Changing Hearts
Chapter 10
It was another early morning for Kamar-Taj. Just as the sun rose over the peaks of the mountains of Kathmandu, Nepal, students got up just as the rays of sun burst through their bedroom windows. They all got dressed and went down to the dining hall to start an early morning breakfast. Almost everyone in the dining room was accounted for, except for two who happened to go missing. The Ancient One assigned Mordo and Wong to look for them, heavy bootsteps echoing through the halls of Kamar-Taj as they raced through the rows of bedrooms.
"This is ridiculous," Wong looked at Mordo. "Why do we have to wake them up?"
"You know the Sorcerer Supreme," Mordo shrugged, "She never likes late beginners."
Wong harrumphed as they walked in front of a familiar set of bedroom doors. It was Stephen's Strange's bedroom. Mordo walked forward and knocked but no one came to answer the door. Folding his hands behind his back, the two masters waited for Stephen Strange to wake up, but he never did. Looking at each other with looks of suspicion, Wong walked over to his door and impulsively opened it despite Mordo's orders to knock first. However, once Wong stepped inside his room, his eyes widened in shock. Turning his head behind his back, he motioned Mordo forward. They saw a sight that was uncommon in Kamar-Taj.
Stephen Strange was still fast asleep in his bed, but he was not alone. Remi Ramirez lay on the right side of his bed, her back towards him with her hands tucked underneath her face. Stephen lay in her direction with his arms wrapped around her in a romantic embrace as the two slept peacefully together. Mordo eyed the two with curiosity and a smile spread across his face.
"Get up, Mr. Strange. You're late for-" but Mordo stopped Wong from entering Stephen's room any further with a hand on his shoulder. Shaking his head, he turned on his back and headed in the opposite direction away from Stephen's bedroom.
Wong was left alone to stare at the two lovers sleeping together. His eyes widened and he scratched his head in confusion, but just as he begun to take it all in, Mordo raced back towards him and grabbed him by the ear, pulling him away from Stephen's with a wide frown. Wong was confused and kept questioning Mordo on what he was doing wrong, but the master trainer stayed silent as he disappeared with an ever so protesting librarian down the hall.
Back in Stephen's room, Remi's eyes narrowed and she groaned in her sleep just as she thought she heard a sound coming from the bedroom. However, Stephen pulled her to him and buried his face in the crook of her neck, relaxing her movements. Remi smiled in her sleep as she snuggled closer against his chest.
Stephen and Remi walked down the hall together, side by side ever so closely. A couple of students saw the two together and eyed them, confused as to why a novice was hanging around a master student. However, just like the adults they were, they ignored their looks and kept on with their business. On the training grounds, Remi pulled her electric whip from her belt and cracked it in front of Stephen, causing him to jump back to avoid being electrocuted. "You really need to stop doing that!"
"It's part of training, Stephen. If you want to learn to master the Mystic Arts, you have to learn to get used to being around relics," Remi held out her whip in front of her face.
"That one is too dangerous! It scares me," Stephen admitted. Remi tilted one eyebrow up and smiled amusingly.
"This…this is the Whip of the Crying Beast," she cracked her whip again at a distance this time, sending electricity running from the ends. Stephen relaxed and watched her swing the whip around herself, tossing the whip from one hand to another and spinning it around herself. The electricity flowing from it ran down her hands and shot out of her palms straight in the air. "I was given this relic because it was attracted to my kind of magic."
"Why is it called the Whip of the Crying Beast?" Stephen asked.
"Because it is said to be so powerful that it will even send the mightiest of monsters screaming like a human when it hits their hide."
Stephen eyed her relic in awe as she hooked it back to her belt. Walking towards him, Remi tightened the orange leather arm guards around her forearms and cleared her throat, stretching them out in front of her and getting ready. "If you put your mind to focus, you can honestly make anything into a relic. Observe me, Stephen!"
Stephen watched as she stretched one arm out in the other, orange light buzzing down her arms and out the palms of her hands. Before he knew it, orange light had formed into what looked like an Eldritch Bow and Arrow, something that he had never seen a student perform before. He was about to say something but Remi stopped him and shot the glowing arrow into the sky, causing the orange light to fall apart into hundreds of particles. Stephen laughed in awe as he caught the orange Eldritch light in his hands. It did not burn his skin, instead dissolving into dust.
