Chapter 273: Nothing Impressive

"The Dark Elf lord, Malekith, must have faced off with your grandfather Bor several times back in the day, right?"

Tony didn't press Loki about the hidden passage's location but instead posed another question.

"How much do you think he knows about Asgard?"

Loki pondered for a moment before responding, "Hard to say. But if I were him, just waking from a long slumber and planning to invade an old rival like Asgard, I'd make sure to get all the intel I could on their defenses before making a move."

"I'd probably only need three days tops," he continued, "since he's familiar with us. Just a quick update on Asgard's current situation, and he'd be ready."

Tony's expression tightened as he turned to Jane. "Ms. Foster, how long has it been since you discovered the Aether?"

Jane's face paled slightly. "It's been... three days."

"Relax," Loki chimed in, noticing their worry. "As long as he doesn't know about the hidden passage, any attempt to invade would be spotted by Heimdall in no time. Asgard's defenses are stronger than you think."

Before Tony could calm down, chaos erupted outside.

"Did you guys take any prisoners recently?" Tony asked, standing abruptly.

"Of course. We often bring back troublemakers from the Nine Realms to lock them up," Thor answered confidently. "Why?"

Tony's gaze hardened. "And what about breakouts?"

"Impossible," Thor declared. "The prisoners are heavily sealed. Unless we pardon them, escape is out of the question."

Yet the sounds of gathering soldiers outside were growing louder.

"This is impossible," Thor muttered, rushing to the balcony. From there, he could see Asgardian guards gathering, armed and ready.

"I'm going to check the dungeons," Thor decided, preparing to leave.

"No, no," Tony stopped him. "If jailbreaks are so rare, then any breakout now must be a diversion."

"Malekith must be ready," Tony reasoned. "He'll come after the Aether and will eventually follow us here. Don't let them lure you away from Jane."

"Loki, gather Sif and the others to check on the dungeons," Thor commanded, deciding to stay put.

"On it," Loki replied, understanding that Thor's place was here, prepared to fight Malekith directly.

"And me?" Banner asked, recognizing the inevitable fight but wanting to know his role.

"Transform and keep Ms. Foster with us," Tony directed, knowing that few could threaten Jane if she were under the Hulk's protection.

Without another word, Banner nodded and began his transformation.

"Thor, you and Banner should take Jane to meet Odin," Tony instructed. "As long as Odin's around, Malekith can't cause too much trouble. I'll catch up."

As Tony began installing JARVIS, he realized he hadn't completed the process before Malekith's sudden arrival.

"Hold on tight," Banner said, scooping up Jane. She clung to his massive arm as he leaped with incredible strength, keeping pace with Thor.

Watching the intelligent control Banner had over the Hulk's form left Thor both amazed and impressed. By then, Asgard's alarm blared, and shields began rising around the palace.

Before they fully deployed, though, dark elf ships hurtled down, crashing through the incomplete barrier. Malekith's forces poured out, beginning their assault.

"Malekith!" Thor roared, his eyes blazing with anger as he unleashed a thunderous storm, instantly taking out dozens of the invading elves.

"Stay focused, Thor!" Banner called from behind, urging him to meet Odin. Taking down Malekith was the only way to stop this invasion; killing a few dark elves wouldn't make much difference.

Thor, regaining his senses, flew straight toward the palace. But before he reached his father, he saw a dark-armored figure with a hideous black-and-white mask emerge from one of the ships.

As Malekith's forces breached the palace, Asgard's guards fought back, though the dark elves' advanced weapons proved devastating. Strange grenades detonated with a force like black holes, destroying everything in their path.

"Malekith, your time's up!" Thor yelled, filled with fury as he saw Malekith leading the charge.

"Ah, Bor's grandson, Thor, is it?" Malekith smirked as he saw the thunder god's hammer, showing no fear.

"Banner, take Jane out of here. I'll handle this," Thor commanded, anger flaring as he noticed his father wasn't in the hall.

Malekith, spotting Jane with Banner, immediately sensed the Aether within her.

"Capture her," he ordered, directing his cursed warrior toward Banner.

The towering warrior lunged at Banner, who, still carrying Jane, sidestepped to avoid harming her. With a mighty backhand, Banner sent a giant stone pillar crashing toward the attacker before bounding away to regroup with Tony.

The cursed warrior staggered back, absorbing the blow but undeterred.

"What kind of monster is that?" Malekith muttered, momentarily taken aback by Banner's strength.

But before he could react further, Thor's hammer came crashing down, lightning crackling through the sky as he launched his attack on Malekith.

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