Chapter 3: There's a Storm Coming

Instead of feeling the heated sun on the warrior's faces and hearing the people, Jotunheim contained blistering winds and rocky, snow-covered mountains. There were no traces of footprints nor growls to determine whether or not the giants had become extinct - that the Destroyer had finished the last of its kind once and for all. As far as the Asgardians were concerned, they were probably lurking in the shadows, waiting to strike where the gods stood.

"We shouldn't be here," Hogun broke the silence.

"Let's move," the leader ordered—he and his team crossed the icy bridge.

As they were walking, a large chunk of rock fell from the mountain and crumbled to the ground. The team mentally prepared for the Frost Giants to attack but couldn't find one anywhere. They eventually made it to the rocky palace of Jotunheim, but still no sign of these monsters and their king.

"Where are they?" Sif questioned.

"Hiding," Thor replied disgustingly, "as cowards always do."

They halted when they arrived at the palace and waited. Some were more anxious than others.

"You've come a long way to die, Asgardians." Finally, they heard a presence echoing in the shadows.

"I am Thor Odinson!" Thor introduced himself.

"We know who you are."

"How did your people get into our realm?" the prince demanded, spitting the frosted kind with such hatred.

"The House of Odin is full of traitors."

"Do not dishonor my father's name with your lies!" Thor lifted his hammer, preparing to fight out of spite.

The owner of the voice appeared in a towering stance over the Asgardians. Ten feet tall and with a frozen barrier to his advantage, his skin matched the murky, crystal walls. His eyes blinked bloody red. The only thing that cast him differently and above all the others was not by physicality but by his title. He was Laufey, King of Jotunheim.

"Your father is a murderer and a thief!" Laufey yelled at Thor. "And why have you come here? To make peace?!" he asked mockingly. This prince believed himself brave, but he was foolish to cross the enemy's line. No matter. Laufey shall teach Odin's son a lesson - whether it was the easy way or the hard way. He didn't mind the latter if the boy persisted.

Laufey continued ranting, "You long for battle. You crave it! You're nothing but a boy trying to prove himself a man." His army stepped out of hiding, surrounding the Asgardians. One. Two. A dozen. Many more either came from the mountains or the palace walls. Their arms morphed into blades.

"This boy has grown tired of your mockery," Thor seethed. His followers looked around, feeling the shiver creeping up their spines and into their minds—all with the same message. Six gods against a Goliath army wasn't a fair game; it was suicide. With that in mind, Loki approached his brother as the voice of reason.

"Thor, stop and think," Loki hissed in his ear. "Look around you. We're outnumbered."

"Know your place, Brother," Thor snapped.

"You know not what your actions would unleash," Laufey warned. "I do. Go now while I still allow it." One of his guards approached the princes with an angry look in his eyes. Laufey's giant army remained still, growling while aiming their blades directly at the mighty six, waiting for the official order from their king to attack.

"We will accept..." Loki bowed his head to Laufey, "... your most gracious offer." Thor glared at his cowardly brother in disbelief that he was backing down now. "Come on, brother," Loki tugged Thor's arm, begging him to follow.

Thor and Laufey continued to stare down at each other, challengingly. Thor reluctantly turned from Laufey to retreat despite his desire for a battle.

"Run back home, little princess," a guard behind him taunted.

Thor halted in his tracks.

"Damn," Loki cursed quietly. He knew that they wouldn't be able to leave in peace.

Thor smirked and swung his hammer at the guard, whose body mashed into the rocky wall.

"Next?" Thor asked before he swung his hammer again, hitting another attacker. Eventually, all the Frost Giants and the six Asgardians battled, only this time it wasn't for the casket but for their lives.

"Please make it a challenge for me!" Thor kicked another defeated Frost Giant on the side. More Frost Giants appeared on cue.

Thor was face-to-face with one, who tried to intimidate him with a roar. The prince imitated his rage as he swung his Mjolnir. The Frost Giant grabbed his arm, slamming his rocky head against Thor's. Instead of crying in pain, Thor laughed, silently asking, 'Is that the best you could do?'

