DoorMan (MCU SI) - #132

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DoorMan #132

Kun’Lun [June 2008]

–Colin Baxter–

“It was something I had never expected to see, not in my lifetime anyway. There have been records of vampires previously attempting to enter Kun’Lun, but they have never been successful.” Yu-Ti told him as they sat in his office. Already, he could tell that the mask was doing its work properly, as with every passing moment, Yu-Ti’s breath stabilised, he sat straighter, and minor tremors in his hands receding.

“Because of Shou-Lao,” He prompted the man who nodded at his words, sipping from the cup of tea he’d made for himself when they entered his office. It had a nice aroma that spread throughout his office.

“Yes, because of Shou-Lao, we never had to worry about those filthy creatures of darkness. They always fell to Shou-Lao’s aura, no matter how strong they thought of themselves. After all, Shou-Lao is light himself. Those filthy creatures of darkness could never get close.”

“Until now,”

Yu-Ti paused, the only sign of his internal turmoil, before agreeing, “Yes, until now. As shameful as it is to be known as the first leader of Kun’Lun to fail in the face of darkness, it is the truth. Somehow, those infernal creatures managed to find someone strong enough to outright ignore Shou-Lao’s aura, forcing our guardian to intervene himself, an event that hasn’t occurred for over a thousand years.”

He leaned back into the chair, exhaling as his thoughts drifted to the time he first got news of that vampire. That stupid, hell empowered Vampire, who apparently was targeting him. So much had happened since then that it felt like ages ago when the Red Matron first approached him, to get her fill of Blood Apples in exchange for informing the Ancient One about that threat.

Since then, this Vampire has orchestrated an attack on Ta-Lo, and now an attack here. He didn’t even know if the Super Vampire himself came for the attack, since he didn’t even know what that bastard looked like or the far more accurate measure of existence, what his energy signature felt like.

They had even roped in the likes of Dormammu, who was instrumental in hiding them from the gaze of the Ancient One. For he was sure that no matter how strong they were, they would fall in front of the Ancient One, with her Vishanti Cloak.

“Did Shou-Lao manage to kill the one responsible?” He asked the burning question, however unlikely it might have been.

Yu-Ti shook his head, “No, they fled just as Shou-Lao’s aura flooded Kun’Lun.”

“I see.” He nodded, lost in thought as he asked the question on his mind ever since he came here, “Why did they come here? What were they after?”

Yu-Ti went silent after that, as his suspicions rose. The Super Vampire must be after something. To risk Shou-Lao’s wrath like this meant it must be incredibly important to come here, raise all this commotion, kill invaluable protectors of Kun’Lun, injure the Supreme Leader, and then just flee.

Something must have happened, they must have done something that he was not seeing here. Some hidden angle that he needed to know because this was fast becoming a huge problem, for both him and Earth as a whole.

Kun’Lun, despite not actively defending the planet against threats, is actually an integral part of Earth’s defenses. 

The Ancient One told him all about it sometime in the past. About how Earth was infested with mystical, supernatural creatures, both benevolent and exceedingly cruel. About how multiple human groups were formed with their own specialty, to defeat the evil in their region.

About how those groups lost their purpose once Earth was cleansed, and the responsibility to defend it against magic fell primarily on Kamar Taj. How the remnants of these groups occupied mystical hotspots, preserving their knowledge, skill and tradition with a small number, eventually becoming the Six Mystical Hotspots on the planet.

How they continued to train, waiting for their foes to return.

“How much do you know of the Six Mystical Hotspots on the planet? I assume you know of them from your time at Kamar Taj?” Yu-Ti suddenly asked him, instead of answering his previous question.

“Yes? I know of their names, but I haven’t been to all of them. Only Ta-Lo, Kamar-Taj, and here.” He replied, uncertain as to where this conversation was going.

“I see. That’s good. Can you tell me why these places still exist? After all, from your time at Kamar Taj, you must know by now that we do very little when it comes to protecting the planet. We send no personnel to train at Kamar Taj, nobody to help you with Chi, no support, no experts, nothing. So, why? Why do we exist?”

