Back in the present time, Phil Coulson had been listening a lot of Sif's story. He could tell how deeply dejected she was since she's been talking and recalling the past recent events that happened back on Arda. It must've been tough for her, even for a brave Asgardian to be assigned by her king on this important mission.
"So they asked him to be their burglar," Agent Coulson pretended to sound intrigued.
"Bilbo Baggins was selected as the only hobbit in the Shire for this mission," Sif said. "No one, like me or Thorin, wouldn't accept this since Gandalf pressured him to consider this proposal."
"But why did you let him?" Agent Coulson asked her that.
"I didn't pressure him," Sif answered. "Nor would I bring him along on this dangerous expedition. He made his own choice. It was decision, not ours."
"Yeah, I get it," Agent Coulson began to understand.
"After Bilbo became our burglar, I took part in this company under the leadership of Thorin Oakenshield, named after Thor," Sif explained more to her story. "Although, during my travel, Gandalf and I began had been keeping the truth from Thorin."
Agent Coulson grew concerned of this. "The truth about what?"
"About the time when he fought in the battle of Moria," Sif told him more. "King Thror, along with his son Thrain the Second and grandson Thorin, were leading a vast legion to reclaim the ancient city of Moria, but it was a trap."
"Someone was already there, waiting for them to come," Agent Coulson assumed if that was the case.
"Yes, it was an enemy that the dwarves hated for ages," Sif said. "Orcs."
In the past, King Thror had been riding on his ram with a full army of dwarves that fled from Erebor. While the rest of the dwarven civilians were moving across the Misty Mountains to make their way to the Blue Mountains to the far west of Middle-Earth, Thror sent many ravens to speed the word in every territory that belonged to the dwarves. Such places included Dunland, Redhorn Pass, and the Iron Hills received the message from the King to take part in his plan to retake the city. Many of the dwarves didn't want to take part in this since they feared what lurks in the city. No one in Middle-Earth has ever forgotten what it was like in Moria, but knew of the worst things that happened and not many inhabitants ever bothered to retake the city which had become ancient.
Moria was founded during the ancient days by Durin, who lived at Mount Gundabad in the Misty Mountains. He came upon the valley Azanulbizar beneath the mountains. He looked into a shimmering lake and saw a crown of stars reflected in its waters. He named that lake Kheled-zâram, the Mirrormere and it remained a revered place among Dwarves of all houses ever afterwards, and the Durin's Stone was erected on the location of that event. There, in the caves above, Durin and his people started the delving and building of the Great Gates of Khazad-dûm, and the First Hall leading to a bridge over a chasm. From there began the expansion, both to Levels above and to Deeps below, and mines expanding out from the inhabited areas of the city proper.
Durin the Deathless thus became King Durin I of Khazad-Dûm and ruled for many years until he was named "Durin the Deathless" during the First Age. Afterwards, other rulers of Khazad-Dûm were sometimes named Durin, as they were considered to be his reincarnations, who the dwarves believed came to live again among his people. As the centuries passed, the descendants of Durin sat upon the throne of Khazad-Dûm, and their cavernous city, that was the greatest of all their mansions, and became famous even to the distant west. King Bor Burison of Asgard, son of Buri and father of Odin, paid great homage to the city and became an honorable ally to the Dwarves that lived for centuries.
After Beleriand was destroyed during the War of Wrath, most of the Dwarves of Nogrod and Belegost began leaving en masse from their now ruined cities for Khazad-Dûm. The city was enriched not just in numbers, but in the western Houses' skills in smithing, crafting and masonry. Around that time, Khazad-Dûm was in a confederation with a number of different races that settled in different places, realms, countries, or kingdoms within the parts of the world. Such races included the Argen, Asgardians, Astrans, Carmondians, Centaurs, Easik, K'aitians, Lupak, Minotaurs, R'Vaalians, Satyrs, Sinnarians, and Sivians. A rare friendship sprang up between the Dwarves and the Light Elves of this new land. By that time, Khazad-Dûm had expanded so much that it completely traversed the Mountains from east to west, ending to the western rocky cliffs at their base, the Walls of Moria.
During the Third Age, Khazad-Dûm further expanded its treasures, but despite this its numbers began to dwindle. Most of its great wealth was based on the Mithril that was found in its mines, and as the centuries passed, the Dwarves mined deeper and deeper for the precious metal. When they dug too deep, they accidentally unleashed a nameless terror from the depths beneath the city. The creature wreaked dreadful destruction, and in slaying the King, Durin VI, became known as Durin's Bane. In the following year, Durin's son, Náin I, was also lost, and the Dwarves had no other choice but to flee their ancient home before the creature could finish them. For millennia, one of the richest cities in Middle-Earth stood dark and empty, but for the brooding menace the Dwarves had released. In that time it was given a new name, Moria, the Black Pit.
