An Iron Resolve Ch. 120 (Marvel)(Time Travel) (Patreon)

A/N: JARVIS fixes shit as the presumptive Sorcerer Supreme, from the POV of the guy who thought he would maybe get the job.

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Karl Mordo was a man of conviction. Quite literally. His convictions shaped who he was, and he lived by a code, the code instilled in him by his Mistress and teacher, the Ancient One. And yet… those convictions had been shaken quite severely in a very short period of time. First, seeing the symbol of the Dark Dimension on the brow of the Ancient One when she’d saved his and Wong’s life from Kaecilius and his Zealots in the Mirror Dimension.

There was no disguising it, no escaping it. The same symbol emblazoned on Kaecilius’ brow had been cut into the Ancient One’s forehead, and while it had faded away shortly, it didn’t change the facts. The Ancient One, their leader and current Sorcerer Supreme, drew upon the Dark Dimension for power and likely to extend her lifespan.

That was bad enough, but then afterwards, after Kaecilius had nearly killed the Ancient One right in front of his eyes… things had gotten even stranger. They’d made their way out of the Mirror Dimension only to find themselves on not just any rooftop, but the roof of Stark Tower.

There, the Ancient One had been healed and Kaecilius and his remaining followers had been dealt with most decisively, utilizing a mastery of sorcery that Mordo still struggled to wrap his mind around. And then Tony Stark had come down from on high and used immense purple energy to turn the remnants into ash and banish them away.

Obviously, Mordo had questions. So very many questions. But the Ancient One, for all her revealed faults, had been right about one thing. They could not afford to hesitate. The London Sanctum was destroyed, the New York Sanctum was thoroughly damaged, and that meant the Hong Kong Sanctum was the only thing holding Dormammu back from entering their world.

It wasn’t so simple as all or nothing. The Lord of the Dark Dimension might have been content to wait to see if his acolytes in their world managed to do his bidding and open the way on their own, but now that Kaecilius and his Zealots had been banished to the Dark Dimension, it fell to Dormammu to bust open the weakened door the rest of the way. And with two of the three locks all but disabled, he might just be able to do it.

From the moment Mordo and Wong had arrived at the Hong Kong Sanctum, they’d been working alongside their fellow Masters of the Mystic Arts to shore up the last remaining sanctum’s defenses and maintain the protection that cut the Dark Dimension off from their reality.

However, it wasn’t easy going, and Dormammu was getting more violent by the moment. Dozens of sorcerers were having to focus all of their attention on defending against the attacks at a time, and while they’d set up a rotating schedule, it still felt like a delaying action at best.

That’s why when a portal finally opens up and the Ancient One steps through, Mordo is conflicted, torn between relief and wariness at the sight of his teacher. On the one hand, he wants her to have a solution. On the other hand, knowing the powers she plays with now, he’s afraid of what that solution might be.

It doesn’t help when she’s followed by two other women. One, Mordo doesn’t recognize in the slightest, but the other is Loki, Goddess of Mischief. Mordo is grateful when Wong voices what he’s thinking for him.

“Ancient One, didn’t that one try to conquer our world a few years back?”

Loki narrows her eyes, but the Ancient One just smiles and waves Wong off.

“She’s reformed. Tony Stark has spent many long, hard nights redeeming her.”

Mordo raises an eyebrow as Loki sputters in indignation at the Ancient One’s words. He doesn’t quite understand. Not that it matters…

“And of course, this is Friday. As well-!”

“Ancient One. I cannot stay silent.”

Wong shoots him a look, but Mordo forges on even as the Sorcerer Supreme looks at him with a soft smile.

“We both saw it… your use of the Dark Dimension. I know Dormammu’s attack must take precedent, but I must question if you are best suited for leading the charge against him… or if you are no more his puppet than Kaecilius.”

Even now, Mordo knows Kaecilius and his acolytes were fools of the highest order. The Ancient One’s transgressions do not excuse Kaecilius’ stupidity, or the idiocy of those who had followed him into damnation. Still…

“Mordo.”

Stepping forward, the Ancient One places her hands on his shoulders, making him go stiff in response as she looks him in the eye.

