Thor’s Adventure (Part 2)

Daredevil Matt received Peter and Thor in his small apartment. Thor asked Peter in surprise, "He can’t see?"

"Yes, Matt is blind, but it doesn’t really affect anything."

"But you told me he was a hero who fought criminals. How does he fight criminals like that?"

"Who says blind people can’t fight criminals?" Matt lashed Thor with his cane, so quickly that Thor did not even have time to dodge.

Thor was genuinely a little surprised. "You can tell where I am? And you’re that fast?"

Peter asked Thor instead, "Don’t you have disabled people on Asgard?"

"Of course not. We are a race of gods, blessed by the World Tree. We are born warriors. Though…" Thor thought for a moment, then said, "If I had to name an exception, anyone under three hundred is considered a child and needs looking after."

"Everyone else is a soldier?" Peter asked in surprise. "Other than children, everyone’s a warrior? Isn’t that a little ridiculous?"

Thor waved a hand and said proudly, "Asgardians are the most battle-hardened race in the universe. That is why we can protect the Nine Realms. But it is not quite that exaggerated. We also have support troops, such as blacksmiths and stonemasons. Of course, there are mages too. Their physiques are not as strong as warriors’, so they usually stay behind the front lines, but they are still far stronger than Earthlings."

"But that makes sense." Thor suddenly looked at it from another angle. "If Earthlings were as strong as Asgardians, who in the universe could deal with you? With your population and breeding rate, if everyone possessed the strength of an Asgardian warrior, you would have conquered the whole universe long ago."

Then he stroked his chin and said thoughtfully, "My father once told me that humans’ short lifespans were both a disadvantage and an advantage. And because Asgardians live so long, we seem to have some problems as well, but I did not understand what he meant…"

At that moment, Matt came over carrying three cups of coffee. The three sat around the table in Matt’s apartment. Matt spread a map across the tabletop, took a sip of coffee, and said, "A few days ago, Elektra told me that The Hand was making moves again. This time, it seems to be something major. I happen to need help."

"No problem, I can help. But we need to wrap it up before the end of the month. Gwen and I are going to Hollywood."

Matt and Thor both looked at Peter. Peter glared at them. "What? This is our first trip together. I’ve been looking forward to it for ages!"

Thor shook his head. "If you were my subordinate, I would make you run around Asgard three times to clear your head."

Matt tapped the table. "Before we strike at The Hand, we first need to find out exactly what they are planning."

"What else could they be planning? Didn’t you say before that all their strategic arrangements were for the sake of finding that dragon skeleton?"

"But something is strange. Based on the information Elektra and I have gathered, The Hand seems to have fallen out with Kingpin recently. We still do not know why. I plan to start there, uncover The Hand’s ultimate objective, and stop their evil plan."

"Fine. What do we do first?"

"Did you know Bullseye has already been released?"

"What? How long was he even in there?" Peter said in surprise. "Last time, wasn’t he put away because I…"

"As long as Kingpin was willing to spend enough to get him out, it would not be strange for Bullseye to beat the charges. What is strange is why Kingpin got him out at this particular time. Is Kingpin really going to war with The Hand?"

"What are you even talking about?" Thor asked, utterly confused. "And why am I involved? What does this have to do with me?"

"Do you have anything else to do?" Peter then said to Matt, "He counts as help. At least I can guarantee he is not Kingpin’s spy."

"Hey, did you get my permission? I never planned to join…"

"Fine. He looks a little stupid, but he is better than nothing."

"How can you ignore…"

Two hours later, Peter and Thor crouched at the entrance of a bar, craning their necks to look inside. Peter turned to Thor and said, "You go in first and cause a commotion. I’ll block them from the back."

Thor snorted. "You dared say Asgard’s bravest warrior was useless? Starting trouble in a tavern is all you need? I know this well!"

With that, he swaggered into the bar. The guard at the entrance sized him up, held out an arm to stop him, and said, "Who are you? Do you have an invitation?"

"Who am I? You have never seen me before?"

Thor sounded utterly righteous, and the guard was stunned.

The guard looked Thor over from head to toe again. It had to be said, Thor fit perfectly into Hell’s Kitchen. He was huge, with shoulder-length blond hair, a full beard, and the fierce air of a battlefield veteran. Combined with his bizarre accent, the guard took him for some Texas mob boss and did not dare stop him.

Thor swaggered inside. He had barely passed the bar when he bumped into someone. Thor shouted, "Don’t you have eyes? Damn it…"

"Hey, Texan! You ran into me first!"

The two started arguing, and it quickly escalated into a brawl. Peter took Pikachu around to the back door. After knocking out one of the guards there, he slipped inside. Peter looked around at the wiring, followed it to the breaker, and Pikachu flashed with electricity. The entire bar instantly lost power and fell into darkness.

Relying on his agility and incredible speed, Peter rushed in amid the chaos, swiftly knocked out a man, and dragged him outside. A while later, Thor came out too and said, "This is the man you wanted? Is he the… Bullseye you were talking about?"

"No, he is just one of Bullseye’s lackeys."

"Why make it so troublesome? Why not just rush in and beat all of them down?"

"We can’t do that. We cannot alert them."

As he spoke, Peter saw Matt’s car arrive to pick them up. He said to Thor, "Come help me. Get him into the car."

