Valkyrie gave no clear response.
For everything in her past, she had already let go. Even now, she knew full well that Thor was the son of the King of Asgard.
Because of her old loyalty to Asgard, she chose to save Thor.
But now, she was nothing more than a scavenger on Sakaar.
She had no other identity.
And she did not want any other identity.
After learning she was a Valkyrie, Thor's face lit up with excitement.
With a Valkyrie's help, killing the Grandmaster would not be so difficult anymore.
But Valkyrie immediately saw through his thoughts and said coldly.
"You should give up. The Grandmaster is not that simple. If you rush in now, the only outcome is death."
Thor's expression darkened. He did not believe it.
"With your help, I don't believe we will fail."
Valkyrie shook her head, a faint trace of disdain on her face.
"Maybe I was once a Valkyrie, but now I am just Valkyrie. Why should I help you?"
Back then, Odin had sent the Valkyries to capture Hela.
The result was the near-total annihilation of the entire Valkyrie corps. Only she survived by sheer luck.
After that, she gave up everything and never wanted to be involved with Asgard again.
So now, when Thor asked her to join them, her resistance was obvious.
Their exchange was quick, because the Grandmaster was still watching their fight from above.
Bruce Banner also pretended to join the battle, working with Valkyrie as if they were truly fighting.
But such a performance would not last long. The Grandmaster would see through it soon.
Thor spoke again.
"I know what happened to the Valkyries. I know why you are like this. Hela has returned, and my father, the King of Asgard, has fallen into Odin's Sleep."
"Asgard needs your help. We need you to stand with us and fight Hela. To protect Asgard."
"Hela…"
The moment those words were spoken, countless memories flooded Valkyrie's mind.
She once fought alongside countless sisters.
They fought with pride and passion, believing nothing could stop the Valkyries.
They once thought they were Asgard's strongest warriors.
But everything changed in the battle against Hela. That fight shattered their confidence completely, revealing how powerless they truly were.
After that battle, she feared Hela deeply. She drowned herself in alcohol just to forget.
But she never could.
The images of her sisters falling under Hela's blade never left her mind.
Now, Thor's words brought everything back, reigniting her anger.
Only then did she realize she had never truly forgotten.
She could never forgive the one who destroyed her sisters.
After a long silence, she finally said.
"Fine, I'll help you."
"But I still say this, killing the Grandmaster is unrealistic. He is far stronger than you imagine."
"He is an ancient being, one of the oldest in the universe. Countless people have tried to kill him, and none have succeeded. Our best option is still to escape."
This time, Thor did not insist.
Even though he did not want to admit it, Valkyrie's strength was real. If even she said it was impossible, then forcing it would be foolish.
"Alright. On the count of three, we leave immediately."
"Your ship is behind you. Thor's axe is near the ship," Valkyrie said.
The three of them immediately broke off at the same time.
They turned and ran.
The Grandmaster froze for a moment, not understanding why Scrapper 142 would suddenly cooperate with the two fighters and escape with them.
But his anger quickly took over.
"Catch them!"
The Grandmaster stood up and roared.
He did not move personally. These gladiators were not worth his hand.
In his mind, his fighters would handle everything.
But the trio's coordination far exceeded his expectations. Soon, they reached the ship storage area.
"Bruce, take the ship. We'll hold them off," Thor said, grabbing his battle axe and turning to face the pursuing enemies.
The fighters sent by the Grandmaster were strong. After all, they were selected gladiators.
But against Thor, especially Thor wielding the Stormbreaker, they were nothing.
And now, they also had Valkyrie on their side.
With the three of them working together, no one could get close to the ship.
Soon, the ship took off.
Thor and Bruce Banner jumped aboard.
Behind them, the Grandmaster's fleet was already in pursuit.
Bruce Banner looked excited.
They had escaped like this several times before, but this time felt different. With Valkyrie gone, he thought this escape would finally succeed.
"Crush them!" Thor shouted, equally energized.
They had suffered enough in the arena. As former royalty of Asgard, Thor could no longer tolerate this humiliation.
Boom.
The ship fired back.
Although it was a vessel developed on Earth, it was an advanced craft built with Lock technology.
