Loki and Ingrid 37

The Sound of Silence

“What did I miss?” asks Loki, abruptly closing the notebook he’s been writing in.

          “Not much.” I say as nonchalantly as possible, “There’s like six people here.”

          “Perfect.”

          Lyd walks in, and sits on the floor immediately, not saying a word.

          “I can get you a chair.”

          She crosses her arms and remains silent.

          “It’s a long story,” I try to explain. Sif is here, which is probably the least of your worries.

          Sif raises her eyebrows at me, but stays quiet.

          “Don’t tell me Thor’s here, too.”

          “No, but my brothers are,” I sigh.

          “All of them?”

          “It’s a long story, I sigh, after a bunch of stuff happened Calder was being all weird and he asked Canute to pick us up for added security or something, and Colby decided to follow along.”        

          “Yeah, and I brought my boyfriend,” says Colby from behind me, still being shy around Loki and Sif.

          Colby’s boyfriend halfheartedly grunts as Canute starts whistling a song from his favorite Xandarian play.

          “Guys, you can all go now,” says Calder, sounding annoyed.

          I see Loki glancing at Calder, “Why don’t you send him away too? He’s useless.”

          “He just saved us,” Lyd looks uncertain to whether or not but she does.

          “Yes, he did,” I say, “Including Lyd.

          “Something seemed wrong so I decided to check by when the party was over, and we heard you scream,” Sif explains. “Calder said it was his job to protect you, and I agreed.

          “Wait, he saved you?” Loki is looking at Lyd, “Not that you aren’t worth saving, just since you’re Jotun like me, he said some things—”

          “Believe me, I know,” says Lyd, “I was locked up with that idiot for a whole two days and that was far too long.”

          “Yeah, I get it,” says Calder, “You were there, I had to save Ingrid, so both of you—”

          “Oh, shut up,” I snap at him, “Go away, and Sif too.”

          “What?” Sif looks at me, “Do you want me to take Lyd for training?”

          Lyd groans as I explain, “No, first of all she doesn’t need it, and second of all, I need her here.”

          “I’m not sure leaving you three alone in a room is such a good idea.”

          “Just go, please.”

          “Fine, but I’m outside in case one of you blows up the building.”

          “Got it.”

          “We good?”

          “We good.”

“Well this is awkward,” says Lyd, stiffly, “Where do you want me to start? Child labor? Almost getting raped by a bunch of assholes? The fact that Thanos is an ass? And I wanna kill him?”

          “I agree,” says Loki.

          “Well he’s going to think I’m making it all up so he’ll feel sorry for me.”

          “I’m right here.”

          “Fine,” sighs Lyd, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

          “About what?”

          “Lyd told me some things,” I start, “Actually she told me everything.”

          “Fine,” says Lyd, starting to get angry, “I’ll spill the beans just so you can laugh at me!”

          “Guys,” I hold up a hand, “No laughing, no killing each other, please,” I sigh, “Go ahead Lyd.”

          “Where do you want me to start, the thing that happened when I was five years old, or the thing that happened five minutes ago?”

          “Start with the five-minutes-ago thing.”

          “Got it. So, yeah, I  was telling Ingrid a bunch of stuff I guess I’ll get to that and these junk traders showed up, and tried to get all over us and get in my skirt and then Calder and Sif showed up why am I telling you this, not a big deal, really.”

          “Sounds like a big deal. Not because there were junk traders in the forest at night but because Calder saved a Frost Giant.”

          “Stop, okay. So, it’s not your fault that my friend—lover got murdered by Thanos, but yeah, I was going to turn you in to him so I could get money to break her out since she was trapped on Sakaar forever, and I was going to hand you over to Aura, and Ingrid said ‘no’ so I didn’t and then Thanos captured her, and I came to try to save her, that’s how I got captured, and he killed her since I wouldn’t bring you to him and that’s why I hate you and Ingrid and I just want to kill him and I’m mad but it’s not your fault I guess I should have not made the deal, not that I care about you anyway, but I guess I shouldn’t, that’s the reason I dragged you out to Jotunheim by the way.”

          “I knew you were up to no good, I was prepared to kill you.”

          “No, you tried to kill yourself and you’re weak and dumb and going to get killed anyway when Thanos finds you since I’m sure as hell not helping out.”

          “I know, tell me about what happened when you were five.”

