The fleet of warships unleashed a thunderous barrage the instant Lothar gave the command.
Plasma cannons, annihilation blasters, orbital particle beam cannons, positron cannons—every weapon fired in unison, raining devastation on the 404 monstrous beasts summoned by Malekith.
Blinding energy, agonized shrieks, enraged howls, and helpless death.
The overlapping firepower drove the bleeding monstrosities away from the area where the Asgardian soldiers had been frozen like statues. Once that objective was achieved, the fleet's energy consumption surged to maximum output.
A mesmerizing aurora of destruction swept away the beast legion, led by the eight-legged, twin-clawed behemoth. The roaring winds stirred Hela's ink-black hair, now visibly shorter than before. Behind Lothar, The Other—clutching the Mind Stone scepter—craned his neck, as if to confirm the monsters had truly perished.
"Rejoice!"
"All hail His Highness Lothar, son of the great Titan, revered master of the Chitauri Star—this is a conquest spanning several star systems!"
"In this moment! The legendary monsters of the Dark Elves have fallen before His Highness Lothar! Even Hela, daughter of Odin, King of Asgard, kneels at his fe—"
The Other's exalted chant halted abruptly.
The cold glint in Hela's eyes froze him mid-sentence, cold sweat beading on his brow. He instinctively stepped back.
He could swear on his life—when Hela met his gaze, he saw death itself.
Real, terrifying, bone-chilling death.
"Your Highness, all targets have been eliminated," Woz's voice sounded beside Lothar as the thunder of artillery faded. The battle's energy expenditure was displayed on the holo-screen before him.
"Transmit the coordinates of the twelve previously identified locations to the fleet's main system. Have the recon teams investigate them in waves," Lothar ordered, unfazed by the energy loss.
"Yes, Your Highness," Woz responded.
Woz uploaded the landmark data into the ship's core systems. "Lord The Other, please awaken the Chitauri soldiers onboard and transfer their command authority to me."
Still shaken by Hela's deathly gaze, The Other nodded frantically and rushed into the ship with the control scepter.
This version of Hela was dangerously unstable. The fear response triggered his biological survival instincts.
"You'd be better off running back to Asgard and crying to your mother," Lothar said with a cold glare, warning her as he held up a war trophy taken from her. His eyes lingered briefly on the torn battle suit around her thigh, and he chuckled derisively before turning to leave.
"Let's see what your oh-so-wise mother can do to help you."
"Wait." Hela's voice cut him off before he could finish the taunt.
"Oh?" Lothar paused, glancing sideways.
"I'm going with you."
"A defeated foe has no right to fight beside me," Lothar sneered, holding up his prize. Hela's face remained unreadable.
"But you need someone who understands the Aether. And I'm that person," she said, voice strained with suppressed fury and grief. She raised her hand, and a book materialized in her palm.
"Malekith was entangled with my grandfather Bor for centuries. Everything about him and the Aether is documented in the royal secrets of Asgard."
"This book contains knowledge you don't have. For instance, do you even know what the Aether—the true form of Malekith's trump card—looks like?"
"No, you don't." Hela shook her head, stepping closer with each word.
"But I do."
"Your AI isn't omniscient. When it comes to Malekith and the Dark Elves, it's practically ignorant."
"So, what do you say, Lothar?"
She stopped and held the book where he could see the title: Asgardian History Textbook – Core Volume III.
"Take the remaining Asgardian soldiers onto your ship. Once the hallucinogenic gas wears off, they'll return to Asgard on their own."
"This book is just a down payment. After the deal is complete, the remaining four volumes—reserved exclusively for the royal family—will be yours."
She tossed the textbook into his hands. In the next moment, four more books appeared in her palms, neatly aligned:
Core Volume I, Core Volume II, Elective Volume I, Elective Volume II.
Lothar furrowed his brow and flipped open the table of contents:
Unit One: Evolution of Mainstream Ideologies in Asgardian Traditional Culture
Unit Two: Origins and Development of Svartalfheim
…
???
Dense text filled every page, and just reading it gave Lothar a headache.
"Woz."
"Unable to scan, Your Highness," Woz replied. Lothar had hoped to digitize the contents but received a less-than-ideal response.
"Useless," Hela said with a wry smile, catching his microexpression. "These textbooks were inscribed with the power seals of every Asgardian king in our history."
"But don't worry. If there's anything you don't understand, I'll be your tutor."
"Shut your mouth, mutt," Lothar snapped.
Hela's face darkened.
Expressionless, Lothar stored the book in his wristband. Under Woz's command, the massive warships descended slowly. Recon teams were dispatched, and the two now-empty ships were quickly filled with the frozen Asgardian soldiers.
"Woz, did Lothar skip school as a kid?" Hela asked as she followed Lothar onto the flagship, a smug tone in her voice as if she were scoring a point in academia.
"Lady Hela, His Highness Lothar's education methods are far more advanced than this," Woz replied without missing a beat.
Hela: "..."
"Your Highness," The Other greeted from the command deck, pausing mid-sentence as he noticed Hela following close behind Lothar. He opened his mouth but said nothing.
That previous death-glare had left deep scars on his psyche.
"Prepare to depart." Lothar pulled up the control screen and opened the map Woz had uploaded earlier, selecting the nearest target location.
The grand fleet lifted off once more, atmospheric turbulence tearing through the dim sky as they soared into the unknown...
...
"...Kotian?"
"Princess Hela?"
Not long after the fleet's departure, the former Asgard outpost commander, Kiel Marza, awoke from unconsciousness in the subterranean isolation chamber. Dazed and disoriented, he pushed open the battered door and called out, but received no response.
"What in the Nine Realms happened here?"
Rubbing the stubble on his chin, Kiel hesitated before leaving the isolation room. The underground defenses had been heavily damaged by bombardment, yet curiously, he found no sign of fallen Asgardian soldiers.
"That's odd… What the—hm?"
Kiel froze mid-rub. He spotted an unfamiliar passage that he'd never seen before in the facility. Likely revealed due to structural collapse.
Tense and on high alert, Kiel ventured into the unknown corridor.
It began narrow, but widened significantly at the end.
Inside the large chamber, he was met with the sight of a faceless corpse. The Asgardian uniform it wore made Kiel instantly wary.
What is this…?
Despite the creeping dread, he found no immediate threat. Slowly, he approached the corpse. A partially eaten piece of roasted meat lay nearby, already rotting. The distinct wound at the corpse's neck made Kiel's face twist in alarm.
"Kotian?!"
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