| Synopsis
| - This story starts out with Loki berating his underlings, the Enchantress and the Executioner, for not defeating Thor, claiming that his plan was "perfect". After he dismissed them, he went to talk to Odin, who was feeling troubled about his son Thor, who had fallen in love with a mortal, Jane Foster. Loki's advice to the Allfather was to go down to Midgard and "assert your authority in person". This idea appealed to him so he instilled a little of the Odin Power into Loki, left him in charge of Asgard, and left for Earth.
Back on Earth, Dr. Blake sends his lovely nurse Jane Foster home, to rest up, because she is very tired after the encounter with the Enchantress and Executioner, in Thor #103. After she has left, Blake noticed that is too quiet, and decides to do a quick patrol of the city, for any more "telltale signs of danger".
In Asgard, Loki is relishing in his new power and vowing that he will never give up Odin's throne. In an effort to keep Odin from returning to Asgard, he uses his new power to free Odin's two most fearsome enemies "they shall defeat Odin for me!". He then released Skagg (Storm Giant), and Surtur the Fire Demon. As he does this the loyal Heimdall hears the incantations, but since he cannot and will not leave his post, guarding the Rainbow Bridge, he sends for Balder the Brave, to go to Earth and alert Odin.
Balder quickly reaches Earth and finds Thor, giving him the message about Odin. Thor realizes that the only reason for his visit is to see his mortal, alter-ego of Dr. Don Blake. Soon after entering his office, Thor enters through the window and alerts his father to the danger that Loki has set loose. "Then, at a gesture from the monarch of Asgard's hand, the very fabric of time itself stands still, as the entire human race, under an irresistible spell is instantly transported to a dimension beyond the ken of the human mind!"
At the next moment, the foes that Loki summoned appear on Earth. Balder the Brave is the first to charge forth, on his winged steed, at the Frost Giant and makes quick work of the ten-ton club, with his Asgardian sword. Just as Thor is about to help him, a firebolt strikes his hammer, throwing him off balance, and out of the fight for a moment. At this point Odin steps in, "no longer can I remain merely a witness . . . ", and causes the seabed beneath the Frost Giant's feet to become soft and he starts to sink, calling on Surtur for help.
Once Skagg is saved from sinking, Surtur moves to destroy the deserted Earth by melting the polar Ice caps, while Skagg creates a storm to distract the Heroes. Thor begins the battle with Skagg while Odin, on his winged Battle Steed, places a protective barrier over the deserted city. Thor's attack had weakened and stunned the Storm Giant, allowing the Father of Thor to use his magic of his "Shining Sword", to drain the evil power from him. Even though Loki was trying to support Skagg from Asgard by replenishing his power, Odin was finally able to defeat him.
This effort weakened the Wise One, leaving Thor and Balder to take care of Surtur. Thor realizes that they "cannot reach him in time, [and] there are other ways to stop him!!" Since Surtur is an older immortal than Thor, and his hammer Mjolnir "might not prevail", he takes his father's magic sword, "it is older than all" and "only his son can wield it!" Using the Odinpower he draws Surtur away from the ice caps and Earth itself, towards a special asteroid made of "magnetic particles!". This holds Surtur in a magnetic pull "which will last for ages to come!"
With the treats to Earth neutralized, Odin leaves for Asgard once again, biding Balder and Thor to join him for a well deserved rest. Thor declines, saying how Earth is his home now, and he shall remain there always. Once back in Asgard, Odin punishes the tricky Loki, sending him to "serve the trolls" until Odin sets him free. As this story ends, Odin narrates to himself, a foreboding of the future, that his son is the most worthy and brave in the universe, yet "his heart weakened by love!"
- This is the story of how Heimdall came to be the guardian of Bifrost the rainbow bridge. Odin holds a sort of try-out, summoning Heimdall and two other worthy candidates. Agnar the fierce, is the first, and offers him self as having the mightiest chest, the strongest lungs, and that none but he have the power to sound the horn warning, , as he demonstrates this ability, the "roar reaches to infinity". The second is Gotron the Agile, who claims that his deeds speak for themselves, and that he was nimble enough to defeat seven frost giants at once, when they attacked Asgard "only last year".
The last is Heimdall The Faithful, who shows that he has other useful abilities other than strength "that is a match for any". He proves this by stepping out into Odin's garden and, by placing his ear on the grass, hears the tinniest plant growing in the heart of a place known as the "Hidden Hills", which was scorched by the fiery breath of a dragon. After Odin had dispatched his gardener to verify the tiny new plant just blossoming into life, Heimdall proved himself further. He said that his eyesight is so keen that he "can see across time as well as space!!" He then informs Odin of a "savage band of Storm Giants" marching towards the rainbow bridge, still two days away. Odin then dispatched a heavily-armed war party to meet Storm Giants. The war party returned in days, with the King of the Storm Giants as prisoner. These demonstrations of abilities and noble character earned him the position of "Guardian of the Rainbow Bridge - - FOREVER!"
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)