Whether Thor loved Loki was debatable, but the hammer in his hand definitely loved Loki.
Eighty for a big hammer blow, forty for a small one.
One smash, one victim.
John watched the Destroyer Armor get batted around like a ball.
The sight left him rather bewildered.
"Are you throwing the fight? Where was all that ferocity when you fought me?"
He silently cursed the rigged fight. The Destroyer had been nothing like this when it fought him earlier.
The real Destroyer: nimble footwork, crushing attacks, powerful heat beams.
The fake Destroyer: a lumbering body, attacks that missed, heat beams that barely grazed their targets.
John couldn't believe it could lock onto him even through Apparition, yet Thor could simply swing a big hammer and fly around without a scratch.
You're a suit of armor, and even you play favorites?
Just because his surname is Odinson and he's a prince of Asgard?
Thor unleashed his might, showing John just how powerful the true God of Thunder was.
Unlike Sif and the other Asgardian Warriors, Thor delivered far stronger attacks, with lightning accompanying them.
With his power restored, Thor knocked the Destroyer away with a single blow, then spun Mjolnir in his hand and hurled it, battering the Destroyer back and forth until it staggered.
The Destroyer opened its faceplate, and its scorching energy beam melted a concrete building in an instant.
Thor rose into the air, spinning the hammer in his hand at high speed.
Dark clouds shrouded the sky, and a hurricane lifted the heavy Destroyer Armor, sweeping it into the air.
Thor brought his hammer down hard, and the Destroyer Armor let out a thunderous crash.
Its faceplate opened, and the Destroyer fired an energy beam straight at Thor.
Rather than retreat, Thor advanced, meeting the beam head-on with Mjolnir.
He plunged rapidly against the energy beam, forcing all of it back into the Destroyer's body.
A tremendous blast swept outward, dispersing the storm and riddling every building in Old Bridge Town with holes.
The Destroyer Armor crashed heavily to the ground and lay motionless.
"Tergeo."
John waved his wand, and a whirlwind dispersed the smoke and dust.
Thor stood there, neither flushed nor out of breath.
"What a great actor," John remarked. "Your power is back, so our deal is officially complete."
"You haven't told me what the deal involves yet." Thor held his hammer again, its reassuring weight filling him with the bold conviction that he could go anywhere in the world.
John tapped the Destroyer Armor with his wand and said casually, "This will do."
"Deal."
The Asgard Prince, who had never had to worry about household expenses, agreed without the slightest hesitation.
Who knew how many slaps that generosity would earn him from Odin?
Now that his divine power had returned, he was ready to head to Asgard and deal with Loki.
He would save Asgard from disaster.
"Will you come with me, John?" Thor truly was generous, inviting John along.
John waved a hand. "No, but I am interested in the Bifrost."
He had no interest in Asgard's internal struggles. More importantly, he was much more interested in the Destroyer Armor.
Melting down such a large piece of uru would be a shame, but he could modify its existing design.
Back when John attended Hogwarts, he had made a suit of magical armor.
He had modified it from a troll's armor and given it to the Care of Fantastic Beasts professor.
That suit of armor had also played a significant role in the Battle of Hogwarts.
John had continued observing the power Thor displayed.
"It's somewhat different from magic, but at its core, it's still the manipulation of chaos particles."
He considered it quietly. This power had certain similarities to a wizard's magic.
It was called divine power.
And Asgardians seemed to possess it naturally within their bodies.
Mjolnir was not the source of Thor's power.
More precisely, it served to channel Thor's power, much like the wand in a wizard's hand.
There was no denying that Mjolnir was a powerful weapon, capable of amplifying magical power just as the Elder Wand did.
It held an enormous amount of power, enough to turn a mortal into a god much like an Asgardian.
Thor strode toward Jane Foster.
He wore a red cape and held a great hammer.
Looking at Thor like this, Jane found him both unfamiliar and familiar.
After everything they had been through, Thor and Jane had already joined their hearts together.
"Is this how you normally look?" Jane's gaze settled on Thor.
"More or less." Thor stood before Jane, his towering frame an imposing presence.
Jane looked him over appraisingly. "Looks pretty good."
Thor gave a knowing smile, then turned to the Asgardians. "We must get to the Bifrost. I have something to say to my brother."
He had plenty to say, including a few things that weren't particularly friendly.
Only yesterday, Loki's words had left him hurt and remorseful. Today, Loki had sent the Destroyer Armor to attack him.
Even Thor, ever the loving older brother, couldn't help feeling some anger.
He prepared to head to the Bifrost and return to Asgard.
The people from S.H.I.E.L.D. arrived.
Coulson had been lucky. The Destroyer hadn't targeted him, allowing him to escape with his life and one reasonably intact car.
"Excuse me."
"Donald," Coulson stammered a little as he looked at Thor, whose divine power had returned. "Is there something else you haven't told me?"
