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Chapter 229: The Dimensional Lords' Hole Card – The Earth Cannot Do Without Aaron!
🕑 Added 2025-04-10 20:25:01 +0000 UTCThe invasion by the Dimensional Lords' alliance marked the greatest crisis in Earth's history.
Compared to this event, all previous crises seemed almost trivial.
On Earth, nearly every practitioner of magic joined the battle.
Ordinary troops—planes and tanks—weren’t even qualified to participate.
In the face of overwhelming power, sheer numbers meant nothing.
It’s no exaggeration to say that under normal circumstances, any one of the enemies involved in this invasion would’ve been enough to challenge the Avengers alone.
Each could have easily served as a final boss on a major stage.
Dormammu, Mephisto, and others had long lurked in the shadows of several sagas.
But thanks to Aaron, the world’s path had diverged into unknown territory.
Today, multiple Dimensional Lords descended upon Earth, alongside many Hell Lords and their devoted followers.
If this magical force had invaded other parallel universes, over 90% of them wouldn’t have been able to resist.
Only a handful in the entire multiverse could.
Unless all the Infinity Gems were assembled.
In this universe, five of the Gems now belonged to Aaron.
Without the Time Gem, Ancient One couldn't use temporal magic to repel the Dimensional Lords and their minions.
She could only use conventional magic, matched against magic.
Alongside many sorcerers, the Avengers, and the Magic Bureau, she barely held the line against the Dimensional Lords' assault.
But this resistance was only temporary.
Even if this was the primary universe and the domain of Kamar-Taj, they were still facing multiple Dimensional Lords.
Three among them were classified as mid-to-high-tier Dimensional Lords—infamous across countless universes.
If not for the demonic "Nine Nine Three" gate within the magic net, these usually solitary and hostile Dimensional Lords would’ve never joined forces.
Kamar-Taj had many powerful sorcerers, but the Dimensional Lords were frighteningly well-prepared.
Mephisto and the other Lords had seized a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and gathered astonishing power for today’s assault.
Numerous Hell dimension lords had arrived—among them, Blackheart, who loathed Aaron with all his being.
United against a common enemy, even Blackheart set aside his hatred for Mephisto and focused on the God of Magic who had humiliated him so thoroughly.
Additional demons were summoned from other realms like Limbo, many of them absorbed under Nastir's banner.
These minions were personally recruited by Nastir for future invasions into other dimensions—and this time, they were deployed to Earth.
Ever since the creation of the magic net, many Kamar-Taj sorcerers had acted too arrogantly, offending a multitude of demons.
Lords and entities from almost every dimension had grievances.
When they heard about the opportunity for revenge against the real universe—especially Kamar-Taj—many eagerly joined.
Of course, the true purpose of this invasion was never shared with them.
Among the top five Dimensional Lords, even a shared victory would lead to strife over the spoils.
Dormammu wouldn’t tolerate rivals; Mephisto certainly wouldn’t.
If another were to covet the magic net, it could spark a second war.
Even the secret observer among them had objections.
Too many Dimensional Lords meant unnecessary complications.
Thus, the battle’s core was Kamar-Taj versus the Dimensional Lords.
The Avengers and the Magic Bureau had only recently been established. Their foundations were weak, and they’d missed their chance to grow strong through the Southern Network.
Ever since the gods returned, magic had become harder to cultivate.
As such, their main role on the battlefield was delay.
Only a few could truly stand in this front line—Tony and Ororo among them.
Even the mutants’ powers were little more than a nuisance to the demons.
In short: ineffective.
Though Kamar-Taj was several times stronger than before, they now faced a well-planned, long-prepared invasion led by Mephisto himself.
Resistance was proving difficult.
Signs of collapse were already showing.
If not for Ancient One’s support, the New York sanctum might’ve already fallen.
But even so, the situation was worsening.
Earth had three sanctums.
The Dimensional Lords’ main assault focused on New York, but they’d also dispatched sizable forces to London and Hong Kong.
These sanctums had some Kamar-Taj defenders, but not enough to repel such overwhelming threats.
Back at base, Nick Fury frowned as he received updated intel from his subordinates.
The video feeds showed both London and Hong Kong engulfed in flames.
His anxiety grew as he watched the enemy forces lean harder into their assault.
Everyone not on the battlefield felt the crushing weight of helplessness.
“Boss, Hong Kong and London have fallen. Only New York is left.”
“Do we notify the higher-ups? Should we request their direct involvement?”
The Avengers and the Magic Bureau were Earth's visible guardians.
But many powerful magicians remained unaffiliated—backed by capital and political power—beyond the Bureau's reach.
Even if they wanted to, the Bureau couldn't command them.
The two sides typically avoided conflict and rarely cooperated.
But now, with New York in peril, total devastation loomed.
Nick Fury considered his options.
He needed to negotiate with these unaffiliated magicians.
Before he could act, his gaze turned to another video feed—a quiet, empty street.
“He still hasn’t come back?”
“No,” Coulson replied, shaking his head. “We’ve stationed people at his residence. They’ll notify us the moment he returns.”
Nick Fury was silent.
The invasion had come too fast, too suddenly.
Clearly, it had been in planning for a long time.
