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It was an odd feeling knowing that you came back from the dead, like when your parents told you about something you did when you were one. You can picture it in your mind, but at the same time you have no recollection. It sounds like something you did, or would have done as a baby, but the only images available were ones you had to make yourself.This feeling had become commonplace in Stephen's life, as if his memories were not real. It made him pause thinking of all the things he had experienced that most people could never dream of.Stephen had died a million times over under Dormammu’s will, each death unique and painful in their own right. Disappearing after Thanos’ conquest had been something else entirely; it felt like falling into a dreamless sleep. Now that he was awake once again, he had to press forward and carry on, as if he hadn’t contributed to half the the universe disappearing for a period of time.Somewhere deep inside of him ached as he bade his new acquaintances goodbye, reassuring them he would be there if it were needed. Their confrontation with Thanos had taken a lot out of him, but he would continue trying not to look back.Reaching his hands out in order to make a portal, he wondered if Wong would feel similarly after all the events that had happened. Would there be pains, regrets, and a feeling of disassociation that lingered for the former librarian as well? After Hong Kong they both had come to an understanding fairly quickly through their shared emotions, albeit many of them still left unsaid.The image of the familiar circular motion of the portal brought him closer to home. However, there was a problem as the portal was not working. Something or someone blocked him from entering his Sanctum. Given all of the events that had happened, it was less surprising than it would be normally, knowing that Kamar-Taj was more than likely on a sort of lockdown. They would protect the Sanctums and the earth by any means necessary, even if that included barring anyone from entering for the time being. Surely though, he thought that they would be watching in the mirror that allowed them to view visitors from the outside, seeing that it was him. When he failed to conjure a portal a second time, he grew worried.On his third try, he created a portal that dumped out into the street outside the Sanctum. Everything was calm even with debris still piled on the side of the streets. A few workers were clearing some of it by hand.He looked up at the repaired sky-light of the Sanctum, and it felt odd to see the building from the outside like this while being empty handed. Most of the times he had seen it from the outside it was because he went out to get food or a coffee.His mood turned dour, because it was at that moment he knew the Sanctum wasn’t really his. It felt wrong to not be his, even if in his mind he knew he owned none of it. The countless hours he had spent there made the time feel much longer than what it had been. Little more than two years had passed, but it felt more like ten. It was his place of comfort.Wong and him would have to talk about everything. He’d grumble his complaints, and chastise the man he had come to think of as his friend. The words would be empty, but he still needed to get them out, irritated that he had been blocked from returning home.Bracing himself, Stephen stood there getting ready to knock all the while knowing that he would thrusted into the second floor stairwell; a spell he devised to confuse outsiders. The gods had other plans for him as nothing happened when he knocked. Whoever removed the spell was clearly a formidable master; Stephen had designed it to be difficult to reverse. Back when he first became the Sanctum’s master it took him a great deal of time to learn how to add personalized flourishes in order to confuse those who tried to break it. Wong could do it, or Tina, but neither would have wanted to remove it. It disturbed him to think about what could have happened, and a foreboding sense of something dramatic having had taken place settled in his chest. He worried there would be more tricks and even prepared himself for the possibility  that the Sanctum had fallen, abandoned. He hoped Wong had not faded away like himself, but when he was viewing all the different realities, there was no time to see what had happened to the other masters of Kamar-Taj. At that time, he could only focused on Thanos.When the door opened, Stephen gasped. The sharp intake of breath was something he rarely did anymore, as little could surprise him, but this shocked him greatly. Standing before him was someone completely unexpected: Karl Mordo.“Strange.”His voice sounded cold and steady, but his face twisted in disgust.“Mordo. How?”His chest and throat tightened in response. Even if that day in Hong Kong was unforgettable, a lot of time had passed. Clearly in all that while, Mordo had not forgiven him in the slightest. Now Mordo was here in his Sanctum, preventing Stephen from entering by leaning against the door frame. If he tried to push in, he knew Mordo would most likely best him physically. Magically it would be a coin toss, not having seen the man in years.“You need to hand over the Eye, Stephen. As of two weeks ago, you are no longer affiliated with Kamar-Taj.”The tone of his voice sounded firm, but anger was behind the words.Stephen was not going to hand it over. There was no way he would do that after fighting so hard to keep it safe for so long. Mordo had no idea of the things he had gone through to get the stone back, and Stephen felt rage gathering within his veins. He seemed to extend from his head to his toes after only a few seconds.“No,” He said, and before Mordo could retort, he called out, “Wong! WONG!”“Wong is not here, Stephen. Give me the Eye and then your sling ring.”“Who are you to demand such things from me?” Stephen snarled.“I am the Master of the New York Sanctum now. As I’ve said before, those at Kamar-Taj have decided to dismiss you. Your recklessness has cost us more than we could pay.”A calmness took over the other master; eerie given that Mordo had been prone to outburst when they last met. Stephen too tried to calm himself, but he was not about to back down anytime soon.“Last time I checked, you left Kamar-Taj. I’m not about to give over the Eye or anything else to you .”Mordo’s mouth twisted into a shape that reminded Stephen of someone sucking on a lemon, trying to hold his tongue. He didn’t argue though, as he knew Stephen had a point. Instead, he continued to contemplate Stephen's words before speaking.“Then go to Kamar-Taj. But you will be watched until that moment, in case you have any bright ideas.”Stephen rolled his eyes. The condescending tone sounded as if Mordo were chastising a child. He knew that he would have a better chance to explain himself with others, as Mordo did not hide his disgust with Stephen. If Wong had been there, things would have gone differently. In his gut, he felt that Wong may have been like himself -gone with the wind on that fateful day on Titan.Stephen thought Wong would have enjoyed that joke, and at that moment Stephen missed the man greatly. When he left Tony and the Peters, he thought he'd go back home and Wong would be there keeping the Sanctum safe as per their agreement. To find he had no ally at his old residence was a crushing realization, and Stephen’s heart sank thinking upon what had happened.“Fine,” Stephen retorted after a moment.Mordo wouldn't move through, watching him like a hawk. At that point, Stephen knew as soon as he summoned a portal the man would race back upstairs to the looking mirror make sure Stephen fulfilled his promise. A feeling of satisfaction washed over him knowing that once he got everything straighten out, Mordo would have to give the Sanctum back to him. Although he had very much appreciated Mordo in the past, this crossed a line, and that prideful part of him reared its head as he would take pleasure in his sacrifice being acknowledged by the others.Maybe he was a bad person, but Mordo was no saint either.The sparks from the portal, familiar and comforting, opened up onto the street outside of Kamar-Taj. It felt like he was going back to the past in some respects. The smells and sights hitting him as if it was his first time in Kathmandu.For a moment he thought about leaving Mordo with a ‘fuck you’ as the portal closed, but if the man was going to be back at Kamar-Taj, it was probably best that he did not. Instead he focused on moving forward. Putting his hand on the door, trying to get it to open up, he swore as he found it would not budge. Another warding spell, just like when he was cast out by the Ancient One after their first meeting. Like that time, he banged the side of his forearms upon the door, waiting for the door to open up.When it did, there stood Wong. The joy Stephen felt at seeing the man in front of him could rival any other happy memory he possessed.“Stephen,” He said quietly before ushering him in.“What the hell is going on? I went to New York, and Mordo demanded to have my Eye. Told me I was kicked out of Kamar-Taj.”The expression on Wong’s face told him everything, scaring him. It was all true. Not only was it all true, but it looked as though Wong maybe have even agreed with them a little. Even though sympathy laid in his eyes, his mouth was pressed into a frown.“What the hell! You have no idea what I have done! You have no idea what I have been though,” Stephen yelled.“It’s not my choice, Stephen. I had no say, as I wasn’t even here.”His stomach gave a heave as he started to realize what he had feared had come to pass actually had passed, and it was worse than he had thought.“Well, there must be something that can be done! Can’t we call a meeting? It doesn’t make sense that I would be cast out without even being able to defend myself. I did my job. You know they would have come for it, and they would have been successful earlier with no chance of reversing it.”He didn’t even try to hide his panic at this point.“It’s not about the stone Stephen, it's the fact you didn’t come back. You abandoned your post.”But, he didn’t. That was the problem. He didn’t abandon it. He left it with Wong. Even if he were the master, the Sanctum was protected at least until Wong disappeared. It wasn’t his fault. It was Thanos’ fault. He had done his best.Crumpling up upon the ground, he couldn't believe what was happening. Only when the weight of Wong’s hand fell upon his shoulder did he manage to compose himself. There were no tears, but he was shaking all the same. Anger, betrayal, and an overall feeling of being misunderstood poured over him. All he wanted to do was scream in denial, but found the words caught in his throat.“Damn it,” He finally gritted out.“You can’t change it. I’m afraid that you’ve lost all your allies when we ceased to exist for that period of time. However, Stephen-” Wong said, helping Stephen up, “there are those in higher positions than Mordo or any of the others.”Stephen got to his feet, looking at Wong with surprise. The other sorcerer was speaking in whispers at this point, clearly not wanting to draw more attention to the two of them as the others had started to gather around them. The words rang in his ear, and he tried to think of whom Wong could be referring to, as there was no Sorcerer Supreme. It was a collection of Masters deciding at Kamar-Taj now. Mordo clearly took the opportunity with Stephen and Wong gone to turn them in a more conservative direction.“Who?” Stephen asked.Wong looked at him in irritation, as if he were being obtuse. He held out his hand, clearly motioning for Stephen to hand over the Eye.A look of understanding exchanged between the two would be interpreted by Kamar-Taj as them coming to terms with Stephen leaving. However, it was because now Stephen was starting to put two and two together. There was no Sorcerer Supreme. There was only Wong and him fighting for Stephen’s right to stay, but Wong also had to think of himself. Stephen knew this, so he would go along with it for now.Handing over the Eye of Agamotto was one of the hardest things Stephen had to do in his entire life. It felt harder than creating a surgical technique, and harder than even his life post car accident. The metal in his hand felt heavier than normal, warmed with the heat from his body, as if it were an extension of himself. Although it was a new case, forged from the remnants of a different gauntlet, he was as attached to it as he was the last one. This had been his responsibility around his neck, but now it was a noose hanging him.Wong held it as if it were something to be hidden, and maybe it was when Stephen thought about it. Having seen it on display all those years ago and not understanding what chaos, hurt, and satisfaction it would bring him, made him wonder why they hadn’t hidden it to begin with.He did well. He had to keep thinking about that, and he knew Wong knew.“Wait here, and I will come back for your sling ring,” Wong said cautiously.For a moment, he wasn’t sure if it was a warning, or if it were a hint to flee. He chose to wait, and when Wong came back, it seemed like he had made the correct choice. Their eyes met. Wong motioned for Stephen to follow him away from the students, many of whom had started whispering about what they had just seen. It was humiliating to be stripped like that in front of them.Walking through the corridor, Wong took his own sling ring from his pocket and gave it to Stephen.“Give yours to me. They will check the number, making sure it's yours. I’ll be able to steal another easily. You do know what you need to do.”“This hasn’t been done in thousands years. How can you be sure it will actually work,” Stephen asked.Wong huffed in irritation at him.“What do you have to lose? Really Stephen, I thought you had grown to have more sense than this.”Stephen went to protest, but he couldn’t as the tone was not a chastising one. It was one that contained notes of sorrow and regret; the tiredness starting to come out in his voice.It was awkward, but Wong reached around to pat him in a quasi-hug that he would have denied if anyone asked. They needed to talk more given all that had happened since they last saw one another fighting in the streets of New York. Whatever Wong had been through too was probably not the easiest, especially coming back to having Kamar-Taj taken over by those who overruled both of them. Wong liked to pick his battles, and this one he would have lost had he tried to fight it. Stephen accepted this fact.“Be careful out there. Like you said, this hasn’t been done in thousands of years, and the Vishanti are not known for their welcoming nature.”Wong stuffed some rupees in Stephen’s pocket. Not much money, but it would buy some food and maybe a room. Stephen knew that he would have to tread carefully; he would be watched. It would be somewhat easy to avoid detection, but clearly Mordo had the upper hand. Even if the wards inside of Kamar-Taj protected him, the minute he stepped out that door, it would be a different world. This was the start of another challenge.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Leaving Wong had been a lot harder than he had expected. They didn’t always see eye to eye, but they had grown closer the past few years. Except for Wong, he only had some of the Avengers and Christine as allies. Something told him that this was a problem that he couldn’t go to any of them with. However, he still needed space, he needed time, and he needed books. Time and space he could get with relative ease. There was always some empty place, and it wasn’t like he was a Master of anything now. The real problem was the books.

As he sat on the cot inside the hostel he had paid for in Kathmandu, thinking about what to do and where to go, he barely noticed the others in the room. Although he couldn’t do what he liked to do in his Sanctum, such as floating with his cloak in the confined space, it was not out of place to be meditating here with all the foreigners trying to ‘find themselves’ in this country. This hostel was not the semi-permanent space he was looking for, but it would do for now as he went through all of his options. Inside of his head he was checking off boxes of where he could go and people he could go to. For a brief moment he reconsidered the idea of going to Thor or to Tony, once again discarding those options when he thought deeply about them. There were too many people around Tony, and Thor had enough problems to last his lifetime and beyond with having to rebuild everything. The others were out of the question, often living with families or together in cramped spaces. It would be better to stay in a hostel than be surrounded by children or child-like Avengers. During his few years as Master of the New York Sanctum, he hadn’t gotten out much, but he had made some contacts all the same. Surely there would be someone, somewhere he could turn to.

Then there was the bigger problem of the books. With Kamar-Taj and their various Sanctums closed off to him, he would have to find another center of learning. That was where he had a tiny bit of hope, as there were a few different places where learning mystic arts took place, each one of them unique with their own styles of learning. All good centers would also have similar books relating to history and shared overlapping elements.

Stephen was aware that people at Kamar-Taj would try to block him from entering other centers, but he also knew that not all centers cared for Kamar-Taj’s practices or their influence over the mystical world. Even if he had only started learning about these things shortly before Banner had crashed into their stairs, he remembered the details of most of them vividly and of the circumstances surrounding them.

It had been a shock at the time to learn there were actual practitioners of mystical arts that were akin to satanism and voodooism. The practices of each were not the same as the stereotypes he had grew up on, but powerful alternatives to the eastern practices he learned in Nepal. The black magic of satanism was still something he was not tempted to approach, but the neutrality of voodooism had peaked his interest, as at the time it seemed so different from the magic he used.

Pondering on it, he remembered Wong mentioning that the current Houngan Supreme was the brother of the former Master of the New York Sanctum, Daniel Drumm. There he could have the in that he wanted, knowing that there had been murmurs of the Houngan Supreme being quite disgusted with how his brother’s death unfurled. He would have to approach it carefully, as Stephen had not been able to save Daniel, but he could perhaps use a dislike of Kamar-Taj to his advantage. He could pitch the fact that if he could go back and change things he would have, and that he had been thrusted into a situation he had been inadequately prepared for to the Houngan Supreme.

Stephen snapped back into reality once he made up his mind that he would venture to where Drumm was. Only, he had no idea where that was, and highly doubted that the man would be listed in the phone book. There was no way he could go to Wong again and bang on the doors of Kamar-Taj, and he had nothing for a location spell. He didn’t have to look to know was no section of the Internet that talked about Houngan Supremes with any real reliable information. On the net there would be whispers here and there, but most would dismiss such stories as oddities of conspiracy theorist or those who believed in ghost stories. Their tales spiraled out of control until the real information was burried in lies. Without a first name as well, it would be hard to search civilian information. Drumm was not a common name, but nor was it incredibly uncommon.

Stephen would have to do it the old fashioned way, and shake down some of the more independent sorcerers until he got some answer. It wouldn’t be too difficult, as there were shops, meeting halls where he could find someone who knew something. He had to tread carefully though, knowing that he would be watched at least for a while.

For now, he would get a good night sleep before heading out the next day. He deserved that at least.

Trying to ignore the noise, he wrapped himself up in his cloak, willing himself into a dream world he had missed.
 
.oOo.
 
The bartender at the Bar with No Doors was a prickly individual, but he eventually gave up the information Stephen had been looking for. Wong was the one to introduce Stephen to the bar a few months ago, and it had been an eye opener to know this kind of place was hidden in plain sight, sandwiched between a few mystic book stores -slash- artifact dealers disguised as stores for practicing Wiccans or people looking for uncommon paraphernalia. Despite the few times he had visited the bar with Wong before, the owner had been suspicious of Stephen intent each time he had visited. Somehow this time, Stephen managed to convince the man he was trying to just return some items to Daniel’s brother. This Drumm’s given name was Jericho whom, unlike the the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, maintained a side practice as a cover and for income. He was a licensed psychiatrist, and according to the internet, a very good one. Stephen heard from the crotchety bar keep that when Doctor Drumm came up to New York for conferences or his other business, he would stop at the bar that most sorcerers would have visited at least once in order to visit with his brother. He also heard the brothers had frequently met up during the year or so Master Drumm was the Sanctum’s master.

Before he arrived and during his time at the bar, he had been concerned that he would accidentally run into Mordo, or that Mordo would hunt him down, since their last meeting was not the most cordial. Thankfully, his fears did not come to pass, and as quickly as he popped in and had a drink, he portaled his way off to Haiti.

Port-au-Prince felt like a world away from New York, as if it weren’t in the same hemisphere. As foreign to him as Kathmandu, it humbled him to see a city that had only been available to him before on the news or in pictures of magazines. The streets felt entirely different and possessed a charm to them that he had not encountered before. In some ways they were as lively as Kathmandu and New York, but with an entirely different energy.

He tried not to look around too much, already drawing attention to himself with his dress. In the markets he may have been able to conceal himself, but where he was going was tucked into an upper-class part of town. As he kept walking, he could feel the color drain from the buildings and the clothes of the people around him as he made his way deeper into that section. Things quieted and the cars he saw became fancier, newer models. Somethings around the world were always the same no matter where you went, once you got beyond the initial wow factor of being somewhere new.

The heat and humidity were suffocating after stepping out of portal, intensified by the many layers he was wearing and distracting him from the sights for a little while. Only the worst summer weather in either New York and Kathmandu could rival this. It made him hurry as much as he could, seeking out Drumm’s office located off on one of the narrow side streets. The door clearly marked out what it was with old-fashioned elegant lettering upon the glass. Something that would only be on a hipster restaurant or bar in the Sanctum’s neighborhood.

Before he entered, he cast a spell for translating, figuring that his rudimentary high school French would probably not do him any good any more.

The door squeaked open to reveal a receptionist sitting at her desk looking at something on her computer. She reminded Stephen of his surgical past not so long ago, until she looked up and her jaw dropped. She quickly closed it, before looking at him in confusion.

“I’m sorry, we don’t accept walk-ins,” She told him firmly.

“I’m not here for an appointment,” He responded in a casual, but friendly tone.

He noticed her hand sliding over to the phone, most likely to call the police or her boss. Whoever she did call would surely get Drumm’s attention.

“I mean, I’ve come on personal matters. I can wait,” he said, trying to turn the charm on.

It didn’t seem to work, but as she picked up the phone, he clearly heard her say ‘Doctor Drumm’, and he sighed in relief taking a seat next to a younger man waiting for the Doctor. Quickly the man moved over to the other end of the sofa.

Sure enough, coming out of the office wearing a dress shirt and slacks was a handsome man, a little younger than himself, looking at him with stern glare.

“It’s fine, Farah. Let him sit there. I’ll take care of him later,” Drumm said before returning into his office.

Stephen couldn’t force Drumm to see him, so he waited and waited. He saw people come and go, and each patient that came looked at him for a great deal longer than he had expected. Some would stare, others gawk, and a few would smile politely. It was par for the course though, and when all the patients had left, he still waited.

Then came his turn, Farah softly telling him he could go in when she got the call. Stephen thanked her as he walked into the office. It had a bit more character than Stephen’s old office; it was homely and comforting. It was an odd sensation, as if he had stepped into a time gone by. The whole situation felt so surreal.

“My name is Doctor Stephen Strange, and I’ve come for your help.”

The man sitting across from him removed his glasses and looked at him a good while before sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I know who you are. As to why you are here though,” Doctor Drumm questioned, trailing off at the end.

His accented voice was quiet, much like his brothers, even if it was not as deep. His expression too was as severe in its seriousness, but there was a softness to him that Master Drumm had lacked in Stephen's eyes. Stephen felt a pang of regret in response. Had he been the sorcerer he is now, he would have been able to save Drumm; he was sure of it. Instead Master Drumm died, he took Drumm’s position, and now he was about to beg his brother for help.

“I’m here to ask for some help. I need to summon the Vishanti, and I don’t have the text for it.”

The look of confusing on Drumm’s face told him that this was going to be a long discussion. Drumm seemed to know this too, as he called his receptionist telling her that she could go home before him. For a moment, Stephen wondered if she knew what her boss did, as it didn’t look like it before.

“What makes you think I have that text? Or that I would be willing to let you borrow it?”

“I just need to look at it. I don’t need to borrow it. It’s a fairly critical text, and I’d be surprised if the Houngan Supreme did not have it in their library, especially since there have been Houngan’s that have been chosen as Sorcerer Supremes.”

“And it’s your intention to become a Sorcerer Supreme when you clearly are no longer affiliated with you sect?” At Stephen’s surprised look, Drumm expanded on how he knew, “Kamar-Taj has plenty of copies of it, but yet you’ve come here.”

Stephen sighed loudly. Really, he didn’t want to get into it, but knowing that he wouldn’t get the book without it, Stephen started to lay out the story. At each part and twist of the story he tried to not to spin it in his favor; he could tell Drumm would have no part of that. Remembering the firm, strict nature of Master Drumm, he could feel that it would be best not to play to sentiment or to exaggerate.

“And you wish to summon the Vishanti to scold your fellow sorcerers?” He asked at the end.

“No, well, kind of. I just want to be judged fairly,” Stephen responded.

“You are as insane as your reputation has preceded you.”

“Wait, what?”

“Most know of the death of the last Sorcerer Supreme and of your battle with Dormammu.”

Stephen nodded. He had only told a few the story, needed to explain the day's events, but it seemed that very few could keep their mouths shut. However, Stephen did not believe his desire to maintain his life to be an insane endeavor. Yes, he was stubborn, but he had good reason. This wasn’t like his hands. There was nothing keeping him from practicing magic, but he didn’t want to be a rogue, or unaffiliated sorcerer either.

Doctor Drumm sighed this time as Stephen stood in front of him looking at him.

“You are best to give up your fight. Why try to be accepted by those who clearly rejected you?”

“That’s the thing though, I don’t think this would have happened if Mordo had not returned.”

Drumm tilted his head to the side after Stephen said that. Clearly, the other man had heard of Mordo before. It was not be surprising since the he had met his brother often and kept in touch with him. Drumm probably knew better of some of the other Masters of Kamar-Taj than Stephen did.

“Mordo has returned?”

Stephen nodded with a flare of annoyance. It was what he had just said.

“He came to me after Daniel’s death, spouting vitriol about the way of things, looking for sympathy, but clearly disturbed.”

This was news to Stephen, even if he had known Karl was quite upset with everyone involved. All he could do was wait for an answer, and hope it was the answer he was looking for. The sudden quiet in the room and the ambience caused by the setting sun made the office take on somber tone. Stephen felt nervous for the first time since he had set off.

“I don’t want to get involved with your problems,” he sighed.

“I’m just asking to see the book of the Vishanti, not for you to join or petition the Vishanti with me,” Stephen responded.

It was more of a plea than it should have been. He was desperate though, and he wasn’t sure who else he could turn to next if he wasn’t able to look at the book. So, he stood there in silence, unable to move or even add to his previous statement.

“You’ll have to come with me.”

Stephen sighed in relief as he waited for Drumm to pack up and show him the way.

As he waited he looked around the office a little bit, interested in this duel life. Jericho Drumm seemed very normal by maintaining a life outside of his mystical practices. There were degrees hung on the wall, textbooks on the shelves, and both small sculptures and paintings around the room. There was even family photos. The one with Daniel surprised him though and it was displayed so openly, something Stephen would have never done in his own office. His office had been cold, minimal, and modern, while this felt like a room in a house.

After about thirty minutes, they left without any fanfare. On their way to wherever the were going, Drumm filled him in on what exactly he knew and what he did not know. Wong had visited him to inform him about Daniel a day or so after everything happened, and then a week after, Mordo paid him a visit. The reasons were unclear as to Mordo’s visit, but Drumm guessed he had felt burdened by Daniel’s death along with looking for confirmation that sorcerers were on the wrong path. The doctor had given him a warning not to come to him or back to Haiti again, and it seemed that Mordo heeded those words.

Stephen was unsure about what was going on with the man, but he knew that things would not get better if Stephen didn’t do anything about his expulsion for himself and even for Mordo. He cringed recalling what the Ancient One had told him, that they needed one another. Something about the weight of those words stuck with him, and he did feel a responsible for driving the man away even if it wasn’t his fault really. Clearly, Mordo had not be stable enough when they had gone to Hong Kong, but they had no other choice. Now, he didn’t want to even listen.

After quite a walk, they finally arrived at where they were going, a small row of apartments a many blocks away from Drumm’s work. The color slowly returned to the area as they walked to where they were going.

They stopped in front of double doors that looked and felt different than the surrounding buildings, and Stephen knew immediately the inside would be very different from the outside. Sure enough, the doors opened up to reveal a much darker environment, reminiscent of old Catholic churches in Europe. It was bigger than the outside would make it seem, much like his Sanctum.

Something told him this was not a place for sleeping, unlike the apartment buildings next to it. He wasn’t planning to sleep there, especially not after he had the book in his hands. Thankfully, Drumm told him that he would let Stephen use the space for as long as he wanted before leaving him. Drumm seemed to trust him a bit more than most would, especially given his current status of being tossed out on his ass from Kamar-Taj yet again.

Finding the information was a lot more difficult than what one would assume. Most spells were straight forward, but this was not just any spell. This would be used to summon entities that had existed for millions of years, and they often did not answer summons. Even if he did everything completely correct, there was only a small chance of being successful. It was not the place of mortals to dictate to those with immense power- a line he kept coming across while reading about it.

After a few hours, he was able to finally remember all the steps and all the things he would need to call upon them. He wasn’t quite sure where Drumm went off to in the meantime, but looking around at the library, he noticed the books were very different from the ones at the Sanctum. Most of these were transcribed into languages that were not English, Sanskrit or Latin. Some were French, a few in Spanish, but the majority were in scripts he had never seen before. Thankfully, the book he had come for was written in English, as it was essentially a primer that would be found in most mystical libraries.