"That…was amazing! You have to teach me that," he requested.
"Unfortunately, that kind of weapon is too difficult to master. It took me almost the entire time I had spent here to master it, and only about five months ago have I managed to get a good hand on it. Perhaps when you have gotten further into your studies, we will discuss this again."
Stephen looked at her with a bummed out look but nodded in understanding. He watched Remi as she walked away from him until she was a few feet across. She commanded at Stephen to come at her with his weapon of choice, unhooking the electrical whip from her belt once more. Stephen formed a simple Eldritch Whip in his hands and came running towards her. Whipping it around his head, Remi spun around on her heels and cracked her whip above her head, sending electricity through the sky down on her. She caught a ball of lightning in her hands and threw it at Stephen, causing him to yelp and causing him to skid forward, landing on his knees bent backward and the electric ball against a pillar. It was a powerful blast enough for the small pillar to fall forward crumbling to the ground. Remi giggled and snapped her whip twice before her.
"In order for you to master a relic, you must not be afraid! Come at me, strike fear into my eyes!" Remi waved the whip forward and lunged at Stephen. Narrowing his eyes, Stephen jumped into the air with his legs in the air, dodging the electricity shooting from the whip. Remi's mouth hung open as he landed on the ground. Smiling confidently, Stephen swung the Eldritch Whip over his head and looped it around her abdomen, causing a small squeak to escape from her throat. Tugging the whip forward, Remi cried out as her relic dropped from her hand and she flew through the air towards Stephen.
Grunting, Remi hit his front hard and she looked up at him. Groaning, she saw a smile spread across Stephen's face. The whip disappeared around her abdomen and he held her close.
"You tricked me!" Remi glared at him.
"I had to catch you off guard,"
"We're training, Stephen. You must take this seriously!" Remi tried to pry herself free but Stephen held her closer to him.
"How can I take you seriously when you're just…" Stephen stopped his words and looked to his left nervously. Remi questioned him and her lips tightened. "You're just too sexy for me to control myself."
Remi's eyes widened and a deep crimson flush spread across her face. Stephen thought he had gone too far and expected a hard punch to the jaw, but instead Remi smiled widely and cracked up laughing. Looking down at her, Stephen saw that she had to hold her stomach because she was laughing too hard. After a couple seconds Remi sighed and she rested her head against his collarbone. "I'll take that as a compliment."
Stephen chuckled and tilted her face upward, pressing his lips against hers in a gentle kiss that she happily returned. However, their kiss was interrupted when they heard the sound of footsteps coming from behind them.
"Ok, you lovers, that's enough," it was Mordo. Unamused, the pair turned to him with annoyed looks.
"Way to ruin the moment, Mordo." Stephen growled as he crossed his arms.
"You two are supposed to be training. Remi, if you are assigned as his teacher, you cannot keep disregarding your role. Stephen, you are her student!"
"Did you come out here to lecture us or is there another reason?" Remi grew just as annoyed as Stephen did but her mood changed when she saw the Ancient One walk towards the two. Clearing her throat, she gave the Sorcerer Supreme a brief bow.
"Stephen and Remi, please come with me." Remi and Stephen looked at each other nervously and followed her from the training grounds.
Sitting with her legs crossed on a pillow, the Ancient One sipped tea from a mug as Remi and Stephen watched her. After a few more sips, she sat the mug down and an apprentice took the kettle of tea and her mug from the table and walked away. "Is something wrong, master?" Remi finally spoke up.
"I've been told that Doctor Strange has been advancing quickly in his studies," the Ancient One folded her hands together.
"Really? That's great!" Remi turned to Stephen with a smile.
"It is, but I've been told that you have been taking books out of the library through a gateway that was somehow mysteriously conjured up."
Remi's smile faltered and she stared at the doctor who pretended to have no idea what the Ancient One was talking about. "You've been using your Sling Ring to sneak books out of the library?!"
"Look I can explain…" Stephen tried to start.
"Mr. Strange, there are rules here that must be abided by all times, and there are certain rules that must not be broken. Only if there is a dire emergency are you allowed to conjure a gateway in the library,"
Remi glared at him and shook her head, crossing her arms.
