Location: Nepal – Kamar-Taj
Time: 3:33 a.m.
The doors of Kamar-Taj opened before I could knock.
Magic didn't need keys.
A monk in orange robes, no older than twenty, bowed and gestured me forward. "The Masters have been expecting you, Victor Wick."
Of course they had.
[System Notice: High Arcane Field Detected]
> Passive Scan Enabled
Mystic Barriers: Layered (13)
Eldritch Signature: Ancient One, Wong
Temporal Irregularities Present
The place hummed with time magic. The air felt like it existed in ten dimensions at once.
One wrong move, and I could fall into 1835—or a version of 1835 where squirrels ruled the world.
No thanks.
---
The Inner Sanctum
The Ancient One waited atop marble steps, shrouded in a golden aura.
Her bald head gleamed under candlelight. Her eyes saw too much.
"Victor Wick," she greeted, voice calm. "The anomaly. The host. The future tyrant… and possibly its savior."
"I've had worse titles," I replied.
She gestured toward the floor. "Sit. The timelines are unstable, and knowledge may be the only anchor you have left."
I sat. Reluctantly.
And she began.
---
"Time," she said, "is not linear. It's a prism. Each choice, each heartbeat, refracts a possibility. Most humans walk blind through it. But not you."
"You're saying I'm a time traveler?"
"No. You're a constant."
That made me pause.
"Explain."
She walked in a slow circle around me.
"There are many timelines. Some with Ultron victorious. Some where Loki ruled Earth. Some where Tony Stark became Sorcerer Supreme. But in almost every timeline where the System manifests…"
She pointed at me.
"…you appear. As its host. As its blade. Or as its bomb."
---
A cold chill ran down my spine.
"You're saying I'm inevitable?"
"No," she corrected. "You're persistent."
She raised her hand, and the room warped.
The walls melted into stars. I was floating in a sea of infinite Earths, timelines playing like film reels.
There I was—training with Matt Murdock.
There I was—dying on Titan.
There I was—devouring Dormammu.
"What the hell am I?"
She looked at me solemnly.
"Not a chosen one. Not a mistake. You're a pressure valve."
---
[System Sync: Forbidden Knowledge Interfacing…]
> Unlocking Timeline Class: Temporal Core Host
Trait Acquired: "Anchor of Probability"
– Immune to minor timeline resets
– Can retain memories across universes
– Can destabilize false realities on contact
My head spun.
"So… someone—or something—put me here to keep the universe in balance?"
"Not balance," she said. "To stop it from collapsing when too many threats converge."
"And what's converging now?"
Her expression darkened.
---
"Project Omega," she said. "A cross-timeline coalition of broken system hosts. You've already met Morrigan."
I clenched my fists. "She nearly killed me."
"She's just the scout," the Ancient One replied. "There are others. One of them is here."
I blinked. "Here?"
"In the Mirror Dimension. Contained… for now."
Suddenly Wong appeared beside us.
"She's waking up."
---
Mirror Dimension Containment Zone
We passed through a rune-covered portal. The world twisted—glass and kaleidoscope geometry spinning around us.
Suspended in the center was a woman in a black cloak, restrained by light chains.
Eyes glowing faintly blue.
"Who is she?" I asked.
Wong answered grimly.
"Codename: Oracle. Timeline: 'Red Library.' She was a Watcher who bonded with her universe's System Core… and tried to rewrite history across multiverses."
"Failed?"
"Almost succeeded."
---
I stepped closer. Her eyes snapped open.
And for a moment—I wasn't in the Mirror Dimension.
I was in her mind.
Books flying. Worlds burning. A library collapsing into the void.
And in the center… me.
But not Victor Wick.
A twisted version, pale-skinned, white-eyed, commanding legions of corrupted Avengers with system runes etched into their bones.
Oracle's voice echoed in my skull.
> "You become him. If the seal breaks. If the Code Lock fails. You become Sovereign Prime."
I staggered back.
Wong caught me.
"You okay?"
No.
But I nodded.
---
Back in the Sanctum
The Ancient One handed me a scroll wrapped in silver thread.
"This is a Gate Sigil," she explained. "If you ever need to reset the local timeline by five minutes, use it."
"Only five?"
"Any more, and you'll risk unraveling yourself."
"Helpful."
She placed a hand on my shoulder.
"You can still change. Still choose. But if Project Omega succeeds, the timeline will collapse into a single, dark continuity… ruled by Sovereign Prime."
"And that's me?"
"In the worst case," she said. "Yes."
---
[System Alert: Global Threat Level Upgraded]
> Project Omega Phase II Imminent
Warning: Anomaly Spotted in London – Energy Spike near MI-13 Black Site
I turned to Wong.
"I need a portal to London."
He sighed. "You people never rest, do you?"
"Nope."
---
Elsewhere: London – Omega Spire Facility
Alex stood in front of a swirling energy core.
Morrigan knelt beside him, scars across her cheek, regenerating slowly.
Behind them, the third host stepped out of the shadows.
His face was burned.
His voice metallic.
"I'm ready."
[System Host: Codename "Revenant"]
> Template: Ghost Rider / Ultron / Red Hood
Trait: Pain Memory Loop – Increases power through suffering
Objective: Break Timeline Anchor (Victor Wick)
Alex nodded.
"Let's kill our past."
---