The sun rose as it always did, its light dimmed by heavy clouds, casting a drowsy haze over the world.
Constantine staggered out of his home, bleary-eyed. Angel was already waiting at the door, her patience wearing thin.
After his plea to become Ancient One's apprentice, she had calmly refused him.
It wasn't that Ancient One begrudged him the chance to grow stronger. Constantine had his own path to tread.
Every word from his mouth was a riddle, impossible to parse for truth. Ancient One assumed he was joking.
As agreed, Constantine was to escort Angel to the Vatican.
Gabriel, the fallen angel, had lost his divine status. Bereft of power, he needed a place to take refuge.
At the very least, it would keep him safe from being sent back to Heaven by some insignificant demon.
He had hoped to seek Bul-Kathos' protection, but the barbarian had no reason to shelter a sin-tainted angel.
No matter how devout the faith or noble the purpose, sin remained sin.
Going to Heaven wasn't redemption. What was so special about Heaven?
Back when Bul-Kathos fought demons, he practically took daily trips to High Heaven, cleaning up the messes Diablo left behind.
No matter how lofty its name, Heaven was just a place.
Redemption through ascension? What a joke.
Bul-Kathos' mind was elsewhere. He planned to have Coulson arrange a driving test. He'd memorized the traffic rules and was eager to keep his promise to take Jill for a ride soon.
Luke, carrying Baal's severed head, returned to the safehouse with Matthew.
Both men now realized how troublesome their ignorance of the occult had become.
Constantine had given them his card, but deep down, they resisted working with him.
There was always a nagging feeling they'd be used.
Perhaps the friends Constantine had sacrificed felt the same at first. Yet, facing Hell's might, they had no choice but to offer themselves up.
That might be why they entrusted everything to Constantine, only to have their sacrifices feel like betrayal—or a price paid with their lives.
Constantine was purely human. He had witnessed the might of Heaven and Hell but had only heard tales of humans rivaling angels and demons. Until now, he'd never seen one.
To him, humans couldn't face angels or demons head-on.
So he sacrificed friends—even himself—to oppose them.
Constantine wasn't a good man. Calling him scum would be polite.
But from humanity's perspective, he was arguably great.
Ancient One had considered training him for a time. His cunning rivaled that of Strange, who might or might not appear in the future.
But she didn't trust him.
Constantine's reckless antics, however lighthearted they seemed, could spiral into catastrophe if he gained power.
As a "powerful" medium, he'd already provoked half of Hell's named demons. Few in Hell didn't know his name.
If given more power, would he stir up trouble with beings like Cytorak?
Though Ancient One felt stronger than ever, she had little confidence against entities of Cytorak's caliber.
Ruling a dimension was not the same as ruling a universe.
So, she decided to observe Constantine a while longer before making a decision.
In the world of Marvel, everything seemed crafted for conflict. Even if you dragged the original comic editor in, they couldn't clarify the power levels of these characters.
Constantine was baffled. How could Bul-Kathos dispatch Satan so effortlessly, leaving only faint traces at the scene?
It felt mismatched, as if their powers existed on entirely different planes.
If Ancient One had heard his doubts, having glimpsed countless timelines, she might have said:
"Gods like Galactus fall and rise countless times.
Mephisto crumbles before the Midnight Sons, mere foot soldiers, yet orchestrates cataclysmic schemes as a mastermind.
Doctor Doom, in a fit of rage, unleashes energy to topple ascetics and shatter walls. Yet, in a moment of whimsy, he becomes the multiverse's ruler.
Blackheart can whisper in Eternity's ear, convincing him to imprison Death itself, only to die absurdly at the hands of a Ghost Rider.
Zatannos, Hell's primordial elemental demon, feared even by Mephisto.
Yet, merged with the Spirit of Vengeance, he's reduced to a backdrop, merely adding flair to the Ghost Rider's bike.
Hellfire, casually unleashed, becomes the Rider's ultimate weapon.
Need I list more examples of their feats and failures?
The Hulk, at his peak, can tear the universe apart, yet early on, he flinched from tanks in pain.
Captain Marvel can single-handedly destroy cosmic fleets, her Binary form hailed as stronger than gods.
Yet she merely pierces ships like a nail through wood.
Thanos, the cosmic overlord, can replace all gods as the universe's sole ruler, yet he fights with crude military punches, cleaving foes with his blade.
The Scarlet Witch, with a scream, reduced mutants to a mere hundred, yet she only tears robots apart with chaos magic.
Satan—Lucifer, the Dark Prince, lord of a Hell dimension—was easily slain by a half-powered Ghost Rider.
This world doesn't need you to question their strength or destruction. It's just that strange!"
Constantine's doubts would go unanswered, but he was undeniably walking a path too vast to measure.
Constantine might have a sliver of potential to become a Supreme Sorcerer, but Ancient One wasn't ready to gamble.
His chaotic nature was too unpredictable. Who could say what incomprehensible thing he might do next?
Author's Note
Apologies for the delay; I couldn't get up on time.
Some readers might skip author's notes, so I've woven this explanation into the main text to avoid feeling too jarring.
To those questioning destructive power: movies differ vastly from comics. Thanos, nearly omnipotent and rivaling the One-Above-All, still throws clumsy punches.
Or just stands there, doing nothing.
In Bul-Kathos' battles, I've always emphasized his restrained, careful use of power.
What happens if a protagonist rivaling Death or Eternity unleashes their full might?
Eternity's full force destroys stars!
Death's imprisonment unbalances the universe!
Should Bul-Kathos act once and obliterate Earth or the universe to satisfy some readers' doubts about destructive power?
This isn't Dragon Ball, where a dragon can restore Earth.
Don't judge based solely on one Marvel or DC work's portrayal of a character. In another, they might die absurdly as a background figure.
(Chapter End)
-----------------------------------
Want to know what happens next?
Why wait when you can find out before everyone else!
All the latest advanced chapters are waiting for you on Patreon.
Exclusive content, early access and direct support for your favorite series!
Join now and be one of the first to discover what happens next:
👉 pat*eon*com/DaoistRoeoNQ
Your support helps me a lot!!