CH 85: Bait
Lex woke up in the morning with Donna cuddled up against one side of him and Kara occupying the other, the two women making it rather difficult to find any reason to leave the warmth of the bed. He had barely managed to enjoy the comfortable situation, however, when he realized that the sound pulling him awake wasn't his alarm. His phone was ringing.
He reached over, grabbed it from the nightstand, and glanced at the screen. Gwen.
“Hi, Gwen. Did you get anything?” he asked as he answered the call.
Gwen had been acting as bait to draw out whoever had been targeting the people around Lex. The attacks had apparently been happening for some time, but almost everyone in Lex's circle was powerful enough to deal with whatever was thrown at them without even realizing they were being targeted. It had taken several incidents before they noticed the pattern, and Gwen had been chosen as bait because she was one of the few people who hadn't been attacked yet. She normally teleported wherever she needed to go and, despite being a professor, hadn't even been going to the university lately, so whoever was behind the attacks hadn't had an opportunity to reach her.
When Gwen had agreed to help, Lex had given her his private jet as well, along with enough money to make the whole trip as luxurious as possible. If she was going to act as bait for him, the least he could do was make sure she enjoyed herself while doing it. As far as Lex was concerned, a luxury hotel, expensive meals, and whatever other comforts she wanted were simply part of the compensation.
“Yes, but it's a dead lead,” Gwen said. “The pilot was mind-controlled, and his memories had been edited to the point that he genuinely thought he was going to gain immense power by killing me or something. The memory alteration reeks of magic, though, so that's something.”
Lex frowned slightly as he listened. A mind-controlled pilot with fabricated memories wasn't exactly what he had hoped for, but the mention of magic immediately made the situation more interesting.
“Stay there. I'll come over.”
He quickly put on some clothes before teleporting directly to Gwen. His intention was simple enough: if the pilot's memories had been altered through magic, perhaps Rey Tracing could follow whatever magical trail had been left behind and lead them to whoever had done it.
There was only one problem.
Lex's teleportation had a rather inconvenient limitation. He could choose where he wanted to go, but he couldn't see what was on the other side before arriving.
The moment he appeared, he realized he had made a mistake.
He found himself standing inside an incredibly luxurious massage parlor, surrounded by warm golden lighting, polished wooden walls, soft music, and the faint scent of expensive oils and incense. Everything about the place screamed money, from the elegant furniture to the perfectly arranged decorations, and Lex immediately recognized it as exactly the kind of place Gwen would have chosen with his money.
He also found a woman running away from him.
Judging by the panicked look on her face, she had probably been startled by the sudden appearance of a glowing magical circle in the middle of the room, followed by a fully grown man stepping out of it without warning.
Lex barely had time to wonder what had happened before his attention settled on Gwen.
She was lying on the massage table, looking absolutely gorgeous after what was apparently a very relaxing session. Her normally neat hair was slightly loosened, her skin carried the subtle sheen of massage oil, and the relaxed expression on her face made her look far less like the university professor who spent her days buried in research and far more like the beautiful woman she actually was. Even without the assistance of Ultimate Chad, Lex would have noticed. With that Essence constantly making situations involving attractive women somehow find their way into his life, he had long since stopped being surprised by how often he found himself walking into moments like this.
Gwen, however, wasn't looking relaxed anymore.
She was staring directly at him.
Very angrily.
“Somnus.”
The fleeing masseuse immediately collapsed into sleep before she could get much farther.
Lex blinked, then looked around the room again before slowly looking back at Gwen.
“Oh.”
Gwen's expression made it clear that oh was nowhere near enough.
“Sorry about that...” Lex said, rubbing the back of his head. “I didn't know you were busy.”
“We were on a call,” Gwen pointed out, sitting up and reaching for a robe. “Couldn't you have asked before teleporting over?”
“Should've.”
Lex couldn't really argue with that. His teleportation was convenient, but not exactly considerate when he couldn't see where he was appearing. He watched as Gwen slipped the robe around herself and tied it at the waist, covering herself properly before stepping away from the massage table.
“Anyways, do you have that pilot?” Lex asked. “I wanna see if I can trace whoever placed the spell on him.”
