#and defeated Dormammu in 2016

[popcorn-plots]

Very long Doctor Strange ramblings below the cut. You have been warned. If you read all of it, feel free to give me your opinion, I am way too invested in this help

In She-Hulk, we see that Wong worked as a librarian at Kamar-Taj for 11 years. In the beginning of Doctor Strange, the first few scenes show Kaecilius and his Zealots stealing pages from the Book of Cagliostro and beheading the current librarian.

When Strange first meets Wong, Wong claims that the former librarian was relieved of his head, and he implemented the rules he now enforces (no portals inside the library, etc.). However, we do not know how long Wong has held the librarian position. If we consider that there is not much Kamar-Taj life shown in the movie, it suggests that no one has forgotten the rules or made mistakes regarding them. This implies that Wong's rules have been around long enough for people to understand and remember them (or at least Wong has been enforcing them consistently). The rules have been in place for a while, and people are not surprised by the missing pages.

Additionally, Kaecilius' betrayal does not seem to be a major issue during Stephen's training, as if it had happened a while ago and Kamar-Taj was biding its time, attempting to hunt him down or waiting for him to make a move. Of course, a rogue sorcerer with that much power is a concern for the Ancient One and Mordo --as seen in the movie-- but Stephen, being a novice/apprentice, is probably not told much.

So, how long has Wong been running the library by himself? It doesn't seem plausible that the gap between Kaecilius' betrayal and Stephen's arrival is 11 years. The entire movie happens over a period of at least a year and a half, maybe even two years. The movie is set from 2015-16, so Wong would have had to take up the position somewhere between 2004-5. If we take Benedict Wong's age and assume that is how old Wong is (as we do with Stephen's age), then he would be 44 in 2016 (Stephen would be 39), making him 33 in 2005. So, was Wong working with the previous librarian for 11 years, and Kaecilius betrayed the Order within a year of Stephen's arrival? Or did Kaecilius steal the pages 11 years prior to Stephen's arrival, right at the beginning of Wong's career?

Not to mention the amount of time it would take for Stephen to recover from the initial accident and the numerous subsequent surgeries, plus the physical therapy and the time it took Stephen to find Kamar-Taj.

The recovery time for hand surgeries is 6 weeks on average. With Stephen having a total of 8 surgeries, his recovery time would be, on average, 48 weeks of the 52 weeks in a year. That's 11 months of recovery, plus a month of travel and logistics. So, if Wong has been working at the library for 11 years, then Kaecilius would have stolen the pages somewhere between 11 years to 1 year before Stephen arrived at Kamar-Taj.

@invye what's your expert opinion? (I'm going way too far into this rabbit hole HELP)

[killacharacterbingo]

Dormammu, I've Come To Bargain

A prompt based on this scene from the 2016 film Doctor Strange. The powerful entity Dormammu, who by all means should be able to defeat the Doctor due to its strength, is trapped in a time loop by him. He will not stop resetting time until he gets Dormammu to listen to him, ergo keeping a much stronger being prisoner in one moment in time. He knows he cannot defeat Dormammu, but he can keep him busy, unstuck in time in order to spare the rest of humanity from its wrath. The doctor dies many times in the loop, restarting it each one to achieve his goal of keeping Dormammu stuck.

As such, this prompt refers to any setting in which a character dies within the context of a time loop.

[the-firebird69]

DOCTOR STRANGE Movie Clip - Dormammu, I've Come To Bargain Scene (2016)

Joe Watts left the house in The jungle room and was going to destroy the clans he said and free the monster on them and he managed to get the monster down there and you can kind of see footsteps in the battle you can see that it's going after the enemy and ate up some bugs and when it's a space for some reason

Thor Freya

When is the space and destroyed a ton of enemy ships and they became furious unfortunately he came gigantic much larger than you would want or think and made a big huge excrement and shrunk from the fight and hid inside of the excrement that the Mac proper would leave there to radiate and that's where it went and Joe wants to not know we are the embeds went and saw the movie and thought it would just show up has been threatening for it and lost a ton of stuff and it's a waste of time it's just one program out of several million top notch programs of s and it is amongst the top echelon is arguments about what's top level it is really but it doesn't make a difference and so the computer programs they're close enough that have been defeated and those people have defeated it are still around and we are too and know how to do it. Besides that in bed which is still in there it crawled into it and it is absorbed it's become at least as big as the asteroid which is not really an asteroid it's a huge piece of s*** and most of the people attacking Mars and my wife knows better than me we're more long and most of at the onset where Trump's then it was mixed and then it was everybody and it forced the clans to run they couldn't outdo the force it was too huge one of the major reasons why that's because of wamamu or dormammu exacerbating the war forcing them to Saturn and he knew it would happen and did it on purpose and Joel Watts was sitting off Saturday waiting to collect stuff in and just never left and it never happened and the clans went to Saturn. Now this monster's devoured probably 90% of Trump's fleet personnel and 1/3 of its iron and similar numbers of the other morlock no about 30%, they're fleets were much bigger and he became gigantic and hid in his own poop people were not adding to it it's about a thousand miles long and they did not know where it came from this creature was so huge that none of you will ever believe it and I'm looking forward to reviving it shortly and the story is coming out and you're going to see these creatures going for JC and Mary and others eventually going back to New Zealand where their Master wanted them to depending on who's the master is to a certain location and I say JC made those huge chips then I say that Thor and Freya made the last furnace blast furnace that I say Hera and I did. And Thor and France say it's a forge and okay that's what a blast furnace isn't it and it is

Zues

Haha I've heard the story before I know but I know it and I knew it happened and my husband knows and I wasn't exactly familiar with it but yeah he knew it was going on and this creature kicked some real ass but the empire showed up and even though he was big enough to do the job they stopped it

Hera

A thousand mile long poop you got to be kidding me and he's saying he hasn't anyone tested you don't know what it is is ridiculous so we have to do that

Trumphsha you're unreal that's crazy s*** this is not right but what the hell is it it looks like a piece of s*** hahaha he says later I look like a piece of s*** as Freddy Krueger so keep it to yourself really it's not an insult the holy s*** what a piece of s*** it's magnificent having something else wow that's ridiculous that's some survival skills for Christ's sake and he thinks Trump had to go back in time and tell himself to eat s*** in Iraq boy you're stupid if you did that you piece of s*** Terry c it's probably why you're dumb worms and s*** speaking of which

Olympus

[blindtaleteller]

All of that but again; @worstloki is also REALLY summarizing there, as to his contact with the stones especially in the MCU: big time. Before I get started though, I need to put in the disclaimer first. No offense meant, just tired of cleaning out my ask box of questions that.. people should but don't always know or understand when reading these.

Get a drink, use the bathroom; and prepare to hold my earrings/beer: cause..

Here we go again..!

Note (and again before someone else sends me another ask not understanding this): this is not meta I'm talking.. these are canon facts of the universe put on screen and said outright in that on-screen dialogue I'm putting down here. If you're coming across this and confused by that: meta is fan theory around and usually based on, confirmed canon information.. I say usually; because some metas do not pay attention even to what their theorists are pretending to be fans of.

If there's meta, I'll identify it in the same sentence, or at the start of a meta section. Otherwise? These are direct references to events and dialogue in the MCU films: facts and history in their universe and story as presented in those films. Not, meta/theory about that story.

That said, crappy writing, directing and more post-TDW makes some of that canon utter and really murky shit (or a shit-show .. Gagnarok and what followed including the Loki series in particular lol) but yeah. Not theory.. they literally show and tell us this stuff on screen over the course of five to six years of films.

Anyway. By the time Infinity War rolls around finally in 2018; Loki had been king of Asgard for another five years since Darkalfheim's attack back in 2013.

If you're questioning that time frame:

Remember, the events of the end of Gagnarok were back to back with the start of IW: the Statesman is found by Thanos in the end credits scene and the battle of the Statesman is just finishing in the opening scene of IW.

The entirety of Gagnarok happened over the course of one or two weeks regular time. (Regular time is wording used, because Sakaar; on which they spent most of it, is stated outright as running differently time-wise very early in by the Grandmaster: part of why they excuse Loki arriving 2 weeks earlier in their time, after being shunted out of the Bifrost seconds prior to Thor in regular time)

Loki gained the throne at the end of Thor: the Dark World which is chronologically placed at the time of it's release, like the majority of MCU films including Infinity War: placing him on the throne prior to GotG in 2014, during Age of Ultron 2015, during CA:Civil War 2016, and during Dr. Strange 2016-2017: etc, etc.

(side notes on that last point:

Confirmed Canon: Dr. Strange is one of the few in that era that have a much wonkier time allotment, as to when it happens and how much time passes in the film. According to the director and other BTS official quotes, DS1 takes place starting in fall of 2016 and ending after his initial training in MOTMA [Masters of the Mystic Arts] in the following fall of 2017. Meaning that as Ragnarok was slated in time later in that same fall of 2017..

