In Modi's eyes, Cassandra Lang's reaction was completely unexpected.
He looked at the scepter in his hand. He refused to believe that he had failed to control Cassandra Lang.
To verify, he aimed his scepter at a nearby HYDRA soldier. The soldier obediently stepped forward and helped Modi wipe his shoes.
This was enough proof that his scepter still possessed its power.
However, when he attempted to control an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., the result was the same as with Cassandra Lang—only a brief moment of disorientation before the agent regained normal consciousness.
There was no way to control them.
If Modi still couldn't understand what was happening at this point, he might as well bash his head against a wall.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had already developed defenses against mind control.
Though he didn't know who was responsible for this, his instincts told him that it had something to do with the person currently locked in a fierce battle with Thor in the sky.
Thor, unaware of when he should stop, only knew that Modi had ordered him to deal with the pitch-black mech before him.
He raised his hammer high, but Bruce was clearly faster.
A jet-black fist smashed directly into Thor's body.
At that moment, the sheer force of impact was so immense that the air visibly rippled where the fist met Thor's body.
Boom!!!
Thor was sent flying uncontrollably in the same direction he had originally arrived from.
The once-mighty god had been struck down by a mere mortal.
Bruce maneuvered his mech to land directly beside Modi.
His father's defeat did not seem to elicit any emotion from Modi. Instead, he scrutinized the imposing Bat-Mech before him with a serious expression.
The towering Bat-Mech cast a shadow that completely blocked out the sunlight, its silhouette looming over the last Asgardian.
"It seems my father has spent too much time with you people. He's forgotten how a god is supposed to fight." Modi shifted his gaze to Thor, who was now standing up again.
"Isn't that right, Father?"
As Modi's words fell, Thor suddenly shot forward, charging straight at the Bat-Mech.
Even without his divine power, Thor still held his own against the Bat-Mech in a battle of raw strength.
"Ahhh!!!"
Thor roared, attempting to overturn the opponent before him.
However, the Bat-Mech was clearly capable of matching Thor's might.
At that moment, one of the Bat-Mech's hands suddenly clenched Thor's fist.
Simultaneously, Thor felt another voice in his mind gradually receding.
He had broken free from that voice's control.
Though he didn't know what Modi had made him do, he recognized the bat emblem on the mech—it was the symbol of the new President of the United States.
His instinct was to back off.
But Bruce stopped him.
During their aerial battle earlier, the Bat-Mech had secretly attached a psychic jammer to Thor.
It had not been activated then.
But now, it was fully operational.
Thor was now free from Modi's control.
Additionally, this also established a telepathic link between Bruce and Thor.
"Keep struggling—don't let that guy notice anything," Bruce's voice echoed in Thor's mind.
Though Thor had never seen the Bat in person, he was familiar with his voice.
Following Bruce's instructions, Thor continued using all his strength to wrestle with the Bat-Mech.
"Now, just listen to me. Do as I say, and everything else will fall into place." Bruce spoke to Thor.
No one else knew what they were discussing.
To outsiders, it merely looked like Thor and the Bat-Mech were engaged in a test of strength.
The next second, Bruce hurled Thor away. However, this time, Thor returned even faster.
Lightning crackled around his hammer, summoning a massive storm cloud in the sky.
Silver-white lightning flickered above, ready to strike at any moment.
As Thor once again swung his hammer at the Bat-Mech, Bruce's mech attempted to block the attack—but unfortunately, it wasn't enough.
The storm's lightning, synchronized with Thor's attack, struck at that very moment.
Under the blinding flash of lightning, everyone paused, watching as the Bat-Mech disintegrated in the storm's fury.
Finally, as the smoke cleared, the Bat himself was revealed.
"No!"
From the Helicarrier, Iron Man was the first to cry out.
He hadn't even had a proper conversation with his closest ally yet!
How could things end up like this?
Monica immediately issued orders: "The President is down! Iron Man, I need you to find him immediately! Captain America, initiate retreat!"
"The President is down! Repeat! The President is down!"
Iron Man shot out of the Helicarrier, followed closely by a swarm of reprogrammed Wasp drones.
"Falcon, does anyone have eyes on the President?"
