A Strange Tale

Stephen sighed as he continued sorting through the small cabinet of the Ancient One's personal items. He and Wong had both put off clearing away her things- it seemed disrespectful, somehow. They'd finally steeled themselves to at least make a start, and so Stephen was going through the cupboards while Wong sorted out clothing and books.

Stephen was coping by not looking too hard at anything. He knew (from Mordo's words, months ago) that the Ancient One never spoke about her past, and even though she was no longer with them, he was determined to not pry too much.

He couldn't keep quiet when he unearthed an old framed photo, though. The colors had faded, so clearly the picture was quite old. The Ancient One stood, in normal clothing, jeans and a yellow shirt (something Stephen had never seen her in), smiling, with a young boy standing on either side of her, and her hand resting on the shoulder of a girl in front. All three children were laughing.

Stephen blinked, picking the frame up, considering. Old pupils of hers, perhaps? He hadn't seen any children that young in his time here, but maybe it was different once? The photo had to be at least three decades old, if not more... He took a closer look at the children, slowly seeing something familiar in each of the boys. The one on the right looked oddly intense, and apparently was African American- he assumed. Could it be Mordo? He didn't know how long his former ally had been with the Ancient One, after all... He shifted his gaze to the other boy in the picture, who looked Asian.

"No way..." He muttered, grinning as he realized where he'd seen those dark eyes. Taking the photo with him, he walked into the next room. "Hey, Wong, look what I found." He offered the frame to the other man, smothering a laugh. "You were a cute kid!"

Wong all but snatched the photo from him. "Where did you find this?"

"In the Ancient One's things." Stephen's voice lost its mirth as he watched Wong's expression turn melancholic. "That's you and Mordo, right?"

Wong nodded, his eyes distant.

"Who's the girl in the middle? I don't remember meeting anyone who could be her..." He trailed off, realizing there was a distinct chance the girl wasn't here anymore- this lifestyle came with risks, he knew that.

"That's Victoria. Vicki, we called her back then." Wong smiled sadly. "She and I were the best of friends, once..."

Stephen waited, suspecting there was a story here. "What happened?"

Wong sighed. "Vicki came to Kamar-Taj about two years after I did, when we were both ten years old. She was an orphan, or so the Ancient One was led to believe at the time. We became friends quickly. We both had a terrible knack for pranks." He chuckled at the memory. "We caused a fair amount of trouble!"

Stephen shook his head, feigning shock. "You, Mr Serious, used to be a prankster?!"

"Shut up, Strange." Wong's face reddened slightly. "Anyway... problems soon arose. Victoria was a magical prodigy, her abilities well beyond her years. She accidentally sent us into Agamotto's realm once, and that was my first encounter with him. Not that we had any idea of the risk back then..." He shook his head.

Stephen held his hands up. "Wait, wait, wait. Agamotto? I thought he'd been silent for-"

"Decades, yes, he has." Wong confirmed. "In fact, that was down to Victoria as well." He closed his eyes. "Power like hers came with a price. If I'd known then the truth of it..."

Stephen rolled his eyes. "I forgot how much I love it when you speak in riddles..."

"I mentioned Victoria was thought of as an orphan, yes? In reality, that was only half true. Her mother and stepfather both died tragically, but Victoria herself..." Wong paused. "You've read of half-demon beings, haven't you?"

"Yes, usually the result of a male entity of demonic nature taking advantage of a human woman- oh." Stephen made the connection. "This Victoria was a half demon."

"Yes. Agamotto himself revealed the truth to her, when her powers and nightmares began to cause problems. I was there at the time. I was a child, I did not take it well. I became angry with Agamotto because I didn't want to believe it to begin with. Neither did she. Then..."

"What? Wong, you're killing me here. What happened?"

"Victoria's presence in Kamar-Taj weakened its defences. Her father was able to gain access to Agamotto and overpower him, holding him prisoner. Legions of demons fell upon Kamar-Taj and the Sanctums during the day he was a captive of Victoria's father. Many sorcerers were injured; several died. Agamotto eventually broke free and cast the demons away." Wong sighed heavily. "I didn't see much of the actual fighting, of course. I was eleven years old. Mordo, Victoria and I were hidden in the old Sanctuary, the hallowed area. I only pieced this whole story together years later."

