Chapter Seven
The storm of the previous night had cleared away, and warm amber rays of the morning sun streaked in, onto the hospital floor.
Stephen startled awake, surprised that he'd fallen asleep on the rock hard couch of the waiting room. He sat up, wincing, tossed aside the blanket that someone had draped over him.
Scanned the room for anyone who might be able to give him news.
He spotted Christine as she came in, got to his feet to meet her.
His anxious scowl was eased by her expression, a mix of exhaustion and relief.
He took her by the shoulders, gently, his question unvoiced.
She nodded, shrugged,
'The surgery was successful. His vitals are improving, already. As usual, you were right.'
Stephen broke into a smile, chided, softly,
'I'm not right as often as used to think I was.'
She managed a tiny grin, turned away, headed down the hall toward the recovery suite, and Stephen followed, uncertain what else to say.
Unwilling to let her leave.
'Christine, please, wait,' he managed, halting her.
'Why, Stephen?' she sighed, irritably, arms folded, as she met his eyes.
'I...I was just hoping...'
'What? That just because you finally...' she began, but Stephen had quit listening.
From behind Christine, he spotted a black clad figure, with a cloak, striding confidently down the sunlit hallway, toward him.
His initial confusion doubled as he realized exactly what he was seeing.
It was Sable, traversing the light, without so much as flinching.
'What the...?' Stephen muttered, taking a few steps away from Christine, towards Sable.
Christine's tirade trailed off into silence as she turned to see what had taken Stephens attention.
'Still playing Doctor?' Sable spat, face twisted with scorn and rage, but Stephen was so stunned he couldn't manage a response.
Sable laughed, paused several feet away, in a defensive stance, hands fists, held at his waist.
'Your Library of Kamar-Taj was very useful. I found several spells which grant me a few hours of immunity to daylight.'
Winked, snarled,
'Element of surprise, especially for you,' and hurled a glinting silver ball directly toward Stephen, which exploded into a hailstorm of deadly daggers, followed by two more exactly like it.
The pattern would encompass the entire hallway, spraying, not just Stephen, but Christine.
'NO!'
Stephen bellowed, lunged forward, throwing a shield up in an attempt to protect them, knowing it wouldn't be enough.
Christine was too far away from him, too surprised to run.
Blasting past his shoulder, a scarlet bolt of lightning threw itself between Christine and Sable.
Cloak.
It grabbed Christine, shoved her behind Stephens' shield, which sparked and wavered beneath the salvo of argent shrapnel.
Stephen snapped a confused glance toward Cloak, but didn't have time to wonder what had brought it back to his side.
Christine huddled at his back, flinching as Sable continued his barrage against Stephens shield, and Cloak hovered close by his right elbow.
'What do you say, Strange?' Sable taunted, not pausing his relentless assault.
'Shall I kill just you, or will your failure to surrender force me to take others?'
His attack was so fierce, so sustained, Stephen knew he couldn't maintain the shield much longer.
Flashing a look at Cloak, Stephen barked,
'Get her out of here!'
Fear for Christine was lessening his ability to make a defense, or mount an attack, dividing his attention.
Cloak shook an adamant NO, but Stephen insisted,
'Get her to safety, now!'
Cloak shuddered, indecision, torn between obedience and newly reaffirmed devotion.
'GO!' Stephen howled, forced to drop to one knee, desperately attempting to maintain his own defense.
Cloak threw itself on Christine, wrapped her up like an egg roll, and, ignoring her squeal of protest, bolted down the hall, frantically searching for what it thought might be a safe place.
As soon as Cloak had gone, Stephen looked to Sable, and gave a slight nod.
Agreed,
'I will surrender.'
Immediately, Sable ceased his attack, allowed Stephen to find his feet, all the while keeping a defensive stance.
Stephen took a deep breath, straightened, dropped his shield, said,
'Not here.'
Sable lowered his eyebrows, smiled, cruelly,
'Where, then, Master Strange? Realize, if you attempt to evade, or deceive me, I will return here.'
His threat was implicit, and Stephen knew he wouldn't hesitate to carry it out.
Stephen gave a sad smile, shook his head, wearily.
He was tired.
Sable had clearly bested him, and he realized that wasn't his only failure.
But, it would be his last.
'The Sanctum,' he decided, and spun a gateway.
Cloak blasted down the hallways, past astonished staff and patients, frantically searching for what it thought might be a safe place.
'Stop! Stop!' Christine screamed, thrashing against its tight wrap,
'Right here, this room...'
Cloak swung a hard right, into the designated room, then slammed to a stop.