While waiting for Drumm, he picked out one, and flipped through it. He missed this, even though it had only be a short time in his own memory from the last time he held a book. For a moment, he mourned the loss of his routine.

His thoughts were broken Drumm returned with what looked like some food.

“My brother told me about you shortly before he died. He said you were the most arrogant man he had ever taught, but that you had abilities and a talent you could not even begin to comprehend. When they told me you defeated Dormammu, I knew that my brother had been correct, but I kept asking myself how was it that you could not protect him?”

The question tinged statement spoken in a low and serious tone weighed on Stephen. The man deserved to know from Stephen first hand.

“I didn’t know what was happening. They kept me in the dark for a lot of it, and I was too late when Master Drumm fell. I would have saved him if I could have.”

Drumm nodded at that. He probably knew, but he needed to hear it. Stephen understood this, as he himself had said the same after his sister died. Saying and hearing the words made it more final.

-I would have saved him, if I could have.-

-I would have saved her, if I had just been faster.-

But his heart always caught at the if. Ifs were wishes not based in reality. It didn’t help any to relieve the pain.

“You may use this space to rest here for the night, then go. I don’t want to see you back here after that. This is the domain of the Houngan Supreme, and it is protected.”

The warning lacked the bite he would have predicted. Doctor Drumm was serious, yet he was not lacking sympathy. It seemed almost more of a routine, an all too familiar routine.

Taking the food, he thanked the man before returning to the books again.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Returning to the Himalayas brought back flashes of that day he was left on them, and he smiled at the memory. Against all common sense it felt good to remember when he was nearly frozen to death. The joy he had felt after he managed to conjure a portal despite being in a state of near hypothermic shock was a euphoria he would never forget; his brain fuzzily recognizing the Ancient One and Mordo standing there proud of him. It was the breakthrough that he needed, starting him on this path. It felt odd that now it was tinged with such a nostalgic haze having taken place less than five years ago.
Coming back to the mountains and summoning entities he had only read about in books should have been more frightening. Had he not done much bigger tasks in the past, even nostalgia would not have made him think this was sensible. Because of his past though, he wasn’t intimidated by the thought of summoning the Vishanti; he was just not sure that this would work. He did the ceremony: ingoring his doubts, placing candles down, waving his hands, pouring out the magic from within him.

When he left the mountain, waiting to see the results of his ritual, a great sadness settled inside him. On reflection it almost felt as if that day so long ago had put him on this path that was almost parallel to the one he had as a surgeon. To become as well trained as he was took a lot of hard work, and it made the fall that much harder. However, this felt right to try to gain back his position, whereas that felt like a battle against himself. Now he wasn’t fighting his body, nor his mind, just the others trying to stop him.

Meandering through the streets, he questioned his own sanity once again. His one track mind often helping him, but making it harder upon his journey in life. This felt right though, and even chasing a fix for his hands ultimately wasn’t a mistake. This would not be either.

As he returned to the hostel he was staying at, he had not expected a response as quickly as the one he received. There waiting for him on his bunk bed was a sheet of paper that gave a date, a time, and the name of a peak on one of the lower range mountains in the area. He knew that it was from the Vishanti as no one else knew where he was. Even if Mordo or another from Kamar-Taj had been watching him, he had put up the necessary wards before beginning the spell. Only those with much more power than a mere mortal would have been able to break them.

No, this was definitely the work of the Vishanti, and Stephen knew that he would have to prepare himself to meet them. They would not be pleased by his summons, but clearly they needed to say their peace as well. Maybe, they would tell Stephen off, or take more drastic actions. His heart stopped at the thought they might bestow upon him a second chance like he wanted. It was scary to hope for such things, and h
e would have to wait and see until the appropriate date and time.
The wait was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. Time seemed to nearly stop and even rewind at parts, even if it was always going forward at the same pace. But there was this sense of deja vu that kept happening. Flashes of his past mixed with his present as he took in all the sounds and sensations of his current habitat. The smells triggered memories of his first day in Kathmandu he thought were buried; none of them overtly horrible now that they had past, but the pain still lingered.
Time did eventually move forward to his appointment with the Vishanti. That morning when he woke up, he felt that he was in the hands of something bigger than himself, and he accepted this was the new norm in his life. There was always something greater and bigger things than himself lurking around the corner about to meet him.

Slowly making his way through the mouth of a cave at the top of the designated mountain, Stephen continued to feel as though it were a dream and not reality. He swore under his breath as something flew past him -a bat or a bird. If he were a more spiritual man, he would call it an omen, but he would never go that far.

“Stephen, I should have known it was you,” a voice called from the side as he entered.

He didn’t need the light to know it was Mordo. The man’s distinct tone and rhythm of speaking, combined with his hiss of dislike, could never be mistaken for anyone else. Stephen would know that voice anywhere.

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, knowing there was nothing that he could say that would comfort the other man. Unlike his expectations, it seemed that the Vishanti knew a little too much about Stephen’s situation. On second thought, given that they oversaw many of aspects of the mystical world, it wasn’t as surprising as he originally felt.

“Did you do this? You went as far as to summon the Vishanti in order to petition them to become the Sorcerer Supreme?”

He rounded on Stephen, visibly upset in the low light. The flames highlighted his furrowed brow, and intensified white of his dark eyes. His mouth pursed into that ragefull shape he had seen that day when they fought in the Sanctum after the zealot stabbed him.

“Please. Do give them and me some credit. If they wanted someone to be the Sorcerer Supreme, they would have bestowed the title on someone worthy a long time ago. I just want a trial, a fair trial. Why they felt the need to call you of all people, I have no idea,” Stephen remarked.

Before Mordo’s twisted expression could spit out some vitriol, a flash appeared in the air of the cave. They ducked as this happened, unexpecting and intimidating by it’s suddenness. When it finished, they looked up to see the Vishanti before them: Agamotto, Hoggoth, and Oshtur. Different from Dormammu, more ethereal than the other beings he had come across in his experiences, all Stephen could do was stare with his mouth slightly agape at their appearances.

Reading about it and seeing it were completely different things. Agamotto’s red eyes of his tiger face caught him by surprise with how fiery they appeared. Hoggoth’s appearance change frequently according to texts, but today he was a blue, bald man with white eyes, much like a character out of a science fiction horror. Oshtur would have been called beautiful by many, but her golden skin and long brown hair reminded Stephen of sirens -beautiful, but deadly.

The were truly awe-inspiring in ways that Stephen had not felt before. And after the initial shock a calmness came over him, as if he were in the arms of safety. At the same time, this meeting was still a scary prospect. Even Mordo could not continue with his normally fierce presence; standing slightly aback from where he was before.

“Stephen Strange and Karl Mordo, Masters of the Mystic Arts of the Kamar-Taj order,” Oshtur said.

“You have disturbed us from our watch for far too long with your antics over the past few years and this summons is not appreciated,” Hoggoth continued.

“I did not summon you,” Mordo protested.

Stephen looked at Mordo as if he had a screw loose. Very few would dare to talk back to such powerful entities when they clearly hadn’t finished, but it seemed Mordo’s vendetta against him prevented the man from using common sense.

“Silence! We are aware of this,” Agamotto retorted.

“But to claim innocence as to the reason why we are here, that is a falsity only man dare to utter,”  Oshtur added.

Stephen sighed once again before Hoggarth continued, “We wish to hear from the one who had summoned us.”

Taking a breath, Stephen stepped forward. He knew he had to make a strong case, and he didn’t know what would work the best. Honesty seemed the only way to go.

“My name is Doctor Stephen Strange,” -there was a snort of derision off to the side of him -“and I have been unfairly cast out of Kamar-Taj. Now, normally I’d never go as far as to summon deities to resolve these disputes, but as there is no Sorcerer Supreme, you were the only ones I could turn to.”

“Are you chastising us, mortal?”

Stephen swallowed hard at Agamotto’s words. It was not what he meant.

“No, I just want to do my job. I want to return to the New York Sanctum and do what I was doing.”

“We know what you have done, and what you have failed to do.”

His failure was news to him. He had done all that was in his power to keep everyone safe, and he even eventually helped retrieved all of the stones from Thanos. He did his best. That had to count for something.

For the first time since he was a novice, a frustrated panic rose up within him. It was a reminder that his fate was not his alone.

“Stephen Strange, we understand, yet we cannot give you what you wish without some trial of sorcery and character,” Hoggoth replied.

“You have no right!” Mordo shouted.

“SILENCE!”

They both jumped after Agamotto roared their command. The power from their words was something he had never felt before. Their words seemed to strike him through his flesh and down to his bone. Mordo seemed to recognize his mistake as well.

There was a whoosh of air before everything went silent. Neither of them could speak from the sheer force of the blast. Even if it did not move their bodies, it affected their lungs as if they had been knocked to the ground.

“Stephen Strange, you have proved yourself to be a capable master. However, since you have been so easily ousted, we question if you have the personality to rise to the occasion. In order to return to your sect, you will be required to recover the Katalyst of Kubic with the help of the current Master of the New York Sanctum. Do this, and we will reinstate your position.”

It was not an easy task. Mordo smiled a smug smile, as if he had won a prize, but Stephen knew that things could not be as simple as they seemed. The Vishanti were known for their unclear ways of working -an aspect clearly forgotten to those who had not recently brushed up on their history.

With no other words, they disappeared without a trace, leaving Mordo and Stephen alone in the dimly lit cave. The two of them looked at one another. Mordo still had that pedantic smirk plastered on his face, making Stephen cringe inwardly. How the hell was he going to have Mordo help him? The Vishanti would know if he recovered it alone.

“Well Strange, good luck in your endeavors,” Mordo remarked.

“God, will you stop? Would it be so bad if I were to come back? I have spent the last few years learning and protecting the Sanctum and the earth as well. Why do you think me so horrid and inept?”

Mordo looked at him as his expression soured, twisting into hatred once again.

“The end does not justify the means.”

Stephen laughed a loud laugh.

“We have rules," Mordo continued.

“You would kill men, but yet you scoff at bending rules that would save millions of lives. Really, Mordo you have a perverse sense of morality.”

“Without rules, we get into messes like the one we are in now. Think about it Stephen. If the Ancient One had not broken her vows there would have been no Kaecilius. There would have been no Dormammu, no Thanos.”

“No me,” Stephen murmured.

“Yes, most likely.”

He didn’t sound happy about it though. It was an odd reaction, given that he was near gleeful that Stephen had been kicked out of Kamar-Taj: retribution for all the ‘natural laws’ Stephen broke. So why was Mordo not rubbing it in that he wouldn’t be here if the Ancient One had not been Sorcerer Supreme for as long as she had?

It then hit him that Mordo may not be there as well. He knew very little about the man, but he did know that the Ancient One’s betrayal had cut him deeply. He held her in such high regard before that day.

“I guess this is goodbye then,” Mordo finally remarked.

“Yea. I’ll be seeing you though. You know how arrogant and foolish I can be,” Stephen responded with some humor.

As quickly as Mordo took to anger, he cooled down just as fast. He always seemed to control his physical actions, but his emotions tended to bubble under the surface like Stephen. There were similarities amongst the pair that was cause for a bit of understanding. Stephen too in times of stress had lashed out in a similar fashion.

Mordo began to make a portal: taking out his sling ring, bringing his hands up, but unlike times before, something very odd happened. Stephen felt a pull, as if Mordo was casting magic upon him. However, it was clear Mordo wasn't casting a spell upon him. All the visuals clues were there, as the other sorcerer was clearly summoning a portal. Stephen felt queasy, and then a stab of pressure upon his diaphragm.

Mordo’s hands fell to his side, and he looked at Stephen.

“Fuck.”

It was the only time Stephen had heard Mordo utter a curse word. The normally proper man looked scared.

“What is going on?” Stephen asked.

“I’ve read about this. It’s rare, but they’ve tied our magic together. Without the other, we won’t be able to cast spells, conjure portals, or do any other sort of magic.”

Whereas they were about to leave with a quasi-sentimental goodbye moments before, anger, shock, and surprise returned to the atmosphere surrounding the two men. The mood changed in an instant as they realized what would need to be done. Mordo and Stephen were tied together now in such way where both would need to do the Vishanti’s bidding. There was no option, unlike what they both had assumed after hearing about the conditions of the Vishanti's task.

“So how do we do this?” Stephen asked.

Mordo looked at him, scared to answer at first. His answer was exactly what Stephen knew to be true, but he needed to hear it.

“You have to picture our destination in your mind while I cast the spell. First, we will go to the New York Sanctum, then we will decide what to do from there,” Mordo tried to state calmly.

He was always a miserable liar, clearly afraid of what needed to happen. His answer was exactly what Stephen knew to be true, but he still needed to hear it. It was time to regroup and plan what to do next, and the lack of control over the situation was disconcerting even to Stephen. It was a shock to his sensibilities. They had to find this relic using their magic together, but would it be possible?

He now understood the Vishanti’s plan, but he wasn't sure if it wouldn't backfire. Either both would quit, or they would come to a consensus. Stephen wasn't sure which would happen, as Mordo was inflexible and could walk away at any time like before.

Mordo started to make the motions that he had made before, and Stephen focused on the Sanctum. This time the portal opened into the foyer of the Sanctum. It looked to be the same place it was before, with everything in its spot. The stairs had been repaired as if Bruce Banner had never been there to begin with. He let out a sigh of relief as looked around. He was home.

“Stephen,” It sounded as if Mordo was winding up to lecture him, “What have you done? Once again you have meddled with things you don’t understand.”

“Have you ever thought, you have meddled in my life? Something you don’t understand?” Stephen snapped back.

Mordo was angry, but Stephen was too. He was tired of this already, and Mordo was to blame for all of it as well.

“Look around you. Everything you see here is here because of what I’ve had to sacrifice, and let’s face it, if I played by the rules, we’d all be in the dark dimension by this point as one of the mindless-ones like Kaecilius and his followers.”

“I disagree.”

“You would.”

They stood there annoyed at one another, but not being able to walk away until they figured this out. The Sanctum would be at danger otherwise. Really, they should be heading to Kamar-Taj at that moment, but Stephen could tell Mordo was scared to do so. His whole body said so with his silence and the way that his shoulders trembled in a frightened rage.

“What do you want to do?” Stephen finally asked after a few minutes.

“What is there to do? As if we have any choice.”

“We could walk away if you wanted to. I would never be able to cast another spell ever again.”

The pained expression Mordo gave was more for himself than for Stephen. A hard choice lay before Mordo, and this was exactly what the Vishanti was testing them on. The test for Stephen was to see if he could keep them together long enough to find the Katalyst of Kubic; a hard test knowing how he and Mordo would more than likely clash and frequently.

Stephen licked his lips, feeling his throat dry out as he waited. If Mordo told him no, he would have to start over again. At the same time, Mordo would have to start over as well, and he didn’t know if Mordo could adjust to a life without magic. Stephen would be able to, but it be difficult.

Wong once told him that Mordo came from a long line of sorcerers whose lineage could be traced back to sorcerers since time the Ancient One was made first made Sorcerer Supreme, if not further. Therefore, he had a feeling that Mordo would go along with him, but still that minute or so was the longest one of his life.

“I would never be able to cast another spell if we don’t do this,” Karl echoed, “If we accomplish this though, what do you think will change?”

“Fine. At the end of this, if you want me to leave Kamar-Taj, I will. Just give me a chance until then.”

He looked irritated by Stephen’s plea -like a teacher deciding whether or not a student may use the bathroom in the middle of a lesson, judging how sincere the student was. Stephen was sincere, having already proved it by going all the way to summon the Vishanti.

Honestly, it really wasn’t up to Karl to cast him out a second time or to let him return, but Stephen knew this would appeal to the man’s ego combined with his sense of justice.

“We will need to tell someone, someone who can keep a secret,” Mordo mused, more to himself than Stephen.

They both knew who that was. What excuses they would come up with, and how they would go about it after, were things they needed to discuss further. They didn’t even know where to start to look, but first things came first, and Mordo went to go fetch Wong from Kamar-Taj. Three heads would always be better than two, especially if the two in question were naturally hot heads when put together.

Stephen waited quietly, feeling stressed, but optimistic for the first time in days.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“Enough!” Wong yelled.
Normally when the former-librarian got angry, his voice would hiss rather than gain in volume. It was effective when it hissed, but to hear him actually yell startled the both of them into silence. Clearly their differences were getting exasperating for Wong, yet they couldn’t help it.

After looking up information about the artifact: what it did, what it looked like, how it worked, and it’s origin, they started fighting about how to begin to search for it. Mordo wanted to use a locator spell, but Stephen knew that it would not be that easy. The Vishanti were not going to make it that easy; they were the Vishanti after all.

Wong tried to stay out of it, but after Stephen and Mordo got into a shouting match for the third time that evening, he stormed in to go off on them. It was impossible to block their noise out even being a few doors down.

“Please tell him that a locator spell is not going to work on a lost relic,” Stephen said, throwing his hands up.

“It’s not a locator spell. It’s an aura spell!”

“If it were that easy, it would have been found by now.”

“Maybe it hasn’t been found because no one cares to look for such a relic!”

Wong stood there with his arms crossed, looking more irritated than when he came in, but this time he didn’t raise his voice. Instead, he picked the book up off the table and opened it back up to the page they had already gone over about five different times. He traced the ink with his fingers, looking for something. If anyone could settle this, it would be Wong.

There was a silence that fell upon the room, and they looked to their shared friend to settle their differences.

“You’re both wrong,” He finally said.

“How is that possible?” Stephen growled.

“You cannot use an aura locator spell, but you can use a feedback spell, which would reveal it’s location if you got close enough. Much like a metal detector, except it works off of magical signatures which are similar to auras, but not the same.”

“How do you even know this, if it hasn’t been seen in hundreds of years?”

Wong gave him a look that challenged Mordo’s line of questioning. Wong knew lots of things and Stephen had learned not to question. He trusted Wong implicitly, as he had never led Stephen astray yet.

Going over to shelves, Wong pulled a few more books for them. The thud of each tome stated with its reverberating sound that he was not pleased with either of the other masters in the room. They needed to come to a consensus and so far it was not working. How they would even perform magic together was starting to look like an impossible task. Stephen worried about it, because he wasn’t sure Mordo wanted to make this work. Even if he talked about getting his magic back, it didn’t seem like his heart was even in it. More than likely he was just scared to let go, and Stephen understood that desperate feeling so badly. It was not the first or second time in his life that he cared so much about achieving his goals with the possibility of his failure higher than the possibility of his success. Without the time stone anymore, it was impossible to make an somewhat accurate prediction.

“There,” Wong said throwing a book open.

They looked at it. It was really as Wong said it would be. It would not locate the exact location, but it would use the magical signature of the object to tell the caster how close they were. They had to be within a 1000 miles in order to use it, but they had some clue as to when and where it was last seen a little over 500 years ago. It could be found within hours if they were lucky enough, or never if they were unlucky.

Mordo looked at him with a tired, concerned expression. Now the real challenge began. They would have to use their magic together, and coordinate how they would go about retrieving it. Heaven forbid anything should go awry or they meet any hostiles on their way. They may not survive if that were to happen at this point in time.

“You should get some rest,” Wong said looking at the two of them.

They both nodded before going their separate ways for the evening.

In a house as large as the Sanctum there were bedrooms to spare, and if they wanted, they could easily avoid one another. Stephen took the room at the end of the third floor hallway, while Wong was near to the stairs on the same floor. Karl’s room was in the middle of the second floor, sandwiched between the study and a bathroom that connected to his room. It was an odd set-up, but it worked for now. However, given their next task and what help monetarily they could get from Kamar-Taj, they would not be able to live in comfort like this for long.

Stephen was surprised when he heard a knock upon his door. He knew it wasn’t Mordo, but he figured Wong would be too irritated with him and Mordo to want to come and visit. Opening the door, it was Wong as he thought it would be, and Stephen invited him in. They both sat down on the bed not to close to one another, much like they used to do in the study when Stephen was master of this sanctum. Wong sighed loudly, running his hands over his head, most likely stressed by his current housemates.

“Sometimes, you are so infuriating. Not just you, but him too. I just hope you don’t kill one another.”

“Yea, well, we’ll see.”

“Be careful. Karl is a good sorcerer, but he has his faults as a human being. I can’t say I don’t understand, but he plays by different rules than you and I. Don’t be surprised if things don’t turn out the way you want it.”

Stephen went silent as Wong patted him on his leg in a comforting manner. Then Wong stood up, looking at Stephen with a frown upon his face. At this point, he didn’t know if Wong agreed with what he had done, but he had a feeling that Wong also did not agree with what Mordo had done to prompt Stephen’s actions.

Wong let himself out of Stephen’s room with little fanfare, and Stephen found himself alone once again. His fate hung in the balance, and he couldn’t stop fighting for it. Even if he knew Mordo was fighting against it, he had to prevail.

The task set before him seemed more impossible after Wong’s words, warning him that the world often had different ideas from hopes and dream. So far it had been a very rough time ever since coming back, with lots of wrenches being thrown into the machines that kept his life running smoothly. He had a feeling that life wasn’t about to let up anytime soon either.

Flopping back upon his bed, he sighed. Tomorrow was going to be a challenge.
 
.oOo.
 
Stephen and Mordo found out very quickly that the last place this relic was seen was nowhere near where it was now. Mordo told him that it was most likely resold on the black market, if it were even still on earth.

They were back to square one, but they had some hope. One of the resident sorcerers in the area they had gone to told them that it had been recorded as being there, and was able to tell them the name of the family that had owned it when it was last seen.

It was a good break in their search. In the history of sorcery, including the time period it disappeared, there had been a lot of looting going on. The fact that they had a name attached to it seemed nothing short of a miracle; they may be able to trace it a bit easier than he originally had thought.

He could see that Mordo was feeling stressed by the experience of not finding it immediately, but the other sorcerer managed to keep it under wraps.

“Well, let's go back and regroup with this information,” Stephen urged.

“We can’t.”

“Why?”

There shouldn’t have been any objection. They could just go back, sleep in a warm bed, eat some food, and get ready for the next part. The note of fear in Mordo’s voice was unexpected.

“Going back empty handed is not an option. I am the Master of the New York Sanctum, and to go back and still not be able to use my own magic? Are you content with this?”

“Of course not, but clearly it’s not here.”

Mordo turned sharply out of anger. Stephen felt a sudden and overwhelming exhaustion at the circular reactions they were having. His existence irritated Mordo, but he didn’t find Mordo nearly as irritating, but he was irritated by Mordo’s irritation.

“Fine. What do you propose?” Stephen asked, exasperatedly.

Quiet fell between them. It was just as he suspected. Mordo only wanted to disagree and fight with Stephen. That was all that he wanted out of this relationship, and because of that, it may prevent him from getting the use of his magic back.

Stephen sighed heavily, his heart as pained as his knuckles at this point; a dull throb going through them due to the sudden change in the climate.

“Fine! We will go back!”

As Mordo made the motions, Stephen called up the magic within him, and they stepped through the opening portal into the Sanctum. It seemed like Wong was busy somewhere else in the Sanctum. As they made their way into the library no sign of the man could be found, but he was clearly there. Wong would never abandon his post and everything remained undisturbed from when they left.

Putting down some papers that they had received copies of from the sorcerer they had visited, Stephen looked over at Mordo.

“I know you hate me, but for the sake of making things a bit easier on both of us, can you at least listen and take into consideration that I may have learned a thing or two since you left Kamar-Taj.”

“It be a lot easier if you hadn’t made half of the world disappear.”

It stung a bit, because Mordo had no idea what he had gone through. The other sorcerer’s words were like water free flowing without anything blocking it, running on pure emotion. Granted, he hadn’t told anyone, but he thought that he could be given the benefit of the doubt at least a little. Just a tiny bit would have been sufficient.

“There was no other way,” Stephen murmured before leaving the room.

Whatever he said it didn’t matter. At this point they may be allies, but barely, and it was only because they both wanted to gain something. However, Stephen felt as though he was putting in more effort into everything than Mordo; Mordo continually wanting to be stuck in his rigid, inflexible ways.

He paced in the hallways for a few minutes before deciding that he could go for a drink, but as he searched the cabinets in the kitchen, he found nothing. It seemed Karl had drank all his stash of brandy. It wasn’t much, but enough to take the edge off at times. This was a day he could have used it. Searching his pockets, he found a crumpled up twenty Wong had given him a day ago feeling sorry for Stephen. It was the only time he really gave Stephen any money, and this time it was in dollars rather than rupees.

It prompted a sardonic laugh mixed with a hint of a hoarseness from how much his emotions were welling up inside him. It had come down to Wong and him once again. Only Wong wasn’t there most of the time, because he had to look out for himself. He understood that. In the end they were all alone and had to do what was right for them. It was what got them to this point as well, otherwise they may have died long before.

When he felt a hand on his shoulder he jumped. Staring at the money, he hadn’t heard the door open.

“Rough day?” Wong asked.

“Yea.”

“Seems the bottle is gone.”

“Yea.”

“That bad, huh?”

Stephen nodded as he got a hold of himself. It would do him no good to get too emotional with Wong there. The man had some sympathy buried under his gruff exterior, but he didn’t need sympathy at the moment. What he needed was for things to stop being difficult.

Stephen stood there as he watched Wong go over the the fridge and opened it up. There was practically nothing in it except for a few basics. Only in the freezer did he find something.

“Oh yea. Jackpot,” Wong snickered.

Stephen perked up as Wong brought out a container of Ben and Jerry’s. Surprisingly there was ice cream. Even more surprising, it wasn’t any of the kinds that were there when Stephen and Wong were forced out of the Sanctum that day. Not that they would be edible.

“Not a well known fact, but Karl has a sweet tooth that rivals yours and mine combined. I’ve already found about three different drawers stuffed with candy in the past day or so. Sometimes, I wonder if he lives off of mints and wrapped chocolates.”

They sat down at the table in silence at first. However, as the evening progressed, they started to slowly talk about nothing. It was so blatantly about nothing that it turned into a conversation that was more about what was not being said, rather than what was being said. They were skirting around the issues, as if they were explosives in a field. Finally, Stephen had enough.

“Am I in the wrong? Should I summon the Vishanti and beg them to reverse this?” Stephen asked.

“You really think the Vishanti will respond to your summons twice?” Wong snorted before continuing, “You weren't in the wrong. There was other ways to deal with this though, but you never could do things the easy way. I remember hearing about your trial by ice and sling ring and thinking that only someone like you would be able to get out of something like that. She never did that to most others who had trouble, but you’re a stubborn ass, so-”

Then, there was a shrug. Wong most likely thinking that he would be able to accomplish what seemed to be one of the more daunting tasks of his career so far as a sorcerer.

