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@Nallore@Blizz@Trainerblue192: You, JackInTheMax, had replaced three corners of the pentagram with Everdark energy, displacing the babies to the Sanctum Santorum. One of the babes has been transfigured into a demon. It is permanent. Its soul burns every brighter, the corruption spreading deeper as the pentagram kicks into overdrive - as the forces of Limbo fall from the sky onto the Earth. You can see other realms now - Asgard, Helheim, the Dark Dimension - all of them bound for collision, all of them fated to come undone.

Most disturbing, though, is the heavy breathing - the breath of old gods forgotten by time, sealed away in another dimension. The Elder Gods are almost free.

"We need to shut this thing off now!" Wong exclaimed. "I'm sorry!" he then added, pain clear in his eyes, as he conjured up blades of pure energy.

And slaughtered the remaining babes.

Their souls were gone, no longer powering the pentagram - it began to flicker and pulse, struggling to maintain its form, feeding off of the Everdark. A hand made of wind and dust closes around you, JackInTheMax - the hand of a god, reaching from its prison to crush you.

On the ground, Ananym let out a primal scream - her body had already healed the wound you'd given her, Madalyne, it was indignity that she screamed for. But her scream was not her own. No, she screamed with your father's voice - she screamed with Ed's voice. She unfurled the wings from her back and shot up into the sky after you, spitting venom, as she continued to use his voice - as she taunted you and your pain.

"You're human now, hmm?" Edus!Ananym taunted. "Pathetic. I'll be doing you a favor when I kill you - I'll use your spine to build my throne."

@KazAlkemi: You abandon the streets of the city, retreating into the relative safety of the Sanctum Santorum. Zelma has temporarily set aside her crossbow, instead rapidly figuring out the basics of infant care - she'd never babysat before, and most things inside the Sanctum Santorum at not child proof. The space is emanating with raw magic, pulsing off of thousands of artifacts contained within. Perhaps you have an idea of what you need - or perhaps it is simply power that calls you.

An ornate box with Greek markings catches your eye - it rests on a pedestal, with a single word carved into the stone below to mark it: Πανδώρα.

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Runa was not surprised that Prudence had been unable to drain the horn.

She was, however, impressed that Annika managed to pinpoint the reason why in advance of Klara's explanation. The horn was connected to the ocean to their east, the one that the Midgardians called the Atlantic. However, even with that knowledge, Annika's conclusion was incorrect. Runa did not wish for them to drain the ocean - such a thing was impossible. She wanted them to drain the horn. And as to that end, their efforts had yet to persuade her that she ought to rally to their cause. She expected more.

Not even Klara, as much as Runa was filled with pride as she recited their histories, made the effort that Runa expected. She could hear as the child drank from the horn, salt-water filling her mouth. She did not drain it. How could she? Even Thor had been unable to drain the sea, had failed at this task. If they were to persuade her that this time, this place, that this reality - that all of reality was worth preserving.

"Drain the horn," Runa reiterated. "I will not ask it again."

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Carolina looked away as Wong killed the remaining babies, she wished that there was a way that they could have all been saved, at least they were able to save some of them. However the Pentagram was still being powered by the energy from the Everdark, she turned to Jaxmax as she started to feel something massive coming. Carolina looked towards the sky seeing the various realms and other dimensions starting to appear in the sky, and they were all going to converge and destroy everything soon. "Cut off the energy from the Everdark!" Carolina yelled to Jaxmax as a massive elemental like hand made of wind started to appear and reached down to grab him and in an attempt to crush the two of them.

Carolina closed her eyes and started to use her new ability to try and save the two of them from being crushed, she managed to get a glimpse and knew what they needed to do. "You need to use a banishing spell that should get you two free it'll be temporary but enough to get you free. If you don't know one i'll try and search for one." Carolina said as she quickly flew back down to the sanctum, she burst through the entrance looking at the others who chose to stay behind.

Carolina started to head towards the library hearing the babies that were saved crying, she couldn't find a spell book that had a banishing spell and quickly went to Zelma. "Do you know a banishing spell?" Carolina asked her, luckily the woman did know where to go and was able to find one easily.

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Madalyne looked down at Ananym hearing her screaming a demonic scream towards her, hearing her using Ed's voice made her really angry as she glared at Ananym. "That won't happen, and you have no right to use his voice like that." Madalyne said to Ananym as she took her sword and quickly took a swing at Ananym, only for her to block the hit causing her to loose her balance slightly. She started to get angrier as she managed to regain her balance once again, and she took another swing at Ananym. The demon girl easily managed to disarm her, her soul sword fell to the ground below them.

She took a moment to look up at the sky she started to notice the various realms and dimensions starting to appear they needed to repair things as soon as possible. She quickly held out her hand and started to chant a spell as a fireball appeared in her hand and this time it managed to hit Ananym burning her pretty badly. "Just give up already, you are going to loose." Madalyne told her.

