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'Time must close the loop!'
Hawk heard the Ancient One's words. He paused momentarily, then understanding dawned—he grasped the meaning behind her cryptic statement.
Right.
Time must close the loop.
His thoughts churned. He turned to the Sorcerer Supreme.
"Master, is there anything else?"
The Ancient One held her teacup, regarding Hawk with a gentle smile.
"The past cannot be changed."
"...Understood."
Hawk nodded, exchanged one final glance with the Sorcerer Supreme to confirm she had nothing more to add, then followed Wong—Kamar-Taj's librarian—out of the hall.
Soon.
With Wong and Hawk's departure, the spacious, antique-styled reception hall held only two occupants: Gwen, silently sipping her tea, and the Ancient One—whose eyes seemed capable of seeing through souls—watching Gwen with an enigmatic smile.
Gwen drank.
The Ancient One poured.
The air hung still and quiet.
Three more cups later.
Gwen watched the Sorcerer Supreme silently refill her tea yet again. She drew a deep breath and looked up at the woman whose smile never wavered.
"Do you know what I want to ask, Master?"
"Yes."
The Ancient One set down the fairness pitcher and met Gwen's gaze with her serene smile.
Gwen blinked at the Sorcerer Supreme's eyes.
"Then the answer..."
"You haven't asked me yet."
"But you already know what I'm going to ask."
"But you haven't asked me now."
The Ancient One sat cross-legged on her cushion, hands naturally folded, smiling at the clearly confused young woman before her. Then her right hand traced an arc through the air.
In an instant.
A dazzling river of time materialized above the tea table.
Gwen instinctively looked up at the brilliant temporal stream before her.
"I know what you wish to ask."
"And I have the answer you seek."
"But without your question, I cannot tell you."
"Because if you don't ask and I answer anyway, then on the river of time, the moment of your question disappears."
"And when a moment disappears, it triggers a chain reaction—like a stone thrown into still water."
The Ancient One explained, then extended a finger to touch the floating river of time above the table.
Instantly.
Where her finger contacted the temporal stream, ripples spread outward. Some faded quickly. Others resonated with the river itself, spawning tributary after tributary.
But among these new branches, the starting point remained fixed. The endpoint remained fixed.
Only the present—where past and future intersected—showed diverging paths.
Gwen watched the Ancient One's demonstration. A phrase Hawk had heard before leaving echoed in her mind.
"The past cannot be changed."
"But..."
Gwen frowned.
"I understand that the past can't be changed. But isn't the future determined by the present? Why does your demonstration show the future always converging to the same outcome?"
The Ancient One's smile remained.
"Why would you want to change the future?"
"Um..."
"Only after seeing the future would you want to change it."
"The moment you see the future, what you've seen becomes your past."
"Therefore..."
"The past cannot be changed—because the future you've witnessed is no longer the future. It has become your past."
"..."
Gwen listened to the explanation, her expression thoughtful.
"Seeing the future turns it into the past. And the past cannot be changed."
"Exactly."
"Then..."
Gwen recalled how the Ancient One had claimed to know her question before she'd even spoken.
Clearly.
The Ancient One had already seen the future where Gwen asked her question. Which meant that future had already become the Ancient One's past.
The past cannot be changed.
Gwen thought this through, then looked at the Ancient One with curiosity.
"Master, what if I don't ask?"
According to the Ancient One's logic—
Once you've seen the future, it becomes the past. And the past cannot be changed. But this "past" is determined by the "present."
So...
If she didn't ask, then that future wouldn't be the future anymore. And if it wasn't the future, it wouldn't become the past.
Gwen studied the Ancient One with genuine curiosity.
The Ancient One shook her head with a smile.
"I have seen the future. It has become my past. So even if you don't ask, my future has already become my past."
"Your future?"
"Yes."
The Ancient One swept her hand across the projected river of time again. Instantly, the river expanded dramatically, revealing its true nature to Gwen.
Countless threads—so numerous they defied counting—wove together, layered upon one another, forming what had appeared to be that single brilliant river of time.
"Each thread represents one person's timeline."
"And when every being in the universe is layered together, they form this magnificent river of time."
"But when I glimpse my own future, my future becomes my past."
"However, that is merely my personal thread."
"I see."
Gwen nodded thoughtfully at the explanation, then drew a deep breath and looked at the Ancient One.
"So... will Hawk and I have children in the future?"
