Issue #16

"Before we begin, is there anything that you have to say to me?" Thor asked Jack while playing around with the hammer in his hands

Jack shook his head in response.

"I won't apologize because I do not regret the steps I am taking to achieve my goals. I will not lie to insult both of our honors. I will not come up with any excuses for my actions. I will simply go all out to protect my people, as I am sure you will do for yours as well."

Thor was stunned when he heard Jack's response but smiled in the end.

'These are indeed the words that he would say.'

"Very well. Then let this epic battle begin!" Thor cheered as he continued to gather thunderclouds above their heads

Jack smiled mildly at Thor. He pointed a finger toward the sky which caused the god of thunder to look up.

The thunderclouds that had been gathered began to part at the center. At first, it was unclear what was causing this phenomenon. But after a few moments, it became clear.

A large meteorite was swiftly descending from the sky. Thor barely had any time to react. The only thing he could do was look at Jack and smile bitterly.

"Seriously?!"

The meteor crashed and caused a massive explosion. With its speed and size, the impact was comparable to the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs. All of Jotunheim was quickly covered in ash which also killed all of the inhabitants. The entire landscape of the Realm had changed from this single move.

Thor climbed out of the pile of dirt that had covered his body. His entire body was covered in serious injuries but Thor was not worried about himself. He feared for his fellow Asgardians. The entire scene was filled with smoke and ash so he was unable to see anything.

Thro began to spin his hammer to clear up all the smoke around him but the new scene was his worst fear.

Most of the armies had been buried underneath the rubble from the attack. A few limbs or faces made it to the surface but it was easy to tell how gruesome the attack they had undergone just was. Besides Thor, there were no other survivors.

At least that was what he thought before Jack phased through the ground and landed in front of him. Jack looked around with a disinterested look on his face.

"Tsk. I went killed both armies, all my allies, and even destroyed the city I have just built, all for him to survive the first attack? Makes me disappointed in myself," Jack half spoke to Thor and half muttered to himself

"Jack!" Thor roared in ranged before firing a bolt of lighting at Jack

Jack summoned the golden spear, Gugnir in front of his body which absorbed the electricity before firing it back at Thor with 3 times the energy and force.

Unable to react in time, Thor was hit directly and sent flying.

The heavy blow along with the injuries he had sustained from Jack's first attack caused Thor's vision to blur as he started to lose consciousness.

"You've done well, Thor. You can rest now," Jack said gently while summoning all of the weapons of Asgard before shooting them at Thor.

The last thing Thor saw was all of the weapons that his closest allies had wielded flying at him before cutting, breaking, and piercing his body. With that attack, the last of Thor's lifeforce was extinguished.

"Ugh!" Thor sat up while taking a deep breath.

The pain and fear he had just felt were so real. Thor looked around and saw that everyone else was in the same position as they were before the match started.

Beads of sweat ran down his face as he felt true despair for the 4th time in his life. The first, was when he battled Apocalypse. The second was when he fought Gorr. And the third was when he tried to help his father against the Celestials.

The 4th time he had felt this fear was due to an illusion that his friend had placed him under.

"*cough*... even Loki's spells are not that powerful! Just what kind of magic do you possess?" Thor asked while trying to stand on his own two feet but his legs would not stop shaking

"Well I have several different types of magic under my belt but that was no spell. That was simply an illusion caused by my powerful telepathic abilities," Jack replied honestly

Hearing how Jack was able to toy with his mind without even using magic put Thor on high alert. The god was still unable to stand but he decided to use that to his advantage.

While Jack thought he was trying to get up, Thor threw his hammer with all his might at Jack's chest. Jack instantly shattered into millions of diamond shards.

Thor smiled triumphantly at having landed a blow on Jack. Although he was regretful that he had to kill him, he knew that a long-drawn-out battle was not in his favor.

"Well, that was unexpected. Who knew that Thor had it in him to play dirty?" Jack's voice echoed from all around Thor

Thor began putting the pieces together.

'He shouldn't have shattered like that! Father would be angry with me for falling to my knees, not keeping silent. Loki would be gloating. That must mean...'

"That's right. You are still within an illusion. And I currently have complete control of your mind," Jack's voice was heard once again

The world went black for a moment before Thor reappeared attached to a cross with nails in his hands and feet while wearing a crown of thorns. Jack stood before him with Mjölnir in his hands.

"So this is the almighty hammer. Feels lighter than I expected," Jack commented while toying around with the hammer

Thor tried to pull at the nails holding him down but found himself unable to break free. So he began to talk with Jack.

"Surrender, Jack. Now that I know I am in an illusion, you can't do anything to harm me."

Jack smiled in return.

"That is where you are wrong, Thor. On two counts actually.

The first count is knowing you are in an illusion. You only know because I allow you to know. But I can take away that knowledge at any moment. I am in control of your mind right now, not you. You will know what I want you to know, believe what I want you to believe, and remember what I want you to remember. In here, I am the one true God."

Jack paused after his rant before walking closer to Thor.

"The second count of where you are wrong is that I can't hurt you."

And Jack swung Mjölnir into Thor's left leg