After a moment, Wong stared at him, his expression slowly changing from a nonchalant one to one of deep consideration and concern.

“His bark is worse than his bite.”

Stephen smiled in response before saying, “he wasn’t always like this, and you weren’t always like you either. Funny how he was my only ally when I came into Kamar-Taj. When the Ancient One threw me out on my ass, I was convinced that was it for me, even if I didn’t want to admit it. It's why I stuck around, but I truly thought that door wasn’t going to open when it did.”

“If you tell people about this I will deny it, but Karl has a bigger heart than most, and it wounds a lot easier. Yet, he also sees himself as a victim. Even if there is a little truth to it, he’s got to realize that he need to move on. He frequently makes his own messes, even if some of them are unavoidable.”

Stephen nodded. Wong’s assessment, like most of his assessments, was not devoid of judgment, but based in honesty all the same. There was a tinge of disgust to it, clearly disliking parts, yet it wasn’t without understanding. Maybe Stephen was born with thicker skin, or maybe he was made that way because of his family, but he wasn’t going to let setbacks stop him. Mordo was being a pain, too. It wasn’t only him with the problem. Mordo needed to have some understanding.

“Fuck this,” Stephen said, finally getting up.

He put the container they had been eating out of back in the freezer while disposing of his spoon in the sink. He heard Wong faintly call after him as he left the kitchen. Perhaps he was worried that Stephen would go confront Mordo. Only, he wanted to rest his weary head.

He really did appreciate Wong trying to make peace between him and Mordo, but in the end it was more to keep Wong’s own life simple. That was the last thought to cross his mind before he fell into a dreamless sleep.

Retiring to bed and getting a little sleep helped Stephen immensely. Although it was hard to sleep through the night without waking multiple times, it at least calmed him from all the leftover anxiety from his confrontations with Mordo. They would start fresh, and maybe make some progress with the new day.

When he arrived at the study, he saw Mordo was up and had plenty of papers stacked nearby. He was looking through a book, and only looked up after Stephen told him good morning. There was a different air about the man compared to the day before. He seemed to be back under control of himself.

“I do not believe this relic is even in this dimension,” he said confidently.

Stephen tilted his head to the side, surprised to hear it.

“I have managed to trace down the families lineage, as I am familiar with last surname listed. Only they have died, and when they died, I remembered my grandfather remarking they had no heirs. He tried to buy many of the remnants of their estate, but at the time it had not been possible to all as he was outbid by a foreigner,” Mordo paused to wave his hand, “I mean a foreign entity, not as in a sorcerer from a different country.”

The way he moved about, pacing and clearly not focused on anyone or anything, made Stephen feel like he was a student again. He was back in the library or the courtyard receiving a lecture. He knew the kind of auction Mordo was referring too, but he had never gone himself. Some of them would be too dangerous for him to attend, as they dealt in the black arts. For a moment, he wondered if Mordo had been to such an auction. It was possible, and it caused him to recall Mordo’s protest of Stephen having no idea of the things the man had done.

He shivered in response.

“Do you know where it is?”

“It will not be hard to figure out. Such records are kept rather tidily by a body at the Universal Court of Affairs.”

Stephen nodded in response. These were all things that he had read of, but had never visited or seen before outside of his text. It seemed though that Mordo was very familiar.

Stephen sighed. Normally he didn’t feel this way, but it sounded like they were going to go to a lot of new places together, filled with new things, and most likely new setbacks. That also meant new arguments for the two of them to get into. Most likely the headaches and heartaches they were still working through would continue to haunt them.

Stephen knew what he had to do.

“Look, before we start, we need to talk,” Stephen remarked.

Mordo frowned and narrowed his eyes at Stephen. It was a common look from the other man.

“Let’s just do this and get it done. Then, afterward you can bring up all the shit you hate about me, and we’ll go our separate paths.”

He watched Mordo consider what Stephen had just said.

“This is exactly the reason why we are in this position. You think you know everything Stephen, and that we don’t need any discussion before you go off and do something foolish. The Eye, Kaecilius in the Mirror Dimension, and Hong Kong. Everything is in your head, but they all have consequences that go beyond yourself. You do before you think.”

“Sometimes there is no time.”

“And that is why I went with you that day, but when you lack knowledge of the basics, how can I continue on with you?”

Now it seemed like they were getting somewhere. Mordo was calm and rational, even if he still had that edge to his voice. That day had been over two years ago, and Stephen knew a little bit more than he did back then. Actually, he knew a great deal more with Wong helping him when he settled in the Sanctum.

“You need to remember that it was you and the Ancient One who encouraged that. Only when it was over did I have the time to go back and learn the basics, which I did with Wong.”

He tried to keep nice and rational. If they continued on the path they were on before, it would be counterproductive. It seemed Mordo knew this too as they stopped there.

For a little bit they worked in silence as they organized the papers Mordo had dragged out. Stephen looked through them for background information, and came across names that he had heard before. Some of them were related to sorcerers he had studied, and some were relations of sorcerers he knew now. Everything seemed to be interconnected like the royalty of Europe.

Eventually Wong joined them, bringing with him a sense of stability to the room which it lacked before. Stephen was truly grateful to not be alone with Mordo in the Sanctum, but he knew they would have to go forward together quite soon without Wong. Once they figured out where the relic was, it would most likely be not an easy task to retrieve it. Because of this, it would be a requirement that they work through some of this stuff as a pair. There was no one who could do this for them, and that was a bit hard and scary to think about. Clearly, Mordo still viewed him as the Master he was before he flew off into the Dark Dimension.

“It’s time to go,” Mordo finally said once they cleaned everything up.

Wong bade them good luck before they took off, and Stephen had a feeling they would be gone for a much longer time than before, prompting him to take one last look around. Everything would come back to this and this place. He had to keep the faith.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Luck seemed to finally be on their side for a little bit. There was record of the artifact at the Universal Court of Affairs, and they could trace it to a dimension just beyond their own, in a place that was much like earth in some respects. Stephen had only heard of this place once or twice, but the way Mordo nodded when they were told this by the bird like creature at the office, it seemed like he was quite familiar with it. However, when he asked about it, like himself Mordo had only heard of it in passing. He echoed the rumors that the realm they were going to was filled with unspeakable dangers. Mordo reassured him it was nothing they couldn’t handle, yet Stephen doubted he factored in the reality that they were dependent on one another for their use of magic.

Difficulties laid ahead for sure; there was nothing that would change his mind on that point.

When they finally managed to get to where they were headed, they were forced to pause. The air was thick, but breathable, reminding Stephen of the jungles he had access to through the Sanctum's windows. The plants took on different colors and shapes, but it all of the foliage seemed to be overgrown with no visible residents in the area they had portaled into. They both looked around, but dared not to take a step.

“This should be the place,” Mordo remarked.

“Maybe it is, but it could be hidden. Let’s do the spell.”

He didn’t have to clarify which spell, and this time the spell they were using worked, albeit barely.

“It must not be nearby,” Mordo murmured with a frown.

The faint glow indicated it was indeed within the acceptable range, but they had no idea of the terrain and where anything was. If they went 1000 miles in one way, it may be the wrong way, then they would have to start over again from where they were now. If they did this, it would be a huge waste of time.

Without a word between the two of them, they knew they would have to make some inquiries. That was if they could only find someone to talk to. Stephen knew there must be beings on the planet, as whoever brought the item to this world had visited their own realm, and they were on a visibly cleared path. It was not a paved road, nor a wide one, but it must be well traveled.

“Which way?” Stephen asked, as he allowed Mordo to pull magic from him once again.

The more they used magic together, the more natural it seemed. Stephen knew it was part of the plan, but it still scared him all the same. It had been a very long time  since he had been this dependent on another. He could never get used to it fully.

Suddenly, this felt too great of a task. Something about the dulling of the feeling when Mordo scooped his magic out of him without him controlling it caused a slight panic within him that took all his effort to quell. If he really wanted, he could cut it off, but that would cause more problems.

“There should be something in the southwest.”

They looked at one another, and it seemed that Mordo was as shaken as he was. It wasn’t just him then who felt it becoming easier, and a thought struck him, even if he dared not ask it. What if they both had to tap into magic suddenly? Would they know? Could they take the cues from one another?

He didn’t want to think of it as they started off down the path.

They walked quite a bit until they came to a few houses. The houses were closed up, and reminded Stephen of the barns of his childhood. He was sure that the insides looked different, but the outsides were quite simplistic. In the front of one of the structures some beings he assumed were children were huddled and playing with stone like objects. The beings were rounder, a dusky mauve color with distinctive markings, and more appendages than humans. Their eyes were also a different shape, more like four pointed stars. They reminded of Stephen of amphibians with their slits for noses and thin mouths.

One pushed the object with a stick decorated with material, and the others cheered loudly after the stone went across a line draw in the ground. They continued to chatter in their own language, until they looked up and laid eyes upon Stephen and Mordo. It was at that point they ran faster than Stephen had expected them to into the structures behind them.

It was not unexpected, but he also looked at Mordo with a questioning gaze.

“They’re not used to visitors like us, I guess?”

Mordo frowned, “You have a lot to learn.”

He refrained from rolling his eyes. His casual remark once again was taken at face value, but this time Mordo’s voice lacked the viciousness it had before. Instead it was more resigned.

Soon after they said that, a much bigger adult came out of their house, clearly a leader by nature. They would need a translation spell, leading them to cast one while trying not to frighten the being.

“What are you doing here? What do you want?”

There was recognition in their eyes. More than likely human or human-esque sorcerers had been there before.

“We are searching for an item, the Katalyst of Kubic, by command of the Vishanti. We know it’s not in this town, but are curious if anyone knows of its whereabouts.”

Their eyes narrowed.

“That object is a cursed one. It will only bring ruin upon your people.”

“We wish to return it to our planet,” Stephen replied, hoping it appealed to their sense of preservation.

“We know it’s on this planet,” Mordo added.

The being looked at him with a stare that would give Wong a run for his money. Stephen readied himself in case it turned hostile. This started to make him feel skittish, as they were quite unfamiliar to him. He didn’t want to hurt any of them; they did seem peaceful. Coming out and greeting them as the did, and the kids playing in the front did not create a feeling of hostility.

“It is on this planet. Last I heard it was in Jaunke, but the Jaunken died out recently -a curse of the object.”

They nodded politely even if they didn't entirely take them at face value. There were curses, but normally curses were cast. It was much more believable that whoever possessed the object now obliterated the people, spreading rumors of its supposed dark properties.

“And where is this town?” Mordo asked.

They would need to know the general direction.

“You cannot go there until the morning.”

Looking at one another, they didn’t know if they would have to go back, or if this would lead to an invitation to stay. For Stephen this was new, mostly unexplored territory, and he deferred to Mordo at this point. Mordo looked a little more in the know, but still he waited for clues.

“We have traveled a long way,” Mordo finally said.

“You are not welcome in our houses, but you may seek shelter over there.”

The being made a motion towards a small structure that was little more than a shed: something basic, but covered. There were windows in it and a small chimney at the top. As discretely as he could, he gave Mordo a look.

“We can go back to the Sanctum,” Stephen said.

Mordo gave him a look that told him not to speak, so he didn’t.

“Thank you for your generosity,” Mordo replied.

The being nodded as they made move to towards structure, and Stephen couldn’t help but look at Mordo in surprise. He got it though, even if the exchange was not what he was used to. They would stay there for the night in that little space.

It was not the worst place he would ever sleep in, but being in such tight quarters with Mordo didn’t seem like it would be a great idea. Yet, it looked like there would be no possibility of escaping it at this point. He resigned himself to the fact that the night would probably be one where they had to press on in spite of their feelings or level of uncomfortableness. Really, they had been in much worse situations, and now they’d just suck it up without a word.

The being who guided them informed them they would provide them with some sustenance, telling them regulations for staying. Their movements would be restricted, and although these beings were clearly magic users, Stephen knew it was very low level magic to get by in life. From the way that they lived, he could tell they were not warriors. Most likely they were an agrarian society, left alone by their neighbors for the most part. There were no fences or walls except for the walls of dwellings. Even individual plots of land had no real visual clues to separate them, except for the occasional trampling of vegetation stopping suddenly.

Their existence seemed peaceful despite their warnings about the object Stephen and Mordo were seeking. That too stuck with Stephen. The artifact they were after was not supposed to be dangerous in nature, but for a moment he wondered if there was something to the warning. The family they traced it to on Earth disappeared, and then this other town disappeared. Stephen wondered if it was just a coincidence, rethinking his original dismissal of the tale.

Before the being left them, they set up some wards, alarms to let them know if the sorcerers escaped. Clearly there was some sympathy, but not much trust between them. Stephen would have probably done a lot more if he had been the leader of this town. Still, he had to be grateful.

It then struck him that this was most likely the reason Mordo wanted them to stay, to build the trust between them. Having allies, no matter how insignificant they seemed, would benefit them in the end.

Mordo opened the door to the small building. Inside it was mostly bare except for some straw mats and other materials that Stephen wasn’t quite sure of what they were at that moment. He sighed.

“We could have made an excuse.”

“Best not to risk it,” Mordo replied.

Stephen shrugged in response, and they let it be. Since time was not the same in this dimension, all they could do was wait for the darkness. There must have been dangers out there, and not just the town’s people threatened by their presence.

They spend quite a bit of time silent and not too far from one another physically, but in their own worlds mentally. Stephen chose to meditate, while Mordo focused his energies physically. At one point when Stephen opened his eyes, he found himself staring at the way Mordo moved his arms gracefully, while his legs and feet were more cautious. It reminded him of long ago, and Stephen thought about the first time they had sparred; Stephen copying his movements until he found his own rhythms.

He cringed as part of himself still wished to please his former master, wanting to show how much he had progressed. Something told him Mordo would never be impressed with him again, his good opinion lost. The other part of him was focused on getting the opportunity to best the man properly. It would happen in time. Already they were hot on the trail, and Stephen felt a level of success from what they had accomplished without coming to physical blows. Really, they had cooled off quite a bit with their slow progress.

Eventually, they were brought some food. It had been edible, but Stephen was not sure if he would go seek it out again. They couldn’t be choosy though, unlike back in New York. And it was then they started talking to one another, most likely to distract themselves from the gummy, squishy texture of the food. As they explored their thoughts they found they were similar to one another. Both were curious as to where this artifact could be, and why these beings thought it was cursed. The original purpose of the artifact had been quite neutral: to look through solid object. It was something that could be done with a spell and would not cause destruction of a town.

When they finished, they left the wood box it came in outside of the door, unsure as where to put it. Once again silence fell between them, but there was an ease to it. It was not the tense silence that they had felt in the library of the Sanctum.

Stephen was the first one to curl up to go to sleep. There wasn’t much space, but there was enough. His body was a lot more tired than his mind, unable to quite itself as it had refused to do many times before. He heard Mordo lightly snoring before he was able to actually fall asleep, contemplating all the things that laid before them and all the things that laid behind him on his path.

It would have been nice if he had slept soundly, but it was not in the cards as he was abruptly awoken with a hard shake. He gasped for air as his head hit the floor, heart pounding. His eyes opened to find Mordo above him, staring at him with concern as he held Stephen’s arms down.

“Had you had access to your magic, we would be in serious trouble at this point.”

He didn’t sound mad, only tired, surprising Stephen. They sat across from one another in near darkness as Stephen’s breathing started to even out.

“What I was doing?”

“You were trying to cast the Chains of Krakkan.”

He searched his memory for a moment. It wasn’t a spell he commonly used, but he had used it in one of the realities he had seen on Titan. It had been somewhat effective, but led the the death of Drax, scrapping the spell from being useful. Most likely the spell had been replayed in his subconscious while he slept.

“Well, just to be clear, I’m not intentionally trying to harm you,” Stephen joked.

It was hard to see one another in the dark, only vague outlines of one another, the details of their faces lost. He did notice Mordo stiffen.

“I don’t think you have the heart to harm me.”

It was a statement and not a judgment this time; they already established one another's willingness or unwillingness to take the first step in a confrontation.

“No, and I don’t think you’d physically harm me either.”

With that Stephen laid back down, turning his back to Mordo once again. Given what kind of chances Mordo would have had to harm him already, he knew he had nothing to fear.

“Don’t be so confident of that. At my lowest point, I contemplated taking your magic permanently, not just temporarily borrowing it as we do now.”

Stephen stilled after he heard Mordo say such a thing. To take his magic would most likely cause him great physical distress for a while, but the emotional devastation it would wreak would be far greater. That would have been far worse than just casting Stephen out into the world as an ex-master of Kamar-Taj.

“Well, you have my magic now,” Stephen said, trying once again to make light of the situation.

“And you have mine.”

Silence fell upon the room, and after some time they slept. This time they were asleep until the morning, waking up in quick succession of one another. They readied to leave fairly quickly, not talking of the events of the last night, but with a little more understanding of one another. After getting a clearer picture of where they were going and giving their thanks to the town that housed them, they opened a portal onto their next destination.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The devastation they saw was not a simple case of people dying out by natural means or even as a byproduct of a curse. This was much greater than how simply it had been put to them. The whole village had been burnt to ground. Flecks of what could have been bones lay scattered in blackened, charred remnants of structures.

Stephen’s stomach did a little flip in response to the acrid, metallic smell of burnt flesh. Mordo stilled next to him, most likely concerned if this was a set up or not. It would be possible that dangers lurked within the plants and trees that surrounded them. Experience told them both to be a little more cautious than their already heightened state.

They were at the ready, and Karl made to cast a spell, making sure to use sweeping movements to give notice to his partner. Everything stilled as the spell scanned the area for threats or objects of concern. Aside from a few small animals, which may or may not become a nuisance, they were alone.

Walking around the remnants of the town, they poked and prodded to gather clues as to what happened. Karl started crouching down and feeling the ground in certain areas.

“Magical fire,” he said after a few touches.

Stephen shook his head. He had a feeling that it wasn’t something natural, and it scared him a little. What kind of being would want to wipe out a whole town? Was it for the artifact we’re searching for, or for another reason?

“Damn it,” Stephen murmured, spotting more material he could recognize as bone.

“Yes, I have a feeling that whoever did this has the artifact we are looking for. We have no choice to pursue who did this, and we will need to proceed with absolute caution, if we wish to keep our lives that is.”

Stephen nodded in agreement. They would have to approach the next group with more of a plan than they had previously.

“If things go south, are we going to fight our way out?”

Mordo rubbed at the back of his neck in thought, knowing how dangerous it could be to do that, especially with the delay they had when pulling magic from the other. Even if he were to open up what Stephen thought of as his magic reservoir, and Karl were to do the same, there was still a split second or two delay of the energies being drawn from it. It would not be completely noticeable to those who were a novice, but it was a considerable long time for either sorcerer at this point in their careers.

“The only other choice is to accept this as the status quo,” Mordo replied.

It lacked the bite it would have had before, and Stephen felt a bit grateful that things seemed to be getting a little better between them the closer they got to accomplishing their goal. If they failed, he didn’t know what he could do. At this point though, he wasn’t going to think deeply about that.

With very little communication, they cast the locator spell, and it showed the object not to far off to the west. With an approximate location, they could portal to a nearby area and hopefully find it. They would not want to portal directly to where the object was, given that it could be in the hands of a hostile group. With what they witnessed at this site, it would be a very bad idea to assume that the group would be amicable.

Stephen hoped they wouldn't portal into a place where it be difficult to navigate on top of potential dangers they had to deal with, as the area that surrounded the burnt village they were currently in was almost like a jungle with it’s thick vegetation. They were not prepared, nor dressed for a laborious trek.

When the portal opened into a swamp like area, Stephen knew it was going to be an uphill battle. Thankfully, they did have the footwear for it with an added waterproofing spell. As they stepped through, they were able to find their footing while looking around. It wasn’t going to be easily, but at least there was a clearing, and their view was not as obstructed as it could have been.

Mordo motioned for him to follow closely. They made their way through the marsh-like conditions, managing to not to get attacked by any animals or by others that may be lurking in the plant life. It was difficult to keep their eyes and ears open while being focused on what they were doing and where they were going.

When they finally got to the edge of it, they crouched down to peer out behind the small, fern like trees. Stephen hovered over Karl with uncomfortable closeness to what they were used to. The sticky, humid air made it hard to breath, and they both started to gain a layer of sweat upon their skin. Yet, they would not be able to move until they could figure out what exactly they were looking at.

The group of structures in front of them looked very different from the structures of the town they stayed at the night before. These were hatched huts and off to the outskirts were large, tent-like structures, most likely covered with the dried fern that they were hiding behind at the moment. Both of them could feel waves of magic roll over them, coming from the where the buildings were, and there was some very interesting technology the villagers seemed to be using. Unlike the minimalistic nature of the first beings they encountered, they noticed from afar as the villagers were using materials that humans had not invented or found being combined with magic. It was interesting to watch. He and Karl didn’t know what exactly what they were doing, but the power coming from this village alone was nothing to be trifled with.

Their stakeout was short lived though, as they felt someone or something behind them, turning to find two humanoid-like beings behind them. Each of their four arms contained weapons that were magical in nature, or objects that would straight up bludgeon them to death if used with a good force behind them.

He and Mordo exchanged a hesitant glance, knowing that it would be best not to engage if at all possible. They slowly put their hands up. Thankfully their sling rings had already been concealed within the folds of their clothing after they stepped out of the portal. They didn’t need those taken from them at this moment, and luckily, they hadn’t been patted down.

Nudging them out of where they were hiding, they slowly went to where the beings were directing them to go. No one spoke a word, and Mordo looked at him once, clearly worried for their safety. That in turn made Stephen feel more nervous than any other part of their journey so far.

Finally, they were brought to a building and shoved inside of it with the door locked behind them. There was nothing inside, and all they could assume was it was some sort of jail. Surrounding them was a magical dampening field that would keep them there for the time being. It was a bit like the mirror dimension, but more restricting upon their ability to use magic.

They breathed a sigh of relief for a moment. Even if they were under observation, it wouldn’t matter what they said now, as they meant them no harm. They would have to be careful about how they went about getting the relic though.

“The Vishanti have asked too much from us,” Mordo groaned.

“Something tells me this is only the beginning.”

“How are we going to get out of this? This group was most likely the ones who've burn that village to the ground, and if it was for this artifact-”

“Maybe that was just one of the spoils of war?” Stephen suggested optimistically.

Mordo shook his head. They both knew it was most likely not the spoils of war. This object had taken such a rough journey, and tracking it down had not been an easy task. It was not going to be easy to convince them to give it up, but Stephen knew most everything had a price.

He laughed at the thought that he once again would be driven to bargaining, and Mordo shot him a look.

“This is a grave situation, Strange. Yet, you do not take it seriously. No wonder you gave up the Time Stone so easily.”

Stephen narrowed his eyes.

“I gave up the Time Stone, because Thanos had collected 4 others. And if I hadn’t, a whole lot more people would have died instead of disappearing. That’s Including you in about 11 million realities I looked through. Or so I would assume, given that in many of them he simply destroyed Earth in its entirety.”

Mordo went eerily quiet, judging Stephen’s words before sitting down on the floor. It was the first time he had talked about it aloud since it had happened, and his anger actually shocked him, too. There was more built up within him, but a lot of it had nothing to do with Mordo and more to do with the exhaustion of going through all those realities without stopping. Then coming back to this... It was difficult.

“I don’t know what to do with that. You should have never had the stone in the first place. There were rules in place,” Mordo said.

“The world changes, and we must change with it.”

He sat down next to the other man, not quite sure how to begin. Mordo had been so much better when Stephen was a student about opening up, but they never really discussed anything personal. That was except for the time Mordo yelled at him that Stephen had no idea of the things he had done. Yet, Stephen felt the need to share his opinion on this, and why he felt this way.

“I’ve worked through so many disasters as a surgeon, and each one of those people had some family member crying their eyes out about someone they loved. That feeling that you have when someone tells you that the person you cared for is dead-”

God, he was crap at this. He never even alluded to this even amongst his closest friends, yet here he was pouring his heart out to someone who might have hated his guts at this point.

“I’ve lost a great many things, too.”

“I don’t doubt that, but I’m not going to lose more than I have to. Not anymore. Rules be damned,” Stephen replied.

Mordo nodded, continuing to look him in the eye. Then, he looked away at his own legs, lost in thought. A tense quiet settled between them as they pondered not only their recent exchange, but also what may happen in the future. Clearly they were not welcomed like in the first village they had come across. How they would get out of this mess would be an interesting feat.

“Stephen,” his soft tone drew Stephen out of his head, “If one of us dies, It’s most likely the other will be stuck here for a long time, if not forever.”

Stephen didn’t want to think about it, and he didn’t know why Mordo’s thoughts would turn so morbid. He had to have faith they would get out of it. This was not the tightest spot he or Mordo would have been in, but he knew that Mordo was more scared about having to rely on Stephen. Mordo still thought of him as that bumbling sorcerer in the Mirror Dimension. The reality hadn’t hit him yet that Stephen was powerful now, and Stephen didn’t know how Mordo would ever see him for himself if he chose to hide behind the past.

“Hey, we’re not going to die. Not here and not now. Don’t worry about that.”

“You can’t know that. Besides, I’m not afraid of dying. I’m afraid of you dying, and me being stuck here without magic.”

Stephen gave a weak smile in response at the lie. It seemed every sentence Stephen said was met with some sort of retort, and with each response, Mordo’s tone lost some of the conviction he had before. There were longer periods of silence, more thinking and pondering on both of their parts, and less fighting. It would have been more welcomed, if they weren’t effectively prisoners.

Mordo let out a sigh before getting up and pacing before Stephen. He was worrying and thinking about their current predicament as he did everyday since they started to work together. How long they would be there was the question mark between them, and given that they were thrown inside a jail without a word, the answer was probably not forthcoming anytime soon.

Stephen wouldn’t allow himself to ponder the fact they had no food, no water, nor any access to a bathroom. That would come at a later time.

They waited in silence, Mordo continually taking turns between pacing then sitting, then back to pacing again. Stephen sat on the ground meditating and saving his energy without pause.

Eventually, the door was thrown open with some might, and they turned to see one of the beings that had brought them there. They motioned for Stephen and Mordo to leave, but not before emphasizing they would be under the duress of weapons pointed to their backs. They went quietly, not even looking at one another. Either they would be going to their deaths, or they would be going to meet the leader of whatever town they were in. Those were the only two options that seemed plausible to Stephen.

When they were led to another building on the far side of the town, they ducked into the the entrance, finding a figure sitting on the throne who also resembled a human. Unlike the ones who had thrown them in the jail this being was without the extra limbs. Stephen narrowed his eyes in confusion. The figure got up, casing a spell upon them all so they could understand one another.

