On the coast of eastern Florida, Hurricane Connie makes its way ashore, bringing with it 114 mile-per-hour winds and a storm surge of nearly 20 feet. The waves crash against the battered shore, laying waste to everything in their path.

Along the coast are a string of small hotels that have survived many storms. However, when the storm surge brings a wall of water crashing up against them, they tumble over as if they were mere toy models.

On the streets of the small coastal town, that were bustling with activity a day before, as mandatory evacuations forced the people onto the roads in frantic attempts to leave town ahead of the rapidly-approaching storm, the scene is quite different now. Roads have been turned into canals, and cars that were left behind slam against the tall skyrises. A large eighteen-wheel trailer truck flips over and floats down the street, smashing into a house that was ripped off its foundation and had come to rest in the middle of the street.

Rain falls down with savage intensity, as the tropical system—with its powerful winds—sends the blowing rain slamming onto the streets, sounding like daggers against whatever they touch.

The small town is a sight of carnage, as power lines and cables litter the streets, ripped from their foundations by the powerful winds. Trees snap and break under the onslaught of the hurricane-force winds. Traffic lights float through the air along snapped cables, occasionally slamming against the hard street below, shattering under the impact.

The mighty Thor flies over the coast of eastern Florida, while he looks down at the seas and the rain below. He flies through the air, defying the winds as if they were a mere slight breeze. To one such as Thor, that is precisely what they are. A grim expression makes its way to Thor’s face, as he nears his destination, overseeing the sight of destruction below. His hammer is tucked in his belt, and his arms are stretched out in front of him, as he glides through—and against—the coming winds.

“The eye of yon storm is still 100 miles from the coast,” Thor considers, “and yet it hath already caused great damage. I must stop the storm ‘ere it reaches the shore and causes great loss of life.” Thor flies away from the shoreline, flying directly into the coming storm, as the swalls swirl around, the outer fringes of the storm continuing to dump water and heavy winds onto the coastal areas covering several counties.

Within seconds, flying at incredible speed, Thor has reached the very eye of the hurricane, flying through the strongest winds that the hurricane has to offer—at points, flying through winds greater than 140 miles-an-hour.

“’Twill not reach the coast,” Thor declares, concentrating as he floats in the calm air in the eye of the hurricane, “or travel any further.” The winds from the outside of the inner walls of the hurricane continue to swirl all around him, but he is oblivious to their threatening gestures. “Such is the will of Thor, lord of the storms!”

Thor continues to float high above the stirred Atlantic waters, putting his hands into the air, his palms outstretched as he concentrates on the storm surging around him. Within seconds, the winds start to subside, obeying his unspoken command. The rains start to die down. In less than two minutes, the hurricane is nothing more than a light breeze, bringing in cool air to the sweltering coast, as the sun starts to rise out of the dark clouds that were filling the sky mere moments before.

“’Tis done,” Thor remarks, as he flies overhead the way he came, flying once more high in the air above the coast. As he does so, he passes by a hotel, where there were people throwing a hurricane party, who were starting to think it would be their last party of any kind.

As the winds subside, they walk onto the balcony, looking up at the noble god of thunder flying overhead. They wave up and cheer at the son of Odin. A slight smile crosses his face, as he continues onward, heading northward along the coastal shoreline.

On the Watcher’s World, the enigmatic cosmic beings continue to discuss their options in their council in the main hall, where it had begun some time ago.* The hall is immense. Along the sides of the hallway are pictures taken from a variety of cultures, and artwork in all forms. The pictures all represent beauty, as defined by cultures as alien and different as night and day. Although many of these pictures and artwork are ancient, they are all in excellent condition, and beautifully framed.

[*We don’t know how time passes on that world, but to you and I, it was last issue…JM]

On the corners of the room are ornately crafted statues, again from various different cultures. Three of them are crafted out of metals that are totally unknown by human culture.

However, the Watchers take no heed in the outer beauty of the room, as their eyes turn to the podium, where one of their own stands before them, explaining what must be done.

“You must decide who best to combat the menace of Kraktu for us, Uatu,” Emmu suggests. “Your sector is closest to the one over which Kraktu has seized control…” Then, his eyes narrow and his face twists in a show of disdain, “…and continues to violate the prime directive.”

“In addition,” Sutu adds, “there are many powerful beings in Uatu’s sector. My sector is still in its early stages of development, although it shows great promise for further development.”

