Book 3: Chimera [Thor]

Chapter 7

Now it was Clint's turn to egg him on, "Go at it."

"It's physics." Looking at the relaxed god, he inquired, "Right, so if I lift it, I then rule Asgard?"

"Yes, of course," Thor answered.

He wasn't concerned in the slightest. Tony slipped his hand through the leather strap and prepared his stance.

"This is gonna be good," Anya muttered.

She felt tipsy, grinning up at the prince, who chuckled in response. He couldn't agree more.

"I will be reinstituting prima nocta," the billionaire declared.

And with a grunt he pulled up on the hilt. The strain became clear on his face, yet the object didn't move an inch. He stopped to collect himself, the group grinning wider at his misfortune. All were ready to heckle him when the billionaire held up a finger before that could unfold.

"I'll be right back."

No one really knew what he had in mind till a wall by the bar opened to reveal a hidden Iron Man suit. However, instead of climbing inside the full armor, he only took the right arm off from the elbow down. Flexing the fingers, he prepared himself for another attempt. The second try ended in failure as well. Thrusters didn't even work. He enlisted the help of James, who took off the same part of his stored away War Machine suit. Both of them gripped at the hilt and began to pull using their boosters for support. Yet still no movement.

"Are you even pulling?" James asked.

"Are you on my team?" Tony shot back.

The two shot a look at each other, not pleased with the fact that the others were snickering at their failure.

"Just represent. Pull."

"Alright. Let's go!"

The duo attempted a wide variety of techniques for a few minutes, but no such luck. The men grumbled to themselves when they returned to their seats.

Somehow, they convinced Bruce to give it a try. Taking the hilt in both hands he began to pull, even standing on the tabletop, knees bent. He yelled from the strain. But just like the others, there was no success. He let go, biceps flexed and still yelling. As if he were trying to mimic the Hulk in some way. Everyone looked at him quizzically. The noise died on his lips, trying to find a reaction from someone who thought he was being funny. No one laughed aloud though. Embarrassed by the display, the scientist sat back down.

Anya tried to not show her nerves on the couch. Every member of the team tried their hand at Mjolnir. Even Helen and Maria teamed up at some point in an attempt. But the young woman couldn't touch Mjolnir after what happened the last time she interacted with the weapon in Norway. Since then she tried to avoid getting too close to the object just to be safe. The agent didn't want the god to know. She had no way to explain how or why her ability to lift the hammer was possible. To suddenly display this 'gift' in front of the Avengers... that wouldn't be the smartest idea. She needed to think of a way to get out of this soon without drawing too much attention to herself. They were running out of teammates.

"Go on, Steve," Tony spoke up. "No pressure."

With a smirk and roll of his eyes, the Captain stood. He pushed up both sleeves, eyeing the hilt for a moment. His hands wrapped around the leather on the hilt.

"Come on, Cap," Clint encouraged.

The exposed muscles tensed, the man attempting to lift Mjolnir. To the surprise of those in the room, it actually shifted on the tabletop. Anya's eyes widened and the whole room grew silent. Thor's grin fell as he sat up a bit straighter on the couch. However, the hammer moved no further. The prince's smile returned almost in relief when the super soldier gave up.