Author's Note:

Hello everyone! Here is the next chapter of Earth's Mightiest Huntsman. But first, let's answer a few of your reviews.

the mysterious Mr.E: First off, mad respect for the name. Second off, the likelihood of any of the RWBY characters being worthy enough to lift Thor's hammer, while very cool to think about, is very slim.

SuperSaiyanFever: Originally, Loki was going to be the main villain for this Asgard arc, but I decided to make him be a red hearing and make the villains be the underappreciated Enchantress and Malekith to give more spotlight to those characters. Plus, I have an upcoming arc that uses a similar concept that would've been used had Loki remained the main villain of this arc, and I didn't want to do too much of a repeat.

Emanuel Castro: You are making a lot of assumptions here. First, you are assuming that Ultron's robots are made of Vibranium here. They are not. Second, you're assuming that this Ultron has an army just as large as the Ultron in What If. He does not. Thirdly, you're assuming that this takes place within the MCU. It does not, as I have said multiple times.

Monster King: I'm certainly am going to be continuing this story, and I do hope I can keep it's quality up to par. There will be some chapters I'm not as fond of (like this chapter), but I hope that the story overall continues to be satisfying.

CRUDEN: Exactly why I chose them as villains. With this story, I want to give shoutouts to not only the big names that everyone knows and loves, but also to characters that either don't get enough credit or have been absolutely botched by the MCU.

Ironchef13: Exactly. The lack of Dust will definitely hurt certain RWBY characters more than others, and unfortunately, Weiss is one of those characters that relies on Dust a lot more than the others on her team.

Guest: Perhaps. That's still up in the air.

UA Alumni 1998: Separating them across the Marvel Universe was certainly something I wanted to do, especially since it lets me showcase a lot of cool elements that the MCU can't really do a lot with. Those are certainly some interesting character pairings you've come up with, and they just might happen at one point or another as this story progresses. As for where everyone else ended up, well, you'll find out another location when the next arc starts (in like 2-3 chapters after this one)

Thank you all for your continued support. Now let's get back to the story.

Jotunheim

Thor grabbed Loki once more and pinned him to the mountain face. "This was your doing," he growled. "You had a hand in this."

"Oh, please, brother," Loki responded. "I am no fool. Malekith is beneath me. I would not dare make an alliance with him."

"Okay, okay, hold on a second!" Jaune interrupted. "I have…so many questions right now. Who were those two? What's going on?"

"The woman was Amora the Enchantress," Thor explained. "An Asgardian sorceress whose heart has turned cold after my rejection of her. The other was Malekith the Accursed, a Dark Elf from Svartalfheim. He and his people have been trying to destroy Asgard for thousands of years. And should he succeed in finding what he wants, I fear that he will try again."

"What is he after?" Weiss asked. "Some sort of casket?"

"The Casket of Ancient Winters," Thor answered. "An ancient artifact containing the fury of a thousand killing winters. Malekith once used it to wage war on Midgard, only to fall at the hands of the Avengers."

"The Avengers?" Weiss repeated. "What is with all these strange team names?"

"You may laugh at their name, but make no mistake. The Avengers are some of the greatest mortal heroes I know. Many foes have fallen to their might."

"Enough about Midgard's heroes, Thor," Hogun grunted. "We must return to Asgard at once, before Amora and Malekith's plans come to fruition."

"And we would return promptly, Hogun," Fandral told him, "Were it not for the fact that, without control of the Bifrost, we are stranded here.

"That may not necessarily be true, Fandral." Thor picked up Loki again. "You know of a way to return to Asgard, don't you?"

"Oh, please, brother, you and I both know that I do." Loki flashed a charming, yet menacing smile. "So go ahead and beg for my help to save your precious Asgard."

"I am no fool, Loki," Thor growled. "I will not beg for your help. But you will show us to one of your secret backdoors so we may return to Asgard."

"And, what, pray tell, is in it for me?"

Thor pressed Mjolnir against his head. "Your life."

"Do you really think you can prevent me from—" Loki's mocking protest was cut off as Thor placed a set of handcuffs around his wrists. The runes on the cuffs began to glow.

