In the blink of an eye, her life had shifted from daily training and vacation bliss to confronting one of the most dangerous enemies—second only to Dormammu himself—Kaecilius.
To be honest, Kagura wasn’t prepared at all.
But that’s how the world works.
You can never be fully prepared for everything.
Disasters and trials often arrive long before you’re ready for them.
And really, if everything in life went according to plan, wouldn’t that be incredibly dull?
At least, for these so-called supervillains, "plans" are nothing more than the first things heroes destroy.
Now, within the sanctum of the Secret Library, a strange standoff had taken shape.
On one side stood Kagura, Stephen Strange, and Master Mordo.
On the other was Kaecilius, now empowered by the force of Dormammu himself.
Meanwhile, Wong had taken the unconscious Ancient One and retreated to the secret chamber housing the Eye of Agamotto, where he began casting protective spells to preserve her life and secure the relic.
"Hmph! And here I was wondering who might show up... just a couple of greenhorns?"
Kaecilius sneered with contempt.
"Ancient One, oh Ancient One... Is this what you’ve come to? Leaving the fate of Kamar-Taj and the Sanctum to novices? How... tragic."
"You’ll pay for your arrogance and pride!" With a sharp motion, Mordo unfurled the Staff of the Living Tribunal. "Justice will be served!"
"Justice? Hah!" Kaecilius burst into manic laughter. "That’s hilarious! Mordo, you poor fool... You’re still in the dark, aren’t you? You don’t even know who truly betrayed the mystic order!"
"What are you talking about?" Mordo’s brows furrowed. "The traitor to Kamar-Taj is clear—it’s you!"
"Absurd." Kaecilius scoffed. "Why don’t you ask the Ancient One who first broke the forbidden laws?"
"Lies and nonsense!" Mordo’s eyes burned with conviction. "Prepare to die, traitor!"
Determined to protect Kamar-Taj, and to shield the less experienced Kagura and Strange, Mordo activated every artifact at his disposal.
With the Staff of the Living Tribunal transforming into a blazing whip, he charged forward.
"Oh? Not bad—you’re finally acting like a senior disciple!" Kaecilius conjured two dimensional blades capable of slicing through reality.
"But it won’t matter. You’ll still die by my hand!"
He smirked, completely unfazed by Mordo’s fury. "But before that, wouldn’t it be more fun to watch your dear juniors die first?"
"Kagura! Strange! Fall back to the Time Vault and stay with Wong! I’ll hold him off!"
With that command, Mordo clashed with Kaecilius head-on.
Reality itself twisted and cracked.
Mystic energies clashed with the darkness of the forbidden dimension, erupting into bursts of power that rocked the extradimensional space like a violent storm at sea.
Was this what a life-and-death battle between masters of dimensional sorcery looked like?
"Doctor Strange, are you afraid? If you are, feel free to retreat on your own."
Kagura glanced sideways.
Stephen Strange gave her a crooked grin. "Me? Let a girl like you fight while I run away? Not a chance. I’m still a man, you know"
Even though Mordo had told them to retreat, Kagura didn’t move.
Because if she left now, just because she wasn’t strong enough, what difference would her presence have made at all?
If Kaecilius defeated Mordo, he would surely go after the Time Vault next.
And the Ancient One—already incapacitated by overuse of the dark dimension—would still be in danger.
Then Kagura and Strange would have to face Kaecilius themselves.
Yes, Mordo could buy time.
Yes, they could escape with the Ancient One.
But Kaecilius wouldn’t give up.
Dormammu needed the Eye of Agamotto.
That meant the enemy’s assault would never stop.
So then what? Sacrifice Wong next? Keep running?
No.
Kagura would never accept that.
If she had to fight—then she would fight here.
If they could repel Kaecilius now, everything would be resolved.
The Ancient One, Mordo, Wong, the Eye of Agamotto—all of them would be safe.
So there was nothing to fear.
Kamar-Taj would not fall today.
Mordo’s fate would not end today.
The Eye of Agamotto would not be taken today.
And the Ancient One’s life would not end today.
Why?
Because—I am still standing here!
————————————————————————
BOOM!
A surge of dimensional energy exploded, lighting the air in a brilliant orange flare.
Out of the smoke and debris, Mordo was thrown violently across the room, crashing to the ground.
Despite his power and experience, even with his arsenal— The Staff of the Living Tribunal, Boots of the Valtorr, the Invisible Wall, the Solar Phantasm Stone...
Admittedly, those artifacts did have quite the ring to them.
Still, even a battle-hardened sorcerer like Mordo couldn’t hold out for long against Dormammu’s top acolyte.
"Hmph. Is that all?" Kaecilius emerged from the dust, robes billowing like a dark lord of sorcery.
"Not that I’m surprised. Even as an apprentice, you never once beat me, did you? Mordo."
"This ends now."
Kagura stepped forward, standing protectively in front of Mordo, clad in her full White Moon combat suit.
A soft blue glow coursed across her form like moonlight on steel—radiant, composed, unyielding.
"Kagura? What are you doing? Why are you still here?!" Mordo stared in disbelief. "Didn’t I tell you and Strange to retreat? Even together you’re no match for him, let alone on your own!"
"Relax, Master Mordo." She looked over her shoulder and smiled. "Don’t worry. This will all be over soon."
"Yes. It will be over soon!" Kaecilius grinned viciously. "Soon, you’ll be dead, girl. And when Mordo sees your lifeless body, his grief will be exquisite. Then I’ll kill him too! What a beautiful ending!"
"You talk too much."
Kagura’s eyes narrowed. "You think just because you’ve mastered the dark dimension, you can defeat me?"
"Hah! Big words." Kaecilius sneered. "Even the Ancient One couldn’t beat me. And you? What are you supposed to be?"
"Overconfidence isn’t a good virtue," Kagura said, smiling coldly.
"So come on, Kaecilius. Let’s me see your precious dimensional sorcery— Struggle with everything you’ve got."