“Are you in charge here,” Stephen cautiously asked.

Mordo stood still next to him.

“You can say that.”

Stephen looked over at Mordo, who gave that same blank expression of disbelief that he would give whenever Stephen pushed the boundaries. Stephen knew that he was thinking of a way to express himself in a neutral manner. The way that everything looked, it read more as if this was someone who conquered these people rather than being elected to such a position. This wasn’t the first time he had seen something like this, but this was the first time he had an urge to do something about it. Whatever had happened here, there was an aura of badness that was brought with this person. Stephen could feel it in his bones, and it looked that Mordo felt the same.

“We’ve come for the Katalyst of Kubic.”

The figure looked at them as if they had no idea what Stephen was talking about. Stephen pulled out an illustration he was able to obtain back in the Universal Court and presented it to the figure.

“Ah, yes. I’m sorry, but it’s not for sale.”

“We have been sent by the Vishanti,” Mordo said plainly.

The being looked unimpressed, as if they didn’t care about the Vishanti, something that was inconceivable to both sorcerers.

“I am the owner of it now.”

“Yes, but -” Stephen paused.

He had nothing, looking to Mordo for some guidance. Even if at this point he had come up against a lot more impressive, intimidating entities and foes, there was something very detached about this one.

“It’s not for sale.”

“There must be something you want or something we can do for you in exchange. We need this relic,” Mordo ventured.

“This is not a powerful relic,” Stephen added.

“This relic is not powerful, but the curse upon it is.”

The two Earth-based sorcerers looked at one another. It was hard to believe that they did not value the relic itself, but rather a curse upon it. The question of how much they could trust this person was still up in the air. The more and more they chased this relic though, the harder it became to unravel the truth. The Vishanti were clearly trying to make their lives more difficult and hiding something by asking them to fetch the relic for them.

“So, you’re telling us there is curse upon it? And that’s the only reason why you won't deal with us?” Stephen asked for clarification.

“We can transfer the curse to a different object,” Mordo offered.

“This is not a normal curse of magic, it’s built into the material.”

Stephen shot a glance at Mordo knowing that even if they could transfer the curse, it probably would not be a good idea. Using all the clues in front of him, it was most likely the supposed curse had something to do with the downfall of the town they had seen, and the extermination of a whole lineage of sorcerers over time. At first Stephen had thought the cases on Earth had just been genetics or the natural way of things, but more and more he was suspecting there was something to this curse.

In addition, the fact that this being in front of him was different from the ones that greeted them with weapons made him suspicious that whoever was currently talking to them were conquerors from somewhere else.

Nothing felt right, but after reviewing the facts he could start to see why they were given this task, even if he didn't know the exact reason. Only, they couldn’t fight their way out, not without a plan, and not without knowing who they were dealing with.

“So, is there no possibility for us to get this from you?”

“No.”

Without much fanfare and without even getting a name, the sorcerer snapped their fingers, and Stephen and Mordo found themselves bound together, being dragged away. Outnumbered and clearly at a disadvantaged, they let themselves be thrown back into the place where they were before. On the ground was a basket of something most likely edible and a few buckets of liquid. What was in them was just as much of a mystery as everything else.

When they were finally unbound after their guards had left, they turned to look at one another, not deigning to speak for a while. Gone was any temptation to fight or even bring up the past. They both knew that the fact that they were thrown back in the same makeshift jail was not a good sign of things to come.

Stephen sat down in front of the basket to examine what was inside. He couldn’t use magic, so he just felt and looked at them. The lack of water was more disconcerting, but he wasn’t going to be drinking or eating anything that could be poisoned until they got more direct answers.

Mordo ignored what was there, instead going back to his same pacing habit he had done a great many times before. His face scrunched up into a contemplative expression.

“Okay, what are we going to do?” Stephen finally asked.

“We need that relic. I don’t care how we get it, but I know you have your reservations, and clearly it doesn’t matter what I do if you are not on board. Strange -Stephen, we need to get on the same page. Whatever comes next, I don’t think it will be good.”

“How are we going to do this then? I don’t think there are going to be any deals made, and frankly we are outnumbered. We don’t know what they are capable of.”

“Death, destruction.”

“What do you think that curse is all about? How much truth do you think is in it?” Stephen asked suddenly.

Mordo looked at him with a pensive expression crossing his face for a brief moment before lightening and shaking his head. He didn’t know as well. It was a little more disturbing to him that they had so little information, and the little that they did have seemed to not be painting a correct picture.

They forgot about some of their past as things got stickier and stickier, and they started working together as they once did before. The deeper they got, the less they had to contend with their differences. If he thought about it, Mordo still probably did not trust him. However, they didn’t have time to do that.

“The material has a curse imbedded in it? I don’t buy it,” Mordo mumbled to himself.

“The material has magical properties most likely.”

“Of course, but a curse? Perhaps the properties lean dark, and it’s more about the intent of the user.”

“Yea, and how do we get it and not kill ourselves at the same time?”

Mordo glared at him, perceiving Stephen as being flippant when he was just wanting to get the point again. There were too many factors going into this. They would have to avoid activating this supposed curse, work together to get the item, and if they had to take it by force, they would have to get out of there fast and without being traced back to Earth and the Sanctum.

“We need a plan,” Stephen said.

“Well, that would be easier if we weren't in this room. Whoever is with the relic is clearly is more formidable than others we have encountered. Normally, I would say leave it be, but -” He trailed off, frowning.

“I wouldn’t be adverse to removing them,” Stephen murmured.

No killing if they could help it of course, and he knew Mordo knew that. They both would have to make compromises, and he too was beginning to understand that there would be times he’d just have to let Mordo take his magic and use it without any doubt or fear. That though was easier said than done.

“Mordo,” he sighed, thinking about how he needed to change this as well, “-Karl, whatever we need to do, we need to do, but the less mess the better.”

“I’m not insane, Stephen. If we can steal this, then we do that.”

After Karl said that, there was a moment of ‘a-ha’. For all the hostility and brushing up against one another in combination with Karl’s inflexible nature, he had forgotten about the person who he was getting to know all those years ago. There must have been some of that person still inside, even if he had changed quite a bit, embittered by his experiences.

Eventually, Stephen came to the conclusion that had Karl not ousted him, he would not have had such a bad view of Karl. Also colored by their last conversations, Stephen perhaps viewed him in a harsher light. Yet, he was still cautious to fully excuse the man, as Karl did not think highly of him either.

They both went quiet after. Stealing it would be a good option, if they could get out of the position they were in. And on that thought, Stephen got up to look at the walls and the things around them. If they could get out without being noticed, they would have a chance, even if they didn’t know all the details of what was outside.

Karl seem to pick up on what Stephen was thinking and followed in suit. They both began to look for a hole or something, anything to help them. It seemed hopeless as the looked around, until Karl called for him with a hiss. He pointed upward, and sure enough there was a patched little square door at the roof. It was maybe big enough for them to fit through, if they could get the cross hatched square off of it. It was worth a shot, but given the ceiling was that much higher than them, it would take some effort. Stephen may be tall enough with the buckets of liquid turned over and stacked, but he would not be able to pull himself up. The only option would be for Karl to get on him, get through the square, and then pull him up. At the same time, they would have to wait till the darkness of night as they did not want to be seen. It wasn’t a guarantee that they would not be stopped by the wards in place, either. However, the magic inside of the hut they were in was a magic dampening spells, and not something that would injure them. He couldn’t be completely sure though.

“We need to get up there and out. Do you think we can?” Stephen asked.

Karl picked up a small stone that was on the floor and threw it up to the ceiling. Nothing happened, and the stone fell back down with a small thud. They looked at one another and sat down to hash out a plan, or at least guidelines on what the hope to accomplish and how they wish to accomplish it. The good thing was once they were out, he’d be able to use his cloak, and Karl would be able to use his boots.

At this moment they sorely needed their relics to work.

After they finished discussing their options, they spent the rest of their time ignoring one another. Stephen lay on the ground, looking up at that little space Karl and him would have to fit through, and then he looked over at the man himself. The quiet contemplation that crossed his face was something he had missed. Truly, if they had not met in this reality, but in a different one, he would have most likely tried to get to know Karl better on a personal level he rarely shared with anyone. There was something comforting and responsible about the man’s expression when he was patient or quiet.

Suddenly his stomach gave a little gurgle, not out of hunger despite being hungry, but out of the pain of how close he had been to losing this reality. He remembered seeing an alternative one where the entire universe collapsed upon itself. The sheer horror of knowing that that was one of the possibilities had been terrifying. Karl could have little idea, living his life under the wing of the Ancient One. Stephen realized her attempt to shelter her pupil, no matter how good intentioned, hurt him the most of anyone.

It all came back to that. The tangle of complexities had at the time tugged at Stephen's heart, but it really broke Karl, shockingly so when he thought about it deeply. Wong had been the one with the most understanding between the two, having discussed with Stephen in depth the problems the Ancient One’s secrets had brought up and why they were secrets that needed to be kept at the time. Clearly after she passed, all hell broke loose, so he couldn't protest.

When Stephen’s stomach finally settled, he drifted off to sleep for a while, tired from their ordeal so far, wanting to prepare for what lay before them. He actually slept well, until he was shaken awake.

“It’s time, Stephen.”

He rose with ease as his heart started to pump a little more wildly.

“Okay, let's do this,” he said more to himself than to Karl.

He took off his cloak first, not wanting to upset it or have to fight to wash it when they did return to New York, and he motioned for Karl to climb on him. While it took a great deal of effort, he managed to steady himself as Karl climbed on his back, standing upon him for what felt like eons before he was able to wiggle off the hatch and climb up. Stephen stood up to help him get an extra push through, and felt impressed by the sheer amount of physical strength he possessed. Turning over the buckets, he stood on them as Karl reached down to help drag him out, grasping his wrists while being careful of his hands. Somehow, they managed to get Stephen out without too much noise or pain. The thud of the buckets was thankfully a lot quieter than he anticipated, clearly not made from material that would shatter and thick enough to just produce a single clang.

They laid on top of the building for a bit, catching their breath and trying to see out. The village was lit up, so they could see what was in front of them, including the guards by the door. There was a lot of movement, and Stephen’s eyes traced the path to where they last saw the relic. They had no idea if it would be there, but now that they could use magic, it would be easier. His cloak gently reminding him of the fact as it spread out to cover both him and Mordo from being seen, comforting him during this tense moment.

Then, they put their plan into action as Stephen motioned for the cloak to float down and try to figure out where and how the relic was being kept. He watched the best he could as it floated to the ground, moving so that it wouldn’t be noticed by those on watch. Most looked out at their eyeline or up and not at the road under their feet. Stephen breathed a sigh of relief. Karl tensed near him watching the same scene, but Stephen had faith.

“That is some relic for sure,” Karl mumbled.

There would be little chance that they could be heard from that far above ground, but still Stephen froze in response, until he confirmed that theory.

“Only when it wants to play along, which is more often than not these days.”

There were times they had fought, but thankfully when things got serious, the Cloak of Levitation understood.

Finally, when it returned, Stephen petted it before he began his questioning. They had worked out a pretty good communication system with tapping and gesturing. It was a little less intense than the first time they met.

“Is it in the building from before?” Two taps -no.

“Okay, is it easy to get to?” Two taps.

Stephen rolled his eyes, of course it would be hard.

“Wards on the outside?” Two taps again, and he sighed a breath of relief.

“Wards near the relic?” One tap.

“Anyone inside guarding it?” Thankfully, Two taps.

That was all he needed to know.

“Thanks,” Stephen replied.

It sounded like what he referred to in his head as an Indiana Jones job. In order to steal it, they would have to get through a test or two, disable the wards, and portal out of there like hell. It would use up a lot of their energy to do one portal from here to Earth, but it wouldn’t be impossible.

“Okay. Shall we do this?” Stephen asked Karl.

“Whenever you’re ready,” Karl mentioned.

They had to watch for the occupants of the town, and for the sorcerer who was in charge of the relic. Stephen was sure they could do this though. They slinked downward off the building with the help of their personal relics, landing on the ground without being noticed. For the first time in a while, he carried hope with him as they headed towards their goal.

Karl nodded at him before they made their move. First his cloak went to check things out and guide them, and then they followed. Turning corners, crouching down, and hiding behind walls or objects, they finally reached their destination. They slipped in relatively easily with the door opening like any other.

The space between the door and the ward around the relic was large enough to stand in, but not much more. The cloak also pressed itself against the wall. Stephen let the magic roll over him, waiting.

“Three layers?”

“Four, I think,” Karl replied.

He went to cast magic, but found nothing happened. Stephen closed his eyes, reminding himself that he needed Mordo to let him access magic. In the intensity of the moment, he had forgotten about their other problem.

“Help me out here,” Stephen prompted.

Karl looked at him nervously, but nodded. At that point, Stephen hadn’t cast this type of magic in front of Karl. Karl had just ordered him to let him use Stephen’s magic. This though he felt he needed to do, and he did.

The rush of magic flowed over him -something he hadn’t done in days, and it felt different from before. It wasn’t the same as the natural creation of magic. This was something different and almost scarier than having magic taken from him. Stephen actually gasped after casting the spells, disarming the wards. He cast a few other spells in rapid succession before stopping. Most of the spell were for scanning and for muting their magical traces in the room. If the others outside should come across them, they would be screwed.

After he finished, he looked over at Karl. Karl seemed surprised by the spells Stephen had cast, even though they were relatively uncomplicated.

“I did summon the Vishanti, give me a little credit.”

Karl jerked his head, slightly irritated by Stephen’s chastisement, but he didn’t say anything about it.

“Let’s get it and go,” Karl said, breaking his silence after a minute.

Stephen knew they shouldn’t take any chances with the artifact. If it truly did have properties that were cursed, it would be risky to handle it with bare hands. Cautiously, he took out his gloves he had tucked inside of his outside robe and put them on. They had spells woven into the materials that should protect him from anything he touched, or at least give him moments to counteract anything that may happen.

He approached slowly, and put his hand upon the spherical shaped relic with some hesitation, eventually picking it up. When it proved to not be dangerous to the touch, they knew they would have to portal back. Stephen made to make a portal, but once again Karl did not allow him access to his magic readily. This time it was not out of forgetfulness or annoyance, but because he was preoccupied. Stephen turned his head back to look at where the man was and saw the sorcerer they had a conversation with earlier was standing with a blade to Karl’s throat.

