Original Sin's vision was fading into darkness.
In her final moments, she saw the figure before her spread his arms—and layer upon layer of afterimages appeared behind him!
A second later, the illusion became reality.
Hundreds of duplicates burst from his body.
Some transformed into flame or thunder. Others became light or vanished into green vortexes, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
"Can't stop them all at the same time?"
That line now sounded utterly ridiculous.
Or rather, it should be reversed: Even if there were a hundred more hammers, they still couldn't kill this man—or stop the God of Winter from destroying all the Sky Hammer Wielders.
Tropical Island
The Hulk, now fused with the Warhammer, had become Nur·Breaker. He roared ferociously, shaking the entire island with a single stomp. The land cracked beneath him, threatening to sink into the ocean at any moment.
Queens, New York
Juggernaut, clad in armor radiating scarlet energy, had become Kus, the Stonebreaker. His eyes blazed with white-hot light. Terrifying electrical energy exploded from his body, tearing through everything in a hundred-meter radius—reducing buildings to rubble.
The Vatican, Italy
A giant stone gargoyle broke free from an ancient seal, spreading massive gray wings. It had become Mok, the Fallen Faith. With a soul-piercing screech, its sonic waves tore through the Vatican. Every priest and believer within range bled from their eyes, ears, and mouths—collapsing to the ground in agony.
Siberian Ice Prison
The Absorbing Man, having broken free from cryogenic confinement, was now ablaze with raging fire. Empowered by a Warhammer, he had become Rethos, the Destroyer. He lifted his hammer high, releasing a tidal wave of fire that turned the entire prison into an inferno.
Earth Timeline: Gregorian Calendar, May 14, 2017
On this day, the Serpent, messenger of the King of Fear, descended upon Earth.
Wherever he walked, despair followed.
The skies darkened, and a tide of fear spread like wildfire, threatening to plunge the world into madness.
But one minute later—
He arrived.
The God of Fire and Thunder, of Light and Winter, descended to save humanity.
Inside S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters
Nick Fury stood before the central command screen, staring at the high-energy signatures—each one representing a Warhammer-wielding monster—vanishing simultaneously from the map.
His mind reeled in silent shock.
According to the helicarrier's advanced predictive system, it should have taken the Asgardian named Russell at least ten minutes to defeat each of the corrupted Warhammer wielders—one by one.
And in that projected timeline, over 60,000 people would have died.
And even that was only if nothing went wrong.
But now?
One minute.
All of them.
Russell had wiped out all of the Sky Hammer Wielders in just one minute.
Nick Fury had believed he understood this so-called god. But now, he realized—he'd only seen the tip of the iceberg.
A total and absolute victory.
And Russell's true power?
Far more terrifying than they could've imagined.
He glanced at Maria Hill, whose face mirrored his disbelief.
At that moment, the same thought crossed both of their minds:
The age of Earth… is about to change.
At the same time —
Asgard
Russell stood tall on the broken ruins of the Bifrost Bridge, while Heimdall stood humbly beside him. His golden eyes gleamed as he searched the realms.
Ten seconds later, Heimdall paused, his expression focused.
"I've found him! Thor is trapped within a barrier—he's fighting, and he's been injured!"
Just as expected…
Russell showed no surprise.
If Odin had foreseen this in prophecy, how could he not have prepared for it?
Those so-called Sky Hammer Venerables—they were nothing but bait. The enemy's real goal had always been clear: to kill Thor first.
"Send me there," Russell ordered.
Without direct coordinates, Heimdall could only use the broken Bifrost's residual energy to send him.
Three hours earlier — North Carolina, United States
In a high-level university laboratory, Jane Foster was analyzing experimental data when her phone lit up. It was Darcy Lewis, calling her in a panic, urgently asking for help.
The voice on the other end was trembling.
As a good friend, Jane didn't hesitate. She grabbed her car keys and drove to the location Darcy had sent—an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town.
As she arrived, something felt wrong.
Jane hesitated. The warehouse looked deserted and ominous. Still, she stepped inside.
What she saw made her heart sink.
