Chapter 22
Sylvie extracted herself gently from his embrace, hands moving to rest on his chest.
“…Did you decide on a time?” Sylvie asked patiently.
Loki sighed, “I believe so… there are many times I would like to intervene, but there is one I think would do the most good…” he stared absently at nothing in particular.
“When Mobius and I were searching through timeline files of different apocalypses, I came across one in particular… the genocide of half of all life…”
Sylvie’s eyes looked worried and her hands tensed slightly. Loki met her gaze then, his eyes somehow devoid of fear.
“My very existence as a variant is predicated upon The Avengers’ interference with time—as I later learned—in an effort to collect infinity stones…” a rueful smile tugged at his lips, “something tells me they are unaware of the cost one of those stones requires.”
“And you want to tell them…?” Sylvie looked slightly incredulous.
“I’m going to give it to them.” Loki grinned.
Sylvie laughed, “I didn’t realize you were carrying around an infinity stone all this time…”
“I’m not. But I just so happen to know a place where they use them as paperweights.”
Sylvie looked confused for a moment, then heaved a reluctant sigh as the pieces came together in her mind.
“So you intend to just turn up on earth with an infinity stone and hope all will be well?”
“No, I intend to bring them two.”
Sylvie rolled her eyes dramatically, “Oh of course, what was I thinking?” She shook her head skeptically, “well, this is your trip of atonement, I’ll just have to hope you know what you’re doing and be ready to run if it all goes to shit,” she sighed.
Loki chuckled, “Sounds par for the course.”
Sylvie retrieved the stolen TemPad and created a portal to the TVA. Loki took her hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze. Sylvie smiled uncertainly and gave him a quick nod.
Loki stepped through first to be sure it was safe, hand clasping hers as she followed. On the other side the TVA lobby looked abandoned. They looked around nervously, then Loki tugged at her hand and tilted his head to indicate which direction they should go.
Sylvie trusted Loki to get them in and out, feeling a sense of unease at being back in this place. He lead them to the room where she had found Mobius drinking at his desk.
Loki released her hand for a moment, walking over to a desk a few cubicles down and opening the top drawer. Sylvie followed slowly and her breath caught at the sight of a handful of bright gems, just sitting conspicuously amidst other random office supplies.
“Wha—why are they just?” Sylvie stuttered.
Loki shook his head idly, “they’re useless outside the timeline… I told you, they use them as paperweights here…”
Sylvie huffed an incredulous breath as she shook her head absently. Loki dug through them, picking out an orange one and then a purple one.
“Why not take them all?” Sylvie asked.
“Can’t make it too easy for them,” Loki grinned mischievously.
Sylvie chuckled, “no, I don’t suppose they’d trust all six coming from you, they might not even trust one…”
Loki tucked the stones into a pocket and straightened up, closing the drawer reluctantly.
He turned to Sylvie with a strange distant faraway look in his eyes, “life is strange indeed…” his attention came back to her, “there was a time I would’ve traded my soul for two infinity stones, in essence I did… now, they are simply a means to an end.”
Sylvie gave him a small smile, “time does lend a sense of clarity…”
Loki smiled back with rueful eyes, “hard won perspective…”
Sylvie handed the TemPad to Loki then.
“Here, we shouldn’t risk staying here too long. Now I don’t entirely know how this works, but when you press the disc, just think of the time and place you want to go,” Sylvie explained.
“What?” Loki looked at her incredulous, “Just think of it? Sylvie, I’ve never been where we’re going, how can I focus on somewhere I’ve never been?” Loki held it out skeptically, unsure he could get them to the correct time and place.
Sylvie took the TemPad in her hands and huffed with annoyance, “look that’s how I found you, alright? I just thought of where I wanted to go and focused on you—I just thought about the place you might be and concentrated on finding your timeline—this TemPad did the rest…”
Loki’s brows drew together fondly, “that sounds like quite a leap of faith,” he said softly, “you could have ended up… anywhere”
Sylvie looked down at the device in her hands self consciously, “it was my only hope of finding you… I’d risk it all over again… for you,” she murmured with bold conviction.
Loki leaned to kiss her softly, then rested his forehead against hers and laid his hand atop the TemPad in her hands.
“Now think of your brother, and the time and place you want to be…” Sylvie said quietly.
Loki closed his eyes and concentrated, he thought of Thor on Earth, he thought of The Avengers, and he focused on the knowledge that they had changed time. Their surely desperate gambit…
“There,” Sylvie murmured and Loki opened his eyes, turning to see an orange portal to his left.
Loki inhaled a deep breath, “do we trust that? What if I did it wrong?”
“Then we’ll most certainly be killed,” she said solemnly making his eyes widen before she burst out laughing, “then we’ll just conjure another portal, come on, it will be fine.”
Loki huffed and shook his head at her with a smile. She took his hand again and followed as he lead them into the orange light.