A/N: Enjoy!
Thor, despite his drunken state, could see that they were losing. Why did they think they stood a chance when they had lost last time? They had lost when their own army was quadrupled and Thanos' army was half the size. They didn't stand a chance. He himself would have collapsed in pain long ago if not for the adrenaline. His chest ached and bled from where Thanos had tried to kill him with his own weapon. Where Thor had tried to kill Thanos with Stormbreaker five years ago. The universe had a strange sense of humor.
Captain Rogers may be worthy now, but his mortal body would pay later. The lightning running through his body exhausted Thor, even after his centuries of training. Bruce-Hulk's arm was charred from the snap and everyone was already injured from the explosion. It was nothing short of a miracle that they had all lived. Not that that would last long. Not the way this battle was going.
The snap should have brought everyone back, yet they still fought alone. Alone because of his mistakes. He was helpless when Loki first died. He was too late to save his mother. Loki nearly died to save him. He was too late to save his father. He was gone when Hela slaughtered his people. He was too weak when Thanos killed his people the first time and Loki died protecting him. Then half of the universe died because of his anger. He was alone and it was all his fault.
Now the universe held its breath as they waited for Thanos to command his armies to destroy them. Before the titan had the chance, the air stirred with magic. Thor glanced over his shoulder as Earth magic appeared, thousands of it's fiery rings coming into view and expanding to reveal the vanished.
Thor turned to face Thanos and smiled. Now they had a chance. Captain Rogers yelled for the Avengers to assemble and Thor was about to surge forward when a voice behind him made him freeze. He hadn't heard that voice in five years. At least, not outside of his head. He turned slowly as bodies surged past him, into battle. Dare he hope that the voice was real?
There. His brother stood mere feet away, dressed in full battle armor with a dagger in each hand. Loki stood calmly, searching Thor's face. Thor couldn't blame him. The first two times that he had found out Loki was alive, he had responded in anger. After Ragnarok, he had been relieved that his brother was alive and he had shown it. Still, his own last words to Loki rang in his ears. You really are the worst brother.
Loki braced slightly as Thor surged forward to hug his brother. Loki didn't move as Thor flung his arms around him and squeezed tight. However, after a few moments, Thor heard his brother mumble,
"Allfathers Thor, now is not the time for sentiment. We have ourselves a war to win." Tears he hadn't realized were there started falling as he gave Loki one more squeeze before holding him at arms length.
"You're right. Allfathers be with you." The two of them surged forward with a battlecry and Thor leapt high, summoning lightning. He crashed down, bolts reaching to obliterate any Outriders or Chitauri that dare come within a thirty foot radius of him. A ways to the right, Loki was making quick work of the aliens with his daggers and a few bursts of green seidr.
The war raged on and for a second Thor thought that they might win. Outriders and Chitauri lay dead, their black blood pooling and coating everything and one around the bodies. Cull Obsidian, Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight were long dead and his brother appeared to have Ebony Maw handled.
The two sorcerers had been battling since the Spiderboy had asked for help. The Gauntlet was somewhere amongst his allies, still out of Thanos hands. Thor launched himself into the air and hurdled Stormbreaker towards Ebony Maw, arcing it back to himself. Even focused on Loki, the sorcerer dodged easily. However, the distraction was enough for Loki to send twenty daggers towards Ebony Maw, as well as conjure one behind him. While the sorcerer blocked the twenty in front of him, the one behind him launched forward, burying itself in Ebony Maw's throat.
Still, when Loki glanced at him, all Thor saw was fear. Sensing someone behind him, Thor whipped around, Stormbreaker acting as a shield against the massive Uru sword. Rage and hatred rose up at the sight of Thanos. However, he was hardly a match for the titan in his state. That wasn't including the fact that he was injured and running on adrenaline.
The titan slammed his sword down on Stormbreaker again and again, each blow weakening Thor's arm, the blades coming closer to Thor's neck and chest. Another blow came, Stormbreaker slipping out of his hand and dropping to the ground. He was defenseless.
So this was how he died. Just as he thought he was going to be ran through, something shoved him to the side and shimmered green as he took the blow. It was complete deja vu, seeing his brother stabbed in the chest. Thor watched, frozen in horror as Loki bent around the blade and gasped as air refused to come. Thanos smiled before twisting and withdrawing the blade, causing Loki to crumple to the ground, just as he had on Svartalfheim.
