POV: Third Person.
Forest Near Ljosalfgard, Alfheim.
At the Onset of the Invasion.
The beautiful forests of Alfheim are undoubtedly one of the most stunning sights in all the Ten Realms. Unfortunately, this green beauty is being destroyed by the march of the Ice Giants, heading towards Alfheim's capital, Ljosalfgard.
Several kilometers away from the capital, amidst the forest, the Light Elves decided to set up their defenses. In the lofty trees of Alfheim, which had lived for thousands of years, they hid, awaiting their enemies. The one in charge of the Light Elves was Sir Ivory Honeyshot, the Lord of Longrose Hall and the Queen's First Knight.
Under his command, his men prepared the trap and stood ready for the enemy. The Giants approached the trap site, bringing with them winter; wherever they passed, the ground turned into a lifeless land of ice.
They were humanoid beings over three meters tall with blue, death-like skin. Their eyes were as red as blood, and they wore only a small piece of skin covering their nudity; weapons were unnecessary for the Ice Giants. They used their powers to turn their hands into swords, and their touch was enough to freeze their enemies.
The trap unfolded as planned: when the Ice Giants came within range of the Light Elves, they initiated the attack. The range of the elves in question was over a kilometer. As all of them were archery enthusiasts, they were nearly perfect marksmen. The majority of their shots hit their targets, killing them, but the giants were numerous like a plague and kept advancing.
While the Light Elves loved archery, not all of them used bows; many wielded firearms reminiscent of the early muskets used on Earth, with some even using older versions of firearms. This gave them a significant advantage. With these "newer" weapons, they could fire more rapidly, thus taking down more enemies before they closed in.
And when the Giants were just a few meters away, Sir Ivory gave the order to retreat. Hundreds of Light Elves, using the tree branches and their agility, began to distance themselves from the enemy, creating a significant gap between them. When Sir Ivory saw that they were out of reach of their enemies, he once again ordered his men to prepare for another round of attacks. This was his plan—to weaken the Ice Giants' forces before they exited the forest and lost the terrain advantage.
The plan succeeded once again. As they fled for the second time, the Ice Giants roared in anger at their attackers. The morale of the elves' army was at its peak, and as they prepared to execute the same plan for the third time, the Dark Elves attacked from above.
Bodies of fallen Light and Dark Elves rained from the trees, hitting the ground. Those unlucky enough to be injured and fall from the trees were condemned to death by the height of their fall.
Sir Ivory knew he could no longer prolong this, and he ordered a retreat. This time, they aimed to leave the forest for the last defense prepared against their enemy. Even at their highest speed, they couldn't shake off their cousins, who possessed similar gifts. Many were killed until they finally managed to exit the forest.
The Dark Elves who followed them were met with shots from the defense. A line of Light Elves fired at their enemies. Each shot was precise, posing no risk to their companions who were near the Dark Elves. Soon after, all the Dark Elves lay dead on the ground. But Sir Ivory knew this wasn't a victory. They had taken too long, and the first Ice Giants emerged from the forest, leaving it covered in ice and snow.
Even though they were giants, they were far from slow. They ran like wolves and leaped over the defenses of the Light Elves, creating chaos among them. The Sky Elves, in their flying machines resembling small balloons, fired down at their enemies from above.
The battle was in favor of the elves for this reason. Sir Ivory finally glimpsed the chance for victory.
Then, the Valley Elves, mounted on their unicorns, charged like a cavalry, wielding their lances and swords or firing their weapons. It was a magnificent sight for Sir Ivory.
But to shatter Sir Ivory's happiness once again, the tide of the battle changed. Two colossal Ice Titans simply materialized behind the Ice Giants. They were humanoid beings made of twenty-meter-tall ice, possessing little intelligence. But their power was undeniable. One of them waved its hand as if swatting a fly, and a mist swept through the air. When it passed through the flying machines of the Sky Elves, they froze and fell to the ground like ice rocks.
The mist expanded through the air and fell upon the Light Elves like snow, slowing their movements.
Sir Ivory was sure that at this moment, the only option would be to retreat to the queen's castle, where they would have defenses to deal with the two Titans. But before giving the order, the second Titan raised its foot and stomped the ground with such force that the earth trembled like an earthquake. The ground then exploded with ice stalactites emerging and moving towards the army of the Light Elves.
With all hope lost of escaping, Sir Ivory lowered his two pistols and embraced his fate. Then came the sound. The first thing they heard was thunder. Then a man in a red cape holding a woman in armor fell in front of the ice titan's attack and spun his hammer, destroying the ice stalactites that were about to hit them.
"Looks like I'm a little late to the party," Thor said to Sir Ivory.
"As always, you found a flamboyant way to show up," replied Sir Ivory with relief on his face.
"If you think that's flamboyant, you haven't met my brother. He's a master at it."
"Enough talk, Thor. We have giants to kill," said Sif, stepping out of his embrace.
