Before the stunned students hung a spiraling dimensional rift, its edges crackling with golden sparks as though reality itself had been ripped apart. On the other side stood a strange man draped in an elegant crimson cloak that billowed gently despite the absence of any wind. His expression remained somewhat calm, yet almost impatient, as he looked directly at Billy before requesting that he follow him through the portal.
Brows arched amongst them as fascination, unease, and outright confusion mixed together. Ned and the others instinctively tensed, their muscles tightening at the feel of adrenaline, each preparing to either bolt for the nearest exit or defend themselves if the situation suddenly turned hostile. No one dared speak first, their eyes locked on the impossible sight before them.
'Who's this guy? And why's he asking for Billy?' Peter wondered silently, studying the mysterious visitor with narrowed eyes. His instincts had him wanting to ready himself for something unusual was clearly happening, but he couldn't tell whether the man posed a genuine threat or was simply someone Billy happened to know.
Part of him debated quietly slipping away to change into his Spider-Man suit, while the other half urged him to stay put, remain alert, and get a proper read of the situation before making a move.
'Why is he here?' Billy thought, equally confused. 'And what the fuck could he possibly want with me that he doesn't mind publicly opening a portal in broad daylight with absolutely no discretion?' Then another thought crossed his mind, one that brought the faintest smirk to his face. 'Since he showed up with zero regard for discretion, I might as well take advantage of this.'
Seeing the perfect opportunity to casually flex one of the more interesting parts of his life beyond school, Billy met the man's gaze without the slightest hint of intimidation. Wearing a confident, almost amused expression, he asked in an even tone, "And what does the great wizard want with me?"
The choice of words made Strange's facial muscles twitch ever so slightly, the irritation plain to see despite his best efforts to hide it.
"Again," Strange replied, his voice measured as he forced himself to remain composed, suppressing the familiar annoyance threatening to surface, "not a wizard."
For reasons he still couldn't quite understand, the kid possessed an uncanny talent for getting under his skin. It was an impressive feat, considering the years of discipline and mental control he had cultivated as the Sorcerer Supreme.
He took a slow breath, doing everything he could not to let the boy's deliberately vexing habit get under his skin. After correcting Billy more times than he cared to count, the teenager's stubborn refusal to acknowledge that he was a sorcerer rather than a wizard was becoming increasingly infuriating.
MJ, Ned, and the rest of the class mirrored one another's expressions as they stared with dropped jaws, their earlier tension quickly melting into wide-eyed fascination. The fact that Billy had addressed the mysterious stranger as someone he clearly knew—and with none of the fear or urgency they'd expected—made it obvious the man wasn't here to hurt anyone. Instead, curiosity rapidly replaced apprehension as everyone struggled to process the impossible sight before them.
"Magic... cool," MJ and Ned said almost in perfect unison, neither taking their eyes off the shimmering portal.
'Did a wizard just stop by to pick up Billy like he was being summoned for some kind of main-character side quest?' Peter wondered, unable to stop his mind from wandering. 'Seriously, who is this kid?'
Pressing two fingers against his temples, he let out a quiet, exasperated sigh as he tried to make sense of everything unfolding in front of him.
'I wonder what the people on the other side actually see,' Billy seemed to space out in thoughts. 'Do they see him standing in front of the portal like we do? Or do they just see us through the spiraling rift? And if they can see him... what about whatever's behind him? Can they even see the space? Or does the portal block everything except us?' The questions piled up faster than he could answer them, each one making the phenomenon seem even more bizarre.
Billy was just about to shift in his seat to get a better look at whatever lay beyond the portal when the sorcerer, whose unwavering gaze had remained fixed on Billy the entire time, finally broke the silence.
"Come on, kid. I don't have all day."
"Right," Billy replied as he rose from his seat. Turning back toward the class, he hesitated for a moment, wondering how exactly he was supposed to explain... any of this. Everyone's attention remained locked on him, their gazes constantly drifting between Billy and the man standing inside the dimensional rift, silently waiting for some kind of explanation as to why the person Billy had casually referred to as a sorcerer had literally appeared out of nowhere to summon him.