"These cuffs will cut you off from your powers," Thor explained, shoving Loki forward. "Now, lead us to where we need to go."

"Are these really necessary?" Loki asked. "I can be useful without my hands bound, especially where we need to go."

"And where might that be, snake?" Fandral asked.

"Oh, just into the bottom of Utgard."

"Are you mad?" Volstagg cried. "We cannot get into Utgard without using force!"

"And that, my dear Volstagg, is precisely why this trap was so perfect," Loki mused. "I must hand it to Amora and Malekith: they played you with a scheme worthy of me."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Asgard is on the brink of war with Jotunheim," Thor explained, having guessed what was going on. "This is why Amora sent us here. She wants Asgard to be engulfed in a war should her plans fail, and she knew that Loki and the Frost Giants would be blamed for any sort of attack, especially with the right evidence."

"If you try to get into Utgard by force," Jaune realized. "It could start the war that you've been trying to prevent."

"And that's precisely what we cannot allow," Thor decided. "We must get into Utgard without alerting the Frost Giants to our presence. You will guide us, Loki, for I suspect that you have ways of entering that stronghold undetected."

Loki let out a bitter sigh. "As you wish, brother."

Thor gestured to his companions. "Come, friends. Asgard needs us."

The group set out, with Thor and Loki in the lead and Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun right behind them. Jaune found himself walking in the back with Weiss. For a long few minutes, neither one of them spoke.

"Well, all things considered, it's good to see you okay," Jaune eventually said.

"You too, Jaune," Weiss agreed. Then she asked, "They gave you new armor?"

"For extra protection against the Frost Giants," Jaune answered. "They're apparently even stronger than the Grimm."

"Great. Well, that's comforting." Weiss paused. "Have you seen any sign of the others?"

Jaune shook his head. "Believe me, I asked. But I was the only one that wound up on Asgard. Any sign of them here?"

"None. Unless they ended up on the other side of the world, or realm, or whatever we're calling this place, I was the only one here. Assuming Loki didn't do anything to them."

"Let's hope their okay. None of us were really in good shape back on Remnant when we—"

"When we got our butts kicked by Ultron," Weiss interrupted. "Yes, I know."

"And to make matters worse, Thor said that there's a lot of other realms that would be very bad if they ended up there—especially in the condition they were in," Jaune added.

"It gets worse, Jaune," Weiss spoke up. "My Dust isn't working."

Jaune nearly stopped in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"I mean my Dust isn't working," Weiss repeated. "I tried to use one of my vials of Fire Dust last night to start a fire, and Myrtenaster wouldn't fire. Either Dust doesn't work on Jotunheim, or it doesn't work anywhere off Remnant."

But—hold on," Jaune said, his eyes widening. "Doesn't your Semblance rely on Dust?"

Weiss nodded. "Which means that all I have to fight with is Myrtenaster, which can only be used as a sword since the Dust rounds won't work."

"Well…that's not good."

"You think?"

"Look, let's just focus on the problem at hand," Jaune suggested. "If we help these Asgardians, they might be able to help us find our friends."

"And then what?" Weiss asked. "Get back to Remnant? If there's anything left by now?"

"There's something left," Jaune told her. "There has to be."

"How are we even supposed to beat Ultron? He took all of us down like we were nothing. We couldn't even scratch him."

"Thor said that he's dealt with him before. Him and his friends. If we can find the others and get them to help, we might have a chance."

"Assuming we make it out of this one alive."

"Well," Jaune said after a moment, "we'll just have to stick together and watch each other's backs. Stay close to the Asgardians and help them save their country."

Weiss didn't respond; she simply nodded and pressed on. Jaune let out a small sigh and caught up with the others. Weiss was clearly having doubts about their chances of success, especially after the beating both of them had endured against Ultron.

But they had to keep going. They had to get back to Remnant and help stop Ultron once and for all.

The group had been walking for about an hour when Thor came to a stop. "There it is," Loki announced, gesturing forward with his bound hands. "Behold the fortress of Utgard."

Weiss stared down at Utgard, a veritable fortress in the middle of an icy valley below the cliff face. "That's the place we have to break into?" she asked.

"If you wish to save Asgard from the likes of Malekith and the Enchantress, that is where we must go," Loki confirmed.

