Under the night sky, the Carpathian Mountains resembled an ancient beast crouching upon the earth, stretching in an arc from the Danube River valley at the border of Austria and Slovakia, eastward through Poland and Ukraine, all the way to the Iron Gates gorge in Romania.
Near the border of Latveria, deep in the dense forests of the southeastern mountains, a Roma tribe had set up camp. In the quiet of the night, tents were pitched on the leeward side of the mountain, beside a shallow, crystal-clear stream.
A few dying embers of bonfires still glowed faintly.
A dozen or so battered old pickup trucks encircled the tents, forming a crude temporary settlement. Such was the life of the Roma... never settling in one place for long, drifting between fringe towns, deliberately or inadvertently evading censuses, isolating themselves from the world.
Among them were skilled coppersmiths from Romania, talented mechanics, and more famously, troupes of acrobats and dancing girls. But the most mysterious were the Roma fortune-tellers and spirit mediums.
Whenever they arrived in a town, these women holding crystal balls, their faces painted with vibrant colors, always drew plenty of business, especially in remote backward villages.
Suddenly, a thick fog rose from the depths of the forest, spreading rapidly toward the Roma camp like a rolling tide, swallowing the tents in an instant.
From within the gray fog emerged Kaecilius, draped in black robes. The fallen sorcerer, once of Kamar-Taj, bore a red sigil on his forehead. That was the mark of Dormammu's gaze.
His eyes were corroded by the energy of the Dark Dimension, his skin cracked and broken, revealing dark purple veins beneath.
He had stolen forbidden rituals from Kamar-Taj's library, the rites to commune with the Dark Dimension and summon Dormammu. Following that, he willingly became a dark enforcer that walked the material world.
"This is far from enough. I need more zealots." Kaecilius spoke in a tone almost like a chant, the fog swirling around him as though alive.
Tents were torn open, their occupants ripped from peaceful slumber. In moments, the life force of the Roma was drained, leaving behind withered corpses.
"None of them endured Dormammu's gaze. A pity."
Behind Kaecilius surged a black tide. In a short time, he had used his dark rituals to amass a following of fanatics.
Like him, they had been deceived by Dormammu's promise of an eternal home. Craving the power of immortality, they willingly became part of the Dark Dimension.
"Ah, here's a lucky little one."
The fog dragged forward a young girl in a linen robe, her head wrapped in a Bohemian-style scarf, golden hair braided neatly.
Her childish face twisted in pain, yet she had endured Dormammu's gaze. The energy of the Dark Dimension was transforming her. Soon, she would join Kaecilius as another zealot.
"Welcome into the embrace of darkness–" Kaecilius reached out to touch her head, then suddenly recoiled.
Space twisted violently. A bolt of lightning pierced the fog, striking a tent as though missing its mark.
The blinding flare illuminated the mist, revealing a figure in a deep green cloak, a stern metal mask emerging from within.
"This is my territory. No one acts with impunity here." Doctor Doom's voice echoed, low and rough, his gaze cold.
Electricity coiled around his metal arm like a serpent, ready to strike. Behind him, the Iron Legion descended from the sky one after another, slamming onto the hard ground with metallic thuds.
"Victor von Doom..." Kaecilius didn't seem surprised.
The last time he had been in Latveria, he had conducted a dark ritual that left over a hundred dead, and clashed with Doom's forces.
"If this is about that incident, I deeply regret it. Those people have returned to the embrace of the Dark Dimension, where they now know eternal peace." The fallen sorcerer, if one ignored his eerie attire, spoke more like a philosopher or a refined nobleman, "Mr. Doom, I've heard you were once a scientist, and now you have devoted yourself to study magic. So you must understand the laws of nature. All things must come to an end."
Kaecilius made no move to fight yet. Instead, he regarded Doom and his legion with a solemn expression, saying, "No matter what it is; be it civilizations, or species, all march toward extinction. It is the irreversible rule of the universe. But the Dark Dimension is different. There, time does not pass. By submitting to Dormammu, we escape death, just like the countless worlds within his realm. We will embrace life, and attain eternal peace."
His voice rose and fell with fervor as he preached Dormammu's greatness, eyes burning with fanatical devotion, "Humans ponder good and evil, yet remain blind to their true enemy, that being time. It erases all, and destroys everything."
It was enough to send chills down one's spine.
Doom sneered. He wasn't buying it. He demanded, "And what of those you sacrificed, whose flesh and blood fed Dormammu? Did you tell them the same?"
"They were insignificant. Mere specks of dust in the vast cosmos." Kaecilius spoke loudly, meeting Doom's gaze earnestly. He added, "We are all slaves to time, trapped in the cage of death. The only way to break free and to transcend time is to serve and worship Dormammu! Mr. Doom, my actions are not for dominion, nor ambition. I seek only to save all, to place the future in the hands of Dormammu, the Lord of All."
"You think you see the truth, yet, like a fool, you remain blind." The fog parted like a tide, revealing a tall figure.
Sean stood with a faint smile, observing Kaecilius...
This fallen sorcerer, who was once favored by the Ancient One, and is now a zealot of Dormammu, had a tragic past. He had lost his beloved wife and child long ago. This caused him to lose hope in life, believing he had nothing left to live for. So, he drowned himself in alcohol.
Then, he came to Kamar-Taj, witnessed the power of magic, and became the Ancient One's disciple.
Kaecilius was undeniably a natural born sorcerer. His progress stunned even the Ancient One. While others were still fixated on superficial perceptions, he had already entered the realm of magic.
An old saying fit him well: "Deep love does not last; excessive wisdom brings sorrow."
Beneath his devotion lay an unshakable grief for his family. And as his mastery grew, Kaecilius gradually yearned for more, like the ability to reverse time and bring his departed loved ones back to him..
He feared death. Feared time. And so he sought power in the darkest of magics.
This corrupted sorcerer was the first in Kamar-Taj to voice doubt, to accuse the Ancient One of deception, of not being the selfless saint she seemed.
And he was right.
He uncovered the truth: that the great Sorcerer Supreme had broken Kamar-Taj's oldest laws. She had forsaken the Vishanti, and instead embraced the Dark Dimension...