"JARVIS, strengthen defenses! Now!"
The moment Tony Stark saw Lockhart raise his wand, he barked the command from within his armor. Instantly, the surrounding Iron Legion drones responded, their surfaces shimmering as they generated an extraordinary energy barrier. The energy moved at frequencies beyond human perception, creating an invisible shield detectable only through specialized instruments or enhanced senses.
This wasn't merely defensive—Tony had designed the frequency modulators to create a synchronized circuit among the drones. If successful, they would not only absorb magical attacks but potentially reflect them back at their caster.
While JARVIS implemented these countermeasures, Tony remained vigilant. His experiences with the Masters of Kamar-Taj had taught him that most sorcerers relied heavily on their relics—particularly their sling rings and, in Lockhart's case, his wand. Without these focal instruments, their casting efficiency dropped dramatically.
Taking advantage of this knowledge, Tony's repulsor began to glow with gathering energy. With lightning speed, he fired directly at the wand in Lockhart's hand, aiming to disarm rather than harm.
However...
Bzzt!
The instant before the repulsor beam discharged, Lockhart's form—including the wand in his hand—shimmered with an iridescent light. His outline blurred slightly, as though reality itself couldn't quite decide where he was supposed to be.
The brilliant white energy of Tony's repulsor passed straight through Lockhart's wand as if it were nothing but a hologram, meeting no resistance whatsoever. The beam continued on its trajectory, disappearing into the distance over the Thames.
Lockhart's expression remained unchanged, not even a flicker of concern crossing his features. When the energy dissipated, the wand in his hand remained perfectly intact.
"Mr. Stark," JARVIS's voice spoke in Tony's ear, "the target has disappeared."
"Warning: target location cannot be established."
"Unable to acquire targeting lock."
Tony frowned beneath his faceplate. "What do you mean, 'disappeared'? He's standing right in front of us, surrounded by the Legion."
"Run a complete system diagnostic," he ordered, concern growing.
"Self-diagnostic in progress..." JARVIS responded. After a brief pause: "Diagnostic complete. All systems operating within normal parameters."
"I apologize, Mr. Stark, but we still cannot detect the target's position."
Tony stared at Lockhart, who hadn't moved an inch and was actually smiling now—a composed, almost pitying smile that made Tony's teeth clench.
"JARVIS," Tony said through gritted teeth, "scan directly in front of me, thirty-six degrees north by west, approximately fifty meters out. What do your sensors detect?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. According to all sensors, that space is empty."
Tony's mind raced. Had JARVIS been compromised? Was this some new form of magic they'd never encountered? He turned slightly toward Ghost Rider, who stood beside him wreathed in hellfire.
"Johnny, can you see Lockhart?" he asked, keeping his voice level.
Ghost Rider turned his flaming skull toward Tony, confusion evident despite his lack of facial features. "He's right there in front of us," Johnny replied, sounding perplexed. "Do you need my help?"
"No, I've got this," Tony replied curtly, his pride flaring. If there was a problem to solve, especially one involving a former friend like Lockhart, he preferred to handle it personally.
"JARVIS, switch to manual targeting and prepare for saturation attack."
"Understood, sir."
This transition would take precious seconds—time during which Tony expected Lockhart to capitalize with an offensive spell. Yet strangely, the wizard made no move to attack. Apart from the shimmering, prismatic light flowing across his body like liquid crystal, Lockhart remained motionless.
Even more infuriating, he continued to smile at Tony—a knowing expression that suggested he was merely humoring them.
Damn it!
"Increase attack intensity to maximum non-lethal levels," Tony commanded, his patience evaporating.
BOOM!
On his command, the Iron Legion unleashed a coordinated barrage. Dozens of repulsor beams converged on Lockhart's position, creating a blinding flash of white light and a concussive blast that rippled across the Thames. Ghost Rider instinctively raised an arm to shield his face from the heat that radiated from the point of impact.
When the light faded and the smoke cleared, Lockhart stood exactly where he had been, completely unharmed. Not a single hair was out of place, his robes unmarked by the assault.
"Tony," Lockhart said, his voice carrying a hint of genuine regret, "you should stop now. The level of technology you currently possess cannot affect me."
