Marvel Comics: The Sentinel(Sentry)

Turning our gaze back to the small town in New Mexico, the aftermath of the battle had begun to settle...

The streets were ablaze, with thick black smoke billowing from the damaged buildings. The Destroyer armor, Asgard's mightiest construct, had unleashed devastating power under Loki's remote control, firing scorching rays indiscriminately and leaving destruction in its wake.

The town lay in ruins, reduced to rubble.

Amid the wreckage, Jane stood frozen, staring blankly at the metal hammer in her hand. She was still unable to process what had just happened.

Beside her, Thor and the four Asgardians were equally dumbfounded. While others might not grasp the significance of lifting Mjolnir, they understood all too well what it meant.

"A Midgardian woman… actually lifted Mjolnir… and defeated the Destroyer?!" Fandral shouted in disbelief.

Just moments ago, he had looked down upon the "backward" humans of this world. Now, reality had delivered a stinging slap to his face.

Meanwhile, Thor seemed to have lost all spirit...

Mjolnir had always been a symbol of his might and renown. His father had even declared that 'whoever' wielded the hammer would be worthy to rule Asgard. The implications of this (for Odin's son, for Asgard itself) were staggering.

"She… Father, have you forsaken me?"

Thor murmured to himself, his eyes fixed on Jane, who stood amidst the ruins. Tiny arcs of electricity danced around her, lending her the imposing aura of a Valkyrie, untouchable and divine.

Before anyone could fully comprehend the situation, a streak of golden light shot toward Thor.

Like an eagle snatching up prey, the towering Asgardian prince was hoisted into the air. At the same time, Mjolnir vanished from Jane's grasp.

The Sentinel armor now held the hammer in one hand and Thor in the other, then vanished in another flash of light.

"Thor!"

His Asgardian companions cried out in alarm, but the golden figure radiated such terrifying energy, that none dared intervene. It swept past them like an unstoppable tide, leaving them powerless to act.

"Another Midgardian?! Just how many powerhouses does this world have?!"

The Asgardians reeled from the shock. In their long-held beliefs, Midgard had always been a primitive backwater world... It was devoid of mighty warriors or legendary heroes, a world that survived only under Asgard's protection.

Yet in a single day, they had witnessed two incomprehensibly powerful beings; a seemingly frail woman who lifted Mjolnir and destroyed the Destroyer, and another who effortlessly seized the hammer and captured its rightful wielder.

"Jane, are you okay?" Darcy rushed over, concern etched on her face as she studied her usually composed mentor.

The astrophysicist looked utterly bewildered, as if she couldn't fathom the voice that had guided her.

Everything had happened too fast. Jane had returned to the battlefield, searching for Sean among the evacuated crowds, only to be confronted by the Destroyer's devastating attack.

Then, the hammer had fallen into her hands, as if guided by some unseen force.

....

"How dare you treat me like this?!" Thor roared in fury.

The proud, tempestuous son of Odin had never endured such humiliation... hauled around like captured prey, and his beloved weapon reduced to another's trophy.

"Did your father never teach you? In this world, truth is decided by whose fist is harder. And right now, Prince of Asgard… mine is much harder than yours."

The emotionless, mechanical voice from behind the Sentinel's visor was cold enough to send shivers down the spine.

"Arrogant Midgardian! Release me! Fight me like a true warrior, face me in fair combat!"

Thor struggled with all his might, but his Herculean strength, which was enough to overpower multiple men, was useless against the golden figure's iron grip.

If only Odin hadn't stripped him of his power! Never would the god of Thunder have suffered such disgrace, left powerless to resist!

"Fair combat? So the future king of Asgard is just a muscle-brained fool? Or did you think Mjolnir could solve every problem?" The Sentinel's mocking tone was laced with synthetic derision.

The hammer in its hand crackled with electricity as white-hot energy coiled around it.

Deep within Mjolnir's core, a formidable will clashed against the armor's control.

From afar, Sean's eyes gleamed with golden light. The Allfather would never allow an Asgardian relic to fall into another's hands...

....

In Asgard's royal chambers, the battle had ended...

Laufey, the towering Frost Giant king, lay defeated at his ancient enemy's feet. Stripped of Jotunheim's frigid environment and without the Casket of Ancient Winters, his downfall had been inevitable.

Forced awake from the Odinsleep and drained from the fight, even the Allfather seemed weary. Striding from the chamber, he reclaimed the Scepter from his adopted son's grasp.

Vitality surged through his aged body as his two ravens circled overhead, their master's single eye burning with cold fury.

Odin's indomitable will blazed like a sun, and within Mjolnir's stellar core, two forces collided in a cataclysmic clash of heat and light...

...

Thor felt the shackles within him shatter...

The power Odin had sealed away came flooding back, filling his veins with divine might. The Sentinel released its grip, and the Asgardian prince broke free.

Mjolnir hovered midair, trembling violently as if caught in a tug-of-war between two titanic forces.

"Midgardian! I will cleanse the shame you've brought upon me, in the name of Thor!" Thor's voice boomed as his restored divinity filled him with unshakable confidence.

Humbled by his exile, the arrogant Thunder god had endured setback after setback. Now, with Odin's seal broken, his pent-up rage erupted in full force.

"So the mighty Thor is just a child who runs to his parents when things don't go his way?"

The Sentinel's synthesized voice dripped with scorn.

Thor's fury ignited like a storm. Gripping Mjolnir, he unleashed a shockwave.

Dark clouds gathered overhead, and their leaden masses crackled with energy. Lightning split the sky, thunder roared, and the world seemed to tremble before the coming tempest.

Clad once more in his armor, crimson cape billowing, the God of Thunder stood reborn... Electricity wreathed his form, and Mjolnir glowed with unleashed power.

With a deafening battle cry, he hurled the hammer, a bolt of pure lightning aimed to annihilate the golden figure that had dared humiliate him.

*BOOOM!*

The air itself screamed as Mjolnir tore through the atmosphere, a meteor of divine wrath destined to reduce its target to dust...