Into The Marvel Universe : A Reborn Sorcerer Chapter 24 24 : Victor von Doom!

Sebastian and Victor nodded in sync and bolted toward the dinsional rift.

When they reached it, everyone was there except Daniel and Mordo. Agatha and Jericho stood nearby, cool as ever. Agatha looked like she'd just walked out of a spa—no scratches, no sweat, totally unfazed. Jericho, on the other hand, had a tired, serious look, his face showing the strain of the fight. The difference in their vibes scread how powerful Agatha was.

But the real star was the Ancient One. Floating in midair, she was straight-up chilling, bantering with Dormammu while fending off his dark dinsion energy and sealing the rift like it was just another Tuesday.

"Ancient One! I'll make you pay, and I'll never give up on Earth!" Dormammu's voice roared, dripping with so much hate it felt like it was clawing at Sebastian's soul.

Sebastian staggered back a step, his heart pounding. Is this what a dinsion lord's power feels like? One sentence almost wrecked !

Victor looked just as shaken, but the Ancient One didn't even blink. She let out a light laugh and said, "Dormammu, a loss is a loss. Wanna co for ? Give up on Earth first, then maybe you'll get a shot at a coback."

"Ancient One…!" Dormammu bellowed, his fury echoing through the hall.

Dormammu's hateful roar echoed as the Ancient One sealed the dinsional rift with a final gesture. The dark dinsion's energy, swirling through the hall, got sucked back through the closing rift, vanishing without a trace. The whole place snapped back to normal, just a plain stone hall, as if nothing had happened. Even the Dark Cult mbers still fighting Daniel and Mordo elsewhere were affected.

The mont the rift shut, the surviving cultists—pumped up with dark dinsion power—burst into flas like walking torches. Their bodies crumbled into black ash, and their twisted souls, corrupted by the dark dinsion, were yanked back through the shrinking rift, gone for good.

Daniel and Mordo, seeing their enemies vanish, realized the Ancient One had closed the rift. They hurried to regroup, spotting Sebastian, Victor, and the others with the Ancient One. They bowed to her, and Daniel let out a relieved breath when he saw Sebastian wasn't banged up.

The Ancient One glanced at her two students, a quiet sigh in her heart. Dormammu had tried to rattle her, showing visions of everyone's fights through those creepy crystal mirrors. Agatha and Jericho? No surprise there—they were total pros. Agatha, who called herself Earth's high priestess, was almost as powerful as the Ancient One. She didn't need anyone worrying about her.

But the Ancient One had kept a closer eye on Sebastian, Victor, Daniel, and Mordo. Daniel and Mordo had struggled against just two cultists, which bumd her out. anwhile, Sebastian and Victor had taken down way more enemies—way out of their league for kids their age.

Sebastian, especially, had shone. He'd crushed his four cultists solo, then swooped in to help Victor mop up his. Both teens were crazy strong, leaving Daniel and Mordo in the dust.

In all of Kamar Taj, only Casillas had skills close to theirs, and even he might not match Sebastian. The Ancient One had watched Sebastian's fight—his magic was sharp, especially his knack for handling tough fights with style.

She'd once asked Victor to join Kamar Taj and train under her, but he'd turned her down for reasons he kept to himself. Sebastian, though, was super hyped about Kamar Taj's magic. The Ancient One wanted him in the crew, even if just as an ally. She figured with Sebastian's skills, he'd be a huge help when Stephen Strange—future Doctor Strange—took over as Sorcerer Supre. Sebastian could back him up, especially in the early days when things might get dicey, all for the sake of their Kamar Taj bond.

With the dinsional rift sealed, every Dark Cult mber in the village who'd tapped into the dark dinsion's power was gone, pulled back to their master's realm. But so villagers remained—regular folks who still worshipped Dormammu, the dark dinsion's lord, even without his power in them.