“I already tried.” Gwen sighed, her irritation easing now that the initial surprise had passed. “I used more than a few tracing spells, but every single one led back to himself. It's like he performed the magic himself, but I know he didn't. I looked into him. He's just a normal pilot.”
“That is weird.”
“It is.”
Gwen adjusted the robe around herself before glancing toward the massage table with a small sigh. Her attempt at relaxing had clearly been interrupted, but at least she had gotten what she wanted out of the trip: the attacker had taken the bait, even if the investigation itself hadn't produced much.
“I suppose that's alright,” Lex said. “So, are you leaving for Nepal now?”
Gwen stared at him for a moment.
“Didn't you say you wanted to go check that pilot? Trace the magic?”
“Yeah.”
“I thought we were going there.”
Lex looked at her.
Gwen looked back.
“We're in Nepal right now.”
“Oh.”
Lex glanced toward the door through which the masseuse had disappeared.
“That girl didn't seem Nepalese.”
“She's not.”
“Nepalian?”
Gwen closed her eyes for a moment.
“Not that either.”
“Oh well.” Lex shrugged. “What I'm trying to say is that since you've already checked the pilot, I don't think I'll have to.”
“That's quite racist,” Gwen said dryly. “Thinking Nepal only has Nepalese people.”
“That's not what I meant.”
“Sure.”
Gwen couldn't keep the faint amusement from her expression before continuing.
“As for tracing the magician, we both have different types of powers. So who knows? Yours might just work.”
Before Lex could answer, something strange happened.
Sparks suddenly appeared in the air a few feet away from them, dancing across empty space before gathering into a circular formation. The sparks expanded into a glowing portal, its edges shimmering with energy as the opening stabilized.
A woman stepped through.
She was older, with a completely bald head and a calm, almost unreadable expression. Her robes were a muted yellow and orange, wrapped neatly around her body, and there was something about the way she carried herself that immediately made her seem different from an ordinary traveler. She moved with the quiet confidence of someone who had spent a very long time in situations where panic was rarely useful.
Lex stared at her for a moment.
“Cool... Nepal has magic monks?”
The woman's expression barely changed.
“Actually, the preferred term is Nepali.”
She took another step forward.
“And I am not a Nepali.”
Lex's eyes immediately drifted toward her bald head.
“Not a monk either,” she added with a faint sigh.
Lex finally realized where he had gone wrong.
“Ah.”
“And that,” the woman said calmly, “is very rude, Mr. Everhart.”
“Apologies for my friend's... enthusiasm,” Gwen said, giving Lex a sideways look before turning her attention back to the woman. “But am I to assume you're the sorcerer who oversees the Sanctum of Magic?”
“Indeed, Ms. Tennyson.”
The woman's gaze briefly moved toward Lex before returning to Gwen.
“I am the Sorcerer Supreme who oversees the Sanctum Sanctorum, and I believe I am the person you have come looking for.”
Gwen's expression brightened slightly.
“That's great. So, would you be kind enough to allow us access to information about dimensions? And, well, any supernatural entities, powers, factions, and anything else related to them?”
“Certainly.”
The Ancient One's answer came without hesitation, but the calmness in her voice made the next words feel considerably more important.
“But for a price.”
Gwen's expression became attentive.
“I need you to bring back Ultron. It does not matter if anything else is destroyed, but the Mind Stone must be brought back. In return, I will allow you, Ms. Tennyson, entry to the Sanctum's library for as long as you wish.”
Gwen considered the offer for only a moment.
“Well, we're already planning that, and we already have a way to go to the Negative Zone and back. Finding Ultron there will be a problem, though, especially since he can create clones of himself using technology. Do you have any way to track the Mind Stone?”
The Ancient One's expression remained composed, but her eyes narrowed slightly.
“You may have other things to worry about, Ms. Tennyson.”
Gwen's eyebrows lifted.
“As time flows differently in the Negative Zone, one day here is eleven months there. Ultron may no longer even be in the Negative Zone.”
Gwen's relaxed expression disappeared.
“What? But we already tested for time dilation, and there was none.”
“Yes.” The Ancient One nodded. “When taken into account according to the true space-time continuum, that is correct. But when compared to the passage of time here, it is different.”
Gwen stared at her for several seconds, processing the distinction rather than questioning the measurements they had already taken.
