"Let's show Thanos what's called an Elden Ring boss," Elric said with a grin, already preparing to teleport to the battlefield.
"What is an Elden Ring boss?" Hela asked, confused by the reference, her head tilting slightly.
"Nothing, never mind. Let's just go," Elric deflected.
"Oh yeah, before we leave—what about Odin?" Elric suddenly remembered. "Where is he? Shouldn't the All-Father be here defending his realm?"
"I don't know," Hela shrugged with apparent disinterest. "He ran away somewhere after giving me the throne, took Mother with him. Said something about 'retirement' and 'finally getting peace.' Very dramatic about it."
"Anyway, he's not on Asgard anymore," she confirmed. "Probably on some remote realm drinking mead and pretending he's a simple wanderer. You know how he gets."
How will I know how he gets, Elric was speechless.
"Okay then, let's go," Elric said, ready to face Thanos alongside her.
"HEIMDALL!" Hela shouted loudly toward the heavens, her voice carrying with divine authority.
With her call, a rainbow beam of the Bifrost descended from above, the brilliant light engulfing both of them.
Elric closed his eyes against the brightness, feeling the familiar sensation of instantaneous travel across vast distances. The moment he felt the light fade, he slowly opened his eyes, expecting to see a battlefield, a fleet of ships, Thanos's forces arrayed before him.
But instead he found himself dumbfoundedly looking at the same exact scenery of the throne room. The same golden pillars, the same murals, the same everything.
And he was still standing in the exact same place he'd been before.
The only difference was Hela's somewhat laughing voice echoing back through the Bifrost connection: "Let me fight first, sweetheart! Be a good boy and stay there! I'll call you if I need help!"
Hearing this, Elric's mouth twitched violently with suppressed frustration.
All of this is the fault of those bullshit romance novels she'd been reading lately, he thought with exasperation. Ever since she discovered that collection of mortal literature, she's been acting differently. Otherwise, his Hela used to be so much sweeter, less... theatrical.
Finally, after a moment of internal grumbling, he sat back down on the throne.
Really, if she wanted to fight so badly, he'd let her fight, Elric decided pragmatically. No point in arguing with her when she got into these moods. Besides, she was more than capable of handling Thanos's forces alone—he'd buffed her to ridiculous levels.
He directly cast a scrying spell, information magic spreading out from him like invisible tendrils.
With the spell's activation, a picture of the exterior battlefield materialized in front of his eyes, projected in the air like a three-dimensional tactical display.
Outside Asgard's Barrier
The normally blue sky above Asgard's golden realm was now covered by three huge warships, massive vessels that blocked out the sun. Each ship was easily a kilometer long, bristling with weapons that were now shooting intensely at Asgard's defensive barrier.
Concentrated energy beams hammered against the shimmering forcefield, creating ripples and flares of light with each impact. The bombardment was continuous, relentless, designed to wear down the defenses through sheer sustained firepower.
Most of Asgard's elite soldiers have already been sent to Earth, Elric thought, analyzing the situation. Mainly because he'd wanted to subdue Earth without too much collateral damage, and he also didn't want to accidentally kill Asgardian warriors because of his orchestrated plan.
The stronger the soldiers, the more easily they could subdue opponents without lethal force, without too many accidents.
And although he'd guessed that Thanos and Loki might pull something exactly like this—attacking Asgard while its forces were deployed elsewhere—he'd come to Asgard himself specifically for this reason. So there wasn't much actual problem here.
"Hey, Alen," Elric called out through his watch.
"Yes, boss?" the female voice came back immediately.
"Is everything going according to plan on Earth?" Elric asked.
"Yes, boss. They've already started fighting. Thor's performance is excellent—very convincing aggression without actual lethality."
"Boss, there is one more thing," the clone added hesitantly. "Although Thor is following orders and specifically avoiding killing people, casualties are still occurring. Some humans might die from collateral damage, structural collapses, that sort of thing."
"The highest priority concern is Tony Stark, who is seriously injured right now,". "Severed arm, internal trauma, massive system damage. Do you want me to intervene?"
Should he save Stark? Elric considered for a moment, weighing options.
After thinking about it, he quickly changed his mind. He could just revive Tony later if needed. Besides the Infinity Stones, there were countless necromantic spells that could restore life, resurrect the dead, repair fatal injuries.
So he wasn't too worried about permanent casualties. And besides, Earth seeing some of their champions fall might make them give up resistance earlier, which would actually serve the plan better.
"Keep a close eye on the situation," Elric ordered. "Keep me informed of major developments, but don't intervene until the plan time."
