The Death Knell

The green flames swayed, making both Loki's faces look pale and ferocious. The younger one wanted to ask a question, but the older one already knew what the question was.

He even knows what choices his other self would make, because it is constant choices that make him who he is today.

Become the God of Story.

It was a long story, a mysterious journey, constantly flowing between death and life, everything was just a story.

It no longer mattered whether he was a good guy or a bad guy, he was Loki, and he had prepared a trap for his past self.

"The destruction of the universe is imminent. Maybe someone told Mephisto about the Crown of Fear. He will get it soon, tonight."

The old Loki looked at his other self standing below, looking at the young face full of confusion as he recalled the past.

The Crown of Fear was forged by the 'Nightmare', and its raw material was the thoughts and emotions of 'Loki'. He was the one who brought it to this era, and naturally it was he who told the Demon King of Hell the news of its existence.

A deal.

As for the current situation, only Loki himself can solve it. He accurately calculated the time required for Mephisto to obtain the crown. After all, he wrote the story.

Although what follows is nothing but doodles and jokes.

"A crown? What is it for?"

"It has many uses, but the most important thing is to collect fear and turn it into power. Satan's position in hell has been vacant for a long time, and when Mephisto sits on it wearing the crown, all worlds will turn into purgatory."

"Fear? The continuous invasions and the fire of the World Tree are just to gain the fear of Asgard? Is Ragnarok just an illusion?"

"I don't know, maybe it's because people who have never been afraid, the first fear is sweeter?"

Young Loki took a deep breath, and old Loki answered him with a half-smile.

As he said himself, he was the most untrustworthy person. Only one tenth of these answers was the truth, but his young self had no way of telling the truth.

The only thing that little Loki can confirm from his own knowledge is that Mephisto cannot be allowed to sit on the throne of 'Satan'.

The strength of the hell lords is not much different, so the hell planes are now in a long state of balance, but any additional power may unbalance this multi-party balance and become the last straw.

And mastering the power of fear means that it is likely to gain the allegiance of the seven fear lords. This is not a straw, it is an added mountain to the balance.

"There must be another way. You have a way, right?"

Young Loki pulled his hair, and there were red marks on his white forehead. He turned to look at the figure in the flames.

The old Loki spread his hands and showed his translucent soul to Loki: "I am just a story. I can't do anything about it now, but you can stop him, and only you can."

"How to do?"

"The crown was forged from 'your' thoughts and dreams. If they no longer exist, the crown will cease to exist."

The figure who called himself the story spoke the solution lightly, and this answer made young Loki unable to make a decision for a moment.

How to eliminate one's thoughts?

Depriving an individual of his or her life cannot destroy the mind. This requires erasing the individual's existence from history and stories.

Loki is considering other methods. He is not a hero. He does not want to exchange his life and existence for the survival of the universe. He wants to escape and go to other universes.

"He will ascend the throne tonight and become the new Satan." Old Loki said calmly.

"Let me think about it. It's not too late. I can think of other ways." Young Loki held his forehead, and the tightness of his skin made his eyes seem to fall out of their sockets.

"Maybe it's not too late for the final victory, but it's too late for mother and Thor. You may be able to find a way to escape alone, but you can't take them with you."

The old Loki looked down, his robes swaying with the flames, as if they were one with it.

"Let me think"

"You retain a part of 'me' in your mind. It is not you. Let it overwrite your soul and change you. Then your thoughts will no longer exist, and the same goes for the crown."

"Why not cover yours with my thoughts?"

"Because you can't do it, just like a stone can hold down an ant, but a leaf can't cover the sea." The two Lokis looked at each other in the air, the young face showing irritability and doubt, but the old one couldn't. Very peaceful.

"No, there must be another way."

"Maybe there is, but you don't have time to look for it, and neither do your mother and brother. Death is already doomed, and Asgardians never have the right to choose their path."

"I am still me after death."

"Well, at least I didn't die in Ragnarok. This is a new story."

"So you want to change? You came from the future just to reverse the fate of Asgard?"

"Of course, but the immediate crisis must be resolved first, otherwise no one will have the chance to wait until Ragnarok."

In the underground secret room, the two Lokis communicated with the same voice, and it was impossible to even tell who was speaking.

The black magpie came out of nowhere. It landed on the stone platform in the fire ring and stood on one of the corners of the golden horned helmet with its twig-like claws.

The bird's eyes are located on both sides of its head, so when it lies between two people, even though one Loki is older and the other is younger, it only sees one Loki.

Young Loki fell into silence. He was making a choice. He didn't care about the life or death of others, but his mother and Thor

The old Loki urged him in a calm tone: "Every time you delay for a while, things will become more and more irreversible. However, seeing the billions of lives in the entire universe destroyed, and his mother and brother being wiped out in the flames of hell, for Maybe it’s a kind of fun for a bad guy like you?”

