Chapter Text

1

Peter was going to be late. He couldn’t be – wasn’t allowed to be – but it was going to happen. It always happened. Peter was a lot of things but being good at time management was not one of them. 

It wasn’t his fault. He just got so caught up in patrolling as Spider-Man. It was the only good thing left in his life. After everything – Ben, then May, changing foster homes, moving away from Ned. All he really had was Spider-Man. The few hours he got to spend in costume helping people in Manhattan were the only times he ever got to feel whole again.

He was doing something May and Ben would be proud of. His parents would be proud of him too, he hoped.

Of course, his foster parents would not be so happy when he came home late again.

Peter dodged around an old lady, running faster than he probably should have on the busy New York sidewalk. He bumped into a tall, broad man, sending his umbrella clattering to the floor.

“Oops!” Peter exclaimed.

He quickly grabbed the umbrella and stood to face the man. His eyes widened. 

“Oh my god, you’re Thor,” he whispered.

It was. He was dressed in casual clothes. A dark jean jacket and sweater of all things, but it was unmistakably Thor. The god was staring at Peter with obvious confusion on his face. 

Peter swallowed audibly.

A thin, dark-haired man leaned towards Thor and whispered out of the side of his mouth, “Is he…?”

Thor tilted his head. “Apparently.” The blond god nodded to Peter. “What is your name, young warrior?”

Peter blushed. Warrior ? Thor called him a warrior . This was officially the best day of his life.

“Peter!” he introduced, voice cracking. “Peter Parker.”

“Peter, Son of Parker.” Thor held out his hand and Peter rushed to shake it. “It is an honor to meet you.”

Peter’s breath stilled. “It’s- it’s an honor to meet you , sir.”

Thor grinned charmingly. 

“He’s a child ,” the dark-haired man hissed in annoyance.

Thor shrugged and whispered back, low enough that Peter wouldn’t have been able to hear if it weren’t for his powers. “ An heir, perhaps? ”

Air? Maybe hair? Peter’s nose scrunched up in confusion. He raised a hand to his messy curls. It was probably pretty crazy looking after being in his Spidey Suit all afternoon.

“Uhm, here’s your umbrella, sir. I have to- uhm, I’m going to be late.”

Thor reached out to take the umbrella just as Peter’s spidey sense went off. Golden sparks appeared in a bright circle around the feet of the dark-haired man. He was startled while both Peter and Thor stepped back.

“Whoa! That’s so cool! Are you a wizard?”

“What’re you doing?” Thor demanded.

The man looked up with wide eyes. “This isn’t me,” was all he managed to say before the ground opened up within the circle and he dropped through the portal. The golden sparks disappeared.

“Loki?” Thor hissed. “Loki!”

“Uhm…” Peter bent down and picked up a business card from the ground. “I think he went here?”

Thor took the card with a frown. “Where is this?”

Peter leaned close as he looked at the address again. “Not far – oh! It’s the weird building.”

“Weird building? You know this place?” Thor questioned.

Peter nodded. He’d only been Spider-Man for a little, but he had an almost perfect memory and he’d been using it to memorize every aspect of New York City.

“You can take me there?”

His eyes widened. “Oh! Uhm, no, I- I’ve got to get back to the foster home before I get in trouble.”

“I can speak with your guardians, Son of Parker. I’m sure they’ll understand. This is important.”

Peter held his breath. Thor – a god – an Avenger – was asking him for his help. How could he say no to that? He puffed out his cheeks before releasing his held-in breath. He nodded reluctantly. Mr. Franklin was not going to like this, but it was the right thing to do. He couldn’t just tell an Avenger no when they needed help. 

He handed the umbrella over but Thor waved him off with a grin. “You hold onto it.”

Peter shrugged and turned. Thor walked with him down the street. 

“What is this ‘foster’ you speak of, Son of Parker?”

“Uh, Peter, sir,” he told the god with wide eyes.

Thor’s smile widened. “Peter, then. Call me Thor.”

Peter nodded, unable to form a response to that. The crosswalk changed and he hurried across the street while he gathered his thoughts.

“A foster home is a place they send kids who don’t have any guardians or family. I’m uhm… I’m an orphan.”

Thor’s smile faded and Peter was surprised to see how genuinely upset the older man was by that explanation. 

“I am sorry, friend. To lose a parent is never easy. To have lost both and so young would have been unimaginably difficult.”

Peter swallowed thickly. He shrugged. They turned down a different street and kept walking. 

“So, the other guy. Loki? He’s your brother, right?”

“He is,” Thor confirmed.

“Isn’t he, like, a bad guy?”

Thor sighed heavily. “My brother is… complex. The stories of him on earth are not far from the truth.”

Peter’s eyes widened. “So he really did have a baby with a horse that turned out to be an eight-legged horse that Odin rode?”

Thor visibly jolted. “What? No! But…” A grin touched his lips. “Ask me again in front of him.” He winked.

Peter quickly shook his head. “I’d rather live, thank you.”

Thor’s laughter boomed down the street like thunder. “A wise decision, young warrior.”

Peter came to a stop. He nodded across the street to a tall stone building with ornate doors and stained glass windows. 

“That’s it.”

It was a tall, beautiful building. Something about it had always given Peter a weird feeling. After getting bit and developing his spidey sense, that feeling had only gotten stronger. Knowing that there was someone in there strong enough to capture Loki – a literal god – was a little terrifying.

Thor hummed. “Come.”

“Wait- but-”

-Thor was already heading across the street. Peter sighed and hurried after him. He clutched the umbrella to his chest as he stepped up the stone steps to the front door. The door was massive and towered over Peter’s much smaller frame. Thor knocked and suddenly they were inside.

Peter gasped audibly and blinked into the sudden darkness of the room. Antiques and elaborate paintings were decorating the space. All the lights were off, the natural lighting from outside the only thing keeping them from being in total darkness.

“Thor Odinson,” a deep voice greeted.

Peter and Thor turned to see a dark, floating figure before an elaborate window. Peter knew the window well. He’d swung by it multiple times already as Spider-Man. He also knew it was on the uppermost level of the building. They’d not just traveled indoors but also up several floors. 

How was that even possible?

The figure floated across the space towards them. Thor stepped partially in front of Peter, hand out as if to shield him. Peter felt the umbrella in his hands vibrate. The teenager looked down at the plain black umbrella with confusion.

What the hell?

“God of Thunder,” the floating man finished greeting as he landed before them. 

He wore a red cape and blue robes like a wizard straight out of Harry Potter.

“Whoa, wizards are real,” Peter breathed.

The wizard raised a dark eyebrow at him before his gaze shifted back to Thor. “I didn’t realize you had a son?”

Thor was still tense standing between Peter and the unknown figure. The god’s head tilted. “His name is Peter,” was all he said in response.

Peter wriggled his fingers in greeting.

“Interesting,” the man responded. He nodded to Peter. “You can put down the umbrella.”

Peter felt his spidey-sense ring and turned to find an elaborate umbrella wrack waiting for him.

“Cool,” he breathed. He set the umbrella down and stumbled when the room shifted.

They were standing several meters to the left of where they were originally. Lights had come on, displaying the glass cases, pedestals, and bookcases, filled with artifacts and ancient scrolls.

Peter felt a strong hand settle on his shoulder and shot Thor a weak smile. 

“So,” Thor began with a small grin, “Earth has wizards now?”

“Like Harry Potter?” Peter eagerly chimed in.

The man shot Peter a flat look. “No.”

“Gandalf?”

A huff.

“Charmed?”

“We prefer Masters of the Mystic Arts,” the man drawled.

Thor turned to Peter who shrugged. “I like Charmed Ones better.”

“Agreed,” Thor said with a nod. “It has a better flair.”

“Great,” the wizard snapped, “I’ll let the council know. Can we move this along?”

Thor crossed his arms as he stood tall. Peter tried not to look like an absolute child standing next to the hulking figure and assumed he failed miserably.

“Alright, wizard. Who are you and why should I care?”

“My name is Dr. Stephen Strange and I have some questions for you.”

Peter’s head tilted to the side. “Dr. Stephen Strange the surgeon?”

Dr. Strange’s eyes flickered to Peter and narrowed. “Have we met?”

He quickly shook his head. “No, but I- uh- read your study on the Variability in the Arterial Supply of Intracranial Meningiomas.”

Silence greeted that statement. Thor raised an eyebrow at Peter.

“He’s, like, a really incredible doctor," Peter informed the god. "Super smart.”

A small grin touched Dr. Strange’s face. “I’m no longer practicing, but I thank you for the review… Peter. Have a seat.”

Peter’s spidey senses flared and the next thing he knew, he was sitting in an elaborate armchair next to Thor.

“Tea?” Dr. Strange asked and suddenly there was an Asian-style mug in his hand.

“I don’t really drink tea,” Thor responded.

“What do you drink?”

“Not tea.”

The tea magically changed to a massive pitcher of ale. 

Peter’s eyes widened. “Can I have a juice box, please?”

A smile touched Dr. Strange’s face and he raised a hand to cover it. Peter’s tea transformed into a juice box.

“Thanks!”

He stuck the straw into the box and drank his juice while the two adults began to talk. He finished the juice box in a few seconds and almost gasped aloud when it magically refilled.

“We’re looking for my father,” Thor said when Peter tuned back into the conversation.

“So, if I were to tell you where Odin was, all parties concerned would promptly return to Asgard?” Dr. Strange clarified.

“Promptly.”

“Perfect!” Dr. Strange paused. His head tilted towards Peter. “And the boy?”

Thor and Dr. Strange turned to stare at Peter. Peter stared back with wide eyes and his straw in his mouth. 

“Peter, will you go get my umbrella?”

“Sure thing!” He handed the juice box to an amused-looking Dr. Strange. “Thank you for the juice, Dr. Strange.” 

Peter headed over to the umbrella wrack to pick up the discarded item.

“ I will take him to meet my father, ” Thor explained when he believed Peter was out of earshot.

Peter’s heart leaped into his throat. Wait, he thought, what? Thor wanted to take Peter to meet Odin ? Why?

“He can’t go to Asgard with you. He’s human, also, he’s a child .”

“ Yes, but he’s also worthy. No other being has ever proven to be so. The closest someone has ever gotten was Steve Rogers. ”

Dr. Strange made a low humming noise.

Peter stared down at the umbrella in his hands with dawning comprehension. At the very top of the handle on the circular end was a symbol that he knew. It was the symbol on Thor’s hammer. It was in all the history books. The umbrella was Mjolnir.

Peter was worthy . He sucked in a sharp breath as he stumbled back towards the other two. 

“Thor, sir, your- uh… umbrella.” 

He stuck his hand out and when Thor didn’t immediately take the umbrella, shook it in the air.

“Please, sir, I need to get home.”

“Yes,” Dr. Strange agreed, eyes on Thor, “he does. His parents will be worried if he’s kidnapped .”

“He’s an orphan,” Thor responded as he stood, still not taking the umbrella back. “There is one more thing I need of you, Peter. Then you can return to your foster home.”

Peter wilted. “I’m gonna be in so much trouble.”

Thor laughed heartily and clapped a hand to Peter’s back. The boy stumbled under the god’s power. 

“Fear not, Peter! I promised I would speak to your guardians and I shall. First, we must collect my brother and then see my father.”

“You want me to meet your father?”

Thor’s eyes twinkled as he smiled at Peter. “Aye, I believe he will have a thing or two to say about you.”

Dr. Strange sighed heavily. “ Please return the boy to where he belongs once you’re done. I really don’t want to have to explain to his foster parents that he was abducted by aliens.”

Peter shrugged. “They’ll just think I ran away.”

Dr. Strange raised an eyebrow and tipped his head to the side. “Prone to that, are you?”

Peter stared back challengingly. “Have you been in the system?”

Dr. Strange didn’t have a response to that. Instead, he said, “I need a strand of your hair, Thor, in order to do the spell.”

“This hair is not to be meddled with- Ow!” Thor rubbed a hand to the back of his head where Dr. Strange had magically appeared and managed to yank out a strand of hair. 

The room shifted and Peter’s head spun when they appeared at the base of a grand staircase. Dr. Strange did a spell in the air and glowing triquetra moved through the air.

“Charmed!” Peter shouted as he pointed at the rune, the symbol of the iconic TV show. His aunt had been obsessed with it for as long as Peter could remember.

Dr. Strange shot him a flat look over his shoulder. “I’m becoming less and less concerned if Thor brings you back.”

“He has to,” Peter stated with firm confidence. “I have a physics test on Tuesday.”

Dr. Strange blinked before turning his back on the teenager and god. He waved his hands in a circular motion and a golden portal appeared in the air.

“So cool ,” Peter breathed as he clutched Mjolnir closer to his chest. 

“This is it?” Thor questioned after polishing off his beer. He set the tankard down on the staircase railing. 

“Norway,” Dr. Strange confirmed. 

“I’ll also need my brother back.”

“Oh, right.”

Dr. Strange created another portal. Peter jumped out of the way as Loki fell through the air with a scream and slammed into the hard marble floor.

“I have been falling,” Loki shouted, “for thirty minutes!”

Peter rushed forward and helped the angry god to his feet. “Don’t be mad, Mr. Loki. Dr. Strange was just showing us magic.”

“Magic?” Loki hissed. He shook Peter’s hand off his arm and glared at Dr. Strange. “Who do you think you are, you two-bit sorcerer?” His hands shot out and two long daggers appeared. 

Peter jumped back.

“Alright, buh-bye,” Dr. Strange said and with a wave of his hand sent the portal careening forward.

Peter grasped the back of Loki’s suit jacket to stop him from face-planting into the grass as they appeared in Norway. A glance over his shoulder showed the portal disappearing.

“Please tell me we’re not actually in Norway?” Peter whined.

He let go of Loki’s jacket to take a look around. The fields of grass and endless expanse of water didn’t look like anything he’d seen in New York before. The air felt cleaner. There wasn’t a city skyline in sight. 

“So much trouble,” he mumbled under his breath.

He turned at the sound of footsteps and spotted Thor heading towards a man standing by the cliffside. Odin? Was that Odin? Peter hung back with Loki while Thor joined his father.

“Father?” Thor greeted. 

“Look at this place, it’s beautiful.”

Loki headed past Peter and joined the two gods on Odin’s other side.

“Father,” Thor said again, “it’s us.”

“My sons,” Odin confirmed.

Thor looked over his shoulder and gestured for Peter to join them. He shook his head quickly and Thor made a face before gesturing again. Peter sighed and trudged across the grass to join them.

“And Peter,” Thor introduced with a heavy hand on Peter’s shoulder.

Odin turned away from the sea to take Peter in. The teenager shrank back, brown eyes wide as he stared up at the god.

“A grandson.”

Peter shook his head. “No, sir. I’m an orphan.”

Loki tensed at Peter’s declaration. 

Odin was otherwise unaffected. He turned back to the sea. “I’ve been waiting for you three,” he told them.

Peter shrank back into Thor, searching for comfort from the ominous words. Three? Odin had been waiting for Peter too?

