"Ancient One!"
Mario resisted every urge to open the Ancient One's trading interface. If they'd been alone, he might have risked buying a bookshelf or something just to hear those ridiculous villager sounds come out of Earth's Sorcerer Supreme. But with several other people in the chamber, he had to consider the possibility that she might kill everyone to eliminate the witnesses.
The Ancient One looked at him. "Let me introduce you. This is Kaecilius, and behind him are his disciples."
Mario gave Kaecilius a nod, which the sorcerer returned. Without all that dark eye makeup from the movies, the guy actually looked pretty normal.
Did the Ancient One agree to my request?
He had asked her to keep Kaecilius away from Dormammu's influence. He just hadn't expected her solution to be this direct.
"This is Mario," the Ancient One continued, turning to Kaecilius. "From now on, you will study under his guidance."
Kaecilius froze.
Did she just... give me away?
At this point in the timeline, his doubts about the Ancient One were minimal, nothing like the full-blown crisis of faith from Doctor Strange 1. He still held deep respect for his master.
Mario, meanwhile, was practically beaming. He kept glancing at Kaecilius, thinking how much better the sorcerer looked without the goth aesthetic.
"Master, I—"
The Ancient One waved her hand gently. "Trust me. He will change your tragic fate."
Kaecilius had no real choice but to accept his master's decision with a slight bow. "As you command."
Mario's grin widened. "Thank you for the trouble."
The Ancient One simply smiled, then addressed the others in the room. "You may all leave now."
Mordo, Kaecilius, and his disciples all stood, bowed, and quietly filed out of the chamber.
Mario lifted his teacup and took a sip, waiting for the Ancient One to explain what was really going on.
Once everyone had gone, she finally spoke. "Kaecilius is now your responsibility."
"Don't worry. He'll be well taken care of under my watch."
The words came out slightly wrong, and Mario paused, feeling like he'd just accepted custody of a child from a distant relative.
"There's another matter," the Ancient One continued. "The portal you constructed is slowly altering the surrounding rules of reality. The effect is gradual but stable."
"What kind of effects? I'm not going to wake up one day and find Earth's turned into a giant cube, am I?"
"It won't affect ordinary people. But for entities that observe Earth from afar, it will. The space around the portal can no longer be probed through magical means."
A Chronosphere, Mario realized immediately.
The device didn't harm people or structures, but it created a shroud that blocked enemy reconnaissance. Anything inside the field became invisible to external observers unless they entered the area.
If I built portals across the entire universe, would that make this whole dimension invisible to the multiverse?
Infinity War was dangerous enough with just Thanos. Who knew what other cosmic tyrants might be watching from parallel realities?
"What do you need me to do?"
"When you have time, construct similar portals in the three Sanctums."
"No problem." That was easy enough. More portals would also make rapid response times better if something went wrong.
"If there's nothing else, I should get going."
The Ancient One nodded and stood, walking him to the door. Seeing Kaecilius waiting in the corridor, she said simply, "Go with him."
She waved her arm, opening a portal that led directly to Mario's workshop in New York.
Kaecilius didn't bring his disciples with him. He followed Mario alone through the gateway.
Mordo watched the portal close, and he couldn't help but turn to the Ancient One. "Master, why did you send Kaecilius to follow Mr. Argento? He's not even a sorcerer."
"Don't worry," the Ancient One replied calmly. "In time, I'll send you to him as well. You'll understand when it happens."
Mordo stood there, processing that statement.
I just asked a simple question, and now I'm being given away too?
---
Back in New York, Kaecilius looked unhappy about his sudden relocation. He'd been living comfortably at Kamar-Taj, and now he couldn't go back. But he also couldn't bring himself to defy his master's orders.
Mario, meanwhile, wasn't paying him much attention. He headed straight into the workshop to find Ivan, who was busy organizing various tools and equipment.
"How's the prep work going?"
