A Guide to Fixing Broken Things

Step Eight: The Plan

Loki POV

The plan went like this.
 
Loki would pose as an agent of the TVA, using his new status to gain access to the computer room that monitored everything. From there, he would use the enchantment trick Sylvie taught him to disarm any others there and take over. All the while, Sylvie would be making her way to the elevator leading to the Time Keepers. Once she got up there and took out any guards, Loki would time portal to her, and they would defeat the Time Keepers. They weren’t exactly certain what would happen after that, other than the fact that they would be free. No more Time Variance Authority, no more predetermined fate, no more pruning of those who dared to have free will. Just the Multiverse, in all of its glorious chaos. 
 
The morning the plan was to be set in motion, Loki was giddy with excitement. First, she woke up from a good night’s rest feeling a way she hadn’t in a long time. Though always a part of her, Loki’s gender fluidity hadn’t exactly been something the people of Asgard looked kindly upon, especially her father, Odin. She grew up repressed and ashamed, but after meeting Sylvie, something inside her clicked. Odin was no longer there to control her, Thor was no longer there for Loki to compare herself to, and she could finally express herself however she pleased.
 
“Did you sleep well?” Sylvie asked when Loki walked into the room, yawning. She had summoned a table full of every food imaginable: pancakes, waffles, biscuits, fruits, eggs, toast. The scent of it all was mouthwatering, and Loki immediately sat down at the table, beginning to shovel food into her mouth. Sylvie raised an eyebrow.
 
“I’ll take that as a yes,” she said, taking a sip of juice. “You seem to be hungry.”
 
Loki mumbled a “mhm” through bitefuls of pastries. 
 
“You also look different.”
 
At that, Loki swallowed her food and ran a hand through her hair, feeling slightly self conscious. 
 
“We shouldn't really be surprised, should we?” she asked. “Considering we’re both one in the same in regards to gender.”
 
Sylvie shrugged.
 
“Fair enough, I suppose. Though you'll need to shapeshift into your disguise soon.”
 
Loki nodded, and quickly finished her breakfast. Then, with a snap of her fingers, her appearance rippled to take the form of a petite, plain brown haired TVA agent. Loki held her hands out in question.
 
“What do you think?” she asked.
 
“Boring.”
 
Loki rolled her eyes.
 
“Well yes, that is the point,” she said irritably. “I need to blend in, correct?”
 
Sylvie sighed and nodded. She fastened her hair into a half bun, sweeping it out of her face. Then, she grabbed her cloak from a nearby chair and tossed it over her shoulders, reaching into one of the pockets to toss Loki a TemPad. 
 
“You ready?”
 
“Let's hope so.”
 
Loki programmed the TVA’s location into the TemPad, then pushed the button to open the portal. She took a deep breath. 
 
“Remember the plan,” Sylvie reminded her once again. Loki nodded and raised her hand up, giving Sylvie a mocking little wave reminiscent of the first time they might. The last thing she saw before appearing in the TVA was Sylvie putting her hands on her hips and glaring. She smiled to herself.
 
The TVA was just as bland and boring as Loki remembered it being. However, gone was the annoyingly perfect order and silence from before. Now, the halls were flooded with people heading in all directions, and no one paid Loki- or Hunt S-70, as was written on her helmet- any attention as she made her way to the camera room. 
 
The inside was surprisingly empty for such a big place. Only a handful of workers were spread out across the room, and even they looked as though they were about ready to fall asleep. It was a good thing Loki was there to help them along with the endeavour. 
 
In a flash, she locked the door and grabbed the arm of the nearest agent. Their eyes widened for a brief moment, but before they could react, Loki was already reaching into their mind and subduing their senses. The agent collapsed onto the floor with a thud, attracting the attention of everyone else. But it was no use, Loki was running on the adrenaline pumping through her veins. There was no stopping her as she ploughed through the TVA agents until they were merely a heap on the floor, which she dragged to hide behind a filing cabinet. 
 
“Well that was easy,” Loki murmured to herself, and clicked on the earpiece that Sylvie had given her. She sat down on one of the chairs in front of the screens, which was hard and uncomfortable. Her nose wrinkled in disgust. 
 
“God, how do they stand these all day? And for all time, too?”
 
“What?” Sylvie’s scratchy voice came through the earpiece.
 
