"I've already figured out the method to leave. Now all I'm missing is one crucial condition." But Tohka didn't waste words—she went straight to telling Miku Izayoi what she'd discovered. After all, she'd already decided to leave Earth, and of course she had to let Miku know.
"You mean leaving this world… could it be we're going back to my world?" When Miku heard that, her eyes lit up. After being away for so long, she was starting to miss her own world a bit. So, she was genuinely excited by Tohka's words.
"That's right, but I still need something before we can do it. Hurry up and pack—we're leaving Earth this afternoon." Tohka was decisive as always. As for what came after—Captain America's storyline—she didn't plan to take part. That wasn't like Tony's straightforward battles—it was an intricate web of espionage, with blurred lines between friend and foe, and Tohka felt a headache just thinking about it. There was no way she was getting involved.
"Okay… Wait, what did you say? Leaving Earth—are you sure?" Miku had nodded automatically, but then she processed what Tohka had said and stared at her in shock. Had she heard right? They were going to leave Earth? Were they about to go drifting through space?
And when she thought of the vast starry void, Miku couldn't help shivering. Sure, it sounded beautiful and romantic, but if you really went out there, you'd probably go insane. Besides, there was no air in space—which meant one slip-up and they'd be dead. Well, she didn't realize that spirits could survive in space—it was just that they couldn't live as comfortably as the Sixth Spirit.
"Yeah, that's right. But first, let's go to Asgard. After all, their Bifrost Bridge is incredibly convenient." And she wasn't just making this up—Asgard held a pretty significant position in the universe. That Bifrost Bridge of theirs let them deploy armies anywhere in an instant. Nobody wanted to be fighting a war in one place and suddenly have an army drop into their homeland.
"Wait—you mean the Asgard from Norse mythology? So, we're going to the realm of the gods—the legendary Asgard, with Odin the All-Father?" The moment Miku heard they were going to Asgard, her anxiety about outer space vanished, replaced by pure curiosity. After all, everyone was intrigued by mythological places.
"Yup, that's the one." Tohka nodded. Then she looked a little unsure: "Though the Bifrost was destroyed during the civil war… no idea if it's been fixed yet. Whatever—we'll just go and find out."
"Alright, I'll start packing." Miku's curiosity about Asgard completely overwhelmed her fear of space, and before Tohka could say anything else, she was already rummaging through her things.
"Uh… you're starting that fast?" Watching Miku pack with such enthusiasm, Tohka stood there blankly for a moment, then began thinking about what she herself should bring. First of all—money. There was no need to bring any. Sure, dollars were great on Earth, but in space, they were worthless. She'd just have to ask Odin for some travel funds. As for clothes—a few changes were enough. As for food… Thinking about it gave her a headache. She wasn't Bear Grylls—she couldn't just eat anything. And in all the movies she'd watched, alien races always had bizarre foods. Bringing supplies wasn't realistic, so she decided she'd rather go hungry than eat any of that weird stuff. After all, spirits wouldn't starve to death—just look at the Sixth Spirit, who'd survived in space all that time.
"Whatever—I'll call Tony and let him know." Thinking it over, she figured she'd better contact Tony first. He'd helped her plenty, and given her several suits of armor—so she owed him that much. Of course, if he tried to insist on tagging along, she'd definitely swat him away.
"Jarvis, help me get in touch with Tony." With that decided, she opened her laptop and spoke to Jarvis. Tony wasn't the type to put surveillance everywhere—even superheroes had their boundaries, especially with agents like Hawkeye and Black Widow living there. The first thing those two had done was sweep their rooms for any hidden devices.
"Mm? What's up, Tohka? Why the sudden call?" No sooner had she spoken than Tony's big face appeared on the screen. Judging by his appearance, he still hadn't taken off his armor and seemed to be on the move.
"I'm planning to leave Earth for a while." Tohka didn't bother with preamble—she got straight to the point.
"Eh, just going on another trip? Didn't you just spend ages traveling around that country? Stuff like this… wait—did you say leave Earth?" At first, Tony sounded casual, but then he suddenly yelled. My God—she was going to leave Earth? Up till now, no human had ever gone beyond the planet's limits. Could she not say it so offhand, like she was just going on vacation?
"Yeah—what's the big deal?" Tohka tilted her head in puzzlement, not understanding why he was reacting so dramatically.
"Take me with you—uh, no, forget it." Tony's first instinct was to ask to go along. But then he looked down at Pepper in his arms and immediately changed his mind. The Extremis virus was like a ticking time bomb. He knew that if he didn't handle it personally, nobody else could guarantee her safety. God only knew how long Tohka's trip would take—and he had no desire to return and find a tombstone waiting.
