Love You to Asgard and Back

1-The Isle of Silence

Thor Odinson was the eldest and favored son of Odin, the king of Asgard. The golden son was heir to the throne of Asgard and widely regarded as one of the finest warriors of the nine realms. Despite this, the prince was arrogant, brash, and vain. His younger brother, Loki, secretly nursed a growing resentment of his older brother. This resentment grew all the bigger when he learned that he was, in fact, not even of Asgardian blood. Loki had been adopted when Odin waged war against his true kin- the Frost Giants of Jotunheim. During this time, Odin also took from them their greatest weapon- the Casket of Winters- a powerful and dreadful relic capable of plunging entire realms in infinite winter. The Frost Giants had used this weapon to conquer entire realms, and Odin meant to liberate all from its power. He took the Casket- and Loki- with him to Asgard.

Upon learning this truth, Loki decided that he would have the throne. He allowed Frost Giants to gain passage into Odin's Vault- a secure place within the walls of Asgard's castle where the rarest and most dangerous weapons and treasures are kept. It was here that the Casket of Winters was kept. The invaders were killed, but this was exactly what Loki had anticipated. His true goal was to use this as a means of undoing his brother. Thor, enraged that Asgard's enemies would dare invade, urged his father to wage war on them once again. Wise to the hardships of war, Odin refused. It was then that Loki used Thor's worst qualities against him. He encouraged Thor to go and deliver Asgardian justice to Jotunheim. In doing so, Thor incited a war between the realms. The period of peace now threatened to end. Enraged by his son's disobedience and brashness, Odin did exactly what Loki predicted he would- he stripped Thor of his powers and cast him out of Asgard. Thor plummeted to Midgard where he would wonder powerless until he proved he was worthy of the gifts he took for granted.

It was on Midgard that Thor learned no longer possessed his godly powers. And he could no longer lift his hammer, Mjolnir. Worse still, Mjolnir was surrounded by Midgardians who called themselves S.H.I.E.L.D. sought to study the weapon. They imprisoned Thor when his attempt to take his weapon back failed. Crestfallen and utterly defeated, Thor's fortunes improved when he met S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Dean Allen. Thor found himself increasingly interested in the mortal, who encouraged him to learn the lessons Odin wished he would learn- that life is precious and war was nothing to wish for. In exchange for Dean's help, Thor pledged his service to Midgard and promised to join S.H.I.E.L.D. 's newly-formed team of super-powered beings- The Avengers. Loki, fearful that Thor would regain his powers, sent a weapon called The Destroyer to Midgard to kill Thor and Dean. Thor sacrificed his own life to protect Dean and the other mortals. This act of selflessness won Thor his powers back. Together, he and Dean traveled to Asgard and deposed Loki. In the aftermath, Thor remained on Asgard for Loki's trial and Dean returned to Midgard. Though they were separated by thousands of stars, Thor's affection for the mortal clung to him and he longed to return to Midgard to see him again. As for Dean, the mortal continued to work diligently with S.H.I.E.L.D. as he waited for Thor's return.

But Thor was not the Asgardian who came to Midgard. While working security detail for a S.H.I.E.L.D. installation designated for the study and experimentation with a device known as The Tesseract- a shimmering blue cube of great and limitless power. Seeking to use this as a source of unlimited energy, S.H.I.E.L.D. soon discovered that the Tesseract also functioned as a means of travel across the cosmos. The Tesseract suddenly awakened and opened a doorway across the universe, and from it emerged Loki. The god defeated and mentally enslaved several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents before claiming The Tesseract for himself. Dean survived the encounter and was sent to find Thor, who was correctly assumed to follow in Loki's wake. The rest of The Avengers- Captain America, Iron Man and Hulk- were summoned.

Loki's scheme on earth was soon realized when he used the Tesseract to create a portal that would allow an entire army of alien forces to invade earth. It was only through the combined efforts of The Avengers- along with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents Black Widow, Hawkeye and Dean- that Loki's forces were repelled. In the Aftermath, the agents were established as Avengers and Thor returned Loki to Asgard along with the Tesseract. Meanwhile, Dean and the other Avengers set about establishing their new headquarters.