Chapter 76: Proof

Bonus Chapter at 2.5k stones.

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A war involving two realms, Thor had only heard of it in sagas; never had he witnessed it or been in one.

But Allfather was all-powerful. He had conquered the Nine Realms before. He held the power to destroy Jotunheim and end the Frost Giants; then why did he choose peace instead?

His Father had taught him many things, but he had been the type to force them. Thor had always thought that it was because he didn’t see the need to do that with him. He believed he had understood everything he needed.

’But maybe Father was telling me something in his own way, even this exile...’ Thor looked at the white tent swaying in the cold night wind.

In the middle of that tarp maze was Mjolnir, still being studied by the Midgardians.

When he failed to lift it, his first thought was that Allfather had taken his power and truly banished him with no way back.

But what if that wasn’t all?

"At times like these, I really miss Loki and his ramblings." He rubbed his temple like it was on fire.

With a sigh, he leaned into the chair and looked at the starry night. Once again spending the night outside, wondering what he should do as the sun came again.

Thor walked back into the room given to him and placed the laptop on the desk; after that, he entered the common kitchen. Jane was already there. She had come here after checking on him outside right after waking up.

"Scrambled eggs?" He had learned how to cook eggs at least while watching over her shoulder for the week.

"Yes, some waffles too." Jane poured in freshly brewed coffee and gave him a cup first.

"That does sound nice." He poured the eggs in the pan and watched the yellow liquid curdle under the heat.

"You have a lot on your mind." Jane tapped his shoulder before the eggs burned. "Think while drinking coffee; it helps."

Thor lowered the heat and picked up the mug. Even though it was better than one he had at the café, he couldn’t really focus on it at the moment.

"Jane, what do you think makes a good king?" He leaned on the counter.

She tilted her head for a moment, wondering why this topic came up. But her mind went to the progression of Princess Mononoke in the past few Chapters, and she understood the reason he’d ask that.

"If I have to choose someone, I’d say Eboshi." She took a sip.

"Her?" Thor’s brow crinkled a bit.

"Is it because she’s a woman?" Jane’s brow shot up jokingly.

"Not that..." One of the fiercest warriors Thor knew was a woman; it was just something else. "She wounded the forest just for iron."

"She also saved people and took care of them." Jane continued. "I am not saying that it was right, but I understand her decisions. And if I have to follow a leader, I’d choose her."

"What would you do in her position?" Thor asked.

"Probably make it worse." Jane turned to him while rubbing the back of her head. She could barely control one intern after all.

"Me too." A small smile hung on his lips as the day passed.

Eboshi had her reasons, and so did he for storming Jotunheim. However, the former’s reason was to protect the people she had taken responsibility for.

Thor only wanted to protect his pride.

The reason he entered Jotunheim that day, it wasn’t because the Frost Giants had entered the Vault; it was because they had entered on the day of his coronation. And he felt the need to show them he was strong.

When Thor read the next Chapter, the depiction of war that this Skald had was told differently from the stories he had grown up with. There was no valour. There were no chosen heroes or evil gods anywhere.

The only thing filling the page was violence and the heaps of bodies left behind by both sides trying to prove themselves the stronger one. The blind anger that did not distinguish between able and diseased, human and beast.

The fire of war spared no one. But it wasn’t the ones that burned in that fire which suffered; the ones that survived that flame were much worse.

"I don’t know. Suddenly I didn’t know what was going on."

These were the words of the man left trembling beside the mound of corpses, bodies that were once his closest friends and family that he now had to see stacked like livestock.

Was this the war he was planning to bring Asgard into just to soothe his wounded pride?

Sure, Asgardians were a warrior race; they saw death in battle as the highest honour. But what would Valhalla think of the warriors losing their lives over in such a pointless war?

And even if he won that war, would it bring his pride back? Would it mean something if he showed them he was stronger?

Would he be any different from the Mikado that wanted the head of the Deer God just for his selfish ambitions without regard for what it would bring?

For a moment he was glad that All Father had cast him out. If he had been made king that day, it might’ve been the biggest disaster Asgard had ever seen.