"I thought you were a warrior who dared face enemies head-on. I was wrong about you." As he spoke, Thor lifted the man’s legs, and together they stuffed him into Matt’s car.

"Honestly, I think your plan is too roundabout. No matter what this so-called Hand wants to do, why not just wipe them all out?"

"Then here is the question…" Matt asked Thor, "Where is The Hand?"

"Uh…"

"This isn’t Asgard," Peter told Thor. "You are not a prince now, and neither are we. No one is going to wave a hand and deliver intelligence to our table. We have to do everything ourselves."

"My brother Loki used to handle these things. I do not know how he did it, but he always managed to get the right intelligence."

"What if his intelligence is wrong one day?"

"He is the God of Trickery. There is nothing he cannot investigate."

"The God of Trickery? What if he tricks you?" Peter looked at Thor. Thor choked on his words, then said, "Why would he trick me? We are brothers. What would he gain from tricking me? If we lost a battle, we would both get scolded when we returned."

Matt shook his head. "I thought Peter was immature enough already."

"Hey, don’t say that. I have been working hard to change. I think I have made a lot of progress lately. I can handle the target without your help now."

"I am playing these childish games with you, and you still think I am immature? I am the Prince of Asgard!"

"I have led countless armies in war across the universe, and now you want me to trade punches and kicks with thugs on some little street in Midgard!"

"Most importantly, you didn’t even win."

Thor glared at Peter, and Peter looked back at him. Then Peter reached out and poked him beside the face. Thor clutched his cheek and let out a miserable "Ow!"

He pressed his face close to the car window and saw that someone had punched his cheek, leaving a bruise.

"You damned Earthlings!!!"

But Thor’s troubles were far from over. After night fell, Peter asked him, "Where are you staying? I’ll take you back."

"How would I know where I am staying? The man who brought me out did not tell me where I was supposed to go."

"Fine, wait here. I’ll make a call." Peter picked up the phone and called Steve, but Steve could not be reached, so Peter had no choice but to call Nick.

Thor was impatient. "Do not let me see that Blacklight Head again. I hate him. Stop treating me like a child. Aren’t there houses everywhere here? I can find somewhere to stay myself. Goodbye!"

"But do you have money? Renting a place on Earth costs money."

"It costs money on Asgard too. I picked some up in the bar. This is your human currency, right?" Thor pulled several bills from his pocket. Peter glanced at them and said, "That is not enough to rent a place. I’ll lend you some…"

"I do not need to borrow money from a child like you. I can find a job myself. Do not think I know nothing. Asgard’s order is far better than yours."

With that, Thor waved to him and left.

He was telling the truth. Asgard’s social structure was actually very similar to Earth’s. There were taverns, Shops, inns, and so on, and Asgardians worked in them too. Though Thor was usually a customer—the kind of big spender who partied and spent lavishly every day—he still knew the process of working, earning money, and finding a place to live.

But knowing was not enough. Surviving on Earth was far more difficult than Thor had imagined.

Although Nick helped him get replacement identification, namely a driver’s license, Thor could neither drive nor take a bus. He could only search for work on foot.

Unfortunately, he had parted ways with Peter in Hell’s Kitchen. What respectable jobs were there? He asked every Shop along an entire street. Most bosses pointed guns at him and told him to get out before he could even enter, obviously mistaking him for a gangster coming in to rob the place.

He finally found a restaurant that had an opening and was willing to hire him, but Thor could not make sense of the modern kitchen equipment and had never done similar work. After clumsily smashing several plates, the boss threw him out.

Thus, on his first day living independently on Earth, the dignified Prince of Asgard and future ruler of the Nine Realms slept on the street.

Fortunately, Thor was unlike most princes. He was not fussy. After all, during war, sleeping rough and going hungry were common enough. If the first day did not work, he could try again the next day.

After running into walls for several days, Thor finally figured out a little of how Hell’s Kitchen worked. With his powerful build, he found a job as a warehouse mover.

The job paid weekly, so Thor soon received his first paycheck. He nearly burst into tears. The repeated setbacks had not only dealt him a mental blow; the hardships of life had nearly broken him too. Without divine power and without money, he could only go to work hungry, sleep on benches every day, and keep warm through sheer righteousness. If he had not been an Asgardian, he would have starved to death by then.

Fortunately, with his first paycheck in hand, Thor could finally find a place to live.

He had also realized that Hell’s Kitchen was not a good place. Outsiders had a hard time fitting in there, so he went a little farther out, to the edge of Hell’s Kitchen, and rented an old apartment in a cheap building with very low rent.

On the first day after moving in, Thor discovered that a new neighbor had moved in next door as well.

At first, he did not care. But on the very first night, his new neighbor made quite a racket, hammering walls one moment and smashing the floor the next. Thor did not get any sleep that night.

The next day was the same, with no improvement whatsoever. On the morning of the third day, Thor had no choice but to visit his new neighbor and ask what exactly was going on.

"Hello, I’m your neighbor, Thor. At night, you…"

The man who opened the door looked utterly haggard. Thor was about to continue when he saw the man twitch, suddenly cover his mouth, and rush to the sink to vomit violently.

"Uh… are you all right?" Thor leaned in and asked.

The man staggered back, braced himself against the doorframe, and said:

"I’m fine… Hello, my name is Eddie. Eddie Brock."