"The main universe is a remarkable place." Adam mused, withdrawing his gaze. "The epicenter of chaos, yet teeming with life, where order and disorder coexist."
He hadn't yet pierced the veils of time and fate, but as a Skyfather-level being, he possessed a nascent ability to sense cosmic rules.
Even observing through a spatial rift across billions of distances, Adam was struck by Earth-616's uniqueness.
Regrettably, now wasn't the time to invade the main universe en masse.
For now, he'd used Cul to send a greeting to Earth-616.
Through this maneuver, Adam successfully planted a Xenomorph in the main universe as a foothold.
Indeed, the seemingly unfortunate Xenomorph, sliced in half by the rift, its upper body falling to Earth-616 and swiftly regenerating, had burrowed into the ocean, lying low.
But Adam had no intention of transferring his consciousness to it. Such a move was, for now, too risky.
Across the multiverse, how many gods of boundless might had fallen due to minor oversights?
Facing superheroes and supervillains of various universes, even gods could be targeted and humiliated once a flaw was exposed.
As the Xenomorphs dragged the battered Cul back, Odin, gasping for breath, had been waiting. Each second now felt like centuries.
"Your condition's dire." Adam remarked. "I can see your epidermal cells dying rapidly. No interest in saving yourself?"
"No need." Odin replied. "I've lived long enough. Without becoming a cosmic entity, even the mightiest Skyfather has limits. Not all Skyfathers enjoy the Elders of the Universe's longevity, but living like them is torment."
Leaning on Gungnir, stained with Cul's blood, Odin stood only by the spear's support.
His tone dripped with disdain for the Elders.
Each Skyfather-level Elder clung to obsessive hobbies to stave off mental collapse from eons of existence. But even this low-cost tether alienated them, eroding their original selves.
To Odin, prideful as he was, such a prolonged existence held no value.
"You visited the Serpent's world. Where's he from?" Odin asked, eyeing Cul, restrained by swarms of Xenomorphs.
Cul was a wreck, limbs missing, muscles sliced apart by Xenomorph claws.
"A place called Universe-616." Adam answered. "Fortunately, I met your counterpart there. He's in far better shape, not teetering on death's edge. And his power far surpasses yours."
Odin gave a noncommittal grunt.
A blood kin to Cul would be abnormal if weak.
As for better health… years ago, he might have sought the cause, but now it was irrelevant.
"Where's Thor?" Adam shifted topics. "I haven't seen him on the battlefield. That's unusual."
"I enchanted his Stormbreaker." Odin said. "Without my permission, or until my death, it bars him from summoning the Bifrost."
True to Odin's name, though less bloodthirsty than his Earth-616 counterpart, he was a worthy god-king.
Few Odins across universes matched Earth-616's ferocity.
"I'm taking Cul back to Earth." Adam said. "You won't contest the spoils, will you, Lord Odin? You risked your life to help defeat him, but I suspect you'll seek repayment elsewhere."
Adam's gaze emanated from the assembled Xenomorphs and heroes.
Odin lifted his weary head. "You're clever, adept at trading minor assets for significant gains."
"Then we have a deal." Adam replied. "You won't regret it. I won't deceive you with false information. In any universe, knowledge is paramount. I'll share what you need most."
Adam knew Odin's desire. "The Yggdrasil isn't just its visible facets. Beyond its radiance lie countless shadows. Those entities seemed to have plans for Cul, but they didn't act, perhaps the timing wasn't right."
"What timing?"
"You know."
Odin fell silent. Dangerous beings in the Yggdrasil's shadows, plotting perilous schemes?
His millions of years warring across the Tree had left him familiar with its worlds, if not every planet. Shadows of the Yggdrasil? Nonsense.
Yet Adam's words, coupled with the Tree's anomalous tremors, gave him pause.
Who dwelled in those shadows?
"Cul's in your hands. What will they do?" Odin asked.
"Either wage all-out war or bide their time." Adam replied. "I didn't kill Cul, after all. Time's never their issue, timing is."
Odin's thoughts turned to Ragnarok, the Yggdrasil's most dreaded prophecy.
When a prophecy ascends to that level, it becomes a universe's fixed fate.
If a universe is a vast story, flipping forward reveals certain events destined to unfold. Within that narrative, they can only be faced, not avoided.
From the perspectives of many Xenomorphs, Adam studied Odin. Though most of his cells were dead, he exuded the ferocity of an aged lion.
Adam knew, despite Odin's frail state, the old god was poised to strike. If Adam showed any dangerous intent, Odin would expend his final breath to take down as many Xenomorphs as possible.
Ultimately, Adam refrained from attacking, departing with Cul. Odin exhaled in relief.
Then the dying god-king mocked himself. How swiftly he'd grown wary of Adam. Two years ago, he wouldn't have spared him a glance.
