Disclaimer: Doctor Strange film and characters and Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV show and characters are owned by Marvel. I claim nothing besides my genius.
Disclaimer #2: This fanfiction contains SPOILERS for the Doctor Strange movie and for the 4th season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
~A BioStrange Story~
No Other
Chapter 8
"Director Mace," she whispered frantically.
"Can talk to me if he has a problem," he said recapturing her hand and leading her through the portal where five people in lab coats started to freak out. Someone dropped a beaker and it shattered on the floor.
"I expect you'll be getting an introduction," she said dropping his hand. "It's all right everyone, it's all right." Once the lab techs calmed down she continued, "This is, Doctor Stephen Strange."
The orange-golden glowing portal sizzled around him as he stood in its doorway, behind him was clearly a different place altogether. While a couple of the techs faked smiles at him, most of them were staring in wonder at the portal he and Agent Simmons had just walked out of.
"Jemma?!" Fitz came running into the lab from another room. He pulled her into a hug. "Where have you been?" he asked breathlessly. "What happened?"
Stephen's eyes shifted from the embrace in front of him to the linoleum floor. He turned and closed the portal much to the disappointment of the techs.
"You." Fitz had apparently just realized Doctor Strange was in the same room. He tore away from Jemma and headed toward him.
"Fitz!" Jemma grabbed his arm.
Stephen met Fitz's eyes looking sort of alarmed.
"What happened? Where did you take her?"
"It wasn't like that."
"Doctor Strange was attacked by another sorcerer while I happened to be there. We fell through a door and ended up in a tundra, and then the door closed we couldn't get back," Jemma said.
Fitz glanced from Strange to Simmons trying to catch up. "You fell through a door and ended up in a tundra?"
"In Antarctica," Stephen supplied.
"What?" He ran his hands through the back of his hair, "Never mind that. Why couldn't you get back? Obviously you brought her here," Fitz said pointing at the portal still sizzling behind Doctor Strange.
"Yes," Stephen looked at it and closed it up. "I lost my ring when I fought with Mordo at the Sanctum… and my cloak. So we were stuck for a little while until I was able to contact another sorcerer to get us out."
"Sorcerer?" He threw his hands into the air, "Oh, this is too much. I don't think I can deal with this. The important thing is you're safe."
"Yes," Jemma smiled.
"Doctor Strange," Coulson strode into the lab. "Agent Simmons, it's good to see you," he said and motioned to the lab techs still standing around behind him.
"Oh right. Why don't you take your lunch break now?" Jemma said.
"Now?" One of them repeated.
She glanced up at the clock. It was 8AM. "Yes, now."
There was a little muttering as they walked out.
As soon as they left Coulson went to her. "What happened?"
Doctor Strange looked at Jemma with a slightly tired expression on his face as if he really didn't want to tell the same story ten more times.
"Yes, well. Stephen was attacked while I was giving him the darkforce-"
"Wait, what?" Fitz chimed in.
Agent Coulson held up one hand. "Let's just get this story first."
"Anyhow… we got blasted out of this door, that was sort of a portal… and we ended up in a tundra."
"In Antarctica," Stephen supplied once more.
"What?"
Jemma ignored Coulson. "And, we didn't have any way to get back because he lost his ring."
Doctor Strange held up the hand with the ring in question behind them, looking incredibly bored.
"How did you get back?" Coulson asked.
"Stephen was able to go into the astral dimension and get another sorcerer to send a portal to us."
"And that took two days?" Fitz asked.
Doctor Strange shot her a warning look before she launched into the rest of the story but she just ignored him. "Well, he went into the astral dimension earlier but Mordo trapped him in there for hours and by the time-"
"Oh look at the time," Doctor Strange said checking his broken watch. "I really should go." And he began to cast a portal back to the Sanctum.
Coulson turned around, "We really need to discuss the darkforce."
"And by the time he'd gotten back he was suffering from hypothermia and he nearly died so then we were just stuck there that much longer," Jemma said brightly. She glanced back at him and he closed his mouth. Apparently he'd been trying to mouth something to her but she hadn't been paying any attention. Now he was just staring at her like a deer in the headlights.
"Hypothermia," Fitz said comprehension dawning on his face. His eyes met Stephen's.
Stephen's expression only served to fuel Fitz's anger.
"But…" Fitz said trying to compose himself. "You had your magic or whatever it is."
Before Doctor Strange could get one word out Jemma spoke again. "Fitz he was unconscious."
"What? Oh." This seemed to calm him down.
"Right," Stephen said. "So. Coulson, if you'd like you can come with me back to the Sanctum and we can discuss the darkforce there. I probably shouldn't get caught on the base with this Director Mace, I keep hearing so much about, roaming around."
Jemma avoided Fitz's gaze and smiled knowingly at Doctor Strange.
He glanced up and saw her, and then focused back on what Agent Coulson was saying about Roxxon.
She smiled to herself, not such a terrible liar after all.
"Up here," Doctor Strange said pointing toward the stairs that went up three flights to his office.