"Lady Sif is correct, Odinson," Sir Ivory agreed.
"I'll take care of the Titans first, while you assist Sir Ivory," Thor told Sif.
"Let's go then!" Sif agreed, drawing her sword and preparing her shield.
Thor couldn't allow another attack like the one from the Ice Titan, so he spun Mjolnir and flew towards the first titan that attacked them. Moving at high speed like a missile, he quickly closed the distance. The Titan raised its hand and tried to grab Thor, but he simply passed through the Titan's hand and then struck its head with Mjolnir, exploding it and spreading blue blood throughout the frozen forest behind them.
The second Titan was faster than the first, and it hit Thor in the air with a slap, throwing him to the ground. Thor didn't even feel that blow, and he quickly got up. As he stood up, he saw several large icicle spears coming towards him from the ground.
Thor struck the ground with Mjolnir, releasing a powerful lightning bolt that destroyed the icicles and struck the feet of the ice titan, causing it to stagger back.
"Tougher than it looks," Thor said, smiling at his enemy.
Thor began to spin Mjolnir, and lightning bolts began to rain down on his body. All this energy was then concentrated in Mjolnir, which was glowing. When the titan managed to regain its balance and was about to attack again, Thor threw his hammer, hitting the titan directly in the chest.
"BOOM!"
The explosion of light was like thunder, releasing a ridiculous amount of electricity into the air. After the light dissipated, only the titan's legs remained standing. Its torso and head had disappeared.
"A little disappointing," he said, holding Mjolnir as it returned to his hand.
"You speak as if the battle is already over!" Sif shouted at him after slicing a Ice Giant in two.
"It's not over. But it's almost."
Then Thor joined the attack on the Ice Giants. The elves began to retreat and took on the role of archers, hitting anyone who came at Thor and Sif from blind spots, who together were enough to stop the Giants' advances. Sif was like a dancer, wielding her sword among the giants. Thor, on the other hand, was like a storm. His blows shook the earth and sent the giants flying for several kilometers.
As the battle grew more intense, Thor's body began to shimmer with energy, and his movements became faster and fiercer. The son of Odin was having fun.
"Where are they? Where's Hogun and the others? If they don't arrive soon, the glory will be ours alone, Sif!"
"Boom!"
In response to the Prince's request, something was thrown from the frozen forest. It bounced once on the ground and landed near Thor, who recognized what it was.
"Volstagg!" he shouted to his unconscious and bleeding friend. Thor approached his friend and checked his wounds. After inspecting Volstagg closely, he confirmed that none of the injuries were fatal.
"Sif! You need to move Volstagg to a safe location!" he shouted to her, still in combat.
"We'll take care of him," said two light elves, who began to drag Volstagg away from the battle.
"THUD THUD THUD"
Footsteps were heard from the direction where your friend was thrown. Thor tightly gripped his hammer, ready for battle. Shortly after, a humanoid figure standing two meters tall appeared in his sight.
The man or elf was wearing a giant, broad armor. It was entirely red with spikes protruding from its shoulders. On its chest, there was a large ornament shaped like a skull, giving the armor a sinister air. His helmet covered his entire head, leaving only his yellow eyes visible. But what caught Thor's attention was his two unconscious friends being dragged by their legs by the armored man.
"Set them free, and I'll give you a swift death!" he said furiously.
The armor remained silent, and then threw Fandral and Hogun as if they were bags of garbage in Thor's direction. He went to where his friends were and saw that they were still alive. Thor felt relieved, but his fury returned when he looked once again at the red armor in front of him.
"Please, take them to a safe place," he asked two nearby Light Elves who were already carrying out this order.
Thor then began to walk calmly towards the red armor until he was just inches away from it. His enemy still hadn't made any move, so the Prince of Asgard judged that he was convinced of his strength for having defeated his friends.
"THOOM!"
The first strike of Mjolnir sounded like a hammer hitting a metal plate. The armor took a few steps back but seemed undamaged. Thor then jumped and hit right on top of the helmet, unleashing a lightning bolt that struck the entire armor. But even so, it didn't seem affected.
Then the being wearing the armor made its first move. It punched Thor right in the face, making him recoil a little from the force. Thor seemed surprised by the strength of the being in front of him as he wiped the blood from his mouth.
"Don't underestimate him by using only brute force, Thor. That's the living armor Kurse!" shouted Sir Ivory to Thor, recognizing the enemy.
Unfortunately, his words were a distraction for Thor, who couldn't defend himself when Kurse's large arms wrapped around him in a bear hug. Thor then tried to use his strength to escape, but Kurse had the upper hand for now. Understanding that he couldn't escape with brute force, Thor summoned a lightning bolt that hit them both. But he forgot that Kurse was not a being of flesh and blood. He didn't feel pain.
Sif saw the situation from afar and began to run towards Thor, cutting down any ice giants in her path. Unfortunately, she was too slow, and a black portal enveloped Thor and Kurse, taking them away from Alfheim.
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