Timeless

◈ 13 ◈

Pitch black nothingness greeted me when I awoke. It seemed to be turning into a common occurrence. The stench of blood and scorched flesh hung in the air.

I tried to open my eyes to figure out what was going on but soon found that I couldn't move. Not one muscle would obey me. I couldn't even speak.

It was as if I was frozen in place.

Or trapped inside my mind. A voice inside of me suggested. I shuddered at the thought. Something that insane had only happened once before, and I wasn't eager to repeat it.

I laid there on what I assumed was the sandy dirt that made up Svartelfheim's ground and tried to figure out what exactly had happened when I'd killed Malekith. I was pulled out of my thoughts, however, as I heard footsteps nearing me.

"Loki, can you hear me?"

The unmistakable voice of Jane rang in my ears. Something about the way she spoke was unsettling. How could someone with such little regard for the feelings and emotions of her lover speak in such a kind, gentle voice? It was baffling.

I tried to do anything to let her know that I could hear her, but I couldn't get out so much as a squeak or a nod.

Her breathing quickened as she began to panic. She placed her fingers against the inner part of my wrist, checking for a pulse. She let out a relieved sigh and called Thor over.

"He's alive!" She shouted.

I heard another set of footsteps heading my way, and soon I could hear Thor's voice speaking in hushed tones to Jane.

They spoke for a few seconds before I felt myself being lifted into the air.

Thor carried me back to the ship in silence. The most I could do to help him remember that I was still alive was to breathe; the steady rise and fall of my chest seemed to comfort him as his muscles relaxed and he loosened his death grip on my body.

We got to the ship after about twenty minutes. I counted the seconds as they passed by. After all, I had nothing better to do.

He laid me down across the bench and sat next to me. Someone started moving the ship. Thor's hands were most likely on the wheel.

"Where are we going?" Jane asked quietly.

Thor shifted a bit and put his hands on my chest.

"Asgard. Help me with his armor, please."

She walked over to me and helped Thor remove the heavier accent pieces and layers of armor on my chest until I was left only with my thin forest green tunic.

Throughout that particularly uncomfortable ordeal, I'd been cursing Thor in my head. He knew full well that I'd never allow him to do such a thing had I been conscious and able to move.

I tried to clear my head in order to process what exactly he'd just said.

We're going to Asgard?

That couldn't be right. Thor knew as well as I did what we had risked in our escape. We could not, under any circumstances, go back.

But of course, I wasn't able to voice my objections to his decision. I couldn't really do anything for that matter. I could only listen.

"We're going back? What will your father do if we bring Loki back like this?"

"You must trust me, Jane. I know that in his heart, Father still cares for Loki. There is a chance that he will help us complete our mission, and I'm willing to risk it."

Jane didn't speak for a while after that.

The rest of the trip back to Asgard was mostly silent, with only a few bits of small talk between my brother and his lover to fill in the awkward spaces.

I spent that time working through possible outcomes of our meet-up with Odin in my head. It seemed that my brain could only process ways in which it could go terribly wrong.

By the time Thor had landed the ship on Asgard, I had convinced myself that all three of us were doomed.

Thor carried me through the palace with Jane rushing along at his side. I couldn't even walk by myself, and I hated it.

We entered what I imagined were the healing chambers, and suddenly I was laying on a table listening to Eir attack Thor with endless questions.

"What happened to him?!"

Thor laughed nervously.

"Well, we intended to destroy the Aether, but Malekith was killed and it ended up taking over Loki's body. I think he's in some sort of coma."

The head healer ceased her questioning to walk over to me. She pulled back my sleeve and ran her hand along my skin.

"He most definitely has the Aether inside of him, but I doubt that he is in a coma. I believe that he can hear us and everything around him, but he cannot react to it."

"Can you wake him up?" Thor asked.

"He carries the remnants of two infinity stones within him. When two entities combine in such a way, they often leave permanent effects."

Permanent?

Thor voiced my concerns.

"Permanent?"

Eir removed her hand from my arm.

"Unfortunately, yes. The only way to fix such a thing would require someone of great power. If you like, I could go to the Allfather. He may be able to help."

Thor ran his fingers through a few strands of my hair and sighed.

"Alright, Eir. You have my permission, which is as good as anything since Loki cannot give his."

Eir gave no response. Instead, the only thing I heard was the sound of doors slamming shut as she left to retrieve the man that could either save me or destroy my Second Chance.