Changing Hearts

Chapter 11

Warning: This chapter has graphic material that may be disturbing for some readers. View at your own risk!

Kodi was drug around by the mysterious red cloak that had saved Stephen's life. After a few more minutes of torture he was able to break free and grabbed the cloak from his head, flinging it against the wall as he gasped for air. Looking around, he saw Remi and Stephen had disappeared from his sight. He growled in frustration and punched a good-sized hole in the wall until he heard a buzzing sound echo behind him. He shot his head around and saw an orange glowing portal circling in front of his eyes. Kodi's eyes widened and he yanked his fist out of the wall, a wide wicked smile spread across his face.

Forming two Time Shards in his hands, Kodi made his way out of the hall and jumped through the portal.

"We need some help!" Remi pleaded as she held a critically injured Stephen in his arms. "Where is Christine?" he turned to a nurse.

"At the nurse's station!" she quickly informed them. Remi and Stephen hobbled their way towards the nurse's station where they caught the attention of a young woman with strawberry blonde hair. She had on scrubs, white tennis shoes, and carried a bunch of folders in one hand. Her hair was tied back into a messy bun atop her head as she walked by them.

"Christine!" Stephen called out for her. The young woman turned around and her eyes widened.

"Stephen? Oh my lord, what happened?" Christine Palmer dropped the folders she was carrying and ran towards them.

"He's been stabbed! Please hurry!" Remi begged as Christine helped one of Stephen's arms around hers. Remi helped support his weight with her arms as they opened the doors to an operating room. Quickly Remi and Christine worked together as a team. Remi wrapped her arms underneath his shoulders and Christine grabbed his ankles, hoisting him onto an operating table so the surgeon could get to work.

"What are you wearing?" Christine asked as she untied the ties that were connecting his robes. She looked down at his chest and saw a large stab wound to the upper left of his chest. She was so confused as to what was happening but Remi saw her perform her work with such precision.

"The chest cavity is clear," Christine informed her as she ran over to get supplies. She came back with a large needle and hovered it above his chest.

"The blood…it's in the pericardial sac. Please….hurry…" Stephen's eyes rolled into his head and his hands became still.

"No, no, no! Stephen stay with me!" Christine commanded but the doctor did not wake up. Remi turned to her left and saw the defibrillator, sprinting towards it and rolling it over onto the cart. "Can we use this?"

"Not yet, his pulse is still strong! I just don't know where the blood is clotting," Christine poked at his chest but she could not pinpoint where the bleeding was. Remi hurried over and hesitantly stared before clearing her throat. She hovered a hand over his chest and her hand began to flow a bright orange. Christine stopped what she was doing and stared at her with wide eyes. Remi saw his veins were black and the blood all around his heart stopped flowing. Looking at the large sac filled with the crimson liquid, she motioned for Christine to put the needle in there. Christine, albeit hesitantly, did as she was told and stuck the needle into his chest. The blood in the chest began to fill the syringe.

Christine and Remi looked at each other with relieved faces. However, as she continued to watch him, an orange portal suddenly formed from behind the two women. Looking up from Stephen, Christine saw a man's two big arms wrap around Remi's chest and mouth, causing her screams to become muffled. Christine screamed and backed away. Remi was able to pull his arm away from her mouth and scream for her to take care of Stephen before she was pulled into the portal. It closed behind her, leaving a bewildered surgeon alone with Stephen Strange on the operating table.

Remi fell back into the New York Sanctum, skidding across the carpet and landing against the wall with a crashing thud. Groaning, she looked up and saw the grey haired male zealot named Kodi coming towards her. With a smile of victory, he walked towards her and formed and Eldritch Whip in one hand.

"I'm not going to kill you, Remi. Just come with me and I'll make this as painless as I can," He motioned for her to come over.

"Like he'll that's going to happen!" Remi snapped as she jumped to her feet. Kodi growled in annoyance and swung the Eldritch Whip around his head, but Remi dodged the movements with ease and slid across the floors on her knees. Kodi saw her coming and jumped in the air. Remi slid underneath him into the opposite side of the hall. Kodi jumped back around as he saw her get to his feet.

"Give it up, Remi! Just surrender to Kaecilius and join us!" Kodi snapped as he formed a Time Shard in one hand. Remi stilled had her back towards him but she balled her hands into two fists and held them out at her sides. Kodi was about to run towards her but his eyes widened in shock as she turned back around. Her forearms, the back of her hands, her palms, and her fingers were covered entirely in the black diamond-like markings and around her eyes as well. They began to light up a light blue as she opened her eyes. Instead of the normal amber color they were the bright light blue that Stephen had once saw.

