You go, I go, right ?

 It's the apocalypse. There is no other word to describe the ambient chaos, the screams, the flashes of light, the collapsing walls, the violent tremors of the ground. It's the TVA apocalypse, its end.

And Sylvie shouldn't be afraid, her stomach shouldn't be in such knots that it makes her sick, her heart shouldn't pound so painfully in her chest. The ends of the world are her universe, it's where she grew up and lived all her life; she has become accustomed to this hell like wolves have become accustomed to living at night to have a chance of surviving.

Yet this time, she is terrified, panicked to the point of feeling all her limbs tremble, driven to run by a crazy adrenaline that burns her veins.

Because this time, she is part of the decor. She is not just a guest, a stranger that no one recognizes, an intruder who appears at the end of everything to leave just before the final catastrophe, the fatal moment. This time, if the world explodes, she explodes with it.

And this time, above all, she is not alone in the middle of the nightmare; at her side runs the person who is the most dear to her in the world, the most precious thing in her life, and his survival counts so much more than hers, and protecting him is more important than anything. It is for him much more than for her that the terror devours her, for him much more than for her that she seeks a way out so relentlessly.

Loki's hand trembles in hers as they speed through the huge place, jostling and being jostled by hundreds of thousands of people as desperate as they are, and he tries to hide it, squeezing his fingers tighter and tighter. She knows it's to reassure her, to tell her that everything will be all right, that it's so she doesn't feel that he's as scared as she is. She also tightens her grip to give him the same messages.

"We'll get through this, Sylvie" he promises with all the rage and conviction of the multiverse. "We'll get through this."

And he believes what he says, because the mere presence of Sylvie at his side is enough to make him feel that he could survive anything.

There's so much confidence in his voice that Sylvie believes him too.

The wrenching screams that fill the air are unbearable, and feel like a thousand blades piercing their flesh and hearts. So many people are likely to die tonight, swallowed up with the mighty place that was thought to be invincible; it is their screams, their cries for help that rip through the atmosphere, and there is nothing they can do. They can only fight to save themselves, trying to ignore the surrounding despair and the terrible pounding of their conscience as it all sinks in for ever, promising long sleepless nights and harsh nightmares if they ever get out alive; they can only focus on their goal, telling themselves that everything will be alright, that these people will find a solution, that they can help them once they get out. 

Their hands clutch each other even tighter as they take the last bend in the corridor before what is surely their last hope, hearing a deafening explosion as they pass, followed by the terrible scream of a woman.

Breathing heavily, their hair dishevelled, they arrive at the highest and widest walkway of the TVA. The place is huge, impressive, with a view of the entire temporal agency, which was once a charming feature and is now just a window to horror ; for this agency is living its last moments, and the place offers an overview of all the flames, the smoke, the ashes, the tremors, the high walls reduced to tiny pebbles, taking the lives of hundreds of people with them. 

But they don't have time to dwell on this appalling sight. Adrenaline making them forget their exhaustion, they rush towards the opposite end of the bridge, where, if they are lucky enough, there are still ships that will allow them to escape. 

"Mobius!" they both shout at the same time as they recognise the familiar figure with his back to them a few metres away.

He turns around, and the relief on his face mirrors theirs.

"Thank Gods you're alive", their three voices say simultaneously, and a brief smile appears on their faces before disappearing as soon as they remember what's happening.

"I've been looking for you everywhere," informs the former analyst, his features weighed down by the hell that surrounds them. "There's no way out from this side, is there?"

Loki and Sylvie shake their heads in a perfectly synchronised movement, and the look of fatality on their friend's face deepens the anguish that gnaws at them, like a heavy weight that goes right through them and leaves their knees trembling. Is there really no hope for them ?

"Nothing on this side either, I suppose ?"  asks Loki in a voice in a voice whose tremors he tries to control. 

Mobius sighs. His hands are agitated with nervous tics. They don't have much time.

"There were evacuation ships around here. Not enough for everyone, of course. The TVA has always thought itself far too powerful for that. The most senior staff brought in about a hundred people, the vast majority chosen for their ability or rank, of course... "

A dull, burning anger suddenly rises in the two lovers. Welcome to the machine, right? Not even death and destruction could prevent the worst of the TVA, selecting who will live and who will die according to what they think is most useful for them, or the blood and wealth of each.

"Is there any left?"

There is a palpable urgency in Loki's voice as he studiously ignores the sense of injustice he feels. He'll think about it later if he can. His priority is to save Sylvie.

Please, let there be at least one place for him. 

