Thor #266 — Nick Peron

May 2

May 2 Thor #266

… So Falls the Realm Eternal!

Thor finds himself locked in a life or death battle against the Destroyer, little knowing that his step-brother Loki has imbued it with the life force of Balder. Meanwhile, the Warriors Three follow Loki’s allies — Kroda, Magrat, and Snaykar — deep into the tunnels below Asgard in the hopes of finding Odin who has been hidden away while he undergoes the Odin-Sleep.

As Loki watches intently from his hideout, Sif, Karnilla and the Recorder watch from the sidelines. For some reason she won’t explain, Karnilla has refused to fight the Destroyer directly and teleports away. She appears in Loki’s hideout having deduced that her beloved Balder’s soul is powering the Destroyer. Soon, she and Loki are locked in mystical combat.

Meanwhile, Kroda and his lackies have reached the chamber where Odin has been kept in a slumbering state by the Mists of Morpheus. There the Warriors Three come out from hiding and attack the evil trio before they can murder Odin. With Kroda and the others defeated, the Warriors Three knock down the barricade into the chamber where Odin is being held, unaware that he mists inside will cause them to fall asleep.

At that same moment, Thor continues to fight a losing battle, but refuses to give up even though he is growing weaker with every moment. While, elsewhere, Karnilla realizes that she is getting nowhere fighting Loki and teleports away, leaving the trickster to wonder if she perished or got away. Loki then teleports back to the palace of Asgard to watch Thor’s impending death. However, upon seeing Loki, Balder’s personality begins to reassert itself and it turns its attention to the trickster god. Fearing for his own safety, Loki casts a spell that vacates Balder’s soul and returns it to his body. Loki then races to touch the Destroyer so he can power it with his own lifeforce.

He is beaten to the punch by Thor, who manages to touch the Destroyer first. Loki is no match for the Destroyer which begins to pull down its visor and charge up its disintegration ray. Luckily for Loki, that’s when Odin arrives and calls an end to the violence. When he orders Thor to bow before him, the Destroyer surprisingly ceases combat and does at it is commanded.

After Odin transfers Thor’s soul back to his body, the Warriors Three explain how they were able to free Odin once the Mists of Morphious were vented out of the chamber through their opening. With Odin now back with his full strength, the people of Asgard once more celebrate the return of their rightful ruler.