They struck not gradually—but with a fatal blow.
And the Dimensional Lords had been watching Earth’s every move.
While Aaron was here, they were silent—meek as domesticated pets.
But the moment he left? They pounced like wolves.
“Do we know why he left?”
“Not yet,” said Coulson. “We’re working on it. But what’s certain is that he didn’t go to Asgard to attend Thor’s celebration.”
“Is Asgard sending help?”
“No... they don’t seem interested.”
Coulson’s confusion was obvious.
Asgard should’ve responded—especially Thor, an Avenger and an ally.
But there had been no move, no support.
Strange—suspiciously so.
Nick Fury thought deeply.
Asgard wasn’t afraid of the Dimensional Lords—he didn’t believe that.
If Earth fell, Asgard and the universe itself would be threatened.
But here they were—Asgard passive, Kamar-Taj oddly restrained.
It felt orchestrated—as if they’d expected this.
It didn’t sit right.
His instincts screamed something was off.
But he couldn't identify the source—nor guess what Ancient One was planning.
Then, a message came in—a special one.
It was from the agents of S.W.O.R.D.—specifically, his Skrull contacts.
He and Carol had once rescued a band of Skrulls from the Kree.
These shape-shifters could impersonate anyone.
Since they understood the wider universe better than him, he’d enlisted their help.
Now, they had news—about the God of Magic.
“What?!”
“The God of Magic saved the Kree Empire? Took out the Matrix family’s main force?”
“Wait… Matrix family?”
“From Earth?”
“When? Who are they?”
The Skrulls’ report left Nick Fury stunned.
He understood their words, but the meaning behind them was staggering.
Apparently, a mechanical species—the Matrix Race—had emerged from Earth and nearly wiped out the Kree Empire.
In their darkest hour, the God of Magic arrived and obliterated the Matrix fleet like stars in the sky, sparing the Kree and forging alliances with Xandar and others to hunt the survivors.
Unbelievable.
The Matrix race had come from Earth, nearly annihilated the Kree, and shaken the entire Galaxy!
Fury remembered the awe in the Skrulls’ voices.
Even some relief…
Yes—relief.
They had once planned to impersonate Earth’s people and take over.
But now? Thank the stars they failed.
Had they succeeded, they would’ve jumped from the frying pan into the inferno—doomed by the Matrix Race.
Even the mighty Kree were almost destroyed—what hope did the Skrulls have?
Their respect for Earth had grown—especially for the one who’d repelled the Matrix Race.
Wait… those mechanical lifeforms…
Could they be the same ones from that earlier incident?
Fury remembered those frequent skirmishes. He thought they were small threats.
But now it turned out those beings nearly shook the Galaxy to its core.
And the God of Magic had driven them away.
“Yes, the God of Magic,” Fury whispered.
“He alone scared the Matrix Race off Earth and pushed them toward the Kree, who weren’t connected to the magic net.”
His expression hardened.
He didn’t like admitting it, but it was the truth.
Aaron—the God of Magic—had become the Earth’s irreplaceable cornerstone.
The Earth could lose anyone... except him.
He had suppressed Dark Phoenix.
He had expelled the Matrix Race.
And it was his presence that made even the Dimensional Lords hesitate.
But now, he was gone—and the Dimensional Lords attacked without mercy.
Earth could not stop them alone.
Even Kamar-Taj was struggling.
“When will Earth be able to protect itself?” Fury muttered.
SHIELD, the Avengers, the Magic Bureau—they all felt like glorified clean-up crews.
The real defenders were Kamar-Taj, Asgard… and Aaron.
It was too much.
News of the fall of the London and Hong Kong sanctums soon reached New York.
Countless guardian sorcerers were slaughtered by the invading demons.
Anger and grief surged among the defenders.
Many launched suicidal attacks in retaliation.
Ancient One frowned and turned toward the sanctum.
This was their last stand.
If it fell, the enemy would anchor their realms in the real universe.
That meant they'd have to fight inside the enemy’s domain—against complete forms of the Dimensional Lords.
Each one, in full power, equaled all of their current duplicates combined.
Ancient One wasn’t confident she could beat even one.
And there were three—no, five—wait… no, three confirmed Dimensional Lords present.
She glanced sideways at Illyana, who was holding back and not exerting full effort. She said nothing.
Illyana belonged to Aaron. Her time would come.
“Supreme One, with two sanctums lost, only New York remains,” Wong said, approaching her.
“Should we summon the God of Magic?”
Ancient One shook her head.
“He’s dealing with the Matrix crisis now. That’s a galaxy-level threat. We cannot disturb him yet.”
The Matrix Race was terrifying.
If Aaron himself had taken action, then it was serious.
Still...
How long would it take him to return?
What were Aaron and Illyana really up to?
Ancient One didn’t know.
All she could do was hold the line—buy time—and keep this last sanctum intact until Aaron returned.
A daunting task.
Once again, she faced the three Dimensional Lord duplicates—led by Dormammu.
Thanks to the detailed data provided by the magic net, she’d barely held on until now.
But Mephisto’s plan wasn’t over yet.
Seeing Kamar-Taj still holding out, he activated his final card.
“Nastir… begin.”