          “I don’t want to, you already know I got abandoned on Jotunheim I said I hung out on Zephenare, but I didn’t I was kidnapped by a woman named Rina who rented me out to the casino owners to get her dirty hands on some sweet cash and I had to work sixteen hours a day for TABLE SCRAPS while you got to sit in a PALACE! I was stuck there for ELEVEN YEARS until Gracia saved me and I couldn’t do the same for her…YOU HAD EVERYTHING, NO REASON TO COMPALIN, AND YOU’RE AN ASSHOLE, YOU REALLY ARE! YOU JUST WANTED YOUR BITHCY ENTITLEMENT TO MAKE YOU KING, AND I HUNTED FOR GARBAGE AT NIGHT I WAS SO HUNGRY—I HATE YOU, I HATE YOU SO MUCH, AND YOU COMPLAIN ABOUT NOTHING, A PERFECT LIFE!”

          “Do you remember when Thanos tortured you? Well imagine dealing with that, every day, for months on end in a dark cellar with barely any food or water, while my best friend and my brother thought I was dead and the only way of contact I had was an ancient locket. Stop trying to tell me I’m entitled.”

          “It’s not about that! It’s about the fact that you were a sore loser, you let go on that bridge since you wanted to die and that’s why you ended up in Thanos’ realm, it’s YOUR FAULT, DON’T TELL ME OTHERWISE. YOU WANTED TO DIE BECAUSE YOUR FATHER DIDN’T WANT TO MAKE YOU KING, THOR MAY BE AN ASS, BUT HE WAS FIRSTBORN AND THAT’S NOT HOW A BLOODLINE WORKS!”

          “I WAS LIED TO! HE ENCOURAGED COMPETITION IN US, AND I THOUGHT I HAD A CHANCE IF I WAS JUST GOOD ENOUGH…clearly I wasn’t.”

          “THAT’S STILL NOT A REASON TO DROP OFF A BRIDGE LIKE A STUPID CRYBABY! I HAD IT FAR WORSE BEFORE STUPID THANOS MESSED WITH YOUR MIND, BELIVE ME, HE DID MINE TOO, LET’S FACE IT, BUT DID I GIVE UP AND STICK THE DINNER KNIVES UP MY THROAT OR GO DROWN MYSELF IN THE PLEASURE POOL? NO, I DIDN’T, BECAUSE DYING IS DUMB. WE’RE HERE FOR SOME STUPID REASON MIGHT AS WELL TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT, AND NOT BE WHINY. I GOT DEALT A LOUSY HAND AND WHAT DID I DO? KEPT MY HEAD DOWN AND KEPT WORKING, HOPING I COULD GET OUT OF THE SYSTEM ONE DAY—I WASN’T GIVING UP ON THAT, BUT ZEPHENARE IS SCUM, THEY ALL ARE!”

          “Hello, Nova.”

          “WHAT?”

          “We talked about this. Right, you weren’t there. You don’t know what love is, what it’s like to care about someone, you’re pathetic.”

          “No.” Lyd’s voice is barely above a whisper. “You are. You are pathetic. Because you don’t care! You don’t care about ANYONE! You just want Thanos dead since he hurt you!”

          “If I didn’t care about anyone I’d be his right-hand man by now, and I wouldn’t regret it for a second.”

          “No, it’s just since you could be included in the 50%. Thanos has no mercy for his followers.”

          “That’s not the reason.”

          “It is! You don’t understand! And I DO know what it’s like to care about someone!”

          “No, you don’t. You just hate everyone equally.”

          “Gracia. She was the sun and moon to me, everything, the only thing I ever had and SHE NEVER DID ANYTHING WRONG, BUT SHE GOT TRAPPED ON SAKAAR AND I WAS THERE, I SAW HER MURDERED WITH MY OWN EYES, THANOS, ALL BECAUSE OF YOU!”

          Loki raises his hands for a quick shield charm, but the blow never comes. Instead Lyd is immobile, possibly looking for something to destroy, confusedly caught between anger and aggression and a crippling sorrow.

          Still frozen, she continues to survey the room with her eyes finally settling on me for some kind of help.

          “Ingrid!” she screams in agony as she collapses to the floor, “I can’t do it! I don’t wanna trust you—you’re weak and you’ll go back to him he’ll never understand!”

          “I didn’t mean—”

          “DON’T TALK, LOKI!” she screams, “DON’T TALK!”

          “Fine, I won’t talk then. I was just wondering who’s being a crybaby now.”

          “Remind me to find a gun, NOW!”

          “You two need to stop!” It’s Sif, standing in the doorway. “Don’t say that to her, Loki, and Lyd, no killing anyone.”

          “Lyd,” I ask, approaching her on the floor, “Are you ok?”

          “She obviously isn’t so don’t ask me,” snaps Loki, “Hi, Sif. I shouldn’t have said anything, edition five million and one.”

          “I’ll note and log that,” says Sif, but she doesn’t note it. And the silence is unbearable.