A couple of months in the aftermath of Erebor been sacked by the dragon Smaug, King Thrór couldn't stand to see tens of thousands of his kin to live despondent and homeless throughout the rest of their lives. While most of his kin had resettled in the Blue Mountains, King Thrór traveled to Dunland with his son to arrange a meeting. Before the meeting ever occured, Thrór gave his son Thráin the Second his Ring of Power, along with the map and key to Erebor. In hopes for his people to continue on with their life and business with other races across the world, Thrór setup a plan to retake the ancient, fabled city of his ancestors, Khazad-Dûm. Lady Sif of Asgard, who had also took part in the meeting, was sent by King Odin to meet with the King. Many of the dwarves, including Thráin and his son Thorin, were concerned of this since they recall the tale of an ancient monster that dwelled far underground the realm and caused terror to the dwarves long ago.
With the decision made, Thrór led an army of the 69,000 of the most mightest warriors from the city of Erebor, including an army of 80,000 Dwarven Grim Hammers and 40,000 Dwarven Wardens that guarded the secret vaults underneath the Lonely Mountain for a long. When word was reached about Erebor been sacked by Smaug and Thrór planning to reclaim the ancient city of Khazad-Dûm as a way to settle his plan to retake Erebor, 18,000 Wyrm Slayers of the Wyrm Guild met up with Thrór during his travel west to the Misty Mountains. The Wyrm Slayers were known to be one of the most mightest warriors of any race in Arda and spent the last centuries hunting down dragons. They also promised to help Thrór in his plan to kill the dragon Smaug, but some members of the guild believed that Smaug was different than any other dragon in Middle-Earth.
With the aid of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, who were also involved in helping many residents escape from the terrible firestorm in Dale and Erebor, the Dwarves were allied other armies that sought to provide their aid due to fear of a cming darkness that would devour all of Arda and every world in the universe. 65,000 Crusaders, 15,000 elite legionnaires from Dorwinion, 6,500 Sons and Daughters of the Scarab, 2,700 warriors of the Panther Cult, 1,700 warrior-priests of the Ordo Draconum, 800 of the most mightest warriors of the Kinn-Lai, and 200 Druids of the Oaken Order, who were sent from Earth due to a connection on how their ancestors fought in the War of the Last Alliance against the Dark Lord Sauron in the end of the Second Age. Even the people of Yaochi overheard from Asgard about the attempted plan to reteak Khazad-Dûm, for the city harbored ancient items that they were willing to get back. The Dragon-Kings sent forth a massive army of 246,000 warriors of the Army of Thunder to meet Thrór and his allies at the Eastern Gate of Khazad-Dûm.
Upon arriving at the eastern gate of Khazad-Dûm first before Thrór and his allies, the Army of Thunder learned that all of Moria was taken by the Orcs of Mount Gundabad, who had recently slaughtered many goblins in order to make this city their base of operations and also using to prepare for the restoration of the Kingdom of Angmar. The warriors of Yaochi held a deep disregard against the Orcs, for many were sent by the Dark Lord Sauron to invade the Seven Cities of Yaochi during the War of the Last Alliance. The Iron Fist of K'un-Lun, who was known as Li Park, was in charge of the Army of Thunder that were given the task by the Masters of Yaochi to retake the ancient items from Moria and return them to their rightful places within their world. However, the Orcs knew of their plan and a massive army of them began to engage the mighty warriors of Yaochi. This led to an open battle between the Army of Thunder and the Orcs of Mount Gundabad that were led by Azog the Defiler.
For centuries during the Third Age, Azog's task was to lead his kin against the Dwarves and eliminate the line of Durin the Deathless. Believing that the Dwarves would one day comeback to reclaim the city of Khazad-Dûm in time, Azog led his army of Gundabad Orcs to claim the city as their base of operations and set it as a trap for the dwarves. While making Moria its base, the Defiler was highly aware of a creature that took residence underground the realm of the dwarves during the Third Age and made sure that he and his kin were to keep themselves quiet since they didn't want to awaken Felagrog, who was known to the races of Middle-Earth as the Nameless Terror. The Orcs and their allies knew a lot of stories on what the Nameless Terror would do if they were foolish enough to wake it up. If the creature would ever awake again, it would kill both sides within a day or few.
The warriors of Yaochi were very wise to master their abilities to fight off the most deadliest orcs. However, they stood outnumbered while fighting the enemy on the lower end of a sloping hill. That was when the horns were blown under Thrór's call. It was at that moment when Thrór's army of dwarves, including the Wakandans, Crusaders, the elite legionnaires of Dorwinion, Sons and Daughters of the Scarab, warrior-priests of the Ordo Draconum, the warriors of the Kinn-Lai, and the Druids of the Oaken Order arrived in time to help the warriors of Yaochi to fight the enemy back near the eastern entrance of Moria.
Far from the battlefield, the Bifrost Bridge beamed down from the sky, and King Odin, along with his sons Thor, Loki, led the charge against the enemy. Lady Sif, along with the Warriors Three, were in command of their garrisons and led the charge.
"Taste my hammer!" Thor bellowed in fury.