Thor read on as Okkoto rushed into the peaceful Deer God’s forest, blinded by the humans under the boar skin of his dead warriors.

The wise, noble boar had fallen to delusion and anger. He allowed the hatred to flow through him and started to turn into a demon. And in doing that, he dragged San alongside him.

’I’ve let down even those who followed me to Jotunheim.’ Thor closed the laptop at last as the moon reached the zenith.

He wasn’t ready to face that his actions had put their lives in danger just because he fell for a cheap provocation.

Right then, Erik had stepped out. He couldn’t sleep because of the sudden drop in temperature and found Thor in his usual spot.

"Still thinking about the war with Jotunheim?" He sat on the chair near the fire with a light chuckle.

"Yes." Thor nodded.

Erik shook his head. Part of him still didn’t believe that this guy was the Thor from the myth. Sure, the guy was a mystery, but he just couldn’t make sense of the rest of the equation.

’He should at least show strong evidence of like Odin or Valkyries if he wants to make me believe he is Thor.’ Erik opened a can of beer and took a sip, illuminated by the full moon.

It was the perfect time to enjoy the clear night sky.

But right at the moment, a sharp alarm pierced through the sombre, cold winds. Even then, Erik’s eyes were locked on the gathering clouds in the sky.

The swirl of dark started to light up. It was just like that day when they had found Thor in the middle of the desert.

"What happened?" Jane rushed out in her pyjamas.

But her face lit up the moment she looked at the change in the sky; her eyes were focused on the device in her hands as she rushed out. Thor and Erik followed after her as the half-asleep Darcy stumbled behind them.

Running the calculations, the impact site was nearby. Really near.

But the moment they left the compound, the SHIELD agents had stopped them before they could make a beeline for the main gates.

"Get out of the way, we have to go!" Jane wasn’t the least bit happy, but Coulson appeared from behind the wall of guards before Thor could step forward.

"We already have some of our best agents securing the perimeter; they are trained to handle any situation." He pointed towards the tunnel he had walked out of. "You can watch the live feed from the control room and get all the data there."

"Should’ve started with that." Jane dashed past him.

"Thank you, Phil, Son of Coul." Thor patted his shoulder and followed after her.

But Coulson’s main focus was on Thor. The last time this phenomenon happened, he was the one who appeared in this area. What would come out this time?

Whatever it was, they could surely handle it.

At least that was what he thought when he entered the control room. On the live feed, the ray of light had landed on the ground, and four silhouettes came out of the dust curtain.

Three men and a woman. All in armour as they had stepped out of a Nordic legend.

And these individuals were effortlessly dismantling the teams that tried to engage with them. Guns and knives did little harm. The woman even flipped an armoured vehicle like it was a toy car.

Honestly, they were getting done in worse compared to when they fought Thor.

"Trained to handle anything, huh?" Jane looked at Phil’s uncrackable poker face.

But Phil and Erik were observing Thor, mostly the happiness on his face. It was probably the brightest he had looked in days.

"You know them?" Phil asked.

"Of course, I do. They’re my friends." He beamed.

"Couldn’t you have told that to me a bit earlier?" Phil would’ve ordered the agents to disengage.

"Well, I was sure nothing you had would harm them." Thor laughed; these four had followed him all the way to Jotunheim. Some bullets wouldn’t even trouble them.

"I don’t think that’s what he meant." Erik looked between Phil and Thor.

"Oh, I mean no disrespect. Your soldiers are quite strong by mortal standards."

That would’ve sounded a lot better if the same soldiers weren’t getting manhandled on the screen for everyone to see.

"And people say I have no filter." Darcy shook her head.

Thankfully, the battle between Thor’s friends and the SHIELD security didn’t cause any serious damage to the latter aside from a few broken arms. Barton was once again on watch duty and didn’t get a chance to fire an arrow.

Thor went out to meet his friends, and Phil stepped out to make a call. Near the gate, Sif, Volstagg, Fandral, and Hogun arrived to meet Thor.

"It’s nice seeing you all." He hugged them one by one and introduced them to the shocked Erik and Darcy.

He probably couldn’t show a bigger proof that he was from Asgard. Still, there was something else that commanded his attention.

"Why did you guys come here?"