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A disorienting sideways tugging sensation was the first sign that something was wrong, as Mobius and Loki stepped through the timedoor. They both staggered, grabbing hold of each other instinctively, both to regain their balance and in moderate alarm. And because… well, they seemed to be doing a lot of that kind of thing lately, anyway.
Not that Mobius was complaining in the slightest.
The second sign was when Mobius promptly doubled over coughing, Loki following a moment or two later. An acrid smell tormenting his airways, Mobius glanced up with burning eyes, barely making out a disturbing vista of blackened rock, streams of lava, and air that was abundant with drifting flakes of ash. The landscape was abruptly warped as Loki recovered for the instant that he required to fling his hands out and conjure a magical shield, which completely encapsulated them.
Gasping a little, a few more coughs escaping, they looked at each other wide-eyed.
“This isn’t Torinnus,” Loki panted with his hands outstretched, holding the shield in place. He was speaking of the temperate, verdant world they'd been prepared to step into.
“Yeah, I got that,” Mobius rasped, coughing once more.
“What happened?” Loki asked, frowning in confusion.
Mobius examined the tempad in his hands. There were no outward signs of it being faulty. The onscreen display appeared as it should. He attempted to re-summon the timedoor to Torinnus, but all that was produced were three or four glitchy bursts of formless golden light in front of them, then nothing. Mobius tried again, this time with a door back to the TVA. Same result.
This was… far from ideal.
“Tempad’s wiggy,” he supplied unnecessarily. He next tried voice communication, but was unable to make a connection. Text messaging likewise did not transmit.
Shit.
“Okay, I’m gonna have to try and do a little field repair on this thing,” he told Loki.
Loki glanced at him skeptically.
“You mean turning it off and on again repeatedly, until you either garner results, or give up entirely and stoop to uttering curses at it?”
Mobius rolled his eyes as he turned his head towards him, not bothering to respond. Loki’s mouth quirked in humour, but there was an uneasiness in his stance and a tension around his eyes that Mobius honed in on immediately.
“You alright?”
“What were we choking on out there?” Loki asked.
“Given the widespread volcanic activity, I’d say sulphur dioxide,” Mobius replied.
“My shield spell seems to be adequately filtering it.”
He sounded like he was trying to convince himself.
“We won’t suffocate in here, though?” Mobius asked, trying his best to keep his voice level as he glanced at the emerald-hued shell of energy surrounding them.
“No, not if this world has an otherwise breathable atmosphere,” Loki replied, then shot Mobius a sharp look, “Please tell me it does!”
“It should, yeah. Tempads are programmed to only allow passage to planets that do, unless you enter a manual override.”
“But your tempad is clearly not completely functional, currently,” Loki pointed out, with an accusatory glare flung at the offending device.
“Relax, Loki, the initial atmospheric readings I got when we first stepped through checked out, volcanic gases aside,” Mobius reassured, “I think we’d know by now if it wasn’t breathable anyway, wouldn’t we?”
“Most likely,” Loki agreed, but nonetheless appeared barely placated.
Mobius couldn’t blame him. Not only did Loki’s barrier have to hold up against the airborne hazard, there was also falling ash, heat that was intensely radiating from a trail of molten lava which was far too close for comfort, and the precariousness of being surrounded by an unpredictably tempestuous environment.
He hated asking the question, but it needed to be asked.
“How long can you sustain this for?”
Loki’s face was grim.
“I’ve never had to do it for longer than a time that could be measured in minutes,” he reluctantly answered.
Mobius blew out a breath.
“Okay… okay. Well I’d best get to work on messing around with this,” he gave the tempad a little shake, before lowering himself onto the ashen surface they were standing upon. He looked up at Loki, who still seemed troubled.
“You should sit down with me, Loki,” he suggested, “You may need to conserve your energy. Plus if it makes any difference, it means you can shrink the shield a little.”
Loki considered this for a moment before slowly kneeling next to Mobius. His hands were still extended, the trademark green glow emanating from his palms. Gradually the shield closed in around them, not so near to their heads to be uncomfortable, but still on the snug side.
As usual, Mobius found the sensation of having Loki so close that their arms were brushing slightly intoxicating, but their current situation was serious enough to temper the effects.
Somewhat, at least.
Determinedly refocusing his attention, he tried to surreptitiously conceal the tempad from view… as he proceeded to turn it off and on again.
