WHAT IF... Hela Won The Fight

19.

Hela and Thor were standing in the middle of The Bifrost. In front of their eyes, a golden barrier was glistening in the air. Behind it, a dark elf was standing.

The elf was a soldier. With the porcelain-white mask out over their face, they looked like that creepy doll which Thor saw in one of Midgard's tee-vees.

They held a device in their hands. It consisted of two metal rods with what seemed to be Dark elven writing. The words, whatever they meant, glowed in a dark red colour.

In between the rods, there was a display made of darkly tinted glass. And within a second, a silhouette of a person's face appeared.

It was a dark elf. But not just any, it was Malekith.

Malekith was the king of the dark elves, the ancient, powerful and most importantly evil being in children's fairytales. It was him who led the elven army to battle against Asgard.

"Greetings, Asgardians. Where's your king? I want to talk to him, not to any little princesses," he said.

"Our Queen is too busy to talk, instead, she sent us. Why did you come here? What is your reason to attack Asgard?" Thor asked, even though it was quite clear. It was a strategic talk to make the enemy confirm the attack. Not to mention that stalling was good as well.

"You have something that is mine, I simply want it back."

"What would that be? What is it that you so desperately want to find within our walls?" Hela asked.

"You know what I mean well, Asgardian. I want The Aether," Malekith said. Even though they could barely see the details of his face, it was clear that he was frowning.

Hela didn't move in the slightest, but Thor still felt her smile beneath the stern facade on her face.

"But The Aether was never yours. And even if it were, you lost a war to Asgard and left it behind. It's rightfully ours," she said.

Malekith quietened for a few seconds to come up with the perfect response and then he said: "Well, alright then. I hoped I could resolve this in peace, but it seems as though I'll have to take it from you with sheer force."

As he finished his sentence, he turned around to start walking away.

"Wait."

Hela looked at her brother in confusion. The whole conversation was planned, this was clearly improvised.

Malekith waited a while before he slowly turned around once again to face the siblings.

"Why do you need The Aether in the first place? You were a powerful race before you got to it. Why go into a war, well, two wars now, just to get it? Not to mention the sacrifices you made."

Thor spoke calmly and without any signs indicating nervousness.

Malekith's face shifted into a petty smile.

"They don't write that in your fairytales, do they?"

He didn't expect an answer to his question, and so when he really didn't get one, he continued.

"The Aether can be used to alter reality once it's found a worthy wielder. And with it, reality can be whatever I'd want. And I want darkness. My people thrive in it, without it, we die."

"But you could live on Svartalfheim," Hela added to it.

"That's just one planet in the entire galaxy. And, frankly, it's not ideal anymore."

Hela and Thor looked at each other.

"Unfortunately, everyone else would die. And we can't let that happen. So, I propose you a deal - leave to Svartalfheim now and we'll let you be. Should you refuse, we won't hesitate to strike. Those who would surrender would be allowed to live in peace on their planet, but the rest will be executed. We can't risk the death of every other race in The Universe."

Thor looked at Hela, who nodded in agreement.

"Don't forget that your technology is unadvanced, ancient, and you're on an unfamiliar ground," she added.

Malekith didn't reply to that. He only cancelled the call and the screen turned pitch black.

"That didn't look too much like a surrender," said Thor.

Hela raised her left hand to her lips and said: "Did you hear that? Start."

Then, she looked up and brought her hands to her hair. Within a few seconds, it transformed into something that Thor liked to call her "spiky battle crown". He loved it when she did that, it looked terrifying.

Moments later, the golden barrier started going back. It passed through them, which felt like a tickle. However, if a person who didn't belong to Asgard tried to go through it, it would burn them to a crisp.

As soon as the barrier was behind their backs, they attacked the two soldiers who were still awkwardly standing at the bridge. As they felt a bit sorry for them, they only pushed the to the water – giving them a chance to survive but not to attack furthermore.

Running a few steps, they both jumped at the same time to the ships that were nearest to them. They quickly found the best way to destroy them – all they had to do was to hit the power centre, which was, quite conveniently, glowing with a bright red colour.

Meanwhile, the barrier went through a line of shooters. It was time like these when Thor very much appreciated the upgrades and innovations that were made throughout the years, all thanks to his mother.

The Asgardians operating them shot energy blasts with incredible precision, every single shot meeting its target.

The barrier stopped just in front of the first houses of the civilians. And just as it clicked to its place, the special force of Valkyries flew through it on their Pegases.

Hela had to stop for a while just to admire the powerful energy they radiated. The beautiful women flew fiercely through the air with their hair flowing behind them and with their legendary blades in their hands.

Hela considered joining them many times, but eventually decided against it as she wanted to get as far away from the war as possible to spend more time with her family.

The Valkyries were great help when it came to a battle, especially one that was happening in the air. With one blow to the core of the ship's engine, they finished it off and it came down with a great splash of water.

Oftentimes, soldiers jumped off the ship when they saw a Valkyrie flying towards them.

It was almost too easy for Asgard, it seemed. Thor realised that while looking at the ships falling down to the water.

He thought of reaching out to someone, but then shook the idea off. It was better for him to be on the battlefield than in the castle, worrying his mother. Besides, it was probably nothing.

A/N: Hi! Hope you're doing good. I hope that exam you're (supposed to be) studying for goes well and that the situation that's stressing you out resolves. And yeah, I'm pretty sure it'll be alright! If it's late, go to sleep, I'm gonna go too. Good night!