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TWELVE  | ALL THAT MATTERS

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JUST WHEN CASSANDRA thought all hope was lost, several cracks split through the air, shattering the very reality they all knew. The fiery ball of energy Kaecilius hurled to the ground to decimate the New York Sanctum was contained by the dimension Stephen conjured.

"The Mirror Dimension." proclaimed the former neurosurgeon. He levitated in the air, his red cloak fluttering behind him. Cassandra shook her head slightly. The Mirror Dimension was not enough to hold Kaecilius and his Zealots down. Actually, they had just trapped themselves with them. "You can't affect the real world in here. Who's laughing now? Asshole."

"I am."

Gesticulating his hands, Kaecilius split the wooden stairs in front of them, an nd twisted it around along with their surroundings. Cassandra attempted to stab him in his back, but he saw her move and stepped to the side. That was when Stephen slipped between them and snatched Kaecilius' Sling Ring, leading himself outside of the Sanctum.

"I've got his sling ring. They can't escape, right?" quipped Stephen, just as the three escaped the Sanctum. Cassandra caught sight of Kaecilius hurling a golden energy ball towards Stephen, and she opened up a portal that swallowed it and redirected its path to space.

"Not today, Kaecilius. Not today. Let's go, run!"

Cassandra's command must've buzzed Stephen and Karl since they ran to their left. The sorceress bought them some more time by taking them all by herself. Using her reserved arcane magic, she conjured a ball of fiery energy and hurled it at the zealots, throwing them off their feet.

"Cassandra! Come on!"

The woman listened to her companions and sprinted across the street, following behind them. That was when they realized that reality around them had been twisted and split apart, and hell was on loose. It was a labyrinth of roads and buildings and they were trapped in it.

"Their connection to the Dark Dimension makes them more powerful in the Mirror Dimension." informed Karl, panting. "They can't affect the real world, but they can still kill us. This wasn't cleverness. It was suicide!"

The three then ran to their right, just as Stephen attempted to open a portal to get them out of the mirror dimension. Unfortunately, Kaecilius had seen this, and once again used his newfound powers to spin their landscape, causing all three of them to slide down the road. Cassandra grunted as she hit face first on the glass window of a moving bus with Stephen crashing against her. The three sorcerers watched as the old man continued to laugh and read his book, unsuspecting of the commotion outside of his reality.

Cassandra squinted her eyes as sunlight reflected off from the two sky buildings, making her raise her hand over her field of vision. They all leapt through the air as Stephen once again tried to open a portal for them to jump in, but Kaecilius was relentless. He split the building they were standing on apart, and made it sink through the ground.

The sorcerers plummeted down, and Cassandra clawed her hands in the air, helplessly trying to catch something to slow down her fall. Thankfully, Stephen's cloak wrapped itself around her wrist, and pulled her in. The master of the cloak circled his arm around her waist and together, they landed safely.

The landscape before them continued to twist, roll, and spin around that one will grow dizzy from all the turning. They jumped through a building, and examined their surroundings, looking for an escape to this madness before them.

"This was a mistake." remarked Stephen, slightly shaking his head.

"Yeah, no shit Sherlock!" retaliated Cassandra, leaping in the air.

The sorceress glanced behind her, and saw that Kaecilius was gaining on them. Desperate, she clasped her hands together, and called forth her dark magic. "You two go." she verbalized, throwing her hands to the side. Purple mists of ancient magic swirled around her wrists, crawling through her veins and into the circles under her eyes. She could feel the magic pulsing through her body, tempting her more to utilize it. Her eyes glowed a fierce gold, and her hair fluttered in the aie due to the strong gusts of wind she conjured. She was ready to give herself up, just to keep Stephen safe. "I'll hold them off."

Karl seized her wrist, disturbing her incantation. "I'm not letting you use dark magic!" He yelled, frantic. "You know how dangerous it is for you to do so! It will corrupt you, slowly and surely."

"But -- "

He looked at her straight in the eye. "I am not losing my friend to the darkness."

Exactly, at that moment, the building below them thrusted forward, throwing them off. They all then slid down another building, and she landed on some metal staircase. She groaned, and looked up to see Stephen getting trapped beneath Karl. She pushed herself up, and caught sight of the zealots closing in on Karl, and Stephen. Gritting her teeth, she made herself invisible, and dealt with Nora herself by slamming her head on the other female. Without hesitation, she unsheathed her dagger, and stabbed the woman in the back, causing her to yell in pain.