“Mine has many war-like cultures,” Ingu agrees, “but none of them are sufficiently powerful to be of any assistance to us, despite their arrogant notions to the contrary.”

“There is only one who I would trust with the task,” Uatu remarks, ignoring for a moment the comments of his contemporaries. “Thor.”

“Thor?” Atul asks. “I am familiar with his powers and they are indeed vast. However, do you think it is safe to tamper with such forces? It will indeed complicate matters.”

“What do you mean?” Aron asks, not understanding the reference. He is young by Watcher’s standards, and his sector is on the other side of the universe. He only has a passing knowledge of Thor, and has not caught up on the tapes that the Watchers turn in periodically concerning goings-on in their respective sectors. If he were not a Watcher, being negligent in his duties to periodically get caught up with other sectors would embarrass him.

“Only this,” Atul explains. He rolls his eyes slightly. Atul has been a Watcher for eons, and has a very professional demeanor, even by Watchers’ standards. He finds himself occasionally annoyed by the ignorance of young Watchers, particularly when it concerns such powerful beings of whom all Watchers should be well aware. His tone is somewhat condescending, as he continues: “Thor is the son of Odin—a powerful cosmic force who we do not need to anger.”

“Why should we concern ourselves with that?” Aron asks, still not following the reference. He knows the Watchers are powerful, and has never felt fear when dealing with other cosmic beings. “You speak as if you fear his power?”

“I realize you are young,” Atul comments, his tone growing increasing condescending, “However, surely you remember Infinity? When Odin’s power was split in that manner, as his evil persona, he laid waste to planets, and destroyed a large part of the universe itself…only to repair all the damage when it was completed.” He then glares at Aron, who shrinks away, deciding not to continue the discussion any further. “You do not need to fear someone to respect such vast power. I say again, it would not be wise to anger Odin.”*

[*During the classic Infinity storyline, which took place in Thor #183-188. Great reading!…JM]

“Why should we need to anger him?” Ingu asks, wanting to get the discussion back to more useful areas. “We can simply ask him to do our bidding for us.”

“That cannot be done,” Emmu explains. “For, to ask him to help us would be in itself interference.” He turns back to the others gathered behind him, as if advocating his position. “That would be taking an active role in the course of events.” He realizes that there are various interpretations of the prime directive, but he has always interpreted it very narrowly—unlike Uatu, who has frequently annoyed him with his very loose interpretation of their sacred law. Perhaps, he wonders, he forgets the reason why they codified the prime directive in the first place? “We must act indirectly,” he continues, “And, to do so, we will stand the chance of incurring the wrath of Odin. However, that is a risk that we must take. For, the prime directive is our utmost concern.”

“The Asgardian ruler has powerful allies as well,” Atul points out. He understands that Emmu is being political here, seeking to advocate his position because he wants to exert his control on the council. However, this is not the time for such matters.

“No matter,” Uatu offers. “I know Odin and Zeus to be noble rulers. If we were to explain the circumstances to them…”

“They are not like us, my brother,” Sutu responds. “They are an aggressive race who are used to taking a very active, direct role in the events of lesser beings.”

“There is, however, one thing that is to our advantage in this endeavor.” Uatu comments, somewhat annoyed at Sutu’s attempt to question his understanding of his own sector. Sutu has always been an isolationist, with minimal interaction with other cultures. “At this time, the All-fathers are engaged in important events. They are having a meeting in another dimension. That will occupy their time and their attention long enough for us to do what we must. That will also prevent them from interfering with our plans for Thor.”

“Quite so,” Emmu agrees. “So, we are in agreement?” He looks at the others, who all maintain silence. Some of them nod, but most do nothing. None show discontent. “Very well then. It will be done.”

Meanwhile, Thor is flying through the clouds, heading straight up into the sky with great speed. “I hath received a message from Tony Stark’s organization,” Thor recalls. “There is a weather satellite that will soon crash from orbit. Normally, ‘twould be no concern of mine, but this one—created by one of Stark’s affiliates, weighs 500 tons and is cast of titanium steel.”

As Thor reaches the stratosphere, his eyes scan for the satellite, which is already starting to decay in orbit. “Already it catches aflame,” Thor considers, flying over to it, “but, ‘twill not completely break up, and the large sections couldst well cause great damage—and deaths—to the cities below. It falls on the god of thunder to stop yon satellite.”

