Hi everyone, welcome back. Does anyone have any guesses as to who one or both of Sigyn's biological parents are? Leave them in the comments down below. And I love seeing your reactions, so if there's a moment that you love or that takes you by surprise, let me know!

Staring down the barrel of her gun, Sigyn tries to assess the woman standing across from her. Judging by the way she's dressed she could be a Loki; it would mean that she was right about the Variant not looking like their version of Loki at least.

"Judging by the way your acting, I'm going to assume you're asking me that because you genuinely don't know and not because you're just trying to be rude. I'm Sylvie," says the woman coyly. "And I already know who you are, Sigyn Larsen. It's nice to see you again."

"Right. Again. So would you say the last time you met 'me' you wanted me dead or...?"

"I would say I've enjoyed a particularly close relationship with several of you."

Sigyn's eyes go wide, thinking about all of the possible meanings of Sylvie's words. Most of them are sexual of course but she doesn't really want to think of the specifics. "Right...very creepy." Sylvie's mouth quirks up into a smile at Sigyn's joke. Well, more of a half-joke really, it was a little bit creepy what she said. "Anyway, all I need to know is if I can trust you to get me out of here."

"Well, I'm certainly your best shot. But don't be fooled, love, I saw the Variant working with the TVA. How do I know you're not too?"

"I mean, I did just beat several of them up," says Sigyn, motioning to the two limp TVA agents behind her.

Sylvie crosses her arms. "And what if that was to gain my trust?"

Everything moves so quickly. Out of the corner of her eye, Sigyn spots something moving behind Sylvie.

Bam.

A shot rings out through the air. Sylvie checks herself over before turning to see that Sigyn had shot a TVA agent. Sigyn lowers her weapon for the first time since seeing Sylvie. "Will you take that as a downpayment?"

The only response Sylvie gives is a smirk, but Sigyn immediately knows that means deal accepted.

As they move towards the elevator, the blood of the minuteman starts to spread all over the floor. Sigyn's killed people before, but not like this. Not 'outside' the law. It was always to protect other people, her family, friends, New York, or to protect the greater good but this, this was done in self-preservation. This was done so that she could escape. Sigyn thinks she finally understands what Natasha meant by having red in her ledger.

Ding.

The elevator opens, pulling Sigyn out of her thoughts. The walls of this hallway are nicer than most of the TVA she's seen. The wood is a rich dark colour, and there are a few plants and benches along the way. "Why do I get a feeling we're not headed towards the exit?" Sigyn whispers, not wanting to alert any nearby guards.

The two walk into a small area with a large set of golden doors and two guards, Sigyn going for the one on the left and Sylvie for the one on the right. The guard Sylvie is fighting lunges for Sigyn with his baton, but luckily she has enough sense to dodge the hit.

The agent she's fighting isn't so lucky because Sigyn watches as the man disappears before her very eyes. If that's what they meant by being 'reset' then she's glad she chose to go with Hilda.

Oh, god, Hilda is going to be so pissed. Sigyn silently hopes that they never run into each other again.

Sylvie gives a roundhouse kick to the final guard, sending him flying into the wall. "Your hand-to-hand skills are a bit rusty."

Sigyn gives the other woman a fake smile at the insult. At least she can now be sure that this is a Loki Variant.

Speaking of the devil, Loki, her version at least, comes around the corner brandishing his knives. Sigyn has the urge to reach for her gun again, but she doesn't want to force him to attack by causing any sudden movements. She doesn't know the full story. He could still be planning on escaping. Sylvie, on the other hand, doesn't care and pulls out her sword.

His face contorts into surprise when he sees Sigyn with Sylvie. "Oh, so what? You'll ally with a mortal but not me?"

"Have you got nothing else to do?" asks Sylvie snarkily.

"Rude," says Loki. Sigyn can't help but stare at the sight. She has no idea what to do, or even worse, who to help if a fight were to break out between them. "Are you sure you're a Loki?"

