Over the next few weeks, I'm not sure how often I will update. Not just this, all my stories. Yesterday morning, my dog unfortunately passed away. So, that was a big blow and I'm still dealing with it. Not sure how inspired I'll be to write over the next few weeks, so just letting you all know why that is.
For now, I hope you guys enjoy this.
birdy: Glad to hear it.
Nora 11: Well, here is your wish. Glad you enjoyed it.
Green Hal37: Yes, it was, but Thor can't be expected to keep control of his emotions when seeing his people slaughtered. One of them, yes.
Guest 1: Perhaps, but the All Speak translating Grandmaster saying something starts with a B has me scratching y head a bit.
Guest 2: So true indeed.
Guest 3: Glad you're enjoying. Oh no doubt. Odin may have been a horrible father, but Hela is ultimately responsible for her own choices. She seems to be stuck in the same mindset Thor was stuck in after he was banished in the first Thor. After all these years, she needs to get over it.
Guest 4: I don't plan to put in anything about Captain Marvel. The entire movie made a mockery of Fury, which just pissed me off.
Guest 5: 1, they were in shock, plus they didn't want to risk upsetting Thor more than he already was. 2, Strange has grown even more powerful in the ten years since Endgame to the point he can now rewind time without it, although not to the extent that he could with the Time Stone. 3, glad to hear it.
Guest 6: Yep, they will.
Guest 7: Yep, Thor lost a lot in this movie.
Guest 8: Oh they'll love Get Help. No, I don't show the music.
On Sakaar, Thor prayed for Odin's soul to take his place in the halls of Valhalla and Loki finished the last verse with him. Thor turned around to see Loki standing behind him. Loki commented how it hurt to have been lied to his whole life.
Thor grimaced, finally understanding Loki's rage at Odin's betrayal. It didn't make Loki's actions afterwards any better, but Thor could now understand his brother in a new light.
Thor threw a stone and it passed through Loki, who smirked and asked if Thor had really thought he'd come visit him in here, as this place was disgusting.
"Never hurts to check though," Thor muttered.
Loki said he couldn't jeopardize his position with the Grandmaster as it had taken time to win his trust. He said Grandmaster was a lunatic but amenable and Thor could join their side. He said an accident would befall the Grandmaster in time and doing gestures, said how they'd be rulers of Sakaar after that.
"As much as I hate to say it, Loki would probably be a better ruler than that lunatic," Clint said begrudgingly, looking like he'd swallowed a lemon.
"My brother may be the god of mischief, but he would likely do well on a place like Sakaar," Thor mused. "And, at the very least, he appears to be a good ruler."
"We didn't see enough to make a judgement, I feel," T'Challa said and Thor shrugged, conceding his point.
Thor was looking into the distance and still throwing stones through Loki as Loki asked if he was thinking of returning to Asgard. He reminded how Hela had destroyed his hammer like a piece of glass and was stronger than them both. He wouldn't stand a chance Loki asked if Thor understood what he was saying but Thor ignored him. A frustrated Loki said he'd have to do it alone like always.
Thor sighed wearily. His brother always felt like he had been alone, even before he found out the truth. What his brother had always failed to understand was that it was his own actions that drove people away.
Thor still didn't say a thing and Loki asked him to. Thor asked what he'd like him to say, pointing out how Loki had faked his own death, stolen the throne, stripped Odin of his power and left him on Earth to die which was why the Goddess of Death had been released. He then asked if Loki would like him to go passed the past two days or if that was enough.
Everyone looked awkward as they witnessed this fed between the brothers. None of them felt any lost love for Loki and Thor's anger was more than justified, but they felt like they interrupting a private moment.
Loki said he had not seen the champion but heard he was astonishingly savage which was why he had placed a large wager against Thor. He asked Thor not to let him down and the illusion disappeared as Korg arrived and kicked the spot where he had stood, calling him 'ghost' and telling him to piss off as Miek arrived too.
The tension broke momentarily as they all laughed at Korg's antics.
Later, as Thor was preparing himself for the contest, they saw a beaten up contestant being dragged away as Korg touched a weapon and said someone's blood and hair were all over it and asked everyone to clean up their weapons after the fight.
"Man, I already love this guy!" Clint said with a laugh.
"I want this guy around all the time!" Tony agreed with a chuckle.
He lifted up a giant fork and asked Thor if he'd like to use it. Thor refused and Korg said it was only useful while fighting against three vampires.
"Wait, Vampires are real?" Peter asked shocked.
"Yes. Like Asgardians being worshiped as gods, many of your folklore was derived from alien life appearing on your planet," Thor said, stunning them all.
