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During the Lunar New Year, Fini took Skye to Hong Kong to accompany his parents and experience the festive atmosphere of the New Year. The elderly couple had grown quite fond of the local cuisine and planned to settle in Hong Kong temporarily, which made Fini overjoyed.
In any case, as long as it wasn't New York, anywhere was fine. If it weren't for Skye's stubborn refusal, he would have wanted to drop her off with his parents as well, rather than having her stay in New York.
In the new year, Fini didn't wait for his fifth extraction, but he did encounter someone at Kamar-Taj who was somewhat unexpected, yet also within his expectations.
Kaecilius—the "two-faced" mage who, in a future without Fini's intervention, would likely betray Kamar-Taj and throw himself under Dormammu's banner.
He was even the one who stabbed the Sorcerer Supreme, the Ancient One, who had already intended to die.
Looking at this man, Fini's gaze was very grave. At this moment, Kaecilius didn't have those dark circles around his eyes yet; he wasn't even a mage. Dressed in pale yellow training robes with fluffy hair and messy stubble, his entire body exuded an aura of sorrow and despair.
Those eyes looked as if they were dead.
Regarding such a person—someone who looked like they could tell a dozen tragic stories over a glass of plain water—no one could imagine that he would betray them in the future and attempt to let Dormammu invade Earth.
Except, of course, for a certain someone!
"This guy doesn't look like a good person at all. We should just let him leave!"
Fini's repeated emphasis made Mordo wonder if Kaecilius had offended Fini somewhere before.
"Fini, he is just a poor man who lost his wife and son. He came to Kamar-Taj seeking redemption. Why are you constantly targeting him!?"
"No, look at this face, this nose, these eyes—he definitely doesn't look like a good person!"
"Fini, stop messing around."
Seeing Fini being so unreasonable, Mordo got a bit angry. It was Mordo who had brought Kaecilius back; not long ago, he had seen a foul-smelling Kaecilius at the entrance of a bar.
Seeing those lost eyes, Mordo thought of his former self, so he brought him back to Kamar-Taj, hoping to help him here.
But he didn't expect it would draw such heavy prejudice from Fini, especially the kind without a logical reason.
Fini was anxious, but he didn't know how to explain. If asked what the one thing he wanted to change most was, it would undoubtedly be the death of the Ancient One. This was related to whether Thanos could snap those fingers in the future.
Was Thanos strong?
Of course he was. He could destroy so many planets, beat the Hulk to the point where he couldn't fight back, and had an army at his disposal. He was definitely a top-tier powerhouse in the universe.
However,
If the Ancient One were still there, Thanos wouldn't dare to come and snatch the Time Stone so easily, especially since Odin was also protecting the Earth and overseeing the Space Stone.
Both the Ancient One and Odin were powerhouses not inferior to Thanos. If they were around, it couldn't be said that the future "snap" would absolutely never happen, but the probability would at least be much smaller.
In Fini's view, although Kaecilius was only one factor influencing the Ancient One's death, he was still a factor. If he could nip everything in the bud, the Ancient One wouldn't have to die.
Unfortunately, this first step had failed. Looking at the somewhat angry Mordo, Fini opened his mouth but eventually sighed and said nothing.
Regardless, it would still be several years before Doctor Strange grew into his role. For now, there was no need to worry too much about the Ancient One's mindset. At the very least, before the next Sorcerer Supreme matured, the Ancient One wouldn't feel at peace enough to die.
Another reason Fini didn't want Kaecilius to stay was that he didn't know how to prevent Kaecilius from turning to Dormammu.
From the plot he knew, Kaecilius seemed to hope that everyone in the world would obtain eternal life, which is why he requested Dormammu's descent.
Though, Dormammu's understanding of "eternal" and his understanding of "eternal" were probably quite different.
Actually, if Thanos knew about this idea, he might be the first one to want to kill him. If everyone's life was eternal, what would happen to planetary resources? What would happen to population expansion?
For a person that even the Ancient One couldn't guide back, Fini didn't feel that a few words from him could change a person's character. Instead of that, it was better to cut off his path from the start.
If it were someone else who had brought Kaecilius back, Fini would definitely have tried every means possible—even if it meant offending people—to fight to kick Kaecilius out.
But the person who brought him back just had to be Mordo. Mordo had helped him a lot, and he didn't want to ruin the friendship between them because of this.
Since it wouldn't work with Mordo, Fini had no choice but to go to the Ancient One. In reality, whether Kaecilius could stay or not was something only the Ancient One could truly decide.
Inside the room, when Fini came to the door, the Ancient One was sitting cross-legged with eyes closed in meditation. In the room filled with curling green smoke, it was peaceful and serene.
Fini came before the Ancient One and said cautiously, "Teacher, that Kaecilius whom Senior Brother Mordo brought back—don't you think there's something wrong with him?"
The Ancient One opened her eyes, her spirited gaze fixed on Fini, and asked, "What is the problem?"
"I feel like he won't be a good person in the future."
Fini said through gritted teeth. He didn't believe the Ancient One didn't know what Kaecilius's future would be like.
"So, we should work even harder to make him a good person in the future."
The Ancient One continued calmly, "Fini, you should give him a chance. He hasn't made a choice about the future yet, has he?"
Hearing this, Fini was somewhat speechless. Yes, no matter how you put it, the current Kaecilius was just a poor man who had lost his loved ones.
As long as he hadn't truly chosen to side with Dormammu, the Ancient One was willing to give him a chance. This was the Sorcerer Supreme of Kamar-Taj—a "goody-two-shoes" to a fault.
"Sigh, alright."
Fini knew he couldn't change the Ancient One's decision. He could only sigh, hoping there would be a chance to change Kaecilius in the future.
"Fini, don't always think about avoiding danger; instead, think about solving danger."
The Ancient One said softly, "I believe that if it's you, no matter what kind of difficulty it is, you can find a way to deal with it."
Fini secretly rolled his eyes and didn't take it seriously. Back then, she said he had such a big impact on the world, yet a year has passed, and everything seems quite ordinary now.
"I understand."
Fini nodded heavily. The matter with Abomination wasn't resolved yet, and now there was another layer of threat from Kaecilius. Fortunately, this threat should still have a few years to brew.
After bidding farewell to the Ancient One, Fini went to peek at Kaecilius again.
It had to be said that Kaecilius possessed a unique charm. Although his face was full of grief and sorrow, one could still see that he seemed to have a rebellious trait.
Fini didn't want to get too close to Kaecilius for now, and at this moment, Kaecilius likewise didn't want to communicate with others, wearing a "do not approach" expression.
Looking at Kaecilius, Fini thought of Doctor Strange again. He was the Ancient One's hand-picked successor for the Sorcerer Supreme. As long as he hadn't grown up, the Ancient One wouldn't step down.
However, thinking of Doctor Strange reminded him of the man's magical talent. Comparing it to himself—so much time had passed, and his research into the spiritual realm still had no progress.
Could it be that he should try shaving his head!?
(End of Chapter)