Chapter 394: The Arrival of Thor
"Okay, I'm guessing you're joking with me, right?" Strange forced a smile at Silas.
To put it bluntly, Silas currently held Strange's life in his hands; in his astral form, he couldn't even use the Time Stone. If he had another chance, he would have set a time loop in advance so that if he died, he could at least restart.
"Congratulations, you guessed right." Silas had no intention of killing Strange. He grabbed the sorcerer's soul and tossed it back into his body.
"Gasp!" Strange's eyes snapped open as he lay on the ground, taking a deep breath of fresh air. At the same time, he realized that the strange crushing pressure from before had vanished without a trace.
"What was that pressure just now?" Strange patted his magical robes, and the dust immediately fell away.
"I don't know if you've heard of it—Universal Gravitation," Silas said.
"Of course. That's middle school knowledge." Strange was momentarily speechless. Did Silas really think he was some archaic, out-of-touch wizard? He was a man of science before he became a sorcerer; his journey began simply because he wanted to heal his hands. He just hadn't expected to be convinced into joining Kamar-Taj and becoming the next Sorcerer Supreme.
"This is gravity." As soon as Silas spoke, the weight of the Earth surged through Strange again. However, this time it wasn't intense enough to force him to the ground.
"You've mastered one of the four fundamental forces of the universe," Strange said in surprise. This was no small feat! The four fundamental forces are Strong Nuclear, Weak Nuclear, Electromagnetic, and Gravitational. Although gravity is the weakest, it controls the macro-workings of the world.
If gravity disappeared, the moon would no longer orbit the Earth, and the Earth would no longer orbit the sun. Planets would lose their direction like billiard balls colliding at random. Knowing Silas possessed such world-ending power made Strange very wary.
"Relax, it's not as strong as you're imagining." Silas could tell Strange's mind was racing. If he were truly that powerful, he wouldn't need to keep a low profile. Currently, Silas could only control gravity within a range of about ten square meters, applying a maximum of five times normal gravity.
"Is that so?" Strange didn't quite believe him. Silas clearly looked incredibly strong. No wonder the Ancient One respected him so much.
Ignoring Strange's over-analysis, Silas asked, "Well? Still want to fight?"
"No. There's no point." Strange decided he should wait until he had mastered a few more spells before sparring again. He waved his arm, and the scenery shifted back to the tea room. On the table, the tea was still steaming.
"Perfect. The tea hasn't cooled yet." Silas raised an eyebrow, sat back down, and picked up his cup. Sigh... the Ancient One's brewing was still better. Day two of missing the 'White Egg'.
"Want to come sit at the New York Sanctum?" Strange offered. Unlike the Ancient One, Strange preferred staying at the Sanctum Sanctorum—it was his home and his post.
"Sure, I wouldn't mind a tour." Silas was bored enough to try anything.
"Let's go then." Strange opened a crackling portal and stepped through. Silas took a quick gulp of tea and followed right behind.
177A Bleecker Street
As they arrived at the New York Sanctum, Strange suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong? Regretting bringing me along?" Silas joked.
"No. Someone is here." Strange's hands began to move, orange magical circles spinning. He finished the spell quickly.
"What did you do?" Silas saw no change in the surroundings.
"I keep a watchlist of individuals who might pose a threat to this world. Someone just appeared on it," Strange explained.
"Loki?" Silas guessed instantly. According to the timeline, Loki was the only one who fits. It certainly wasn't Thanos yet.
"Mhm." Strange looked slightly surprised.
Flash!
The scene transformed instantly. Silas was suddenly sitting on a sofa in a living room.
"Spatial displacement," Silas noted with a nod. He hadn't seen the move clearly, though it wasn't particularly useful in a direct fight. Furthermore, Strange could only pull off this kind of environmental control within the Sanctum.
"You could call it that." Strange sat on the opposite sofa. "He'll be here any moment."
"Thor?" Silas suddenly found a cup of tea in his hand.
"You forgot to bring yours." In his home turf, Strange seemed to have regained his confidence. Silas looked down and realized it was the same cup from the tea table.
"He's on his way." Strange had already "displaced" Loki and left the address for Thor.
Silas nodded. "Need me to step out?"
"No, this isn't a secret matter," Strange replied.
Soon, they heard a knock at the door downstairs.
"I'll be right back." Strange vanished.
"Fast." Silas blew on his tea. Regardless of the drama, he was going to finish his hot drink.
Downstairs, the moment Thor opened the door, he found himself at the rooftop skylight.
"Thor Odinson." Strange stood by the window and floated down toward him.
Faced with this sudden stranger, Thor warily raised his umbrella—which was actually Mjolnir in disguise—in a defensive stance.
"You can put the umbrella down," Strange said, glancing at it.
"Right." Thor shrugged, brimming with his usual confidence.
Snap!
As soon as he lowered the umbrella, the scene shifted again. They were now in a bright hall. Thor looked around and, out of habit, picked up a trinket from a table.
"Cool. You're the second wizard I've met on Earth." The first "wizard" Thor was referring to was, of course, Silas.
"Second?" Strange thought for a moment. He knew about the Battle of New York; Silas must have been the first.
Clatter! Crash!
When Thor tried to put the model back, it fell apart, pieces scattering across the table. Thor frantically tried to fix it, only to make the mess worse.
"I prefer the term 'Master of the Mystic Arts.' And just leave that there," Strange said, nursing a slight headache.
Thor stiffened, then stood up straight, pretending to be composed. "Fine. What do you want with me, wizard?"
"I am Doctor Stephen Strange. I have some questions for you. Please, sit."
Flash!
The scene changed again. They were now right next to Silas. Thor sat on the sofa and then turned to look at the person beside him in surprise. Who was this? Thor had never seen Silas without his mask, so he didn't recognize him.
Silas noticed Thor's confusion and waved. "Long time no see."
Thor narrowed his eyes. "Long time no see? Do we know each other?"
"Ah, right. Maybe this will be more familiar." As Silas spoke, his voice shifted into its dual-tone resonance, and his mask slowly materialized over his face.
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