Golden Palace, the Treasure Vault of Asgard.
"This is the Eternal Flame—an endless source of energy with the power to revive the dead from the underworld. It's an evil fire.
"It originally served as the power source for the fire giant Surtur, ruler of Muspelheim. He is the King of the Fire Giants and relies on the Eternal Flame plus the Twilight Sword to threaten Asgard day and night.
"Several thousand years ago, I seized his Eternal Flame, thus defeating him and forcing the Fire Giants to stay away from Asgard for millennia."
Odin spoke with deep feeling to Aaron about those past events.
Clearly, the Fire Giants were a respectable and fearsome foe. Even Odin, recalling them, felt lingering dread. Had he not devised a way to take the Eternal Flame, there was no way he could have defeated Surtur in his prime so easily.
…
"This is the fire of honor, the fire of victory, Father. I'll definitely be like you and defeat that Fire Giant King!"
Hearing this, Thor grew so excited that he wanted to grab his axe on the spot and go face the Fire Giant King that even Odin had praised. He yearned to campaign across the Nine Realms, building a legendary name that would awe them all.
But first he had one thing to do—beat Aaron!
Unless he could defeat Aaron, how could he possibly conquer all Nine Realms in one go?
After all, surpassing his father meant surpassing a "young Odin," which is exactly what Aaron was. Thor steeled himself, not realizing just how out of reach that goal was.
Odin, hearing Thor's words, very nearly slapped him. "Thor, to become a qualified king, you need more than bravery. You must have compassion.
"They say in Midgard: 'There's always someone stronger, and there's always another sky above the sky.' One day you'll grasp how small your present world really is. Even we gods can't do certain things."
For instance…bidding farewell to death.
Thor didn't take Odin's words to heart. Yes, Aaron was strong, but Thor figured that if he just tried a bit harder, he could beat him. He was Odin's son, after all—the heir to the throne!
Seeing Thor's attitude, Odin sighed inwardly.
Aaron paid no attention to the father-son exchange and simply reached out to touch the Eternal Flame. Contrary to expectation, there was no scorching heat. It couldn't wound him in the slightest. With hardly any effort, he melted and absorbed a portion of the flame. Perhaps it was an illusion, but the once-leaping Eternal Flame now seemed a bit shorter—though still quite large.
…
[Flame Mastery]: You have gained the power of flame, able to conjure fire at will to fight foes.
[Flame Elemental Form]: You can transform into living flame. In that state, you are immune to frost detection and flame-based powers, and you shrug off most physical attacks; you can also freely fly.
[Raising the Dead (Undead Revival)]: You can pull departed souls into the mortal realm, bringing them back from the dead. After resurrection, they remain undead spirits, not truly alive. Only undead creatures (Fenrir, Surtur, etc.) can be fully revived through this.
(Note: Surtur is considered a dimensional demon god, essentially a god of the underworld.)
[Eternal Core]: A related ability has been detected and fused (Solar Core). Your internal miniature sun now boasts the traits of the Eternal Flame, burning endlessly and continually releasing power to strengthen your body.
…
Aaron felt a joyful blaze surge within him. This was no ordinary fire; it was the Eternal Flame that could resurrect the dead as undead creatures. It now merged with his Eternal Solar Core flame, giving him the Eternal Flame's complete properties. In other words, he had become the equal of Surtur, capable of generating the Eternal Flame and controlling it at will.
Fundamentally, this fire was a special kind of life energy, containing extraordinary power. It could also serve as an enchantment tool. Even a mundane piece of equipment, imbued with the Eternal Flame, could achieve remarkable power. It was best matched with the Twilight Sword, which was similarly forged by the Eternal Flame.
To maximize this power, Aaron thought he should make a trip to Muspelheim to chat with Surtur, exchange feelings, maybe learn from him. Having Surtur's traits might help him wield the Eternal Flame more perfectly, accelerating his "growth." Otherwise, he might only lie low, letting time pass to slowly become stronger—which sounded decent enough too.
Odin glanced sideways at the fire flickering in Aaron's hand. "Were you planning to revive a friend or relative? I strongly advise you not to use the Eternal Flame. Strictly speaking, anything it revives is no longer who they were.
"It resurrects the living dead who cannot die or feel pain. They shouldn't exist in the mortal world, and for that individual, it's a torment. If that person was a god, I'd recommend bringing them to Asgard. Their spirit might go to Valhalla instead of being stuck in a desecrated undead body."