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Prudence bit her tongue at Runa's insistence over this seemingly purposeless endeavor. If Annika and Klara were correct, this horn was enchanted and connected to the ocean. It would explain the salt water inside of it. Which meant, to others, the task was impossible. However, Prudence knew better. She allowed Klara to try, but once the girl showed she would was unable to accomplish it, Prudence gave her a smile. "I applaud your efforts, young one. Your knowledge far exceeds your age. I would try again, if you permit."

Prudence took the horn and summoned up her magic. To break an enchantment such as this, one had to charge it with the opposite. So Prudence cursed the horn. She felt resistance as if the horn was fighting back with its own magic. She summoned it again, feeling the enchantment crack and shudder. Finally, with one final push, Prudence broke through, cursing the object and ending the enchantment.

This created a cursed horn. Prudence did not know what would become of it, but she would not drink it. After all, Runa said drain the horn, not drink it dry. So Prudence tilted the horn, dropping the salt water on the ground, but no more poured out. She showed this again, topping the horn with nothing coming out of it. She held the horn out again.

"It has been drained, per your wishes."

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The door shut tightly behind Annika, and she leaned against it for a moment. Sound from outside was temporarily blocked, providing Annika with a reprieve. When she got sucked into Limbo, dealing with the end of the world was the farthest thing from her mind. Things shifted rapidly after Ananym’s reveal. Part of Annika still wanted to reach out to Ananym. To talk about what pushed her to this point, to wanting this end.

Crying babies entered her mental discussion. Annika opened her eyes, followed the sound, and found Zelma dealing with the babies as best she could. Right. Annika pushed away from the door and stalked through the Sanctum. The power vibrated across her body, making her skin crawl. She walked forward, looking at the strange artefacts, hoping her intuition would pull her towards something. Her attention shifted to a box sitting by itself, isolated from the other items in the room. She walked a few more steps away from the box before stopping, pivoting, and returning to the box.

Annika stepped up to the pedestal. Her hands hovered over the jeweled box, tracing the air around it until letters revealed themselves to her. She lightly traced her finger over the foreign letters. Annika felt an unbelievable draw to the item, but she had a healthy adverse for it as well. It felt familiar, like kin. Human.

”Zelma,” she found herself calling out. ”Do you know what is inside this box?”

Max saw the pain in Wong’s eyes and instantly knew what he was about to do. He wanted to stop him, to scream and hope for a better way, but he couldn't. He didn't. The scene flickered before his eyes, the babes suddenly appearing like Dorian to him before they settled back into their true selves. He wanted to believe that his inaction was due to being fused with Jack, or perhaps due to his unusually old age. He didn't dare face the facts that he simply couldn't act as fear and shock froze him in place.

”I should skin him alive for that…” Jack said to himself, feeling frail in his magically ancient age.

”Don't. Wong is just doing what was necessary. As cold as it may seem, with Strange gone, it is the job of the Sorcerer Supreme to protect Earth against magical and mystical threats. Without one, it fell to Wong to do what we couldn't…” It hurt Max to say it, but Strange had drilled it into his head so many times. This was their duty, their oath, to defend Earth in these times of crisis where all other options failed them. They didn't have a Time Stone to revert it back to before they invaded, and the Soul of the Supreme was divided both physically and morally. The others didn't care to stand together.

”Strange would have had the power to simply teleport Witchfire’s victims away from the moment he put his mind to it,” Jack wasn’t happy about the way this was going, and it was obvious through the way he spoke. ”This is not good enough, we are losing what little ground we currently have.” A god had come down to take its toll on the mortal world, and they were staring it in the face… And it was trying to grab them.

The hand began to close in around them, Carolinas's voice barely cutting through the massive winds that muffled sound as it encroached on Jax. ”A banishing spell? First we need to get out of its grasp.” Max was about to attempt to use his secondary mutation, a skill he'd only used reactively until not too long ago. As he began, waves of information flooded his mind and the power fizzled out within the palm of the hand of god. Time was of the essence and Jax used the new knowledge and abilities to navigate the mutation better. Cold air filled the space where they once stood, as a blackhole engulfed them and reappeared down on the streets of New York. ”I have an idea on a banishment spell, but I've yet to get it right…though perhaps with our knowledge combined we could do it.”

”The only banishments I use involve sending someone through a portal.” This was bad. They could cut the portal off, but then that thing might grab them. Or they could banish it, but then the Veil would be gone for good.

”Keep talking.”

”Strange has used it on several occasions. It's meant to banish the target back from where they came, though how helpful any banishment is as the Veils are thinning is beyond me. But I figured with our magical prowess combined we could use The Whirling Winds of Watoomb to banish the hand back just long enough to deal with the current threats around us. Though Watoombs Magic is powerful…calling upon such arts has proved…difficult for me.”

”My magic is drastically different from Strange’s. I have heard of that spell, but I’ve never learned or used it.”

