Chapter 348: The Bone Queen

"Erik!" Jane Foster shouted from within the ruins of Greenwich University. It was one of the rare safe spots in the battlefield, devoid of the pale, ghastly-masked aliens and the gold-armored Asgardian warriors. She, along with Darcy, her endearing but otherwise useless intern, and Darcy's intern, huddled together in the debris.

Seeing her mentor, Erik Selvig, fiddling with his instruments, Jane's frustration boiled over. "Have you finished yet?" Jane had never doubted Erik's brilliance. Even though he had been acting erratically ever since his time at Stonehenge, his theories had repeatedly proven correct. His eccentricities, including streaking through ancient stone circles, didn't diminish his credibility.

She just needed him to work faster.

"Almost!" Erik, his thinning white hair disheveled, continued adjusting the parameters on his devices. According to his theories, when the celestial convergence occurred, the barriers between the Nine Realms would dissolve. The resulting phenomena were straightforward enough that even a middle school physics student could predict them—gravity would decrease at the point of convergence. This effect would spread across Greenwich, and eventually, London itself would be torn apart by the gravitational pulls of other realms.

It was a full-blown catastrophe. Erik's instruments could detect subtle gravitational anomalies, but after receiving inexplicable knowledge from a mysterious source, he had repurposed the devices into tools capable of creating counteracting anomalies.

"Done!" Erik exclaimed, handing the equipment to the panicked Darcy and the calm Jane Foster. "Remember, set these devices precisely where the signals indicate." He pointed to a handheld monitor that tracked gravitational distortions and then at the ominous circular portals expanding in the stormy London skies. "Don't take a single misstep, or you'll fall into another realm and never return. Worse still, no one knows where you'll end up—you can't fly, after all."

The warning applied just as much to Solomon.

The cacophony of hymns and demonic roars grated on Solomon's nerves. Though his wounds were slowly healing, the itch and sting seeping through his armor were maddening. He took a deep breath, still feeling the ache in his lungs and the metallic taste of blood. His chest plate, a prime target in the last battle, had taken the brunt of the enemy's attacks, particularly blunt force that his armor couldn't fully absorb.

The spell Analyze Portal had a limited range of 60 feet and a fan-shaped area of effect. Solomon advanced cautiously, casting the spell repeatedly to locate portals. Each time he found one, he had to cast another spell to determine its destination. Yet, the portals, tied to the chaotic forces of the celestial convergence, appeared and disappeared unpredictably. On several occasions, just as Solomon prepared to analyze a portal, it vanished without warning.

Finally, he devised an alternative.

Holding his phone aloft, Solomon used signal strength to gauge the proximity of a portal leading back to Earth. It was a risky move; this method couldn't identify whether his path crossed portals leading to other realms. The gravitational pull of a planet was not something he could resist.

"So… that's your excuse?"

The voice of a queen, seated upon a throne of bones, broke the oppressive silence. In the dim, shadowy environment, Solomon couldn't make out her expression.

"Midgardian, your excuse is accepted. Now, kneel." The Bone Queen spoke with disdain. "You might wonder where you are. You might wish to know my name. Very well, I shall enlighten your feeble, mortal mind with knowledge beyond your grasp."

Before Solomon could reply, she patted her icy throne and continued.

"These are my servants," she said, gesturing to two skeletal figures. "This one is named Sloth, and that one is named Delay." She puffed out her chest proudly. "I am the Mistress of Decay and Disease, the Hidden God, rightful heir of the Nine Realms, Queen of Death, Queen of Asgard… your queen! Now, kneel and be honored that you stand before me. Perhaps one day, you'll join me as I spread death and slaughter across the universe. Your worthless bones will serve as my soldiers in this epic conquest—the only purpose for your insignificant life!"

Her proclamation echoed in the vast hall, followed by a tense silence. The atmosphere grew awkward.

"Kneel now!" The queen, draped in a dark green cloak, barked in frustration. "Shouldn't you obey your queen's command? Put down that toy in your hand!"

"I don't have time for this," Solomon replied, turning to leave. "I have other matters to attend to."

"Ha! You'll find no escape," the Queen of Death snarled. "This is Odin's trap—a prison of his design. Damn Odin! After all the battles I fought for him, he repaid me with imprisonment! The throne of Asgard is mine, not that golden-haired pup in diapers or the blue-skinned stray he adopted! Do you hear me, mortal? Come back here! Do you think I haven't tried to escape? Even with the celestial convergence, you won't leave. Odin's magic is everywhere! Don't force me to kill you, warrior!"

"Every spell has a counter. No magic is flawless," Solomon retorted. His glowing blue eyes scanned the intricate network of runes saturating the space. The sheer complexity of the enchantments rivaled planetary defense systems. Only Odin could craft such magic, but perfection was another matter entirely.

"You're a wizard?" The Queen of Death narrowed her eyes. "If you can escape, I'll reward you with a place by my side."

"I can't," Solomon replied bluntly.

The queen, Hela, was unsurprised. Her mastery of runic magic, taught by Odin and Frigga, was unparalleled in Asgard. She had been imbued with powerful magic even before her birth. As Odin's deadliest weapon, Hela believed the throne was rightfully hers.

Hela was Asgard's problem, Thor's problem. Solomon wanted no part in it. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that his arrival in Helheim was no accident. Scanning his surroundings, he searched for clues about who—or what—had orchestrated his presence there.

"No matter. You can die later," Hela said, lounging on her throne and toying with a servant's skull. "Tell me of the Nine Realms. What are my future domains like? Speak, and kneel while you answer!"

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