It doesn't take a genius to realize that Sylvie likes that question less than polar bears like deserts. "You're in my way."

"You are my way."

Sylvie takes a broad swing at Loki whilst simultaneously kicking Sigyn in the gut, sending her into the wall. Unfortunately for Sigyn, the hard metal gun in the back of her waistband drills into her back as she hits the wall.

That one hurt.

Regaining the inside, Sylvie pushes Loki back out into the hall. Unfortunately, Sigyn is still catching her breath, so even if she did want to join the fray, she can't.

"I thought perhaps we could work together," says Loki, motioning to himself with his knives. Once again, Sylvie sends a powerful kick his way and although it sends him backwards, that damn Asguradian physiology saves him from getting the wind completely knocked out of him. Only slightly out of breath, Loki sees that the other him isn't willing to negotiate at this point. "But now I see you lack vision."

Sylvie groans at his undersized insults and turns away from him. But before Loki can come close to her and close the gap between them, Sylvie points her sword at Sigyn's throat, placing it right underneath her chin. "One more step, and I skewer her."

For the briefest of seconds, a look of anxiety passes through Loki's eyes.

Sigyn's eyes flash wildly, getting whiplash from Sylvie's behaviour. Of all the potential ways a Loki would betray her, she's got to say, she didn't see this one coming. Sylvie's got to be bluffing. Right? Right?

"You think I care about a mortal?" says Loki, scoffing at the thought of it. "Go ahead. One less Avenger to worry about when I take over Midgard."

At times, Loki has found it difficult to read Sigyn's face, but right now it's easy because there's only one thing written across it: betrayal.

Sylvie is now the one looking panicked. She didn't expect that reaction.

He takes her reflecting as a time to strike. He lunges for Sylvie and twists her wrist behind her arm and Sigyn takes that as an opportunity to go and move behind him. She's not sure which of them she trusts less at the moment, but either way, the last thing she wants is the minutemen coming around the corner and vaporizing her. "Either you'll come willingly or you won't," says Loki to Sylvie. "Either way, that's how I get to the Time-Keepers."

Sylvie manages to get herself out of the hold, rolling backwards over Loki but sending them both to the ground in front of Sigyn. "Oh, god, shut up!" screeches Sylvie, and even though she just tried to kill Sigyn, she can't help but agree with the sentiment.

Both of the Loki's manage to get up onto their knees rather quickly, holding one another by the wrists. The only difference is that Sylvie is armed with a knife and Loki is armed with, well, a fist.

"Hey!" Everyone snaps their heads up to see the judge, Ravonna Renslayer standing in the hall with two minutemen, all of them with their batons and ready to attack.

Once again, Sylvie tries her trick. She pulls Loki onto the ground in front of her, holding her sword to his chest. "Come any closer and I'll kill him."

"Go for it," says Ravonna.

From behind Sylvie, Sigyn fakes a cough into her hand. "You heard the lady."

The judge, apparently more set on being the executioner today—not very judge-like if you ask Sigyn—lunges forward to swipe at and vapourize all three of them. But before Sigyn can process what's happening or why, she starts to fall down. Like, into the ground down. Shit.

Sigyn hears her screams mix with a few others so she knows she's not the only one falling. Something somewhat soft breaks her fall, though if anything, it's her back that's still hurting. Maybe it's a good thing that she's fallen flat on her face then. Or maybe not because Sigyn soon realizes she's fallen face-first into Loki's chest. Some all-seeing, all-knowing creator somewhere must be getting a kick out of this, Sigyn thinks to herself.

She goes to prop herself up but is instead promptly pushed off by Loki as he utters the ever-charming words, "Get off me."

He and Sylvie lunge for the Tempad, pulling one another backwards as they try and crawl to it. But the Tempad whips through the air, past both of them and into Sigyn's hand. "Listen here, you two idiots. The TVA is coming after us and we need to get back to earth."

Loki flops up dramatically. "Why would we want to go to Midgard?"

