harbors another persona within him," Odin mused. "Ragnarok, the Infinity War, the Multiverse War... the future is far from peaceful, and I won't live to see it."
Heimdall hesitated, wanting to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.
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