Chapter 20 – An Anomaly

Tony was sitting cross legged on a table in his lab in Norway. Stark Industries was everywhere as it was the global provider of the state of the art technology. Tony had already arrived in Norway two days ago and was constantly trying to connect with the Infinity.

He had many books lying around in front of him which he had stolen from Kamar-taj along with the Time Stone which was levitating in front of him in a magnetic confinement.

“The Stones…..I have two stones and yet I cannot contact any Supreme being? Sorcerer Supremes can contact Eternity, Infinity, and even The Living Tribunal and One Above all without any stones and yet I am unable to contact any of them?” Said Tony with a broken smile.

Tony had been trying to learn the Mystic arts since the past two days and was also trying to contact Infinity. He wasn’t able to contact any Supreme existence like them but he was able to learn some Mystic spells because of his control over energy particles, thanks to the blood of Apocalypse. He was still not able to learn quite a few of them but he never stopped trying.

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A month later, Tony was walking towards a cliff where an old man was standing, looking at the beautiful scenery in front of him.

“You don’t get to see this kind of scenery in the realm of gods, now do you?” Said Tony with a smile while walking up to the old man.

“Two Infinity stones, Isn’t that a bit too much for a puny sorcerer?” Said the Old Man who was revealed to be Odin himself.

Tony was amused at Odin’s answer and said “You know, Surtur has got your son”

“And? I also know that he will be back” replied Odin almost immediately, without even sparing a glance at Tony.

Tony sighed, as whatever he could scheme, Odin was the All-Father, who created a cosmos with the body of his own dead brother. Well he might be not a sliver of his true power in movies but still, the ruler of the Nine Realms commanded respect.

Odin suddenly turned towards Tony and sized him up from head to toe before speaking.

“An anomaly…That’s what you truly are, aren’t you? I can’t even feel your soul, much less peek in your mind and thoughts…Even Divination and All-Seeing eye doesn’t work on you..It’s like you don’t even exist in this boundless Multiverse..So tell me, What have you come here for? Because If you are here to kill me, then It’s useless as I’m already dying.”

Tony too looked Odin in the eye after listening to him and said

“Dying? You will be reincarnated just like your other countless reincarnations…Anyways, What I am here for is…is a little bit complicated.”

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Tony was back at his Lab in Norway and was trying to connect with the Time Stone. Even after trying for countless of times, Tony couldn’t connect with the green gem.

“Jarvis, Record all the Spells and Scriptures I have collected from Kamar-taj and start decoding and compiling them. Divide it in three parts, The Basic Principles, The Path to Enlightenment and The Sorcerer Supreme.”

[All the Spells and Scriptures are already recorded] [Attempting to decode and compile…1%…2%…4%…Failed!] [Host would need the help of special Artifacts used with some Spells]

“Keep aside all the spells which require the help of any special artifact I don’t have.”

[Removing Spells requiring the help of special artifacts instead of The Time Stone] [Attempting to decode and compile…1%…] [Requesting permission to connect with The Time Stone]

“Permission Granted”

[Authentication Confirmed] [2%…3%…4%…5%…Failed!] [Failed to make a connection with The Time Stone]

“…Eliminate the spells which require the use of The Time Stone too….”

[Removing the spells which use The Time Stone] [Attempting to decode and compile…1%…3%…7%…9%…Failed!] [Spell Symbols are too complex. The Laws of Physics aren’t working around the Mystic Arts]

*Smash*

“…SHUT DOWN”

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Tony’s lab was in tatters. The Time Stone, one of the most powerful things in the Multiverse was lying in the dustbin with a half-eaten hotdog while Jarvis was scanning all the Scriptures and Spell books Tony stole from Kamar-taj Sanctum.

Tony himself was beneath the Lab, in a man made underground cave. He was relaxing with his eyes closed in a Hot Spring that he created himself. His beard and moustache had grown long while his long hairs were lying on the ground near his head.

It wasn’t clear how much time had passed since Tony had been like this when suddenly his eyes opened to project a green light and he was his normal self again, with his signature moustache and beard. His long hairs were gone as if it was all a mere illusion while the water around him started to cool down rapidly.

[Found the Coordinates of the Quinjet taken by Hulk to Sakaar]

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[Found Wendell Vaughn]

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[Waiting for Host’s commands]

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Jarvis’s notification came again and again about different things Tony had previously tasked Jarvis to do but Tony didn’t reply to any of them.

He stated walking out of the water which immediately turned to Ice after he completely exited from the cave. Tony then wore a normal set of black shirt and pant instead of his Endo-Sym Smart Metal.

After wearing the clothes, he started walking towards his kitchen and made himself an omelette, after which he drank a glass of water and tried to soothe his brain.

“100 years….And still no progress…” murmured Tony with after which an Insane look appeared in his eyes which were now red and pulsating visibly, threatening to leak blood.

“Jarvis, Get me the Time Stone”

Suddenly the Time Stone was levitated out of the dustbin and was presented to Tony, who then took the Stone with his bare hands, which then started to break Tony’s body apart and made it disappear.

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Tony then started appearing in the exact same spot but his illusory body was fluctuating between the many ages of his body before he finally materialized stably and the Time Stone was in the dustbin again.

“Jarvis, Present me the changes in my body while I was experimenting with The Time Stone”

[Host’s Mind has started to reshape with the influence of the Mind Stone, which has helped host in the comprehension of the Time Stone.]

“And What is the date today?”

[The date is 12 July 2017]

“One day before I met Odin? That turned out in my favor, considering all the s*** and headache the Time Stone as given me. Now Odin can’t warn Thor about me while I already have what I wanted.”

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“Jarvis?”

[Yes, Sir]

“I see that you have gained Self-awareness?…Don’t worry, I intend to let you keep it.”

[…Affirmative, Sir. And Thank you for letting me live]

“Oh I was just kidding, There is no way I’m letting a program bound by my soul to gain awareness and start becoming like me. It won’t end well you know.”

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Months passed while Tony was holed up in his lab. No one knew where he was, what he was doing or why he was doing when suddenly, An Asgardian teleportation array struck New York and two figures appeared from it. One was Thor while the other one was Loki and both of them quickly went to the New York Sanctum.

Dr. Strange, who had a dead look in his eyes was practicing his spells when he detected two Mystic auras of gods at his doorstep. He was tempted to fire a spell but controlled himself and went to greet these guests.

As the door opened, Thor greeted Strange with a smile

“Hello Sorcerer Supreme, I am Thor, The God of Thunder and this is My brother Loki, The God of Evil-” Before Thor could complete the greeting, Loki smacked his brother’s stomach and corrected him while smiling at Strange

“Mischief, He means the God of Mischief”

Strange knew who they were and it was evident with magic particles they were radiating. He invited both the gods in his Sanctum and started making tea.

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Tony was in a building where everyone around him was overwhelmed by his presence. Suddenly a person came running and greeted Tony while saying

“Hello Dr. Stark! I am Wendell Vaughn. You asked for me?”

“Yes Dr. Vaughn, I did. Walk with me please.”

Vaughn and Stark then went to a lift while talking about something.

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After about half an hour, Tony exited the building and disappeared while walking in crowd.

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