When the alarms begin blaring at the TVA, those in the archive have no idea what is going on. It's been a quiet day. Nothing requested from the Earth film reels, no new Variants of interest anyone has wanted to review. So when alarms start blaring throughout the entire building, everyone panics. Tam, sitting at their desk with a book and coffee, startles so badly that they nearly fall from their chair. Iris, quietly tending to a plant, yelps and drops their watering jar, the glass shattering at their feet, water spilling across their shoes. Cyd jumps to their feet and skitters away from the door, terrified of what might be coming for them. And Jemmi, gathered around a desk playing cards with other archivists, drops their hand and immediately turns to their left, sweeping a pile of papers off a buried monitor they never watch.

They see the branching timelines and all colour drains from their face, "Oh SHIT."

Tam passes the desk on the way to get towels to help Iris with the glass and water, "What happened?"

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, I don't know, but oh shit...," Jemmi repeats.

Tam leans over the desk and sees the monitor, "What the ever living hell?"

Cyd hurries over and pushes through the other archivists huddled around the monitor in stunned silence, "What's going on?" They see the branching timeline, "Oh dear gods..."

Iris, their hands pressed over their ears, eyes closed, calls out, their voice drowned out by the noise, "Tam? Are you getting towels?" They open their eyes and notice everyone around the desk. Not wanting to track water around the archive, Iris takes a deep breath and speaks as loud as they can, not nearly a yell, "Tam! Can you help?"

Tam barely hears their friend and hurries back with the towels, "Iris, I don't think the water's really a problem, all things considered."

Iris eases one hand from their ear and then snaps it back in place, "I can't hear you. This is painful."

Tam nods; Iris has always struggled with loud sounds, the archive a perfect respite from noise, the quietest place they're aware of, outside of the library. They drop the towels on the ground and go to the nearest desk, grabbing a piece of paper and quickly scribbling a note.

Water's not a problem. Go see the monitor. I'll clean up.

Iris nods and, ears still firmly covered, makes their way to the desk. They lean over from the back, the same way as Tam had. Their eyes widen as they look up into the stunned face of their friends.

"What in the name of all that's holy just happened?" Iris asks.

Cyd shakes their head, "I have no idea."

Jemmi gathers the other archivists and ushers them out the door that will lead them home, "Go back. We can't work more today. Find the family. I'll be home soon." They return as the others leave.

Ayshi bursts through the main doors, running to their friends, "Have you seen the timeline?" They see all but Tam clustered around the monitor, "You have. Where are the others?"

"I sent them home," Jemmi says.

"Why?" asks Cyd.

Jemmi meets their eyes, "Because you know this has to do with him."

Cyd freezes, "What?"

"It can't be," Iris protests, "He can't have made this happen."

"Why not? They say he's some kind of wicked Variant. That he's only about destruction. You remember Mobius' words," Jemmi says, "Maybe we were the fools to trust him, even for a moment at night. Maybe he's just as bad as they say."

"He couldn't have," Ayshi says.

"How do you know?" Tam asks, dumping shards of glass into the nearby trashcan.

"Because I sneaked over to the main monitoring office. I heard them call out the codes. Our Variant Loki doesn't have the powers to do this."

"What do you mean?" Cyd asks.

"Somebody nuked the Sacred Timeline," Ayshi says.

Iris faints and Cyd catches them. Jemmi looks like they might be one step away from doing the same.

Worry crosses Tam's face, "So where is our Loki?"

Ayshi sighs, "I know he went with Mobius somewhere. I was wandering when they left. There were all kinds of Minutemen and it looked like something big was about to happen. He nodded to me as he passed in the hall. I think he went with them."

Tam pales and bolts from the room, Ayshi close on their heels.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Cyd calls after as Iris struggles to regain their bearings.

Jemmi sighs, "To his room. To see if it's real. I'm going, too."

"What's happening?" Iris asks.

Cyd drapes Iris' arm over their shoulder, "Ayshi says Mobius took a lot of Minutemen and Loki into the field. So whatever's happening, he's a part of it."

Iris, still feeling weak, leans into Cyd, "I hope he's alright. I liked him. He was honest with us. And he treated us like we were worth answering."

Cyd nods and nuzzles Iris' cheek, "I know. We weren't just archivists. We were people."

"I wonder what he's really like. We've seen the reels, yes, but...what could he be, were he allowed to rest and come into his own? He never really had the chance, did he? And now...he probably won't."

Cyd starts walking towards the door with Iris supported by Cyd's arm around their back, under their arms, "What do you mean by that?"

"Whatever happened...he's a part of it. And if he's a part of it...they're going to prune him. It doesn't matter what he is, what he was, what he could be...it's over."

Cyd's face falls, "I hope you're wrong, Iris."

"I know. So do I."

They walk slowly through the halls to Loki's room. When they get there, they find Tam, Jemmi, and Ayshi sitting cuddled together on the bed. Ayshi holds the glowing blue cube from Loki's bedside table in their hands. Jemmi holds a small screen in their hands. They turn it toward Cyd and Iris as they settle in beside them.

It says two words.

Fugitive Variant

Iris curls into Tam as tears trickle down their cheeks. All of them know what that usually means and none of them want to think about the very real possibility that they will never see him again.

Ayshi sighs, "Well...maybe there's some kind of hope here."

"How do you figure that?" Cyd asks.

"Well...he wasn't the one who did it. Maybe he tried to stop it," Ayshi answers.

Tam strokes Iris' back, "And there's one other thing we know."

"Oh?" says Cyd.

"He's still alive as of right now. It wouldn't say he's a fugitive if he wasn't. Maybe he's looking for whoever did do it. Maybe he's still on our side."

"Was he ever?" asks Iris.

Cyd shrugs, "I don't know. But there's only one thing we can do, really?"

"What?" says Iris.

"Keep our ears sharp and wait," Cyd replies, "But other than that...I think we need to go back home. No one will expect us to stay in the archive. And at least then the damn sirens won't be so loud."

Iris sighs, "But we have to go back out into them to leave here. I just want to rest."

"Well, then I guess we can rest here for a little bit. It's not like he's here to use the room," Jemmi replies. "We can go home when you're ready, Iris."

Iris nods and closes their eyes, "Thank you."

They all know time will feel immeasurably long, no matter how much of it actually passes by the time they find out what has happened to Loki. When they leave, Ayshi carefully places the cube back where they found it. Tam pockets the little screen with his status. It isn't theirs, and they could get in trouble if someone finds out they have it, but it is the one security they have, knowing if he's alive or dead, and none of the five of them are willing to leave it behind.