"I hate to break it to you, love, but they're going to find you as soon as you step foot on that planet," says Sylvie. Loki sends her a questioning glance at the use of the nickname for Sigyn.

"No, you guys don't understand," explains Sigyn enthusiastically. "We go back to earth, find the rest of the Avengers, and they help us take down the evil time cult."

Loki puts his hands on his hips and sighs. "Not everything can be solved by Avengers."

But Sigyn isn't quite ready to give up on her idea. "Solved the you problem, didn't it?" Loki shoots her a deadly glare before disappearing. Both Sigyn and Sylvie glance around the room wondering where he went.

He reappears behind Sigyn, grabbing the Tempad out of her hands. "How about no Midgard." He turns the Tempad on intending to scroll through the possible destinations, but it's out of batteries.

"Give it to me," says Sylvie, holding out her hand. "You don't even know how to recharge it."

Naturally, Loki doesn't hand it over and keeps tinkering with the device. "Of course I do. You're not the only tech-savvy Loki."

"Don't call me that."

"Tech-savvy?"

"No, a Loki." Sylvie lunges forward for the Tempad but Loki makes the item disappear. "You're just fully a magician then?"

Both of the Loki Variants get ready to square off against one another, pointing their weapons at each other. "Fine. For my next trick, I'll make you disappear."

Before either can make a move, a small rock shoots into the tent, landing in the middle of the two about to fight it out. Everyone's heads turn in confusion at the sight of the rock, trying to figure out where it came from, or rather, who is responsible for it. "That's not me," says Loki, who then shoots a side-glance at Sigyn.

"What? Don't look at me."

"Oh, come on, that's totally something you could do."

"If I was doing it, I would have made it hit you in the head at least."

Sylvie rolls her eyes at their bickering. "Shut up, both of you." Then, she turns to Loki with an accusatory look on her face, "Where did you send us?"

~~~

They all exit the tent, getting their first sight at the planet they're on. Sigyn's never seen anything like it. The entire planet is lit up with purple light, a magnificent and breathtaking sight. Sigyn's always wanted to see space. And this? This is exactly what she imagined it would look like—wondrous planets, each different and unique from the rest.

Minus the giant moon heading towards them at least. Instinctively, they all break into a run as asteroids rain down as if they were the heaviest pieces of hail Sigyn's ever seen.

"You idiot! This is Lamentis-1."

"Does that mean there's a Lamentis-2 then?" Sigyn asks sarcastically.

"Yes, they make it after this one is destroyed!"

Oh, great. Sigyn thinks to herself. I'm going to be turned into space dust surrounded by two idiots fighting themselves. Of course.

An asteroid lands right in front of them, causing them all to gasp and quickly change directions. "That moon is about to crash into us," says Sylvie. "Of all the apocalypses saved on the Tempad, this is the worst. No one makes it off here. If that's too hard for you, I can make it simpler. Planet. Go. Boom."

At the last minute, Sylvie manages to yank Loki's arm, preventing him from walking into an asteroid's path. "Oh, I'm sorry madam. Didn't have time to scan the brochure." All three of the Variants dive under a large truck, giving them a few moments of cover. "By the way, I thought you wanted me dead?"

"I don't know where you hid the Tempad, but if you blow up, it blows up, and then I end up blown up." Sylvie points to a small building that seems to be withstanding the falling rocks pretty well. "There!"

Everyone darts out from under the truck, making a mad dash for the building. "So we're a team now?"

"Oh, God no!" Before they can get any further, Loki reciprocates Sylvie's favour of not letting him get crushed by pulling her out of the way of an asteroid. But apparently, Sylvie isn't too happy about that. "Didn't need your help!"

"You're so weird!" Loki yells back at her.

"Oh, that's rich coming from you!" shouts Sigyn.

Finally having reached the building, they all file in. For a few moments, the only thing that can be heard is panting, all exhausted from the run. Sigyn leans against the wall, trying to calm her lungs that feel like they're on fire. She watches as Sylvie walks over to Loki and puts her hands on his temples. What the hell is she doing?

Whatever Sylvie is trying to do doesn't work, because Sigyn feels the confusion radiate around her. Loki questions Sylvie about what she's doing, only for the question to be shot right back at him. "Are you trying to enchant me?" he asks. "It won't work."

"Why? Because you're a magician?"

"No, because my mind is too strong." Both of them drop into fighting stances, ready to attack one another.  Loki sighs, "Look. Are we really about to do this here? Again?"

"No, but I am." Then, having had enough of their constant bickering, Sigyn decides to take matters into her own hands. She pins both of them against opposite walls of the room. "We are all going to stop trying to kill each other, or else I'm going to throw you into the moon!"

"She can't do that, can she?" Loki whispers to Sylvie across the room.

"I don't think she can," says Sylvie.

"I can hear you. Loki, we need you because you've got the Tempad, and we need Sylvie because she knows how to charge the damn thing. You can both fight it out and decide who's got the most glorious purpose or whatever it is you two do after we get off of here. Got it?"

After a moment of consideration, Sylvie speaks up. "Good for me."

"I've been trying to make a truce this whole time so, yes. Of course."

Sigyn drops them both and storms out the door, leaving them to stare after her. Sylvie shakes her head and clicks her tongue at the sight as a playful look dances across her face. "What a woman."

