rehandle: (pic#16175943)
dr. stephen strange ([personal profile] rehandle) wrote in [community profile] eastbound2023-02-06 03:55 pm

un: strange / video

( Forward-dated to the 7th / during the Clawing. )



[ The image opens to a view of Alem from above and at great distance. It's an awkward angle, somewhere to the side of the great stone Citadel where a couple of the smaller merchant entrances open into the Crossing. The view dips and sways, wind howling across the network as the pendant that captures it sits against its wearer's chest, floating high in chill air.

Only this for a few seconds - and then the slow zoom of an approach until Alem is much larger and the small figures of people and their wares can be seen disappearing in through one of the more secluded merchant's gates, more figures closing them up behind. Another eerie stretch of nothing but the buffeting of wind and an unaware fortress, then hands raise into the forefront of the image. Precise white scars trail the backs of all the fingers and that's the last detail there is before everything happens too fast for detail.

Those hands move through two swift patterns and a pair of vibrant orange mandala burst into life. They crash together, spark, and huge angry bolts of raw magic leap from them, hot and bright as fire and travelling in violent arcs toward an unwitting target.

They strike the gate. An explosion.

From this distance, the sounds of screams and cries for action are difficult to separate from the screeching of the wind. The broadcast cuts dead. ]




( ooc: somebody got Clawed!! He's attacked one of the rear merchant's entrances of the Crossing, so there's no pressure for anyone who is frequenting the Crossing in general to have been caught up in the blast, but if you'd like for your characters to have been there to witness first hand when the spell struck/to have been hurt in the blast that is also A-OK! No obligation to tag into this post, but if you do have your character hurt please let me know here so I can keep track.

The majority of Stephen's replies will most likely come a few hours after the attack once he's fully released from the Claw, but if anybody would specifically like to reach him while he's still Clawed, hit me up oocly (the comment linked above works, or plurk/disco!) and we can do the thing. Otherwise, feel free to also use this post as a place for characters to talk amongst themselves! )
downswing: (〇)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-12 12:11 am (UTC)(link)
You stood a hero.
downswing: (gallantry)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-12 12:17 am (UTC)(link)
The girl Kamala spoke of heroism. Skill.

Squandered.
downswing: (guanxi)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-12 12:30 am (UTC)(link)
You court necromancy?
downswing: (endgame)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-12 12:57 am (UTC)(link)
A man resuscitated?
cosplayqueen: (I have crossed the horizon to find you)

[personal profile] cosplayqueen 2023-02-12 01:32 am (UTC)(link)
He is! Was? I don't know. [Kamala groans in frustration. She decides to provide context even knowing it'll open a door that all the survivors try to keep shut. You survive the blip by never talking about it. She feels she owes people like Wanda and Stephen this much; an acknowledgment of what they've done for the galaxy. Even a girl as naïve as her knows the cost must have been great.]

When Thanos came to destroy half of all life in the galaxy, he fought to stop him. He failed the first time, but other heroes found a way to bring all of our dead back to life. Thanos didn't take it well. Like at all. He decided this time he'd just kill all of us. The entire galaxy... life was going to end. I know that sounds crazy, but take it from someone who survived when he just killed half of us. He could do it. We were all going to die this time.

[Her voice sounds wet. Kamala pushes through it. She needs him to get it.] Anyways, Doctor Strange was the one who brought an army from all over the galaxy to fight Thanos with his magic. He's a big part of the reason why I'm alive today.

I don't know why he's doing this. I swear to you, he deserved to be called a hero.
downswing: (interim)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-12 09:16 am (UTC)(link)
A general.

Kamala. Bury admiration. Stay clear of his troubled path.
westviews: (CONFESS)

[personal profile] westviews 2023-02-12 10:00 pm (UTC)(link)
[Her brother is one of the last people she'd let approach Strange in this context.]

I do. Don't worry. It'll be fine.
cosplayqueen: (I pray it never fades)

[personal profile] cosplayqueen 2023-02-13 04:43 am (UTC)(link)
[This should have been as exciting as meeting Wanda. She should want to ask a million questions about how magic works in their world. Does he know about other dimensions? The Noor? The list goes on. Instead all Kamala feels is dread. She replies anyways with way more restraint than she's ever shown here.]

Yeah, it's Kamala. I'm glad that wasn't you and that it won't happen again.

I appreciate the apology. I'm sorry for freaking out. I know that doesn't actually help in an emergency. I just... you're from home. You know what it's like when someone really strong decides to come at us.


[She almost leaves it there. It's Kamala so it isn't long before she circles back to ask:] Are you okay? You said you weren't yourself. Did you get brainwashed or something?
cosplayqueen: (I wish I could be the perfect daughter)

[personal profile] cosplayqueen 2023-02-13 04:47 am (UTC)(link)
Okay, I'll try not to. Just be safe, okay? I mean as safe as any of us can be here. We are spending a lot of time fighting for our lives on a tower.
cosplayqueen: (girls die to trust)

[personal profile] cosplayqueen 2023-02-13 04:56 am (UTC)(link)
I guess he is a magical one, yeah. [There's a long pause before she gets to the rest. It isn't even for her to take off her rose-colored glasses. She has to concede he could be right here.] But, okay. Even if he saved our lives back home, I can't ignore this. I'll stay away.
downswing: (aside)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-13 07:49 am (UTC)(link)
Perhaps he is not himself.
vdovy: (BLACK WIDOW 034)

[personal profile] vdovy 2023-02-13 06:31 pm (UTC)(link)
Of myself?

[ Yelena would love to answer yes, but the truth is more complicated than that. Sometimes she still has doubts. ]

It's hard to tell, isn't it? That's the thing about mind control. It blurs the line between your own thoughts and impulses and what you've been forced to do.

[ Perhaps if she pulls at enough threads, this man can begin to unravel himself from their enemy's grip. The controlled mind never asks why; it simply obeys. But people in control of themselves have distinct motivations. ]

Have you asked yourself why you're doing this?
vdovy: (HAWKEYE 106 00:17:53)

[personal profile] vdovy 2023-02-14 03:45 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Okay, so asking him to look within is not the winning maneuver. She had hoped for the best but this outcome is more in line with her true expectations.

At least she tried. ]


Are you done?

[ She doesn't stand a chance against his magic but she also can't bring herself to leave. If he intends to keep going, she might at least slow him down. ]
vdovy: (HAWKEYE 134)

[personal profile] vdovy 2023-02-14 04:21 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm going.

[ This said with reluctant acceptance as she takes a few backwards steps. She would really love to wipe the floor with his smug face but that's a base impulse. Rationally, she can't blame him for how he behaves under Rathakku's control. ]

Find me when you're yourself again. I'm a pro at the mind control pep talk.

[ There is a defeated quality to her tone, born of regret and sympathy. Yelena has helped countless widows regain control; she knows how hard it is to come back to yourself and doesn't envy what's in store for this man. ]
cosplayqueen: (I lied)

[personal profile] cosplayqueen 2023-02-15 04:21 am (UTC)(link)
I hope so? Is that bad to say? I just can't believe this happening.
downswing: (survive)

[personal profile] downswing 2023-02-15 06:52 pm (UTC)(link)
Do not allow him beside you, until this matter is known. Pledge.

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