Sort-of, Meta?: ...Strange was met by them at the start of Gagnrok roughly a month [or less than that] after the Ancient One's death and Dormammu's defeat. At this point, Stephen had less than two years of training/learning, even with using Astral projection very night to do so. Which IS important, when you take how mundane/human magic in particular works in the MCU, versus the very different way it has worked in the comics.)

(the above is an older pic and manip from 2016; just after DS1 had released. It displays the Stones' film appearances, then current containment, and wherabouts as of 2016 when the fith of six had finally appeared on film. Space is mislabeled in the last tier, in part likel because Gagnarok hadn't been out yet to remind people the King had a vault.)

Moving on though?

Loki at that point in Infinity War had come into personal direct contact (this wording and difference is important) with not one or two: but three Infinity Stones out of the six:

Mind Stone (contained in the Chitauri Scepter) Loki held and personally wielded throughout the first Avengers films. This was lent to him by Thanos to retrieve the one Infinity Stone he was already most familiar with; listed as number two: BUT. This is not the only interaction he has or intends with it throughout the MCU. Because remember, again: he was the King of Asgard in 2015 during and after Age of Ulron, too. The King of Asgard who sent Thor, who states outright early in the film before Tony really messes with it; that this Stone is intended to go back to Asgard for safe keeping: an idea that is swiftly left behind and never mentioned ever again after Vision's creation: rather than insisting all the more after it's previous intelligence gave extra reason to do so when he dropped an entire city on the planet with the intention of killing Earth's entire population. Mmhm; Loki was that King.

2. Space Stone (contained in the Tesseract) also used by Loki in the 2012 invasion, and several humans [some maybe indirectly] including Eric Selvig and Clint Barton. However! There are two films prior to Avengers 2012 that not only set up the Tesseract's presence and connection to Asgard --whom at those times referenced and direct: Loki is a prince of-- well and prior: enough that, that connection and Loki's already existing knowledge of the Tesseract/Space Stone and it's container is stated outright in A1's first scene through the Other's opening dialogue with it on screen. Literally, they say this and say this is why he was sought out to head the invasion; before any character is shown on screen, and they cut to the Dark Energy facility for scene one in New Mexico with Fury etc. Going back to CAtFA 2011, and Thor 2011 we don't have to guess, we know that knowledge comes from his 1000+ year prince OF Asgard status: which did not end until almost a century after Schmidt, in 2011; and whose visits in the centuries well before Red Skull/Schmidt took it from it's human guardians in the beginning of CAtFA released July of that same year. The Space Stone, and Tesseract which is basically just it's jewelry box/container: remain in Asgard's vault throug the entirety of Loki's 5 year reign, and in his possession after Ragnarok until 2018 when the Statesman is attacked. Loki keeps the Tesseract's presence secret and hidden until Thor's life is seriously threatened with the Power Stone itself.

3. Reality Stone (adapted by Darkalfhiem, into a differing form called 'the Aether':) During Thor: the Dark World, this one was the main plot point of TDW. Later stolen and hidden in the depths of an unknown planet within the nine realms by Bor [Odin's Father,] during the previous Convergence around 3013 BC, the former rock turned energy/liquid/gas ..stuff? (lol seriously, it takes several forms in the film including briefly returning to a solid state near the end: and even briefly shows signs of lower intelligence at the start of the film when it decides to immediately attach itself to Jane without any provocation other than her just.. being there.) While Loki has very little interaction through the start of the film: after Thor goes treason happy again, for better reasons this time.. Loki is literally in it's presence (because it's INSIDE Jane Foster who he's literally been broken out of jail to take to another planet sans Bifrost:) he has not only plenty of contact.. he is one of the last people in contact with it having taken Odin's face and place on the throne. After the Dark Elves are defeated: Loki is of course at that point also the king who sends Sif and the Yes-Men Three, to give the Reality Stone/Aether to Tanaleer Tivan aka The Collector in mid credit scenes, rather than keep it.

Oh, but that isn't all of them. Yet...

Now, that in mind.. and I've discussed this in discord a bit but; timelines and mention of them, and especially understanding the content of the films between TDW and Gagnarok are stupid important here where the Infinity Stones and Loki in particular are concerned, and why I mention them by name and sequence of appearance early in the post.

Because guess what? Three are confirmed direct contact: but over the course of 2012 to 2017? Loki with Odin's face since 2013, came canonically into indirect and knowledgeable contact with at least four of the six, as early as 2014 (GotG): a year after he took said throne. Well.. maybe more than that, but that is technically assumed meta and not technically confirmed: even if canon history in their universe literally makes it NOT being a thing a thousand to one chance...

Meta notes: Maybe and very much more likely; five of the six Infinity Stones; not four: and here's why.

If you consider the Time Stone's presence on Earth for 4k+ years in the hands of MOTMA.. whose entire purpose is stated outright in Doctor Strange as policing if not ending other-worldly threats hailing from (among other places) differing parts of the multiverse (including Dormammu's universe featured in DS1 as the ultimate antagonist above Kaecilius), both potential and blatant?

And, that the Ancient One (TAO) in particular is very likely at least as old as Loki, who along with Thor has been established as visiting the planet well and often enough during her lifetime (see the entire premise of Asgard as a advanced alien society in the MCU rather than actual gods who did that, to be mentioned and featured in Thor 2011 in books [props created and displayed], and Thor's & Darcy's explanation of that; plus the mentions by the Yes-Men Three of visitation doing exactly that, the fact that yes she existed and was in power prior to the 2012 invasion and more) and her tenure as head of MOTMA and keeper/head protector of the Time Stone in particular?

Mordo's reference to her origins and specifically the length of her immortal life during Strange's training among other things puts a pretty interesting spin on the canon for Loki especially and the Stones (and in meta: raises questions as to why she really did not take part in actively repelling the invasion too with her ability to look into the multiple timelines ahead all the way to her 2017 death, including those where the probability did not win in 2012 was also available to her viewing:) Mordo referring to her as a Celt so old and secretive that her age is indeterminate in modern times, tells us this much alone. Add in the fact of how long the time stone has been in their care since at least Agamotto, and been handed down through unknown numbers of generations of human sorcerers since and during both her and Loki's lifetimes: but of course not excluding one of the few who wrote the freaking ancient book Strange picks up to fool with the Time Stone that first run, either..

And well; I mean... lets go through this scenario as it's presented by that canon: Head/gifted sorceress lives multiple centuries during which this other extremely gifted immortal-ish otherworldly sorcerer and his lightning throwing himbo of a foster brother is visiting.. and they never meet? With the stated job premise: and thunder-bro tossing house-burners around ancient civilizations .. MOTMA never approach the alien sorcerer-prince or the likewise alien himbo prince while tossing lightning to stir shit up during the eras when the Inquistions were just starting into if not already IN full, horrifying swing? If only, to ask them to cut it the frick out?

Uh.. hm.

Likelihood of that not happening even once, over the course of one thousand to one thousand five hundred years; especially pre-T1 with Thor's arrogance/self importance and racism mirroring Odin's and amplified to boot, is zero to nil with existing canon, lets be honest.

Still, that bit is solidly unconfirmed in the films and untouched by their creators too.. so that one while very much beyond probable: is sadly very much meta until they do so.

Which I for one am not counting on happening, or being handled well at all if they do, given the current dumb in the studios; and the writers and BTS crews they've been picking to ignore all that literal history and placement in the universe they claim to be creating for: as well as and the stuff below after this foundation was set for them by the creators and writers prior whom: they constantly spit on now, with every 'new' iteration.

But yeah.. next up. Remember how I said that bit about direct contact was an important term?

4. Power Stone (raw, contained within a restriction orb; and further contained behind energy fields, in the tomb temple of Morag: and later in the Nova Vaults) Did you notice, that Xandar is part of the nine realms? As in, the nine realms Asgard watches over/protects/has treaties varying from very tense 'I would rather kill you' peace, to downright alliance or protectorate status? Again, for the dozenth time in this post.. in 2014 when Xandar --as a part of those nine realms-- was attacked by Ronin with the Power Stone? Loki was still king of Asgard; their ally at the least, and protector at most. He was still king, of Asgard; afterwards, too: for another four years.

This happened very loudly in the Galaxy of over 100,000,000,000 stars! Not planets like Xandar ro Earth or Asgard: stars they orbit.

The monstrously huge Kree empire was involved.

All of Xandar, the Nova Corps at war with that monstrous empire who called Xandar their main home capital planet; was involved.

The Collector and his entire Celestial mining station and museum: was involved.

It was so loudly done, and crossed so many systems from Morag, to Xandar, to their interstellar prison Kyln, to Knowhere and the Collector (who Loki had already given the Reality Stone a year prior,) back to Xandar again, being chased by a galactically renowned rogue general who decided to work for a Universally renowned genocidal eco-terrorist and maniac.. whose likewise infamous 'daughters' were also in the mix, on both sides of the fight?

