War of the Realms #5 (2019)

Brief Summary Still empowered by Hofund, Daredevil takes Thor on a Skidbladnir to the Sun, where Yggdrasill has taken root from a seed that had been growing in Asgardia before the city was destroyed in the star. Thor decides to nail himself to the tree to search for answers to something. All over the world, different contingents of heroes fend off the invading forces. The Angels of Heven meet resistance in Wakanda; Enchantress and the Draugr are overwhelmed in Montevideo, Uruguay; Ulik and his Rock Trolls are opposed in Australia; in Antarctica, the Agents of Wakanda take back control of global communications from Roxxon. In the present, in Old Asgard, Jane Foster meets up with Heimdall before reaching for the shattered pieces of the Ultimate Mjolnir. Back in the recent past, Sindr and the Fire Goblins fight heroes in Shanghai; in Manhattan, Iron Man leads the War Machine Dwarves against Frost Giants while the Fantastic Four fight King Laufey; in London, Dark Elves are taken down while Volstagg uses the Destroyer to fight Kurse. A storm of global scale ravages enemies worldwide as Thor demands to know Malekith's whereabouts. In the present, Thor has used Jarnbjorn to nail himself upside down to Yggdrasill to find answers. Earlier, Malekith had magically contacted Thor to summon him to Stonehenge, where he has erected a magical barrier only Thor can cross without killing his hostages, Odin and Freyja. As Thor burns to find a way to overcome Malekith's challenge, Jane lifts the broken handle of the Ultimate Mjolnir, and is engulfed by the weapon's energy. Detailed Summary In the present, the deific Daredevil and Thor steer Skidbladnir towards the sun, the God Without Fear telling the God of Thunder that back when he was mortal he'd been able to hear screams all across New York City, but that with the power of Hofund he can hear screams not only around the world but across the universe. Thor irately demands that Daredevil take them back to Midgard, but Daredevil refuses and shows Thor that a new Yggdrasill is emerging from the stellar plasma. As Thor wonders how this is even possible, Daredevil states that a seed of the World Tree was on Asgardia when it and Magog were thrown into the Sun, and that it impossibly took root and grew from the fire. As Thor begins to ask another question, Daredevil says there is a price for answers and asks what he's willing to pay. Recalling the incident where his father nailed himself to the original Yggdrasil in exchange for knowledge, Thor flies towards the new World Tree and tells Daredevil to pin him to it with Jarnbjorn. Earlier in Wakanda, the Dora Milaje, Hildegarde, Lady Sif, and Angela fight the Queen of Heven and her War Angels; Okoye stating that she's going to teach the Angels not to mess with Wakanda. Hildegarde jokingly asks Angela why she's been holed up in the Bronx if a place like Wakanda exists, Sif telling her to focus on the fight. As Black Panther arrives on a winged horse, accompanied by a mystically-enhanced helicarrier, Shuri delivers a motivational speech telling her people to be themselves and show the world what it means to be indomitable. Leading a brigade of Light Elves armed with assault rifles, the Punisher instructs them to aim for the Angels' heads before the squad opens fire with vibranium bullets. Thor flies past, trailing lightning in his wake and electrocuting every enemy he passes. In Montevideo, divine lightning smites a horde of Draugr about to attack a civilian as Ghost Rider faces off with the Enchantress. As the Asgardian sorceress sneers that he's merely a boy in the body of a monster, Ghost Rider unleashes the power of his inner demon and blasts her with hellfire. Driving the Hell Charger, Balder cheerfully agrees as Doctor Strange - leaning out the window and wielding an axe - complains about how malevolent the possessed vehicle is. Recognizing Spider-Man as the avatar of a superior spider-god, the Spiders of Hel choose him as their new master - though he is grossed out by them eating the undead and attempts to get away from them. In Australia, Hulk - wielding an Asgardian warhammer and calling herself Thunder Hulk - faces off against King Ulik, who is enamoured by her viciousness and physical prowess. Luke Cage, Deadpool, Daredevil, and Iron Fist fight against Ulik's troll army; Rand expressing concern about Hofund's growing influence over his friend and saying they need to get the divine sword away from him as soon as possible. In Roxxon's headquarters, Broo and Gorilla-Man of the Agents of Wakanda succeed in restoring the networks downed by Roxxon's hacks; but are attacked by Hulked-out security forces and call for backup. Ka-Zar, Blade and a group of Vanir leap from the helicarrier overhead to rescue them. Outside, Agent Roz Solomon and All-Mother Jane Foster attack Dario Agger - the former delighted to finally have a legitimate reason to kill him. Unable to fend against a barrage of vibranium bullets and Gungnir even after transforming into the Minotaur, Dario is defeated and exposed as a monster, causing Roxxon's stock to go into freefall. In the present, Jane Foster arrives at Old Asgard and greets Heimdall, asking if he hears Thor's screams. Heimdall states that the entire cosmos must have heard them, Jane lamenting that he would go to such lengths to find an answer to Malekith's challenge. As Jane vows to not let him search alone, Heimdall warns her against taking any rash actions; though she rebukes him by reminding him of Valkyrie's sacrifice. Jane swears to avenge her and the other Valkyrior, cutting Heimdall's protest off as she states that as All-Mother of Asgard everything on it is hers, looking down at the shattered pieces of Ultimate Mjolnir. Earlier, in Shang-hai, Captain Marvel lifts Queen Sindr into the sky and threatens to water all of China with her blood unless she surrenders and puts out the Muspelheim Fire. Using the Progenitor's power to teleport reinforcements around the world, Light Elves assist the Winter Guard in retaking Volgograd; Hawkeye, Shuri, and Shang-Chi fight Fire Goblins in Shanghai alongside Logan and the Warriors Three - Hogun being impressed by Logan's berserker state and asking Fandral if they can keep him. In Manhattan, Iron Man leads a group of dwarves equipped with magically-augmented War Machine Armor against the Frost Giants, while the Fantastic Four work to subdue King Laufey. In London, Captain Britain - wielding the Ebony Blade - and Captain America repel the dark elf horde, pushing them into the River Thames. One of Malekith's War Witches struggles to hold back Thori as the mystical hound declares his intent to eat her, Bats threatening to haunt her forever unless she retreats. Kurse trades blows with the Destroyer - controlled by Volstagg, who despite still being weakened from his time as the War Thor is able to supply it with enough power to punch her over the horizon. All around the world, divine lightning smites the forces of the Dark Council as Thor joins the battle searching for Malekith. In the present, Thor is pinned by his ankle to the new Yggdrasil and engulfed by the sun's flames - his clothes and armor incinerated. Ulik and his trolls surrender, the Queen of Heven is killed and sent to Hel, and Laufey is left the last Frost Giant in Manhattan. Malekith was presumed dead after the destruction of the Black Bifrost, but Thor knows that's not true - having received a telepathic challenge from the dark elf warlord: At Stonehenge, Malekith brandishes the Venom symbiote - transformed into a blade of living abyss - and issues a challenge to Thor, saying only he can pass through the magical barrier erected around the megalith structure; and that if anyone else tries to intervene he will kill Odin and Freyja - who he has captured. Odin tries to warn his son that it's a trap, but Malekith stabs him with his symbiote-sword and tells him to hurry so that he can write the final chapter the War of the Realms with Thor's blood. As Thor struggles to replicate Odin's legendary feat in record time, Jane Foster states that there must always be a Thor and that sometimes there must be more than one as she lifts the handle of Ultimate Mjolnir, becoming wreathed in divine lightning.