"Holy crap!" Kodi stumbled backwards. Remi's hands rose to her face and she uncurled her fists, two big balls of bright blue light swirling in her palms. A dark smile spreading across her face, she walked towards Kodi with a charging stance. Gasping, Kodi charged after her, jumping into the air and spinning with two Time Shards in his hands. Remi looked up and easily dodged them. Swinging her back against the ground and twirling behind Kodi. Kodi grunted and jumped back around and charged towards her. Remi dodged this move again and grabbed his right arm, the Time Shards both disappearing and she painfully twisted his arm behind his back, making him wail in pain as he felt his wrist crunch backward and the bones break.

"Please…have mercy…" his voice was shaky.

"There is no mercy for the wicked," Remi simply said. She grabbed his head and began to squeeze.

Like a banshee Kodi screamed as he felt his skin burn intensely. The markings around Remi's arms and eyes suddenly turned yellow as she chanted a couple of words. Kodi gasped and he saw his skin become grey and purple, cracking and tearing. She squeezed even harder and commanded him to leave Earth. The skin around Kodi's eyes and mouth began to thin until all of his teeth were showing and his eyes melted from their sockets. After what seemed like an eternity of torture, the room grew silent. Remi gasped as her eyes returned to their normal color and the markings dissolved in the air. Looking down, she saw she was holding Kodi's body and immediately dropped it.

Remi put a hand over her mouth as she realized what she had done. Half of Kodi's skin was missing around his face and the skin around him had burned off, showing off bone, flesh, and muscle in between. Kodi's eyes had completely melted from their sockets and his mouth had eroded to the point where no flesh was around it, exposing all of his teeth. Looking down at the ground, Remi saw he still had his Sling Ring around his boney fingers. Gagging and hacking, she pulled his Sling Ring off his fingers and circled her two fingers around, an orange gateway pulsating before her. Holding her stomach she made her way back into The Metro-General Hospital.

Christine had been able to successfully defibrillate Stephen back to consciousness as he opened his eyes for the first time. The blood that was clotted around his heart had been cleared up, and now she was busy suturing his stab wound up.

"After all this time, you somehow show up with a…a witch?" Christine asked a now fully awake Stephen.

"First, she's not a witch, she's uh…she's my girlfriend," Stephen hesitantly admitted.

"Oh so you just jump from one woman to the next. Is that how it is now with you, Stephen?" Christine asked as she tugged the needle hard, causing Stephen to groan in pain.

"No, that's not how she is at all. Christine, when you emailed me, we both agreed to move on with our lives, right?" Stephen asked.

"Yes, we did," Christine kept suturing the wound.

"I know you think I picked up another woman just like that, but she kind of came into my life by her own choice. Remi helped me realized what a total jackass I was to you, and I am so sorry I treated you like that. Please forgive me."

Christie shook her head. "Stop, you're clearly in shock."

Stephen smiled amusingly and he chuckled. Christine smiled back but their conversation was interrupted when another orange portal began to form in front of them. Christine yelped and jumped back, but Stephen watched motionlessly as Remi stepped through the portal. She had a traumatic look on her face and her eyes were wide, but when she saw Stephen awake on the operating table, she grew relieved and ran towards him. She flung her arms around him and hugged him tightly, pressing on his stab wound that caused him to moan in pain. Tears of happiness formed in her eyes. Stephen smiled back and he gently used his free bandaged arm to pull her closer into him. Christine observed the happy moment between them, causing her to look at the ground sadly.

Once he was able to get to his feet, Stephen and Remi made their way back to the mop closet where Remi had formed the gateway. Christine was shocked to discover another orange portal in front of her.

"We have to go now," Stephen stepped into the portal first. Remi turned to Christine with a genuine smile.

"Thank you, Christine, for saving his life. If it wasn't for you…I don't want to think about what would've happened to him."

"I was just doing my job. You were the one who saved his life," Christine smiled back. Remi took her hands in hers and placed them against her heart.

"You will always have my thanks. Until then, you must never mention what you saw here."

Christine looked at her with a confused look but slowly nodded as the portal disappeared behind them. Bewildered, she turned around and was about to walk out of the closet, but screamed when she heard the sound of a broom and bucket topple onto their side.

