Norway C.E 261
The wind cut through the assembled army, whipping capes and flags. It came off the sea, but it only smelled of death.
It smelled good, at least to Hela's tastes, though the assembled Asgardian's retching told her they felt differently. Perhaps the scent of putrefying corpses was not universally appreciated. Their loss.
In the distance, a speck appeared in the air. "It appears our scout has returned." Her father remarked, as if discussing the weather. His words were borne out, as the speck resolved into the unmistakable form of a Valkyrie atop her steed. The warrior more crashed into the ground than landed and staggered to her feet.
"Well?" Hela demanded.
"The other gods-" The woman gasped, before taking a deep breath to collect herself "The other gods are dead or have fled."
"Fled." Odin said. "Where?"
"Zeus is taking his court and founding a city far away from Midgard- he's calling it Omnipotent City."
"Seriously?" Hela scoffed "A wretched name. Fitting for someone so vain."
But the woman, still nearly hysterical, kept speaking despite her. An insult. Hela would have to deal with her later "We're the only ones left; the only pantheon left on Midgard."
"Aside from Demogorge." Odin noted "This is troubling."
"But it is also an opportunity." Hela smirked. "Father. Midgard could be ours."
"If we can stop the beast that slew the others." Odin tempered. "What cost to our army, to our people would you pay for dominion over Midgard?"
"Any cost." Hela said decisively "But you needn't worry father. Leave the God-Eater to me." She called Mjolnir to her, and it sprang from the ground into her hand.
"You can't possibly expect to defeat it alone."
"I'm the goddess of Death, putting down rabid beasts is my duty."
-----
"I had hoped I would never see you again like this."
The impact of the gad landing behind him rattled him like an earthquake, but the power approaching had been obvious well before he had arrived. He had known that his own presence would be equally apparent to the God-Eater, and that it would be drawn to him like a vulture to carrion.
"Then you should have let her kill me." A deep, cavernous voice returned. Odin finally turned. "You showed me mercy. You were weak."
Demogorge was a monstrous thing, towering above him like a mountain. Its leathery, blackened skin still hissed and popped with residual heat. Odin didn't bat an eyelash. "It wasn't mercy, Atum." He said "She always posed a greater threat than you."
"Where is she."
"Does it matter? I'm right here, at your mercy, it would seem."
"I didn't come here for you. I came here for her. I came here for revenge!"
-----
She breathed it in- the careless destruction that the beast, Demogorge, wrought. The residents of the small city were Norsemen, hardy folk, but they were like ants to a god. They pleaded to Odin for salvation. There would be no salvation, there was only her.
For with every death, Hela grew stronger.
Finally, as the cries faded out, Hela stepped out of the shadows. "Enough."
Demogorge twitched toward her. "I was wondering if you would show, little god." His voice rumbled like an avalanche. "But you waited too long. Your people are dead."
Hela sneered in disgust. "You think I weep for them? I don't. There will be others, swarms of them begging for my mercy."
"And yet here you are."
"You only made one mistake. Those people. They weren't yours to reap. They were mine." She unleashed a volley of blades that pierced through Demogorge's thick skin. He howled and reared back, before slamming two clawed fists into the ground. The world seemed to uproot itself as debris was flung in all directions, but Hela was already airborne, keeping up a steady hail of blades on to monstrous god as she arced through the air and landed gracefully. Demogorge roared in fury and anticipated her landing with another thunderous fist plunging into the ground.
This time Hela was blown back, her body slamming through trees until it was eventually deposited on a mountainside. She grunted as she regained her footing and rolled a crick out of her neck. Demogorge was massive, but slow, and Hela had plenty of time before he upon her again. This time she aimed for its massive wings, forcing Demogorge into a plummeting descent. He impacted the ground, once again flinging earth into the air, and lumbered towards her- an unstoppable machine. No matter how many wounds she gouged the beast with, it just kept coming.
Until he had her, on massive, bloodied clawed hand grabbed her in its crushing grip and lifted her up into the air. His furious eyes met hers. "ENOUGH!" He bellowed. "Your soul is mine."
The irises of the god's eyes had been pure black, but now they were glowing green. Hela understood immediately what was happening, what the root of Demogorge's power was. This was the power of souls and of death. This was the power that belonged to those who'd been touched by Death. It was Hela's power, and this beast was unworthy of it.
That had been how he'd killed the other gods and taken their power, he had taken their souls and eaten them. And now he was going to try to do the same to her.
To her.
She did not know if he was simply ignorant, or if the beast was dumb enough not to understand to implications of her divinity. She was the goddess of death, to try use her own power against her was folly. Power surged within her, cresting to new heights, with will alone, she summoned Mjolnir, and the sheer speed and force of the hammer jolted Demogorge's grip, allowing her to slip free. Hela alighted on the ground and pushed, channeling her power through Mjolnir.