"I don't know. They were filling the last ship when I left. I don't think there are any seats left...I was looking for you so you could get on board"  -  and they feel a sudden surge of affection for the analyst- "but..." 

Loki does not wait for the end of his sentence. He starts to run, dragging Sylvie behind him, whose hand he is still holding. 

There is still a ship, which seems so full from where they are that the idea that anyone could still enter it seems laughable. Heaps of people crowd around, forcing Loki and Sylvie to push and elbow their way through all the terrified people banging on the windows, crying, clawing at the ship and screaming.

"WILL YOU LET US ALL DIE HERE?!" a man rages, trying to force his way through with the help of several people. 

"LET US IN!" screams a woman who has managed to reach the door and is now struggling with two guards.

A din of voices responds, and the crowd begins to push with even more desperate energy and vehemence. At the same time, another mighty explosion sounds, from a lower level, and a woman, younger than the other, exclaims:

"HURRY UP AND FORCE YOUR WAY THROUGH!"

"Step back! GET BACK IMMEDIATELY!" yells one of the TVA members at the top of his voice. "There is only one place left, we can't fit everyone in! Help will come when the ships are..."

The rest of his sentence is muffled by the unanimous cry of the hundreds of people gathered, and he topples to the ground under its pressure. There is another shout, this time of triumph.

Thrown in all directions, roughed up, Loki and Sylvie hold each other's fingers tightly so as not to lose each other, and after a few minutes of obstacle course, they reach the head of the crowd, just in front of the ship. 

 One seat.  

"Let her board this ship!" Loki immediately shouts, feeling his throat hurt from screaming so loudly, before Sylvie can say anything.

Some of the attention then shifts to him, and Sylvie looks at him with wide, protesting eyes. 

"What are you..." she begins in a voice that makes it clear that she has no intention of letting him do this, but he doesn't give her time to finish.

"Let her on board this ship" he repeats in a breathless voice, covering the protests and arguments of Sylvie who keeps saying that it is out of the question, that she forbids him to add anything else, and who enjoins the guards to let him on instead.

Her free hand now encircles his arm, and he forces himself not to look at her, keeping his eyes fixed on the TVA agent whose eyes dart back and forth as if he's watching a tennis match, while the two Loki's try to convince him to get the person they love on that ship.

"If anyone deserves this place, it is her. You know that as well as I do."

The guard exchanges a look with his colleague and Loki guesses what they are thinking without difficulty. 
    Yes, they know. Both he and Sylvie are known and respected here. But Sylvie has much more merit than him, that's no secret. In terms of ability, she is one of the best here, if not the best. It's also because of the TVA that she lost everything she had, and went through hell. Not only is this course enough to give her the right to ride and to prove that her strength and courage are valuable, but on top of that, how could they leave her here after all of this? Especially now that she has helped them so much, however reluctantly.

There's a lot of outrageous ideology in that, but if it saves Sylvie, he doesn't care. 

Unlike Sylvie, whose stomach suddenly clenches.

They are gonna agree with him.  

Both read at the same time the conclusion that is drawn in their minds. Loki is right in saying that she deserves her place. She does.

"Wait," she intervenes. "You have to let him in. I..."

He interrupts her again, and the guards listen to him, not her. It's a losing battle. 

"We don't have much time," continues Loki. "Our attempts to reignite the tempads have failed and Kang's plan is working. The TVA will be reduced to ashes in less than two hours and forty minutes. If we're going to rely on the survivors to send us outside help, then she needs to get on a ship. She is our best hope."

And that's it. They are fully convinced.

"Get in" they tell Sylvie, and the noise of the crowd becomes even more deafening, and its struggle even more virulent. They all shout injustice and outrage with all the force of their lungs, but they can shout as much as they want, Loki doesn't care. An intense relief runs through his entire being. 

He just wants Sylvie to be okay.

Indifferent to the insults, he gently pushes her towards the entrance of the ship while the guards try to contain the raging crowd and an entire corridor collapses on the next floor.

"Go ahead, Sylvie" he whispers to her, hoping without believing that she will do so without protesting.
"I'm not going without you" she replies, and this idea seems crazy, terrifying and criminal. 

How could they part, how could she save her own skin and leave him there, in this place that death and destruction are devouring?

"No, you have to go, now!"

 I beg you, go away, leave this madness and save yourself, stay alive, I beg you, you have to do it, I can't take the risk of seeing you die, please go away 

"No, Loki."

She tries to move away from the ship and he stops her without being abrupt, but firmly.