Remi and Stephen stepped into the New York Sanctum. Looking around, they walked to where Kaecilius had been imprisoned in the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak, but got the shock of their lives when they saw them scattered across the floor. They hurried downstairs and saw broken wood, shattered glass, and stuff thrown everywhere. Stephen saw Kodi's body and held his wounded chest and looked at Remi. However, he realized she had did it in self-defense and decided not to question her after that. He saw the red cloak floating in the air and he grabbed it, swinging it around his back and taking Remi's hand, leading her down the hallway towards the front entrance of the Sanctum.

"Stephen, Remi?!" Remi and Stephen looked up and saw Mordo at the top of the stairs. Rushing up, Mordo wrapped his arms around Remi and he shook Stephen's hand. "Thank goodness! Where have you two been?!"

"We had a little scuffle with Kaecilius. He chased us in here and we trapped him, but he escaped," Remi explained.

"How many more did he have with him?" Mordo inquired.

"Two. I don't know where the girl is, but…his body is in the hall," Remi turned her back and sighed. Stephen groaned and held his chest before walking in front of her towards Mordo. He noticed the red cloak wrapped around his shoulders and smiled curiously.

"The Cloak of Levitation…it came to you," Stephen noticed the cloak and shrugged. Their conversation was interrupted when the Ancient One caught up with them moments later.

"Thank heavens you two are all right! We heard the commotion in the library but you both disappeared."

Remi looked down at the ground when she noticed her armguards were missing. However, the young woman's look grew angry and she marched towards her master. Stephen and Mordo watched as she raised one hand above the Ancient One's face and slammed it across her cheek. The Ancient One stumbled backwards a bit but kept her space as a bruise started to form on her left cheek. However, she was not surprised as she rubbed her sore left cheek. Tears formed in her eyes as she rose another hand to slap her master across the face, but Stephen grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her back before she could make another move.

"This is all your fault! Because of you, Kaecilius now has the rituals to release Dormammu!" Remi snapped as she struggled to free herself.

"Remi, stop!" Stephen tried to coax her.

"It was all lies! Your rules about how we're not supposed to draw magic from the Dark Dimension, you've been doing it yourself this entire time! That's how you're immortal! YOU FEED OFF DORMAMMU!"

The whole Sanctum grew silent. Mordo looked at Stephen and Remi in shock, but he walked in front of the Ancient One and glared at them. He started to reprimand them for making incredibly insulting remarks against the Ancient One and they should show her more respect, but Remi told him that she has been deceiving him the whole time. Mordo stopped talking and turned towards the Ancient One but she never responded. Stephen finally released Remi once she had calmed down.

"Once they regroup, the zealots will be back. You'll need reinforcements," the Sorcerer Supreme cleared her throat and turned to them. "We need to go back to Kamar-Taj to discuss our next moves."

"I'm never going anywhere with you again. You've already turned Kaecilius against you, and now you've lost me entirely."

The Ancient One was taken aback and she tried to reach out for Remi, but she smacked her hand away and ran down the stairs. Stephen and Mordo watched as she opened the door to the Sanctum and closed it behind her, disappearing down the street until she was completely out of sight. Excusing himself, he whistled to his cloak and he flew into the air for the doors, opening them up and chasing after Remi.

A confused Karl Mordo turned to his master, but she did not return his gaze.

Stephen looked around him in front of the building leading into the sanctum, but all he got were stares of onlookers. Growling in frustration, he raced down the sidewalk in a direction he thought Remi had taken off to. However, the crowds seemed to get bigger with every turn he took. Starting to get frustrated, he levitated off the ground and shot into the air, getting a better look of New York City around him. He shot his head around in all directions but he could not find any glimpse of Remi. He thought he had seen her face in the crowd, but it turned out not to be her.

"C'mon Remi, where are you?" he thought to himself as he flew in the right direction.

Remi crossed her arms as she walked down the trail of Central Park, observing children tossing balls back and forth and playing tag with their parents, laughing and carrying on as if they had no care in the world. She looked down at the ground as she took a seat on the bench underneath a tall oak tree. Crossing her leg over one, she leaned back and took in a moment to think about the events that had transpired. However, the more she began to think about it, the more she began to think of her own childhood.

Closing her eyes, she sighed and surrendered herself to her thoughts.

Ten-year-old Remi Ramirez watched as she sat in the middle of Isadora Ramirez's living room. Her grandmother was spinning around slowly with a ball of orange Eldritch Light in her hands. She smiled at her granddaughter as she watched her roll it across her arms over her shoulders, throwing it into the air as it dissipated in the air, sending a million tiny of particles of light down onto the living room floor. Remi caught some of the light specs and watched as they dissolved. Isadora laughed and continued to entertain her granddaughter.