Kurse was beating him to a pulp and he couldn't get up. He was going to fail and the Nine Realms would pay for it. He was going to die. Then the beast stopped as a spear stuck out of it's chest. Kurse turned, revealing Loki. For a split second, happiness flooded Thor's heart. Loki had saved him. His brother was back instead of that venomous creature that he had been fighting. Then he was filled with dread as the beast grabbed Loki and stabbed him with the very spear that protruded from it's chest. His brother gasped in pain as Kurse shoved him off of the spear. It was the second time Loki was stabbed in the chest and it was the second time he was killed by Thanos.
"Undying? You should consider your words more carefully." The titan grabbed Loki's arm, crushing it so that he dropped the dagger. Thanks grabbed his little brother by the throat and squeezed. Thor was helpless as his brother thrashed for air.
"No no no. Not again. Please not again." Thor went down to his knees and cradled his brother's body. Not again. I can't lose you again.
"Loki no. Please no. Not again. I just got you back." No response. No pulse. No life.
"You know, he fought me for a long time. He defied me over and over again, even going as far as to lose me two Infinity stones. My only regret is that he didn't get to witness his precious brother be destroyed." Thor attacked, rage filling the emptiness in his heart.
Three lives had been lost the day of the Blip. Many had been ruined, many had been reunited. Everyone had been changed. Mothers were reunited with their children and spouses, as were fathers. Siblings saw their brothers and sisters again. Pets saw their owners again. Still, there was conflict and change. People that had lost their spouse might have remarried or were currently dating somebody else. Mothers that had unborn children might come back with the baby simply gone. Younger siblings might be older than their older brothers or sisters. Pets might have been relocated to new homes. Classmates were graduated, while others were with kids that they had never met. Friends might have moved away. People might have committed suicide because they didn't think they could go on without their friends or families.
People might have lost their houses because the kids or young adults that lost their parents couldn't pay taxes. Houses might have been moved into during the five years between the Snap and the Blip. People lost their jobs because they had already been replaced or the small businesses had been closed down. Houses were ransacked by criminals, children were placed in foster homes. People died during the space between the Snap and the Blip, causing some people to just start to be able to move on while others just learned of the deaths of their loved ones.
Thor stood on the edge of the cliff where his father died, his heart full of grief and guilt. Grief for his friends and brother. Natasha and Tony had gave their lives to ensure that in the end, Thanos lost. Loki gave his life so that Thor could live. Again. Meanwhile, all the pain that the world and the universe had experienced was Thor's fault. He should have gone for the head the first time, but all he wanted was to avenge his people. To avenge his brother. "Even with two eyes, you could only see half the picture." The entire universe had paid for his mistakes. With all the damage that he had done over the centuries, he deserved this.
How many lives had been ruined because of his youthful bloodlust? The lives he took as a youth may not have been innocent, but had they deserved to die? Did their families deserve that grief? How many soldiers had simply been defending their homes when Thor decided to attack for sport? How much would have been different if only Thor had not gone to Jötunheim? How much pain could he have prevented his brother from experiencing? The Snap could have been prevented if only Thor had not let his rage consume him. He had once accused Loki of being stuck in a loop. Really it was him that was caught in a loop. A loop of loss and rage. His brother, his mother, his brother again, his father, most of his people, including his best friends, his brother and his entire home world. Then half of the universe disappears because of his rage. Well Thor was done. He was done grieving, he was done with people dying because of him and his mistakes.
He was considering stepping off of the cliff when something that sounded like Loki spoke in his head. If you kill yourself now, then your brother died for nothing. Then a voice like his mother's spoke. The pain will never go away completely, but it is temporary. Killing yourself isn't. Then a voice like his father's said even if you wish to give up, you cannot. If you do not wish to live for yourself, then live for others. There will always be someone that grieves for you, even if you do not believe it. So Thor stepped back and the tears came. Tears for all the lives that had been cut short. Tears for all of the lives left behind. Tears for himself and the loop he was trapped in.
A/N: I didn't look up any of the lines from the movies, so they might be slightly off. This is like a back to school story, meaning I'll be updating even slower than usual. I'll try to update the mutichapter stories at the same time, but don't expect it to be soon. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this story, have a great day!