The sun shone brightly across Olympus, intensifying with every moment. Standing before Thor and Wonder Woman were holograms of Batman, Iron Man, Captain America, and Superman, plus Maria Hill and Steve Trevor of S.H.I.E.L.D. Loki and Donna Troy stood behind the other two, listening to their discussion.

"Ares and Amora could be hiding anywhere on Earth," Wonder Woman began, extending her hand out while the wind flowed through her hair. "The four of us must travel to Hel. While we do so, we need you all to focus your efforts on tracking these two down before their plan comes to fruition."

Iron Man, his arms crossed, let a scoff escape his throat. "Maybe the Asgardians' minds have been meddled with, but are you sure about the Olympians? I've read the myths. Most of them are asshats, especially Zeus. He makes the old me look like Joan of Arc."

Thor raised his mighty hammer up. "It is true that Migard's mythical records of the Olympians were more accurate than their depiction of the Asgardians, but I can assure you that verily, Ares and Amora are behind this madness!"

Superman nodded to them. "We've already sent Green Lantern, Flash, and Captain Marvel across the globe on reconnaissance. Aquaman and Black Panther have combined their resources to detect any energy signatures that match beings from Asgard and Olympus. And the rest of the Vanguard is on standby for when we find them. Don't worry, we'll be ready."

Wonder Woman and Thor both returned the nod. And with that, the Vanguardians' holograms dissipated. That left Hill and Trevor, the respective second- and third-in-commands of SHIELD. Trevor had his hair combed up, and it looked as though he had recently shaved off his heard. He locked eyes with Wonder Woman and smiled.

"So, Diana, I do appreciate you trusting me enough to contact me alongside your super friends," Trevor stated, twiddling his fingers around. "It means a lot, really."

Agent Hill's lips contorted into a dark frown as she scowled up towards Trevor. "The Greek God of War is on Earth, Trevor! You can practice your flirting later."

It was Thor, not Wonder Woman, who responded next. "Worry not. We came to you because SHIELD, aside from the Vanguard, has the best resources of any organization on Midgard. If anyone else can find these nefarious foes, it would be you, fellow warriors!"

While Thor spoke, Wonder Woman heard muttering from Loki and Donna. She turned her head ever so slightly when she picked up on Donna saying, "Even if they might resort to some really shady tactics to do so,"

Trevor pulled out a phone-like device on his phone and tapped on it, while saying, "No worries. The Greek God of War and an Asgardian witch can blend in all they want, but eventually they'll do something that'll make them stick out. And we'll be ready for when that happens."

Wonder Woman nodded, and with that, the transmission ceased. From the corner of her eye, Wonder Woman saw weariness painted onto Thor's face. And that feeling was spreading over to her as well. Crises were nothing new to Asgard and Olympus, but the reality of both pantheons waging war against each other…why couldn't it at least be Cronos, or the Frost Giants? Why did the gods have to clash?

Thor swung his hammer around, letting a rare sigh escape into the air. "I fear I brought an omen upon myself when I said we need to remember what to protect Midgard from."

Wonder Woman stretched her arms and groaned. "Makes you want to fight Rhino and Psycho, doesn't it? Or read a story to Elmo? At least Elmo doesn't goad people into war for his own schemes."

Thor rolled his eyes. "The little red monster? I don't know if he'd like any of the stories I would want to read him."

"Oh, I would love to discuss what kind of stories Elmo would love," Donna Troy interjected as she and Loki walked over to the other two. "If our realms weren't trying to destroy each other, I would be down for that. But…our realms are trying to destroy each other."

Wonder Woman placed a hand on her sister's shoulder, chuckling. "I thought you knew me better than that. We are ready to travel to Hel. It's someone else who I'm unsure about…"

As Wonder Woman said that, she moved her gaze from Donna over to Loki, who just stood there with his arms crossed. When she did so, he immediately perked up.

"What?" Loki said, moving his hands over to his hips. "Oh, you mean me and my daughter. Well, I did last see her three years ago, and she didn't try that hard to claim my soul that time, so I think we're on better terms."

