"Maria, contact the U.S. military immediately. I'm flying at high speed to London. Clear the air space."
"S.H.I.E.L.D. has detected abnormal energy fluctuations in London and is preparing to investigate," Maria said. "Do you know the cause?"
"Thor is on Earth. Jane Foster is missing. He had someone call me. Also contact the British military and London police. Prevent any conflict, he's not in a patient mood with Jane gone."
"Copy that."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
James activated his Umbra Sentinel and surged forward at supersonic speed.
Midflight, James wondered. "Hey Cortana, what's the chance I could open a space portal where Thor is at?"
[With proper support and stabilizers of energy using the Umbra Sentinel, probability of accurate portal jumps at 90%.]
"Alright. Let's test it using the armor's energy generator. I need to gauge how much control I actually have." He glanced upward. "We're going into the clouds. I don't want satellites getting a read on us."
James climbed rapidly, cutting through layers of air until he found a dense stretch of cloud cover. He plunged in and hovered inside. The chest plates of the Umbra Sentinel parted, revealing the Space Stone embedded within.
He focused.
[Armor output at 60%. Spatial portal forming. Increase output.]
"Hnnn." James willed out more power.
[70% output… Entry point stable.]
James accelerated forward.
"What's our distance?"
[Two hundred kilometers with 70% power output.]
"Alright let's do another one then at 80%" James opened another portal and pass through to the other side.
"How far, this time?"
[Jump distance of four hundred kilometers. Each additional ten percent increases traversal by approximately two hundred kilometers.]
"I see, calculate distance from here to thor, output proper power percentage and open the portal"
[Calculating, space portal forming.]
The space portal opened again. This time he covered eight hundred kilometers in a single jump.
[Current system threshold detected. The armor can only safely regulate up to five times its base output. Anything beyond that exceeds structural endurance parameters.]
The material and technological limitations were a bottleneck. The Umbra Sentinel's power ceiling was dictated by its material resilience. If the Space Stone's energy was routed without restriction, the armor could melt from over heat from the power surge. Fortunately, the energy was being projected outward into space rather than cycling through the core systems.
"Five times the output," James repeated to himself. "Very well, power up to 500%, and monitor the armor's core temperature."
[Increasing output to 500%, System clear.]
The jump this time was a little off course but still got them closer to their destination. When he went through the portal, he reappeared over five thousand kilometers away — bringing him near the coastline of the United Kingdom.
"Whistle~ so that's U.K.," James muttered. "Too bad I'm not here as a tourist, So Cortana, which way is Thor."
[Thor's location locked on. However, interference detected in the surrounding area.]
James made his way toward London.
"The Aether is coming out," he mumbled out. "There's definitely a resonance between the Infinity Stones. When one manifests, the others will follow. I still don't understand the logic behind this."
Thor's location wasn't that far after those jumps.
Within minutes, James spotted him on the ground, his iconic red cape and hammer in hand. He began to decelerate and descend toward him.
His descent was unexpected and with the clear sky, his black armored flying suit made all the nearby police officers react instantly, drawing their weapons.
James stepped forward to the officers with his towering and intimidating suit that the officers gulped in nervousness. Lifting his hand, a badge came to view "I'm from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, we have already contacted your headquarters," he said calmly to the men and women in badge. "Confirm it and stand down."
The officer keyed his radio, tension was high in his voice. After a brief exchange, confirmation came through. The officers lowered their weapons.
The Umbra Sentinel Retracted from James and folded into a portable pod the size of a suitcase.
James turned to Thor. "What happened?"
"Thank you for coming, my friend," Thor said with gratitude. "I'm glad you came so swiftly. Jane has vanished, and Heimdall cannot find her."
"Yes," Daisy Louise stepped forward to explain. "The magnetic field here is unstable. So we came to investigate, but suddenly Jane disappeared, we don't know where she could have gone."
James already knew.
"Just stay calm," he said. "I'll check on the anomaly."
The Umbra Sentinel deployed around him once more.
'Cortana,' he mentally communicated, 'begin scanning the entire area.'
[Understood.]
The Umbra Sentinel's sensors activated. Data streamed across James's visor as the surrounding environment converted into a multi-layered projection. A magnetic field waveform chart formed in the corner of his display.
James observed carefully. "The magnetic field here is indeed unstable… and there are abnormal spatial fluctuations. Multiple micro-channels are forming. Though they're not the same as what I generate with the Space Stone."
He turned slightly toward Thor.
"Is something major happening in space?"