Thor wished he had his hammer, saying it was a unique one forged from the heart of a dying star and when he spun it really, really fast it gave him the ability to fly. Korg asked if he rode it and then asked if he rode it on his back. Thor explained how when he spun it he was pulled off. Korg interrupted, disgusted at the innuendo.
"Did it ever pull you off Point Break?" Tony teased and Thor pulled his eyes in exasperation.
Thor explained it would pull him off the ground and it would return whenever he threw it. Korg said Thor had a special relationship with his hammer and equated losing it to losing a loved one, to which Thor agreed.
"He is wise," Thor said softly. "My hammer…I'm not sure how to explain it."
"It feels like an extension of yourself. Losing it is like losing a limb," Steve supplied and Thor nodded.
"Yes, that sounds like the only way to put it," Thor mused.
Thor then noticed 142 there at a bar, buying a beverage and opening it. Thor pointed her out to Korg, who said she was Asgardian, shocking Thor.
"You're just noticing this?" Natasha asked and Thor flushed.
"Well I didn't have time to look at her markings before she captured me and filled my body with toxins!" Thor cried and they all laughed at the offended note in his voice.
The beverage was fiery but she started drinking as Thor called out to her. She showed him the remote but he begged her not to zap him, saying he just wanted to talk. He then said Asgard was in danger and she started drinking her beverage, causing Thor to notice the mark on her arm, which made him realize she was a Valkyrie.
"A Valkyrie! I thought they were all extinct!" Thor said excitedly.
"What's a Valkyrie?" Scott asked curiously as they all turned to Thor.
"Asgard's elite force of women warriors. They're legendary; I wanted to be one as a child. You know, before I found out they were all women," Thor added quickly.
"And they're extinct?" Wanda asked curiously and Thor nodded his excitement fading.
"Yes, it was said that they all perished fighting one of Asgard's enemies. It was never said who. Another of my father's secrets, I suppose," Thor said, a hint of bitterness entering his voice towards the end.
Thor said excitedly how he wanted to be one when he was younger before finding out they were all women. There was nothing wrong with women of course as he loved them, sometimes too much, not in a creepy way though, just a respectful appreciation and that it was great there was an elite force of women, Thor rambled.
Thor flushed as they all snickered at his rambling.
"Why couldn't you have been like this before?" Clint asked with a laugh.
"Would have made the parties a lot more fun," Natasha added and Clint nodded.
Valkyrie asked if he was done. Soldiers arrived to take Thor away as he asked for her help but she walked away. Thor said she was a traitor or a coward as she was sworn to protect the throne. Valkyrie angrily walked to him and said this was Sakaar not Asgard and she was a scrapper not a Valkyrie. Thor punched a soldier down but someone activated his Obedience Disk and he was down as two of them started dragging him away. Valkyrie said no one escaped this place and he was gonna die either way.
"We shall see about that," Thor said grimly as he narrowed his eyes.
Sam studied Valkyrie, noting the signs of PTSD and someone who was drinking to avoid dealing with the pain, as he'd seen a lot of people he'd served with do. Whatever happened to her had done a number on her, Sam mused.
Thor was restrained to a chair as an old man arrived and said, "Now, don't you move. My hands aren't as steady as they used to be."
"So now he's following us into space? This is just getting creepy now," Clint muttered.
Thor glared at him as he said, "By Odin's beard, you shall not cut my hair, lest you feel the wrath of the mighty Thor." The elderly man activated his cutting device, which looked like it could cut anything. He laughed as Thor now begged, "Please. Please, kind sir, do not cut my hair. Please! No! NOOOOOOO!"
"Not my hair!" Thor shouted, clutching his hair like a child's stuff animal and everyone laughed at his antics.
"I guess he's getting back at you for the party," Steve joked and the original Avengers plus Rhodey laughed even harder
Later, The Contest of Champions was held as everyone arrived to see it. A hologram of Grandmaster appeared, saying how they all looked very good and he was their host before asking for a round of applause for their contestants who had died. They applauded as Korg, Miek and other champions watched from their prison while Valkyrie watched from her ship in the air. Loki arrived at a higher seat for privileged ones and took a drink from a serving girl as Grandmaster announced, "Making his first appearance, though he looks quite promising, got a couple of tricks up his sleeve. I'll say no more, see what you think. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you...Lord of Thunder." And then the door went down as Thor arrived, dressed in Sakaarian armor along with a Sakaarian helmet and two retractable swords strapped on his back as well as a Sakaarian hammer and shield in his hands. He had a red mark on running up his eye as some cheered while others booed at him.
"You look good," Natasha said as they all saw Thor with his new haircut.