They tried to rally, aiming to attack the Ancient One and her team as they freed the captives and human sacrifices. Agatha wasn't having it. She cast a wide-ranging spell, wiping all their mories of the Dark Cult. It was a harsh move, and it might ss with their heads a bit, but it was necessary. If they kept their obsession with Dormammu, they could find ways to reconnect with him or his dinsion, causing endless trouble.

Sebastian watched the confused villagers, their minds scrambled by Agatha's magic. Victor, leaning against a big tree, looked sad for the first ti, his usual confidence replaced by pity.

Taking a deep breath, Victor turned to Sebastian. "You know, these people? They're just villagers from here. Even the cultists we fought, the ones using dark dinsion power, were mostly locals. Only a few were hardcore Dark Cult mbers who ca to the rift. But now they're all… like this. Crazy for Dormammu, desperate for his 'eternal peace.' Wanna know why?"

Sebastian scanned the village. It was stuck in the past—basic stone and wood houses, dirt paths kicking up dust that clung to shoes and pants. Electricity was spotty, barely reaching a few hos, and the only water ca from an old well. It looked rough, like a place forgotten by the modern world.

He sighed. "Poverty's crushed them. They can't see a future, so they turn to a fake god, even an evil one like Dormammu. Probably doesn't help that the governnt's taxing them to death or whatever else is going on. All that pushed these simple, good people into Dormammu's grip. This country needs soone big to step up and fix it."

Victor's eyes widened, his usual pride lting away. He'd never t another teen who saw things so clearly, let alone shared his exact thoughts. He'd already liked Sebastian for his magic, but now? He felt a real connection. For the first ti, Victor, who'd never believed in friends, wanted to get close to soone.

Sebastian caught Victor's look and hesitated. "What? Did I say sothing dumb? Sorry if I got it wrong."

Victor shook his head fast. "Nah, you're dead-on. Everything you said—it's exactly what I think. This country needs a strong leader to shake things up. Soone who can change it all, even if these kind but clueless folks don't get it yet."

Sebastian saw the fire in Victor's eyes—pure ambition and confidence—and nodded. "Victor, I hope you pull it off."

Victor blinked, surprised but not shocked that Sebastian had read his dreams so easily. To him, Sebastian was just that kind of guy—soone who got it, soone who could be a real friend. No need to play it cool. He nodded back. "I will make it happen."

Just then, the Ancient One and the others finished handling the villagers and walked over. She looked at Victor. "Mage Victor, are you sure you won't join Kamar Taj? With your talent, you could beco an incredible mage."

Victor bowed slightly. "Master Ancient One, I'm honored, but I'm into more than just magic. I'm hooked on science, too. I'll keep studying both, so I can't join Kamar Taj. Sorry."

"No need to apologize, Mage Victor," the Ancient One said warmly. "You've made your choice. Just stay safe out there."

"Thanks, Master Ancient One. I will," Victor replied.

She turned to Sebastian. "Mage Sebastian, ready to head out?"

"Yep, let's do it," Sebastian said.

The Ancient One raised her hand to open a portal, but Victor stopped Sebastian. "Hold up, Sebastian." He handed over a slip of paper. "Here's my contact info—my email. Let's keep in touch about magic and science, yeah?"

For soone as proud as Victor, handing out his info was a big deal. Normally, he'd make others beg for it. He couldn't just say he wanted to be friends—that wasn't his style—but "magic and science" was a solid excuse, and he ant it, too.

Sebastian took the note, glancing at Victor's full na and email. He nodded. "Got it, Victor von Doom. I'll shoot you an email when I'm back, so you've got mine."

"Cool, I'll be waiting," Victor said, stepping back.

Sebastian and the others stepped through the portal, returning to Kamar Taj. The portal snapped shut, cutting off Latveria completely.

Back at Kamar Taj, the Ancient One turned to Agatha and Jericho. "Mage Agatha, Mage Jericho, thanks for your help. I'll have Daniel and Mordo take you back."

Then she looked at Sebastian. "Mage Sebastian, let's wrap up our next bit of business."