This was something Hela could not accept. Yet deep down, she knew she truly had no chance of defeating Thor and Loki's combined efforts. If the fight continued, her death in this severed realm of Asgard would be inevitable.
"I'm sorry, Hela. While much of the tragedy of your earlier life was caused by our father, the unfortunate reality is that you and I are not on the same side." Watching the remnants of rune thunder wreak havoc in Hela's wounds, Thor slowly shook his head. The mighty Mjolnir in his hand began to release terrifying bursts of rune thunder, resonating with the energy already embedded in Hela's body. Thor spoke with a tone of quiet regret.
"Hah! Thor, I see nothing in you except the same hypocrisy that plagued that old man Odin!" Hela sneered. Back when she had been confined to the hellish dimension of Helheim, she had thought Thor was unlike Odin. But now, she knew she was wrong.
Thor and Odin were, at their core, remarkably similar. Both were adept at standing tall on their pedestals of privilege, passing judgment on others from a place of self-righteousness.
As much as she resented Thor's words, Hela also knew she had no means of countering his current attack. The rune powers Thor wielded were undeniably stronger than Asgard's conventional divine energy.
If Thor had full mastery of the runes, not only would Hela be unable to contend with him, but even beings like Kull or the All-Father Odin himself would stand no chance.
Hela realized she had no choice but to retreat. Thor's escalating power and the grievous injuries she had already sustained made it impossible for her to continue the fight. Her only remaining hope was to flee back to her domain of Helheim in the hellish dimension, where she could recuperate and rebuild her strength.
Her plan was clear: stabilize her rule in Helheim, amass greater power, and eventually exact her vengeance on Asgard.
"Boom!" Overhead, the skies of Asgard were cloaked in dark, roiling storm clouds. Thor's rune power intertwined with his thunder, unleashing a force that drew upon the very essence of Asgard itself.
At this moment, Thor seemed to gain the divine favor of Asgard's entire realm. Even Yggdrasil, the mysterious World Tree, appeared to resonate faintly with his power, as though its cosmic breath aligned with his thunderous fury.
This phenomenon triggered an overwhelming sense of impending doom within Hela. She could feel death closing in on her, step by step.
"Damn it! If only I could awaken the army that once fought alongside me—or Fenrir! Victory would have been mine!" Hela's heart seethed with frustration and regret. She had once held a winning hand, but the events following her release from captivity had spiraled out of her control.
"Farewell, Hela." Thor's voice echoed like a final decree. In a flash, Mjolnir transformed into a streak of lightning, hurtling toward Hela.
The powerful rune thunder coursing through Hela's wounds rendered her body completely immobile. It seemed as though she had no chance of dodging this fatal blow.
"I will return!" Yet, in the next moment, something unexpected happened. Hela's body erupted in a massive explosion, her form disintegrating as death energy and rune thunder collided in a terrifying detonation.
"Boom!"
The explosion tore open a spatial rift within the Asgardian realm. From this rift emanated the distinct aura of the hellish dimension, and a small gate to Helheim manifested in the heavens of Asgard. Hela's shattered remains shot through the gate, vanishing from Asgard entirely.
As the hellish aura began to seep into Asgard's realm, it started to spread, threatening to taint the divine land. Thor's expression grew grim. He knew all too well the dangers of the hellish dimension.
Thor had ventured into the hellish dimension before and was fully aware of its immense scale. It was a realm far beyond Asgard's ability to contend with, even if all the divine realms of Earth were to join forces. The hellish dimension would still overshadow them.
Thor understood that he could not allow the hellish aura to spread further in Asgard. If unchecked, its invasive nature could transform the entire realm into an extension of the hellish dimension.
With Hela safely ensconced in her own domain, Thor's attack could no longer reach her. Shifting his focus, he redirected the rune thunder he commanded, channeling its power to obliterate the encroaching hellish energy.
"What happened? Did Hela escape?" Loki, who had not seen the events clearly, nonetheless caught snippets of Hela's parting words and glimpsed the formation of the gate to Helheim. His heart sank as he turned to Thor for answers.
"Yes, Hela escaped. It seems our troubles are far from over. I have no doubt she'll seek revenge in the future," Thor replied with a sigh, his voice heavy with resignation.
Loki fell silent at Thor's words. Under different circumstances, Loki might have chastised Thor for failing to finish the job, accusing him of not trying hard enough.
But after fighting alongside Thor, Loki now understood that his brother had given it everything he had. Hela's escape was not due to Thor's lack of effort, but rather to her cunning and decisiveness. Her final move had been a calculated self-destruction, leaving behind only fragments of her body to escape.
Were it not for Helheim—a domain under her control—Hela's severe injuries would likely take centuries to heal, if not leave her incapacitated forever.
