a/n: Just wanted to apologize for the lateness of the update! Please enjoy!
March 2013
Father and daughter wandered through the New York Sanctum, trying to find another way out. It was very similar to the London Sanctum. There were multiple glass cases containing relics of all sorts. They looked at them with varying degrees of curiosity, but remained pretty much silent through their walk.
"We need to find the guardian of this sanctum," Stephen said, tearing his eyes away from the red cloak that floated in the glass case.
"Yeah," Gwen agreed. She adjusted the staff in her hand. Without warning, it started to shrink in her hands. She looked down at it, only to see that it had transformed into a pen. "What the hell?" she muttered, looking at it in confusion. Curiously, she clicked the pen once. It transformed back into the long staff. "Huh." She searched the handle for the trigger that turned it into a pen. A small knot on the side appeared to be it. When she pressed it, it transformed back into a pen. Handy, she thought and she tucked the pen into the folds of her robes.
"Gwen, are you coming?" Stephen had already left while she had examined her staff. "Where's your stick thing?"
She rolled her eyes. "It's called a staff, dad," she told him. She reached for the pen and pulled it out, clicking it once and transforming it back into the staff. "It can transform, apparently."
"Interesting," he commented. "We should hurry." Gwen clicked the pen again and tucked it away again, following her father towards the stairs they had come up before.
Waiting at the foot of the stairs was the guardian of the New York Sanctum, Daniel Drumm, holding aloft his weapon, ready to fight.
The door was forced open by Kaecilius and his Zealots. "Daniel," Kaecilius commented, sounding awfully calm given the situation. "I see they made you master of this sanctum."
Daniel ignored him and swung his weapon. All the Zealots charged him. There were too many of them for him to take on all by himself. He was overpowered in mere seconds.
Kaecilius stood in front of him. He conjured that same invisible weapon and raised it high in the air. Then, before Gwen could protest, he fought it down harshly and Daniel fell to the ground, dead.
"No!" Stephen and Gwen yelled at the same time. Stephen leapt over the railing to the top step. Gwen followed his lead.
Kaecilius looked up at them, looking curious. "How long have you been at Kamar-Taj, Mister?..."
"It's doctor," Stephen snapped.
Kaecilius tilted his head to the side. "Mister Doctor?"
Gwen and Stephen exchanged confused glances. "It's Strange," Stephen clarified.
Kaecilius shrugged. "Maybe. Who am I to judge?"
Gwen reached into the folds of her robes to pull out her staff. However, before she could reach it, an Eldritch whip was wrapped around her wrist. The Zealot holding it yanked back harshly, pulling her to the ground. Stephen quickly conjured an Eldritch rope of his own, ready to attack back.
Kaecilius ran up the sides of the walls, weapons held in the air. He jumped high and kicked Stephen to the ground.
Gwen wanted to help her father, but first she had to get free of her own bonds. She yanked hard on the whip that held her bound. The Zealot stumbled, but did not let go of the rope. So, Gwen rolled over onto her stomach, pulling the whip with her. This time, the Zealot's grip on the spell loosened enough for her to get free. She jumped to her feet and conjured up an Eldritch whip, ready to strike. The nameless Zealot charged at her. Gwen swung the whip and hit her in the face, by sheer luck. The Zealot stumbled backwards and Gwen kicked her down the stairs. Then, she turned and ran after her father with Kaecilius and two other Zealots hot on her trail.
She caught up to him quickly. "Come on, this way," he said, waving her down an unfamiliar hallway. They sprinted towards a set of glass doors that overlooked a desert. But as they ran, the hallway seemed to stretch to impossible lengths, with the glass doors far beyond their reach. They turned to see that Kaecilius had caught up with them. His powers were clearly beyond either of theirs because Gwen had no idea how he was doing this.
Stephen stopped running and turned to face them, so Gwen did the same. Simultaneously, they conjured a pair of shields. However, the shield on Stephen's right hand disappeared. He shook his hand helplessly, as if this would somehow help him.
This gesture seemed to raise the confidence of Kaecilius and the Zealots. It was clear that they were novices in the mystic arts.