“These chairs!” Loki exclaimed. “It’s a miracle that those here at the TVA don't have the worst back pains imaginable. Why, if I worked here-”
 
“Remind me why I thought teaming up with you was a good idea, again?” Sylvie muttered under her breath. Loki could practically feel her rolling her eyes on the other side. She smiled.
 
“Right, sorry, sorry,” she said. “Focus. Mission.”
 
“Am I all clear?” Sylvie asked. 
 
Loki scanned the screens, searching for the one Sylvie planned to portal into. The hall was empty. 
 
“Good to go.”
 
On screen, Loki watched her counterpart step through a time door and quickly glance around, making sure there were no TVA soldiers nearby. She drew a blade from her cloak, and Loki let out a groan.
 
“Seriously? A weapon already? My god, you’re worse than Thor!”
 
“Shut up.”
 
Loki grinned and continued to check the screens.
 
“There’s a group of people coming up to your right. It’s just three though, so you should be able to take them easily,” she told Sylvie. 
 
Just as Loki expected, Sylvie rounded the corner and after engaging in brief combat, the TVA agents were left lying on the ground, Sylvie emerging victorious. 
 
“Bravo,” Loki drawled, and she heard Sylvie snort on the other end.
 
“That was hardly a challenge.”
 
“I figured you would appreciate the praise anyway,” Loki said. “Not that you need anything else to feed that ego of yours.”
 
“Oh my god, would you-”
 
Sylvie was cut off by a singular agent coming around the bend with a pruning stick. In all their banter, Loki hadn’t noticed the agent in time to give Sylvie a proper warning. Luckily, Sylvie seemed to be winning the fight, despite the agent catching her off guard and attacking viciously.
 
“She’s trying to prune you,” Loki observed dryly. 
 
“Thank you, Loki, that wasn’t obvious at all,” Sylvie grumbled, kicking the agent down. “Your commentary is most helpful.”
 
“You’re welcome!”
 
Sylvie sighed.
 
“Whatever. Where to next?”
 
“The doors to the elevator are two more lefts, then a right. They’re brilliant, golden, kind of hard to miss.”
 
The two lapsed into silence as Sylvie neared the elevator doors. A strange mix of joy and nervousness bubbled up in Loki’s chest the closer she got. She thought she might burst from inside out, when an oddly familiar voice came from behind her.
 
“I thought Casey was on camera duty today,” Mobius said.
 
Loki spun around in her chair in an instant, shocked to see the analyst up and moving. The last time she had seen him, he was bleeding out on the floor of a cave. Now, he was holding a coffee mug lazily in one hand, and upon first glance, nothing seemed to be the matter. But when Loki peered closer, she saw the way he stood awkwardly to keep all his weight on the uninjured side of his body. Despite Loki’s magic from the other day, she wasn't a healer, and Mobius was clearly still a little hurt. 
 
Mobius glanced around the unusually empty room.
 
“In fact, I thought a lot more people were on duty today.” He raised an eyebrow in Loki’s direction, and she had to remind herself that Mobius saw Hunter S-70, not Loki. Otherwise, this situation would be playing out very differently.
 
“ Loki?” Sylvie hissed into the earpiece, but Loki couldn't respond to her with Mobius here. She wracked her brain, trying to think of the best way out of this unfortunate situation.
 
¨Lunch break,” Loki blurted out, coughing a little. “Everyone else went on lunch break, so I volunteered to hang back and watch the cameras.”
 
“And the door was locked because…”
 
Loki’s mind raced for a lie.
 
“Nervous habit. With all that’s happening, I get paranoid, you know?”
 
“Uh-huh.”
 
Mobius looked doubtful, and took a few steps closer to Loki, causing her to be overcome with a confusing wave of emotions she didn't have the time nor will to pick apart. She wondered what would happen if Mobius knew her true identity. Would he still willingly approach her, or charge at her with a weapon in hand? The fact that Loki even cared about the answer to that question outside of personal concern for her safety worried her. 
 
“So uh,” Loki decided to change the subject. “You seem to be recovering well.”
 
Mobius seemed surprised by the comment, and nodded slowly.
 
“I had help.”
 
Loki paled, and hoped her face hadn’t gone as white as she imagined it had. Mobius was so delirious when Loki had helped him that she wasn’t even sure he remembered. Apparently, so.
 
“What do you mean?”
 
“ Loki, what are you doing?”
 