~~~

The trek to find a power source is proving to be longer than Sigyn had hoped. She seriously misses the days where a Quinnjet or a Stark Industries plane or helicopter would be there to transport her wherever she was needed. Sylvie leads the pack, keeping an eye out for any potential power sources.

Unfortunately for Sigyn, that leaves her walking side by side with Loki. Someone she's not exactly happy with at the moment because he tried to get her killed. She can feel that he's conflicted. He wants to say something but isn't. Sigyn does her best to shut off her powers, not wanting to feel anything on a planet where people are all about to die. The constant feelings of grief, agony, and panic aren't constructive when you're trying to get off of a planetary death trap. "Shut up."

"I haven't said anything," says an offended Loki.

A seething Sigyn turns to him, pointing a finger at his face. "You were about to." Loki goes to open his mouth to speak again but Sigyn cuts him off, "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you'd want to talk to a mortal so badly." She stops for a moment before the rest of it explodes out of her, "You told her to stab me!"

"I had to call her bluff."

"You couldn't have known she was bluffing."

"Yet I did. Because you're still here, aren't you? I had to distract her so I could free you."

Sigyn scoffs and crosses her arms. "Oh, so you're going with the 'you were rescuing me' story now? Mobius was right. I'm just cannon fodder to you."

"Look, Sylvie didn't want to work with me, but somehow, she agreed to work with you within, what? Ten seconds of being in the TVA? I think that's part of what makes her a Loki."

Sigyn's eyebrows furrow in confusion. She's not exactly sure what he means by that. "I don't understand."

Loki takes a big breath. "For better or for worse, I think part of being a Loki seems to be that we trust you. And when we see that trust, we cling to it because we don't happen upon it often."

The words completely take Sigyn by surprise and all of the air floods out of her lungs, leaving her breathless. He looks at her with such sincerity that even if she couldn't sense it, she would be able to see it. After regaining her wits, she clears her throat. "Do you think...do you think that's why in the Sacred Timeline we...it's why we..."

"Fall in love?" supplies Loki, "Get married?" Sigyn nods. "Well, it's certainly not because of looks."

Loki wears a teasing smile, and Sigyn shoots him a faux exasperated glance, though there's a plethora of playfulness behind her eyes when she gives him a small shove. "Shut up. I could say the same about you."

He gives her a cheeky smile. "Well, you could. But I'd know you were lying."

Sigyn elbows him and the two burst out into laughter, the tensions between them dissipating.

"You two, stop being happy back there. It's disgusting."