"Yes," Thor replied gravely. "The Convergence approaches. Once every five thousand years, the Nine Realms align. Realms start to overlap and boundaries weaken."
"That explains it." James narrowed his focus as the scan intensified. "Jane must've fallen into one of those channels—"
A distortion spike flared on his display.
"A spatial channel is opening over there."
Jane Foster materialized abruptly where he pointed at, collapsing on the ground unconscious. The spatial channel closed instantly, and the magnetic turbulence began to subside. The overlapping phenomena weakened by the second.
James had intended to enter one of the spatial channels himself, intending to possibly extract the Aether before it latched on to Jane. But he hadn't anticipated Jane being forced back out so fast.
A drizzle of rain began to fall.
Jane was stirring awake, feeling disoriented as she stood up slowly. Thor rushed beside her, intending to help her to her feet.
The moment they locked eyes and recognized Thor—Smack.
The sound echoed loudly through the rain.
Even inside his armor, James felt a phantom pain from that slap.
Thor accepted the smack without protest.
"I'm sorry," Jane said, breathing unevenly. "I just needed to know you were real."
"It matters not—" Smack.
The backhand slap landed on his other cheek.
"Where have you been?" she screamed at him. "Do you know how long I've been waiting?"
James looked away. Emotional reunions weren't his thing.
"Cortana," he said quietly, "do a scan on her."
His concern was whether the Aether was inside her.
The Scans attempted a full-spectrum analysis.
[Scanning… interference detected.]
The results were distorted. Jane's body radiated immense cosmic energy. A dense, chaotic, and reactive energy fluctuations. The readings showed a disrupted sensor wavelength.
James stepped forward to interrupt their reunion quarrel.
"Thor, this isn't the time for emotional reunions," he said directly to Thor. "Jane's body is saturated with cosmic energy. Comparable in intensity to the Space Stone."
Thor felt alarmed by the news. "That's impossible, How?"
"It's inside her," James continued. "My scanners are not powerful enough to do a proper scan of this cosmic energy, nor would any scanner on earth. Does Asgard have any way to scan this cosmic energy?"
Thor hesitated since he didn't know. "I cannot promise that we do. But Asgard's knowledge surpasses Midgard's. I invite you to come with us. My father has long wished to meet the wielder of the Space Stone."
James considered only briefly.
"I'm interested in the energy within her. It may be another Infinity Stone — and I've wanted to study Asgardian technology firsthand if it's allowed."
Understanding the Space Stone's usage that's possibly tucked away in the library throughout the years of Asgard's history would be invaluable.
"Then we must go," Thor declared.
He drew Jane into his arms and raised Mjolnir.
"Wait." James lifted a hand to stop thor. "I need to notify S.H.I.E.L.D. otherwise they'll escalate the situation."
He opened a secure line to Maria Hill.
"I'm leaving with Thor, our destination is Asgard. Jane Foster was exposed to unknown cosmic energy. I'll report in once the situation is assessed."
He closed the channel and nodded to Thor as he got closer.
Moments later, the rainbow light of the Bifrost slammed right at them.
The column of radiant energy enveloped them as space fractured into cascading lights pulling them upward.
James remained fully armored, analyzing everything throughout their journey.
He extended the sensor sweeps outward, attempting to map the Bifrost's energy composition.
The results were inconclusive.
[Energy pattern beyond current interpretive models. Dimensional transit mechanism does not align with the Space Stone manipulation.]
James put the results of his finding at the back of his mind and just enjoyed the ride.
Earth's level of technology and even augmented by the Infinity Stone's exposure was still behind Asgard's technological progress.
At the far end of Asgard stood what James could only describe as a Rainbow Bridge. The Bifrost that connects Asgard to all realms.
A towering figure in golden armor greeted them upon arrival.
James retracted the Umbra Sentinel and stepped forward to the man.
"Heimdall," he said, extending his arm. "I've heard many great things about you."
Instead of a handshake, Heimdall clasped James's forearm — the warrior's greeting of Asgard.
"I have seen all that you have done, your battles and victories against your enemies, I welcome you to Asgard, great warrior. I give you my thanks for helping Thor and being his friend in his time of need," Heimdall said appreciatively with a stoic face. "If you wish to visit Asgard, just call upon my name."
James smiled in appreciation. "Thank you, I will do so when needed or just wish to visit a friend." he said as he looked into the eye of Heimdall. "With my achievements being known, let's hope you don't have customs involving formal duels," he said dryly.
Thor approached them, Jane's hand in his.