"I've had enough!" declared Cassandra dangerously, unaware that this was a sign of the dark magic slowly consuming her. "This ends here."

Actually, what she did earlier revived her connection with the dark dimension and Dormammu, and he was now more than determined to put her under his control.

Just as she pulled out a dripping dagger, she swept her gaze up, and saw Kaecilius almost piercing Stephen with his own weapon. "No!" cried out the woman, and at that moment, the next Sorcerer Supreme was torn away from her former lover's reach.

It was then that several concrete pieces levitated in the air, forming a platform. Cassandra jumped down to it, checking Stephen for any injuries. She glanced around the whole scenery, and her breath hitched when she finally locked eyes with her mentor of many years, the Ancient One. This time, a glowing red symbol was visible in her forehead, and the sorceress knew then and there that her teacher drew power from the dark dimension.

"Oh! It's true." gasped Karl, mortified. "She does draw power from the Dark Dimension."

The Ancient One spared them a glance, sorrow and regret filling her eyes. "Kaecilius."

Kaecilius started circling like a predator examinig its prey. "I came to you broken... lost, in need. Trusted you to be my teacher, and you fed me lies."

"I tried to protect you."

"From the truth?"

"From yourself."

"I have a new teacher now." remarked the leader of the zealots.

"Dormammu deceives you." The Ancient One tried to placate Kaecilius. "You have no idea what he truly is. His eternal life is not paradise, but torment."

"Liar!" their enemy shouted, charging at her teacher. He and his followers then battled the Ancient One with their space shards, and her mentor was able to evade their attavks skillfully. She conjured multiple mandalas to defend herself, and Cassandra felt the need to help her, but Karl blocked her way.

It was then that she heard a loud gasp coming from the center of the platform, and it took all of the sorceress' strength not to scream. The Ancient One had been successfully stabbed by Kaecilius who pierced his follower so he could get to her. He then kicked her body into a portal, letting her fall headlong to the ground.

"Oh, my god..." mumbled Cassandra, her hands trembling. "Ancient One!"

She unhesitatingly dived into the portal to catch her rapidly descending teacher. Vivid memories of them together learning, and practicing the mystic arts flashed before her eyes, and tears began to brim. "No..." she breathed out, and shut her eyes when the Ancient One's body crashed into a glass ceiling, shattering it. Her body collapsed to the ground with a loud thud and crack, and Cassandra landed only a few meters away from her.

The sorceress felt her heart stop. Her mentor was still, unmoving, life hanging on a thread. Cassandra knelt down beside her mentor, her mind scrambled all over the place. "Why are you all just standing there?" cried the woman, fear-stricken. "Call a fucking ambulance!"

She cannot lose another parent today, no, no, she can't.

Just how much loss can one take before they finally snap?

Oh, one must realize that this was all part of the enemy's plan to turn her to their side.

CASSANDRA WORKED HER anxiety by pacing the hallway, her stomach contracting into a tight ball. She was outside the operating room, waiting for anyone to inform about the state of mentor. Her lips grew thin and firm, she was growing  restless from all this anticipation. She just wanted to know if her teacher was alright.

Karl, utterly disturbed by what he discovered about their mystical mentor, returned to the New York Sanctum in hopes he may be able to save it from Kaecilius. Cassandra sent him off to check on the novices, and her mother. It had been a very long day for her, and she wished it would end already.

Dad, whereever you are, help me please. Guide me.

The woman clenched her fist when she saw the corners of her vision turn to black and purple. Poisonous whispers clouded her mind, tempting her to surrender to the gravity of the darkness. Cassandra always feared the darkness, the uncertainty. The woman never realized that it was a part of her she will never be able to set aside.

A quick jump pulsed through her body, as if something -- or someone just passed her. She furrowed her eyebrows when she heard the faint call of her name behind her. Bliking twice, she realized someone was communicating with her from the astral dimension. Sitting down, she pushed her golden astral form outside of her body, and caught a glimpse of Stephen's soul wandering around.

"Stephen!"

"Cassie! I need your help!" he vocalized, worried. "The Ancient One... she needs to come back to her body now!"

Not replying, she levitated towards her teacher, and stood by her side. "Ancient One..." breathed out the woman, pensive. "what are you doing? Come on, you're dying!"