”By all technicalities my magic is vastly different from both of yours. We are fused as one via mutant magic, it isn't something Strange could do to my knowledge. But we've gotten this far thanks to you and your vast wisdom, and I've never been one to back down just because it had never been done or the odds were slim. I've felled immortals and I won't let myself be beaten by a gassy puff of air that deems itself godly in nature.”

Appealing to his ego? Clever.

”Well, if you believe that there is a chance, then so be it. What other choice do we have? Shall we”

Jax moved in unison, following the movements Max had seen Strange use several times (as well as from the scriptures that he may have borrowed from the archives for some light reading). There was hope, with two sorcerers combined, both their knowledge and skills as well as two tenths of the soul of the supreme, they had a chance to actually do this. The Pentagram was already flickering, they only had to hope that it would go out on its own while Jax dealt with the partial god before them. They called upon The Whirling Winds of Watoomb, asking them to banish the hand from whence it came. Winds rushed past them as their arms swept out, making contact with the thing but nothing happened.

”By the Hoary Host of Hoggoth! That didn't go as planned. I was really hoping that even having two fragments of Stephen's Soul would allow us to accomplish it.”

It did nothing.

”We are not Strange. Perhaps our mistake was thinking like him. We may have pieces of his soul, but we are still different sorcerers, with different methods…”

Jack had an idea.

”Stephen was a traditionalist. You bend reality, and I bend the forces of a plane that is all but removed from most of the universe… If we truly were chosen as successors, it was not to be like the previous Sorcerer Supreme. No, we must do this our way.”

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"I always liked the stories my dad tends to tell about his adventures and all," Klara said with a bit of a shrug towards Prudence when she made her comment about everything. She personally always liked to hear stories about everything in general, it just so happens to typically align with Asgardian history for the most part. Even when her father tended to overexaggerate everything just a little bit, trying to figure out the full truth from that is half the fun.

Her attention shifted towards her cousin again as she once again reiterated the question. Well yeah, duh, they needed to drain the cup so there wasn't water in it. Technically trying to just disconnect the horn from the ocean would make sense, but honestly where was the fun in going with the obvious solution? Besides, it was more fun to try to drink from the cup first instead of anything, so she wasn't too surprised when Prudence decided to do just that and emptied the water, so she looked at Runa, "So will you help us now?"

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@Nallore@Blizz@Trainerblue192: Wong cast spells quickly on the fly, in an attempt to dispell the god that had grabbed you, JackInTheMax. But it was too little too late. The pentagram was still powered, the bleed between realities continuing. And as Wong went to cast another spell to aid you, he found himself in mortal peril - a swarm of imps descended upon him, a small legion, so many that as they circled him, he was entirely blocked from view.

Ananym coughed, strange green blood trailing down her face. She was burned heavily now, her wounds healing yes, but it was slow. She looked like she was a corpse pulled from the flames, her hair gone, her clothes thick with the stench of smoke. If her actions had started an Inferno, even she was not spared from the flames.

But she still spoke with your father's voice. "I have no right? I have every right. I was born to rule Limbo. I was born to burn your precious, pathetic little world to the ground," Ananym taunted. "I was born to destroy everything. Just like you were. You were afraid of your destiny. But I'm not!"

And with a cry, electricity filled Ananym's hands, and she grabbed you, electrocuting her foe. But she was not immune to her own attack, her charred flesh cracking from the power, as she leaned forward, sinking her teeth into your neck and biting down hard, hard enough to draw blood.

@KazAlkemi@Nallore: Zelma had just finished helping Carolina to find a banishment scroll, the magic imbued into the parchment itself so that way anyone could cast it, even those without a shred of magical talent. When she glanced up at your remark, her face paled rapidly. "Don't touch that!" she snapped, harsher than she intended. "That's Pandora's box. Inside is Hope - with a capital H Hope. The very concept itself. If you open it... There's no telling what will happen."

Carolina, you however, would see a vision flicker before her eyes - a vision of Annika opening the box, of a blinding white light consuming Ananym, consuming herself.

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"Aye," Runa said. Her word was her bond. They had met her challenge, had accomplished her task. They had done what Thor could not do - what the best of Asgard had been unable to do. Perhaps there was something worth saving here - perhaps these lives were worth preserving. She had not been able to see the horn run dry, but she had felt it - had felt Prudence's careful spell, her magic. And Klara, gentle Klara, she was too innocent for lies. She was not like Runa - and would never be like her.

So this was their task then. Their task was to help - to aid. The restoration of the veil was paramount. They bowed their head slightly, their cape billowing behind them, as they called upon their magics - their magics as Sorcerer Supreme of this time, and of another. And they chanted not in the tongue of Midgardians, but in the All-Tongue - in the language of the Asgardians, of the gods.



The last fragment.

The final piece.

The veil, renewed.

To those able to see, the pentagram up in the skies would dissipate - the colliding worlds would vanish.

Yet Ananym remained.