It wasn't that Thor lacked strength; it was that Hela was simply too shrewd. Loki chose not to dwell on Hela's escape for another reason: the battle between the All-Father Odin and Kull in Asgard's palace was still unresolved.
Or rather, Odin had been deliberately suppressing Kull, conserving his strength until Thor finished his own battle and could take over the fight.
"When I arrived, Father told me he wouldn't last much longer. We need to return to the palace immediately," Loki reminded Thor urgently.
"I understand." Thor nodded, glancing around to ensure the hellish aura had been completely eradicated. Satisfied that the danger was contained, he took to the skies, flying toward Asgard's palace with Loki close behind.
Despite his battle with Hela, Thor's condition remained near its peak. Drawing upon the combined forces of rune thunder, Asgard's divine energy, and even Yggdrasil's resonance, Thor found his strength replenished. The battle had even deepened his understanding of rune power. He could now feel the power of the Mind Stone lingering within him being slowly suppressed by the runes.
Once the rune power completely overpowered the residual influence of the Mind Stone, Thor would finally break free from its control. His rune mastery would then ascend to a new level, marking his rise to the rank of Skyfather.
"Welcome, my sons," Odin greeted as Thor and Loki entered the palace. His astral form, composed of fading divine energy, was noticeably dimmer. On the other side, Kull's aura had also weakened significantly.
Kull's strength had been steadily eroded under Odin's relentless suppression. Only the residual fear emanating from Asgard's people had kept Kull from succumbing entirely.
"Father, are you alright?" Thor asked, concern etched on his face. He could feel the lingering danger in Kull's aura, as well as the diminishing power in Odin's.
"Do not worry about me. I'm about to join your mother," Odin replied softly, shaking his head. "This outcome differs slightly from what I foresaw, but perhaps a warrior's death is a better ending. I will unleash one final surge of divine power to weaken Kull, reducing him to a level below Skyfather. After that, it will be up to you, Thor, to finish him."
Everyone's expressions turned solemn at Odin's words. Even Robert, observing from the shadows, couldn't help but smirk wryly as he muttered, "Final strike? Odin's 'final strikes' seem endless! Kull's probably cursing him to high heaven right now. 'Just weaken me already! Stop dragging it out!'"
Unaware of Robert's commentary, Odin truly was at the end of his strength.
With a final burst of divine power, Odin unleashed a brilliant flash that illuminated all of Asgard. Then, as the light faded, his astral form dissipated completely. Gungnir, the spear of eternity, fell to the palace floor.
Kull collapsed as well, his aura diminished to the point where he was no stronger than Thor had been upon first arriving on Earth. At this level, Thor was more than capable of dealing with him.
Though he witnessed Odin's demise, Thor did not waste the opportunity to grieve. Instead, he acted decisively, unleashing the full force of his rune thunder. Empowered by Asgard's recognition of him as its new king, Thor's might surpassed even what he had shown against Hela.
"Boom!" The palace trembled violently as Thor's devastating attack struck Kull, obliterating his body entirely.
"Did we… succeed?" Loki asked hesitantly, his eyes wide with disbelief as he stared at the spot where Kull had stood.
Thor also hesitated. He scanned the area for any trace of Kull but found none. "I think so," he replied cautiously.
But had Kull truly been vanquished? Robert, still observing from the shadows, shook his head knowingly. His gaze shifted to another part of Asgard—the sanctuary where Heimdall, the Warriors Three, and Asgard
's remaining citizens had taken refuge.
While neither Heimdall nor the Warriors Three exuded any fear, the citizens of Asgard were a different story. Trembling in panic at the destruction shaking their realm, their collective terror began to coalesce above the sanctuary.
The fear took shape, forming a solid figure that was unmistakably Kull.
Kull had been reborn.
"Since you helped us deal with Steppenwolf before, I'll give you a heads-up," Robert transmitted telepathically to Thor. "Kull isn't dead. He's been reborn at your sanctuary."
"What?" Thor exclaimed, his body surging with rune thunder as he vanished in a flash of lightning, heading straight for the sanctuary.
Loki, realizing something was amiss, hurried after him. But his steps faltered as his gaze fell on Gungnir, lying forgotten on the ground.
After a moment's hesitation, Loki reached down, grasping the spear. With Gungnir in hand, he took to the skies, following Thor toward the sanctuary.
Meanwhile, in the sanctuary, Heimdall's keen senses finally pinpointed Kull's presence. His heart sank. Of all those left alive in Asgard, Heimdall understood Kull better than anyone. He had lived through Kull's reign, standing among the rebels who had helped Odin overthrow him.
Now, seeing Kull return filled Heimdall with a deep and foreboding dread.
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