"What's the plan then?" Jaune asked Thor. "How do we get in there without starting a war?"

Thor stared out at Utgard. "Hogun, Fandral—find a way in," he ordered.

"There's no need for that, brother," Loki piped up. "If you would merely remove these restraints, I can get us in."

"Nay, brother," Thor countered. "Trusting you, I believe, would be far more hazardous."

Loki let out a dramatic sigh. "Oh, very well. I suppose you don't want to know about the secret tunnel into the depths of Utgard."

Thor grabbed Loki and slammed him into the rock wall. "What tunnel?" he demanded to know.

"There happens to be a secret tunnel that runs under the citadel," Loki explained. "It may lead you directly to where you need to go."

"I do not trust him," Hogun grunted. "What's the catch?"

"Oh, there's the simple matter of the tunnel going through the frost wolf pens," Loki admitted.

"What are frost wolves?" Jaune asked.

"Beasts that the Jotuns use in battle," Fandral explained. "Very dangerous."

"We may have no choice," Thor said, "Going through those pens is far more preferable than taking on all of Utgard's forces." He let go of Loki. "Where is the entrance to these tunnels?"

"Oh…closer than you think." Loki suddenly pressed his hands on a spot on the wall. Instantly the ground dropped out from under them. Weiss instantly felt weightless as she tumbled, letting out a cry of shock and fear.

She hit the ground hard, along with all the others. While she and Jaune landed on their backs, the Asgardians seemed to manage to land on their feet just fine. "Behold," Loki announced, gesturing down the tunnel that they were now in. "Your entrance to Utgard."

Jaune let out a groan. "Maybe give us a little more warning next time?"

"Pay him no mind, mortals," Volstagg warned. "Loki has always been full of tricks like that."

"Let us move on," Thor decided. "Asgard needs us."

The group continued down the tunnel. As they walked, Weiss's thoughts turned to how she would function in the battle. She had no Dust, which not only made her weapon almost useless, but it also meant that her Semblance would hardly function the way she wanted it to. Without Dust, her glyphs wouldn't have any special abilities, making her even less helpful should they get into a battle.

Which they no doubt were. Even if they made it off Jotunheim without having to fight these Frost Giants, there was still the problem of the people attacking Asgard. How was she going to help when she could barely do anything?

There was…one possibility. Before Ultron's attack on Remnant, her sister, Winter, had talked with her about the unique trait that the Schnee family had: the ability to summon past foes through the use of glyphs. And while Weiss had yet to achieve this, it might be her only chance to offer any sort of effective assistance in the battles to come.

Just thinking about her sister made her fists clench. She hadn't seen Winter since the battle in Vale had begun, when she had gone out to help rally the remaining Atlas troops in the city. She didn't even know if she was still alive—or if any of her family were still alive.

Shaking her head, Weiss pushed these thoughts out of her mind. Now wasn't the time to think about her family or Remnant. Jaune was right. The first thing they had to do was find the others and figure out a way to stop Ultron.

A low growl suddenly echoed throughout the tunnel. "What was that?" Jaune asked.

"A frost wolf," Thor guessed. "It appears that a few of them may have found their way down here."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Weiss asked.

"Both," he answered. "It means that Loki is telling the truth and these tunnel does lead inside Utgard. But it also means that the tunnel was breached and there are now frost wolves in the tunnel."

"Does that mean the Frost Giants know?" Jaune asked.

"Nay, Jaune Arc," Thor assured him. "If the Jotuns knew about this tunnel, they would have sealed it by now."

"My brother is correct," Loki confirmed.

"Be silent, Loki, or I'll add a muzzle to your bindings."

Another growl echoed in the tunnel, this one sounding much closer. "Should we be worried?" Weiss asked.

"About frost wolves?" Fandral let out a laugh. "You need not worry. Frost wolves are nothing compared to the Jotuns."

Something darted from down the tunnel, snarling. It was a large white wolf, fangs glistening with slobber as it stared the group down. It ran at them, but before it got very far, Fandral plucked it out of the air, grabbing it by the neck before drawing his sword and stabbing it through the torso.

"Move quickly," Thor warned. "There will be more."

