Malrick stood alone, contemplating the true cause of the world collisions, but fresh doubts weighed on his mind.
Before understanding the origin of the collisions, he had many possible suspects. Now that he believed he had pinpointed the cause, the number of plausible culprits had shrunk dramatically. In the entire Multiverse, only a few beings had the power to tamper with the main timeline, but it was still unclear exactly which one was responsible.
So Malrick's thoughts turned once more to the Time Variance Authority. If even the main timeline was experiencing problems, shouldn't the Time Variance Authority have detected the disruption first, and responded immediately? Yet Malrick had seen no sign of the TVA reaching out to him for help.
Perhaps the Time Variance Authority… had itself fallen into crisis.
With that in mind, Malrick finally retrieved the Time Pad that had long gathered dust. Once activated, the device that was crafted with advanced temporal technology now flickered like an old, broken appliance, constantly displaying messages about losing connection with its host.
He tried opening a portal to the Time Variance Authority, but the Time Pad remained unresponsive.
As Malrick expected, the Time Pad was useless.
He tucked it away and prepared to depart toward the TVA's headquarters outside of time. But just as he was about to merge into space, he paused.
He said, "I'll bring Jarvis with me."
In Mephisto's Hell, Jarvis, Dark Strange, and numerous mages stood together, waiting for Mephisto to open a spatial passage that would take them to the domain of another Hell Lord, where they planned to strike.
Malrick's sudden appearance startled them. After he explained everything, Jarvis spoke up, confusion clear in his voice.
"The Time Variance Authority is having problems? How can that be, Young Master," Jarvis asked, bewildered. "Just the day before you returned, I accessed the sub‑body and obtained the latest intelligence from the Time Variance Authority."
Jarvis sounded baffled, and his expression matched his tone. "As far as I know, the Time Variance Authority is still performing its regular duty of maintaining multiversal stability. The world collisions have been ongoing for some time, yet the TVA should still be functioning normally and has nothing to do with this crisis."
Malrick's eyes deepened with thought.
"Jarvis, time is both extremely complex and yet straightforward. The Time Variance Authority exists outside of time itself, where one day for them could be a hundred million years in other universes, or it might be only a single second. To you, they may have contacted you just yesterday, but to them, their last contact with you could have been ages ago."
After Malrick finished, he placed a hand on Jarvis's shoulder.
"What I can confirm now is this. The source of the multiverse collision crisis has definitely reached the Time Variance Authority. That source created an illusion for a vital individual like you, making you believe the Time Variance Authority was operating normally. If I had not suddenly returned from other worlds and disrupted your future trajectory, Jarvis, that source might have allowed you to keep receiving misleading messages from your sub‑body for a long time."
Jarvis suddenly realized the implication.
"So the Time Variance Authority might have collapsed. But they are key to maintaining universal stability. If even they have fallen, then…" Jarvis trailed off.
Malrick shook his head to stop him. "We don't know what has happened yet. There's no reason to speculate about the end before we even see it. Let's go to the Time Variance Authority and find out."
Just as Malrick prepared to enter the TVA with Jarvis, Dark Strange, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.
"Wait, Your Eminence. Please take me with you. I may be able to help. After all, many versions of Doctor Strange are quite skilled at destroying universes. Perhaps I can detect something unusual."
Dark Strange gave a self‑deprecating laugh. "If the old me knew about the Time Variance Authority, I might very well have acted out of instinct."
Malrick gave him a pointed look. "You think another Dark Strange might have attacked the Time Variance Authority to resurrect Clea?"
Dark Strange smiled bitterly. "That possibility cannot be ruled out… If the old me knew of the TVA, I might truly have acted."
Well, should one ever be surprised by Doctor Strange?
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, if there is a scapegoat for any problem, generally Doctor Strange variants tend to be involved.
"All right, let's go together."
Malrick brought Dark Strange along with him. With that, the three of them stepped forward and simultaneously merged into space, jumping out of time itself.
Jarvis and Dark Strange only saw a blur before their surroundings changed, and they suddenly stood inside a strange building. They were in a long corridor. The walls and floor were patterned with time‑related symbols in hues of orange‑yellow and off‑white.
This place should have felt familiar to Jarvis. His sub‑body had worked here for over ten years, far longer than his main body had existed in the S‑Universe. And yet, now this place felt unsettlingly unfamiliar.
The corridor's tiles had noticeable cracks and scattered pits, signs of intense combat. Walls that once should have been pristine were scarred by knives, bullet holes, and impact marks. Specks of old blood stained the walls like grim reminders of battle, yet there were no bodies anywhere in sight.
The corridor stretched silently ahead, lights flickering at irregular intervals. At first glance, this place did not resemble the TVA headquarters as they knew it. Instead, it looked more like an abandoned hospital from a horror movie.
Jarvis felt uneasy. Many people at the Time Variance Authority had once been his colleagues. People like Casey, O.B., and Miss Minutes were all familiar faces. But this place now felt wrong in every way.
Dark Strange, however, seemed almost relieved.
"These battle marks are not like any version of Strange's work," he observed. "Perhaps the Time Variance Authority's current fate has nothing to do with any of my variants."
Malrick nodded, understanding the implication, and advanced deeper into the corridor.
Jarvis then spoke, his voice uneasy, "Young Master, there's something… I can still use the Infinity Stones."
Those words caused Malrick's steps to falter.
The Time Variance Authority had long relied on anti‑magic devices that could be activated or deactivated. The Infinity Stones fell under the umbrella of energies that those devices should suppress. If Jarvis could still use the Stones, it meant that the anti‑magic systems were either turned off or destroyed. That, in turn, meant the Time Variance Authority had completely fallen.
The last time the TVA disabled its anti‑magic systems was before the Golden Throne at the end of time, when Shen Wong — now Wong — had not yet taken that seat, and the Multiverse was on the brink of annihilation.
Malrick said nothing. He continued to lead the way, deeper into the silence that enveloped the once‑great Time Variance Authority, where only their footsteps echoed.
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