Her demons remained.

New York was still threatened - the veil repaired, but still fragile, still weak. Still in need of defense.

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Carolina looked at Zelma as she handed her the scroll and looked it over. "Thank you." She said as she started to roll it back up as she was about to leave to head out she watched as Annika headed for a strange little box on the other side of the room. Zelma quickly yelled at Annika to stop and not to touch the box. She stopped as she started to receive a another vision, seeing Ananym getting consumed by a blinding flash of light. She shook her head slightly as she looked at Zelma then at Annika, hoping that it would work and maybe stop Ananym for good. "This maybe a bit crazy but I just got a vision, if you open it Ananym gets consumed by a blinding light." Carolina told Annika hopefully it'll stop Ananym for good, she looked at Runa as well as Prudence she was glad that Runa agreed to help them.

She quickly went out of the front door of the Sanctum once again as the veil slowly started to repair itself, and the Pentagram above them slowly disappearing from view along with the various realms and dimensions across the sky had gone to. She noticed that Wong was quickly about to get overrun by a group of demons and quickly used the scroll, the demons around him were quickly banished back to Limbo.

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Madalyne glared at Ananym who still continued to use Ed's voice clenching her fists as she stared at the severly burned demon girl in front of her. She never wanted to be a demon and she hated that half of her and she knew that she would never want to fall and become like Ananym at all. "Unlike you I have people that I actually care about and would protect them from people like you." Madalyne said to Ananym as Ananym charged at her, she cried out in pain as Ananym started to electrocute her and held onto her.

Then she cried out as Ananym sunk her fangs into her neck feeling blood going down her neck. Madalyne held out her hand and sent out an eldritch blast at Ananym managing to stun her, she sent another one at Ananym again but ended up grazing her slightly. She stepped back slightly running a hand over her neck where Ananym had bitten her seeing the blood in her hand.

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Prudence felt some semblance of pride over doing what Runa had asked. Apparently, something even Thor himself was unable to do. With the horn emptied, her task complete, Runa spoke words into existence and repaired the veil. All was not done though. While the veil remained, Annanym was still a threat.

Did Prudence go help? She had offered her services to Runa and made it apparent she intended to do what was best for herself. She hoped her words were felt by the older woman, one who had a master she had pledged to and had gone against him. For now, she supposed. The end of the world could always come later.

"There is still the threat outside. If the others have not gone and done foolish things, though I offer no hope that they didn't, there is still a battle ahead." Prudence said this more for Klara and Runa than herself. Would Runa go aid them? And what of the child?

This would be interesting.

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Hope. Hope for a new world, a new order. When her home was first invaded, hope was common among her people. Hope, that the White Men would spare Annika and her people. Hope that the foreigners would work with the world's caretakers and aid them. And then that hope shifted to just making it through the night. Hope that their elders would survive the new diseases brought to their lands.

Carolina came over and spoke of a vision she had. Annika removed her eyes from the box to look at Carolina. Seers were revered among Annika’s people. If this box contained the very essence of Hope, the thing Ananym was attempting to take from them, they had to try, right?

Carolina left, taking the scroll with her to save some of the others. Annika picked up the box. Even if it consumed her, she had to try. What if this Hope reached through time and helped her people?

Annika stepped back out into the chaos of New York City. She looked up at the sky, seeing Jax struggle. The imps closed in on Wong until Carolina saved him. The pentagram seemed to fade, although Ananym attacked Madalyne, unrelenting in her need to destroy the world. Although this was not Annika’s world, it shouldn’t be destroyed. Although this world was not full of nature, wind, and peace, it was her friend’s world. Annika walked calmly towards Ananym — her purpose clear — and opened the box.

A blinding light enveloped the world Annika knew. It burned, but it also felt comforting, like the Creator had picked her up himself and began to burn away all the imperfections and all the pain she had known in the last few years. It was a release. Even as hope faded from Annika’s mind, she knew her mission was being accomplished. Ananym was fading just as Annika was until the two no longer existed as they once were.

The box Annika had been holding dropped to the ground and shut. As the light faded, two babes were revealed — the embodiment of hope and a new generation to fight for.

Now it was Max's turn to listen. Jack made some valid points. They had to have been chosen for a reason. Perhaps it was to be different than Strange. To do things he wouldn't do, or couldn't do. A part of him wanted to say to be better than Strange, but he didn't think that possible. He was to be the best of them. Frankly Max didn't think Strange could die until this night. Even then he still grappled with that fact, as if walking throughout a dream this whole evening, waiting to wake up from the nightmare. ”What exactly is our own way then?”

His original point would have been that they had their own means of banishing a god. Jack could have simply banished it to his realm, and as far as he knew, Max could theoretically snap it out of existence with his own magic. But as the god disappeared and the sky seemed to turn almost normal, there was another set of problems to deal with. Comparatively minor, but problems nonetheless. Wong was being attacked by demons, the Pentagram was still active, and Witchfire was on the ground.