* * * * * * *
About forty-five minutes and more than a dozen hard resets later, Mobius checked on Loki yet again to ensure he was handling the extended spellcast with no great issues.
“How’s it going now?” he asked lightly, patting Loki’s shoulder.
“Well, it’s still going,” Loki muttered, the faintest hint of strain evident in his tone. Mobius peered at him a little closer, taking advantage of the opportunity to slip an arm around him in support. Barely visible on Loki’s forehead was the merest suggestion of perspiration. He thought it wise not to draw attention to his obviously increasing struggle, knowing it wouldn't be particularly helpful.
He cast his eyes around them to instead examine the shield itself, which to a layman appeared just as robust as it had in the beginning. A fine layer of ash was settling on the surface over their heads.
The tempad finished loading following its latest reset, and Mobius tried yet again to get a message back to the TVA. He then swore under his breath and tossed it onto the ground in front of him in defeat. Loki glanced down at it, then back at him for a moment.
“No luck.”
It wasn’t a question.
Mobius sighed heavily and looked up again to meet Loki’s eyes. It was now clearer to see that they were pinched with tension, and he was shaking so very slightly that Mobius thought he was imagining it at first. But it was confirmed by the visible quivering in the curls framing his face, cast into silhouette by the incandescent lava flow behind him.
“What’s your energy like?" Mobius inquired, his voice gentle, "And please be honest."
“I’m okay,” Loki looked away.
“Honest, I said.”
Loki sighed faintly.
“I really am.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Mobius, it’s-“
“Would sugar help?” Mobius cut in.
“Sugar? What- why?” Loki sounded a little bewildered.
“It helps humans when they’re under physical stress. I’m not sure if it works for godly magical exertion, but worth a try, maybe?”
Loki frowned, his arms dropping very slightly before he forced them back up in front of him again, groaning almost inaudibly.
“I suppose it could be,” he conceded, “But do we even have any-“
Before he could finish, Mobius produced a half-full packet of Gummy Bears from his inner jacket pocket, waving it in front of him.
Loki eyed it in distaste.
“What in the Nine Realms are those?”
“Gummy Bears.”
“Gummy what?”
“They’re a chewable candy. They’re not too horrible, I promise,” Mobius grinned at him, enjoying the brief levity.
“Ugh, I’ll be the judge of that. Alright, here…”
Loki moved to hold a hand out for one of the offending sweets, but as soon as he did, the shield around them flickered and wavered. He breathed in sharply and threw the hand back out again to join the other, his expression suddenly frightened.
“Hands are busy, I get it,” Mobius said, keeping his tone casual in an attempt to alleviate some of Loki’s unease, “Go on then, open up.”
He shook a few Gummy Bears into his cupped palm, then looked up to find Loki staring at him, aghast.
“What?” Mobius frowned.
“You’re going to… feed me?” Loki said weakly.
“Do you have a better option?” Mobius couldn’t keep an edge of slyness out of his voice as he smirked a little at Loki’s frankly adorable discomfort. His cheeks, already pink from the effort of maintaining the barrier, now flushed an even deeper shade.
Affecting an air of being completely put-upon, but not fooling Mobius for a second, he gave in as he rolled his eyes dramatically and opened his mouth just enough for Mobius to slip in a Gummy Bear.
Their eyes met in that instant, and something abruptly shifted. The violent, unstable world around them seemed to freeze, and Mobius’ heart thumped hard as Loki’s lips closed over the candy, grazing his fingertips. His breath caught as Loki’s gaze almost imperceptibly flicked down to Mobius’ own lips. He gravitated towards Loki ever so slightly, before pausing as he awoke to what he was doing. The air felt too thick, and his throat was unnaturally dry.
Then as quickly as it happened, the moment was over; Loki pulling back all of a sudden, face twisted in an expression of disgust as he chewed on the candy.
“Mobius, this is vile!” he exclaimed, and Mobius suspected his vehemence was heightened to counter the ambiguity of whatever had just passed between them.
“Ah come on Loki, they’re fine,” Mobius replied, trying his utmost to sound calm and unflustered.
“Why is it slimy?” Loki demanded, wincing involuntarily.
Mobius couldn’t help but chuckle at his indignant reaction.
“Look, do you want more or not?”
Loki swallowed the candy with a repressed shudder.
Then paused…
Then sighed.
“… Fine.”
