An Imaginary Throne // Doctor Strange // Far From Home

Chapter Twelve // go

THE HOT TEARS trickling down her cheeks fail to distract her from the chill in the air. Goosebumps prickle her bare arms, her fingernails have turned purple from the cold and her breath fogs up the air in front of her. Not that any of that matters. Casey has no idea how much time has passed since Kaecilius left them but she feels her hope wane with every second. Then there is the guilt. The fact that she maimed the man who had done nothing but help her, even when that meant following her into another dimension, clouds her mind with enough emotion that she can't think straight.

She's afraid it's formed a rift between them that they'll never smooth out.

"More pressure."

She glances upward at the murmur of his voice, pressing the blood-soaked rag in her hands closer to his torso. No matter how much she wills her magic to heal him, it refuses to budge like a limb that is no longer hers.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I thought you were Kaecilius and Quentin was dying and I, I just-"

She stops at the feeling of his hand on her knee.

"It's okay," Strange says and there's a forced smile on his face that objects the hoarseness in his voice, "Help me up?"

Casey obliges, positioning him so his back is pressed against the wall and he can see the wound in his abdomen. He peels the fabric away with a wince, exhaling slowly.

"What's wrong?" He asks when he looks up and sees the distant expression that's overcome her. It takes Casey a moment to hear what he said and she bites her lip, staring up at the empty ceiling. A brass chandelier hangs there, waving slightly from side to side. The lights are broken but they glint in the streak of sunlight coming in through a narrow slit in the top of the wall across from them.

"I thought that I came here to find Quentin and bring him back to you. That's what I told myself and I swear to god I believed it, but now I think I just wanted closure. I stole the Serpent Crown, stabbed you in the back, figuratively and literally, and risked who knows how many other lives because I just couldn't accept that he was dead. And all I got was watching him die a second time, hurting you and giving the most powerful weapon I've ever seen to a...a psychopath. Now I don't even know what's real and what's not. I'm scared, Stephen. I'm scared that all of this is an illusion that's going to fade away the second Kaecilius gets whatever he wants this time and...I'm going to be alone again." She laughs at herself, "I'm sorry, here you are bleeding out and I'm going on about my emotions. This is probably all karma anyway."

"If it makes you feel any better, I forgive you. You had no idea who I was, Adria. BARF is...more potent than I expected, it's no surprise you were tricked. And you came here with a noble goal, though I can't say I appreciate you going behind my back to do it."

Casey stays quiet, her gaze fixed onto the floor. Despite, or maybe because of her proximity to him, she doesn't dare look up.

"I'm-"

"Sorry?" He asks, "Yeah I know."

He nudges her with his elbow, forcing her to glance up and the second her eyes meet his, they both smile. Casey wipes away the remainder of her tears with the flat of her finger, her expression turning more serious as her mind is left to wonder.

"Do you know what he wants with the crown?" Casey asks, climbing to her feet and glancing at the dilapidated door down the hallway. Kaecilius locked it magically and she knows it would be hard to dispel one of his enchantments even at her full strength but the other end of the hallway had caved in during the chaos, so it's their best bet.

Strange sighs, watching her closely, "The powers of the crown attract users the same way a venus flytrap attracts prey. People like you who come for the promise of magic are usually at the lowest point in their lives, making them easy prey for Set, a demon who was exiled millenia ago. The longer someone uses the crown, the more they fall under Set's control. Soon he makes them perform tasks that enable him to return to Earth in his physical form. They're awful, heinous jobs but if anyone is capable of them, it's Kaecilius. And he'll do them willingly. If we don't stop him first, it'll mean the apocalypse. Again."

"But if Set's goal relies on taking control of whoever uses that crown then why wasn't I affected? I used it more than once." Casey glances back at him, scouring his face for an answer. When he shrugs, she returns to the door. There's a crack between two vertical panels of wood which she hesitantly lowers herself in front of. On the other side, she sees nothing but darkness. Until the darkness begins to move.

"With you, I don't think that was ever his end game. He wanted you to come here because he wanted to get to your father and he couldn't do that if he was possessing you."

"Why Kaecilius?" She murmurs. The guard who had been leaning against the door, blocking her view had moved away and she could see him in distinct conversation with a blue hooded man. Eli, she remembers. They would probably open the door if she yelled for help and she doesn't doubt her ability to take on the guard but it's Eli and the tattoos that swirl around his neck- marks of an elite sorcerer, that raise her concern.

"He's done the whole worshipping an evil god act before. Maybe Set got inspired." Strange says, pulling her away from her thoughts.

"Right...well, how do we stop him?"

"You need to destroy the crown or at least move it back to our dimension, where you can protect it at the sanctum."

"You? What do you mean you?"

"Unless we get a med kit and a week to spare, I'm not making it out that door nevermind fighting Kaecilius. I'm not asking you to leave me behind, Adria. I'm telling you that you need to do this first. Alone. The universe takes priority over my life."

"When have you been so easily defeated? We're in this together."

"Is that what you thought when you stole the crown?"

Casey grits her teeth, finally turning to face him. Though it pains her to admit it, he's right. In his condition, he would only slow her down. Except, there's an issue with their plan.

"That wound is infected. If not now then soon it will be. I don't need to be a neurosurgeon to know that. Your powers are as weak as mine in this dimension too. If I leave you here and I don't come back in time, you could die. Couldn't you?"

Stephen looks away as if he's grappling with the truth. It takes a moment for the tension between his eyebrows to relax but his jaw is clenched with anger.

"What do you care? You put us in this situation. You know what, you were right the first time. You helped create Mysterio, you were willing to put thousands of lives at risk for Beck's legacy, got him killed, betrayed me after I took you in- after I healed you, lost the serpent crown which you stole from my sanctum!" He takes a sharp inward breath, calming himself enough to continue, "And now you've killed me too. Don't come to me looking for comfort because you can't live with the guilt of what you've done. And don't you dare use it as an excuse to hide the fact that you're too afraid to face your father again. This is no longer a choice, Adria, you are obliged to leave and you're obliged to retrieve that crown. So if you don't go now, I myself will feel no guilt in handing you the same injuries you have dealt me. And Quentin."

For a moment, the air fills with silence. Casey clasps her hands together when they begin to shake, not with anger but sadness, and inclines her head to hide the tears in her eyes.

She replies calmly but she knows in her heart that what he's saying, comes from the truth. Whether he means it or not is a different story.

"I know what you're doing. You're being cruel so it'll be easier for me to walk away."

Not that that makes you any less right, she thinks.

Stephen's eyes soften but his demeanour doesn't change, cold gaze unfaltering.

"Go."

a/n

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