In the back of her mind, Loki knew she shouldn't continue prying. She should eliminate Mobius and get back to helping Sylvie. But curiosity had always been one of her many weaknesses, and she couldn't help it. 
 
“Have you ever thought maybe you were wrong about someone?” Mobius asked her unexpectedly. When Loki frowned in confusion, he continued. “Like, let’s say, for example, you had a friend. And you thought you understood them, but then they did something that completely changed your perspective on them? But, hypothetically, what if this person had also severely broken your trust? What would you do?”
 
“Well,” Loki considered her words carefully. She had a sneaky suspicion of what this was about, and knowing made it so much worse. Slowly, she said:
 
“I believe that everyone has the potential to be good, if given time. And if you really… care about this friend, I think you should give them a second chance. They’ve already surprised you once. Maybe they’ll do it again.”
 
Mobius studied her carefully, and then nodded. He was smiling, and Loki wasn’t sure what to do with that.
 
“You’re very smart, you know?”
 
Yes , Loki thought. 
 
“Thank you.” 
 
Mobius’s brow creased all of a sudden, and he peered over Loki’s shoulder. She turned around, only to see a group of at least twenty TVA soldiers approaching an unsuspecting Sylvie. Loki’s eyes widened and her pulse quickened. This was bad. This was very, very bad. She had to warn Sylvie, but-
 
“You're not Hunter S-70, are you?” Mobius asked. His voice was still level, but it had a cold undertone that sent shivers down Loki’s spine. Slowly, she turned back to face him, only to be met with a pruning stick. She held her hands up, and Mobius’s face turned to stone.
 
“Loki,” he said. It was only one word, but it managed to convey so many emotions that Loki couldn't even name them all. Loki felt as though her heart was being stabbed repeatedly and then torn to shreds, but she was frozen in place, unable to move or say anything in her defense. 
 
“Mobius-” Loki choked out, trying to think of what she could possibly say to stop Mobius.
 
“Don’t.” Mobius’s broken tone left no room for argument, and Loki snapped her mouth shut. They stared at each other for several long moments as Loki prepared to be deleted. She wondered faintly if it would hurt. She hoped it didn’t. 
 
“I should prune you,” Mobius murmured, more to himself than Loki. “Why can’t I prune you?”
 
His eyes grew wide and vulnerable all of a sudden, and Loki took that opportunity to lurch forward, grabbing Mobius’s wrist and reaching for his mind. She just skimmed around the edges, extending to grab small wisps of consciousness. Still, it was clear that Mobius’s mind was a complex place. Even just brushing by, Loki could see how clouded and intricate the weavings of his thoughts were. The temptation to delve in further was strong, but Loki cared enough to pull back out after achieving what she needed.
 
When Loki let go of Mobius’s wrist, his eyes fluttered shut and his knees buckled. Gently, Loki grabbed Mobius’s limp body and propped it up on the wall, whispering “I’m sorry” over and over under her breath. Perhaps if they had more time, Loki would talk things over with Mobius and explain why she did everything that she did. But right now, Sylvie was in danger.
 
Loki turned back to the screens, and was horrified by the images that she saw. Sylvie was surrounded by a group of TVA agents that seemed to multiply by the second. She was fighting valiantly, but she couldn't keep it up for much longer. 
 
“Sylvie!” Loki shouted into the earpiece. “Sylvie!” 
 
She was met with only static. The earpiece must have been disconnected or destroyed in all the fighting. Loki pounded a fist on the table, letting out an angry scream. It would take too long to get to Sylvie without portalling, and even if she could, that was certain to be a death wish. No, there was nothing Loki could do except watch as Sylvie took a devastating blow to the head and fell, sprawling out on the TVA floor. A handful of agents restrained her unconscious body with cuffs, and they clipped that godforsaken collar around her neck. Then, they began hauling her away, presumably towards some kind of cell. Or worse, her death. 
 
Loki swallowed. For once in his life, she was entirely unsure of what to do. Instead, she thought about what Sylvie would want. The mission was what had always been the most important to her. She would want Loki to get out of here, save herself, and then come back later to finish the job. So that’s what she would do.
 
Making up her mind, Loki took one last look at Sylvie, then at Mobius, then pulled the TemPad from her pocket. She was just about to step into the portal, when an idea hit her. Before even taking the time to consider the consequences of her action, Loki acted on impulse. She grabbed Mobius’s body, and dragged it with her into the portal, hoping she wouldn't come to regret this decision.