The Zealots made the first move, charging into battle with their invisible weapons. Gwen blocked a blow with her shield, which evaporated into gold dust from the force of the hit. She rolled out of the way to avoid the next attack. When she was out of harm's way, she reached for the staff yet again. As she did so, the hallway shifted again. It was as if the floor was switching places with the ceiling. She reached out both hands to grab onto something to stop her from falling to the end of the hall. She ended up grabbing her father's hand. The Zealot that had been attacking her fell straight down and through the glass doors. Just above her, her father was holding on to the handle of another door, which was starting to break off its hinges. Gwen's hands were slipping and she fell out of her father's grasp. He shouted her name as she fell through the broken glass doors, tumbling through the sands of whatever desert this was. She spat sand out of her mouth and scrambled to her feet. Her father had fallen too, but managed to hang onto the edge of the doorway. Just as she was getting ready to run for the doors, she was knocked back on her face by the Zealot that had already fallen through. Gwen sat up quickly to see the Zealot sprinting for the door. She meant to change the scene and leave Gwen stranded in the desert.
Gwen scrambled to her feet and conjured another whip as she ran. She then shot it out at the Zealot's ankles, tripping her to the ground. Gwen ran as fast as she possibly could, running past the Zealot. Her hands fumbled for the staff in the folds of her robes. For a minute, Gwen was scared that she had lost it, but then her fingers felt the cool metal. Relief washed over her. She quickly removed it from its hiding place and clicked it once. It transformed into the long wooden staff. Turning around sharply, she focused all her energy into sending out another telekinetic blast. Miraculously, it worked. The Zealot was sent flying farther backwards, giving Gwen more time to reach the door and change the scene to a jungle scene. Hopefully she didn't have a sling ring.
Her father and Kaecilius seemed to have disappeared. So, she held her staff high in the air, ready to attack. Slowly, she took a step forward.
Very suddenly, a fist connected with her face, knocking her to the side. Before she could right herself to counter attack, an Eldritch whip had pushed her to the ground and her staff fell out of her hands, rolling down the hallway, out of her reach. She looked up to see the male Zealot lifting the invisible weapon they carried, ready to stab her as they had Daniel. She attempted to roll out of the way, but wasn't quite quick enough. The thing cut her arm, causing blood to spill out of a wound, staining her robes. She hissed in pain, but knew that she couldn't let this small injury stop her from fighting. She lifted her leg and delivered a swift kick to his ribs. He grunted in pain, and his footing slipped. Gwen conjured up another rope and wrapped it around his ankle, and, using all her strength, threw him through the magical doorway and into the jungle. She hurried into a standing position and yet again changed the scene in the magical door to a beachside. For a fraction of a second, Gwen was tempted to visit it, but then she shook away the feeling and raced down the halls to find her father.
She arrived just in time to see him being thrown over the railing by Kaecilius. "NO!" Gwen shouted. She was so distracted by her fear and anger that she didn't even see the blur of red that followed him down the stairs. She turned her gaze to Kaecilius, and conjured a weapon, ready to fight. She had never hated anyone quite as much as she hated this man. He had killed Sajit. He had hurt her father. No one was allowed to do that and get away with it.
Just as Gwen was about to charge him, she saw her father flying above the both of them. She blinked, astounded. Flying? How? Was it some spell that Sajit had neglected to teach her?
Stephen conjured an Eldritch whip. "Get away from my daughter," he spat at Kaecilius before tossing the whip at him. It latched itself around Kaecilius's weapon. Stephen tried to tug it out of his grasp, but instead, Kaecilius pulled him forward. Stephen flew into him, and they both crashed to the ground. When they regained their feet, Kaecilius took a swipe at Stephen, but he was pulled out of the way of danger. Gwen watched, still confused. Was the cloak… protecting him?
While she was distracted, Kaecilius attempted to spear her in the stomach. "No!" Stephen shouted. But before harm could befall her, the cloak had dived in front of her, stopping the blade from piercing her. Quick as lightning, it then wrapped itself around her shoulders and pulled her back to safety. Then, it returned to Stephen's shoulders. The father and daughter exchanged nods, glad that they were both safe.
Stephen looked behind her and pointed to an ax that was mounted to the wall. Gwen nodded and turned to grab one of them. It was heavier than she expected and she couldn't quite get it off the wall. "I can't get it," she said, turning to her dad, desperate for his help.
The cloak, however, had another idea. It prevented him from moving forward to help his daughter and kept dragging him to the odd looking contraption on the wall. Kaecilius was quickly running at Gwen. Stephen panicked and made a split second decision. He grabbed the contraption on the wall and threw it at Kaecilius.
Kaecilius halted his charge and went rigid. Moving robotically, he was forced into a kneeling position with his hands held at an odd angle behind his back. His mouth was covered, muting his speech. He couldn't move. He was bound.
