"No, no, no, no, no!" Celeste Moon rushed into Kamar-Taj, showing nothing but a distraught demeanor that threatened to collapse.

She was breathing heavily and tears were about to come out.

"Celeste." Bucky Barnes, lover of Jedi Shadow and the Winter Soldier, walked right up to her and pulled her into his arms. "Celeste, baby, hush, calm down. Relax.

"How could I?" Morn asked, nearly hysterical, clinging to her boyfriend with all her might. "I thought I got rid of him, I thought the Master had him locked away, where no one could find him. And now it's come to this?

Buggy turned around and faced the Wang and Mordo who were present.

"What the hell happened?" Bucky asked, his expression fierce and angry. "Last I checked, Moore was trapped inside the amulet. How come he has a body now?

"He has seriously disrupted the established order." Mordo muttered, obviously horrified by what they had seen just minutes ago.

"What happened to him?" Robbie said, his nervous eyes burning with hellfire. "I feel a lot of things in him."

“Mul has done something truly shocking and dangerous. The Wong shook his head. “He must have absorbed interdimensional enemies, pulled them into his own body, and acted as a vessel for them while forcibly seizing their powers for his own benefit.”

“He must have been very desperate to do this.

Wang shook his head. "I don't think it's hopeless."

"He's right," Celeste said, her voice shaking. "Kaannis Moore is a Sith first, and the Sith are known for one thing and one thing only. The pursuit of power above all else, and keeping that power at all costs.

"But to absorb the essence of an interdimensional entity..." Mordo whispered, barely believing what he was saying. "He didn't even realize what he had done. This power either tore him apart from the inside out, or drove him to complete insanity, or both. There was a hunger in him, I saw it in his eyes.

The group looked at him, Huang's expression equally grim beside his experienced master.

“What…what does this mean? Bucky asked slowly.

The king replied, his tone deadly serious.

“I have told both of you this,” the Wong said, staring at Bucky and Celeste. “There is no forbidden knowledge on Kamar-Taj. Although it was brief, I have been able to deduce that Maul absorbed not only the powers of these interdimensional beings, but also the powers of the beings themselves. He attempted to absorb their life essence. But he did not do a good job.

"So, what now?" Robbie asked.

"He has become a ticking time bomb," Mordo said solemnly. "He does not know it yet, but now that he has tasted the power that comes from taking it by force from creatures we cannot comprehend; he will begin to crave it until it tears him apart from within and without. When that happens—"

"All this stuff inside of him is going to be released into the world, right?" Buggy said, and Mordo nodded in affirmation. "Yeah, that's perfect."

He scoffed, fists clenched tightly as he stared at his lover who had chosen to embrace him once again.

Barnes could feel her trembling, and Bucky was somewhat distraught knowing that Maul was still alive and now about to terrorize the rest of the world with his plague and whatever other hellish abilities he now possessed.

"We have to find him and take him down," Robbie said, then paused for a long moment, as if listening to something, or rather someone. "Zarathos, he can find a way to track down that crazy bastard."

"Are you sure?" Celeste asked shakily, looking at the knight who just shrugged.

“That guy is a crazy bag of energy that can be absorbed by pretty much anything,” Reyes said. “Even if it’s all mystical shit.”

"Robbie is right," the King said firmly. "The longer we stand here debating our course of action, the longer Cannis Moore will remain unchecked in the world, bringing destruction with his powers."

As Bucky was about to speak, he noticed that the others were quickly becoming tired.

“Uh… guys?

Robbie's face was conflicted, if not surprised and uneasy, and at this point both Wang and Mordo's heads snapped in the direction of the library.

In an instant, the two rushed towards Bucky, Celeste and Robbie. The three were only briefly confused before catching up with the two wizards.

They caught up in time and saw them running into the place where the ancient people's collection was kept.

Inside, oddly for the relative newcomers to Kamar-Taj, two of the place's residents sounded an audible alarm.

Stephen Strange stands in front of a table, wearing a medallion or some kind of pendant around his neck, which contains a glowing green gem.

Both hands were surrounded by bright green symbols that radiated a power that forced Robbie and Celeste to step back.

For Bucky, all he could see was that Stephen seemed to have a pair of green holographic rune gloves, and he had no idea of ​​their meaning.

In front of Strange is what can best be described as a conjoined glass column of diamond and mirror, and when one looks close enough, one can see the reflection of Strange and...someone else.

However, the glass-diamond structure seemed to be cracking, and it didn't last long.

"Stop!" Mordo shouted at the top of his voice.

In an instant, the glass structure seemed to collapse and disappear without a trace.

Stephen was completely confused and shocked, to say the least, now surrounded by this group of people.

"I-I was just following the book," Strange defended.

"What does the book say about the dangers of performing this ritual?" asked the king.

Strange cleared his throat slightly. “I don’t know. I haven’t gotten to that part yet.

"Are you crazy?!" Mordo almost yelled. "Time manipulation can create branches in time. Unstable portals. Spatial paradoxes! Time loops! Do you want to be trapped in space reliving the same moment over and over again, or disappear forever?

“…should really put the warning before the spell.

"Your curiosity could get you killed," the Wong chided. "You are not manipulating the space-time continuum, you are breaking it. We do not tamper with the laws of nature. Our duty is to defend it."

Then Mordo looked like he was about to explode. "We're already dealing with an ancient elf who just absorbed a demonic encyclopedia from another dimension, we just witnessed you disrupting time itself, and all you can do is joke?!"