They had to break that Pentragram, Wong could defend himself a little longer.

We do what we know best, Jack said, as the two moved backward beyond what would hopefully be the full blast radius in case this went wrong.

They got into position to remove the Everdark rifts from the Pentagram, breaking it to help dissipate the magic within. But as soon as they were about to break the enchantments they placed, the Veil began to renew, the Pentagram dissipating on its own as the other world's began to fade into the distance once more. They didn't know what had transpired, but whatever it was he was glad it had happened. Too little too late for Wong however, as a hoard began to enshroud him and attack. But once again as they lifted their hands to free Max's friend, Carolina came out and banished the damned things. It seemed their allies were finally coming out of the woodwork to help out. Madalyne had been doing her part, sure, but the others Max hadn't seen since the squabble.

”Then we must call upon an old friend first. To help us with our…condition.” Max said as he opened a portal between himself and James. He was currently sitting at his clinic, the most obvious place to find him, especially if you were a mutant in need. ”James! It's Max, well…sort of. We go by Jax, I'm bound to another at the moment and if we part we die. If you could give this old man some youth again?”

James paused, eyebrows raised as he put down the book he just picked up. "Well, I have to admit, you finally surprised me again. Ben and Dorian are fine, though I recommend a really nice bouquet when you get yourself sorted out." James gave his best friend's most recent mishap a look over. "So, what's the trick here? Do you just need to be younger, or do you need me to support while you pull apart?"

…DORIAN?

”Just make us younger. We need the combined might to fight off the demons invading New York City.” Max snapped back like a crotchety old man. ”Ever second longer this portal stays open is a second longer to allow the demons armies to invade through it. So time is of the essence.”

"It's only been an... You know what, not important. You're the only one who'd stumble into this without us so fast." James shook his head in fond exasperation, reaching out to take both Jax's hands. James closed his eyes, sinking into the familiar feeling of their vitals syncing up, and nearly disconnected. His own heart was barely beating; he could hardly believe Jax was still alive!

He focused, bringing Jax back from the brink, unwinding the clock as carefully as he could. It took a few moments but finally, James stumbled back with sweat on his brow. "Christ, Jax. I haven't had to fix anyone up like that since we brought our last batch back from death. Please try to stay alive and make sure you bringing your friends by the clinic when you clean all this up; they'll probably need a touch up too."

”Whoever you are, thank you,” the other half of Jax said. ”…Wait just a moment. You knew Strange, Max. I thought you seemed familiar when we first met. This “Dorian” person is your son, isn’t he?”

”Yes? But I don't see what that has anything to do with this?”

”…I am from your relative future. And you’re from my relative past,” He explained. ”Strange’s death pulled us all from different times, and our times were not so far apart. I likely should not be telling you this, but when I was young, I went to a school for superhumans. With Dorian Gray.”

Max looked at James sheepishly before stepping backwards into the portal and closing it behind himself. He'd have held up a finger to Jack to tell him to shut it if they weren't cohabitating a body. ”Not another word. This is a delicate balance we have right now, and any information about the future could change the future, create a paradox, or worse…write it into stone. Nothing good ever came from peering ahead. When the time is right, I will know.” Jack was clearly from a not too distant future, after all Dorian was slated to go to Xaviers School for Gifted Youngsters when he became of age, or at least that was the current idea Max had had. He didn't know whether or not Ben would bite, he hated that school, but if Jack's already spilled the beans on that then it means Ben agreed in the end.

”Apologies.”

”So. The demons. You thinking banishment or just kill them all? Ones less risky and avoids collateral damage to both human lives and buildings. The other…well its more to the point with less risk of failure.”

”Banishment would mean we tamper with the Veil, which he went through enough trouble already to repair. But, we cannot be slow when they are taking human lives…We can renew the Veil indefinitely, at this point: Banishment is quicker.”

”Then let's do this. Care to try that spell once more? Should be easier to handle that it's small fry and not the literal hand of god.”

”By all means. I’ll follow your lead.”

Max took the lead, once again attempting one of Strange’s spells. His most difficult one it seemed. The Flames of Faltine conjured with ease, as too did the Crimson Bands, yet try and try again Max couldn't summon the Winds of Watoomb to aid him like Strange had. But this time was different. ”By the Whirling Winds of Watoomb I banish you back to Limbo you fiery fiends!” Max proclaimed as winds erupted from around him and blew a handful of demons back into their plane. A grin spread across his face. He turned to face another group and did much the same, diminishing the numbers slowly but succinctly.

Good, it was working. ”They've been cut off from this world. There is little more to do than return them from where they came.” But he looked down before, and saw that Witchfire and Annika were… Gone?

”We will need the others.”

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Ananym had been transformed into a small infant, crying with horns curling from its forehead. The same fate met you, Annika - just a babe now, no longer the adult, no longer cognizant. The last Goblin Night ended with a similar sacrifice. Perhaps this was destiny.