Spikes erupted from the ground, spearing into Demogorge's gut, and then branching out like in a fractal pattern. Each new wave of growth drew another convulsion from the deity, and another pained groan. She drove another spike into its head, and that too branched, until the creature dissolved into rubble.
Hela walked forward, brimming with power. There, in the center of it all, was Atum, the god of the sun. He was faint, shimmering faintly yellow, almost as if he'd been reduced to a ghost. He was on his knees, head bowed in shame, brought low by her. She would kill him, Asgard and Midgard would celebrate her for slaying the host of the beast that had terrorized them, and she would cement their dominion over this world. Killing a god… that would give her power. And killing Atum…
But before she could, Odin stepped between them. "A little late, father." She sneered "Your dutiful tool has destroyed another threat, are you not proud?" The Valkyrie, the most loyal and elite of Asgard's warriors, had followed him, and were standing at attention.
"You've done enough, Hela."
"No, I haven't." Hela declared "I haven't even gotten started, father. This is just the beginning; Midgard is just the beginning. Asgard's glory will know no limit!"
"I'm sorry." Odin said.
"You are sorry." Hela dismissed "You've-" She stopped in her tracks, gleaning the meaning of his words. Moments later, she felt a powerful force yank her back.
"I can not let you do this." His words sounded distant now. She'd been pulled back, into a pocket dimension of sorts, a piece of the world had been chipped off from the whole, with her in it. There was still a link to Midgard, but it was a rapidly stretching tunnel. "And if I don't stop you now, I fear I may never be able to."
Hela almost couldn't believe that this was happening. That her own father had betrayed her. She had thought he'd been softening, but he had just shown her that he could still be cruel. Shock turned to rage. "This isn't over!" The link to the outside world hadn't been seered, she could still break free. She propelled herself forward, her magic surging against Odin's- his binding, hers straining to break free. The tunnel distended and buckled under the stress of their clashing magic.
"You must stop her from breaking free, at any cost. Valhalla will be your reward."
Ah, he was sending them to their deaths. The Valkyrie streaked in, honorable and beautiful on their winged steads, perfectly, obedient soldiers for Asgard. They were doomed, just as she was. Hela knew, at this point, that she was trapped. Odin had stacked the deck and ensured that she would be bound. All she had left was her rage, and many targets to take it out on. So she dealt out death, as was her nature.
And then she didn't even have that. The Valkyrie had been slayed, and eventually time weathered down even the embers of her rage, until they were little more than bitterness and resentment. Only one thing kept her going, the knowledge that one day, her father would falter, and when he did, she would reassert her rightful place in the world. Revenge, after all, was a dish best served cold.
-----
The portal appeared just as Demogorge began to bring its fist down upon Odin, who was in no hurry to avoid it. Stephen Strange blinked in shock, and then promptly whisked him through another portal, depositing him far away for the blast radius. Demogorge's blow came down hard, but there was no one there to feel his wrath.
From a safe distance, the four Avengers piled out, taking in the sheer scope of their foe. Demogorge was like a mountain, with an oblong, deformed head, clawed hands that could pummel city blocks and a wingspan that could shadow a city itself. In terms of sheer size, Harry had never seen bigger. He remembered feeling tiny next to a Basilisk and a Hungarian Horntail, but this was in a completely different category.
How could they possibly beat that?
Thor, however, was gobsmacked for a different reason. "Father?" He gaped "What? I thought you were in Asgard!"
"I'm sorry, my son. But you have been… deceived." Odin said "I haven't been in Asgard for some time."
"Then… who…" Thor's words stumbled to a halt as realization settled in "Loki."
As alarming as the prospect of Loki being on the throne of Asgard was, it was by far the less immediate of the crises they faced. Strange attempted to trap Demogorge in the mirror dimension, but the deity broke through it like shattering a pane of glass. Wanda's attempt to restrain him, even just one hand, was similarly brushed aside. It was Harry's turn.
As he'd expected, his standard repertoire of spells were useless, bouncing off Demogorge's hide. He followed that up with gouts of fire, arcs lightning, and volleys of blasting curses, but they seemed to do little more than irritate the massive creature. He was saved by his seeker training, as out of the corner of his eye he spotted Demogorge's long, whip-like tail lashing towards him. Harry apparated away and began his assault from another angle. He might as well have been chipping away at a mountain, for all the progress he made. Thor's lightning and hammer were about as successful- tearing away chunks to no noticeable effect.
"Okay, regroup!" Harry called out. The four collected themselves next to Odin, who had watched the display dispassionately. Harry conjured a large gout of water that drenched Demogorge, and then froze it. Hopefully that would be enough of a distraction for them to come up with some sort of plan. "I think we need backup."
