The story begins a few days prior to the current events: the Frost Giant king Skrymir was having second thoughts about allying with Malekith but the Dark Elf tells him that the long-sought skull of ancient ruler Laufey has been found and they need only besiege Midgard to recover it. And there’s an added bonus: Thor no longer has his hammer….
Now on the floating sky island owned by Roxxon Corp., the new female Thor is facing Frost Giants while Mjolnir is trapped inside an impregnable vault with CEO Dario Agger. Malekith chides the new heroine with the news that he has killed the old Thor (he doesn’t realize that Thor survived their encounter in issue #1). He leaves her to the mercy of the giants, who freeze her in spittle (!) and Skrymir swallows her in a gulp. She then crashes her way out of his skull and lays into the others using the giant king’s frozen jawbone as a weapon….
Meanwhile, Malekith has entered the sealed vault by means of his superior magic and demands Laufrey’s skull from Agger; the Roxxon CEO responds by transforming into his minotaur form and giving battle….
Outside Thor keeps up her mocking patter as she plows though the giants, ending by smashing a hole through the floor of the flying island, dropping her opponents to the earth far below. As new Thor finds herself starting to change back into her human form, she manages to pry the vault doors open enough to allow Mjolnir to escape—and kill the last remaining giant which was sneaking up on her. With her hammer returned, she enters the vault and smashes the precious skull to bits. Malekith pronounces doom on Midgard once the Frost Giants learn what was done. A new voice enters the chamber with a challenge for the new Thor: it is the old Thor….