Through the Times
Disclaimer:
Nanatsu no Taizai is owned by Nakaba Suzuki and Studio Deen
Doctor Strange (2016 MCU) is owned by Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Pictures
Many thanks to those who read and reviewed this fic. I really appreciated it and this gave me inspiration to work on the next chapter and here, the build-up pushes through as Meliodas continue his journey to find a way to break the curse cast upon him and Elizabeth, while the Sorcerer Supreme is also making his own journey, where they would soon encounter one another…
Well then, read on and enjoy!
Ch. 2: higeki-tekina tatakai no pureryūdo
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain, with a border with England to the southeast, and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the North Sea to the northeast, the Irish Sea to the south, and more than 790 islands, including the Northern Isles and the Hebrides.
The Kingdom of Scotland emerged as an independent sovereign state in the EuropeanEarly Middle Ages and continued to exist until 1707. By inheritance in 1603, King James VI of Scotland became king of England and Ireland, thus forming a personal union of the three kingdoms.
Scotland subsequently entered into a political union with England on 1 May 1707 to create the new Kingdom of Great Britain.
The union also created a new Parliament of Great Britain, which succeeded both the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England. In 1801, Great Britain entered into a political union with Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (in 1922, the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1927).
Within Scotland, the monarchy of the United Kingdom has continued to use a variety of styles, titles and other royal symbols of statehood specific to the pre-union Kingdom of Scotland. The legal system within Scotland has also remained separate from those of England and Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland constitutes a distinct jurisdiction in both public and private law.
The continued existence of legal, educational, religious and other institutions distinct from those in the remainder of the UK have all contributed to the continuation of Scottish culture and national identity since the 1707 union with England.
The scene zoomed towards the map of Scotland, where it slowly zoomed closer until you can see a certain part of the country which shows that the area is bustling with people, where it is shown that as of now the scene is currently showing Glasgow, which is one of the cities located, where it is bustling with people doing business.
Glasgow city centre is the central business district of Glasgow, Scotland. Is bounded by Saltmarket, High Street and Castle Street to the east, The River Clyde to the south and the M8 motorway to its west and north. Glasgow City Centre is composed of the areas of Garnethill, Blythswood Hill and Merchant Cityas well as parts of Cowcaddens, Townhead, Anderston and Calton.
The city centre is based on a grid system of streets, similar to that of Barcelona or American cities, on the north bank of the River Clyde. The heart of the city is George Square, site of many of Glasgow's public statues and the elaborate Victorian Glasgow City Chambers, headquarters of Glasgow City Council. To the south and west are the shopping precincts of Argyle Street, Sauchiehall Street and Buchanan Street, the latter featuring more upmarket retailers and winner of the Academy of Urbanism 'Great Street Award' 2008.
The main shopping centres are Buchanan Galleries and the St. Enoch Centre, with the up-market Princes Square and the Italian Centre specialising in designer labels. The London-based department store Selfridges has purchased a potential development site in the city and another upmarket retail chain Harvey Nicholsis also thought to be planning a store in the city, further strengthening Glasgow's retail portfolio, which forms the United Kingdom's second largest and most economically important retail sector after Central London.
The city centre is home to most of Glasgow's main cultural venues: The Theatre Royal(home of Scottish Opera and formerly Scottish Ballet which now resides in The Tramway Theatre), The Pavilion, The King's Theatre, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow Film Theatre, Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA), Mitchell Library, the Centre for Contemporary Arts, McLellan Galleries and The Lighthouse Museum of Architecture, Design and the City.
The world's tallest cinema, the eighteen-screen Cineworld, is situated on Renfrew Street. The city centre is also home to four of Glasgow's higher education institutions: The University of Strathclyde, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow School of Art and Glasgow Caledonian University
To the western edge of the city centre, occupying the areas of Blythswood Holm and the southern edges of Blythswood Hill, lies Glasgow's financial district, known officially as the International Financial Services District(IFSD), although often irreverently nicknamed by the contemporary press as the "square kilometre" or "Wall Street on Clyde".
Since the late 1980s the construction of many modern office blocks and high rise developments have paved the way for the IFSD to become one of the UKs largest financial quarters. With a reputation as an established financial services centre, coupled with comprehensive support services, Glasgow continues to attract and grow new business.
The scene later shifts to a certain area, where business is thriving the area is frequently being besieged by customers which are a mix of adults and teenagers, and they appeared to be avid collectors, as they are looking and buying second-hand items which are technological in nature, and their reasons for patronizing the said shops are purely economical in nature - cheaper prices and practicality. You can see several shops selling HOT items for cheaper prices, such as smartphones, android tablets and even laptops, and despite being second-hand items, they appeared to be in good working conditions, and some of the customers are willing to buy them as long as their desired items are working fine as well as to save money for budgetary reasons, and the merchants are using subtle means in enticing passing customers.
