As soon as they reached a nearby S.H.I.E.L.D. base they were immediately transferred to the one in Manhattan, and from there to the Avengers headquarters.
Coulson wasted no time, he ordered that Amora be sent to Asgard as soon as possible, he requested that she be interrogated upon arrival and Thor agreed as soon as he understood the situation.
At the same time, Coulson contacted Natasha to ask for support in Doctor Strange's recovery. If this truly was a conspiracy, then there was a possibility that Strange was not unconscious solely because of the Dark Dimension, perhaps someone had silenced him on purpose, using some special method to prevent him from speaking.
When Coulson was quietly celebrating that Natasha had accepted, the bad news arrived from Asgard.
They were overwhelmed. There were almost no people available with the mental ability necessary to interrogate Amora. Not because Asgard was empty, but because most present were either too powerful yet unfit for a mental interrogation, or simply too weak to attempt it.
"Damn it, if I had known, I would not have sent her" Coulson murmured to himself.
Although they could interrogate someone from Asgard in emergency situations, it was not ideal, especially because they knew Thor's personality made such matters risky.
---
Days earlier, the Asgardian army had arrived in Het.
As expected, the planet was a living hell. Lava everywhere, constant fire, scorching air, heat strong enough to kill a human within minutes through burns and dehydration.
Surtur, strengthened by the planet itself, unleashed thousands of fire creatures. Some had defined forms, dogs made of volcanic rock wrapped in flames, golems shaped from the hardest stone. Others were abstract monsters born from his imagination, living rocks, incandescent formless masses, shifting liquid lava beasts.
Individually they were not too strong, but their numbers were endless. Destroying them took time, and for each one defeated, two more would appear. Surtur created them as fast as they were exterminated, covering the terrain without rest.
The Asgardians were not intimidated, instead they were exhilarated. For them it was endless battle, yes, but also a glorious battlefield.
"A planet worthy of Surtur" Thor said as he advanced with hammer blows and bare fists. With the strength of the creatures, a single strike was enough.
Days passed without rest, the cycle repeating itself, advance, destroy, be surrounded, advance again. No one complained.
Days later, while Thor fought, he saw a shadow covering the horizon. A dark burst swallowed everything within kilometers. The creatures vanished, only for their remains to gather seconds later and form a colossal monster, a giant gorilla made of countless fiery fragments.
Thor was not concerned. He knew Hela's power and knew she could handle the creature. Instead, his competitive instinct ignited. He summoned a storm of lightning, channeled it into the hammer and descended with all his strength, releasing a discharge that tore through the ground.
When he saw its radius was smaller than Hela's attack, Thor clicked his tongue in frustration and continued forward.
Finally, after hours of battle, they spotted Surtur. He sat upon a massive throne carved from the remains of a shattered mountain, simply watching them fight with disdain.
The moment Thor saw him he threw his weapon. A colossal three headed hound intercepted it and deflected the strike. Thor recalled the hammer, the beast charged toward him, but another creature of equal size rammed into it before reaching him.
Thor did not stop fighting. He was focused on the sudden transmission from Heimdall.
"Your majesty, we have received an urgent distress call from Nidavellir. The attacker is Thanos."
"Thanos," Thor muttered with anger upon hearing the name.
"Handle it. I will deal with Surtur" Hela said as she appeared behind him.
Thor agreed. His combat style was better suited for facing a primary opponent, while Hela, expert in mass destruction, could handle entire armies alone.
Thor withdrew immediately, leaving his sister to inform the rest.
They had prepared a method for returning to Asgard. He reached a ship orbiting the planet and activated the teleportation system.
Once he arrived in Asgard, he gathered almost the entire half of the army he had left in reserve and marched directly toward Nidavellir.
He knew leaving Asgard unprotected was a massive risk, but Thanos was a threat that had to be stopped before growing stronger. If allowed to advance, the destruction would exceed that of a single realm.
Even at maximum speed, the journey took time. When he reached Nidavellir there were already corpses on the ground.
And at the front, there he was. The titan Thor had hunted for years. Thanos.
"Thanos!" Thor roared, charging with his hammer raised.
Thanos extended a hand and stopped the weapon. The lightning that occasionally sparked from the hammer burned his skin, yet the titan did not release it.
Thor continued pushing with all his strength until he was pushed back by two new attackers.
Two figures struck him from behind, Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight. Both moved to stand in front of Thanos with weapons raised, Corvus holding his black glaive, radiating death, and Proxima's spear shining with pure energy.
But Thor was not alone either. His army arrived moments later, he had rushed ahead of them. The Asgardians clashed with the two members of the Black Order, creating an opening for Thor to charge at Thanos again.
Before Thor connected the blow, the titan closed his fist. A violet energy surrounded his hand and Thor's strike collided with it.
The moment Mjolnir struck the titan's fist, the hammer was blown back and Thor with it. The weapon cracked again from the impact, but Thor did not stop. He stood up and attacked over and over without rest, and without success.
"Asgardian, your struggle is meaningless" Thanos said while dodging effortlessly, returning precise blows, demonstrating his superior combat skill.
Thor, who at first had underestimated him for lacking the Stones, realized his mistake. A single punch sent him sliding meters away.
Thor recognized the purple power Thanos used only twice. It was the energy of an Infinity Stone.
But he did not understand how Thanos could wield it without the gauntlet.
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+14 chapters in advance on Patreon.
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(just delete the hyphen)
80 power stones = 1 extra chapter (cumulative)