If we have to die then I'll die with you I can't leave you here alone and go cowardly I can't know you in the middle of this apocalypse without being by your side and without being able to help you, I couldn't bear the thought of waiting without knowing how you are, I couldn't bear the thought of waiting without you coming back, I couldn't bear the thought of running away and leaving you here to die 

"Get in the ship, Sylvie!"

Why are you so stubborn why won't you listen to me, can't you see that all I need is to know you're safe can't you see that the thought of you dying makes me sick  

"No, Loki!"

How can you ask me to do this how can I do this, get in this ship yourself and go, I won't leave you, just the thought that you might die here in this hell I left you in and that I might lose you is unbearable, get in this ship or let's stay together but I won't go 

She is slightly taller than him, standing on the step into the ship. The human tide violently tries to force its way through in a deafening swirl of voices, the guards grow impatient and the world falls apart, but they pay no attention. Their hands no longer hold each other, for his are on her waist, and hers on his shoulders. They look into each other's eyes, with that special look that belongs only to them, as if they were alone in the world, as if they could read each other. 

He guesses that she is about to tell him to get on instead and refuses to let her.

"Yes! Get on the ship!"

 I beg you Sylvie I don't want this to end in a struggle to get the other one on that ship, please listen to me please do it at least for me

I'm ready to force you in I swear I won't leave you here 

He tries to push her gently again, she opens her mouth, get on that ship yourself but he doesn't want to hear it, I need you out of here. 

"Go on! I'll get the next one!" 

 Do you really think it will work with me 

"No, not without you!" 
"I'll be alright ! Listen, I'll be fine. I'm a survivor right ? Don't worry about me. Go on, get on !"

She shakes her head and is about to say something else, does not see the figure that has approached. 

"Get on that ship, Sylvie" Mobius' voice says, and they both jump before turning to him.
"We found another ship on the lowest floor," he says in a choppy voice. "I managed to book two seats on it, for Loki and me. I thought you had already boarded this one, but knowing you, I thought I'd check. I was right, apparently..."

Loki turns to Sylvie again. 

"See? I got my own ship to catch ! Go on, hurry!"

Sylvie hesitates, her eyes going from one to the other, not knowing what to do. She looks at the reassuring expression of Mobius, who nods confidently, and at the pleading expression of Loki, who smiles to assure her that everything will be all right, and forms a silent "please" with his lips. 

This is Mobius. You can trust him. Everything will be fine. You're both going to survive. He has a ship too. Everything will be fine. 

And finally, she takes a deep breath and nods. If the word relieved fits Mobius' expression, what Loki feels goes far beyond that. She will live. 

The guards let out a grunt expressing how much the situation has annoyed them so far, the crowd is going crazy, wild, harder to contain than ever. It is only then that both of them become aware of the world and the turmoil around them. A slight layer of doubt still lingering, Sylvie slowly lets go of Loki's shoulders, who lets go of her waist. 
    Two employees help her finish climbing into the ship, although she doesn't need it, and she goes inside. About fifty people are waiting here, their faces pale and their eyes frightened. She knows some of them by sight, sees the others for the first time. They however all seem to recognise her. 

"Close the door!" 

Loki bites his cheek until it bleeds and Sylvie is startled. She turns towards him, and stretches her arm to the maximum. He does the same and their hands join, their fingers clasping tightly for a brief moment sufficient to express everything they can't say at the moment. The look they exchange is just as intense, and when their hands have to let go, when Sylvie has to turn away, when the door separates them, Loki closes his eyes for a second. 

Finally.

"You're a very good liar." 

The ship began to descend slowly, heading towards the central level from where he can leave the premises, under the command of a waving guard. The door is closed. There is no way Sylvie could have heard what Mobius had just said with a smile full of sadness. Loki knows that this is why he has waited. 

"Almost as good as you."

His voice is full of contained pain.

"You haven't found another ship have you?"
"I wish I had."

There is silence for a moment.

"Thank you..."

Loki's voice is trembling, but he means these words from the bottom of his heart. Thank you for everything. For everything since the beginning, and thank you for saving her. Thank you.

Both then fall silent, as there is nothing to say. They will both die here, taken away with this place that has stolen everything they had and refuses to let them leave to build something else. 

Sitting on the ship's bench, uncomfortable with the proximity of so many strangers, Sylvie looks around, her head going from right to left, up and down. Her stomach feels strangely tight, like a bad feeling that she blames on her tendency to overthink. 

After a few seconds, she looks for Loki and finds him. He is leaning over the fence as far as he can. Their eyes meet.

He watches her fly away from him, forever, even if she doesn't know it yet. He wants to look at her one last time, he wants to engrave every detail of her face, her eyes, her hair in his memory. And he wants her to do the same, even though she doesn't realise the importance of that look, even though she doesn't know it's her last, even though it won't ease the grief that awaits her. 

