"It's not working. Something's... missing." The cult leader assessed.
"What!? What now!?" The green Symbiote whined.
"Rrrrrr. Carnage... his codex is not present, but Venom's is here."
"What!? How!?"
"I... I am not sure." The eldest brother pondered for a moment. "Wait, that boy... he is the son of Venom's host, correct?"
"Yes!"
"And he has power over us Symbiotes... what if, when he was born, Carnage's codex left his own father's DNA and entered the baby boy's? Maybe the child inherited the codex into his very biology!"
"No wonder he is so terrifying!" Disaster remarked. "Wait... does that mean we have to go get it from him?"
"What about the ceremony?" The gray Symbiote wondered.
"The ceremony is nearly complete." The leader answered. "Once we get that last codex, we only need to bring them together long enough for the beacon to awaken our god. So yes, Brother Disaster, we do need to find that child again!"
"Count me out! I don't want to get blown to smithereens, I want to live to see the creator!"
"Eldest brother, you can travel through shadow; why don't you get the codex?" The gray-eyed Symbiote suggested.
"I must stay here to protect these we have and keep the ritual in stasis."
"Can we make more dragons?"
"And what about that detective and his Symbiote? Are they still on our trail, eldest brother?"
"Don't ask me, the one with the intel on that time-traveling duo is..." The leader smirked at the green-eyed Symbiote. "The one who hired Mancer! Ah, Brother Grievance... I believe I know a way for you to get us that last codex... without risking a fight!"
"Me?"
Meanwhile, far above their lair, the red-haired and bearded Thor stood threateningly among Loki's cult members!
"Ah, Brother!" Detective Loki called to him. "Just the person I wanted to see, believe it or not!"
"'Brother?' You look not like Vidar or Váli, and Baldur and Hodur are yet dead. In truth, you look more like... nay, he remains imprisoned! Who dares to speak to Thor, son of Odin and god of thunder, in this manner?"
"Well, my name is Loki, but I'm not exactly the one you know: I'm a detective, currently on the case to stop an ancient dragon of darkness and his master from bringing about the end of the world. You recall the Grendel who roamed these lands in times of yore?"
"Aye, but although I do not know you, detective, I know that anyone who would proudly bear the name 'Loki' is not to be trusted with such information. It is the name of a vile coward and a traitor, and you bear a striking resemblance him!"
"Oh come now, Thor, you can't judge someone by what their lookalike has done; you don't even know me! I mean, I'll admit I've done some regrettable things in my past, but can you honestly say that you or any of the others gods hasn't?"
"You have Loki's tongue of silver as well." Thor pointed Mjolnir at Detective Loki. "Mayhaps you truly have escaped your punishment early!"
Loki raised his hands defensively. "I am sorry for your loss, but I didn't kill this Baldur. Truthfully, I am a Loki from an alternate universe, where Odin adopted me as your brother, and we had no Baldur to begin with. Like I said, I came to this universe to solve a case involving Knull and his followers and keep a particular family of humans, along with this world, safe from them!"
"I don't believe you, liar." Thor lowered Mjolnir and pointed a mistletoe-tipped spear at Loki. "Do you recognize this evidence?"
Detective Loki raised a sassy eyebrow. "Be careful where you dangle that mistletoe; if we're not brothers, I have no valid reason not to follow the Midgardian traditions that come with it!"
"Shameless cad!"
"Except of course, the fact that I am happily engaged to someone else, and you're not my type!" Loki grinned. "I told you not to judge me prematurely! Back on subject, you take me to the cave where I am supposedly bound, and you'll find your Loki there still, but if not, then you'll have your prisoner returned. Either way, you can see for yourself that the real culprit doesn't escape."
The redheaded Thor grunted while the protesters shouted at him.
"Free him, god of thunder! Stop his needless suffering!"
"Lord Loki is mischievous, not murderous! You Asgardian gods are the ones who threw the weapons at Baldur; Loki just added a sprig of mistletoe! If you hadn't made a game out of Baldur's life, he wouldn't have died!"
"One bad prank doesn't deserve an eternity of suffering!"
"Prank?" Thor repeated. "He plotted Baldur's death out of petty jealousy and pure malice, not mischief! Not this time! He betrayed us and allowed Hodur to take the blame!"
"You Aesir are the ones who used his talents of deception and speechcraft for your own gain and mocked and threatened him when you had no use for him!"
"Yeah, his own blood brother locked up his children over crimes they haven't committed, and you betrayed him by turning him over to the dwarves to have his mouth sewn shut, even after he made up his prank to Sif by bringing her new hair!"
"That is cruel!" Detective Loki admitted. "But to be fair, why would your Loki volunteer to wager his head in the first place?"
The protesters ignored the question and continued verbally assaulting Thor. "And then you gods viciously murdered his own son right in front of him and bound him with the boy's entrails while that torturous snake venom continues to drip into his eyes! You are cruel!"
"Free our god!"