"Too bad—I really would have liked to see it with you. Anyway, when are you leaving?" Since he couldn't go, Tony sighed, but he didn't regret it too much. After all, he still hadn't fully understood all that Chitauri tech. For the time being, staying on Earth to study it was the smartest choice.
"This afternoon. We're in a hurry."
"Wow—that soon? Alright, if you're on a tight schedule, I won't try to stop you. Just be safe—and come back soon." Tony let out a helpless sigh. This brat was clearly just looking for an excuse not to take him. Well, actually—he'd gotten it a little wrong. Tohka really was in a hurry. If she remembered right, the Guardians of the Galaxy storyline was about to unfold. She couldn't recall the exact timing, but if she missed it, she'd have to barge straight into the Nova Corps' turf. Whether she could beat them was one thing—but it would definitely complicate matters. If she ended up dragging Earth and Asgard into interstellar disputes, that would be a disaster.
"OK—I'm hanging up now. And don't have anyone come see me off. I'd rather keep this low-key—otherwise, who knows what trouble will follow." With that, Tohka ended the call. But as soon as she looked over, her eyelid started twitching—because while she'd been talking to Tony, Miku had somehow dug out a backpack as big as hers, and actually stuffed it full.
"Uh… we don't need to bring that much." Tohka realized Miku had misunderstood something critical. They weren't going to some deserted wasteland to camp out—they were visiting a civilization far more advanced than Earth. "You realize where we're going, right? We're heading to a planet way ahead of Earth in every respect. If you show up carrying all that, people are going to laugh at you."
"Ah… okay." Miku looked a little embarrassed, but she obediently pulled out a few changes of underwear and other essentials to wear, leaving the rest behind. Tohka packed up a few simple things herself, then the two of them went up to the roof of Avengers Tower—Tony's helipad. There, Tohka produced a token.
"What's that? You never told me about it before." Miku peered curiously at the token in her hand. She'd seen it before, but since Tohka never explained, she hadn't asked. The strange power emanating from it only piqued her curiosity further.
"This is a token Odin gave me—it can contact Asgard when needed." Tohka glanced down at the engraved runes as she spoke. She'd never used it before, so she wasn't sure what would happen. Still, she followed Thor's example: she poured her power into it, held it high above her head, and shouted, "Heimdall!"
Boom. As Tohka expected, the moment her words fell, a pillar of rainbow light engulfed her and Miku. In the next instant, they vanished. Then they were traveling at faster-than-light speed—everything around them blurred past. But they could still see the vast starry expanse, because compared to the universe, even light was trivial.
"Welcome to Asgard, Miss Tohka—and Miss Miku Izayoi. I presume you are also a Guardian, like her?" Heimdall greeted them politely. His golden eyes then shifted to Miku, who was nervously peeking out from behind Tohka. You couldn't blame her—at night, the Bifrost offered a clear view of endless stars, and the air itself seemed saturated with tangible magic power—something she'd never seen before.
"..."
Unlike Miku, Tohka's attention was focused elsewhere. The moment she saw Heimdall, the Space Stone inside her began to stir. If she guessed right, this man might be a holder of another Infinity Stone. At that moment, she looked into Heimdall's eyes—eyes that could see nearly everything. Perhaps this was the last of the unknown stones in the cinematic universe: the Soul Stone.
(Author's headcanon—don't mind me, even if I get smacked down by canon later.)
"..."
Like Tohka, Heimdall also looked steadily at her. He too had sensed the power within her, but he said nothing. Instead, he gestured and said, "Please proceed to the palace at the end of the Bifrost. King Odin is waiting for you there. If you have anything to discuss, speak with him."
"Mm, got it. Let's go." Tohka looked at Heimdall—and just as he hadn't mentioned her Space Stone, she didn't call attention to what she'd seen either. They simply exchanged a wordless glance. But she was sure that Odin already knew—others might be clueless, but not him.
"Hello, Miss Tohka." As soon as she entered the palace, she saw Odin sitting high on his throne, with Thor standing beside him. Loki, presumably, was already back in prison. Nearby stood the Queen of Asgard.
"So, this is another fragment of the World Tree. I hadn't expected it to descend directly to Earth." Odin greeted her and then fixed his single eye on Miku behind her. Clearly, he'd sensed her arrival the moment she appeared—but the old man hadn't shown any reaction until now.
"Hey, Odin—you old geezer, put that look away. And quit talking in riddles—especially about Miku." Tohka wasn't intimidated by Odin's authority in Asgard. Besides, she still held a grudge over how he'd once tried to marry her off to Thor. So, she didn't bother with politeness.
"Ahem, ahem…" Thor let out an awkward cough. Even though he'd reconciled with Odin, he couldn't help smirking at his father's expression after Tohka's blunt words. But out of respect, he held back and just cleared his throat.