12 | Previously on Dr Strange & Dr Lewis - A Strange Anomaly

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Location: New York Sanctum, USA, Earth

Time: February 2024

-Six Months Ago-

"Strange..."

He groaned and thought, 'Illyria, can't it wait?'

"Strange, you have to wake up."

Since it wasn't Illyria, who was talking to him? Didn't they know it was the weekend and it was his early night in?

"Stephen!"

Snapping his eyes open, he flung his upper body up from his position – forming two mandala shields in his hands. But once his mind quickly adjusted to his surroundings, he relaxed his arms and internally sighed.

Standing in his bedroom was Wong, and from the look on his face: he was not messing around.

Well, most of the time, Wong was kind of like that anyway. So why was he surprised? Oh wait, that was it: it was probably because he had walked into his bedroom just now. This was also another question to ask himself since he did put multiple protection and locking spells in the entire living spaces in the Sanctum.

And then Stephen remembered what had happened for the past five years and mentally facepalmed.

Instead of trying to comprehend the 'how' question, Stephen pulled away the shields, slid out of his bed and glared back at the sorcerer. "What?" He tiredly yawned out as he continued, "Wong, it's 4 am in the morning. Why are you-"

"It's Mordo." Wong simply answered.

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The librarian had given him enough time to get changed into his outdoor clothes (and from embarrassment, Wong had just seen him in his pyjamas) before leading him to towards the opened portal to what seemed to be Kamar-Taj.

"I have heard from Singapore that several magic users have encountered him," Wong informed as they strode down the corridor. "Most are gaining close to the Hong Kong Sanctum, but he's been taking more ever since we all returned."

Half of the time Wong was talking to him; Stephen was still trying to wake himself up. Man, he would kill for a cup of tea just to stop him from dozing from Wong's discussion as they arrived at the large domed room. The Orb of Agamotto, glowing in gold as it was suspended in the air hovering over a painted chart of the stars. [1]

When Stephen glanced up, he narrowed his eyes to concentrate. The Orb has always detected any possible threats, whether it was Earth or the other adjacent dimensions in this multiverse. But as he saw the red stain rather brightly, Stephen realized how near their threat was.

And how many Mordo has crossed with.

Stephen's lips thinned, a low hum from him as he thought loudly, "He's doing a clean sweep of magic users again." He exhaled deeply. "I thought he would be done after we were all brought back."

That was what he, Wong and the other Masters of the Mystic Arts believed. Even before the snap, the couple of years since Mordo left the Mystic Arts and began popping up in their radar was already concerning after discovering Jonathan Pangborn reformed into his paralyzed self – before he had come to Kamar-Taj to heal his spine. It was there he knew he needed to keep an eye on him, even if it did hurt Stephen then. Not only him but the entire Mystic Arts.

Especially Illyria, who had once looked up to Mordo as one of the best teachers: only to be let down as he stepped out from the doors of the Sanctuary to search for his own future. Stephen wasn't sure then if Illyria should know about Mordo and what he was doing, but with her own unique ability to read through his head so easily as a child, it wasn't a secret to her that Mordo was doing questionable things.

Wong murmured back, "I believed so too, but you might need to see this." Holding out a sheet of paper, Stephen took it from his hands and looked closely.

He asked, "What am I looking at?"

"Names we have identified." His friend replied, a worried expression crossing over him subtly.

As he skimmed through the list, he noticed several names he knew from his time in Kamar-Taj and ones he had yet to meet. But to his shock, they were not just novice sorcerers. Some were masters already for years. Stephen pursed his lips and stated, "He's gaining followers." Glancing back up to Wong he said, "That isn't him."

Wong reciprocated the same disapproval. "No. And that is why we need to warn the other magic users." He looked at him with a dour expression. "You are Sorcerer Supreme, Strange. You will need to be able to contact the other sorcerers to warn them."

Once they were done, Stephen followed Wong out of the doors and through another portal created by his sling ring – entering what was the Hong Kong Sanctum. His memory of seeing this once destroyed due to Dormammu still lingered in his mind that he had to quickly delete it from his head as they headed into one of the Sanctum's rooms.

They entered what seemed to be a bedroom and found two figures by a single bed. One was lying down whilst the other was beside them. Stephen quickly knew the familiar Master at hand as Wong greeted them.

"Master Minoru, how is he?"