"Yeah, you pull it off nicely," Wanda agreed thoughtfully, causing Clint and Vision to shoot her looks that had her blushing.
"Thank you," Thor said gratefully.
Grandmaster said to watch out for the sparks from Thor's fingers. Thor then put on his helmet as Grandmaster announced to everyone's cheers, "Okay, this is it. Let's get ready to welcome this guy." Green smoke crackers were burst as Grandmaster announced, "Here he comes. He is a creature. What can we say about him? Well, he's unique. There's none like him. I feel a special connection with him. He's undefeated. He's the reigning. He's the defending. Ladies and gentlemen...I give you...Your Incredible..." And then a huge green monster in a Gladiator armor with the helmet as well as a hammer and ax in his hands. He announced himself with a roar, "HULK!"
"It's the Hulk!" Peter exclaimed excitedly as the Avengers all stared in shock.
"Son of a bitch. I didn't know a Quinjet could get that far," Tony said in stunned disbelief.
Steve and Clint, once they got over their shock, glanced over at Natasha. Natasha had a blank look on her face as she stared at the screen, which concerned them.
"Nat, you okay?" Steve said gently.
"Fine," Natasha said in a voice that said it was anything but.
For while on the outside Natasha was calm, cool, and collected, on the inside all the anger she had felt at Bruce for his departure had come back to the surface. Maybe it as unfair of her to be angry, considering she made him turn back into Hulk when he wanted to run away, but she couldn't help but feel like he had abandoned her. She thought maybe Bruce could be good for her, but when the going got tough he ran. She needed someone she could rely on in her life and it obviously wasn't Bruce.1
Steve and Clint stared at her for a moment, exchanging a glance before they nodded, deciding to let it go…for now.
Loki, who had been laughing, was now horrified as Thor happily cheered, "YES!"
"I have to get off this planet." A traumatized Loki said as he turned around but Grandmaster was in his way as he told him they were just getting started.
"Looks like he's still not over being thrown around like a ragdoll," Tony laughed as Thor smirked in amusement.
"Indeed Stark," Thor agreed as Clint smirked.
Hulk roared as the crowd chanted his name. Thor waved to Loki and Grandmaster and said, "We know each other. He's a friend from work." Loki looked nervous.
"You are enjoying this far too much," Wanda noted as Clint watched gleefully.
"Loki made me his flying monkey. Karma's a bitch kid," Clint said gleefully.
"Where have you been?" Thor asked. "Everybody thought you were dead. But so much has happened since I last saw you. I lost my hammer. Like, yesterday, so that's still pretty fresh. Loki. Loki's alive. Can you believe it? He's up there." He pointed up with his hammer and said, "Loki! Look who it is!" Loki was pale at this point.
Everyone laughed along with Clint at Loki's reaction.
"Oh thank god this was recorded!" Tony chuckled.
"Banner, I never thought I would say this, but I'm happy to see you," Thor said to him. Everyone cheered for Hulk with balloons and other stuff in the shape of Hulk's face.
"They seem to like the Hulk very much," Vision noted.
"He must have been quite the spectacle," T'Challa said.
"Banner. Hey, Banner!" Thor called out. "No Banner. Only Hulk." Hulk said.
"Uh oh. You brought up puny Banner, big mistake," Tony said and Thor sighed.
"Of course, because things can never be easy," Thor snapped.
Thor was shocked by Hulk's behavior as Hulk leapt at him with weapons raised but Thor rolled away as they hit the ground and smashed it instead. Hulk then hit him with his hammer in a rotatory motion and Thor was sent flying off.
"That had to hurt," Clint noted.
"I have been through much worse Barton. I will defeat Hulk," Thor said as he narrowed his eyes.
He used a knife to stick himself to the ground, slowing himself down as the ground was broken by his strength. Getting up, Thor brandished the retractable swords while Hulk roared in challenge. The Grandmaster clapped while a tense Loki watched. Thor said this was crazy as they were friends.
"I don't think Hulk sees it that way," Scott said as Thor sighed.
Hulk charged again and attacked Thor who blocked or dodged before being kicked into a wall as it smashed as Grandmaster watched gleefully.
"You're gonna be feeling that in the morning Point Break," Tony said as they winced.
"I can feel it now," Thor muttered.
Hulk threw his hammer at Thor who jumped out of the way and it hit the wall, where it was now stuck. Hulk charged at him but Thor managed to free the hammer and hit Hulk who was sent flying off, smashing through the walls. Everyone cheered while Grandmaster was shocked and Valkyrie simply watched.
"Wow, you sent the Hulk flying! Why did I bother making Veronica when I had you?" Tony asked as they all stared stunned and Thor smirked.