“The scientist who helped craft yon satellite several years ago did warn that the re-entry and the effects of Midgard’s gravity will increase the weight of yon satellite a hundredfold!” As Thor reaches the satellite, it is already a blaze of flame, as it enters the Earth’s gravitational pull and starts to plummet at amazing speed. “No matter,” Thor resolves, “’twill be done.”

Thor latches onto the underside of the craft, pushing upward with the palms of his hands, even as gravity continues to drive the satellite downward. Thor’s great strength overcomes the effect of gravity, re-entry, and the ship’s own weight, forcing it to back away from the Earth it would have crashed into. Thor holds onto the satellite, even as he carries it aloft with his great strength. He summons rain down to cover the satellite, extinguishing the flames.

Thor then flies the mammoth satellite the rest of the distance to the small Stark affiliate factory where it was built. As he lowers it on an abandoned parking lot—as the technician had requested, it takes up the entire acre of parking space, and stretches out on the ground beyond the parking lot.

Technicians come out, waving at Thor. He waves back, taking to the air once more, heading back into the sky to make sure that there are no more threats from the area where the satellite resided shortly before.

When he reaches beyond the clouds, his eyes are caught by the sight of a flickering light in the distance to his right. “Eh?” he asks, looking towards the light that is radiating. It swirls around, continuing to radiate light in the space above the Earth.

“That is an unnatural occurrence,” Thor considers, as he flies beyond Earth’s orbit, into space. “I must needs investigate this matter, lest it be another threat to Midgard.”

With that, the noble prince of Asgard flies over to the flickering light, his cape trailing behind him. Thor floats before the glimmering light, as the shape starts to spin faster, becoming ever larger. Thor is surprised, as the speed increases by the nanosecond! Within the blink of an eye, Thor is completely encompassed by the object, as he is swept up, disappearing completely from view. Immediately after the god of the storms has disappeared, the shape blinks out of sight, and the void that is outer space once again returns to normal, as if the flickering shape had never been!

On a small, barren husk of a world, a figure stirs. He has not moved in a long time, but the first sensation he feels upon his revival is one of pure rage. In anger, he smashes against a large mountain, shattering it with one mighty blow from his powerful hands. The small rocks are dislodged, flying in all directions, smashing against the sand and rock that surround the area.

The figure, who is wearing a costume with a “D” on it, looks around. He sees no signs of life on this world, and he also sees something else that makes his rage grow ever stronger—there appears to be no way off this world.

Giving in once more to his rage, he slams his foot against the surface of the world, creating a huge earthquake that shakes the very foundations of the world, and opens two large fissures, separating from the point of impact—his foot—and heading outward in diagonal paths.

“I see thou hast been revived,” a voice from above him comments. “Good.”

The figure turns to look upward, where he sees the form of Loki floating down towards him. “Yes,” he says. “Are you responsible?”

“Indeed I am,” Loki returns, as he now hovers directly over the large, powerful figure. “I hath need of thy services…Demolisher!”*

[*That’s right. This is the brute who we last saw in Thor #193…JM]

“You want me…to serve you?!” Demolisher asks, his tone growing increasingly hostile, obviously insulted by the insinuation. He swings at Loki, but his blows only pass harmlessly through him.

“I thought ‘twould be thy initial reaction,” Loki comments evenly. “Thou wouldst do well to remember that I returned thy life to thee, and can return thee to thy previous state.”

“What do you want?” Demolisher asks, glaring at Loki, realizing that he cannot harm his deliverer…yet.

“I want thee to return with me,” Loki offers. “I need thy services in destroying a mutual enemy. Thou knowest him well.”

“Who?” Demolisher asks, irritated.

“Thor,” Loki replies simply.

Demolisher’s eyes flare with rage at the mention of the name. Yes, he realizes that he would very much like to leave this world, and to destroy Thor. “Yes,” he replies aloud, nodding.

“I thought thou would see the reason in my offer,” Loki replies, smiling a sinister smile. “Come then, let us away from this barren place.”

At that selfsame moment, across the universe, Thor has indeed been teleported to a world called Onaque. He is floating above the lush green planet below him, with a look of complete surprise, and some measure of confusion, on his noble face.

“How came I here?” Thor says aloud, looking at the planet below him with interest. “One moment I was near Midgard, and the next, I am countless light years away. Yon world is unknown to me. I know not for what cause I be here, or who was the culprit in bringing me here. I must needs find out. And find out I will!”

