Thor (1998 series) #52

At Bilskirnir, Thor’s palace, Balder the Brave comes looking for Thor and encounters Thialfi; Balder is concerned that Thor never arrived for a meeting and worries that trouble has arisen. Thialfi tries to calm him, assuring the warrior that it is merely some personal business that detains him. Thialfi can say no more so Balder expresses his concern that, Thialfi is a recent addition to Thor’s inner circle, he has not won Balder’s trust; he may be an enemy or agent of Loki. Thialfi remains quiet as he is in Thor’s confidence….

Thor, wishing solitude, walks in the wilderness, his thoughts going back centuries on Midgard to when the Vikings terrorized the Northlands. During one such raid, a young couple and their child fled for safety but encountered a burly Viking who killed the man, calling him a disgrace to Odin, killing him in the name of his god Thor. Later, as the Vikings sat around the fire, exchanging stories, Thor came to join them. The widowed P’aesi called to them, demanding to know what kind of god demands the slaughter of innocents. Thor tries to explain noble warfare but she invites him to go to the battlefield where he will find only the corpses of unarmed men, women, and children. Thor turns to go and a Viking warrior kills the woman on the spot. Thor is shocked and the Vikings are confused, isn’t this what they should have done? Thor tells them the blood of the innocent must never be spilled and carries off the woman’s body over the battlefield, discovering that the woman’s report was true and wondering how the Vikings could have thought that was the way of the gods. Odin answers that these are the ways of mortal and it is best to turn away. The All-Father notes that he could lash out at wrongdoers but it would be better if they learned that lesson on their own. But Thor is still concerned for those who suffer, like the boy whose parents were slain. So Odin transformed Thialfi into one of the gods, that his home may be in Asgard and when he comes of age to join Thor’s friends. And Thor remembers this, occasionally visiting the battlefield where the innocents died, reminding him that the difference between gods and men is not so vast….

Thor returns to his palace and Balder asks him how he knows they can trust Thialfi. Thor assures Balder that he has known Thialfi since he was a boy and he can be trusted. After Balder leaves, Thialfi asks about the battlefield; Thor responds that the ghosts still linger but they learned from that, to correct their actions….