All Is Lost

You untangled yourself from Loki's embrace and you instantly missed the warmth and security you had felt wrapped in his arms. You shook your head to get your emotions in check and followed Sylvie who had started walking in the direction of the city Shuroo where the Ark was scheduled to leave from.

"The TVA is lying to you, you know?" Sylvie asked casually and both Loki and you whipped around to stare at her and wait for further explanation. She let out a huff and told you about her encounter with Hunter C-20 in Wisconsin and how she was able to sift through her memories while she enchanted her. You cringed at the thought of someone having access to such a private part of your mind but you kept quiet as to not interrupt Sylvie.

"I found old memories from before she worked for the TVA," she said and you gasped. Before? You had been told by Miss Minutes that the agents had been created by the Time-Keepers as guardians of the Sacred Timeline and nobody ever insinuated otherwise.

Sylvie told you that everyone working for the TVA was actually a Variant themselves and used to have a regular life before having their memory wiped. You wondered if under different circumstances you would have your mind erased and had worked for the TVA without ever knowing your past.

Loki was staring at Sylvie with the same horror on his face that you were certain was mirrored in your expression. "Why would they do that? And why would they then lie about it?" you asked and you were aware of how naive it sounded but you simply couldn't fathom the cruelty of turning humans into tools.

Sylvie scoffed and responded saying that all the TVA does is lie and destroy lives and you genuinely couldn't fault her for that. You thought of friendly and determined Agent Mobius who had an interest in jet skis despite supposedly never using one and you wondered what his past life had been like. Your heart felt heavy and melancholy at the idea that he could have had a family, a purpose, even love.

You didn't have more of a chance to dwell on the fate of the poor TVA agents as the rate of asteroids raining down on you was increasing rapidly as you approached the city. You could see the Ark in the distance and the three of you started running towards it, narrowly avoiding getting hit with every step.

You were so focused on the sky you didn't pay enough attention to the ground and when your foot got caught on a rock you fell face down with a shriek. Out of the corner of your eyes you saw one of the buildings lose its foundation and start to crumble and you scrambled to your feet trying to ignore the pain in your legs.

You stumbled in panic but before the concrete walls could crush you a flash of green held the bricks together and put them back into their rightful place. You let out a sigh of relief and looked over at Loki who proudly smiled at you and stuck out his hand for you to grab. You whispered a thank you and together you continued running in the direction of the gigantic evacuation vessel at the edge of the city.

You were pushing people out of the way to reach your destination faster when all of a sudden a gigantic asteroid crashed down directly on top of the Ark. You knew in an instant that nobody could have survived that and you let go of Loki's hand as you stared at the wreckage of your last chance of survival.

All of the adrenaline that had kept you going rushed out of your body and you became extremely aware of your burning lungs and the stabbing pain from your earlier fall. You couldn't breathe properly and with a desperate wheeze your legs gave out under you and you crumbled to the floor. Loki managed to catch you before your body hit the ground and you shuddered when he easily picked you up and held you close to his chest.

You were too exhausted to feel embarrassed and your mind was trying to grapple with the fact that all was lost so you simply leaned into him. You vaguely registered Sylvie standing beside you with a forlorn expression on her face and you sighed as Loki started walking towards the outskirts of the city.

He put you down next to a large rock and you sat down with a grateful smile that he returned warmly. With a wave of his hand a magic shield appeared around the area and you knew it would at least protect you from smaller debris for the time being. Loki took a seat next to you and you instinctively leaned into him when your shoulders touched.

You glanced over at Sylvie who was hovering nearby and you waved her over to join you on the other side. "So how exactly did you end up sworn enemy of the TVA?" you asked with a smile and she grinned before her expression turned serious. You listened with bated breath as she relayed the story of her being taken from her home at a young age and how she managed to escape her pruning by stealing Renslayer's TemPad.

She had been on the run and hiding all over the Sacred Timeline ever since then and you were starting to understand why she was so bitter and cutthroat. "Everywhere I went, I created a Nexus Event because I wasn't supposed to exist," Sylvie said with a humourless laugh, "Eventually I learned how to hide in catastrophic events and I could finally breathe a bit."

You gave her a smile and you counted it as a win when she returned it with one of her genuine ones. "It is only fitting that I grew up in apocalypses and now I will die in one," she added after a moment of silence and you nodded gravely. "You know, I think it's impressive you managed to survive for so long. Not many people could have been that strong," you said earnestly and her smile widened when even Loki agreed with a decisive hum.

She turned towards the horizon with a sigh and you could see the asteroid shower reflected in her eyes. Her expression was softer than you had seen it since you met her and you figured since you were going to die anyway you might as well learn more about her until then.

You nudged her shoulder to get her attention and then asked with a grin "Anything you want to say or do in your final moments?" Sylvie gave you a calculated look and before you could so much as breathe, she grabbed your face and pressed her lips against yours.