Stephen was frowning. "Still not getting this. You said it was somehow this Victoria's fault that Agamotto withdrew from having contact with his followers. But it doesn't really sound like any of it was her fault..."

Wong's brow furrowed. "While we were hidden away, during those attacks, Victoria went into some kind of seizure. Later, in the aftermath of the attack, we were told by Agamotto himself, before he departed, that Victoria's father was using her energy to fuel his attack on our world. She lay comatose for nearly a month afterwards. She may even have inadvertently led her father to Agamotto's realm- she managed to take us there, about a year before the assault. No, it may not have been her fault, but if it were not for her, none of it would have happened."

Stephen was scowling now. "So what, she was thrown out of here because of something her father- who is a demon and probably doesn't give a damn about her- did?"

Another head-shake. "No, she was permitted to remain, by Agamotto's grace, but after that, she withdrew, wanting less and less to do with us. She still studied, but otherwise... it was as if she preferred to be alone, which, to me, implies she felt guilt for what had happened, or had something to hide." He took a deep breath. "And if I am honest, she didn't really fit in here after that. When we began learning magic in earnest, she had little skill in the art. Agamotto's rites rarely worked for her. And it was after that dark day that he ceased communicating directly with us."

"But the magic thing, that could just be because she used a different 'type' of magic, right? I've read that demonic magic, which is what I guess she'd use, is chaotic. Agamotto's power stems from Order. Kind of obvious that a half-demon's power wouldn't work the same way... Anyway, where is she now?"

"I'm not sure. She lived at Kamar-Taj until we were in our twenties, though she travelled a lot, doing what I don't know. Then, one day, she just... didn't come back." Wong's face reddened further. "I, ahem, may have... accidentally overheard the Ancient One make contact with Agamotto one last time. He told her that Victoria had chosen to leave her studies at Kamar-Taj, and had chosen a different path. And before you ask, no, I don't know what that means. That's also how I worked out the sequence of events that led to the disaster when we were children, and Victoria's role in it. The Ancient One tried to find her, but we've never heard more than rumors, though we have been assured she's safe. She never returned to Kamar-Taj or the Sanctums, wanting nothing to do with Agamotto's followers."

"So she might not even know that the Ancient One..." Stephen shook his head. "Wong, your friend was raised by her, don't you think she at least deserves to know that she died? Don't you owe her that much?" he folded his arms, eyes narrowed. "Because to me, it sounds like you only heard Agamotto's side of the story, and everyone accepted him at face value, and no-one really bothered to ask for Victoria's side of it. And yes, I'm sure that's blasphemous and you're going to get mad at me for insulting our patron god, but I'm calling it as I see it. Did you ever even ask for Victoria's version of events?"

Wong had the grace to look ashamed as he shook his head. "No. But as sorcerers, we follow Agamotto's laws. Victoria would not have been able to live that way, against her very nature. So her leaving Kamar-Taj was the best thing." He sighed. "You are correct, though. She should be told of the loss of the Ancient One. She desrves to mourn." He walked away without another word, and, curious, Stephen followed.

In his room, Wong pulled a cell phone from a bedside drawer. Stephen's brow rose. "Since when do you even have a cell phone?!"

"Since Victoria gave it to me."

Stephen's jaw dropped. "Wait, what? But you said you lost touch with her..."

"I said, if you'd been listening, that she never set foot in Kamar-Taj or any of the Sanctums again. I never said I hadn't heard from her. She calls me once or twice a year, though I know very little of her life now. I know she still deals in magic and works to protect the world, just not in the same manner we do. She's quite secretive about her methods."

Stephen was intrigued. "I don't suppose I could meet her someday?"

"Perhaps. Though you might be shocked if you do."

"Why?"

"Because she's my age but hasn't really aged in physical terms since our late adolescence." And with that, leaving Stephen with his mouth hanging open, Wong walked from the room to make his phone call in private.