The steel chamber was silent, except for the bodies scattered across the floor. Whatever had been here before was now destroyed—wiped out by Kaecilius.
Crack...crack... A strange sound echoed. A ripple, like shattered glass, formed in the air above. A black dot suddenly appeared and grew fast—within seconds, two figures dropped into the room.
Daniel landed on his feet and quickly scanned the area. Nothing. Just steel walls—no doors, no exits.
Maria Hill jumped down from his back, her face tense.
"The Corrupted Crown," she said, "was one of three crowns once worn by King Arthur. But this one was cursed—gifted to him by his cousin, King Voldesh of Wales, to imprison him. That's why it was abandoned."
There were rumors Arthur had two royal crowns and Excalibur—but few knew he once had a third.
Daniel nodded silently. If this artifact came from Merlin's time and could imprison Arthur himself, it made sense that it had strange powers.
At least now they knew what they were looking for.
Right then, a golden portal opened. Kaecilius stepped out from the mirror dimension—alone.
"Rune magic?" Kaecilius said, narrowing his eyes. He lowered his arms—two space blades formed in his hands. Tension filled the room instantly.
"See this hammer?" Daniel said coldly, lifting Mjolnir. "You know what it means. Surrender now, Kaecilius. I'll make sure you get a fair trial."
He didn't promise mercy. Kaecilius had killed too many SHIELD agents. There was no walking away.
Kaecilius laughed. "You? Judge me?"
He hurled his space blades. But Mjolnir flew ahead of Daniel and smashed them midair. Back in the real world, Kaecilius was weaker. Even his sharpest magic attacks couldn't hold up to Mjolnir's raw power.
Then Kaecilius clapped his hands—and pulled out a black staff. It was a scepter. No one knew its full name. Maybe not even the Ancient One would want to speak it.
In a blink, Kaecilius stepped forward. The scepter slammed into Daniel's chest—so hard it cracked the air itself.
Even with Mjolnir, close combat was risky. Kaecilius could throw out deadly spells at any moment. One mistake could kill him. And Maria was behind him—he couldn't let her get hit.
Da-da-da!
Gunfire tore through the air. Flames lit up the room, brushing Daniel's cheek. Maria had opened fire. The armor-piercing rounds forced Kaecilius to pause, activating his protective shield just in time.
Modern weapons might not kill someone at Kaecilius' level—but they could still hurt. And caught off-guard, even a sorcerer could be staggered.
Maria's surprise attack gave Daniel a perfect opening.
Mjolnir flew forward and slammed into Kaecilius' chest, sending him flying. His chest armor cracked—badly. The magical impact crushed his ribs and flung him across the room.
But within seconds, Kaecilius' body healed. He raised his Sling Ring and aimed at Daniel. A burst of unstable space energy wrapped around him.
Daniel didn't hesitate. He reached out, and Mjolnir snapped back into his hand. Lightning surged around him, stabilizing the collapsing space instantly.
Kaecilius wasn't stupid. He could see Daniel's strength came from Mjolnir. Without it, he might've already killed him.
But the same was true in reverse. Without Dormammu's dark power behind him, Kaecilius wouldn't have lasted this long.
Mjolnir was more than a weapon. It let Daniel break free of the mirror dimension. It anchored him in reality and protected Maria.
When space around them began to break apart again, even Maria—calm and collected as she was—pressed herself close to Daniel to avoid getting pulled in. Her rifle dug into his shoulder like a brace.
She fired again. The bullets pushed Kaecilius back, forcing him to retreat. When she had enough distance, she lobbed a grenade.
BOOM! It exploded in front of Kaecilius before he could react.
But his shield held. A shimmering energy barrier kept him safe.
"Don't stop! Keep firing!" Daniel shouted.
Maria obeyed without question. Bullets roared once again.
Kaecilius frowned and drew a glowing circle in the air. The bullets disappeared into it—sucked into another space entirely.
Then he looked at Daniel and hesitated. Why wasn't he attacking? He knew Daniel had more tricks than just the hammer.
Suddenly, realization hit him—and his eyes widened.
A smile crossed Daniel's face. "Found it."
In a flash, Daniel flew to the ceiling and smashed a lone lamp.
But the room didn't go dark. In fact, it got brighter.
In his hands was a crown—silver thorns lined with gold. It looked beautiful… but wrong. Each thorn's tip glowed faintly with black light, invisible to normal eyes.
The crown radiated intense power, lighting up the chamber.
Daniel floated back down and looked at the stunned Maria. "This crown," he said, "is what trapped us here."
Maria stared at it. "That's the Crown," she said. "The one that once imprisoned King Arthur."
She didn't relax. Her eyes stayed on Kaecilius. Her finger stayed on the trigger.
Daniel glanced at Kaecilius too, but said nothing. Instead, he studied the crown as Mjolnir spun in a protective circle around them.
He had spotted it thanks to his stronger magical senses. Kaecilius, though boosted by Dormammu, had forced his way into power—without fully mastering it. He couldn't even sense the crown's presence.
Daniel turned the crown in his hands. It was more than decorative—it held several binding spells and could repeat them endlessly, as long as it had energy. SHIELD probably never figured out how to unlock its true use.
Kaecilius' face changed the moment he felt its power. He hadn't noticed it before—but now the crown's magic pulsed in the air. Strong. Ancient.
It was too late.
In a flash of panic, his eyes turned red. Dozens of space blades erupted from the air, flying at Daniel and Maria from every angle.
Even Daniel looked serious now.
Mjolnir lit up with bolts of lightning as Daniel grabbed it with both hands and slammed it down hard.
BOOM!
A thunderous shockwave tore through the room.
—
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