GotSIS Ch.19: The Lost Temple (Patreon)

18th December 2007

Harry’s Home, Bleecker Street

Frost crept across the windowpanes, faint beams of sunlight falling against the cushions, white steam curling over the rim of the cup in Harry’s hand. The television flickered, its low volume ringing through the room, as Harry flicked through the numerous channels, sipping on his tea.

“Billionaire playboy, Tony Stark has been found by the US Airforce after a long three-month captivity in Afghanistan,” a news reporter said, a photo of Tony Stark appearing next to her face. “Sources suggest that he was held by an organization known as the Ten Rings who have been spreading terror in Afghanistan for the better part of the last decade.” 

‘That’s still yesterday’s news.’ Harry scoffed. ‘Is there nothing else for them to show? For the past three months, it's all been Stark, Stark, Stark.’

“Tony Stark has already landed on US soil an hour ago and has reportedly called for a press conference in his office which is set to begin as soon as he gets there,” she continued. “Coming live from the building of Stark International, Ben Parker.”

The screen split to show a man with a microphone in his hand. “Hey, Kylie. I am here at Stark Industries where everyone’s waiting for Tony Stark to arrive for the much-awaited press conference. Obidiah Stane just arrived a few moments ago but declined comment, stating Mr. Stark will say what he has to himself. Now speculation is ripe that—”

He turned as a commotion rose behind him, a black Rolls Royce pulling up from the street.

‘I know that car. It is the same one that showed up at the chocolate shop a couple of years back.’

A man got out of the driving seat, fastening the button on his black suit as he moved to open the back door, helping Stark out of his seat.

‘And that man too. Stark keeps his people close, it seems. Or pays them really well.’

Bruises littered Stark’s face, one of his arms in a sling, the other holding a half-eaten burger.

“And Tony Stark has just arrived at Stark International, with his famous assistant Virginia Potts.”

Everyone crowded around him as he moved, eating his burger without a care, and the cameraman followed him into a vast hall where Stark moved through the horde of people fist bumping a few on the way before promptly sitting down on the floor, leaning against the podium.

“As you can see, many are eagerly awaiting what Mr. Stark has to say—” The camera turned, showing a crowd of reporters. Harry narrowed his eyes as the camera zoomed onto Potts for a moment, Phil Coulson standing next to her before being turned back to Stark who had removed another burger from his jacket. “The press conference is about to begin.”

“Hey, would it be all right if everyone sat down?” Stark waved his hand. “Why don’t you just sit down? That way you can see me, and I can see you. A little less formal.”

A man knelt next to him, putting an arm on his shoulder.

“Good to see you.” Stark gave the man a faint smile and turned to the media. “I never got to say goodbye to my father. But if I had the chance, there’s questions I would’ve asked him. I would’ve asked him how he felt about what his company did. If he was conflicted. If he had doubts.” He wiped his face. “Or he was every inch the man we all remember from the newsreels.”

Stark scoffed. 

“I saw young Americans killed by the very weapons I created to defend them and protect them.” Stark’s gaze roamed around the room. “I saw that I had become part of a system that is comfortable with zero accountability.”

Ben raised his hand, and Stark pointed to him. “Hey, Ben?”

“What happened over there?”

Stark rose to his feet, walking around the podium. “I— I had my eyes opened. I came to realize that I have more to offer this world than just making things blow up and that is why, effective immediately, I am shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark International.”

The media went into an uproar and Stark leaned into the mic, his face hard, the man next to him pulling him away from the podium.

“Until such a time as I can decide what the future of this company will be, what direction it should take, one that I am comfortable with and is consistent with the highest good for this country as well!”

Stark walked off the podium, ignoring questions while the other man took over the podium, trying to regain control of the situation. 

“Well, that’s something new,” Harry muttered to himself. “Would probably give the media something new to talk about for the next couple of days. Anyhow…”

He plucked his phone off the table, dialing a number, a grin spreading across his face as he pressed the phone to his ear. 

“Hey, Phil. I just saw you. You were looking excellent on the TV, mate.”

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6th January 2008

Harry’s Home, Bleecker Street

The yellowing pages glowed with an amber hue in the candlelight, the dark glyphs and runes gleaming red against the ancient pages. The pages of the book flipped by themselves, threads of golden magic appearing in front of Harry, floating to join the runes and symbols that stretched across the floor. 

