"Loki." Odin's voice thundered through the chamber.
"Wherever you go, war, destruction, and death follow. What else can you say for yourself?"
Loki's lip curled into a bitter, sardonic sneer. "I came to Earth to be their god."
He spat, his eyes glinting with unrepentant madness. "A merciful god… just like you, Father."
At those words, a flicker of shock, perhaps regret, crossed Odin's ancient face.
He let out a long, heavy sigh and spoke, this time not as a king, but as a man burdened by loss.
"Loki… we are not gods."
"We live, we age, we fall ill, and we die, just like the mortals you sought to rule. You chased power to satisfy your own wounded pride, not to help them. You don't need these excuses to hide your ambition."
Loki laughed darkly. "So this is it? The mighty Odin, reduced to this, disappointed in a child he stole."
Odin's disappointment was palpable. "Frigga pleaded for your life, and I granted it."
"But you will live out the rest of your days in the darkness beneath Asgard. Perhaps I should have let you perish when you were a babe… left you to fate."
The guards seized Loki, leading him away, the heavy chains clinking with each step.
It was Odin's final mercy, sparing his life, though leaving him to the loneliness he had created for himself.
Elsewhere, in Vanaheim
Meanwhile, far from Asgard's shining halls, Thor stood tall amidst the smoldering remnants of battle. The rebellion in Vanaheim had been quelled, and another ripple of chaos was left in Loki's wake.
The God of Thunder raised his hammer and summoned the remnants of Bifrost. In a swirl of rainbow light, he returned to Asgard.
At the gates stood Heimdall, ever-watchful, his eyes glimmering like molten gold.
"How are the stars, Heimdall?" Thor asked, his voice light despite the weight of duty on his broad shoulders.
Heimdall smiled faintly. "The Nine Realms slowly heal, my prince. Though chaos still stirs in distant corners, the worst has passed. I see billions of lives, countless stories unfolding."
"It is… beautiful."
Thor let out a relieved sigh. He knew the peace was fragile, but under his watch, it would hold.
"Soon, the throne will be yours." Heimdall added, his tone respectful. "You have earned it."
Thor gave a modest smile, then hesitated.
"How is she?" He asked quietly.
Heimdall understood at once.
In the midst of godly affairs and universal wars, Thor's thoughts always drifted back to Earth… to Jane Foster.
The mortal woman with a heart and mind as vast as the cosmos, whose life span was but a fleeting spark compared to Thor's.
Heimdall's gaze softened, a flicker of conflict crossing his face. "She is well," he replied carefully. "Working tirelessly, as ever. She watches the stars and waits."
Thor looked away for a moment, gripping Mjolnir tightly.
"I miss her." He confessed, his voice barely a whisper.
Heimdall nodded. "I know."
"…!?"
Heimdall's usually unshakable expression was troubled. His golden eyes shimmered unnaturally, darting as if searching the corners of the cosmos.
"What is it, Heimdall?" Thor asked.
The Gatekeeper spoke without looking away from the void. "Every five thousand years, the Nine Realms align, an ancient convergence of cosmic forces. And it happens…" he hesitated, his brow furrowing, "…that your little mortal, Jane Foster, is studying a similar phenomenon."
"She doesn't yet know what these converging energies truly mean."
He trailed off, his face darkening. The glow of his eyes flickered, dimming in an instant.
"Heimdall? What's wrong?"
"I… I can't see her anymore!"
Heimdall's eyes flared as he searched again, his gaze piercing the realms.
"She was there~and then… gone." Heimdall's face was ashen. "Vanished beyond my sight, beyond the Nine Realms themselves."
Thor's stomach dropped, his fist clenching around Mjolnir's handle. "Could someone be hiding her? Like Loki did?"
Heimdall shook his head grimly. "She's just a mortal. There's no power in the Nine Realms that can shield her from my sight… unless~" he paused, his voice dropping to a troubled murmur, "-unless she has left the Nine Realms entirely. I felt it. It was as if she was… pulled away."
"Then I have to go to her. Now."
Heimdall gestured solemnly toward the dimmed Bifrost. "It isn't like before. We barely have it working as it is, it's too soon to reopen."
"The strain on Asgard would be immense."
But Thor was already turning, determination blazing in his eyes. "I'll take another path, through Soren's portal!"
Earth
Dr. Soren Macaluso was finishing his rounds. A gentle, unassuming man, his mastery of otherworldly medicine was hidden behind simple robes and a kind smile.
Those who should have remained beyond saving walked again.
Suddenly, Soren felt an energy shift that tightened his senses.
With a wave of his hand, a shimmering doorway of light bloomed open, and through it stepped Thor, still clad in gleaming Asgardian armor, bloodstains smeared across his chest and arms.
The patient gasped. A god had just walked into their world.
Soren calmly raised a hand. "Today's consultations are over."
Though many waiting souls were desperate to stay, none dared argue.
Once the lines were cleared, Soren turned, brow lifted.
"Thor." He said lightly, motioning to a chair. "You look… rattled."
Thor wasted no time sitting. "Jane is gone, Soren."
Soren's expression flickered in surprise. "Gone?"
"Heimdall can no longer see her. One moment she was on Midgard… the next, vanished beyond his sight."
Soren's thoughtful frown deepened. "For Heimdall to lose track of someone… it would mean she's not in the Nine Realms."
"Exactly." Thor leaned forward, desperation etched in his voice.
"I need your help!"
꧁𓊈𒆜༺⚜༻𒆜𓊉꧂
Fellow Phantoms and aspiring Phantoms to be, if you seek to access advanced parts of this story procced to my shadowy realm of p@treon.
PhantomDream