Thor's other motive for coming to Earth was to meet the woman who'd lifted Mjolnir, Lady Thor, in person.
It gnawed at him.
Thor wasn't petty, nor did he cling to obsessive purity, but his trusty companion of a thousand years had once again chosen another's grasp, becoming their weapon. It stung… somewhat.
What? Lady Thor had wielded Mjolnir after Adam and Reynolds? Well, that softened the blow. Once a thing happened once, the second or third time became easier to stomach, a rapid adaptation even Asgardians shared.
Sensing something, Thor spun around, catching sight of Lady Thor striding in.
He watched his once-beloved Mjolnir in her hand, twirled with casual ease, wielded so effortlessly.
"You're the one." Thor said, "the fourth Thor Adam mentioned? To walk my path proves you're worthy of Mjolnir's approval."
Scrutinizing Foster, Thor didn't know her, nor felt any instant camaraderie. He only wanted to knock her down and reclaim his hammer.
Instinctively, he twitched his fingers, attempting to summon Mjolnir back, to prove his worth, he believed he was worthy now.
Foster spoke up. "A reminder: I lifted Mjolnir first, then became Thor, not the other way around. Also, your axe seems to have opinions about you."
"Oh?" Thor glanced down, noticing Stormbreaker, unnoticed, had rotated in his grip, its blade now aimed at his head.
This side faces the enemy, Thor understood Stormbreaker's intent.
"This is merely a senior guiding a successor." Thor said smoothly, "but I need to confirm: you don't carry my bloodline, do you? The Xenomorph embryo in your chest isn't tied to me? You truly lifted the hammer on your own?"
Unobtrusively, Thor pressed a finger to Stormbreaker's blade, gently nudging it aside.
"Yep, I picked it up with a light tug." Foster said. "Mjolnir likes me. In my hand, its weight is perfect."
Thor, thoroughly vexed, fell silent. Gripping his axe, he smashed through the wall and charged into the battlefield beyond.
"You rattled him good." Adam said, chuckling.
Foster grinned, a sly edge to her smile. "I didn't say much, just stated facts. But seeing the Thunder God fuming? Worth it."
"For him, facts are brutal." Adam replied. "Go. This battlefield is your stage. You're the symbiotes' natural predator. See Thor out there, cutting loose? One swing of his axe clears countless symbiotes."
Adam assessed Thor's current power, noting the axe's full Uru construction, lacking a potent wooden handle.
In other universes, elite Thunder God weapons, new Mjolnirs, double-edged warhammers, or battle-axes, boasted handles crafted from Yggdrasil's branches.
From the shattered wall, Adam gazed through the breach, surveying the war outside.
Zooming out, the Weyland Tower's surface teemed with Xenomorphs, these ruthless warriors locked in savage combat with the gooey, plummeting symbiotes. Every moment saw Xenomorphs fall, but far more symbiotes were slaughtered on the spot.
Xenomorph losses were minimal. Those guarding the Weyland Tower were the elite, birthed from hosts no weaker than Atlanteans, with Frost Giant hosts among the finest.
The Xenomorphs' corrosive blood served as a devastating area-of-effect weapon against symbiotes.
Moreover, giants and Asgardians bolstered the Weyland Tower's defense. These once-rival races now rallied around Adam, their roars echoing as they fought ferociously, expanding their territory outward.
Centered on the Weyland Tower, every inch of ground pulsed with clashing figures. The fallen were trampled into pulp by both sides.
New symbiotes rained from space, while endless Xenomorphs surged from the oceans, moving at breakneck speed.
Led by Reynolds, a cadre of powerhouses joined the fray, showcasing unparalleled killing efficiency.
The two Thors stole the spotlight.
Soaring into the sky, one wielding Stormbreaker, the other Mjolnir, their paths crackled with lightning. Summoning boundless thunder, they scoured the heavens, turning every stray particle into a lethal anti-symbiote weapon.
Symbiotes wailed and perished, yet more descended upon Earth.
In this oceanic clash, two vast torrents collided and intertwined. None could predict where this struggle would end, victory hinged on whose forces dwindled first, collapsing under the strain.
For now, the Weyland Tower and its environs stood firm. Elite warriors executed a rapid, large-scale purge, forging an ironclad defense that repelled all symbiotes.
"Brilliant." A resident remarked. "Moving here was the best decision ever."
Adam's zealots and quick-witted opportunists had relocated near the Weyland Tower long ago. Once desolate, the area had grown modestly vibrant with rising populations, boasting basic amenities, a small but functional hub.
When the crisis erupted, residents rejoiced in their foresight. Peering cautiously through reinforced glass, they watched the swift-moving Xenomorphs, an unprecedented sense of security washing over them.
They'd long deciphered the pattern: avoid provoking or touching Xenomorphs, and they'd treat you like air, ignoring you entirely.
In this cataclysmic war, such disregard was the greatest shield.
Seal the doors and windows, stockpile food and water, and stay put. Even cloistered at home, anxiety lingered, but safety was maximized. All that remained was awaiting the war's end.
Moreover, everyone knew Adam commanded formidable Xenomorph heroes, beings capable of leaving Earth to wrestle cosmic titans. Against the symbiote swarm, they could execute swift purges.