"The times have changed." Odin murmured. "The era of the young has dawned. Old relics like me should exit the stage forever."
But one critical task remained.
Returning to Asgard, Odin saw Thor furiously wielding Stormbreaker, trying to summon the Bifrost.
"Father! You're safe… but your body…" Thor rushed forward.
"A king's fate." Odin said. "To die in war is infinitely better than on a sickbed. Be glad for me, my son. My greatest joy is that, before my end, I've forged you. You're one step from true kingship."
Thor realized Odin's intent. He watched his father's body, as if time accelerated, waste away.
Odin's vast divine power coalesced, channeling into Thor.
Thor's eyes reddened. He opened his mouth, desperate to speak, to act, but words failed, and he was powerless.
Only the surging Odinforce filled his robust frame.
"Use this power well." Odin said. "It's not wholly yours, nor will it guarantee you become a mighty god-king, but it'll see you through crises."
"Watch Adam closely. I can't fathom his true aims. At first, I thought he sought to conquer the Nine Realms, enslave races, and become a god-king like I once was. Now, it's clear his ambitions lie beyond the Yggdrasil, using the present as a springboard."
"He could've struck me down but didn't, perhaps out of pity, or because a decayed Skyfather no longer registers in his eyes."
"Thor, learn from Adam, but never become him. You and he are worlds apart, as are your people and his, a fundamentally different path."
"Bring your brother back. I refuse to believe Loki would truly submit to Gorr. He's surely plotting to undermine him."
"Lastly, when communing with the Yggdrasil, beware its shadows. Something dangerous may lurk there. Stay close to Adam, he seems to be scheming against whatever haunts those shadows."
Odin spoke at length, perhaps more to Thor in this moment than ever before, his body fading with each word.
As the final syllable fell, amid Thor's anguished tears, the mighty Skyfather dissolved.
Countless light motes, like fireflies, drifted into the cosmic void, as if embracing all of Asgard or blanketing the Yggdrasil.
In that moment, Skyfathers across the Tree's branches sensed it.
A divine Skyfather's death couldn't escape their notice. Bound to the Yggdrasil's power, they felt a link in the divine chain snap.
"So Odin's dead." One remarked. "That old bastard lived millions of years and finally croaked."
"If he were alive, would you dare say that openly? Though, true, in his youth, he waged wars that left countless races hating him. Some youngsters think he was benevolent, but at his cruelest, he was a nightmare to worlds."
"Why did Odin, on his deathbed, confront that otherworldly Skyfather? Adam was already engaged. I don't believe Adam could lose."
Some were baffled, unable to grasp the purpose. Was he hastening his demise? In such poor health, why brandish Gungnir for one last fight?
"Perhaps a deal with Adam." Another mused, "or a deliberate choice to meet death in war. He was the Yggdrasil's mightiest Skyfather, the Allfather."
The Yggdrasil fell silent. Whether they revered or cursed Odin, all acknowledged his power.
Relief came with his death, but unease followed: Midgard, a mortal world, had birthed a race not divine yet seemingly more perilous.
None knew what Adam, leader of this race, intended. Would he, like Odin, lead armies to conquer formidable foes, cementing his people's supremacy?
The Xenomorphs, who'd conquered Jotunheim, were deeply feared by other realms' rulers.
They dreaded Adam turning his sights on their worlds as he had Jotunheim.
With multiple Skyfather-level and numerous sub-Skyfather beings under his command, Adam could wage a war to conquer the Nine Realms that few single realms could withstand.
Only Muspelheim at its peak, led by Surtur and his daughter Sindr, two Skyfathers commanding fire and rock giants, could challenge him.
Envoys from various realms flocked to Asgard to mourn.
Adam sent an emissary too, a single Xenomorph, imbued with his consciousness.
"Your astral projection grows more refined." Thor said, forcing a smile as he addressed the Xenomorph. His strain was evident. "Sometimes I can't tell which is the real you. Are these Xenomorphs your soul's vessel or mere conduits for your voice?"
"In your 1,500 years, what you face now is but the start of your cosmic journey." Adam replied. "Compared to your long life, this is trivial. You'll witness greater wonders, carrying your father's legacy."
Adam offered no wreath for Odin, whose body had vanished. Instead, he presented a finger, Cul's, severed by his hand.
"I'll hazard a guess: did Odin's soul enter Valhalla?" Adam asked.
"Valhalla?" Thor hesitated. "They say it exists, a haven for heroic souls, but I've never seen it."
"It likely exists." Adam said. "But Odin's stature was too great. He'd return to Death, not Valhalla."
Adam resolved to seek it. By unraveling Valhalla's structure, he might construct a Xenomorph-exclusive Valhalla.
Every Xenomorph and hero was, at the soul-consciousness level, his vassal, inherently bound to him.
Adam believed he could create a realm between reality and illusion, transforming his abyss of consciousness into such a space.
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