Although Billy had stubbornly insisted on calling the man a wizard, Gwen's attention remained fixed on the portal itself. Her scientific curiosity was already working overtime as she studied the swirling rift with intense fascination. 'Is this really magic... or is it some kind of technology so advanced it only looks like magic?' she wondered, her eyes tracing the glowing sparks dancing around its edges.
Meanwhile, Peter's spider-sense remained completely silent. There wasn't the slightest warning of danger or hostility, only an overwhelming feeling that he was witnessing something far beyond anything he'd encountered before. Even so, countless questions and possible conversations raced through his mind as he quietly observed the exchange without saying a word.
'Fuck it,' Billy finally thought, mentally giving up on trying to invent a believable excuse.' There's no explanation I could come up with that'd make any of this sound normal anyway. Might as well just tell them the truth.'
"Sorry, guys. I know this was arranged to help me get up to speed before midterms, but..." Billy gestured toward the spiraling dimensional rift over his shoulder with a helpless shrug. "As you can see, I kinda have to go."
He took a few measured steps backward as he spoke, never taking his eyes off his classmates. Their expressions ranged from stunned disbelief to open fascination, with more than a few still trying to convince themselves they weren't somehow hallucinating. Reaching the shimmering threshold of the portal, Billy offered them a small wave and an easy smile.
"See you guys tomorrow."
With that, he turned on his heel and stepped through the swirling rift to join Strange. Barely a heartbeat later, the portal folded in on itself, the golden sparks collapsing into nothingness before vanishing completely, leaving behind no trace that it had ever existed. The section of the cafe fell into an uneasy silence as the witnesses continued staring and had their phones out wanting to record the empty space where reality itself had seemingly torn open only moments ago.
The entire encounter had lasted no more than a couple of minutes, yet it felt surreal enough that no one quite knew how to process what they had just witnessed.
"How sure are we that Billy wasn't just kidnapped by a mind-controlling wizard..." Ned paused for a moment before adding, "...or an alien in disguise?" He added in his attempt to broaden the scope of possibilities.
The question wasn't directed at anyone in particular. It simply hung in the air, sounding absurd under normal circumstances. Then again, after watching a glowing portal appear out of thin air before their classmate casually walked through it with a man in a red cape, the idea didn't seem nearly as ridiculous as it should have.
"I don't think so," Gwen replied after a moment's thought. Although Billy insisted on calling the man a wizard, nothing about their interaction had suggested fear or coercion. If anything, Billy had seemed mildly inconvenienced rather than alarmed, which did little to ease everyone's confusion but was enough to convince her that whatever was going on, it probably wasn't a kidnapping.
- - -
As the portal sealed itself behind him with a shower of fading golden sparks, Billy found himself instinctively taking in his surroundings. His gaze swept across the vast hall stretching before him, its high ceilings, ancient architecture, and mystical atmosphere making it feel more like an old monastery than any place he'd ever visited. Men and women clad in robes moved about with quiet purpose, some carrying strange artifacts while others appeared to be deep in conversation or study, paying little attention to the newest arrival.
"Sorry to crash your party, kid," Doctor Strange said as he started walking through the expansive hall, expecting Billy to follow.
Billy quickly fell into step beside him, though his curiosity got the better of him almost immediately.
"First off, where are we?" he asked before a second thought popped into his head. "And secondly... what if I'd been in the bathroom when you opened that portal and just pulled up on me while I was taking a dump?"
Strange considered the question for a brief moment, his expression remaining remarkably composed.
"Then," he answered with complete seriousness, "we'd certainly be having an entirely different conversation right now."
Billy grimaced.
"I'd rather not think about it."
'Even I refuse to imagine how painfully awkward that would've been,' Billy admitted to himself. 'I probably would've just sat there with the straightest face imaginable, staring him dead in the eyes until he realized he was the one who'd barged in. If anyone was going to carry the embarrassment of that situation, it'd be him.'
A faint smile threatened to tug at the corner of Strange's mouth before he pushed the mental image aside and returned to the original question.
"And to answer your first question, this place is known as the Sanctum Sanctorum. One of three Sanctums."