"Hello...please by our items..."
"They are cheaper..."
"...they are in good working condition..."
"You can try them if you like..."
"I promise you will like them..."
"I promise you will get your money's worth..."
"Here are the items on our display..."
"Pick the one you like..."
Then the scene shifts to another nearby shop, where a merchant is also selling second-hand items, but unlike the other shops, this merchant is selling something else and is catering avid collectors, and the scene shifts inside the shop where you can see the items being sold, which turn out to be classic console units and games, all being displayed on the shelves, and one by one you can see the following consoles being on display, which are:
- Nintendo Famicom
- Super Famicom
- Sega Mega Drive
- Game Boy Color
- Game Boy Advance
- Neo Geo
- Sony Playstation
- Sega Saturn
- Nintendo 64
In a matter of minutes customers passed by the shop, and most of them are avid collectors and fans of video games, and they were immediately intrigued by the items on display and they looked at the items, as some appeared to be unaware that such classical consoles actually existed, and they began asking the merchants if those consoles and its games are really something to be owned, which the merchant nodded and assured to them that the classic games are RARE, and are fun to play with, saying that even with popular games today that are released on current consoles such as the Sony Playstation 4, the Microsoft X-Box One and the Nintendo Switch, the consoles on display are even COOLER due to its nostalgia factor.
"Are they really cool compared to today's consoles?"
"Yes...they ate cool..."
"Seriously?"
"Yes, sir...they are the very first games...and they are the popular ones in its heydays...and they are RARE to find..."
"Hmm..."
"Would you like to try them...?"
"..."
"I promise you will not regret it..."
As people are lining up to see and check out the products, the scene shifts at the sidewalk, where Stephen Strange and Wong are walking by, and both noted that the current area they are in is bustling with people, and Wong sighed that the OUTSIDE WORLD is somewhat complicated compared to the quiet yet simple life inside the Sanctum, and said he is glad that he did not grew up indulging himself to such materialistic treasures.
Strange smiled and said that doing something outside the Sanctum once in a while is a good thing, and tells Wong to lighten up a bit, reminding him that someone they once called a friend and comrade has turn his back and is now after their lives, which Wong frowned at realizing what Strange is implying about, which is quite a bad memorable event to him.
"…"
"Wong?"
"I…understand…"
"I know it feels bad, Wong…but that's…"
"I know, Strange."
"For now, let's enjoy the day and…"
"Too bad I don't think…"
"You should learn to relax once in a while."
As Strange and Wong continued to walk the road, they were approached by a few female high school students, and Wong wondered what the teens want, seeing them acting giddy while smiling, while Strange was rather bemused as he wondered what did he do that made the girls smiling at him, and awaits the girls' responses before making his own moves.
Wong is also bracing himself in the case the girls might be assassins of some sort, given what has happened before that led to the death of the Ancient One, but Strange raised his arm sideway, assuring him that they are not in danger and that they should wait and see what the girls want with them before judging them accordingly.
Finally the leader of the girls approached Strange and asked him a question, which made him raise an eyebrow as he found out what this is all about, whilst Wong stared in confusion as he listened to the conversation between Strange and the teen girl.
"Hee-hee…"
"Yes?"
"Excuse me, sir. Can I ask you something?"
"Which is?"
"Are you Benedict Cumbercatch?"
"Me?"
"Yes."
"Well…"
After getting the answer, the girls apologized which Strange said it is okay, and left the girls took their leave, while Wong asked Strange what was that about, as he could not seem to get the gist of what the conversation is about, but Strange smiled and told him the reason why: the female high school students mistook him for someone, saying that he resembled an English actor in the movies.
The actor that the girls referring to is Benedict Cumbercatch, and Wong asked in curiosity who this person is, and Strange smirked and tells him that he should at least go watch the movies in theatres once in a while so that he can learn more about the actors within Europe, and even at Hollywood in the United States of America.
"You know, Wong…you should leave the Sanctum once in a while."
"But you know I…"
"Just a few hours would be good."
"But I'm not quite good in doing activities outside the Sanctum…"
"Okay, I'll guide you. We'll go to the movies…the malls…the amusement centers…"
"Is that okay?"
"Trust me. I'm an expert at that before becoming the Sorcerer Supreme…"
"…"
However, their conversation is interrupted when someone approached them, and there Strange and Wong stood still and their facial expressions changed in an instant, and they are not quite pleased at the turn of events that just occurred, and thus the atmosphere is giving off a threatening vibe.