He grudgingly opened his mouth again, and Mobius smiled mischievously as he popped four in at once. Loki made a noise of pained protest even as he obediently ate them, causing Mobius to laugh again.
Over the next fifteen minutes, Mobius eventually fed the entire stash of sweets to Loki, and they even managed to work out which colour was Loki’s favourite: “If I absolutely had to choose, at knifepoint, mind you…”
Mobius did notice that Loki seemed a bit stronger and steadier in himself, but he was all-too-aware that the sugar rush would only last so long, and he would come crashing down once more.
Sobering, he went back to fruitlessly prodding the tempad.
* * * * * * *
“Dammit!” Mobius cried, snapping the device closed, his temper uncharacteristically raging.
He really thought he had it that time; he was sure he’d made a connection with the TVA’s communication systems for a scant moment. But before he could even react in celebration, it had severed, and he couldn’t get it back.
Mobius glanced sideways at Loki, who hadn’t responded at all to his outburst. He did a double-take when he noticed how badly Loki was now struggling. His whole body was trembling, most especially his arms, remaining extended in mid-cast all this time. He was noticeably panting, and sweat was beading on his face.
Crap.
“Loki…” he began.
“I’m alright,” Loki forced out.
“No you’re not,” Mobius insisted, as the shield spell flickered minutely. The layer of ash above was thickening, and a few stray flakes floated down as they permeated the membrane before it restabilised… as well as a hint of sulphur dioxide, judging by the pungent odour immediately evident.
Loki made a soft sound of helpless fatigue, and Mobius’ heart broke a little.
“Here, let me help,” Mobius said, placing the tempad on the ground and shuffling around to sit behind Loki. With bent up legs either side of him, he gently reached for Loki's shoulders and eased him backwards to lie against his chest. He propped tired arms up on his knees so that Loki could retain the necessary hold on the spell, whilst giving his aching muscles a rest.
Loki minutely tensed against him.
“Is- is this okay?” Mobius said softly into his ear, belatedly doubting himself. He could’ve sworn he felt Loki shiver in reaction, even over the quaking that already had a hold on him.
“Yes,” Loki whispered back, breathlessness subtly increased. He slowly began to relax, and Mobius noted in satisfaction that the magical energy had visibly revived, looking stronger and brighter than it had even before Loki’s exhaustion swamped him.
That was kind of strange, to be honest, but he wasn’t going to complain. As long as Loki could continue to hold it, for now...
He glanced down at the tempad next to him, starting to get seriously worried. How were they going to survive this? Loki could not keep this up forever, that was becoming increasingly apparent.
Mobius lay his cheek on Loki’s sweat-dampened hair, staring unseeingly at a volcanic eruption barely discernible in the far distance, and rubbing his hands soothingly over Loki’s upper arms. Loki sighed softly and Mobius felt him allow himself to melt further into the much-needed support, his relief palpable.
* * * * * * *
An hour or more later, things were really, really not good.
Even with Mobius literally holding him up, Loki was now clearly on the verge of an irreversible lapse. He was shuddering again, but painfully so, his breath coming in urgent gasps. His shield spell was still holding, but judging by the strained noises that kept escaping him every few seconds, this was alarmingly temporary. Not only that, but it had shrunk even further, to the point where if either of them suffered from claustrophobia, it would have been absolutely intolerable.
Mobius soon realised that he too was shivering, anxious tension now overwhelming him. He could feel a lump forming in his throat, as he began to morbidly wonder whether heartfelt goodbyes were imminent.
For now though, the pair remained in silence, neither of them willing or able to be the one to break it.
A while later, there was a random burst of static from the tempad lying forgotten in the dirt next to him, a garbled voice barely audible before the sounds fizzled away. Mobius snatched it up and put his arms around Loki to flip it open in front of him. The noises returned, and this time Mobius was able to tell that it was B-15, but could not make out a single word.
“B!! We can’t hear you!” he cried desperately, no idea whether his reply would even make it back to her.
With shaking hands, he instead attempted a text message, his chin resting on Loki’s shoulder so that he could see the screen.
B, tempad inoperable. Negative on voice comms. Both unhurt, but SOS!
He waited with bated breath, intense gaze positively willing a response to appear.
Less than a minute later, it finally came through.
Received. Hang tight Mobius, narrowing in on location. Be ready for timedoor.