"Miss Ramirez," her eyes snapped open when the Ancient One called her out. "I understand that what you and Stephen have is special, but your relationship must not interfere with your studies. It does me happy to see you two together, but nevertheless you both have a role to play here and you must take it seriously. Understood?"
Remi and Stephen looked at each other and darted their heads at the floor. "Understood." They both said in unison.
"Ok. Now Stephen, if you are advancing in your skills, you need a safe place to study. Follow me," the Ancient One got up and motioned them forward. She pressed the tips of five fingers together and a crack in the scenery began to form. Stephen watched her with amazement as all three stepped into another world that was filled with rainbow crystals that floated around them endlessly.
"You are now in the Mirror Dimension. Ever present but undetected. The real world isn't affected by what goes on in here, so you don't want to get stuck without your Sling Ring."
Stephen chuckled as he ran his hands through the crystals, feeling a sensation where ripples of distorted energy was running through his veins, almost as if he were having the best massage in his entire life. Remi watched him explore the world, watching as the people around him went on without giving him a single glance as if they never knew he had existed. She gave the Ancient One a smile as he enjoyed the new parallel universe around him.
Day soon turned into night and the moon hung bright over the mountains with stars surrounding. Stephen walked down the hallway towards the library, munching on an apple he randomly picked up from the dining hall. He passed a couple of students and walked into the library. He saw he was in the section that was filled with books for beginner and intermediate students, but he had gotten bored reading the books in this section. Looking around, he snuck from the section and into another room where the books for Masters only remain. He stared at the massive collection of novels, some that he had never seen before. He walked to one shelf, grabbed a random book and flipped through a couple of pages here and there before turning to the books that were chained up on the heavy metal shelves.
"The Ancient One's private collection," he thought to himself. He knew he was not supposed to read them, but he could not help but wonder what practices had been forbidden by the Sorcerer Supreme that she did not want others to learn. He called out for Wong but heard no response from the librarian. Tilting his head to one side, he saw a book that stood out from the rest of the collection, It has a hard brown plastic-like material around the navy blue cover, as if someone was preparing to lock the book shut permanently. It had a circular golden symbol around the middle. The raindrop symbols around it danced clockwise. He grabbed the book and sat at a random table.
"Ok, let's see what the Ancient One is hiding," he told himself as he opened the book.
"Stephen, no!" a loud voice startled the doctor from focus. Turning around, he saw a panicked young woman sprinting towards him. Looking down at the book, she snatched it from in front of him and slammed it shut before chaining it back into its rightful place. Breathlessly, she turned back around and glared at Stephen.
"Remi, what are you doing here?" Stephen asked.
"I'm stopping you from making a terrible mistake! You were just about to perform a forbidden ritual from the Book of Cagliostro!" Remi snapped.
"What? I never-" The master student marched towards him and shook his shoulders.
"Stephen, trust me. Please…do not try to practice any magic from that book! If you do, you'll end up like Kaecilius," her voice was desperate.
"Kaecilius…what did he do?" Stephen looked at her as he placed his hands on her shoulders. Remi stayed silent but sat down with him at the table.
"It was several months before you came. Kaecilius was a master student who was powerful and a strong fighter, nearly mastering the Ancient One's level of sorcery. However, he…he was a broken man. His wife and son perished and he was trying to find answers to why they had to die. He thought the Ancient One had a way to bring them back…but he lost his way when he discovered she could not."
"Kaecilius became obsessed with the idea of immortality. He found out why the Ancient One was immortal, so he sought after the magic that gave her the power she had. He and his followers, the zealots, stormed Kamar-Taj one day and stole the forbidden ritual that allowed them to bring Dormammu from the Dark Dimension to Earth."
Remi's voiced hitched in her throat as she slowly rose from the table and walked back, unchaining the Book of Cagliostro and bringing it back to the desk they were sitting at. Flipping it open, she showed Stephen the section where the two pages that had been ripped out.
"I tried to stop him from taking it, but he killed the librarian before I made it in time. I was too late! Now that he has this ritual, he can…"
"He can what, Remi? You don't have to be scared," Stephen assured her.
