Loki finds himself in an eerie
wasteland, unaware of how he got there. He is in the center of a
field of Dark Elf and Troll corpses and is met by Viking-era Loki who
tells him that he caused this war for fun after being defeated by
Thor over the matter of Erika the Red (issue #7). An Elf boy,
assistant to the undertaker goes by, collecting corpses for the pyre.
Loki realizes this is young Malekith and, with it, the realization
that the war he himself started created the villain who is now
destroying the realms. He tries to plead with the boy but learns he
is incorporeal because he is dead, eaten by Laufey at the end of WAR
OF THE REALMS #1. His Viking self banishes him tot he next stop on
his ghostly journey....
Laufey is slaughtering all of the
giants he accuses of putting roses on his doorstep; Loki himself did
it in an attempt to honor his father on Father's Day. He is met by
Boy Loki whom he betrayed many series earlier. Loki explains that he
didn't ant to be the villain anymore; Boy Loki tells him that ended
when he stabbed Freyja in the back in THOR (2015 series #5) no matter
his supposedly good intentions. Loki is being punished not for his
bad deeds but the admiration of himself while doing them. He then
shoves Loki along to his next self....
And this turns out to be Loki the
Necrogod, the future villain, changed by the Necrosword to destroy
everything; Loki is appalled that he will become the greatest monster
that ever lived. Loki convinces himself that since this is all in his
mind he can stop this if he concentrates—and he's right: he awakens
in the stomach of his father Laufey....