Thor held no grudge against this mortal. Ultimately, he was not someone who killed indiscriminately.
As Odin's son and a prince of Asgard, Thor had to shoulder the responsibility of keeping peace across the Nine Realms.
He told Coulson, "From this day forward, you can consider me an ally."
"So long as you return what you took from Jane."
Even at a time like this, he was thinking about his girlfriend. What girl wouldn't be touched?
Jane immediately corrected him. "Stole!"
"Borrowed." Coulson looked resigned. With the balance of power against him, he had no choice but to yield.
He had just watched Thor end the battle with his hammer.
"No problem. You can have your equipment back," Coulson conceded. "You can use it to finish your research."
It seemed S.H.I.E.L.D.'s intervention had cost them on every front.
Come to think of it, they had thrown in a check, too.
But no one was foolish enough to bring that up now.
Jane was naturally delighted, and something even better soon followed.
Thor invited her to watch the Bifrost open.
This was the very subject Jane had always sought to research.
Thor wrapped his strong arm around Jane's waist and swung his great hammer, launching them into the air and flying swiftly toward the place where the Bifrost opened.
"Wait, we haven't finished asking questions!"
Coulson looked up as the heavenly couple departed. On this ruined battlefield, he had no authority whatsoever to decide whether a god stayed or left.
The United States government would probably have to pay dearly for this.
Thinking of all those politicians trying every possible way to squeeze funding out of S.H.I.E.L.D. gave Coulson a headache.
A wobbling taxi was stopped, and four people piled into it.
The taxi driver felt like crying. His car was almost ready for the scrapyard. Couldn't they leave him alone?
Volstagg slapped the front passenger seat. "Get moving!"
The trembling taxi driver could only submit to these aliens' superior strength.
Selvig slapped his forehead. "I remember we parked our car on the other side."
Daisy and Selvig hurried to their car and drove after them.
Only S.H.I.E.L.D. and John remained at the scene.
John put away the Destroyer Armor and noticed the injured Star Spirit.
He raised his hand, letting the Star Spirit return to his palm, and murmured, "Episkey."
The cut on the Star Spirit's arm began to heal.
The Golden Little Man moved its arm about, making happy, unintelligible sounds.
John glanced at Coulson and the others, then said to the Star Spirit, "Thank you."
The Golden Little Man stood up and saluted.
As the magical guardian of this area, it had always faithfully carried out its duties.
It jumped down from John's hand and scurried on short legs behind a mailbox that had flown in from somewhere, peeking out from its hiding place.
John chuckled, waved his wand, and vanished with a loud crack.
Hearing the noise, Coulson turned and called out in confusion, "Mr. Wick?"
Walking through the ruined Old Bridge Town, Coulson was certain he had just seen John here.
The place where S.H.I.E.L.D. had been attacked was just as much of a mess.
Wrecked cars lay scattered in every direction.
Thor landed with Jane in his arms. He turned his head to give her a small smile, then called the gatekeeper's name to the sky.
"Heimdall, open the Bifrost."
The yellow taxi and the research vehicle arrived, and several people climbed out.
Receiving no response, Thor said hesitantly, "Heimdall?"
He had no idea.
The gatekeeper who watched over the Nine Realms, clad in golden armor, was frozen solid at the entrance to the Bifrost.
This was Loki's plot. He had used the Casket of Ancient Winters from the Asgard Vault to freeze the gatekeeper, then opened the Bifrost so people from Jotunheim could come and assassinate Odin.
Heimdall heard the call and struggled with all his strength.
On Earth, Thor remained puzzled.
"The bad news is, he isn't answering."
He shared this news with his companions.
The Asgardians' expressions grew grave, and Fandral said solemnly, "Then we have no way back."
Without the Bifrost, even the Asgardians, who were called gods, had no way to return.
Just then, a loud crack sounded beside Thor.
John appeared there.
His arrival startled Jane.
"Where did you come from?"
"When you ask that question while standing among a bunch of aliens, you ought to rethink how open-minded you are."
John shrugged, glanced down at the Bifrost markings, and asked casually, "Where's the Bifrost?"
"Heimdall isn't responding. We need him to open it."
Thor's expression was grim as he shouted, "Heimdall, if you can hear us, we need you!"
"It's Loki," Sif said with certainty. "He's done something to Heimdall to stop us from returning."
That made Thor anxious.
If he couldn't return, regaining his divine power was no use at all.
At that moment, John quietly raised his hand. "Do any of you know where Asgard is?"
Thor looked at John. "You have a way?"
"I can give it a try," John said, rubbing his chin. "But I'm not sure it'll work."
"It would be best if you knew where Heimdall is."
Thor nodded emphatically and told John where Asgard was.
John closed his eyes and raised his wand.
"What's he going to do?" Daisy whispered to Selvig.
Selvig didn't know either.
They watched John in silence.
The next second, the scene before John's eyes changed.
Everything around him was white.
A blue planet floated in the center.
Before you continue