Restart, Spider-Man! [50]

“I am Thor, the God of Thunder! You mortals who desecrate the gods will pay the price!”

Thor’s roar echoed through the corridor for so long that the guards were forced to activate the mute mode, sealing the loud voice inside the room. Several passing guards glanced at Thor through the glass, seeing him flailing like a mute, and couldn’t help but sneer.

“Huh, this is supposed to be a god?”

“Hahaha, what a terrifying god!”

“Yes, we’re so scared, hahaha.”

The guards laughed recklessly as they wheeled Mjolnir past Thor’s cell on a small cart, taunting him with the sight.

“You scoundrels, are you even listening to me?” Thor shouted, his voice muffled by the glass. “Give me back Mjolnir! What are you going to do with it?!”

He watched helplessly as his beloved hammer was taken farther away. He tried to summon it with a raised hand, but the next moment, a powerful electric current shocked him, paralyzing him once more.

“Zzzzttt~”

Thor collapsed to the ground, convulsing, and after a while, he slowly got up, using the wall for support. “These cursed fools! How can they take my hammer away?” he growled through gritted teeth, though he didn’t dare to try using his strength again.

Behind him, Jane Foster, her eyes closed, spoke calmly. “If your hammer can be hung on a wall, why can’t it be taken away?”

Hearing her, Thor turned to look at Jane’s familiar face, and his anger subsided slightly.

“Jane, you still haven’t told me why you—” he began.

“You should know,” Jane interrupted him, “there’s really nothing between us.”

She exhaled softly, her voice composed. “The situation isn’t what we thought. Killing people or destroying the sanctuaries won’t get us into the Exile Journey. We might have been wrong from the start. Even if we do participate, we won’t be allowed to carry weapons as criminals, so the chances of failure are high.”

Nearby, Loki stretched lazily, a carefree look on his face. “Maybe this is all just a prank.”

“No, this must be a test from Father,” Thor insisted confidently.

Loki rolled his eyes. “A test? To get us killed by Thanos again? Besides, Father’s power has already faded. He couldn’t have brought us here.”

At this, Thor’s last hope seemed to fade. His expression became gloomy, and he slumped down on the floor. “Yes, Father is gone, and our home is destroyed.”

“Destroyed? So what? There was nothing worth keeping there anyway,” Loki responded indifferently.

“What did you say?!” Thor shouted angrily. “You fool! That was our home, you are my brother, and it was your home too!”

“I am not your brother.”

“Yes, you are.”

“I am not.”

As the two continued to bicker, a group of Steve Rogers variants sat in the corner, looking irritated. They quietly plugged their ears with their fingers to drown out the noise.

Suddenly, the room flickered to life with a virtual screen, and a guard’s voice came from outside.

“You’re in luck! The Exile Ceremony will be broadcast globally. You can watch the grand event unfold.”

“The Exile Journey is starting?”

Thor and Loki immediately stopped their arguing, and everyone turned to watch the figures on the screen. Inside a majestic palace, countless Titans were kneeling in prayer. A massive altar, resembling a giant millstone, slowly turned, and within it, several familiar figures appeared, shocking everyone.

“That old Captain, he actually got into the Exile Journey,” Natasha remarked with a smile.

The other Steve Rogers variants exchanged puzzled glances.

“How did he do it?”

“Who knows!”

“Wait, what is he holding?”

Suddenly, Loki pointed at Old Steve on the screen, a look of astonishment on his face.

“That’s your hammer!” he exclaimed, turning to Thor.

Thor stared in disbelief as Old Steve wielded Mjolnir. He shook his head repeatedly. “No way! How could he be worthy to lift Mjolnir? That’s impossible!”

Even the usually calm Jane Foster seemed startled by the sight. A thoughtful expression crossed her face as she spoke, “They took the hammer so this Captain could use it. That means… could it be him?”

She seemed to have a theory, though she wasn’t entirely sure. In the vast multiverse, it was hard to be certain.

“And Tony! He made it too,” one of the Steves remarked, filled with envy.

Another Steve, however, sighed with relief. “Carter’s also part of the Exile Journey. She might have a chance to come back to life.”

“That big lizard sure is lucky.”

“And that red-and-blue Spider-Man, standing next to Thanos of all people. What are they planning?”

“Isn’t Thanos supposed to be a criminal? He doesn’t seem like it—he’s even allowed to carry weapons!”

“What are they holding? Are those Titan relics?”

“What’s that light?”

“It’s something like the portals used by the wizards from Kamar-Taj. I’ve seen it before. So, the altar sends them to the Exile Zone.”

“Look! Some of the other contestants are trying to get through the portal!”

“They’re being rejected.”

“Why? Could there be additional requirements to enter the portal?”

Under the crowd’s complex gazes, the group vanished into the portal. At the same time, those in the room heard the system notification announcing their elimination.

Planet M78.

“Whew~”

In the biting cold wind of a desolate wasteland, a purple portal slowly opened, and Xia Luo’s group stepped onto the dim landscape, which was littered with massive stones and giant skeletons.

“So this is the Exile Zone?”

Old Steve looked around at the bones and rubble, a decaying smell hitting his nose, making him uncomfortable.

Infinite Tony raised his hand, releasing a swarm of nanodrones that swiftly scouted the surrounding area.

Thanos, holding his double-edged blade, glanced curiously at the hammer in Old Steve’s hand.

“That hammer can only be lifted by that man,” Thanos remarked.

Old Steve raised Mjolnir, his eyes filled with nostalgia. “Yeah, only he could lift it. My acting was pretty good back then too.”

Infinite Tony chuckled, remembering he had been there when it happened.

Behind them, Xia Luo, Lizard Parker, and Carter each held a version of Captain America’s shield, a benefit of having so many Steves in the competition.

Thanos pointed to the faint sunlight in the distance. “Our goal is over there. Once we reach that place, I will find a way to save Titan.”

Xia Luo observed the scene. “If there’s a portal, why not just teleport us directly there?”

Thanos shook his head. “It’s impossible. The elders of Titan have tried many methods but were never able to bypass this journey.”

“Alright then, we’ll protect you and make sure you reach that destination,” Old Steve said, stretching his limbs to get ready.

Infinite Tony sighed. “I never thought I’d see the day when we’d be fighting to protect Thanos.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a massive skeleton in the distance began to tremble. The ground quaked as a giant creature, similar to a whale, burst through the earth, shattering bones as it emerged. Dark shadows swarmed over the ground, as though the entire land had come to life.

“That’s… the Chitauri army!” Old Steve exclaimed, shocked. He could never forget those creatures.

“No, something’s different. They haven’t been turned into bio-weapons yet.”

Xia Luo glanced at Thanos’s back, deep in thought.

Perhaps the reason Thanos would later command an army of Chitauri bio-weapons was because of this Exile Zone. The original Chitauri had no such giant apes or whale creatures.

—

T/N: It’s chapter 50! Like with the other story I will be taking it slower on the updates for this story so I can focus on catching up with the other stories I am currently working on. Do not worry I will still be posting updates daily! I just won’t be posting 5-10 chapter updates like before for a bit.

Thank you for reading!