Chapter 118: A Brother’s Lie
The green light faded from the skylight, but the Sanctum's warning remained in Ethan's senses.
Someone had used Asgardian magic somewhere on Earth, and the house had registered the intrusion.
Ethan closed his eyes, tracking the faint, cold signature as it stretched west toward New Mexico. Deep inside his inventory, the Hōgyoku had already gone still. He would deal with that later.
"That was Loki," Ethan said. The timing clicked into place. "He's with Thor."
Natasha rose from her meditation cushion and grabbed the pistol resting on the training bench. Gwen stayed by the couch.
"I'm checking it," Ethan said.
Natasha checked the slide on her weapon. "I'm coming. Thor is at a S.H.I.E.L.D. site, and I'm still their liaison."
Gwen stayed behind. She had work with Pepper in the morning, and there was no reason for her to follow Ethan into an Asgardian family matter. Ethan opened the portal into the hallway outside Jane's temporary laboratory and stepped through with Natasha beside him.
In the main room, Jane, Erik, and Darcy were sorting through returned S.H.I.E.L.D. equipment. Jane looked up as the portal snapped shut.
"Where's Thor?" Ethan asked.
Jane pointed toward the closed door of the back room. "In there. He wanted to go back to the crater earlier. I talked him out of it. He's been quiet since."
Ethan pushed open the door.
Thor sat in a folding chair, his face buried in his hands. The faint chill of illusion magic still lingered in the corners of the room.
Ethan stopped in the doorway. Natasha stayed a step behind him, checking the empty corners.
"What happened?" Ethan asked.
Thor lifted his head. His blue eyes were red and hollow.
"Loki came to me," Thor said, his voice cracking. "My father is dead."
Ethan looked at him for a moment. So Loki had already played his little brother prank.
"What did he tell you?" Ethan asked.
Thor lowered his head again. "He said my banishment and the threat of war with Jotunheim were too much for Father. The Odinsleep failed. My mother refuses to see me. Loki has taken the throne, and my exile must remain permanent."
"Your father isn't dead," Ethan said. "Loki lied."
Thor looked up sharply. "How do you know?"
"Because Odin placed the restriction on Mjolnir," Ethan replied. "If he were dead, that restriction should be gone."
Thor stood from the chair, anger returning to his face. "A spell may remain after the death of the one who cast it."
"Maybe," Ethan said. "Then try the hammer again."
He raised his hand and opened a portal beside the crater. Mjolnir could be seen through the opening, sitting exactly where Thor had left it.
Thor stared through the portal for a few seconds before stepping into the desert. Ethan and Natasha followed him.
Thor walked straight to Mjolnir and wrapped both hands around the handle. He pulled hard enough for his arms to shake, but the hammer did not move. He changed his footing and tried again, digging his boots into the mud.
Nothing happened.
Thor finally released the handle and stared down at it.
"The restriction is still there," Ethan said. "Your father is alive."
Thor turned toward him. "Why would Loki lie to me about this?"
"He has the throne," Ethan answered. "You returning to Asgard would be a problem for him."
Thor's hands tightened into fists. "Take me there."
"I can't. I've never been to Asgard, and I don't have a route or coordinates. Opening a portal blindly between realms could drop us anywhere in space."
Thor looked back at Mjolnir. The hammer had given him a reason to doubt Loki, but it had not given him all the answers.
"You don't have to trust me," Ethan said. "Someone from Asgard will come looking for you. When they arrive, ask them about Odin."
Thor remained silent.
"And Loki lying does not erase what happened in Jotunheim," Ethan added. "Odin being alive does not make you worthy. The hammer is still rejecting you for a reason."
Thor looked down at Mjolnir again. He did not accept Ethan's claim completely, but he no longer believed Loki without question.
Back at the New York Sanctum, Natasha went straight to her room to rest her aching hands.
Ethan entered his private study, closed the heavy oak door, and opened the System interface.
[User Status]
Name: Ethan Williams
Age: 30 Affiliation: Kamar-Taj / Master of the New York Sanctum
Completed Template: Albus Dumbledore — 100%
Current Template: Benjamin Kirby Tennyson — 17%
Special Authorities:
Master of Death
Spectral Command
New York Sanctum Authority
Major Abilities:
Advanced Wizarding Magic
Kamar-Taj Sorcery
Mirror Dimension Access
Spatial Manipulation
Dimensional Containment
Plumber Basic Training
Alien-Technology Intuition
Major Inventory:
Deathly Hallows
Multiversal Tracker
Hōgyoku
Nth Metal Fragment
Hoi-Poi Capsule Technology Blueprint
Anti-Totem Ward Blueprint
System Points: 80,010
Active Quest: Hammer Falls
Companion Path: Gwen Maxine — Intimate Partner
Companion Path: Mystic Widow — Stage I Complete
Stage II Requirement: Emotional Anchor
Ethan checked the gacha tab. A Random Template Ticket cost 100,000 SP. The Omnitrix cost 500,000 SP. He couldn't afford either.
Ben's synchronization remained at seventeen percent. The active Hammer Falls quest offered up to another three percent—enough to bring the template to a clean twenty once he completed the major objectives. He had no reason to empty his reserves chasing another power set yet.
He opened the equipment shop. Whatever happened next, Natasha and Gwen needed better gear.
He bought a Plumber Multispectrum Analyzer for 7,500 SP to properly study Mjolnir, Uru, and whatever else Asgard sent to Earth.
Next, he selected a pair of Dimensional Training Bracers for 4,000 SP. They would physically limit how much ambient energy Natasha could pull at once, stopping her from burning her hands while she practiced.
He followed that with a Plumber Multi-Mode Sidearm for 9,000 SP, locked behind a biometric safeguard and equipped with stun, pulse, cutting, and anti-machine settings.
Finally, he spent 6,500 SP on an Adaptive Acoustic Dampening Mesh. Worn under Gwen's suit, it would reduce the effect of Mason's sonic weapons and false spider-frequency pulses. It would not help against a true Inheritor.
[ Purchases Complete ]
Plumber Multispectrum Analyzer acquired.
Dimensional Training Bracers acquired.
Plumber Multi-Mode Sidearm acquired.
Adaptive Acoustic Dampening Mesh acquired.
System Points Spent: 27,000
System Points Remaining: 53,010
Four sleek, reinforced cases materialized inside System storage.
Ethan dismissed the interface. He would distribute the new gear to Natasha and Gwen in the morning.
For tonight, Thor had stopped believing Loki without question. That was enough.
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