"Hah!"

Thor bellowed, his voice rolling like thunder across the empty air. His body surged forward, cloaked in lightning that danced and cracked over his armor, every stride radiating the majesty of the God of Thunder himself. The ground trembled beneath his boots as if bowing to his fury.

With both hands gripping Mjolnir, Thor descended on Alex like a storm given flesh, the hammer sweeping down in a brutal arc meant to crush mountains.

Alex didn't flinch. He stood calm and unmoving, as though Thor's fury were nothing more than a passing breeze. He raised a single hand and, with a flicker of will, an immense wave of telekinetic force erupted outward.

Thor's body froze mid-swing. His arms locked. His legs dangled helplessly above the ground. It was as if he had been caught in an invisible web, bound by a spell.

Suspended in midair, unable to move an inch, Thor's eyes bulged with outrage. "What trickery is this?! Release me!" He strained, lightning sparking violently as he roared against the unseen bonds. Yet no matter how he struggled, the force binding him didn't yield.

"To toy with me—Thor, son of Odin—like some puppet…" His words cut off into a growl of disbelief.

Alex's voice came soft but unshakable, every syllable carrying the weight of command. "Since you're destined to be beaten anyway, there's no need to ruin my square in the process. Don't you agree?"

The casual dismissal ignited Thor's temper like dry tinder meeting flame. His chest heaved with rage, his pride wounded far deeper than his flesh. "Damn you, mortal!" he roared. "How dare you mock me so!"

Before Thor could spit out more fury, Alex's telekinesis flared brighter, wrapping the Asgardian like an iron grip. Then, in a blink, Alex shot into the sky, carrying Thor with him at a velocity that shattered the sound barrier.

The world became a blur. Wind howled. The horizon snapped past in streaks of color. In only moments, the two had left Krakoa far behind, landing instead in a barren wilderness where no innocent lives would be caught in the storm.

Thor's stomach lurched from the sudden shift, and he gritted his teeth, barely believing the raw speed. This man… could simply pluck him from one battlefield and deposit him in another, as though distance meant nothing.

Landing with a heavy thud, Alex released him from his telekinetic prison. "Here. No distractions. No excuses."

Thor steadied himself, planting his feet firmly on the cracked earth. "You dare to treat me as though I were some training partner?" His teeth bared in a wolfish snarl. His chest expanded with a deep breath, and then—BOOM.

A wave of power burst from him, thunder rolling across the wasteland. Lightning lanced outward in wild arcs, burning deep gouges into the stone around them. The invisible force binding him shattered like glass.

Thor dropped heavily to the ground, free once more. His eyes gleamed with the storm's fury. "You want to play at godhood, mortal? Then you shall feel the wrath of Thor in full!"

"Not bad," Alex said evenly, his lips curving in a faint smile of approval. "There are few who can break free of my telekinesis. Very few."

Thor roared, leaping forward with Mjolnir raised high. The hammer blazed with lightning, its runes glowing as it came crashing down.

Alex blurred into motion, his figure vanishing in a streak of speed. He appeared in front of Thor in the next instant, fist cocked.

Boom!

Flesh and uru metal collided with a detonation like cannon fire. Sparks scattered into the air, the shockwave flattening the nearby terrain. Thor expected Alex to be crushed beneath the weight of Mjolnir's swing—but instead, it was he who went flying.

He slammed into the ground with the force of a meteor, stone cracking, dirt flying skyward in a choking cloud.

Thor groaned, chest heaving as he pushed himself upright. Disbelief painted his face. "How… how can a mortal withstand Mjolnir with nothing but his bare hand?!"

Alex didn't bother answering. His eyes narrowed—and then twin beams of blazing heat lanced out, searing the air as they shot toward Thor.

Instinct took over. Thor snapped Mjolnir up, angling it just in time. The hammer drank in the deadly rays, shielding its master from their fury.

But Alex wasn't done. With a flick of his hand, another telekinetic wave slammed into Thor's chest.

Boom!

The Asgardian's body was hurled backward, flipping end over end before smashing into the ground with bone-rattling force. He barely had time to rise before another wave struck from the opposite direction.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

It was merciless, relentless. Thor's body was battered from one side to the next like a sandbag, every strike detonating against him like artillery fire. The wasteland shook with the ceaseless blows, craters forming with each impact.

Minutes passed, though it felt like hours. Ten minutes of pure punishment, Thor's body reduced to a ragdoll in Alex's grip.

At last, Alex let him fall.

Thor lay sprawled across the ruined ground, his chest rising and falling in ragged heaves. His once-proud visage was battered and bloodied; bruises marred his godly face, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. His golden hair was a matted tangle, his cape ripped to shreds, his armor dented and scarred.

The God of Thunder, reduced to little more than a beaten man.

"I… I don't believe it." Thor's voice rasped, raw with disbelief. "No Midgardian should wield such power. Just what… what are you?"

His eyes, wide and searching, held none of his earlier arrogance—only bewilderment, humiliation, and doubt.

Alex didn't answer. His gaze shifted instead to Mjolnir, lying in the dirt nearby, faintly glowing with divine power.

In another world, Alex had lifted that hammer with ease. He had wielded it in battle, channeling its might to strike down even Thanos himself.

So why not here?

His curiosity sparked, Alex strode over and gripped the handle. Thor, still sprawled on the ground, let out a weak chuckle, his lips curling into a mocking grin. "Go on. Try. You'll fail. All mortals do. That hammer belongs to Thor, and Thor alone. Attempting it is nothing but humiliation."

Alex ignored him, focusing as he tightened his grip. Muscles coiled, strength surged—tens of thousands of tons of force condensed into his arm.

And yet… nothing.

Mjolnir sat unmoved, rooted to the earth as though it weighed the world itself.

Thor's laughter burst out, ragged but triumphant. "Hahaha! What did I tell you? No one but me! You thought you could? Foolish mortal!"

For the first time in their battle, Thor tasted victory—however petty. It was a small ember of pride flickering in the ashes of his humiliation.

Alex's brows drew together, eyes narrowing with contemplation. "Strange…" he murmured. He had wielded it before. Effortlessly. So why not now?

The answer came to him quickly: Odin. His agreement with the All-Father, his secret dealings in another timeline. That must have been the key.

The realization only deepened the gulf between then and now. With a soft sigh, Alex released the hammer, stepping back. He had no desire to chase old paths or seek validation from a relic.

Shaking his head, he cast aside the thought. With one gesture, his telekinesis wrapped around Thor's battered body, lifting the limp god into the air like a broken doll.

Then—whoosh.

The two vanished in a blur, leaving the shattered wasteland in silence.

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