For All Time. Always!

29 - The One with More Lokis

The Void

Still Loki's POV

  I stand up, flipping my hair to get it out of my face. I remember Y/n once telling me I was a poser for doing that. I smile at the thought before wiping it off, trying to focus on the matter at hand.

  "What is this place? Where are we? Who are you?"

  The older man walks toward me while I look around at the scenery. It had overgrown plants, enormous, abandoned sculptures, definitely not from here. And of course, there was the gigantic purple thundering cloud seeming to come straight at us.

  "This is the Void, that's Alioth, and we're his lunch. Come on!" he says, slapping my shoulder in a way to make me run along with the group.

⚛ 

  After what seems like forever of running through the deserted land, trying to escape whatever Alioth was, I grow tired of whatever we were doing.

  "I highly suggest we take a breather, so I can ask several thousand questions," I request, out of breath.

  "Gotta keep moving so we don't die," the old Loki responds, walking quickly. How in Odin's name was this old man able to walk this far and still walk faster than me?

  "Okay, but what's your plan?"

  "Don't die."

  "Okay, but beyond that?"

  "Don't die."

  "Don't die is not a plan! It's a general demand of living. If you're Lokis, you should always have a plan-" They're not even listening to me. I rush to catch up with their fast pace as some bird-like creatures run around me.

  "Will someone please explain to me what the hell is going on?!" I snap. They stop, turning to me. 

  "Look, it's been a very, very, very trying past few days. Months? I don't even know how long it's been since New York. All I know is, I got pruned and woke up here, and now I'm surrounded by variants of myself, plus an alligator, which I'm heartbroken to report that I don't even find that all that strange! And now we're running from God knows what to God knows where, when I need to be trying to find a way back to the TVA!"

  The younger Loki draws a blade, pointing it right at me, causing me to fall down on my back. "Stop wailing or you will signal Alioth," he demands.

  I look behind him. "You mean the monster in the sky?" He sighs, shaking his head and hiding his blade God knows where, all before grabbing my hand to pull me back to my feet.

  "Thank you."

  He spreads out his arms, signaling to the area around us. "This is the place where the TVA dumps it's rubbish," he turns around. "Everything they prune. And," he points to the cloud. "Alioth, he ensures none of it ever returns."

  "It's a living tempest that consumes matter and energy," the buff Loki explains. "They send entire branched realties here that are devoured instant-"

  "We're in a shark tank," old Loki interrupts. "Alioth is the shark." The alligator growls, catching his attention. "Oh, there's no such thing as an alligator tank. Besides, it's a better metaphor. He's overly sensitive like the rest of us," he explains the last part to me.

  I furrow my brows. "Hang on... you're telling me that things a Loki too?"

  "Oh, yes," he states as if it's obvious.

  My brows raise, the information confusing me too much. "Okay, fine. I'm willing to accept that. Why are there so many of you?"

  "Because Lokis survive. That's just what we do."

  "Great, so how do we escape?"

  "We don't. All of us were arrested by the TVA and pruned, just like you. And just like you, we all stood around making bad plans that went nowhere."

  "But we could use a tempad."

  "Oh, the one thing that could get us out of here, yes," buff Loki says, sarcastically. "They're all over the place, right guys?" The others start laughing.

  "Fine. What about causing a Nexus event?"

  "The TVA doesn't care what happens here."

  "Surely there's something we can do."

  "There is," old Loki starts. "Survive. That's all there is. All there ever was."

  "We're done talking," the younger one states. "Let's go. Just do what you want I guess."

  They all get one last look at me before following the kid, leaving me behind. Thunder grumbles as I look around, desperately trying to think of some sort of plan. With no ideas, I run after them. "Okay, wait, wait, wait."

  Catching up with them, I furrow my brows when I get a better look at their suits. "Why do you wear the horns? You let a child command you."

  The old Loki turns to me. "You'll do well to respect the boy. This is his kingdom."

  "Right. What was your nexus event, your majesty?"

  He turns to me. "I killed Thor."

do you think the chapters are too short? It just feels like it takes forever to write them but then I look at them on my phone and it takes like 2 minutes to read-