"Hey, so listen, we should talk."
I scowled, gritting my teeth as I hastily typed in a code into a security panel. Turning to my brother I smiled and said, "I disagree. Open communication was never our family's forte."
The door shot open as I pressed enter. Grabbing my gun, I walked through the entranceway with Thor as he said, "You have no idea. I've had quite the revelation since we spoke last."
At the end of the hallway, a gaggle of Skaaraian guards had collected. Hefting up my gun, I smiled at the unsuspecting crowd.
"Hello," Thor said as he did the same.
"Hi!" I said excitingly before completely letting loose of my ammunition and mowing them down. Thor followed suit as we made our way to the net security panel for me to hack.
Slowly getting through, we both dodged behind columns. Turning to him, I said, "Odin brought us together, it's almost poetic that his death should split us apart. We might as well be strangers now. 'Two sons of the crown' set adrift."
Quickly, we both shot out from behind or hiding place and made quick work of the remaining guards. Dropping my gun, I made my way to the next access panel and began typing in a code.
The last thing I wanted to do at that moment was having a heart-to-heart with Thor. I was so sick of all his emotional over-analyzation of our childhood and my family. I was perfectly fine before he came along and decided to muck everything up. I was ruling Asgard, I had a gorgeous wife and child, and I was perfectly happy leaving Odin to die on Midgard. But suddenly, all those luxuries were stripped from me and he had the audacity to lecture me on responsibility.
As the door opened, I was greeted harshly with a large gun to the face. Putting my hands up in defense, I backed up slowly before Thor made quick work of the guard. Within seconds, the guard was flat on the ground. Hastily, Thor brushed past me and said mockingly, "Thought you didn't want to talk about it?"
I looked at the guard, in complete awe of how easy he had been taking out. Looking up at Thor, I quickly followed after him into the elevator and explained, "Here's the thing, I'm probably better off staying here on Sakaar."
Thor chuckled lightly and turned to face me as he said, "That's exactly what I was thinking."
SHocked, I furrowed my brows and looked at him. I expected a lecture on how I had to return home. I was just waiting for him to tell me I was an awful husband or an even worse father.
"Did you just agree with me?"
"Come on, this place is perfect for you," he explained, "It's savage, chaotic, lawless. Brother, you're going to do great here. Just send a postcard to Sigyn please, ya'know, explaining why you're abandoning her."
I scoffed, "Do you truly think so little of me?"
"Loki, I thought the world of you," he said, looking at me with eyes that conveyed a broken heart, "I thought we were gonna fight side by side forever. I truly thought you had turned your life around, Sigyn made it seem that way at least. She believed in you so much that I figured you must have changed. That you must have been the good husband and father she said you were. But, at the end of the day, you're still you, and I'm me..."
"I don't know, maybe there's still good in you," he continued, "but let's be honest, our paths diverged a long time ago. And your path seems to be at a crossroads yet again, either be the man Sigyn believes you to be, or the one you are."
Pursing my lips, I masked my discomfort by saying, "It's probably best I just stay here isn't it? Never seeing you again and just leaving Hela and Sigyn to be saved by you?"
Thor did no more than pat me on the shoulder and say, "That's what you've always wanted isn't it? To be an only child and he truly devoid of all responsibility? It's a dream come true for you."
I paused, allowing all that he said to finally sink in. It was as if something finally clicked to me. I finally had the opportunity to have what I've wanted my entire life and somehow it seemed so unappealing. I didn't want to be alone. I certainly didn't want to be useless. In fact, I realized I wanted the opposite. I wanted to be needed, I wanted to be loved, I wanted all this and more. It was just as Sigyn always told me, she knew all along that I wasn't an evil monster. She saw right through my facade and saw me, as me.
Instantly I knew I needed to return to Asgard. A vision of both Hela and Sigyn flashed in my mind. My girls. My heart felt as though it had been squeezed as I realized how dramatically I had disserviced them. Sigyn had been left completely alone to defend all of Asgard and protect our daughter. My anxiety began to rev up as I thought of all that could've happened in my absence. Oh god, I thought to myself.
Snapping me back to Sakaar, Thor asked, "Hey, let's do Get Help."
"What?" I said, shaking my anxiety away.
"Get help," he repeated.
"No."