That by if not well before the events of GotG2 in early 2017, everyone knew exactly who the Guardians were and what they had done on Xandar. To the point they were making a living off that reputation; and said reputation and experiences with the Power Stone: is exactly how Ego knows to look for Peter Quill at all, and eventually finds them as the main antagonist of that film.

Yeah, so.. as king of an interstellar alliance and protectorate keeper, which included Xandar: even if we're being dumb and saying he didn't know prior to that? Loki along with every other advanced civilization in their universe; definitely knew the rock was there afterwards, or at least to look for it there first.

And he did not collect it; to put in the King's vault he was king of along with Asgard's armies; for those next four years, either.

So..yeah. It isn't just his ability being cut down, and down, and down some more; as more hacks like Waldron (who wrote the series including that ignorant proof of his unprofessional and frankly insulting lack of knowledge of the series title and title character in that entire episode 1 'life viewing scene' just as example one through twenty of why that show is a dumpster fire.

It's the entire history of the infinity stones and every film they were in from Captain America July 2011 all the way through to Avengers Endgame in 2019.

His character is most affected and spat on along with it; likely because Loki as a character in the MCU has the most interaction and association with the Stones, period and long before Infinity War's film started rolling in theaters anywhere.

That doesn't mean it's acceptable, that doesn't excuse it in any way shape or form: but it's pretty common dumb in the MCU too in the same breath.. the series and it's writers simply crank that up another few notches.. crappy and insulting to us the audience as that is, to do in his own series.

Just sayin': current creators outside of those who took part in and spent their time to create those foundations prior to Taika's crap hiring kicking it off? Haven't given a shit about the MCU project as a whole, or the parts in they have been hired to do in building the next piece on top of, that foundation.

And Micheal Waldron, his buddy hire for S2 writer Eric Martin, director Kate Herron and her buddy hire for the scary manly sue amalgamation they made of the Sylvie Lushton character, Sophia Di Martino; have been and still are very loud about openly stating as much in Taika's same disrespectful and dismissive flavor; in official interviews, on the bird app, on their instas, and more.

Most of these fools still have their jobs, while at it. Waldron is not just still writing for Disney and the MCU; they gave him the Doctor Strange sequel that failed to BE a sequel to the 2017 title.

And studios have since announced to our dismay --to most actual fans, not mcu-disney/feige religious zealots mind you-- that he's being given the next Avengers film as a reward instead of being fined and fired for not doing the job, and NOT keeping them out of the range of class action lawsuits for falsely advertising what the series was at Cons and more for the two years prior to it's airing. 👍

Post-insanity Edit: .........I'm putting in pretty reference pictures amongst my canon research and meta rambling; because this got long AF, and I do like my gifs etc to break that crud up. lmao.. sorry.. ish? 🤣 💚

also..

In comics Loki is immune to Wanda's magic. Thats how powerful he is.

In MCU Val knocks him off with 1 hit.

[presidentrhodes]

i am tired

every time ive been trying to convince myself to watch this movie in theatres, the universe keeps giving me signs not to lol.

Strange's first movie came out in 2016 and was used mostly to set up the mystic arts. since then he had a series of glorified cameos where he didn't win a single fight (im still mad about nwh).

wong, thankfully, got some character development between infinity war and shang chi.

marvel's forgotten mordo even exists or that the first movie set him up to be the main antagonist. and if the leaks are true about prime mordo then that's a fucking travesty

it's unlikely we'd be getting clea and jericho drumm in this film

back to strange — the comics have an incredible amount of lore that makes him a very weird, interesting character. but all i see is people saying in the mcu he's tony stark with magic and it's sadly true because marvel's been using him basically to fix other people's shit

wanda just had a massive character arc in wv and is prob going to have her solo movies soon. even if she's the villain in this film, her getting the same amount of screen time + all of the rumoured cameos mean there's very little room left to tell strange's story

and it's basically a self defeating cycle because how would you expect new mcu fans to care about the character or the franchise if you don't give them proper arcs?

like wong being made sorcerer supreme was HUGE but it was done off screen, almost as a throwaway idea. we've never even seen strange talk about his encounter with dormammu. say nothing of strange's tragic family history with his siblings' untimely deaths. and marvel had as talented an actor as chiwetel ejiofor on payroll to rebrand comics mordo (who is still dull as dirt) but they didn't do that either

this movie would've been a lot more enjoyable if it was the third one in the franchise. the sequel should've been more intimate and about stephen and other doctor strange characters. the reason crossover movies like ragnarok, civil war, nwh worked is because the sequels took the time to set up the characters so that we'd care about them

but that's unlikely to happen with multiverse and we'll have to keep reading bad takes about how stephen is just iron man with magic

[supremescrceress]

how does clea fit into the mcu || main verse

{ ☆ } Clea’s Bio

{ ☆ } Timeline

☆ (2016/2017) Clea comes to Earth shortly after the events of Doctor Strange and immediately becomes a disciple, training in the Mystic Arts.

☆ Within the year, Clea and Stephen have begun a romantic relationship. 

☆ (2017) The Children of Thanos invade Earth (Ebony Maw & Cull Obsidian). Clea helps protect the people of New York. She is beyond furious when Stephen and Peter Parker are discovered to be aboard Ebony Maw’s ship. 

☆ She stays behind to help guard the planet. Because of their telepathic connection, Clea feels Stephen’s disappearance before she’s told about it. She breaks down and almost flees to the Dark Dimension. Ultimately, Wong convinces her to stay and continue her training. To take on Dormammu now would be SUICIDE. 

☆ (2019) Clea feels ready to lead the rebellion against Dormammu and succeeds. She banishes him and her mother, Umar (who aided him) into the dark recesses of the Dark Dimension. She assumes the mantle of Sorceress Supreme of the Dark Dimension. 

☆ It’s a bitter victory. She’d imagined taking her throne with her MENTOR by her side. 

☆ (2022) Events of Endgame. Clea returns to Earth now and again to help Natasha and the other surviving Avengers with MYSTIC issues around the planet. She functions as a sort of ambassador between the Avengers, the Dark Dimension, and the Sorcerer Supreme, Wong. 

☆ She fights side by side with everyone in the Battle for Earth. She nearly breaks down again when she first hears the telepathic connection is back. After Thanos is defeated, she quite literally attaches herself to Stephen like a spider-monkey and alternates between grieving relief and relieved anger.

☆ (2022) Clea attends the funeral of Tony Stark. She continues to advocate for a PROPER memorial for Natasha Romanoff. 

☆ (2023) Clea alternates between the Dark Dimension and Earth, serving as ruler of the Dark Dimension and continues to assist with Mystic Matters on Earth. She preoccupies herself with worrying about Peter Parker, a hero that everyone consistently forgets is a CHILD. 

☆ (2024) Events of No Way Home. Clea is on Earth when Stephen agrees to cast the spell for Peter. Though she wants to help the boy, she strongly disagrees with this use of magic. She vocalizes it every chance she gets. When it goes wrong and Peter decides to SAVE the villains, Clea aids Peter. After he locks Stephen in the Mirror Dimension, Clea prepares herself for the worst scolding of their relationship but continues to work on scouring the city for anyone else from another dimension.

☆ In particular, she looks for other Spider-Mans and their friends and loved ones. She finds Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson and brings them to the Sanctum for protection.

☆ Just like everyone else--she ultimately forgets who Peter Parker is. After these events, she continues to alternate between Earth and the Dark Dimension and now busies herself trying to convince Stephen to have a baby because damn it something is missing.

[aelaer]

Inspired by the X men ask: instead of Donna, what if Stephen's mutant powers manifest after she drowns? It's definitely writable with movie-only knowledge! (I think Stephen would have some scary strong powers).

This prompt is nearing a year and a half old and is my second to last prompt from 2019 so I wanted to try to get it out of the way as I attempt to do at least one prompt fic a month to clear my inbox of those remaining.

After being stuck on trying to figure this out for so long, I decided to approach it quite differently than I thought I would, and this is my first fic writing from this character’s POV. I made Stephen's age the same as Ben's for ease. I also prove, yet again, that my ability to write short things is very much lacking.

My interest in geography 100% leaks through, and I'm not sorry.

My thanks to nemmy for helping me decide the direction of this story.

Fate Won’t Compromise Fandom: Doctor Strange, MCU Genre: Gen, canon divergence Chars: The Ancient One, Stephen Strange, Donna Strange Word count: 5k Warnings: Minor canonical character death, near drowning

In the summer of 1995, The Ancient One felt a ripple in the fabric of reality.

Such ripples, while uncommon, were not unknown to her in her many centuries serving as Sorcerer Supreme. They happened as major events within their reality shifted from the threads found in similar realities across the multiverse. While change was inevitable between realities, commonalities often brought them back to follow the same paths, to hit the same major events, to survive the same catastrophes. Reality and time were excellent in creating situations that balanced the flow again and brought them back to their natural parallels across the majority of universes.