“You are right. I have stolen bits and pieces of Dormammu’s power out from under his nose over the centuries, in order to better fight him and all of the threats that faced our reality. But there is still no excusing my actions. I drew upon the Dark Dimension to extend my life. In a way, my actions are what led Kaecilius down his path, even submission to the Dark Lord was never something I’ve advocated for. And that is why… I’m stepping down as Sorcerer Supreme, effective immediately.”

… What? Mordo had been so taken aback by the Ancient One’s words, at first a little frustrated she was trying to defend herself, and then confused when she explained that she wasn’t attempting to excuse her actions at all… even taking ownership for her mistakes.

But that part at the ending… well, Wong puts it best.

“What?! Ancient One, now is not the time for this! Dormammu is attempting to batter down the defenses of the Hong Kong Sanctum as we speak! Whatever your failings, whatever your crimes, we need your guidance now more than ever!”

Mordo almost wants to say the same… but the words catch in his throat even as the Ancient One’s eyes bore into his own for a moment longer. And then she lets go of him and steps back, shaking her head and smiling in wry amusement.

“Do not fret. I have already chosen my successor.”

What? Not him. There was no way. And Wong was the Librarian, so not him either. Certainly not the Goddess of Mischief! Loki wasn’t even of Earth! But then… Mordo’s eyes catch upon the other woman, the red head… who just smirks and shakes her head at him in response.

“Not me.”

“No… not her.”

At the Ancient One’s words, she looks around for a moment before sighing.

“JARVIS? Would you please present yourself in a more… physical manner?”

There’s a brief pause, and then Mordo and Wong both take a step back as fine grains of metal sand suddenly begin collecting in the center of the room, rapidly building up into a featureless body in moments.

“Greetings. I am JARVIS… and I have not necessarily agreed to become the new Sorcerer Supreme.”

The strange construct directs that last part at the Ancient One, even as Wong quickly finds his voice.

“What… what is this?”

Smiling, the Ancient One shakes her head.

“Not ‘what’, but rather ‘who’. This is an Artificial Intelligence created by Tony Stark decades ago. However, he has become more than that. You see, in his drive to protect his creator from all threats, JARVIS sought to gain the ability to see through our anti-detection wards… as well as the invisibility and illusions of Loki, Goddess of Mischief.”

Loki huffs as the Ancient One gestures at her, crossing her arms over her chest and rolling her eyes.

“In doing so, he did something even I thought couldn’t be done… he grew himself a soul.”

Mordo’s eyes widen at that and he finally steps back into the conversation.

“Impossible.”

“No, Mordo… merely highly improbable. Tony Stark is an incomparable genius, the sort of man who stops at nothing to make his ideas a reality. JARVIS here started out as little more than an advanced user interface for the man’s house, but ultimately became so much more. He takes after his creator in a lot of ways too… having inherited that single-minded focus needed to make his ideas a reality.”

Sensing that he’s still incredulous, the Ancient One sighs.

“Who do you think opened the portals that brought us to the top of Stark Tower, Master Mordo? Who do you think sliced and diced Kaecilius and his followers into cubes? It wasn’t Tony Stark, if that was the impression you had. JARVIS’ ability to perform our magic confirms the plain and simple truth… he has a soul. Otherwise, he would not be able to do what we do. He would not have been able to learn from us all these years.”

Learn… from them? Mordo blinks as the featureless metal turns to ‘face’ him… and executes a picture perfect bow.

“Master Mordo. This one thanks you for your tutelage, regardless of your knowledge of this one’s existence. I learned much from you… and you as well, Master Wong.”

… He’d been observing them all this time. Ever since he’d grown himself a soul and broken through their wards and anti-scrying spells. He’d been watching them and learning from them. Mordo… doesn’t know how to feel about that. This is wrong, isn’t it? This feels wrong…

“JARVIS is my chosen successor for Sorcerer Supreme. Unlike me, he cannot be tempted by the failings of the flesh. He will never draw upon the Dark Dimension because he had no need to. He will be everything I should have been. He is the best of us.”

What? He wasn’t one of them at all! How could he be the best of them?! This… this didn’t make any sense. The Ancient One needed to answer for her crimes, but this was not the correct path forward. Surely not!

