Lock and the others flew at high speed in the light of the rainbow. Outside the Rainbow Bridge, countless stars shone, and in an instant, they were left behind.
He didn't know how many universes and timelines they passed through.
He didn't know how much time had gone by—maybe just a moment, maybe an eternity.
Suddenly, the rainbow light ahead vanished, and six people appeared inside the Rainbow Control Room.
In the center stood a small raised platform with the Guardian Sword still stuck into it, connected to the rainbow channel and flashing with white lightning.
Next to it, Heimdall had collapsed unconscious.
Earlier, Loki had frozen him with the Casket's power, leaving him gravely injured. After hearing Thor's call, Heimdall forcibly shattered the ice and spent the last of his strength to open the way.
Thor rushed forward, checked quickly, and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Heimdall was only unconscious.
He turned to Fandral: "You send him to the healing room. The rest of you, with me—straight to the palace!"
"Yes!"
Lock glanced around the control room. The place was dazzling, shaped like a hemispherical dome.
The walls were layered with circular patterns, covered in ancient runes.
Beyond the control room stretched the body of the Rainbow Bridge.
The divine multicolored light that usually ferried Asgardians across the cosmos was only the channel—strictly speaking, the bridge itself was the source.
The structure was tens of meters wide and several kilometers long, spanning the great sea of Asgard. One end linked to the control chamber, the other to the land of the golden realm.
The surface was built of translucent golden-yellow crystal of unknown material, glowing with divine light day and night.
Looking out across it now, Lock could already see firelight in the distance. The sounds of battle carried even here.
Thor grew anxious. "Loki has already begun. I go ahead to the palace—follow me!"
With a whoosh, he swung Mjolnir and vanished in a streak of lightning.
"Holy shit!" Lock cursed in his heart. At least take me with you!
He could leap great distances himself, but without knowing exactly where the palace was, if he just started jumping at random he'd look like an enemy intruder.
Deciding the Warriors Three were too slow, Lock simply grabbed Sif.
"Point the way."
And with that, he blasted into the sky.
Sif resisted at first, but quickly realized she couldn't break free and that the situation was urgent. She stopped struggling and directed him in the air instead.
Fandral, Hogan, and Volstagg exchanged looks, their tension easing.
With these two heavy hitters heading to the palace, the three of them didn't need to force their way through. If Thor and Lock couldn't solve it, they definitely couldn't. Better to mop up Frost Giant stragglers along the way.
Palace of Asgard.
Odin lay peacefully in his Odinsleep chamber.
Queen Frigga guarded the door. Whenever Frost Giants forced their way inside, she drew her blade and struck back.
But she was first a witch, her strength lying in sorcery, not swordplay. She cut one invader down, only to be slapped aside by the Frost Giant King, Laufey, left unable to resist further.
Laufey stepped forward. His icy hands pressed against the golden shield of the chamber as he reached inside, prying open Odin's eyes.
"I know you can hear and see everything, old god! Remembering her,h s— the one who killed you is Laufey, King of the Frost Giants!"
An ice blade formed in his grip. He raised it high, ready to pierce Odin's heart.
Suddenly, divine light flared behind him. A blast hurled Laufey from the chamber.
Staggering and wounded, he raised his head in disbelief.
The one who struck him… was Loki, the very god who had plotted with him.
Loki's face was shadowed with gloom as he raised his staff again. "The one who kills you… is the son of Odin!"
"Zzzzt—!" Another blast of divine energy tore through Laufey.
He fell dead at Odin's bedside, never understanding why Loki betrayed him.
He never realized Loki was his blood.
To Laufey, killing his father and brother for power fit Loki's cold, ruthless nature. It was only logical.
But Loki's true motive wasn't the throne, nor glory. He wanted to prove, to Odin and Frigga, that he was a better son than Thor.
So he butchered his own father and vowed to destroy the Frost Giants entirely, severing every tie to his past.
All the lies, all the blood—just for this twisted performance before his mother's eyes.
Lock nearly coughed up three liters of bloating from his absurd drama.
Only someone whose brain is tied in knots could do such childish, cruel nonsense. But that's Loki—the god of trickery!
Frigga, still shaken, actually believed it. She was moved. "You saved your father!"
And she embraced Loki warmly.
A smug smile tugged at Loki's lips. "Mother, I swore to you they would pay the price for what they did. And I have done it."
Just then, Thor and Lock burst into the hall.
"Loki!" Thor roared.
Lock's gaze swept the room, landing on Loki. He stood in full armor, golden scepter in hand, horned helmet gleaming.
Compared to Thor's power, Loki's frame was slender, his features sharp and handsome—evil beauty matched with a mocking smile.
This was Lock's first proper meeting with Loki.
Last time, near Mjolnir, Loki had stayed hidden. They had only sensed each other's presence.
Now, face to face.
Frigga turned, released Loki, and smiled as she walked forward. "You are finally here."
Thor's eyes filled with tears. He stepped forward eagerly. "Yes, mother—I've returned."
But Frigga passed him by, going face-to-face. She took his hand warmly. "My husband Odin only invited you a few days ago. I thought it might take years… yet here we meet so soon."
Thor froze, mortified. Did the Frost Giants beat Mother's head stupid? How could she mistake me?
No—that thought was unworthy. He shook it away and quickly circled
"Ahem, mother, I'm here. I'm Thor. The son you longed for has returned."
Frigga frowned slightly, scolding, "I know who you are. But even after a thousand years, you're still so rash. Can't you see I'm receiving a guest?"
She sighed. "Asgard is already in chaos. As a prince, you must still show proper courtesy."
Thor was dumbstruck.
Even Lock was speechless.
Sure, he could wield Mjolnir—but still, wasn't this too much?
"Just him?" Thor laughed dryly. "Mother, he's just a friend I met on Earth. We drank, we fought—don't be so formal. He's an Earthling. We rule Asgard. If anything, he should be bowing to you."
"What do you know?" Frigga's tone sharpened. "He may be your friend, but that doesn't change that he is also our honored guest. Strictly speaking, he is of Earth, but not only of Earth. He comes from… a higher dimension. A truer dimension."
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A/N: Sorry For Taking A Break without any notice as compensation. I have uploaded an extra chapter on my Patreon
A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
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