But sometimes, sometimes the fabric of reality and time was disturbed. It happened with a change, unexpected in its improbability and big enough that it diverted the parallel lines the majority of the multiverse followed to create a timeline that diverged, crooked and uncertain. If the ripple was small enough, the powers surrounding reality often fixed itself with countermeasures—new actors, new probabilities that helped bring time back to its parallel path. But some ripples, some ripples required intervention.

And this one? Well, this one absolutely shattered reality with its ripple effect.

Hmm. It was time to consult the Eye of Agamotto and see what changed.

— — — — —

Her time with the Eye was long in her search. With such a significant ripple, The Ancient One first looked at the immediate months coming, searching for change in the most important of events for the remainder of the year.

There was nothing different. Interesting. Then this was likely an event that changed the course of the life of an individual, an individual who was very important sometime in the future. She scanned the years following more broadly after that, coming upon the events of the new millennium, both mundane and arcane, that would change the course of Earth's future forever. They all came as expected, one after the other.

It wasn't until her search took her to 2016, the year before her own inevitable passing, that she finally came across the anomaly: Stephen Strange never made it to Kamar-Taj.

The Ancient One pursed her lips; this was not meant to happen. While her sight beyond 2017 remained veiled, her experience and intuition as well as glimpses across the multiverse gave her an insight into the likely path of Stephen Strange. And from what she had seen, he was meant to be the best of them all.

So what had diverted him from the path that was written in the course of time, so much so that its lack of manifestation caused such a ripple in reality? Surely it didn't change her death; she had accepted the inevitably of that decades ago.

(She first discovered her death after the chaos of WWII, where the Masters of the Mystic Arts fought their own war against demonic invasions looking to take advantage of the chaotic time. She looked to prevent such a thing ever occurring again, then found her death. At first she wasn't concerned, and made plans to avoid it, just as she had several times before.

But it was different this time. With the Eye of Agamotto in the past, she was always able to find a route that allowed her to survive and the world to remain intact within a dozen attempts of altering her actions. It took her over a thousand attempts over the next year to realize that, no, no matter what, she was going to die before the fourth month of 2017. She never lived further than that.

And in the course that seemed most sound to her, the most consistent, she was always by the side of the unsure, amateur, but potentially great Stephen Strange.)

The Eye confirmed for her that, yes, she still died in early 2017. However, the manner of death was completely unacceptable, as it led to Dormammu eating their reality. She had not seen that possibility since she stopped trying to find a solution to her death several decades ago.

(She wondered how Stephen Strange managed to defeat him. She did not sense the end of reality after her death, so it was with confidence that she knew he found a solution. What the solution was, however, remained unknown to her. It was most intriguing. He had such potential.)

The Ancient One finally withdrew from the encompassing powers of the Eye and allowed herself a frown. She hoped Stephen Strange was not dead. It would mean finding another like him, and quite soon so she may prevent the terrible future she just saw.

Still, the ripple she felt did but not necessarily mean death; it meant change, for good or ill.

The first thing to do was to check on what was, and what would hopefully remain, her future pupil. She directed the Eye to review the timeline of Stephen Strange, going to the moment just before the ripple in reality occurred.

As she searched for that moment, flashes of memories not belonging to her flipped through her mind's eye: the first was a pair of hands on the wheel of a car, left side, as it turned off the paved road to a bumpy gravel-filled spot of driving, then quickly smoothed out to a road less rough. A large brown sign with yellow, capital letters read "Lewis and Clark State Recreation Area", with a smaller "Nebraska State and Park Commission" underneath. "Weigand - Burbach" was spelt on a separate plank just below the main sign with the same dark brown backdrop and bright yellow lettering. In the backseats was excited chatter from two others, women. Surrounding the road were tall trees of various species, all different colors of green.

Another flash, and she was now watching a small motorboat being backed up into the water from its trailer by a young man—barely a man—into a wide lake. Beyond the water the distant shore was all but flat, with only a small ridge of hills giving the horizon any distinct shape. A shrill voice shouted behind her, "Don't crash it!" and the man in the boat shouted back, "Shut up, Melissa!" Giggles followed, and then a voice came from the soul she watched, a deep baritone that said, "But seriously, if you crash it, my dad will kill you." The young man in the boat retorted, "Fuck you, Stephen!" in return, and Stephen's body shook with soft laughter. The man successfully maneuvered the boat into the water, and a short cheer sounded behind her.

Then another memory, and she was now on the motorboat, far out on the water which shone as bright a blue as the sky above. A young woman—a teenager, as they said in English in the 20th century, now—was doing some sort of sport she was unfamiliar with, letting the motorboat drag her along as she hung on by a rope with a handle at the end. Perhaps this was surfing. The teenager completed a short jump on the waves, and from her point of view, the memory's host shouted, "Nice, Donna!"

Another flash, and she was the one at the end of the rope. She quickly passed through it to the next memory. 

Time had passed; it was late afternoon, perhaps an hour or so before sunset. Her host was looking at the boat's controls. A female voice—Melissa—behind them said, "Okay, Aaron's ready to go. Start it up." As the boat motor roared to life, another voice—Donna—said over the noise, "We should get out of the water after this. It'll be dark soon." The soul behind the memories, Stephen, shouted back, "That's why we have navigation lights on this thing!"

The memory shifted again, and all four were on the boat now. The sun was set behind the horizon and the sky was painted a soft yellow before it melted into blue, then black. Stars were already appearing in the sky. Surrounding her were the other three, Aaron and Melissa and Donna, and there was a strong feeling of content within the memory. "We should get back to camp," Donna said, and she heard Stephen sigh and say, "Yeah," in reply. "Your turn, Aaron," he added. Aaron said, "Dude, I'm wiped out. You do it." Stephen retorted in return, "No, you."

Then it shifted again, and she was looking up at the darkening sky when Melissa said, "That boat's going fast." Her point of view changed as Stephen straightened himself, and she saw another motorboat running straight towards them. "Stop!" Stephen shouted as he got to his feet, and a second later, Aaron called out, "Jump!" and Stephen did, hitting the water and diving just as their motorboat was hit and destroyed. He was facing down into the murky, black depths of the lake as suddenly something hit his back, and at that moment some sort of rope or netting caught his leg and its weight started dragging him down. She could feel the alarm running through the young man's head and the Ancient One wondered if she was going to be seeing his death, now. A strange pang of regret went through her at the thought.

But then a sudden glow encompassed Stephen's body, subtle but in the blackness of the water, quite, quite clear. Confusion joined his panic but before any other thoughts came to his head, he was suddenly out of the water and on the shore of the lake. He collapsed the moment he went from liquid to air, falling on his back before turning to his side to cough up water from the lake.

The Ancient One stepped back from Stephen Strange's memories and blinked again back in the normal passage of time. As the green glow of the Time Stone's powers faded from her body, she considered the last memory.

She knew, from all her viewings of the future, that it was about this time that the mutation that came to be known as the X-Gene started popping up in the population. It would eventually have an impact on the future of Earth. But Stephen Strange was not meant to have it—or perhaps, rather, it was never meant to activate. Not if the flow of reality and time considered this an anomaly in the general course of the multiverse.

His appearance within the order of the Masters of the Mystic Arts seemed to lead to the event that prevented Dormammu's entrance into their reality, so he—or someone of his caliber—was necessary to have under her tutelage. And as he was not dead, she needed to see what had to happen to work him again onto a path that was the best for the universe's survival, regardless of this unexpected development in his life.

It was time to consult the Eye once more to determine the right path.

—————

Using the Eye worked outside the flow of time, and so all the Ancient One's endeavours, though seeming to her to take several hours, in reality only took her about twenty minutes since she first felt the ripple. She had passed through various scenarios and glimpsed at various extensions of those scenarios as needed until she had an outcome that had her satisfied with her decisions and, more importantly, made it very, very unlikely that the universe would end to Dormammu in 2017.

(Her own future, strangely enough, grew blurry and uncertain the closer she got to that year, which she found quite intriguing. She would pursue the matter at a later date.)

For now, though, she had a job to do. And so she created a portal that led her to the north shore of the lake, at the beach where the small hills lay. At this point of time it was nearly dark, and so she conjured a lantern—one of the elegant ones that they used to craft in Japan, the ones she preferred—and placed a small, magical light within the illusion. It would reveal its true nature soon enough. Despite the rockiness of this part of the shoreline, her footing was sure as she made her way along the edge of the lake.

In a couple minutes, a voice, expected and now familiar, called out to her. "Hello? Is someone there? I need help!"

In all her experience of using the Eye of Agamotto, the Ancient One had gotten very good at differentiating all the viewed possibilities to the experienced reality. Reality was sharper in every way, and the auras of people's spirits shone brighter without the power of the Time Stone to stifle them. And in the night surrounding them, Stephen Strange's aura shone very, very bright.

Interesting.