Odin knew the Eternal Flame's nature, but he had never used it after Frigga's death. He had loved the real Frigga, not a reanimated corpse in her body. In Asgard, a warrior's death wasn't truly the end; it was a rebirth on another level. Their souls would dwell eternally in Valhalla, spirits immortal, even awaiting a future reawakening.
Aaron shook his head. "I've got no need for that." With a wave of his hand, the spark of Eternal Flame vanished, as if it had never existed.
Odin stared intensely at Aaron's right hand but saw no sign of where the flame went. "You're quite practiced in spatial manipulation—maybe Celestial power?"
He held a healthy fear of the Celestials; without a good reason, he'd never seek them out. However, Aaron was different—he had Aesir blood as well! As far as Odin knew, previous Aesir royals were all men, so presumably at some point an ancestor had "done his part for the kingdom." Thinking about it fired Odin up. Who knew where Bor had found a female Celestial? Come to think of it, do Celestials even have females…?
…
"So…where is Muspelheim located?" Aaron asked, deciding first to figure out Surtur's whereabouts.
Hearing that, Odin said, "I'll prepare a geographic guide for you with detailed information on the Nine Realms—plus an up-to-date galactic star map. You can find what you want there."
He couldn't fathom why Aaron was fixated on collecting these artifacts—maybe a quirk. He didn't ask further, as the treasures Odin had gathered were part of their bargain anyway. Perhaps they symbolized Odin's past glory, but Asgard's people, and Asgard itself, were his real priority.
"You want to see Surtur?" Odin frowned. "I don't mind if you seek him out. His strength is much lower these days, but we do have a truce with him…"
"Until tomorrow, I'm still a Midgardian," Aaron cut in. "Relax—I just plan to borrow something from Surtur."
Could it be Surtur's crown? Odin wondered, but that would effectively doom Surtur. Odin considered himself a merciful king who could kill his enemies but usually chose not to. If it were Thor or Loki, he might try to stop them. But if it's Aaron…fine. Right now, he's not actually Asgardian. If he kills Surtur, that's no business of mine.
Recalling a certain prophecy, Odin felt even less concerned about whether Surtur lived or died.
"In that case, be on your guard. Besides Surtur, Muspelheim teems with Fire Demons and savage Fire Dragons. Even if you're powerful, every god's power has limits."
He muttered that last line and said no more.
At that point, Frigga entered with two maids, each carrying part of a golden suit of armor. Odin saw them and turned to Aaron with a smile. "I think Loki's already told you about it. We specially prepared this armor for you. We've added a bit of magic, so it'll be simpler to put on."
The two maids unfolded the armor. Aaron took one look, then cast Thor a strange glance. Thor looked thoughtful. Why did it look so familiar? He touched the two winglike projections by his ears and realized: "Father, it's just like my armor!"
A knockoff—and that's yours, Loki sneered silently, face unreadable.
Odin, maintaining his smile, said, "Your own set is still being designed. That's simply the Asgardian style." He then had Aaron examine the "Thunder God–style" armor. "See if it fits. If there's anything off about the design, we'll fix it."
The more Odin fussed over it, the more Aaron guessed it was originally Thor's. Wow, I'm basically inheriting all of Thor's stuff? Poor guy, the unluckiest in Asgard.
Seeing how much it resembled Thor's outfit, Aaron remained dissatisfied. Viewed strictly from an Asgardian standpoint, the armor was marvelous: it could transform into stored energy at will and re-manifest in an instant, boasted formidable defense against most attacks, and offered high energy resistance. It measured up to Thor's own standard gear, requiring equally strong weapons to break its defense—like Hulk's brute force. Compared to Tony Stark's armor, it was indeed quite good.
But Aaron didn't want to wear something that was basically Thor's. It felt weird. He tested analyzing the Uru metal, using matter reassembly to reconstruct it. Not so easy: Uru had some mysterious properties that current universal science couldn't fully break down or replicate. After a moment, he decided not to force it yet. Once he fully excavated his Celestial power, matter reassembly would be much stronger anyway.
A moment later, the new Asgardian armor vanished into Aaron's hand—consumed by the Primordial Furnace, reassembled according to Aaron's own ideas. Out emerged a golden suit of armor. Immediately, Aaron thought of the "Emperor's Armor." In an instant, the furnace reshaped it as such. Quickly, the "Marvel version of the Emperor's Armor" took form. Right now it merely had the appearance—no real essence.
