Thor Kills Loki

[catharsis_logs]

...

It is now one hundred years after the Centauri have attacked the mortal city known as Manhattan. One hundred years since the Son of Coul was slain by the wicked God of Mischief, by he who was once my brother. And though we did not know it, it has been one hundred years since the evil that festered in my brother slowly took over his mind and soul, leaving nothing behind but a dried husk of malice.

And now, as my friends fall one by one, as Sif chokes upon the black blood bubbling at her lips and Fandral lies hanging impaled on the standard of the enemy, as the Man of Iron lay unmoving and crumpled in his metal coffin and the valiant Steve gasps his last by my side, as our beautiful golden Asgard burns from black flames unleashed by the evil Loki himself, I am given one last chance to change things.

In my hands lies a single blue orb, imbued with the ability to traverse time. And I will go to a time when my brother was still my brother, when his eyes were green as fresh grass and butterflies instead of black flame alighted from his fingers. When we were all young and so, so innocent.

And I will kill him.

...

I used the throwing dagger Loki had used against me so many years prior, one hundred years in fact. I knew not why I had kept the dagger with me on my person, for one hundred years, until the day that I saw Loki, young again, alone in the fields of Asgard, picking flowers. And staring down at a bewildered young Loki, I knew.

"I am sorry, Odinson, brother of Thor, brother of mine." I said as gently as I could. I watched Loki's grass-green eyes grow wide with understanding and horror. "For crimes against Asgard and Midgard, I must condemn you to death. By the order of the All-father, I am to kill you, my only brother, Loki."

"What have I done?" Loki croaked, eyes swimming with tears, but not shedding any of them. "What did I do, to deserve such a fate?"

I smiled at him, my own eyes full, "Odinson, you have killed your father, your mother, your friends, and broken your brother's heart. All because you are not by blood a son of Odin. You have killed thousands of midgardians, none who deserved to die. I am here, from the future, to erase you from it. For one hundred years, your soul will reside in darkness, in peace, until the next cycle of Ragnarok."

"Then I am not truly, 'Odinson'." Loki croaked, one tear escaping his tight control, "And I am not truly your brother, Thor."

I bent down on one knee, drawing the dagger, "That kind of thinking is why you have to die, to rest until next cycle, where hopefully, things will go well for you." Loki's eyes fixed on the dagger and he raised his head, baring his throat to me.

"Then kill me, Odinson." He hissed, trying to be brave. I cupped his cheek with my hand.

"Don't worry." I said, "I will find a way to survive Ragnarok, to come to your cycle as a grown man, aware of all the mistakes I have made. I will find you in the next cycle, and I will keep you safe from yourself."

"You lie." Loki says, softly, and I smile up at him and raise the dagger.

"I do not lie." I lie. And I slit my brother's throat with his own dagger. I catch the smaller body, not yet grown completely into manhood and let my fingers and body be soaked by his blood. I lie him down, among the flowers, and I begin the long march to Yggdrasil, where I will destroy everything, and bring Ragnarok upon all the nine realms, just to see my brother again, with fresh eyes, and a new life. Where hopefully, I will not make the same mistakes.