"You have to return to your body now, Ancient One." expressed Stephen, floating beside their mentor. "You don't have time."

"Time is relative." voiced out the Ancient One, their voice soft and wise. "Your body hasn't even hit the floor yet."

Cassandra watched her study her surroundings, and realized the Ancient One had used her remaining strength to stretch time so they coul talk. "I've spent so many years, peering through time, looking at this exact moment." verbalized their teacher, shaking her head. "But, I can't see past it. I've prevented countless, terrible futures. And after each one, there's always another. And they all lead here, but never further."

"You think this is where you die."

"You wonder what I see in your future?"

"No." was Stephen's first response and the Ancient One chuckled, knowing what was really in his mind. The next Sorcerer Supreme hung his head low in shame and embarassment. "Yes."

"I never saw your future." The Ancient One uttered, firmly. "Only its possibilities. You have such a capacity for goodness. You always excelled, but not because you craved success, but because of your fear of failure."

"That's what made me a great doctor."

"It's precisely what kept you from greatness."

That struck Stephen directly in the heart for he anchored all his attention to the Ancient One.

"Arrogance and fear still keep you... from learning the simplest and most significant lesson of all."

"Which is?"

"It's not about you."

And there it was. The lesson that Cassandra had been trying so hard to insert inside Stephen's thick head. It wasn't about himself, it was about others. He had focused on his own well-being rather than being other-focused. Life is about doing the right thing without thinking about success or failure. There were things greater than themselves and they should place the greater needs ahead of their own.

"When you first came to me, you asked me how I was able to heal Jonathan Pangborn. I didn't. He channels dimensional energy directly into his own body." informed the Ancient One, smiling kindly. She was now letting Stephen decide just like Jonathan did before.

"He uses magic to walk?"

"Constantly." This time, it was Cassandra who spoke up, gazing at Stephen's conflicted expression. "He had a choice, you know. To return to his own life... or to serve something greater than himself."

"So, I could have my hands back again? My old life?" the former neurosurgeon expressed, hopeful, and the sorceress knew this was it. Stephen could choose to return to his own life, or be the mystical protector the Earth needs.

"You could, and the world would be all the lesser for it." The Ancient One conveyed, her yellow robes fluttering behind her. "I've hated drawing power from the Dark Dimension. But, as you well know, sometimes one must break the rules, in order to serve the greater good."

Cassandra understood why the Ancient One did it. The safety of the world was in her hands, and she had to do everything she could to protect it.

"Mordo won't see it that way."

She shook her head and sighed. "Mordo's soul is rigid and unmovable, forged by the fires of his youth."

"And what about Cassandra?"

"Ah, Cassandra, my most diligent pupil," the Ancient One said her name, as if testing it on her tongue. "She is the balance you both need." She then tilted her head to the sorceress, placing a hand on her cheek. "Do not be afraid to embrace that darkness in you. You've always been strict on yourself because of the sins you believe you have committed. It wasn't your fault."

"Embrace my darkness? But, I'm deathly afraid of it, Ancient One!"

"You were always meant to be the balance between light and darkness." explained the Ancient One. "You've always been afraid of failing the task this universe had given you that you constantly ask me what your future holds."

She swallowed.

"There will always be pain along your way, but whether you suffer or not depends upon you."

Cassandra put her hand above her mentor's hand, as her eyes brimmed with tears. "Don't go..."

"Like what I said before to you, I only saw possibilities, different paths you take, but in all of them, there was always one certain point in time that you meet Stephen Strange."

The sorceress and the next inheritor of the title Sorcerer Supreme exchanged a glance. They knew what their teacher was implying. She wanted them to be honest of what they felt for one another before they run out of time.

She hung her head low, not ready to bid goodbye to her teacher, her second parent. Her chin trembled, and she pressed her lips tight to avoid letting out a cry of anguish. She was going to lose someone she loved again, as if her first loss wasn't enough.

"Don't let your power control you, control it." the Ancient One whispered. "Master Cassandra Mason, you are the wielder of light, and the warrior of darkness. When light will be ushered all unto oblivion, never lose hope, for where there is shadow, there is light."

"Please, don't go. I'm begging you..."

"You need to accept this darkness inside of you, Cassandra, and Mordo needs your flexibility, Strange... just as you both need his strength. Only together, do you stand a chance of stopping Dormammu."

"I'm not ready." admitted Stephen, forlorn. "Cassie and I are not ready."