With the veil repaired and Ananym defeated, all that remains are her legion, her hoard.

But as Sorcerers Supreme, you all ought to make short work of them, no?

Especially as a familiar face approaches you, stumbling from a portal with the scent of Limbo clinging to him. Like magnets, the shards of the office of Sorcerer Supreme leave your bodies, flying into his - the Cloaks of Levitation, the amulets, all merging into a single item, supporting a single entity.

Limbo works in mysterious ways, I should know.

Doctor Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme, is alive.

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"Well, none of you would have been my first choice... But thank you," Strange said.

It had been some time since Runa had heard his voice, but she recognized him immediately - particularly as she felt the vestiges of his office leave her. She was no longer the Sorcerer Supreme of this moment - the rich magics were beginning to fade, her powers gradually returning to their somewhat deadened state. She was Sorcerer Supreme of the future, yes, but it was a future without magic - a dead, waking grave.

As to how Stephen was alive, Runa did not know. Realms outside the multiverse were strange - and their magics even stranger. Limbo was a land that twisted and turned over itself. One Stephen died, another lived. Perhaps that was all the explanation that was needed.

"You ought to be more careful than that, Stephen, to thank a witch," Runa chided. They had known other witches before that traded in gratitude - that used it to take hold of their victims, a line tethering them together, an eternal favor just waiting to be granted. Absentmindedly, they wondered where Mother Righteous was now - if the sorceress would have stepped in had they fallen, had they failed.

But now was not the time for chatter.

It was the time for action.

Zelma had taken the baby Ananym and baby Annika inside, sheltering them with the other infants.

That left the demons.

Runa breathed in.

They breathed out.

And they set the sky ablaze.

They incinerated demons on mass, the flames seeming to pour from their own body, heavenly fire that destroyed whatever it touched.

There were still more, still more to face.

But Runa was not alone.

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Klara was super happy to hear Runa was going to help them, and she recited the words to repair the veil the rest of the way. She followed along after the others now as they were all heading to deal with the chaos going on outside currently. Klara had no idea what all was going on, the main thing that she saw was a bunch of demons, attack and causing chaos. This obviously meant that she needed to try and kill some of the demons, as many as possible. And Klara wasted no time in drawing her sword from it's sheath with a bit of a smile.

"This is going to be a lot of fun," she said as her eyes started to glow pink.

A swirl of pink hearts started to swirl around her, and she instantly flung her free hand outwards, the hearts flying forward in a chain of pink hearts, as they started to shoot between different demons. Flying with such speed that it started to go straight through the demons that it hit, killing them and dropping them to the ground. The chain weaving in and out of the demon hoard as it was starting to take them out. Without missing a beat, she instantly whirled with her sword, cutting down more demons as she went along. It was hard to keep track of how many demons she cut down, but it definitely was a pretty surprising chunk of them. Nothing was better then getting to cut down mobs of something that was trying to kill you.

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Max had no idea what had happened to Ananym nor Annika, the blinding light having stopped any view of what had transpired. Yet he heard a familiar voice in the distance as he felt the Eye of Agamotto and Cloak of Levitation fly off of him and fuse into a singular around Dr. Strange. So overwhelmed with joy was he that he had forgotten all about the circuit he'd forged with Jack, stepping forward towards his master and leaving Jack's body behind as he regained his own. Max went barreling towards Strange, wrapping his arms around his teacher and squeezing him tight. ”What happened?! I was so worried when you didn't come back, and then the portals and…what do you mean I wasn't your first choice?!” He said as he pulled away from Strange.

”Perhaps this discussion can be tabled for later. Until then, we have an infestation to take care of.” Max took his stance, as he decided to try and show Strange that perhaps he could be worthy of the title of Sorcerer Supreme. ”By the Whirling Winds of Watoomb I banish you!” Winds erupted from Max, blowing back countless demons as they were thrown back into Limbo with its magic. He used the momentum to conjure up the Flames of Faltine, burning other demons down to help lower their numbers more.

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Jax- Jack could feel the cloak and Eye of Agamotto flying off of him. When he looked down, he saw Strange was alive and well again. The universe worked in mysterious ways, such a thing was not the oddest event to occur. But couldn't the universe have done this just thirty minutes sooner to spare them the trouble? Jack watched Max fly off on his own to catch up with Strange. Touching as that was, he had something to take care of. Jack floated upwards, higher into the air until he had a clear view of the entire city, end-to-end. Up here, in relative quiet, he could contemplate the last few hours.

Life was cruel. And the ways of magic were such that even with absolute power, even with an entire plane of reality under one's whim, you couldn't always break even. Someone would die, and their soul would be wilted beyond recovery. Someone could simply have their neck snapped before their companions could react. People could do everything perfectly, make absolutely zero fumbles, and save reality from being played with like wet clay. And they could still come up short. Lives were lost, all because of Ananym. What did she want in all this? He could have tried to stop her sooner, couldn't he? Jack could have check in with Ananym's young self, tried to steer her off this path and stop an entire future from unfolding.