The Frost Giant punched him in the stomach; Thor flew and tumbled backward.

"That's more I like it," Thor smiled at Laufey with satisfaction. He threw his hammer, smashing the Frost Giant's face. Thor extended his limb to summon Mjolnir back to him.

Sif struggled to fight one giant, who knocked her down on the icy ground. Luckily for her, Hogun was her backup and threw his knife at the giant's neck.

Loki turned to see one running after him. He slowly backed up but stopped when he realized he was standing on the cliff's edge. One more step - one fall was all it took. However, there's this giant ready to pounce. Loki could die either way. The Frost Giant jumped towards Loki but somehow went through Loki's body, falling to his death instead. Being the God of Mischief, the real Loki lurked behind the large rocks, using a projection of himself to fool the Frost Giant. He waved his hand, making the copy of himself disappear before returning to battle.

Sif ran her sword through one giant.

Volstagg was fighting a monster, only to have his arm trapped in its grip, receiving frostbite. Volstagg cried out in pain as he bumped his head against the giant's face, pushing it away from him. He briefly analyzed the scorching mark on his forearm. His eyes tore up from the smoke and the pain.

"Don't let them touch you!" Volstagg warned his friends.

One of the frost giants grabbed Loki's wrist, destroying his armor and touching his pale skin. Instead of receiving the bite like Volstagg, his pale skin turned blue.

Loki widened his eyes at the change in disbelief. He and the giant looked at each other, silently exchanging the same confusion before Loki swiftly killed his opponent with his dagger. He watched his blue arm slowly pale to normal.

Meanwhile, Fandral was having the time of his life. He was laughing while fighting with his opponents with his sword. Annoyed by him, the giant knocked Fandral's sword off his grip, morphing its arm into an icy blade. Fandral quickly slid under the monster, retrieving his sword. He turned around to chop the giant's limb, then slew the monster instantly with a single stab to the chest. Fandral turned around and cried in pain when an icicle pierced his body.

Loki, Sif, Hogun, and Volstagg turned their attention to Fandral's cry. Loki threw a knife at a giant that was after Fandral before. Volstagg and Hogun helped Fandral out of the icicle, carrying him over Volstagg's shoulder.

"Thor!" Sif called for him. Thor wasn't listening to her, preoccupied with the enemy to pay mind, laughing heartedly as Fandral once did.

"We must go!" Loki shouted.

"Then go!" Thor barked, smashing another's skull. Then, he threw the Mjolner, taking down a bunch of giants in one line.

Meanwhile, Laufey was watching the battle and didn't like what he saw. He knew it was time to call for backup. He cracked a bunch of ice, unleashing an enormous monster. The sound of its growl caught the Asgardian's attention. The beast broke through its icy prison and chased after the intruders.

"Run!" Volstagg cried. The entire group did just that, except one. Thor continued to hit more giants with his hammer.

Loki ceased to see his brother not running with them, "Thor!" Loki resumed the pace when the god of thunder didn't acknowledge his brother's call. If his brother were to die, at least Thor would die doing what he longed to do.

Thor grasped Mjolnir's strap and spun the hammer in circles. He lowered his spinning hammer against the ground, spreading icicles around, killing the giants. Still turning it, he lifted the hammer to create an explosion of lightning, crushing the icicle army.

His followers hurried back to where they started while dodging the beast's claws, teeth, and tail. Thor's lightning spell struck the bridge; each piece crumbled and fell into an abyss, including the beast. Fandral exhaled; a smile of relief curled his mustache lips when the worst had passed, now the Asgardians had a chance to escape.

"Heimdall! Open the bridge!" Volstagg ordered. The group waited anxiously for the Bi-Frost to escort them back home.

Suddenly, the monster's paw slammed before their eyes. The four warriors cautiously backed away from it. Volstagg quietly assured his injured friend that everything was going to be alright. Fandral didn't know what his friends were seeing, but judging by the monstrous growls, he knew it was wishful thinking to assume it came from Volstagg's stomach.