All Stephen could think was of course that it would never be that easy.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Normally blades were nothing to a sorcerer as long as they were not enchanted. Due to the spell Stephen had casted in the room, he couldn’t be certain they were not enchanted as the spell muted the traces of magic. Karl and him would have to move carefully with all these uncertain factors hanging above their heads. They could get out of this, but they would have to be in tune with one another and act accordingly. Unfortunately, more bad news started coming in as they were soon surrounded by the town's other occupants. After a minute or so there was no way to escape and still able to keep the relic Stephen had in his hands now.“I suggest you put it down,” The sorcerer holding the knife to Karl’s throat remarked.“Only if you guarantee my partner and mine’s safety.”“You’re not in a position to make demands.”The options open to them raced through Stephens’s mind as he looked at Karl. Karl looked at him with empty eyes, expressionless in such a way that unnerved Stephen. He seemed to accept his position, and Stephen couldn't help but wonder if Karl was actually ready to die,.even though he and Stephen had fought so hard to keep their magic. It struck him these were the terms Karl was willing to accept: death or magic. There would be nothing in between.A surge of anger rose up inside of him. Karl couldn’t give up at this point, because Stephen wouldn't either. They needed to fight through. Didn't the man know that?Stephen put the sphere down and watched the scene around him carefully. He knew that he would have access to magic if he needed it, but there was no way with his distance from Karl that they would both be able to escape through a portal without Karl being injured or killed. He didn’t want that.After sizing up his options, Stephen put his hands up, letting let himself be taken.They were then taken to a different place, underground this time, where they were once again thrown in to the space with very little consideration to their comfort. The look of defeat on Karl’s face when the room was lit nearly crushed him, because a lack of faith in them would make the next part even harder, whatever's the next part may be. The only comforting thought he had was at that least they were safe. Once again their captors didn’t kill or torture them, and Stephen couldn’t help but wonder why. That was the most pressing question on his mind at the moment. They had another chance, and he was grateful, but it seemed as if they had no reason to be alive.“You should have left me,” Karl finally said with a touch of dramatics that he so often fell back on in these moments.“And possibly not get my magic back? Don’t want to risk it,” he replied, weakly smiling.Still, he was past that, even if Karl felt the need to dwell.“Why haven’t they killed us?” Stephen asked, pushing forward as they needed to do.They shared a moment of silence. Surely the sorcerer holding them knew at this point Karl and Stephen would not give up. Time and time again, Stephen came back to the idea that it would be easier just to get rid of them.It took a few minutes before they started to brainstorm together.“They need us for something,” Karl ventured.“They don’t know what we're capable of, nor do they want to tell us or ask us anything.”“You don’t need cooperation for a sacrifice.”Stephen stopped and froze to think about it. This place felt dark. It would not be out of the realm of possibility, and with the liquid they were given the day before in the stead of water, it heightened Stephen’s suspicions. Yet, he knew it could be something else entirely or what he though it might be before, something mundane to drink.“I know they talk of curses, but what if it’s nothing to do with dark magic or a ritual.”“That sorcerer is possessive of that relic, and we both know they most likely killed that whole village, even if we have no proof. There is no way that thing burned an entire village down alone, no matter how powerful a curse may be.”Stephen frowned as a million thoughts ran through his head. It was one possibility of many, and he went silent thinking about which ones were most likely. They were trapped now. The only way out was the way they went in. All he could do was think.“We should fight our way out, portal away, and then come back with reinforcements,” Karl said suddenly, likely out of frustration.Stephen looked at him the best he could in the dim lighting and frowned.“We’ll be overpowered, most likely wounded, and there's no guarantee that we will be able to get back with or without reinforcements.”“Well what else do you suggest we do?”He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. It was not a question easily answered, because he had no idea. Would it be better to stay and fight or move on and regroup?It was at that moment fear gripped his heart, something he had experienced before -memories of flying to Titan flashing before his eyes. This time he didn’t have a time stone, he didn’t have easy access to his magic. Yet, it was still that same panic of not knowing which was the better option, even if he couldn’t show his panic now or then.“We’re going to get that relic, and we’re going to get it before going back,” Stephen replied.He frowned once again. It could be done as long as they were smart about it, were able to cast the right spells, and make the right decisions. Really, he had defeated a few of the worst threats in the galaxy. This was nothing as long as he started thinking out of the box. Mentally he kept coming back to the fact that he didn’t have the same access to things, but now he was slowly starting to explore the idea that the restrictions they did have were just small obstacles. Taking a few tools out of a tool box did not leave you with nothing to work with.It was at that point he realized Karl need to be on the same page as him. Both as a plan and in spirit as well. The best way to do that would to be to actually take him through Stephen's thought process.“What spell can we use to incapacitate a number of people in an area without us being affected?” Stephen asked.Karl perked his head up from it’s low hung position, realizing that what Stephen was asking was an important question, furthering their quest. It wasn’t like a fairytale where they could make all of them sleep, but there were ways to freeze others or neutralize them. Normally those types of spells worked only on one or a few people, but he may have not been able to pull from his memory some of the more obscure ones. Not because he didn't remember them, but because of the overwhelming number of spells that he did remember. He would have to go through the pros and cons of each, and that took a while. After coming back, things were not as they once were, including him being distracted by many of the problems they were having.“It depends on how many. Normally there are no less than 6 with us at any time. But they are clustered together fairly closely in groups of two or three, except for the the leader.”Stephen nodded. With the delay of pulling magic, it would be tough to focus their energies on two groups. He stayed quiet as Karl reached onto his belt and pulled off his sling ring.“If we distract one group, we can send the other somewhere else. Although we won't be able to get back to earth, we can at least get to the where the intergalactic courts are. From there I know a sorceress.”Stephen nodded at Karl’s idea. They would need to do it in a place that did not prohibit the use of magic, but it could be done if they made a distraction. From there they discussed the details further, going over the problems and possible solutions.It was all guess work, but they couldn't not do it. After going through quite a few different possibilities, the only question that remained were questions they could not answer: When and How?Again, it was a waiting game, something he had a hard time with. He always wanted to be proactive, and he knew Karl felt similarly. Over the past years he had to learn to be patient, but it was never easy, even if it were easier than before.They had nothing else to say after, and sat back against the wall on opposite sides of the room, barely able to see each other. Stephen’s mind gave up on their problem completely, instead retracing his path to this moment, as he so often did. His family's death, his rise to the top of the neurosurgical world, his downfall and subsequent rise from the ashes as a sorcerer, then his recent literal rise from the ashes. He didn’t care at this point if it ended, but he did want it to go on. Something about approaching all of those terrible things over and over again had numbed him in some ways, but striving to survive and do good only became stronger with each event.Round and round his thoughts went, until finally the door opened and for a flash of a second he was able to see the sorcerer they had been held captive by entered.Then everything went black.When he awoke, he was alone in the same place as before, but Karl was gone, causing him to silently panic. Had they talked too freely and were being watched? Did they know what they were planning and decided to separate them? Did they know Karl and Stephen didn’t have their own magic by this point?His head hurt from whatever had hit him, most likely one of the blunt objects the villagers had carried with them. It hurt a lot more the more aware he became, and when he felt his head there was tenderness and a bump. The dimly lit hole he was in seemed a lot darker than before. He wasn’t quite sure if it was a trick of his mind or if it were truly darker. He would have to keep mind of any side effects he was suffering, but it didn't seem as it was as severe as it could have been. He could function, the skin wasn't broken, and even though there was swelling it was not as alarming large as it could have been.He sat up again, trying to ignore his bladder, his dry throat, and stomach pains in addition to his other pains. Stroking his lifeless cloak, he started to fear for Karl and himself. As long as they were together, it would be okay, but now they were seperated. Curling his knees to his chest, he tried to block out all those negative thoughts that his brain was throwing at his emotions.Stephen waited for quite a while before the door opened once again. The sorcerer from before stepped in, and Stephen stood up, his eyes narrowing on the being.“Where is Karl?” he demanded to know.The being looked confused.“Oh, your companion? We needed information.”“Where is he?”“Not here.”“I demand some answers,” Stephen snapped.“You’re not in a position to do so.”With a clap, Stephen found himself surrounded by a bunch of guards. He knew it would do no good to fight it, so he let himself be taken out. The brightness of the day told him he had been out for quite a while, even if time didn't work the same here as it did in their dimension. It was hard to adjust. The colors seemed brighter, and the air seemed thicker than before.When he did manage to focus his eyes and his mind from the sudden visual onslaught, he tapped on his cloak, whispering to it to go find Karl when he gave the signal. Thankfully, the only one who could understand him was far enough behind that he would not have noticed. It would have seemed like Stephen would have been talking to himself. He worried about Karl, and wondered if he was going to meet the same fate, whatever that fate may be.Then they turned to go to a part of the village Stephen had not been in before, to one of the tent like structures on the outskirts.Before he could be shoved back into what he assumed was another building devoyed of magic, he tussled and struggled. His cloak fell to the ground at the signal and played dead, as it had the good sense to understand the grave nature of their situation. Being that they had not really seen it in action, they thought nothing of it.After being hit twice on his shoulder and back, he was thrown into the brightly lit room with a table, chairs, and various decorations. He was surprised; this place seemed very welcoming had he not been thrown into one of the chairs and bound to it. Here he could feel that he would be able to use magic, if he could only access his magic. It was at that point he knew the sorcerer knew that he and Karl were dependent on one another.“Tell me, what does the Vishanti want with this?” They asked, rounding upon Stephen.“I don’t know.”“You lie. Maybe you did not inform your companion, but you know.”“No, I don’t. They only told us to retrieve it.”Stephen stared him down, trying to impress upon them that he truly did not know. The expression he received back told him he was not believed at all.“We need it so that I can regain my position within my sect. I don’t know what the Vishanti wants with it, but do you really think you can stop them from getting it? Even if you kill us, they will still come after it.”“That’s why you're not dead.”It made sense. Kill them and eventually the Vishanti would send another -whoever the next Supreme was or whomever called on the Vishanti again. Stephen frowned, but he knew he was finally believed. Uncertainty still remained in his future, even if his safety was guaranteed for now.“Where is Karl?”“Elsewhere.”“Take me to him.”The sorcerer took a great stride towards Stephen, but did not cast a spell or make to hit him as he thought they would. The being only smiled at him, coming close to his face. Something about the way he did it brought back the memory of Maw; the twisted, yet calm response nearly identical although they looked nothing alike. He held steady as he forced the memory out of his mind.“What are you going to do with us?” Stephen finally asked, knowing he was never going to get an answer about Karl.“Strip you of your magic and sell you off. However, in order to do that, we will have to right what is wrong with you.”“You can’t fix this.”It looked as the sorcerer found out about their problem and this confirmed that. He knew they didn’t possess their own magic, and it would not be possible to strip them of others magic -a small miracle in the grand scheme of things.Stephen couldn’t help but laugh at the situation, and the sorcerer narrowed his eyes. Then something happened that surprised Stephen. For all their planing and efforts, it was his cloak that came to the rescue. Breaking through the window, it wrapped itself around the head of the sorcerer as it did to Lucian all those years ago, right before Karl burst in after it. He could have never predicted when or how things would end, and it was surprising how instinctively he knew what to do. It looked like ballet with how easily and gracefully Karl cast the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak before the sorcerer fell to the floor. The cloak would not stop it’s assault until the sorcerer stopped struggling. Stephen just hoped they weren't dead. When Karl released him with the help of a spell, he confirmed that the being was only unconscious rather than dead.Turning to Karl, he asked, “Why didn’t we do that before?”“There were too many of them before. We only had to take out two guards and this one.”“We?”“It’s quite an extraordinary relic,” Karl replied softly.He smirked in agreement. It seemed that his relic was very special given that it now knew the difference between a chokehold versus a strangling, forever learning how to work within Stephen’s world.“What should we do now?” Stephen asked as his cloak returned to his shoulders.“Bring him to the courts and have them sort it out. First the relic though. I think we should have no problems now that we have our magic.”Stephen nodded, and tried to focus on what needed to be done.Casting an illusion upon Karl, Stephen stayed behind with his cloak and watched the unconscious sorcerer before Karl came back with the sphere. It gave off a small glow unlike what they had seen before, but it wasn’t threatening. It felt more like it was absorbing energy. Looking upon it, it did seem different to how it had been described in writings, and Stephen figured that would be something for the Vishanti to figure out.“Did you run into any trouble?” Stephen asked.Karl shook his head as Stephen took the orb with some help from the cloak. He then opened a portal, and they moved the sorcerer through it. Making sure they erased traces of where they were going, they closed the portal as they stared up at the steps to the buildings to the interdimensional courts. With as much hospitality as they had been shown, they gift wrapped the sorcerer and left a note attached to his figure.It felt odd to do such things, but they really couldn’t waste much too much time. They had just enough energy to get back to the Sanctum, but without any more to spare. Karl had suggested they seek out his sorceress friend when they were dropping off the sorcerer who had imprisoned them, but Stephen wanted this to be over.They also weren't sure if anyone else would come after them for the relic. If they were on their home territory, it would be easier to fend off any challengers.When they got home, they looked at each other and the object. There was a sense of dread that started to well up inside Stephen. The moment was coming where things would return to normal, and they would have to go their separate ways, or Stephen would be able to stay. He started to regret making that deal with Karl. He didn’t want to leave, but he knew if he didn’t have the other sorcerer and the sorcerers at Kamar-Taj on board, he would have to leave all the same. After all they had been through, Stephen knew he needed them just as much as they needed him, even if they didn’t know it. He still knew his value and wouldn't make light of that.“It’s done,” Stephen sighed.“Yes, it’s best to rest and then go see the Vishanti tomorrow.”“And after?” He turned his gaze to meet Karl’s again.“We will get there when we get there,” Karl replied ominously.Stephen closed his eyes as he turned to go to back to his area of the Sanctum. The walk felt longer, his body felt heavier, and his head hurt from the lack of water and the bump that was there.He first used the restroom, making sure he drank a few of glasses of water after washing his hands. After checking his head out to make sure there were no serious changes to the surface, he then stripped his clothes off to take a bath. He was dirty and everything ached: his body, his mind, and even his heart. In some ways he felt like he had made a lot of breakthroughs with Karl, but to hear his response to his question of if he could stay was hard to hear. There was always something a little too good to be true, and the sting had been harder to deal with on top of him feeling exhausted.After sitting in the bath water for quite some time, he sat up and hunched over himself with a sigh before sinking back into the very dirty water. When he looked down, he cringed then drained it out and filled it again; water waste be damned. He needed to be clean.The second time it filled up with him in it, things started to change within himself. It felt like everything that had happened started to settle in his heart and soul. The weight of the worries he had washed away like the dirt of their journey. He’d be okay. They did this, and really, there were others out there he could help, even if he wasn’t with Kamar-Taj anymore. He would miss this place, as it did feel like a part of him, but he wasn’t defined by it. He wouldn’t allow himself to be defined by it. It was a stepping stone on his way to other things.Getting up and out of the water after it had turned cold had been a more difficult than climbing in. He nearly passed out from the physical toll their task had taken, and knew he needed to get something to eat before retiring for the night.When he managed to stumble down the stairs and into the kitchen, he was surprised to see Wong and Karl sitting inside. Karl hadn’t washed yet, seemingly too engrossed in the conversation he was having. What was more interesting was how Wong met his eyes with fear in them. Stephen couldn’t turn back though. He needed to eat something.As he went to the cupboards to fetch some bread and peanut butter, Karl left when his back turned; the sound of the closing door being too hard to ignore. Many hours before, he was passed out on the floor of a foreign land, and now he was in the kitchen of the Sanctum with Wong once again. It felt a bit surreal.“He wants me to leave, doesn’t he?” Stephen finally asked, clearing his throat.“He’s confused, conflicted. I admit, I’m impressed you could shake his beliefs that much, but I would not be surprised if the conclusion he comes to is not in your favor.”A note of worry lay in Wong’s voice.“Yea, I’m preparing myself. I hope you won't forget me when I’m living on the streets.”Wong actually waited until Stephen turned back around to roll his eyes. Stephen laughed a hearty laugh; a great big -ha ! It helped relieve the tension he was feeling in his shoulders.“Did he tell you what happened?” Stephen asked with some hesitation.“Bits and pieces. Seems like your cloak is the most useful of the two of you.”Wong let out a snicker at his own joke after that, which cause Stephen to shrug and smile in response. It felt good to be back in this room with Wong.“I can’t deny that,” he finally responded.It did feel a bit embarrassing how it came out, but they achieved their goal, and Wong wasn’t one to hold that kind of thing against him. He knew just how dangerous it was out there, especially for two sorcerers who did not have access to all of their skills. They needed to take all the help they could get and go with the flow.“Whatever happens, Stephen, I want you to know you can come to me. I don’t think that you will be prevented from visiting at this point, and I wasn’t so sure of that before.”What little amusement he did have before dissipated with that statement, and he looked at Wong with worry in his face. There was a churning of his stomach that made him freeze for a moment. This was wrong in some ways, but he had to have some hope things would work out. After all, he and Karl had come a long way from where they began.“Thank you. I don’t have a lot of people I can turn to and trust with this sort of thing. I don’t say it as much as I should, but I am grateful for that,” Stephen said quietly.He went silent as he sat down to dig into his sandwich in front of him. There was a mutual understanding that things shouldn’t be disturbed at this point. Wong seemed just as worried for him as another person could be. They both wanted the same outcome, and as they had discussed before, they both knew Karl had developed a lot of sway over others during the period that they were gone.When he finished the sandwich he had made, he looked over at the other master, who was now studying his face.“I’ll be fine, except I need to go to bed,” Stephen replied.If he stayed in the kitchen any more with his friend, he didn’t know if any good would come from it. A good rest would be better than the exchanges they were having now, so he headed up the stairs to his room that wasn’t really his room. It may be the last night he was in the Sanctum for the rest of his life, and as much as he told himself it would be fine, it still did not keep the sadness at bay.It also did not help with his ability to sleep. Laying in bed, looking at the ceiling for quite a while, his mind was working overtime despite all of his physical woes that hit him before they even left the dimension they had been in.A knock on the door pulled him from his thoughts. He figured it was Wong, but when he told the person outside of it to come in, he was proven wrong.Karl closed the door behind him, leaning against the knob as if he were afraid to come any closer. Stephen sat up his bed, shirtless and feeling much more naked than he normally did when others had interrupted his sleep in the past. Something about the way Karl stood put him on edge; he looked like a cat that had been spooked.They stayed staring at one another for at least a minute, awkward and creating more tension than was necessary. Stephen was starting to wonder if it was an intimidation technique.“Before tomorrow,” Karl started, looking at him directly in his eyes,” I wanted to tell you that you won’t be welcomed back here after we are finished. However, I will not protest you coming back to Kamar-Taj. I don’t believe you should be a master of any sanctum, but you can be useful to us as long as you learn.”He held back from reacting negatively. Karl didn’t have the final say. Karl wasn’t the Sorcerer Supreme, and shouldn't act like it, but he knew Karl had come to this realization slowly and wanted to inform Stephen of his lack of opposition. They were more alike than not in some ways: patient to a point, quick to anger when upset, and slow to cool down.“Okay, I can live with that.”“Good. I appreciate your understanding.”Stephen could not hide his surprise, but the look Mordo was giving him was even more perplexing. The nervous energy from before changed to an intense stare; his eyes trying not to roam from Stephen’s face, but there was these little quick flicks of his gaze downward.It got weird, and Karl fled. Stephen didn’t know what to make of it as it happened so fast, much like everything else. The whole experience they went through with the Stephen coming back and the task by the Vishanti happened in a little over the span of a week, made each day seem like it were three or four. If he sat there and thought about it, it would have prevented him from sleeping that night. Instead, he cleared his mind, telling himself it could wait until the morning, and slept a deep sleep.Waking in the morning, he didn’t think about the exchange he had with Karl the night before either. He didn’t want to go down that path. Moving forward was much more important than going back. Today, they were going to the Himalaya’s and finally finishing this, severing their ties to one another.It was easy to rise from his bed and get ready, finding the two other masters in the study after breakfast. Karl had the relic in his hand and the blank expression on his face told Stephen it would be all business today. This was their last day together, and there was a bittersweet aftertaste to the thought. He would be glad to be going back to Kamar-Taj, getting his magic back, and finally stop arguing with Karl. Even if they had reduced their bickering considerably, it was hard to forget those first few days. Yet, he felt like they still had things they could work through, and their relationship could have become more stable with time. Karl would not be interested in that though, as he had made clear the night before.“Ready?” Stephen asked.Karl nodded before they said their goodbyes to Wong. Wong in return gave them both a look as if to say ‘good luck‘, even if he didn't say the words. Numbness filled Stephen's soul at that moment.It wasn't that big of a deal, but he knew the Vishanti were waiting for them to fulfill their end of the bargain. He wasn't sure how he felt about that. It took a great amount of effort, and although he was sure it was worth it, it seemed like a very big hassle for such a small item.They pressed forward, portaling back to the mountain where Stephen first summoned them. Like the last time, he did the ceremony, and they waited together. Unlike before, he was positive they would show, so they did not leave after.Waiting for the Vishanti in the cave, they passed the time in silence. Karl still had the relic in front of him; looking at it, but not touching. Stephen dared not to ask him about his thoughts or feelings, knowing that he may not like what he heard. From now on they were strictly coworkers of whom would rarely see each other. He had a feeling Karl would not want to waste the energy on dealing with him outside of that, even if Stephen felt otherwise. It was best to let sleeping dogs lie.Finally after four hours or so, Karl was the one to break the silence.“What is taking them so long?”“I don’t know. Maybe they are busy?”“This is the relic. It must be.”“It is.”They stopped speaking after their small exchange, until enough time had passed where both of them knew the Vishanti would not show. When they both were able to admit it, they headed back to New York. The Vishanti would find them when they were ready. Stephen got the message. But after they got back, he could not have guessed what they would come back to find. Wong stood in front of them in the foyer, waiting for them in the dead of night with a slip of paper in his hand. He looked at both of them with a curious expression before handing Karl the paper. The explosive shout of anger that happened after he did that startled both of them.“WHAT GAME ARE THEY PLAYING AT!?”Stephen stepped back in surprise as Wong mimicked his movement on the other side of Karl. The paper fell to the ground, crumpled into a ball, where Stephen picked it up to read it. Unfurling the message took a few seconds, and as his eyes traced the words, he could feel the blood rush from his face.Written in the same script as the summons he received the first time he had summoned the Vishanti, the paper said: We do not wish to receive tampered goods. Return the Katalyst of Kubic to its original state, and then we will summon you. There was no question who the paper was from. It was another setback in their journey, and all Stephen could do was watch in sympathy as Karl stomped up the stairs.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Wong sat with him in the kitchen again, both of them examining the object.“A curse embedded in the material?” He scoffed. Stephen nodded before Wong continued, “What are they doing?”There was no question Wong was referring to The Vishanti.“Trying to kill us?” Stephen laughed.“Not you, Karl maybe,” Wong joked.That was the thing that still got to him. It had been hours since they had seen Karl, clearly taking it badly, and Stephen didn’t know if it was due to the fact he wasn’t getting his magic back soon, or that he was going to be tied to Stephen for more time than he thought he was going to before. The man’s reaction had bothered him. Even if he felt frustrated, it didn’t mean forever. They would just have to remove the curse and that would be it. A few more steps and then they would be finished.“Do you think I should go talk to him?”“Do you really think he wants to see your face at this moment?”Wong had a point. Still, they would have to deal with one another while trying to remove this curse. He knew he should stay away for at least a few hours, but that little voice of doubt nagged at him. It told him to go check on Karl anyway. Wong’s glare told him otherwise; at this point he could guess the kind of things Stephen was thinking.“He’ll come around,” Wong said.“Not so sure, he was really gutted. And the sooner we finish this, the better it is for all of us.”“Well, it’s either come around to the idea or quit being a sorcerer, and he doesn’t know how to be anything else.”The sadness in his voice was more evident than it normally was, and they both went quiet. They had talked about this before, but this time it stung more. Stephen started to feel grateful that he was able to break out of the mold he had set for himself all those years ago. At the same time, he couldn’t forget that it was Karl and the Ancient One who helped him break out of it.His head seemed to be spinning with the onslaught of feelings from the memories. Quietly he sorted them in his mind, zoning out for a few minutes. Round and round he went, ultimately deciding to do something about it.  Wong wanted him to leave Karl alone, but Karl had not done that with him, and he figured it was time for a little payback. They were both truly more entangled with one another than it seemed at first glance.Getting up, he grabbed a tumbler and filled it with water. Then he grabbed a pack of crackers to take up to Karl. He was sure the man had eaten that day, but it was more of a peace offering than anything else -a symbolic gesture that he would try to take care of Karl as Karl once took care of him when he showed him around Kamar-Taj.Wong watched him as he did this with a slightly disapproving look upon his face. It was not out of the realm of possibility that he would not be welcomed, but at the same time he wouldn’t know until he tried. His common sense sometimes had been overridden by intuitive desires. In many circumstances it was a bad habit for people to have, but for him it worked out more often than not.Ignoring the other master in the kitchen, Stephen made his leave to head up to Karl’s room -Stephen’s old room.His hands always shook, but it wasn’t so much an issue anymore, figuring out how to get around some of the menial day to day tasks, like with the tumbler and crackers. Long ago he’d have a mug and maybe have taken some other kind of food, but now it was about the ease of transportation, becoming second nature to him. The way up the stairs to the room seemed like second nature, too. He had taken this exact path with these exact things in his hands quite a few times, and it helped put his mind at ease, counting the steps as he did so.When he knocked on the door that used to be his, he waited for a moment, but no answer came: no positive nor negative. He repeated his action and waited again. Again, no answer came. Cautiously he opened the door, planning on just leaving the stuff on the side table or the vanity that should be in the room. He slinked inside seeing that Karl, still fully clothed, was curled up with his back to the door, most likely sleeping. Stephen quietly put down what he had brought, but did not venture any closer to the man until he heard a weak voice, “You can’t leave well enough alone.”“You know me,” Stephen replied with slightly sad humor to it.Against better judgement, he went and sat on the bed by the man. Karl’s back still facing Stephen as he sat down. Their eyes didn’t meet as Karl was staring at the wall, but Stephen couldn’t help but look down at his form, looking like a sulking child with his hands near his face.“Look, it won’t take that long to lift the curse, even if it’s harder than it is with people.”He knew there were more complicated factors involved.“The Vishanti are doing this on purpose. They could lift it if they wanted to, but instead they are punishing you and me. Why me, I have no idea.”His voice was cold, devoid of anger or sadness. It felt like he had a good cry or emotional release after the frustrated shouting in the foyer. The pain was still there, Stephen knew that, but it lay dormant inside him for now. Ripping the access off to Karl’s magic was more punishment for Karl than Stephen not being able to access his own magic. He had survived nearly 40 years before now without magic; for Karl it was a much shorter time.“I’m sorry. If I had known, I think I would have done things differently.”Karl shifted to look at Stephen, twisting so their eyes could meet.“You do before you think, and others pay the price for it.”There was a moment of silence. It wasn’t always true, but the situations they had been in, Stephen only could be reactionary. The suddenness seemed to throw Karl for a loop each time, and Karl wasn’t exactly wrong with what Karl had seen. Their brief time fighting side by side more often than not seem to wind up with some sort of casualty. Yet, he had been a student for most of that.Sensing there was something more to the statement, Stephen had to ask, “Do you want to stop?”“Yes… No… I don’t know. I wish everything would stop being so hard. You have no idea the turmoil we had gone through after everyone started to disappear. Then to have this afterward. I thought I would die a sorcerer in some battle as so many had or grow old in Kamar-Taj like Master Hamir.”Karl sounded tired or possibly going through a midlife crisis. He curled back the position he was in before, and Stephen turned so that he was facing forward, his arms resting on his thighs.Accidentally dragging Karl into this mess was not what he had intended, but he had to acknowledge it. At the same time, Karl had seemingly backed him into a corner. Now he could see the other paths, but back when he summoned The Vishanti he had been desperate.“I will fix this, unless you don’t want me to.”“I have nothing else, Stephen,” he remarked, once again shifting sharply on the bed.Stephen looked over, and absent mindedly put his hand on Karl’s arm. They didn’t move, but there was something that settled between them. This felt intimate in a way that Stephen had not felt in a very long time. They danced around one another at this point, figuring out how to fit together at least in concerning this. It felt though that this moment between them now was very personal.“You have your spirit, and you’re clever. Not to mention you’re fit, too. You could have quite a lot if you wanted, opening your mind. I’m sure they’d let you stay here if you wanted to leave.”“I’m not a beggar by any means.”“Didn’t say that. So the real question is: Are you in or are you out? You don’t have to answer right away, but we need to get working on this soon if you’re in.”Stephen went quiet, looking back over at the items he had put on the table. It was such a familiar sight, but it was different from before, most likely because there were small objects on the table. They were nothing grand: a small box most likely containing some personal items, and some bottles containing liquids.“Of course I’m in,” Karl grumbled.For a minute it had been an uncertainty, but it seemed that the mood had lifted a little after Karl said it.“We’re in this together then,” Stephen replied with a half smile.“I guess.” Karl’s soft tone had a note of relief. They had been doing this together for a while, but now that they were actually truly working together on the same page, it seemed to hit them both. Only when they had rested did it sink in.Stephen could laugh with how hard it had been to get to this point, but he didn’t. Instead, he got up, retrieved the things he had brought, and put them in Karl’s view to offer them. Karl sat up and took the tumbler, side eyeing the crackers Stephen had brought. He continued to look at them as he drank probably about half of the water Stephen had brought. When he put it down, his eyes met Stephen’s.“How do you even eat those things. They’re bright orange.”“They’re cheese crackers. Couldn’t spring for the brand name, but they’re good.”“They are neon.”Stephen laughed a single laugh. They weren’t neon, even if they weren’t a natural color. They tasted fine. He had no idea that Karl would be so picky, so he opened the bag of crackers up himself with some difficulty and popped two in his mouth in quick succession. Karl looked at him in disgust.“Don’t be eating in my bed.”Stephen rolled his eyes before licking one of his fingers, startling Karl. Closing the ziplock of the bag, he crossed his arms defensively, but still respected the man’s wishes.“Was never really your bed. It’s technically Kamar-Taj’s.”There was a teasing tone to Stephen's words, wanting to cheer them both up. They were so serious most of the time, and it took its toll on them. Out of the corner of his eye Stephen could see that Karl was amused by him, maybe for the first time since they had seen one another outside of Kamar-Taj. Their end in Hong Kong had been so firy and it had continued up until this moment. With it disappearing bit by bit, it was starting to feel like it did back then. The small smiles Karl would give him in his early days as a student had a chance of returning, and that made Stephen feel more comfortable than before.“You should go. I think I need some rest. This day has truly taken its toll,” Karl said softly.Stephen nodded, tucking his bag of not-really-neon orange cheese crackers under his arm. He didn’t take the tumbler, leaving it for Karl, and stopped himself from looking back when he left. Heading down the stairs, he thought about retiring as well, but really he wanted to get going on trying to determined what the hell kind of curse was on this relic. The Vishanti had told them it was tampered with, and he was wondering what kind of tampering it could have been. The sorcerer from the dimension they had traveled to had said it was embedded into the materials. One of those things were true, but not both of them. If the material had a curse embedded into it, it would not have been tampered with and would be part of the design of it. The Vishanti would know this. At the same time he would not have put it past The Vishanti to be messing with them once again. It really did seem like they were punishing Stephen for summoning them the more he thought about it.Walking into the library, he saw Wong was picking out a book from the shelves. He looked at Stephen with an enquiring expression before his eyes fell to the bag of cheese crackers. Stephen tossed them over to Wong, who barely caught them with a book in his hands. They were lucky they didn't burst open and spill out, leaving both of them to clean their possible mess out.“Nice. You won’t catch him eating these though. He’s a bit of a snob about food.”“Yea, I noticed. Well, things are a little smoother now. I’m glad I did that, but it’s time to really get to work.”Wong re-opened up the bag after putting down the book and offered a few to Stephen. Stephen took some while looking at the spines of the books in front of him. He wasn’t quite sure where to start as there were a lot of spells that were curses, those that were not curses but could be used as curses, and some magic that was inherently dark when used with its original purpose but not quite a curse. He also could not fully rule out that there wasn’t something to the materials it was made from, where in altering it could produce a negative reaction once he began to think about it. It would not be a curse though, just a reaction like vinegar meeting baking soda.He would have to get the artifact and examine it again, read up on the circumstances that they had written about while they had been tracing it. The images of the burned village kept popping up in his brain, and the way that the ground had felt still lingered in those memories. It wasn’t as vivid as the magic would be on Earth, but it was still there.It would be easier if he had it in front of him, and if he did some diagnostic tests on it, but he would have to wait for Karl to do that. Karl needed some rest and relaxation. If Stephen pushed him too much it would backfire.Pulling tens of books off of the shelf and putting them on the desk, he had forgotten about his dirty fingers until he caught Wong glaring at him. Thankfully, there were some tissues off to the side that he used to clean his hands and the spines up, and that was when he saw it. Someone or something had moved the relic to the shelf off to the side from the alcove at the top of the stairs. He turned to Wong.“Did you move that?”“Yes, it shouldn’t be left out in the open in a place like the kitchen. Besides, I figure you’ll need all the help you can get.”Stephen's eyebrows raised in response. This was the first time in a while Wong was offering to help out. Then again Wong couldn’t have gone with them to a different dimension and leave the Sanctum unguarded. He also knew that Wong had gotten pretty tired of their bickering in the beginning as Stephen had become fed up with it as well. Now that things were better, it would be best if they had an extra hand in research.“Thanks,” Stephen responded.“The quicker this is finished the better. The two of you are going to manage to destroy all of Kamar-Taj at this rate if I don’t help.”Stephen laughed, knowing Wong only half meant his complaint. Sure enough, soon after he said it Wong started to look through the books Stephen had pulled out, pulling some of them out of the stack.“These are redundant. The original texts I can send for from Kamar-Taj, and they are comprehensive. You also need to tell me what exactly you are looking for.”Stephen sighed as he started to lay out what they knew, and what he was guessing at. It felt odd to do it without Karl, but he was grateful to have a neutral sounding board. Wong didn’t respond in the beginning, considering what Stephen was saying. Eventually he pulled more books out. It seemed that he too was perplexed.It was at that point Stephen remembered Wong could do the diagnostics on it and asked him to do so. That mistake they came to regret directly after the spell was cast. As soon as magic hit the sphere, fire started to travel out from the bottom, like creatures scurrying out from under an overturned rock. It danced in front of them, and Wong tried to contain it with more magic only to find that it started to spread to the shelves. Stephen looked around, finding a vase of flowers and quickly threw the water in it upon the fire. It seemed to put some of it out, and then he threw some of the pillows on it, smothering the rest of it. Wong did the same, conjuring some water from some unseen source and putting more cloth upon it. They managed to stop it after a few minutes, but already the damage was more extensive than what they could have predicted.When they managed to make sure the fire was all put out, Stephen and Wong looked at one another.“I don’t think that this supposed curse is the only danger about this thing. The fire seemed like a defense mechanism, and this is not going to be easy for us to remove,” Wong stated.By the time they managed to clean up the liquid and ash that was all over the floor, they heard the door creak open. They turned in reaction to the sound, even though they knew it was Karl. His eyes roamed from them to the floor, widening when he saw the damage. Stephen felt guilty after that. It was definitely not his intention to wake Karl or summon him with fire.“It apparently doesn’t like magic,” Wong said with a bit of humor.“No it doesn't. You’re lucky it didn’t explode or worse.”