But he didn't. He was absent.

It made him angry towards himself, and Jack didn't consider himself an angry man. So he pushed the thoughts aside and reaches out overhead. The sky above New York City darkened, as a swirling black portal manifested just underneath the cloud. Those on the ground might think a solar eclipse was happening, right before the Everdark was brought through the Veil and down onto the heads of the demons. It mixed with the inferno of Runa's magic in a display that gods would tremble at, had they not been cast out already.

A meteor shower of dark energy, casting the burning sky in hues of black and faint purple, hammered down on the legions of hellspawn. Demons were knocked out of the sky like birds hit with stones. Here in the light of the mortal world and the fire of Asgardian magic, the corrupting energy would have nowhere to go, meaning once it spread, no one would be harmed. But the demons he struck with his rain of black fire would be withered to absolute nothingness; Shriveled husks that would crumble in the fire, to be forgotten as the world kept turning.

For a moment, one could imagine that Earth was about to collide with yet another world.

Jack allowed the rift to close naturally as he drifted downwards to the Sanctum's doorstep. Once he touched the ground, the onslaught from his spell would conclude. Day would overtake again, and not a single mortal soul would be harmed. Jack walked up to where others were gathering, and met Strange with a weary smile.

"You are not the only sorcerer capable of preserving worlds, my friend." Everything would be much easier now, with him back. "What happened to you? How are you back home? We were informed that you had been killed."

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Carolina was glad that she was able to save Wong being killed by all of those demons, Annika came outside carrying the box and made her way towards Ananym and opened it up. She shielded her eyes as the blinding light came surrounding the two of them, when the light faded the box fell to the ground and noticed two screaming babies were on the ground. She felt bad she should have seen what would have happened to Annika she was now a baby along with Ananym. However with the leader now gone and the veil had been repaired they only had to deal with the remaining demons that were left behind.

Then something weird happened as a portal suddenly opened up seeing Strange coming out of it and he was alive, which was really weird Carolina had seen Strange's body herself with the dagger in his heart. "What happened? I saw your body and everything in Ananym's library back in Limbo." Carolina wanted to know, she shook her head slightly when Max suddenly came over and hugged Strange her cloak and eye of agomotto were now gone as well to, along with her new power to she feeling it leaving her now as well to. Her eyes wondered over towards Ananym as Zelma carried her and baby Annika off to where the other babies were, she decided there that she would take Ananym and try and raise her properly so she wouldn't hurt anyone again.

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Madalyne watched as Annika had came out of the Sanctum and over towards them carrying a box of some kind, and opened it up, she quickly shielded her eyes as a blinding light went over the two of them. Then the bright light was gone, however she could hear babies crying as her eyes wondered down to see two babies on the ground crying. Madalyne sighed slightly as she walked over and grabbed her soul sword that had been dropped and quickly put it away. She wasn't going to kill a baby even if it was Ananym who had ordered S'ym to kill her father Edus right in front of her. Zelma picked up the two babes and headed back inside to be with the other babies to make sure that they were safe.

Madalyne felt her cloak and eye of agamotto quickly being pulled away from her, as the others had their own removed from them as well to just as a portal opened up to see Dr. Strange himself alive and well. Max quickly went over to hug him, she couldn't help but feel slightly jealous since her own father wasn't able to live. "Glad to see you aren't dead." Madalyne said as she went over to the nearest group of demons and quickly started to set them all on fire taking out a few as she threw some fireballs at them along with Jack and Runa's attacks as well to.

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Prudence, having completed her task, set to help eradicate the remaining demons. She ignored the mysterious man who emerged. Runa was already conversing with him. Instead, she focused on the situation before her. With Ananym taken care of and the veil restored, each of them set out to destroy the remaining trouble.

Prudence strode forward, allowing her cloak to billow behind her. The demons saw her, of course, and went after her. Prudence summoned her magic, allowing it to cascade around her and outward, hitting the demons who all stopped. They looked at her with wonder, or about as much as a demon could muster. This would suffice.

"You all have one task and one chance to earn my love. Kill each other. Last one standing wins."

That was all the demons needed before they turned to face one another and unleash literal hell. Tearing flesh, cracking bones, and ripping off limbs in a quest for true love was someone's sick game. Prudence merely watched with a smirk as the demons decimated each other. Some used their own weapons and abilities, some used what was happening around them (one demon in particular held his brethren in a nearby fire until it burned to ashes). It filled Prudence with pride. This was her ability. This was her power.

She walked amongst them as some crawled for help before having their skull smashed. Some were tossed in the air and impaled. Prudence thought she heard cries, but do demons cry?

Eventually, one was remaining. It looked pitiful and destroyed, having killed its brothers and sisters. It looked at her. She caressed it;s head. "You have won, my love." She held its head to her bosom, "To the victor goes the spoils. We shall be with each other in the afterlife." She said this before she snapped its neck, tossing it to the ground.