The truth dawned on Tony then. While his eyes perceived Lockhart standing before him, the wizard wasn't actually occupying the same dimensional plane. Lockhart had somehow shifted slightly out of phase with normal reality, his body infused with what wizards called "oneiric energy"—the power of dreams and illusions. This explained why JARVIS's sensors couldn't detect him; they were scanning a reality Lockhart wasn't fully present in.
Tony opened his mouth to respond, but Ghost Rider stepped forward, his hellfire blazing more intensely as his patience expired.
"Lockhart," Johnny growled, his voice carrying the echo of countless damned souls, "let's see how you handle hellfire!"
Lockhart merely glanced at Johnny, his expression cooling noticeably. Without deigning to respond, he simply began walking forward, passing through the Iron Legion's formation as if they weren't there.
Tony noted the change in Lockhart's demeanor with interest. The wizard clearly regarded him differently—perhaps out of respect for Tony's scientific genius or their past friendship. Ghost Rider, however, seemed to warrant only indifference. Tony recalled that Lockhart had extensively studied hellfire in the past, even harvesting some for what he claimed was "academic research." The wizard had later provided samples to that terrorist who called himself Voldemort—a fact that still troubled Tony.
Moreover, Johnny and Lockhart barely knew each other, having met only a handful of times during previous interdimensional incidents. Their lack of personal connection gave Lockhart little reason to engage.
As Lockhart calmly walked through the encirclement, Ghost Rider's hellfire erupted more violently, responding to Johnny's growing rage at being so blatantly dismissed.
BOOM!
With a roar that was more demonic than human, Ghost Rider launched himself skyward, then descended like a meteor. His fist, wrapped in the infernal flames of hell itself, plummeted toward Lockhart with force enough to shatter concrete.
Johnny intended to subject the wizard to the Penance Stare—to force him to experience all the pain he had ever inflicted on others in a single, soul-shattering moment.
Whoosh!
Ghost Rider's fist passed through Lockhart's form as if striking smoke. The momentum carried Johnny's entire body through the illusory wizard and sent him tumbling forward, a victim of his own unmet force.
Lockhart continued walking, unperturbed. He was effectively invulnerable—existing partly in another dimension where physical attacks couldn't reach him. He could have retaliated at any moment, yet he held back, perhaps out of some lingering respect for past alliances.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Disbelieving and enraged, Ghost Rider spun around and attacked again, calling upon more hellfire to fuel his assault. Once more, his attacks proved futile—passing through Lockhart's form without resistance, like shadows trying to strike light.
After passing beyond the Iron Legion's perimeter, Lockhart paused and turned back to face them.
"Tony, Johnny," he said with surprising gentleness, "please withdraw for now. When this matter is resolved, I promise to explain everything in detail."
Not waiting for their response, he turned away and focused his attention on Thor, who was still attempting to breach the energy beam with Mjolnir, trying to prevent anyone from accessing the Celestial embryo's space.
Lockhart's body flared with prismatic light once more, and he stepped forward—only to instantly reappear on the opposite side of Thor, having traversed the distance in a single heartbeat.
Tony and Ghost Rider fell silent, the fight leaving them as they witnessed Lockhart's casual display of power. It was suddenly, painfully clear that the wizard had been toying with them, holding back out of some misplaced sense of courtesy.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Meanwhile, Thor continued his assault on the black veil that Lockhart had created earlier. With each mighty swing of Mjolnir, sections of the magical barrier shattered, releasing surges of cosmic energy. The God of Thunder seemed determined to destroy the light beam entirely, preventing access to the Celestial embryo's dimension altogether.
This would fulfill Odin's directive through alternative means—preserving the Celestial embryo by ensuring no one could reach it—while avoiding direct conflict with forces that might plunge Earth into unnecessary war.
Yet despite Thor's godly might and the legendary power of Mjolnir, his attacks proved ultimately ineffective. Each breach in the barrier sealed itself almost instantly, the magic regenerating faster than Thor could destroy it.
"Thor," Lockhart called out, his voice carrying easily over the din of battle, "you should cease this pointless struggle. Kamar-Taj has already secured the dimensional boundaries to the Celestial embryo's realm. Your efforts, noble as they may be, cannot prevail against our combined mystical power."