The group's pace quickened as they continued down the tunnel. Occasionally, a frost wolf would scamper out, barring its fangs, but it would be swiftly dealt with by one of the Asgardians.

Before long, they had reached the end of the tunnel in the form of a dead end, with a small hole at the top. Thor motioned to Hogun, who leaped into the air, grabbing the edge of the hole and pulling himself up. Fandral quickly followed him.

Volstagg glanced up at the hole. "Is there no other way through?"

"Easy, Volstagg," Thor told him. "You will fit…maybe. Come—I will give you a boost."

Volstagg shrugged and ran at Thor. Thor knelt down and, when he arrived, threw Volstagg up into the hole, where Hogun and Fandral caught him and pulled him roughly through, though his wide girth certainly gave them some trouble to pull him through.

"You are next, mortals," Thor told Weiss and Jaune. "I will follow with Loki."

Jaune looked up at the hole. "Yeah, uh…we can't jump that highaaaaahhh!" He let out a startled cry as Thor picked him up and tossed him up through the hole, where he was caught by Fandral.

"If you even think about throwing me—" Weiss started. But Thor was already grabbing her and throwing her up. Fandral grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the hole, setting her down gently on the ground.

"That was rude!" Weiss complained.

A few seconds later, Thor flew up through the hole, dragging Loki behind him, who he threw onto the ground, sending him rolling a few feet. "Do you always treat your prisoners this way, dear brother?" he asked.

"Only you, brother," Thor shot back.

It was then that Weiss took in her new surroundings. The group was now in a large sort of kennel. The place was massive, large enough to fit beings of great size. On both sides of them were pens filled with snapping, snarling frost wolves, all trying to leap out to try to get at them.

"Where is this portal to Asgard, Loki?" Thor questioned.

"Buried deep beneath Utgardhall," Loki answered.

"Wonderful," Fandral muttered. "There's no way we can get through that without drawing attention."

"Aye," Thor agreed. "Unless we cause a diversion."

"Diversions won't save you now, Thor Odinson!" a new voice boomed. Everyone swung around to the doors to the kennel as they blew open. Weiss' eyes widened in horror as a giant, blue skinned man entered, followed by several more just like him.

To call them "giants" was an understatement. They were easily several times taller than even the Asgardians. Even their weapons were much bigger than both her and Jaune combined.

"Well…he's big," Jaune commented, taking a nervous step back.

"That is Laufey, king of the Frost Giants," Thor warned, raising Mjolnir.

"You are trespassing in my domain, Odinson," Laufey warned.

"We did not come here for ill will to you or your people, Laufey," Thor told him. "We were merely pursuing a dangerous fugitive from justice to your realm."

"And yet here you are, in Utgard, with your most powerful warriors," Laufey pointed out. "I find that rather suspicious."

Lightning began to crackle from Thor's hammer. "I have no time for your misguided suspicions, Jotun," he warned. "Let us pass, and we will be on our way back to Asgard."

Laufey let out a booming laugh that shook the walls. "And why would I do that? At long last, I have the prince of Asgard at my mercy, all while Odin himself slumbers." He smacked his massive club in the palm of his hand. "On this day, we take our vengeance against your people."

"I say thee nay!" Thor began spinning Mjolnir around rapidly.

"If it is a fight you want, Laufey, then it is a fight you're going to get!" Volstagg yelled.

Laufey growled. "Crush them!"

"Run, mortals!" Thor yelled, "Head for Utgardhall and find that portal!" He threw his hammer with all his might, smashing it into the giant and sending him stumbling back outside. With a battle cry, the Asgardians followed them.

"Wait! We don't even know what that is!" Weiss yelled after them.

"We'll probably know it when we see it," Jaune said, grabbing Weiss' hand and pulled her along briefly before letting go and letting her run beside him.

Outside the frost wolf kennels was a warzone. Multiple Frost Giants were closing in on the Asgardians, the ground shaking as the massive beings approached. But to Weiss' surprise, Thor and his friends seemed to be easily holding their own. Thunder boomed and lightning crackled as Thor threw his hammer around, directing it into other Frost Giants. One giant, who was charging at the Asgardians, buckled in shock and pain as Mjolnir blew through his chest, sending shards of ice everywhere.

