Loki entered through the towering marble gates and made his way along the familiar streets leading to the palace. He could have simply arrived in his own chambers of course, but he always enjoyed strolling through the city after having been away. It was a bright, cool morning and Asgardia was bustling, as usual, as people went purposefully about their daily business. Loki passed an open-air market where farmers were selling the produce they had brought in from the fields of the surrounding villages. Over to the east he could hear the calls of the fisherman at the docks, just returned from the morning's catch.

The palace came into view and Loki felt his breath catch at the sight of it, towering white marble with gold-tipped spires. It wasn't as imposing as the palace on old Asgard, but Loki liked it better. Maybe because he had helped design it, maybe because he had called it home far longer than the original. But today he felt a particular pang of longing because he knew this was the last time he would ever behold the palace from this vantage point.

Loki continued on to the palace and found Thor in his chambers sitting on the sofa in his great room, reading. It had been a month since he had seen his brother and was struck, as always when they had been apart, at how much Thor now looked like father with his white hair and beard and the weight and weathered skin time inevitably bestowed. Thor looked up and grinned and the likeness vanished. Even at over 4500 years old, Thor still gave the impression of boyish youth.

"Brother, you're back!" Thor said. "What new tales do you bring from your travels?"

"Not much", Loki said, taking the chair nearest Thor. "The universe is a boring place these days."

"That's because it's mainly at peace, in which case I'll take boring over interesting any day."

Loki ignored Thor and gazed out the open doors to the veranda. For a moment the sounds and scents of home overwhelmed all other thoughts.

"Loki?" Thor said. "Are you all right?"

"I'm old," Loki said, turning back to his brother.

"You're no older than I am."

"You're old, too."

Thor chuckled. "True, but I still have a few good centuries left, I think."

Loki smiled affectionately at his brother. "I don't."

Thor's smile vanished and he looked sharply at Loki. "What do you mean?"

Loki shrugged. "I have been to see the healers. Perhaps the Jotnar do not live quite as long as the Aesir, or perhaps maintaining an Aesir form all my life has taken a toll on my body. Regardless, my days are coming to an end.

"Do not look at me like that, brother," he said in response to Thor's stricken expression. "I have lived a long life and done more in my time than any ten men my age. All things end. I have no regrets."

Thor swallowed and nodded solemnly. "How long?"

"A year, perhaps more, but it matters not. I have no intention of spending my last days enfeebled and lingering in bed, waiting for the end. I prefer my own terms."

Thor frowned. "Meaning what? We are not at war. There is no death to be found in battle. Surely you don't intend to take your own life. There is no honor in that."

"Of course not. But just because we are not at war doesn't mean there is no battle to be found anywhere."

"Then I shall come with you," Thor said without hesitation. "We shall fight one last battle and march into Valhalla together."

Loki shook his head. "Where I am going, you cannot follow."

"Why not?"

"That is complicated to explain."

"Try. I am not quite as dense as you have so often accused me of being and if my brother is to go to his death, I would know where."

Loki regarded Thor appraisingly then said, "Do you remember the way the mortals on Earth defeated Thanos all those years ago?"

Thor nodded. "Of course, but… you intend to travel through time?"

"I told you it was complicated."

Thor shook his head. "It's madness. Why choose to die in the past? What is the point?"

"I won't be dying in our past, but in an alternate one."

"An alternate one? You mean an alternate reality?"

Loki nodded. "I have studied time travel for centuries, Thor, and have traveled many different timelines. I know what I'm doing, where and when I mean to go."

"But, why?" Thor asked again. "To die in another reality? Would you even be able to find your way to Valhalla? I don't know that I could bear eternity without you."

"Valhalla exists in all places at all times. It exists beyond time. If I am worthy to enter, I will find my way."

"But I still don't understand why you would choose this. Is there nowhere in this present universe you can find honorable death?"

"There might be, but this is important to me, brother. I don't choose it lightly. In fact, I have planned this for a very long time."

Thor sighed. "Where will you go?"

"That's…"

"Complicated. I know." Thor shook his head. "Honestly Loki, must everything you do always be filled with intrigue? Can you not even die a simple, straightforward death?"