Don't break down now, she mustn't know, she mustn't know, don't break down now

She mentally begs him to keep his promise, and he mentally offers her countless excuses for not being able to. He tries to smile but is not quite sure what to make of it. 

Norns please don't let her guess, she will be in enough pain later

He tries with all his might I can see it he tries but it's not enough  

The lump in the throat of the god of mischief is so huge, so painful, that he could not speak even if he wanted to. His eyes glisten and he cannot hide it.

The ship descends further and further, now three floors down, and Sylvie's heart beats faster and faster as she moves away from the bridge and Loki's face becomes less and less clear.

What the hell are you doing Sylvie what the hell are you doing 

Her eyes survey the ship around her once more, then freeze completely, staring at the floor directly in front of her. 

She stays like that for a few seconds and then suddenly gets up and runs to the door. 

"WAIT!"

All heads turn towards her, accompanied by shouts, by "oh my god!" "what is she doing?!" "Are you crazy or what?!" "Sit down!", and by all kinds of shocked exclamations. 

"Sylvie!"

Loki leans further over the barrier, a sudden fear running through his body like an electric shock. 

She must not do that, she must not do that, she must stop, someone must stop her! 

But she is doing it, ignoring the cries and the foreign hands that try to hold her back. She has opened the door and is now carefully building up her momentum, calculating the exact moment she should make her move, before jumping up and grabbing onto the barrier. The ship continues its journey, without her on board.

"Sylvie, what are you doing?!"

Don't do that don't do that, get back on that ship I beg you get back  on 

She starts to run, jostling lots of people as she goes, taking, he knows, the direction of where he is.

"No!"

Walking through the crowd without worrying about what is going on around him, he also starts to run, faster than he has ever run, and both walk the corridors half destroyed by the flames as if they were being pursued by something more terrible than death itself. They push a lot of people, screaming for the passage, not even hearing the indignant words that their actions provoke.

A mysterious and thundering energy gives them the speed of the wind, and although it seems incredibly long, they finally both reach the opposite ends of the same corridor, and rush into each other’s arms. 

Carried away by his feelings, Loki lifts her slightly from the ground for a second, and they hug each other to suffocate, with a devouring passion and almost despair, as two people close to drowning would cling to a buoy. Their breasts are gasping, their legs about to let go, and they press against each other so hard that their bodies seem to mix, becoming one and the same entity that cannot be separated. 

"Sylvie!"

If the embrace is intense, it’s nothing compared to the kisses he gives her right after, holding her face in a cup. He kisses her again and again, on her forehead, nose, eyes, cheek and forehead again, with an almost enraged love, then grabs her lips to lay down a kiss that burns even more than all the others. 

"You're so stupid! Why did you do that?!"

He kisses her again, even more passionately, as if his body was burning with the irrepressible need to do so, until the lack of air forces him to break the kiss.

"You're so stupid Sylvie!"

Another kiss, then another and yet another, he doesn’t want to stop, or perhaps he can’t, and he kisses her over and over again, like a madman, because that’s probably who he is. 

"Why did you do that, why?!"

Tears run down Sylvie’s face, and Loki’s as well; a surplus of emotions invades them like a storm, and Sylvie needs a few moments to recover before saying in a trembling voice:

"You go, I go, right ?"

Oh.

Oh.

You  go , I go, right ? 

Loki’s face lights up, his whole heart warms up with a strange and powerful feeling that he could not describe, wrapped in all the love she has for him, and that gives him more hope and happiness than he thought he could feel at the time. He feels capable of surviving anything, facing any danger. They're both together. Nothing could defeat them. Not even an apocalypse.

 You go, I go, right ? 

Yeah, she is right. Of course she is right. 

"Right." he whispers, a sweet smile on his face.

They exchange a long glance and a smile mixed with tears, then Sylvie moves her hands from his chest to his cheeks. Right.  

She closes her eyes and places her head on Loki’s torso, who closes his arms around her and puts his lips on the top of her head, one of his hands resting on her hair. They know that they don’t have much time, that everything around them is chaos, collapses and explosions, but they need a few seconds in this warm and reassuring ball, and a few seconds are enough to make them feel soothed.

"Oh Gods... I couldn't go, I couldn't go Loki."
"It's alright."
"At least I'm with you..." 
"It's alright, we'll find something."

And when those words come out of his mouth, he knows it’s the truth. They both know it, unquestionably. They can’t explain why, but they’re certain of one thing: they’re not going to die tonight. Neither one nor the other.