Chapter Six: Cry for Help
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Of course he had grabbed her on her injured shoulder. How else could have today gotten worse?
She clenched her teeth to keep from crying out in pain. Her entire body felt like it had been run over by a steamroller and then backed up over again for good measure. In hindsight, she should have tried to avoid rolling down three flights of stairs, but she had been a little focused on the whole not-being-eaten-alive thing.
Turning she broke his grip on her arm. He was quicker, though, and delivered a hard kick to her side. Letting out a cry she fell to the pavement in time for a car to come screeching towards her. Then she felt herself slide and fall to the other side of the street. Where cars were driving above her. She was standing in the sky.
"What the hell?" was all she could manage as the man approached her. "What did you do?"
He grinned. "Welcome to the mirror dimension."
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Wong was having a bad day.
If he was honest with himself, and he generally was, most days were bad. It was just the scale which changed. Some days all he worried about was making sure that the house was in order. Which involved making sure objects were properly contained and not reeking havoc on the universe. Making sure the Sorcerer Supreme managed to stay alive for another twenty-four hours.
When his master had brought home a teenage girl he was surprised. He was also tired. Watching Stephen carry her through the front door he knew that his breaks from mayhem were going to be much fewer. Particularly when he found her setting fire to a sixteenth-century carpet he had been rather fond of.
Over the course of her brief stay he found that he rather enjoyed her company. She was quick-tempered but not what he had expected. Many of the younger sorcerers and mages he had met were convinced of their own superiority and needed a few months to have the ego beaten out of them. His own master was a much older example.
He didn't like how she looked at him. As if he were some monster intent on beating her into submission. She had nearly jumped out of her skin the first time he had entered her room. How she didn't allow anyone to be close to her. The idea that anyone could have scarred the child to this extent made him sick.
Moving her upstairs was the safest move. The wards were stronger where she slept. He only wished he hadn't lost his temper with her. His anger at Mordo had gotten the better of him. His thoughts clouded his mind as he descended into the basement. With Mordo able to step within a foot of the Sanctum he needed to strengthen the wards of the house. It seemed that the attack was still affecting the sanctum's abilities to defend itself.
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A foot slammed into her chest. Why is he attacking me? This doesn't make any sense. She struggled to get back on her feet. She shoved herself out of the way as he attempted to throw her back to her back. Moving quickly she slid out of his way, grabbing ahold of a lamp post to keep herself upright. Fighting the urge to puke her guts up on the sidewalk below.
The man, Mordo, came at her again. She felt her body being pulled towards him. His eyes fixed on hers. Breaking the concentration she managed to dodge a punch to her stomach. Dragging up her flames she swung her fist at him. She briefly caught him in the cheek and forced him to draw back.
"There it is," he said. Gingerly holding his burned face. "The reason I must kill you."
"Really?" her knees almost gave out from the pain. "You're attacking me because I can summon flames? Then why don't you hurry up and stop playing with me?"
"Do not worry, half-breed. You will die, but not before Doctor Strange learns that he should have killed you before I had the chance." Mordo pulled out a staff from his side and held it out. She watched, holding her stomach, as it expanded.
She had no chance of defeating him. The amount of magic he held was on par with Stephen's. She didn't look back as she threw herself down. As she fell she watched him look on at her. Before she fell into speeding traffic strong hands wrapped around her. Turning to face her saviour she saw Wong glaring up at Mordo, who fell down a few feet away.
"I do not want to harm you, Wong." Mordo watched as she managed to stand. "Move away."
"Never," Wong said. "If you think I will allow you to harm an innocent you are mistaken."
Mordo chuckled, he addressed his scarred face. She had managed to burn his left cheek and some of his neck. "Do you think an innocent can summon those flames? I doubt even the strongest magic I possess will allow me to heal these burns. Keeping her alive is one of the most shameful things you can do."
"Hypocrite," Wong spat at him. "If half the rumours are true then you will be spending the end of your days in the darkest pit of the underworld."
She watched Mordo's face contort in rage. The blisters that marred his skin stretched and he grimaced.
Wong looked over at her and whispered, "Stay behind me. I may need your support."