"Where would be the fun in that?"

Thor snorted. "And you're sure your death in this other timeline will not disrupt it?"

"Well, I'm not sure about disruption, but let's just say I trust myself not to make things worse than they already are."

XXX

Loki had only intended to stay in Asgardia a day to make his preparations, but Thor, naturally, had insisted on making his departure a production. There had been days of feasting filled with stories and songs lasting long into the night. Every family member, friend, acquaintance and servant he had ever known seemed to have to bid him farewell. After nearly a week, he was exhausted.

"Enough, Thor. You may erect a statue to me when I'm gone, but I must go."

Thor chuckled and grinned. "Do you remember that statue of yourself you had put up on Asgard right before Ragnarok?"

"Thor."

Thor's smile faded and he sighed. "Very well, brother. I will miss you."

"Don't be sentimental. You're not going to live forever. You'll see me again soon enough."

"Of that, I have no doubt." He reached out and pulled Loki to him. They embraced then stepped back and clasped hands. "May your journey be swift and the gates of Valhalla open wide to welcome you."

Loki nodded then turned away before his own emotions could overwhelm him. He made his way to his chambers and to the laboratory at the back where he worked his most complex magic. He paused to take a deep breath and settle his mind. He had traveled the byways of time and space on numerous occasions, but he had to get this exactly right. Too soon would be awkward and too late… would be too late.

He took another deep breath, reached out both hands and pulled apart space and time to form a portal. Then, with no further hesitation, he stepped through.

XXX

The ship was smaller than he remembered, though admittedly he hadn't really been paying much attention, having had far more urgent matters on his mind at the time. He had only a moment to spare for that thought however, as the ship's single occupant, having sensed his arrival, leapt out of his seat and spun to face him, a knife in his hand.

Loki held out his empty hands. "Peace, Loki of Asgard. I mean you no harm."

The young man frowned, but relaxed fractionally. "Who are you? How did you get aboard this ship?"

"Spacetime portal."

"Excuse me?"

"I arrived through a spacetime portal. As for who I am… who do you think I am?"

The young man scowled impatiently. "Listen, old man. You need to sit down and keep quiet. We'll rendezvous with the transport ship soon enough. Until then, don't bother me."

Loki burst out laughing which only made his younger self scowl more. Loki collected himself and shook his head. "I really was insufferable at this age."

The young man gaped at him then began to nod slowly. He flashed what he clearly hoped was a reassuring smile. "All right. I understand. You were nearly killed by Hela's undead army and then saw Asgard reduced to rubble. That would drive anyone to temporary madness. But you're safe now and we'll be joining the others soon. So, why don't you sit down and stay calm?"

"Actually, we need to talk."

"I really don't have the time just-"

The young man broke off as Loki gave a practiced twist of the wrist and produced a smooth, flat stone about two inches across from his invisible storage space. He held it out in the palm of his hand. "Do you remember that trip the family took to Lake Lashima on Vanaheim when you were ten years old? Thor beat you at every game that day until mother showed you how to skip stones upon the water. You took to it easily, but Thor never could get the hang of it. Every stone he threw sank. He finally gave up and tossed this one on the ground as he went off to sulk. You picked it up and kept it as a reminder of something you bested him at."

Loki's younger self gaped at the stone in astonishment then looked up. His eyes widened in dawning recognition, but he clearly wasn't ready to accept the truth. "There are thousands of stones to be found on the beaches of the Nine. You could have picked that up anywhere."

"Let's compare then, shall we? I showed you mine. You show me yours."

The young man hesitated then produced his own stone out of thin air.

"Hmm, they look the same to me," Loki said, pretending to examine the stones. He looked up and met the younger man's eyes. "Besides, no one knows you carry that stone or why. You never told a soul."

The young man was shaking his head. "This is a trick. It has to be."

"You know it's not."

"But you… you're…"

"I'm you, yes."

The young man's mouth fell open. "But... how?"

"I can explain all that. But, maybe you ought to sit down."

Young Loki dropped into his seat and Loki took the chair next to him. "First of all, I am not, strictly speaking, you. I am an alternate version of you from the future of an alternate timeline."