Before Falcon could respond, he was ambushed and struck down by a War Machine unit.
Now, Iron Man could only rely on himself and the AI in his helmet—Anthony.
"Anthony! Get the Wasps to locate him!"
Anthony's holographic form appeared on Iron Man's HUD and saluted. "On it, sir!"
While S.H.I.E.L.D. was in a state of frantic urgency, Modi was anything but pleased as he observed the unfolding events. Instead, he frowned.
Something felt wrong.
How could a mech that had previously held its own against Thor be destroyed so easily?
The next moment, Thor kicked Bruce's body toward Modi.
The Bat looked utterly battered, his suit still emitting wisps of smoke.
Thor said nothing, merely standing beside Modi, as if protecting him.
"My father, what deal did you two make?" Modi asked with a smile.
Thor lifted his head, his eyes still blank, unchanged.
"He said he could free me from your control… that he could restore me to normal."
Bruce lay motionless on the ground, silently glaring at Modi.
Hearing Thor's words, Modi chuckled.
"Did you really think a few words could make my father abandon me?"
Modi gripped his scepter tightly and approached Bruce. However, he still didn't turn his back to Thor.
Even though Thor had answered, Modi didn't trust him. He needed to reinforce his control.
Without hesitation, Modi placed the scepter against Thor's chest.
A radiant glow burst forth.
As Modi expected, Thor immediately clutched his head in agony. His once-blank expression flickered with momentary struggle—enough for Modi to understand what had happened.
Thor had regained his senses during the fight with the Bat.
But clearly, neither of them had anticipated this outcome.
"Ahhh!!!"
Thor let out a painful roar before obediently standing behind Modi once more, like a personal bodyguard.
It was only then that the Bat's eyes widened in disbelief.
"To be honest, your acting was impressive. But perhaps you don't realize—when it comes to my father, I know him better than anyone. Besides, the object in my hands tells me exactly who is under my control." Modi smirked as he approached Bruce, finally turning his back to Thor.
"I could discuss surrender terms with you, but I have bigger plans." Modi sneered. "Imagine tying your corpse to a truck's hood and broadcasting it live across America. What do you think would happen?"
Without waiting for an answer, he raised his hands excitedly. "Wails! Cries! Despair!"
"That… will be the moment when America truly falls."
Bruce, struggling to keep himself upright, spoke through gritted teeth. "You're using the Mind Stone, aren't you? I remember what was stored in Project Pegasus."
Modi raised his scepter triumphantly, revealing the gem at its tip.
"Indeed—the Mind Stone. Carelessly discarded in a forgotten wasteland, like a mere trinket."
"You guys will never truly understand the power of this thing, will you?"
"But it has always been calling to me. After spending thousands of years in the World Tree, it belongs to me. This is my birthright because it comes from Asgard."
"It has existed since shortly after the kingdom was founded."
"Odin, my grandfather, traveled across the Nine Realms in search of challenges before he became the All-Father."
"He found Sidbad, the wisest giant in Jotunheim, whose wisdom and skill forged an invincible sword."
"But Odin's sharp wit allowed him to outsmart Sidbad."
"Odin seized the invincible sword and used its power to steal Sidbad's wisdom."
"However, Sidbad's fury was too great. He did not directly grant his wisdom to Odin but instead condensed it into a gem—a gift."
"The old giant's astonishing wisdom was concentrated in a single gemstone!"
"Hahaha, with it, you can effortlessly persuade anyone to do whatever you want."
At that moment, Modi raised his scepter, radiating boundless power.
"It holds enough power to break my father's will. Do you understand now?"
"I understand." Someone responded to Modi—but it wasn't Bruce.
The voice came from behind him.
Thor no longer had the vacant expression from before. The war hammer in his hand was already surging with intense lightning energy.
Modi could hardly believe it. By all logic, he had just regained control over Thor.
But why did Thor now appear completely unaffected?
Before Modi could react, a hand had already grasped the top of his scepter.
At some point, Bruce had formed a massive mechanical hand.
The pitch-black hand crushed the ornament at the tip of the scepter, ripping out the Mind Stone.
The moment the Mind Stone was removed from the scepter, the ordinary American civilians, who had been drawn here under Modi's influence, suddenly snapped back to awareness, confused as to why they were here.
