"No. I mean, come on, look at your face," said Stephen, almost making Amber bark out a chuckle.

Both saw Kaecilius' eyes surrounded by a dark purple, fading into his normal skin. Between his eyes was the symbol from the Dark Dimension etched into his skin.

"Dormammu made you a murderer. How good can his kingdom be?"

Kaecilius's lips spread into a wicked grin, chuckling quietly.

"You think that's funny?" Stephen hissed, his eyes squinting again.

"No. Not that. What's funny is that you've lost your sling ring." he replied. Stephen patted his belt, turning only for Kaecilius' spear to stab him in the torso.

"Stephen!" Amber shrieked, holding onto him as Stephen fell on her for support. A man skipped up the steps, throwing both of them down the stairs. Amber landed on top of Stephen, quickly rolling off of him with a gasp.

"Shit, we gotta go. Come on." Amber pulled him onto his feet, curtly glancing up the stairs to the man who threw them.

Stephen fell again, grunting loudly. Blood dripped from his body, staining his and Amber's clothing. Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, Amber grunted as she hauled him up again.

Looking over her shoulder, the same man stood behind them, forming a crystal spear. When he raised his arm to strike, she shielded her body over Stephen's.

Suddenly, the red cloak flew from Stephen's shoulders, wrapping itself around the man's head. Flailing around, the cloak knocked the man from side to side. His sling ring skidded on the floor beside Stephen and she picked it up, handing it to him.

Her own blue cloak escaped her shoulders, helping out the red cloak, to Amber's surprise.

"Come on, we gotta get you to the hospital." she huffed, leaning him on a table momentarily. Quickly making a portal to the hospital, she grabbed Stephen, rushing in.

They crashed into a cleaning cart with supplies on it. Stephen let out a breath.

"Get Chris...Christine Palmer." Stephen slurred, his weight becoming heavier on her by the minute. Amber hurried to the doors with a nod, opening them and running through.

"Palmer?" Amber panted, stumbling down the hallway with him. "Help!" she yelled out, her eyes widening when Stephen placed a hand on the wall and leaving a streak of red.

"Ma'am, c-can I help you?" a nurse asked, rushing over to them in panic.

"Palmer. Where's Doctor Palmer?" Amber demanded, panting loudly.

"Ma'am, we need to get him–"

"Where is she?!" Amber yelled in her face, death glaring the woman.

"The nurse's station!" The nurse called back, moved out of the way with her hands up.

"Christine!" Amber yelled, turning on her heel, practically dragging Stephen by now. "Christine!"

Christine rounded the corner on cue, dropping the clipboard she was holding and rushing up to them.

"Stephen?" Christine grabbed his other arm, helping him.

"Get me an operating theatre now. Just you," he ordered. "Now! I don't have any time!"

Christine and Amber helped him lay down on the operating table. "What happened?"

"Stabbed," Amber replied, walking around to stand on the other side of Stephen.

"Cardiac tamponade," Stephen added.

"What are you guys wearing?" Christine asked herself, staring at both of them. Christine quickly pulled open Stephen's tunic, tapping spots on his chest. "Chest cavity's clear."

"N-No...the blood in the paracardial sac..." Stephen's eyes fluttered shut at Christine turned to turn on various operating machines.

Looking up at a worried Amber, Christine moved to a small medical table. "What was your name again?"

"Amber." She replied back, starting to bite her nails in worry. Stephen's hand suddenly went limp.

Amber rushed to his side, cupping his cheeks gently. "Stephen? Stephen, open your eyes."

Christine quickly hooked Stephen up to a heart monitor, relieved to see a slow heartbeat show up on the screen. Amber watched as Christine held up a large needle at his chest, her hands having a small tremor.

Stephen suddenly appeared floating in the air, right beside Amber. "Just a little higher."

Both women screamed, recoiling away from his sudden ghost form. Christine held a hand to her chest, leaning on a table for support. "Stephen?"

"Please be careful with the needle."

"God, you scared me!" Amber scowled, walking away with a shake of her head.

"Oh, Lord. What am I seeing?" Christine asked, a terrified look in her eyes.

"My astral body," he replied back, looking down at his unconscious physical one.

Christine hesitantly stood up. "Are you dead?"

"No, Christine. But I am dying."

Christine shook her head, moving back to his physical body. "Right...right."

Stephen, using his magic, stuck his finger in his physical chest, illuminating the heart.

"Oh wow." Christine breathed. "I've...I've never seen a wound like this before. What were you stabbed with?"

"I don't know," Stephen replied, breaking eye contact with her. Stephen glanced over at Amber, leaning beside the door frame before leaving the room silently.

Back in Kamar-Taj, the crook that was fighting the cloaks launched his astral form from his body, floating into the hospital.

The man found him, making Stephen glance off into a corner of the room. "I'm going to have to vanish now. Keep me alive, will you?"

Christine held the needle, watching as the excess blood drained from Stephen's heart. The light above her shook, scaring her even more

Keeping a firm grip on the needle, a wave of force went through her, sending her nearly stumbling back. "Oh shit!"

Stephen and the man fought, going from hallway to hallway and from room to room. The man quickly kicked Stephen in the head, making him go flat-lining.

Christine gave a worried look at the monitor, watching as the green line continued horizontal. Grabbing the defibrillation machine, she rubbed the paddles together and gave a shock to Stephen, helping him in his astral battle. "Stephen, c'mon."

"Hit me again." Stephen appeared again, startling Christine.

"Don't do that!" She groaned, moving back to Stephen's body.

"Up the voltage and hit me again!"

"But your heart is beating." She argued.

"Just do it!" He commanded, disappearing again. Charging the paddles to three hundred and sixty joules, she struck Stephen again. In result, the lights around her sparked and it suddenly went quiet.

Christine's eyes roamed over Stephen's form, yelping again as he jerked awake. "Oh, God! Are you okay?"

Stephen nodded lazily, breathing unsteadily. "Where's Amber?"

"She left." Christine quickly got to work sewing up his chest. "After all this time, you just show up here, flying out of your body?"

"Yeah, I know. I missed you too, by the way. I wrote you emails but you never responded." Stephen said.

She looked at him briefly before back at his wound. "Why would I?"

"Christine, I am so, so sorry. For all of it. I mean, you were right. I was a complete asshole. I treated you so horribly and you deserved so much more."

She shook her head. "Stop, stop. You are clearly in shock." She received a dry laugh from him. "I mean what the hell is happening? Where have you been? Who is this Amber girl?"

"Well, after Western medicine failed me, I headed East and I ended up in Kathmandu," he said.

"Kathmandu?"

"Yeah."

"What, like the Bob Seger song?"

"1975, Beautiful Loser, side A. And then, I went to a place called Kamar-Taj and I talked to someone called the Ancient One, and I met Amber and I–"

"Oh. So you joined a cult."