The Asgardian Prince unleashes a barrage of lightening from his hammer and killed a number of Orcs and Sakaarans. Loki and Sif wielded their weapons in front and fought side-by-side against a number of foes that tried to get to them. Sif stabbed an orc straight into its head and then let out a huge kick in sending a Sakaaran warrior flying backwards towards a rock. The Dwarves were pleased to have their allies fight with them as the battle wasn't drawing to an end just yet. Thorin remained separate from his father and grandfather while fighting. That was when he heard the sound a huge angry roar. He turns around and by the sight of his fearful eyes, he witnessed the arrival of a massive, deadly orc. It was Azog the Defiler.
Azog was a very powerful warrior amongst his kin. His skin is bone-white, compared to other orcs whose skin color generally ranges from sickly green to a dark brown or lighter peachy colors. Further differentiating Azog from other orcs are his piercing blue eyes and smoother skin, with deep, tattoo-like incisions covering his face and torso. Azog's body is a collage of battle-scars and combat-tattoos, and is possibly designed to intimidate his enemies on the battlefield. Many people heard stories of the Defiler and what he was capable of. They described him to be very wrathful, psychopathic, iron-fisted, malevolent, bloodthirsty, insidious, cynical, bitter, malicious, arrogant, merciless, cunning, monomaniacal, and very ruthless. Thorin believed Thor would take care of the Defiler, but he saw Thor flying around with his left hand locked tightly to Mjølnir.
King Thrór chose to face Azog himself, but the deadly chieftain gained the upper hand by striking his sword and shield away, and swung his mace directly into dwarf king's chest very hard. Thrór lied on the rocky floor as he watched the Defiler grab hold of an axe he took from one of his warriors. Thrór closed his eyes just as the Defiler raised his axe and decapitated the Dwarf King. Odin stopped for a moment and felt Thrór s death. He turned around to witness the Defiler raising Thrór s head as he roars in triumph. He then flings the head, which bounces and rolls to Thorin's feet.
"Thror, no," Odin breathed in the sight of horror of seeing his friend killed.
Lady Sif, Loki, and the Warriors Three witnessed what the Defiler had done. Loki didn't bother to avenge the fallen king and kept on fighting while Lady Sif chose to do so and let out a furious war cry. She fought her way towards him, striking down any Sakaaran and Orc in front of her. It wasn't long when she saw Thorin confronting the Defiler himself. Azog swung his mace and knocks away first Thorin's shield, then his sword. The impact caused the Dwarf Prince to fall down an embankment and lands on the rocky ground. Azog leaps to smash Thorin, but Thorin, grabbed an oaken branch lying on the round, manages to roll away in time. Azog continues wielding his mace against Thorin, who is still on the ground, but Thorin blocks his mace with the oaken branch, which he uses as a shield. As Azog swings one last time, Thorin, grabbing a sword lying nearby, cuts off Azog's left arm, his mace arm, from below the elbow. Azog clutches the stump of his arm as he howls in pain.
"Thorin, finish him off!" Sif called to him, but was surprised that the Dwarf Prince chose to let Azog's soldiers take him away to safety.
Lady Sif finished explaining everything to Agent Coulson about the battle of Moria. Phil listened to everything she told him about what it was like. War, blood, and terror.
"It was a relief," Sif finished the story. "Azog was defeated. Thorin thought he died from his wounds long ago, but that was proven to be false. That monster survived that battle, and no one in Middle-Earth believed he was alive. Some believed that they saw his ghost wandering the wilderness, riding on a white, furry warg." She stopped for a moment and sighed very slowly. "I never told Thorin the truth of his survival. Odin was aware of it, but he chose to be silent. I followed his orders and… waited until Thorin was ready to learn the truth."
"Its never a good idea to keep things hidden about a certain foe who was thought to have been dead," Agent Coulson said, unsatisfied.
"I know," Sif quietly nodded. "I was a fool. Gandalf knew of this too, but he never said a word. I wanted to be the one to tell Thorin the truth, but I wasn't fast enough. My words were locked away, never to be open."
"No one can be good at keeping secrets," Agent Coulson understood how she felt about her mistake in not telling Thorin about the Defiler.
"Nor am I," Sif said and took a sip of her drink. "Throughout my travels in this world, there were a lot of things that I uncovered with Gandalf."
"What were those things?" Agent Coulson asked.
"After being chased by pack of warg riders that served the Defiler, we were able to find a secret passageway that led us straight to the city of Rivendell, ruled by the House of Elrond," Sif went on with her story. "When we arrived, Thorin didn't trust the elves very well."
"And why is it that he didn't trust them?" Agent Coulson wondered why.
"Am I done talking?" Sif grinned.
"No, sorry," Agent Coulson apologized with a grin.
"Thorin didn't trust them since he remembered the time back when Erebor was taken, he tried to request the aid of King Thranduil of the Woodland Realm," Sif continued. "But in the end, he didn't. He was deeply angered and betrayed for what the elven king had done. He didn't want the lives of his kin to suffer the wrath of the beast, and so he turned his back, but I wished the king would've helped him and the dwarves to recover from this… disaster. They didn't do nothing. And so, I convinced him to trust Lord Elrond, since he was much wise and would never turn away from aid, even if it was dangerous."