“It was just a diagnostics test.”Karl gave that same look of surprise and shock they had on their face minutes before. It was not the type of magic that would provoke such a reaction. It also meant they would have to remove the defensive spell it with other means.“We will have to take this to Daimon,” Karl stated.“You could take this to Jericho, and you know that,” Wong sharply chided.That threw Stephen a little. He had forgotten about his exchange with Jericho before and how Jericho informed him of Karl’s visit. It also made him recall the sense he got there was something between Jericho and Karl that was not right, and it wasn’t just the fact that Karl had come bearing the belated news of Daniel’s death that Wong had already informed Jericho of.“Since you nearly set the library on fire, it would be better to take it to Daimon,” Karl snapped back.“This fire and Soulfire is entirely different, and you know it. Swallow your pride for once.”Karl looked at Stephen for help. Wong also looked at Stephen to back him up, and Stephen was now put in this awkward position of having to choose between someone he was tied to magically and his friend. This was a very unexpected bump in their road, and he found himself on edge because of it. He only hoped Wong would understand as he opened his mouth.“We can try to go to this Daimon first. No harm in that,” He ventured slowly.Then there was that pissed off face Wong had when he thought Stephen was being an idiot, and he took the non-verbal criticism in stride. Maybe he was being stupid, but he couldn’t help it. He did not know of Daimon, but judging from Wong’s reaction, he wasn’t sure if that was the kind of person they would want to go to.Wong left in a huff, and Stephen knew he’d have to help smooth that out later. Karl sunk into the sofa off to the side and Stephen decided to join him, needing a rest from what had just transpired. It wasn’t as if it were intentional. Everyone was being pushed to the breaking point by the task The Vishanti had sent them on.Tilting his head back, he sighed a loud sigh.“You weren’t helping there.”“No, but we can’t go to Jericho.”“Why? At least tell me that.”Karl didn’t answer for a long while, and Stephen about had it with the secrets. The way Stephen snapped his head back up, and curled up his hands to the point where they hurt probably gave Karl a clue that he was almost done with all of it.“Daniel and I were involved before he died, and I-” he stopped.So that was it and put into perspective some of the things that had happened in the past. Karl had really been dragged to the edge that day the Ancient One died. No wonder he had reacted so poorly, this adding another layer. Jericho was also most likely pissed Karl had not been the one to tell him of his brother’s death.In response to the news and the clear guilt that radiated off of the other man, Stephen put his hand upon Karl’s. Karl didn’t flinch away, but brought his other hand up to his face. Clearly, Wong knew about them, but had never told Stephen. Granted it was not anyone’s place to discuss another master’s personal life; no one knew anything about his lack of one at the moment, and only a few times did he venture to talk about past relationships with Wong. Wong was the only one he would talk about those things with.“If it comes to it, we will go to Jericho, but I would like to avoid it if at all possible.”Suddenly Karl turned to Stephen with an odd expression on his face. It caused a bit of panic in him, wondering if he should give some sort of half hug that he was often forced into by patients families. Debating on whether he should or shouldn’t hug Karl took a long time, and before he could lean in, Karl turned himself enough so that it would be too awkward at this point. Their hands still touched, forgotten as Karl kept his gaze despite turning his body. They exchanged a look with Karl looking calm and almost dream-like.Stephen jumped up when he realized what was going on. Normally, he wasn’t this slow on the uptake, but with everything else going on he hadn’t recognized the unsaid truth that was buried deep between them, something his heart knew long before his head. Karl turned once again so that his side leaned against the sofa. Stephen could tell he was trying not to give away his thoughts and feelings.“I think I need to go smooth things over with Wong,” Stephen said, trying to steady his voice.“Maybe it's best if you do that.”The note of disappointment that lingered in Karl’s response uneased him, and he fled, but at a normal pace. He didn’t want to give any wrong impressions. Running his hand through his hair, he had no intention of going to seek out Wong at that moment. Instead he went back to his rooms, and sat on his bed going over all those little weird things that had piled up between them over the last few days: Karl being scared to look at him the night before when he told Stephen he could stay at Kamar-Taj, their very calm and intimate conversation regarding the continuation of their quest, and then this. This was the something that he felt as well. It was not just friendly, it had crossed over to the point of being more than that.He couldn’t help but wonder if it all had been out of loneliness on both of their parts. Or was the sudden surge of affection and lust coming upon him caused by them being tied together by their magic? It couldn’t be ruled out.All he knew was he wanted Karl to look at him like that again. He wanted to hold Karl’s hand and put his other one on Karl’s thigh, and he wanted to lean in to finish what he had thought of doing minutes earlier, but more than a hug. The emotion Karl had been showing him made him a little more uncomfortable, but when that little spark blew what lay between them wide open, he tried to tell himself that it was natural.With a thud, he fell back on the bed knowing they were in deep shit for feeling this way. They had a job to be done, and Karl seemed from the way he told Stephen about Daniel he hadn’t quite worked through everything either. It would have been wrong to take advantage, and they both needed to take a breath before regrouping. Stephen didn’t know if they would talk about it, but a little time resting should help them before they embarked to go visit this person Karl and Wong talked of.Wong. That was the next thing he had to tackle. Although he had been on the receiving end of sharp words from Wong before, he had never seen anyone else chastised in such a way. Remembering how he told Karl to swallow his pride startled Stephen. Stephen knew Wong was at the end of his rope the way that he said it. That thought was what propelled him to get up and go find the man.There were only four rooms that they stayed in normally, and since Wong was definitely not in the library, he was most likely in the kitchen or the study. Wong never retired to his bed earlier than midnight, so he probably not there.The kitchen was the heart of the home as his grandmother would tell him as a youngster, and Stephen had come to think of it as their place -the place him and Wong would always go to to kick their feet up and connect with one another with casual conversation. There was something very comforting in that, like he was part of Stephen’s family. Maybe they had gotten to that point, with all the drama feeling beyond what would be acceptable in a traditional office. Even his most high strung days of cutting open people’s heads never lead to such utter chaos.Sure enough, Wong was sitting in the kitchen with a cup of tea and some of the crackers from before in front of him. He must have taken them with him.Stephen walked over putting his hand down on the table so that Wong looked up at him, irritation crossing his expression.“You should go to Jericho,” He said. Stephen stayed quiet knowing that more was coming, “Just because he feels guilty or something to that effect, doesn’t mean he should sabotage your chances.”Stephen was touched by his concerned.“I don’t know. The way Jericho talked when I saw him last, it almost seemed as they had some sort of falling out.”“Jericho never liked Karl to begin with. He was clingy and needy compared to the people Daniel had dated before, and Karl, he just can’t seem to keep his -” Wong went silent.Whatever he was going to say wasn’t going to be very nice. Normally Wong didn’t talk about others in such a way, but whatever had happened when Stephen was a student or before then seemed to have really gnawed at Wong. It could have been that this was also taking a toll on the man as it was with Stephen and Karl. They were still doing everything in secret, those at Kamar-Taj none the wiser.“It’s water under the bridge. Daimon will not be able to help you. You should be careful as well. There are reasons why we don’t associate with him often,” Wong warned.“Let’s humor Karl’s idea this once. We need as much help as we can get, besides you’re always scolding me about how much I do have to learn. This is just another learning opportunity.”Wong pressed his mouth together, the thin line as severe as Stephen had seen in quite a while. He seemed satisfied with Stephen’s answer, not able to counter-argue it, even if he didn’t like it. Most of the time when tempers did flare they would get into it and one of them would quietly storm off to cool down, but they seemed to do that less and less these days. These were now motions in the ocean of routine instead of sudden storms popping up.“Who is this Daimon anyways?” Stephen asked.“Satana’s brother.”Stephen recoiled just a little. He knew of Satana. Every sorcerer knew of her. She was a Black Magic user, daughter of Satan, although there were disputes to that claim. He had not known she had a brother, but it revealed one reason why Wong had warned them against going to see Daimon. Why Karl would want to go visit the brother of Satana, no matter his skills, made Stephen hesitate for a moment.“I know what you’re thinking, and no, he’s not affiliated with his sister or father, but there are ramifications that can happen if you are being watched by his relations. Entangling yourself with one member of the family may bring both of your ruin down upon you in the end. It’s one reason why we don’t associate with him normally. There have been instances, but some of them have gone south.”“And you’re extra worried because The Vishanti are involved with this.” Wong nodded before Stephen continued, “If Satana or their father get ahold of this, it may cause more damage than expected. We might not even get the artifact to them or our magic back.”Wong’s silence told him that his assumption was correct.It was all becoming a little more clearer why Wong had protested so strongly. Now Stephen had a choice to make, his heart or his head. Would they have to take two steps back in order to go forward right when Karl and him were getting on the same page? He wasn’t sure, but he couldn’t in good consciousness not weigh the options and try to bring Karl around to see sense over emotions. Now, how to do that was something he would have to ponder for some time.Stephen sat and poured himself a cup of tea, knowing it was going to be a long night.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Portaling into New Orleans, a place he had only visited once before for a conference, had been easier said than done. He could tell that Karl wasn’t completely satisfied with their compromise, but it would have to do for now. They would leave the artifact in New York until Stephen knew it would be safe to trust Daimon and that Daimon would actually be able to help them. No matter how quickly they wanted it to be over, they had to do this safely, and that was the argument he had gone with when discussing it with Karl. Thankfully, common sense always won out once the emotional reactions were over.The two of them didn’t mention anything about their encounter the night before as they discussed their options with the relic in the morning. It may have been a moment of weakness, and Stephen figured it be better to let sleeping dogs lie for now. This was top priority.Stepping out of the portal into the hot, muggy streets, Stephen looked over at his partner, waiting for Karl to lead the way. Karl told him before that he knew exactly where to find every sorcerer known to their kind that were on Earth. Stephen had heard about how long ago the Ancient One would bring Karl along to train him up, and she insisted that he familiarize himself with all those who could be allies or enemies of their sect. Stephen couldn’t help but wonder if she had been grooming him for something bigger before Stephen had entered the pictures. There were lots of questions now that he understood some of the things that he had no clue about a few years before, like seeing all the possibilities of the future. With the time stone gone now, he started to sorely miss it, as it had been a useful tool in eliminating a bunch of those question.Karl moved quick considering they were not dressed for the weather. It was surprising how fast he did move as it was a little hard to keep up for Stephen. It didn’t help that his cloak seemed to be dragging in the weather as well. The humidity was not it’s friend.Eventually, they went down a side street somewhere in the Warehouse District. Before they even could knock on the door, it opened to reveal a shirtless, tattooed man with fiery red hair. His hair matched his sharp expression, his eyes narrowed in suspicion and dislike. With how fast the door had opened, Stephen wondered if he could see they were coming, like they watched those who approached them in their own viewing mirror.“Mordo,” He greeted.“Hellstrom,” Karl responded cooly.It was very curt until Daimon broke into a big grin, pulling Karl into a hug. That was a piece of information that Wong clearly had not been privileged to. They seemed a lot friendlier than Karl was with many people. Although he was civil and kind, Stephen never saw Karl hug anyone else. He was always very isolated physically, much like most others were in Kamar-Taj. Stephen wondered how the two of them came to be that way when Wong made it sound like most were wary to interact with this sorcerer standing front of them.He tried to ignore it as they were invited in, but he found it hard.“What brings you here?” Daimon asked.“We have a new relic in our posession, but when we tried to run a diagnostic spell, fire spilled out from it. We had to put it out with water as the fire only grew with magic,” Karl summarized.Stephen watched them, trying to see Daimon’s character through his interactions with Karl. Even with his lack of clothing on his upper body, Karl seemed at ease with him. Stephen crossed his arms as he listened to them. Already he didn’t like Daimon.“Sounds like a type of Wildfire used as a defense mechanism. There are a few different kinds, but one triggered with such low level magic is interesting. What’s the relic?”As Karl explained what they were dealing with, Stephen looked around at the house. It was oddly barren except for a few decorations and wooden furniture painted dark like mahogany, but clearly not something as sturdy or expensive. There were little questions that popped up into his head as he half listened to the conversation. Although Daimon seemed okay, it was a bit curious that Karl would be friends with someone who seemed to be much less rigid with the use of magic. They talked about dark, Black Magic -a conversation he would have not expect Karl to have so much knowledge of. Daimon had some thoughts on what kind of curse may be lurking under the defensive magic that was placed on it, thinking of curses that would go well with Wildfire. All of that was pure speculation though.Stephen started to feel irritated by the way that Karl was looking and smiling at Daimon. This was not a light matter. For the way that he had given Stephen such strife when he returned to Earth and they had to work together, to see him at ease with this other, dark sorcerer was starting to get under his skin. This man, Daimon, didn’t even have enough self-respect to wear a shirt while talking with them.“Okay, so you can tell us how to remove the Wildfire?” Stephen interjected.They turned to look at him, shocked that he would interrupt their chat.“It’s best if I do it. You’re gonna need something a little more heavy than what Karl likes to dabble in.”“Black Magic?” Stephen asked.“Black Magic can only be destroyed with Black Magic. You can fight it with Neutral or White Magic, but to destroy it-”He knew that. He didn’t need it explained to him.“So we should go get the Katalyst. I’ll open the portal and you can go get it,” He suggested to Karl.Karl looked at him, narrowing his eyes.“Why don’t you get it, and I can explain things a bit more to Daimon here?” Karl retorted.The tension between him and the other pair increased, and he was starting to understand why Wong didn’t like this guy either. There was something that rubbed Stephen the wrong way with how he talked so nonchalantly about using Black Magic. With his ties to it, it seemed more dangerous than not.For a moment he thought about arguing, but instead knew that it would cause more trouble than what it would be worth. He nodded as Karl pulled magic to make a portal for him, opening it into the library where it still lay from the night before. Then an idea hit him before he stepped through.“Why don’t both of you come, and we can do it there,” Stephen suggested.In his moment of brilliance, he knew Daimon would not refuse, even if Karl glared at him harder than before. At least he could have Wong to back him up in this instance or so he hoped.They were all in the Sanctum’s library less than a minute later with Daimon examining the scorch marks the item left the night before. He picked up the sphere in his hand and closed his eyes, shuddering after a moment. Clearly he knew exactly what kind of defensive spell it was.“Wow. Who had this before?” Their guest asked.The explanation was long, and Stephen left it to Karl as he tried to listen for the sounds of Wong moving around the Sanctum. He hoped Wong would pop into the library, but it seemed like he was out at the moment. Stephen then went over to the object to take it from Daimon, and tried to feel the spell for himself, but couldn’t. Now he knew there was a reason for that: internally he was just not dark enough.“So your father trained you, right?” Stephen asked suddenly.“It doesn’t matter who trained him,” Karl pipped up.“You seriously can’t believe that. I mean, it gives us insight into whoever tampered with this was using Black Magic of a certain variety.”They both knew Stephen was making excuses with that sentiment.“What has gotten into you? Has Wong been talking to you?”Stephen went silent as he met Karl’s eyes, confirming Karl’s suspicions. Karl gave a heavy sigh.“He neglected to tell you the whole story then! Daimon has no connections with his family now, and it be best for you to approach these things with an open mind. Not every sorcerer from a dark family will turn to darkness. There is something called free will. I’m sure you’re not like your own family, otherwise The Vishanti help that town!”He had hit a nerve. Karl normally would not have defended someone so righteously without something else going on. Considering how much he was about rules, it made Stephen step back a little, and he felt like he had stumbled upon stories that went beyond the warnings of Wong.“I don’t know him, even if you do.”“Strange, right? I don’t care if I help you or not, I’ve got no skin in this game,” Daimon replied, “But there will be very few Black Magic users who will help you for nothing in return.”Stephen stopped at that moment, understanding the option being presented to him. It was clear. Even if they did go to Jericho, he would not have been able to help them in destroying the spell that protected the item. They may have found some way to counteract it, but Karl had been right that going to Daimon was the best bet. It still wounded him for some reason that he was wrong. These days he had gotten better about swallowing his pride in these things, but today it was difficult.“Fine. I’ll go fetch some tea.”“Bourbon is more appropriate,” Daimon replied.Stephen turned in surprise as it was still the morning. When he saw Karl grinning though, he knew it was some sort of joke, no matter how unfunny it was. If it were any other person, he’d ask Karl to help him conjure some for their guest, but he needed a moment to himself and to see if Wong was actually not in the Sanctum.Going down the stairs, irritated by interaction, he thought out of spite about if he should fetch a shirt for the man as well. As he went to make a pot, he tried to calm down a bit. As far as he knew, Karl never defended him like that before, and he had to admit he was a little jealous how much ease there was between the two. He had seen Wong and Karl interact in a friendly manner, but never like that.For a moment he pondered if he miscalculated what he felt the night before, wondering if it was one sided only.When he returned he saw Daimon and Karl going over some of the research he and Stephen had done. In that too, he felt a surge of uncomfortable, heated, difficult to digest feelings.“Do you want me to leave the two of you?” Stephen asked, keeping his tone level.He was honestly curious at this point.“Of course not. Don’t be so dramatic,” Karl chided.Stephen went silent, putting the tea in front of all of them.“It shouldn’t take long, and I’ve got appointments in the afternoon,” Daimon replied, his tone telling Stephen he was sick of Stephen’s attitude as well.The reassurance that Daimon would be gone soon was what made Stephen pull back from his spiteful feelings a little more. They did need his help, and as long as he wasn’t being thrusted to the side by Karl, he could deal.Stephen sat and watched as Daimon created a small mirror dimension for them that would not damage the books and area around them. This one would allow them to confine any reactions to their circle.Daimon pulled a trident of fire from the air; he waved it, and it turned blue. Wildfire and Breaker Fire -it made a lot of sense. When they met, the reaction was not as big as when they had cast the diagnostic spell, but it still caused Karl and Stephen to jump back; the colored flames fighting for domination. They danced until the bluish flames overtook the orange, and then they both were extinguished. It was at this point the sphere did something unexpected, hovering in the air, and Daimon casted a containment box. They would need that as the magical aura that surrounded it changed. The defensive magic seemed to have contained the magic within as well as work as a defensive mechanism.When Daimon stopped his spells, they all silently looked at one another. Stephen knew Karl hadn’t talked about The Vishanti with the man, but Daimon seemed to have figured out whatever they were in was not something for the faint of heart. An eyebrow shot up questioning them.“I’m gonna leave it at that. You two are on your own now.”Daimon extended his hand out, and Stephen reluctantly took it. Karl then shook Daimon’s hand with two of his, and whispered something to the man. It would have caused Stephen to feel another surge of irritation, if what he just felt with the magical feedback from the relic hadn’t startled him into quiet contemplation.When the son of Satan left, Karl put the relic, now in a magical cube, on the table. They looked at it for a second before Karl turned to Stephen.“What the hell has gotten into you?”“He’s a Black Magic user!”“And? You know we needed to use Black Magic. Unless you wish to taint yourself and me? Besides, you were bent out of shape only after we met him. Last night and this morning you were willing, so what is it exactly!?”He felt the heat rise up in his face at that moment. In his mind he screamed that he was supposed to be doing this with Karl, but he knew it was just a cover for what he was really starting to feel. His throat closed up with his heart jumping into it as his mind started to slowly unravel the real problem from all the excuses flowing through his thoughts: he was attracted to Karl much more than he should be in the midst of everything.Stephen closed his eyes, “Last night we seemed better -better together.”Karl’s face was fairly close to his, so he could see the breath Karl held. He could feel the hesitancy to respond.“You’re jealous of Daimon.”He didn’t want to nod. He wasn’t going to nod, so he stood there defiantly.“But why?”“You can’t be that thick.”The words left his mouth before he had time to think about it. He really didn’t mean to say that aloud, but it was too late now.“I’m not. I’m not... I shouldn't have asked.”Karl hung his head in response, unsure of how to proceed, exactly how Stephen felt at the moment. Only he couldn’t help but take a step closer, his instincts telling him to close the gap and force the cards to fall and land where they may. This was it, and if Karl moved away, it would have to be be fine. But Karl didn’t move away, only raising his gaze so that his met Stephen’s. His head was still stooped a little lower, yet his eyes were connecting. The dark irises practically hypnotized Stephen as Stephen bowed forward a little, hovering about an inch away from Karl’s face. He wanted to give Karl the out if he wanted.Then those full lips were upon his, reluctant and tender before they pulled away again. He chose not to deepen it; whether it was out of fear or desire to leave it there, Stephen had no idea. It felt like it was teetering on something more, and he so wanted it to be more.The inside of his chest gave a heave as he let out a slow, heavy breath, waiting.“We shouldn’t complicate things,” Karl protested weakly.Then he gave in, pushing his mouth against Stephen’s, only going deeper this time. His tongue slid against Stephen’s as he pressed himself into the taller man. Stephen wrapped his arms around Karl’s waist feeling like he wanted to ravage the man right then and there. All that pent up tension over the last few days coming out between them through their action. At that moment Karl grabbed his robes hard as he pushed Stephen back on the sofa, crawling into Stephen’s lap. He then moved his hands to Stephen’s hair, pulling on a chunk as he continued to taste the other man.That was that. There really would be no going back. Visceral need outweighed everything else.When Karl pulled away from him, leaning back on his shins and Stephen’s lower thighs, he looked the way Stephen felt. Karl’s eyes were awake with the adrenaline that must have been coursing through his veins.“I thought you didn’t want to complicate things.” Stephen murmured.“I don’t, but you’re so stubborn. I hate how you hover, making me become unfocused. I don’t need this in my life again -more complications.” Stephen went quiet, not wanting to bring up the past as Karl continued, “We can have a little happiness, can’t we? Haven’t we earned that?”Karl seemed to be working through more things with his questions, and Stephen didn’t want to push him. Instead he decided to do what was best for both of them and not act in an extreme manner going either way.“Let’s have a bit of happiness, but maybe in a little bit. We’ve got to untangle our magic first, right?”Karl paused for a moment before nodding and then got up off of Stephen. Honestly, he too wanted to keep going after not having someone touch him physically or emotionally for such a long time, but he couldn’t do that to either of them.“Sometimes, I wonder if you know how to quit.”“It’s not something I’ve really mastered,” Stephen replied in all sincerity.Karl nodded, wandering a little off to pace, most likely thinking of Stephen’s offer. The changes had been sudden, but building for a while. Trying to navigate all these different parts on top of whatever this was going to be was not an easy task. He couldn’t help himself though and neither could Karl. That was really what it all boiled down to.“How did we end up like this?” Karl asked more to himself than Stephen.“Why don’t we take a break, then we can do this after lunch,” Stephen suggested, pointing to the magical box containing the artifact.With a nod, Karl and him separated. It wasn’t a question, they knew they needed a breather from one another to think about what had happened. Stephen had been surprised with himself too, how he had reacted to seeing Karl with Daimon. Even after hearing about Daniel, he hadn't felt anything like that, but seeing the closeness of the two sorcerers had switched something on.Stephen sighed. He hoped Wong would have come back by that point, not that he would mention anything about what Karl and him were doing minutes before, but because he did want to update him on the relic. There was also this sense that he may need to keep quiet about Daimon and letting him into the Sanctum. That piece of information he would have to approach cautiously, if he did decide to mention it.However, Wong wasn’t around. He was still clearly out handling some business, so Stephen went to go get something to eat outside, wanting to give Karl space to figure things out. It seemed the best way to do things: surprise him with new information and wait for the man’s internal storm to pass.Once he started to walk around outdoors, he decided to go to his favorite deli. When he got there, the guys looked surprised to see him. One of them mentioned that they guessed he went to ‘the otherside’ like a few others he knew, but was glad that Stephen managed to find them afterward. They mentioned how Wong had been in a few times and had told them Stephen had been a bit busy with other things. His customer loyalty was rewarded with a small bag of chips on top of his normal order.After paying, he went to go sit on a bench outside, trying to refocus his thoughts upon something that was not on the Sanctum’s other occupants. They were closer to their end goal now that they had removed the defensive magic that was on top of the relic. Clearly there had been a lot of thought by the last owner in protecting the object, and most likely the reason why that village they had seen had been burnt to the ground. By the time most magic users would have turned to water, it would have been too late to save the buildings. However, in that little town the people had burned as well, and he had to suspect foul play. He made a mental note that when he got his magic back, he would track down the sorcerer they had left at the courts.It irritated him thinking about the destruction, and gave him more of a drive to get back to the library and focus on what needed to be done. When he did finish his sandwich and head back, he found Karl in the library. He wouldn’t meet Stephen’s eye, clearly of the same mindset of getting back to work. The uncomfortableness started to fall by the wayside as they began to look at different books set on opposite sides of the room. Some of the books had come from Kamar-Taj while they were gone in the morning, and the others were pulled the night before.Karl cleared his throat before speaking, “Do you want to try to cast a diagnostic spell now?”“Uh, yea, but we should be careful.”“No more fire hopefully,” Karl awkwardly joked with a small smile to accompany it.They came together in front of the magical box that contained the Katalyst of Kubic. The magic wouldn’t hinder them, and hopefully if there were more traps upon it, the box would contain the magic. With a few movements, Karl pulled the magic from Stephen and they watched as it gave off colors. Different colors meant different things. The elements would have certain colors, the degree of magic would have others, and the neutrality would give off hues in splotches. This one gave off four distinct colors: blue, goldenrod, rose, and a piss yellow. They were not a common combination. Then after a moment it shifted colors: blue, aquamarine, rose, and a piss yellow. The variable was not the the degree of magic or neutrality but the element, yet there was more than one element to it. The stable colors were easy to decode as blue was an earth based magical element, the rose meant it was a very strong magic, and the piss yellow meant that it was a neutral to dark magic. Since there was most likely a curse upon it, the color that changed would give them a clue as to what it was. Goldenrod was an air element, while the aquamarine was symbolic of water. It was odd how a fire defensive spell had so easily been attached to it. Stephen chalked up to it most likely piggybacking off the darker magical traces.Stephen frowned.It took a minute before he looked back up at Karl, who had an equally grave expression upon his face.Wordlessly, they went back to their respective piles and sorted out the texts that would be helpful. The order of the changing colors didn’t really tell them anything special, but it did give them a starting point. Anything having to do with fire or metal would not be useful to them, and it would not be a trivial spell. At least it was not a completely Black Magic spell, otherwise they would need to enlist more help from Daimon. Even though he now knew that Karl was not involved with the man, Stephen still didn’t like him and would like to avoid him for the time being. They may still need help, but they could get it from Wong, if Wong would ever show back up.After about an hour, Karl and him started to discuss what exactly it may be or not. They carefully avoided standing too close or to make too much contact with one another, wanting to get this over with. Within five minutes of starting to talk about the various possible spells it could be, Wong showed up with a story of a possessed bus driver he had taken care of. They nodded in response as Wong came round to look at the artifact. He watched it for a moment before turning to both of them, looking for an update.They carefully constructed their story and avoided mentioning their own personal drama that had gone on. There was no point to speak so soon. Wong seemed to take everything in and agree with what they were saying, offering his opinions on it as well. He’d leave it to them for the time being, but promised to help later at night when they had some downtime. In the meantime, Wong went to check in at Kamar-Taj, leaving Stephen and Karl alone once again.Silently and separately, they started to go through the materials. Once or twice he looked over to see Karl staring down, biting his lip in concentration with his brow furrowed. He took a deep breath and held it before he released it, determined to focus better on what he was doing.By the end of the evening, they had ten books each of possible curses that it could be. They agreed to eat some dinner before delving back into their current search. Since Wong was gone and most likely would be back late, Stephen scrounge around for some more money in the drawers, finding two twenties. He took one and left an I.O.U. for Wong later, like he had done before when he was Master of Sanctum. He knew Wong hid money for this purpose even if he didn't admit it. They would only use a little, most likely getting food from a nearby food truck in Washington Square Park and returning the rest.It was eventually decided that they would get something with rice in it, and since Karl was a pickier eater, he volunteered.He came back and they decided to eat in the dining room for a change. It was normally closed off and not used, but it seemed that Karl disliked the close quarters of the kitchen. He informed Stephen that after eating in the dining hall at Kamar-Taj for many years, he had grown accustomed to a bigger space.For him, it was an odd experience. He didn’t grow up in such places, and only knew the mess halls of organizations. Dining rooms were only eaten in when visiting places, and this was the first time he had used it in the Sanctum.“Did you normally eat in here?” Stephen asked carefully.“Yes. It’s comforting. I know you and Wong prefer the kitchen, but it’s just ” he wrinkled his nose, “cramped.”He was going to say something else, but Stephen couldn’t decided what it was. There were these little details that started to come out as they talked to one another, but he wasn't at the point he could finish Karl’s sentences.“We didn’t have a dining room as a kid, and then living in this city, nearly no one has a dining room.”Karl looked at him, clearly unsure of how to respond.“I’m trying to get to know you,” Stephen added after a moment.The blank expression he received was more curious than it should have been, and Stephen wondered if this was something that was unfamiliar to the man. In his experiences, most were offering details before he could offer his, but Karl seemed shut off to discussing things beyond Kamar-Taj. That was unless he was yelling at Stephen in fervorous rage.  “Oh. Yes, well, what is there to say about dining rooms?” He finally laughed.The soothing sound of it immediately brought a smile to Stephen’s face. It wouldn’t be an instant change in their interactions, but the idea that Karl was clearly willing to try made him feel more positive than even an hour ago.“I think we went about this all wrong. I don’t even know anything about you, except for the time we’ve spent together. When you told me about Daniel last night, I had no idea.”“It’s not like we were flaunting it or anything. No one talks about such things. I don’t know much about you, except you were a surgeon in New York, and now you’re a sorcerer.”“I’m originally from Nebraska, if that means anything to you. And I am the first of three kids, but my family is all dead now.”The last part he said with some hesitancy. He had told maybe ten people in his adult life, and three of them had been therapists after his brother died. Even Wong didn’t know about that, and Wong was his best friend at this point. For some reason he felt he could tell Karl though.“I’m an only child without any family in my life,” Karl responded quietly.Maybe it was too early for this kind of talk, because the conversation between them died out for a little while. Stephen was a fool at this kind of thing. He never was the one to instigate conversations in the beginning of the relationship, often not reaching this stage even, and maybe had leaped a little too soon. It might have been better to just talk about the relic.“Sorry if I pushed,” he finally said.“No, I don’t normally share.”Stephen gave a small smile in response. He’d offer another apology for not knowing how to do this, but in that it seemed that they were the same.“Stephen, you don’t have to take too much of an interest in the past. It’s not an easy topic,” Karl finally said.That made him feel as though a weight was lifted off of him. If the expectations were a little lower, it would help him greatly.“Okay, so let’s talk about something else. Food? New York? Interests?”Karl smiled, and then changed the topic back to food, goading Stephen about his tastes in things. It seemed that he was quite appalled with what Stephen and Wong had been keeping or not been keeping in the New York Sanctum before they were snapped out of existence. Cheese crackers aside, they really did not keep it well stocked, and Karl couldn’t help but rib that cereal did not cover all the food groups, going as far as to question his qualifications as a doctor. When the banter came to them easier, Stephen realized his mouth was hurting from how wide his smile was. It had been quite a while since he had felt at such ease -a respite from their difficult days.It felt they finished too soon and had to get back to their work. Almost directly after they had returned to the study, Wong came back with some extra food from Kamar-Taj with him, looking exhausted. Stephen and Karl sat on opposites ends of the library pouring through the books and marking off spells that could fit their scenario.Some things he knew, some he was learning, but it was very much a solitary exercise. Soon enough Wong joined them as well. Occasionally one of them would sigh a loud sigh, digging into the books with a little more focus than before. It seemed that Wong wanted this finished as much as them with the way he kept hemming and hawing over one of the books.Late into the night they decided to retire one by one: first was Wong, second Karl, last was Stephen as he was used to running on little sleep. By the time he did go to bed, he expected to sleep a little and then wake. But life had other plans as the unexpected knock on the door startled him.It creaked open, and Karl let himself in without any hesitancy or even waiting for Stephen to answer the knock. The man was dressed in ridiculously old fashioned pajamas, which was a whole lot more than what Stephen would have worn when he was younger. At the same time Karl clearly did not come just to inform Stephen of something he had forgot.Without thinking, Stephen threw the cover off to the side to let him into the bed, and Karl climbed in wordlessly. His pajamas fell against Stephen’s shirtless frame, and Stephen immediately started to feel a lot hotter than before. The dim light should have hid a great deal of the flush that was starting to happen, but dim lighting would not be able to hide some of the other ways his body was reacting.Stephen waited for a moment. He didn’t want to push too much if Karl just came for a talk or company. Maybe he was like Stephen with many sleepless or rough nights under his belts.It was then Karl leaned over to kiss him, much like earlier in the daytime. Only this time, he slowed and had nothing to grab onto as he pressed Stephen for more. Stephen submitted readily and gladly to Karl’s whims. The man was a better kisser than most.When they finally pulled apart, Stephen looked at him waiting and not really knowing what to say or do. Well, he did actually know what he wanted to do and that was to lean in again, but he stopped himself. He could tell there was something Karl wanted to say.“I don’t really know what to do about this. This is different from all those other times I’ve been involved, and have this overwhelming feeling that you’re going to hurt me.”“It may happen, but it won’t be intentional,” Stephen answered truthfully.“I’ve come to the conclusion you have a good heart, even if you have your very obvious faults. I just hope taking a chance will work out for the both of us.”Stephen took this in, even though he knew Karl had been overthinking again. It wasn’t hard to believe though, as he too had struggled with the thought of if this would be a good thing for both of them.“We’ll I’m glad I get a chance at least.”Karl settled against him, his head resting upon Stephen’s shoulder. The action was louder than any words, letting Stephen know that he was in this for more than some romp and that his hang ups would be ignored at least for now. It made it a little harder to breath, sensing the struggle within Karl was coming to an end. This wasn’t just loneliness. There was something very real about this all, and it felt like the pieces were fitting.Stephen thought about what had happened in the day and how they got to this point. Still something nagged him, and he had to ask even if it came as a surprise to Karl.“Can I ask something? How come you’re so friendly with Daimon? I get why Wong doesn’t trust him, but I don’t get why you do trust him.”Karl shifted against him. Stephen felt he could ask about that, but didn’t want to pry further.“Why? Do you still believe there is something between us, even though I just poured my heart out to you?” Karl asked with some suspicion.Stephen shifted out of surprise, and it seemed as if Karl understood by looking at him that that was not his intent.Karl continued, “Because he’s the same as me. If the Ancient One had not given me the chance to prove myself as a sorcerer, I would have gone as dark as any. Our family is steeped in Black Magic and I was expected to follow.”Stephen took into consideration what he was hearing. The empathy there was as thick as anyone’s could be. Karl could understand the ruined reputation, and although he worked in moral codes, it read to Stephen that Daimon had never crossed any lines with Karl. Wong had alluded to something going wrong with Daimon and sorcerers from their sect, but it must not have been the man’s fault.It was a puzzle he would have to be content with not knowing all the details of at the moment. Especially when Karl wrapped his arm around Stephen, reminding him that the other sorcerer did not come to talk about Daimon or work related things.This was much more natural than their exchanges in the dining room before. Most likely their fear had broken down in the meantime. In the safety of the night in the bedroom they also didn’t have to focus so much on one another’s visual reactions.Karl’s hand ran up along Stephen’s skin, over his chest, and back down to his side. Before Stephen knew it, the arm stilled completely. It was quickly followed by very steady, soft sounds of breathing in and out, rhythmic and gentle. Karl had fallen asleep on him, tucked in Stephen’s arms. Stephen wasn’t going to wake him to continue their conversation or anything else that night. He was just content that Karl felt comfortable enough right there and then.They had time; tomorrow was another day, and they could figure things out then.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Normally he’d wake a few times during the night; sometimes it was from a nightmare and other times it was from stress. That night he had managed to sleep soundly. The surprise of sleeping through the night was quickly followed by a painful tingle in his arm as he looked over to see Karl still there. The man was tucked at his side in his adorably silly pajamas, which were now climbing up his torso, revealing a few more scars upon his body. Stephen wiggled his arm to remove it from under Karl’s head and smiled. It had been a great while he had slept in the same bed as another, and this felt more right than the last time. He didn’t care to remember the way he had physically turned away from Christine, angry about how she tried to baby him after his accident.