“We’ve come to take you home,” Thor explained with a smile. “Perhaps we can show Peter around Asgard before we return him to his place on Midgard.”

“Home. Your mother calls to me,” Odin said. He smiled kindly at Peter. “Can you hear your grandmother?”

Peter wasn’t sure how to respond to that. He looked up at Thor.

“Loki cancel your magic," Thor hissed at his brother.

Odin chuckled weakly. “Aye, yes. It took me a while to break your spell. Friga would be proud.” He turned back to Peter. “Can you see it, young prince?”

Odin’s hand grasped Peter’s over the handle of Mjolnir. Peter gasped and his eyes shot wide. The seaside view disappeared and in his mind, he saw darkness. White thread shot outward from beneath his and Odin’s feet. The line broke off and intersected again, reaching out far across the dark expanse of nothingness.

A spiderweb.

A red thread ran through the spiderweb, out from beneath Odin’s feet, and straight into nothing. No other branches broke off from it. It appeared as if the red thread stretched out into nothing.

Odin’s hand disappeared and with it, the vision.

“You’re going to die,” Peter blurted out.

Thor and Loki tensed.

“What?” Thor demanded. “Father?”

“Come,” Odin interrupted, “sit with me. I don’t have much time.”

“Father,” Thor pressed but was ignored. 

The once King of Asgard turned and hobbled towards a low rock. His sons sat with him and Peter stood, the mighty Mjolnir still clutched in his hands.

“Father, please,” Thor implored. “I know we failed you but we can make this right. You mustn’t go yet.”

Odin sighed as he stared out across the sea. “I have failed you . It is upon us – Ragnarok.”

“I put a stop to it.”

“No, it’s already begun. She’s coming.” He turned to Peter. “Did you see her?”

Peter felt his cheeks burn as all three gods turned their attention to him. Peter quickly shook his head. He had no idea who or what Odin was talking about.

“Good. Hopefully, she will not have seen you either. As long as there is an heir to Asgard, there will be an Asgard.”

Peter swallowed thickly. He’d really like to go home now. He was not ready to be an heir to anything, let alone an entire planet . 

“Father?” Thor questioned gently. “Who are you talking about?”

“The Goddess of Death, Hela. My firstborn. Your sister.”

“What?”

“A violent appetite that ruled beyond my control. I couldn’t stop her, so I imprisoned her. Locked her away. She draws her strength from Asgard. Once she gets there, she will be limitless.”

“Whatever she is, we can stop her together. We can face her together.”

“I’m on a different path now.” He turned to Peter. “Isn’t that right? You saw, yes? You can see the Web of Life and Destiny.”

“That- that vision?” Peter shook his head. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“You are young, princeling. Your powers will grow with time, for which there will be plenty.” 

Odin sighed as he shifted. His wrinkled hand reached into his pocket and he pulled from it a round object in a red cloth. He offered it to Peter.

Hesitantly, Peter took the offering in one hand. Thor – finally – took Mjolnir back to allow Peter to open the cloth. It was an apple. A golden apple. Peter’s eyes widened. He looked up and couldn’t help but notice that Loki and Thor looked equally shocked.

“What is this?”

“I saw this,” Odin told them. “The moment I locked Hela away, I saw this . I saw you ,” he said, one blue eye firmly fixed on Peter.

The teenager swallowed thickly. 

“Take a bite, young prince.”

Peter’s eyes darted to Thor. The god looked conflicted.

“Father, are you sure?”

“I’ve been carrying this since that day, awaiting your arrival. I didn’t know when or how. I thought you would be my own.” His kind smile returned. “A grandson. I should have known.”

Peter didn’t have it in him to correct the god again. He wasn’t Odin’s grandson, but he wasn’t cruel enough to point this out to a dying man.

Odin nodded once more, encouragingly. Peter glanced down at the apple. He sighed and decided things really couldn’t get crazier than they already were, right? He took a bite of the apple. 

It tasted incredible. Fresh like a fruit, but with the rich taste of honey. Peter swallowed the bite without thinking, lost in the flavors that were so intense it was almost overwhelming to his hypersensitivity. 

Peter felt a jolt run through his body. He gasped and the apple fell from his fingers. The apple disintegrated before it touched the earth. 

A foreign energy coursed through Peter’s veins. He felt his wrists burn with a fire under his skin. His senses turned sharp like when he was focused on something far away. A high-pitched ringing rose up and Peter clapped his hands to his ears as he cringed. His eyes squeezed shut.

A heavy hand touched his shoulder.

“Peter? Peter ?” Thor’s voice cut through the ringing, pushing it aside.

Peter lowered his hands. He stared at Odin and was unnerved to see a red line stretching out of the god and towards the sea. It looked like the red line from the spider web vision. 

“What was that? What did I just eat?”

“Ambrosia,” Odin said.

Peter’s head tilted. “The food of the gods?” 

But wasn’t that only in the Greek god tradition? Were they connected? Was there also a Zeus? Peter’s head was spinning.

“You are ready for this path now.”

“Father-” Thor began.

“-I love you, my sons.” He eyed Peter and then Loki. “Even if you’ve come to me in ways I’d not expected.”

“Father,” Loki whispered, heartbroken.

Peter gasped as he saw the red string leading out of Odin break off. He stepped back as the great king began to turn to golden flakes, quickly whisked away by the wind. Thor and Loki rose to their feet. They stood on either side of Peter as all three watched the golden wisps of Odin be carried away.

Peter felt his spidey sense flare stronger than he’d ever felt before. He sucked in a shuddering breath as his entire body tensed.

“Something’s coming,” he whispered.

All three turned. Dark, ominous clouds had rolled in. Peter could feel the power rolling off of Thor as the god readied himself.

“Brother,” Loki began.

Thor shot him a glare. “This was your doing.”

“No,” Peter said with a shake of his head. “This was always going to happen.”

Neither Thor nor Loki had a response to that.

Peter stepped forward as his spidey senses screamed louder. A darkness, almost like an absence, appeared several meters away. Peter could feel a dark power emanating from within it. 

“That’s her,” he whispered.

“Stay back, Peter,” Thor ordered.

“Yeah, sure. No problem.” 

The teenager quickly stumbled back behind the two towering gods.

Thor and Loki stepped forward. Loki's outfit changed to the black and green robes that Peter recognized from pictures of him at the original Avengers Battle. Thor waved his umbrella and lightning struck, changing him and Mjolnir to their god-like forms. 

Peter stood between and slightly behind them both in his jeans and old hoodie. His fingers curled around the straps of his backpack. He could see as webs formed out from beneath Loki and Thor, bright white and with strong red lines that connected to each other, back to Peter, and far beyond in several directions. Peter didn’t know what they were or what they meant, but the sight of strong red lines filled him with confidence.

A figure appeared from the bubbling black nothingness. A woman with dark hair and pale skin emerged and the portal disappeared behind her. Peter swallowed at the sight of her. Thick, black lines spread out from beneath her. Her spider web looked dark and sickly – destructive. He saw it branching out towards Loki and Thor, destroying parts of their web and infecting other parts with its inky blackness.

“So, he’s gone,” she said in a husky voice. “A shame, I would have liked to have seen that.”

Peter frowned at her words. This woman was bad news . He felt a shiver run down his spine.

Thor gestured with his hand not holding Mjolnir. “You must be Hela, I’m Thor, Son of Odin.”

She raised a black eyebrow. “Really? You don’t look like him,” she quipped.

“Perhaps we can come to an arrangement,” Loki put in.

“You sound like him.” Her eyes focused on Peter and she tilted her head. “And you?”

Thor raised his hand like he had back in Dr. Strange’s home. A move to keep Peter back and safe.

“Peter. My heir.”

“Heir?” Hela’s smile was vicious. “To what? I am the firstborn. Asgard belongs to me .”

Peter could feel the tension rolling off of Thor.

“Father banished you,” the God of Thunder reminded her cooly.

“And now the old goat’s dead .” She tilted her head. “Kneel.”

“I beg your pardon?” Loki demanded.

Hela extended her hand and a wicked-looking sword formed. Peter’s eyes widened. He felt like he was trapped in a game of DnD with Ned and the other robotics club kids. And they were definitely outmatched.

“Kneel,” she said again with a coy smile, “before your queen.”

“I don’t think so,” Thor responded in a low voice. 

The god of thunder threw his arm out and cast Mjolnir forward with all its power. Peter felt the wind whip past him. He heard the hiss of the weapon fly through the air like a missile. There was a deep boom that echoed across the open fields of Norway.

She caught it. Hela caught Mjolnir. Peter’s stomach dropped. Oh god, she was worthy?

“That’s not possible,” Thor hissed. He pulled back, calling on his hammer. 

Hela smirked. “Oh darling, you have no idea what’s possible.”

Peter saw the red webs attached to Mjolnir slowly begin to turn gray. Cracks formed in the hammer, releasing the bright glow of power from within. Dread filled Peter. Time moved slowly, the way it always did when his heightened senses took over.

Peter wasn’t sure what these spider webs he was seeing were, but something inside of him instinctively told him that gray was not good. Gray lines were the opposite of good. In response, Peter did what he normally did in a Spider-Man fight – he let his instincts take over.

Peter grabbed Thor’s arm and through the God of Thunder, felt a powerful thrum of electricity that raced up Thor’s arm and into Peter. Their combined power swirled in his chest. 

Peter held out his left hand and focused on the magical hammer. He pulled with all his and Thor’s combined might. The hammer shuddered in Hela’s hand but did not move.

The goddess’ eyes narrowed on Peter.

He had milliseconds .

His eyes dropped to the slowly graying spider webs. He saw the bright red lines branching off in all directions. He still didn’t know what they were, but they were connected to Mjolnir. Instinct once again taking charge, Peter closed his fingers. He grabbed as many of the red strings as he could and yanked back with all his power.

Mjolnir went flying out of Hela’s grasp and straight into Peter’s chest.

“Oof!”

Peter was knocked clear off his feet and hit the ground with a dull thud . Mjolnir, cracked and only just being held together by magic, was clenched tightly to his chest.

“Whoa,” he breathed, eyes wide.

“Take us back!” Loki shouted to the sky.

“No!” Peter and Thor hollered at once.

It was too late. The gate opened and suddenly all three were being shot through the bifrost. Peter curled into a ball around Mjolnir as he squeezed his eyes shut. The sight and sound of the Bifrost was loud and overwhelming. Colors burned his eyes. The noise pierced his eardrums. Magic and wind burned his skin as they rushed through the portal. 

He looked down when he heard Thor’s warning shout. Hela was not far beneath them. 

Asgard, Peter remembered. If she got to Asgard, she’d be limitless.

“Stop her!” Peter shouted.

Loki threw a knife at the goddess but it was deflected back and Loki was quickly thrown from the bifrost.

“Loki!” Thor shouted as Peter gasped. 

What happened if someone was cast from the Bifrost? Did they die? Was Loki dead? His mind instinctively searched for the webs that had extended from the god, but he couldn’t see anything. Either the rushing colors of the Bifrost blinded him or there was nothing left to find.

“Peter!” Thor shouted as Hela made her way towards the god. “Get to Asgard! Protect the people!”

How the hell was he supposed to do that?

Thor threw a punch at Hela. She grabbed at his throat and pushed him back into the edge of the Bifrost. Next thing Peter knew, Thor was being shot across the Bifrost and disappeared the same way Loki had.

“Oh, God,” Peter whispered to himself.

Hela’s head shot up and she smiled viciously at him. She had a sword in her hand as she moved up through the Bifrost towards him. Peter tensed, ready for battle. This was a goddess , he reminded himself. No pulling punches, no holding back his strength.

He slowly uncurled from a ball, one hand tightly gripping the magic hammer. Man, he wished he had his web-shooters too.

Her sword swung up with alarming speed. For anyone else, it would be too quick to see. But Peter was Spider-Man . He easily caught Hela’s wrist, something that shocked the woman if the widening of her eyes was anything to go by. Peter swallowed down his empathy and snapped the woman’s wrist in two.

Hela screamed. Her other hand shot out to wrap around Peter’s throat. Peter choked as her nails pressed into the delicate skin of his throat. Peter wrapped his legs around her arm. One hand wrapped around her wrist to pry her grip away and the other held Mjolnir. He swung his arm and slammed the hammer into the side of her face. 

The goddess’ head whipped to the side. Part of her helmet cracked. Her gleaming black eyes filled with fury. Peter paused briefly at the sight of her anger and then did it again.

Peter’s spidey sense went off too late.

A sharp pain erupted in his side. He gasped and his eyes flickered down. Hela’s sword had cut clean through his stomach. Her wrist was no longer broken. A goddess meant quick healing. He really should have seen that coming.

Hela drew him closer by her grip on his throat which was still cutting off the oxygen to his brain. Peter wasn’t sure how long he could hold his breath for but it wasn’t causing him any discomfort yet .

“Nice try, godling. Better luck next time.”

Hela’s fingers tightened and in that moment, Peter knew he was about to be cast out of the bifrost as well. Peter pulled his knees in and with all his power, kicked the goddess back. Her sword went with her. Peter shouted as the blade was pulled from his stomach.

Hela hollered in rage as she was thrown further down the Bifrost. 

Peter looked up towards the end of the Bifrost. He tucked his hands into his sides and straightened his legs the way he did when he wanted to move through the air like a bullet. His speed increased, leaving Hela behind. 

The end of the pathway came and Peter hit the metal floor hard. He rolled, blood leaving a trail behind him. Mjolnir fell from his grip and skidded across the floor.

“What?” a voice boomed. “Who are you?”

“Close it!” Peter shouted as he waved his hand. He stumbled to his feet and turned to see the bright semi-circle doorway. “Close it!”

It was too late. Hela came strolling into Asgard just behind him. Her helmet was partially bent and she had blood on her cheek from where Peter had broken skin with the hammer.

Peter clutched a hand to his stomach as he stumbled back. Hela took a moment to collect herself and Peter used it to scramble towards Mjolnir only a few feet away. He picked it up and turned back to the goddess, hammer held and ready for an attack.

A tall blond man hurried to Peter’s side with a sword in hand. “Thor?” the man asked him quietly, eyes on Hela.

Peter shook his head.

The man cursed under his breath.

Another man, round and with bright red hair, picked up his ax and stepped towards the edge of the platform he was on. “Who are you? What have you done with-”

“-No!” Peter shouted as a knife went careening across the room and straight into the warrior’s gut.

Another shot towards the blond at Peter’s side. Peter swung the hammer and intercepted it before it could hit. He shoved the blond warrior.

“Run! Go! Get out of here!”

“What? No! I will not run!”

Peter deflected another knife. He grabbed the back of the man’s robes to keep him from charging the warrior goddess.

“You can’t defeat me, godling,” Hela taunted with a smirk.

Peter glared at her. His stomach was aching and his breath was coming faster. This was all kinds of not good. He couldn’t stop Hela, he knew. But Thor had told him to protect Asgard and its people. He couldn’t die in vain and he certainly couldn’t run back to earth.