Darcy was kneeling on the ground, Asgardian runes glowing faintly beneath her. Standing before her was an old man leaning on a long, eerie scepter.
Jane's hand slipped into her bag, fingers wrapping around a concealed electric shock device.
"Who are you?" she asked cautiously.
The old man said nothing.
Then Darcy stood up slowly, turned to face Jane, and smiled—cold and twisted.
"My dear sister… you finally came."
Jane's instincts screamed danger.
Without another word, she turned and ran.
She had seen enough in her time with Thor and the Nine Realms to know when something was truly wrong. This… this wasn't Darcy.
But before she could escape, a blast of purple energy struck her, lifting her into the air.
Darcy—no, whatever was inside her—walked forward, staring up at Jane suspended mid-air. Her face was warped by rage and jealousy.
"Why did we both start as Dr. Selvig's assistants, and yet you became a university professor while I was left organizing files?"
"Why did Thor fall from Asgard to Earth… and then end up in your bed?!"
"It was me who bumped into him first!"
"I should've been his girlfriend!"
"Why you?!"
Jane swallowed hard, fear tightening her chest.
"Darcy… this isn't you. You're being controlled! Please… fight it!"
Darcy grinned cruelly.
"No. This is the real me. I've wanted to say this for a long time."
"And now… I'm finally taking back everything that should've belonged to me!"
With that, her jaw split unnaturally wide—and she sucked in with a grotesque force.
Jane froze, glowing golden runes flashing on her body as they shattered. A shimmering, glowing soul was pulled out of her body—violently—before being devoured by Darcy.
In the next second, Jane's physical body vanished.
Darcy's face twisted—then slowly reformed into one nearly identical to Jane Foster's.
Fate theft… complete.
From this moment on, Jane's past and future had been grafted onto Darcy.
This was the terrifying ability of Skorn, the Soul Stealer—the eighth Sky Hammer Venerable.
"What should I do next, Father?"
Darcy (now Skorn) knelt and asked piously.
A deep, echoing voice replied—belonging to The Serpent, the King of Fear.
"Jane's guardian rune is broken. He will come—to check on her safety."
"When that happens, strike. Ambush him. Kill him by any means necessary."
"Only by destroying this cursed prophecy can I truly become the King of the Nine Realms!"
Darcy hesitated for a moment. A strange flicker crossed her eyes—it wasn't clear if it was her own hesitation, or the remnants of Jane's will still echoing in her soul.
But she still nodded.
"Yes, Father."
The Serpent nodded in approval, and the illusion of his form slowly faded.
Polar Base – Three Hours Later
After the death of the Soul Eater Stoneman, the Serpent sent out Original Sin.
And now, he began a massacre.
One by one, he slaughtered the HYDRA agents stationed in the base.
Under his intentional emotional manipulation, their dying screams filled the air with a potent, high-quality fear—the energy he fed on.
When the final scream echoed and fell silent, the Serpent's once-gray hair had turned dark again, and the wrinkles on his face had faded.
His strength was returning.
Then, raising his staff, he gently tapped the ground.
A magic circle burst into life beneath him, enveloping his figure in radiant light.
The Serpent vanished—then reappeared inside a massive purple energy barrier.
Inside the Barrier
Thor was in bad shape.
His right shoulder was dislocated and fractured. His once-proud Asgardian armor hung in tatters. His left hand, still gripping Mjolnir, trembled. He was gasping for breath.
Across from him stood Darcy (Skorn), clad in dark purple armor. Her body glowed faintly with divine energy.
She had dominated the fight since the beginning, ambushing him and suppressing him with divine might.
If not for the incredible resilience of his Asgardian body, Thor would've already lost.
"Well done," the Serpent said, appearing beside her. His eyes locked onto Thor.
After a moment of cold silence, he sneered:
"So you're Odin's son? You don't look like it."
"I doubt your father will even cry for you."
His voice dropped cold as ice—and murderously intent.
But in that moment, the barrier cracked.
A torrent of rainbow-colored energy crashed through it like a meteor, slamming into the ground.
From within, a faint voice echoed—
"I think Odin will cry for you. After all… you're the one who's going to die today."
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