Both Stephen and Gwen were breathing heavily. "Are you ok?" Stephen asked. He had caught sight of the blood stains on her arm.
She waved away his concerns. "I'm fine. It'll probably need stitches, but it doesn't hurt too bad. What about you?" she asked, examining the cut by his eyebrow.
"All fine," he replied simply.
Behind them, Kaecilius was mumbling words. "What?" Stephen asked. He simply continued to mumble unintelligibly. Sighing, Stephen walked over and removed the piece blocking his mouth. He continued to mumble words that seemed to be in another language. "Stop it."
"You cannot stop this, Mister Doctor," Kaecilius responded. Gwen wondered if he was actually that dumb or if he was just messing with them.
"I don't even know what this is," Stephen retorted.
"It's the end. And the beginning. The many becoming the few becoming the One," Kaecilius explained.
Stephen raised the mouthpiece. "Look, if you're not gonna start making sense, I'm just gonna put this thing back in."
"Please do," Gwen interjected. "This man is getting on my nerves." She was itching to punch the man in the binds. Itching to see him punished for all that he had done today.
"Tell me, Mister Doctor- "
"Are you that stupid or are you just fiddling around with us?" Gwen snapped. Kaecilius simply looked confused.
"Look, my name is Doctor Stephen Strange," Stephen explained.
Kaecilius raised an eyebrow. "You are a doctor? A scientist? Then you must know that everything dies. Everything ages. In the end, the sun will burn out and our universe will die along with it. But not the Dark Dimension." He stared at them both with the utmost seriousness. "There, the laws of time do not apply."
"Can we kill him now?" Gwen asked through gritted teeth. She knew what he was up to. He was going to try to convince them that he was right. That he was justified in killing Sol. In killing Sajit. She wanted to hear none of it.
"None of us will die," he continued as though Gwen hadn't spoken. "The world won't have to die if we become part of the One."
"You keep saying the One," Gwen mentioned, curious in spite of herself. "What is the One? The One what?"
"The great and beautiful One," he said vaguely. "In Him, we can all live forever."
"God?" Gwen asked doubtfully.
"No, Miss Strange," Kaecilius replied, shaking his head as best as he could. "The Ruler of the Dark Dimension."
Stephen scoffed. "Don't bother listening to him, Gwen," he said. "The man is insane. Twisted by the idea of this new age utopia."
"Is it insane, Doctor?" Kaecilius asked rhetorically. "I have much to gain from this new age. You could gain the same. Eternal life as part of the One. A place beyond our only true enemy: time. Time kills us all, it ruins us."
"What about the people you killed?" they spat out angrily.
Kaecilius shook his head again. "Tiny," he dismissed. "Insignificant specks within an indifferent universe." Gwen clenched her fists, trying not to lose control. Sajit had said that her greatest weakness in battle would be losing control of her emotions. She had to stay focused. She tried to think of things that would calm her down.
"You see, don't you?" he continued in a soft voice. "You see why we fight, why we kill. It is a necessity to save the rest of humanity. To give humanity what it truly desires, to stop the laws of time, to end the ever-ticking clock that counts down to our doom. In Dormammu, we can find peace, we can find answers. The why of all existence."
"The Sorcerer Supreme defends existence," Stephen shot back.
Kaecilius gave a hint of a smile. "Tell me, doctor. And you, Miss Strange. What brought you to Kamar-Taj? Was it knowledge? Power? No. You came to be healed, as did I. As we all did. The Ancient One promises to heal us and then only shows us a tiny glimpse of what is possible. Parlor tricks. The real magic she keeps for herself. Haven't you wondered how she managed to live this long?"
Gwen furrowed her brow. Sajit had told her that the Ancient One was much older than she looked, insinuating that she was hundreds, maybe even thousands of years old. But she had not thought of how she might have stayed alive so long. She had just assumed that it was magic. And it was, in a way, but not the kind of magic Gwen had thought it to be. If the only universe beyond time was the Dark Dimension, then that was the only place to gain longevity. Which meant that the Ancient One was drawing power from the Dark Dimension, the very place she had told them that they were fighting.
That's what we ask of all that join our ranks. That you trust us.
That was what the Ancient One had said to her, not so long ago. She had asked her to trust, insisting that it wasn't blindness. And all along, she had been lying to them all, telling them all to stay away from something while freely partaking of it herself.
"I saw the rituals in the Book of Cagliostro," Stephen spoke, drawing Gwen out of her thoughts.
