"Quite impressive."
The female voice appeared out of nowhere.
Julius reacted instantly.
Several golden ripples opened behind him.
A sword and spear shot forward from the Gate of Babylon with enough force to kill most supernatural beings before they could even blink.
At the same time every surviving member of the Red Right Hand snapped their weapons toward the newcomer.
Laser sights filled the area.
Protective wards activated.
Combat protocols engaged.
Then Julius froze.
The weapons stopped mere inches from their target.
The Ancient One stood calmly before them.
A portal slowly closed behind her.
She didn't move.
She didn't defend herself.
She simply stood there as if she had known exactly where every weapon would stop.
Julius felt a knot form in his stomach.
That was not a comforting realization.
The battle against Blackheart and Mephisto had already drained a significant amount of his mana reserves. His body still ached from maintaining multiple Noble Phantasms and constantly supplying energy to the Gate of Babylon. Under normal circumstances he would be confident facing almost anyone on Earth.
The Ancient One was not almost anyone.
She was one of the very few individuals the Foundation had specifically decided not to challenge.
Not because they couldn't.
Because it wasn't worth it.
A war with Kamar-Taj would be catastrophic.
The Foundation would probably win eventually through sheer resources and manpower, but the cost would be horrifying. Entire task forces would be lost. Valuable researchers would die. Multiple Overseers could potentially be killed.
And most importantly...
The Ancient One possessed the Time Stone.
One of the six Infinity Stones.
A weapon powerful enough to alter time itself.
That alone made her one of the most dangerous entities on the planet.
The Foundation also tolerated Kamar-Taj because the sorcerers were useful.
While the Foundation contained anomalies, the sorcerers fought threats from outside reality itself.
Dimension Lords.
Ancient gods.
Entities that would easily qualify as high-level Keter threats.
Every day the Ancient One and her followers were fighting wars most of humanity never even knew existed.
Attacking them would be monumentally stupid.
Julius lowered his weapons.
The Red Right Hand followed suit.
The Ancient One smiled slightly.
"Good. Most people continue attacking."
"I considered it," Julius admitted.
"I know."
That answer somehow wasn't reassuring.
A golden portal opened beside her.
"Walk with me."
Julius already knew refusing wasn't really an option.
Several minutes later he found himself sitting inside Kamar-Taj.
The atmosphere was surprisingly peaceful.
Warm sunlight filtered through ancient windows.
The scent of tea filled the room.
The Ancient One personally prepared a cup before setting it in front of him.
Julius accepted it carefully.
The conversation that followed lasted for hours.
To Julius's surprise, the Ancient One already knew quite a bit about the Foundation.
Not everything.
Thankfully.
But enough.
She knew about containment operations.
She knew about some of the larger facilities.
She knew the Foundation had been expanding aggressively over the last century.
Most concerningly, she knew the Foundation possessed multiple Infinity Stones.
Fortunately she didn't seem particularly interested in taking them.
Instead she seemed curious.
Observant.
As if she were studying him.
Eventually the conversation turned toward Mephisto.
"You handled yourself well," the Ancient One said while sipping her tea.
Julius nearly laughed.
"I nearly got killed."
"You fought Mephisto on Earth and forced him to retreat."
She looked genuinely impressed.
"Very few people can claim that."
Julius considered that for a moment.
When she put it that way, it did sound fairly impressive.
The Ancient One continued.
"I've been watching your organization for some time."
That immediately put Julius on alert.
She noticed.
Of course she noticed.
Nothing escaped those eyes.
"I wasn't certain what to think at first," she continued. "A hidden organization collecting dangerous anomalies while quietly building enough military power to conquer nations."
That sounded significantly worse when someone else said it.
"But?"
The Ancient One smiled.
"But unlike most organizations that obtain power, you seem to genuinely believe you're protecting humanity."
Julius relaxed slightly.
That was probably the closest thing to approval he was going to get.
The discussion continued for another hour.
Magic.
Dimensions.
Infinity Stones.
Threats to Earth.
Future possibilities.
Julius even briefly considered offering her a seat on the O5 Council.
The idea had merit.
She was powerful enough.
Intelligent enough.
And possessing the Time Stone alone made her strategically invaluable.
But he quickly decided that was a discussion for the full Council.
Not something he could promise on his own.
Eventually Julius stood.
"I should return to the Foundation."
The Ancient One nodded.
"I expected as much."
"I may return later."
"You will."
Julius blinked.
Future sight.
Right.
Sometimes talking to someone with the Time Stone was irritating.
The Ancient One simply smiled.
A portal opened beside him.
"Until next time, Overseer."
Julius stepped through.
Several minutes later he was standing outside Kamar-Taj.
He immediately contacted the nearest Foundation facility.
A helicopter was dispatched.
As the aircraft lifted into the sky, Julius leaned back in his seat and stared out the window.
His mind was already racing.
The Foundation now possessed two Infinity Stones.
The Herta Space Station was operational.
Hydra had effectively been infiltrated.
Blackheart had been captured.
And now the Ancient One knew about them.
The future had suddenly become much more interesting.