"Especially impressive considering you hadn't bothered to reach out to her, in any way, for 200 years before that," Thor replied, swinging his hammer eye.

Loki brushed him off. "Yeah, so what if I haven't been the best father in the world? I think I'm hardly any worse than Odin was to me. Not to mention two Amazons going into Hel will be far more auspicious to Hela than my presence."

And with that, they opened up the portal to Hel. It was black, with static green spheres popping out every now and then. But it wasn't the shape or color that made the magical gateway stand out, nor was it the slow way that the portal whirled around. Rather, it was the screams. There were dozens, maybe even hundreds, of agonized shrieks. Some were deep in tone, others were high-pitched cackles, but all of them spoke of terror without respite. The thing about Hel was that, unlike the numerous dimensions that were supposed to be the afterlife which were short of an extra 'l' added to the name, it wasn't intended solely as a place of suffering. Thor's mind wandered back to Valhalla, a hidden dimension within the Nine Realms, where fallen Asgardian warriors drank to their hearts' delights in celebration of the battles they had fought in life.

Too bad they were not going to Valhalla.

"I don't care much for dealing with underworld lords," Donna stated, looking down at her knuckles and cracking them. "Let's just rescue Athena and Heimdall and leave."

"Hela's not the most amicable god," Loki added on as he headed straight towards the portal. "So I couldn't agree more."

Loki disappeared, yellow specks following in his wake, as he entered the portal. Donna Troy was the next to do so. Thor exchanged glances with Wonder Woman one more time. They nodded at one another, turned their attention to the portal, and walked over to enter the Norse realm of the dead.

Unlike Hell, which kept its classic-bordering-on-cliché "fire and brimstone" aesthetic, regardless of the circumstances, Hel's appearance was one in constant shift. Sometimes, it was bright and luminous, other times it was dark and gloomy. At the time of the heroes' arrival, Hel appeared as the latter. Sometimes, it appeared as a never ending pit of caverns; other times, there was black energy emanating all around some floating, suspended rocks; yet other times, there was green fire burning all around, not unlike the certain other realm. It was the second appearance that took hold for this visit.

"Looks like Hela is in one of her moods again," replied Loki as the four walked straight ahead, with no other path in sight for them.

Wonder Woman nudged his elbow. "Can you focus? The fates of Asgard and Olympus are at stake!"

Loki merely jeered in response. Wonder Woman shook her head; the God of Mischief was already well aware what the stakes were. She chided herself for playing into his game. Her mind needed to be focused on the likelihood of confronting the Norse ruler of the dead.

And speak of the Devil. Her throne loomed ahead in the distance. It was rocky and pointy, with spikes protruding out from the top. There were whirls of verdant energy circling the area, which grew larger as Wonder Woman and the others approached. The only sounds that could be heard were the thuds of their boots and the fizzing of the energy. That is, until they got closer to the throne.

Hela wore a simple-yet-elegant black outfit, which had streaks of green throughout. Emerald lines were stretched all across her body, and she sported dark green boots and shoulder pads. But that was not what stuck out the most about her. No, what stood out most about Hela was her helmet. It was unlike any headgear anyone had ever seen before, with sharp dark horns practically the size of an elk's sticking out on them. She initially paid no attention to the four warriors walking up to her. She was flicking her fingers around, finally filling the air with a new sound.

And then she broke the silence entirely when she turned her head to the four. "Now, I do wonder what circumstances have brought four unusual guests here to my realm, uninvited and unwelcome."

Donna scoffed. "I think you know damn well what we're here for, miss Hela."

As soon the words left Donna's mouth, Hela stood up. And dear Lord, was she statuesque. She towered over Wonder Woman and Thor. Even Odin and Zeus would be overshadowed by her height. She was a daunting seven and a half feet tall, and that fact became more apparent as she stepped off her throne and headed straight to the four, tilting her head down in order to make eye contact with all of them.

Much to the group's surprise, she bent down until she was only an inch or two above Donna's height, hanging in front of the Amazonian's face. Hela smirked. "Uninvited, unwelcome, and unaware of to whom you are speaking."

