“Found you…” His vision touched upon a young boy, imprisoned within the German camps. Dan shook his head as he returned his focus to the scoutship, an order to the auto-piliot moved it to an opposite orbit around the sun. “Alright you two, this universe is part of a dangerous multiverse… what’s more, we’re going to have to let certain events play out as they’re meant to.”
Captain America was the same in appearance to the MCU version, but the presence of a young Erik Lencher ment this wasn’t the main MCU universe. The addition of mutants created the possibility for nearly anything to appear, as well as a good amount of future benefit.
“We’ll leave the ship here for now, with its automated defences enabled,” Dan led the excited Kryptonians to the airlock and gave them both a long stare. “When we get to Earth, you need to follow my orders exactly… this isn’t like the universes you’ve visited before, it’s potentially full of beings that make Abeloth seem small.”
“Does that mean we can’t fight anyone? Kara puffed up her cheeks in disappointment, while Cal nodded obediently. “I was hoping to find a challenge on this trip…”
“You will,” Dan shook his head at the enthusiastic, battle hungry teen. Kara was the strongest of the younger generations, but her reckless nature needed to be tempered with more experience. “Even the weaker versions of most of the dangers here are beyond the two of you, at least for now.”
He ignored the bright, joyous expression on the young girl's face and pulled the two teens into open space. Bear and Stormy frolicked ahead, glad to explore a new system. He already knew his goal, or at least one of them, within this universe. So long as enough of the plot stayed in line with what he expected, the infinity stones were as good as his.
[Quest available: Collect the infinity stones and prevent Thanos’ snap. Collect the Ego Stone from the Ultraverse for a quest specific bonus reward!]
Dan’s eyebrows raised at the bonus section of his newest system quest. The Ego stone was the centrepiece for all the infinity stones across the Marvel multiverse, a last remnant of the being known only as Nemesis. The system was certainly optimistic about his time here, if it encouraged him to hunt out the soul fragment of a peak-multiversal being.
“Stick close to me for now, we’ll need permission to operate freely on Earth,” Dan sent out a mental whistle and recalled Bear and Stormy to his side. The slightly plump cat seated himself on his master’s shoulders, while Bear ran energetic circles around the Kryptonians. “Let's go visit the Sorcerer Supreme and see about setting up a home on this Earth…”
Dan’s gaze flicked around the system as an unseen pair of eyes fell onto his body. He scanned until his gaze met with that of a blue suited man. Located within a hidden city on the surface of the moon, Black Bolt held their staring contest without fear.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
A sigh slipped from Dan’s lips as his gaze broke away from the powerful Inhuman. He motioned the group toward the Earth. They would deal with the Inhumans later, if they became a problem.
“Come on, space is a bit too crowded,” followed by Cal, Kara and Bear, he slipped past the man on the moon and entered the atmosphere. Stormy stayed on Dan’s shoulders, green-gold eyes locked onto Black Bolt. “We’ll head right to Nepal, the Ancient One seems willing to train all who reach Kamar-Taj and we can introduce ourselves before taking action in the war.”
Cool winds carried a light dusting of snow, dropped from pale grey clouds onto icy mountaintops. Dan led the rest through peaceful skies, until a walled monastery appeared from between the peaks. They landed at the gate, feet half buried in newly formed drifts.
“Everyone be polite, this is the home of the strongest being on Earth,” Dan squinted through the walls of the hermitage, only to find his vision blocked by a tight weave of luminous spells. The Ancient One’s magic repelled even Kryptonian abilities. “She’s proficient in time manipulation, so it’s best to stay on her good side.”
“You seem to know a lot about me, Mr…” A bemused laugh filled the air as a bald-headed woman stepped from the void. She glanced at each member of their group, before she settled on Dan.
“You can call me Dan,” hand extended, he put on his best smile as he scanned the Ancient One from head to toe. Countless runes rested beneath her skin, formations that wrapped up her cells like a mighty wall. “This is Kara and Cal, two juniors of my race… and these are my pets, Bear and Stormy.”
“Aren't you forgetting someone…” The Ancient One glanced at Dan's shadow, a mild smile at the edge of her mouth. “The last member of your party is far more sinister than the rest.”
“I am the Demon, Etrigan!” Dan’s shadow grumbled, but the Demon remained hidden within. “A humble servant to Master Dan.”
“He’s a captured demon, assigned to watch over me by my teacher,” Dan rolled his eyes at Etrigan’s words. He may be his servant, but he wasn’t humble. “He’ll stay in my shadow unless I order him out or I face some kind of life threatening danger.”
“Indeed?” The Ancient One raised her eyebrows as she accepted Dan’s handshake. “If your teacher can bind such a demonic being, I would be interested in meeting them!”
“Master Merlyn is far away at the moment, but one day he may come to visit,” Dan released the Sorcerer’s hand and turned to face the walls of Kamar-Taj. “May we come inside? I’ll admit that I’m not my Master’s greatest student, but I have a great interest in your branch of spellcasting.”
“You are a most interesting trespasser, quite bold,” the Ancient One shook her head and opened the gate with a wave. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll treat you like I would any invader from another realm?”
“There is some risk, but my own magical abilities aren’t horrible,” Dan laughed as they followed the Sorcerer into her fortress. He could also summon Merlyn, though right now it would shut down his system for thirty days. “Plus, from what I know about you, our goals are pretty compatible.”
The Ancient one remained silent as she led them through a courtyard of busy monks. Past a magical blacksmith and a line of apprentices engaged in drills, they continued until they stood before the central building of Kamar-Taj.
“This magic system seems to use objects as a medium…” Cal’s murmured voice drew a smile from the Ancient One, who paused as the boy focused on the monks. “Runic constructs, similar but different to our own…”
He glanced at the Ancient One, then back to the lesson in the open square. Dan also focused on the monks, less interested in this branch of the Ancient One’s magic. His goals lay in how to draw power from an extra-dimensional realm, as she did with the Dark Dimension.
“Your energy doesn’t come directly from the universal will, but from entities in other realms…” Cal frowned and shook his head. “What if the being on the other side decides to restrict you?”
“We sign contracts, a give and take between us and the powers beyond,” the Ancient One motioned for them to proceed and opened the door. “Now let us retire to a sitting room, I’d like to discuss your purpose here…”