She'd heard everything Strucker had said over the Atlantic through S.H.I.E.L.D.'s satellite feed.
Though she'd acted like it didn't bother her.
But—
It had. Especially when Strucker mentioned that higher life forms had increasingly difficult times producing offspring. That had really gotten under her skin.
So!
After asking her question, Gwen fixed her unblinking gaze on the Ancient One.
The Sorcerer Supreme didn't speak in riddles.
"Yes."
"Two boys and a girl?"
Hearing the answer, seeing the expression on the Ancient One's face, Gwen felt a wave of relief wash through her. She pressed further instinctively.
True, someone else had already achieved this dream.
But that was someone else.
She was herself.
The Ancient One observed Gwen's desperate need for answers. She shook her head with a smile.
"No."
"Oh..."
Gwen's expression fell.
At that moment.
The Ancient One spoke again.
"At a certain point in the future, you and Hawk will have five sons and five daughters."
Gwen's body jolted. Her eyes went wide as she stared at the Sorcerer Supreme.
"That many?"
"Yes."
"That can't be right."
Gwen blinked, struggling to believe this future the Ancient One described.
"I only ever wanted one daughter and two sons—just like my mom and dad. I figured three kids would be perfect. Five sons and five daughters? What, am I supposed to do nothing but have babies?"
Good grief.
What would that make her?
A baby factory?
Gwen's mind wandered into increasingly absurd territory.
The Ancient One heard Gwen's muttered complaints and simply smiled in silence.
After a while.
Still quietly grumbling, unable to fathom why she'd have so many children, Gwen suddenly thought of something. She looked at the Ancient One.
"Master, I have one last question."
The Ancient One regarded her with that same gentle smile.
Gwen spoke.
"Master, you're already aware of Jean, Billy, and Tommy's existence, aren't you?"
The Ancient One nodded.
"The past cannot be changed."
"I know."
Gwen nodded as well.
"Jean seems to have inherited Hawk's abilities, but Billy and Tommy apparently haven't. I want to know—my children..."
The Ancient One's smile brightened.
"Jean inherited because she was born before Hawk proposed to you."
"Billy and Tommy didn't inherit because, by then, Hawk had already proposed."
"Um..."
Gwen looked at the Ancient One, confused.
Back at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters in New York, they'd run full medical scans on Billy and Tommy as a precaution against any contingencies Strucker might have left behind.
The results showed perfectly healthy babies. But compared to Jean's data, the differences were stark.
Bottom line.
Even compared to other children their age, Billy and Tommy's readings were squarely average.
But Billy and Tommy carried Hawk's bloodline. Logically, they should have inherited their father's power just like Jean had.
And yet—
Billy and Tommy appeared to be completely ordinary children.
Gwen hadn't thought much of it initially. Maybe Jean had inherited while Billy and Tommy simply hadn't. Genetics could be like that.
No big deal.
But after hearing that she'd have ten children in the future, this detail suddenly resurfaced in her mind.
Even if her future children didn't inherit anything, Gwen wouldn't consider it a tragedy.
But—
If it were possible, she'd prefer that her children with Hawk inherited his power.
After all, Hawk was incredibly strong. If their children inherited that strength and she raised them well, their futures would be extraordinary.
That was Gwen's thinking. But the Ancient One's explanation had thrown her completely.
"What does this have to do with me?"
"Hawk proposed to you."
"Yes."
Gwen nodded, then seemed to remember something. She raised her hand, showing off her engagement ring, her smile radiant as she recalled the moment Hawk had proposed.
The Ancient One continued her explanation.
"Though Hawk isn't a god yet—"
"He already possesses divine authority."
"And for divine beings, every promise they make isn't merely a promise—it becomes a Divine Decree."
"When Hawk proposed, he promised that only children born to you could inherit everything from him. Once that Divine Decree took effect, Billy and Tommy—born to another woman after that moment—could not inherit Hawk's power, as they are not your children."
"..."
Gwen absorbed this, then looked at the Ancient One.
"You're saying Billy and Tommy could have Hawk's power—but Hawk's decree prevents it?"
The Ancient One said nothing more. She simply lifted her teacup and took a sip.
Gwen followed suit, raising her own cup and draining it in one go.
The Ancient One poured more tea.
Gwen pondered the Sorcerer Supreme's words, gazing at the engagement ring on her finger. Remembering the day Hawk had proposed, a soft, happy smile curved her lips.
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