"How did you know the champion destined to battle this evil would arrive? I'm not even from this world, and you died... what, over a thousand years ago?" Billy asked, carefully skirting around the question he truly wanted answered. More than anything, he wanted to know if ending up in this universe had really been an accident... or if someone, somehow, had intended it all along.
"I cast a spell that searched across every possible world. It was an endeavor born from my desire to save my own, and in time, I succeeded," Solomon replied. "What I discovered was that every world shares one immutable constant. Sooner or later, each is confronted by a disaster—an apocalypse capable of bringing it to ruin. Any world whose inhabitants fail to find some means, however improbable, of surviving that catastrophe is ultimately doomed."
Billy quietly mulled over those words. 'Could that have been what happened to my world?'
"After God bestowed upon me the blessing of wisdom," Solomon continued, "there was scarcely a problem I could not solve. Every challenge seemed to have an answer, every puzzle a solution. In time, life itself became painfully dull, for it is adversity that broadens a man's horizons and allows him to grow. Without hardship, there was nothing left to strive for."
"One day, while praying at the temple, I brought this emptiness before God. In answer to my prayer, He revealed to me the existence of these ordeals that every world must inevitably face. Though each catastrophe differs in nature, they all serve the same purpose. It is almost as though every civilization is being tested—judged on whether it is worthy to continue existing."
A faint smile touched Solomon's lips as the memory resurfaced.
"The moment I learned of it, a thought came to me. 'Wouldn't it be fascinating to use the wisdom I had been granted to devise a way for this world to survive its trial?' It was a challenge unlike any I had ever encountered."
His expression, however, soon turned thoughtful.
"But after making that decision, I found myself staring at an obstacle I could not simply think my way around. Before I could even take my first step toward that goal, there was a wall standing directly before me."
Turning his gaze toward Billy, who floated silently in the endless void, Solomon raised an eyebrow.
"Care to guess?"
'What's with people always turning everything into a Q&A session?' Billy deadpanned inwardly.
"Guess I'd leave that one to you," he replied with a shrug.
The corner of Solomon's mouth twitched upward, the subtle wordplay not escaping him.
"How could I possibly devise a solution when I knew nothing of the catastrophe itself?" he said.
"To uncover the answer, I ventured into branches of magic that no righteous man should have touched. The very act stained my soul, and for the first time in my life, it felt as though God had withdrawn His presence from me. That was the price I paid to obtain a clairvoyance powerful enough to pierce the veil of destiny."
"Once I discovered that the Primordial Darkness was the catalyst destined to bring about this world's end, I buried myself in research without rest, searching relentlessly for a way to stop it. My studies eventually led me to peer into alternate realities through the eyes of my own variants, allowing me to witness countless worlds and the different paths they had taken."
"That was when I found your world," Solomon said. "In that reality, one of my variants united powers borrowed from other gods and forged a champion strong enough to stand against Knull's forces and prevent his escape. It was through observing that world that I came to understand what this one would eventually require. It was a power that could be passed down through the ages."
Billy frowned.
"And how exactly am I supposed to stop him from escaping when I don't even know where he's imprisoned?" he asked. "For all I know, he could be breaking out this very second."
"He'll need a key known as the Codex," Solomon warned. "Whatever you do, don't let his forces obtain it."
"A... what?" Billy echoed, one brow arching as he stared at the ancient king with an expression of genuine, almost comical confusion.
"Even I have no idea what exactly that is, a codex can be anything in any culture. Especially for a being that is as hold as the universe itself," Solomon answered. "Unfortunately, you won't be able to seek it out through your own efforts. Instead, allow the tides of fate—which still flow in favor of humanity's survival—to guide you. In time, they will bring you into contact with it."
'I feel like I should be taking notes or something,' Billy thought dryly.
Before he could ask another question, a powerful ripple surged through the endless void. The entire space trembled violently, a deep rumble reverberating in every direction as though reality itself were beginning to crack apart. The darkness around them shivered, and fragments of the spell seemed to peel away into nothingness.
"We're out of time," Solomon said, his eyes sweeping across the collapsing limbo as though he could see the magic sustaining it rapidly unraveling.
"Wait... already?" Billy blurted out, panic creeping into his voice.
'Shit... we spent so much time talking about everything else. I barely got any of the answers I actually needed.'
"I'm afraid so," Solomon replied, his voice carrying a note of reluctant finality.
Billy's mind raced frantically through everything he still wanted to know, trying to decide which question mattered most before this chance slipped away forever.
"Wait... my world..." he stammered before forcing the words out. "Was what happened there... also one of these cosmic trials?"
"Most likely," Solomon answered as though he knew the fate Billy's world had suffered. "You may not have been able to save your own world, yet here you stand, confronted by another catastrophe of the same nature. Consider this an opportunity for redemption—a chance to save this world, even if you could not save your own."