Biting her lip she tried to move behind him. The pain almost made her double over. She didn't know if she could help him, unless he was planning on throwing her at Mordo. But she couldn't not help him. She wasn't going to give up until Mordo was defeated.
Mordo grinned, he looked almost demonic as his smile reached the tops of his eyes. He licked his lips. "Are you in pain, half-breed? Once I finish off this fool I will make you unrecognizable. You will welcome death when I am done with you."
Wong briefly looked over at her. She met his eyes. A moment later she saw him draw his wand, summoning a powerful blast that knocked Mordo across the road and into an apartment building. Pulling out a ring he created a portal ahead of them. Grabbing her waist he helped her to the real world, just as Mordo was getting to his feet.
She gasped and fell to her knees. Puking her guts up onto the concrete. Wong bent down next to her and helped her to her feet. The portal vanished behind them.
"Where are you hurt?" Wong almost dragged her up the steps and into the walls of the Sanctum. He used his free hand to pull the door closed behind them. She finally allowed tears to flow from her eyes and she could feel her breath catching. He lead her into the nearest room and laid her back on the couch.
"My chest and my stomach," she managed. A noise upstairs made her start. Wong looked up and sighed in relief.
"Stephen!" Wong called. She was shocked because she had never heard Wong call Stephen by his first name. Not since she had arrived. "Stephen!"
She heard the doors upstairs bang against the wall. Wong gently began touching her stomach and she screamed in pain. Her vision briefly went black and she drifted out of consciousness. She blinked and saw Stephen leaning over her. His beard had grown out. His clothes were wrinkled. He looked like he hadn't slept since he had left.
The two men were speaking but she couldn't pick up all of it. She knew they were talking about Mordo. Why weren't they going after him?
"Go," she said. The two looked down at her. "Go after him."
Stephen touched her face. He whispered something to Wong who nodded and left.
Hands gently lifted her into the air. The cloak was gently touching her face, wiping away the tears. As she was shifted in Stephen's arms the pain became too much. She closed her eyes and fell to blackness.
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She woke while she was being examined. There was so much noise. The room was freezing and she shuddered before opening her eyes. A young woman was gently touching her chest with a stethoscope. She felt someone holding her back aloft.
"Put her down, Stephen," the woman said as her patient came back to consciousness. "Cecilia? My name is Doctor Palmer. Do you know why you're here?"
Her lungs felt like sandpaper as she spoke and her head felt like it weighed twenty pounds. "I was attacked, I think. I'm in the hospital."
Doctor Palmer smiled gently at her. Stephen was gently touching her arm. "Now that you're awake we can get a better look at your injuries. Do you want Stephen to leave while we do an examination?"
She felt herself blush. She did not want anyone to see her without clothes. "Okay."
Doctor Palmer smiled again and looked at Stephen. "We should be done in a few minutes. If you could get me a coffee that would be great."
"I remember when I would ask you for that," Stephen grumbled. Doctor Palmer gave him a look before he sighed and left the room, closing the door sharply behind him.
Cecilia laughed a little but regretted it. Even breathing hurt her chest. Doctor Palmer slid off her hospital gown and exposed the myriad of purple and black bruises. It didn't seem to phase her as she asked Cecilia to lay back down. The doctor examined her carefully, gently prodding and poking at her bruises. Always checking to see if she was okay.
"Cecilia," she said. "You're almost eighteen, so I'm going to give you the option of confidentiality. Anything you don't want me to say I won't tell Stephen. I need you to be honest with me. How were you injured?"
She met her eyes. She didn't believe that Doctor Palmer would take her words into confidence. She wasn't an adult. The doctor was just trying to get her in trouble. But she seemed so sincere and honest.
"I was attacked," Cecilia said. "Some guy grabbed me outside Doctor Strange's house and attacked me. I was saved by his housekeeper, Wong. Strange brought me here as soon as he came home. That's the truth."
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Author's Note:
I gave you guys action and a villain! I hate writing action scenes, they're the hardest I think. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and favorited this story since the last chapter. I really appreciate it. Questions will be answered soon...