However, before Mordo can voice his discontentment, before he can state in no uncertain terms how opposed to all of this he is, they’re interrupted by the Master of the Hong Kong Sanctum, Tina Minoru.

“Masters! Ancient One… the attacks are abating. The protections are… they’re stronger than they’ve ever been before!”

What? How was that possible? Perhaps if they’d stretched their resources to the brink they might have been able to hold Dormammu off long enough to restore the New York Sanctum, which would then allow them to rebuild the London Sanctum. But those things would have taken time! Far more time than the half hour it’d been since they dealt with Kaecilius and his cronies!

“Ah. Yes, apologies but I took care of that issue while we were talking.”

What? Every eye turns towards the featureless metal form in the center of the room as JARVIS raises one of his ‘arms’. Mordo stares in bewilderment, not certain what the ensouled AI is talking about… until several portals open up all over the room, revealing darkened caves beyond them… barely lit by rows upon rows of perfectly crafted glowing runes of protection and dimensional warding.

Against his better judgment, Mordo finds himself walking up to the edge of one of these portals alongside Wong and Tina, the latter of whom gasps in shock.

“These are… the Sanctum Runes. But this place… I’ve never seen it before.”

“This is a cave I hollowed out several miles beneath the location of the London Sanctum. I inscribed and empowered the Protection Runes that used to exist there. I have done the same beneath the New York Sanctum as well.”

Looking around, Mordo sees a lot more than two portals. His voice fails him though, and it falls to Wong to ask the obvious.

“And these other portals? Where do they lead?”

“Underground facilities on planets, moons, and asteroids across the Solar System. I wasn’t quite certain if spreading the Protective Runes outside of Earth would have any effect, but so far they seem to be working perfectly fine. By creating multiple sets of protection runes, we now have multiple shields against incursions from the Dark Dimension and other realities that might want to intrude upon our own. Even if one set of runes were to fall, dozens more would remain and dozens more could be made without issue.”

Across… across the Solar System? The AI was talking about off of Earth itself. That was… mind-boggling. And worrying. Mordo finds himself frowning as he interjects once more.

“How are we to maintain these runes? How are we to guard them?”

“… I will guard them, of course. I will maintain them. This is easily within my capabilities.”

Mordo scoffs at that.

“But you cannot be everywhere at once! You are stretching our resources too thin!”

There’s a brief pause… and then the featureless metal form that JARVIS has taken falls back into sand, before vanishing as quickly as it formed. And then, JARVIS’ voice comes from all around them. Not just from the room itself, but also from the portals he’s opened.

“You misunderstand my nature, Master Mordo. I AM everywhere at once. And I have no need for any of your resources. Let the Masters of the Mystic Arts focus on guarding the Earth and its Sanctums. I will assist you in your work while also protecting everything else.”

That was terrifying. Horrifying, even. But Mordo can’t properly put his thoughts into words. At least not before the Ancient One steps forward, hands clasped behind her back.

“And so now you understand why JARVIS is my chosen successor. He will be the new Sorcerer Supreme.”

Mordo looks to his fellow Masters but finds no allies there. Wong is nodding along, and even Tina, who hadn’t been here the first time the Ancient One announced her intentions, doesn’t seem opposed to the idea. In fact, the only other person in the room besides Mordo who seems to think this is crazy… is JARVIS himself.

“I am still not convinced I am the one best suited for the role of Sorcerer Supreme.”

Yes! Thank you!

“… But I am willing to take on the duties and responsibilities on a trial basis, with the understanding that we shall assess my actions and how I’ve comported myself at the end of the agreed upon trial period. If a majority of the Masters of the Mystic Arts do not think me fit to lead them at the end of that trial period, then I will step down and another shall take my place.”

Reasonable. He was just so damn reasonable. Mordo’s hands clench into fists behind his back and his jaw tightens as he realizes that there’s no stopping this. But that doesn’t mean he’ll let his guard down. He’ll keep an eye on this Artificial Intelligence even if no one else will, and he’ll be ready when the damn thing finally shows its true colors…

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A/N: Sure Mordo, you do that buddy!

Next time, we see what Tony is up to~

Just five more chapters to go, but it's been a hell of a ride!