"I have what he wants. The Book of Cagliostro reads that in order to release Dormammu, the Sanctums of Hong Kong, New York, and London have to be destroyed. The sanctums form a protective shield around our world to prevent mystical threats from invading our planet. But…but I am enough to bring the Dark Dimension to Earth alone."
Stephen watched as she rose from her seat. Looking down at the orange guards around her forearms, she untied them and dropped them to the floor. Sighing shakily, Remi balled her hands into fists and circled them around before pulling them out. The markings that Stephen had seen around her eyes and arms before suddenly started to snake their way down her forearms and around her palms, her fingers, until they stopped at the back of her hands. The mosaic diamond-like design started to form around her eyes. Before they could fully develop, Remi hissed in pain and retracted. The marks instantly disappeared.
"I never tap into these powers because of what I am. Stephen…I know you asked Mordo for my medical files."
Stephen closed his eyes and mouth tightly.
"It's ok. I know I'm a monster just waiting to be woken up. The Ancient One tells me that I can control my dark powers. I just don't know how. The thought of being able to release Dormammu alone prevents me from doing so."
Remi closed her eyes and lowered her head. Stephen sympathetically reached his hand out for hers, clasping his fingers around them. Remi looked up with sad eyes as Stephen pulled her close to him into a tight embrace. She gasped at how comforting it was to be in his hold. Closing her eyes, she took in his scent, the clothes he was wearing, everything about him.
"Listen to me, Remi. The powers you have, they're not dark and dangerous. If there is a way for you to control them, then I want to find a way to help. Please don't call yourself a monster. If you were a monster, you wouldn't be the kind and caring woman you are now. That's what I love about you, Remi. You're…you're everything that I want to be."
Her dark yellow pupils widened as she took in his words. Remi's frown formed into a deep smile as she gulped down her emotions, wrapping her arms around Stephen to pull herself tighter into his embrace. Stephen stroked her head and rubbed her back. Looking up, Remi smiled into his light blue eyes. Wrapping a hand underneath her head, Stephen pulled her in closer as he gripped her right arm with his hand. Remi closed her eyes as they went in for a kiss, but it was cut short when they were only mere inches from each other. Their eyes shot open when they heard a deep, ghostly chuckle echo through the library.
Turning around, both students saw a portal begin to form in front of them. They both knew it was not one of them or the Ancient One and Mordo. They watched as three figures stepped into the Kamar-Taj library. Remi's eyes widened and she stumbled back in her seat, gripping the edge of the table tightly as Stephen's eyes narrowed.
"It has been a long time, hasn't it, Remi?" Kaecilius smirked as Katrina and Kodi lowered their hoods. Stephen saw the skin around their eyes was a purple and silvery color.
"Kaecilius…what are you doing back?" Remi asked with a shaky voice.
"I have come to collect what is mine. You, my dear, need to come with me." Kaecilius pointed at her as he started to walk towards her. Stephen saw him and immediately jumped from his seat, shielding her from his sight with his arms out. "Over my dead body."
Kaecilius's smile turned into a frown as he looked at this strange man with a curious look. "How long have you been at Kamar-Taj, Mister…"
"Doctor."
"Mr. Doctor?"
"It's Strange."
Kaecilius looked at him with a confused look before tilting his head. "Maybe, who am I to judge?" with one quick move, he grabbed Stephen's head and in a swift motion, one hand moved from his cheek to his throat. Stephen grunted as he was lifted off his feet towards the bookshelf, flying through the air and landing hard with a loud slam! Books dropped from the shelf and hit the floor. Stephen landed on his side.
"Stephen!" Remi shot up from the table and ran towards him. Kaecilius stopped walking and froze in place. Looking up, he realized what had happened. "Stephen? It's you!" Glaring and gritting his teeth, he signaled Kodi and Katrina forward. Katrina ran at the two with two Time Shards formed in both hands.
Shoving Remi out of the way, Stephen shot to his feet and two Mandalas of Light formed in both hands. Remi backed up and she watched Stephen and Katrina fight, Dark Magic against Eldritch Magic. Stephen slid across the table, but Katrina jumped in front of him and slammed her Time Shard against his Mandala Shield, causing it to break and the blade to pierce through the fabric of his sleeve. Stephen screamed in pain as he felt the fabric tare and the shard right against his wrist, a large gash forming against his arm and blood soaking through his sleeve.