'Put me down,' she insisted, more angry than afraid, 'I'll be fine, right here.'
Cloak hesitated, briefly, then unceremoniously dumped her to the floor.
She hit hard.
'What are you waiting for?' she gasped, scrabbling to her feet, 'Get back there, and help him!'
Cloak didn't pause one second.
It raced back the way it had come, but when it came flashing around the last corner, it jerked to a halt, scanning the now empty hallway.
Stephen wasn't there.
Distressed, it searched, frantically, but the connection that had led it to its Chosen, told it where he was, was gone.
Closed, or blocked.
Deliberately.
Which meant Stephen had consciously decided to face almost certain defeat, alone.
Stephen stepped thru the gateway, into the main foyer of the New York Sanctum, and Sable came thru his own, immediately opposite.
Stephen straightened, squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, met Sables icy, remorseless stare.
'I want no one to be harmed, because of me. I will agree to surrender my life to you, without a fight,' Stephen said, 'and, in response, you will swear an Oath never to return, nor take any further actions against the inhabitants of my world.'
Sable narrowed his glittering eyes, bared his silver fangs in a cruel snarl, sarcasm, disbelief,
'You would accept my Oath?'
Stephen gave a tiny smile, which faded into acceptance,
'I have seen how you keep an Oath. I trust you will honor another, even if the one you have given it to is dead.'
If Sable was surprised, he hid it well. After a few moments, he nodded, hissed,
'I give this Oath; If you surrender your life, I will neither return, nor cause harm to any of the people of your world.'
Stephen nodded, with a sad smile, looked around, one last time, at what had become his home.
Thought how unworthy of this place, his title, he'd become. Undeserving of Cloaks' loyalty, its brutally honest perception of his loss of merit. Perhaps it was even presumptuous to assume he should die here, but he had no other place he'd choose.
One thing he was very clear on; he deserved to die alone.
He drew a deep breath, closed his eyes, briefly, then calmly looked straight at Sable, spread his arms wide, with a nod.
Sable raised his hands, full of the glistening silver shards, and unleashed them into Stephen, like a barrage from a machine gun.
The shards ripped thru Stephen, tearing him to shreds.
Cloak blasted thru the front door of the Sanctum, tearing the door off its hinges.
Wong charged in from the opposite side of the foyer, Master Jade, in her astral form, at his side, both having arrived via the Kamar-Taj portal.
They were just in time to see Stephens body crumple to the floor.
With a scream of fury, Jade threw a scarlet fireball toward Sable. Caught completely unprepared, he had no time to raise a defense. The blast knocked him to the floor.
Immediately, Wong lassoed him with a thick golden whip. Ebon cloak dodged the whiplash, tore at Wong, viciously. Wong gave a roar, and battled it off with one free hand, refusing to let go of the whip.
Jade hurled anther bolt into Sable to keep him down, then barked a sharp command in a harsh, unfamiliar language.
Ebon cloak shuddered, as the words hit it. It jerked away from Wong, and floated away, unsteadily, to hang in a shadowed corner, dazed.
Oblivious to the battle raging between Jade, Wong, and Sable, Cloak had frozen at the sight of Stephen, lying motionless in a spreading pool of blood.
After a moment, it moved to hover over Stephen, laid its hem to his bloodied cheek.
For Stephen, everything had gone black. Death had him wrapped in its remorseless grip, dragging him into eternal night.
Then, he felt a gentle touch against his face, recognized it, even now.
Cloak.
He channeled the last of his energy into his hand, raised it, shaking, to pull Cloak tightly to his cheek, and a peaceful smile touched his lips.
'I'm sorry,' he managed to choke out, feebly, a broken whisper.
'Loyal...friend,' he exhaled, but didn't draw another breath.
His hand fell away.
Dead.
It's' Chosen, dead
Quivering with sorrow, Cloak collapsed onto his body. Curled its edges around his shoulders, wrapped him tightly, and lifted his head to cradle against its collar. Puddled on the floor, it rocked its Chosen, knowing that, if it had been here, perhaps, somehow, it could have protected him.
Wong wrapped another loop around Sable, attempting to keep his hold, but his attention was severely divided.
Capturing Sable was essential, but he was clearly distraught by what had happened to Stephen.
Jade wasn't quite as distracted.
She swung her Staff, gave Sable a vicious bash to the skull, which sent him to the floor, barely conscious.
She spun a Containment spell around him, allowing Wong to release his hold, leaving him free to move to stand with Cloak, and Stephen.
She stood over Sable, her Staff at the ready, eyes blazing with anger.