"I can have my entire ballistic payload over to you in about ten minutes." Stark chirped over comms. "Think that'll be enough?"
"Worth a shot." Harry shrugged "Send it. And get as many drones in the air as you can, we may need them to buy time. We need to make sure he stays away from anywhere populated."
"You're in a pretty good spot." Natasha noted "Only a few small fishing villages nearby, we're working on evacuations now."
With that quick breather, the four returned to battle. The first, more explorative attacks gave way to a more coordinated offensive. Harry, instead of wielding lightning directly, channeled it into Thor, who could utilize his element of power far more effectively than Harry. The mighty bolt that the god unleashed was blinding, and it had Harry tasting ozone even from ten meters away. Demogorge had staggered back, and bore a new scar, but hadn't been put off balance for more than a few seconds. "Ah!" He crowed, voice deep and powerful "Godspawn. I should have guessed. Another one of Odin's, I will have fun with you."
Something about that niggled at Harry's mind. Another? But he set it aside for at time when they weren't fighting for their lives.
At that moment, Strange opened a series of portals, and massive gouts of water began cascading down on the god. Harry had his cue, and once again tried freezing him in place. Demogorge roared in indignation as he shredded apart the ice as quickly as it formed. This was fine, it had only been meant as only a distraction. As discretely as he could, Harry had summoned a massive, sharpened metal spike, and Wanda was powering up, waiting for the perfect moment to… strike. There was a sharp crack as Wanda launched the blade through the air, and in the blink of an eye it was no longer in her hands but in what passed for the god's forehead- a perfect shot.
And yet… Demogorge roared in pain and rage and ripped the metal rod from his head. They had hurt him, but it hadn't been enough. They were forced on the defensive, Harry and Strange popping around to rescue their teammates from Demogorge's fists and tail.
"The good news is we've got visual on you guys." Natasha notified them "Bad news, the entire world does, too. I hope you guys have some more tricks up your sleeves."
"Oh, I do." Harry tried to grin, but it came out mostly as a grimace. "Conjuctivitus!" He aimed his wand at the wound in Demogorge's forehead. It had been the curse that Victor Krum had once used against his dragon in the Triwizard Tournament. If it worked on a dragon…
There was another aggrieved howl from Demogorge as the curse hit home. The area around the wound began to swell in irritation, until he could keep his eyes open no longer. Harry pumped his fist in satisfaction, but Thor shook his head. "That is not as useful as you think, Harry. He can still…" They both leaped out of the way as his tail whipped towards them. "Sense our power!" She shouted.
"Shit." Harry muttered "Well, at least we pissed it off more."
"You hardly need to try to do that." Natasha teased "Missiles inbound in thirty seconds. Try to keep him in place and steer clear."
Strange took care of immobilizing him this time, sending hundreds of golden threads shooting up from the ground, wrapping around whatever parts of the god was available. Immediately, Demogorge began ripping himself free, but not in time to avoid the payload headed his way.
The explosion filled their entire field of view. Harry's well timed shield charm saved them from beings struck by dust and debris, but they could still feel the heat, like standing next to a bonfire. The dust cleared and a crater from the explosion came into view and rising out of that crater… "Oh come on!" Thor complained "How is it not dead already!" Demogorge, licked by smoke and fire, looked more like a demon than a god.
"Confirmed, target is still active." Natasha announced "Anyone got any ideas?"
"Naval and air assets are available, should you need them." Hill said.
"We'd just be sending them in to die." Steve rebutted.
"Yeah." Harry said softly. Most of the other Avengers would be liabilities, too. Pietro could be useful from getting people out of the way, maybe Skye's shockwaves could do some damage, other than that…
"Time for the infinity stones?" Wanda raised an eyebrow at him. It was a risk, such a risk. The Mind Stone had nearly killed them when they had last- inadvertently- used it. The tesseract had apparently killed Red Skull, and the Time Stone… Strange had warned them about how abuse of the Time Stone could tear reality apart.
"No." Harry said. "I have… more. It's just… not going to be pretty." He had made his decision, for the first time since the war, he was going to use dark magic. "Keep him busy for me."
The others did as he asked, harrying Demogorge while Harry apparated with nothing more than a soft swish of wind. He raised his wand and said with a dull voice "Sectumsempra."
The gouge that opened along Demogorge's arm was deep, and it must have hurt by the noise he made. Emboldened, Harry let loose a series of the curse, lacerating the deity's arms, legs and underside. Its menace of a tail whipped around, but Harry was quicker, and the spell was powerful enough to sever the appendage entirely. It landed with a heavy thud behind him, while Demogorge staggered to the ground and screamed.
