Chapter 2
Loki woke up with a gasp. What--where was he? His surroundings were unfamiliar. But he was in a large room. A bedroom, with large windows, expensive furniture, and extravagant tapestries hanging on the walls. The room was slightly cluttered, with the most beautiful silks he had ever seen adoring various surfaces. Loki knew this had to be The Grandmasters room. Which meant that he had brought him here after he--Loki looked down, his shirt and coat were gone, and he was wearing a very soft and comfortable muted yellow robe. His stab wound had been bandaged. Loki was thankful for that, but oh what a mess he found himself in this time. Sitting here in The Grandmaster’s room, helpless.
Loki looked around, now where had The Grandmaster gotten off to. Loki noticed that he wasn't currently lying on The Grandmaster’s bed, but instead he was on a sort of padded ottoman.
“Oh!” The Grandmaster entered the room, “Oh thank goodness you’re awake! You were out for quite a while! I was about to toss you in the trash, truth be told.”
“Toss me in the trash?”
“Well, yeah, to be fair we only just met, and having a dead guy in my room is a real,” he cleared his throat, and made a face, “a real turnoff.”
Loki furrowed his eyebrows. What a strange man.
“Well, thank you for healing me, but I really must be going--” Loki tried to stand up, but The Grandmaster held him back.
“Hey, hey! Sit for a while.” The Grandmaster offered him some water, which he took gladly. “So, I assumed this happened in your crash?”
Loki nodded, “Yes. I didn’t want to, um, show weakness around a being like yourself.”
The Grandmaster smirked, “Right choice. But, besides that, how was our date going?”
“Wh--” Was all Loki could manage to say. That’s right--shortly before passing out, The Grandmaster had asked how their date was going. They were on a date? Loki thought that he was bargaining for his life, but it was a date?
The shock quickly disappeared from Loki’s face, and he smiled. This changes everything. If he was smart--which he was--Loki could use this to get anything he wants. Seduction was an art he had mastered over the years.
“It went well. I was having fun.”
“Excellent!” The Grandmaster smiled. “Well, hurry along.”
“Hurry along where?”
“Our next date. My Contest of Champions. They won’t start without me. So get dressed, and we’ll go down together!”
Loki chuckled, simply at the absurdity of this whole situation, “Get dressed? In what?”
“I noticed your old clothes were ruined, so I got you some new ones.” The Grandmaster gestured to some clothes which had been laid out for Loki that he hadn’t noticed. There were...blue and yellow? That was an odd departure for Loki. He was usually a fan of darker colors, especially black and green, and occasionally gold.
“What’s wrong, you don’t like them?” The Grandmaster seemed a bit disappointed.
But Loki’s mind flashed back to his sister, on Earth. Her black and green outfit the last thing he saw before being ripped away from his brother and his home forever. He pictured Thor dead at Hela’s feet once more. Loki touched his wound gently. Perhaps a change was what he needed right now.
“No, they’re fine.”
Loki got up to change, but noticed the Grandmaster was still staring at him. “Do you...mind?”
“Mind what?” The Grandmaster said.
Loki frowned, and turned himself invisible.
“Oh! You’re no fun!” The Grandmaster said playfully. “I’ll meet you down there. See you in a bit, doll.”
Loki couldn’t help but be offended. “Doll”? Who did he think he was talking to? Loki was a king, he had sat on the throne of Asgard only yesterday! But, he had to remind himself, he didn’t sit on the throne today. That throne was probably gone.
Loki sighed. He supposed he was “doll” now. But, he reminded himself, there were worse things that he could be. Dolls were taken care of. Well kept, given attention, put on display for all to see. Yes, there were far worse things than being a doll.
After The Grandmaster left, Loki undid the invisibility spell and looked for a mirror. Upon finding one in the bathroom, Loki noticed that he looked just dreadful. His eyes were sunken and tired, and his skin was turning a unique shade of pale bluish grey, which often happened when he was feeling weak. And his hair--oh his hair! It lay in a tangled greasy mess upon his shoulders.
Seducing The Grandmaster while looking like this was going to be a task, for sure. He splashed some water on his face. It was going to come down to body language on this one.
Loki put on the outfit that The Grandmaster had left for him, and found that it was...tighter than he usually went for. Loki, despite his large ego, could sometimes be...uncomfortable with his appearance. He usually hid behind long coats and high collars to remedy this. But it seemed there would be none of that today. Oh well, all the better to flaunt his figure, he supposed.