A small, vague idea came to mind that probably wouldn’t work at all. It was the only shot Peter had though.

He looked down and widened his eyes innocently. “Please, Hela,” he pleaded. “I don’t want to hurt you I just-”

Hela narrowed her eyes. She seemed amused by his innocent display. “Just what?”

Peter swallowed visibly. “Thor asked me to keep it secret,” he replied quietly.

“What? Keep what secret?” She stepped closer. “Show me, boy. We needn’t fight. You’re strong. Capable. I see why Thor made you his heir.”

A little gasp to his right made Peter tense. The blond warrior was staring at him with wide eyes. 

“But you could be better than that. I could give you a greater destiny than Thor could even imagine.” The smile that slithered across her face was cold and heartless. “Show me Thor’s secrets, princeling.”

Peter slowly shrugged off his backpack.

“No,” the warrior at his right quietly hissed.

Peter shot him a look before opening the zipper and fishing around inside. His hand closed around the metal canister containing his web fluid. Okay, he thought to himself. He only got one shot at this, so make it work the first time.

“It’s this,” Peter said. He dropped the bag and held his hand closed around the cylinder.

Hela extended her hand. “Show me.”

In one fluid movement, Peter tossed the canister and swung Thor’s hammer. The canister exploded on Hela and web fluid went everywhere.

“Run!” Peter shouted. 

He jumped to the top of the platform, grabbed the fallen soldier over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, and leaped out of the large circular room. He and the other warrior raced down a long rainbow bridge towards Asgard.

Hela’s furious screams echoed behind them.

Chapter Text

2

“We have to get somewhere safe!” Peter shouted.

“We should hide with the common folk in the city,” the blond warrior quickly suggested.

Peter nodded and pushed himself to run faster. They made it to the end of the bridge and Peter fell back a step to allow the warrior to guide him through the streets. There were people about, moving through their day and unaware of the coming threat. As much as Peter would love to go to the palace and make some sort of announcement, Hela would find him in a heartbeat.

“Here!” the man hissed and pulled Peter and his heavy load into a barn. 

Peter laid the red-haired warrior down on a bed of straw as gently as possible. The man groaned as he clutched his stomach. Peter winced in sympathy. His own stomach didn’t feel too great.

“Thank Odin you’re still alive, Volstagg,” the blond warrior said to his friend. He turned to Peter and bowed his head. “I am in your debt, young prince.”

Peter made a face. “It’s Peter.”

“Prince Peter,” he responded with a nod. “I am Fandral and we are two parts of the Warriors Three. You saved my brother, for that, I must thank you.”

Peter tried not to wince at the formality. “Uhm, okay? Wasn’t there another guy in the big golden room?”

“The Himinbjorg?” Fandral clarified. 

Peter’s brows drew together. Was that a place or a name? 

“Where the Bifrost opens?” he clarified.

Fandral frowned. “Yes. Skurge was there. He didn’t flee with us. He must have remained behind to aid us in our escape. A worthy death.”

Peter silently disagreed. It was a useless death, especially since Skurge could have fled with them. 

“We need to alert the people,” Peter said instead. “Hela is going to take Asgard. We need to get the people to safety first and then try and stop her.”

Fandral shook his head. “Hogun, the third to our warrior brother band, leads the armies of Einherjar. She cannot best them.”

“She’s literally the goddess of death, dude.” Peter raised his eyebrows. “She just beat Thor and Loki like it was nothing . They can’t take her on.”

Fandral looked unconvinced.

Peter breathed out a frustrated breath and said, “Odin told us if she made it to Asgard she’d be limitless ." Peter gestured to the stables they were in. "We’re in Asgard.”

“You spoke with the king?” Volstagg asked, voice rough and weak.

Peter and Fandral both turned to the injured warrior.

“Volstagg!” Fandral exclaimed. “Please, do not strain yourself. We will get you to a healer soon enough.”

Volstagg waved his friend’s concerns away. “You spoke with Odin?”

Peter nodded. “He called me…” He shifted uncomfortably. “He called me his grandson. Both he and Thor called me an heir.”

Fandral and Volstagg turned and stared at Mjolnir, still firmly held in Peter’s hand. A long silence passed.

Finally, Volstagg said, “What will you have us do, Your Grace?”

Oh, Peter did not like that title.

“We need to get to your friend and the Earheardyars army thingie-?”

“-Einherjar,” Fandral corrected.

“Right! That. They’ll help us evacuate the people.”

“You mean to leave the capital behind? The castle ?” Volstagg demanded, aghast.

“Your Grace,” Fandral implored, “there are many valuables and weapons in the castle. There are objects of great worth.”

Peter frowned at them. “Objects are not more important than people .”

“His Grace is correct,” a new, low voice interrupted.

Peter and the two warriors turned to see a tall cloaked figure at the door to the barn they were hiding in. The figure removed his hood and a dark face appeared. The man had dark facial hair and fiery orange eyes. The very sight of him had Peter seeing the magical web from before spring out in every direction. Multiple red lines spread across the man’s web.

“Heimdall?” Volstagg whispered, his voice growing weaker.

Heimdall smiled slightly. “Let’s get you to safety, brother.” 

He turned and nodded to someone outside the barn. Two figures entered the stables next and began to attend to the warrior. Peter stood with Fandral and joined the other, much taller warrior.

“Your Grace,” Heimdall greeted with a bow, “I have been awaiting your arrival for some time.”

“You knew I would come?” Peter asked.

“The late king and I spoke of it many times. I always knew this time would come.”

Peter stared up at the Asgardian as he absorbed his words. This man had been close enough to Odin to hear about his visions of Peter -- ones that even Thor and Loki had been surprised to learn of. That was certainly interesting.

“Are you hurt?” Heimdall asked.

Peter looked down at his stomach. His sweater was soaked in blood. Strangely, it didn’t feel so bad anymore. He lifted the fabric and was surprised to find unblemished skin. He knew he healed quickly but he’d never healed that fast before.

“Huh.”

“Gods are of another breed,” Heimdall told him.

Peter looked up with wide eyes. “I’m just Peter Parker. I’m not a god or a prince.”

Heimdall smiled. “We are all what destiny makes of us. Now, you wish to evacuate the people?”

Peter glanced at Fandral but the man was simply staring back, clearly waiting for instructions. No one was going to help him. Peter was in charge. Peter Parker, a fourteen-year-old boy from Queens. No – Peter Parker, a vigilante superhero with an exceedingly high intellect. Peter Parker, now a Prince of Asgard.

He nodded. “The less people who get hurt, the better. I’d like the army to protect them, if at all possible.”

Heimdall hummed as he nodded. “It will be difficult to sway Hogun away from defending the castle. You will need to sneak in unseen and leave together before you draw Hela’s attention.”

Peter tilted his head as he considered that. “I’m pretty good at sneaking.” He glanced at Fandral. “You know Hogun, you said? Will you come? He’ll probably listen faster if there’s a familiar face there.”

Fandral nodded once and pressed his clasped hand to his heart. “I’m honored to serve you, Your Grace.”

Peter wrinkled his nose. “I really don’t like that title.”

Heimdall chuckled.

Peter sighed and ran a hand down the side of his face. “In the meantime, we need somewhere to hide the people. They can’t just stay in their homes. We don't know what Hela will do to them.”

Heimdall nodded. “I know of a place deep in the mountains. Old temples that are no longer in use. They have strong fortifications.”

Peter nodded. “Good. Start herding the people there. Civilians first. Anyone who can fight should put the ones who are too young or too old first. We’ll bring the army down from the castle and evacuate people as we head back this way.”

“I’ll have someone waiting at the edge of the Hraefnscaga forest to guide you to the temples.”

Peter blinked at the unfamiliar name of the forest. He shook his head. “If we don’t show up, keep the people safe in the temples until Thor arrives.”

Fandral gasped softly. “He’s alive?”

Peter shifted uncomfortably. “I mean, he was pushed out of the Bifrost. I’m not- I’m not sure what happens to someone after that.”

“A mortal would perish,” Heimdall revealed calmly, “but Thor is no mortal. He is both a god and the King of Asgard. He will be fine.”

“Loki too?”

Fandral scoffed. “I think you’ll find that Loki is particularly difficult to kill. You needn’t worry, Your Grace. Loki and Thor will return to us, it is only a matter of time.”

Peter breathed a sigh of relief. Good, he really wasn’t ready to be King of Asgard at fourteen. Maybe not ever, if he were being honest.

“Alright, get that guy to a doctor,” he ordered, pointing to Volstagg. “We’ll meet your guy on the edge of the… Rafe-Scaga forest. Fandral, let’s go.”

><

Sneaking into the castle was surprisingly easy. Well, sneaking anywhere was easy when one had spidey senses. Peter slipped into the room of the assembling army. Hundreds of heads turned, swords raised. 

Peter raised a hand with a nervous chuckle. “Hi! I’m Peter, please don’t kill me.”

Hogun, an Asian-looking man with long black hair, narrowed his eyes. “Stand down,” he ordered the Einherjar.

The hundreds of soldiers lowered their assembled weapons. 

“It’s unsafe here, boy. You need to leave.”

“Uhm… actually…” 

Peter glanced back just as Fandral caught up to him. The warrior stepped through and quickly closed the door behind him. 

“Hogun! Brother!”

“Frandral! You’ve come to join us?”

“No. We have orders to-” he glanced over at Peter who nodded firmly, “-to abandon the castle and evacuate the people from the city.”

“What?” Hogan thundered. “Under whose orders? Are Thor and Odin both not still missing from Asgard?”

“Yes, but… Thor’s heir is here.”

Murmurs spread through the assembled Einherjar. 

“An heir? What-”

-Hogan’s eyes turned back to Peter and finally lowered to look at the hammer in his hand. 

Peter wriggled the fingers on his other hand in a little 'hello' as he smiled sweetly. “And now that we’re all on the same page, let’s go protect the people of Asgard, okay?”

“But the castle,” Hogan protested.

“It’s just a building,” Peter insisted. He was getting tired of having to reiterate that point. “It’s just a place. It can be rebuilt. The lives of civilians are infinitely more important. Your orders are to abandon the castle and help every person you can get to safety. If you have a problem following orders to protect and serve then you can leave your service right now.”

Silence greeted his declaration.

Hogan stared at Peter with dark eyes for a long moment. Finally, the commander raised a fist to his chest and bowed his head. The sound of armor shifting echoed through the massive room as every soldier followed suit.

Peter released a shaky breath. He nodded. “Alright. Let’s go. We’re evacuating the people as we move west towards the base of the mountains. Move quickly. Now!”

The soldiers all gathered their weapons and began moving out in pre-established groups. Hogun joined Peter and Fandral as the others moved out.

“She’s taken the throne room,” Hogan informed Peter.

“She can have it,” Peter replied with a shrug. “We need the people safe until Thor and Loki arrive. Let’s go.”

The three headed out amongst the moving mass of soldiers. The groups broke off into different homes, gathering the nobles and evacuating them towards the far side of the city as they went. 

Peter kept glancing back towards the castle. The further they got from it, the more his anxiety grew. Hela would hear of this, surely. 

Would she care? Would she try to stop the people from leaving? She didn’t seem the type to care all that much about the people. She had immediately come in and apparently -- if Hogun's word was to be believed -- taken the throne. She hadn’t addressed the people or spoken with the army. 

Peter figured they had another hour at best. 

The second they reached the lower city, it was smooth sailing. Most of the people there were already evacuated. A few of Heindall’s men remained on the streets and helped them move the nobles and upper-class Asgardians through the narrow streets to the forest just beyond.

A boom echoed across the city.

Peter, Fandral, and Hogan turned to stare back toward the castle.

“I think she knows,” Fandral whispered.

“Get the people out of here,” Peter responded. “Go!”

The people began to run as their panic grew.

“Your Grace, you must come with us,” Fandral insisted.

Peter shook his head. “We need to give the people time. She can’t just follow us directly to the temple. It’ll be a bloodbath.”

“You can’t-”

“-Go,” Peter ordered. He gave Fandral and Hogan a steady look. “I’ll just buy us some time. Get everyone to the temple. I will find you.”

“You don’t know where to go,” Hogan hissed.

Peter gripped Mjolnir tightly in one hand. His shoulders drew back and his chin raised. “I’m not some random kid,” he assured them calmly. “I can and will find you. Now go.”

Peter turned before either could respond. He began to head back the way they’d come. He heard Hogan curse before the two began urging the people beyond the city limits and into the forest.

Peter began to run back towards the castle. The further he got from the people before he met Hela the better. 

He felt his head ring loudly as his spidey sense went off. Peter stumbled to a stop in the middle of the street at the edge of the lower city leading into the middle-class section of Asgard. The roughly cobbled streets were older and broken here. The buildings were only just turning from wood and ramshackle to neat and more orderly.

Hela turned down the street and stopped. Her eyes, smudged in black makeup, pinned Peter where he stood. Her long black hair was pulled back under a massive helmet. It had spires coming out of it like antlers. She looked dark and deadly as she stalked towards him.

“Godling,” she seethed.

Peter tilted his head. He swallowed down his fear and greeted back cheekily, “Auntie.”

Hela’s lips twitched. “You’ve displeased me.”

Peter bobbed his head. “Yeah, well, right back at'cha. My last aunt was- she was awesome .” Peter swallowed down the ball of emotion that threatened to choke him. “You’re a pretty poor replacement. Can I get a refund?”

Hela’s eyes narrowed. Her arms shot out and two wicked-looking swords materialized in each hand. “I grow tired of your prattle.”

Peter whistled. “Yeah, that sucks. As my foster dad always says, I can’t shut the hell up.”

“We’ll see about that.”

Hela dashed forward. Peter leaped over her and out of the way of her sword. He swung Mjolnir while he was upside down and blocked her attack with the other sword. He landed lightly and swung the hammer again, crouched low to knock out her knees.

Hela blocked the hit with a blade. She turned and slashed both forward. Peter leaned backward and the blades sliced through the air, missing him by less than an inch. 

He grabbed the goddess’ arm and pushed her forward, tipping her out of her battle stance. She stumbled for only a moment before returning with a powerful underhand swing. She moved so quickly that only Peter’s spider-sense had him leaping between the two blades and out of danger just in time.

Hela paused, still in a stance of attack. “You’re not unskilled,” she observed.

Peter tilted his head. “Thank you?”

“But you’re not good enough to beat me and you know it.”

Peter took a deep breath. “You won’t kill me. You want Thor.”

Hela hummed and shrugged, a little smirk on her lips. “Maybe I’ll take you captive and torture you until he gets here – if he ever does,” she teased.

Peter frowned. He shifted his stance, ready to attack. “Thor wouldn’t abandon his people.”

“Of course he would,” she scoffed. “He’s an Odinson.”

“He’s an Avenger .”

Hela raised an eyebrow. “Is that meant to mean something to me?”

Peter’s eyes narrowed. “It will.”

