The sky was dark, illuminated only by thunder and lightning!
Thor.
The new Thor.
At this moment, the four warriors of Asgard felt an unprecedented shock. They could sense the immense power emanating from him, far more terrifying than Thor himself, as if the Thor they knew was a mere imitation.
Mjolnir, in the hands of this figure, seemed to embody the true Thor's hammer.
Inside a small breakfast shop, the expressions of three humans were frozen in disbelief. In their eyes, there was nothing but the god floating in the air, cloaked in thunder.
As scientists, their understanding of reality was shattered; everything they believed in was overturned.
Jane Foster's mind replayed the events of the previous night.
"Who are you?"
"Thor."
It turned out he hadn't lied, nor was he joking when he said he came to help.
Just like the myths, the gods had descended to protect mortals from impending danger.
Daisy's face contorted in regret and disbelief as she exclaimed:
"Damn fake Thor! I almost slept with him last night! That was God—an actual God!"
Eric, a former materialist, wanted to rationalize this as some alien phenomenon, but faced with such a divine display that shook him to his core, he couldn't form the words.
Meanwhile, in the ruins, Thor gazed at the new Thor in the distance. His eyes revealed shock, joy, and despair. He was relieved others had been saved but despaired that the power of Thor had abandoned him completely.
A meteor of lightning crushed the Destroyer's high-energy rays, reducing Asgard's most formidable weapon to fragments. The sky cleared, and Coulson, witnessing this miracle, whispered hoarsely:
"Sir, I think I just saw God…"
Nick Fury's voice responded gravely in his headset:
"You may not be wrong. The hammer at the base—identical to the one in the myths—just flew away."
Coulson murmured, "I know. It's in his hands."
As the lightning dissipated, Russell landed beside Thor. Removing his divine armor, he looked down at him.
Thor, scarred and battered, looked up with a conflicted expression.
"You're Thor. I'm the fake," he admitted.
Russell, his disguise now removed, didn't respond to Thor's despair. Instead, he spoke:
"The star in Jotunheim's star field burned out 30 million years ago, leaving it trapped in perpetual winter. Thor's hammer—Mjolnir—is more than a weapon. Its true power lies in its runes: solidity, transformation, summoning, and storing divine energy. The Dwarves' forge was built from a dying star's core. And the Dwarves? They were called that because Asgard's ancestors, who were giants, defeated them. Asgardian magic extends beyond illusions to include elemental, summoning, and witchcraft. The World Tree, hidden beneath dimensions, only reveals itself under special circumstances."
Thor was stunned by these revelations.
Russell delivered the final blow:
"You were never Thor. I'm taking this hammer with me."
Without another glance, Russell turned and left.
Sif, injured, staggered over. "Thor, we need to return to Asgard. You must expose Loki's conspiracy!"
Thor, after a moment of silence, shook his head.
"No. Thor is dead. Perhaps Loki is better than me. Asgard doesn't need a reckless warrior like me."
Eric approached cautiously, extending an invitation:
"Want to join us?"
Thor refused without hesitation. He didn't look at Jane again but instead faced SHIELD, ready to confront his new reality.
Back in Asgard, Loki was reveling in his success at sowing chaos. But upon returning to his chamber, he froze as a stranger's voice echoed:
"I've been waiting for you. Took you long enough."
Loki's confidence faltered as he saw a man casually eating his fruit. Fear crept in, though he masked it well.
"Who are you?" Loki asked, approaching slowly.
Russell chuckled. "You're as predictable as always." With a snap of his fingers, Loki's illusion shattered, and the real Loki stumbled to the ground at Russell's feet.
Loki, dazed and confused, tried to attack, but Russell deflected it effortlessly. For Loki, it felt like being trapped in a time loop.
For Russell, dealing with Loki was an unfortunate necessity.
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