The courtyard was silent, save for the faint rustling of leaves in the breeze. The scent of jasmine lingered, but it could not hide the tension that had crept between the two figures seated across from each other.
Ancient One sat with her back straight and her hands folded gracefully around a cup of tea. She looked at peace, radiating nothing more than a gentle presence, but Soren saw differently.
[Ancient One]
[World Class: A]
[Abilities: Sage Magic Lv 9, Dark Magic Lv 8, Martial Combat Lv 6]
Soren's eyes narrowed slightly.
So… She's not just a spiritual guide.
She's an apex predator waiting to pounce.
At first glance, he had misjudged her, believing her to be a Grade B+ figure. But the System never lied. She was A-Class.
Someone who wields Dark Magic to extract energy from the Dark Dimension... and has lived far beyond her time.
No wonder the world reveres her as Sorcerer Supreme.
Yet her soul was slowly burning from within.
Instead of answering her earlier question, Soren lifted the teacup to his lips.
He let the warmth settle before he finally spoke.
"Good tea."
"I didn't expect the Ancient One to have such a deep understanding of both magic… and the tea ceremony."
She didn't respond at first, merely watching him over the rim of her cup.
You avoid my question, her gaze seemed to say.
But Soren continued casually, as if discussing the weather.
"It makes sense, though. Someone who's lived for so long would naturally acquire all kinds of disciplines. Even mortals, without gifts, can attain greatness through time."
For the first time, Ancient One's expression changes, only slightly. But for someone like her, who held complete control over her emotions, even a flicker was telling.
He knows. He knows I've lived longer than any magician here suspects.
Few in Kamar-Taj were aware of the full extent of her age. Fewer still knew why she continued to live.
Only a handful of her closest disciples were vaguely aware that she drew sustenance from the Dark Dimension, bartering purity for time.
And yet... this stranger had pierced that secret with a single sentence.
She set her cup down and leaned forward.
"Oh?"
"Sir, how did you come to know that I've lived longer than even the records admit?"
But when her gaze tried to dig into Soren's essence, she was startled.
There was nothing.
No spiritual signal. No magical residue.
It was as if the man in front of her was not entirely tethered to this world.
The calm smile on his face remained. "Ancient One."
"My purpose is simple."
Then came the words that truly shattered her composure:
"I'm here... for you."
She blinked, confused. "For me?"
"Yes."
"My name is Soren Macaluso. I am the doctor. And I came to heal you."
The breeze paused.
Ancient One's brows knit together slowly. "Heal me?"
"What are you talking about?"
Soren's eyes met hers.
"The erosion from the dark power you siphon sustains your life, yes. But it's tearing your body apart, it's corrupting your soul."
The words were spoken softly, but they thundered through her bones.
The truth she buried, even from herself, had been dragged into the sunlight by a stranger.
She stood up swiftly, the air around her rippling as a protective enchantment sparked into place.
The surge of magical force cascaded outward, stirring the courtyard. The leaves trembled.
Ancient One's golden eyes now glowed faintly. "Who are you, truly?!"
"How do you know so much? What are you?"
Soren didn't flinch.
Instead, he offered the same maddeningly smile. "I told you."
"I'm a doctor… Soren Macaluso."
Seeing that he made no aggressive move, the Ancient One relaxed her posture, though her eyes never fully softened.
She was still studying him, this mysterious man named Soren.
And…
Her eyes narrowed faintly in realization.
"Soren?" She repeated.
"Are you the miracle doctor from Everlife Medical Center in New York?"
That name, Soren Macaluso, had surfaced repeatedly in obscure articles, whispered interviews, and medical miracle reports. Whose techniques skirted the boundary between science and the... more mystical.
"I didn't expect that a magician hidden away in the Himalayas would recognize me."
Ancient One gave a wry smile. "We're not cut off from the world. Even we hermits make use of the Internet."
Her voice had lost its earlier edge.
Headlines of miraculous recoveries, unsolvable cases turned hopeful, and the lives saved not by medicine, but by what some called divine intuition.
He's not a schemer, she reassured herself.
He's known for his healing… and his discretion.
"I've read about your deeds."
"You've healed many with great compassion. That kind of heart… is rare. Forgive me, Soren. I may have been too suspicious earlier."
"It's understandable," Soren said gently, brushing aside her apology with a simple smile.
"You carry the weight of the world. Suspicion is just another shield."
There was a pause as they sipped tea together, a moment of mutual respect grounding their conversation.
Then Ancient One leaned in slightly, her tone curious but cautious.
"Still… I must ask. How did you know about me? About the darkness?"
Soren's answer was quiet. Simple.
"I could see it."
Ancient One blinked, slightly frustrated. His answer was like everything about him, elusive.
Like fog… visible, but untouchable.
She sighed, shaking her head faintly. "You really don't give anything away, do you?"
Soren chuckled softly. "You asked if I could heal you."
"Yes, I can."
Ancient One's eyes searched his, weighing the sincerity of his words.
"You draw life from the Dark Dimension. A noble act, born from the desire to guard this world against threats it cannot yet understand. You willingly tainted your soul… for protection."
"But the power you draw is absolute. It corrupts. Slowly, inevitably. Even your will, formidable as it is, cannot keep it at bay forever."
"It stirs within you, doesn't it?"
"…"
Her silence was answer enough.
For years now, she had sensed it. The dark whispers. The flickers of shadow in her thoughts.
The small lapses in serenity. She had attributed it to age, to burden, to stress.
But deep down, she knew.
The darkness was winning.
"I can help. I can cleanse both body and spirit from the corruption of dark magic."
"You will regain perfection, but only if you stop drawing from that place."
Ancient One's face turned solemn. "If only it were that simple."
"You're right. I am falling. Bit by bit. I see it now."
She looked up at the clouds drifting through the high mountain sky.
"But I cannot stop. Not yet. The Dark Dimension isn't dormant. Dormammu watches. Hungers. There are multiversal threats stirring beyond comprehension."
"If I fall, Kamar-Taj has no one strong enough to stop them."
Her voice was steady, but sorrow flickered beneath the surface.
"This was the oath I took when Agamotto passed his mantle to me. To be the last light if all else failed."
Soren watched her, then nodded in deep understanding.
"I don't judge your burden. But if you keep walking this path… you'll lose yourself before your enemies even reach you."
He extended his hand.
"Come with me. I will treat you, not here. My methods require more than what this place can offer."
Ancient One tilted her head, a brow rising.
"Why not here? Kamar-Taj is sanctified. Protected."
Soren gave a soft, knowing smile. "My clinic is not just protected. It exists outside the reach of this world's threats. Not even the Great Old Ones can peer into it."
"Trust me, it's ten thousand times safer than here."
He paused, hand still extended. "Come with me. Let me help you."
Ancient One looked at his hand… then into his eyes.
What she saw there wasn't ambition.
Wasn't manipulation.
And beneath that, a strange kind of sorrow, like someone who had seen too much, too soon.
After a long pause, she set her cup down and slowly stood.
"Very well, Doctor. I will trust you."
She placed her hand in his.
꧁𓊈𒆜༺⚜༻𒆜𓊉꧂
Fellow Phantoms and aspiring Phantoms to be, if you seek to access advanced parts of this story procced to my shadowy realm of p@treon.
PhantomDream