Katrina went in for another blow but felt something wrap itself around her abdomen. Turning around, she saw Remi's Whip of The Crying Beast around her abdomen. Glaring, Remi flicked the handle and electricity flowed right up to the two whips, sending a strong electric current around her body. Katrina screamed as she felt her fabric being penetrated by the sharp waves, causing her to break free and hit the table, falling across the floor and slamming into a bookshelf. Unwrapping the whip from around her waist, Remi ran towards Stephen and helped him to his feet.
Stephen grabbed her wrist and they both ran right passed Kaecilius and Kodi. The doors to the New York Sanctum were already open and they leaped inside. Kaecilius seethed and he saw Katrina weakly get to her feat. "FIND THEM!" he ordered at the top of his lungs. Katrina groaned and struggled to her feet but followed Kaecilius and Kodi into the New York Sanctum. The large doors closed behind them.
Stephen looked at the long gash the blonde female zealot had left in his arms. It was not too long and deep, but it was enough to break skin and blood to seep through. Remi hastily wrapped his arm with a gauze and tied it tightly, making him cry in pain. Once his arm was wrapped, she leaped to her feet and she ran towards the door. Cracking it open, she saw the hallway was empty but knew the zealots were still coming for them.
"Don't worry, I can fight," Stephen assured her.
"It's a pretty large gash. Are you sure?" Remi looked at him with concern. Stephen nodded and they headed out of the room together. Weapons ready, they made their way down the stairs.
"OH DIOS MIO!" Remi screamed as she stopped dead in her tracks. Stephen's feet slid to a halt as she ran down the stairs. A man wearing light green robes with a red belt around his waist was slumped over on his side, clutching at his stomach and his eyes were rolled into his head. Remi hurried towards him and flipped him over. One of his legs had been injured to the point where his foot had almost completely torn off and he had a deep stab wound to the left side of his chest as she pulled back the robes. Tears forming in his eyes, she clutched the man's body close to her as sobs wrecked her body.
Stephen ran to her side and stared at the dead man's body. "Who is he?"
"Daniel Drumm. He was the master of this Sanctum! He rescued me when my grandmother died fighting Kaecilius!" Remi sobbed as she continuously wiped her eyes. Stephen eyed her sadly but before he could comfort her, the walls began to close around them. The room started to shift and the wall around them began to ripple and zigzag. Looking up from the man's body, Remi saw the doors to the sanctum open and Kaecilius, Kodi, and Katrina stepped inside. Gritting her teeth, Remi got to her feet and unhooked her relic from her belt.
"You killed my rescuer! PREPARE TO DIE!" she screamed as she ran towards Kaecilius. She cracked her whip in front of them. Kodi and Katrina were left to deal with Remi while Kaecilius made his way towards Stephen. The doctor got ready to fight and an Eldritch Whip formed in his hands. Kaecilius threw a Time Shard at him but Stephen whacked it out of the way with an Eldritch Whip and made a run for the stairs. Spinning the whip above her head, Remi cracked the whip against the floor and huge bolts of electricity pulsated from the whip sending Katrina and Kodi flying against the walls. Katrina slid to the ground unconscious, but it barely fazed Kodi as he rose to his feet. Remi walked towards him with her weapon ready. Just as she was about to send him another killing blow, her head shot around to see Kaecilius chasing after Strange.
Eyes widening in horror, she rolled her whip back up and ran after them. Kodi watched her disappear from view as he got to his feet.
Kaecilius had two Time Shards ready as he made his way towards Stephen. Stephen had tried to make a run for the Rotunda of Gateways in front of him, but Kaecilius waved his arms in an outward position. The room had begun to look like a treadmill and Stephen ran in place. Groaning, Stephen balled his hands into fists and two Mandala Shields rounded up, but one malfunctioned and disappeared from view. Kaecilius jumped up from the floor and a shocked Stephen saw him hung upside down on his feet above him from the ceiling.