When she came close enough for him to see her clearly, his eyes widened as he took her in. She knew her resemblance was considered odd by late twentieth-century standards, but the memory of centuries of lice infestations made hair still undesirable and robes were infinitely more comfortable than jeans. But she was aware of its oddness, and as he stared, the Ancient One took the time to also observe him beyond the fuzziness of the Eye of Agamotto.

The gangly boy sitting in the sand in front of her hardly resembled the arrogant, talented man she had come to know through her past use of the Eye. Just breaking the cusp of manhood, his hair was still fully dark brown, and he wore a sleeveless blue shirt with long swim shorts, all still wet despite the time out of the water. His cheeks were fuller with the last remnant of youth still remaining, and the look in his eyes was wild and unguarded. Filled with fear.

Quite different from what she was used to.

"Who are you?" Stephen Strange whispered.

"A friend," she answered. She placed the lantern on a rock before settling down in the dark sand near him, about five feet away. "I mean you no harm."

He continued to stare at her, then looked at his leg. It was bleeding sluggishly and would need stitches. "Can you please help me? I—I'm not sure how I got here, but there was a boating accident and I—I need to find my friends and my sister. It's on the lake, I swear, I don't know why we can't see it from here but the accident just happened and it can't be that far."

She let him finish before she broke the news. "You are about seven kilometers west from the site of your accident, on the north shore of the lake. I believe you call this part of your country 'South Dakota'."

Stephen's eyes somehow widened even further, then he quickly shook his head. "No, that—that's impossible. That's completely impossible."

"Just as impossible as finding yourself drowning at the bottom of a lake one moment and being on dry land in the next," she said agreeably.

The wide-eyed look seemed it would remain a permanent fixture on his face. "Wha—how—how do you know about that?"

"It is my job to know of such things," said the Ancient One. "It is also how I know that, if you are found so far from the site of the accident, you will draw unwanted attention upon yourself."

Stephen visibly swallowed and looked around them, as if the unwanted attention was already watching. "What—what do you mean?"

The Ancient One offered him a benign smile. "You are not the first to perform the impossible. When figures of authority learn such things exist, they pursue them. And your story would draw their attention. Historically, your country has been known to use extraordinary people as assets when needed. Many kingdoms and governments throughout time have."

A soft wind blew in from the south, causing Stephen to shiver in the oncoming chill of the night. Regardless of his discomfort, his wide eyes narrowed into something more calculating and thoughtful. "Why are you telling me this? What do you get out of it?"

"A future ally, hopefully," she answered truthfully. "I have no interest in taking you from your studies, Stephen Strange—yes, I know who you are," she said, the benign smile coming again as he startled. "Your name is the least I know about you."

He stared at her once more, mouth hanging partially open. As the wind blew through again, he snapped his mouth shut and rubbed his shivering arms. "And why—why should I believe you aren't part of these secret government groups, or part of something that wants to use me? Why should I trust you?"

She kept that slight smile on her face as she answered, "Because I offer my assistance and ask nothing in return. I will guide you to the shoreline just north of the accident, and show you where you may find help. I recommend a forgetful memory between the crash and you reaching shore, which is quite common in times of traumatic events. No one will suspect anything different about you, Mr Strange."

The boy fidgeted at the name, as if not used to it. He really was a young thing, wasn't he? "You can get me there? Do you have a car nearby?"

The Ancient One smiled and lifted her lantern. "Remember what I said, Mr Strange." She let the lantern disintegrate, leaving only the glowing ball of light. Stephen's mouth dropped. "You are not the only person who can do the supposedly impossible. Can you walk unaided?"

Stephen snapped his jaw shut at the question and looked down at his leg. He pressed his lips together, and then with a grunt, he slowly shifted his weight under his legs, most of it on his good leg, before he pushed himself up into a standing position.

She offered another slight smile and held her hand forward to create a portal further east along the lake. "Follow me." The Ancient One did not bother to look at his reaction to the gateway, but had the ball of light follow her through. When she turned, Stephen was limping just through the portal, and after he got through she allowed it to close.

They were on the shore again; to the south in the water, a mile or so away, she could see the distant pinpricks of shiplights at the scene of the accident. Stephen, too, stared in that direction. But she forced his focus elsewhere when she pointed to the northeast, to the pinpricks of light beyond the trees. "Do you believe you can make it to those lit buildings? It is perhaps two hundred meters away. They should have a phone."

He offered a nod. "Yeah. My leg's not so bad."

"Good," she said. "Then I recommend you go that way; it may be some hours before authorities search the shore for you." She looked back at him. "I would not tell anyone of what truly occurred to you; such tales have an unfortunate habit of getting out, no matter how private the story is meant to be."

Stephen frowned at her, and she offered him another one of her benign smiles. "I will come to see you again, after you have had some time to recover. Good luck, Mr Strange." With that, she let the glowing ball beside her fade out, and created a portal into one of the darker rooms of Kamar-Taj and left the young Stephen Strange on the shore of the lake.

—————— 

Two weeks later, the Ancient One created another portal to the midwestern United States, landing underneath a narrow strip of trees that bordered a small creek that made its way through wide fields of agriculture. The nearest field beside her was corn, and just beyond it was a half-harvested wheat field. The trees bordering the water were a mix of oak and pine, specific species she was not familiar with but that she could broadly identify due to the commonalities found within their relatives in the Eastern Hemisphere. It was just after midday in this place known as Nebraska, and the summer sun was pleasant in this corner of the world, with a soft breeze taking off the edge of the dry heat.

She saw no one at first, but if the sling ring brought her here, that meant Stephen Strange was also nearby. A faint trail followed the bend of the creek and she paused in consideration before her instincts led her to go southwest.

In a few minutes, she came upon him. While her step was soft, the silence of the trail around them should have alerted Stephen to her arrival. But his back remained turned to her as he sat beyond the narrow trail and on the slope that led into the creek bed. His chin was propped on his knees and, since he had not heard her approaching, the Ancient One knew his mind was quite far away.

"Mr Strange," she said in greeting.

The young man violently started out of his daze and nearly lost his seating as he twisted around to stare at her. It seemed to her that he had aged some years in the last two weeks; his eyes were dark and sunken with lack of sleep, and his entire expression appeared drawn and pinched. His lips tightened for a moment, then he said, "It's you again."

"I did say I was going to return," she reminded him. She approached the sloping hill beside the creek and sat down beside him.

From the corner of her eye, she saw his expression tighten again. She remained quiet as he gathered his words. "Did you know?" Stephen asked after several passing seconds of heavy silence.

The Ancient One kept her gaze on the small creek. She knew what he was asking, and she would not play any games pretending otherwise; it wouldn't serve her purpose. "I knew that, by the time I came to you, your sister had died."

The tenseness beside her did not lift; if anything, it grew heavier. "Did you know Donna was going to die?"

An interesting question. She considered her answer; a multitude of answers would lead to an acceptable outcome, but this was reality. "We don't get to choose our time," she started. "In some probabilities, the question of death is split between a thin line that sways from one option to the other depending on the reality. In other instances, death is all but certain." She spared a glance at him; Stephen's grief was now layered with confusion. "I am sorry to say that, in the wide expansion of possibilities, your sister's death was largely unavoidable. All points led to it."

The young man's face contorted in anger. "I don't believe in fate or whatever the hell you're talking about."

"Some may call it fate," she answered, and looked back to the creek. "I call it probability. You may have been told, at some point in your life, that there are random events in life that are unpredictable. This is untrue, at least on a larger scale. Each event of consequence has a set probability in occurring, with the powers balancing reality and time ever trying to keep them as consistent as possible in the grand scheme of the multiverse. Certain people are always born. Certain events always occur. Certain items are always invented. Around people of consequence, events play out so that they may help play the part that they are meant to play."

In the corner of her eye, she saw Stephen run a hand over his face. "Look, lady, like I told you: I don't believe in that bullshit. And if you're trying to tell me that my sister was meant to—" He cut himself off and turned his head away. She saw his knuckles tighten to the point of turning white with the strain.

She slowly exhaled and closed her eyes. She had not spoken with youth who did not know her for who she was in some many years; she could not remember the last time a young person had spoken to her with such disrespect. But she had to keep in mind that Stephen was grieving, and that he was absolutely clueless.

Perhaps if he saw a small glimpse of what she saw, he would understand.

"I would like to show you something, if you would allow it," said the Ancient One as she opened her eyes and looked at Stephen.

His eyes darted to look at her with a side glance, though he did not look at her fully. "Show me what?"

"What my powers allow me to see," she said. His eyes narrowed. "It won't hurt or leave any lasting effects."

She saw the internal struggle, but one thing she knew well of Stephen Strange: his curiosity always got the better of him. And as she expected, he relented and said, "Okay, fine. How do you do that?"