"All set. We can leave whenever you're ready."
Ever since hearing they were going to study an alien spacecraft, Ivan had been excited. For a true scientist, nothing beat the opportunity to learn something completely new.
"Where's Tony?" Mario glanced around, not seeing the billionaire anywhere. After all, hewas supposed to be a key member of the research team.
"He went home. We can just call him when we're ready to leave."
"Then let's call him now. We're heading out immediately."
Ivan nodded. "Natasha, contact Tony."
From the lab's speakers came the slightly robotic voice of the AI. "Connecting to Tony Stark."
Even though his mood was sour, Kaecilius couldn't help but examine the various suits of armor scattered around the workshop. Ivan's designs in particular drew his attention. It looked aggressive, and brutal. No man could resist their appeal, not even a sorcerer.
Mario walked over with a friendly smile. "Like what you see? The company can custom-build a suit of armor just for you. Consider it an employee benefit."
Kaecilius' expression softened slightly, but he shook his head. "Ordinary steel interferes with magical energies."
"Then I'll forge you a custom suit made from Uru metal."
"Uru metal?"
He'd read about it in the Kamar-Taj library. It was a legendary material that didn't exist on Earth. Even in Asgard it was incredibly rare. More importantly, Uru was one of the finest magical materials in existence. Not only was it nearly indestructible, but it greatly amplified magical power.
Thor's hammer itself was forged from Uru.
"Then I'll take you up on that offer, Mr. Argento."
"No trouble at all. And you don't need to be so formal. You can call me Mario."
Kaecilius nodded.
If he really obtained a set of Uru armor, his strength would increase dramatically. And he'd be one step closer to resurrecting his family.
---
Asgard appeared as a continent floating in the vastness of space, once a desolate graveyard of abandoned ships, now bustling with activity.
Circular portals rimmed with flame would periodically open, with battle suits moving in and out. There weren't enough people to handle all the work, so the automated armor made up the difference.
The countless derelict ships that had once littered the area were now reduced by at least a third.
"Mineral supply should be sufficient."
Mario surveyed the busy operation. He walked over to the Tinker's Construct seared smeltery and began feeding various ores into it.
The smeltery could refine ores at double yield, normally one block of iron ore produced one ingot, but the smeltery produced two. It was one of the best resource multiplication methods available.
A familiar sound cut through the air. Mario looked up instinctively.
That recognizable figure, and that recognizable hammer.
Seeing Thor, his first thought was, Did he finally find a suitable planet?
Two months ago, when he had first set foot in Asgard's palace, he'd asked Thor to help search for a planet suitable for human colonization. But he had since learned how difficult that was. In the Marvel universe, if a planet was suitable for human life, it usually meant it was suitable for most alien life too.
There were exceptions, races that required special environments, like Frost Giants or Fire Giants. But that made truly habitable planets extremely rare, and uninhabited suitable ones even rarer.
So there'd been no news for quite a while.
BOOM.
Thor landed heavily, kicking up a cloud of dust, then strode toward Mario from the impact crater. Over the past two months, whenever he wasn't putting down rebellions across the Nine Realms, he would visit. Of course, there was another reason for the frequent visits, Mario had brought Jane along.
Seeing Thor's somewhat darkened expression, he felt confused.
What happened? Did he get his ass kicked during one of those rebellion crackdowns?
Before he could speak, Thor said, "My father, he's awake. He wants to see you."
Mario froze. The incident with the Destroyer still left him uncertain about what Odin was thinking. The All-Father was notoriously difficult to read.
If I'd known this was coming, I wouldn't have gone mining.
Since there was no avoiding it, Mario had no choice but to face the music.
"Let's go. Take me there."
Thor nodded, grabbed Mario's arm, and spun Mjolnir rapidly. In moments, they were airborne and heading toward the palace. His speed was incredible, and somehow the hammer's momentum cut through the air ahead of them, preventing Mario from feeling any wind resistance.