With that, the lord of lightning flies down towards the planet blow, seeing two vast oceans and four large landmasses laid out beneath him. “The technology is above that of Midgard,” he thinks, flying through the clouds, as his enhanced eyesight picks up every detail of the surface, perhaps 20,000 feet below. “There are many such worlds, but this one is far away from both the Kree and Skrull galaxies,” Thor comments, looking up to the constellations in the sky. “In fact, it appears not to be within any known boundaries of any empire that I know about.”

Thor continues to fly overhead, noticing sights below him. “’Twould seem that everywhere I do look, I see the same statue,” he remarks, noticing a statue 100 feet fall laid out on the center of a square below, several sidewalks leading directly into it, with cushions completely encircling it. “’Tis a man who looks like a Watcher. Perhaps a deity? But, ‘tis strange, because it appears everywhere I look. The area below appears as though a place of worship. If indeed it is a deity, ‘tis a planet-wide religion that has been started in his name.”

Thor notices that the markings on all the skips and buildings are also the same in design. “’Twould seem that the world is unified.” Thor considers, as he continues to look down at the people, who move about, as if oblivious to his presence well in the sky above them. “This seems to be a monotheistic religion,” Thor says, seeing additional structures and markings. “These people are primitive, more than their technology suggests. ‘Twould seem that their god hath taken a more active role in the affairs of men here.”

Feeling a twinge, Thor looks down at his hammer, still tucked away inside his belt. The hammer is glowing with energy. “Mine hammer doth detect a large energy source—the one that I hath been seeking since being whisked hither.” Thor silently considers. “And, ‘twould seem that I finally be near it. The planet’s god—if indeed a god he be—must be located near. ‘Twould be logical that he would be the only one capable of getting me here…although I know not the reason.”

As Thor flies down towards the mountain from which the power is radiating, he sees several druids dressed in their religious robes, not unlike the ones worn by the Celtic druids on Earth in centuries past. He sees many young women—completely naked and tied to the wall of the mountain, as the druids stand before them, with knives in hand, preparing to make sacrifices of them. This is a sight that Thor knows all too well.

“I hoped I would ne’er again behold such barbarism,” Thor says, a disturbed look crossing his face, as he flies down towards the mountain. He throws his hammer at the druids, connecting with all of their knives, knocking the knives out of their hands, surprising them! They have never known resistance to their ceremonies. They turn to face Thor, enraged and somewhat frightened that anyone would interrupt their ceremony!

“Who would dare to defile the sacred ceremony of Kraktu?” the chief druid demands.

“I dare!” Thor responds, sending out his hammer again, as it flies with a precision guided by Thor’s mental commands, breaking the chains that bound the woman, causing them to fall the short distance to the ground below.

“And who are you, stranger?” another druid asks. “You have powers and abilities not unlike our master, but your impudence must be punished!” With that, the druids all throw knives at the mighty Thor. The knives all break when they bounce off his invulnerable body, and fall harmlessly to the ground. Thor looks at the druids with disdain.

“Nay, friends,” Thor replies. In the background, the women all flee for their very lives, rushing down the mountainside below, scared as much of this new powerful being as they are of the druid—and the master they serve.

Thor claps his hands together, creating a tremendous force wave that sends all the druids flying off, landing hard on the ground, as their instruments of death are all destroyed in the same thunderclap! Thor looks down at the temple on the other side of the mountain. Instantly, a massive bolt of lightning strikes down from the skies, completely destroying the temple, leaving nothing but rubble and ruin in its wake.

“There will be no more sacrifices!” Thor proclaims. “This will cease…and it will cease now!” The druids are all terrified as they look up at Thor, fearful of his power. He stands firm, glaring at them, waiting for their answer. Then, they look past Thor, as a shadow appears before them, blocking out the light that was radiating from the mighty thunder god’s presence. Their looks of fear do not subside, but merely increase as they look past Thor to see another figure…their master and deity!

A searing blast of energy strikes Thor’s back and sends him to the ground with great force! “You dare too much, Thor!” the figure says with a thundering voice. “And you will have to die for it!”

Thor gets to his feet, seeing a large Watcher standing fifteen feet from him, his hands glowing with energy as he hovers slightly above the ground. “These people are my subjects,” he continues. “And, for your arrogance in daring to interfere with their worship of my presence, you will now die! Let it not be said that Kraktu is merciful to his enemies!”