Largo Descent (Loki x Nebula)

Bolt

Loki
She was giving in. Finally. The Mischief God was getting very tired of having this cyborg pointing guns at him.
Nebula gritted her teeth before slowly lowering her arm, letting the gun in her hand hang around her thigh.
“We need to move.” She said quickly, pulling her hood up and stalking for the exit. Loki glanced back at the crumpled Collector and his unconscious slave.
“What shall we do about those two? Kill them?”
“No. It would draw too much attention. It's better to leave while we're a few steps ahead.” Loki shrugged a shoulder at this and meandered after her.
“Suit yourself. But if they come for you later, do not blame me.” Nebula shot him a look over her shoulder.
“Shut it. And hurry up.” Loki quickened his pace slightly. Nebula creaked the door open, peaking out for a few seconds before opening it wide enough to slip through. She signaled with a tilt of her head that the coast was clear and the two snuck out onto the street, closing the massive door behind them.
“I have a ship, it's on the far east end.” Nebula gave him an incredulous look.
“How did you get a ship?” He smirked, eyes twinkling with mischief.
“How else would I acquire one? I stole it.” Nebula rolled her eyes.
“Fine. We'll get to the main plaza and split there.” She muttered. Loki glanced at the box in her tight fist. I'll be stealing that map, too. He thought to himself. Wondering how he would get it from her metal death grip.
Nebula started to hustle into the crowd, but Loki quickly grabbed her shoulder. She whipped around to glare at him.
“What do you think you're doing?” She hissed quietly. He shook his head slightly.
“If you go storming about like that, you're going to draw too much attention. Try to be casual, follow my lead.” He said lowly, Nebula’s glare deepened.
“If you think I am crazy enough to-” Her tone grew louder, and Loki pressed a finger to his lips. She scowled.
“Watch and learn.” He mused. He fell into a casual step, blending seamlessly into the crowd. He turned back to her and raised a brow. She huffed out an irritated breath and slowly trudged after him. He smirked at her, his eyes glinting.
“Much better.” She continued to scowl at him as they fell into step together before slowly turning her head forward, tugging her hood down further. If looks could kill . .
The pair journeyed through the streets for a while, sticking close together, their eyes scanning for any dangers. As they ventured on, Loki started to notice how tense Nebula was becoming. He leaned a bit closer to her, speaking in a low voice.
“Just act normal. We are two travelers in the vastness of Knowhere, not thieves. Do not be so stiff.” Nebula sighed, and her shoulders dropped ever so slightly.
Better than nothing. The crowd thickened the deeper they went, strange smells of food, and Odin knows what else permeated the air. As they strode along, a sharp shout was heard across the way. Both their heads snapped in the direction of it. A burly looking alien had stopped a pair of travelers and was yelling questions at them in an unknown language. One was hooded, and the other was a dark-haired man. Loki glanced over at Nebula, she stood only a few inches shorter than he did. Her gaze was locked onto the scene.
“Looks like we have company . .” He murmured. They slowly turned away from the spectacle. They hastened their pace ever so slightly, making sure to keep casual but to get away as fast as they could without drawing unwanted attention. After they made it a few paces away, Loki saw his chance. The cyborg was distracted by trying to keep an eye out. He sidled up closer to her, waiting for the exact right opportunity. Another shout rang out. Nebula’s head swiveled to the right, and Loki went for the box. He snatched it quickly from her left hand and darted off into the crowd.
“HEY!” She snarled, her head whipping around as she searched for him. He slipped between people with ease, keeping his head low and his pace quick. The noise and the chaos around him were providing the perfect cover. He thrived in chaos. Still, he could feel her fury even this far from her and swallowed up in the throng of people. Nebula was not one to give up easily. He knew that far too well. He stiffened a bit as he thought about his time in Thanos’s court. He had been desperate, lost, alone. He remembered the torture from Ebony Maw, and when that didn't do it, he fell into the hands of the Mad Titan himself. And by then, he had broken almost too easy. He shook himself from those thoughts. This whole situation had become a very uncomfortable reminder of what Thanos had done to the galaxy, let alone him.
While he was distracted, he barely had time to notice the large, muscular alien from plowing into him. He quickly sidestepped.
He needed to get out of here. He moved as swiftly as his casual demeanor would allow. He was almost out of the plaza when something shoved him heavily into an alleyway. He grunted both in surprise and pain as his back thudded against a metal wall. Nebula’s furious gaze seethed up at him.
“Give it back, you snake!” She snarled, shoving him harder against the wall, her fists balled up into the front of his coat. He was getting very irritated by her pension for violence.
“Wouldn't you like to know?” He hissed back. She punched the wall by his head with a metal fist, the force of it vibrating into his bones.
“Answer me, or I swear I will-”
“Youll what exactly? You know, for someone with so many threats, you hardly follow through with them.” She growled in frustration, eyes boring into his.
“I am sick of your games. Hand it over. Now.” Loki was about to quip back, but a sudden explosion sounded a ways away. Both he and Nebula glanced in the direction of the explosion, it was on a platform higher up. A ship docking platform . . The exact one his own ship had been on.
He groaned.
“Oh for the love of Asgard, that was my damn ship!” Nebula smirked at him triumphantly. His own mouth tightened into a frown.
“Guess you're stuck here, trickster.” Before he could say anything else, her hands had already buried into his pockets, and out from his right one, she snatched the box. She back handed him across the face, hard. From a normal humanoid, the smack would have hurt. From an angry woman with a metal arm, it was brutal. He grunted and fell to the ground, clutching the side of his face.
“Better luck next time.” She smirked, stalking out of the alleyway. He shifted on the cold, metal floor. He cupped his lower jaw where the blow had been most severe, it was already bruising and tender to touch. He grimaced slightly, pressing a finger to his busted lip. He tasted blood.
“Not one for subtlety I see . .” He muttered, pulling himself up and off the ground. Only now did he see the dent in the metal wall her fist had made.