Beads of sweat rolled down his torso and the golden rings of the eye of Agamotto gleamed against his bare chest as he worked, drawing runic circles as the book showed. A faint smile curved on his lips and with a flick of his fingers, the book soared away to a corner of the room. 

Breathing deeply, he crossed his arms and pulled them apart slowly as the rings spun, the eye of Agamotto opening its outer eye.

“The scrying circle is as perfect as it can be. Now I just need to connect the eye to the circle to enhance it.” Golden ribbons wrapped over his arms, snaking over his chest, the amulet thrumming. “If this doesn’t work, nothing normal will.” 

Harry pressed his palms onto the floor. 

Golden lines crawled, forming a grid over the tiles, encompassing the symbols and runes. The candles burned higher, the flames turning red. Harry closed his eyes as he was drowned in a golden hurricane of visions that flashed past his eyes. 

‘Darkhold. Show me the Darkhold.’

Old ruins crumbled in front of his eyes, magical castles rising and sinking under the waves of the sea. Glyphs and runes faded against ancient stones, rough carvings, and sculptures emerging from the sand. Lightning cracked over an icy mountain, deep, red eyes staring back at him before he was pulled away, his feet touching a cobble-stoned floor. 

Books floated in every direction, the tomes whispering to him. A chandelier swayed over his head, magic churning against his skin.

‘I need to see this.’ Harry tugged the magic under his control, pulling its reins and the storm eased, a golden breeze tugging at his clothes as he glanced around. ‘This is a library. The lost library of Cagliostro.’ 

His heart clenched, a sweet pain flaring beneath his ribs. ‘Hermione would kill to see this library. She’d probably spend half an eternity here trying to read every book.’

He drifted through the vast room, the titles of books blurring away as he neared. Books floated back onto shelves before he could touch them.

‘The books are protected. I need to visit them in person if I want to see them. Which means finding out where the library is.’ 

He trudged through the shelves, past a portal of floating golden runes until he stepped onto the bare stone, sunlight stabbing against his eyes. A forest stretched below the mouth of the cave, a trodden path leading deeper into the trees.

Stepping off the rock, he floated down onto the path, his hand brushing against the weirdly shaped leaves. ‘This is not earth. This is a pocket dimension of some sort.’ 

“Which means that the library is hidden by magic in a pocket dimension, within another pocket dimension. Clever.” Harry glanced around. “Now I just need to find the entrance in the real world and come back here.”

He walked along the path, trying to grope for magic around him. A pair of tall oaks formed an archway in the distance and Harry hurried, stepping through it.

The archway disappeared and he found himself in a small clearing, tall trees rising from the ground, insects and birds chirping. Thin columns of sunlight poked through the leaves high above, falling against the thick roots of the tree.

‘Time to find out where I am.’

A golden rope sprung from his fingers, wrapping around a nearby tree, and tying itself firmly. Harry jumped, flying upward, through the canopy of trees. 

The lush green forest stretched as far as his eyes could see in all directions, a river flowing in the distance, cutting through the forest. Birds soared in the sky, the sun glaring down at him. He pushed himself higher, the golden rope elongating, its one end tied around Harry’s hand. 

The forest grew a green speck in the distance as he pierced through the clouds, till he could see the landform, surrounded by the blue ocean.

“South America. The library is in the Amazon Rainforest.” A triumphant flame burned in his breast. “Once I can figure out a more precise location, I can find it with a simple portal.”

He tugged at the rope, soaring back toward the ground, the world blurring past him until he landed on the ground, golden whorls of magic cascading over the ground. The rope dissolved into sparks, and he drank in his surroundings, committing the place to memory.

‘The Darkhold can wait. This library is what I have to find now that I know where it is.’ Harry let go of the magic and he slammed onto the cold tiles of his home. 

The golden runes broke into a river of sparks that faded away, the candles extinguishing, plunging the room into darkness. A ball of white light shone at the tip of his finger, falling against the candles on the floor, and the book in the corner.

‘The library first.’ His cloak appeared over his body, and he rotated his fingers, tugging at the memory of the forest.