That person who showed up turns out to be Karl Mordo, who now goes by the name of Baron Mordo. It turns out that Mordo was once comrades with Strange and a pupil of the Ancient One, but he became disillusioned with what happened in the past and turned his back, and now he has decided to use his talents on other things, and in a chain of recent events, Mordo has become Strange's opponent and now wishes to settle things with him one and for all.
"Hello, Strange."
"Mordo."
"Been a while."
"Mordo…there's a way to settle this without…"
"Sorry. I'm not backing out. I wish to settle this once and for all."
"I don't want to do this. I don't want to fight you."
"I do. I want to be the sole sorcerer in this world. So prepare yourself."
"Mordo…"
Strange told Wong to get back and possibly leave, as he will face Mordo by himself and lead him to some place where no innocent people could get dragged in, but Mordo said that casualties cannot be helped as the Earth dimension is a battlefield itself, and spinning his hands, he conjured a magical circle as he prepares to battle Strange.
In response, Strange did the same thing and now the two former comrades are getting ready to face off in a very tough, life and death situation. The Cloak of Levitation suddenly arrives and fastened itself on Strange's back, and now the two sorcerers are getting ready to duke it out.
-x-
The scene shifts to the world of Britannia, where Meliodas is currently wandering the world, as an undetermined amount of time passed since the last reincarnation of Elizabeth died (who died of old age and has not regained the memories of her past life, thus dying peacefully), and Meliodas is trying so hard to cope with the loss as he wondered if he did the right thing in turning his back on his kind and facing his father and the supreme Deity is a good idea.
He soon met a powerful magician, a young woman at that, who goes by the name of Merlin, and there they formed a friendship and helped each other out, and once learning of his plight, a very concerned Merlin attempted to try everything she could think of to break the curse, doing a lot of research as well as attempting to use magic.
So far the attempts she made were unsuccessful yet she promised to find a way, and Meliodas is grateful to her for trying her best to help him find a way to break the curse that has plagued him for 3,000 years, showing his trust to the magician.
"Sorry, Meliodas…so far I haven't found a way…"
"It's okay, Merlin. I'm grateful."
"I'll find a way to end the curse."
"I know."
"So for now, be a little patient."
"I will."
"I'll let you know once I find anything important."
"Thanks."
After some time, Merlin told Meliodas that she found a lead, in which to break the curse, they need to find Zeldris, his younger brother, who is able to borrow the Demon King's power, but in order for this to happen, it requires reopening the Coffin of Eternal Darkness where the Ten Commandments are sealed. Meliodas felt quite uncomfortable with this given his relationship with Zeldris, yet Merlin told Meliodas that they can find an alternative if he wishes.
Meliodas was silent for a while before telling her that he would find alternative means for now, and will consider seeking out Zeldris as a last resort.
"Are you sure about this, Meliodas?"
"Yeah."
"So seeking out your brother…"
"Will only be as a last resort."
"…"
"I want to find another way without sacrificing another…"
"Very well."
"…"
After another undetermined amount of time passes, the scene shows that this time Meliodas has formed a relationship with the current reincarnation of Elizabeth, a female knight by the name of Liz, who resides in the town of Danafor, and there Merlin's cauldron showed that there is an attack on Danafor, where a demon worshipper resurrected Fraudrin by sacrificing the citizens, and is now after Liz.
Meliodas became alarmed and heads off to Danafor, which Merlin told him to be careful and try to reach Liz in time, which he nodded in a panic.
"Meliodas…!"
"Got to go!"
"You should get there in time!"
"I know!"
"I'll see what I can do!"
"Thanks, Merlin!"
"Will you be okay?"
"Yeah!"
Meliodas then ran off and is filled with worry and terror. H has witnessed the deaths of every incarnation of Elizabeth, about 107 times, and felt that if Liz were to be killed, he might not recover from it, and wished that he would get to Danafor in time and stop Fraudrin and save Liz from death.
To Be Continued...
Hope you liked this chapter, as it mirrors episodes 10 of current season of the anime series, which would set up for the next chapters as this fic takes a turn, as at this time Melodias has met up with merlin and are working together to find a way to break the curse…
And in a STRANGE twist of fate…Doctor Strange continued his usual thing, only this time another character makes an appearance…which is Baron Mordo. Looks like the two sorcerers are set to duke it out.
My apologies of Meliodas gets a small screen time whilst Strange hogged most of the chapter. It's part of the story and the next chapter will give Meliodas more screen time as he faces a tough battle…
Preview:
Meliodas encounters another Elizabeth and tries to protect her…but something tragic happens to him…
At the same time Doctor Strange faces off Baron Mordo in the heart of Glasgow City, resulting in a battle that involves CROSS-DIMENSIONING, and might encounter someone he would not expect to meet…
See you in 6 to 8 weeks (probably around the end of February or early March)…
Reviews are welcomed, but needed…