The doctor had to admit that when he was the age of this young sorcerer, he could never have been so calm.
"Are all sorcerers as special as you?" Holloway asked.
The young sorcerer glanced at him, a small smirk playing on his lips, a flicker of pride flashing in his black eyes. "Those who can't think calmly are already dead. You must have seen their corpses by now, right?"
Holloway's hand paused for a mont as he stitched the wound, then nodded in acknowledgnt.
Seeing him nod, the young sorcerer continued, "These bugs are experintal creatures, magical mutants. While they lack a commanding lord, the countless experints have made them highly resistant to magic. They're practically a sorcerer's natural enemy."
"Why would sorcerers give them magic resistance? Isn't that like creating your own doom?" the doctor asked, shaking his head as he flicked away so blood. The dark and damp environnt forced him to lean in close to see the wound clearly.
The young sorcerer's response was matter-of-fact: "For power, of course. Ordinary people create bigger bombs, stronger weapons. Sorcerers research more powerful spells and naturally, stronger servants."
Holloway opened his mouth but didn't say anything. Ordinary people fight other ordinary people, so it made sense that sorcerers' enemies were other sorcerers, making the creation of creatures with higher magical resistance logical.
Even though he barely understood the magical world, he ntally labeled sorcerers as dangerous.
"These insects aren't the root of the crisis. They're just a lucky group that escaped," the sorcerer said, his tone carrying the confidence of soone who had won. He looked down, watching the needle move through his skin. "When I saw them break out, I imdiately chose to leave, to find a place to hold my ground. Because I remained calm, I survived long enough for you to arrive. Survival of the fittest."
"But your companions are all dead."
"Forr companions," the sorcerer corrected, his face expressionless. "Once they died, they were no longer my companions. Sorcerers are responsible for protecting Earth, and those who died had no future because they lacked the power."
Holloway tied off the stitches and began wrapping the wound with bandages.
"But if we hadn't arrived in ti, you would've died too."
"I used every thod I could think of. I outran everyone else, even the head sorcerer. I watched the bugs devour him. If death were my fate, I would accept it without hesitation," the sorcerer said, showing a smile for the first ti. On his young face, that smile was chilling. "Death would just an I wasn't strong enough. The weak are ant to die."
The doctor didn't understand much about the world of sorcerers, but it didn't sound like a friendly place. Was everyone in the sorcerer world living like beasts in the jungle?
"I don't get your sorcerer ways, but power isn't everything in this world."
The young sorcerer gave him a half-smile, not arguing. "I used to be an ordinary person, and I thought just like you."
But then, sothing seed to darken in his expression, his face turning cold once again, emotionless like a corpse. "But now, power is the only thing I can pursue."
His gaze shifted to Su Ming, who stood at the cave entrance. Su Ming's black-and-yellow armor held the line, cutting through bugs with ease, turning them into shattered pieces that flew away. The creatures, which had seed so terrifying before, no longer looked threatening.
That's the benefit of power.
Holloway sighed. This child's way of thinking was clearly problematic, as if he had grown numb to everything in life, leaving only a hunger for strength. The doctor couldn't imagine what this young sorcerer had been through, but after finishing the bandaging, he removed his rubber gloves and wiped his mustache.
"Alright, what's your na, young man?"
The young sorcerer braced himself against the cave wall and stood up. He muttered a short spell, and a glowing, intricate magical sigil ford in his hand, shining with golden light.
But, like an unstable power source, it flickered a few tis before vanishing.
He twitched his mouth, sighed, and looked up at the much taller Holloway.
"I'm Kaecilius, a disciple of the Sorcerer Supre."
Standing guard at the cave entrance, Su Ming had been multitasking. Although the bugs were manageable after setting up the tactics, he had kept an ear on the conversation inside the cave. He knew exactly what was going on between the two.
Upon hearing the young sorcerer's na, a flood of information about Kaecilius appeared in Su Ming's mind.
Kaecilius wasn't a character from the comics, but a creation of the movie universe. Su Ming didn't know much about his life's trajectory.
All he knew was that in the movie universe, Kaecilius eventually betrayed the sorcerers and went to work for Dormammu, though he didn't seem particularly smart.
But here and now, Kaecilius was showing remarkable precociousness. Despite his cold deanor and ruthless philosophy, he had survived. That was a fact.
Perhaps Su Ming's presence had altered history, or perhaps it was nudging the world toward a more familiar movie-based narrative.
As Su Ming pondered this, his sword continued to slice effortlessly through the bugs, splitting one in half, its dark blood splattering onto him.
This world had already beco unfamiliar enough. A few more complications didn't matter. The ti-travel point Su Ming had arrived at was much earlier than he expected, but his goal remained unchanged—there were several things he needed from the Marvel Universe.
And Kaecilius, from a certain perspective, was destined to beco soone significant. Dormammu, one of the most powerful beings in the universe, had chosen him out of Earth's billions to serve as his agent—that alone was telling.
Su Ming and the doctor had saved his life today. While Su Ming didn't expect any imdiate repaynt, who knew what might happen in the future?
Dormammu's dark dinsion powers—if even the Ancient One had used them to her benefit—could be sothing worth experinting with. Maybe, when the ti ca, Kaecilius could repay today's favor by sharing so of that energy with Su Ming.
Su Ming was immortal, but his allies weren't. People like Gin had followed him for many years and had proven useful. He needed to find a way to extend their lives too.
In fact, his idea of stealing the super-soldier serum was partly for this reason. He didn't need his people to beco Captain Aricas, just to live longer.
Of course, Dr. Erskine wouldn't cooperate easily, and deciding who to give the last vial of serum to would be another problem. The process also required Howard Stark's radiation chamber, an imnse amount of electricity, and expert technicians.
It was sothing to consider after his current tasks were complete.
As Su Ming's thoughts raced, his hands didn't slow. Sword strikes to the left and right quickly cleared the area.
"Thwack. Thwack."
With a small mountain of bug corpses piling up in front of him, Su Ming drove his two swords into the ground at his feet. Thick insect fluids oozed down the blades.
"Alright, you can co out now. It's safe," Su Ming said, folding his arms across his chest and turning to speak into the cave.
The Cloak of Levitation was the first to react. It flew out of the cave, stretching in the air as if it were shaking off stiffness from being cooped up. But it still held tightly onto the gem Su Ming had given it.
Kaecilius was the second to step out, and when he saw the mountain of corpses and the sea of blood, a glimr of light flashed in his eyes before fading quickly.
After giving Su Ming a formal sorcerer's bow, Kaecilius understood that this powerful stranger had saved him for a reason. He stood patiently, waiting for whatever question Su Ming might ask.
Reviews
All reviews (0)