The space in the fiery ring distorted, lush greenery stretching on the other side, and Harry beamed.

“This is it.” He conjured a pair of shoes over his feet and stepped through, loam squelching beneath his soles. Magic tingled on his forearms, and Harry squinted, spotting the faint shimmer in front of him. 

‘I found it.’ His heart soared and he inched closer, hesitating to touch the veil of magic. ‘I shouldn’t go alone there. If Hermione and Ron were here, I would’ve taken them with me. But I need to get someone else.’

Rotating his fingers, he opened another portal into the moonlit courtyard of Kamar Taj. Raising his feet, he froze and glanced over his shoulder. 

‘Dimensional gateways move all the time. What if this disappears while I am gone?’ Harry stepped back from the portal. ‘I can’t risk it. If the portal shifts, the library will be lost again forever.’ 

He thrust his hand forward, his parents’ faces smiling at him in the Mirror of Erised. “Expecto Patronum.”

The white stag bounded through the portal flying across the courtyard and disappearing into the building. Harry waited, his heart drumming in his chest, occasionally glancing at the shimmer behind him.

“Come on. Where’s she?” Harry huffed, pacing across the forest floor. “This is a big discovery. Eons of magical knowledge might be lost. Come on.”

He saw the flutter of a yellow cloak between the pillars as the Ancient One strode through the courtyard, peering at him with sleepy eyes.

“Mr. Potter, is something the matter?” She covered her yawn. “And why are you in the wild?”

“I might’ve accidentally found the Library of Cagliostro.”

Her head snapped toward him, sleep draining out of her eyes. “You found what?”

“The lost Library of Cagliostro. At least that is what I think it is,” Harry pointed over his shoulder. “It is hidden in another dimension, right through here, if you can see the faint shimmer. Once inside, there’s a path leading to a cave, where there’s another pocket dimension: the library.”

Her forehead creased and she stepped onto the other side, the portal collapsing into a shower of sparks that sank into the ground. 

“I can feel the magic,” she whispered, brushing past Harry. “It is ancient. Older than I am. How did you find this, Mr. Potter?”

“I was using a scrying ritual to find the Darkhold. I didn’t find the book, but I found this.” He waved his hand. “I reckon it’s because some of the knowledge from the Darkhold would be there. Like it is in the book. Or the spell just sensed that I was looking for a book and it showed me the library.”

“Using a scrying spell to find the Darkhold.” She pursed her lips. “You shouldn’t try that again, Mr. Potter. Lest you stumble upon forbidden paths or the realm of the Elder in the search for it. Even in the protective confines of your home, despite having the eye and the stone, the Elder can tear your being to nothingness or drive you insane. Perhaps, do something even worse. Not even your uncanny luck will protect you then.”

Harry frowned. “I was just scrying. Doesn’t—”

“Not against the Elder gods,” she said. “Never try your luck against those who can have reality dance at their whims, Mr. Potter. Not even with passive and soft magic like scrying. How long have you been trying to scry out the Darkhold?”

“Err… since you showed me the function of the eye and I met Heimdall?” Harry shifted on his feet.

The Ancient One pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed in exasperation. “It is a miracle that you haven’t died yet, Mr. Potter. With all the reckless things you do…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “Just, don’t scry for the Darkhold. Losing you in the pursuit of preventing something will lead to several unwanted and unpleasurable consequences for this Universe.”

“Right.” Harry winced. “No more scrying for the Darkhold. Or anything to do with Elder Gods and their artifacts.”

She nodded, glancing at the shimmer. “Shall we?”

Harry nodded and they walked through the shimmer, the loam, and the undergrowth disappearing into a trodden path, the trees changing around them. Over his shoulder, the oak tree arch rose, and Harry smiled. 

“Down this way, we’ll find a hill. There’s a cave on the hill where the library is hidden behind another veil.” Harry waved his hand at the path. “There might be protections though. I could feel the magic even while I was scrying.”

The Ancient One inclined her head before her eyes narrowed at the path ahead. “Someone’s coming.”

Harry tensed, an energy disc forming in his hand, spotting a long shadow across the mud, nearing them. 

‘I cannot feel anyone here except us. So, who’s coming?’ Harry felt ice creep through his veins.