"Hah... I see," Billy said thoughtfully as his eyes wandered across the enormous building once more. Watching the robed sorcerers go about their daily routines, he couldn't help drawing comparisons. "So... kinda like Hogwarts then."
"Hog...warts?" Strange repeated, slowing slightly as he turned an uncertain, thoroughly confused look toward the teenager walking beside him.
"It's a school for wizards in my world," Billy explained, stretching the truth just enough.
The moment the word 'wizard' left Billy's mouth, Strange's facial muscles nearly twitched again.
At this point, he'd long since accepted that correcting the boy was a futile exercise. After reminding Billy more times than he could count that he was a sorcerer, not a wizard, Strange had begun to suspect the teenager must be doing it on purpose.
"Training takes place somewhere else," Strange answered as he came to a stop before a towering wooden door adorned with intricate carvings that seemed almost alive beneath the soft glow of the Sanctum's enchanted lighting. Resting a hand on the door, he decided to elaborate further, giving Billy a better understanding of just how significant the place around them truly was.
"The Sanctums are positioned at three mystical points across the planet. Together, they reinforce a magical barrier that separates Earth's reality from countless other dimensions. They repel hostile entities seeking to invade from beyond our universe while serving a number of other defensive purposes that help keep the world safe."
Billy quietly absorbed the explanation, his eyes wandering across the ancient halls before giving a small nod.
"I see..."
"Think of them as enormous anchors," Strange continued. "Without them, there'd be no shortage of horrific possibilities of what could be."
Billy scratched the side of his head.
"One small problem with that." He glanced sideways at Strange. "Somehow I still ended up here from a different universe."
"As concerning as that is..." Strange admitted, his expression growing more serious, "your arrival did not go unnoticed."
His tone became noticeably heavier as another thought crossed his mind.
"What troubles me far more is that those creatures have managed to breach the dimensional barriers repeatedly while somehow remaining completely undetected. And that has me on edge for it shouldn't be possible."
Reaching for the ornate doorknob, Strange gave it a firm twist before pushing the heavy door open. It swung inward with a low creak, revealing what appeared to be an immense archive. Towering shelves stretched into the distance, packed with ancient manuscripts, weathered tomes, and countless scrolls that looked as though they had been carefully preserved for centuries. The room carried the unmistakable scent of old parchment and ink, making it feel less like a library and more like a vault safeguarding humanity's accumulated mystical knowledge.
Billy slowly looked across the neatly organized aisles, his curiosity momentarily outweighing his impatience before his attention returned to Strange.
"You're still yet to tell me why I'm here... or what exactly you want with me."
"I was getting to that," Strange replied calmly as he stepped farther into the archive. After a brief pause, he turned to face Billy, his expression growing noticeably more thoughtful.
"Are you aware of a prophecy... or perhaps a clairvoyant prediction made by King Solomon in relevance to you?"
Billy frowned slightly.
"Regarding what?"
"An apocalypse of some kind," Strange clarified, "one that would endanger humanity as a whole." There was a faint hint of expectation in his voice, as though he hoped the description alone might be enough to stir Billy's memory.
Billy hummed thoughtfully as he reached up to his chin, slowly stroking it while searching through everything he could remember. After a few seconds, he gave a small shake of his head.
"Hmmm... none that I'm aware of."
His brow furrowed as another thought surfaced. 'This is the second time I've been asked about some prophecy.' He looked directly at Strange.
"What exactly does it have to do with me?"
"For starters," Strange began patiently, "Solomon was a Sorcerer Supreme, renowned as one of the greatest mystics in history. His wisdom and mastery of the mystic arts became known across numerous civilizations and cultures."
He continued speaking in an even, measured tone, deliberately laying the foundation before getting to the more important details. If Billy understood the context first, Strange hoped it would spare them from constantly stopping to answer questions every few sentences.
"News of the apocalypse Solomon foresaw has been passed down orally from one Sorcerer Supreme to the next for countless generations. Unfortunately, the prophecy itself contains very little actual detail..."
"So the prophecy that's been passed down all these centuries doesn't actually tell you anything about the threat it's warning you about?" Billy interrupted before Strange could continue.