Hela moved as quickly as a viper. One of her swords disappeared and Hela threw a dagger through the air. Peter jumped and flipped. The dagger sailed past him, missing him by only a scant few millimeters. He tried to hit her back with Mjolnir, but she blocked it with her sword each time. 

Another dagger came and sliced across his arm. Peter hissed and dropped to a knee. Hela stood a few paces away, a triumphant smile on her face. Peter glared back. He charged her angrily.

Mjolnir sparked and hummed with power in every strike and swing. Peter felt the godly magic flow through him. The city faded to black. All Peter saw was Hela and the dangerous gray lines that stretched out beneath her. His foot stepped on one of the strings. Peter felt the hammer pulse in his hands and then everything shifted .

Peter blinked as the city came back to him. He was standing on the opposite side of the street now. He looked over his shoulder and found Hela standing with her back to him. She moved slowly, the way things always did when Peter’s spidey abilities were fully engaged.

Peter wasn’t sure how he had suddenly appeared on the opposite side of the street, but he wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth. He sprinted forward and swung Mjolnir with all his strength.

There was a sickening crunch as the hammer slammed into Hela’s side. The goddess grunted as the force of the hit threw her off her feet and several meters down the street. She hit the cobble street hard and rolled to a stop.

Peter stayed where he was, heart in his mouth. 

Hela looked up from her position on the ground. Her eyes were filled with a piercing intensity that Peter couldn’t name. Her lips curled into a hateful smile. She pulled herself up to her great height as if Peter hadn’t just crushed one side of her ribcage.

“So, the little godling can already use his abilities,” Hela called to him mockingly. “I must be going too easy on you.”

“Uhh, no, I don’t think so,” Peter immediately responded.

Hela’s response was to materialize several wicked-looking daggers, this time hovering in the air around her. 

“See, that feels excessive,” the teenager told her. “I’m not even sure what I did.”

“Better learn quickly,” she taunted. 

The daggers flew through the air, faster than when she'd been throwing them herself. Peter’s eyes widened. He flipped out of the way of two and hissed as two others nicked his arms. He used the hammer to bash back another flying dagger. 

They kept coming at him from every direction. It didn’t matter how fast he was, there were simply too many projectiles. He was just getting into the rhythm of it when he turned and Hela’s sword was thrust deep into his stomach. 

Peter gasped. He dropped Mjolnir to grab Hela’s wrist where she held the sword currently piercing his stomach. It was almost exactly where she’d stabbed him the last time. Peter looked up, eyes wide and unable to speak past the unbearable pain.

“Poor little godling,” Hela crooned tauntingly. “Thor is lost, your people are in hiding. Asgard is mine .”

Hela twisted the sword. Peter whined pitifully. 

“Tell Heimdall I want the sword. I will kill any remaining citizens until he gives it to me. He’s free to watch,” she finished with a cruel smile. 

With that, Hela pulled the sword out. Peter screamed. He fell to his knees, hands pressed tightly against the wound in his abdomen. 

Hela’s sword disappeared. She picked up the fallen Mjolnir. Peter watched, desperate and unable to move, as she crushed the hammer between both her hands.

“ No!”

The pieces of it crumbled to the ground. 

“Pitiful,” Hela scoffed. She turned and headed back towards her castle.

Peter slumped forward, unable to remain sitting up any longer. He lay there in a growing pool of his blood. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he stared at the broken remnants of Thor’s hammer. 

“I’m- I’m so- sorry,” he cried. 

He pressed his hands against the gaping wound in his stomach. He was losing a lot of blood. He was probably losing too much blood. He’d healed so fast before, but maybe that was a one-time thing? It was probably a fluke.

Peter closed his eyes and tried to regain control of his emotions. Breathe, he thought to himself, just take deep breaths. 

A gentle, comforting hum reached him.

Peter’s eyebrows scrunched up. He opened his eyes and saw the broken pieces of Mjolnir. The hum emanated again. 

“You’re- you’re okay!”

Peter tried to move and immediately gasped with pain. “Oh, wow, okay. Gotta do this slow.”

He cried out as he pulled himself up to his knees again. He kept his hands pressed to his stomach. They were completely red. His shirt was soaked through. 

“We gotta- we gotta get you outta here,” Peter told the hammer breathlessly. “Leave no man behind.”

The hammer hummed in response. 

“Yeah, yeah. Just- uh, give me a sec.”

Peter took a couple of more deep breaths. He could feel the faintest itch along the edges of his wound. His healing ability was finally starting to kick in. Peter’s entire body shuddered with relief. 

He nodded to himself. “Alright.” He picked up the first piece of the hammer and immediately winced. It was covered in red from his own blood-soaked hands. “Sorry.”

He gathered the pieces into his shirt like a little basket. One hand held the edge of the shirt up against his chest to keep the pieces of the hammer contained. His other arm pressed against his stomach in the vain hope of keeping his internal organs in place. 

Peter stumbled to his feet and despite the intense pain, he began to move towards the edge of the city where he could see the forest. His head spun as he made his way through the streets. They were completely empty. Heimdall and the Einherjar had done their jobs in getting everyone out. 

Peter forced himself not to sag in relief when he reached the treeline. He still had a ways to go and he had to try and stay aware enough not to lead Hela straight to the people. He didn’t think Hela was following him, but he couldn’t take any chances. 

He looked down at the pieces of Mjolnir in his shirt. “Any ideas where to go?”

The hammer pulsed in response.

Peter leaned his shoulder against a nearby tree. He closed his eyes and took a moment to catch his breath. As he rested, his mind swam. The pain was creating a sort of haziness around his thoughts. He got lost in it for a moment, unable to make his body move now that he had stilled.

In the dark fog of his mind, Peter found himself walking through black emptiness. His pain felt distant here. Mjolnir sat heavy in his hand, once again unbroken. Peter looked around the darkness as he walked. He was searching for something. He had to find something . 

There were paths of red string spread out across the darkness in front of him. All of them branched out from his feet. He knew, instinctively, that he had to choose a path. He just didn’t know which one he was supposed to choose. 

He chose a random one, on a whim, and followed the red string. He walked and walked for what felt like miles. When he finally reached the end, he found himself standing in Ned’s bedroom. It was dark outside and a person was sleeping restfully in the bed before him.

“Ned,” Peter whispered.

He looked around the room. It looked the same as always. Legos hung from the ceiling and sat proudly on shelves. Ned’s desk was covered in a mixture of his school things and the few pieces of salvaged tech that Peter had given to his friend before moving into foster care. He hadn't seen Ned in a few weeks. They texted a bit, but only when Peter had wifi and could message on Insta. Ned had sent him a reel of a Lego challenge that morning. That felt so long ago now.

A pile of papers sat on Ned’s desk. They had one of Peter’s school pictures on a white sheet with the words “Have You Seen This Teen?” written in bold above it.

Peter’s gut twisted. 

How long has it been since he left Earth? It felt to Peter like ages, but realistically he knew not even a day had passed. But what about on Earth? He didn’t know how long it took to pass through the Bifrost. At least a few days would have needed to pass for Ned to be putting up wanted posters. Peter felt bad for worrying his friend, but he couldn’t do anything about that right now. He had to find the people of Asgard. 

Peter gave his best friend one passing glance before turning and following a new red string outward and away from Earth. This one took him to a large theater filled with the muted sound of shouting. Standing in the center of the arena was Thor. He was dressed in different armor, with a helmet on his head and decorated in blue face paint. 

Thor roared at his opponent.

“Thor!” Peter shouted.

The god inhaled sharply. His head turned towards Peter.

“Peter?”

A massive green blur slammed into Thor and the arena disappeared. 

Peter gasped as he found himself back in the empty blackness of before. He turned back towards the string that would lead him to Thor but didn’t move. Thor had told him to help the people. He had to help Asgard. 

Peter’s face crumpled. He wanted, more than anything, to go home and curl up between his aunt and uncle. A sad, grey string stretched outward from beneath his feet. Peter knew instinctively that the gray string would lead him to May and Ben. He stepped forward, but the string turned to dust underfoot and reappeared slightly to the right. He tried again. The string turned to dust and reappeared where it had first been again.

It wasn’t an option anymore. Aunt May and Uncle Ben were gone. They would never be an option for him again. 

Tears streamed down Peter's face. Mjolnir hummed soothingly in his hand. Peter sucked in a shaky breath as he tried to pull himself together. He roughly scrubbed his tears away.

He had a mission. He had a job to do. People were counting on him. He thought about May and Ben -- " With great power comes great responsibility." He could do this.

With a deep breath, Peter began to follow another red string. This one, finally, led him to the people of Asgard. The temple was made of stone, carved out of the cliffside, and hidden amongst the trees. It looked like there were already patrol routes set up around the perimeter to keep the people safe.

Peter entered the temple. He walked through the main hall, with crying families on either side of him. The people huddled together with no distinction of class left between them. The soldiers handed out blankets and carried around skins of water. 

“Your Grace,” a deep voice said, alarmed.

Peter looked up and met the glowing gold eyes of Heimdall. The man looked directly at Peter with no small amount of alarm.

“Your Grace, you must return to yourself.”

Peter tilted his head. He had just gotten here. That was what he was trying to do, wasn’t it?

“Your Grace ,” Heimdall stressed. He took a step forward. “You must awaken – now .”

Heimdall’s final word echoed like a magical order. Peter gasped as his body flew back. The temple disappeared as he was thrown backward through the black nothingness.

Peter awoke with a cry. The pain that crashed into his senses almost knocked him back out again. The slight reprieve of before made the pain of his wounds feel a thousand times worse. His stomach was itching like mad from a combination of healing and the fact that his shirt had started to dry into the wound.

Peter looked around. It was dark. He was sitting at the base of a tree. How long had he been there?

“Okay,” he whispered to himself, breathless, “Okay. Come on, Pete.”

Getting to his feet was one of the most painful things he’d ever done. He was crying by the time he was standing once again. Peter turned and he saw the red string that would lead him to the temple burning brightly amongst the forest floor. Mjolnir hummed warmly against him, still safely tucked into the fold of his shirt, as he made his way toward the others.

Peter wasn’t sure how long he walked. It had been dark when he awakened and it only grew darker as he moved through the forest. Eventually, the sound of movement reached him. 

Peter kept moving. 

He spotted flickering lights through the foliage. It was a party of soldiers heading towards him. They sounded like they were moving urgently. Peter wondered if something bad had happened to cause them to worry.

He came to a stop when the first soldier spotted him. A whistle sounded and then an entire contingent of soldiers were converging on him. 

“Your Grace!” several exclaimed upon seeing them. 

Arms grasped Peter and helped him to the forest floor. He didn’t complain, but he didn’t relish the idea of trying to stand up again. The first time had been awful enough. Peter’s arm was lifted and when they saw the remnants of Mjolnir, a hush fell over them.

“I tried to save it,” he whispered.

The men looked at him in confusion. Someone pressed something down on the wound in his abdomen. 

“Be still, Your Grace,” a warrior instructed. “We will tend to your wound and then carry you to safety.”

“I’m good. I can walk,” Peter insisted weakly, even as his eyes fluttered with the desire to close.

“Sleep, young prince.”

Peter’s eyes fell shut and he released a deep breath as he fell asleep.

Chapter Text

3

Peter felt a million times better the next time he opened his eyes. He was lying in a bed in a small room. Fandral stood in the room by the only window. It had no glass, but instead was an arch cut out of the stone to look out on the beautiful green forest beyond.

Peter stretched and yawned loudly.

“Your Grace!” Fandral exclaimed when he noticed Peter was awake.

“Hi,” Peter greeted sleepily. 

“Let me alert the others. Do not move, Your Grace.”

“I feel fine,” Peter said, but Fandral was already gone.

He looked around and frowned when he realized that Mjolnir was nowhere to be found. Where was it? He had collected it. He remembered that. He’d held it in his – dream? What was that? Peter's head throbbed. He needed water and a lot of food. His body healed itself from being stabbed twice in as many hours. Peter didn’t even know he was able to do that. Well, he hadn’t been able to do it before .

There was the sound of footsteps outside. Peter looked up and waited for them to enter.

“ If he’s well enough, he should do it ,” Volstagg stated in the hallway outside of Peter's room.

“ He’s a child ,” Hogun argued. “ He’s not even a teenager by Asgardian standards. He’s still a babe. We cannot ask him to speak to the people and even if he did, they don’t know him .”

“ They saw him wielding Mjolnir, ” Heimdall cut in. “ They know what that means. They will heed his word.”

“ You should do it, Heimdall. The people know and respect you.”

“They certainly do. But I am not their leader. A boy he might be, but he is worthy . Odin’s magic would not make it so if he weren’t worthy in all respects. The people needed to be assured that Thor has not abandoned them. The prince is the one to do that, not me nor anyone else.”

A heavy silence followed. 

Peter swallowed thickly from his position in the bed.

The door opened and the Warriors Three entered with Heimdall close behind.

“It is good to see you well, Your Grace,” Heimdall greeted in his deep timbre. He closed the door behind him. “Especially after such a foolish decision.”

“You didn’t argue at the time.”

Heimdall raised a dark eyebrow. “I thought that you would retreat after distracting Hela, not fight her.”

Peter frowned. “That wouldn’t have worked. And everyone is okay, right? It worked out.”

Volstagg burst into laughter. “Oh, he takes after Thor in the best of ways. Our King is also brave and daring.”

Fandral raised his eyebrows. “Those are not the words I would use.”

“Gentlemen,” Heimdall interrupted. He turned to Peter. “How are you feeling, Prince Peter?”

He wrinkled his nose at the address. “I feel fine. Hungry. I’m always hungry after using my powers to heal.” He looked around. “Where's the hammer? Or, uh, what's left?”

“We couldn't carry the pieces out of the forest,” Heimdall informed him.

“We almost couldn't carry you out of the forest,” Fandral explained. “But we were able to get you to roll over before you fell into a healing slumber.”

Peter's brows drew together. “I need to go get it. Hela can lift it. I don't know how -- she's definitely not worthy -- but she can-”

“-Later, Your Grace,” Heimdall soothed. “You must rest.”

“I'm fine! I'm totally healed up. Look!”

He lifted his shirt and showed off the bandages. He began to unwind them to show he was okay.

“Your Grace-" Fandral protested as he came around Peter's bedside. "Your Grace, please .”

Peter looked up, bindings half undone, and a frown on his face. “I can heal from a stab wound overnight. I just need to eat something before I get hurt again or it'll be slower.”

The men stared at him expectantly. Peter dropped the bandages with a sigh. He allowed Fandral to redress his abdomen.

“You have a strong grasp of your abilities for one so young,” Hogun pointed out with his arms crossed over his chest. He studied Peter with an intensity that the more friendly Volstagg and Fandral lacked. “And certainly for one so new to his godlike position.”

“I had powers before I met Thor. He didn’t know.” Peter stared at the four of them. “Should I clean up? I want to get Mjolnir after I go speak with the people.”

The Warriors Three looked startled. Heimdall only tilted his head.

“That’s what you want, right?” Peter’s lips twitched. “I have super hearing.”