Kaecilius flattened his hands and turned them counterclockwise and the opposite, causing the hallway around them to turn right to left. Stephen fell from the floor and hit a glass window, causing a nasty gash to spread across his forehead. Kaecilius kept this movement up until he lowered his hands. The hallway began to tilt backward and Stephen found himself falling. Quick thinking the neurosurgeon grabbed onto a lamp and saw random heavy objects falling to the gateways below. Just as he was about to slip, the loud zap of a whip echoed across the hall. Kaecilius looked around his waist and saw Remi's whip around his abdomen. Giving a hard yank, Remi grunted as Kaecilius fell from the ceiling to the floor.
Everything returned to normal and Stephen go to his feet. Remi grabbed his hand and he hopped to his feet. She and Stephen sprinted down the hallway as Stephen pushed a large bookshelf behind them, but Kaecilius jumped over it with two Time Shards ready. Remi and Stephen hurried into a room where there were a bunch of random weapons in glass cases. Looking around, they whirled around to see Kaecilius come running towards them with his weapons ready. Remi jumped in front of Stephen and swung her whip around her head. She was able to wrap it around one of the Time Shards, but easily Kaecilius tugged her forward.
Remi screamed as she went flying through the air against one of the glass cases, slamming through the glass and hitting the wall. Her whip flew across the floor, sending her slumped over into a state of paralysis. Stephen tried to run after her, but found himself caught in a clash with Kaecilius. A Time Shard flew above his head, causing him to dodge it and run for the stairs. However, Kaecilius kicked him hard in the stomach, sending him flying into a glass case against another one. Stunned by the sudden shards cutting into his skin, Stephen tried to rise to his feet, but felt Kaecilius's hand grip the back of his shirt and pull him to his knees.
Smiling triumphantly, Kaecilius swung a Time Shard towards his throat, but a red sheet of fabric stopped him. Looking up, a large cloak made from a fine fabric had swung itself against the blade. Kaecilius tried to strike the doctor again but the cloak blocked his moves each time. Growing impatient, Kaecilius kicked the doctor aside and swung along a poll, kicking Stephen in his abdomen and sending him straight for the stairs. The neurosurgeon tried to grab the railing, but yelled when he flung over it head first. The red cloak swiftly flew over the railing towards the falling doctor.
Kaecilius stopped at the railings. Turning his head, he saw Remi struggling to get to her feet. Groaning and panting, she started to cough vigorously as she gripped the carpeting tightly. Looking around, Remi saw the Whip of The Crying Beast a few feet from her up against a glass case that had not been broken. She tried to get up off her knees, but a terrible painful ringing sound in her ears forced her back to her knees.
Kaecilius shifted his feet and started to walk towards her, but stopped when he heard a huge gust of air through the Sanctum. His eyes widened when he saw a now flying Doctor Stephen Strange in the air, the red cloak fanned out from his back. He waved his hands and an Eldritch Whip formed in his hands, cracking it against a Tie Shard that Kaecilius quickly pulled up. Remi lifted her head and saw Stephen and him clash. Stephen had a strong hold against Kaecilius, but he tugged him forward and send him skidding across the floor. Stephen tried to get to his feet but the cloak swiftly pulled him backwards.
Growing confused, Stephen dug his heels into the floor until he was next to two walls of weapons. One had an axe and a shield, another one with Crimson Bands of Cyttorak. Stephen eyed the axe and shield and ran towards him, but the cloak pulled him back and motioned towards the bands. Stephen made a run for it and knocked Kaecilius to the floor, grabbing the weapon and flinging it at him.
Before they knew it, the room had grown silent. Remi finally managed to get to her feet as she stumbled towards Stephen. The bands wrapped themselves around Kaecilius until he was on his knees, a metal guard around his mouth and his arms bent behind his back. Stephen had his hands on his knees and he gasped for air, looking at the now trapped former master sorcerer in a helpless state. He saw Remi come stumbling towards him holding her side. He saw that she had some cuts on her cheeks but other than that she was all right. Putting a hand on his shoulder, they both looked and saw Kaecilius wrapped up tight in the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak. This did not seem to faze him as he began a muffled speech.
"You'll die here and Dormammu…" Remi and Stephen had a hard time making out his words, forcing Stephen to walk towards him and remove the metal guard around his mouth. Still speaking about Dormammu, the doctor commanded he stop and speak so he could understand him.
"You cannot stop us, Mr. Strange. The world is not what it once was before. You understand the laws of nature, don't you? It is the end and the beginning. The many the few, becoming the one."