It felt a bit sad that he had missed out on this for as long as he did, but that was the nature of life.The timing was often more important than how it came about. Funnily, it all came back to time in his life. Things would be very different if they happened before or after they had actually taken place.

He wondered if he had passed a plain clothed Karl on the street when he was younger, would he have taken notice? Would Karl have taken notice of him? Then, there was their actual meeting. Had Karl shown up three minutes later, Stephen would have been beat up, and maybe Karl would have passed him by. There were no guarantees that the reaction would have been the same from either man at the time of their meeting. Stephen had been so awed and grateful only because he had escaped less hurt than he would have been otherwise.

All he knew now was that couldn’t think of the what ifs. He had to enjoy the now.

“Time?” Karl asked, half asleep.

Karl’s voice startled Stephen. Looking over at the clock on the side table, he read the time -nine. It caused him to jolt awake, surprised he had slept that late in addition to sleeping that well. Karl too sat up with a startle, rubbing his eyes and swinging his legs over the side of the bed.

“I shouldn’t have stayed here. It’s too late. We should have started the day earlier.”

“I’m glad you came,” Stephen reassured him.

Karl didn’t meet his eyes, clearly not knowing how to respond. Stephen smiled to himself.

“May I come back tonight?”

Karl’s voice was soft and filled with uncertainty. The tone was endearing and amusing given how they were nearly at one another throats a week earlier.

“As long as we’re here. I like to think we’ll figure out the curse soon, and then The Vishanti will call. After, we can try to figure something out.”

There was some hesitation dancing around in his expression, but ultimately Karl nodded, getting up and stretching in front of Stephen. His pajama top went up as he stretched his arms behind his head. Without contemplating his action, Stephen touched the skin showing, still warm from his sleep. For a second Karl looked at him in surprise, but didn’t pull away to stop him. He stepped forward instead, allowing Stephen to wrap his arms around his midsection. Karl put a hand in Stephen’s hair, lightly playing with it.

There were still a little bit of nervous energy that laid between the two, but pushing through it felt natural. This was especially true as Karl wiggled out of his arms, bending down slightly to claim a kiss from Stephen. Stephen wanted to drag him down and continue this foray, however Karl put a squash upon that desire, pulling away before rubbing the back of his neck in contemplation.

“We should get going. I’ll see you in the library in a little.”

Stephen nodded at the declaration before Karl turned to leave, quietly closing the door behind him. He couldn’t help but smile to himself, grinning like a fool. The warmth from Karl’s spot on the bed made Stephen hesitant to stand up and get moving, wanting to stay in his little world. It was a place that was much more pleasant to be in compared to reality. If things didn't work out for them, he figured he’d have an alternative plan.

It was silly, but he felt at this point he could have his little moments daydreaming.

After taking a shower, going downstairs and getting some breakfast, he made his way to the library to find Karl and Wong inside discussing what they were looking at together. The seriously expressions upon their face wiped the smile off of Stephen’s face as he furrowed his brow in concentration on what they were saying. It was time to get down to it and figure it out.

“One of a houngan’s signatures, faded, but there” Wong murmured as Stephen approached.

They stopped talking to look up at Stephen. Karl seemed incredibly disturbed by this information. Even though Stephen came in at the end part of the conversation, the mention of a houngan must have made Karl uneasy. It was another type of magic they didn’t dabble in.

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Karl asked turning back to Wong.

“Why do you think it showed the the colors it did? And frankly it seems more probable than an actual spell curse -all the families that died out because of it, the troubles of other areas. You told me of the town that was destroyed. The person who contained this relic with their defensive spell was most likely trying to contain it and prevent others from accessing what was contained inside. It was defensive in more ways than one.”

Wong shivered in response after he said it, and Karl looked sickened to his stomach. Whatever they were talking about was something Stephen couldn’t decode from the part he came in at. They would have to tell him.

“Wait. Do you know what it is?” Stephen pressed.

“This object is not cursed, it’s possessed. It’s also one reason The Vishanti couldn’t return it to its original state alone. The spirit would need to be released in the dimension it’s from and they have no way to do that, if not through a proxy.”

It seemed like Wong solved the issue as he looked positive in his assessment.

“You mentioned something about houngans?”

“I was getting there,” Wong replied sharply, “I can’t say for certain, but given the earth magic it has, and the way that the fire element attached to it so easily in spite of the water element being there, I wouldn’t be surprised if a houngan had something to do with it. Given the age and where it was found on the European continent, it was most likely stolen from its origin. You see, the neutral magic leads me to believe that the spirit inside has no vicious intent, but is rather out of its place. It was never meant to stay inside of a relic; it was only placed there as a temporary resting stop before it would be helped to pass into the next realm.”

Stephen shuddered, surprised. If he understood Wong correctly, this spirit wasn’t intended to be imprisoned, but accidentally came to be that way through the theft of where it was being housed during a ritual. Again, he was no expert, but he did trust that Wong would have more answers than him on that matter.

“So how do we remove the spirit?”

Wong sighed and looked over at Karl who was clearly not pleased with what the answer would be.

“We don’t. Only someone of the Houngan Supreme’s stature can sort this out,” Karl grounded out.

“Oh well, I mean, you don’t have to come. Wong and I can go,” Stephen replied softly.

Karl shook his head, surprising Stephen. It was confusing with how much strife he had given them before about taking the relic to Jericho. Now he was willing to accompany Stephen. It didn’t seem right, and it made Stephen wonder what had changed in the past hour. Yet, he couldn’t ask that question, not in front of Wong. They weren’t going to be open about any of it until they finished this. For a fraction of a second he thought that may be it. Karl wasn’t going to give into the appearance of letting Stephen take the lead, perhaps tipping Wong off to the changes in their dynamic.

Wong cleared his throat, interrupting his thoughts, “I have things to do, and besides someone clearly needs to finish some unfinished business from before.”

The irritation in his voice was alarming, but it shouldn’t have been with the echange they had in the kitchen a few nights before. Wong had been frustrated with Karl’s past, and that also could have affected Karl’s decision.

Stephen took a few minutes to think about what to do next.

“Okay, maybe we should send word that we are coming?” Stephen suggested.

“We will be refused,” Karl replied flatly.

“It’s best if you go, and Karl begs for forgiveness,” Wong said sternly.

“Okay,” Stephen said slowly before the stress started to get to him. He took a breath to keep himself steady before asking, “What the hell is going on? Drumm didn’t tell me anything. Wong has only alluded to it, and I only know snippets from what you’ve said and done. I think I should know what the hell is going on between you two before I step my foot into it.”

Wong and Karl looked at one another. He’d seen that look before, when he asked them to explain what exactly sorcerer’s did, only this couldn’t be as serious as that. It was of a personal nature, that much he could tell. Karl nodded at Wong, who rolled his eyes in return, and Wong left them, closing the door behind him with a flourish that told them he was over it all.

Stephen sat on the couch. This was clearly a conversation meant for sitting. Once again Karl started his pacing habit, pawing at his face where the stubble was starting to show more on his jaw.

“I may have been in a very low place at the time, and I came to him asking for a spell -asking for a copy of a book I had burned before. I needed it in order to remove magic from sorcerers, and I told him of my plans against you and against the others who rejected our ways, our laws. And I told him if it wasn’t for Kaecilius and you, Daniel would have never died. When he denied me, I may have lashed out. Not with magic, but I tried to force my way in to take the book. I’m not proud of myself, but he made me see sense after a few minutes and forbade me to see him again. Jericho also went as far as to threaten me with my own plan.”

Stephen went quiet. Karl said when they were in the other dimension that he had contemplated taking others’ magic, but it was scary to hear how close he had come to actually getting the spell to do it. Had Jericho not stopped him, he may have never had come to senses. That was a shock, and he felt a bit confused. This wasn’t new information so much, but to hear it fall from this man’s lips in greater detail was hard to hear. Just hours before he had held Karl in his arms as he slept. The night before he confessed his own background of Black Magic, and now Stephen knew how close he probably came to slipping back into it. There were a lot of revelations.

One thought nagged at him after the initial shock, and he had to ask, “Do you still blame me for Master Drumm’s death?”

Karl shook his head in response, “Of course not. I would not be able to do this otherwise. I can only lay blame where it is deserved at this point, at Kaecilius and his followers.”

Stephen knew it was partially true; he had a feeling that the Karl still blamed the Ancient One for all of it, wrestling with her actions in private. There was no point in trying to change his mind on that topic. They hadn’t even approached it, and he knew they wouldn’t for quite some time. However, Stephen had to believe that eventually Karl would understand the Ancient One’s point: that they had to adapt to problems and situations. Coddling and sheltering Karl from reality had been maybe one of the worst mistakes she had made, but given his upbringing, Stephen wasn’t sure if there had been another way.

“I think we should go tomorrow since it’s Saturday, and we may need to take some time to convince Jericho. Also, it might be best if I did the talking,” Stephen suggested.

Karl didn’t protest, confirming that was the best course of action. The sudden depression in their mood of what had originally been a happy morning was a bit exhausting. The rollercoaster of emotions they were on would put a lot of strain upon both of them, but all they could do was endure. Enduring the lows to get the the highs would be worth it, even if it could bring them down as well. Stephen was grateful that they were a real team now, at least in their work. It made things seem a lot easier.

When Stephen looked back to Karl, he could see his brain working overtime. Even though Karl had just told him what had transpired between the two, the experience must have been a lot more tempestuous than it sounded. He had a feeling there was still more to the story, but he knew not to press it at the moment.

Extending his hand, he motioned Karl to sit next to him. They would have to keep to themselves at the moment, but at least being together and taking a breather would help them out. Stephen had a feeling they would have to save their strength for the next day.
 
.oOo.
 
“Do you think Wong knows?” Stephen asked quietly as they made their way out of the library with the relic in their possession.

“If he doesn’t with the way you keep looking at me with that dumb grin on your face and sparkle in your eyes, I would be surprised,” Karl replied dryly.

“I don’t look like that,” Stephen scoffed.

“You do. Even I can tell your smitten in the darkness.”

Stephen frowned in response. They had almost been caught sharing a kiss before they set off. Wong walked in to wish them luck and to fetch the books they had borrowed from Kamar-Taj, only to find Stephen and Karl huddled together. The new librarian, Master Hur, had asked a student to retrieve them for another Master. Any books they would need from that moment on, they would most likely be able to access from Jericho’s library, so they gave it to him while at the same time trying to pass off their closeness as Karl having trouble seeing some text on the a spine of a book.

“And you were blushing, or I don’t know, flushed? Whatever it was, it was suspicious,” Karl added.

“It will come out eventually,” He murmured in response.

Stephen gave a small smile after to try and reassure his partner.

“That! That was the look. You need to stop doing that, especially not in front of Jericho.”

The smile fell from Stephen’s face after Karl said that. There was some trepidation on his part on how to approach someone who had treated Stephen cordially, but also told him not to bother him again. He hoped Jericho would understand and do it for the poor soul probably trapped in the orb Stephen had in his hand.

When they made a portal to Port-Au-Prince, Stephen retraced his steps back to where Drumm lived. Everyone knew that it was best not to use magic outside of a sorcerer’s house, so there was no discussion on how to approach the house. It was only going to be on foot. Karl also knew his way, but he dragged behind Stephen, and it wasn’t due to the weather like Stephen had in New Orleans. They shared a tense quiet, not knowing what would happen, much like they did back when they had retrieved the orb. He just hoped it wouldn’t boil over into an argument. All three sorcerers were not the easiest people to deal with.

Before he even got to the door, it opened with Jericho settling in the frame of the doorway, his arms crossed and looking not too pleased. Dressed as if he were going to work, it seemed as if he were a normal resident in the street, very different from their own sects dailywear. They stuck out like a sore thumb, and people continually looked at them as they passed.

“I thought I told both of you to not come back.”

“Believe me, we want to respect your wishes, but we need your help with magic that only you can perform,” Stephen said.

Narrowing his eyes in disbelief, Jericho didn’t make another move for a minute before sighing and taking out a handkerchief to wipe his brow.

“And why should I help you? What’s in it for me?”

Stephen looked to Karl, who looked away from both Stephen and Jericho. After a few moments he turned his head slowly to look at Jericho.

“I’ll give you what you want,” Karl said, his voice flat and stealy.

“Finally,” he replied.

He stepped aside to let them in, and Stephen couldn’t help but feel confused. He didn’t deserve to know everything about their situation, yet he felt Karl had left something important out from their talk the day before. It was too late to go back and ask at this point.

“Well, you should go get it,” Jericho said, glaring at Karl as he said the words.

Karl looked at him angrily before reaching into his pocket and pulling a knife out from it. It was a little pocket knife, nothing fancy like a swiss-army knife or dangerous like a butterfly knife. It would have been plain and practical if it didn't have such ornate decorations. The handle had pictures carved and containing inlay upon it. Even from a distance Stephen could see that they were sort of ruins.

“It was a gift,” Karl protested, handing it over.

The knife must have been Daniel’s. Now it made more sense; the layers of meaning that object must have had for the two of them probably contributed to the strife between them.

“It was not his to give. It was our family's and you were never family, nor were you ever going to be family.”

“You have no right to say such things of what may have been.”

“Let’s take a minute and refocus on what we need to do. The sooner we get this over, the sooner we can leave and finish what we need to do,” Stephen interrupted, turning from Jericho to Karl in the process.

He didn’t want it to escalate. The tension between them had already become thicker than before, fraught with anger, and sadness on both men’s parts. There were many things Stephen was learning watching this exchange. Secrets kept pouring out, many of them Karl’s, with some of them having been hidden from his plan sight. Once blind, he was starting to see how complex things really were for this man and his relationship with others.

“Why did you come, Strange? You said you had something only I could help with?”

“We need the knowledge and power of the Houngan Supreme to help us,” Stephen said holding out of the relic.

Jericho took the orb, still being kept in it’s magical box and examined it. He put it on the table, removing the magic around it and started to examine the feel of the object for himself. When a frown appeared on his face, Stephen knew that he knew what he was dealing with.

“How long has this been gone from it’s home?” Jericho asked with a heavy heart.

“Centuries. They’ve been on quite a journey.”

Jericho nodded, more in understanding of what had happened than in response to Stephen. By the way he moved, gently holding it, placing it in the middle of the floor, Stephen knew it wouldn’t take long. The preparation may take a little time, but it was nothing compared to the centuries the spirit inside must have waited to move to the next realm.

“I don’t know what I will find, many only spend a week at most tied to objects in order to prepare themselves for the next life,” the Houngan Supreme stated as he started to pull things from cubbies and shelves in the room.

“What do you need from us?” Karl asked.

“A bit of blood, only a few drops. Normally it would be done by lower houngan priests, but it’s not a requirement the blood be from a houngan, only magic users with some experience.”

Stephen figured it have something to do with built up magic particles in their systems.

They nodded in response as they all quieted. This was clearly not Jericho’s first extraction of a soul and most likely not his last, but it was their first. They watched quietly off to the side as all the elements came together. After about an hour of observing, Jericho told them they would need to rest for one more hour before they could begin. The ritual would not take too much time to complete, but it would require energy that would tax their minds and bodies, Jericho’s the most of all.

Time passed slowly sitting there without talking. There were things Stephen wanted to ask and know, yet he knew this was neither the time, nor the place. Maybe on a different day he could get answers. The hurried actions of this day though told him that today was clearly not that day.

When Jericho called them back to the center of the room, they refocused. The first thing they did was watch as Jericho started to do the things he needed to do. Then he asked for their contribution, a pin prick to the finger to provide enough blood for the ritual to be effective. They sat on the floor after in a triangle, helping call upon the powers from various Loa to help Jericho. The two sorcerer’s from Kamar-Taj were not privy to their answers, but knew that Jericho was talking to them. His low, raspy voice spoke an unknown language as the relic shook from the energy surrounding it. They could feel that, despite not being practitioners. They didn’t need to be houngan’s to feel it, and even if they were not magic practitioners they probably could have picked up on it. The energy was powerful and deeper than most magic they experienced on a regular basis. To be a part of such a ceremony almost felt wrong to Stephen, but given how overdue it was and their limited options, they had no choice. They could at the very least stay silent and try to remain respectful of what was happening.

Most things didn’t move him spiritually. The first time he used magic did, and then this as well. This was something else. When it was over, he felt an emptiness that he had not been expecting.

A thud pulled him from his thoughts as Jericho slumped over near them. Stephen understood why having been witness to the ritual. The strain upon the body and mind must have pushed the limits to what one sorcerer could bear alone. He too had felt the physical strain when he fought with lots of magic before, but those times were fairly devoid of emotion and the connection to the spiritual. Those connections would only exacerbate the strain.

Wordlessly, they went over to help move him to a more comfortable place. Karl had a worried look upon his face -a very different reaction from when they first came. Then Stephen notice a tear rolling down his face, silent and hard to see if he hadn't been staring. It rolled down Karl’s skin before falling off with no other tears following it.

After they put Jericho down on a chaise lounge nearby, he noticed Karl shaking slightly before his fingers wiped the moisture from under his eyes, clearly upset by what had just happened. In response, Stephen moved closer, putting his hand on Karl’s arm.

“He called upon his brother to help him. I saw him. I saw-”

It didn’t make sense to Stephen, but he knew it had to be the truth. There was no way Karl was making it up, nor that he was exaggerating. Stephen knew about calling on the different Loa, but to go as far as to call upon his brother must have been a last resort.

They didn’t talk until Jericho woke a few minutes later. Stephen handed him a glass of water that he had fetched from the kitchen in the meantime. Karl had managed to calm down a bit and pocket the relic, which now read as a regular relic with no special auras or energies coming from it at this point.

“You understand now?”Jericho asked, clearly speaking to Karl.

“I understood before, but you should have left him be.”

“I needed a spirit I could trust to help extract the spirit inside. Had the woman not been stuck in there for ages, it would have been easier.” he paused, letting it sink in for the Kamar-Taj sorcerers, “He haunts me at times, and this should bring some comfort.”

With that he pulled the knife Karl had given him from his own pocket. The look the two of them shared felt like they were coming to an understanding, and Stephen could only quietly watch.

“I will be fine, so you two should leave now. My last warning to both of you still stands,”Jericho said curtly.

Stephen looked upon Jericho out of concern and shook his head in response.

“We will leave, but give us a few minutes. I don’t want to leave you in this condition.”

What kind of person or doctor would he be otherwise? Although there were signs the fainting hadn’t been too serious, there was no one else at the residence as far as he was aware. It was then he decided to disregard the wishes of the other two people in the room to a degree. They may not like it, but it would put Stephen’s mind at ease.

With a little convincing, he managed to get Jericho and Karl to agree to let him help out for a little. Karl went to make something for them to eat, not wanting to stay in the same room with them, and Stephen stayed with Jericho after bringing him some more water. They both sat on the chaise, not saying a word for a moment. Stephen silently listened to the breathing of the man, noticing it becoming a little less uneven after a few minutes.

“Thank you for agreeing to this. I don’t know much about you or even about Karl at this point, but I do know that both of you have helped me more than most would,” He stated.

“I have a feeling that he’s a little less selfless in his endeavours,” Jericho remarked dryly.

Part of him wanted to argue with the point, but he also knew that it was not the time, nor the place. It also may have contained a note of truth to how it was now. Long ago though, he was very selfless; Stephen started to realize that it was much to his detriment.

“Well, one day I’m sure we will be able to return the favor.”

Jericho looked like he didn’t agree. They would have to wait and see, so Stephen took it in stride.

Eventually Karl returned with something he had cooked up in the kitchen, nothing too fancy, only some hashed potatoes and eggs. They were all hungry, the ritual took more out of them than they could have predicted, despite being bystanders for the most part. The stress most likely contributed to the hunger pains. Accompanying the small meal were two cups of coffee and a cup of juice for Jericho.

Odd how Jericho had been so ready to throw them out, but now was noshing with them. Stephen couldn’t help but mentally note how on this journey they had made some strange bedfellows. It was comforting in a way though, making him feel like he had grown in many ways socially.