Heimdall grinned. “Of course you do. Yes. We’ve managed to procure you some clean clothing. Someone will bring water for you to wash and food for you to eat.”

“Hela told me to give you a message.”

The room stilled. Heimdall leveled Peter with a serious stare. “What was it?”

“She wants the sword. She’s going to kill someone every day until she gets it.”

Heimdall sighed.

“The sword is like the key to the bridge, right?”

“Yes, Your Grace,” Heimdall responded gravely. “With it, Hela would be able to access any of the realms. She plans to continue her assault.”

“Assault?”

“A long time ago, before Hela was banished, she was power hungry. She wanted to conquer more worlds and expand Asgard even further. Odin felt her hunger for domination would never end. He locked her away.”

Peter’s face twisted. He felt a cold finger run down his spine. He shivered and his gut twisted. Peter shook his head and said, “You have the sword, right?”

Heimdall nodded. “I won’t hand it over. No matter what.”

Peter nodded too. “Then we have to save any people that were left behind. We can’t let them die.”

“It would be a worthy sacrifice, a few lives for that of the universe,” Hogun stated.

Peter frowned. “It would be an unnecessary sacrifice, especially if we can save them – which we’re going to do.”

The Warriors Three bowed their heads in acknowledgment. Peter turned to Heimdall.

"What should I say to everyone? I can like, read a statement? Mr. Hogun is right, they don't know me and I don't know them. It might be better if you tell me what to do."

Heimdall shook his head. "You are no puppet, Your Grace. I can guide you beforehand and would be honored to stand with you, but the words you choose should be your own."

Peter made a face. "Yeah, I'm not good at that."

"You will learn." He turned to the Warriors Three. “We should get the prince ready.”

The Warriors Three nodded. They bowed respectfully to Peter before leaving the room. Heimdall turned to Peter once they were alone.

“Now, how are you, truly?”

“Super freaked out. I don’t really know what’s happening. I feel like I had a dream about you and Thor?”

“You saw Thor while you were Soul Walking?”

“ Soul Walking?”

Heimdall nodded once. “It’s an incredible gift. One that very few people have the ability to use. Your grandfather, the late King Odin, was able to do it when he went into an Odin Sleep.”

Peter’s eyes narrowed. “Okay… so it wasn’t a dream?”

“No, Your Grace. Soul Walking, while it can happen when sleeping, is a special ability that allows the practitioner to use the Web of Life to travel across space – one can even use it to traverse across the realms.” He raised his eyebrows and nodded at Peter. “In the beginning, King Odin was only able to travel to see those he had a strong connection with. Over time, he was able to Soul Walk to anyone, anywhere. With some control, you can use it to move from place to place in this realm with ease. It is a skill that the late king taught Prince Loki when he was a boy.”

Peter tilted his head. “I think I did that with Hela, during the fight?”

Heimdall frowned. “What happened?”

“Uhm, I can see these lines sometimes? On the ground. Usually, coming off of people or leading me somewhere? And I stepped on one and the next thing I knew, I was on the other side of the street. It was wild. Both of us were surprised, actually.”

Heimdall nodded. “You need to learn control and you need to learn it quickly. I can help you focus your Sight, but traveling is something only King Odin would have been able to teach you properly.”

“You said Loki knows it too.”

Heimdall’s face was carefully blank. “He does. Loki’s magic is different though. He’s adopted.”

Peter raised his eyebrows. “So am I. Also, I was bitten by a radioactive spider. I think it’s safe to say my powers are also going to be different.”

Heimdall stared at Peter. "You were bitten by a spider?"

Peter stared back. "Yes?"

Heimdall looked as if he didn't quite believe Peter. He shook his head. "As far as teaching you goes, Loki doesn’t have as strong of an affinity for Sleep Walking as you seem to possess. Although, since it was a skill taught to him by his father, I assume that also affected his willingness to learn.”

“Did they not get along?”

Heimdall raised his eyebrows. “That is certainly a way of putting it. Loki was very close with his mother, Queen Frigga, your grandmother. She taught him almost all of the magic he knows.”

Peter raised his knees and wrapped his arms around them. “I’ve never had grandparents before.” He looked down. “I guess I still don’t.” He took a deep breath and looked up again. “So, will I be able to do that one day? Travel across the universe with my powers?”

“With lots of time, patience, and hard work. You’re a god now, Your Grace. The life you will live is considerably longer than that of a mortal. You have centuries to practice and hone your skills.”

A frown slowly overtook Peter’s face. “I don’t want to live forever.”

“No one lives forever. We all must one day come to an end. But for the people outside, hopefully, that day won't be too soon.”

He leaned forward. “What do I tell them?” he asked in a small voice.

Heimdall’s expression softened at the fear in Peter’s young voice. “You have lived through hard times, Your Grace. Tell them what you would have wanted to hear during your moments of fear and uncertainty.”

Peter thought about that for a moment before giving a single nod. A knock at the door sounded. Fandral entered with a bowl of water and some clean clothes. Peter was left to clean up and change. The clothing was different. The fabrics were thickly woven and the pants were a sort of soft leather. He felt a little like he was dressing up for a Renaissance fair. 

Ned would love this.

Peter took a deep breath as he fixed the simple tunic and pants ensemble he’d been given. He paired it with his black Vans, which definitely didn’t match but they certainly fit. Fandral and Heimdall were waiting when he exited his little room. Along with them were three guards. 

“Ready?” he asked.

“Whenever you are, Prince Peter.”

Peter wrinkled his nose. “I’m never gonna get used to that.”

Heimdall looked amused. “In time. Come.”

Peter followed Heimdall and Fandral down the corridor and into the main hall. Hundreds of people sat together, huddled close to the floor. The slightly stifled cries of children could be heard from every corner of the room. Guards walked out between the families as they passed out more blankets and skins of water. 

Right, Peter thought. Water and food. They would have to make sure they provided as well as they could for these people until Thor arrived – maybe even longer. He looked at all the people packed into such a small space and bit his bottom lip in worry. There were too many people, even if the main hall was really big. They’d have to branch out and see about moving people into side rooms or maybe other temples. But then they’d have to split the guard and Heimdall would surely be against that idea. So was Peter. 

Then again, splitting the people to make them harder to find was an idea that had some merit. It would keep Hela on her toes, certainly. Maybe they could create a false secondary hiding location? Make it look like people are being brought there. Set a few traps?

These thoughts raced through Peter’s mind in the short time it took him to get to the front of the hall. There was a raised dais and wooden throne of all things sitting there. Peter ignored the throne and turned out to face the sea of people in front of him. Scared faces stared back at him. Some others looked confused and more than a few looked distrustful.

Peter swallowed thickly. He raised a hand. “Hi,” he began haltingly. 

The empty silence that followed was deafening. Peter visibly winced.

“I’m Peter,” he continued. 

He looked to Heimdall desperately. The man nodded once.

“I’m- I lived in New York City when… when Loki attacked years ago. I- I know you’re scared. I was scared then too. But I want you to know that just like in New York when Thor came to save us, he’s going to come here and save you too. And in the meantime, I’m going to do everything in my power to keep you safe.”

He licked his lips and swallowed thickly. “Thor asked me to protect all of you and I’m going to do it. So just… ask if you need anything and- and we’ll do our best to keep you all comfortable.”

Peter tried to smile, but he was sure it didn’t come across. The people were silent as they stared at him. He didn’t think he helped much at all. He turned and made it to the edge of the dias before something compelled him to stop. He could feel it. He could feel the helplessness and fear in the room. These people were terrified. They had nowhere to go and seemingly no one around to save them. 

Peter turned back around and stepped back to the center of the dais. He stared out across the sea of people. "There's a story in my world," he told them, "called Pandora's Box. This girl opens this box and she releases all these awful things. Famine, war, disease. Everything is just unleashed and things look awful. It looks terrible. People are dying. No one can stop it. No one can help.

"And then, one day, the girl opens the box again. And there, sitting at the bottom was Hope. Because bad things happen, and sometimes it doesn't look like anything good will ever come again, but that's why we have hope. It's always there. So, don't give up hope, because it's not going to give up on you."

Another silence fell across the room. The people and the soldiers stared at Peter. Peter felt his cheeks burn. He fled the dais and rushed out of the temple hall. He stormed out of a backdoor into a courtyard overgrown with grass and trees. He gasped for breath. His heart was hammering inside his chest.

“That was bad,” he lamented. “That was so bad . Stupid. Stupid. Hope? Ugh.”

“It was great!” Volstagg denied in his loud baritone voice. “It was- it was a fine job, Your Grace.”

“A truly incredible effort,” Fandral agreed.

Peter’s skin crawled in a way that was both similar and completely different to his spidey sense. He turned, his shoulders hiked towards his ears like a cat with its hackles raised.

“I know you’re lying.”

“No…” Volstagg denied.

Peter narrowed his eyes. 

The rotund warrior visibly wilted under Peter’s glare. The young hero turned to Hogun and Heindall. Hogun had his arms crossed over his chest and didn’t say a word. 

“It wasn’t great,” Heimdall admitted.

Peter dropped his head back and sighed loudly. He ran his hands down his face before dropping his gaze to the cracked cobblestone beneath his feet. He took several deep breaths as he tried to manage his anxiety. 

"But," Heimdall continued, "you finished better. The people were affected by your story."

Peter turned away from them. "I am never speaking again," he whispered to himself. He pushed his mind away from the blank and scared faces of the people of Asgard and onto something he could fix. Food. Water. Safety.

Peter turned to the others. “How much food and water do we have?”

“There is plenty of fresh water that we can access from a stream that runs along the south side of the temple," Heimdall informed him. "Food will be harder to get as time moves on.”

“Right. Uhm… do you guys like, hunt for food?”

Heimdall nodded.

Peter nodded. “Is there another temple or any other areas like this in the woods?”

Heimdall’s eyes narrowed and his brow furrowed. “There is another temple to the east, but it’s closer to the castle. And two further north of it. This is the best temple to have fled to. It has the strongest fortifications and it was built after Hela was banished.”

Peter nodded. “Okay. Good. Mr. Fandral, I want you to take some of the army and go hunting by one of the northern temples for food.”

Volstagg shook his head, his red beard wagging with his confusion. “What? The army is Hogun’s to lead, Your Grace.”

“Yes,” Fandral agreed hesitantly, “and any hunting we do there would be difficult to carry back. We would have to dry it into rations which takes longer and the smoke might be seen.”

Peter nodded. “Okay.”

Volstagg and Fandral reared back.

Hogun smirked. “You want to make Hela think we’ve hidden in the north-east rather than the south.”

Peter shrugged. “It’s worth a shot. I don’t know how long it’ll last. Meanwhile, whatever hunting we do here will have to be small. Whatever food can be made easily indoors would be good.”

“We should steal some oats from the city while it’s still empty,” Volstagg suggested.

Peter’s eyes lit up. “That’s a good idea. Oats, beans, anything like that would be a big help, right?”

Heimdall smiled, a touch of approval on his face as he nodded. “It certainly would, Your Grace. Whatever men you send to the city will be at a high risk. It should be a small contingent. And whatever men get sent with Fandral to the north will be attacked.”

“It can’t be too many men,” Hogun added. “Or it’ll look less like a hunting party and more like a distraction.”

Peter’s mouth twisted. “I trust Mr. Hogun to organize that however he thinks it will be best and safest . I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

“This is war, Your Grace,” Hogun returned sharply. “Death is inevitable.”

Peter frowned. He didn’t want anyone to die. The only way out of war safely was to use diplomacy. 

“Let’s just… try to mitigate it, if we can.”

Hogun tipped his head but didn’t say anything else.

Peter nodded. “I’ll go into the city for the food.”

All four men immediately began protesting.

“I’m the best man for the job,” he argued over them.

“You almost died!” Fandral exclaimed.

“I’m better now though.”

“You don’t have control of your powers yet,” Heimdall rebutted.

Peter frowned at that. “I have control over the powers I need to get food.”

“Super hearing will do little to protect you from Hela,” Hogun spat angrily.

“I have more abilities than just that!” Peter protested. 

He turned around and leaped into the massive tree in the center of the courtyard. He disappeared amongst the foliage, moving as quickly and silently as he knew how.

“Your Grace!" Fandral called. "Your Grace, please.”

“That’s very impressive, Prince Peter,” Volstagg called in an almost pacifying way.

Peter fought not to grind his teeth. He glanced towards them. Once he had confirmed that they were looking into the tree at the wrong place, he dashed out of the tree's leaves silently and without notice. He stuck to the ceiling of the courtyard’s surrounding parapet and silently crawled back around to the others. The Warriors Three were still staring up into the tree, trying to call him back down.

Heimdall hadn’t moved, but he also showed no indication of having seen Peter leave the tree. The young hero silently leaped down. He inched forward and when he came level with Heimdall, the man’s head whipped around, golden eyes wide. A smile touched his lips and that glimmer of approval returned.

Peter got as close to Hogun as he dared before saying, “Boo!”

Hogun spun, sword drawn. Peter easily stepped out of the way. He grabbed the man’s arm and twisted his hand. The sword dropped to the ground. Peter twisted Hogun away and kicked him hard enough that the warrior was sent a few feet away before hitting the ground with a thud . 

Peter flipped in the air and landed on Fandral’s shoulders. He used his momentum to flip again, taking the much larger soldier with him. His hands hit the ground and shortly after, Fandral slammed face-first into the cobblestone with enough force that a few of the stones cracked.

Finally, he stood and on instinct, pressed two fingers to the base of his palm to web Volstagg to the trunk of the tree.

Peter wasn’t sure who was more surprised when a string of web fluid shot out of his wrist and webbed the rotund hero to the tree. Volstagg’s eyes were wide as he stared at Peter. A moment passed. 

Volstagg burst into joyous laughter.

Peter glanced at his hands as he swallowed his panic. Hogun and Fandral slowly stood as Heimdall joined Peter.

“Impressive,” Hogun stated and actually sounded like he meant it.

Peter blinked widely. He clasped his hands behind his back as his mind raced. “Thanks.”

Don’t freak out, he told himself. Play it cool.

“So, I’m gonna go get the food myself,” he decided.

“We should still send others,” Heimdall disagreed. “ With you,” he emphasized. “There are probably still people trapped in the city. You can get food, the rest can lead others out to safety.”

The Warriors Three nodded in agreement. 

“Okay. Let’s do it. We can grab Mjolnir on the way.”

They turned to leave.

Volstagg cleared his throat loudly. The three stopped and turned. The rotund warrior was still stuck to the tree. Thick ropes of web fluid were spread across his torso and arms.

“A little help, Prince Peter?”

Peter’s eyes widened. “Oh. I uh… it’ll dissolve in a few hours? Probably.”

Volstagg’s eyes widened. “What? No- No! Your Grace!”

“Sorry!”

Peter hurried away. 

><

Peter sat on the bed in the room he’d woken up in earlier that day. A large silver platter of food sat on the bed, mostly finished. He felt full again. The annoying itchiness of his healing ability at work was gone. The bandages had been unwrapped earlier too. Fandral hadn’t been able to hold back his awe at how quickly Peter healed.

