Pandora's Box
Loki stirred awake, his arm draped across his torso and one leg hanging off of the couch. He slowly sat up, straining his eyes in the dim morning (or whatever form of day and night cycle existed) light. Something had awoken him; he didn’t know what but he wasn’t awoken by his own volition. He swore he heard his name called out as he woke up. Who had called out to him? Who woke him up so early in the morning? Had the voice been real?
Getting up from the couch, Loki listened for the subtle musings of the other Lokis. They were all still asleep; the loud snoring of Boastful Loki was audible in the quiet morning. Loki, still partially asleep, summoned a fresh pair of his TVA clothes before heading out of the chambers. Standing in the hallway, something drew him toward the entrance, even though he wanted to go back to the sorceress's chambers. It was an internal push and pull, staring down the hallway toward the sorceress chambers, he wanted to venture toward the room but he knew that he shouldn’t. Against his own want, Loki turned down the opposite direction, heading toward the main hall of the palace instead. The tap of his dress shoes along the floor, echoing off of the walls around him, filled the jarringly empty space around him. Even during the break of day, the palace felt no less empty. As he approached the main hall, the echo of voices overtook the suffocating loudness of his empty thoughts. It was a smooth melodic voice that quickened Loki’s pace, could this have been the force that woke him? It couldn’t be, could it?
He hadn’t realized that he was in a run until he jogged to a stop in the main hall, his eyes landing instantly upon the signature blonde hair that he knew all too well.
“Next time I drive” Amora groaned, her back turned to Loki as she smoothed her hair back, flicking her ponytail over her shoulder.
“I wasn’t that bad; would you rather have been left to that massive fog monster?” Mobius chuckled but his eyes trailed toward Loki. “What are the odds…” he smiled.
Amora whipped around, her lips parting in a small breath, she looked like she wanted to say something but Loki could see the hesitation in her eyes. Mobius smiled, striding over to Loki and bringing him into a tight hug. The god was taken aback by the sudden gesture but a part of him felt warm and comfortable in the embrace. Carefully her wrapped his arms around Mobius, returning the hug but also resting his head on Mobius’s shoulder. Loki wanted to savor the moment, with Mobius it was like a breath of fresh air, like the world and all its troubles collectively fell away. Releasing his arms from around his friend, Loki smiled down at him for a moment.
“It’s nice to see you,” He said.
Loki’s eyes drew back to Amora, she was by herself, staring around at the decrepit remnants of the main hall around her. Loki could tell she wasn’t okay, he noticed the small twisting and picking motion her hands were doing while clasped in front of her. Excusing himself from Mobius’s side, Loki slowly approached Amora, her back to him. Slowly he reached out to her shoulder, as he touched her he saw her jump and heard a small gasp escape her lips. Amora’s head whipped around, panic flooding her eyes for a brief moment before settling back into a rigid calm. Tears were already filling her eyes, her hands shaking as she looked at him.
“It’s safe here” he whispered, taking her shaking hands in his.
“I can’t take that chance, Loki” She mumbled, looking down at their hands and then back up to his eyes.
“Amora” He gently placed a hand on the back of her neck, bringing their foreheads together. “I promise you. On the river Gjöll, I promise you that you will be okay…she cannot get you here”
Amora nodded, wrapping her arms around Loki, he returned the comforting gesture, giving her some time to calm down. Amora’s ragged breathing and shaking slightly diminished as the minutes ticked by, but Loki could tell that if this was her reaction to the main hall, it wouldn’t be wise to bring her anywhere close to the sorceress chambers. The two turned back to Mobius who had been giving them the space they needed, stealing one more look at Amora to check and see if she was okay, the trio proceeded deeper into the palace.
As Loki led the way, Amora interlocked their hands, still shaking and her grip tightening with each step. Mobius, Norns bless him, was trying to keep the mood elevated by asking Loki about the palace and making some off-handed joking remarks about it. It seemed to soothe Amora, the smallest hint of a smile poked at her lips and her grip on Loki’s hand loosened. When they turned to head down the hall toward Loki’s chambers Amora stopped, planting her feet firmly on the damp and dead carpeted hallway. Loki quickly looked back, as his hand had been held back as well. Amora’s ragged breathing had returned, her eyes were full of fear and the shadows of tears. Looking back to Mobius, Loki instructed him on what room to go to, watching his friend continue down the hallway without them. Looking back to Amora, Loki sighed, she was unraveling quicker than he anticipated. Amora was mumbling under her breath, shaking her head while maintaining unwavering eye contact with the hallway.