The petite sorceress was kneeling beside the middle-aged man, who laid down on his back. Stephen grew to recognize the man's face, having met him many years during his training back in Kamar-Taj. Whilst many of the students who came in studied and learnt the Mystic Arts, not every single person stayed to continue with their training and mastery. Like this man, Ryoichi Sasaki, who he once heard that his heart could have faltered despite any use of a pacemaker.

Tina Minoru held a distraught face, speaking honestly: "I don't think he will last." Her hands held an orange glow over the man's heart as she continued, "His magic was what kept his heart alive."

The sounds of a struggling breath drew Stephen back to his doctor mode, analyzing the situation. He was already forming plans in his head, both a mix of medical and magical solutions that could save the man's life-

"Strange, I know what you're thinking." Wong cut him off with a blank look. "You cannot let him suffer."

Stephen tightened his jaw and bit the inside of his cheek. He wanted to reply back that it was possible, but even so – the chances of the former sorcerer to survive was very slim. Sasaki would not survive even the duration of the procedure.

Instead, he asked Sasaki carefully, "What did Mordo do."

"...He came during the night," Sasaki whispered faintly, a breathless tone as his eyes closed and opened every few moments. "I remembered his face, but it was too late. I felt like the connection of my energy getting destroyed."

The times when they discovered the magic users, they would never arrive on time to know how Mordo could have done it. But now, Stephen realized how the sorcerer could do something impossible to what he believed it to be.

Stephen murmured, "Like destroying a program," All pairs of eyes turned to him, "He tried to cut the connection of his source of magic. That's what he's been doing to sorcerers. But why though..."

Wong simply answered, reminding him of the memory. The day Mordo left. He said gravely, "Order. Strange, what he said those years ago. He believes in restoring the Natural Order." His eyebrows creased firmly as continued, "And he would do what it takes to take our sorcerers down."

They left Master Minoru and Sasaki in the room, returning to the New York Sanctum as Stephen processed through his mind on how to tackle this. He cannot just go and try and reason with Mordo. Talking to that man would be a death trap after how much determination Mordo would do to achieve his goal.

Baron Karl Mordo would do anything to bring balance.

And he was equally a threat to Thanos was.

Once they were in his study, Stephen began pulling through books to see how Mordo had been trying to cut the connection of sorcerers. He then eyed Wong and told him, "We'll need to keep an eye on him. Make sure we begin contacting previous students in Kamar-Taj."

"And what of Mordo?" Wong questioned with a hardened look despite the small tint of fear in his eyes. "I know that we knew him, Stephen. But he is a threat."

Stephen took a moment to ponder on that statement. This was more difficult than defeating Thanos. Whereas he didn't know the Titan much despite searching through Thanos' history, he and Wong shared a friendship with Mordo for almost a year until he walked away from Kamar-Taj.

He would need to tread carefully and do this without shedding blood.

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Location: New York Sanctum, USA, Earth

Time: August 2024

A couple of days had passed since Darcy and Jane's discovery of the energy anomaly in Europe.

Most of the two days comprised of going through the data the two astrophysicists found along with setting key points on the specific location before packing up enough sweatshirts and thermal underlayers for Darcy's suitcase. There was also the need to bring the equipment with her to measure out the anomaly but when there was a sorcerer in the picture, he knew that Darcy would take any advantage.

He had hoped the time trying to track Illyria down would have been quicker, but seemingly even detecting the location of his daughter throughout the multiverse and all possible realities was the most mind-numbing experience. He had tried to find something that could detect her, anything from memory to her own DNA to connect a link through the realities. But that trick which he used with Thor Odinson to locate his and Loki's father didn't seem to work for his daughter.

However, he could not deny that he felt relief and respect for Darcy after he contacted her and confessed that he couldn't find Illyria back in Oxford. Or anywhere on Earth for that matter. Already, their relationship (if he still hopes there was one) was shaky, only tied back because of Illyria herself, a young magical child that not only had him but Darcy around her fingers.

And he couldn't ignore it. Stephen still cared for her even after for Darcy's sake: she hadn't seen him in five years. But seeing her alive again when he returned, arriving at Tony Stark's funeral with still the flame and confidence she had – perhaps there could still be a chance. He had seen how close she and Illyria have grown to be, how Darcy went ahead to comfort Pepper first before trying to gain some smile from Stark's child.

It was only a month later that brought them back together again.

Sort of.

And then the following year brought him as far as he could from his family, with the aftermath of the Hex and Mordo causing havoc across Earth – he hadn't had the time to reach out to her. Until now, where he was still unsure after last year.