After Thor finished the Frost Giants, he kept swinging his hammer in circles, creating enough wind to fly in the air, catching up to the group. The beast was ready to devour Thor's friends and brother. He had to rescue them. He flew towards the beast, aiming straight through its mouth. The beast released a roar of pain before it died and fell off the cliff. Thor landed on the icy ground, grinning at his friends in victory.

However, the moment of celebration didn't last long, for he spotted Laufey smirking along with his vast army of giants. The group knew they couldn't take a thousand of them, except for Thor, whose ego continued to inflate. This was it. They were going to die in this wasteland.

The icicle army charged at the Asgardians, but thunder rumbled in the sky before they could attack. A rainbow of colors shined in the dark, revealing an angel riding on his noble steed and wielding a staff at hand. This angel warrior, the group's savior, was none other than the Allfather himself.

Thor's face lit up as he lifted his hammer, "Father, we'll finish them together!"

"Silence!" Odin scolded his eldest son, whose smile faded instantly. Laufey morphed a staircase to speak to the Allfather face-to-face.

"Allfather," the ice king greeted with a taunting look in his red eyes, "you look weary."

"Laufey, end this now," Odin ordered.

"Your boy sought this out."

"You're right. These are the actions of a boy. Treat them as such. You and I can end this. Here, now. Before there's bloodshed."

"We are beyond diplomacy now, Allfather. He'll get what he came for... war and death."

Odin knew there was no way to convince Laufey to resume their peace. If Laufey declared war against Asgard...

"So be it."

Secretly, Laufey turned his hand into a dagger, planning to kill the King of Asgard on the spot. Odin raised his staff before Laufey could surprise attack, blasting him away. It was enough time for the Asgardians to travel home.

~000~000~000~

"Why did you bring us back?!" Thor demanded Odin when they arrived back in the dome.

"Do you realize what you've done?!" Odin replied to Thor with his questions. "What you've started?!"

"I was protecting my home!" his son argued.

"You cannot even protect your friends! How can you hope to protect a kingdom?!" Odin withdrew the key blade from the slot to deactivate the Bifrost and tossed it to Heimdall. He addressed Warriors Three and Sif, ordering them to escort Fandral to the healing room immediately.

Hogun and Volstagg dragged injured Fandral out, and Sif followed them. Heimdall left the king and the princes alone to converse, returning to his post outside the dome.

"There won't be a kingdom to protect if you're afraid to act!" Thor pointed out. "The Jotuns must learn to fear us, just as they once feared you!"

"That's the pride and vanity talking, not leadership," Odin scolded. "You've forgotten everything I taught you about a warrior's patience."

"While you be patient, the Nine Realms laugh at us!" Thor argued. "The old ways are done! You stand by giving speeches while Asgard falls!"

"You're a vain, greedy, cruel boy!" Odin shouted, enraged by his son's behavior.

"And you're an old man and a fool!" Thor mimicked his father's tone.

Odin's face saddened, lowering his head in a reluctant nod.

"You're right..." he declared quietly. "I was a fool... to think you were ready."

Loki strayed from their argument long enough. Gods argued and insulted one another out of spite - that was normal. Although, most of the time, negative emotions could push individuals into acting in haste that could later become regrettable - actions that cannot be undone with a simple apology. Loki must step in and be the voice of reason for the good of Asgard.

"Father-"

Odin snarled, silencing his younger son back into submission.

"Thor Odinson," Odin addressed his eldest as if he was speaking to a prisoner or a dishonorable soldier, "you have betrayed the expressed command of your king. Through your arrogance and stupidity, you have opened these peaceful realms and innocent lives to the horror and desolation of war!" He stuck his gungir into the Bifrost, creating lightning in the dome. He marched towards his eldest, prying Thor's badges off his armor.

"You are unworthy of these realms!"

Then, Odin ripped the crimson cape, "You are unworthy of your title! You're unworthy..." He looked at his eldest son, who was heartbroken by his father's hurtful words. Tears were watering his blue eyes, though it wasn't enough to gain mercy.

"...of the loved ones you have betrayed," Odin finished softly, returning to his original spot up the stairs by his scepter.

"I now take from you your power!" He extended his hand, summoning the Mjolnir, "in the name of my father and his father before... I, Odin Allfather, cast you out!"