“Amora” Loki spoke softly to avoid making the situation worse. “Amora it’s okay”
“No” She mumbled, tears finally falling from her eyes. “I I I…” she finally looked up at him. “the Einherjar, Loki they-“
“They aren’t here…they can’t get you, I won’t let them” As Loki looked down at Amora, the tears falling from her eyes, the redness of her face, and the shaking of her voice and body; he felt a strange sensation come over him, as if he had seen this before, said these same words before.
Loki drew in a deep breath, closing his eyes and composing himself. He wasn’t sure how he would proceed; Amora was becoming almost inconsolable. Opening his eyes back up and looking at her, he hoped the doubt wouldn’t be noticeable. As Loki opened his mouth to speak, he noticed a change in Amora’s sight, she was looking past him, seemingly toward something. Rather, someone, Kid Loki stood in the hallway, his eyes wide and filled with as many tears as Amora.
“Amora?” Kid Loki’s voice wavered but there was a familiar false braveness that Loki picked up on.
“Oh…” Amora softly smiled, looking from the Loki beside her to Kid Loki.
The two just stared at each other for a few minutes, it seemed that there were a lot of moments like that for Loki recently. Words fall flat where they should be, filling the space with something other than the subtle breaths of the people present.
“You’re older” Kid Loki sniffled, carefully approaching Amora.
Loki placed his hand on Amora’s back, a reassuring gesture that he hoped would keep her steady and grounded. He kept his hand on her back as Amora knelt down to be at eye level with Kid Loki.
“I am” She smiled.
Kid Loki hesitated, Loki saw how the child’s eyes searched Amora’s face, an action which he knew all too well. When Loki noticed himself doing it, it was usually to get past Amora’s stoic exterior, with Kid Loki, it was more of an expression of desperation. Almost as if Kid Loki was trying to capture her features as much as possible because he feared that she would vanish when he blinked. Kid Loki lifted a hand out to Amora, slightly pulling himself back but proceeding with gently laying his hand on Amora’s cheek. Amora reached up to the small hand, grasping it lightly with a smile, not breaking the gaze between them. Kid Loki’s lip quivered, he tried to keep himself together but it wasn’t working. Loki saw the tears begin to flow rapidly down Kid Loki’s face as he looked at Amora.
Without another second to try and compose himself, Kid Loki wrapped his arms around Amora, almost knocking the two of them over. Amora caught herself and returned the hug, allowing the young boy to sob on her shoulder as she held him. Loki watched with a soft smile, noticing how much calmer Amora looked compared to how she was a few moments ago.
“Please don’t leave again” Kid Loki sniffled, still in hysterics.
“I won’t leave you Loki” she smiled, squeezing the child before breaking the embrace. “Are you going to be okay?”
Kid Loki nodded, using his sleeve to wipe his face from the tears and snot that had culminated from his crying. As Amora stood back up, she kept hold of Kid Loki’s hand, the young boy not showing signs of letting go. Loki gently touched Amora’s back, she turned back to look at him, the storm behind her eyes had gone and Loki could see the smallest glimmer of happiness. The trio headed toward Loki’s chambers, Kid Loki sticking to Amora’s side and Loki following behind closely, not wanting to ruin the moment.
Entering the chambers, Kid Loki dropped Amora’s hand and mumbled something about the alligator before rushing toward the bed chambers. Loki wanted to check in with Amora, believing that he had a moment when Boastful Loki and Mobius walked out of the study.
“I killed the Avengers! Surely I must be a well-renowned case within your field!” Boastful Loki laughed.
“I’m afraid not my friend” Mobius smiled.
As the two entered, Boastful Loki stopped in his tracks, his eyes permanently fixated on Amora. Loki thought that he looked like he had seen a ghost, but that look quickly faltered into a look of pure happiness and bliss.