So, there he was, setting himself down to try and bring some reconcilement between him and the astrophysicist. Darcy gave him the address and coordinates for the anomaly before picking a reasonable place to set up a portal from the Sanctum. He allowed the Cloak of Levitation to be with Darcy, amused at how the two got along well enough as she stepped into the Sanctum with her suitcase and backpack behind her back.

Whilst she prepared last-minute adjustments and checks, he teleported over to his study and skimmed read through several texts to remind himself of the instructions of working the gateway. Whilst Jane and Darcy did their work, Stephen managed to go through several books in the Sanctum library – only ending up in a dead-end for any reason as to why he couldn't identify Illyria's location.

Teleporting back up to where he found her waiting in the dimly lit room, the lights from the Rotunda of Gateways allowed him to see Darcy's pondering expression. How the low coolant light made her face solemn and yet still showing the beauty she had. He approached her, nodding to her as she lifted her shoulders – a sign of preparation.

Stephen had not used the Rotunda of Gateways in years, hardly anything to be of use other than tossing zealots into jungles and deserts. After changing the central gateway, they found themselves staring through the glass doors. [2]

Through the gateway was a layer of snow, a path leading towards the snowy cap of the alpine mountain range.

It was there he turned to her and glanced down. "These anomalies, how can't I detect them?" Stephen asked her.

Darcy glanced back up, adjusting her glasses as she shrugged. "I'm not sure, but until we can go up there and check it out, we won't know what happened."

He stared at her, looking back in his mind at the very moment he saw his daughter. Illyria: battered and bruised in what was supposed to be the Avengers Compound. Her staff in her hand as she sliced an outrider by the head before sending a blast of light around her.

It was there they locked eyes, and all he could reminisce was embracing the tall nineteen-year-old girl in the middle of the battlefield – not caring for the world who saw him.

"Stephen, we'll get her back." Darcy brought him back to reality with a little murmur.

He licked his lips and replied, "I know, Darcy." Stephen paused. "It's just: I've come back after five years; I didn't expect it to be like this."

Stephen wouldn't say he was slacking.

Maybe he was.

But you can't blame him: he's been away from this plane of existence for five earth years. All because some purple douchebag was destined to go through the universe, trying to obtain six cosmic stones created from the big bang - just to snap his thick sausages fingers and erase half of all living beings. If Stephen told his old self ten years ago, Dr Stephen Strange would think he was bonkers and kick him out of the hospital. Now he's technically unemployed, part of a cult (that's what Christine said, not him), has an adopted daughter and had seen 1000 years' worth of futures.

Again, it was all because he was a dick back then.

And he's still being a dick now considering he hadn't taken care of Illyria since he returned. He did try. He really did. For Stephen, it was already difficult to comprehend that he had missed five years of reality. But for a father, he had missed Illyria grow up through the most important parts of her childhood.

Five years ago, he left a 13-year-old girl, scared and worried.

Now, he comes back to find his girl already an adult with a life of her own. Twenty years old and still afraid of spiders crawling around in the Sanctum. Where did that little girl with the blonde braid go?

"You know it's not too late."

As Darcy interrupted his thoughts, Stephen looked at her with bewilderment.

The astrophysicist explained, "Illyria's only twenty and age doesn't change the fact that she's been your girl the entire time. She never gave up on you, always telling me and Wong that it's possible for you to come back from the snap, that you'll just return back home." Darcy waved her hand, gesturing to him. "And there you were, with your round golden portals that breaks the laws of known physics. I don't think you were forgotten, Stephen."

There was Darcy Lewis again, surprising him in more ways than one as his chest was hit by a force that he forgot was there.

All he could hear was the thumping of his heart, and the shallow breaths from Darcy as she stared up at him. He could see the emotion swirling around her, the passion and the spike that almost confused him how it could catch his attention.

He then asked back attentively, "What about you? You were probably angry I left you with her."

"Yes." Darcy didn't hesitate to confess, shuddering a breath.

He noticed how her hands constantly clenched at her sides. Stephen wouldn't be mad if she did throw a punch at him.

She then explained: "I was really pissed at you first. Not for the reasons you think...But I was mad." Her eyes closed for a moment before taking a deep breath. "You left without saying goodbye or even any note for me! I wasn't ready to take care of her, Stephen! I can barely take care of Jane and Selvig at the same time let alone a kid!"

Her eyes began to water, the light from the gateways making her eyes sparkle from his view. Sensing the anger and energy flowing out of her, a realisation came to Stephen then what he had truly done this whole time – and that pushed Darcy away.

