"What are you doing here?! Leave—now! This place is dangerous!"
Thor shouted instinctively.
It was pure reflex—the part of him that still wanted to protect Jane.
Seeing that Thor could still recognize her, a flicker of hope ignited in Jane Foster's chest.
She didn't hesitate.
Jane ran straight at him, planted herself in front of Thor, and threw her arms wide, blocking his path.
"Thor! Look at me!"
"Didn't you promise me?" she cried. "You said you'd never fall for that woman's spell again! You said your heart was as solid as stone!"
"Look at what you're doing now! You're attacking your friends! You're tearing this city apart! Where is the brave, righteous God of Thunder I knew?!"
"Wake up, Thor! Don't let that evil woman control you!"
Thor stared at her. For a brief moment, struggle flickered across his face—
Then his expression flattened.
"Silence, mortal," he said coldly, divine arrogance seeping into every syllable.
"Do not insult her."
"She is not a witch. She is… my beloved."
"Beloved?"
Jane froze.
It felt like a needle pierced straight through her heart.
"Then what am I?" she asked softly. "What were we?"
Thor looked at her, impatience flashing through his eyes.
Then he said, detached and merciless:
"You?"
"You're just… a scientist. A fairly knowledgeable scientist."
The air went dead still.
Jane stared at him.
The man who once gave up a throne for her.
The god who learned to cook steak on Earth just to make her smile.
Now he looked at her like a stranger.
She knew—she knew—this was mind control.
But knowing didn't make it hurt any less.
Anger ignited her clarity.
"A scientist… huh."
Jane clenched her teeth and stepped forward.
SLAP—!!
A crisp, thunderous slap landed squarely on Thor's face.
His head snapped to the side.
Slowly, he turned back, eyes blazing.
He was a god.
The son of Odin.
And a mortal woman—this mortal woman—had slapped him in public.
And insulted the one he "loved."
"How dare you—"
"You insolent mortal!!"
Thor roared, raising his right hand, ready to strike her down.
"Jane—RUN!!"
Jessica shouted, lunging forward to save her—
But something was faster.
HMMMM—BOOM!!!
A silver-gray streak tore through the air and slammed into Thor's face with pinpoint precision.
He was sent flying dozens of meters, crashing straight through a storefront window, buried in shattered glass and steel.
"What—what was that?!"
Everyone nearby froze in shock.
Hovering in front of Jane Foster—
A squat, square-headed hammer.
Mjolnir.
The Hammer of Thor.
It had returned.
And it trembled—humming with a resonance only the worthy could hear.
Jane stared at the hammer.
She felt it.
That familiarity.
That call.
That quiet, undeniable rightness.
As if it were whispering—
Take me.
Jane reached out and wrapped her fingers around the cold handle.
BOOOOOOM————!!
A colossal pillar of lightning slammed down from the heavens, striking her directly.
"Ah—!!"
Her cry was swallowed by thunder.
Blinding electricity engulfed her, lifting rubble and debris into the air as a roaring energy field spiraled outward.
Her ordinary trench coat disintegrated—
Reforming into gleaming silver Asgardian armor.
A crimson cape unfurled behind her.
Her body strengthened, reshaped by divine power.
Brown hair turned radiant gold, dancing in lightning.
When the thunder faded—
A new figure stood in the street.
Mjolnir in hand.
Lightning crackling around her.
Winged silver helm gleaming beneath the city lights.
The Mighty Thor—
Jane Foster, Goddess of Thunder, was born.
"How… how is this possible?!"
Thor crawled from the rubble, staring at the woman holding his hammer—radiating purer thunder than he ever had.
His eyes nearly popped out of his skull.
"That's MY hammer!!"
Jane tightened her grip on Mjolnir, divine power roaring through her veins.
She looked at Thor, lightning dancing behind her eyes.
"No, Thor," she said, her voice deep and resonant.
"Not anymore."
"Right now—"
"You are not worthy to lift it."
She raised the hammer toward the sky.
"Now… let's talk about that scientist remark."
BOOM—!
Thunder answered.
------
One Hour Earlier
New Mexico – Outside Puente Antiguo, Astronomical Research Station
Far from the city lights, the stars burned bright.
Jane Foster was hunched over blueprints and data models, surrounded by scribbled equations.
"If quantum entanglement is introduced here…" she muttered, chewing on her pen. "It might explain the Bifrost's transmission mechanism…"
Knock. Knock. Knock.
A polite knock sounded.
Without looking up, Jane said, "Darcy, I told you—don't bother me unless you got those limited-edition donuts."
"Lucky you," a magnetic male voice replied.
"I brought exactly what you wanted."
Jane spun around.
A red, white, and blue figure leaned against the doorway, a box of her favorite donuts in hand.
"Homelander?" Jane shot to her feet. "What are you doing here?"
"Passing by," Antony said with a smile, setting the donuts down among her chaotic equipment.
"Thought I'd check on an old friend—and a genius physicist."
He picked up a sketch—Jane's rough dimensional model.
"I read your paper, Jane. Your corrections to the Einstein–Rosen Bridge."
He studied it carefully.
"Brilliant. Honestly—ahead of its time."
"Thank you," Jane said, surprised. "Most people think I'm insane."
"Geniuses usually are," Antony replied sincerely.
"Jane, your talent shouldn't be trapped in a shack like this, using last-century equipment."
"So?" she asked, biting into a donut. "You didn't fly halfway across America just to deliver pastries, did you?"
Antony chuckled softly.
"Talking to smart people really is easier."
He pulled up a chair, his expression turning serious.
"Jane, I'm here to invite you."
"Invite me?" she joked. "To the Seven? My superpower is calculus."
"That's exactly the superpower we need," Antony said calmly.
"Vought is creating a new division—Deep Space Exploration and Dimensional Defense."
"You know why I came to you?"
"Because you're one of the smartest minds on this planet."
"New York. The Dark Elves. The invasions," he continued. "You've seen it. Earth isn't safe anymore."
"We're like children holding torches in a dark forest. Every alien civilization is watching us."
He gestured toward the stars outside.
"If we stay isolated, the end result is only one thing—enslavement. Or extinction."
Jane fell silent.
She had seen alien power firsthand. She knew he wasn't exaggerating.
"Humanity has been trapped in this tiny solar system for far too long," Antony said, voice rising with conviction.
"We need to step beyond it. Build an interstellar defense. Spread human civilization across the galaxy."
"Only then do we earn a second chance."
"Only then do we survive."
And Jane Foster listened.
--------------
T/N:
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