That rainbow-colored light was none other than the Bifrost.
At the far end of the Golden Palace, where the Bifrost began, Heimdall had used his greatsword to activate it.
The light came as suddenly as it vanished. Before the spear could pierce Thor's throat, the Bifrost swept him away into its rainbow glow.
Hela's spear pierced empty air.
She looked up at the ceiling of the Golden Palace.
A shrinking ring of colored light hung there, the fleeting trace left by the Bifrost.
Her green eyes followed its trail across the universe.
To a blue, tiny, unremarkable planet.
Earth.
"Run, little brother," Hela said, her voice echoing through the vast hall of the Golden Palace.
"Run to Earth and find your allies. I'll come for you. Once I rule Asgard, once I've gathered my army, I'll come to Earth. And then no one will save you."
She turned toward the throne.
Odin's throne lay shattered, mangled by Thor's impact.
She studied the fragments, the golden pieces carved with heroic epics, and a cold smile touched her lips.
"I'll build a new throne," she said. "Bigger than Odin's. Grander. One worthy of me."
She sat among the throne's ruins, her green eyes fixed on the entrance to the Golden Palace and the land beyond, gleaming beneath the stars.
Asgard.
She had returned.
The Bifrost's light exploded across the New Mexico desert.
Thor tumbled out of the beam and rolled more than ten meters, kicking up a cloud of dust.
He lay half-buried in the sand, limbs spread like a starfish washed ashore.
Golden blood seeped from the corner of his mouth and the cracks in his armor. It hissed as it struck the sand.
A god's blood burned tiny pits into the mortal earth.
His eyes were half-closed, his breathing ragged.