In the city of Rivendell, the company of Thorin Oakenshield took refuge in one of the most beautiful places in the world. Bilbo Baggins loved the city so much as if he wanted to stay here forever. Lady Sif too endured the love for this city and saw a little similar to the city of Asgard. She assisted in allowing Thorin to reveal the map and read the ancient dwarven texts written on it in order to figure out a way into the secret passage of Erebor. The plan was a success, but Sif knew that Elrond didn't want Thorin and his company to leave and let them go into the mountain since it was unwise. He declared it nothing but suicide since it was very difficult to slay a dragon.
While the company had been resting and waiting to leave at the stroke of dawn, Lady Sif accompanied Elrond and Gandalf outside on an evening walk. he already discussed this Lord Elrond and allowed him to speak about this to Gandalf. Elrond wasn't pleased by this and considered this quest to be very dangerous and that would come at a terrible price, should the dwarves fail. Lord Elrond was a half-elven lord with the blood of an elf and human. Despite being a cross between an elf and man, he was described to be more elf like pure-blooded kin. Elrond is described to seem ageless, resembling neither old nor young, however one could see in his face the memories and experiences of thousands of years. Elrond is described as dark-haired, while his eyes were grey shining like starlight. He could be seen wearing a circlet of silver.
Elrond was born at the Havens of Sirion late in the First Age. His parents were Eärendil and Elwing and had a twin brother, Elros, who later became the first king of Númenor. Following the War of Wrath, because of his Half-elven heritage the Valar gave, Elrond and his brother were given a choice whether to be counted among the kindred of the elves or become mortals. Elrond chose to belong to the kin and remain immortal while Elros chose to become mortal. He was married to a beautiful pure-blooded elven lady of Lothlórien named Celebrían, who was the daughter of Galadriel and Celeborn. Together, he was the father of three children, the twin sons Elladan and Elrohir, and their daughter Arwen.
During the Second Age, Elrond and Gil-galad sensed that he was not what he seemed, and denied him. They were correct, as proven in the later War of the Elves and Sauron. Elrond led Elves from Lindon in battle to defend Eregion. Elrond marched with Gil-galad and Elendil during the War of the Last Alliance, serving as Gil-galad's herald. He was present during the last battle of that war, witnessing the deaths of Gil-galad and Elendil. When Isildur cut the One Ring from Sauron's hand at the conclusion of the battle, he and Círdan advised Isildur to destroy the Ring, but Isildur refused to destroy the One Ring and kept it which led to his death. Elrond subsequently returned to Rivendell, which prospered the coming years with the aid of the Ring of Air, Vilya, that Elrond had received from Gil-galad.
Following Isildur's death, Elrond received the shards of Narsil, which he preserved for many years. He began his long tradition of fostering the heirs of Isildur by helping to raise Isildur's son Valandil, who had been left in Rivendell during the War of the Last Alliance. When the Northern Kingdom fell, Elrond took the other heirlooms of Arnor into his keeping, holding them for the one who would eventually be able to reclaim the throne of Gondor.
"So this is what you've been this whole time, Gandalf," Elrond sounded disappointed by this. "You bring in a halfling as a burglar, put him on a dangerous assignment." He stares at him briefly unsatisfied. "This is what I've warned you about."
"Of course I was going to tell you," Gandalf explained in mild annoyance. "And really, I—I think you can trust that I know what we're doing."
"Do you?" Elrond retorted. "Lady Sif has been trying desperately to warn you about this. It's madness."
"Madness you say?" Gandalf retorted in annoyance. "What madness do you think this is? There has nothing that I've done which includes madness."
"But this one is," Elrond pointed out. "That dragon has slept for sixty years. What will happen if your plan should fail? What do you think will happen if you let them wake that beast?"
"What if we succeed?" Gandalf countered if there was an exact chance to prove him wrong. "If the dwarves take back the mountain, our defenses in the east will be strengthened."
"Its a dangerous move, Gandalf," Elrond warned.
"It is also dangerous to do nothing," Gandalf argued against his warning.
"It is wise we not get involved in this danger," Elrond continued on his warning. "If Smaug discovers that we were involved in helping the dwarves enter that mountain, he will spread fire all over the mountains, valleys, forests. Everything will burn."
"Save me the warning of what else is at large," Gandalf disputed. "Think of what Thorin is trying to do. The throne of Erebor is his birthright. What is it you fear?"
"Have you forgotten?" Elrond asked, wondering if Gandalf knew of this or not. "A strain of madness runs deep in that family. His grandfather lost his mind, and that is what led to his downfall when he led an attempt to reclaim Moria. Then, his father succumbed to the same sickness. Driven mad by grief when he watched his father perish. Can you swear to me or Sif that Thorin Oakenshield will not also fall? Gandalf, these decisions do not rest with us alone. It is not up to you, Odin, or me to redraw the map of Middle-Earth."
Sif was silent during the calm argument. She didn't bother to speak as it was not her business to get involved in their argument. She continued to follow the two towards a marble stairway. The stairway winded up to a very large pavilion which overlooked the beauty of the city and valley all around. The pavilion had a very large roof that was all domed and a large round table was placed in the center with seats.