Billy fell silent for only a heartbeat before asking the question that had lingered at the back of his mind from the very beginning.
"Does that mean... you had a hand in bringing me to this world?"
As the final words left his lips, an overwhelming radiance erupted around them as the darkness vanished in an instant, replaced by an endless sea of blinding white. It was an empty expanse much like the void they had been standing in, yet where the previous one had been swallowed by darkness, this one was consumed entirely by light.
"Yes, with the help of my variant responsible for your powers as champion" Solomon replied.
Billy's eyes widened. Deep down, he had already suspected as much, but hearing the confirmation sent countless thoughts crashing through his mind all at once. Before he could voice even one of them, Solomon's final words echoed across the dissolving space.
"Good luck, humanity's Champion. Do your utmost to defend this world. Otherwise, yours shall be the last thunder to ever cast its light upon this world at the end of all life."
The ancient king's voice lingered in Billy's ears for a fleeting moment before fading away, dissolving like the remnants of a dream just beyond the edge of waking.
As though jolted awake from a deep sleep, Billy's eyes snapped open and he shot upright with a sharp gasp, drawing in a desperate breath as he settled into a seated position. Solomon's revelations still echoed vividly in his mind, every word regarding the Primordial Darkness etched into his thoughts.
Only now, back within his own body, did the full weight of those revelations truly settle over him. A lingering dread, absent while speaking with the ancient king, overwhelmingly washed through him.
He quickly surveyed his surroundings. They were back in the medical bay. Strange, Tony, and Steve had apparently been in the middle of a conversation before his sudden awakening drew all of their attention.
'At least this time it's the medical bay,' Billy mused inwardly.
"What happened, kid?" Steve asked first, concern evident in his voice.
"Got anything?" Tony followed without missing a beat.
Doctor Strange, whom Tony had called the moment Billy lost consciousness, remained silent. His gaze never left the boy, patiently waiting for him to speak. If Solomon's prophecy had truly revealed itself, then this was the moment he had been anticipating.
Billy lowered his eyes to his left hand and noticed it trembling uncontrollably. Only then did he realize just how frightened he was. The fear lingered deep within his nerves, and he couldn't understand why it hadn't affected him while speaking with Solomon.
'That place must've screened all of this away,' he concluded. 'The horror didn't truly settle in until I was back in contact with my physical sense.'
Taking a slow breath to steady himself, Billy began recounting everything that had transpired. He relayed his encounter with Solomon in full, repeating the warning, revelation, answers the ancient king had given him. As he spoke, the vague, fragmented prophecy they had been chasing finally began to take shape, painting a far clearer—and infinitely more terrifying—picture of the catastrophe looming over humanity.
Strange's expression subtly hardened as Billy continued. Though he remained composed, it was clear from the look in his eyes that his mind was racing. Of everyone present, he perhaps understood better than anyone just how grave the prophecy truly was.
"So, basically," Steve began once Billy had finished, carefully piecing everything together, "our only chance of surviving this great peril—a trial that's apparently meant to determine whether this world deserves to keep existing—is stopping this entity of darkness from getting his hands on this... Codex?"
Billy answered with a silent nod before turning toward Strange.
"Any idea what that is?" he asked.
The others instinctively shifted their attention to the Sorcerer Supreme as well.
Strange remained quiet for several moments, brows furrowed as he sifted through every piece of mystical knowledge he possessed in search of the name Solomon had given them. At last, he slowly shook his head.
"No," he admitted. "...But I do know where to look."
Tony had been watching Billy throughout the exchange, his usual sarcasm noticeably absent as the implications of everything he'd just heard settled over him. Thoughts of an enemy capable of butchering gods and ending worlds weighed heavily in his mind, along with the unsettling question of whether even the combined strength of Earth's mightiest heroes would be enough. Yet when he finally spoke, his voice betrayed none of that concern.
"Tell me his name again."
Billy held his gaze for a few deliberate seconds, allowing the silence to linger before quietly uttering the name that had haunted him ever since leaving Solomon's presence.
"Primordial Darkness... Knull."
- - -
Knull's looming existence had left the entire team on edge. Everyone threw themselves into preparations for the inevitable ordeal, each contributing in whatever way they could. Yet there was one glaring problem none of them could ignore. What preparations could anyone realistically make against a being capable of bringing about the end of worlds? Worse still, they had no clue where to even begin searching for the Codex—the one object Solomon claimed was humanity's only chance of preventing the calamity.
Despite the constant vigilance and planning, life refused to pause simply because the fate of the world hung in the balance. Bills still had to be paid, schools still opened their doors each morning, and people continued living blissfully unaware of the storm gathering beyond their sight. As absurd as it felt, the burden of humanity's survival now rested squarely on the shoulders of a seventeen-year-old boy who still had classes to attend.