Loki's younger self smiled mirthlessly. "Of course you are. Given the last few days I've had, why not?"

Loki leaned forward and punched the young man in the shoulder. "This is important! Listen to me and understand. Time is like a mighty river. It is not easily turned from its course. Trees and boulders may fall into its path, causing it to split and churn for a moment, but it takes a truly momentous event to sunder it in two permanently. There is only one point in time, when our existence splits. In all the multiverse, there are only two of us, you and me and every timeline, no matter what other differences exist, contains either your existence or mine. Do you understand that?"

The younger man huffed irritably. "Yes, I understand."

"The moment at which our existence diverged occurred immediately after the Battle of New York. Thor took you back to Asgard and you were imprisoned there for a year, correct?"

Young Loki nodded. "Yes."

"I wasn't. As we were leaving Stark Tower, there was a commotion, a scuffle. The case containing the Tesseract was dropped and the Tesseract fell out at my feet. Before anyone else could react, I picked it up and teleported away."

"Lucky you."

Loki shrugged. "I spent the year in freedom, but mainly looking over shoulder. I traveled constantly, afraid to stay in any one place for long. I wasn't particularly worried about Asgard tracking me down. But I was very concerned that Thanos might, especially since I had the artifact I had promised to give him and which I had belatedly realized would be a very bad idea to do.

"But as I said, time is not easily turned from its course, so it was likely more fate than luck that I was on Vanaheim when mother died."

Young Loki started and his attention was now riveted on his counterpart. "Mother died? But, you weren't there."

Loki regarded the young man and his voice was gentler when he spoke. "Malekith was intent on acquiring the Aether which resided in Jane Foster. Mother was intent on protecting her. There was only one way that was ever going to end."

The young man swallowed hard and Loki saw both grief and relief in his eyes before he looked away. Loki gave him time to blink away the brightness in his eyes before he continued.

"In any case, I returned to Asgard for her funeral and learned what was happening. Thor discovered me and I made a bargain with him. I would help him defeat Malekith, avenge Mother and he would not stop me from escaping Asgard's justice again."

Young Loki regarded him with a shrewd look. "But you didn't want to escape Asgard, did you? You wanted to rule it."

Loki smirked. "That's right. I wanted to prove I could rule, that I was worthy of being king. So, I faked my death and took father's place, shuttling him off to a retirement home on Earth."

"Then all the rest happened the same? Sakaar and Ragnarok?"

"Yes, all of it."

The young man shook his head. "Then I don't understand. Why are there still two of us if our timelines converged."

"Because they only converged temporarily," Loki said. "Tonight, they split permanently."

Young Loki looked at him sharply. "How?"

"Thanos. Tonight, his ship will overtake the transport carrying Asgard's survivors."

Loki watched his younger self's eyes widen in horror and fear and felt his own throat tighten. It had been 3000 years since he had lived these events, but for the young man before him, it was all happening now and there was no way to make the truth of what was coming less brutal.

"This happened in my timeline, as well. Thanos found us. But, I told you I traveled constantly the year you were in prison. I used the Tesseract to do so and it had become second nature to me. When Thanos' ship appeared, I automatically pulled it out, told Thor I had to go and teleported to the other side of the galaxy. I was gone before the attack began. I didn't learn until years later that half our people had been killed and the ship reduced to scrap."

Loki felt bitter hatred at the memory. "The Tesseract wasn't even there. He had no reason to slaughter our people. He did it simply because he could. If Thor hadn't given the order to abandon ship, there wouldn't have been an Asgardian left alive. As if was, it took months for the survivors who had fled in the escape pods to regroup and make their way to Earth."

"And Thor?" Young Loki asked quietly.

"He survived and was picked up by a passing ship."

The young man sighed in relief then shook his head. "All that happened in your reality? What happens in mine."

"As I said, having spent a year using the Tesseract to travel, it was second nature to me. But you spent that year in prison. You never had the benefit of that experience, so even though you possessed the Tesseract, it didn't occur to you to use it. You stayed-will stay-to fight."

The young man paled and licked his lips. "I take it that doesn't go well."

