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"It wasn't entirely a wasted trip," Strange remarked, pointing at the Time Stone Vision was carrying.
The green Time Stone floated from Vision's body to Strange's hand, and the Eye of Agamotto appeared, perfectly encasing the stone.
Roger felt a surge of frustration, had he and Vision, along with Wanda, just been couriers for the Time Stone all along?
After staring at Strange for a moment, Roger asked, "You're the one who's been safeguarding the Time Stone, right? Then why did you give it to Thanos?"
"No, technically I didn't give it to him. Thanos found it himself."
"But you didn't die. You should have stopped him."
Roger had always been puzzled by this point in the original story: how did Thanos manage to obtain the Time Stone? Whether Thanos sought out the zombified Strange to retrieve the stone or found it under tight security at Kamar-Taj, he would have realized Earth had been overrun by zombies.
If Thanos truly cared about the survival of the universe, once he detected the zombie outbreak on Earth, his most logical move would have been to destroy the planet from orbit and search for the stones in its debris. Yet, he hadn't done that. Instead, he chose to land directly in Wakanda, leading to his demise.
Of course, in the zombie universe, many illogical things happened. The writers of the What If...? series likely didn't overthink these details. Whether Thanos' actions made sense, or if the other characters behaved rationally, wasn't their concern, they just needed to tell their story.
But that was when What If...? was merely an animated series. Now that Roger had entered the What If...? universe, fiction had turned into reality, and Roger needed to understand the reasons behind all the apparent absurdities.
In the real world, no matter how illogical things seemed, there had to be a reason. If you traced the source, you'd find the motivations behind people's actions.
Roger was perplexed about why Strange handed the Time Stone to Thanos. After pondering for a moment, Strange replied, "At the time, the Time Stone wasn't in my possession as a soul."
Roger frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Well, it's complicated, but to put it simply, a soul cannot interfere with the physical world. You get what I mean?"
"So, you saw it happen but couldn't stop it…?"
"More or less."
Strange's answer was ambiguous. Roger pressed further, "I have another question. As the Sorcerer Supreme with the Time Stone, you should have foreseen this future, right? Why didn't you, "
"I can only see a limited future without using the Time Stone, and according to the original timeline, the world wouldn't have ended up like this. You're a traveler from a distant time and space; you know what I'm talking about."
"So, Earth being overrun by zombies wasn't part of the world's original trajectory?"
"It was merely one of countless tiny possibilities, something we never considered."
Strange's response was clear. Earth being overrun by zombies was indeed just one of countless tiny possibilities, something that wasn't supposed to happen. If it weren't for the Marvel writers' wild imagination, these worlds would never have existed.
"So, when you gave the Time Stone to Thanos, you, "
Roger had more questions, but Strange interrupted him with a slight exasperation, "You're asking too many questions. I'll answer the rest later. I believe you didn't come all the way here just to ask these questions."
It seemed Strange didn't want to say any more. Roger took a deep breath, stopped probing, and looked back at Wanda and Vision, who hadn't spoken much. Then, turning to Strange, he said, "I was worried that Kamar-Taj had no Sorcerer Supreme, so I thought I'd bring Wanda along to see if she could help. But now, it seems I worried for nothing."
"It seems you know more than I expected, but your concern wasn't entirely unnecessary. The world has strayed from its original path, and the future is being rewritten. Wanda's fate has also been altered; she needs a guide."
Strange's words were cryptic, and Roger felt like he was watching the Ancient One all over again. In the movies, the Ancient One loved speaking in riddles.
Or perhaps becoming the Sorcerer Supreme made people enjoy speaking in a roundabout way?
When the conversation shifted to her, Wanda looked around, confused, and asked, "What are you talking about? What guide?"
Strange smiled at her, saying, "It's a long story. Before that, why don't you and Roger come with me? As for him..."
Strange glanced at Vision.
Vision took his eyes off Wanda and asked, "Can't I come too?"
Strange stared at Vision for a long moment before finally saying, "Alright, you can come too, but life at Kamar-Taj might be pretty dull."
"That's fine," Vision replied indifferently.
As long as Wanda was there, he wouldn't be bored, no matter where they were.
Following Doctor Strange, Roger and the others made their way deeper into the Sanctum Sanctorum.
As they walked, Strange explained, "You were worried about Dormammu invading Earth, but as long as the three Sanctums stand, Earth is protected from invasions by other dimensions. So even if there isn't a Sorcerer Supreme for a while, Earth will be safe."
Strange's explanation helped Roger understand why, in the original Marvel universe, no other dimension invaded Earth during the five years Strange was gone.
"And if the Sorcerer Supreme is truly lost, do you have a way to choose a new one?"
Roger asked another question.
Strange smiled and said, "Every Sorcerer Supreme sets a path for their successor before they depart. So even if a Sorcerer Supreme suddenly vanishes, it's all part of their plan."
"That confident?"
"Of course."
Strange smiled at Roger again before pushing open the door leading to Kamar-Taj.
Standing at the entrance, Roger hesitated before entering. He looked down the corridor, then focused on Doctor Strange.
"I understand why you want to bring Wanda with you. The world has deviated from its original course, and Wanda's chaos magic needs a guide. Vision, as her boyfriend, coming along makes sense. But what about me?"
Roger finally voiced the question that had been bothering him.
"Why did you want me to come along?"
"I thought you were interested in magic," Strange replied.
Roger was taken aback. "Are you… planning to teach me magic?"
"Why not? After all, you did save this world."
Doctor Strange winked at Roger, then turned and walked into the portal leading to Kamar-Taj.
Roger watched Strange's disappearing figure, feeling that there might be more to his offer to teach him magic than just gratitude for saving the world.
But since Strange didn't want to elaborate, and Roger knew he couldn't beat him in a fight, he decided not to press the issue. Instead, he followed Wanda and Vision through the portal to Kamar-Taj.
In the blink of an eye, the three of them found themselves inside Kamar-Taj.
The sacred ground of all sorcerers.
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