Book 4: Arcane [Thor]

Chapter 15

To not insult the ruler of Sakaar, the God of Mischief was forced to take a seat on at one end of the couch. The Grandmaster sat at the other side.

Hulk had managed to get the crowd going again. Cheers, chants, as if the Lord of Thunder hadn't been excited to fight against the champion. This contender didn't stand a chance.

"Hey! Hey!" Thor waved down the Grandmaster excitedly from the box. "We know each other. He's a friend from work."

The ruler looked to Loki with a bit of confusion. As if asking if his brother was serious. The God of Mischief merely stared at the arena, clearing his throat awkwardly.

The prince turned his attention back to Hulk, who continued to pump up the crowd. His fans held banners, wore face masks, popped off streamers, all of them loved the champion.

"Where have you been?" the Asgardian questioned.

The green giant looked towards Thor, a glare on his face.

"Everybody thought you were dead. But so much has happened since I last saw you. I lost my hammer. Like, yesterday, so that's still pretty fresh. Loki. Loki's alive. Can you believe it? He's up there."

He pointed towards the Grandmaster's box. Hulk growled at the sight of the familiar individual.

"Loki, look who it is."

The God of Mischief sat petrified.

"Banner, I never thought I would say this, but I'm happy to see you."

The chants of the crowd distracted the Hulk from his opponent.

"Banner? Hey, Banner?"

"No Banner, only Hulk," the beast roared back.

"What are you doing?" Thor questioned. "It's me."

Hulk charged, roaring like a feral creature.

"Thor!"

Hulk lunged. The Asgardian had a split second to roll out of the way before the hammer and axe came down together. They embedded into the ground right where he once stood, kicking up dirt in all directions. The miss didn't deter the champion's chances. The weapons were pulled free and the beast turned to swing out the hammer. This time the flat face knocked the Asgardian through the air. The top of the mace and the shield in the god's possession shattered from impact. What was left of the handle he stuck into the ground to slow himself. Without any further use for, it the object was thrown away and he removed the two swords from their sheaths. The ends extended out once free. The Grandmaster clapped his hands together in a giddy manner, Loki shifting uncomfortably. Hulk roared, his weapons banging together in an intimidation tactic.

"Banner, we're friends," he tried to reason. "This is crazy. I don't want to hurt you!"

"Thor!" Anya shouted. "Less talking, more fighting!"

Hulk didn't seem to care by the way he lunged at the god again. Their weapons clashed in an array of sparks. Thor had to take a few steps back to hold off the green giant when a certain hit to a sword bent the metal at an odd angle. It had been rendered useless. Hulk's foot kicked, slamming into his opponent's chest hard enough to throw him into the far wall. Instantly, the outer surface broke from the way Thor became wedged in. The crowd cheered from the brutal move.

He had to recover quickly. Thor pushed free to drop to the ground just before the hammer slammed into the spot he'd once occupied on the wall. The force had been so great it became stuck in place. Hulk took a running start at the prince with the raised battle axe. He had every intention to end this here and now.