"No one ever is." implied the Ancient One, facing the landscape again. The snow falling was whalebone-white, and slow in their descend to Earth. It flashed and glittered like angel-fire. One may marvel at the sight of nature, yet it only saddenes Cassandra. She knew that from now on, whenever she sees snow falling from the sky, she will recall this day. The day she lost her father and teacher.

"We don't get to choose our time. Death is what gives life meaning. To know your days are numbered. Your time is short."

Your time is short. Her mentor's words echoed in her head. She recalled her own father's advice at the same time. Your time is limited, so make every second count.

"You'd think after all this time, I'd be ready. But, look at me." she sighed. "Stretching one moment out into a thousand... just so that I can watch the snow."

And with that, Cassandra watched as the snow continue to plummet from the sky. She felt her teacher's head lay on her shoulder, and her hand entwining together with hers, as if to comfort her in this end. The sorceress squeezed the Ancient One's hand, not letting go.

But, it was already time...

She felt the grasp of her teacher loosen and fade away, and when Cassandra lifted her head to glance at her, she was already gone. Her second parent, the Ancient One, had finally departed this world, just like her father. Her heart stumbled over its own rhythm, and she held herself steady onto the metal railing in front of her.

Then, the sorceress collapsed.

WATER GUSHED OUT loudly from a faucet, filling Cassandra's listening ears. The operating room her teacher and second parent occupied earlier was empty. The surgeon, and nurses left to tend to the other patients that also needed them. The woman sniffed, and wiped the last of her tears from her ashen cheeks. She had no more tears to spill for her eyes hurt already. She had already bled the salt of her soul. 

Her shoulders dropped in resignation as she entered the washing room of the operating theater. She lost her father, her teacher. No longer was she going to hear the witty remarks and wise advices of her teacher, her father's classic jokes and encouragements. They were gone, and she was no longer going to see them again.

She observed Stephen wash his hands, and tread to his side. Closing her eyes, she went over to open the faucet, but he took ahold of her hand, lacing their fingers together. Cassandra squeezed his hand for support, letting him know that she was there for him, just as he was there for her. They didn't have to be alone in this.

He slowly turned her to face him, and they locked gazes. They stayed like that for a while, not speaking. Stephen ran his shaking thumb across her fair cheek, and she leant against his touch. Soon, he cupped her face in his hands.

"You said that," he started, his voice tight. "losing my hands didn't have to be the end. That it could be a beginning."

She put her own hand above his to steady their trembling. There was no doubt Cassandra Mason loved Stephen Strange. It was written all over her face, visible in her actions, and expression. She nodded. "Yeah, because there are other ways to save lives."

"A harder way."

"A weirder way." the sorceress added, shrugging before lifting her hand to brush Stephen's hair back. "We have a choice here, Stephen... to serve something greater than ourselves. Dedicate ourselves to saving humanity."

He listened.

"This is what I want to do until I leave this world, Stephen. Serve humanity, and always give up what I desire in order to do what's right, no matter how hard it will be for me."

Stephen mumbled under his breath, "I don't know if I can do that."

"You can if you want to. It's your choice and decision to make. Either way, I will still be here for you." Cassandra uttered, leaning her forehead against his. The feeling of his warm skin comforted her, and she brought their hands to his face.

"We're going to get through this." voiced out the former neurosurgeon, placing a feathery kiss on her forehead.

"Together?"

"Together."

She smiled at his assurance, and once again, silence befell on them. They easily got used to it, and just listened to each other's breathing, their hearts beating together in sync.

"I love you."

Cassandra looked up, blinking.

"You-you don't have to say it back or do anything." stammered the man in front of her. "I-I just want to let you know that because you know, our reality might get destroyed later, and I just..." Stephen screwed his eyes shut, and exhaled. "Look, we're going to get through this together, and we're going to get that dinner date."

She humored, "In New York city?"

"Le Bernardin."

"That French seafood restaurant in Midtown Manhattan? That-that place's quite expensive." Cassandra frowned.

"You don't think I can afford it? I have a job, remember?"

She slightly chuckled, tilting her head. "No, it's not that. I'm okay with burger and fries, Stephen... as long as I'm with you. That's all that matters to me."

"You're all that matters to me." the apprentice confessed. "And the safety of our reality, of course."

She laughed, knowing he will always be there for her. "Of course, of course. The world first before us."