The king aimed the hammer at Thor, who forcibly flew backward into the Bifrost. Loki watched Thor disappear in horror, shifting his gaze at Odin. He had done it. The Allfather had banished his own flesh and blood.

Odin ignored his youngest's silent judgment as he whispered into the Mjolnir - a promise, "Thus whoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor."

After he declared those words, the king tossed Mjolnir into the Bifrost.

~000~000~000~

The van was parked in the middle of nowhere outside the desert town. Most of its passengers snuggled in blankets or jackets as the night cooled the summer day temperature.

Garrett was playing with his game boy. Darcy sat beside him, resting her head against the passenger seat with her eyes closed.

Kelsey and AJ were outside with their backs against the van, embracing the fresh air while snuggling in a blanket. AJ peered behind him, watching Jane and Erik prepping their equipment.

"Jane, I thought you said this would be like a Batman stakeout," AJ complained in boredom.

"Well, it is, AJ," Jane assured him lightly. "But just like Batman, he has to wait for the criminals to commit a crime."

"How long?"

Jane sighed irritably, "For as long as it takes. Why don't you finish your homework?"

"But it's too hard, and I'm starving!"

"So am I!" Darcy raised her hand in agreement.

"We'll get something on the way back, alright? Maybe we can have some takeout for supper," Jane paused to see the intended's reaction to the offer; unfortunately, she received cold stone silence. Then again, Kelsey's back was turned, shielding Jane from seeing her expression.

AJ groaned as he turned around and laid his head on Kelsey's shoulder. He should finish his reading homework, but it was too dark to see the pages, not that was a legitimate excuse, for he was holding a flashlight that shined on Kelsey's face. She squinted her eyes and shoved the light away, commanding him to watch it. He noticed that she had her phone out and heard the muffled jam from her earbuds. What song was she listening to? He had no idea. The boy tapped her shoulder to ask if he could play a game on her phone, but Kelsey wasn't the type to share. She refused and told him to do his homework. AJ wasn't trying to be a procrastinator; he just needed help. He told her as much.

Kelsey groaned, allowing her heart to soften by ripping the earbuds from her ears. Jane made it clear that her project was far too important than family. Kelsey didn't wish to be a hypocrite by ignoring her brother's pitiful cry for help.

"Okay," she motioned for her brother to open his workbook. AJ was grateful to get his work done. However, it doesn't stop him from crossing his fingers, hoping to see the look on Kelsey's face when Jane finally proves her wrong.

Erik and Jane popped their heads through the van's roof, watching the night sky. Jane picked up the gadget that was continually beeping. The noise was a good sign so far. They both stared, waiting with anticipation.

Listening to the beeping machines inside the van, Kelsey growled with irritation, wishing there was a mute button. She focused on the boy's paperwork, challenging AJ to read and identify the following sentence. Five minutes quickly passed by. Erik glared at Jane, who still had a determined but hopeful look.

"Wait for it," Jane whispered to him without taking her eyes off the sky.

"Can I turn on the radio?" Darcy asked, breaking the suspense.

"No."

The intern huffed and rolled her eyes, returning her head to a neutral position. Darcy, too, should've brought entertainment for herself but left her iPod in the lab. Garrett's video game was the only thing preventing boredom.

"Hey," Darcy called out to him. Garrett didn't move a muscle. Either he didn't hear her, or he was merely ignoring her. Sick of seeing Mario fall to his death for the umpteenth time, Darcy shoved Garrett against the door.

"What the hell, Darcy?!" the teen lifted his forearm, ready for another physical assault.

"Give me your Gameboy," Darcy commanded in a casual tone.

Garrett creased his brows in confusion, "What?"

"You suck, and I want to play!"

Garrett scoffed, resuming another round of Mario, "Get your own Nintendo and FYI, I don't suck!"

"Garrett, can I play?" AJ asked outside, ignoring his sister's demand to focus.