Loki sighed at the lack of gold on his outfit. Gold had always been a status symbol on Asgard. The more you wore the more important you were. But he supposed it was only fitting that he wear none, since Asgard was gone and their king had fallen. The image of Thor dead at Hela’s feet flashed through his mind again. He wasn’t going to get used to that.
After Loki had gotten dressed, he went to find The Grandmaster down in the Colosseum. He eventually found him in the highest box overlooking the Colosseum. No surprise there, he thought. He waved to The Grandmaster, who excitedly beckoned him over. “Hi! You missed the fight with my champion, unfortunately, but there’s still a lot of show left! Sit down, sit down.”
Loki sat down a few feet from The Grandmaster on the large sofa, but The Grandmaster quickly scuttled over to him, sitting very close and putting his arm around Loki.
“So, what is this contest, exactly?” Loki asked.
“Well!” The Grandmaster began, “I take any fighters that drop down on Sakaar--and make them fight each other!”
Loki chuckled, “Why?” he asked playfully.
The Grandmaster shrugged, “I dunno. I thought it would be a fun little game. I love games. All sorts!”
Loki gazed over at The Grandmaster. If it was games he was after, the god of mischief knew how to deliver.
They watched the next fight begin. a man made of rock entered the one side.
“Ah--” Loki pointed, “That’s a Kronan!”
“Oh, oh yeah, his name’s Korg, he’s very nice, and a very good fighter. He’s one of my favorites.”
At the other end, a large dwarf entered, wielding a large axe.
“Oh, oh!” Loki pointed to the other warrior, “He’s from Nidavellir! I toured there once, during my studies.”
The Grandmaster seemed impressed, “You sure know a lot about these guys. Doesn’t make a difference to me, they all just plop down in the garbage, like everything else.”
Loki made a face. He supposed that was true, but how could the Grandmaster be so content, not even knowing what these creatures were capable of. What they could do, given the right match ups.
The battle was bloody, but Korg eventually came out on top. Loki admitted, this was fun to watch. All the fanfare did make it seem like a game, as opposed to a real “battle”.
“So, how was that?” The Grandmaster patted Loki on the shoulder.
“Interesting. I enjoyed it.” Loki answered.
“Excellent, because there is much more to see! These contests can go on all day, if I will it. Ah, and where are my manners…” He snapped his fingers, and suddenly servants brought drinks to them.
Loki could get used to this, he thought.
“Yes, but, hold on,” Loki said, “Can I see the matchups for these fights?”
“Hm? I suppose so.”
The Grandmaster handed Loki a tablet with various names and species on them. Loki smiled, and rearranged a few. “I’m pairing them up based on their abilities. You’ll get a much more interesting show this way.”
The rest of the Contest of Champions went on in much the same way as that. There was a bloody fight, and the crowd cheered. Soon, the drinks piled up, and Loki found himself getting just a bit woozy.
“So--” The Grandmaster said to Loki, booping him on the nose, “How are you liking this date?”
“Well, I’m not on the floor yet, so I’d say it’s an improvement.”
“Well if the aim is for you to not to end up on your back--” the Grandmaster massaged Loki’s back, “you may be a bit disappointed.”
Loki an eyebrow. Ah, there it was. He knew the Grandmaster would be making that request sooner or later. Loki mulled it over, taking into consideration both his brain and his hips. On the one hand, he had had a long day yesterday, and getting rawed by a galactic diety would be the perfect way to unwind. But, he had his pride after all, he wasn't that easy. Had mastered the art of seduction, and he knew not to play all his cards at once. Loki huffed. He supposed patience was a virtue.
He smiled, leaned over to The Grandmaster, and whispered in his ear, “Not on the second date.”
The Grandmaster smiled, and continued rubbing his back, “Such a tease.”
They drank, and talked, for while after that. Maybe all day, even. And the more drunk he got, the more he liked The Grandmaster. Loki wasn't sure what time it was--did Sakaar even have “time?”--when he finally became a little nauseous. Loki scolded himself for not remembering to use his magic to prevent such things. He hadn't been intending on drinking this much.
“That's it, I've had enough.” Loki admitted. Any more and he would vomit, which was one of the more un-sexy things he could do.
The Grandmaster laughed at his red face and blurry eyes. “You look it alright. Yes, let's go to bed. Stay in my room tonight?”
