Stepping back through the halls, Astra had enough strength to walk on her own as Stephen steps over towards the zealot, he kneels down and immediately checks his pulse.
Nothing. He was dead and a sense of guilt floods through Stephen as he stood up and looks over at Astra. "I'm sorry you had to do that, Stephen," she tells him. He sighs and nods at her. "Me too," he states, then looks away as he grips the cloak and swung it onto his shoulders.
Astra exhales as she steps over to the man, kneels, and gently closes his eyes, she then stood up, gripping the black cloak, and flung it onto her shoulder, and strides after Stephen. They headed up the stairs and saw that Kaecilius was gone, "Damn, he escaped." Astra states as she jogs up the steps.
Then they heard a growl and looked over, Sully in his Zheng form steps towards them, looking Astra dead in her eyes. "Sully?" she asks, he purrs and nuzzles his head against her. She exhales with relief hugging his big head. "Good to see you too, boy," she states and pulls back, taking him in. "Might be a little too big for the apartment, but we can make it work," she states.
Sully purrs and nuzzles against her. Stephen just smiles and pets Sully's head. "Strange!" Mordo calls out, alerting the two as Sully just snarls. Mordo steps over and looks at them both. "You're okay," he states. Stephen just sighs, "A relative term. But yeah, we're okay." Stephen informs him. The Mordo notices the cloaks on their shoulders and Sully in his true form. "The Cloaks of Levitation and Invisibility," he states.
Stephen looks down at his cloak. "They came to you both. And a Zheng familiar," he states, sully snarls at him as Mordo looks at Astra. "He chose you as his master," he states as she places her hand on Sully's side. "No minor feat." The Ancient One states. The two immediately went stiff as she steps into the room. "It's a fickle thing," she states, Astra was ready to go off on her, but Stephen grips her arm, stopping her, and looks back at the Iron restraints. "He's escaped," Stephen informs her. "Kaecilius?" The Ancient One, "Yeah." Stephen answers and glares right at her, "He controlled space and matter at will." he informs her.
Astra can feel the anger radiating off Stephen as Sully did as well, growling at the Ancient One. "He folds matter outside the Mirror Dimension in the real world?" she asks aloud. "Yeah," he answers. "How many more?" she asks again. "Two more. One is stranded in the desert. The other is dead, just downstairs." Astra informs her. "Master Drumm is in the foyer," Stephen informs her as he strides past the two, Sully and Astra right behind him.
Mordo exhales, "He's been taken back to Kamar-Taj." he informs them, "Good. Then he can get intensive care." Astra states. "The London Sanctum has fallen. Only New York and Hong Kong remain now to shield us from the Dark Dimension." The Ancient One informs them as the two came to a stop "You and Sunflare defended the New York Sanctum from attack. With its master gone, it needs another. Master Strange and Master Sunflare." she said to them.
And this sets Astra off. "Master?" she questions and looks back at her, as Mordo just at the Ancient One in shock. "No," Stephen states and looks at her. "It is Doctor Strange and Sunflare. Not Master Strange and Master Sunflare. Not Mister Strange and Ms. Sunflare. Doctor Strange and Doctor Sunflare." Stephen snaps at him.
The Ancient One tilts her head a little, "And when we became doctors, we swore an oath to not harm. And I have just killed a man. I'm not doing that again." Stephen snaps at her. "We became doctors to save lives, help the wounded. Not rip them apart like shredding paper!" Astra snaps as well. "You became a doctor to save one life above all others. Your own. And you became a doctor to prove that a woman is just as capable as any man to being a doctor." she informs them both.
Astra rolls her head, looking away from her, "Still seeing through us, are you?" Stephen questions her. "I've seen what I have always seen, your over-inflated ego. And your constant fear of abandonment," she states, making Astra stiffen. "You both want to go back to the delusion that you can control anything, even death which no one can control. Not even the great Doctor Stephen Strange," she said to him then turns her gaze to Astra. "And you grow ever so terrified at one day, everyone you ever loved will turn their backs on you, leaving you when you most need them, but no one control such things, not even the great Doctor Astra Sunflare," she tells her.
Sully snarls at her, tears stream down Astra's face as she touched a nerve. "Not even Dormammu?" Stephen questions her, making her smile fall. "He offers immortality," he states, stepping towards her. "It's our fear of death that gives Dormammu life. He feeds of it," she informs him, Mordo steps to her side as Stephen was in front of her. "As you feed off him?" he questions her.