From what Peter gathered, Thor was more durable than Peter but Peter healed a lot faster. Hogun had mumbled something about Peter being more like Loki. A comment that had Heimdall and the other two warriors glaring at the man. Peter hadn’t been offended, but it looked like the others thought he should be.

Now, Peter was supposed to be preparing himself for heading into the city. A cloak had been found for him, as well as a few daggers. Peter liked the cloak and knew the mottled greens would help him blend into the forest -- he'd read and watched Lord of the Rings. But the daggers made him uneasy. 

Peter picked one of the sharp implements up and turned it over. It wasn’t a gun, which would have been an immediate no from him, but it was still a weapon. Spider-Man didn’t use weapons.

Was he even Spider-Man anymore?

Peter’s gaze slid down to his wrist where he could see a small hole. He doubted anyone else would be able to spot it without a magnifying glass. 

“I have arm holes. What the fuck." He shook his head. "How is this even possible?”

Peter dropped the knife onto the bedspread. He raised his hand and pressed two fingers down against the base of his palm. A web shot out across the room. 

Peter’s concern only deepened. 

“Did the apple do this? Why? How?”

He rubbed a hand down his face. Maybe he should ask Heimdall about it. After they sneak into the city. He didn’t want Heimdall and the Warriors Three to be any more unsure of Peter and his abilities than they already were. 

“Guess I don’t need any knives,” Peter mused to himself. “I wonder if this affected any of my other spider abilities?”

He raised his hands and inspected them closely, as if he’d be able to notice any changes in them. 

“At least I don’t have eight legs all of a sudden.”

Peter shuddered at the thought. 

There was a knock at the door. Peter hopped up from the bed and exited his room. Hogun was waiting there for him. 

"I have the guard you will enter the city with. This way."

Peter hurried after Hogun. 

"And the group heading north?"

"A slightly larger group. They'll be out there for longer, they will need the men."

Peter nodded, fully trusting Hogun to organize and lead his army however which way it would be most effective. 

"I've also decided to send out Volstagg with a contingent."

"To the north as well?"

Hogun shook his head as they made it outside of the temple. "No. Volstagg will be leading a distraction on the south-west side of the castle. Fandral's contingent is meant as a long term distraction, they can't aide you today."

"We don't need aide, it's a stealth mission."

"A stealth mission that will grow more boisterous with every person you find and need to lead back here. The city is mostly empty. You will be easily spotted."

Peter nodded along. "Okay. That makes sense. So, Volstagg is leading a distraction from the opposite side of the castle?"

"Yes, it'll allow you to get closer to the castle where the nobles will be hiding. There's likely more of them that haven't cleared out. They would have thought they were safe."

Peter's lips twisted at that. He bit back his annoyance and focused on the fact that these were innocent civilians and they needed to be protected. 

"But you won't be able to access the castle," Hogun continued as they trudged through the forest. "And the closer you get to the castle, the closer you get to the distraction which will be... explosive."

"Okay. Cool. Get the people in the upper and lower city. Get food. Steer clear of the city. Gotcha."

They entered a clearing where a small contingent of men were waiting. They were dressed down, wearing similar clothes to Peter's but with leather armor overtop. None wore the glittering metal armor that the army had worn before. They were outfitted with swords, bows and arrows, and daggers. Peter made a mental note to take these guys to a Renaissance fair. He had a feeling that Asgardians would love it.

"These men are my best scouts," Hogun explained. "They work together often and are extremely adaptable. They are well trained and they are extremely dangerous."

Peter grinned brightly and waved. "Hi! I'm Peter."

In unison, the men clasped a fist to their hearts and bowed their heads. "Your Grace."

He made a face. "Never gonna like that," he mumbled.

"This is Balder," Hogun introduced. "He leads their party. Volstagg's contingent has already left. They have further to travel. Be careful with the timing of your escape from the city, Your Grace."

"Thank you, Mr. Hogun."

Hogun bowed before heading back towards the temple.

Peter turned back to the scouting party. "Okay... Uhm, introductions? You're Mr. Balder?"

The man was massive, easily as tall as Thor. He had long dark hair and bright blue eyes. He grinned at Peter's address. "Just Balder, Your Grace," he replied with a sort of fond amusement.

"Just Peter."

Balder narrowed his eyes as he tilted his head. "Prince Peter."

Peter shrugged. "Better."

Balder gestured to another man. "This is Frode, the most silent and swift of us."

Frode, a smaller, blond man tipped his head in greeting.

"And then Niel. He is our most learned. He is most often tasked with creating maps of the locations we are directed to scout out. He can count the number of an army at a thousand paces."

Peter nodded. "I don't really understand all of that but keep going."

"And these are our youngest monsters, Selby and Rune."

Two twin men who didn't look much older than Peter grinned and waved at the same time. They had a mischievous air about them that Peter immediately liked.

"Alright, cool. Let's do this. We need to start at the base of the city. I have to pick up Mjolnir on our way in."

Balder hummed. "That's a more laborious route, we should leave now."

"Lead the way."

They headed through the forest together. Peter found himself in the middle of the group with Balder and Niel at the front of the group. Selby and Rune bookended Peter on either side. The two were funny. Whispering jokes to Peter and telling little stories about the group's previous adventures as they went. Peter wondered again how young they actually were. The Warriors Three kept mentioning how young Peter was. But these twins didn't look much older than him. He wondered how aging worked for Asgardians. He had so many questions. They needed to get Google or a Siri. 

He felt the presence of the hammer before he saw it.

"There!" Peter rushed forward and dropped down to his knees. The broken, blood-covered pieces of Mjolnir sat sadly on the forest floor. Peter sighed as he picked up one of the pieces.

“I’m so sorry, buddy. I really tried to keep you together.”

He felt a responding pulse of magic from the pieces.

“You’re still there, aren’t you? We’ll figure it out. We’ll get you put back together. I’m really good at Legos. This is like Legos, right?” 

There was another answering pulse of magic.

“I’ll get you back together again before Thor shows up. He’ll never even know this happened. Our little secret, okay?” Peter looked up at Balder. “Hey, do you guys have super glue?”

Balder shot him a look of confusion.

“I’ll take that as a no.”

Chapter Text

Four

Peter stayed low, a dark cloak covering his head as he surveyed the streets leading into the inner city from the top of the tower he had scaled. He was on the edge of the middle city, just on the outskirts of the richest part of Asgard before they made it to the castle. He could see the castle gates from here. He could also see the small group of civilians standing in a courtyard with Hela. They were surrounded by some weird-looking soldiers. Hela had found herself an army somehow. That was an unpleasant development.

Mjolnir hummed in agreement at his hip. Peter had the hammer tucked away into a little leather pouch secured to his belt. He could feel the hammer’s warm magic like a security blanket at his side.

Peter crawled around the tower to the far side that faced away from the castle. Peter ran down the side before jumping off. He flipped through the air and landed on the balls of his feet, fingertips steadying him against the ground. The scouting party with him looked impressed at the display of athletics.

Peter stood. “Okay, so Hela has an army now.”

The soldiers made low sounds of alarm.

“She also has people up there. I assume they’re the ones she’ll start killing every day until she gets the sword. We need to get them out but we should do it as quietly as possible.”

“We were told not to go into the castle, Prince Peter,” Balder responded. “It is very dangerous, especially if Hela has an army now.”

Peter nodded. “That’s true, but there are people there who need help and we can’t just leave them. Volstagg’s distraction will pull attention away from the civilians. We might not be able to rescue everyone, but we can help some.”

Balder looked unsure. “Volstagg’s distraction is meant to help us get away, not get closer.”

Peter looked across at the wary faces of the soldiers with him. “I get this isn’t the mission you signed up for and it’s really dangerous. You don’t need to come. You can stay in the city, receive the civilians once they’ve escaped, and help them get to the temple with the food we’ve already found.”

Balder glanced at his men and back. He sighed. “We aren’t leaving you to fend for yourself, Prince Peter.”

“Well, I’m not leaving those people to fend for themselves either. Some of you should stay behind with the supplies and the civilians we’ve found in the city so far.”

“Alright. The twins will remain with the supplies and civilians in the town square. There are multiple roads that lead to the castle from there. That will provide us with different exit points once we’ve retrieved the civilians.” 

Balder turned to look at the twins who nodded and picked up the bags of oats that Peter and the others had gathered from the city. They turned to the small group of civilians and hurried them back towards the town square.

Balder glanced towards the sun. “Volstagg’s distraction will be going off soon. We should get into position if we’re going forward with the plan, Your Grace.”

Peter nodded. “Let’s go.”

They continued closer to the castle. They didn’t come across any more civilians. Peter assumed the rest had already been rounded up by Hela and were the ones they were on their way to save.

Balder led Peter, Niel, and Frode to the castle. Two guards stood at the entrance gates. Balder hissed at the sight of them.

“Draugr,” he cursed.

“What’s that mean?” Peter asked quietly.

“Not a what, Your Grace,” Niel whispered back, “but a who . The Draugr are ‘again-walkers.’”

Peter frowned. “I don’t know what that means.”

“The undead,” Balder explained grimly. 

“ Oh . Zombies, mummies, or vampires?”

The three older men blinked at him. “What?” Balder finally said.

Peter gestured. “You know. Do they eat brains or drink blood?”

“ Blood?” Frode whispered, shaken.

“Yeah like-” he put his pointer fingers by his mouth like fangs and made an exaggerated biting action and noise.

The soldiers looked horrified. “What manner of beasts walk on Midgard?”

“Oh, they're not real . Well, actually- I'm not sure. They might be real. I dunno.”

Balder slowly shook his head, eyes wide. “The Draugr are fallen brethren that now live in the halls of Hel.”

“Hell?”

“Aye,” Niel responded. “I’ve only heard stories of such creatures. Yet here they walk among us.”

“Hela is a truly terrifying monster,” Frode intoned.

Peter frowned at the Draugr soldiers. He narrowed his eyes and focused his vision further. The faces of the Draugr soldiers were pale and decomposed. Their eyes were a bright glowing green. Peter stared at the undead soldiers and felt confused. He expected horror and disgust at the sight, but there was something about the soldiers that felt… fitting. 

Peter felt a little niggle at the back of his head. It felt like his spidey sense trying to tell him something but for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out what it was. He needed to speak to Heimdall about this. Peter had questions and he wanted answers.

“Stay here,” Peter ordered as he moved forward.

“Your Grace-”

-Peter was already gone. He snuck close to the gate and then, before either noticed him, he webbed them to the stone walls. He webbed their mouths shut for good measure. Peter turned and waved to the others.

The soldiers rushed forward. 

“What manner of rope is this?” Niel asked.

“Spider web.”

“A spider ?” the soldier responded, alarmed.

Peter narrowed his eyes. “Asgard has spiders?”

“Aye,” Frode agreed. “Truly ferocious creatures. If you have wrangled the web from one, you must be an incredible warrior. I’m not sure why Heimdall and the Warriors Three would be so worried about you, Your Grace.”

“Huh.” Peter turned towards the castle grounds. “Let’s wait for Volstagg’s-”

-An explosion shook the ground.

“There it is.”

They turned and watched the smoke rise up from the south-west side of the castle grounds. The civilians were in the south and Peter and the others were sneaking in through the east. 

“Okay, let’s move. We don’t have a lot of time. Volstagg and the others have no clue what we’re doing.”

Together, the small group made their way through the castle grounds and towards the south courtyard. They ducked into alcoves as Draugr soldiers swept past them. Peter was grateful that Hogun had given Peter a scouting party. They were incredibly quiet and smaller than the hulking soldiers that Peter had seen standing guard around the temple.

They finally reached the courtyard and Peter gasped at the sight of the massive black dog that stood watch over the civilians.

“That’s a big doggo.”

“What?” Blader said.

“I bet he’s a really good boy.”

“He’s a beast ,” Frode hissed.

“The goodest of boys,” Peter whispered with determination.

“How are we going to get the people away from it?” the soldier pressed.

“I’ll distract him,” Peter eagerly offered.

“Your Grace,” Balder sighed.

Peter raised an eyebrow at the other three soldiers. “Do any of you have super strength and speed? Well?”

They shook their heads.

“Thought not. You sneak around. You guys are quiet and quick, that’s what we need. I’m gonna go find a stick.”

Peter snuck out of the hallway and into the courtyard on silent feet. He found a stick in the garden bushes as he descended the stairs into the courtyard and picked it up as he went. The massive black canine turned at the sound of the rustling bushes as he pulled the stick free.

As Peter made it to the courtyard center, he felt his body vibrate with excitement and fear in equal measure. The dog was much bigger up close. 

The dog – clearly a wolf – raised its hackles and growled at Peter.

“Hiya, doggo.” 

The wolf’s green eyes narrowed as it stepped closer and further away from the Asgardians.

“Who’s a good boy?”

The wolf’s head drew closer to the ground as his chest rumbled with another growl.

“I’ve got a stick,” Peter declared as he raised it. It might as well have been a toothpick in comparison to the dog’s massive maw. “But I think you want a bigger one. I’ll bring a bigger one next time. Or a treat? I’ll bring you a nice treat, how’s that?”

The wolf bared its teeth.

Peter stuck out his hand. “Don’t worry. I’m a friend. I’m a good guy. I’m really nice to doggos of all shapes and sizes. We can go for a walk. Wanna go for a walk?”

The wolf snapped at Peter.

Peter immediately retracted his hand with a nod. “Nope. No walks. You are a tired boy. That’s okay.” Peter grinned and tilted his head. “Next time?”

The wolf leapt.

Peter flipped out of the way and raced back into the castle. The massive wolf gave chase after him. 

“Oh my god ,” Peter laughed, feeling half delirious.

This was simultaneously the best and worst day of his life.

He dashed around a corner, flipped high into the air, and shot a web to swing through the halls of Asgard's palace. The wolf raced after him.

“Here, boy! Come on, Lassie!”

The wolf snapped his jaws at Peter as he swung through the air. Peter released his web, flipped, and shot another off. 

He shot a web at the wolf's nose. The canine reared back with a pained growl.

“Sorry, Airbud. Promise I'll bring a tennis ball next time.”

He shot around the corner and shot a web to the right. Then he lept to the ceiling and quickly crawled through the archway that led in the opposite direction. Peter stayed as still and silent as possible. He felt the castle walls vibrate as the wolf raced down the hallway and then turned after the scent of the web he had shot in the opposite direction. 

Peter waited for a moment longer before he dropped to the cobblestone floor of the enclosed courtyard he'd found himself in. The moment his feet hit the stone, he froze. Peter felt a surge of magic settle over him, warm and welcoming. Mjolnir responded to the hum in equal kind. His eyes immediately shot to the large golden tree in the center of the courtyard.

He felt a pull, drawing him closer. 

Peter edged closer to the tree, mindful of the fact that he was on a time limit that was slowly running out. 

A glint of gold at the base of the tree caught his eye. Peter inched closer. The gold glinted again and then Peter realized what was sitting at the base of the tree. They were gauntlets. 