"The internet's spotty…" One warned. "If you can't make Molotovs or lack weapons, stay home. Don't go out."
"My neighbor got possessed by those black things." Another said. "Forced to attack the Weyland Tower. Probably dead now, host and parasite both."
"Damn, what did I just see?" A third cried. "My cousin near the Weyland Tower sent a video, eating a sandwich, gaming in his room! I'm so jealous!"
"That's nothing." Another boasted. "I'm holed up here, filming everything. With some editing, it'll go viral, prime war footage. I've got a title: The Adam Defense. These Xenomorphs and their heroes move with such precision. And those giants and ancients from the rainbow bridge, slaughtering those freaks, they're all guarding Adam, aren't they?"
Low tides reveal the naked swimmers; global crises reveal the safest havens.
Most regions drowned in misery, people hiding in terror, dreading symbiote possession and forced combat.
Once bonded, their fate was to be shredded by Xenomorphs.
"Can I still flee to the Weyland Tower?" Someone asked.
"Idiot." Came the reply. "The streets are crawling with those things, symbiotes, they're called online. Hide in your closet; you might survive until the Xenomorphs clear them out. Go outside, and you're dead, part of a symbiote, then mulched by Xenomorphs."
"What if Xenomorphs sent eggs to us normals, let us host them?" Another mused. "Better to become a Xenomorph, gain power, and kill symbiotes than be taken by those disgusting things."
"Genius." A voice mocked. "Think Xenomorphs are delivery boys? Everyone near the Weyland Tower dreams of hosting a Xenomorph. How many succeed? Even if they need troops, they don't need you."
From afar, symbiotes slithered across building facades, joined by possessed unfortunates crawling alongside.
Countless regretted not selling everything to move near the Weyland Tower, to be Adam's neighbor.
Even a makeshift shelter would've sufficed.
Soon, the area would surely boom, skyscrapers rising in droves.
But now, they had no claim to that future. They could only pray the Xenomorphs fought harder and their luck held, hoping to survive until the catastrophe ended.
The world descended into chaos. Without Xenomorphs relentlessly slaughtering symbiotes, some even tearing themselves apart, their corrosive blood splashing to kill swathes of symbiotes, the planet's fate would be unthinkable.
In outer space, Loki monitored the global battle through his symbiotes.
The war had only begun; most symbiotes were yet to be deployed.
Yet even this was agonizing for him.
Not due to dissatisfaction with the war's progress, but because his mind couldn't handle the deluge of information.
"It's torture." Loki groaned, his face pale. "Every moment, countless symbiotes bombard me with signals, trying to communicate. My brain can't manage millions simultaneously."
The sheer volume of data overwhelmed him, his head throbbing as if it might burst.
This filled Loki with dread.
Knull, the God of Symbiotes, could control all symbiotes with precise commands, unsurprising for a cosmic deity.
But Adam? What explained him?
Loki had tried emulating Adam, using symbiotes as his eyes to monitor and control everything, only to find it impossible.
"A thousand-year-old god like me can't do it." Loki muttered, incredulous. "How can he?"
He'd assumed Adam's ability was a natural mental link, not deeply considered. But attempting it revealed the staggering difficulty.
Loki realized Adam's innate talent might far exceed his imagination.
"Is this your true power?" He wondered. "A unique mind? Yet you've produced no groundbreaking research. Perhaps it's purely in the mental or spiritual realm, an ability beyond mortal comprehension."
Loki frowned, but his attention shifted to another.
"Thor…" His expression grew complex. "He's grown so strong. Father's taught him too much."
Thor was now far beyond Loki's ability to counter. A casual swing of Stormbreaker left symbiote corpses strewn across the battlefield.
Odin had imparted his finest teachings to Thor. Loki sensed that soon, even the Odinforce would be his.
"Then, you'll surpass Father as the mightiest Allfather." Loki murmured, "perhaps a true cosmic deity."
The complexity in his eyes flickered, then iced over. His path had diverged from Thor's, irreconcilable.
Suddenly, Loki caught an anomalous signal from a symbiote cluster, his gaze snapping to it.
Not just him, every powerhouse on Earth felt it, looking up in shock.
A mechanical giant, hundreds of meters tall, materialized on the surface, its body studded with massive glowing bulbs.
Though bizarre in design, its energy was earth-shaking. A casual wave of its hand, like dusting a window, erased swathes of symbiotes, as if they'd vanished from existence.
In truth, they were disintegrated into microscopic particles.
Its appearance seemed to sink the land a fraction, halting the oceans for a heartbeat.
"A Celestial…" Adam noted, observing through a Xenomorph's eyes with keen interest. "So, this universe's S.H.I.E.L.D. salvaged a scrapped Celestial and restored it?"
Celestials in the multiverse came in two forms: mechanical lifeforms and rare armored humanoids of flesh.
Most universes featured and discarded mechanical Celestials; only ancient ones briefly showcased armored flesh variants.
"Intriguing." Adam mused, stroking his chin. "But deploying it now risks symbiote possession. Knull's surely watching."
In Universe 616, Knull assaulted Earth with three Celestials. In this diminished state, Knull would leap at the chance to parasitize powerful hosts, bolstering his strength.
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