"With or without our help, Thorin leads his company to march on the mountain," Gandalf continued his explanation of what Thorin plans to do on his quest just as he arrives at the pavilion. "They are determined to reclaim their homeland. I do not believe Thorin Oakenshield feels that he's answerable to anyone. Nor for that matter am I."
"Perhaps, it would be wise for to answer to someone in our council," Elrond said, directing the wizard's attention to the opposite side of the pavilion.
Gandalf and Sif turn to face a very tall, but beautiful Light Elven woman with her back turned. She slowly turned around and faced the trio to greet them with respect. She wore a dark-grey cloak over her white gown. The woman's name was Galadriel, also known as the the Lady of Lothlórien, Lady of Light, Lady of the Wood, Lady of the Galadhrim, or Mistress of Magic. Galadriel was very beautiful, her hair being the most notable feature amongst her appearance. Galadriel, at least in her earlier years, was of a somewhat proud and rebellious nature. She was free-spirited, and during her time in Aman had many dreams of wide unexplored lands. In her early youth, she was very willful and of an "Amazon" disposition; and bound up her hair as a crown when taking part in athletic feats.
During her days in Doriath, Galadriel and her husband Celeborn would come to Middle-Earth. After the War of Wrath, Galadriel and Celeborn came to Lindon with so many survivors in Beleriand. Together, they ruled over the fiefdom of Harlindon, which was composed mostly of Sindar, under the High King Gil-galad. Eventually the couple moved to a new land called Eregion in far eastwards of Lindon. It was ruled by Celebrimbor, a grandson of Fëanor and distant cousin of Galadriel. They dwelt there for a time and Galadriel was present during the time when Celebrimbor crafted the Rings of Power. Galadriel learned of his fate, but could not bother what caused to become so obsessed with such terrible power that he couldn't resist when he tried to confront the Dark Lord Sauron himself.
After Sauron was vanquished and the One Ring was loss, Galadriel was now free to use one of the three elven rings she kept through the Third Age. With the power of her ring, she protected it from the intrusion of evils throughout the Third Age. It was during their days of power and glory in Lothlórien that Celebrían, their only child, married Elrond, a close friend of Galadriel's and bearer of Vilya after the death of Gil-galad during the Alliance. Celeborn and Galadriel had three grandchildren by her, one of whom, Arwen, they were especially close to. There, she formed the White Council along with Gandalf, Elrond, A'Lars, Frigga, Odin, Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Osiris, Isis, and Saruman.
Gandalf was surprised to see her and responded to her in awe. "Lady Galadriel."
"Mithrandir, gwewin in enninath," (Gandalf it has been a long time.) Galadriel greeted Gandalf to her in elvish with a smile on her face.
"Nae nin gwistant infanneth, mal ú-eichia i Chíril Lorien," (Age may have changed me, but not so the Lady of Lorien.) Gandalf said in elvish, giving her remark to her beauty as he bowed his head to her in respect. He slightly turned his head over to Elrond and gave him a pleasant remark. "I had no idea Lord Elrond had sent for you."
"He didn't," A voice responded out of the darkness. "I did."
Gandalf slowly winced in recognition to face the other individual who spoke to him. Emerging out of the shadow was another wizard. He was described as an old man with white snow hair. He was tall, his face was long, and his eyes were deep and dark. He would appear in a white cloak, a habit he later changed into a cloak that changed colors as he moved.
Gandalf, upon seeing Saruman's face, was pleased to see him and him an honorable bow to him. "Saruman."
"You've been busy of late, my friend," Saruman commented on what his friend had been doing.
That was when a huge figure slowly stepped out of the shadowy corner to reveal himself to Gandalf. He was very tall and massive, having purple skin, long grey hair, and a beard that was all but brownish gray. Saruman noticed him from behind and didn't bother to turn around to face him, only allowing Gandalf to bow his head in respect to the person he knew. His name was A'Lars, a Titanian who was a survivor of a terrible genocide on his home planet that was issued by his son Thanos. Like the Light Elves of Alfheim, Arda, and other worlds, he too was immortal, and immune to disease and the debilitating effects of aging.
Before departing his home planet, A'Lars was very rich, but was known to be very generous and kind helping his kin. However, when his world was starting to be plagued by overpopulation, causing a drain on its resources which sent the Titanian race hurtling towards a societal cataclysm. A'Lars and a number of Titanians weren't willing to give up hope for their kin and sought to use their strategies to prevent the cataclysm from happening. That was when his eldest son Thanos proposed a solution. His solution was to allow half of the planet's population to be killed off as a way to preserve their finite resources. A'Lars tried to reason with his son and considered this plan to be madness since he saw this as a genocide.
After Thanos was cast out, A'Lars and the rest of his family and friends survived the terrible catastrophe along with a small amount of Titanians that tried to prevent their world from turning into ruin. Having failed to protect his kin, A'Lars and his wife Kazantra remained separate from their family and began to settle on the world of Arda that was related to their original home planet. During their stay, he and his wife learned the elven language Quenya. Upon their arrival to Middle-Earth, A'Lars and Kazantra came to Doriath as guests to Elu Thingol, the King of Doriath. It was there that they would befriended Lady Galadriel, Lord Celeborn, and Queen Melian during the days in Doriath. A'Lars and Melian were eager to learn the causes of the Exile of the Noldor, but Galadriel would tell them nothing of what occurred after the death of the Trees.