Unbeknownst to them, a woman's footsteps echoed through the hallway towards the living room. Remi commanded her grandmother show her the ball of light again and she obeyed her request. The woman's eyes widened and she leaned against the frame of the doorway leading into the living room. However, instead of an angry scowl spreading across her face, a sweet smile appeared. She had long black curly hair, the same skin tone as Isadora, and light amber eyes with dark yellow pupils. She had on a sleeveless white shirt and grey pajama bottoms. On her left arm was a tattoo of a large boa constrictor wrapping itself around until it ended at the back of her hand. It had large red eyes and its mouth was open, showing its incredibly sharp fangs and its deadly tongue.

Once they caught attention of someone else in the room with them, Isadora turned around and smiled widely. "Ah Eulalia my dear, come in, come in!" she motioned for her daughter forward.

"Oh ok, mamí." Eulalia smiled and grabbed Remi, crossing her legs and sitting her on her lap. "So, what have you shown her this time?"

"Abuela's been teaching me all about magic! She's so amazing isn't she, Auntie?" Remi laughed as her aunt wrapped her arms around her.

"Well your grandmother was one of the most powerful master sorceresses at Kamar-Taj. She knows her magic well," Eulalia bragged as she eyed her grandmother.

"Those were the old days, Eulalia. No need to bring up the past," Isadora waved her off and took a seat on the couch.

"Grandmother, why did you leave Kamar-Taj?" Remi asked as she snuggled against Eulalia's chest.

"For a simple reason. I wanted to have a family, and I was blessed with the two most beautiful daughters in the world. I just had no idea they would be born with the same magic I have practiced."

Eulalia looked down at Remi and formed a ball of Eldritch Light in front of her, making her laugh as she watched it disappear. Isadora smiled as she watched her daughter entertain Remi, but a frown formed on her face when she thought of Eulalia's twin sister, Katyana Ramirez. Sitting back into the couch, she sighed deeply and rubbed her temples with her fingers. Her youngest had always rejected the idea of magic, and whenever the mention of her mother's power was brought up, Katyana would react violently whereas Eulalia would casually brush it off.

"Mama, what's wrong? Is it about Katyana again?" Eulalia gave her mother a serious look. Remi looked down at the floor in her aunt's arms.

"Mommy yelled at me again when I told her you showed me one of your old spells."

Isadora and Eulalia shot her looks and Remi slunk back in her aunt's arms. "Why is she always mean to me? She's so scary."

"Remi mi amore, your mother is just a hardheaded soul. When she was around your age, Katyana always showed off her powers to her peers. But the other students became afraid of her and started to call her terrible names, so afterwards, she always hated her powers and accused your grandmother of teaching her witchcraft."

Remi looked down at the ground and leaned her head against Eulalia's shoulder. Her aunt smiled sadly and cradled her head against hers. Isadora sighed and stared at the wall. It was still a painful subject to bring up, but since Katyana was an adult, she had the right to make her own decisions. She only wished she would treat her daughter better. The conversation was interrupted when they heard the sound of a car horn echo outside Isadora's house. Not even a few moments later there was the sound of heavy footsteps coming up the stairs and the front door swung open. Katyana Ramirez entered the house, her long black hair out in all ends, her blue jacket half unzipped, the bottoms of her jeans rolled up. She kicked off her flip-flops and entered the house, slamming the door behind her. Remi saw her come into the living room with a blank stare.

"Where's the beer?" Katyana inquired.

"Excuse me?" Isadora shot her daughter a glare. Rolling her eyes, Katyana made her way into the kitchen and rummaged through her grandmother's fridge before finding a bottle of Seagrams Vodka. She returned to the living room and plopped down on the sofa with her feet stretched out. Eulalia and Isadora stared at each other as Katyana stared at the ceiling.

"Katyana, aren't you going to greet your daughter?" Remi jumped out of her aunt's grip and ran towards her mother, hopping onto the couch.

"Hi, mama! How was work?" Remi asked excitedly.

"It was the same old same old, nothing more." Katyana slunk back against the cushions. She went to open the bottle of vodka before she noticed something on the coffee table. Setting the bottle down, she curled her legs in and snatched the magic book from off the table. Remi tensed and hurried of the couch into the safety of her aunt's arms. Katyana took a good look at the book and turned it from front cover to back cover, ran her eyes along the seam, and opened it flipping through the pages. Her eyes widened and narrowed tightly when she realized her mother had been reading her daughter another one of the books she had gotten from Kamar-Taj.

Katyana's hands gripped the book tightly and she shot Isadora a deadly look. However, the old woman remained defiant and still as Katyana got to her feet.