Donna narrowed her eyes and raised her sword up, pointing it anxiously close to Hela's throat. "Oh, you're nothing special, Hela. You're close to finding out who's the oblivious one here. So let's try that again."

Wonder Woman was about to raise her hands up and break this up, to tell them both that they needed to focus. But it was actually Loki who placed his arm in-between Donna and Hela. "All right now, all right now. Donna, I see you've introduced yourself to my daughter. Hela, despite our…rocky relationship, we're not here to fight."

Hela looked dead at Donna and sneered, before straightening out her posture and standing massively tall once more.

Thor pointed his hammer right at his pseudo-niece. "We know that you are aware of the ongoing conflict between Asgard and Olympus. Even now the battle between gods endangers the realms!"

"Perhaps I am aware," replied Hela, looking at her knuckles and cracking them. "I suppose, then, that it would be pointless to ask what brings you here."

"Aye! Now, in the name of both our realms, please hand Athena and Heimdall over to both of us!"

Wonder Woman wanted to facepalm. She stared aghast at the God of Thunder, holding back a powerful urge to smack Thor on the side of his head. She had just met Hela, but she knew enough. Enough to know that Thor's choice of words was sure to enrage her.

And indeed, Hela's teeth were clenching, her neck veins were popping out, and she let out a deafening growl.

"In the name…" she began, extending her arms outward. "Of Olympus?! And Asgard?!"

She swung her hands together and unleashed a mighty clap, the shockwaves of which were enough to send Wonder Woman, Thor, Loki, and Donna all flying about several dozen feet away. Hela stopped for a moment and breathed, before she continued,

"Olympus means nothing to me!" she started off with, pointing her finger down at the quartet. "A bunch of good-for-nothing, pompous cheats and fools, they are, wrapped around their ridiculous melodrama! And Asgard….you dare expect me to forget how my dear old grandfather cast me aside to rule this realm for all eternity?! And neither my father nor my uncle did nothing to stop it? I see no reason why I should give my aid to any of you!"

Wonder Woman was the first back on her feet. She pulled her sword out and raised it onto the ground, using its weight to help herself up. She grunted, placing her hand on her side.

Loki laid on his knees, stretching his back and raising his head up for a moment. "There's no need for escalation. You want us out of your realm, do you not? Just hand us over Athena and Heimdall, and we will leave you alone."

"He's right," Wonder Woman added on, stepping forward to Hela. "Please. I understand your quarrel with the Asgardians, but Donna and I have done nothing to you. We have no quarrel, and we are not here to start one."

Hela chuckled, circling around Wonder Woman. "You think you're the first person to make their way to my underworld, seeking your precious missing gods? Have you put much thought in your fellow Amazon, Artemis?"

This caught Wonder Woman off guard. Artemis was one of the finest warriors in all of Themyscira, possibly third only to Diana and Hippolyta themselves. Sharing her name with the goddess of the hunt, Artemis the Amazon had little else in common with Artemis the Olympian. Brash and violent and abrasive, but ultimately good of heart, was she. Wonder Woman could not remember seeing her when Hippolyta and the other Amazons were raising their swords against Frigga, but she had merely assumed that she was lost in the battle. There was so much going on in Asgard, it was easy to imagine that she was elsewhere, or in the middle of that massive Amazonian army.

But Hela snapped her fingers, and in a conjuring of green fire, there was Artemis. She bore pure scarlet hair tied up in a long ponytail. Dark crimson and black were across her lower torso, her shoulders and upper arms exposed; she wore bandages and gauntlets on her lower arms, and she wore knee-high red boots with white lines at the center. And she was bleeding from her face. She looked up at Hela and spat in her face.

"This isn't the first underworld I've crawled my way out of," Artemis growled out. "Just watch me, you coward. And then you'll pay dearly for your compliance in this scheme."

Wonder Woman raised her sword up against Hela. "Please do not make us fight you! Our enemies are Ares and Amora, so I give you this one chance to stand down!"