Its performance was far beyond anything they had seen in space so far.
Not only was it fast, its weapons were powerful as well.
One shot destroyed a pursuing ship.
These were not the Grandmaster's expensive flagship vessels, but standard fleet ships.
Under Bruce Banner's precise control, the ship weaved through the battlefield.
In the end, they successfully escaped Sakaar.
In space, the pursuit was gone.
"Where to next?" Valkyrie asked.
Bruce Banner checked the star map.
"Vormir."
Vormir, the location of the Soul Stone.
But none of them knew its exact position on the planet.
"Our allies will meet us there," Thor said, taking over the explanation.
"Right now, we are facing not only Hela, but also a far more dangerous enemy, Thanos."
"Thanos?" Valkyrie's expression changed instantly.
She knew exactly what that name meant. A universal tyrant, someone even the Grandmaster would avoid provoking.
"How did you end up provoking Thanos?"
Thor's expression darkened.
"We didn't choose him. He is already threatening the survival of the universe."
"His goal is to collect all the Infinity Stones and snap his fingers."
"With that snap, half of all life in the universe will be wiped out. Randomly. No choice."
Valkyrie's expression finally turned serious.
Erasing half of all life in the universe with a single gesture.
What kind of madness was that?
"And what do we do on Vormir?" she asked.
"The Soul Stone is there. We must stop Thanos from taking it," Thor replied.
Valkyrie nodded.
"Then let's move."
She sat down quietly, no longer speaking.
Once again, she would become a Valkyrie. And fight against evil.
Meanwhile, on another ship.
Thanos walked into the room where Gamora was being held.
"Gamora."
His voice was soft.
But Gamora's eyes were filled with anger.
"What are you planning to do?"
"You already know," Thanos replied calmly. "I am going to take the Soul Stone."
Gamora laughed bitterly.
"You plan to sacrifice me."
"To obtain the Soul Stone, you must sacrifice the one you love."
"Do you even have someone you love?"
The requirement of the Soul Stone was absolute.
Even Thanos could not cheat it by simply capturing someone.
It required love. Real love.
The kind of love where one would willingly die for the other.
So how could someone willingly sacrifice what they loved?
That was why Gamora believed he could never succeed.
Thanos simply shook his head.
"Come with me. It is time to go."
"You know your fate. And I can promise you this. If they do not interfere with me, I will not kill them."
Gamora let out a small sigh of relief.
At least the others might survive.
But Thanos continued.
"Nebula is missing."
Gamora's heart tightened.
"She likely went to find the Guardians of the Galaxy. I hope they do nothing foolish, or I cannot guarantee their lives."
Gamora felt a storm of emotions.
She had thought Nebula hated her.
But now it seemed that was never true.
It was all misunderstandings.
But it was too late to fix anything.
Soon, the ships departed.
At the same time, Tony Stark and the others also set course for Vormir.
All three parties converged toward the same destination.
Finally, Thanos' ship landed on the barren world of Vormir.
Ebony Maw stood beside him, holding Gamora to prevent her escape.
The planet was desolate.
Thanos said calmly.
"Let's go. It is time to take the Soul Stone."
Gamora's face was filled with despair.
They moved forward.
After a long journey, a figure appeared before them.
Thanos did not react.
He already knew what would happen next.
That man was no longer important.
But shortly after they left, another ship landed nearby.
Tony Stark and the others stepped out and saw the figure.
"Red Skull!"
Tony Stark's eyes widened in shock.
He had seen this face in old records. He thought this man was long dead.
Red Skull looked at Tony Stark, thinking for a moment.
Then he recognized him.
"You are Howard Stark's son."
He had once interacted with Howard Stark. In that era, Howard Stark was one of the greatest scientists in the world.
Tony Stark looked very similar to him.
"Are you here for the Soul Stone as well?" Red Skull said with a faint smile.
"To obtain it, you must sacrifice your loved one. If you are prepared, go ahead."
Tony Stark frowned.
"Has someone already gone for it?"
"Of course," Red Skull replied. "Not long ago, three people went toward the Soul Stone."
"If nothing goes wrong, they should already be there."
Everyone's expression turned grim.
They were already late.
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