Kaecilius hummed in approval. "So you do see. I have the power to overthrow the Ancient One and her sanctums. To let the Dark Dimension in. Because what the Ancient One keeps for herself, Dormammu gives freely. Life everlasting. He's not the Destroyer of Worlds, he is the savior."
Stephen was shaking his head. "No. I mean, come on. Look at your face. Dormammu has turned you into a murderer." That one word brought Gwen back down to reality. For a minute there, she had been caught up in what Kaecilius had been saying. She had been considering what having eternal life with her father would be like. But then she remembered Sajit's body, lying stiff on the floor with blood pooling around it. Kaecilius had murdered him. Kaecilius had nearly murdered her. He had nearly killed her father. He could not be trusted. "Just how good can this kingdom be?"
The villain did not respond. He just chuckled softly. "You think that's funny?" Stephen asked in disbelief.
"No. What's funny is you've lost your sling ring," he retorted.
Gwen's head snapped up, recognizing what was happening. Kaecilius was monologuing. He went on with his prepared speech to confuse them, just to distract them and then bam! They were attacked.
Just as she thought it, she watched as her father had one of those invisible weapons shot into him. "DAD!" she screamed. He groaned in pain and started to curl in around the glass-like blade. Another Zealot climbed the stairs and shoved Stephen back down them. Without stopping to think, Gwen shot down the stairs after him.
"Leave her," she heard Kaecilius say to the Zealot. "She won't risk losing her father."
She ignored him. Kaecilius was right. It had come down to stopping Kaecilius from escaping or saving her father from bleeding out. She would choose her father in a heartbeat and she would have no regrets. If the Ancient One wanted Kaecilius captured, she could do it herself.
Stephen had pulled out the blade in a moment of panic, and began to stumble away from Kaecilius and the Zealot. Gwen caught up to him easily, and grabbed his arm. "Come on," she grunted, practically dragging him along. "We have to get out of here. Get you to a hospital."
It was easier said than done. Stephen could hardly walk, even with Gwen's help. He stumbled and whenever he did, Gwen stumbled too. Eventually, he fell over, bringing Gwen with him. "Come on," Gwen muttered, mostly to herself. She sat up and tried to get her father to sit up. "Come on. We've got to- "
Her words died in her mouth when she saw that the Zealot had followed them. He was merely a foot or two behind them, holding his weapon high in the air. Gwen conjured a shield in a panic, trying to make it as big as she could. The Zealot did not seem intimidated. This is it, she thought desperately. This is how we're going to die. She was no match for this man. Unless… With a jolt of elation, she reached into the folds of her robes to find the pen. But it wasn't there. She had dropped it further down the hall. She would never reach it in time.
Just as she was about to abandon all hope, the cloak on her father's shoulders shot out and wrapped itself tightly around the Zealot's head. The Zealot dropped his weapon and tried to tear the piece of cloth away, only for it to start yanking him back and forth, dragging him to the floor. It was trying to help them escape.
Gwen tugged even harder on her father's arm. "Come on. We need to go. I'll get his sling ring." She quickly snatched the ring, which he had lost in his struggle with the cloak. Stephen grunted in pain, but forced himself to his feet. Together they made their way into a room just off the hallway. Making sure that he was ok leaning against the wall, Gwen raised her hands and conjured a portal to the only place she could think of: the hospital where she and her father had both worked. She drew the portal into a supply closet, so they didn't draw any more suspicion than they were going to.
Gwen grabbed her father's arm and dragged him through it. They burst into a hallway full of nurses and doctors. Most didn't notice them at first. Only one stopped to talk to them. "Are you two alright?" she asked in concern.
"Dr. Palmer," Stephen said simply.
"I- "
"Where is Christine Palmer?" Gwen shouted in anger and fear.
"Just down the hall," the nurse replied quickly, backing away fearfully.
"Christine!" Gwen shouted. "Christine!"
Just a few yards in front of them, Christine turned to see who was shouting. Her look of confusion changed to one of fear and shock. "Stephen? Gwen? What?-"
"He's been stabbed, we need to help him now," Gwen answered. "Cardiac tamponade, I think."
They ducked into an operating theater and placed him on a table as gently as they could. While Gwen stood beside him, Christine started to gather the necessary supplies to save his life. Gwen tore away the shirt that was blocking the wound. Gwen had to blink away any tears that formed at the sight of the wound. Now was not the time to panic, now was the time to act. "Chest cavity is clear. Do you have the syringe?" Gwen asked, trying to capture the calm voice her father always had when treating a patient.