“Oh, my days!” Boastful Loki rushed toward them, picking up Amora in his arms and spinning her around. “You bewitching vixen, how I’ve missed your face!”
Amora giggled, holding onto Boastful Loki as he spun and hugged her, “Loki, I assume?” She smiled as he set her back down.
“You look different from what I remember but I guess I look different too, you’re used to one direction over here” He jabbed a thumb at Loki who couldn’t help but roll his eyes.
“My, you look more like Thor” Amora giggled.
“Thor?” Boastful Loki let out a deep hearty chuckle. “If you think that, then you should see him!”
Amora placed a hand on Boastful Loki’s cheek, “I’m happy to see that your playfulness is still there…right behind those mischievous green eyes of yours”
“It never left” He smiled, taking her hand from his face and placing a chaste kiss on her knuckles.
A loud crash echoed throughout the chamber, turning everyone’s focus toward the door to the study. Old Loki stood in the doorway, a metal cup clattering at his feet, but he only stared at Amora. Boastful Loki took a spot beside Amora, looking at her, and then Old Loki.
“Amora?” Old Loki’s voice staggered as he continued to stare.
“Yes,” She smiled.
“He’s waited a long time to see you again” Boastful Loki whispered to her.
Loki could see the pain in Old Loki’s eyes, the way he couldn’t decide what to do next now that Amora was in front of him.
“Amora!” Kid Loki rushed back into the room; the alligator clutched tightly in his arms.
Amora’s attention from Old Loki was broken but his stare didn’t falter. She looked toward Kid Loki and knelt down to speak with him. Kid Loki presented her with the alligator, who wiggled excitedly in the child’s arms at the sight of her. She smiled and gently shook one of the alligator’s claws between her fingers. Boastful Loki pulled Loki aside, taking them to the corner of the room.
“The old geezer might need to speak with her alone” he whispered.
“I figured as much” Loki nodded, glancing back over to Old Loki who was still in shock.
“We are all excited to see her, but he’s waited a millennium to see her, even if it’s not the Amora he remembers”
“Well, we have the time, so might as well” Loki patted Boastful Loki on the back, heading over to Mobius.
*********
Amora had never felt safer in her entire life, she was surrounded by the person whom she sought comfort in during times of strife. Every single one of them had a light in their eyes when they looked at her, something that she knew was long overdue for them. As she spoke with the alligator Loki in front of her, she could feel eyes on her back. Glancing back over to the older Loki, she saw how he was still fixated on her, a sadness in his eyes that she couldn’t dismiss. Excusing herself from the child and alligator, she walked over to Old Loki, picking up the cup that had rolled away.
“I believe you dropped this” she extended the cup to him.
Snapping out of his trance, Old Loki took the cup. “Thank you…”
A silence hung between them before Old Loki spoke again.
“Would you accompany me to the gardens? What is left of them at least…”
“I would be honoured”
The gardens were partially dead and partially alive, overgrown plants ran rampant throughout. The formally polished and shining white stone pathways were dulled, vines of ivy twisted over them and dug below their placement, breaking some of the stone tiles. As the pair maneuvered their way around the thicket of plants, Old Loki used his magic to clear the pathways, leaving only dirt and fallen leaves on the paths. From the garden, Amora could see the roof of the vast cave that the Palace now resided in. The purplish grey cave ceiling was a vast departure from the endless cascade of colours that made up the cosmos, the backdrop of Asgard that made the realm much more bearable than it really is.
Walking down the pathways, past the many planters and dead plants, Amora could see Old Loki taking moments to stare at her. On their way to the gardens, the Older Loki had told her about his life, how he ended up in this wasteland, hiding out in the former glory of Asgard.
“I haven’t seen your lips enchanted in so long” Old Loki broke the silence.
“Pardon?” Amora looked up at him.
“your lips…I can’t remember the last time you enchanted them”
Amora gave a nervous chuckle, “my lips aren’t-“
“Amora” He gave her a look of knowing and the enchantress knew that she couldn’t lie to him as she had intended.
Stopping at a greyed stone bench, the pair sat down, Old Loki leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees.