Standing right in front of her, "You talk to me about controlling death? Oh, I know how you do it. We've seen the missing rituals from The Book of Cargilostro." he warns her. "Measure your next words very carefully, doctor." The Ancient One warns him, then Astra steps up next to Stephen. "And I suggest you measure yours," she warns her right back, the green mist flowing through her hands as Sully was right next to Stephen. "Because you might not like them?" Stephen questions her. "Because you may not know of what you speak," she assures him.
Astra just glares at her, "Not what we speak? You really want to take your little secret of immortality to your grave?" Astra questions her. But The Ancient One just looks at her, "What are they talking about?" Mordo asks her. "We're talking about her long life, the source of her immortality. She draws power from the Dark Dimension to stay alive." Stephen answers.
But Mordo just scoffs at the thought. "That's not true." he states, "We've seen the rituals. You work them out." Stephen tells him, "I know how you do it." he informs her, but she does her best not to react. "Once they regroup the Zealots will be back. You'll need reinforcements," she informs him and walks away.
Astra informs deeply as she steps away, flexing her hands as she was trying to control her flaring temper, Sully steps towards her and nuzzles into her side. Mordo looks back at them, "She's not who you think she is." Stephen said to him, "You don't have the right to say that. You have no idea the responsibility that rests upon her shoulders." Mordo informs them. "No, and I don't want to know." Stephen states as he turns back to them, "You're a coward." Mordo said to him.
Astra opens her eyes and looks back at him. "Coward? You call us coward because we don't simply take away a life?" she questions him, "These zealots will snuff us all out and you can't muster the strength to snuff them first?" Mordo questions her. "What did you think I just did?" Stephen shouts at him. "You saved your own life!" Mordo asks, but Stephen shook his head, "No, I did it to save Astra." he reminds him.
Mordo threw up his hands, "And you whined about it like a wounded dog." he states, then Stephen steps towards him, "Oh, you would have done it so easily." he questions. "You've no idea the things I've done. And the answer is yes. Without hesitation." he answers and Astra steps in front of him, "Then you're no different from Kaecilius." she snaps at him, he glares down at her, biting his bite. "What if there was another way?" Stephen questions him.
Mordo glares back at Stephen, "There is no other way." he growls. "You lack imagination," Stephen reports. "No, Stephen. You lack a spine." he informs him and Astra shoves him back, "And you lack compassion." she reports and Mordo glares down at her, "I will not like another word from you, Nephilim." he states, pointing at her, but the name he used immediately caught her attention. "What did you just call me?" she questions him.
Cursing to himself he turns away, "Oh no, you don't get to walk away. What did you call me?" she snaps again, as he came to a stop and looks at her. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with," he answers, but she pressed on. "The zealot, right before he died, he called me a Nephilim as well, that time would die with me," she states. Mordo inhales as he said nothing. "How long?" she questions.
Mordo looks over his shoulder, "What?" he asks, "How long did you know and pretended to be my friend?" she questions him, making him turns to her. "I can't answer that," he answers. And that was all she needed. "Did the Ancient One know too?" she questions him again.
He said nothing, but a distant rumble catches their attention, Mordo shot one last look at the two of them "They're back." he states and follows the sound, "Sully, stay here." Astra orders. Sully huffs and walks off, going to find a bed to rest on. Then Stephen and Astra followed the sound as well.
They headed towards the front and peer down at the zealots as they were making a bomb. "We have to end this." Mordo states then he jumps over the rails, "Now!" he calls out and charges at one of the zealots. "Strange! Get down here and fight!" he calls out, fighting off the zealots.
Kaecilius looks up at the two, then shot his hand down, but the bomb went out as nothing happened. He looks up and saw Stephen glaring down at him. "The Mirror Dimension. You can't affect the real world in here," he states as Keacilius stood back up. "Who's laughing now? Asshole." he shot at him as Astra glares down at Kaecilius.
But the zealot held no surprised look on his face, "I am." he answers and with the motions of his hands, everything was bending to his will. Mordo breaks the zealots hold on him as Stephen flew down at Kaecilius. Astra jumps down to the floor, stealing a sling ring off the ground as Stephen took Kaecilius' ring, and the three immediately charged out of the mansion and look up at it as it was bending. "I got his sling. They can't escape, right?" Stephen asks as the two looked at him. But they looked back and there they were. "Run!" Mordo calls out and they took off down the street.