After participating in the War of Wrath, A'Lars was known to be a great hero and became a noble ally to the Elves of the Vale, for many were living in Lindon. He would accompany Lady Galadriel to the land of Eregion where they met the most famous elven smith known as Celebrimbor. He was present at the time during the crafting of the Rings of Power. However, he tried to convince Celebrimbor to not collarbone with Annatar since he didn't trust him. His warning failed, in which Celebrimbor would forge the Three Rings of the Elves, which were far more powerful than the lesser rings he forged. This act led him to fight in the War of the Last Alliance where he aided Elendil and his army across Dagorlad. After witnessing Sauron's defeat, A'Lars was among those that tried to convince Isildur to destroy the One Ring Celebrimbor forged, but refused due to being corrupted by the Ring's influence.
"Hello, Gandalf," A'Lars grinned in delight. "Its been a long time my old friend."
"The honor is mine, A'Lars," Gandalf grinned back at the Titanian. "Where is Lady Kazantra?"
"She is doing important business in the far east," A'Lars told him what his wife was doing. "Saruman requested my presence. I'm pretty sure you have a lot of things to explain."
"That is why your insolence has led us to attend this boring council once more," Another voice said from behind A'Lars.
A'Lars sighed with a weary smile and stood aside to reveal the person who was revealed to be Zeus Panhellenios, the King of Olympus and Supreme Monarch of the Olympians. His hair and beard were all brownish-red and wore armor that was all in silver.
Born ten of thousands years ago, Zeus was the son of Cronus and Rhea, the two mighty Olympian Rulers that ruled the planetary body of Olympia and its city Olympus. After Cronus overthrew his father and took position as King of Olympus, he was given a vision that his own children, including Zeus, would rise against him and imprison him in Tartarus. As a result, Cronus planned to prevent that from happening, and so he imprisoned his children Hades, Poseidon, Hera, Demeter, and Hestia in the barren prison dimension. Appalled at the mistreatment of their children, Rhea concealed her sixth pregnancy from him and secretly gave birth to Zeus, somewhere in the land of Arcadia. Rhea gave the infant Zeus to Gaea who hid him on the island of Crete to be safe from Cronus.
As Zeus grew to adulthood among the Olympian shepherds of Mount Ida, the heart of Crete, he set on his quest to free his siblings from imprisonment and remove his father out of power. Once his powers grew strong, Zeus used his dimensional teleportation to bring him to Tartarus and freed his siblings, who had all grown to adulthood, from imprisonment. He also freed Polyphemus and an army of Cyclopes from the Hidden Isle that were also imprisoned by Cronus for rebelling and trying to remove him out of power. With the aid of his siblings and Cyclopes at his side, Zeus commanded an army of Olympians and other beings that fought in a ten year war with Cronus' army. As the battle was being drawn to an end, Zeus was victorious for defeating his father and banished him to be imprisoned in Tartarus.
"Zeus," Gandalf greeted him by bowing his head towards the Olympian king.
"Gandalf," Zeus replied by giving him a slight nod and a half-smile on his face.
Standing behind to Zeus were two hooded individuals that emerged from both corners. They removed their hoods to reveal their faces, Hera and Poseidon. Hera was the wife and sister of Zeus, making her the Queen of Olympus, and Poseidon was the brother of Zeus.
"I never thought we would schedule this meeting at a certain time," Hera said.
"Nor do we," Odin said.
Sif kneeled before Odin and Frigga. "My lord and lady."
"Odin, it is good to see you again my old friend," Gandalf smiled, pleased.
"I see Rivendell hasn't changed, Lord Elrond," Odin remarked.
"So mind if you tell us why we came?" Poseidon asked what this meeting was about.
For hours until dawn that was slowly arising from the eastern side of the world, the members of the White Council had been talking about the recent events that Gandalf had been up to. Gandalf, Saruman, Odin, Zeus, A'Lars, and Poseidon were seated around the stony pavilion while Elrond, Galadriel, Frigga, and Hera remained standing during the important meeting.
"Recruiting a halfling as a burglar," Hera scoffed, thinking this was a joke, and chuckled a bit. "You have indeed lost your mind, Mithrandir."
"Not in the mind you see my lady," Gandalf said. "I've chosen Mr. Baggins for a good reason and he has a part to play in this prophecy."
"Not the prophecy again," Odin sounded a bit irritated. "We've spoken of this already. Saruman and Poseidon disagree as well."
"Neither do I," A'Lars calmly argued. "But I believe in the prophecy, especially the one that no one is allowed to speak of in Asgard."
"We both know of these prophecies, I know they're not to be ignored," Zeus said.
"I made it clear that none of us would speak of these prophecies," Odin claimed. "Must I inform the council that it is our responsibility to look after our own worlds from any perils to come."
