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….
However, Heimdall shouldn't possess such limitations. His eyes are a phenomenon, such a strong embodiment of a divine aspect that it earned the title of legend even within Asgard.
One can become invisible and inaudible to the Guardian of the Bifrost, but his gaze itself is capable of penetrating any part of the galaxy.
If Thanos doesn't have magic or technology allowing him to hide all his armies, then Heimdall will find him, and then a strike could be launched…
If I decide to do it.
But will I?
No matter how carelessly I clown around, I am far from the strongest warrior even in Odin's family.
Both the Allfather and Thor surpass me in a direct clash; they are true warriors, fighters who are not afraid of battle, who are in their element there.
I am different. I can't stand fighting. I know how. And I can. But it sickens me. It is much easier for me to kill someone than to fight them.
That's not a joke, to kill, you don't have to meet face to face and exchange blows, you don't have to plan the course of a duel, you don't have to do anything at all.
You might not know how to punch an opponent in the face, but still be capable of easily snapping his neck or sticking a knife in his throat.
I, and the former Loki too, were the kind of people who don't get a rush from a brawl. We don't feel anything special waving our fists in a fight; it was always easier for us to kill than to win.
True, both he and I were limited all our lives by the framework of society, not allowing such behavior, only he was limited within Asgard, and I generally.
But the point is that such a temperament doesn't allow one to surrender to battle completely and risk one's head with full dedication, at some point relying only on one's luck and the opponent's failures. Odin and Thor could do that; I cannot.
I cannot rush into battle ready to die if fate wills it so; I cannot lay down my all for victory over Thanos.
And the Fallen Titan isn't one you can defeat without strain and risk.
At the same time, I have no one to send in my place, Odin sleeps, Thor is exiled, and no one else can handle it, even Heimdall, although he is a very serious fighter by Asgardian standards.
Again, the plan was: bail from this universe, not overcome its problems like some Superman. If I had Superman's strength, I'd think about it, but alas, I'm a scrawny half-blood Frost Giant who can't even fly on his own, not the Last Son of Krypton.
And here, by the way, is another trouble, what to do with Laufey and the coming war?
The canon plan to eliminate my biological dad wasn't bad, but for objective reasons, it is unavailable to me, since I didn't lead the Jotuns into Asgard.
So Laufey won't even listen to me if I offer him to walk into a trap. And fighting a full-scale war with Jotunheim… We-e-ell, it's possible, in principle.
Jotunheim is in decline, all their technomagical industry was smashed by Odin long ago, they don't have their own analogue of the Bifrost, and they won't restore it anytime soon, even if they throw all their forces at it now.
Speaking of which, yes, they had their own analogue of the Bifrost, but it was destroyed, and restoration is forbidden by treaty, the execution of which Heimdall monitored tirelessly.
But there's trouble here too; war with Jotunheim is long and troublesome.
Asgard is a Flat World the size of a large island, but that is a full-fledged planet, the local population of which will play guerrilla warfare with the army of Aesir and Vanir with great pleasure, and sympathizers from all Nine Realms will come running too.
Again, having no alternative, over the last thousand years, the Frost Giants have become quite adept at walking the shadow paths…
Suddenly, the smooth flow of my joyless thoughts, which were slowly leaning toward the option: "actually, shouldn't I just blow up Jotunheim with the Bifrost?", was rudely violated.
And in general, the peace and tranquility of the ancient hall shattered like a crystal vase under a landsknecht's boot.
"Allfather! We need to speak with you urgently!"
Lady Sif burst through the side doors at the head of the trio of Thor's degenerate friends, rushing toward the throne almost at a run. At the same time, she managed to maintain a respectful and humble look on her face.
The guard didn't even bat an eye, and why would they? "Guests" at court had a high status in themselves, and being part of the Prince's retinue, even if he was currently in disgrace, made this status even higher.
But then this entire cavalcade saw me and stumbled.
"You finally showed up…" I smiled, waiting for their approach. Sure, that wasn't according to protocol, but protocol was the last thing on my mind.
"Loki?! You're back?" Sif was surprised, unable to keep her face for a moment and revealing some hostility to me.
Well, yes, Thor's "hooligan friends" didn't favor the "nerd brother" much, and this lively lass was no exception. "What happened? Where is Odin?"
"What happened?" I raised an eyebrow. "What happened is that Thor's stunt almost drove father into the grave, and now he is in the Odinsleep and will wake up only in a few decades, at best!" I didn't have to fake irritation much; the whole situation infuriated me considerably.
"As a result, I had to drop everything and rush to Asgard so there would be someone to lead the army in the war with Jotunheim, unleashed, among other things, by your efforts. And by the way, Sif, bother to explain to me, how did it happen that you didn't set Thor's brains straight when you heard about his plan? I don't ask why they didn't do it," a gesture toward the trio of warriors.
"But I had a better opinion of you! Where was your female intuition when the five of you went to storm an entire planet of beings in no way inferior in strength to the Aesir?!"
"…How can you say that?!" the girl didn't find words immediately, but she needed the pause only to go on the attack. "Thor wanted to save you!"
"Save?" not believing my ears, I asked again with a very characteristic facial expression, usually expressed by a phrase starting with "what" and ending with an obscenity. Did she really let half my speech fly past her ears?
"From what? I didn't need saving! I wasn't kidnapped, I wasn't captured by enemies during a campaign, I just went for a walk away from Asgard so as not to spoil Thor's holiday with my sour face! I even left a note so you wouldn't twitch and look for me. But instead, he climbed to the Jotuns for some reason and, effectively, unleashed a war."
"And now the result: father sleeps, mother doesn't leave his bedside, Thor is in exile, and I became King, who has to clean up all this mess. So answer me, friends, how should I speak in such a situation?"
If I could condense poison from my voice, I could start wholesale deliveries from the last phrase alone.
"King?!" my brother's friends shouted in unison.
….
If you want to read ahead by 20+ chapters from here you can visit my Patre-on.
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