His consciousness returned fully to observing the Asgardian battlefield.
Asgard - Exterior Defensive Line
With the rainbow Bifrost light descending like a pillar of divine power, Hela appeared directly in front of the gathered Asgardian defenders, materializing from pure light.
She stood tall, regal, every inch the Queen of Asgard despite the battle situation. Her black and green armor gleamed, her crown of blades manifested automatically around her head.
"What is the current situation, Heimdall?" she demanded immediately, her tone commanding.
"Lord Hela," Heimdall responded, his golden eyes still tracking the enemy fleet above. "For now, our barrier is holding strong. They cannot break through the defensive field with this level of firepower. The shields will hold for days at this rate."
"The attackers appear to be Chitauri forces," Heimdall continued his report. "Led by three capital ships, approximately 10,000 infantry soldiers in dropships waiting behind the bombardment screen. Standard invasion formation."
"And I can see through the ships' hulls," Heimdall added, his all-seeing gaze piercing through matter itself. "Thanos the Mad Titan is aboard the center vessel. He appears to be... waiting. Not directing the attack personally yet."
Although the barrier could hold the attackers for an extended period, providing a comfortable defensive advantage, Hela's patience could not.
She wasn't interested in siege warfare, in waiting out an enemy who'd come to her doorstep. That wasn't her style, had never been her style across thousands of years of warfare.
She raised her hand dramatically, fingers spread, channeling her divine power.
And with that gesture, a massive sword began to rise from the golden ground of Asgard itself, materializing from death-energy and solidified magic. The blade was enormous—easily fifty meters long, ten meters wide, black as midnight and radiating malevolent power.
It rose at incredible speed, shooting upward like a missile, accelerating as it climbed.
Before the lead ship could react, before weapons could track or shields could adjust, the giant blade directly penetrated the vessel's underside, punching through armor plating that could withstand nuclear weapons.
Without encountering any meaningful obstacle, the sword directly cut the ship cleanly in half, slicing through it like it was made of paper rather than reinforced alien alloys.
The two halves of the ship began to drift apart, secondary explosions blooming across both sections as systems failed and reactors breached.
Thousands of Chitauri soldiers died instantly, vaporized by the explosive decompression or the raw magical energy that suffused the blade.
The sword continued its trajectory without slowing, heading directly toward the second ship in the formation, promising the same fate.
But this time it was abruptly stopped by a shimmering yellow barrier that appeared directly in front of the vessel—a hexagonal energy field that intercepted the blade with a sound like thunder.
The massive sword pushed against the barrier, death-magic warring with cosmic power, but couldn't penetrate. The yellow shield held firm, rippling but not breaking.
The undamaged ship's main hatch slowly opened, revealing a launching bay that had been concealed by armor plating.
And standing in that bay, silhouetted against the interior lights, was a figure that commanded attention despite the vast distances involved.
The Mad Titan himself. Thanos.
He was exactly as legends described—massive, purple-skinned, armored in gold and blue. But what drew every eye, what made even Hela's gaze sharpen with interest, was the bracelet on his left wrist.
The Infinity Gauntlet, though not the full version from legend. Just a simple golden band, elegant and understated.
But set into that band, glowing with brilliant yellow light, was a single gem.
The Mind Stone.
One of the six Infinity Stones, artifacts of cosmic power that predated the universe itself.
And its yellow radiance was the source of the barrier, the power that had stopped Hela's blade.
Thanos stepped forward to the edge of the launching bay, looking down at Asgard's gleaming realm far below, at the Goddess of Death standing on her home ground.
And despite the distance, despite the miles of air between them, Hela could hear his voice perfectly—amplified by the Stone's power, projected directly into her mind.
"Hela Odinsdottir," Thanos said, his voice like grinding stones, carrying inevitable weight. "Goddess of Death. Queen of Asgard. I have come to negotiate for what is mine."
"Your negotiation tactics need work," Hela called back, her voice carrying on winds she commanded. "You started by attacking my realm. That's not typically how diplomacy begins, Titan."
"I needed to demonstrate that I am a threat worth negotiating with," Thanos replied pragmatically. "That I am not some petty warlord you can simply dismiss. Now that I have your attention..."
He raised his gauntleted hand, the Mind Stone pulsing with increased intensity.
"Shall we discuss terms? Or shall we see whether the Goddess of Death can truly die?"
Hela smiled—not a pleasant expression, but the grin of a predator who'd just spotted interesting prey.
"Oh, Titan," she purred, her power beginning to build around her, the sky darkening in response to her divine fury. "Let's find out together."
The battle for Asgard had truly begun.