Story continued from THE MIGHTY THOR #19Loki returns from his journey to Hel and fills Thor in on what happened (off-stage): after Hela rejected his plea for help, Loki remembered the StarkPad which provided the evidence that Loki and the All-Mother were traitors. He stealthily removed the pad from Volstagg’s room and after some research discovered the existence of a portal directly to Muspelheim from the base of the Manchester God statue in Otherworld….
Unaware that this is a trap laid by Leah of Hel (revealed in Thor #19), he steals into Otherworld and enters the portal accompanied by his dog Thori and his magpie/spirit guide Ikol. As he gains entrance to the domain of Surtur, Leah reveals herself and her desire for revenge: it seems this is not the real Leah but the embodiment of the fictitious one he wrote into the history of the Serpent to provide a weakness for the villain so that Thor could slay him (see JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #629 and FEAR ITSELF #7). Abandoned in the pages of a book she has been conspiring against him with Surtur—and Loki is delighted! Why? Look at his record: everything he has done since the Siege of Asgard has been to betray his people (despite always claiming his true motives were misunderstood) and now he wants her to join him in his final vengeance on Asgard….
Meanwhile, Volstagg is the new King of Asgardia, selected by drawing straws (actually hairs from his beard) with Hogun and Fandral. Now his heart is heavy under the burden of leadership and he worries over the fate of his land….
Leah takes Loki to Surtur where they convince the Fire Demon that the Norse God of Evil is a true ally. And so to demonstrate, Loki invites Thor into Muspelheim on the pretext of planning an invasion of the fiery realm but he tricks the God of Thunder into plunging into a demon-infested river of molten rock….
Story continues in THE MIGHTY THOR #20