Not entirely, no. But he pushed all the responsibility onto her shoulders when it should have been him. And all this time, he had been calling Illyria his kid; his daughter. When in fact, the very person who cared for and nurtured Illyria was the woman right in front of him. The once assistant of a scientist to now a scientist of her own. The same one who shared her home and passions with Illyria; the same one who brought her to school and sat down with her to do homework. The one who would talk to Illyria if she was upset or angry.

All those thoughts and feelings made his heart clench as he reached out his hand to her face.

Darcy's body froze at his touch whilst he brushed the tear on her cheek. "I am sorry...for not being there on time." Stephen croakily admitted, "I don't really think I can just apologise in one time or even a year after what happened."

Grasping his hand, Darcy pried his hand softly from her cheek. She swallowed before answering, "Yeah well, I just needed to let some anger out." Inhaling, she glanced down onto the floor before looking at him. "I know you're busy; you're an important person on Earth and maybe in this multiverse. But even Illyria needs you from time to time."

They passed through the gateway, regretting to put on at least his gloves to protect him from the cold. Because goddamn he forgot how cold it was up in mountains. How the heck did Illyria manage to round herself up here?

So, bearing down his body's complaining, the two began their trek through the snowy path towards where the portal should be. He suggested carrying her rucksack up the hiking to make it easier for her, but Darcy refused – already mentioning that he already had the equipment stored in his dimension pocket. She told him how Illyria grew into the same habit as he did, carrying anything and everything in their own little dimension pocket that they might as well have the entirety of Costco in there. [3]

Stephen couldn't help smirk at that and didn't exactly deny it. Why physically carry baggage when you're already carrying an emotional one at that?

Nonetheless, if he was carrying a suitcase filled with equipment: it was there and then he would've dropped it from his hands if he didn't put it in his dimension pocket.

Darcy was the first one to react, "Woah, now that's new."

They arrive at what seemed to be a wasteland of rocks, sheltered by the rising outcrop of rock as the snow hid them. It was a round open area, with the peak of the mountain above them.

In the middle of the open area was nothing like he's ever seen.

A white and golden aura was emitted in the middle of the area, perhaps the height of his own or perhaps even taller. It was like a portal, but the shape was different from the golden circles the sling-ring created.

It was as if something tore the air around it, forming a sort of geode-shaped gateway that not only showed nothing but just white.

Huh, well this was new indeed.

"I've never seen anything like this." Stephen breathed, too much in awe at the spectacle.

Darcy turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "Really? After going through the multiverse?"

He shook his head and elaborated, eyes never leaving the portal. "I haven't been everywhere. I saw glimpses of other realities. Our realities."

"So, you're saying this isn't in ours?" Her eyes widened, surprised.

She wasn't the only one. "No. This is different," Stephen responded and began going around the portal to inspect it.

When he went around it, he realised that the tear was three-dimensional. And by the geometric and jagged shapes...it did kind of looked like a shard of crystal. It was far from what the Mirror Dimension looked like, far from it. [4]

Not to mention the energy and power radiating from it. And from how Darcy was holding her radiation detector – it seemed to be acting up.

"Well, you're not wrong. Look at this." Darcy nudged him to look at the data as he returned to her and saw heard the device whirling as she held it towards the portal. And to his worry, he had seen her body begin to shiver – and it was not because of the cold.

He narrowed his eyes in concern.

As he was about to ask her a question if she was alright, he then heard a family hiss before he spotted the golden portal forming just a few feet from them. His body relaxed once he knew who came through. "Oh, look the calvary arrives," Darcy commented and greeted him with a wave. "Hey, Wong."

The librarian spared a small kind smile over to the astrophysicist before turning his usual stern look back at him. "Darcy. Strange, I got your message."

"Thank you," Stephen spoke.

Wong shut the golden portal before heading towards them. "Well, we're doing it for her." He paused and continued, "We can protect the Sanctums but there's only one Illyria Strange to protect."

For a moment, Stephen, Wong and Darcy shared a silent thought. For months, he had yet to fully thank Wong for not only keeping Illyria safe from danger but also keeping up her apprenticeship with the Mystic Arts. The librarian had given his time to teach Illyria during the five years he was gone, finding it amusing to hear from Illyria about Uncle Wong's lessons.

He specifically liked the story about them trying to make Wong laugh. And he was impressed that actually cracked the serious sorcerer for once.

"Woah, readings are really high now. Even brighter than the sun and something weird." Darcy whacked the side of her device with the side of her leg before holding it back up. "It's similar to what the Hex radiated with, but it's in the spectrum of UV and Infrared, not microwave. It should have melted half of the snow here. With all the heat."