Wonder Woman let out a heavy breath. In her heart, she knew Hela's answer already, and how this was about to turn out. But she had to try, at least. She had to try. The others were ready. Loki was conjuring a spell in his hands, Donna wielded her own blade with a death glare painted onto her face, and Thor began swinging his hammer around, thunder rumbling from above as the hammer spun.

Hela grinned. "It's been too long since someone challenged me like this. I missed it!"

Wonder Woman sighed. "So be it."

Wonder Woman and Donna both lunged towards Hela with their blades. Donna slashed Hela in the leg with hers, while Wonder Woman thrust her blade towards Hela's stomach. Thor leapt high up into the air while firmly grasping Mjlonir with both of his hands. "For Asgard!" he bellowed as he brought the hammer down upon Hela's head. Hela screamed as the attacks landed on her. Donna flew up and backhanded her in the face, Wonder Woman formed her hand into a fist and delivered an uppercut towards the ruler of the Norse dead, and Thor conjured up some lightning that he directed towards her.

Loki had just been standing there this whole time, but then he chuckled while cracking his knuckles. "You know Hela, some days I wish you'd act like my other children."

And with that, a yellow line of energy emitted all around him. Mere moments later, his form had changed into that of a colossal serpent. Thick scales, fangs that could cut through adamantium, piercing golden eyes, and a deafening hiss.

Hela snarled. She grabbed Donna by her leg and threw her towards Thor, sending them both flying into the void that surrounded her throne. In the confusion, Donna had dropped her sword; Hela grabbed onto the blade, and when Wonder Woman tried to raise her sword up against her, Hela used Donna's sword to block Diana's swing. Loki, in his limbless reptile form, slithered around Hela, preparing to constrict her. But Hela lunged towards the snake and grabbed him by his neck. She continued to tighten her grip, with Loki squirming to break free. When Wonder Woman tried to kick her in the kneecap, Hela evaded her strike. While Hela kept one hand tightly onto Loki's neck, she used her free hand to intercept Diana's charge and grabbed the Amazon's throat. She leaned then and slammed the Amazon onto the ground. She lifted Diana up, and slammed Diana's forehead with her own. Hela dropped Wonder Woman, and then grabbed Donna's sword again, which she pierced into Loki's scaly skin. But while she did so, Donna and Thor had flown into the air. Donna began swinging her Lasso of Persuasion, and when Thor charged at Hela to bring his hammer crashing onto her Hela's legs, Donna threw her lasso down and wrapped it around Hela's neck.

"Bring us Athena and Heimdall!" Donna commanded.

But unlike the Lasso of Truth, the Lasso of Persuasion had one little catch: Donna's willpower specifically had to be stronger than that of the other person's. Normally, this wasn't much of an issue for Diana's sister. But Hela refused to submit to Donna's orders. She clenched her teeth and raised her hands up to try and free herself. Wonder Woman rose to her feet and charged towards Hela while Thor conjured up more lightning with his hammer. But Hela grabbed onto Donna's lasso and used it to swing her around. Donna was sent crashing into Wonder Woman and Thor, sending the trio hurtling away.

"I've had enough of your games, Hela!" Loki roared out, a hiss following his words.

Loki darted towards Hela, bashing his gigantic head into hers. Hela reeled backwards, and, for a moment, struggled to find her footing. Then Loki finally did what he had been attempting and wrapped his serpentine body around Hela's. Wonder Woman looked over her shoulder to see Donna grabbing back hold of her blade and cutting Artemis' bonds.

Artemis leapt to her feet and cried, "Loki's right! This has gone on for long enough! We need to defeat Hela swiftly!"

The other two Amazons joined Wonder Woman, and as they rushed back into the heat of battle, they saw Loki, having tightened his grip around Hela, bite her head with his dagger-like fangs. Hela's scream echoed throughout the skies, and the warriors knew the tide had finally turned. Thor was on one side, Wonder Woman and her two fellow Amazons on the other, and they all charged towards Hela. Thor and the Amazons all jumped on Hela at once. Hela was pinned to the ground the ground as the other completely wailed upon her. Bruises and cuts were forming all around Hela, and Loki reverted back to his humanoid form and watched.

