Chapter Thirty-Five: Influencing the Past

After turning off the surveillance screens, Fury opened another file. Just moments ago, the agent in charge of compiling information on the cult had sent in a report. Fury opened the document and began to carefully read through the details about this cult. According to the file, the religious group originated from a small town called Innsmouth. Twenty-seven years ago, a sudden fire broke out there, claiming the lives of all its residents, and the church was abandoned ever since.

"Twenty-seven years ago? Didn't Hill say fifty years?" Fury frowned slightly and called Hill in. "Agent Hill, why did you previously say that church was abandoned fifty years ago?"

Hill flipped through her own files and saw that it actually stated twenty-seven years. She apologized to Director Fury, "Sorry, Director, I must have mixed up the two and the five when organizing the information."

"Alright, you may go for now, Agent Hill. Don't make this kind of mistake again." Fury nodded; it wasn't a major issue, but then his tone shifted. "Go take a psychological evaluation."

Hill understood—Fury was concerned she might have been influenced during her prior interaction with Helaer. She nodded decisively. "Understood, Director." With that, she left the office immediately.

Fury watched Hill leave before finally bringing his right hand up from beneath the desk.

Clearly, when dealing with any powers related to mind control, the security level must be raised, Fury thought to himself.

Meanwhile, in Kamar-Taj, both the Ancient One and El simultaneously sensed an anomaly along the timeline: a being who had just ascended to the rank of a principal deity was extracting their own information from the present and projecting it into the past.

Transcending time and space, defying the primordial order—once one becomes a principal deity, they are no longer bound to the timeline. From then on, they exist beyond past, present, and future. As long as they have existed, they exist now, and will exist in the future.

"Such cunning—clearly, the Blind and Foolish God is not so foolish after all, but rather exceptionally clever." El felt that surge of darkness and, after brief contemplation, understood Amon's scheme. When a principal deity transcends the timeline, there is a single opportunity to deliberately affect the past. If this chance is seized, one can plant ancient schemes. While reality as it exists cannot be altered, much can be hidden from prying eyes.

For example, the Protoss Empire's detectors arrived on Midgard a million years ago. If Amon tried anything on Midgard after that time, the detectors would inevitably discover it. But if a principal deity plants their machinations hundreds of millions of years in the past during their transcendence, they can avoid detection by the Protoss Empire—this applies to other worlds as well.

"No wonder you are the antithesis of wisdom—my eternal adversary." El narrowed his eyes, gazing into the endless void. He knew that, even so, the schemes of a principal deity could not influence the current Protoss Empire. However, when it came to other intelligent life forms, the outcome was far less certain.

The Ancient One knew full well that someone had influenced the past without changing the present, but interventions of this magnitude—even a creator god could not interfere at will. Yet the God of Darkness had declared war on all the gods. As the favored of the Eternal God and the bearer of the Time Stone, the Ancient One immediately called upon the stone's power to examine those "ancient" schemes.

"Your Majesty El, three mysterious ruins have appeared on Midgard. They are located beneath Antarctica, on the ocean floor of the Pacific, and in the Bermuda Islands," the Ancient One reported the findings. While the true secrets left by the principal deity could not be directly uncovered, as the Sorcerer Supreme, she could still discern the addition of foreign elements to the world.

"Amon's minions have already begun a large-scale invasion of this universe. War is now inevitable." El nodded slightly and looked at the Ancient One. "I wonder if the lineage of the Sanctum Sorcerers will choose to cooperate with the current government?"

The Ancient One smiled faintly. "That is a concern for the next Sorcerer Supreme. After all, the battlefield of the mundane universe is but a minor skirmish."

...

Helaer lay on the hospital bed, rendered completely immobile by various medications and only able to speak in a faint voice. Though he was furious at this so-called National Land Bureau for drugging and hypnotizing him, he could only tell himself the old adage: If you cannot resist, you might as well endure.

After waiting for an indeterminate period, a voice sounded at his bedside. "Mr. Helaer, we need to perform a second hypnosis session on you. Please rest assured, after this procedure you should regain your freedom."

Cursing inwardly, Helaer lacked the strength to resist; even if someone forced themselves on him, he would be helpless, let alone resist their procedures. "Thank you for your help. I will do my best to cooperate."

Natasha's gaze carried a trace of disdain as she looked at the limp figure of Helaer on the bed. She didn't know why Fury had assigned her to keep watch over someone in this condition, but as an agent, vigilance was always required—especially after the Battle of New York.

Standing nearby, the psychologist skillfully hypnotized the still-recovering Helaer. This time the hypnosis was highly effective, and Helaer soon fell into a deep sleep. Yet that strange persona never resurfaced, no matter what methods the psychologist used.

Soon, Helaer awoke from the hypnosis, and Natasha's voice returned. "Mr. Helaer, your tests are complete for today. We will provide you with accommodations and meals. Enjoy your stay in New York. By the way, please do not disclose any relevant information to the outside world."

Helaer managed a wry smile. He knew perfectly well that "accommodations and meals" was simply a euphemism for house arrest. He would be under surveillance for the foreseeable future, and the moment he arrived at his "temporary residence," a stack of confidentiality agreements would surely be waiting for him.

After watching the guards escort Helaer away, Natasha picked up the psychologist’s assessment and read it carefully. Fury had summoned her without providing detailed information, but as an agent with Level Nine clearance, Natasha understood his intentions.

"Unknown dissociative identity, evidence of mysterious influence, no recurrence observed after medical and psychological intervention; efficacy of treatment remains uncertain." Natasha frowned slightly. Incidents involving mysterious forces affecting the mind were the hardest for her to accept—after all, Barton had once been controlled, though he was eventually rescued.

She now understood why Fury had called her in yet kept her away from Helaer—this was the reason. However, Helaer’s symptoms differed from Barton's when he was controlled, and the psychologist’s report confirmed that the previous situation had not recurred. Whether the problem had been cured or merely concealed remained to be seen.