"Your Highness, Lady Hela has gone to Asgard and quarreled with King Odin again. She demands that he send out the troops," Saga reported to Della in the Star Hall.
"Oh? It seems Hela is on the brink of another confrontation," Della mused, as the celestial starlight faded and he opened his eyes.
Thinking of Hela gave Della a headache. As the Aesir goddess of death, she was anything but her namesake—a warmonger who reveled in slaughter.
Della sensed Hela's growing power and her increasing detachment from familial bonds. She was becoming obsessed, like characters from novels he once read. In the past, Hela may not have respected her elder brother, but she wasn't cold-hearted. Now, all he saw in her was chilling indifference.
"No wonder Odin sealed her away for so long. As soon as she's freed, she decimates Asgard's forces," Della sighed. Hela was a classic problem child, or perhaps an ungrateful daughter spoiled by her parents.
"It's best to leave this mess for Odin to deal with," Della decided. He had no intention of intervening in Hela's affairs. Their relationship was strained, and he had no desire to help. Besides, even if Hela was released, he was confident she couldn't defeat him.
Over in the Asgard Hall:
"Father! When will you send the troops?" Hela demanded, confronting Odin and Frigga with icy detachment.
Hela's patience had run out, and she demanded a definitive answer.
"I am the king of Asgard! Your duty is to obey my orders!" Odin retorted. Since the battle with the Celestials, he had regained his prime. His mindset had shifted, but he remained the unchallengeable God King.
Furthermore, Odin recognized Hela's problem. Initially, to bolster Asgard's power, he linked Hela's origin to Asgard. Her power grew exponentially while in Asgard.
However, Odin hadn't anticipated the side effects of her death godhood. Hela transformed from a capable general into a ruthless butcher.
Her feelings grew colder, even towards Frigga, which was unacceptable to Odin.
"Then let there be a new God King!" Hela's tone was icy, and the Blade of the Night Sky in her hand trembled, ready to strike.
Odin's gaze turned steely. Hela had crossed the line. As God King, he feared no challenger, not even his children.
"Hela! Apologize to your father at once!" Frigga urged, sensing the impending conflict. As Odin's closest confidante, she understood his pride like no other.
"Why should I apologize? Odin's lost his ambition—a tyrant turned benevolent king—how laughable!" Hela sneered, ignoring Frigga's plea.
Frigga wanted to intervene, but Odin stopped her. As God King, a challenger was never a reason to avoid battle.
Odin's divine power surged, shaking Asgard. His armor and Gungnir appeared, transforming him from father to majestic God King.
Hela hesitated not, her wild hair rising (in a style reminiscent of Thor: Ragnarok's Hela), ready for battle. The Blade of the Night Sky gleamed ominously in her hands—an instrument of death.
"A confrontation?" Della sensed the Asgardian clash. Clearly, Hela and Odin were at odds.
Della sighed inwardly. He'd noticed Hela's growing detachment and bloodlust. Her presence made many in Asgard uneasy.
Not only Della, but Asgard's saints and gods felt the collision of divine powers. Hela and Odin's discord was no secret, but few expected open warfare.
"Power has gone to her head," Della mused, sensing the clash.
Hela's arrogance was misguided. Even connected to Asgard's origin, she couldn't rival Odin. The divine power Odin unleashed rivaled what he used against the Celestials.
Odin's strength, even without the Destroyer Armor, was more than enough for Hela.
Hela might challenge Frigga, but she was far from God Father level, even among the Aesir.
Odin's decision to seal Hela in Helheim was wise. It was the perfect place for her to hone her powers.
Odin hoped Hela could master her abilities in Helheim, free from divine power's influence.
But ultimately, Odin's plan failed. After his eternal slumber, Hela's first act upon leaving Helheim was to decimate Asgard. Without Heimdall's foresight, Asgard might have fallen to Hela's army before Thanos arrived.
"A complex and contradictory father-daughter dynamic," Della thought, rising to fly towards the Asgard Hall. After today, Hela's presence in Asgard would be no more.
As her elder brother, Della felt it necessary to see her. Who knew when they'd meet again?
Maybe one day, he'd find a way to reverse the death godhood's side effects and visit Helheim. Until then, Della chose to avoid Hela.
With Hela's current disposition, Della feared he might be tempted to end her!