A man appeared around the turn; a tall wooden staff clutched in his hand. His heterochromatic eyes shone, one crimson and one blue under the hat of straw.

‘Why is the stone not giving me anything? No name, no indication of his presence?’ Dread welled in his chest. ‘This can’t be happening. No magic can overpower an Infinity Stone. Not even that of Elder Gods.’

“Who are you?” The Ancient One asked. 

The man remained silent, staring blankly at the two of them. The Ancient One pursed her lips and drew a spell in the air, wrapping it around her neck.

“Sir, who are you?” She repeated. The man didn’t respond, staring between them intently and she frowned, letting the spell dissipate. “We are here for the Library of Cagliostro.”

The man blinked but said nothing.

“Books? Cagliostro? Sorcery? Tomes? Magic?” The Ancient One sighed. “Reading? Knowledge?”

The man gave a single nod and turned, walking down the path, his staff clicking faintly. 

“Come, Mr. Potter. We should follow him.” 

“I don’t think the Soul Stone is working here,” Harry whispered urgently. “It is not responding to me. I cannot feel the man.”

“Can you feel me?”

Harry frowned, tugging at the magic of the stone and nodding. “I can. But I cannot feel him. This has never happened before. It is like he doesn’t exist.”

“That might be because he isn’t quite real. If my guess is correct, he’s a construct. An illusion meant to guide the seekers of knowledge to its well.” A faint smile quivered on her lips, her eyes sparkling. “Think of it like those highly advanced magical robots from the Western films. Not alive but if you strip away the technicalities, they are quite human.”

“I’ve never heard of magic like that,” Harry murmured. “Are you sure we should even follow him? I can find a path to the library.”

“Either he leads us to the library or a trap.” She grinned. “Any which way, it’d be worth the journey.”

Annoyance flashed on Harry’s face, but he smothered it, shaking his head. “How does it even work? The magic, I mean. Sentience in an uncontrolled construct. It can’t be like the relics because if you’re purposefully creating something like this, you don’t have the time to let it develop its own sentience like relics do.”

“Cagliostro was a master of time, Mr. Potter. He was the one to truly master time. It is said that he even knew how to reverse an absolute point in time in the last stages of his life.”

“That’s supposed to be impossible. He said so himself in his book,” Harry blurted. “Even the slightest manipulation of time that has already passed can lead to dire consequences. Reversing an absolute point would lead to unraveling the fabric of reality. The universe itself would collapse.”

“Since it hasn’t, either Cagliostro didn’t do it himself or he found a way to do so without the consequences that follow.” She looked up, a red hill appearing into view around the bend, a wide cave at its center. “And if any place holds that answer, it’d be his library.”

Harry nodded and looked around. “Where did the man go?”

“His purpose is fulfilled. He has led us to the well and now it is up to us to draw the water from it.” She spread her arms. “Now, how shall we get up there? I haven’t brought my sling ring.”

Harry opened a portal and they walked into the mouth of the cave, both of them stopping short at the edge of the rocks. Harry felt magic prickle his skin, like the heat of a raging fire. The Ancient One tensed beside him and they shared a look. 

“Protections,” Harry said, conjuring a bird that fluttered, disintegrating in a flash of blue, crumbling to ashes. “Just as I thought.”

The Ancient One tilted her head before a smile curved on her lips. “Why don’t you try to remove these protections, Master Potter? You know to lay them, but it is seldom that we face the need to remove them.”

“Which means you already know how to remove them and want me to figure it out,” Harry murmured. “I will.”

“By Holcate light,” Harry pulled at the magic in the air, hurling it at the protections. “Reveal to me what’s not in sight.”

A ripple spread through the air, and runes appeared on the ground, forming a boundary at the entrance. 

‘These are not standard protection runes.’ Harry knelt on the ground, the Ancient One watching him over his shoulder. ‘This is a series. I can either remove it by overpowering it or nullify it by adding something to the sequence.’ Harry bit his lip. ‘I can also make the boundary line movable and just pull it out of the way.’

Harry ran his eyes across the various symbols before drawing a set of symbols in the air, golden sparks falling onto the floor below as the runes joined the sequence, the magic shimmering with a blue hue. With a wave of his hands, the boundary folded and tucked itself into a corner, freeing his path.