Harry had not considered that Demogorge's voice itself might be used as a weapon, that the sheer volume and power of it could hurt him. Yet the true pain Harry had inflicted on the god had allowed this scream to be drawn from the soul, and it came out like a sonic boom. Harry's ears blew out and he was thrown back, tripping over the remains of Demogorge's tail. He hit his head on the rocky ground, and his vision swam. He tried to get to his feet, but it felt as if the ground wouldn't stop shifting around him. He looked up and saw Demogorge's raised fist coming down on him, and then he didn't.
It took him a few moments to realize that Strange had dragged him through a portal. Raising a shaking hand to his temple, Harry willed up his healing magic. Harry breathed deeply and looked over to Steven "Thanks."
"You're reckless." He returned, his voice strained, Harry noticed that there was gash in his left arm, he'd been hit by shrapnel at some point in the fight. Neither of them, it seemed, were in the best shape. He'd heal him next. He hoped Wanda was alright. Thor, he could see raining lightning down on Demogorge from above, swinging his hammer in the air to propel himself around him, but he couldn't see her. She could take care of herself, he knew, but he couldn't help but worry.
"I know." Harry said plainly, and then he winced. Thor had just been swatted out of the sky like a pesky fly. He sailed over a mountain crest and out of view. With a beat of his wings, Demogorge lifted up and followed. The gust of wind lifted both of them into the air and sent them tumbling back. "Shit!"
Harry stumbled to his feet, still dizzy but prepared to come to Thor's aid. He scrambled back to the edge, bracing himself to apparate, and then, after a moment of judgement, changed his mind. It was a terrible idea, apparating while impaired, he would probably achieve nothing other than splinching himself again.
Their team had seen the danger, and Stark had sent in his fleet of drones, only partially rebuilt after the battle with Zola. Demogorge didn't even bother destroying them. Those that were in his path were crushed unceremoniously, those that weren't were allowed to fire, buzzing around him, blasting chunks out of his thick skin but not truly hurting him. Stephen was two beats behind Harry, opening a portal to the other side of the ridge.
Harry knew what he had to do, there was only one trick left in his book that he thought would work. He'd hesitated to use the killing curse, and it had nearly cost him. It was time to put aside his misgivings. The two magic users stepped through to find Thor's body crumpled, but still alive and awake, staring blearily up at his father. Odin, King of Asgard was all that stood between his son and the God Eater.
Earlier, Harry would have described him as an old man. Thor's stories cast his father as dispenser of wisdom. But now, Harry was forcefully reminded of the fact that Odin was a god of war. The look on his face was pure, protective fury. Harry knew all to well, the power of a parent protecting their child, that power was his legacy. He wondered, distantly, whether his own father might have looked like this as he faced down Voldemort for the last time.
There was a flash of light, but more than that there was sound. As the light faded, still casting spots into the backs of Harry's eyes, there was the concussive distortion in the air that ripped outward. Demogorge disintegrated, stones and boulders crumbling to the ground and scattered down the mountainside. The shockwave boomed in Harry's chest, staggering him with the sheer power of it.
Odin staggered and turned to kneel beside Thor. "Father." He said "You…"
"I'm sorry Thor, my son. I love you. And I'm sorry for what I'm about to put you through."
Thor propped himself up to his knees, worry and confusion warring in his eyes "What do you mean? You just… saved us."
Odin grinned ruefully. "At a cost."
"Remember this place, Thor." He cast his eyes around "One day, when our people most needed it, they may need to call this place home. And I'm sorry, but they are your responsibility now." And then Odin began to fade away, disappearing into what seemed to be hundreds of tiny fireflies that drifted up into the sky.
Thor half-sobbed, still too shocked to process what had just happened. Harry couldn't imagine the whiplash he was going through. And Harry? Harry could only muster guilt. Odin had not needed to sacrifice his life. If Harry had been less squeamish, perhaps he could have killed Demogorge before Odin had been forced to protect his son. Or perhaps the Infinity Stones could have held the answer. He knew that there were reasons he had forgone those options, saved them as weapons of last resort, but they all tasted bitter now. Thor, his friend who had already lost far too much, had just lost his father. And Harry couldn't help but feel responsible.
Harry's self-flagellation was disrupted by an unearthly sound, as if something was tearing, but it felt somehow hollow and reverberating. Harry spun in place just in time to catch the formation of a gouge in reality, and stepping out of it…
A woman. A goddess.
"Well, I didn't expect a welcoming party. But I suppose you'll do." She regarded the three men in turn. They, all of them, had seen better days. When her eyes alighted on Harry, they lit up in hatred and disgust. It felt like how Malfoy calling Hermione a mudblood. It felt like his aunt and uncle telling him he was a freak.
"What are you?"