On the other side, four individuals in strange costumes passed through the town and made their way to the crater stronghold where Thor was being held.
These were naturally Thor's friends from Asgard: the three warriors of the fairy palace—Volstagg, Hogun, and Fandral—and the female warrior Sif.
In their mission to bring Thor home, they had disregarded the orders of Loki, who had temporarily taken over the throne, and descended to Earth.
This act could be considered "treason," but they were deeply uncomfortable with Loki's behavior and believed only Thor was fit to rule. They didn't care about the consequences.
As long as Thor could return to Asgard and reclaim the throne, their charges would disappear.
Upon arriving at the crater stronghold, Hogun paused and spoke.
"Thor is inside."
"Mjolnir is inside as well."
"Thor hasn't regained his powers... Would it be too dangerous for him to return to Asgard?"
"We have no choice! Even if he is mortal now, he is still the King of Asgard!"
"You're right!"
As the group of four from Asgard prepared to enter the stronghold, they encountered someone standing in their way.
"I don't know who you are, but you're not allowed on Earth," Hawkeye said coldly, eyeing the strangely dressed individuals in front of him.
He had learned everything from Coulson and quickly realized they were from Asgard.
Whoosh!
Hawkeye drew an arrow from his quiver, pulled back the bowstring, and aimed it at the group. The palm of his hand glowed red, and the intense heat distorted the air.
Even the bow and arrow emitted a red light, a clear sign of overflowing energy.
He warned, "I suggest you stop right there and surrender. This isn't a place for you to come and go as you please."
"Earthlings, a friendly reminder," Volstagg said dismissively, ignoring Hawkeye's warning with a laugh. "We are not the mortals you think we are. Don't get in our way, or you'll regret it."
"Try me."
Hawkeye's eyes remained unchanged, and as he released the arrow, all the heat from his palm was transferred into the shaft, turning the arrow into a streak of red lightning that flew toward Volstagg.
Boom!
Volstagg swung his battle axe to deflect the arrow, then casually turned to his companions.
"You go to Thor. I'll deal with him," Volstagg said.
Sif and the others nodded, leaping into the air and heading straight for the crater stronghold. Like Volstagg, they didn't take Hawkeye's warning seriously.
"Is that how visitors from another world behave—so arrogant?" Hawkeye muttered, his gaze cold.
He quickly nocked another arrow and began shooting continuously, blocking Volstagg's advance while positioning himself between the warriors and the crater stronghold.
Hawkeye's mission was clear: prevent them from entering before Coulson returned.
In truth, however, he wasn't overly concerned.
Anton was still in the pit.
Although Hawkeye harbored some hostility toward the Justice League, he had to admit their strength. He clearly remembered Anton's confident expression when they had spoken.
With that kind of confidence, Anton should be more than capable of dealing with a few visitors from another world.
And then it clicked.
"Wonder Woman!"
A thought flashed through Hawkeye's mind. "Daughter of Zeus... Since real visitors from another world are here, then she must be here too!"
"Thor!"
Sif spotted the glass prison. Before they descended to Earth, they had located Thor's position to ensure they could find him as quickly as possible to achieve their goal.
"Sif!"
Thor was overjoyed, and through the glass, his face beamed with happiness. "Why are you here?"
"Not just me—Vostagg, Fandral, and Hogun are with me," Sif replied. "We're taking you back to Asgard."
Boom!
As she spoke, Sif smashed through the special glass with all her strength.
Thor looked at the three members of Jane Foster's team in the other room and said to Sif, "Do me a favor and save them too."
"No problem."
A little while later, they reached the edge of the crater.
At this moment, the battle between Vostagg and Hawkeye continued. Fandral and Hogun had finished dealing with the other agents and spotted Sif and Thor.
They were overjoyed and sprinted toward them.
"Thor, it's great to see you!"
"Same here."
"Guys, although it's good to see you, you'll be punished for coming here." Thor looked around anxiously. "I won't return to Asgard with you."
"Why?"
Sif and the others stared at Thor in surprise. This didn't sound like the Thor they knew.
"My father died because of me," Thor said. "I've decided to live as a mortal and make up for my past mistakes."
"Thor..."
Sif and the others exchanged glances before saying solemnly, "Your father is still alive."
"What?"
Thor was stunned. At that moment, he recalled Loki's various statements and the punishment of being deprived of his divine power. He immediately realized there were many issues at play.
Loki!
There was no doubt that his younger brother was behind this.
...
At the same time, Anton stood at the edge of the crater, watching the battle between Hawkeye and Vostagg. His expression was a bit strange.
He was well aware of the Asgard quartet's actions, but he didn't care about them. He knew they weren't enemies.
The misunderstanding at this moment was hardly chaotic—it was merely the drizzle before the storm. The real chaos would begin when the true enemy appeared.
"Unexpectedly, Hawkeye was injected with the Extremis Virus..."
Anton watched the battle in front of him, surprised.
The plot had already diverged significantly because of his presence. While the overall direction had remained the same, there were many more variables now.
He hadn't expected that, in the original plot, Clint Barton—Hawkeye—who had remained unenhanced, would now be injected with the Extremis Virus.
As Hawkeye shot his arrow, a red light flashed in his eyes, and the energy in his body surged into the arrow, increasing its power.
Furthermore, the hand-to-hand combat between Hawkeye and Vostagg revealed the effects of the Extremis Virus on him.
Anton, who had once transformed into a steel bone to frustrate Kylian, knew the characteristics of the Extremis Virus.
After being overwhelmed by Batman and Arrow one after another, Hawkeye had likely learned from the pain and decided to improve himself.
Anton pondered and thought it was very possible.
With S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research power, Extremis, a human body enhancement technology that had solved key difficulties, was easy to master.
As for what needed improvement...
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research team was certainly stronger than Kilian's pioneering technology. Furthermore, Tony Stark, the intellectual pinnacle of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was still working as a special consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D.!
Solving the side effects of the Extremis Virus would be no problem for Tony.
Ch-ch-ch!!
A black car stopped at the edge of the crater base.
Colson quickly got out of the car.
He assessed the situation and immediately saw Hawkeye fighting against a mysterious enemy. His face changed slightly.
He ordered the agents around him: "Go and help Hawkeye."
"Understood."
The agents in the car grabbed their weapons and rushed toward Hawkeye's position.
Thor and the others were in that direction as well.
Sif, Fandral, and Hogun, seeing this, armed themselves and prepared to lead Thor out of the siege.
At the same time, Colson spotted Anton, who was watching the commotion.
"Where is Wonder Woman?"
He looked solemnly at Anton. "Didn't you say she would appear at the critical moment?"
"This is not a critical moment."
Anton shrugged. "You don't think that a few of them are the ultimate threat, do you?"
"What do you mean?"
Colson suddenly turned his head, staring at the visitors from another world in their strange costumes, then turned back to Anton. "You mean they're not enemies?"
"Yes, they're not enemies."
Anton nodded. "Colson, tell your people to stand down, conserve your strength, and save some ammunition. The real crisis is just about to begin."
…
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