"We've spent hours discussing all this and there doesn't seem to be any peril at all!" Poseidon exclaimed, but sighed as he remained calm. "Apologies, my lord Elrond."
"None taken, my friend," Elrond replied and gave a nod.
"I know we've talked so much in this council, but a few of us, like me, worry about one other prophecy that none of us should ever ignore," Gandalf recalled another. "Its not Ragnarök. It is one where a madman would claim all the Infinity Stones and half of all life in the universe would die."
A'Lars knew what Gandalf had mentioned about and sighed. "I know what it is you speak of, Mithrandir. The Infinity War, in which my son Thanos will play a big part in it."
"Your son is nothing but a madman," Poseidon said. "He will doom us all if he succeeds."
"He believes he can bring balance to the universe," Zeus clarified. "Its chaos he will bring."
"There is no light in him," Galadriel said as she slowly circled around. "Only pain and misery."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Poseidon wondered, standing up to address the council as he thought it was a total waste of time. "Lady Galadriel sees this. If Thanos knows where they are, we must find them. All of them. Either we hide them somewhere else across the universe… or destroy them."
"It'll take years to find these lost stones," Hera added. "However, my husband and I never informed you all of this. Several years ago, there was word from Hermes that someone on Midgard was in claim of an Infinity Stone locked inside of a cube."
"The Tesseract," Galadriel answered, sounding concerned of the news. "How was it found?"
"And more importably, who was in possession of it?" Saruman asked.
"Someone who looks dead to me in the eye," Hera described. "He disappeared during a battle against a very strong warrior who wielded a shield made out of pure vibranium."
"Impossible," Poseidon gasped.
"How is it the vibranium ended up on Midgard?" Frigga asked.
"No one knows," A'Lars answered. "But I could tell it was millions of years ago. Stories were told that a meteorite made of vibranium struck a continent on that world. Everywhere around, it affected the plant life around it."
"Perhaps we should investigate this," Poseidon suggested.
"Patience brother," Zeus said. "There will be a time to learn how the vibranium came to Earth, but we must dread carefully. Thanos is not the only threat we face. I see familiar faces at work. Faces that seek retribution."
"Zeus is right," Gandalf agreed. "For always Evil will look to find a foothold in the universe."
"Then tell us, Gandalf," Saruman insisted to hear what he had to say to him and the rest of the council. "Did you think these plans and schemes of yours would go unnoticed?"
"Unnoticed?" Gandalf sounded baffled by this since he was finding reason. "No, I'm simply doing what I feel to be right."
"The dragon has long been on your mind," Galadriel said, putting it more.
"The dragon?" Odin was surprised by hearing this. "This is what is troubling you? Smaug has laid silent and asleep in the Lonely Mountain for sixty years. Why are you concerned of this?"
"My concern of Smaug proves to me that he is a threat," Gandalf openly claimed.
"But Smaug is a lone wolf," Hera said. "He owes no allegiance to anyone."
"My point exactly," Poseidon agreed to his sister.
"But if he awakes and summons another fire storm by the weight of his breath, my heart tells me he will side with the enemy," Gandalf earnestly stated of what might happen. "With a dragon on the enemy's side, it would be a terrible effect."
"What enemy are you talking about?" Odin asked skeptically.
"Gandalf, you are talking about an enemy that has been defeated long ago," Saruman said.
"He's right," A'Lars agreed to Saruman's point. "We were there when Sauron was vanquished during the War of the Last Alliance, and without his power, he'll never regain his full strength."
"Does it not worry us that the last of the dwarf rings should simply vanish, along with its bearer?" Gandalf asked. "Of the seven dwarf rings, four were consumed by dragons, two were taken by Sauron before he fell in Mordor. The fate of the last dwarf ring remains unknown. The ring that was worn by Thrain."
"Without the Ruling Ring of Power, the seven are of no value to the enemy," Odin claimed. "To control the other rings, he needs "The One Ring", and that ring was lost long ago during the early years of the Third Age in this world. Rumors were told that it was swept out to sea by the waters of the Anduin. No one has found it, and if remains lost, we should leave it at that."
"Gandalf, for four hundred years, we have lived in peace within Middle-Earth," Elrond outlined. "A hard-won, watchful peace."
"Are we? Are we at peace?" Gandalf asked if that was something to be heard. "Ologs have been coming down from the mountains. They are raiding villages, destroying farms. Orcs have attacked us on the road. There are other races on Arda that are paying homage to the enemy."
"Hardly a prelude to war." Hera calmly disagreed.
"Always you must meddle, looking for trouble where none exists," Saruman harshly claimed.
"Let him speak," Galadriel requested.
"There is something at work beyond the evil of Smaug," Gandalf began to address something else to the council. "Something far more powerful. We can remain blind, but it will not be ignoring us, that I can promise you. A sickness lies over the Greenwood. The Wood-Folk there now call it 'Mirkwood' and they say…"
"Well, don't stop now," Saruman encouraged him to continue. "Tell us about the Wood-Folk say."
"They speak of a Necromancer living in Dol Guldur, a sorcerer who can summon the dead," Gandalf informed as if it was a warning.