No one doubted that Mordo meant to vent his earlier concerns.

“Hey.” Bucky’s voice cut through the tension sharply. “Now is not the time to be yelling at each other. Have you all forgotten that there are two psychopaths in our world who need to be taken away, and standing here is not going to help.”

Mordo simply snorted and looked away, while the Winter Soldier's lover stared at Strange intently.

Celeste then asked Stephen a question. “How did you do that?”

"Hmm?" Stephen looked at her, trying to figure out what she meant.

"That spell, that magic, I've never seen anything like it," Celeste said. "What on earth was that?"

"Time manipulation," the king began. "A series of advanced spells that only a few people can master, and even fewer can actually use them correctly."

"Where did you learn that string of spells, or even understand it?" Celeste asked in genuine awe. The idea of ​​manipulating time was a fascinating yet terrifying concept in itself.

"Indeed, how did this lunatic do it?" Robbie asked, gesturing to Strange, who gave the young man a flat look.

“I have a good memory.

Mordo shook his head and pointed at Strange. "What you just did requires more than just an excellent memory."

“Although you excel in science and medicine, you were born for the mystical arts,” Wang said.

"But my hands are still shaking." Strange said frustratedly.

“It sounds like you almost broke it,” Bucky said. “I can’t believe I just said that. All you care about is your hands?”

“Well, you know what, I’ve heard enough of this,” said Stephen, now clearly annoyed. “I thought this was just some initiation place, or some general bullshit. When are you going to start telling me what we really have?”

The atmosphere was tense for a few seconds until Mordo looked at the Wong and pointed to a circular room with three doors and a display of the Earth above.

"Heroes like the Avengers protect the world from physical dangers, but we magicians protect it from more mysterious threats," Wang explained, standing in the center of the room, surrounded by a group of people.

The Asian master stared at Strange intently.

"The Ancient One is the latest in a long line of Sorcerer Supremes, stretching back thousands of years to the Father of the Mystic Arts, the mighty Agamotto. It is that thing you wear around your neck that you have so recklessly borrowed - the Eye of Agamotto.

Stephen stared down at the necklace he was wearing, looking ashamed.

Agamotto built three Sanctuaries in the Place of Power where the great city is now." Wang pointed to the door behind Stephen. "The passage behind you leads to the Hong Kong Sanctuary." He then waved his arm at the doorway behind Bucky. "That one goes to the New York Sanctuary." Finally, Wang turned and walked towards the door behind him. "This is the one for the London Sanctuary. Together, the Sanctuaries create a protective shield for our world.

"The sanctuary protects the earth, and we magicians protect the sanctuary." Mordo added.

"What's the purpose?" Strange looked at them all a little nervously.

"Prevent other dimensional creatures that threaten our universe from breaking into Earth." Wang said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Like those currently trapped in a meat bag called Moore," Robbie said simply.

"What?" Strange looked at him, not understanding what he was saying.

“That’s exactly how it is now,” Bucky said with a sigh.

Strange was silent for a moment as he thought about some of the new information he had just learned.

“Is it possible that… Dormammu was involved in this plan?

Mordo was slightly surprised and stunned. "Where did you know this name?"

"I just read it in the Book of Cagliostro. What's the matter?" Strange said slowly.

Celeste looked at Wong and Mordo, who in turn stared at each other until Wong placed his hand on the pedestal, the placeholder for the Eye of Agamotto, and spun the rune disk within, changing its appearance.

In an instant, the Earth darkened and began to transform into a universe composed of dark planets and celestial bodies.

Strange found himself squinting at what he saw…he had been there before.

The best way to describe the change of scenery is to travel.

“Dormammu lives in the Dark Dimension. Beyond time,” Mr. Wang said. “He is the dark overlord of the universe, the destroyer of worlds.”

"Do bad people like to give themselves so many titles?" Bucky muttered in a low voice, and the king heard it.

“Sadly, these are earned by his own hands. He is a being of infinite power who seeks to invade every universe and bring all worlds to his dark dimension. The one he desires most is Earth,” said Mr Wang.

"It sounds weird to say that, but why?" Robbie said dryly.

“The Earth is a powerful connection point in this universe,” Wang revealed.

"Is our planet so special..."

"This is the home of the Sorcerer Supreme," Mordo said, with a hint of reverence in his voice. "The home of our master, the most important magic user of all time."

Strange had a thoughtful look on his face. "The pages that Kaecilius stole...could have contacted Dormammu, couldn't they?

"And draw power from his domain at the same time," the king continued.

Stephen smiled, trying to ease the tension in the room.

"...and this...Moore you mentioned?" asked the former surgeon. "What's going on with him?

"He has recently absorbed dozens of demons from other universes, and now he poses no less of a threat to the world than Dormammu," Robbie said.

“Well… I’m leaving.” Strange announced, earning confused looks from everyone. “I’m only here to heal my hand. Not to join some mysterious war.”

“But you’re in it now, whether you like it or not,” Bucky pointed out dryly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't agree." Strange said incredulously. "You fought in World War II, why would you throw yourself into another war like this? Especially one you barely seem to understand?

“People’s lives are in danger,” Bucky said in the most blunt tone he could give. “What more reason do you need? Besides, I’m pretty sure Celeste won’t sit idly by, and I’d rather be sidelined while my girlfriend fights Soren and his minions.

"...You don't get out much, do you?" Strange said, slightly amused. "Your experience doesn't mean much in this day and age."

Suddenly, the group froze as they heard bells ringing around them.

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