Asgard is frozen over due to an invasion by Malekith and his
Dark Elves, thanks to the power of the Cask of Ancient Winters. The humongous
Kurse is crushing Thor’s skull under his massive boot. Malekith holds Sif in
his grip, icing her over and telling her that her only hope is to become his
Servant Queen. He demonstrates the Cask’s unbelievable reach…
…into Hel itself where Volla panics but Hela silences her,
reminding her that this has happened before and Thor will win out once more. A
mysterious visitor assures her that she is right about Thor….
As Kurse crushes Thor’s head under his boot, the Thunder God
uses Mjolnir to blast through the frozen ground, dropping the big guy into a
pit while he flies off to retrieve the Gem of Infinite Suns from the Hall of
Lost Souls. Malekith yells at Kurse to follow Thor to prevent him from reaching
the Gem. Sif escapes and encounters Beta Ray Bill who suggests she head to the
Hall of Lost souls—but Bill quickly reveals himself to be Malekith in disguise
and Sif tries to swipe his head off but misses. The villain has her at his
mercy, demanding she confess her love for him but the real Beta Ray Bill
clobbers Pentigaar and leaps on Malekith, delivering a beating…but the Cask of
Ancient Winters heals and enlarges Pentigaar and Bill must again battle him as
Malekith pursues Sif…
…while Thor knows Sif is but a decoy so he can reach the
Gem’s real hiding place, in a secret compartment under Odin’s bed.
Meanwhile, Sif battles Malekith in the Hall of Lost Souls, a
chamber dedicated to honoring Asgardian heroes who died in battles far from
home, their bodies never recovered. Thor uses the Gem of Infinite Suns,
thrusting it against Pentigaar’s heart and killing him in seconds. Thor then
uses it to overpower Kurse, non-fatally and then he employs it to melt the ice
imprisoning Asgard and freeing its citizens. As SIf engages Malekith, Thor
simply walks in and closes the Cask of Ancient Winters, joining it to the Gem
of Infinite Suns so that it is rendered forever harmless and he transports it
by the power of Mjolnir to a distant dimension. Sif asks the privilege of
chastising Malekith and Thor grants it; the result makes all the heroes
cringe….
Thor returns with Beta Ray Bill to Jake Olson’s apartment
where the Thunder God transforms back into his human identity. Then Jake’s
mother enters from the kitchen, sees Bill, screams and faints….
Give that special marvelite a timely gift