"Come." Thor took the detective underneath the Earth's crust, and they beheld Earth 688's Loki, bound to the rocks as described. He resembled Detective Loki, but with lighter hair and slightly scarred lips. His wife faced the two visitors, still holding the bowl of poison above her Loki's face.
"Thor Odinson, have you come to show mercy to my husband?" Sigyn asked.
"No, I merely wanted to make sure he hadn't escaped."
"Who have you brought with you?"
"Apparently, this Loki is from some kind of parallel universe."
"Hello." Detective Loki greeted them. "So, I'm the blond in this universe, am I?"
"At the moment, I am." The blond Loki replied, peering at his variant through his own venom-stained eyes. "But you look rather dashing with dark hair, parallel me, so perhaps when I break free of these chains, I'll become a midnight again."
"Nice to meet you."
"Lady Sigyn, I presume? You're very loyal; he's lucky to have you."
"Okay, so you were telling the truth." Thor interjected. "But don't even think about about freeing him!"
"I won't; he did still murder someone. However, if I may give a bit of advice... if you aim to truly ease his suffering..." Detective Loki placed his hand underneath the bowl of venom, duplicating it with magic and setting it beneath the one she held. "May I suggest keeping one bowl placed on his head while you empty the other? That way, when one bowl fills up, you just switch to the empty one!"
Sigyn's eyes widened at the trick. "That's so clever! Thank you!"
"Yes, thank you!" The blond Loki agreed, his voice hoarse from the venom. "He's a Loki, alright!"
"You're quite welcome. Now..." Detective Loki placed his hand on Thor's forehead, enchanting the bearded thunderer. "Forgive me, but I still need answers; do you know where the Grendel or its kin nests?"
"Nay, I have not seen the beast since I slew it o'er a thousand years ago, and I know not of any others."
"And what do you know of Knull and his Symbiotes, or of Klyntar?"
"I haven't heard of any of those."
"Really?" Detective Loki looked around at his fans, who peeked down from above the cave with Jörmungandr's help, amazed at his awesome display of magic! "Then take me to the all-seeing Heimdall, and we'll ask him! He favors you."
"Heimdall, bring us-!"
"Oh, but before that..." Detective Loki interrupted with a mischievous smirk. "This Jörmungandr isn't spoken for, I presume? Give him a kiss goodbye."
Despite his loathing for his nemesis, the enchantment compelled him to obey, and he kissed the snake on its nose while both Lokis and the others laughed.
"Sorry, I couldn't resist; I was curious!" Detective Loki giggled.
"Don't be sorry, that was funny!"
"Verily, go on."
"Heimdall, bring us to Asgard!"
The light of the Bifrost then carried the duo away, and when they arrived in their longtime home, Heimdall wasted no time in his approach, aiming his sword, Hofund, at Detective Loki's neck.
"Pleasure to meet you too, good Heimdall." Loki greeted the pale, red-haired variant. "Tell me, is every Asgardian man a redhead in this universe, because-"
Heimdall pressed his blade closer. "Still your silver tongue, trickster. You may not be from here, but a Loki is still a Loki, no matter how noble he pretends to be."
"Heimdall, we come merely seeking answers." Thor defended, pushing Hofund away.
"You are under the sorcerer's enchantment." Heimdall looked into Loki's eyes. "Undo it."
"Sorry, but in a realm where everyone wants me dead and/or tortured for eternity, I can't afford not to have at least one Asgardian on my side, by choice or not. You can trust me, however, when I tell you that I mean your realm and your people no harm, nor those of Midgard. I only wish to keep their world safe from the dangerous Symbiotes, so I need to know where their lair is."
"If I tell you, will you undo your enchantment?"
"Immediately."
"There is an area underneath Zealand where they congregate, but the inside is shrouded by a veil of darkness even I cannot see past. It is around this part of the island..." As Heimdall showed Loki and Thor the location through their eyes, they were interrupted by a woman's voice.
"What is that villain doing running free!? Is Ragnarok approaching already?" They turned around to see a woman who resembled Frigga approach, her eyes colder than Detective Loki had ever seen in her.
"Mother..."
She glared at Loki. "I was a mother..." Then she slapped him, catching the detective off guard. "Until you, the son of Laufey, murdered my beautiful son!" She turned to Thor. "How did that monster escape!?"
Loki, for once, was at a loss for words, tears welling up in his eyes.
"Oh, now you can shed tears, can you? Just not when my son Baldur needed them to return to us from the dead?"
"Lady Frigg, Baldur's killer has not escaped!" Thor assured her. "This Loki is innocent of my half-brother's blood!"
"Lokiii, are you okay?" Loki shook his head, snapping out of the shock. "You know this variant is not your mother any more than that Baldur was your brother, or your Frigga's son."
Loki sighed. "I'm so sorry for your loss, Lady Frigg, but I did not murder your son."
"Then why do you bear his resemblance?"
"I am a different Loki; in my universe, you adopted me as your son, Thor is my adoptive brother, and Baldur never exis-"
"Don't you speak his name!" As Frigg prepared to strike him again, Healer held her arms with his tendrils.
