Loki and Ingrid 48

Alright, so, now that endgame is out, this series will be going back to canon soon and ending after endgame. Several more parts coming, and i'll post frequently. But it may go into spoiler territory. Thanks. 

Trust

I feel the ship sinking a bit, into the void. Wait, that doesn’t make sense. There isn’t gravity in space. I feel a sinking sensation anyway. It feels wrong, but somehow right. Silently, no one will know. I can’t bring myself to say anything, to think. Calder’s sacrifice for nothing. It should have been me. It should—

          “What are you doing, Loki?”

          “You can’t win.”

          “Firing in five—”

          “If you shoot, you won’t be able to get Odinson’s whereabouts from me. Without us, the stones will remain in our minds.”

          “Oh, we know where the stones are. This isn’t about the stones. This is about timing.”

          “Thanos’ words, undoubtedly.”

          “We must wait.”

          “This isn’t about you, Proxima.”

          “We’re losing connection. I command you to power on, now.”

          “If you’re just going to shoot, you can’t win,” says Loki, turning the ship’s power back on. “And I won’t hesitate to power down again. You can’t win.”

          “It’s not about the stones. It’s about making you serve Thanos. Grovel at his feet. Serve the—”

          “No. Shoot if you’re going to shoot. You can’t win.”

          Proxima laughs, a cold, soulless laugh, filled with the confidence to control a system. “Ha! You think so? You pitiful—We have our eyes on the stones. Is Thanos really that blind? Now that the Ancient One is dead, now that your father is dying—it’s hopeless, it really is. It’s only a matter of time. And we have Odinson’s location. Not yet, mind you, but we have someone who knows.” She laughs. “We were told you two were on Jotunheim! That little liar! But we’ll get the truth out of her, yet. Temptation, psychological torture. Life or death matters. It will all work out in the end. Even if you aren’t there, we will show no mercy. She said to let it burn—”

          “Who’s she?”

          “Your sister.” Proxima laughs.

          “Hela? She may awaken and destroy you and Thanos—maybe I have a plan!”

          “You never had a plan, Loki. Your impulsiveness will be your downfall. And what makes you think that Hela would harbor a hatred for Jotunheim.”

          “No.”

          “Yes. You simply refuse to believe what is right in front of you, Loki. Lydvor betrayed you, and that is fact.”

          No. There has to be another explanation. I don’t want to believe it. I won’t believe it. Even the one last person I thought stood by my side—

          Suddenly I hear a crash above me, and I’m knocked to the floor. “Thor, no! You can’t be here!”

          “Well, if I couldn’t be here, I—never mind. Get your space suits on.”

          “Thor? What are you doing here?” It’s Loki.

          “Saving you, you fool! Get in my spaceship.”

          “They’re going to capture you!”

          “Not if I have anything to do with it—go! Come and get me, Proxima.”

          I hear him departing on Mjolnir and I feel myself sinking into despair again.

          “He’ll be fine. Ingrid, this is your one opportunity to escape, find somewhere safe, and hide until it’s all over—”

          “I’m not going anywhere, Loki. We decided we’re in this together. To the end.”

          “If anything happened to you, I’d—”

          “Come on!”

          “Where are we going.”

          “Back to Asgard. We have to clean up this mess. Pretend nothing happened! Pretend you had the guise up the whole time! Pretend you were partying and eating grapes! It’s all an act! Trust me!”

          “You’re crazy, Ingrid.”

          “Trust me.” I reach out my hand as the hatchet opens above us. “Please.”

---

          “Sif, no matter what you do, stay away from Asgard! Bad things will happen there!”

          The voice sounds so far away, and yet I know Ingrid has everything under control. For now. Maybe I can fix this. Maybe I don’t need to fix it. Maybe all I need to do is kill Thanos. Maybe all I need is for this to be over. Done. But it will never be over. I sigh. We can’t let him win. We can’t. We won’t. But somehow, I have a creeping feeling of dread.

          Sif is sitting in silence, across from me.

          “You need to go hide,” says Loki, “I’ve been having dreams.”

          “Oh, stop it with the dream nonsense, Loki!”

          “It’s true.” I hear Ingrid now. “This isn’t good. Go.”

          “Are you unleashing her?” Sif’s voice is quiet. “You can’t—she will destroy us all.”

          “She might destroy Thanos.”

          “She will turn the realms into her empire of evil!”

          “My father’s time is running out.”

          “You were trying to contain her on earth? It won’t work. She’s strong, but not that strong. Once Thanos gets the stones—”

          “He won’t!”

         

          “Loki, protect the stones at all costs. Especially the tesseract on Asgard.”

          “We should destroy it. Destroy Asgard. Let it burn.”

          “At what cost?”

          I hear the words in my head now. “Let it burn.” Oh, dear. But they aren’t on Jotunheim, are they?

          “Ingrid? I ask, “They know where you are?”

          “Not at the moment, no. Thor was distracting them.”

          “Good,” I say, “Asgard isn’t safe, you know that.”

          “We know,” says Ingrid, “That’s why we’re here. A defenseless Asgard is the most dangerous of all.”

          “They said they will have no mercy—” the transmission cuts as I see Aisha enter the room.

          “Who were you talking to, prisoners?”

          “I don’t belong to anyone.” I say.

          “That’s what you think.”

          “I don’t care about Aura. I don’t care about your shit!” I yell. “I don’t care! Kill me now, and let her go! I give up.”

          “Ah, but you might be useful yet. The superweapon is ready as we speak.”

          “What?” I’m speechless. “But they aren’t—I was lying!”

          “Oh, we know, girl. But maybe it’s a nice little business tactic— she gestures at the projector, “To watch the destruction of your homeworld live. Surrender now. Pledge your fidelity to Thanos or else—”

          “No.” I remain quiet. Composed. Emotionless. “Let it burn.”