She wasn't wrong.

With what Darcy said, Stephen knew that the snow should have melted with the radiation. But instead, he felt no heat from his hands.

Stephen made a grim look and said, "It's being contained." He turned to Wong and spoke, "We'll have to keep this a secret."

"No shit, Sherlock." Darcy snorted back before placing her device into her rucksack.

With their decision to head back to the New York Sanctum, Stephen decided to take some mental pictures and began filing through his head to begin researching the library before creating a sling-ring back to the Sanctum. Luckily, the place the portal was in seemed to be isolated from the rest of the mountain paths. However, both Wong and Stephen didn't want to take any other chances for other people to stumble upon it and began putting shields around – creating an illusion to hide the source of energy.

Though just as they were about to head through, he spotted Darcy pausing in her tracks – her eyes staring intently at the jewel-shaped portal.

Approaching her, Stephen placed a hand over her shoulder and asked, "What's wrong Darcy?"

It took a second for her to respond before she shook her head. "Nothing." Pulling a small smile up to him, Darcy spoke. "Let's head back and analyse this. I need to make sure you can enter that portal safely."

He waited for Darcy to enter the portal, his growing worry for the astrophysicist after what occurred. Stephen would probably ask her when they are back.

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That evening, he found himself and Darcy sitting in his study.

They had set up her equipment already, letting her type away in her laptop as the monitor and machines operated throughout the entire time since they arrived. Tomorrow, they would plan to head back to the portal to set equipment once more to test out the extent of its power. Hopefully, if it wasn't as dangerous as he, Wong and Darcy perceived it to be – they would be able to enter the portal and see if Illyria went through.

Wherever she was. Stephen hoped she was alright. From his knowledge from both her, Darcy and Wong: Illyria had yet experienced travelling the multiverse. Hardly any of the sorcerers did, let along with her age. It was a dangerous trip to enter in, and sometimes he's heard that people couldn't even find their original one.

As well as worrying about his portal, he was also worried for the woman sitting opposite her. He knew how much work this was giving her, and he could tell it was stressing her out. And when Darcy Lewis was stressed: was stressed.

If he wasn't such an idiot, he would have been a better partner and actually encouraged her to sleep it through. But Darcy wasn't like that. No: she had gone through so much. With the bad moments becoming frequent in the past six years.

He decided to enter the lion's den and approach her, beginning the conversation, "That portal." Stephen spoke, "Isn't it just any ordinary one?"

The question was directed at her. And from how Darcy paused for a moment from typing, she realised what he meant.

Stephen wouldn't ask an obvious question to someone other than the likes of her. Out of all the people he's known in his life: only Darcy knew that answer.

And to his surprise, Darcy answered cautiously: "No. After what the Hex did to Monica, I need to make sure your atoms don't reconfigure and mutate."

It was then he put the question bluntly.

Stephen gave Darcy a plain look before questioning, "You haven't gone to the doctors yet, have you?"

From her silence, that was enough to know.

He was about to grill her that she should be getting checked but she was there first: "What do you say to the doctor about that?" Darcy rambled sarcastically, "Oh hey, I just came back from a pocket reality where my cells mutated and now: I can sense energy fields. Not see them with my eyes but sense them. And that's weird enough!"

Stephen reached forward, placing his weakened hand over her own. Her head immediately went to his, startled at his touch. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, Darcy." He spoke with sincerity. "In fact, I think it's helping you with your work. But it could potentially harm you if someone from S.W.O.R.D doesn't analyse you. At least have Christine give you a scan." [5]

Taking a shuddered breath, Darcy composed herself. "I'll appreciate what you say until I can understand what that Hex did to me." She tried to smile, but her lips faltered as she whispered to him. "But as of now, I'm going to call it some freaky whack seventh sense before calling it a superpower."

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As they assured, they went back to the anomaly the next day, now along with placing most of the equipment a few metres away from the perimeter of the portal. Luckily, no one had seemed to enter it as the snow from yesterday hadn't yet built enough to hide the footprints he, Darcy and Wong created.

Once the set-up was done, Darcy was busy inspecting the live data causing a very awkward silence between him and the sorcerer standing beside him. They were watching the portal intently, trying to study how it had been able to stay here. Even from all the countless searches, Stephen did last night (which was probably the most frustrating night he had in his astral form), he found no books about light portals of this shape, size and energy.