"Here," Christine replied. Gwen cleared out of the way so Christine could insert the needle. She watched from his head, stroking his hair unconsciously. He had passed out, unsurprisingly, but it wasn't a good sign. Inhaling sharply, Christine got ready to insert the needle into the chest cavity.
"Just a little higher." Both women gasped and jumped back, knocking into medical supplies. Stephen's astral form was floating just above his body. "Please be careful with the needle."
"What is this?" Christine whispered.
"My astral form," Stephen answered calmly.
"Are you dead?" she asked next.
He shook his head. "No, Christine, but I am dying."
"Right," she breathed, calming down ever so slightly. She moved back into position and inserted the needle into the chest cavity, just where Stephen pointed to.
"I've never seen a wound like this before. What were you stabbed with?"
"I don't know," Stephen replied unhelpfully. Then, he looked up sharply. "Gwen, he's here," he told her.
"What?" she shouted, still panicking. "Where? Wait, do you mean his astral form?"
He nodded. "I'm going to take care of him. You two work on keeping me alive." With that, he vanished before Gwen could protest.
Christine continued to work silently, draining the fluid from the sac. There was not much Gwen could do until they were ready to stitch up the wound. So she just stood there, feeling useless.
At one point, his heart stopped beating. There was a long, high pitched whine coming from the machine. Gwen turned to it, panic returning. "No," Christine whispered. "Gwen, get me the crash cart. 200 J. Hurry!"
She did as she was told, rolling the cart towards Christine, and turning it on. It whirred until giving the signal for Christine to use it. She pressed it to his chest and shocked him. They both turned to the machine, which slowly started to beep again. His heart was beating again.
"Hit me again!" Again, they looked up in shock to see his astral form. "Gwen, up the voltage to 300 J and hit me again."
"But dad- "
"Just do it!" With that, he disappeared again. Muttering obscenities under her breath, Gwen upped the voltage to the amount he said. Christine reluctantly shocked him again. Gwen closed her eyes, unable to bear what could happen from what they had just done. Shocking a patient whose heart was beating at that voltage could kill them. However, the steady beating from the machine signified otherwise.
But then the machine's power went out. The power in all the monitors and machines went out. Gwen looked around the room with wide eyes, but there was no sign of his astral form. "Dad," she whispered, still stroking his head. "Come on. Wake up."
Stephen gasped loudly, causing Christine to jump again. "Are you ok?" she asked him and he nodded, still gasping for breath. "Thank goodness," she breathed. "Ok. Uh… We need to stitch you up. Uh, Gwen, can you get a needle and thread?" She nodded and retrieved the objects needed. Christine began to clean his wound, wiping away any blood.
Gwen left her father in Christine's care. She moved her arm and remembered the injury she had sustained from earlier.
She took a step back from the other two, who were discussing where they had been and what was going on. Carefully, she unwrapped the yellow cloth that she wore, leaving her in her sports bra and pants. Gwen gingerly touched the wound, trying to see how deep it was, and winced. Yeah, it needed stitches alright. So she took a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a clean cloth, trying not to distract the two adults from their conversation.
She hissed when the alcohol made contact with the wound. "Gwen?" Stephen asked, turning his head as much as he could to look at her. "Are you ok?"
"Fine," she said through clenched teeth. "It just stings. It'll need stitches."
"Oh, Gwen, I didn't even notice you were bleeding," Christine apologized. "Let me finish stitching up your father and then I'll help you."
Gwen waved her away. "No worries. I can stitch this up by myself. You just help him."
Stephen smiled proudly, knowing that she was fully capable of doing so, and returned to his conversation with Christine. Gwen grabbed another needle and enough thread to close the wound. She winced from the pain, but didn't stop stitching until the bleeding had stopped and the wound was sealed. Then, she wrapped her clothes back around her as best as she could.
"We should go," Stephen said to Gwen, who nodded in agreement.
"Wait, where are you going?" Christine asked.
They decided to show her to the portal in the supply closet. Her eyes widened at the sight of the swirling, golden circle that showed a glimpse into another room. Gwen went through first. "Goodbye, Christine," she said, giving her a wave. Christine waved back.
Gwen returned to the hall to find that it was quiet. The body of the Zealot was lying motionless on the floor. At her side, her hand twitched. She looked down to see the pen on the ground, just a few feet away from her. She stooped down to retrieve it, and clicked it once. It transformed into the long, wooden Staff of Moriancum. Power pulsed through it, beating against the palm of her hand where it was held. That was how she knew that it belonged to her. It had chosen her.
Sajit had been right. She was born for this.