“What?”
“You won't get very far wandering around Sakaar by yourself like that. There are a lot of unsavory characters out there, I should know.” he smiled and twirled Loki's hair, “Come stay in my room again, you'll be safer there than anywhere else on Sakaar, promise.”
Loki sighed, but agreed. He knew he would be fine in The Grandmaster’s room, and he didn't exactly have anywhere else to go. But so much for playing hard to get.
The Grandmaster stood up, and offered his hand to Loki. Loki took it, and stumbled as he stood up. He had had far too much to drink. The Grandmaster laughed, and went to catch him, but Loki assured him that he was fine enough to walk, at least. Probably.
The Grandmaster led Loki into his room.
“I had them bring you sleeping clothes.”
“Thank you.” Loki said, admiring his new blue silk pajamas. He went to put them on when…
“Do you mind?” Loki snapped at the staring Grandmaster.
The Grandmaster shook his head, and Loki put his hands on his hips. “Is this just a game to you?”
The Grandmaster smiled, delighted by himself. “Isn't everything?”
Loki rolled his eyes, and turned invisible to change. Mostly out of stubbornness than anything else. He was a lady (sometimes) and Loki didn't care who The Grandmaster was, he wasn't about to drop his pants in front of him just yet.
“Such a tease!” The Grandmaster chuckled, before getting up himself, and beginning to change.
My, Loki thought, bold of him. He admired the Grandmaster’s body. It was quite nice, but Loki felt a little hypocritical, gawking at him like that.
A few moments later, The Grandmaster sat on the edge of his bed, legs apart, leaning back, waiting for Loki to reappear. Loki sighed, looking at him longingly. He was very...good looking.
Oh alright, Loki thought to himself, he would give the old man something.
Loki reappeared, sitting on The Grandmaster’s lap.
“Mmm,” The Grandmaster purred, “Welcome back.”
“Shut up and kiss me, old man.”
Loki held The Grandmaster’s face in his hand, and kissed him. The Grandmaster hummed sweetly. A moment later, the Grandmaster broke the kiss, and worked his way down Loki’s jawline. Loki gasped, scratching into the Grandmaster’s back. The Grandmaster bit into Loki’s neck, which drove him wild. Loki continued his scratching, and grinded his hips into the Grandmasters, with an almost animalistic hunger.
“My, my” The Grandmaster whispered to him, as he nibbled his neck, “Who taught the king of Jotunheim to move like that?”
Loki smirked, “I don’t suppose you’d believe me if I said a horse?”
The Grandmaster stopped nibbling his neck and burst out laughing. Loki nearly fell off his lap as the Grandmaster rubbed the tears from his eyes.
“Oh come now, it’s not that funny.” Loki found himself getting more red in the face than he already was.
“I can’t tell--I can’t tell if you’re serious--or just really drunk!” The Grandmaster wheezed, falling backwards onto the bed.
Loki flopped over and laid on the bed next to him. “I am serious--sort of. My sexual history is a bit...strange, I’ll admit. I’ve had rebellious phases in my youth.”
“Fucking a horse was not a rebellious phase, Loki!”
“Oh no, no, the horse fucked me.”
The Grandmaster continued wheezing with laughter, “Loki--Loki stop, you’re going to kill me.”
Loki rolled his eyes, “Would it make you feel better to know that I was also a horse, at the time?”
The Grandmaster lost it, “No way! You’re drunk! None of this is true!”
“It’s true, I can take any form I like. In fact--” Loki, smiled and transformed into the Grandmaster. “Hm? What do you think?”
“Say!” The Grandmaster stopped laughing, and admired his double, “I like it! You’ll have to save that one for...later.”
Loki turned back into himself, playfully hitting the Grandmaster’s arm. “You narcissist!”
“Guilty.” The Grandmaster smiled coyly. “But you really are a master sorcerer, hm? Can you really turn into anything?”
“Mostly. But even I have limits.”
The Grandmaster imagined in the possibilities, and got quite excited. He snuggled up next to Loki on the bed, “How lucky I must be. My strange little creature, falling right out of the sky, and into my arms.”
Loki’s guilt haunted him. He couldn’t allow himself to be happy here. Not while so many were suffering. “Alas, I must return to my people soon.”
The Grandmaster gripped him tightly, “We’ll see.”
Loki’s worry was drowned out by drowsiness, and he drifted off to sleep.