But everything was flip-flop and non-senseable, "Jeez, I knew the mirror dimension was confusing, but this is mind-fucking me." Astra states as she looks around. Mordo then ran up to them. "Their connection to the Dark Dimension makes them more power in the Mirror Dimension. They can't affect the real world, but they can still kill us. This wasn't clever. It was suicide!" he informs them. "At least the Sanctum is still standing!" Astra snaps at him, making him glare down at her, "You don't get to be mad after lying for months about what I am!" she growls.
He scoffs and looks back seeing the zealots were marching right for them. They break into a run and hurried to escape, Stephen then conjures up a portal and they ran right for it. But Kaecilius turns his hand and sends the three slidings down the road and they crashed on the side of a bus.
An old man inside was laughing at what he was reading in the newspapers, "That is hilarious!!" he laughs, completely oblivious about the three as they stood upon the bus and looks back at the zealots as they were charging, Astra glares then swung her arm, sending a green orb flying right at them, it explodes at their feet, creating a bubble around them, causing their time to slow down.
Shocked and surprised the two looked back at her as she looks down at her hand. "That's new," she states and the two looked back at each other. Then they looked back at the zealots as the bubbles drop. "Run!" Astra calls out and threw another at them, slowing them down.
Stephen and Mordo jump away and ran up a skyscraper, Astra threw one last one, then thrust her hands down, using the green mist to fly in after them, heading up the sky scrapper. She looks back, seeing the zealots were catching up, and looks back to the two as Stephen was opening up a portal.
But Kaecilius slams his hand down, causing a wave to ripple out, making the two unbalanced and the portal shimmer away, and with his powers, the skyscraper literately bends to his will. The two lose their footing and were screaming as they fell. "Stephen!" Astra calls out and flew down him. Her hand reaches out, making him reach out for hers.
She grabs hold of his hand and slows their descend and land on the side of a building, Mordo catches himself as he steps into the side of the building as well and they hurried towards the edge and looks out at the folding Mirror Dimension. All three were panting, "This was a mistake." Stephen admits. Mordo shot a look at him, "It was either this or blow up with the Sanctum." Astra informs him, making him look at her and smile.
But the moment was gone as the three yelps in surprise as the building under their feet folds in and sends them falling. They fell for what seemed like forever, but the two use their relics as Astra threw her hands down, using her green mist to catch herself. Stephen grips hold of the rail but fell.
Both land on the ground, but the ground immediately swallows Stephen, separating the two. Astra lands on top of the side of a building and pulls herself up to her feet. She looks down, seeing no trace of Stephen, but did catch sight of the zealots making their way towards the two.
She growls then shot out, landing in front of Kaecilius, he looks at her as she glares right at him. "What is a Nephilim?" she questions, he arches his eyebrow at her. The two then circled one another, "The Nephilim were once a race of supernatural beings, birthed between an Angel and a Demon. There were hundreds of them." he answers.
Astra wiggles her hands, pulsing the green mist. "Long before the world of man, the Nephilim were a proud race, a noble race great and terrible war came and wiped them all out, to extinction, thus giving theirs to the universe of ours. Legend has it, they had... children of their own and they had children of their own and so on. Hidden between realms. Others... were reincarnated, a completely blank slate, waiting to be reawakened." he said to her.
Then turns his gaze back to her, "You are the child of an extinct race, reborn through the mystic arts. You are Nephilim." he said to her, shocking her. Making his step closer towards her, "Through you flows the raw energy of two infinite power. Time and Space and through your existence, Time and Space flow like the stream in the river." he said, making her take a step back. "But if you were to die..." he states. "Time and Space would die with me, thus ending the natural order of the universe," she states.
Making Kaecilius smile, "Precisely." he hisses, she blinks, flicking her eyes back to him, "and the voices..." she asks again, Kaecilius folds his hands behind his back. "They are the voices of the past, present, and future, only you can hear them because of your deep connection into your third eye," he informs her.
Inhaling deeply, Astra keeps her cool and lets out a quick breath "Is that why The Ancient One kept me close and lied to me all these months?" she questions, he peers in, making her lean back, skin-crawling from the staring darkness of his eyes. "A Nephilim is too dangerous to let loose in the city, the influence they have on people, well, you have on people can be... inspiring and destructive. But controlling one..." he adds, coming to a stop.
She took a step back, "Well, you don't need me to tell you that part." he states and she took another step back. "So forgive me, but you must die," he said and summons his blade, charging the mist in her hands, she motions her arms, forming the two into one, Kaecilius charges, but she threw the orb right at him.
Stephen ran along the sidewalk and up the rippling stairs, as Mordo was running alongside him, atop the rails, upside down. Stephen peers over his shoulder, seeing the zealots chasing after them, one jumps out at Stephen, but Mordo crashes into her, causing Stephen to stumble a little.
