"You are not my equal."
"You weren't before, you aren't now."
"And you never will be."
Lothar's "arrogance," so overbearing it seemed to mock the world itself, almost ignited the hatred for Odin that had been twisted inside Hela for over a thousand years.
"Huff..."
Closing her eyes, Hela took a few deep breaths, savoring the fresh air of freedom. When she opened them, she flicked her right hand, and a gleaming blade shot toward Thor, who was still with the Avengers.
Clang!
A crisp sound of metal clashing rang out. Guided by Thor's will, Mjolnir flew in front of him, blocking Hela's attack.
"So you're Hela..."
Thor, clutching his right shoulder, looked grim. Odin's imprisonment had stripped Hela of her youthful innocence and beauty, but it had left her with a dangerous charm and a unique allure.
"It's a shame. Odin should have died by my hand, but this meddlesome man got to him first." The still-weary Hela remained stubborn, though Lothar, standing beside her, simply scoffed, his red tail swaying idly behind him.
"Why?!"
"He was your father!"
"Why—"
"Allow me to correct you, my dear brother." Hela's face, when she spoke of Odin, was devoid of all warmth.
"From the moment he sealed me away in that quiet hell, he was no longer my father."
A thousand years of imprisonment, a thousand years of solitude. Had it not been for the burning desire to break free, Hela would have gone mad or killed herself.
Hela said these words with a smile, but it was a smile that left Thor completely at a loss. He didn't know what had happened back then. He didn't know what great conflict had existed between his father and his sister. All he knew was that his father and his brother were both dead, killed by Lothar.
"No matter how much you deny it, Odin's genes are still inside you."
"You are his daughter. That fact will never change."
Thor clenched Mjolnir tightly, and sparks of lightning flickered across his body.
"Are you truly Odin's son?" Hela watched Thor with interest. She was genuinely curious why Odin would raise such a naive heir.
"The one who's like Odin is the other one, Loki," Lothar interjected.
"Really? Where is he?"
"I don't know. Maybe he died in the space-time rift, or maybe he was banished to a strange universe."
Lothar gave Hela his answer.
"Whatever. It doesn't matter."
"Let's go, Lothar, come back with me."
"Asgard needs a queen to lead them back to greatness." Hela didn't even spare a glance at the weak Avengers. A longsword appeared in her hand. Heimdall wouldn't open the Bifrost for her, and in her current depleted state, she needed Lothar's help to get back.
"No, I refuse."
Lothar gave her no quarter. He still had to play out this act, to see if he could truly force the location of the Soul Stone out of someone. At the very least, he needed to let the people around Thor know about his desire for the Soul Stone. Only then could he be the proverbial praying mantis stalking the cicada, waiting for the oriole.
"I know where it is. I've even been there with Odin." Hela's words made Lothar pause.
"?"
"Take me back, Lothar. In exchange, I can take you to where the Soul Stone is hidden." Hela held up her sword.
"Where?" Lothar's eyes were filled with doubt. He genuinely had no idea Hela had been to the location of the Soul Stone.
"Vormir." Hela glanced at the still-cautious Avengers. Assuming one of them already knew the location, she said the name directly.
"When I was at Gafa, I met the Collector once, and he gave me the map to Vormir."
Gafa again?
Hearing the name once more, Lothar was slightly confused but didn't doubt Hela's words.
"The secret path back to Asgard is in—"
"Lady Hela, if you wish to return to Asgard, you don't need to go through the trouble of a secret path." The Other, who had been holding his breath for a long time, finally found an opportunity to prove his worth in front of Hela.
"Prince Lothar once shattered the Bifrost. When Odin repaired it afterward, Lord Thanos intervened and left a backdoor."
The Other subtly boosted his master's reputation again. Woz, meanwhile, scratched his head, thinking about the chip he had left in Mira's book.
So Lady Hela really isn't dead...
....
DC Universe, Apokolips.
Loki, his armor in tatters, was bound tightly like a ball of yarn and brought before a magnificent throne. The altered cosmic rules and suppression of the universe prevented Loki from using his divine power, leaving him at the mercy of his captors.
"Do you... know Lothar?" The figure on the throne asked, speaking a name that left Loki utterly astonished.
"Lothar?"
Loki's mind raced, trying to figure out the meaning of this stranger's question.
"The one whose hair can change between black and gold, and who has a red tail behind him?" Loki asked cautiously, suppressing his turbulent thoughts. He still didn't know why these soldiers had saved him and given him a strange potion. He was naturally very wary. What if this person was Lothar's friend?
Although the potion seemed to have no other effect so far besides helping him understand them.
"Give him the box."
Once he confirmed that Loki was indeed from Lothar's universe, and that he had the right person, the figure on the throne waved his hand. A general in Apokoliptian armor threw a square box at Loki's feet and removed his chains.
"Go to Earth and find a Kryptonian named Clark Kent."
"Then guide the energy from this box into him."
"If you want to go home, do as I say. Understand?"
Loki looked up at the blurred figure on the throne, cautiously picked up the box, and held it in his arms.
"Home? What does that mean?"
Loki already had an idea, but his face remained a mask of innocence.
The person on the throne didn't say anything else. Two fully armed generals appeared out of nowhere, each grabbing one of Loki's arms.
"Wait!"
"Wait!"
"What should I do after I finish the guidance?! How do I contact you?!" The trembling in Loki's voice was carefully hidden, but a hint of it came through in his desperate plea.
"Once you're done, say Darkseid into this wristband."
The figure on the throne remained silent, but one of the generals dragging Loki away put a brown wristband on his arm.
"Darkseid?" Loki, having been shocked by a jolt of electricity, quieted down and stopped struggling.
What is this?
Is it a person's name? Or something else? What does it have to do with Lothar?
And who is Clark Kent? Loki was left in a state of profound confusion as he was dragged away.
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