Coulson ascended the steps in wonder as they passed the room of relics, he no doubt, wanted to spend some time in there with his nose pressed up against the glass.
Doctor Strange's cloak flourished all around him as he sat down at his desk. It had been a while. Nothing had been moved. The phial of darkforce sat exactly where he'd left it.
"Doctor Strange," Coulson began, standing at the other side.
Stephen motioned for him to sit. "Please."
"Thank you." He sat down opposite the doctor.
"You wanted me to get to Roxxon to remove the darkforce before S.H.I.E.L.D. got a hold of it, I'm going to guess I'm to be too late for that?"
"Yes, probably. I haven't been in there since I took that sample. I know they've been at the site but you might be able to get some of it. Anyhow, some is better than none is it not?"
Stephen nodded. It wasn't good but it's not like he could do anything about his current predicament anyhow. Well, there was the Eye of Agamotto but he wasn't going to turn back time to save the darkforce at this point. Besides the whole tampering with natural law thing, it would also would mean losing all of the time I'd spent with Jemma.
"Might be better to try at night, it's being guarded but the lab geeks aren't around, so definitely quieter then." He reached into his pocket, "I can give you the coordinates."
Doctor Strange made a sound of appreciation, little more than a grunt really, as Coulson looked at his phone.
As Stephen copied it down Coulson was looking over the top of his smartphone as if maybe studying him.
"What?" Stephen said.
"You seem like a smart guy."
Understatement. "What are you getting at?"
"Is something going on between you and Simmons?"
"What?" He sat up. Yes, if he got taller than Coulson he'd definitely seem more intimidating and then maybe he'd move onto another subject… like going back to his base.
"You heard me."
He made some dismissive gesture with his hand, "Of course not. She's with Leo Fitz as I understand it. Right?"
Coulson glanced down at his hands thoughtfully. "She told you that did she?"
"Well, how else would I have known?"
Coulson smiled at him, a tight little smile, as if Stephen had just lain all of his cards on the table for Agent Coulson to read.
Doctor Strange turned away from him, facing his body completely to the side, and stroked his beard a little as Coulson analyzed him. "Stop doing that. You're worse than a third year psych student," Doctor Strange said.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."
Stephen glanced back at him annoyed. "Is there something else you wanted to say?"
"No, I think you've told me all I need to know," Agent Coulson said standing up. "I'd let myself out but I obviously can't do that."
Doctor Strange remained seated, looking up at Coulson darkly. "I could let you walk back to your base."
"Like you pretended not to have your powers in Antarctica?"
"It wasn't like that at all," he said, his rich voice echoing off the walls of the upper chamber they were in. "You don't honestly think I'd strand her in Antarctica so I could get to know her?"
"Would you?"
Stephen rolled his eyes. "No. It wasn't a picnic for me either." For a moment his mind went immediately back to the cave floor picnics… and then he tried to catch back up and forgot what he was trying to say. He picked up the darkforce and examined it again. "I'll head to Roxxon tonight, see if I can offer some sort of resolution to this minor catastrophe."
"I'm sorry. I have to make sure I think about the welfare of my fellow agents."
Stephen stood and waving his hand in the air created a portal back to the base. "You're just being nosy."
Coulson smiled his tight-lipped smile back at Doctor Strange. "Just cautious."
"Well," Stephen said, indicating the portal. "There is your door. You are, of course, welcome to call me if there is danger from any peculiar sources again."
"Goodbye Doctor Strange."
After Coulson left the portal closed behind him and that was when Stephen knew his time with Jemma had come to an end. Suddenly. He was left with the most stunning feeling of emptiness he'd felt in a long time.
Doctor Strange awoke with a start. For several minutes he wasn't quite certain where he was. Overhead he'd expected a frost covered cave, instead he awoke staring up at wood coffered ceiling tiles and mahogany paneling on the walls.
There was sunlight streaming in from outside one window and onto his face. He rolled over unhappily… he was alone. At least no one was there to hit him in the face upon first awaking he thought to himself but it was as if he was trying to console himself with that idea. It fell from his head to be replaced with a pang of longing and sadness…
He stared down at one broken hand that lay limp on the bed in front of him. He thought of how she'd held it, examined it slowly… and determined she might be able to help him. Her hands were so firm and tiny, and soft…
A smile quirked at his mouth and then faltered. He needed to get up.
Jemma awoke to the smell of Fitz's open mouth and turned over to get away from the morning breath. He'd wanted to give her a proper welcome back but she was too exhausted, at least that's what she'd told him. The time on the bedside table read 6AM but their room was still dark. She needed to get up, exercise… get back on that workout routine… and pop into the shower.
She'd have to deal with Director Mace today as well, and she didn't relish that thought.
Jemma looked over her shoulder at Fitz who remained sound asleep on his side of his double bed. She remembered how Stephen had looked unconscious… sweet and helpless… how striking his face looked caught in the half-light…
Fitz snored.
She slid out of bed quietly and padded back to her own room.
