In Asgard, Lady Sif watches with her All-Sight as Volstagg attempts to pacify the refugees from the planets Galactus devoured; the badly-beaten and depowered Beta Ray Bill prays beneath the dying Yggdrasill, and King Loki broods on his throne in Jotunheim. Unable to stand the overwhelming commotion she withdraws into herself, only to be roused by Bill approaching her. As Bill apologizes for intruding, Sif states that she tried to see Thor, but cannot sense him even with Hofund's power. As Sif laments having thought that becoming the All-Father would make him less reckless, Bill remarks that they shouldn't have expected it to. As Sif incredulously asks why Bill is defending Thor after their brutal fight, Bill states that anyone who wants to become a king should be disqualified, but that Thor didn't ask to be set on this path. Nevertheless, Bill states that he hopes Thor will rise to the challenge. Watching Thori play with Lockjaw, Sif asks Bill what he was praying for; and Bill responds that he was praying for forgiveness, though he's not sure for whom. Bill informs Sif that Volstagg has called a gathering to discuss the goings-on - and as an excuse to get drunk - but Sif declines to leave her post.
Across the universe, Thor and Galactus are engulfed by the Black Winter, lashing out with divine lightning and the Power Cosmic against tendrils of eldritch darkness. The Black Winter greets Thor and tells Galactus to shut up as the Devourer of Worlds begs for Thor not to listen to it. Remarking that it finds Thor interesting, the Black Winter mockingly addresses him by the titles of his distant future self. Confused, Thor protests that he's never gone by "The All-Butcher" or "End-God" before, but the Black Winter silences him with a blast of energy and asks if he wants to see how he'll die. Galactus futilely struggles to free himself as the Black Winter engulfs him, pleading for it to stay out of his head. Thor attempts to hold it back, but is engulfed by the universe-devouring darkness as well.

Thor finds himself in an Escherian maze of staircases, the Black Winter stating that it asked him a question. Thor furiously demanding for the Black Winter to show itself, the Black Winter stating that the arena Thor is in is an extension of itself, but that he cannot defeat it. Offering Thor the gift of the truth of how he will die. Thor shouts that he's not afraid of the end, the Black Winter sneering that the end isn't afraid of him either. Attacked from behind, Thor looks up in horror to see Gorr the God-Butcher seemingly alive and once-more bonded to the All-Black symbiote. As Gorr brandishes his Necrosword and gloats, Thor incredulously protests that he'd killed Gorr years ago, then angrily snarls that he'll gladly do so again. Before Thor can attack, he's impaled from behind by a spear and turns to see the original Loki, who gleefully mocks him. Snapping the spear, Thor bashes Gorr with Mjolnir and shouts at the Black Winter that he has had enough. The Black Winter sneers that Thor hasn't nearly had enough as Mangog, Jormungand, Malekith, the Enchantress, Mephisto, Surtur, Apocalypse, the Juggernaut, Annihilus, and Doctor Doom appear. As Thor struggles against the horde of top-tier supervillains, the Black Winter muses that Thor has had many scrapes with death over the centuries of his life - naming the Beyonder and the Serpent as some examples before listing the various ways in which Thor has been killed. Finally, it brings up what was supposed to be his true end: fighting one-armed and one-eyed alongside his brother against the resurrected Gorr at the end of time, before sacrificing himself to hold off entropy. As Surtur and Magog punch Thor into Jormungand's gaping maw, the Black Winter sneers that something has altered history's course - slithering through time to kill Thor's destiny and break his fate. As Thor breaks free from the Midgard Serpent's jaws, the

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