With that in mind, Billy found himself returning to school after several days of absence. The hallways buzzed with students rushing between classes, conversations blending into the familiar chaos of lockers slamming and footsteps echoing against the tiled floor. As he navigated through the crowd, a distracted student accidentally shoulder-checked him while hurrying past.
Instantly, a groan escaped Billy before he could stop it.
Grimacing, he instinctively reached up and clutched his aching shoulder, trying not to wince too visibly.
'Shoot... everything hurts,' he thought as he quietly assessed the countless bruises hidden beneath his clothes.
The soreness was hardly surprising. Earlier that morning, Natasha had put him through another brutal training session. Having decided that Billy's age and complete lack of any official identity made him an ideal candidate for undercover work, she had begun teaching him skills suited for infiltration.
Today's lesson had revolved around learning how to dislocate and reset certain joints with minimal pain. Before he could ever do it himself, however, Natasha insisted he experience it firsthand. With the aid of a paralytic nerve agent, she repeatedly dislocated and reset his shoulders, wrists, and thumbs until he could almost predict the sensation before it happened.
According to her, they couldn't afford to ignore any skill that might one day keep him alive.
If he ever found himself captured, restrained, or trapped somewhere impossible to escape and his powers happen to be having an off day, being able to slip a joint free and relocate it afterward might very well be the difference between life and death. It wasn't pleasant training by any stretch of the imagination, but Natasha wasn't interested in pleasant. She was interested in survival.
And there after, she had Clint spar with Billy for combat training. Of which he was very obliged to leave the boy battered and all bruised up. 'You better step up your game kid, or next time you'll be going to school with a black eye.' As the thought of Clint's words to him after giving him absolute belt-to-ass went through his head, he was drawn out of thought.
"Well, if it isn't Dorothy." Gwen greeted him with an amused grin as he approached. "Guess the Wizard finally let you come home?"
"…The what now?" Billy asked, blinking in confusion before the reference finally clicked a second later. "Oh... a Wizard of Oz joke. Clever."
"You mean The Enchanter of ZO," Gwen corrected with a playful smirk.
'Right... different world,' Billy reminded himself.
"Yeah," he replied with a small nod. "That."
Before either of them could continue, the school bell rang throughout the hall, its shrill tone cutting through the chatter and sending students scrambling toward their classrooms.
As lockers slammed shut up and down the hallway, Gwen looked at Billy, a flicker of disappointment briefly surfacing on her face before she tucked it away behind her usual composure.
"How about we talk later?" she suggested.
"Yeah, sure," Billy replied with an easy nod.
Just then, Ned and Peter caught up to him, and the three of them made their way toward class together.
"Look who finally decided to grace us with his presence," Peter remarked with a grin as they stepped into the classroom.
Billy simply shrugged, taking his seat as the lesson began.
Barely fifteen minutes had passed before the classroom speakers crackled to life, the announcement echoing through every hallway and classroom in the school.
"Mr. Batson, report to the Principal's Office. Now."
Billy froze.
'Fuck... why does it have to be the principal's office?' he inwardly groaned as he pushed himself out of his chair. 'What trouble have I gotten myself into this time? I haven't even been at school, for crying out loud.'
Trying not to dwell on every worst-case scenario his imagination eagerly supplied, he slung his bag over one shoulder and headed for the door.
The moment he stepped into the hallway, however, his attention was stolen by the sight of a girl approaching from the opposite direction.
She possessed shoulder-length platinum-blonde hair that framed a pale, angular face. Her beauty wasn't the delicate, conventionally soft kind, but something more striking. High cheekbones, well-defined brows, and an expression so calm and unreadable that it betrayed nothing of the thoughts behind her eyes gave her an almost ethereal presence.
For a brief moment, Billy found himself staring.
She was undeniably beautiful.
As she drew closer, their eyes met for only a couple of seconds before they passed one another without a word, each continuing on their respective paths. Billy couldn't help but glance back for the briefest instant before reminding himself he had more pressing concerns than drooling over hot girls.
A few minutes later, he arrived outside the principal's office.
After knocking twice, he heard a voice invite him inside.
Billy pushed the door open and stepped in, finding the principal seated behind her desk. A pair of glasses rested neatly on her face, lending her the composed, scholarly air of someone who had spent a lifetime surrounded by books and students alike.
She folded her hands atop the desk and regarded him for a long, measured moment before finally speaking.
"Tell me, Mr. Batson," she began, her tone calm enough to make him even more nervous, "do you intend to graduate... or would you rather repeat your senior year?"
'Ehh!?'
Billy felt as though an invisible arrow had suddenly shot straight through his back, leaving him completely blindsided by the question.