The grounds kept changing and changing in the Dimension, but Stephen kept running and running, trying to outrun the zealot behind him, making him jump to the intersection, only for the ground to open up and swallow him whole.
He slides down through the subway, yelping in surprise as he passes through the wall, landing back at the street. He only looked back momentarily and immediately took off running.
Astra drops onto the ground, looking up, and immediately took off running. Kaecilius lands on the ground, then took off running, falling in step with the rippling stairwell. Astra kept pushing herself as Kaecilius was right behind her, she then flips right side up and crashes into Stephen, making both parties grunt from impact.
Stephen pulls her in front of him, looking down at her, "Astra." he said in surprise. Then immediately notices Kaecilius behind her, he turns them, shoving her away as Kaecilius reaches out and grips hold of his neck.
Astra hits the ground with her side, she gasps in shock as it irritated her wound. She presses her hand to her chest, then looks back, seeing Kaecilius tower over Stephen, he kneels, gripping Stephen's neck once again. The doctor struggles in his grip as he reaches in and pulls out his sling ring.
Kaecilius summons his blade once more and reels it over his head, "NO!" Astra cries out, Stephen braces himself. But the ground under him immediately pulls him away, separating Stephen from the zealot. Astra then gasps in surprise as the ground pulls away, carrying her. He peeks at her, seeing her being carried to safety.
He stood and turns around, finding his zealots being pulled away as well, the ground then forms, forming a room of sorts, keeping both them and the zealots inside. Mordo looks around at the room they were sealed in. Stephen sat up, panting with relief as he still breathing. Astra groans as the pain from her wound were horrible, this gets Stephen's attention and he hurried to her side. "Astra," he whispers, gently rolling her onto her back.
The Ancient One twirls her fan to the side, separating the sorcerers from the zealots, Stephen helps Astra to her feet as Mordo was staring right at the Ancient One, seeing the symbol on her forehead. "It's true. She does draw power from the Dark Dimension," he whispers.
Astra pants as she looks over at The Ancient One and for a moment she could almost see the look of guilt and regret in her eyes. But it was just a moment. The Ancient One then looks back at the Zealots. "Kaecilius," she calls out.
He glares back at her as they begin to circle one another, "I came to you broken lost, in need. I trusted you to be my teacher and you fed me lies." he sneers at her, "I tried to protect you." she admits to him. Making him narrow his eyes at her. "From the truth?" he questions. "From yourself," she answers.
He looks away from her, unpleased with her answer. "I have a new teacher now." he declares to her. "Dormammu deceives you. You have no idea what he truly is. His eternal life is not paradise, but torment." she tries to reason, but he stood in front of his zealots, glaring at her, "Liar." he said, summoning his blade and they charged at her.
She calmly folds her hands behind her back and awaits them, The three watched from the sidelines at The Ancient One was beating them easily, Kaecilius rolls onto his knee, glaring up at The Ancient One as she fights off the Zealots.
He sneakily pulls on his sling ring and marches up towards The Ancient One, Astra notices him marches towards The Ancient One, flickering her head between them, she shot her hands out, the mist suddenly changes to a mixture of green and blue.
Causing Kaecilius to come to a complete stop, the two looked down at her as she was straining under the pressure, Kaecilius struggles and fights against her, but then the pulsed pain from her wound ripples in her chest, causing her to recoil into herself with a gasp of pain, "Astra!" Stephen calls out, catching her.
The spell broke free and Keacilius breaks through, with his blade raised, but The Ancient One pulls her hand from the zealot's throat, blocking the attack, but he cheats and stabs her through his zealot, making her gasp in surprise. The three looked at her in horror as she stood there in shock.
Keacilius just held a satisfying smile as he pulls the blade away, the zealot drops dead as Kaecilius twist and kicks The Ancient One right out through the passing Portal, "No!" Astra calls out as they hurried after her, jumping through the portal as it vanishes behind them.
The Ancient One fell 60ft from the air, unable to stop or catch herself, the three flew in after her, trying to catch up, but it was too late, she crashes through the window, smacking onto the ground. This startles everyone as they scatter back from the body and falling glass.
The three lands down onto the ground, they hurried through the crowd, pushing and prodding their way towards the center, Astra hurried to her side and looks down at the deep and gashing wounds on her body, Stephen kneels next to her, panting heavily as he checks her pulse, Mordo was still incomplete horror as his teacher was lying limply on the ground.