“Huh.”

He picked up the golden gauntlets. They didn’t have gloves. More like metal bracers, Peter supposed as he turned them over in his hands. They had beautiful woven details etched into them. On the underside there was a small, almost indiscernible hole. Peter held them closer. The hole would fit perfectly over his new arm holes. That couldn’t be a coincidence.

Peter looked up at the tree. “Uh, thank you?”

He felt a warm, comforting hum in response. Peter blinked rapidly as his mind tried to process that the tree seemed to be responding to him. He tugged the bracers on. They fit perfectly over his forearms. Footsteps sounded from the castle halls. He could distantly hear Hela shouting orders. Time to go.

Peter turned and hurried out of the strange courtyard. He made his way back through the castle grounds, only encountering a few guards as he went. He webbed them up easily before moving past, barely breaking his stride. 

Peter met the others in the town square.

“Prince Peter!” came Balder’s relieved call.

“Let’s go!” Peter called and everyone began moving out. 

Peter tossed the largest bag of oats over his shoulder and took up the back of the group with Balder. Another explosion rocked the south-west side of the castle. Peter glanced over, alarmed.

“It’s Selby,” Balder explained as they hurried back to the Hraefnscaga forest. “The twins split up and Rune stayed behind. Selby went to alert Volstagg to set off another explosion to aid in our escape.”

“Oh, good thinking.”

“Did you kill the beast?” Balder asked.

Peter’s mouth flattened. “No.”

“Next time.”

Peter turned back to the forest. His brows drew together as he thought about what he’d have to do to win that wolf over. “I’ll have to bring a bigger stick, I think.”

“Perhaps an ax.”

Or a treat, Peter thought. He wasn’t sure where he was going to get peanut butter and a kong on Asgard, but he was willing to look around.

><

"Thirty more civilians were saved. It was dangerous of you to sneak into the castle like that, but not without its rewards. Good work, Your Grace."

"Thanks, Heimdall. Uhm, can we talk?"

"Certainly,” Heimdall gestured down the hall and the two began walking together towards the courtyard, “what is on your mind, Prince Peter?"

"I found a golden tree in a courtyard in the castle?"

Heimdall nodded. "Ah, yes, your grandmother."

Peter blinked widely. "... My grandmother is a tree ? No- wait. No grandmother. Thor is not my dad."

Heimdall hummed and tilted his head. “If I understand correctly from what I’ve Seen, you are without parents.”

“Yes. But Thor didn’t adopt me.”

“Odin adopted you as his grandson.”

Peter shook his head. “That’s not how it works.”

“He is king. Or he was. I think you’ll find that Thor will take his responsibility for your life very seriously.”

“That doesn’t make him my dad . He’s just… another guardian.”

Heimdall stared at him for a long moment. Finally, he said, “If that makes you feel more comfortable, Your Grace.” He tilted his head. “Might I tell you about the late queen?”

Peter sighed, feeling very much like he lost that battle. “Sure.”

"When Friga passed, her magic was placed within a tree sapling. It was placed in the courtyard and with her magic inside of it, the sapling grew to be a thousand years old in the time of three days. Her magic remains within even as she walks the halls of Valhalla."

"Oh… okay. Uhm, I found these at the base of the tree?" Peter raised his arms to show off the gleaming trinkets to the older Asgardian.

"Ah. A gift from your grandmother? They are an anchor."

"What does that mean?"

"They are a tool for you to use to hone your magic,” he explained as they entered the courtyard. “Loki was gifted daggers and Thor, his hammer. They are skilled enough not to need such tools anymore, but when they were children, they were given anchors to use to help them. It can also act as a magical device from which you can draw your godly armor."

They came to a stop beside the large tree in the courtyard.

Peter hummed in thought. "Armor? Like Thor and Loki? Hela has armor too. Does she have an anchor?”

“She was gifted Fenris as her anchor. It was the first and last time Odin gifted a magical creature to aid in the development of one's abilities.”

“You mean the big puppy?”

“Fenris is not a puppy. He is a fully grown and trained Asgardian wolf.”

“He's also a really good boy.”

Heimdall came to a stop and sighed. “Prince Peter, and I can't believe I have to say this, do not pet Fenris.”

“I wasn't gonna.”

Heimdall leveled Peter with a flat look.

“I wasn't!” Peter scuffed the toe of his Vans against the cobblestone. “Even if he is a really good boy.”

Heimdall sighed heavily again.

“Hey, can I have armor now that I have my own anchor?” His eyes widened. “What's it look like?”

Heimdall’s smile was small and amusement flickered in his gaze. "That is for you to decide. It is entirely in your hands. But you must choose a color to go with red and gold."

"Red and gold? Why?"

"You are a part of the royal family and like them, this is conveyed through the color of Odin – gold. It is in both Loki and Thor's armors – it was in Loki’s armor. He removed it after he learned he was adopted. Red is the color that Thor chose for himself many centuries ago. It is the color of your king and father. But whatever color you choose is an expression of yourself."

"Hela doesn't have any gold on her,” Peter pointed out.

"She was disowned by Odin. She cannot wear his colors."

Peter’s nose wrinkled. "She's still his daughter."

"She wants the destruction of Asgard and everything it means. She is no friend and certainly not family."

Peter’s mouth twisted. He felt his skin crawl at the damning words. Hela had come in swinging and clearly wanted control of Asgard, but Peter couldn’t help but feel like there was more to it. Between the Draugr soldiers and the big wolf, Peter knew he was missing something.

"Doesn't Hela get her power from Asgard?" he asked.

"You are correct."

"Then why would she want to destroy it?"

Heimdall was quiet for a moment. “The hunger that Odin saw in his daughter was ferocious. She was not pleased with the land that Odin conquered. She will stop at nothing to take all the realms, your home included. She wants total domination.”

Peter’s skin crawled. "They were conquering lands? Colonization is not cool, Heimdall."

"No, it most definitely is not cool . Odin stopped. Hela would not. She would stop at nothing."

“What about the Draugr? Who and what are they?” Peter questioned.

“Soldiers of the undead. Risen from their places in Hel.”

Peter's eyes widened. “Like Hell Hell? That’s a real place?”

“Hel – H-E-L. The land that Hela rules." Heimdall gave Peter a long, serious look. "All gods have a dominion. A god is a god of something. Thor is the god of thunder. Loki is the god of magic and mischief. Hela is the goddess of destruction."

"What am I the god of?" Peter wondered.

"That remains to be seen. You are young. Your abilities and your character develop alongside one another. I believe Odin knew, but he did not share the knowledge with me."

Peter took a deep breath. The idea of having dominion over an entire elemental or philosophical concept was extremely overwhelming. He hoped it didn't happen soon or quickly. He'd like a bit more time to figure out the ways the god-magic was effecting his spider abilities first.

"And so Hel is connected to Hela's ability?" Peter asked, pulling them back to the topic at hand.

"Hel is one of the places that souls go to live after their lives on the mortal plane is over. It falls under her control.”

“So it’s not like Earth's concept of Hell?”

“No, Your Grace.”

“What’s it like then?”

“I dare not cast my eye that way. But with Hela in charge? Most decidedly a dark and bloody place.”

Peter crossed his arms over his chest. He raised an eyebrow. “And that’s where Odin banished Hela to be for the last several centuries?”

“It is. But it is a place of her own making. If she does not like it, she can change it. Odin’s punishments are not without purpose. Thor was similarly banished from Asgard.”

Peter tilted his head. He hadn't known that. "He was?”

Heimdall nodded. “It was his first journey to Midgard. Mjolnir was charmed so that only he who was worthy could wield it.”

Peter nodded as he immediately connected that with what was now common knowledge on Earth. It was part of Thor’s incredible power. 

“He proved himself worthy, not just to Mjolnir but to his father as well.”

“So what did Hela have?” Peter gestured when Heimdall didn’t respond. “If Thor was given a chance to prove himself, I assume that Hela was too, right?”

Heimdall remained silent. 

“So Odin imprisoned her. He didn’t try to teach her a lesson.”

Heimdall’s golden eyes focused on Peter. “She wants control. Total domination and destruction. She is a goddess of a hell dimension. It is her nature.” He shook his head. “Do not pity her, Your Grace. Odin had the gift of sight. Even if you are to think he took drastic measures with his eldest, he knew what would come."

That response didn’t sit well with Peter. How hard had Odin tried to change his daughter’s ways? Ways that she had learned through her father? Was Hela punished for what she did or what Odin feared she could do?

Peter’s gut twisted. "And now we have to fight her."

"I'm afraid so."

He looked up at the older man. "That really sucks, Heimdall."

"Yes, it does."

><

“Here you go,” Peter said as he offered the young mother a blanket. “The soldiers are bringing some more fresh water. Just sit tight.”

He turned and headed back to the supplies. 

“Your Grace,” Fandral implored, not for the first time, “please rest.”

“I'm fine.”

“The circles under your eyes say otherwise.”

“The people here need help. There's not enough space or food or water-”

“-More water is on the way. Volstagg will return in the morning with food from their expedition to the north and Heimdall is taking care of the space issue. Please, Your Grace. The people can't see you struggle. They need your strength.”

Peter sighed. He felt bone tired but there was more to do. It felt like his patrol this past Halloween. It had been chaotic. He finally understood what his uncle had always been dreading when he went out as an officer on Halloween. Peter had patrolled all day and night and by the time he finally laid down to sleep, he didn't think he'd be able to get back up again for a week.

“Fine. I'll- I'll go lie down.”

“I will bring you food and water when it arrives.”

“Thanks.”

Peter spared one last glance towards the people before finally tearing himself away. He headed through the crowded halls, full of even more people seeking shelter and safety, before he finally found his room. 

He had tried to give the space up to a family, but no one would allow it. Now, dead on his feet and emotionally wrung out, Peter was grateful he had a small space to call his own.

He kicked off his Vans and crawled into the uncomfortable cot. Mjolnir hummed at his side. 

Peter untied the leather satchel and gently spilled the contents onto the bedspread before him. Staring at the pieces before him left him feeling hopeless. 

How was he supposed to fix this?

How was he supposed to fix anything?

Reports from the north indicated that Hela’s army was scouring the northern mountainside. She'd fallen for their ploy, but it was only a matter of time before she figured it out and then immediately set her sights on the other temples. 

Maybe Peter should have had Hogun's men set up their decoy elsewhere. Hadn't Peter essentially told Hela where they were? They were hiding in the temples. God, he was so stupid. 

What was he going to do when Hela figured it out?

Peter picked up one of the larger pieces of Mjolnir. He wasn't sure how he was going to do anything. Hela had an undead army. She had the advantage. She had Asgard's people on the run. 

Peter leaned back against the headboard with a sigh. 

“Okay. Table the temple problem. I can talk to Heimdall about it when he gets back.” He looked down at Mjolnir. “Maybe we can spend a little time trying to put you back together?”

The hammer hummed in response.

Peter tilted his head. He slowly raised the stone in his hand. “You don't sound weaker. But I'm not sure how to put you back together. You can go back together, right?”

The hammer hummed again.

“That's not entirely helpful, you know?” He looked up with a sigh. “I'm talking to a hammer. Maybe I do need to sleep.”

Peter collected Mjolnir back together and set it on the side table. He took off his gauntlets and rested them beside the pieces of the hammer.

Another thing to add to the list of stuff Peter couldn't figure out. Heimdall had said Peter would be able to call forth his godly armor from the gauntlets, but so far they'd just been pretty gauntlets that Peter wore.

He hadn't faced anything dangerous since they infiltrated the castle two days ago. Maybe it wouldn't work until he needed it? It was possible, but it didn't sit right with Peter. He felt like he should be able to call the armor whenever he wanted. 

Peter’s eyes grew heavy as he stared at the golden gauntlets and broken pieces of Mjolnir. He needed to figure this out and he needed to do it sooner rather than later.

The teenager could feel his anxiety growing in his chest. He needed to figure it all out or something bad was going to happen. 

><

Peter looked around, unsurprised to find himself in a cemetery on earth. He looked down at the tombstone before him.

Benjamin Parker and May Parker.

Peter hung his head and shoved his hands into his pockets. He always came here when he was upset or anxious about life. Ben and May had been so supportive of him. 

He took up Spider-Man for a number of reasons, but a large one was to make them proud.

“I hope you're proud. I hope I'm not a huge disappointment right now.” His eyes teared. “I definitely feel like one.” 

Peter looked up and took in a shuddering breath. The midday sun streamed through the trees. He couldn't feel the warmth. He couldn't feel anything physical when he was dream walking except for a floaty weightless sort of feeling. 

“There's just so many people who need me right now. And I don't know if I can help them. I don't know what to do, Ben. I could- I could really use some help.”

“ Peter?” a familiar voice exclaimed.

Peter spun around and his eyes widened. “Ned?”

“Oh my god. Peter!”

“Ned!”

The two rushed towards each other and Ned's arms went straight through Peter. The teenager gasped and took a step back. Ned took a closer look at Peter and took another step back as his eyes teared.

“Oh my god, you're a ghost. You're dead . Oh my god.”

“What?” Peter looked down at himself. He certainly looked a little see-through. “No, no, no.” He waved his hands.

Ned was already spiraling. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he rambled. “Flash was right. You're dead, you're gone. Oh my god. My best friend is dead and he's a ghost-”

“-Ned! I'm not dead. I'm not!”

Ned shook his head. “Look at you!”

“I'm dream walking.”

“What?”

“I'm not actually here. That's why I'm-” he gestured to himself, “-but I'm alive. I promise.”

Ned eyed him suspiciously. His tears hadn't stopped. “How do I know that's true? Maybe I'm just going crazy.”

“When we were seven, you told Miss Lewis that Betty broke the floor scooter but it was you.”

Ned narrowed his eyes. “Of course you know that. You're a figment of my imagination!”

Peter sighed. “Last week, you told Michelle that I could kick everyone's ass in gym class now and then suddenly stopped before telling everyone about- you know.” He gestured with his hand and made a thwip sound.

Ned's eyes widened. “I didn't tell Peter that.”

“I know I overheard you, man.”

Ned narrowed his eyes again. “Well, maybe you're just saying that to make me believe that when actually Peter doesn't know about that at all-”

“- Dude. Come on.”

“That wasn't last week.”

“What?”

Ned widened his eyes. “Peter, you've been missing for almost a month.”

Peter's face creased with worry. “I- I'm sorry. I didn't know. Time moves weirdly here.”

“Where are you, exactly?”

Peter sighed and ran a hand down the side of his face. “It’s- it’s complicated. Come on.” Peter sat down with May and Ben's tombstone to his back and Ned gamely sat down before him. Peter frowned at his best friend. “What’re you doing here ?”

Ned shot Peter a look. “A month , Peter. I come here every day. I figured you’d show up eventually.” He gestured to Peter. “I was right, but not really the way I was expecting. Where are you? When are you coming home?”

“I don’t know. Dude.” Peter leaned forward. “I'm on Asgard.”