Eventually, Loki walks ahead to speak with Sylvie, leaving Sigyn trailing behind with all of her thoughts. She always judged her future self for falling in love with Loki, a villain, the person who tried to take over the world. But if this is what he was like, what he was really like, maybe she could start to understand her future self.

~~~

Walking with two versions of Loki is more of a headache than Sigyn thought. For a man who almost succeeded in taking over the world, he could be quite daft sometimes. He had suggested that they use a neon sign to power the Tempad, starting a fight between him and Sylvie about their tech skills and what it would take to power the damn thing.

They walk through the entirety of a small town without finding anything useful and in complete silence. That is until Sigyn can't take it anymore. "Right, so back in the tent, you said you would make Sylvie disappear, yeah? I know you meant you were going to stab her with the knives, but could you? Make a whole person disappear, I mean?"

"I don't know. Do you want to try it?" he asks flatly.

Sigyn makes a sour face. "Well, when you say it like that, no."

Sylvie shushes them as they come across a lone home and makes her way up the steps. "Brute force is no substitute for diplomacy and guile," Loki says to her.

"Noted." Sylvie marches forward and kicks the door of the home open, only to be hit by some sort of blast that sends her hurtling through the air.

"It's remarkable you ever made it as far as you did," says Loki. He then leans towards the door that Sylvie was just blasted from. "Sorry about that."

"Oh, don't be," says a female voice. "I enjoyed it."

"Oh, I did too," Loki assures her. "But I can assure you, despite my acquaintance behaving like an animal, uh, we mean no harm. We're simply weary travellers."

"Sure you are."

Something catches Loki's eye from inside the trailer. A picture of a woman and a man, clearly her husband.

Loki transforms himself into the man in the picture and then steps out in front of the door.

"Patrice?"

Loki, masquerading as the man, starts to nod, crying slightly. Well, if his career in super-villainy doesn't work out, he might have one in acting, Sigyn thinks to herself. "It's been a long time. You're as beautiful as—"

Boom.

Loki gets hit with a blast, changing him out of his disguise and sending him flying towards Sylvie.

"Patrice never said a thing that nice in 30 years. You're no travellers. You're devils." The woman steps out of her house, brandishing the giant blasting weapon. Sigyn, who is still on the porch, immediately knows she's screwed.

She holds her hands in the air and backs off of the porch. "Unlike them, I break when I get tossed around, so please don't shoot me."

"What do you devils want with me?"

Sylvie holds her hands up to show that they're friendly. "We just want to ask you a question. Where is everyone?"

"The ark." When recognition doesn't cross any of the three Variant's faces, the woman clarifies, "The evacuation vessel."

"Something like that would have enough juice to power a Tempad," says Sylvie.

"How do we get there?" Loki asks.

"Train station's at the edge of town. But you'll never get a ticket."

Both of the Loki Variants seem happy with the information and move to leave, but Sigyn isn't quite as satisfied. "Why won't we get a ticket?" she asks the woman.

"They're only giving them out to the rich. The people who own these mines, these towns."

"Typical. Listen, why don't you come with us? We're going to sneak on that train and get out of here."

"I can't leave. This is my home."

That's a sentiment Sigyn can't quite understand. "But you'll die here."

"I've accepted my fate. Maybe it's time you accept yours."

Sigyn blinks hard, trying to process everything. That damn word. Fate. She hates it. She's an Avenger, for god's sake. She should be able to save this woman and this whole freaking planet. She feels Loki tug her arm, leading her away from the woman, abandoning her to her inevitable death.

But the woman's words play on repeat in Sigyn's head as they march along the dusty ground. I've accepted my fate. Maybe it's time you accept yours.

That's all for this chapter, folks!

Will Sigyn's Avenging heroic tendencies help or hinder the Variants' escape from Lamentis-1? Find out next chapter!

Onto the sole reason for my existence, the chapterly memes. And PS if you have any ideas or want to make one for the story, I'll feature it in the chapterly memes section!