When they finished, they cleaned up and bade Jericho a very short farewell, knowing that the man wanted them out of the way sooner rather than later. Stepping out into the street and creating a portal, they were back before mid afternoon. Instead of regrouping in the library like they normally would, Stephen watched as Karl headed up the stairs alone. It was a signal that the man needed some time from what had happened in the day, and he knew following would be a little to much.

Stephen chose to spend his afternoon in the study. There was no point going to the library at the moment having finishing their task. He sat in his favorite chair, not thinking about anything special or paying attention to what needed to be done. For a minute, he could relax and wait for the next part to happen. He was sure that The Vishanti would be calling, but unlike before when they had attempted to contact the entities, he was certain that their situation would be reversed. There would be no postponing it.

His confidence in his convictions were also boosted due to the fact that he now knew that he wouldn’t be kicked out of Kamar-Taj. His mind even dared to think that he might get the New York Sanctum back. There was some doubt in that though, as Karl could handle the sanctum by himself. What would Stephen do? Be an assistant? Go back to Kamar-Taj?

Alas, he had to remind himself that nothing would be set until they got their magic back and they could make a case for Stephen's return. Still, he had a lot more optimism than the first time they summoned The Vishanti.

Stephen closed his eyes for a fraction of a moment, or so he thought, until he found someone shaking him awake. Despite the good amount of sleep that he had the day before, he was still making up for lost time. Shaking his head to wake himself up more, he looked up to see Wong standing in front of and over him, looking sterner than normal.

“Is it finished?”

“I think so. I can’t be sure until we’re summoned, but you were correct. It was possessed rather than what we think as  cursed.”

As Stephen got up to stretch, Wong looked at him with a piercing stare. The way that his mouth thinned and his eyebrows turned downward, there was no question to as what he wanted to say. Stephen couldn’t help but sigh knowing he was going to have to cut him off before Wong could ask it.

“It just happened. With all the time we spent together-” He gave a heavy sigh.

“I hope it works out for you.”

“I hope so, too.”

There was a hesitancy that told Stephen that he probably didn’t approve, but wasn’t going to criticize.

Wong sat down in the seat across from Stephen’s, prompting Stephen to sit back down as well. They looked at one another for a moment, knowing the subject was breached, but unsure how to take it further. It was something they rarely talked about, and felt like it needed to be danced around. Not everything was comfortable even between good friends, especially because Stephen wasn’t good at expressing feelings beyond amusement, contemplation, irritation, or anger. A heart to heart conversation felt as foreign to him as the ritual he witnessed in the morning.

“It won’t be easy,” Wong warned.

“It never is.”

“Especially with either one of you in a relationship -but the two of you.”

Wong shook his head, causing Stephen to grin. There were going to be a lot more interesting moments between the three of them in the future. Wong might as well prepare himself for it. At the same time he knew that he needed to keep things quiet and not bring it into whatever work they would be doing.

“Yea, yea. I get it. I’ll keep you out of the drama,” Stephen responded.

“That’s the least you can do.”

The message was loud and clear, but he was happy for it. If Wong really wanted, he could give both of them hell. It wouldn't be the first time Wong disapproved of his choices, and all those times before he had been more vocal than many others would have been. Stephen appreciated this aspect of Wong’s personality even if did become a thorn in his side occasionally.

They sat there for a while, discussing some other things that had been going on while Karl and Stephen were off on their adventures. Both him and Karl would need to be caught up before they met with the other masters at Kamar-Taj. Wong knew that they couldn’t do that before they met The Vishanti, but he reassured Stephen that it wouldn’t take long. Sure enough as they were talking a paper floated down from a small portal that opened up above their heads. They didn’t even need to look at it to know it was from The Vishanti.

When Stephen did open it, it had a time and a date written upon it in fancy scrawl. It wasn’t for another two days, which would give them all some time to sort out the more personal matters at hand and give them some rest. He wasn’t quite sure if The Vishanti's time off would be welcomed or not after it was finished, but he did welcome it at the moment.

It was with that he decided he would have to go and tell Karl. Finding the man would be easy enough as he never seemed to leave the house, especially without his autonomy over his magic. First, Stephen went to Karl's  room to find him, but he wasn’t there. The next stop was the library, again empty. And then the last stop was the kitchen, which he was in with the kettle on.

“Watched pot never boils,” Stephen joked.

Karl turned to look at him, clearly unaware of the expression, but smiled anyways. The weak upturn of the corners of his mouth was more out of politeness than actual amusement. Stephen’s brow soften as he gave a sympathetic look in response. Stepping closer, he held out the paper that they had just received. Most likely The Vishanti had sent it to him as he had summoned them, and he felt sad they both hadn’t gotten it together.

“I’m thinking. It’s a habit you should take up,” Karl responded with a little cheek.

That made Stephen grin wide. He was used to this kind of comfortable banter with Wong, but it was a little surprising from Karl, and said with a very different tone than the other would. There wasn’t a real jab behind it as it might have had a week ago.

The kettle started to whistle, and Stephen helped by getting out some cups for the two of them. With a graceful carry and tipping of the handle Karl poured them some tea. Stephen watched how delicately he did it. The pour finished off with a smooth and clean flourish, very different from when Stephen made his own tea. While watching it, he didn’t feel the normal pang of irritation when someone poured him tea, but an admiration. It felt silly once he realized how sappy he was starting to get about Karl, and he hoped that maybe Karl was starting to feel the same way about him.

“So,  it’s really happening?” Karl asked in disbelief.

“Hopefully they won’t make anymore excuses this time.”

“What do you want to do until then?”

“We could help Wong a little. Try to sort out the Sanctum some more. Rest. Get some sleep.”

He didn’t add they could do a lot of other things while getting to know one another a little better. Really, he would not object to sleeping all day with Karl in his arms like the night before. After The Vishanti gave them a few days, he wanted to savor the time they had here and now, not knowing exactly what they would be doing once they had access to their magic.

Karl looked at him with concern in his expression. It wasn’t the kind of look that made Stephen think that he said anything wrong. It was one that told him it was an unfamiliar sensation to have so much down time.

“We should rest, I guess. And help of course. Maybe we should also talk a little?”

The warmth from the cup in Stephen’s hands provided a lot of comfort, making the chat a little less awkward than it could have been. It had the same sort of tone as the dinner they had the night before, but this was easier to hear than that sorry attempt at getting to know one another.

Karl’s fingers rubbed the side of his tea cup before he brought it up and took a sip. As he put it down, his downward cast eyes looked up to make contact with Stephen’s gaze. His beautiful lashes caused Stephen’s breath to catch for a second.

“Yea, figure out things. It’s good. Figure out where to go,” Stephen added.

“How we fit together?”

“Yea.”

He couldn’t help but smile at the idea and the multiple meanings behind it. He highly doubted Karl would take too many steps early on, especially given the emotions they had been going through, but it felt more open than before.

They finished their tea fairly quickly, not continuing the conversation. Instead, they chose to make eyes at one another from across the table. Had anyone played witness to the scene, he was sure they would be turned off from the display. It would have felt very immature, if it wasn’t so rewarding.

They tried to keep things very low key when they were in the main rooms for just in case someone else walked in. Every so often they would huddle together over something,  get a moment or two to softly discuss a topic, or to engage in some light flirtation. It was at night when they snuck off to Karl’s room where they truly began to flesh out some of their plans they talked about in the kitchen, gently breaching the subject of what would happen next. Stephen had been curious.

Normally masters of sanctums did not have many people with them, a few more if Karmar-Taj had more followers, but at the moment it was looking that Stephen would have to go back to Kamar-Taj. Karl still wasn’t ready to give up this sanctum and now that Stephen understood some more of his connection to it, he could bear to be away from it until they had more sorcerers.

As they talked about possible positions and places Stephen could go, Karl helped him out of his clothes. In exchange, Stephen helped Karl out of his, even if he needed a little help with some of the buckles. This was the first time he saw Karl strip down, and he tried not to stare too much, not wanting to make this more about gawking at his partner than actually talking.

Karl stepped close to him for a kiss after they both disrobed, and then suggested that they take a shower together, something that threw Stephen off his guard. Here he had been thinking Karl would want to take it slower, but clearly Karl had other ideas.

Stephen let himself be led into the attached bathroom, knowing that things were starting to turn right after feeling wrong for quite some time.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“It feels like closure after yesterday,” Karl admitted quietly.
The sad undertone to his statement caused Stephen to move a little closer, a difficult feat given that there was barely any room between the two. They lay face to face with Karl stroking Stephen’s hip in an absent-minded manner. His eyes roamed, studying parts of Stephen’s face. Stephen could tell he was trying to savor every moment with the way his eyes seemed to trace how his hair fell into his eyes and near his mouth. Karl then looked down. It was quite obvious that he was looking at nothing in particular, much to Stephen’s dismay, he was only avoiding Stephen’s gaze.

“About?”

There were so many things Karl could be referring to, and the only reason he pushed was because he knew that the other man was beginning to open up about personal things, personal feelings. It seemed fast; he was starting to let Stephen in, and maybe even quicker than Stephen was letting him in. He wasn't about to protest.

“Everything feels different. Everything that’s happened since even before you entered my life -all the trials and tribulations. This has been so hard for me, but something happened at Jericho’s. Daniel didn’t speak, but it felt like a goodbye. There was something about it all that helped put it right for me. Not right, but -I don’t know. I can’t put it into words.”

Stephen had no idea what had happened, but after the initial shock of what had taken place, it was clear to both of them that something had changed. Yet, there was no possible way Stephen was privy to it. He also knew there was nothing that he contributed to change it. It also wasn’t caused by the knowledge that they would be meeting The Vishanti soon; it truly felt as if their hearts had been set free from the baggage that they had been carrying.

Life worked in odd and mysterious ways. One day a person could wake up and suddenly things were right again after being in pain for so long. It was a surprisingly familiar feeling.

Karl turned over and sighed, moving back into Stephen’s frame as Stephen held him close, letting his leg fall over Karl’s two.

“We should really get going and out of bed,” Karl finally said after a few minutes.

“And do what? I’ve finally got you right where I want you,” Stephen teased, nuzzling against Karl’s shoulder blade.

“Stephen, we can’t just lay here all day.”

As Karl began to scold and try to reason with him, Stephen pressed a few kisses upon his partner’s smooth shoulder, understanding that this would not continue for much longer. It was true, they should go and help out, but Stephen wanted just a little more time. It wasn’t as if it were noon yet. The sun had only risen a few hours before, so it wasn’t as if anyone at Kamar-Taj would protest, being on a different time table than them. Wong could deal and handle the Sanctum without the two magically defective sorcerers.

He smiled into Karl’s skin at the thought. Then, there was only air. Stephen couldn’t help but protest with a playful whine. At least the disappointment was offset by the nice visuals that followed it. His eyes roamed over the lines that composed Karl’s form. He’d seen enough bodies in his life, but he felt his breath taken away just like he had felt the night before. The memories of the night played in the background of his mind, mixing into the daydream of Karl coming back to bed.

The dream was over by the time Karl threw on his dressing gown and stepped into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Stephen stretched out, feeling perturbed that the day should start so early. Honestly, he wasn’t like this before, but he did subscribe to the belief if one worked hard, they should be allowed on some occasions to play hard. It had been a very long time since he had been allowed to play at all.

When Karl exited, toweling off from taking a shower, Stephen decided it was at that moment that he should follow suit. All hopes of some more rest and relaxation in bed had been dashed with a quick glance that said ‘You’re still in bed?’.

After he came out of the shower he found himself alone in the room, and put his clothes on as he did every morning, as if the night had not happened. The act of doing so reinforced that nagging feeling inside of him that there was actually work to be done, even if he wanted to remain curled in bed snuggled up with Karl.

Heading down the stairs, he decided to skip breakfast that morning and went straight into the library where Wong was organizing books they had pulled. Occasionally he flipped through the pages before putting them back, most likely jogging his memory of their contents. Stephen came over and knelt beside the man to help him in his task.

“Having a lie in?”

Stephen shrugged before answering, “Might not get the chance later. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.”

“Yea, maybe they’ll just take the magic from you forever with the headache you’ve presented them with.”

He let out a laugh and Wong followed. When they quieted he looked at Wong in all seriousness.

“You don’t think they’d really do that, do you?”

“Relax, they would have done that before they sent you on this scavenger hunt if that were the case. They understand that both of you are formidable sorcerers.”

He didn’t know why he was suddenly so nervous when he thought of it now. The day before he had been so confident, but as the time approached, the more he realised how little he did know about what would happen when they met again. It didn’t help that from start to finish of summoning The Vishanti to restoring the relic to its original condition had been a wild experience. Who knew what The Vishanti had up their sleeves.

They continued to sort through the books for quite a while in silence. Sometimes they both got lost in certain books, distracted by their contents. It was one of the things that brought them together. There was no denying they all thirsted for knowledge to a degree.

They barely noticed when Karl joined them. The sorcerer had let himself in with little fanfare as per normal and went to work. Stephen could feel Wong next to him tense up in response. The two of them had not talked with one another since Wong had discovered Stephen and Karl’s relationship. All three of them knew they would keep it professional though, so they kept working. Stephen also figured neither of the other men would talk about the subject with the three of them in there. Wong and Stephen already had their talk, so he was curious if Karl and Wong would talk about it later, or if it would just be ignored. Part of him wondered if he should bring it up, debating if there was any point in doing that. Who knew what would happen after the next day, so he decided to just keep going.

It took all morning to sort everything out in the library. When they were finished, they looked at their work, sighed in relief, and smiled at one another, fakely grumbling about how hungry they were. Wong volunteered to go make something, even though Stephen had suggested that he should go to the deli, and he left both of them.

After he left, Karl turned to Stephen with both of them wanting to say something, but not quite sure what to say.

“Are you ready for tomorrow?” Karl asked with some hesitation.

“As ready as ever. Why? Having second thoughts? Enjoying being tied with me?”

The teasing tone of his question caused Karl to sigh in exasperation, but the upturn of the corners in his mouth and the small dimple on one side of his face, told him he was amused. Maybe he was feeling a little sorry that it was going to be over. Stephen had to admit he liked how close they had grown, even with the added nuisance of not being able to access magic immediately. Stephen thought they wound up working better together than apart at times. It had taken not just Karl and himself, but all three of them to get to this point. There was something special about them. It just took an upheaval of their lives for them to come to this realization. Well, he wasn’t sure if Wong agreed, but he was pretty sure Karl did.

“I will be glad when all of this is finished and we can get back to our normal lives.”

Stephen came closer to him, smiling, looking at him as affection danced in his expression.

“You only mean about 95% of that, I think.”

“Perhaps. The other 5% may be the fact I will miss someone fetching me food every now and again, even if it’s not really to my taste.”

The playfulness in his expression set Stephen’s heart on fire; the ebbing embers being stoked to a full flame once again. He leaned in to kiss Karl before Wong came back. Slow, tender, heated, and satisfactory in every single way he knew it could be, he didn’t want to pull away, but had to eventually.

Tomorrow things would change, but at least they had now.
 
.oOo.
 
They arrived early to the spot they had ventured twice before. Stephen had to believe in luck, and the third time was always the charm according to the saying. Although he would not put all of his faith into the idea, he did have a good feeling when they arrived. That was until The Vishanti appeared before them.

He had forgotten how intimidating they were; their presence was overwhelming in ways that Stephen had trouble coming to terms with for a moment as Agamotto roared to life. Karl moved forward at that moment and put the relic upon the ground in front of the beings. Directly after that, he moved backwards in a bow, as if he were positioned in front of royalty. Stephen quickly made to do the same.

“We have fulfilled your wishes, and request that you reverse our current situation,” Karl began.

They looked upon both sorcerers as if they were pets demanding to be fed, but that it was not feeding time. It scared Stephen they may have no intention of doing so.

Oshtur sighed dramatically.

“We will set right what we have done, but first we shall have word.”

“We have watched with considerable irritation the path the two of you have taken. In the end, we have decided to give your magic back, but with a warning. Do not disturb us again, Sorcerer Strange. There will come a time where we will meet again, but it will be on our terms,” Hoggarth added.

It was funny how the majority of responses that he received most of the time in the past two weeks was pretty much along the lines of ‘fuck off’, but given that he had instigated most of this, he could muster an understanding of their reactions. Although he would have had the same sort of attitude, if not the same sort of language, he couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed. Yet, all these people and entities had ultimately helped him, even if they put him and Karl to the test while doing so.

“Sorcerer Mordo, we impress upon you the idea that not one man should play the role of judge, jury, and executioner. Although we understand your desire for order, the truth, much like the relic you encountered, is often multi-layered and complex. We suggest for you to do some soul searching in the meantime,” Oshtur added.

Stephen looked over towards his partner, standing there dumb-struck. They both understood the point, but had they not thought of it that way. Clearly, much like Stephen, Karl had grown leaps and bounds by the experience, learning to let go of the past. They would have never accomplished much otherwise.

With a powerful burst of energy, they were knocked off their feet for a moment. Getting up, The Vishanti looked upon them with condescending expressions. Most likely they were done for now, but Stephen and Karl would have to wait until they were dismissed.

“We will meet again. The fates have willed it so,” Agamotto complained.

It was uncertain to whom he was talking to, but they were not going to ask with the way that they had been talked to the first time they had all met. They also didn’t give Stephen time to even consider asking as they disappeared shortly after without even a goodbye, taking the relic with them in a poof of smoke. He thought it was fairly typical of what he had seen, and he turned back to Karl to comment on it. Karl stood there, looking at his hands, moving them with a slow ease. It was clear that he was feeling out the magic, as he too felt his own hands’ ache slowly dull in response to his own magic running through them again.

Karl then put his sling ring on and summoned a portal into the Sanctum. The familiar sparks and glow felt like it was a new sensation for some reason. Stephen paused before following Karl through into the foyer where Wong was waiting for them.

He nodded in approval, clearly understanding things were now put right. It was only a matter of waiting until it was morning in Nepal before they could take their next step. There would be a meeting of the masters of Kamar-Taj, and then a decision would be made as to their fates. There was a chance if enough people felt wronged, Stephen would still not be welcomed, but he had a good feeling about what would happen. Once again things would be righting themselves. However, he knew shouldn’t count on it.

In the meantime, Wong suggested that they have lunch together. It may have been their last chance to share a meal, and they both readily agreed with the other master. As they ate, they steered clear of any topics that may bring strife between them, and avoided talking about their upcoming visit to Kamar-Taj. Thankfully, there was a continued sense of ease that hadn’t been there when they were trying to figure out how to retrieve the relic and rid it of it’s ‘curse’.

Wong even led them in a toast with some old brandy that he had stashed away in a cabinet somewhere, something no one else had found in the time that they had been there. Drinking in the afternoon wasn’t normally his thing after he had become a sorcerer, but he could make an exception. The only problem it did bring was that he started to drift into a highly sentimental mood towards the end of the lunch, and it was much harder to hide that. His eyes, like his mood, drifted off towards Karl’s direction. He was lost in thought and only brought out of it when he saw Wong glare at him in warning.

Karl looked at his food and not at Wong, nor Stephen, and it was perhaps for the best.

Stephen followed Karl’s example after that, reminding himself that he had to maintain professionalism even if he were with the people he trusted the most at this point in his life. There would be time for play later. That was something he was certain of, but being that they had metaphorically been joined at the hip for a while, it would be another transition to get used to.

The hours flew by, and they soon found themselves gathering in the room where the sanctums connected. Stephen looked around to see how many were actually left after everything: 20 masters. Only 20 masters remained from the 40 he knew of when he first joined Kamar-Taj; half of what they had before and still leaderless.

He knew he had no real voice here, so he waited for Karl and Wong to plead his case, and they did it with great eloquence. Karl’s passion was unmatched, while Wong’s logic was flawless, and he could see the other masters mentally changing their opinions of Stephen. There were still some who murmured about his inability to protect the Time Stone, but when they heard of how he had managed to prevent a bigger catastrophe than the one that had taken place, they looked a little less fervent in their opinion.

Eventually they gave their opinion as to what should happen to Stephen and the rest of the sorcerers who had been at the New York Sanctum. Karl would stay in New York, and Wong would return to Kamar-Taj where he would oversee Stephen for a trial period. It seemed that those with some skepticism still left had won out on that point. A little insulting, but he would deal with it. The politics swayed like branches the wind, and he was confident that he would convert them into believing in him with little effort.

After things were settled for the moment, the three of them were dismissed and given a few hours to sort things out. Stephen didn’t have many possessions at the Sanctum, and the move back would be easy, but the goodbye would not.

He wished he had one more evening, but he had to accept that it was time for the next chapter. It didn’t mean he’d stay away forever or that he couldn’t visit; he would still have his own personal time in the evenings. His demotion meant he would have a little more time than when he was a master of a sanctum, and he knew that with Wong being his supervisor, he would not receive too much hassle in his free time. There would not be as many sharp eyes watching him as there had been when he was a student.

Karl went with him when he went back to his room. They both sat down on the bed, not saying a word for a good while. His cloak floated off to the side, waiting patiently for Stephen to finish. It wouldn’t take long. They knew it was coming. It wasn’t a shock, but there was a bitter aftertaste to how it had happened. There was no guilt or real anger about it, but acceptance of their judgement was a hard pill to swallow, even if it was the best medicine.

Stephen took one last look around the room, but had a feeling it wasn’t going to be the last time he saw it, especially now that he was back in the fold. Everything had been like a dream with all the ups and down, sprinkled with surreal moments for good measure.

When Karl started to rub his leg, he snapped out of it, feeling the need to say something. He opened his mouth to do so, but nothing came out and he shut it again. What was there to say?

“You won’t be watched as closely as they say. All the rest there are less taskmasters than Wong is, and you have already proven yourself to him. In fact, I think you're his favorite at the moment, so you have that going for you.”

Stephen laughed weakly at statement. He knew that, and he wasn’t worried.

“Everything has happened much too fast, I mean, I guess I’ll see you when I have time.”

“I don’t know how much time you’ll have. I think they want you to start recruiting students; to get a feel for what makes a good candidate. They have no confidence in my abilities in that area at the moment, hence why they want me here. Although they didn’t come out and say it, they don’t trust me to teach either.”

It was politics in action, but a burden they would have to bear for the time being.

“I’ll find time. I’m not worried.”

He was a little worried, but it would be fine as all things tended to be.

Stephen turned his head and smiled before he brought his hand up to stroke Karl’s cheek. Leaning in, their lips met once again for a quick kiss, but their minds were elsewhere and pulled away after moment. Stephen put his forehead against Karl’s, resting and closing his eyes, basking in the comfort of having this person in his life.

He took a breath before getting up and fetching a case for his clothes and other things. The few items he had fit in one medium sized case. His hands ran over the other set of clothes he had with his laptop tucked under them. His undergarments, socks, and toiletries lined the sides of the case, and he paused before he closed the top.

Strong arms came around his midsection as Karl swayed into him, smelling his robes, the fragrance of his shampoo, and whatever other scents came off of him. The thought that Karl was going through the same emotions he was going through crossed his mind at that moment, and he brought his hands up to cover Karl’s.

After a few minutes of standing there, taking it all in, Stephen wiggled out of his grasp to turn around and give him a proper kiss. It was the type of kiss that people saw in movies, with the same sort of passion the classics managed to get right every single time. The speechlessness from Karl when they finished told Stephen that he managed to convey what was inside of his heart. He grinned wide in response, turning again to close the clasps on the case for his clothes. Before he could say another thing or turn around for another kiss, there was a knock on the door before Wong opened it.

“Glad you’re decent,” Wong remarked dryly.

“For now,” Stephen teased back.

“For a while, I hope. We have to get back. Even though they gave us a few hours, they didn’t actually mean we could take that long,” Wong grumbled.

“Alright, I’ll be there in a second,” Stephen sighed.

Wong took his case out of the room without offering or being asked. The coak flew back upon his shoulders after noticing the case leaving. It gave a flutter to tell Stephen to get going, reminding him of the nag that it could be at times.

“I’ll be back soon, in a few hours even. They can’t keep me working all night after all,” Stephen murmured.

“I know. It will be okay.”

“Are you going to be okay?”

“Of course. I’m not a child. It’s not as if it’s forever.”

“Yea.”

With that, Karl motioned for them to leave, closing the door behind them. Wong had already headed to the door that connected them to Kamar-Taj, and Stephen followed after. Tomorrow had come and it was a new day with new challenges.

Despite all his efforts to freeze this short time they had together, the world kept turning.

.oOo. 5 Years Later .oOo.
 
Karl sat down across from Stephen, sighing heavily before grabbing at his neck, most likely trying to ease the tension. Stephen in turn put his book down to look up at his partner.

“The students giving you a hard time these days?” He snorted in amusement.

“You have no idea,” Karl grumbled.

Although Stephen couldn’t see with the desk between them, he knew Karl was kicking off his boots and stretching his legs out. It was a common occurance at the New York Sanctum. Whenever Karl could get away from his duties as teacher he came to unwind at the Sanctum. Yet, Stephen knew that he was happier there than he was in New York. With only a door between their worlds, it wasn’t as much of a burden as others assumed. There was still this feeling of being worlds apart, but at the same time, Stephen wasn’t sure it work as well as it did if they were on top of each other like before.

As Karl closed his eyes and tilted his head back, Stephen got up and came around the back of him. Holding out his gloved hand, he smiled slightly as Karl opened his eyes again to see the hand. Taking it gently, Karl stood up leaning in for a peck. Stephen smirked and raised a brow mischievously.

“Feeling tired? I could use a break you know.”

Karl gave him a disapproving look, but followed by that brilliant smile, Stephen knew he wasn’t going to protest.

“You know if you’re caught, it’s the end of you,” he teased back.

“Breaking the rules? You know I flirt with danger. Besides if anything serious happens, we’ll know before they do.”

They always joked that he’d get the wrong end of the stick if he put a step out of line, given what The Vishanti had said the last time they met. The inside joke had spiraled out of control to cover things that they would have never bothered Stephen about.

Karl nodded in approval as he ran his hands over the fabric of Stephen’s robes, almost the same since he had become a master. There was no point in changing them, despite having a different title. Given that the title was almost superficial now in comparison to when he first entered Kamar-Taj, he was okay with that. It was especially true, since he understood how necessary others were, and the man in front of him reminded him of that everytime he came for a visit.

Karl let go of his hand and headed off first. Somehow he always knew when Stephen had to finish something before he could take a break.

In magic, in love, their partnership had grown to the point where it seemed odd to think that at one time they had practically been at eachothers throats. Stephen realized after that sometimes the only way out was through. He was glad they both came out the other end of their experience better people.