“So it's not that our calculations were wrong. We simply didn't have the information needed to account for how this universe's time relates to the Negative Zone.”
“Precisely.”
Gwen's eyes widened as the implications finally settled in.
“Oh no... Then we need to go immediately.”
She turned toward Lex.
“Sure,” Lex agreed, though his attention wasn't entirely on the Negative Zone anymore. His gaze had drifted toward the Ancient One's chest, where the Eye of Agamotto rested against her robes. “But I wanna know more about these Infinity Stones first.”
The Ancient One noticed the direction of his gaze. She didn't move to cover the Eye, nor did her expression change, but there was a subtle shift in the atmosphere around her as she looked back at him.
“I will impart that knowledge to you...” she said calmly, “when and if you are able to bring back the Mind Stone.”
Lex raised an eyebrow.
The Ancient One simply held his gaze for a moment before turning her attention back toward Gwen, making it very clear which of the two she was willing to trust with the knowledge she possessed.
---
Meanwhile, back at the mansion, Grayfia was feeling something that could technically be called upset, although that wasn't quite the right word. She wasn't angry, frustrated, or even particularly sad. She simply didn't have her usual spirits, mostly because she had spent the better part of the last two hours preparing breakfast for Lex, only for him to suddenly disappear before he could even sit down and eat it.
She had prepared a full English breakfast from scratch, including freshly baked bread, sausages, bacon, eggs, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms, hash browns, and a selection of fruit, while also preparing a pot of fresh coffee and several sauces to accompany the meal. None of it was particularly difficult for someone of Grayfia's abilities, but she had taken her time with it, making sure everything was prepared properly rather than simply throwing something together. She had even made the bread that morning.
Then Lex's phone had rung.
A few minutes later, he had vanished.
Grayfia stood at the kitchen counter with her hands resting neatly in front of her, looking at the breakfast she had prepared. She could hardly complain. Lex had a tendency to disappear whenever something interesting happened, and she knew perfectly well that his life rarely allowed him to plan his days around meals. Still, after spending two hours preparing his breakfast specifically because she knew he enjoyed her cooking, watching him leave without eating even a bite had left her just a little less cheerful than usual.
Jean, meanwhile, was having a much more awkward morning.
She sat at the breakfast table with her attention fixed firmly on her plate, doing everything she could to avoid making eye contact with anyone. Ever since last night's events, her imagination had been far too active for her own comfort. She had walked in on Lex and Regina, and although she hadn't actually seen anything other than Lex’.... She squeezed her thighs together by that thought before returning to what she was thinking, her mind had been more than happy to fill in the gaps.
The problem was that she knew about Regina, Donna, Kara, and Jubilee.
She had also started to suspect Sharon.
For all she knew, Lex might have slept with almost every woman sitting around this table.
Her eyes briefly drifted toward Grayfia, who was calmly preparing more food with the same flawless professionalism she displayed every day. Jean immediately looked back down at her plate.
Probably not the maid.
Grayfia looked far too composed and professional.
Across the table, Kara had been unusually quiet, although the faint smirk appearing on her face every now and then suggested she was thinking about something that Jean probably didn't want to know about.
Before Jean could wonder what it was, golden sparks suddenly appeared in the air beside the table.
They rapidly gathered into a circular formation, the sparks spinning around its edge before the center opened into a glowing portal. A moment later, Lex stepped through with Gwen following behind him, and the golden circle closed behind them, vanishing without leaving so much as a spark behind.
“Ooo, a new teleportation...” Donna commented, looking toward the spot where the portal had disappeared.
“Cool, right?” Lex said with a grin. “You should've seen the look on her face when I stole—well, copied it from her.”
Gwen walked past him with an unimpressed expression. “She looked pretty much the same. There was no change in her expression whatsoever, so I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Yeah, but imagine what her face would've looked like if she wasn't some master of the poker face,” Lex replied, clearly amused by the memory.
He pulled out a chair beside Sharon and sat down.
Sharon immediately picked up a piece of food from her plate and held it out toward him.
Lex happily leaned forward and accepted it.
“Aww, I wanna do that too!” Jubilee announced from the other side of the table.
She immediately grabbed her plate and came running toward Lex, apparently having decided that if Sharon got to feed him, she wanted her turn as well.