Ned leaned forward too. “What?”

“Thor took me to Asgard.”

Ned gestured. "Wait- what? Why? When? How?”

“It's a long story. Odin adopted me, sort of.”

Ned shook his head. “You were adopted by a god?”

Peter made a face. “He kind of… turned me into one too?”

“What?”

“Stop saying what!”

Ned gestured wildly. “What else am I supposed to say?”

“I don't know," Peter whined. "It's just… Odin died almost immediately after. And then Hela, Thor’s big sister showed up and now she's trying to destroy Asgard and possibly everything else?”

Ned's eyes widened. He very visibly held back from saying ‘what.’ “What's Thor doing about it? He's gonna stop her right?”

“Thor isn't here,” Peter replied with a desperate tinge to his voice. “I have other people helping me. But… I'm kind of on my own. And everyone keeps calling me ‘Your Grace’ and ‘Prince Peter.’ It's really weird.”

“Prince Peter,” Ned repeated with awe.

“We're hiding in the forest and I just… Hela is going to find us soon. I don't know how I'm going to protect these people. I can't fight an army.”

“She has an army?” Ned replied in a hushed voice.

“An undead army.”

“Whoa.” Ned narrowed his eyes. “Zombies, vampires, or mummies?”

“That's what I asked!” Peter exclaimed.

“It's the most obvious thing to ask.”

Peter gestured to his best friend. “Thank you! I think they're closest to zombies but no brain-eating.”

Ned frowned as he thought that over. “Huh." He blinked. "Wait, what do you mean Goddess of Hell?”

“H-E-L. It's like Hell but not? She runs it. I think maybe it's named after her. Heimdall says it's probably super dark and scary.”

“You don't sound convinced?”

Peter tilted his head. “Who would want to live like that?”

“Probably a goddess of hell,” Ned replied with a shrug.

Peter hummed as he thought. He looked up. “Can you look her up for me?”

“Who? Hela?”

“Yeah, we've got stories of Thor and Loki on earth. There's probably information about Hela too, right? Google doesn't exist on Asgard. Or super glue.”

“You should invent it," Ned suggested enthusiastically. "You could be the Prince that brought the internet to Asgard!”

Peter laughed. “That's an idea.”

“I'll look her up. Do you… do you know when you'll come back?”

Peter shook his head. “I'm not very in control of this dream walking thing. It's new.”

“Yeah, you couldn't do this before, right?”

Peter shook his head again. “There are some other changes too. But- oh! Dude. I have magic gauntlets.”

“What?” Ned exclaimed before meekly saying, “Sorry.”

Peter waved his hand dismissively. “I'm supposed to call my armor from it like Thor can with Mjolnir. But it's not working.”

Ned tilted his head curiously. “How's it supposed to work?”

“Heimdall says I just envision what I want and then-” he gestured.

Ned narrowed his eyes. “So you get to design it yourself?”

Peter nodded.

Ned scoffed. “Well, that's your problem.”

“What do you mean?”

“Dude, I've seen your Spider-Man suit sketchbook. You went through a million designs. You didn't even choose it in the end! I did. You can't make a design choice unless it's engineering-related.”

Peter dropped his face into his hands. “Ugh. You're right. I'm going to be armorless because I can't pick between spider symbols and colors.”

“I can look some stuff up for options? It's kind of like outfitting our DnD characters, right? Which, come to think of it, I also chose that for you.”

Peter groaned. “Please, choose something for me. I'm hopeless.”

Ned smiled. “Any time. I'm just… I'm really glad you're okay, Peter.”

Peter smiled back. After a moment, he asked, “Is Flash really telling people I'm dead?”

“Oh my god, do not get me started.”

><

The sky was just beginning to lighten. Dawn slowly encroached over the quiet, sleeping forest. 

Peter stepped over a patch of twigs, moving silently without thinking about it. He felt invigorated after his dream walk to Ned. Peter had needed the comfort of a familiar face. Asgard was so far from Queens. Peter felt so small as he walked through the forest filled with trees that were impossibly tall and covered in leaves he'd never seen before.

Home sick. It was a feeling Peter was familiar with after being foisted into the foster system of New York City. He was used to moving from home to home, school to school. He hadn't had a home in a long time.

Peter looked up at the treetops as the sky lightened to a swirl of pretty pink and pale orange. He could feel the thrum of Asgard beneath his feet, the hum of Mjolnir at his hip, and the swirl of some unidentifiable energy in every breath he took. 

Asgard was foreign and different, but it also felt a little like home. That was the part that made it the most surreal. It felt like home, but not the home he grew up in. 

Uncle Ben and Aunt May would have loved Asgard. They'd want him to save it. He wondered if that's what Odin and Frigga wanted too. Did they want Peter to save Asgard? 

Peter sighed. He didn't know. At the end of the day, he probably would never know. He just had to keep doing what he always did: try to make his family proud. 

Today, that meant keeping the people of Asgard safe from the Draugr. He was setting up spiderweb traps across the forest. The closer he got to the city, the more he set up. He wanted it to become a hassle to search for the people. The more inconvenient he had made the job, the less likely it would be that Hela would keep sending her men out.

Peter dropped down from the high branches of a tree to the forest floor below. There was something a little further ahead. He narrowed his eyes and focused his enhanced sight. It was some sort of structure maybe. But it didn't look like it was made of bricks or stone.

Peter edged closer.

It was a carcass of a massive beast. It was long dead, only the bones left behind. Peter had only seen skeletons of this size in museums. It was gigantic. One of the rib bones was easily as tall as Thor.

Peter blinked as a thought occured to him. "Doggos like bones."

He jumped up onto the carcass and ripped one of the better-looking rib bones free. He glanced back towards the temple and then in the opposite direction where he knew the castle lied. Peter didn't hesitate a moment longer. He hopped down and began dragging the bone towards the castle. The city was empty. There were no more civilians left amongst the streets or even the castle. Peter was aware there were still people missing, but the patrols were bringing them back from the forest, so Peter felt confident that there were no prisoners under Hela's watch.

The castle, when he reached it, was suspiciously unguarded. Fandral had mentioned that they were sending out larger parties of soldiers into the forests. It was why Peter had gone out to set up traps. He hadn't realized that meant the castle was unprotected. Perhaps Hela didn't see any reason to guard it. It wasn't like Peter had made any moves to fight back. 

Peter wandered into the castle, the rib bone dragging behind him. He found his way into what he suspected was the throne room. At the end of the hall was a large throne. There were broken tiles across the floor. Peter tilted his head as he stepped through the rubble. The pictures on the tiles glittered and moved fractionally. He saw depictions of Loki and Thor as well Odin. The colors were bright and beautiful. It looked peaceful. 

Peter looked up. The images on the ceiling were completely different from the shattered ones on the floor. He saw bright reds and gold of flame and glory. Hela was depicted beside Odin in battle armor. It was a depiction of how they conquered the Nine Realms. Peter's jaw clenched. The images were reminiscent of depictions of battle from Earth's history. 

He saw Hela riding atop Fenris with his glowing green eyes. The Draugr were shown alive and well, marching on their king's orders. And at the center of it all was Odin, depicted as the great conqueror.

Peter looked back down at the broken tiles on the floor as he realized that the tiles showing a more peaceful history had been used to cover up the truth.

"History is written by the victors," he whispered to himself. 

Peter's mouth twisted. This was awful. Disgusting. It wasn't right and it wasn't fair.

"You're trespassing," Hela stated.

Peter's head whipped around. He stared at Hela. She looked better than before. Her hair was smoother. Her outfit was less bedraggled. She was stronger and healthier now that she had spent some time back on Asgard.

"Hi," Peter said lamely.

Hela tilted her head as she studied him. "Come to learn the true history of our nation, godling?"

"Heimdall told me," Peter responded sadly. He looked down at the destroyed tiles at his feet. "I don't get why he'd lie about it."

"He was ashamed. In Odin's mind, he was a great and kind leader. The truth is that he was a cruel and heartless dictator."

Peter gestured to the ceiling. "Is there anyone that still remembers this? Besides you and Heimdall? Does Thor know? Does anyone?"

"I doubt your father has been informed," Hela stated as she edged closer. "He wasn't born yet. The Asgardians don't live as long as us gods. Heimdall is special. Chosen by the gods with his gifts. He didn't live it, but he can See it."

Peter clenched his jaw. He felt torn. He didn't agree with what Odin and Hela did. He didn't agree with the actions that Odin chose to take with Hela. 

"Heimdall says you didn't want to stop. That's why Odin imprisoned you."

"That is correct," Hela drawled. "I was too ambitious. I wanted more."

"But you're the goddess of destruction," Peter returned. "Of course you wanted to destroy things. Our abilities and our personalities are connected. That's what Heimdall said."

"Again, he is correct. It is a cyclical question. Do I want to destroy because it is my godly dominion or is it my godly dominion because I like to destroy?"

"I don't know what I'm the god of yet."

"You're a child," Hela dismissed. "It will reveal itself in time." She tilted her head.  “What is that?”

Peter looked down at the massive bone he was dragging along with him. “It’s a bone. I brought it. For your- uh- your dog?”

Hela stared at him blankly. “You brought Fenris a treat?”

“Yeah. He seems like a really good boy.”

Hela pursed her lips. “He is a very good boy. Particularly when it comes to ripping apart my enemies.”

Peter nodded. “I’m glad you have him again and I’m sorry that you two were separated for so long. That’s not fair.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “No, it’s not. But little in life is fair.”

“Yeah, I’ve learned that too.”

Hela’s eyebrows creased as she studied him. “Have you? Little godling born with a golden spoon in his mouth was treated poorly?”

Peter narrowed his eyes. “I was human. Odin turned me into a god just before you arrived.”

Hela tilted her head as she studied him.

“I wasn’t born with a golden spoon or even a silver one. I know what it’s like to lose the people you love.”

“I don’t love Odin," she sneered.

“Well, yeah,” Peter agreed with a shrug, “he imprisoned you. He hurt you. I get that.”

“You wish to join me?” she asked with a smirk.

Peter studied Hela curiously. “And do what? Hurt the people of Asgard? Your people? You just told me none of them were around when this happened.” He gestured to the ceiling. "They don't know who you are and they don't know how you've been hurt. They also weren't the ones who did it."

"No, but Odin loves them." She stepped closer. The tiles cruched beneath her boots. "And I delight in the idea that Odin will watch from Valhalla as I destroy what he loves most."

"Asgard?" Peter returned in disbelief.

"His legacy. His power."

Peter nodded. “Okay, I get that. But the people are innocent. They’re your people too. Destroying Asgard isn’t going to bring any good to anyone.”

“I’m not going to destroy Asgard.”

“But you are," Peter argued. "Asgard isn’t this place, it’s the people .”

“Don’t be silly," she scoffed and turned away.

“On Earth – Midgard – whatever ," Peter gestured with his free hand, "my ancestors were forced from their home. A dictator basically decided they weren't allowed to live there anymore. He slaughtered them. People hid. They ran. We survived and we built communities elsewhere. We still exist. We’re still a community of people. A place is just a place. It’s the people that matter.”

“ I never mattered," she raged, her fury bubbling over.

Peter forced himself not to flinch. He stared into Hela's green eyes. “You matter to me.”

Hela didn't respond. She stared back at Peter for a long moment looking away. She swallowed visibly. When she turned back to him again, a veil had been cast over her emotions.

“We’re coming upon the part of this interaction where I try to kill you," she told him simply.

Peter nodded. “You’re not actually going to though, right? You wanna keep me alive for when Thor and Loki get here.”

Hela tilted her head. “It might be more fun to see his face if I have your body strung up at the gates.”

“Oh," Peter shook his head, "I don’t like that plan.”

Hela smirked. “Better put up a good fight, godling.”

Peter dropped the giant bone and leapt out of the way of one of Hela's flying daggers. He landed on a pile of crumbling tile and leapt into the air again just as another dagger flew past him. Peter shot a web into the high rafters of the throne room and slung himself into the air. He webbed around the room, dodging daggers as he went.

Peter looked at his golden gauntlets. "Come on. Come on. Work, you stupid things."

One of the daggers cut the web Peter was using. His stomach dropped as he suddenly plummeted through the air. He hit the ground hard. The wind was knocked right out of him. The room swam around him. Peter's mind grew hazy. The webs of red and grey blurred in and out of focus. A flash of red he wasn't expecting jumped out at him.

Peter frowned as he focused his vision. There, beneath Hela’s feet, was a bold red string reaching out into the city. Hela didn't have any red lines when she first appeared. Everything she touched seemed to turn to grey and dust. But now she was connected to something. Fenris?

A blinding pain erupted in Peter's leg. Peter screamed and grabbed his thigh where a dagger was now embedded.

"Stay focused, godling," Hela warned.

Peter gasped and whined. He ducked out of the way of another dagger. "Right! Focusing."

Peter lept to his feet and released a painful whine. He dropped back down. "Wait!" he shouted when he saw Hela levitate another dagger into the air. "Time out! Time out!"

"What?" Hela hissed.

Peter touched his hands together in the 'time-out' sign. "Time out? Like pause?"

"You want to take a break?" she sneered.

Peter widened his eyes in a way that had always worked on Aunt May when he wanted something. "As everyone keeps telling me, by Asgard standard I'm like a baby. Babies get breaks, right?"

Peter glanced down at his bleeding thigh. He pressed his hands to it and hissed in pain. Take the dagger out or don't take the dagger out. Fandral had given him a pretty serious talking to about taking the knife out last time. Peter knew he'd never hear the end of it again if he did the same now.

"Fine."

Peter looked up, shocked. "Really? I mean, great! Great. Thanks." He released a heavy breath of relief.

Peter licked his lips and glanced up at Hela. He focused his gaze for those webs he could see with this new extension of his ability. He could see the strong red thread that connected her to Fenris. There was another red line. It was faint and as Peter watched, it deepend in colour until it was as strong as the one that connected Hela to Fenris. 

The new line stretched the short distance from her to Peter. Connected. Peter felt the significance of it reverbrate through his body. They were connected.

Peter grinned.

“What're you smiling about?”

He looked up and smiled blindingly. “Hey, Auntie Hela?”

Hela hesitated at the address. She tilted her head curiously. “Yes?”

“Have you ever played Dungeons and Dragons? I bet you’d be awesome at it.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I’ve been in plenty of dungeons, some even had dragons.”

Peter’s eyes widened. “Really?”

Hela’s lips twitched. “Really.”

“That’s really cool. I wanna see a dragon.”

Hela opened her mouth and the line connecting them grew a bit brighter. She swallowed whatever it was she was going to say. “I’m going to need that dagger back now.”

Peter looked down at the knife in his thigh and back up again. “Finders keepers?” he suggested hopefully.

Hela shot him a flat look. “Fine. Here.” She marched forward and stabbed another dagger into his gut. “It’s a matching set.”

Peter whined. “Thanks.”

Hela smirked and walked away. "Go crawl back to your people, godling. If you're still here when I return, I will feed you to Fenris instead of the bone."