"Woah," Jaune breathed. "These guys are awesome."

"Gawk later, move now," Weiss suggested.

"Wait—where's Loki?" Jaune suddenly asked, looking around.

Weiss scanned the area. "There!" she shouted suddenly, pointing. At the other end of the battlefield, Loki was running, his hand still bound, towards a large looking tower nearby.

"I'm going to guess that that's Utgardhall," Jaune said.

"Come on, we can't let him get away!" Weiss took off after Loki, Jaune hot on her heels. They ran through the battlefield, dodging a Frost Giant club at one point and would've certainly been stomped on by another Frost Giant if Volstagg hadn't been there, lifting the giant foot up with ease and tipping him to the ground.

Loki had already made it to the open doors to Utgardhall, and was beginning to close the massive doors. "So sorry, mortals," he said, "but I have no desire to be locked away in an Asgard prison cell, assuming my dear brother can defeat Malekith. So, I bid you farewell." With that, he closed the doors to the fortress, sealing the two out.

"Hey!" Weiss shouted, banging her hands against the doors. "You backstabbing jerk!"

"No time to worry about that," Jaune advised, starting to push against the door. "We have to get in there."

The two continued to shove against the giant ice doors, but they remained firmly shut, not budging a single inch. "It's no use," Weiss sighed, throwing her hands against the solid ice. "These doors were made to be used by Frost Giants. There's no way we can open it."

"Then we'll have to cut our way through." Jaune drew his sword and began hacking into the door. Weiss drew her own weapon and began to do the same, even though she knew that there was just as little chance of them breaking through the door as there was a chance of opening it.

"We have to come up with another way of getting in!" Weiss exclaimed, looking back towards where the battle was raging between the Asgardians and the Frost Giants. "And we have to hurry."

One of the Frost Giants was suddenly knocked away from the fight thanks to a strike from Thor. He landed several feet away from Weiss and Jaune. With a snort, he slowly got to his feet…and his eyes landed on them.

"Uh oh," Jaune said, raising Crocea Mors towards the giant nervously. "I think he sees us."

"Wait—this could work out for us," Weiss realized.

"How can—" Jaune's eyes widened as he figured out what Weiss meant. "Oh, I get it." He pointed his blade at the Frost Giant. "Come on, uh, Frost Giant! Come and get us!"

The Frost Giant snarled and marched towards them, needing only three steps to reach them. He raised his club and swung it at the pair.

"Duck!" Jaune yelled, pulling Weiss down. The club swung over their head, hitting the fortress doors and causing them to crack heavily.

"Seriously?" Weiss shouted. "That still didn't break the doors!"

"Look out!" Jaune cried, rolling to the side as the Frost Giant tried to slam his club down on them. He was back on his feet in an instant, swinging Crocea Mors into his ankle, which seemed to do little more than annoy him.

"Okay, I can't believe I'm saying this, but fighting Grimm is way more preferable than fighting giants!" Jaune exclaimed. "At least they're close to our size!"

The giant swung his club again, this time aiming at Weiss, who barely had time to jump out of the way. "Any ideas?!" she asked.

Jaune hacked again at the giant's ankle. "If we can get him down to our level, we might have a chance!" he realized. He stabbed Crocea Mors into the Frost Giant's leg. This finally seemed to get his attention as he raised his leg up. Unfortunately, Jaune was still holding on to his sword, which meant he was raised up along with it.

He let out a cry of fear as he clung on for dear life. The Frost Giant stared down at him and then, with a snort, flung his leg to the side, sending Jaune flying into the doors of Utgardhall, which he hit with a loud CRACK and slumped to the ground, his aura flickering.

"Jaune!" Weiss cried. But Jaune just lay there, momentarily stunned. The Frost Giant, seeing his chance, raised his club and prepared to strike a defenseless Jaune.

That was when Weiss snapped. She charged towards where Jaune was lying, barely even registering the glyph that was slowly forming behind her. She knew it was hopeless; there was no way she could block a strike from someone so big. But she still had to try.

She slid into place between Jaune and the Frost Giant just as he was slamming his club down. Desperately, she raised Myrtenaster and closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact.