Thor walked towards a dazed Hulk and holding out his hand said, "Sun's getting real low." Everyone watched in confusion as Thor repeated the words gently and said he won't hurt Hulk anymore while Hulk was puzzled too.
"Seriously?" Clint asked as the originals Avengers laughed, even Natasha cracked an amused smile.
"You're trying lullaby?" Natasha said amused.
"I had to try something! I don't wanna fight him!" Thor exclaimed.
For a while, it looked like Hulk would stand down. Then he grabbed Thor's hand and smashed him around as all cheered while Hulk threw him away.
Everyone else burst out laughing as Thor flushed.
"That's what I call an epic fail!" Scott laughed.
"YES!" Loki cheered as he stood up, "THAT'S HOW IT FEELS!" Grandmaster looked at him in confusion and he said he was a huge fan of the sport as the two laughed. Thor got up, now pissed. He avoided Hulk's ax and hit him in the knee with the hammer, staggering him down before upper-cutting him with it. He then leapt to avoid Hulk's ax and hit his face with the hammer, staggering him away as everyone cheered. He then broke the handle of the ax with his hammer, making Hulk stagger back again while all cheered.
"Nice moves. Why haven't you used any of those before?" Natasha asked and Thor shrugged.
Thor said he'd get Banner out as he hit Hulk hard with the hammer, making him fly back. Hulk got up and they fought as Hulk managed to disarm Thor of the hammer. "What's the matter with you? You're embarrassing me! I told them we were friends!" Thor said angrily as he avoided Hulk's blows and punched him a few times, making him stagger around. Thor leapt at Hulk and held him in a chokehold but Hulk jumped into the air before slamming on his back, crushing Thor and making him let go. They both then rolled away as Thor picked up the hammer and leapt at Hulk but he stopped it with his hand this time as everyone tensed and Loki and Grandmaster leaned forward to watch.
"Uh oh," Rhodey said as Thor tensed.
Hulk snarled angrily as Thor laughed nervously but was punched away as everyone cringed. Hulk leapt on top of Thor and started pummeling him angrily, throwing his helmet off. Loki cringed while Grandmaster laughed.
Thor grimaced, as did Tony. He remembered fighting Hulk when he was under Wanda's spell. It was not a pleasant experience.
Thor suddenly saw a vision of Odin standing in the grassy field in Norway.
"What's that?" Peter asked as Thor frowned.
"I am not sure. A vision of some kind. I've never had one wile awake. At least not one that wasn't caused by someone else," Thor said and Wanda winced.
Suddenly, lightning emanated from Thor's body and he punched Hulk away as his helmet fell off and he fell down while everyone watched in shock, including Loki and Grandmaster, who got to his feet in shock.
"I can use lightning without my hammer?" Thor asked shocked.
"You already did," Steve pointed out. "When you destroyed the TV."
"I assumed that was a response to my emotions. And in these recordings, my hammer has been destroyed," Thor said, in awe of the fact that he could have that much power even without Mjolnir.
Hulk roared and the two charged at each other, leaping to attack. Thor punched Hulk in the chest and a shockwave of lightning went around, destroying the ground as Hulk fell down. Everyone was chanting 'Thunder!' repeatedly now including Korg and the other champions.
"It appears there is a new favorite," Vision noted.
"And a new strongest Avenger," Tony said as Thor smirked.2
Hulk groaned and shook his head as Thor walked towards him. Then, Grandmaster pressed the button and the Obedience Disk activated as the toxin passed through Thor's body, sending him to the ground.
"Oh come on!" Thor exclaimed in exasperation.
"Don't feel too bad, the fight was rigged from the start man," Sam assured him.
Loki sighed as Valkyrie finished her beverage and sat in her ship. Hulk leapt high right to the top of the arena near the roof. Korg muttered, "Another day. Another Doug." Thor watched with wide eyes as Hulk leapt down. Thor put his hand in the way but was knocked out cold.
"That's gonna hurt," Clint muttered as Thor sighed.
"And with my defeat, I will be unable to return and help my people," Thor grumbled.
"Don't worry Thor, you'll find a way out, you always do. And whatever happens this time, we'll be here to help you," Steve promised and the other Avengers nodded.
"Thank you my friends," Thor said with a slight smile.
1: No offense to Bruce/Nat fans, but I despise the pairing. It's my least favorite pairing in the entire MCU. There is no basis for it, Scarlett and Mark have no chemistry, and the execution makes little sense. The entire pairing never made any sense to begin with. It's like they wanted Bruce to have a love interest and randomly chose Natasha because she was convenient for them to use.
2: It's undeniable that Hulk has everyone beat in terms of brute strength. But in terms of power, Thor far outclasses Hulk.