A slight smile appeared on her lips. "Like this," said the Ancient One, and she placed her thumb upon his forehead and connected her third eye to his unused, undeveloped one. She picked from her memory a set of images gained by using the Eye of Agamotto in conjunction with the Cauldron of the Cosmos to explore the realities across the multiverse, the images she picked up some years ago as she looked into the man known as Stephen Strange and what he became in other realities.

And the images she chose were specifically referring to his sister's death. As she let him see various versions of himself (some with slightly different physical features, and a couple further in the past, but so very much Stephen Strange), she said, "The multiverse is a strange thing in its consistency. Donna Strange was not born only to perish at such a young age in every reality, but the probability was stacked against her. And many named Stephen Strange have experienced the grief you feel now. It is not your fault that the universe stacked probability against her survival."

She removed her thumb from his forehead and Stephen collapsed, rolling down a couple feet down the slope before catching himself. Laying on the ground now he panted heavily, trying to gain his breath.

When he finally raised his head, tears were streaming down his face. "It should've been me," he choked out. "She didn't deserve to die! None of those—" He cut himself off and shook his head, then angrily wiped at his face. "I—I don't know what the fuck you were doing—"

"I was using my powers to show you what I have seen," she interrupted, cutting him off for the first time. "After what you managed to achieve at the lake, are my abilities really so hard to come to terms with?"

Stephen shook his head again and pushed himself off the ground so he was standing. The Ancient One remained sitting and kept her expression neutral. "Okay, fine, so you have some crazy-ass powers that—that make no sense. I get it, you did physics-breaking things at the lake, too. What the hell does that have to do with me?"

She offered a benign smile. "Surely you haven't forgotten your unusual journey from the lake to the shore. Or have you been telling yourself that it was all a hallucination?"

By the look on his face, it appeared that that was exactly what he was trying to do. That would do no good.

"Unfortunately for you, your powers aren't just going to go away," the Ancient One said. "Whether they will manifest under physical or emotional stress I do not yet know, but they will return if you do not know how to control them."

"And what, you can teach me how to control them?" Stephen asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Yes," was her simple answer.

Stephen's eyes remained narrow, then he cut off his stare to run a hand through his hair and shake his head. "And what would you want out of me in return?"

"Nothing you are unwilling to give," said the Ancient One. "You can continue your studies as you wish. Go on to become a doctor."

"How did you know—" He paused, cutting himself off, then shook his head. "You know what, never mind. Go on." 

She offered her smile again. "All it would require is some of your time to discover the extent of your powers and to learn ways in which you can best control them. Consider it an extracurricular activity, if you would like."

"And what do you get out of it?" he asked.

"The knowledge that those with unusual powers remain hidden from those who would exploit them," is what she answers, but in truth, it was so much more. Still, it was not yet time to tell him that; he was too young. Too green.

Stephen looked down and crossed his arms as he considered her words. His expression was stone, but she knew what he was going to answer. If there was one thing predictable about Stephen Strange, it was his curiosity and his hunger for knowledge. It was his ambition to be the best at whatever he set his mind to, and a new ability suddenly within his hands was one meant to be conquered for him.

He then nodded jerkily, just once. "Okay. Sure. When do we start?"

The Ancient One smiled and stood. "How about now?" She opened a portal to one of her private rooms in Kamar-Taj, where she was rarely disturbed. It would not do to show him everything of the compound immediately, but it would come in due time.

He hesitated. "I need to be home for dinner at six."

"That is quite doable," she answered, and waited.

A couple seconds of hesitation passed, and then Stephen Strange lifted his chin and walked directly into the portal to Kamar-Taj, over two decades earlier than expected. The Ancient One followed him and closed the gateway behind her, leaving behind the quiet creek to flow under the bright green leaves on a sunny Nebraskan summer day.

— — — — — 

The big happy moment for me in writing this fic was that the town I chose for Stephen to grow up in and alluded to in another story is pretty close to this lake, so that worked out great. The most disappointing discovery, on the other hand, was that the Google Maps car only got like, the major roads in Nebraska. That does not include annnyyyyy of the roads near the Lewis and Clark State Recreation Area. And their promotional video didn't help in determining the details I wanted.

But then *the best thing* happened and on the camp's location on Google Maps, some beautiful, beautiful person took a photo of the entrance of the campgrounds, which was the exact detail I needed. So I dedicate this fic to Denis F. and their photo. (We're gonna pretend that the road and sign's 100% been like that since at least 1995). As much as I'd like to make an excuse to go to a lakeside attraction for boating fun, I'm sadly not a millionaire and cannot throw away thousands for the sake of fic accuracy. Alas. Once I win the lottery, though, 100% will commit to this. (Also, it's January and freaking freezing in Nebraska right now.)

FYI, Donna was not surfing, but wakeboarding. I just doubt that the Ancient One has bothered to learn all the new sports that popped up in the latter half of the 20th century - especially as one as young as wakeboarding was in 1995.

Hopefully the emotional roller coaster in the last bit worked. I've had conversations that just went all over the place like that before—crazy emotional subject to another crazy subject that just shook you to the point that the emotional subject was put on the back burner for processing—so hopefully people can relate.

[ririsasy]

If I could engage with all the bullshit they say about strange that he didn't feel sorry at all for sacrificing Tony, and how Tony would never sacrifice himself if he knew about it from Stephen, how could some people can be so blind? And so many people agree with this too, what movie are they watching? Do they even know who Tony stark is? What hell he had walked through? What kind of person he was? And the most insulting to read is about stephen willingness to sacrifice Tony's life, if he knew another way, another way at all? He rather give his own life than to sacrifice other's.

Didn't they watch doctor strange (2016) movie and how stephen willing to die a thousand death so dormammu could leave the earth alone? how in the hell he is willingly, without an ounce of regret and guilt to know about Tony's fate to just let him die like that without even trying for another alternative?

Didn't they watch avengers: Infinity war and hear about what Stephen said? he willingly go through 14,000,605 alternate realities to see a way to defeat Thanos without having to sacrifice anyone, he wished he could have another way, but there was no other way.

He didn't spesifically chose the one in which Tony died, no, how did you know that it wasn't the first alternate that he saw to defeat thanos? If he really want to sacrifice Tony that bad because he is a cold blood heartless person, why don't he stop just there? Why he keep searching and risk his own sanity to live a thousand lifetime so he could watch the 14,000,604 other realities so he didn't need to sacrifice Tony at all? but the fate of course is stronger than his will. How many times do I need to tell this that there was no other way? at least the writer decided to be this way.

At first I didn't wish for Stephen to be shown that he mourn over Tony's death even a little bit in his next movie but seeing how cruel all the words spun around his character, I really want them to show us a glimpse of what it takes on Stephen's soul so the antis can shut up.

Benedict had portrayed strange in infinity war and endgame as a man who is burdened by that knowledge, he played a man who had to chose wisely even though it's heavy on his soul, and yet all they see is a heartless arrogant doctor, they didn't learn a damn thing about stephen's character growth and it makes me furious.

[bakerlooandbeyond]

After plenty of anticipation, Marvel Studios has finally unveiled its surprising plans for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While a Doctor Strangesequel was always in the cards, the official announcement of the film's title, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was wholly unexpected, as was the confirmation that Elizabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, would appear in the movie.

Given the film's title, it seems like the sequel will finally deliver on the long-teased promise of exploring the MCU's Multiverse. The presence of multiple realities was already teased in both 2016's Doctor Strange and this summer's Spider-Man: Far From Home, but now it appears as if we will truly travel throughout multiple frightening universes.

However, that title doesn't just tease a trip through the Multiverse. While most people are focusing on the "Multiverse" aspect, could the inclusion of "Madness" be what's more important here? Since the film is confirmed to be the MCU's first forray into horror, what if the sequel's title is more literal than we think?

THE FALLOUT FROM INFINITY WAR AND ENDGAME

Other than the title and the presence of Scarlet Witch, there isn't much we know yet about Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' plot. Benedict Cumberbatch has said that his character will no longer be in a place of authority, and that the film will aim to try and destroy him, but it's not clear what that means. However, the Doctor Strange sequel could examine the direct fallout of Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, on a personal, psychological level.

While the superheroes of the MCU felt crushed by the loss of Tony Stark, Doctor Strange experienced the defeat of the Avengers and the annihilation of everything 14 million 605 times. It might have happened off-screen in Infinity War, but the Doctor did travel through time to live through over 14 million futures where he experienced death, destruction, and the loss of everything he knows.

For us, it was condensed into mere seconds but for him, it was something that, possibly, lasted an untold number of years. The number of futures he saw is simply astronomical, and it could be something that takes its toll on Stephen Strange -- even for someone as powerful as him.

THE BILL COMES DUE

What's more, this could even tie back to the warning made by Baron Karl Mordo, back in the first Doctor Strange movie, "The bill comes due." As we know, magic always comes at a price, and the sequel could explore that idea by having Stephen Strange's falling into possible madness as he comes to grips with all of the horrific deaths he has seen in 14 million different futures.