"Sure, squirt," Garrett stretched his arm back with the console in hand. Darcy scoffed; the teen's smugness intensified her annoyance for him. Instead of taking no for an answer, Darcy reached to steal Garrett's game. His free arm blocked Darcy's reach, keeping her from taking what belonged to him.

"I said, get your own!" Garrett barked.

Darcy was more determined, using both hands to take the device from him. She leaped while Garrett leaned away from her.

"Hasn't your mom ever taught you to share?" Darcy asked while struggling.

"Hasn't your mom ever taught you not to steal?!" Garrett spat at her; his knee on the horn startled everybody.

"Sharing is caring!"

"A thief is a thief!"

"Shut up!" The people behind them snapped with irritation.

"That's enough!" Erik's stern tone caused Darcy and Garrett to cease their wrestling.

"Don't make me come down here!" Jane threatened from above the roof, feeling like she was raising four kids instead of two for the summer. The two enemies glared at each other before they resumed their game of tug-a-war.

Every minute wasted, Kelsey was closer to winning the bet.

"Jane," Erik began softly, "you can't keep doing this."

Jane panicked, ducking back inside the van, turning her attention to the screens, "The last seventeen occurrences have been predictable to the second!"

"Jane, you're an astrophysicist, not a storm chaser," Erik reminded her.

"Storm chasing sounds exciting," Garrett commented after defeating Darcy. "A lot of action, danger- sure beats basketball camp."

"Ooh, good idea," Darcy said in a false, cheerful tone. "Then we'll get caught in a twister. And if we're lucky, it could take this van over the rainbow and crush a wicked witch - what a dream come true," she eye-rolled the last bit.

"That won't happen," AJ disagreed. "Dorothy already killed the bitch first."

"Whoa!" Kelsey was the first to react in shock. AJ's vocabulary earned mixed responses from the group. "Jane, did you hear what he said?!"

Jane heard and promised to serve AJ a bar of soap for dessert. The boy expressed confusion. Everyone except Erik had their share of cursing and got away with it, especially Jane. How was he any different? If he were lucky, by the time they return to the lab, Jane would be too tired to punish the boy, forgetting all about it the next day.

"There better not be a wicked witch," Darcy sulked after losing the tug-a-war with Garrett. She sighed after hearing another death jingle from the teen's game. "I'm only here for six college credits, not some suicide mission. We didn't pack a bucket of water anyway."

"What do you think this is? Some kind of Suicide Squad?" Garrett challenged, restarting another level.

"Better not! I don't get paid enough... I don't get paid period," Darcy mumbled at the last part quietly.

While his sister explained the difference between an imperative and an exclamatory sentence, AJ perked at the strange blue light in the sky. He didn't know what it was, but he was sure it was the aurora everybody had been talking about.

"I'm telling you, Erik!" Jane insisted on her theory. "There's a connection between these atmospheric disturbances and my research! I wouldn't have asked you to fly out here if I wasn't sure."

"Jane!" AJ called out to his aunt, who refused to hear more whining and complaints.

"AJ, are you listening to me?" Kelsey demanded.

"Jane, does the night sky always shine a blue light like that?" AJ asked Jane, pointing at where the light was illuminating. Everyone else paused what they were doing in confusion. They followed AJ's direction from the point of his chubby finger.

Garrett and Darcy used their side mirrors; Jane and Erik stuck their heads through the sunroof; Kelsey lifted her head - all jaws dropped at the curious sight.

"Holy crap," Kelsey mumbled quietly. She rubbed her eyes to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating.

Everyone stared at the beautiful blue aurora, dumbfounded and amazed. Jane's luck was about to change; she was about to prove her niece wrong.

"What is that?" Jane asked.

"I thought you said it was a subtle aurora!" Erik exclaimed.

"Go!" Jane cried out. Kelsey and AJ hurried inside the van before Garrett ignited the engine and slammed his foot on the gas pedal. The trailer took off, and Kelsey didn't have time to shut the door. Her bottom was resting on the van's edge with her legs hanging out. AJ huddled in the corner, knees tucked against his chest with his homework in between.

"Kelsey, what are you doing, sitting there like that?!" Erik demanded as he and Jane hurried past the siblings to get a better look at the aurora, "Shut the door!"