She turned and made her way back into the Sanctum. A job well done.

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You have questions.

I do my best to answer them.

I explain to you that Limbo exists outside of the Multiverse, but that it is a realm with layers onto itself. It twists and turns, it divides a soul and fractures it. When I entered Limbo, a version of myself was murdered by Ananym - but another version, the one you see before you, survived. I was not able to reach you all in time, as I fought my way through Limbo's deepest layers, but I am... relieved to see that my successors performed adequately.

You saved more than just the city - you saved the universe.

So for that, I... thank you all.

You are welcome at the Sanctum Santorum any time.

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Carolina Reed:

Carolina, you undertake the noble - if not complicated - task of raising the infant Ananym as your own. There are moments where the child's eyes look like your lost beloved's, moments where the child instinctively uses October's voice. Perhaps your beloved is still there, reaching through time. Or perhaps it is a demon's trick, meant to endear you to the babe. Only time will tell.

Maximilian Gray:

I have no idea who this young sorcerer is. Maximilian, you return to your home and your family, changed by what you have seen and experienced in ways that are not marked upon your flesh. You remember what it is like to be the Sorcerer Supreme, to have the power of the universe at your fingertips - and you feel its absence. But your destiny lies elsewhere, not in a Sanctum Santorum but in a mansion.

Madalyne Crane:

You have shaken off your demonic essence, Madalyne, but Limbo's fires call to you all the same. You leave this plane and head to Limbo, the prodigal daughter returned. There, you hunt day and night for Sym, to find the demon who killed your father. You are so very close to finding him, and your soulsword vibrates, shaking with anticipation. Will you be the same once you have killed this demon? Or will your own heritage resurface, horns sprouting from your head once more?

But there is one portion of relief - your father is alive. Just as I escaped Limbo despite dying within it, a version of your father who did not die by Ananym's hand lived and returned to Earth.

It does not change the fact that his flesh rots in Limbo, that a version of Edus - perhaps the original - did die there.

Prudence Knight and Runa the Gray:

For better or for worse, you two find love - or something akin to it - in one another. Runa, you abandon your dead future and instead take an apprentice, the first one in an age. You teach Prudence everything that you know, and she swears a vow to kill you. It pleases you. You travel the universe together, the multiverse, moving forwards and backwards in time.

Prudence, you have abandoned your old master, and emerged from the depths of Limbo a vampire - a daywalker. Under Runa's instruction, you learn the old Asgardian magic, learn to peer into the space between the realms and divine the future by seiðr. It is promised that once you find a way to kill your lover, you will inherit her station, her authority - you will become the Sorcerer Supreme of the End of Time.

Annika Falling Star and Jack Hawthorne:

Jack, you raise Annika as your own, traveling the time stream as well. You search for her family, for her culture, for a way to restore her memories to her. For now, your leads are slim - but they are not nonexistent. The infant Annika grows more and more each day, and already, hints of her magic are about - she is no ordinary child.

Klara, Daughter of Thor:

Klara, you return home to Asgard. You recount your tale to your parents and roam and play and fight. But gradually, the memories fade - the knowledge of what your cousin became is lost to where childhood recollections go. If it was not for your skeletal friend, a horse that came all the way from Limbo to Asgard, perhaps even this entire adventure would be lost to you.

The Second Edus Penior:

You emerge from Limbo later, finding your sworn daughter on a path of vengeance over your death. You hear of your tragic demise and end, events that you have no recollection of. You return to your world and find that months had passed. You go to Cardiff. Your family needs you.

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Ed had been looking at Mads. She was the last thing he saw. But she hadn't been the only thing in the room he had cared about. He had to protect her though. He knew why now.

His lungs ached. He couldn't breathe. Ed knows this sensation. He had once almost drowned when he was a kid. His twin sister had saved his life. Helplessness. Pain. Everything he did to try to escape the suffering just made it worse.

He held the image of Mads' face just before his death trying to keep his sanity about him. It took him a while, through the building agony to realize the person looking down on him had her face. Something was off. His daughter had a soul, she was part human, but this being looking at him was not part human. She was fully his daughter, fully demon.

Anger started to build and bury everything else. His family had held him back. He knew that. He could have ended fights faster. He could have saved lives if he had been allowed to bring people back from the dead. His sister could have saved the world. Those laws had made all of that impossible. Even now the laws restrict him. He tried to reach for his magic to end his suffering but it was gone. The magic was outside his reach.

This was on purpose.

His life started to fade away. They say when you die your life flashes before your eyes. This may have been true, but as images of people came to him he knew who they were. He knew their names. Then the names were gone. The relationship was gone. He tried to hold on, but the more he tried the faster it flowed away.

He was empty. Only pain and anger echoed through him.

Who was he?

That didn't matter, because she was still there.