“You once told me that it was like bees to flowers,” he said, Amora, looking at the dead garden around her. “your lips were a carefully selected red which drew attention to them, but only a select few could see the deceptive shine on them, the beautifully deceptive venom” he took a moment, the silence hanging between them. “I don’t know what took longer to convince you of, the fact that you didn’t need to enchant your lips or the concept of aging”
“I don’t look good with grey hair” Amora chuckled.
“So you told me…often…”
“Were we happy?” Amora blinked away tears.
“As happy as we could be, alone and away from everything, not worrying about waking up to some minuscule task or world-ending disaster” A smile appeared on his face.
“How did you find me?”
“You found me” Old Loki sat up, placing his hands in his lap. “I remember when you showed up on my doorstep, tiredness in your eyes that I had never seen, whenever I looked into your eyes in our youth, even now, there was a storm that could never be weathered…calmed a bit? Yes. But there was always a storm raging in the depths of your gaze…when you showed up…the storm had vanished and all you could say was ‘I’m tired’ not even a ‘hello’”
Amora rested her head on Old Loki’s shoulder, closing her eyes as she drew in a deep breath. With her eyes closed, she could feel his arm hug tightly around her shoulder, holding her close as if he were afraid of her disappearing.
*********
Loki walked down the empty corridor of the palace, Mobius beside him and Kid Loki leading the way. They had left the alligator and Boastful Loki back in their chambers, wanting to waste some time until Old Loki and Amora returned.
“It’s one thing to experience this place through a time theater, it’s another to actually be walking through its halls,” Mobius said.
Loki smiled, “Well, it didn’t look this run down when I lived here”
“The halls are so much larger than I anticipated”
Loki sighed, “More secrets to hold”
“I’m sure” Mobius smiled at him.
Kid Loki let out a small chuckle, “You don’t know the half of it! This one time, I had snuck off to the library one night and found Thor sneaking snacks from the kitchen”
Loki smiled at the memory, for he shared the experience, “If I remember correctly, that was the same night we met Amora”
Kid Loki frowned, “Oh…right…”
Noticing the sadness on the child’s face, Loki attempted to change the subject, digging deep into his mind to find something, when a notch on the wall caught his eye. It was a sizable notch taken out of the dulled golden wall; Loki approached it a ran his finger over the notch.
“I can’t believe this is still here…” He chuckled.
Mobius walked over to where Loki was, looking at the notch.
“I was chasing after Thor with a sword, the problem that caused my anger was so minuscule that I can’t even remember it…but I swung on him and struck the wall, I was so terrified that Odin and Frigga would scold me for the mark that I abandoned my pursuits…”
“That’s a rather extreme response…” Mobius commented.
“I’d say” Loki chuckled. “I can’t even remember what it was” Loki’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried to remember, he knew why the notch in the wall was there, but not why he was chasing Thor, almost as if it was a story with pages ripped out.
“When did we do that?” Kid Loki asked, peering up at the notch.
Loki looked down at his child-self in confusion, “You don’t…”
Loki couldn’t pinpoint it, but it was as if something in his mind clicked, what he originally assumed about the palace, a minor unimportant assumption, was now vastly different. Kid Loki was both the youngest and oldest of the Lokis there, by default, Loki assumed that this palace was from the child’s timeline…but Kid Loki had no memory of the notch. Such a small moment, a small dent in the palace walls that echoed a memory within the god, which should have been present in Kid Loki’s mind. But the more Loki dwelled on the memory, the more the memory reconstructed itself, he wasn’t a child when he chased after Thor. He was slightly older, taller, and capable of lifting one of the swords that the guards carried, something that he knew his child self would struggle to lift.
“I need to get Amora out of here” Loki mumbled.
“Why? What’s going on Loki” Mobius placed a hand on Loki’s shoulder.
“I haven’t figured it out yet, I think-“
A loud bang echoed through the hall, causing the trio to jump and quickly look toward the source of the noise. Loki’s blood chilled as his eyes swept across the floor toward the darkened door of the sorceress chambers. Loki’s heart began to race, as he stood in baited fear. Loki’s vision seemed to tunnel as he stood there, and as his chest rose and fell with ever-increasing rapidness causing him to fall back against the wall in an attempt to catch himself.