"He speaks the truth. He is from another universe, one much different than yours. But he loves the you from his universe as his real mother, so your cruel words and animosityyy towards him hurt him faaar more than your physical attacks. But... I will not let you hurt my Loki again in any mannerrr!" Healer then raised another tendril. "Lokiii, do you want me to-"
"No! I don't care if she's my real mother or not, I won't let you harm her!"
"I was going to say, do you want me to give you a hug?"
"...Oh. Thank you, but... that's not necessary."
"Okay." He wrapped the tendril around his Loki's shoulders anyway.
"...Thank you." Loki undid the enchantment over the redheaded Thor before Frigg spoke again.
"I have seen visions of you and your shadow creature in the future, causing the end of our world."
Loki sighed, not turning to face her. "It wouldn't be the first time someone's told me my destiny was to cause death and destruction in the future." He turned his head and smirked. "Nor would it be the first time I had defied my supposed predetermined destiny. Good day." Then, he and Healer left for their destination: the Cult of Knull!
Back in the underground cave, Sigyn took the detective's advice, alternating between the two bowls to stop the venom from dripping onto Ragnarok Loki's face completely. However, Heimdall notified Odin of this change to his punishment, and he had Thor take both bowls from Sigyn, causing the poison to continuously sting the trickster, and his increased writhing brought stronger and more frequent earthquakes with it!
From the outside, Knull's green-eyed follower watched the blond Loki suffer, each drop of poison painfully reminding him of the acid his own father tortured him with. For the first time in his life, Grievance felt empathy, pitying the half giant as he writhed in pain!
His faithful fan club protested all the more vehemently at the upsurge in tremors, but they were ignored again. A squad of Asgardian soldiers watched the imprisoned Loki, not even letting Sigyn stay, yet they didn't notice the black blob slink behind them, attaching itself to a nearby guard and whispering into the trickster's ear.
"Hellooo. Your name is Lokiii, right? The same Loki as that detective who helped you earlier?"
Ragnarok Loki didn't answer, the pain hindering him from doing so, besides him not seeing the point of telling them anything at this point.
"I am not from Asgard, or a guard... I am a bit like you: I take on whatever shape benefits me at the moment, and I want to help you escape this wretched place as soon as possible!"
"How?" Loki managed to speak.
"I have a deal for you, Lokiii: I can set you free and help you get payback against these wannabe gods, cause that Ragnarok they're so afraid of, if you help meee. I need a trickster to get it started: do we have a deal?"
Loki smiled through his torment. "We most certainly do!"
"Good. First, I will unbind you, and when I do, we are going to kill everyone here that threatens us! After that, we will bond, and you will do your part of the bargain! We need to find a boy in San Francisco named Dylan Brock and take the codex from inside him: a piece of my kind, a little black blob around his spine. The thing is, he is a very powerful child that can destroy a Symbiote like me, so I need you to be my host, pose as the detective variant of youuu, and charm him into letting down his guard. Is that doable?"
"It will... be my p-pleasure. Just... aghhh... do it nowww!"
Grievance grinned. "It will be my pleasure!" The guard then shattered Loki's chains with his spear before Grievance pulled the guard between the venomous snake and Loki. The black blob then leapt from the guard to the venomous snake, which spit poison into the other guards' eyes! "Have a taste of your own poison, fools!"
Loki stabbed each of the blinded men with their own weapons while the remaining guards charged at him in unison, raising their shields above their heads to protect their eyes, but Loki ran out of the cave before they could catch him!
"Jörmungandr, to me!" He called his own serpent son while Grievance kept the guards busy, bonding with each of them and devouring their internal organs in turn! "Come, little blob!"
Grievance promptly escaped through the cracks of the cave as the Midgard Serpent slammed into the ground from above, causing the cave to collapse on the opposing Asgardians, and for good measure, Jörmungandr spewed his own poisonous vapor into the rubble beneath!
"Ahahaha, that was fun! Just one last thing..." Grievance revealed his father, hidden away in one of Mancer's containers. "I did not forget youuu, Malice! Just because Eldest Brother says I cannot kill you doesn't mean I cannot torture you!" He poked a hole through the top with his fangs and had the snake drip venom onto the formless blob, each drop causing it to writhe in agony, just as Ragnarok Loki did! "Ahhh, sweet vengeance! I hope you suffer alone for a long, looong time before the awakening!" Grievance then left the serpent's body while the poison continued to fall.
"Loki!" The ever faithful Sigyn ran to her husband, embracing and kissing him. She then brought him to a nearby stream where he washed the poison from his face.
"Sigyn, my dear, I thank you for your kind devotion, but I have work to do at the moment; when my debt is paid, I shall return to you, and we will have our sweet revenge on those hypocritical Aesir!" On cue, his Symbiote partner bonded to him, while his slithering son took Sigyn to safety. "So, how do we get to this 'San Francisco?'"