"No. You don't survive."

Young Loki nodded slowly and gave a wan smile. "Well, I can certainly see how that would create a divergence in our timelines." He rose and paced across the deck, running a hand through his hair. "So, what should I do differently?" he asked, turning back to the older version of himself. "Should I use the Tesseract to escape as you did, or simply not rendezvous with the ship at all?"

"Neither. You can't change what happens tonight."

"Of course I can. I'm not going anywhere near Thanos."

Loki shook his head. "The events I have told you about have already happened. They cannot be erased. If you attempt to alter those events, you will simply create a new timeline. The original will still exist and some version of you-a very real Loki-will still die."

"Better him than me." The young man began to pace again. "Besides, why would you even come here to tell me all this, if there was no way to avoid it." He stopped and stabbed an accusing finger at Loki. "I wouldn't do that, so you must have some plan."

"As a matter of fact, I do. You may not care what happens to an alternate version of yourself, but I realized some time ago that I didn't want any incarnation of myself to die young at the hands and that madman."

Young Loki's eyes narrowed. "But you said there's no way to prevent it. You said-"

"That some version of Loki must die tonight, yes. But I didn't say which version."

The young man regarded Loki in silence for a long moment then said, "Are you suggesting what I think you are?"

"As I said, there are only two of us. I've lived a long, eventful life; a good life that is rapidly approaching it's natural end. But I'm still selfish enough to want more, to want a second chance to live, to give you a second chance."

"You want to swap places with me?"

Loki rose, shape-shifting into an exact duplicate of the younger man standing in front of him. He smirked. "They'll never know the difference."

"And that won't create a new timeline?"

"Not as long as you stay out of the way until Thanos is defeated for good five years from now. In the next two days, he's going to wipe out half of life in the universe. In fact, you'll probably be among those killed. I was."

The young man looked at Loki aghast. "What? But you're alive!"

"In five years the mortals on Earth find a way to bring everyone back and kill Thanos."

"The mortals?" Young Loki scowled. "You mean the Avengers?"

"Yes. Tony Stark was insufferably annoying, but he was also a genius. In any case, if you're dead, you won't have a problem lying low. If you do happen to survive, just stay put for the next five years and don't do anything to call attention to yourself. No one can know you're alive until after Thanos is defeated."

"And after that?"

Loki shrugged. "Whatever you want. You have a lifetime ahead of you and it won't matter if you split your timeline at that point. You'll be alive and Thanos will be dead in any future."

Young Loki nodded and looked away, clearly trying to process all he had been told and what his next moves would be.

"I'll need the Tesseract and this ship, obviously," Loki said, interrupting the other's reverie. "And I'll send you to Bosporos, which is where I fled to when Thanos appeared. It's far enough away from Earth that you can easily stay hidden."

Loki pulled open a portal which revealed a darkened alley with the lights and sounds of a city beyond. He arched an eyebrow at his younger self and held out his hand.

The young man looked into the portal then back at Loki. He swallowed then gave a twist of his wrist to produce the Tesseract. He hesitated and Loki could see the longing in the young man's eyes as the Tesseract's siren call of power tempted him.

"I carried that with me for a year," Loki said. "It was useful for getting around, but ultimately…" He nodded at the open portal. "I prefer not to be dependent on anyone or anything."

The young man glanced at the portal again then squared his shoulders, took a deep breath and handed over the Tesseract which Loki immediately vanished. He nodded at the portal again. "Go on. Malos is the largest city on Bosporos, prosperous, with plenty of fine restaurants and entertainment. Enjoy it all you can for the next few days."

Loki nodded. "I will." He stepped up to the portal then looked at his other self. "Thank you. I'll make it worth while."

"I know you will." Loki grinned and winked. "You're me."

The young man smiled then stepped through the portal which closed behind him.

Loki sat down at the ship's helm and verified it was on course to intercept the Asgardian transport ship. Then he sat back and gazed out into space. He wasn't sure if the death he was headed for was what Thor would call honorable, but cheating Thanos out of cutting short his life by playing one last, epic trick on the multiverse, was exactly the death he wanted.

The End