“Loki?” Mobius called out to him but he couldn’t see where he was, only a touch on his arm as a notifier of Mobius at his side.
His vision continued to tunnel, and suddenly the decrepit hallway of the palace began to jump between dulled gold and shining gold. The door pulled him in, an echoing scream flooding his senses along with a strong smell of copper and iron.
“LOKI” Amora’s voice echoed in his mind, her voice frantic and filled with strain.
“What happened?” His own voice was unattached from his body.
Sobbing.
Screaming.
Shouting guards.
Blood began to pool out from the bottom of the door.
Running.
Running where?
The gardens, they won’t follow us.
Go.
Leave.
“Loki?”
Blood.
Struggle.
Guards.
“Loki!”
“I had no choice!”
“Murderer!”
Something was thrown in the bushes.
Loki tried to shake the hands off of his arms, who was holding him down? His vision slowly began to return.
“What happened?!” Amora.
“I don’t know, it was so sudden” Mobius.
“Loki! Loki look at me!” Amora.
“What caused this?” Old Loki.
“He was looking at that door” Mobius.
“What do-“ Amora.
The gathered group in front of him slowly shifted back into view, blurry, but he could make out shapes. Was he sitting on the floor? Amora’s face was turned away from him, she was looking unwavering at the sorceress's chambers. He found himself grabbing onto Amora’s arm, tightly gripping onto her as he continued to slowly come out of his dazed stupor.
Another loud bang echoed around him; he knew it wasn’t the same hallucinations as before because of the sudden reactions of the people around him. They all looked toward the door, waiting, for what was the real question. Amora stood up, prying Loki’s hand off of her arm without looking at him. He tried to force himself but to a level of stability. Amora began to approach the door.
“Love, I don’t think that-“ Old Loki shot backward, his back slamming and sliding across the floor, a subtle glow of green fading away from Amora’s splayed outstretched hand.
“Loki!” Kid Loki rushed toward Old Loki, panic-stricken across his face, Mobius following quickly behind.
Loki felt a small semblance of control return to his body, it wasn’t much but he pushed himself against the wall and slid up it, balancing himself as best he could. His eyes stayed on Amora as she summoned another powerful blast of magic to break the door open. It slammed into the entryway, staying intact to the frame by only a single hinge. Loki stumbled forward, feeling like a drunk maneuvering through the dark streets of Asgard. Amora stepped into the entryway, Loki stumbling behind her and steadying himself on the doorframe.
“Amora…don’t…” he mumbled in his delirious state.
She looked back at him, something was wrong, her face was contorted into pure anguish and anger. With Amora’s gaze fixated on him, Loki’s eyes were drawn to the door behind her. A soft but ear scraping creaking emanated from it, scraping across the floor as it opened, allowing a quick gust of wind to escape. Loki held back a gag as the air hit him, it was rotten. Amora tilted her head toward the door as if she were listening for something, but it seemed to be something only she could hear, as all Loki could hear was the creaking of the door. Whatever was calling to her was not why he wanted to get her out, but it began one of the factors. Loki repeated himself as best he could, echoing the same two words as before, putting more strength behind them in an attempt to get through to her. The door had opened just enough so that Loki could see inside the pitch-black room. Amora faced him, her back to the opening and seemingly wanting to walk away from it. Her eyes softened, a clarity of sadness coming back.
Amora’s soft red lips parted, she looked as if she was going to reply to him, but instead, her body jolted violently, blood spilling from her mouth. Loki let out a piercing scream, quickly seeing a pair of glowing green eyes appear in the darkness as Amora’s body, slammed to the ground. He rushed to her, managing to grab her arm just as something in the darkness tried to drag her in. She was still breathing but it was ragged, something had plunged a knife into her back. Amora took hold of the door frame, holding herself back from the darkness of the room as Loki struggled as well to pull her out. As the two struggled, a battle that both were losing, Loki felt the numbness flood back over him and his body slumped, still clutching onto Amora the two were pulled into the darkness. The door slammed behind them, ricocheting against the frame. The last thing Loki could recall was a sharp stinging sensation across the back of his skull and a dull purple glow.