A few moments later, there was a follow-up:
Will try to get it as close as we can. Signal weak; accuracy not great.
As he began to tap out an acknowledgement, there was a small but violent eruption just metres away from them, a geyser of molten rock shooting up into the air, the ground underneath them almost rippling with vibration. Reeling from shock, but thinking fast, Mobius replied to B-15 with haste.
NO, HOLD!! Too dangerous. Standby, wait for my go-ahead.
He’d felt Loki startle at the unexpected roar from outside their bubble of safety, but he had thankfully managed to retain his concentration. Mobius looked up in horror as a deluge of lava flecks inexorably showered down around them. Holding Loki close, he bent his head down to speak to him as gently as he could.
“Loki, the guys have found us, and they can open a timedoor close by. We’re gonna- we’re gonna need you to expand the shield, so we can get out of here without being burned to death.”
The sound Loki made at that tore painfully at Mobius’ chest.
“Can’t,” was the almost whispered response.
“Sure you can,” Mobius encouraged, trying to inject as much positivity into his words as possible, “Just one last push, for a few seconds, that’s all we need.”
Loki huffed out a breath, then almost shook to pieces in his initial attempt, the barrier glowing brighter for a second, but not budging. Loki collapsed against him, trying to catch a breath that had already been eluding him for far too long.
“Try again, I know you can do this,” Mobius murmured, hugging him tighter as he pressed his cheek against Loki’s. He felt his entire body go taut with effort, and this time the shell did expand… infinitesimally.
“Good, come on, Loki,” he urged, as the magical energy briefly stuttered in a hair-raising moment, “We’re this close to getting back home, I promise.”
Loki released what was unmistakably a quiet sob. Swept up in desperation, his heart aching, Mobius raised a hand to smooth Loki’s hair back, and planted a kiss on the side of his head.
At that, Loki jolted a little, and Mobius’ skin prickled at the tangible surge of his powers. Loki made a strangled sound, then Mobius watched in awe as the shield slowly distended, the greenish glow faint, but holding steady.
Tearing himself away from marvelling at Loki’s feat, Mobius punched “NOW!” into the tempad, and hit the ‘send’ button the instant that the dome was big enough to permit a timedoor. A moment later it appeared a couple of metres away, a sight for sore eyes.
Mobius leapt to his feet, ignoring the pervasive stiffness throughout his body. Adrenaline fuelled him as he hauled Loki up under his arms, half-dragging him over to the door. As they stumbled through, falling onto the polished floor of the chrono bay, Loki finally succumbed to the fatigue from his prolonged exertion. Mobius leaned over him to make sure he was alright, and he barely managed a slight smile, lifting his hand towards Mobius’ face. But he was out cold before his fingertips could reach him.
* * * * * * *
It was kind of creepy, watching Loki sleep, if he allowed himself to think too objectively. Yet it was fast becoming one of his most favourite things… provided Loki was safe and healthy, of course.
Which this time, he actually was.
Mobius sat on the couch in Loki’s quarters, relaxing to the sweet sound of Loki’s deep and even breathing from the bed in the opposite corner. Congratulating himself on convincing the response team not to unnecessarily whisk Loki away to the blasted infirmary, they instead brought him here, at Mobius’ request.
Well, it was probably closer to an emphatic order, he thought, with only a hint of remorse.
Loki had been sleeping peacefully for nearly three hours now, but out of nowhere a small sound suddenly escaped him. Mobius rose and crept over to his bedside, hoping it wasn’t a return of nightmares, or that he wasn’t waking prematurely. He hesitantly sat down next to Loki, freezing for a second at an indecipherable muttering, though a few seconds later, a slurred “Mobius…” was perfectly coherent.
Mobius’ face warmed as he realised that Loki was legitimately dreaming about him. The hand resting closest to him twitched in a grasping movement, and Mobius couldn’t help himself, sliding his fingers between Loki’s and giving a gentle squeeze. The pressure was returned even as Loki slept on, and the small upturn of his lips sparked an onslaught of emotions, both pleasant and exquisitely painful, that Mobius couldn’t quell even if he wanted to.
It was certainly not lost on him that Loki had found it within himself to save their lives immediately after Mobius kissed him. He wasn’t completely clueless.
Hope was hard, however.
Shamelessly admiring the beauty curled up next to him, he slowly ran his thumb over Loki’s, and resolved that someday soon he would find out exactly what it meant.