"Look if you're not going to start making sense, I'm gonna put this thing back on." Stephen showed him the mouth guard.
"He means that Dormammu is coming soon and there's nothing we can do to stop him! Isn't that right, Kaecilius?" Remi shot him a glare that made him chuckle.
"Exactly, but I'm afraid I cannot release him without your aide, Remi," Kaecilius told her. Remi clenched her teeth and walked towards him. Stephen tried to stop her but she held a fist in front of his face.
"Why? Why me? What good will it do you if you release Dormammu? It won't bring Adria and your son back!" Remi snapped.
"Do not speak of them! The Dark Dimension is a place beyond time, a place where one can truly be free. The rituals give me enough strength to overthrow the Ancient One and tear her sanctums apart…but I no longer sought after them. Remi, Doctor…we do not seek to rule this word, we seek to save it, to hand it over to Dormammu, the true Ancient One!"
"By handing the world over to Dormammu you've doomed all humanity! What will happen to me if I die? How good will my power be to you if I'm dead?!" Remi sneered.
"The others are just tiny, momentary specks within an indifferent universe. You, my dear Remi Ramirez, are more than that. You have a power that everyone wants…and with my teachings and Dormammu's magic, I will show you a way that you will never regret." Kaecilius persuaded.
"The Sorcerer Supreme is my teacher…you will never be her!" Kaecilius smirked and tilted his head to the side.
"Have you ever wondered how she managed to live this long?"
The room grew silent. Stephen stumbled towards them and Remi looked at him with a sad look. "The rituals you've stolen…she draws her power from the Dark Dimension." Her eyes widened and she looked at the ground. Stephen's eyes widened and he turned to Kaecilius, who nodded his head. Remi cleared her throat and closed her eyes tightly.
"I know how she is. I've seen her read the Book of Cagliostro before. I've seen her perform the forbidden rituals," Remi turned to Stephen sadly. They stared at each other before Kaecilius smiled and chuckled.
"You think that's funny?" Stephen snapped.
"No, Doctor. What's funny is your time is up."
Growing confused, Stephen turned around, but felt something sharp pierce right through his chest. Remi shot her head around and her eyes widened. Kodi came running up the stairs, a Time Shard formed in one hand, right at Stephen Strange. Feeling the blood beginning to seep through his clothes, Stephen clutched the wound as the zealot grabbed him, shoving him right down the stairs. Remi watched as Stephen crawled his way towards the hallway below.
"No, Stephen!" Tears formed in her eyes.
"There's still time, Remi. Make the right choice," Kaecilius told her.
"Go to hell!" Remi screamed as she ran down the stairs for Kodi. She saw that she did not have her relic by her side, but that did not stop Remi. She saw Kodi go after Stephen with a Time Shard in one hand. The weakened doctor tried to get away but he did not have enough energy. Remi rose her hands to her feet and two orange balls of electricity began to form.
Kodi stared down at Stephen's body with satisfaction. "Give it up, Doctor. The girl's ours now!" Before he could make the killing blow, an Eldritch Whip wrapped itself around his throat. Kodi rasped for air as his head shot back, seeing Remi clutch the whip tightly in both hands. In one swift motion, she flung the whip in the air and Kodi was sent flying. Grunting, the boy landed against a glass case and slumped to the floor.
Remi ran to Stephen's side and used all the weight she could muster to help him to his feet. Getting to his feet, Kodi growled and went after them. Turning back, Stephen and Remi watched him come towards them, but he was stopped when he felt red fabric wrap itself around his head. Kodi screamed as he was dragged back and forth by the red cloak, slamming into a glass case and picture frames.
Sighing with relief, Remi quickly slid her own Sling Ring onto her fingers and a gateway formed in front of them. Groaning in pain, Stephen and Remi both stumbled into The Metro-General Hospital.
To Be Continued
Probably the longest chapter I have written yet! I really wanted to write the fight scene in this and I couldn't stop myself from doing so. Anywho, here is the tenth chapter!
I don't know how long this story will be. It starts where it starts and ends where it ends. But hey, I love writing this story! It's one of my favorites yet. :)
Don't forget to leave your reviews. Flames and all are welcomed.
See ya next chapter! :)