There was a bit shock, confusion, and concern within each and every member of the council. Was Gandalf bluffing about this? Odin and Zeus started to grow concerned of this and worry about how this sickness was spreading all over the Greenwood in the east.
"That's absurd," Saruman scoffed, declining to believe that. "No such power exists in this part of the world, nor any other."
"The only person who was gifted with such necromancy was Hades, our brother," Hera recalled. "Like our father, he committed terrible atrocities against Olympus and we imprisoned him in Tartarus. He'll never break out of his chains."
"But I am concerned of this necromancer that Gandalf speaks about," Odin said. "Hades had followers and I've known a few that studied necromancy."
"Then perhaps this necromancer is nothing more than a mortal man," Frigga stated. "A conjurer dabbling in dark magic."
"And so I thought too," Gandalf decided to go on. "But, Radagast has seen…"
"Radagast?!" Saruman foolishly interrupted. "Do not speak to me about Radagast the Brown. He is a foolish fellow."
"Well, he's odd, I grant you," Gandalf remarked. "He lives a solitary life."
"It's not that," Saruman disgustedly remarked too about Radagast. "It's his excessive consumption of mushrooms. They've addled his brain and yellowed his teeth. I warned him, it is unbefitting of the Istari to be wandering in the woods."
"Well if we are to believe that this Necromancer is not what he says to be, then it's proof," A'Lars confirmed.
As A'Lars had been speaking, Gandalf suddenly reaches into the fold of his robe and pulls something out. He lifts a package that was given to him by Radagast the Brown. which he had in his lap, and places it on the table. It lets out a dull thud.
"What is that?" Frigga wondered in concern.
"It can't be," Elrond gasped in confusion.
"Its a relic… of Mordor," Galadriel stunned.
Zeus reached his hand out to unwrap the package and opens it, revealing the sword Radagast took from Dol Guldur. The White Council members look upon it in shock. It was a dagger.
"By the might if the Titans, it can't be," A'Lars gasped in horror upon what he was looking at.
"Its a Morgul… a Morgul Blade," Frigga identified the weapon.
"But that's impossible," Poseidon rebuked in shock. "These weapons weren't forged since the end of the Second Age."
"This weapon was made by someone," Hera said. "Someone with the power to construct a weapon with poison in it."
"But how was it made?" A'Lars asked, concerned. "There must be an answer to this strange mystery."
"It was made by the Witch-king of Angmar, and buried with him," Galadriel explained. "When Angmar fell, the mightest champions of the North took his body and all that he possessed and sealed it within the High-Fells of Rhudaur. Deep within the rock they buried them, in a tomb so dark it would never come to light."
"This is not possible," Elrond said in contradiction. "A powerful spell lies upon those tombs. They cannot be opened by force."
"What proof do we have this weapon came from Angmar's grave?" Saruman testily asked.
"I have none," Gandalf innocently admitted.
"Because there is none," Saruman rammed, believing he made the exact point.
"I think we should examine what we know," Poseidon suggested a plan immediately. "Enemies have dared to cross the Bruinen. A dagger from a bygone age has been found. And a mortal sorcerer, who calls himself the Necromancer, has taken up residence in a ruined fortress."
"It's not so very much, after all," Hera rebuffed. "But the question of this dwarvish company, however, troubles us deeply. They go towards the mountain, reclaiming something that is already lost to them. A sickness lies in that ancient city for a reason. If Thorin Oakenshield should succumb to it, he will doom his people, should he fail."
"We're not convinced, Gandalf, I do not feel we can condone such a quest," Saruman disagreed on what Thorin planned on doing. "If they'd come to me, I might have spared them this disappointment. I do not pretend to understand anyone's reasons for raising their hopes."
"Well I am afraid there is nothing else for it," Odin sighed.
That was when a brown-haired elf entered the pavilion to bring important news to Lord Elrond and the council. The elf's name was Lindir, one of Elrond's most trusted advisors that served him in Rivendell for centuries during the Third Age.
"My Lord Elrond; the dwarves… they've gone," Lindir informed him very hastily.
"Like I said, its suicide," Hera scoffed and turned to leave the council immediately.
"I think we're done," Poseidon announced that the addressing of the council was over.
In the present time, Sif had already finished her explanation about the White Council. Coulson had listened to every word she said about this Morgul-Blade she spoke out.
"I didn't know Zeus and Poseidon were part of this council that you spoke about," Agent Coulson smiled weirdly.
"They forged this council for a purpose," Sif said.
"So this weapon your friend showed, this Morgul-Blade, what does it do?" Agent Coulson asked.
"It is something that no one like you or me should ever wield," Sif warned. "Its a blade made out of poison. Trust me, Son of Coul, this weapon would kill you."
"And that is something I'm not stupid to even touch," Agent Coulson said. "Trust me, Lady Sif, these a lot of classified things that are dangerous to touch, especially monoliths."
"Best be careful about what these monoliths do," Sif said about them. "Very few can be deadly and it will kill you, no matter what."
"But that doesn't about them," Agent Coulson said. "This is still something that happened on Arda, right?"
"It is," Sif answered.