"Come one! You love it," he pleaded.
"I hate it."
"It's great," he countered, "It works every time."
"It's humiliating," I argued.
"Do you have a better plan?"
"No."
"We're doing it," he said happily as he looked forward.
I repeated myself once more, "We are not doing get help."
He smiled at me and quirked an eyebrow, before I had time to protest any further he swung my arm over his shoulder and the elevator dinged. Quickly, I slumped and put all my weight on Thor.
"Get help!" He cried out, "Please! My Brother, he's dying!"
A small group of Sakaarian guards turned towards us very apprehensively. One guard aimed his gun at us, prompting Thor to picked me up and fling me at the guards, knocking them all down like bowling pins. Quickly I stood up as Thor stepped to my side.
"Classic," he said, grinning from ear to ear.
"I still hate it," I grumbled, dusting myself off, "It's still humiliating."
"Not for me, it's not!"
I rolled my eyes, walking forward as we surveyed the area. There were multi-tiered levels filled with spaceships galore.
"Which one is the ship she told us to get?" He asked, looking around the hangar.
Leading the way, to the bright shiny new ship that stood before us, I reminded him, "The Commodore."
It was a gorgeous vessel. Sleek, shiny, and sophisticated. As I walked, I thought for a brief moment. I needed to return to Asgard. But I certainly did not want to do it with Thor. I had to be there for my girls and save them from whatever madness Hela had created. But, as I looked at my brother I realized that returning with him at my side may be a danger to whatever Sigyn and I had. Easily, upon hearing of my escapades she would have every right to leave me for my brother. This was a chance I wasn't willing to take.
As we walked, I cast an illusion of myself to walk besides Thor as I snuck back to the control panel I had hacked earlier. J activated the panel and brought up a screen that would set off all the alarms palace-wide.
"Oh, Loki," Thor said, looking over my shoulder I saw him looking not at all surprised.
"What would Sigyn say if she saw you now?"
I rolled my eyes and said, "I know I've betrayed you many times before, but this time it's truly nothing personal. The reward for your capture will set my family up nicely here on Sakaar."
"Never one for sentiment, were you?"
I laughed as I pulled the alarm, "Easier to let it burn."
Thor smiled and held up a small fob. My face paled as I realized what he held. I grabbed at my neck and quickly realized that Thor had fixed an Obsidian disk around my neck.
"I agree," he said before clicking the trigger. I hit the ground with a mighty force, the electricity coursing through my body as Thor approached me.
"Oh brother, you're becoming predictable," he said looking down at me, "I trust you, give you an opportunity to show your worth as a brother, husband, and a father, and you betray me. Round and round in circles we go."
Kneeling down as held down the trigger, he continued, "See, Loki, life is about, it's about growth. It's about change. But you seem to just wanna stay the same even when you have so much to live for. I guess what I'm trying to say is that you'll always be the God of Mischief, but you could be more. I'll just put this over here for you and let Sigyn know about the decision you made."
He placed the fob just out of my reach, and with it still being triggered my body continued to feel completely abuzz. He gave me one last sad smile before finally walking away and into the Commodore.
The massive garage doors opened shortly after, setting off blaring alarms to alert the palace of the unauthorized departure. The Commodore ship lifted off from the garage floor. In the cockpit, Thor pushed forward on the throttle, speeding out fo the hanger.
I stayed on the garage floor for what seemed like hours, desperately trying to get ahold of the fob but to no avail. Eventually, that rock man came out of nowhere seemingly leading a hole army of former slaves.
I looked up at him with a pleading glance, hoping just maybe he would have mercy on me and free my from the obsidian disk. Luckily for me, he did.
Finally, I took a breath and struggled to return to my own two feet. I hastily dusted myself off and said a very genuine, "Thank you."
"Hey man, we're about to jump on that ginormous spaceship. You wanna come?" he asked politely, gesturing to a super cruiser.
I smiled, "You do seem in desperate need of leadership."
"Thank you!"
I couldn't help but smile. I had my ticket home and a perfect escape from Thor. I suppose with my plan now finally in action, it was simply a race to see who would return to Asgard first.
I smiled to myself as I thought of Sigyn welcoming me home with open arms. Ah, I could not wait any longer for that moment. She's going to be so thrilled to see me, I thought.