Thor #338
A Fool and his Hammer…
The Place Beyond the Fields we Know…
A massive entity has formed metal out of the very stars and has taken it to his forge. There he begins pounding out the metal. With each blow rings more loudly than the last.
Earth
Doctor Donald Blake stands atop an alien ship that has recently landed on Earth calling out to his father, Odin. Blake lost Mjolnir to an alien named Beta Ray Bill who was shockingly able to lift the enchanted weapon, stripping Thor of his immortal powers.
He is soon joined by Nick Fury, director of SHIELD, who originally sent Thor into space to confront this alien ship and find out if it was a threat to Earth. Blake quickly tells Fury what went down and that he fears that his father may have forsaken him.
Asgard
Odin had called Thor back to Asgard for an important matter and is surprised when Beta Ray Bill has appeared in his stead. Thinking the Asgardians to be the demons who have been pursing his ship, Bill begins attacking people in the street until Odin steps in to stop the intruder. When Bill tries to throw Mjolnir at the All-Father, Odin is able to pluck the hammer out of the air with little effort. Incapacitating Bill in a mystical barrier, Odin demands to know what has happened to his son.
Looking back down at Earth, Odin sees Don Blake is still conversing with Nick Fury and teleports him back to Asgard. There, Thor returns to his immortal form and tells his father about what has transpired. Intrigued over how an alien was able to lift enchanted Mjolnir, Odin decides to look into the matter and instructs Bill and Thor to join him atop Hildskjalf to find answers. Having deduced that these beings are not the demons who have been hunting him, Bill agrees to accompany the two Asgardians to learn more. Once upon the top of this high mountain, Odin asks Bill to tell them about himself.
Elsewhere in the kingdom, Sif is walking through the forest trying to understand why Thor insists on remaining on Earth when he is no longer bound to his mortal identity of Don Blake.[1] The warrior stops dead in her tracks when she comes upon Thor making out with Lorelei, the sister of the Enchantress. Furious to see her beloved kissing another woman, Sif lashes out at both of them before storming off. However, this is not Thor at all, but Loki in disguise. The trickster god is forming a new scheme against his brother and tricking Sif into thinking Thor has been unfaithful is just the first step in a much grander scheme.
Back atop Hildskjalf, Beta Ray Bill explains that he comes from a high advanced alien civilization on a distant world. One day, some unknown force destroyed the star that sustained his world forcing his people to flee in an armada of ships.[2] They headed off into the stars to find a new world to call their home. Among all his people, Bill was chosen to be their protector and was biologically engineered into the cybernetic form he now has. This was in order to defend the armada from near constant attack from a demonic horde that chased them from their dead star across the cosmos. After finishing his tale, Bill decides that he wants to keep Mjolnir as it is a powerful weapon that will allow him to more adequately defend his people.
This leads to protests from Thor, who wants his weapon back. Odin reminds his son that Mjolnir can only be held by one who is worthy enough to do so. As Bill is apparently worthy to wield its power and Odin sees that everything Bill has said is true. Although he is curious to know where the demons originate from, the All-Father decides a contest must be made. He decrees that Thor and Bill are to fight to the death in order to determine who will possess the enchanted hammer. Stripped of all enchantments, the two warriors are then sent to the fiery domain of Skartheim.
There the battle beings in earnest with Bill having an apparent edge over Thor. Ambushed by his challenger, Thor struggles to get free but Bill easily overpowers him. Unwilling to lose Mjolnir, Bill pulls Thor to the ground as they struggle ever closer to the edge of a cliff hanging over a river of molten lava.
Back in the kingdom, Volstagg continues to be a friend to Balder, who is still struggling for purpose after his recent brush with death.[3] Balder has taken to binge eating but Volstagg tries to tell him that eating such mass quantities without enjoying the food is a waste. They are interrupted by Agnar of Vanaheim who has come to test his fighting prowess by clashing with Balder. When Agnar moves to attack, Balder does nothing to defend himself as he has sworn off all violence. With his friend in danger, Volstagg steps on Agnar’s foot causing him so much pain that he drops his sword and shield. Deciding that the youth needs an education, the voluminous Volstagg carries Agnar off to a nearby glen. There, Volstagg sits atop Agnar so he cannot move while he tells the tragic story of Balder the Brave.
While in Skartheim, the battle between Thor and Beta Ray Bill rages on. Both combatants are plunged into the river of lava but are saved from death by a raft made of solid rock. There, the two strike each other at the same time with enough force to knock both warriors out. Bill is the first to revive and sees that their raft is drawing near a fall. Believing that his competitor deserves a more honorable death, Bill picks up Thor and leaps to safety. They are soon teleported back to Asgard. Considering himself the victor, Bill proclaims that Mjolnir is now his.
Recurring Characters
Thor, Beta Ray Bill, Odin, Sif, Volstagg, Balder, Loki, Lorelei, Surtur, Agnar, SHIELD (Nick Fury), Hugin, Munin
Continuity Notes
Decades earlier, Odin banished Thor to Earth as Donald Blake to teach him a lesson in humility. Once Thor had proven himself worthy again, he was allowed to find Mjolnir and resume his immortal form. Up until now, Thor continued to divide his time between Earth and Asgard, utilizing his medical skill as Don Blake to help others in ways Thor could not. See Thor #159 and Journey into Mystery #83.
Bill’s race is not identified in this story. The alien appendix in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Deluxe Edition #15 identifies them as the Korbinites.
Balder hovered between life and death from Thor #274 through 301. During this time his soul roamed the afterlife and what he saw there deeply disturbed and changed him. Upon returning to life, he swore off violence and began falling into a deep depression.
