Nearly ten thousand Asgardian soldiers still surrounded the battlefield. Despite how fierce the fighting looked, fewer than a thousand had actually been taken out. Loki was certain of it. Numbers alone would overwhelm any spell, no matter how dramatic the lightning looked from afar.
More importantly, he had already identified the real problem.
The storm wasn't natural. It was being sustained by that human spellcaster.
As long as the defenders were focused on the charging soldiers, Loki could slip through unnoticed. One clean strike from behind, the spell would collapse, and the Rainbow Bridge would be his. Once he seized the control chamber and activated the Bridge with the Eternal Spear, Jotunheim would be erased and everything would be over.
With that plan in mind, Loki ordered the soldiers to charge headlong into the storm. At the same time, he left an illusion behind and vanished, Eternal Spear in one hand and a dagger in the other, silently circling behind Rowan Mercer.
"Die, you insignificant mortal."
The blade lunged toward Rowan's side.
At the last instant, Loki felt resistance. The dagger froze midair, as if caught by an invisible grip.
Rowan smiled.
"You really walked straight into this."
His body surged in size, muscles swelling as his right hand continued to maintain the storm. With his left hand, he seized Loki by the ankle and yanked him upside down.
Loki barely had time to raise the Eternal Spear before his body was slammed into the Rainbow Bridge.
Once.
Twice.
Again and again.
The spear flew from Loki's grasp. Each impact cracked the air itself. By the time Rowan stopped, Loki was barely conscious, his body limp and broken.
Rowan let him drop.
As a telepath, he had sensed Loki's killing intent the moment it approached. Rowan had already been searching for a way to end this stalemate. If Loki had chosen to unleash Asgard's heavier weapons without caring about the Bridge, the situation would have turned ugly fast.
Instead, Loki had come to him.
Rowan had simply locked the dagger in place with magnetism and ended it in one decisive move.
Rowan raised the unconscious Loki high.
"That's enough," he shouted. "Stand down."
The thunderstorm faded.
Seeing their acting king captured, the Asgardian soldiers halted. Many of them hadn't wanted to raise weapons against Thor in the first place. Now they finally had an excuse to stop.
Thor stepped out from the control chamber.
"Hendall," he ordered one of the officers, "go to the palace. Bring my mother here at once."
Odin still slept. Loki was subdued. Thor remained officially exiled. That made Frigga the highest authority left in Asgard.
The officer saluted and sprinted toward the golden spires of the palace.
Before long, Frigga arrived in an elegant Asgardian skiff. The moment she disembarked, she waved her hand.
"All soldiers, withdraw. This matter will be decided when Odin awakens."
The battlefield emptied as she embraced Thor.
"My son… what has happened?"
Thor told her everything he knew.
Frigga looked at the unconscious Loki and sighed softly. "I feared something was wrong. Loki has always been… too stubborn."
Then she spoke again, her voice gentle but heavy.
"Thor, I ask that you do not hate him. Loki is not your father's biological son. He is Laufey's child, the son of the Frost Giant king."
Thor froze. "What?"
"Don't be ridiculous," Frigga snapped, tapping him sharply on the forehead. "Loki was abandoned at birth for being too small. Your father found him after defeating Laufey and took him in."
She met Thor's eyes.
"Odin hoped you would rule Asgard, and that Loki would one day rule Jotunheim. Peace through balance. No more war."
Thor stared for a moment, then nodded slowly. "That explains a lot. He never grows a beard."
Frigga sighed again.
"I'm relieved you don't resent him. But your father was right about one thing. You still need time among mortals. Perhaps Midgard can teach you the wisdom you lack."
Rowan, listening quietly nearby, couldn't help thinking that Thor truly was… special, in his own way.
After settling the immediate crisis, Frigga turned to Rowan and the others.
"Honored guests of Midgard, thank you for protecting my son and Asgard itself. Please come with us to the palace and rest."
...
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