CLANG!

When nothing happened, Weiss slowly opened her eyes. A glyph had materialized above her. From that glyph extended a giant arm, which carried a sword. It was this sword that was blocking the Frost Giant's club.

"Summoning?" Weiss thought with astonishment.

The Frost Giant seemed equally surprised. He raised his club again, but Weiss directed the arm, which swung the sword straight into him, cutting deep into his chest. He roared in pain before stumbling forward straight into Utgardhall's doors, finally shattering them as he fell to the ground. Weiss was barely able to grab Jaune and pull him out of the way in time.

"Are you okay?" Weiss asked.

Jaune rubbed the back of his head. "I'll live. But…what just happened? How did you do that? What did you do, exactly?"

"Long story," Weiss answered, helping Jaune to his feet. She cautiously prodded the Frost Giant's body with her foot. It didn't move.

A loud BOOM echoed as lighting crackled. Weiss turned her head to see Thor floating in midair, drawing massive amounts of lightning into his hammer. "This ends now!" he roared, flying into the ground and slamming his hammer down. A massive wave of electricity shot out all around the sight of the impact, knocking down Laufey and the other Frost Giants. With their foes momentarily stunned, Thor and the other Asgardians ran towards the Utgardhall.

"Let us leave this place!" Thor ordered. He then noticed the dead Frost Giant. "Impressive," he remarked. "Who felled this giant?"

Jaune pointed at Weiss. "Hmph," Hogun said. "Impressive, for a mortal."

"Yeah, well, Loki escaped," Jaune told them.

"Unfortunate," Thor said, "but we will have to leave him for now. We have bigger problems to attend to. Asgard is threatened. We must return at once."

"What about the Frost Giants?" Weiss asked. Nearby, Laufey and his Frost Giants were already recovering from Thor's attack.

"They would not dare follow us to Asgard," Fandral assured her. "Even they would not risk Odin's wrath, even with him still in the Odinsleep."

"This way," Thor said, leading them deeper down into the fortress. "Loki said that the way to Asgard was in the deepest reaches of Utgardhall."

"Can we even trust his word?" Jaune asked. "How do we know this portal won't take us someplace worse?"

"I believe Loki spoke the truth," Thor answered. "He knows that he can use the chaos on Asgard to his advantage to escape to another realm."

"Thor," Hogun said, pointing forward. At the end of the hallway was glowing portal.

"This is it," Thor realized. "The way back to Asgard." He motioned to Weiss and Jaune. "You two go first. But be wary: we do not know how much of Asgard has been overrun with Dark Elves."

"Got it," Jaune said, "Walk through this portal, and potentially get attacked instantly by more bad guys." He turned to Weiss. "Ready?"

Weiss pointed Myrtenaster at the portal. "Ready."

The two walked towards the portal, ready for what would surely be the fight of their lives.

And so our heroes are returning to Asgard, ready to take on the likes of Enchantress, Malekith, and the Dark Elves. But can they succeed? Find out next time, as the conflict reaches its conclusion.

This chapter certainly wasn't my favorite to write, mostly because half of it was little more than walking. But there's also the fact that writing for Asgardians is pretty difficult, as they have a very distinct way of talking. But I think the big problem I've been having with this arc is the fact that Weiss and Jaune are waaaaayyy overpowered by everyone around them. They can't even come close to the power levels of Asgardians and Frost Giants, which should make their combat on Asgard against the Dark Elves quite interesting.

But I think my favorite part about this chapter was the moment where Weiss partially unlocks her summoning much like she did in canon. This is what I like to call a "canon moment," in which an event seen in the official RWBY canon is recreated in some way in this story. Expect several more of these as the story progresses.

Speaking of Weiss' summoning, it was very interesting to see. As you all know, because Weiss' Semblance relies on Dust for full effectiveness, this left her with little options to fight with. But after some research, I concluded that Weiss doesn't need Dust to use her summoning, meaning I'm free to use it, albeit currently in a reduced state since she has had little time to refine this ability given on when this story branches off of RWBY canon.

But anywho, that's about it from me. Until next time, this is Guest 1138, signing off.