Soon they landed in front of the great gates of the palace.
Mario gave Thor a glance.
So you do know fear. That expression was because Odin chewed you out, wasn't it?
When Odin had still been in the Odinsleep, Thor would bring Mario straight to the palace and land right at the entrance to the throne room. This time, he'd landed outside the main gates.
Following him inside, Mario saw Odin's royal guard, clad in golden armor, spears held upright. As Mario walked past, they raised their spears in salute.
Even though he didn't fully understand Asgardian protocol, he recognized this was quite an honor.
At the entrance to the throne room, the massive golden doors were opened by guards on either side.
He stepped into the hall and immediately saw Odin seated upon the throne, with Frigga sitting beside him.
Odin looked exactly like his depiction in the movies, yet he lacked that overwhelming aura of power. If not for the gleaming armor and Gungnir in his hand, Mario might have believed he was just an ordinary old man.
But Mario didn't underestimate him for a second. A thousand years ago, this "ordinary old man" had led Hela to conquer eight realms, forcing them all to kneel before Asgard.
As for the remaining realm, Midgard, that was a different story. Though small, it was filled with incredibly powerful beings. Even so, Earth had been officially recognized as one of the Nine Realms, nominally under Asgard's rule.
What truly surprised Mario, however, was Frigga. Compared to her movie portrayal, she was even more beautiful and poised in person. It wasn't just appearance, her grace radiated from within.
When Frigga noticed his gaze, she smiled and gave a polite nod. Embarrassed, Mario quickly shifted his attention back to Odin.
For the past two months, Frigga had been by Odin's side during his slumber, so this was his first time meeting her in person.
"Greetings, All-Father Odin."
He gave a respectful bow. Though he spent plenty of time drinking in dive bars, he at least knew basic etiquette when meeting royalty.
Odin nodded slightly. "Hello, young man from Midgard. The Ancient One has already contacted me. She asked me to look after you. And... thank you for providing the Tesseract."
As expected, the Ancient One is the real power player here.
"You're welcome. It was simply a trade between Thor and me."
Odin smiled and shook his head. "No, you may not realize the true importance of the Tesseract. It is merely a container."
He looked at Mario, clearly waiting for him to ask the follow-up question.
Mario couldn't help but laugh internally. This Odin was nothing like he'd imagined. A sudden thought crossed his mind, Could this not be Universe-616 after all? Maybe it's just a parallel world?
"I'm aware of the Infinity Stones."
Odin showed no surprise at being denied his teaching moment. He simply nodded and continued. "Good. If you know of the Infinity Stones, then you understand their significance. Since awakening, I've heard from Thor that you wish to reside in Asgard. Therefore, the land where the abandoned ships are stored shall now belong to you. Consider it your reward for helping Asgard repair the Bifrost."
Mario was momentarily stunned by the unexpected generosity.
Is Odin serious? That place is huge!
Asgard wasn't like Earth with its multiple continents. It was a single massive landmass. The area used to store derelict ships might have been far from the palace, but it was undeniably enormous, probably hundreds of square kilometers.
Seeing no reason to decline such a valuable gift, he accepted.
"Thank you."
"Thor," Odin said, "take Mario with you. My body has not yet fully recovered, I must rest again."
After Mario had left the throne room, Frigga turned to her husband. She knew his temperament well and couldn't understand why he seemed to value this human.
"You think very highly of him."
Odin gazed at the now-closed doors. The gentle smile vanished immediately.
"The Ancient One told me this man may be the one who can prevent Ragnarok. Even if there's only a one-in-ten-thousand chance... that's reason enough for me to invest in him."
Frigga's face showed surprise.
Then she heard Odin's voice grow somber. "My time is running short. I must enter the Odinsleep again to ensure Thor continues growing. He is still far too weak to face what's coming. Frigga... I'll have to trouble you with everything that follows."
---
---
50 Advance Chapters!