In certain stories, Emperor's Armor was the ultimate suit of armor, symbolizing justice, light, and the sun, controlling time and space plus yin-yang and the five elements, even the embodiment of cosmic law. Of course, this "Emperor's Armor" was nowhere close. After pondering a bit, Aaron integrated powers of frost, flame, thunder, water, and air, since he couldn't gather "gold, wood, water, fire, earth." Then he added electromagnetic mastery, energy rays, short-range teleportation, gravity control. One wild idea came: "If I graft in the 'infinite evolution' trait, will it grow with me? If it's broken by a stronger attack, can it rebuild itself even tougher?"
Once that thought surfaced, Aaron directly added infinite evolution. Whether it helped or not, he was set on crafting an armor befitting his status. Even if it still fell short of the "real" Emperor's Armor, he believed one day his would surpass the original.
Soon, that Emperor Armor, fused with the Primordial Furnace's top "positive" attributes, was complete. As long as Aaron permitted it, whoever wore it became a pseudo "god of minor omnipotence." Its visor carried Aaron's advanced vision: micro-vision and night vision.
Its base material blended an alternative "steel body," merging three prime metals. It was likely the strongest metal in the current universe.
Flying, tunneling, fighting in space—child's play! And with the Eternal Solar Core built in, it had effectively infinite energy—cosmic rays, photons, heat, or kinetic energy, all could refuel it. Aaron also used his Skyfather authority to enchant it meticulously.
At his command, the Emperor Armor could act like the Destroyer Armor, fighting for him regardless of distance in the cosmos. Maybe it wasn't the "true" Emperor's Armor, but it was a genuinely versatile all-rounder. And though it took inspiration from that Emperor's Armor, it didn't have the cheap plastic look. In sunlight, shifting traces of flowing brilliance danced on its surface, making it more imposing than ever.
Compared to the armor Thor was supposed to wear, be it style or function, it was a world apart, like heaven and earth!
When Aaron summoned his Emperor Armor, Thor couldn't stop staring. He glanced down at his own suit, then at Aaron's. A swirl of complicated feelings roiled inside him: It's bad enough that he's more handsome—why must even his armor outshine mine?
Beginners see the flashiness; experts see the craft. Thor only cared about the aesthetics, while Odin focused on function and power. Odin gazed at that armor with rapt attention, his face growing solemn.
"You just finished modifying this?" he asked.
Aaron nodded.
"What's the matter, Father? Something wrong? Do you think it looks pretty good too?" Thor asked, eyes not blinking.
Hearing this, Odin felt the urge to smack him. You may not understand, but don't go revealing it, you fool! Look at Loki—also displeased, but he keeps it quiet, so he doesn't look ignorant!
Sighing, Odin said, "This armor holds an extremely potent force. I can sense that it's no ordinary gear."
Thor shrugged. "Could it really be stronger than the Destroyer Armor?"
Odin glared. "The Destroyer was just a 'toy' I built. This armor is at least ten times stronger than the Destroyer!"
In certain comics, the Destroyer Armor could harness multiple Skyfather powers to fight Celestials. But here, it was just something Odin forged to guard his treasury (and Earth). It was still powerful, but Hammer-God Thor had smashed it with little fuss.
.Aaron's Emperor Armor was different.
If Thor fought it, he couldn't break through that defense even if he lost an arm. His lightning would only fuel it. Essentially, it was a "smaller version" of Aaron, holding most of his main abilities—no chance Thor could compete. Even Odin…
Odin shook his head. The more he saw of Aaron, the less he felt he understood him. Such a casually made suit of armor yet emanating such a frightening energy. If Aaron wore that armor, Odin couldn't fathom who might stand against him. Perhaps…only by unleashing all his might in a life-or-death clash might he drive him away?
Aaron ignored Odin's swirling thoughts. Touching the armor caused it to melt into energy, spreading across his body in tangible form. The Emperor Armor automatically adjusted to the user's physique, with various user-friendly features. Through voice, text, or mental interface, anyone could quickly master it. Even if they were deaf, blind, illiterate—once they put it on, they became a godlike being.
After a moment's practice, Aaron raised a hand and conjured a towering mirror of water to gaze at himself. The armor's helmet retracted in a flash of energy, revealing his handsome face. He couldn't help quipping, "If being handsome were a crime, I'd be guilty beyond any hope of pardon!"
Thor and Loki both stared, eyes wide. Damn it, he's shown off again!
~~~
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