"Good idea!" Kelsey exclaimed with forced sweetness as she tried to reach the door handle without falling out. The task became difficult when Garrett made a sharp turn. She felt herself slipping, now holding onto the van door for dear life, lifting her legs off the ground.

"Get closer!" Jane commanded Garrett as she sat on Darcy's lap, sticking her head and the camera out the window. Her number one focus was getting that aurora on tape.

"Whoo!" Garrett cried, embracing the adrenaline pumping through his veins. "To think this summer is supposed to be boring without basketball camp!"

"Good one," Darcy grumbled, trying to shift Jane's weight off her, so she could start breathing again.

"Go!" Jane barked at Garrett impatiently. The boy sped the van closer and closer until the aurora turned into a terrifying tornado, lightning sparkling through the funnel cloud. Everyone reacted with mixed emotions. Who knew that a beautiful aurora could turn into a deadly storm?

Garrett widened his eyes in fear, "Holy shit! It's a twister, Jane! It's a twister!" There were rules about going near a tornado, but when Jane encouraged him to get closer, Garrett realized the woman had tossed common sense out the window. He would do anything for her, but not this. Maybe he's better off playing video games than becoming the first black Indiana Jones.

Darcy managed to push Jane off and grabbed the wheel, turning the van away from the twister.

"What the hell?!" Garrett cried, regaining his grip.

"What are you doing?!" Jane demanded.

"Stupidana Jones might be willing to die for you, but I'm not!" Darcy exclaimed. "Not for six college credits!"

Garrett and Darcy fought control over the wheel, making a U-Turn from the danger. Jane didn't take her eyes off the tornado, keeping the camera still. Erik offered AJ fatherly protection by wrapping his arms around him. AJ had never felt so excited and scared at the same time. He admitted that this was better than watching Batman on TV.

Everyone was oblivious to a shadowy figure that slammed against the vehicle's passenger side. Darcy lifted her leg over the gear shift to hit the brake, spinning the van in circles. Finally, the vehicle made a screeching halt in time for the wrecking cloud to disappear.

The group looked at one another, speechless at first. Seeing each stunned expression was like looking in the mirror. Everyone had trouble comprehending the traumatic event.

"Is everyone alright?" Erik broke the silence.

"What kind of question is that?!" Darcy demanded. "Brad almost had me killed!"

Garrett finally caught his breath, only to notice cracked glass on the passenger window, "Uh, guys... I-I-I think I hit something."

Erik found the sliding door open and one passenger missing, "Uh... Where's Kelsey?"

All shifted their gazes between one another and outside, gasping in horror at the realization of who Garrett had hit.

"Oh, my God!" Jane fumbled with the door handle. Darcy silently offered assistance by pushing the unlock button. "Kelsey!" Once the door flew open, Jane jumped out of the vehicle, not taking a flashlight.

"Holy shit!" Darcy grabbed the flashlight from the floorboard and turned to Garrett as if she was about to use it as a lethal weapon. "This is legally your fault!"

"I'm so sorry, Kels!" Garrett cried out as he hurried outside with Jane, the others not too far behind them.

Jane spun around in the dark with a frantic look in her eyes. She placed a hand on her chest, struggling to breathe, not realizing she had been holding it. She needed to find Kelsey and take her straight to the hospital.

Garrett and Darcy's flashlights shined on the ground, revealing a lifeless body a few feet from the van.

Jane gasped and covered her mouth in terror, "Oh my God! Kelsey!" The adrenaline pumped through her veins as she ran towards the body, "Somebody call 9-1-1!"

Erik immediately pulled out a phone to do just that. The boys and Darcy rushed to Jane's side, hoping and praying that Kelsey was still alive.

Once they were close enough to catch the crucial details, Darcy and Garrett dropped their flashlights in disbelief. AJ picked up one from the ground and shined it on the face. Jane kneeled next to the body and stared with wide eyes. All thought the same thing. Kelsey's body was different. She didn't look like herself.

"Oh my God..." Garrett whispered, then screamed out, "That crazy-ass storm turned Kelsey into a dude!"