The name alone made Nolan frown.
"Odin? He'd help me?"
With Odin in the fight, they could finish Dormammu. The All-Father's power was terrifying one of the few forces in the Nine Realms capable of matching a being like Dormammu on his own ground.
The power of Asgard's king wasn't static it grew over centuries. A God-King didn't train to grow stronger. He existed, and time itself deepened his might.
That was why Odin required the Odinsleep not weakness, but necessity. His divine energy was so immense that his soul struggled to contain it. Rest was the only way to keep his godhood from burning him out.
Even now, near the end of his reign, Odin remained one of the MCU's most dangerous beings.
But strength didn't mean loyalty.
"And why would he help me?"
The Ancient One sipped her tea, calm as ever.
"Because his Odinforce has reached its peak. This is the strongest he will ever be and he intends to use it. With him, we can take the fight directly into the Dark Dimension… but he has one condition."
She set her cup down.
If Dormammu were erased, it would end the greatest source of black magic corruption in the cosmos.
Dormammu's appetite was endless, consuming dimensions, worlds, and entire civilizations. Removing him would be a permanent safeguard for Earth.
Nolan had no illusions about morality, but when he gave his word to protect the planet, he meant it. Dormammu's absence would make that job much easier.
"What's his condition?"
"He wants to speak with you directly," she said. "Ragnarök is coming for Asgard. He no longer believes he can lead his people through it. You know the state of his two sons."
She sighed. Thor's recklessness had tempered somewhat after his time on Earth. Loki… remained brilliant, ambitious, but poisoned by pride and resentment.
The Ancient One studied Nolan.
"When both my chosen successor and Odin's heir are unready, you may be the only one who can bear both burdens."
Ragnarök. The destruction of Asgard itself. Nolan's eyes lit up not with joy, but with the interest of a scientist facing a new, unique phenomenon.
"Waiting for you in Norway."
A sling ring portal opened and Nolan stepped through.
Norwegian Coast – Sea Cliffs
Wind howled across the grey waters. An old man in a long coat stood alone, staring at the horizon. White hair and beard framed a lined, weathered face. His right eye was hidden beneath a golden patch.
"Greetings, new Sorcerer Supreme," Odin said, turning with a faint smile.
In Nolan's sight, the old man was anything but frail. Odin's presence was a cathedral of power a shimmering palace of divine energy, filled with beings so mighty they barely fit mortal definition. That was the Odinforce.
The myths said Loki once stripped Odin of his power and banished him to Earth. Nolan knew better.
A God-King didn't lose his throne by accident he allowed it. Perhaps to test his sons. Perhaps to force them to grow. But Loki had never understood.
To him, Odin's refusal to crown him was favoritism an unhealable wound made worse when he learned the truth of his Frost Giant heritage.
Odin studied Nolan, measuring him as an equal.
"Sorcerer Supreme. The Ancient One tells me you know our plight."
"She said you'd help me with Dormammu."
"Yes," Odin said. "And in return… I ask that you help protect Asgard when I am gone."
It was almost absurd for a ruler of Nine Realms to ask for aid from a man of Midgard. But Odin was out of options. The doom he foresaw could not be averted, only prepared for.
"You've fought gods before. I saw what you did to Knull. You've earned your place among the All-Fathers. When Ragnarök comes, I need someone who can stand in my place."
Nolan said nothing for a moment. He wasn't one for sentimental pledges but power, opportunity, and leverage? Those, he understood. And this… was all three.
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