Chapter 280: Learning the Portal
"Ancient One, aren't you afraid he'll freeze to death?" Silas asked, floating directly above Stephen Strange's head and looking down at the struggling man.
"I have faith in him." The Ancient One hadn't left; she remained suspended in mid-air beside Silas, watching Stephen's relentless attempts to open a portal.
A faint yellow sphere of light enveloped the two of them, shielding them from the biting wind and driving snow.
Below
"Stop... shaking!" Stephen gritted his teeth. It wasn't just his hands anymore; his entire body was convulsing from the extreme cold.
Sizzle, spark...
An orange ring of sparks began to manifest in front of him. It grew brighter, almost forming a complete circle.
"Yes! Finally!" A look of joy flashed across Stephen's face. He prepared to give one final push to stabilize the gate, but his hands gave an involuntary, violent twitch.
The nearly finished portal flickered and vanished into thin air.
"NO! Dammit!" In a fit of rage, Stephen ripped the Sling Ring off his fingers and hurled it against a nearby rock.
To his horror, the ring hit the stone at just the right angle to bounce off and plummet over the edge of the cliff into the abyss below.
"The ring!" Stephen scrambled to the edge, reaching out desperately, but it was far too late. He had lost his primary tool for focus.
"NOOO!" Stephen collapsed to his knees, howling at the sky in pure frustration.
If Silas could have played background music right then, he would have treated the future Doctor Strange to a somber melody.
"Should we go down and save him, Ancient One?" Silas asked with a light cough.
"No need." The Ancient One remained serene. She believed in him. To be the Sorcerer Supreme and protect Earth, a sense of justice was useless without the strength to back it up.
Without the assistance of the Sling Ring, Stephen's task became infinitely harder. Before, he could at least form the shape; now, he could barely produce a few orange sparks. He couldn't even manage a curve.
"Hoo... hoo..." Stephen's rage began to cool—literally. The extreme cold was rapidly sapping his life force. If he didn't leave this godforsaken place soon, he would freeze solid.
"Don't be anxious... don't be impatient..." Stephen closed his eyes, forcing himself to breathe. He began to trace the circles in the air again, moving purely by instinct and necessity.
Five minutes passed.
Stephen was covered in a layer of frost. His curly hair was bleached white by snow, and ice hung from his eyebrows and beard.
Sizzle!
Suddenly, a portal sparked into existence. It grew larger, revealing the warm, sunlit training grounds of Kamar-Taj on the other side. The spatial tunnel held steady.
Stephen stumbled through the gate. The moment he felt the warmth of the sun hit his face, he collapsed face-first onto the floor.
"He succeeded," the Ancient One smiled.
"Yeah. He almost died, too," Silas added.
"Would you like to learn the Kamar-Taj portal magic, Silas?" she asked, turning to him with a gentle smile.
This was her second invitation. Silas had refused before, citing the Shadow Kingdom, but now his interest was piqued. He wanted to see how the portal differed from his shadow travel.
The principles were similar: one created a spatial tunnel out of thin air using mystical energy, while the other used shadows as a medium for entry and exit.
"If it's just the portal, I'll give it a try."
The Ancient One opened a gate and led Silas to a vast, empty grassland. There, she began to teach him the source of Kamar-Taj's magic and the specific mental discipline required for the portal.
Ten minutes later.
"Try it, Silas," she said.
Silas took a deep breath, recalling her instructions. He pressed his index and middle fingers together, his thumb tucked to the side. He began to trace a circle in the air with his right hand, rotating his wrist in a steady, rhythmic motion.
Sizzle!
A vibrant orange portal flared into existence. Through the center, Silas could see his own bedroom back in Queens.
"It seems you are ready to go," the Ancient One noted.
"Thank you, Ancient One, for the lesson." Silas bowed.
She shook her head. "No thanks are necessary, Silas. You have a profound talent for magic."
Silas indeed had a natural affinity; otherwise, he never would have mastered the complex spells from the Jackie Chan Adventures universe.
"Thank you. Goodbye, Ancient One." Silas turned and stepped through.
"Goodbye, Silas," she whispered. Perhaps, for her, this "goodbye" carried a weight of finality.
The Parker Residence
"I bet I can combine the Shadow Kingdom with the portal magic," Silas mused the moment he stepped into his room.
He pulled out a red grimoire and a pen, beginning to scribe complex magical seals. However, he soon hit a snag. While the principles were similar, the dimensions they drew power from were different. Integrating them was like trying to mix oil and water.
He glanced at his clock. 3:00 AM.
"Wait, today is the first day of school!" Silas suddenly remembered.
He immediately put away his book, turned off the lights, and lay down. He used astral projection to continue pondering the magical theory while his body slept—the ultimate "time management" trick.
Hours passed. A dark shadow zipped past his window.
"Huh? Peter?" Silas sensed his brother's return. He checked the time: 5:00 AM. Peter was only getting home three hours before they had to leave for school. "What kept him out so late?"
Silas had been too busy with the Ancient One to track Peter's night in Clinton. "Whatever. At least it's not me pulling the all-nighter." Silas shrugged and went back to his mental research.
Soon, sunlight spilled into the room. The alarm blared.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
"8:00 AM?" Silas snapped his soul back into his body. "Ugh... still a bit tired."
He dressed quickly and walked over to the neighboring room, pounding on the door. "Peter! Wake up! We have to report for school!"
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