Marvel has never shied away from examining the psychological fallout its big tentpole movies can have on characters. In fact, Iron Man 3 primarily dealt with Tony Stark's PTSD after flying through a wormhole in space in 2012's The Avengers. Captain America: The Winter Soldier showed Steve Rogers' struggle in adapting to modern times. The events of Avengers: Age of Ultrondirectly led to the rift in Civil War. Now, the events of Avengers: Endgame are no different. They had an effect on Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Far From Home, and they could continue to impact characters in the Doctor Strangesequel.

Sure, Stephen Strange already lived through his death countless times during his time loop battle with Dormammu, but the death of the universe, 14 million times over could be something else entirely. It could even affect Strange in ways he hadn't considered or foreseen -- much like Tony's battle with the Chitauri.

TWO PEAS IN A POD

This psychological effect could also take into account the presence of the Scarlet Witch too. While the Scarlet Witch shares a link to the mystical side of the Marvel Universe with Strange, she could come into this movie for another, far more desperate reason: for treatment.

In the comic books, the Scarlet Witch is no stranger to mental breaks. In fact, one of those episodes even led to the creation of a new reality where mutants reign supreme. With that in mind, could a psychological parallel between Strange and the Scarlet Witch be explored in the Doctor Strange sequel?

Moreover, it's already been confirmed that Scarlet Witch's role in the film will be connected to the events of the Disney+ television series, WandaVision. While we don't know anything about the series yet, it's theorized that it might see Wanda create a new, alternate 1950s'-inspired reality where she lives a happy life with Paul Bettany's Vision. If that is the case, then perhaps this is part of her own mental break, and something that could tie into Stephen's own story in in the Muliverse of Madness.

Given director Scott Derrickson's comments about horror, all of these possibilities seem plausible. But since we have so little concrete information about the film right now, this is ultimately speculation about details we probably won't know for quite some time. By the time the film gets here, it may be something entirely different from what we expect.

Directed by Scott Derrickson, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Elizabeth Olsen. The film hits theaters on May 7, 2021.

[bad-puns-and-even-worse-magic]

not a prompt but whats your pet eeves about dr. strange fanfics? im trying to write him and cant figure it out???

so this is more about stephen’s actual characterization than just pet peeves so like, stuff to think about when writing him;

1) uhhh saying he’s never been disintegrated? or died? the guy was blown to pieces by dormammu. fading away to dust probably looks like a pretty nice way to go. (proof: uhhh the entire last ten minutes of Doctor Strange 2016)

2) he’s poor. he has no money and he spent what he had left to go to nepal. also? he doesn’t have a job and being the master of the new york sanctum probably takes up a lot of his time. stephen’s whole job is to look over the dimensional rifts and repair them. not a whole lot of money in that. (proof: he and wong can’t get enough money to get a sandwich from the deli in IW, stephen selling all his stuff for his surgeries and is homeless before he gets to Kamar-Taj in Doctor Strange)

3) stephen strange is a pacifist who only uses violence when absolutely necessary. he wouldn’t punch someone cause he’s mad at them. actually, he avoids punching in general unless in his astral form like just look at his hands??? ouch (proof: cried??? when he killed a man?? and then gets frustrated when people call him a coward because of it but doesn’t even kill the zealots in the end)

4) he has a knack for the mystic arts in a way no one else does and it’s not because of his ‘good memory’ or because of diligent studying. stephen sees sorcery in a way no other person does besides, maybe, the ancient one. (proof: Mordo’s “it takes more than a ‘good memory’” and Wong’s “you may have a knack for the mystic arts but you still have a lot to learn”)

5) he STRUGGLED with magic at first. he had to rewrite his entire world viewpoint from the ground up (proof: the ancient one’s ‘swim or drown’ lesson where she dropped him on Everest so he had no other choice than to get over his old ideals and make the damn portal) 

6) he very rarely follows the rules, especially when the rules stand in the way of saving lives (proof: opening portals in the library, breaking the natural law not once but MULTIPLE times, the ancient one’s “but as you know, sometimes one must break the rules in order to serve the greater good”)

7) the cloak hates everyone. just straight up is uninterested unless their name is stephen strange and then it actually does hilariously care. a lot. (proof: “the cloak of levitation? it’s chosen you?” “no minor feat. it’s a fickle thing.” and in IW when it just uses peter and tony to rescue stephen before ignoring them again. when it wipes his tears or rescues him when he’s falling over the stairs. takes a zealot that stabbed strange and repeatedly slams his head into the ground)

8. “it’s not about you.”

9. he actually is incredibly ashamed of his old arrogant self and makes note to repeatedly apologize (proof: him apologizing to christine about the way he treated her pre and post his accident)

10. thinks about saving people 1st and defeating his enemies 2nd (proof: slamming the zealots into the mirror dimension when they’re trying to destroy the sanctum instead of rushing into a fist fight like mordo)

11. he’s funny??? and is perfectly okay with taking jabs about being a ‘wizard’ and kinda thinks it’s ridiculous himself (proof: “it’s not a cult!” “well, that’s something a cultist would say–hey, what do you think you’re doing?” “well, I’m late for a cult meeting.”)

12. actually really wants people to like him?? not in a love the ground he walks on kind of way but more like a puppy (proof: spends the WHOLE of his movie trying to get wong to laugh and looks bemused but pleased with himself when he finally manages to do so on accident)

that’s not all of it but it’s just some pointers to think about when writing him? sorry it got so long!

[artemisegeria]

Infinity Stone Theory (Endgame Spoilers)

Upon seeing Endgame again, I had a realization that bloomed into a theory. This theory is not without certain problems or counterpoints, but I really like it. It would tie in a number of different threads from Infinity War and Endgame and provide a base for more movies going forward.

I want to start with Nebula’s assertion, made while the Avengers were in Thanos’s cabin, that Thanos is many things, but not a liar. Something about hearing that line this time reminded me of a line in Infinity War when Thanos is talking to Gamora. He takes credit for her strengths and then tells her that she is a bad liar because he never taught her to lie. Now, you could interpret this line as being consistent with what Nebula said. Thanos never taught Gamora or Nebula to lie because he doesn’t do it himself. But I think it’s also reasonable to assume that he only did not teach them to lie because he feared that they would use it against him. You could also read into Thanos’s line the implication that he could teach Gamora to be a good liar, but he chose not to. 

To be fair, I couldn’t think of too many examples of Thanos lying. There is the “Fine, I’ll do it myself.” line when he actually sends his minions to do it. The easy responses to that point are that it was just a throw-away line in a teaser and he seems to consider all his minions extensions of himself so it would not be a lie in his mind. And he did hunt down some of the stones himself. The other lie I could think of was his claim that Gamora’s planet was much happier and more prosperous after he killed half the population. This line is contradicted by Gamora’s designation in Guardians of Galaxy as “the last survivor of the Zehoberi people.” Credit for the original observation here. That could be a simple continuity error, but simple common sense would indicate that a planet would not just carry on happily when half of its population was killed. We also see Thanos lying with the Reality Stone to draw out the Guardians in IW. Seeing as Thanos is willing to kill half the population of the universe to achieve his goal, I don’t think he would draw the line at lying. 

The next point I want to address is the Ancient One’s assertion that removing an Infinity Stone would cause great damage to her reality. I have seen some interpretations of that line that she was referring to Strange using the Time Stone to defeat Dormammu in 2016, which could be the case, but to me it sounded more like she was talking about the act of removing the Infinity Stone itself. This ties back into Wong’s claim in IW that each of the Infinity Stones “control[s] an essential aspect of existence.”  This would suggest the loss of one, nonethless six, would have a cataclysmic effect on the whole universe. So far, we’ve seen only hints of such changes like the earthquakes that Carol says are happening on planets across the galaxies and the tear in the multiverse that Mysterio talks about in the Far From Home trailer, and its unclear whether those are the result of the Snap(s) or the loss of the Infinity Stones. The response to this is that cataclysmic changes are happening, but they are building up slowly and will be explored in the next few movies.

However, the main idea that I would like to posit is that Thanos lied about destroying the Infinity Stones, and that they still exist in the universe but are hidden. Thanos has every reason to lie to the Avengers about destroying the Stones to prevent them from hunting the stones down. At the end of Endgame, Thanos says that he will remake the whole universe so that its inhabitants do not remember a time when their lives were any different, so they have nothing to fight back against. This is a much greater feat than merely lying to the Avengers about not having the Stones. My explanation of the second energy surge that matched the Snap that they used to track Thanos is that, instead of using the Stones to destroy the Stones, he used the Stones to send all the Stones into various regions of deep space, making it extremely difficult for anyone to find them. This would be the reason the universe has not been completely destroyed along with the Infinity Stones.

If I’m right, which again I’m not saying definitively that I am, this would be a great set up for the Captain Marvel sequels and the GOTG franchise. It could be a thread to set up Adam Warlock and the Infinity Watch. It could also mean the Mind Stone might be able to be found and might have Vision’s consciousness bound to it (which is a big part of why I like this theory, to be honest), although hopefully it wouldn’t take multiple movies to find it. 