Strange slowly closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath before letting it out through his nose. When he looked back at Billy, his expression remained composed, though only just. Years of discipline and the inner calm expected of the Sorcerer Supreme were the only things preventing his patience from slipping.
"You ask... a lot of questions."
'And you still haven't answered the biggest one,' Billy shot back internally. 'Why exactly am I here?'
"Just keep quiet and listen while I explain," Strange said, his tone carrying just enough authority to make it clear he wasn't interested in another interruption.
Billy responded without complaint. Raising two fingers to his lips, he mimed zipping his mouth shut before tossing away the imaginary zipper with an exaggerated flick of his hand, silently promising to keep his questions to himself—for the moment.
"Although the prophecy survived through oral tradition," Strange continued once Billy settled down, "we were never instructed to actively search for it or obsess over its meaning. We were simply told that when the appointed time arrived, the tides of time would hint provide hints the Sorcerer Supreme at the time should recognize the impending doom of humanity Solomon had foreseen."
"After an extensive search through centuries' worth of forgotten records," Strange continued, "we eventually discovered a small wooden box left to rot in one of the oldest archives. Inside it was a crystal orb."
As he spoke, his eyes briefly drifted toward the finely crafted wooden box resting on the desk between them before returning to Billy.
"The records accompanying it state that Solomon foresaw a great evil, one capable of bringing about humanity's end. They also speak of a champion—one said to ride the thunder. Without that champion's presence and participation, humanity's chances of surviving the coming catastrophe were said to be... exceedingly slim."
Billy remained silent, listening intently.
"When Thor first arrived on Earth, I naturally assumed he was the individual the prophecy referred to," Strange admitted. "Given his command over lightning and his status among the Asgardians, it seemed like the obvious conclusion."
A faint shake of his head followed.
"But I was mistaken."
His gaze settled squarely on Billy.
"A young man who refers to himself as being a Champion of gods while wielding divine lightning leaves very little room for doubt. It doesn't take much more to conclude that you may very well be the champion Solomon spoke of."
'Normally I'd call something like that ridiculously cliché,' Billy thought to himself. 'But considering I've literally got the Wisdom of Solomon as a magical skill... yeah, it honestly doesn't get much more legitimate than that.'
Keeping the thought to himself, Billy offered no verbal response. Instead, he leaned casually against the desk, his attention drifting toward the wooden box Strange had mentioned. Unlike the weathered relic described moments earlier, this one looked expertly crafted, its polished surface and refined finish standing in sharp contrast to something that had supposedly spent centuries gathering dust.
'Guess they replaced the original storage box,' he concluded silently.
Strange noticed Billy's gaze lingering on it but chose not to comment.
"There is something else I'd like to understand," he said instead, momentarily steering the conversation away from the prophecy. "How exactly did you come to possess such divine power? Who are you? How did you attain that title…and in what way are you acquainted with Solomon?"
Billy continued staring at him without saying a word.
Several seconds passed.
The silence stretched on long enough for the faintest hint of irritation to creep onto Strange's face, when Billy's eyes widened in sudden realization.
"Oh!" He scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"I wasn't exactly sure how long I was supposed to keep the whole code-of-silence thing going."
Strange didn't bother responding. He merely gave Billy a long, flat look that said more than words ever could.
Billy cleared his throat.
"I serve as an avatar, carrying the blessings of a couple ancient gods and using the power they've entrusted to me to protect humanity from threats."
His voice softened noticeably as his thoughts drifted elsewhere.
"And... as you can probably tell from my track record..." A self-deprecating smile tugged weakly at the corner of his mouth. "I wasn't exactly successful in that department."
The weight behind those words lingered in the air, the memory of his world's destruction quietly hanging over the room.
Strange offered no immediate response. Instead, he simply observed Billy with an unwavering gaze, silently studying both his words and his demeanor. Then, with the slightest movement of his fingers, the finely crafted wooden box resting atop the desk flipped itself open. A crystal orb rose gracefully from within, floating through the air before settling neatly into the Sorcerer Supreme's waiting hand.
"And this," Strange said, raising the orb slightly between them, "is the real reason I brought you here today."