"Shut up! You know it isn't!"

The old Loki smiled: "The pursuit of change is my whole purpose, and I guess Loki will only die to save Loki."

Sacrifice, an unfamiliar word, had never been in Loki's dictionary before.

But when it suddenly became the only choice, young Loki could face it calmly. He was the prince of Asgard, and this seemingly unfamiliar word was never far away.

He figured something out and a smile appeared on his face, the same sly smile as before.

"Odin, I just realized that I am so annoying when I play word games. You want to replace me just for my good reputation. You need a clean prince status to do something."

"Well, I really haven't thought about it."

"Stop lying, we are all Loki."

"Haha, okay, I know what you want to do. You want a real farewell, so just think of it as my last gift. You can find three people to talk to in private, but everything about here and the future must be kept secret." Old Loki also smiled, maybe it was history, maybe it was stories, but everything was as it should be.

He had agreed to his future self's conditions back then, and he even remembered clearly which three people he found.

He pursues change, but the reality has not changed at all. This contrast makes him don't know what else to express besides laughing.

"I promise you."

Young Loki nodded in agreement. Once he made up his mind, he had to execute it immediately. Time was running out.

There was a gap in the ring of fire behind him, and young Loki turned around and left. The green flames that had been an illusion before did not know when to reveal their true identity. It was the real fire of the underworld, the dark green hell.

If Loki doesn't trust his future self and can't reach an agreement, then he can't leave at all.

And now that Old Loki allows him to leave after the agreement is reached, it shows that what Old Loki said before is true, and he can let Young Loki verify it.

As long as he doesn't care about wasting time and letting his mother and brother die

Loki could feel the cold and biting flames, but he no longer cared about old Loki's pranks. He wanted to find his brother.

He doesn't believe in his old self, at least not completely. He must leave a guarantee for the future.

"Stop chasing me, you idiot!"

"Don't run away, I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"

In a corner of Asgard, there is a garden affected by the war. The cursed warriors have demolished almost all the buildings here, leaving only the thick trees in the ruins and broken flower beds.

Loki had previously used his clone to lure Thor away. Along the way, he also led Thor into a mud puddle, into a haystack, knocked over a bee nest, and ran into the women's toilet.

And Thor is now in a very embarrassed state, covered in black mud, the straw straw has turned him into a hedgehog, and the bees and the women have made his face red and swollen.

Thor was so ashamed and angry that he wanted to catch Loki and beat him.

But suddenly, the Loki in front of him disappeared, and a new Loki came out from behind a tree.

Thor hesitated a little. He didn't know if this was true. He had been tricked by illusions for thousands of years, so he had some experience. He immediately looked at the grass between the two of them, guessing whether there would be a cesspit or a pit. Spike trap.

But Loki suddenly ran over and hugged him. The tangible touch made Thor even more confused.

"Loki? What's wrong?"

Mjolnir was put down in his hand, Loki seemed to be crying, his body was shaking.

Loki was indeed crying. He was not as tall as Thor, so when he looked up, Thor saw that his face was stained with tears.

Loki didn't want to die or have his existence wiped out, but this was the only way.

"Thor, promise me that if one day I become evil, you will kill me."

""

Thor frowned. He threw Mjolnir aside and looked at his brother's strange look. Why did he suddenly say such a thing? Didn't you have fun just now?

"Loki, I won't."

"Thor, you don't understand"

"I don't need to understand, you are my brother and I will protect you."

Thor interrupted Loki's words, put his big hand on Loki's shoulder, and squeezed hard, as if he wanted to convey confidence to Loki.

"We all know how the story ends. In Ragnarok, I will kill you all."

Thor patted Loki's head with his hand and said decisively: "I will not allow the story to happen like that, and neither will you. I will never give up on you."

Loki rubbed his eyes. His purpose was defeated, but he didn't know why, but he was happy.

"Thor, you are truly the biggest fool in the Nine Realms."

Loki hugged him with tears, patted Thor's armor, and looked at his face and beard, as if to remember everything in his heart.

Then he suddenly lifted Thor's cloak, wrapped it around his head, and emerged from Thor's arms. A water magic turned Thor into a drowned rat.

The wet cloak and long hair were tangled, and Thor finally freed his head. He saw Loki turning his head and making faces as he fled quickly.

"Haha! Have you been fooled? Come after me!"

"I'm going to beat you to death today!"

Thor roared angrily, and liquid spurted out from his nostrils. He didn't know whether it was water or snot. He picked up Mjolnir on the ground and ran after Loki.

After the two figures got further and further away, the real Loki walked out from behind the tree. He held onto the broken branches and let tears slide down his face.

"Goodbye, brother"