They stood frozen in place, trembling, surrounded by gunfire and battle.
None of them dared to move recklessly. If a stray bullet hit them, they would die in vain.
At that moment, Thor raised his war hammer toward Modi.
Seeing Thor's furious expression, the divine hammer held high and summoning lightning, Modi instantly understood Thor's intent.
His father clearly intended to end his life.
"Father, you must understand the price of killing your only son!" Modi shouted at Thor.
But unfortunately, he could not make Thor stop. The war hammer swung directly at Modi's head.
Blood splattered.
As Modi's headless body collapsed to the ground, everyone seemed to awaken from a dream.
It all happened too quickly.
Thor staggered back two steps. Even though he had harbored the deepest killing intent toward Modi—
He knew that the moment he swung his hammer, he truly became the last Asgardian in this world.
He had no kin left.
"Sorry." Thor murmured these words toward his son's lifeless body.
Bruce silently observed everything, knowing the psychological impact of such an event.
But this was something Thor had to process on his own.
A wasp drone flew to Bruce's side.
"We've found the President." At that moment, Anthony called out to Iron Man.
Iron Man quickly broke away from the War Machine beside him and rushed to Bruce.
"I think you owe me patent fees."
The first thing Iron Man said upon landing wasn't a concern for Bruce's condition but a casual joke.
Bruce didn't say much.
By now, Captain America and the others had also gathered around Bruce.
Looking at the grief-stricken Thor, Hawkeye considered saying something but was stopped by Bruce.
Hawkeye glanced at Bruce, who simply shook his head.
In the end, he abandoned the idea.
This was something Thor had to recover from on his own.
"What do we do with these guys now?" Captain America looked around at the Hydra soldiers, feeling a headache coming on.
They had no way to distinguish who had been controlled by the Mind Stone and who had willingly joined Hydra.
This was the hardest part.
Even a lie detector might not solve it.
Bruce pulled out the Mind Stone. "Use this. Stark, I trust you can create a large-scale telepathic scanning device."
"Understood." Stark immediately grasped Bruce's meaning.
Though they didn't fully understand this artifact, its function was brutally simple.
As long as they installed it into something resembling a super lie detector, they could likely determine who among them had willingly joined Hydra.
It would also minimize potential hidden threats.
Bruce said nothing more. He tapped a few buttons on his gauntlet, and a Batwing appeared in the sky.
It descended silently, so quiet it seemed like a model.
But when Stark scanned its power source, he nearly lost his composure.
It was running on his own Arc Reactor.
And its efficiency was nearly on par with the reactor in his chest.
He knew S.H.I.E.L.D. had access to outdated Arc Reactor designs.
But seeing the Batwing's energy output, it was clear it had nearly matched his latest model.
Just as he was about to say something, the Batwing vanished before he could even get a word out.
"Honestly, I should start charging him patent fees. Even the President of the United States can't freeload off my tech!" Stark grumbled, though he knew what mattered most right now.
His priority was determining how many Hydra operatives were truly loyal.
Though he suspected there weren't many unwilling participants.
Inside the Batwing, Bruce had already contacted Jessica.
"Mr. President, how was your day?" Jessica teased.
But Bruce had no time for jokes.
"We need to prepare ourselves." His tone was grave.
Hearing his seriousness, Jessica immediately dropped her playful tone and focused. She needed to know what was coming.
"Should we move Aunt May and the others to a safe place?" Jessica's first thought was of Aunt May, someone very special to both her and Bruce.
Bruce shook his head.
"This situation is likely—"
Before he could finish, a sudden sound of struggle erupted from Jessica's side.
Bruce could tell—she was losing the fight.
He instantly pushed the Batwing to full speed, heading straight for the Batcave.
When Bruce arrived back at the Batcave, all that remained was devastation.
Jessica was nowhere to be seen, nor was the attacker.
There were no signs of forced entry.
Bruce rushed to the control console. Despite the damage from Jessica's battle, the critical components were intact.
He quickly pulled out several cables and connected them to the Batmobile.
He needed to find out who had dared to abduct someone inside the Batcave.
(End of Chapter)
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