When Karl finally woke up, it was already evening. He had slept an entire day straight. As he opened his eyes, Wanda was sitting in the room reading, with dinner neatly placed on the table.
"You're awake," Wanda said with a smile, setting her book aside and sitting next to him. "Get up and eat something."
Karl washed up briefly and then ate the food Wanda had brought back. The meals at Kamar-Taj weren't elaborate, but they were exceptionally good.
After saying goodbye to the Ancient One, Karl returned to the office with Wanda via the Chocobo Space. Skye was still in her usual spot, furiously typing away at her keyboard, earning money to support both Karl and the office.
In truth, Karl wasn't short on money at all, but on the surface it really did look like Skye was the one bringing home the income. Karl—and Tony as well—had essentially become useless mascots. Tony, lacking a proper lab to continue developing his armor, had been idle as well. A few days earlier, he had even gone to participate in a rally race. He didn't place, and his car flew off a cliff midway through, but at least he had found something to do. Unlike Karl, who spent all day lying around the office.
Karl and Wanda's sudden appearance didn't surprise Skye or Natasha in the slightest. Yes—missing-in-action Natasha had returned. Nick Fury had sent her to a small European country where intelligence suggested someone was secretly building a nuclear weapon. Natasha infiltrated to investigate, confirmed the situation, and—under various international treaties forbidding nuclear weapons production—acted as the investigator. Barton and Steve followed up as the strike team and wiped out the entire operation.
With the mission complete, Natasha had some free time and returned to the office to resume her role as a freeloader—doing nothing but eating and drinking on someone else's dime.
Tony was playing the latest game release when he saw Karl and Wanda reappear. He immediately dropped the controller and rushed over.
"Where the hell did you go? I've been looking for you all day!"
Since recovering from his injuries, Tony had fully reverted to his old rich-kid behavior—minus the playboy reputation.
"I went to Kamar-Taj," Karl said calmly as he sat down on the couch. "What I'm about to say is important."
Tony's playful expression vanished at once. Natasha and Skye also put aside what they were doing.
"What's so serious?" Tony asked.
"Do you remember Asgard and Thor?" Karl began. "Before long, the Dark Elves will invade Earth. In the past, they—"
Karl proceeded to explain everything in detail: the Dark Elves, the Convergence, and the Nine Realms.
Everyone's first reaction was disbelief—it sounded like mythology. But Asgard and Thor had already proven to be real, which meant the Dark Elves were very likely real as well.
"So you're saying that during the Convergence, the Dark Elves will invade Earth?" Natasha asked, her expression grave. Protecting Earth was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s core mission.
"That's right," Karl nodded. "And not just Earth. All Nine Realms will become their battlefield. They want to unify the Nine Realms."
"In that case," Natasha said immediately, pulling out her phone, "I need to report this to Nick Fury."
"Where's the passage?" she asked as she dialed. "New York?"
"No," Karl replied. "Earth's convergence point is in London—at the Royal Greenwich Observatory."
As soon as he finished speaking, Tony projected images of the Royal Greenwich Observatory and its surroundings.
The call connected, and Nick Fury had already heard Karl's explanation through Natasha. Tony split off a screen, projecting Fury's face.
"Karl," Fury said with a deep frown, "I need to know your source. This involves another country. S.H.I.E.L.D. needs a legitimate reason to intervene."
"There is no source," Karl replied without hesitation. "I foresaw it. My magic allows me to occasionally glimpse the future."
He made it up on the spot—yet to his surprise, Fury accepted it without question.
"I understand," Fury said. "What's the exact time?"
"When is the next solar eclipse?" Karl asked in return.
Fury paused, then realization dawned on him.
"The day after tomorrow, around two in the afternoon."
Tony pulled up another projection—an official forecast from the meteorological bureau confirming the time.
"During the eclipse," Karl said, "the passage connecting the Nine Realms will open. That's when the Dark Elves will invade Earth. The exact location is the former site of the Royal Greenwich Observatory."
Fury nodded. "Leave the rest to me. The entire area will be sealed off, and all civilians within a two-kilometer radius will be evacuated. Your job is to keep the battle confined to the Observatory and minimize collateral damage."
Karl nodded in agreement. Fury then ordered Natasha to return to S.H.I.E.L.D. immediately and ended the call.
"Tony," Karl said, turning to him, "I'll need you to take Skye, Wanda, Gwen, and the others to London with S.H.I.E.L.D."
"What about you?" Tony asked in surprise. "Why am I taking everyone? What are you doing?"
"I'm going to Asgard," Karl replied. "I'll try to deal with the Dark Elves there first."
"Asgard?!" Tony shot to his feet. "You're going somewhere that awesome and not taking me with you?"
The idea of Asgard—the golden realm of Norse legend—instantly ignited Tony's curiosity. Of course he wanted to see it.
Tony's reaction stood in sharp contrast to Skye and Wanda's calm expressions. They weren't surprised at all. Any place Karl had been before would be marked by Chocobo Space. Asgard would be no exception. If they wanted to go, it would take nothing more than a thought.
Karl considered it for a moment. Bringing Tony along wasn't impossible, and Tony would be a powerful ally. The only concern was Kamar-Taj. The sorcerers had always kept a low profile, protecting Earth from the shadows. Karl wasn't sure whether the Ancient One would approve of Tony learning about their existence.
"Wait here," Karl said. "Let me ask first."
With that, he used Chocobo Space to travel to Kamar-Taj, where he found the Ancient One overseeing the training of sorcerers in the courtyard.
"Master Ancient One," Karl said, "about the trip to Asgard—I'd like to bring someone with me. Would that be acceptable?"
"Tony Stark?" the Ancient One asked, smiling as usual.
Karl wasn't surprised in the slightest. Coming from her, nothing ever was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For 20 advanced chapters, visit my Patreon:
Patreon - Twilight_scribe1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you enjoyed Marvel Manifestor, please give it a Power Stone and leave a review! Your support means everything.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~