And if Darcy's 'seventh sense' was right: it might be possibly the reason why he hadn't been able to detect her in the nearby realities and dimensions. Even the Orb of Agamotto didn't show Illyria's location.

Wong spoke after breaking the silence, "I am impressed that it only took you this long."

"And you didn't?" He raised a brow in return.

"She wasn't picking up her phone calls," Wong informed him. "I call her once a week."

Stephen sighed and asked, "What else don't I know?"

"Strange. If you stop to think for a second, you will know that Illyria has been trying to reach out to you. She didn't want to be in your way as she knew our work was more important than herself." Wong looked at him directly, "I know this because I had to sit down with her."

He had to take a double look back at the sorcerer in question before the words fully immersed into his mind in a wave of realisation. Wong was right; he should have taken more effort in reaching out to his daughter all this time. If he did it, perhaps she wouldn't have disappeared.

His heart might as well be hurt from that burn he deserved. "Wow, never thought you would be someone like that, Wong," Stephen said wryly.

Wong's lips twitched as he folded his arms. "You would be surprised. Knowing her as the little girl in Kamar-Taj, and then bringing her up with you and Darcy. It changes you, Strange."

"Are you trying to give me the worst guilt trip ever?" Stephen raised an eyebrow. "If so, you're doing a great job."

Standing beside him, he found Darcy pipe in, "Yeah, we are." Her eyes then widened before trailing off: "Oh fudge..."

"What?"

Stephen looked over to the portal and saw what she had meant.

The portal before them began to alter, sensing the energy beginning to grow as they took a step back.

"Fuck, it's acting up." Darcy rushed over to the equipment before typing, breathless as her nerves and power began to act up. "I don't know why, but we need to get back!"

"Strange! Get out of there!" Wong ordered back, already forming two mandala shields from his hands.

However, Stephen ignored his command – his feet firmly on the ground as the force of wind began to grow around them. The portal was glowing brighter like it was pulsing bursts of light as a spectrum of colours were emitted in a beam towards the sky.

She staggered back, along with Wong at the outer rim of the anomaly. "The portal's just changed energy patterns. It's changing to fit for something!" Darcy's voice was growing with nerves as she continued, "I don't know if it's Illyria's work or-"

"Then I have to go. I have to go in." He spoke loudly, his feet rising from the ground as he got closer to the portal.

Darcy exclaimed in shock, "What! Did you just hear what I just said?"

"I did." Stephen turned to her and said determinedly: "But I'll take the risk."

This was their chance, and he was not going to miss it when the possibilities of seeing this portal again were small. He had to try.

Because if he didn't, Stephen knew he wouldn't forgive himself.

She grasped his wrist and said, "Stephen. I know I shouldn't have said those things. I just needed to let it all out. But stay safe will you?" Darcy pleaded, "I want my wizard boyfriend and my kid back home, okay?"

If he could have kissed her then he would, but he knew that time was short. He had to go. Giving one last stare at her blue eyes, he felt her lose grasp from his wrist as he began to hover towards the portal.

He stared at her and spoke, "I'll bring her back, Darcy." Stephen darted his eyes over to his friend and nodded to him. "Wong, keep the Sanctum and Darcy safe."

After Wong nodded in response, Stephen levitated towards the portal. He could feel the energy beginning to tug him in. It was unlike anything he had felt, and he wasn't sure if it was a good feeling or painful. He looked up and took a deep breath before he whispered in his head one last thing.

'Don't worry, Illyria.'

In one motion: Stephen Strange entered the unknown.

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[1] - Orb of Agamotto: A floating relic in Kamar-Taj used to monitor the mystical shield cast by the three Sanctums to protect the Earth and the relative near dimensions.
[2] - Rotunda of Gateways: A device in the New York Sanctum with portals within three doors that lead to various locations on Earth.
[3] - Costco: A wholesale corporation.
[4] - The Mirror Dimension: A parallel dimension that allows the user to practice their magical abilities and fight their enemies without the public's knowledge.
[5] - S.W.O.R.D: The Sentient Weapon Observation and Response Division, is an extra-governmental intelligence agency founded by Maria Rambeau under the US government.

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A/N: Hehe, two updates in one night. Thought I would treat you guys after the long wait.

And so Stephen Strange enters the portal. I would like to clarify that when I was writing this, this was written during the releases of WandaVision, hence why certain bits aren't yet tailored to when CAatWS, Black Widow, Loki and Chang-Chi came out.

Thanks again for reading. :)

Edited: 15/09/2021