Billy glanced at the crystal sphere before immediately jumping to his own conclusion.
"Don't mean to disappoint you," he began, rubbing the back of his neck with an apologetic smile, "but I don't have the blessing of any gods in the seer department. I can't perform divinations or try communing with Solomon's spirit or anything like that, if that's where you were headed."
"That," Strange replied flatly, "was nowhere near where I was going with this."
Billy blinked before letting out a short, self-deprecating chuckle. "Oh... guess I leaped pretty far with that conclusion."
Strange continued as though the interruption had never happened.
"The records never explain what the orb is actually meant to do, nor do they mention how it's supposed to be activated. Every attempt I've made has failed." He looked down briefly at the crystal sphere in his hand. "It's protected by a sealing spell unlike anything I've encountered. I've cast quite a lot of unsealing spells, yet not once has the seal shown the slightest sign of weakening."
As Billy instinctively extended a hand, Strange passed the orb over without hesitation.
The crystal felt surprisingly cool to the touch.
Billy slowly turned it over in his hands, examining every angle with quiet curiosity.
Several seconds passed.
"...Well," Strange finally admitted with a disappointed sigh, "that's unfortunate."
His remark caused Billy to look up.
"I was hoping the orb might react if you poured your magic into it," Strange continued. "If you truly are the champion mentioned in Solomon's prophecy, I thought it might at least reveal the nature or pattern of the seal. Even that would've been enough to help me devise a proper unraveling spell."
Billy's lips curled into a small, knowing smile as he continued staring at the crystal.
"I don't know about that..."
The confidence in his voice immediately caught Strange's attention.
"You've got something?" he asked. Rather than letting excitement get ahead of him, he deliberately kept his expectations in check and waited for Billy to either explain, or just do his thing.
"Open another one of those portals."
Billy's eyes never left the orb.
"We're gonna have to take this outside."
He glanced around the archive, his gaze sweeping over the countless shelves lined with ancient scrolls and fragile manuscripts.
"I'd rather not accidentally set a few centuries' worth of magical history on fire."
Without questioning him further, Strange lifted a hand and traced a familiar circular motion through the air. Golden sparks spiraled outward as another dimensional portal bloomed to life before them, opening onto the stone courtyard of what appeared to be an ancient monastery. Light from the setting sun poured through the shimmering gateway, carrying with it a gentle breeze that stood in stark contrast to the stillness of the archive.
Together, the two stepped through the portal, leaving the priceless collection of mystical knowledge safely behind.
Billy walked a reasonable distance away from Strange, making sure there was plenty of open space between them. The courtyard was quiet, save for the gentle rustling of leaves and the distant sounds of the Sanctum carrying on with its daily routine. Cradling the crystal orb in one hand, he took a steady breath before calmly speaking a single word that sounded barely above a whisper.
"Shazam."
The clear sky answered instantly.
A colossal bolt of divine lightning tore through the heavens with a deafening crack, crashing directly onto Billy's position. Blinding white light engulfed him for the briefest of moments before rapidly fading away, revealing Captain Marvel standing where the teenager had been only a heartbeat earlier. His white cloak fluttered gently behind him as faint arcs of golden electricity danced across his suit before gradually dissipating into the air.
'It seems his magic is inaccessible while he's in his teenage form.' Strange briefly thought in observation.
Neither of them paid much attention to the transformation itself.
Instead, both pairs of eyes immediately dropped to the crystal orb still resting in Captain Marvel's hand.
The once-lifeless sphere had begun to react.
Soft golden lines slowly spread across its polished surface, glowing brighter with each passing second. Intricate patterns emerged one after another, weaving together into an impossibly complex design that seemed to exist both on the orb's exterior and somewhere deep within its crystalline core, as though countless magical layers were awakening simultaneously.
"Well... that just happened," Captain Marvel quipped, his dry humor disrupting the sudden silence since the blast from his transformation.
The remark earned an immediate reaction as Strange's eyes narrowed ever so slightly, recognition flashing across his face the instant he understood exactly what he was looking at.
"The Seal of Solomon," the Sorcerer Supreme murmured, identifying the ancient symbol now illuminating the orb with a strong certainty.