"You've been at it again?!" Katyana demanded.

"At what, mi amore? You mean teaching your little girl the fundamentals of magic? Yes!" Isadora shot right back. Getting up off the couch, she walked in front of Katyana. "No matter how much you want to deny it, Katyana, Remi was born with the same powers you and your sister have! I am only teaching her so she can protect herself in the future."

"I told you I did not want Remi to learn such magic, but again, you always follow your own agenda. Why can you not take your own daughter's rules into consideration? YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THAT KIND OF MAGIC DID TO ME!"

"I know it was a hard time for you, Katyana, and I've tried to help millions of times, but you refused my comfort!"

Growling, Katyana snatched the vodka bottle from the table and jumped off the sofa. She walked passed her sister and daughter to the foyer and grabbed her purse and car keys hanging on a hook. Isadora hastily followed behind her daughter and asked where she was going.

"If you want to raise Remi then do as you please. I will no longer have part in any of this! YOU'VE TURNED HER INTO A DEMON!" Katyana screamed as she opened the front door and slammed it shut.

Isadora's eyes widened and Remi and Eulalia got to their feet. Quickly running out the front door, they saw Katyana walking towards a white van. She put one key into the lock of the car and turned it, opening the front door.

"Katyana, wait! You're really abandoning Remi?!" Eulalia had her hands on Remi's shoulders. Remi gasped and ran out of her aunt's grasp and passed her grandmother, hurrying toward her mother with her arms wide open. Katyana turned around as Remi wrapped her arms around her waist in a pathetic attempt to prevent her from leaving.

"Mommy, please don't leave me! If you don't want me to learn anymore magic, I'll never ask abuela to perform anymore spells! Please don't go!" Tears poured from the little girl's cheeks. Katyana only shot the little girl a cold gaze and with one swift hand, her fist connected to Remi's stomach. Gasping and gurgling, Remi felt her mother punch her hard in the stomach enough to send her flying off her and slew through the grass until she came to a quick halt. Remi started crying loudly as she held her sore stomach. Eulalia and Isadora quickly ran off the porch towards her. Eulalia watched as her mother bent down and clutched her sobbing granddaughter tightly.

"Katyana…how could you be so cruel towards your daughter? What kind of a mother are you?!" Isadora angrily demanded through her own tears. Her eyes widened when she saw her daughter's cold gaze.

"That thing is not my daughter. I did not give birth to the spawn of Satan."

Remi turned her head as she watched Katyana climb into her van, the Seagrams Vodka bottle still in her hand. Closing the door, she started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot, ignoring her daughter's desperate sobs for her to come back.

Speeding at an incredible 85 MPH, Katyana swerved in an out passed cars, ignoring the angry horns of motorists. Panting heavily, she clutched the wheel as she thought about her mother and daughter. However, images of them appeared surrounded by flames. Remi and Isadora's eyes were red and when they smiled, she imagined them having long fangs just like a vampire. Her shaky breaths turning into chuckles, she looked up from her lap and stared out of the windshield.

"This magic is a load of crap! A LOAD OF CRAP!" she screamed at herself as her foot increased pressure on the gas. Turning to her left, she saw the alcohol bottle she had taken from her mother's fridge and grabbed it. Laughing hysterically, she clutched the edge of the top and swung one hand against the dashboard. The impact was enough to send glass flying in all directions, onto Katyana's lap, all over the floorboards and front seats. She looked down and saw she managed to grip half of the top of the bottle, jagged edges sticking out.

"I told you, mother, magic is forbidden! Forbidden!" Katyana hysterically told herself. Looking in her rearview mirror, she did the unthinkable. Tightly grasping the edge of the broken bottle, she rose it to her throat. With a wide insane smile, she pushed it deeply into her neck and sawed it straight across. She continued to laugh and cry as she repeated the same motion back and forth, glass cutting deep into her throat and blood free flowing down her clothes, soaking her jacket and pants until the front was completely splashed with crimson. Katyana's laughs turned into gurgles and gasps and the sawing motion slowed down. Her entire face was covered in blood and her throat was slashed to the point where she almost completely decapitated herself. Still speeding down the highway, her eyes rolled back into her head as the glass dropped from her hands onto the floor.

She never woke up to notice her van crash into a rocky cliffside minutes later.

To Be Continued

I understand it's a very graphic way to end a chapter. I wanted you to get a good look at Remi's past so I hope I did not disappoint!

Please do not forget to leave your reviews! Flames and all are welcomed. :)

See ya next chapter! :)