Fastest update of "Clark in the Marvel Universe"!
Kathmandu, Nepal.
Kathmandu is the capital and largest city of Nepal. It sits in the Kathmandu Valley at the confluence of the Bagmati and Bishnumati Rivers. Surrounded by mountains, the city was founded in 723 AD and has a history spanning over 1,200 years.
Though a famous tourist destination, Kathmandu's sanitation conditions seem just as ancient as its history.
"Clark, where exactly is this Kamar-Taj temple you mentioned?" Diana asked as they sat in a local-style restaurant, sampling Nepali cuisine after a full afternoon of exploring the city.
"Uh… let's just call it a vacation." Clark felt a little embarrassed.
He had assumed that once they arrived in Kathmandu, finding Kamar-Taj would be easy. But reality hit hard—it wasn't.
That afternoon, Clark asked around town about Kamar-Taj, but as expected, no one knew what he was talking about. Then he took to the skies, scanning the entire city—still nothing.
Clark remembered from Doctor Strange that Kamar-Taj was located inside a small courtyard, but Kathmandu had countless courtyards, and he couldn't tell which one was the right one.
"I've been here before," Diana said, gazing out the window, lost in thought. "But… not on this Earth."
She recalled her time in Kathmandu decades ago, shortly after losing Steve Trevor. She had been lost and heartbroken, leaving behind Themyscira and trying to hide the fact that she never aged. Back then, she had to relocate every few years.
Kathmandu was one of the places she'd lived. But now, it felt like a lifetime ago. After being randomly teleported by the Tesseract, Diana realized these unstable jumps would never take her home.
Her powers didn't include teleportation. And even if the Tesseract could cross universes, she had no idea where her own universe was. So… she slowly gave up on the idea of returning.
"Is it the same?" Clark asked, noticing Diana's silence.
"Huh?" She snapped out of her thoughts.
"The scenery here. Is it the same as the Kathmandu on your Earth?"
"I don't know. When I came here, World War II had just ended. It wasn't a tourist city like this. It was rundown, but… peaceful."
Her memories had faded with time. But what stuck in her mind about that Kathmandu… was quiet.
"Then let me show you the new Kathmandu," Clark said warmly.
By now, he knew that unless the Ancient One sent someone, there was no way he'd ever find Kamar-Taj in this massive city on his own.
"Excuse me, are you Mr. Kent?" A man in a hood appeared as Clark and Diana were paying their bill.
"Who are you?" Clark asked, instantly reminded of the Ancient One by the man's outfit. It wasn't exactly the same, but the style was unmistakably similar.
"By order of the Supreme Master, I've come to guide you," the man said, lowering his hood.
He wasn't Asian as Clark had expected, but a Black man. At the sight of his face, a name flashed in Clark's mind.
"Mordo?" Clark recognized him from the post-credits scene of Doctor Strange. Mordo was one of the few names Clark remembered.
"You know me?" Mordo was surprised but quickly reasoned it out—perhaps the Ancient One had told him about these two. If the Supreme Master had sent him to greet them, they must be important.
"Please, follow me."
"Let's go, Diana. Looks like you're about to see one of Earth's great mystical powers—Kamar-Taj." Clark grinned at her, as if to say "See? I found it after all."
Diana smiled in return and gave Clark a playful push toward Mordo.
Mordo led them through several winding alleys before stopping in front of a rundown building. He stepped forward and opened the door, then turned to Clark with a nod.
Clark looked up and realized—he'd flown past this exact building earlier that day but hadn't given it a second glance. It was too ordinary.
"Mr. Kent, this is Kamar-Taj," Mordo said, seeing Clark hesitate. He assumed Clark didn't believe it was really the entrance to the mystical temple.
But that was normal. Everyone who came to Kamar-Taj for the first time had doubts—even Mordo had once felt the same. So he wasn't surprised by Clark's reaction.
Driven by curiosity for magic, Clark led Diana into Kamar-Taj.
Inside, it looked exactly like the great hall from the Doctor Strange movie. At the center stood the Ancient One, alongside another man, both waiting for them.
"Welcome, Mr. Kent… and the warrior princess."
"You know me?" Diana asked, surprised when the bald man addressed her by name.
"Of course. The Goddess of War from Themyscira. I noticed your arrival in this world from the very first day. After all, your presence is stronger than anyone else's."
As she spoke, the Ancient One briefly glanced at Clark.
Clark chuckled inwardly: "Hey, I've got presence too, you know. You just haven't seen it." But little did he know, she meant him—as someone whose presence was… less overwhelming.
"Clark, you came here because of the energy inside you, right?" the Ancient One asked gently.
She had been watching Clark for a while and could already guess why he was here.
"Yes, Master. Can you help me control it?"
Clark didn't want to get rid of the Tesseract energy inside him. It had been absorbed when he used his energy suit. If anything, he wanted to learn how to control it.
After all, even if the Ancient One could purge the energy, he might still activate the suit near the Tesseract in the future—and get teleported again. And if that happened, there was no guarantee he'd make it back.
Clark suspected the only reason he returned last time was because Loki activated the Tesseract again. Otherwise, he'd probably still be hitchhiking across the galaxy.
"I can't deal with that kind of energy directly. But I can offer you training here at Kamar-Taj to help you learn how to control it yourself."
"Thank you, Master," Clark replied gratefully. He felt this was the best solution.
"Kaecilius, please take our guests to their quarters," the Ancient One said, turning to a man who looked to be in his forties.
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