Finally, they all backed away, and Hela coughed, staying on the ground. Donna swung her Lasso of Persuasion over her head again, and wrapped Hela in it.

"Let's try this again," Donna stated, being the one to step closer. "Bring us to Athena and Heimdall. Now."

Athena was a muscular woman with green eyes and long, flowing brunette hair, while Heimdall was a bulky black man with a thick beard coated across his face. They were both wearing only ragged clothes that had massive tears in them. They were both chained up to the wall, their chains glowing with dark green energy. Athena and Heimdall hung their heads low, doing nothing but grunting and groaning.

Hela, still bound by the Lasso, pointed her finger directly at the two, while Wonder Woman and Thor and their allies looked onward. After doing so, Thor clubbed Hela's face with his hammer, causing her to collapse unconscious to the ground.

"Don't want her going after us as soon as we take the Lasso off her," Thor stated, placing his hammer back onto his belt.

Wonder Woman and Donna both flew towards Athena and Heimdall, unsheathed their swords, and sliced off the chains that had bound them. Athena and Heimdall immediately fell down. Artemis and Thor, respectively, were there to catch them and break their falls.

"We are so sorry," Wonder Woman said as she returned to the ground. "We are sorry that you've been imprisoned here all this time, and that we couldn't free you sooner."

Athena brushed her away as she returned to her feet. "We don't have time to apologize. Ares and Amora…"

Heimdall coughed as he, too, got back up. "Even I cannot see Ares and Amora in this moment…but their plans for conquest…I fear we are too late."

Wonder Woman looked over to Loki, who nodded before conjuring green fire into the air and creating another portal. Athena and Heimdall did not stop for a fraction of a instant; they immediately dashed towards the portal leading to Asgard. Thor, Wonder Woman, Loki, Artemis, and Donna all exchanged glances with one another before they followed suit.

Their views changed from the green fires of Hel to the war-torn, ravaging fires of Asgard in a single moment. Smoke was emitting from all around the towers and homes of the realm; Wonder Woman, Thor, and all of their allies floated in the air, watching as the Olympian and Asgardian soldiers continued their epic clash. And Zeus and Odin were at the center of the Bifrost Bridge, with Zeus generating lightning out of his hands and blasting them towards Odin, who placed his spear in front of himself and deflected the lightning towards the sea.

Athena gasped. "It's going completely according to their plan,"

Heimdall turned his attention over to the God of Thunder. "If we can't find Ares or Amora soon, our realms and Midgard will be completely under their control! Please tell me you have people looking for them?!"

Thor nodded to his comrade. "Aye. But we've found no trace of them."

Just then, a hologram burst out of thin air, coming from Diana's earpiece. It was Agent Steve Trevor, his eyes bulging, his hair a nervous mess, and his hands shaking.

"Yeah, okay, good news and bad news!" Agent Trevor exclaimed, raising his finger up. "The good news is, we found Ares and Amora! The bad news is, about a hundred SHIELD agents were torn to complete shreds in their wake! I've…I've never seen anything like it…they're on their way to one of your realms!"

Right at that moment, the two villainous gods made their appearance.

It was seemingly out nowhere that they arrived. No portal whirling through the sky, no beam of energy, no flash of light. They were just…there. A blonde woman with an emerald headpiece, a green skirt, and dark green legging-boots. And a hulking man clad entirely in cerulean armor, with sharp spikes protruding out of his spikes, though much smaller than Hela's.

"How disappointing that Hera couldn't keep them imprisoned in her little realm," Ares sneered, crossing his arms.

Amora chuckled. "It matters not, Ares. The three realms are about to be ours, once the greatest warriors of Olympus and Asgard have completely destroyed themselves!"

She shifted her attention over from Ares to the heroes. "There is only one obstacle in our way," she stated, as she began emanating white energy out of her hands. "And they must be dealt with, immediately."

She fired the energy with her hands, and then an object glowed in-between Ares and Amora. A golden orb, shinier than the Sun itself yet still bearing a darkened tint at the center. This object was familiar to all who had seen it before. A stone. A stone of great, unfathomable power. The Mind Stone.