He replied slowly, “Well, I know about Ta-Lo. They have that ancient demon behind that seal. As for you, I guess it’s because of Shou-Lao? He doesn’t have anyplace else to go?”

Yu-Ti burst out laughing at that, “Believe me, Master Colin, if Shou-Lao wanted to, he could go to any place in the galaxy, such is his strength. No, Kun’Lun is not just glorified housing for Shou-Lao. We serve a purpose far more important than that.”

“What is it? Stop speaking in riddles. Just tell me what they took so that I can go get it back for you.” He, did not snap but it was very close.

“I will be clear then. The Three Sanctums.”

His brows furrowed as the conversation took another turn once more, “What of them?”

Yu-Ti’s hands moved, as Chi began flowing through his hands, forming a visual representation of Earth, and the Mystical Shield surrounding it, with the three central points denoting the Three Sanctums keeping the whole thing running. The shield moved fluidly around the planet but it was clear that it had three anchor points that were necessary to keep it running.

“I assume you know this much,” 

To which, he just nodded, marvelling at the extremely precise Chi manipulation on display. He was sure that mask was helping somewhat but even so, the man in front of him was probably the foremost human expert on Chi. The only reason he was as skilled as he was because he cheated. 

He could never run out of Chi, allowing him to practice without end. These guys, on the other hand, had to keep some in the tank, else they ran the risk of injuring themselves, or even outright death.

“What you don't know, however, is that this is only part of the total picture,” His eyebrows rose as Yu-Ti moved his hands once more, expanding the shield, and then, six different rings popped up in between the shield and the planet.

“Each one of these rings is a Mystical Hotspot.”

What? How does that work?

Yu-Ti, seeing his confused look, began explaining, “The shield is not just a single layer supported by the Three Sanctums. The Three Sanctums, along with the six Mystical Hotspots, create an energy feedback loop that powers the whole thing. Now, I must emphasise that destruction of the three Sanctums would destroy the shield entirely, that part is true but the Sanctums do not make the shield by themselves.”

“I see.” His mind churned furiously as he connected the dots and realised just why the Ancient One took great care of these hotspots, despite them not even lifting a finger for Kamar Taj in exchange.

“Just like Shou-Lao here, and the Demon in Ta-Lo, there are beings with great significance, in each of these six places, fueling the shields, with the Three Sanctums siphoning energy straight from the leylines, all so that the shield can be kept active.”

“Wow.” He said, truly amazed. So the part of these people not currently defending the planet from mystical threats was false. They have been protecting the planet, just like their ancestors.

It also explained why the Ancient One never took any effort to actually slay the demon in that seal, even when she had Jin’Ya and the Red Matron on her side with a weakened Demon in that seal. She needed that demon to remain alive, to fuel the shields outside. 

Then, he snapped out of it, looking at Yu-Ti, “Wait. That still doesn’t explain why that vampire came here. Shou-Lao is still here, so the shield is still active. What did he take from here?”

Yu-Ti folded his hands in front of him, as he leaned on the desk, “That wretched being came here and took something worth more than my life itself, “He took the keys to the shield.”

“Keys?”

“Yes, keys. Once in a hundred years, the keys to the shield in each of the six pillars are interchanged, for safety. These Keys, are more information than physical items, holding the secret to the shield and how it draws energy from every one of the six places. It is extremely valuable and is guarded zealously by everyone, even at the cost of their lives, just so the secret remains safe.

The Ancient One has gone to great lengths to bury this information, but apparently, somehow the vampire knew, and he now has Kun’Lun’s key. We have failed.”

For some reason, that declaration rang like a gong in his ear.

A/N - Hi, guys! You might have noticed as the updates for this fic have become less and less frequent. As it turns out, maintaining the muse for a single thing for long is hard, and as days go by, I find it harder and harder to write this, especially with all the IRL stuff taking its toll as well.
So, for now, I am relegating this story to secondary updates, with one or two chapters posted per week.

I have also begun writing another story that feels very exciting to write. Hope you like that as well and continue to support me as you have until now!

Thank you for reading! Toodles!