“A most ingenious solution, I must say, Mr. Potter.” The Ancient One beamed at him. “This way we can put it back before we leave, keeping the place protected.”

Harry nodded and walked through, conjuring a bird, and sending it fluttering ahead of them. A few meters ahead, the bird disappeared into a veil of magic, and they shared a glance, following it.

Hues of blue and white shone on the other side, a soft hum ringing in Harry’s ears, the smell of lemon and fresh pages tingling his nose. The man who had led them to the cave sat atop a stool, his staff and hat laid in his lap.

“Welcome, Sorcerers.” He stood, a slight smile on his face. “I am O'Bengh. The guardian of the books of Cagliostro.”

“You can speak.” Harry raised an eyebrow. “You could’ve said something back there.”

“I was too far from the source of my magic. I am only meant to exist here, Sorcerer. I choose to guide visitors, who are far and few, in between centuries. But the farther I am from the library, the less I am myself. Thus, I couldn’t speak, merely guide.”

“Because you cannot exist without a source of magic,” The Ancient One said. “You are a genus locus, provided form and sentience. Cagliostro was truly a sorcerer of wonders.”

“Sorcerer Cagliostro was our creator,” O’Bengh said.  “And everything you see here— the shelves, the chairs, the books themselves! They are naught but creations of his magic, representing what Sorcerer Cagliostro, amongst many others of his time knew and studied through their lives, presented in a form accessible to any Sorcerer who sought knowledge.”

‘That’s brilliant.’

“Most impressive.”

“Now, how long shall you be here?” 

“We would like to come and go, if possible,” Harry cleared his throat. “We have responsibilities in the physical plane.”

O’Bengh inclined his head and banged his staff, a breeze flowing through the room. “You can come here now any time you wish, Sorcerers. If you need anything, call my name and I shall come to your aid.”

O’Bengh walked away, disappearing amongst the shelves and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. “That was something.”

“Indeed, it was.” The Ancient One walked near a floating tome, flipping it open. “Let’s explore a little, shall we?”

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7th January 2008

Disney Concert Hall, LA

“Two Vodka Martinis, extra dry, extra olives, extra fast,” Tony slipped a fifty-dollar bill into the glass, his fingers drumming on the bar table. 

“Well,” A voice called, and Tony turned to see a blonde sauntering toward him. “Tony Stark.”

“Oh hey,” A vague memory surfaced, and Tony groped for a name for her.

“Fancy seeing you here.” She gave him a smile. “You have a lot of nerve showing up here tonight. Can I at least get a reaction from you?”

“Panic,” Tony glanced at the bartender who was still shaking drinks, his eyes falling upon the government agent who had approached him before, standing across the bar, his eyes fixed on him. “I would say panic is my reaction.”

“Yes, I was referring to your company’s involvement in this latest atrocity.”

“Yeah, they just put my name up on the invitation. I don’t know what to tell you.” Tony brushed her off, looking for an escape from her.

“I actually almost bought it hook, line, and sinker,” The woman scoffed, and he turned, raising an eyebrow. “Is this what you call accountability?” She pulled photographs from her purse and held it out for him to see. “They are from a town called Gulmira. Heard of it?”

Yinsen’s face rose in his memories, his dying words, and his last smile lingering in his mind. A tide of rage swelled in his chest as he flipped through the photos, a storm brewing in his chest.

“When were these taken?”

“Yesterday.”

“I didn’t approve any shipments.” Tony’s grip on the photos tightened and he turned, storming away. 

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AND… DONE! Hope you all liked the chapter!

So, yes. Harry accidentally stumbled upon a long-lost library, that too of one of the more… renowned sorcerers in Marvel, Cagliostro. This was also the library that made Dr. Strange into Strange Supreme (What-if series). If you haven’t seen it (you really should, it is fun af), Cagliostro was also the guy from whose book Kaecilius tore the pages to get instructions on Dormammu 101.

As for the moving of the timeline now, we are halfway through the Iron Man 1 movie where Tony has made Mark III and solved the icing problem. And he has just smelled something fishy with Obidiah.

As for what happens next, stay tuned!

A huge thanks to Mughil and ShadowCheck for betaing this chapter.

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Stay Happy! Stay Safe! Keep Smiling! Keep Reading!

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