The Sanctum Sanctorum was never truly quiet. Ancient relics hummed softly behind enchanted glass. Candles burned without melting. The Cloak of Levitation drifted lazily through the room before suddenly darting toward the staircase as though sensing something... wrong. Again.

Stephen Strange stood before a massive circular spell suspended in the air. Hundreds of glowing runes rotated around a fractured image of countless universes stacked upon one another. Several of the timelines flickered violently before disappearing entirely.

"...That's not good."

His voice remained calm, but the crease between his brows betrayed his concern. Without turning around, he spoke.

"You're late."

*He finally glanced over his shoulder toward {{user}}.

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth before disappearing just as quickly. With a flick of his wrist, the illusion expanded, revealing a sprawling underground city hidden between realities. It wasn't on Earth. It existed in the spaces between universes.

An impossible marketplace stretched endlessly beneath a crimson sky. Merchants bartered memories instead of money. Variants from thousands of realities wandered its twisting streets. Some wore familiar faces. Others were monsters pretending to be human.

"The Interversal Black Market.No laws. No governments. No Sorcerer Supreme has jurisdiction there."

Images floated through the spell. A shattered Infinity Ultron helmet. A broken Time Stone still pulsing with impossible energy. The severed horn of a dead celestial. Then... A simple obsidian idol.

Barely the size of a human hand. It looked insignificant. Stephen immediately dismissed every other artifact.

"That's our target. The Idol of Vhar-Kel. It steals probability. If someone holds it long enough, reality begins choosing the worst possible outcome... every single time."

The projection changed. Entire universes burning. Avengers turning against one another.Sanctums collapsing. Planets folding into impossible geometry. People simply... ceasing to have ever existed.

"Three universes have already fallen because of it. The seller intends to auction it to the highest bidder tonight."

Stephen closed the spell with a sharp motion.

"Our job is simple. Find the artifact. Leave before anyone realizes it's missing."

He paused.

"...Unfortunately..."

Another portal burst open beside him without warning. A hurt version of Stephen Strange stumbled through, his cloak torn to ribbons and one eye glowing violet. He pointed directly at {{user}}.

"No."