I did say before Endgame that I hoped all the Stones were destroyed in the movie, but after seeing it, I’ve changed my mind. The MCU is still leaning into Tony Stark/Iron Man, even though he’s gone. So they might as well lean into the Infinity Stones as well. 

[loyaloutwear-a2]

* DORMAMMU, I’VE COME TO BARGAIN ! 

                    agamotto is the world’s first sorcerer supreme, a role created to protect the world from inter-dimensional beings. during this time, he created hundreds of magical artifacts, && gave birth to levi. she spends every second aiding&& assisting him in his endeavors to keep the world safe. together, agamotto && levi, along with other mystical arts users, built the three sanctums. soon after the buildings are completed, dormammu returns to earth. the ancient one has long since replaced agamotto as sorcerer supreme, but he and levi must go behind her back to battle him after discovering that she draws power from the dark dimension.                     they had faced off a dozen times before, && they had won each of those battles. however, this time would be different, because the risks of turning back time rose with each other. without the time stone’s power, there would be no walking out of this one alive. they put up a good fight, but in the end, agamotto is killed, despite levi’s best efforts to protect him. she’s battered, bruised,&& scarred && having her father&& master die in her arms sends her into a rage. unleashing powers she didn’t know she had, dormammu is sent running until he returns in 2016 to be defeated once again by stephen strange.                     she’s both excited && terrified to help stephen in his own battle against the being. stephen’s plan to defeat him is a success, but it’s not enough for levi. she wants dormammu dead for killing agamotto, for killing stephen thousands of times over. she has every intention of tracking the monster down to get her revenge, even if it costs her life. 

[lantia]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Doctor Strange (2016) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange Characters: Tony Stark, Stephen Strange, Wong (Marvel), Karl Mordo, Friday (Marvel), Cloak of Levitation - Character Additional Tags: Post-Doctor Strange (2016), Missing Scene, Hurt Stephen Strange, Canon Injury, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Stephen does too, Cloak of Levitation (Marvel), Wong is a low-key Tony fanboi, Angst, Supreme Snarks, Stephen & Wong broship, Mild Language, Pre-Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Series: Part 3 of Of Overqualified Hands & Pi Figures (IronStrange) Summary:

After the 'defeat' of Dormammu, Doctor Strange is at a loss of what to do next. With his teachers gone and only Wong left to keep him company, he will have to figure out this new life of his.

But before he can even make it back to the Sanctum, certain portals-in-the-sky hating superhero flies in to investigate the Honk Kong scene of battle.

[undertheinfluencerd]

https://ift.tt/3njzoMX #

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Marvel’s What If…? episode 4.

A new version of Doctor Strange is created in Marvel’s What If…? episode 4, but this Phase 4 iteration’s origin is better in one regard. In “What If… Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?,” the Sorcerer Supreme has a fundamentally different motivation for becoming a Master of the Mystic Arts. Strange’s pivotal car crash results in the death of his co-worker and lover, Christine Palmer, breaking Strange’s heart and leading him to delve into the realm of magic, becoming the mystical hero like his mainstream timeline’s counterpart. Doctor Strange’s new origin draws from a different set of emotions than the classic iteration, making for a tragic and doomed version of the character.

2016’s Doctor Strange follows the classic Marvel Comics origin story. Stephen Strange, a renowned, gifted, and arrogant neurosurgeon, is permanently injured in a car crash, losing the ability to use his hands and thus ending his prosperous career. This version of Strange sought the wisdom of The Ancient One to heal his hands and return to his life as a surgeon. In What If, Strange is motivated by a need for hope and the possibility to bring back his deceased lover, but he still becomes the Sorcerer Supreme and saves his reality from Dormammu like his mainstream counterpart.

Related: How Doctor Strange Can Hear & See The Watcher (When No One Else Can)

The mainstream iteration of Doctor Strange had an understandable motivation. Though he was arrogant, his career was his passion, and his hand injuries effectively ended his life as he knew it and severely damaged his pride in the process. Fundamentally, the alternate version of Strange is motivated by love and grief for a lost loved one. This new motivation is far more primal and melancholic than the classic iteration, which ultimately sends him down a different path than the original version. In What If, Doctor Strange cannot accept the loss of Christine, so two years after her demise, he decides to use the Eye of Agamotto to attempt to bring her back from the dead.

Strange’s grief and obsession with undoing the past leads him to become a misguided and villainous version of himself. Similar to his method of defeating Dormammu, Strange unintentionally caught himself in a time loop, reliving the death of Christine again and again, torturing himself even more in the process. This universe required Palmer to die so that Strange would become a sorcerer, so her death was a fixed point in time. His inability to accept this not only resulted in experiencing Christine’s death yet again, but it left him as the only living being in his reality as well.

The main MCU version of Doctor Strange, notably, could repair his hands, but he consciously chose not to. Strange’s hands are still visibly damaged and occasionally can be seen twitching in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. The MCU’s Doctor Strange could have easily repaired his hands and resumed his career as a neurosurgeon, but he chose to protect the world with his magic instead. Similarly, in an attempt to defeat the villainous version of Doctor Strange, The Ancient One splits the timeline, creating another version of Stephen, who decided to move on from his grief. This version of Strange is ultimately unable to defeat his villainous counterpart, however.

While the What If version of Doctor Strange has a more primal and emotional origin story, he does ultimately become a villain who destroys his reality and is left tormented and alone. His mainstream counterpart goes on to become an ally to The Avengers and has an instrumental role in defeating Thanos. Marvel’s What If…? may have given Phase 4 a better version of Doctor Strange’s origin, but the main MCU timeline still ultimately has the better version of Stephen Strange.

Next: Every MCU Easter Egg In What If? Episode 4

Marvel’s What If…? releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.

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The post Phase 4 Just Made Doctor Strange’s Origin Way Better appeared first on undertheinfluencerd.net.

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[ironstrangeao3]

[TTS Podfic] Worthy (Friends) Opponents

by TTSPodfics (sherlockian4evr)

After the 'defeat' of Dormammu, Doctor Strange is at a loss of what to do next. With his teachers gone and only Wong left to keep him company, he will have to figure out this new life of his.

But before he can even make it back to the Sanctum, certain portals-in-the-sky hating superhero flies in to investigate the Hong Kong scene of battle.

Words: 5, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 3 of [TTS Podfic] Of Overqualified Hands & Pi Figures

Fandoms: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Doctor Strange (2016)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Tony Stark, Stephen Strange, Wong (Marvel), Karl Mordo, Friday (Marvel), Cloak of Levitation - Character

Relationships: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange

Additional Tags: LPost-Doctor Strange (2016), Missing Scene, Hurt Stephen Strange, Canon Injury, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Stephen does too, Cloak of Levitation (Marvel), Wong is a low-key Tony fanboi, Angst, Supreme Snarks, Stephen & Wong broship, Mild Language, Pre-Captain America: Civil War (Movie)

source http://archiveofourown.org/works/21917998

[ao3feed-lokiangst]

The Time Entity

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3yL5qEI

by thatgooddoctor

269 years. 269 years he spent in that time loop, trying to delay the end of the world, trying to prevent Dormammu from entering Earth. One could expect that eventually, Stephen would crack.

An AU in which Doctor Strange gains omnipotent powers due to the Time Stone and the defeat of Dormammu. Warning: If you don't like slightly overpowered character fics, I advise you to leave.

Words: 2221, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Strange (2016), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)

Rating: Not Rated

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: M/M

Characters: Stephen Strange, Tony Stark, Wong, Kaecilius, Dormammu (Marvel), Peter Parker, Karl Mordo, Ancient One (Marvel), Avengers Team, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, Natasha Romanov (Marvel), Sam Wilson (Marvel), James "Bucky" Barnes, Scott Lang, Carol Danvers, Nick Fury, Thor (Marvel), Loki (Marvel), T'Challa (Marvel), Shuri (Marvel), Okoye (Marvel), Hope Van Dyne, Clint Barton, Vision (Marvel), Wanda Maximoff, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, James Rhodes, Pepper Potts

Relationships: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange, Tony Stark & Stephen Strange, Peter Parker & Tony Stark & Stephen Strange, Kaecilius & Stephen Strange, Stephen Strange & Wong, Karl Mordo & Stephen Strange, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Ancient One & Stephen Strange, Stephen Strange & Avengers Team

Additional Tags: Tony Stark/Stephen Strange Parenting Peter Parker | Supremefamily | Strange Family, BAMF Stephen Strange, Stephen Strange & Wong Friendship, Omnipotent Stephen Strange, Sentient Infinity Stones (Marvel), Infinity Stones, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Divergence - Doctor Strange (2016), Canon Divergence - Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Alternate Universe, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Stephen Strange Needs a Hug, Omnipotent, Time Stone, Time Entity

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3yL5qEI