After a moment, Sable shook his head, looked up at Jade with some confusion.
'Master Jade,' he managed, with a cough, 'I see you yet live. I had thought otherwise.'
Jade slammed the heel of her Staff against his chest, producing a grunt of pain.
'You took only my eyes, not my life,' she jeered.
Wongs' face showed absolute shock at her words, but Jade didn't have time for his questions, or his pity.
'Who sent you?' she demanded, of Sable.
Sable merely smiled, flashing fangs at her.
Clearly ignoring her query, he replied, sardonically,
'I gave an Oath to your Master Strange that I would leave without harming anyone, if he sacrificed himself.
'I'm prepared to honor that.'
Jade barked a sharp laugh, shoved her Staff firmly against Sables chest.
It gave off a silver blue arc of energy where it touched him, pulling a grimace from Sable.
'That Oath isn't binding on me,' she snarled.
She glanced toward Wong, tears trickling down his face, who had knelt alongside Cloak, and Stephen.
The sight prompted her to give Sable another slam, and he whimpered, thrashed against the Containment spell, but couldn't break free.
Straightening, she glared down at Sable.
'I won't retaliate against you for depriving me of my eyes. That loss enabled me to defend existence in a way none other could.
'It also gave me the chance to live, long enough to meet Stephen.'
She looked over, at the mourning pair of comrades, huddled around Stephens body, and her expression hardened,
'What you have done to him... I cannot forgive.'
Jade raised her Staff, above her head, like the axe of an executioner, and the length of the Staff blazed, a sapphire flame.
Sable gave a wail of absolute terror, but Jade didn't hesitate.
With a brutal swing, she brought the Staff down against his chest, and he exploded, a brilliant silver black ball of dust.
The floor rocked beneath their feet, and then Sable was gone, leaving only an outline of where he'd lain on the wood.
Jade lowered the tip of her Staff to the floor, leaned heavily on it, eyes closed, for several moments, as the dust that had been Sable settled.
She looked back to Wong, who had lifted Stephens body, begun to carry him toward the portal, Cloak hanging limply at his side.
'No! Don't move him!' she ordered, stepping his direction, garnering a confused look from Wong.
'We must return him to Kamar-Taj,' Wong insisted, 'He should be given a Masters' burial.'
She stabbed a finger at him, repeated, sharply,
'Don't move him.'
After a moments uncertainty, Wong lowered Stephen back to the bloody floor, dragged a sleeve across his teary face.
Jade looked at Cloak, hovering protectively over Stephen, and it gave a shiver of anticipation.
Her eyes, now bright with hope, told it,
'I need the Eye.'
It was like being struck by lightning.
An emerald explosion in his brain, wrenching a groan from him.
Stephen shuddered, thrashed, gasped his way back to consciousness.
Back to life.
He felt like he'd been dragged thru a blender, or worse, and it was as if someone was standing on his chest.
He could barely catch a breath.
He opened his eyes to see Master Jades' astral form kneeling over him, concern on her face, Wong standing at her side.
Stephen wasn't quite sure what to make of his expression.
Jade wore the Eye Of Agamotto, gleaming like a beacon, around her neck.
Stephens brow furrowed, pain, eyes and jaw clenched.
'Sable?' he whispered, fearfully, not exactly clear what had happened,
'I...I thought he killed me.'
'He did. That's why he's dead,' Jade assured him, grimly.
'Fortunately, Master Jade was able to recover you, using the Eye,' Wong added, and Stephen was pretty certain he detected the slightest quaver in his voice.
Stephens' head spun, and he sighed, softly,
'Cloak?'
Cloak slipped between Jade and Wong, hovering briefly, before dropping onto its Chosen, wrapping around him, gently.
A relieved smile curved Stephens lips, and he curled a hand into its quaking folds.
'Gah,' Stephen gasped, at a sudden stab pain. Clenched a palm to his chest, pulled it away to find it covered in blood. He studied it, briefly, confused,
'Why? I thought...'
'You were moved before I was able to get to you with the Eye,' Jade explained, 'The rollback was flawed, interrupted. So, you've retained the damage of couple of Sables' strikes.'
That explained his difficulties with breathing, his swirling head.
'Oh, my God,' he heard someone gasp, from across the room.
Christine.
'Doctor Palmer,' Jade said, coming to her feet, with a look toward the smashed front door,
'Just in time. I believe Doctor Strange is in need of your skills.'
Stephen attempted to raise his head, but, his vision blurred, went dark.
Just before he passed out, he heard Jade say,
'We have a lot to talk about, Stephen.'