"James my friend, let us go! My people would be glad to meet you, you are famous here!" Thor laughed. "Your battles and triumph are known by everyone, especially your victory against the destroyer who guards Asgard's vault, many wish to test themselves against you!"
Heimdall smiled faintly.
James exhaled slowly. "Of course they do."
Thor swung his hammer and flew with Jane in his arm. James redeployed the Umbra Sentinel and took to the air, following them toward the heart of Asgard.
They entered what passed for Asgard's medical chamber.
Jane was guided onto a raised platform by several Asgardian women clad in ceremonial robes. The space around her shimmered with orange light. Energy patterns refracted and resembled advanced holographic projections — though far more refined than anything on Earth.
Jane looked around in fascination.
"Is this a quantum generator?" she asked.
One of the elder women responded to her question, "It is a Soul Forge."
James observed how they worked.
They have different terminology and metaphysics yet the same underlying principles — possibly using energy manipulation at the molecular or perhaps sub-atomic level.
"Can it rearrange molecules?" Jane inquired.
"Yes."
Jane whispered excitedly to Thor, "It is a quantum generator."
Thor forced out a smile. His concern outweighed any of her stuff curiosity.
A deep, commanding voice echoed through the chamber.
"Do you disregard my words?"
James turned towards the voice.
The one-eyed Allfather stood before them. Odin Borson, Son of Bor, father of Thor and Hela, and adoptive father of Loki.
His missing eye was the opposite of Nick Fury's. For a fleeting second, James wondered if the universe is just making them share one set of eyes.
"She is ill," Thor said firmly.
Odin waved a hand dismissively. The Soul Forge dimmed.
"She is a mortal, and mortals easily get ill."
James frowned.
"With due respect," he spoke out, "you should assess the situation before reaching the conclusion that her sickness is normal. A king should lead with clarity, not assumption."
The chamber fell silent.
Odin's remaining eye fixed on him.
"Another mortal. Is he your companion?" Odin asked Thor.
Thor straightened proudly. "He is James Gibson — wielder of the Space Stone. My brother in battle. He defeated the Destroyer and saved my life."
Recognition flickered in Odin's gaze.
"I see. Young bearer of the Stone," Odin said, more gentler now. "You must understand — I am both a king and a father."
"I understand that," James replied. "But fatherhood also requires guidance, and we mortals…" His voice sharpened slightly. "We have evolved from our old lifestyle. Earth is not afraid. We may not rival ancient advanced civilizations yet, but we are not beneath them. As for the gods — once we can see them we usually prefer to call them as aliens."
Everyone looked at him for his bold statement.
Odin inclined his head to his words. "Very well. My words were poorly chosen. Tell me what afflicts her."
James stepped forward.
"There is immense energy within her, it's comparable in magnitude to the Space Stone. Sadly her mortal body cannot sustain it."
Odin approached Jane and placed his palm against her forearm.
A red glow pulsed beneath her skin.
"Come," Odin ordered. "All of you."
He turned and walked.
Thor supported Jane as they followed. James trailed behind, observing the towering palace halls etched with carvings and histories of Asgard's rise to its current glory.
"The Nine Realms are not eternal," Odin began. "They rise and fall, like dawn and dusk."
What he said may sound like a sudden wisdom drop, but its meaning was more of a warning that will soon come.
The Dark Elves, the Aether, and reverting all of the Nine realms and beyond back to darkness.
The Aether transformed matter into dark matter. The Dark Elves had intended to use it to reshape the universe back to darkness — or at least the known regions of it.
Odin's father had defeated them, or so history claimed.
Yet the Aether had returned.
"Is there a record of their complete destruction?" Thor asked.
Odin's expression hardened. "No."
James spoke before the silence grew heavier.
"It seems the Aether chose Jane as a host. Like a parasite it sucks at her life force for power. But since she cannot use it, it means that its original wielder may still exist. And if so, they'll know it has resurfaced."
Odin looked at him more carefully now.
James continued, thinking aloud.
"The Aether behaves similarly to the Space Stone. Which suggests it's also an Infinity Stone. Its current state is transitional, possibly a protection phase. So Jane isn't its true bearer."
Thor turned to him. "Do you have a solution?"
"I don't," James answered honestly. "But I need to examine her directly."
He stepped closer to Jane.
"Jane Foster," he said softly, extending his hand, "may I?"
She nodded and extended her hand to him.
James took it and closed his eyes.
'Cortana,' he murmured, 'Do a full direct analysis of the energy wave.'
The scan began.