Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Stephen Strange's eyes opened wide as he awoke from yet another nightmare.

Stephen: "Every night..."

Stephen stood in a vast, empty white field, looking up at a darkened Sanctum Sanctorum.

Stephen: "I dream the same dream."

The doors of the dark Sanctum opened up, revealing a large staircase that led up through a gigantic, vast landscape that was partly covered by clouds.

Stephen: "And then..."

A yellow glass shattered on a floor. In a large, open area, an explosion burst on the ground, sending sorcerers and archers flying in different directions, while others tried to scramble to protection. Stephen was with Vanitas Jordan, and the two stared up with horrified expressions on their faces. There were multiple pillars, something attached to those pillars, and two tentacles from that something holding up a person within, before it released energy that glowed bright. That person being held up ended up looking into the roaring face of some kind of monster.

A person that looked exactly like Stephen, but with his grey hair in different spots, yelled out as he spun around in what looked like a vortex. He went in circles before he shifted into normal Stephen gasping, pushing himself up into a sitting position in his bed. Stephen gasped and covered his face in surprise.

Stephen: "The nightmare begins."

Stephen looked over at his bedside table, where his cracked watch from Christine was resting.

Stephen: "I did what I had to do."

Stephen stood in the upper level of the Sanctum Sanctorum, and waved his hands around. Various items rose up, glowing black in a form of Dark Magic, and a bright red from Chaos Magic. Stephen sucked the magic towards himself so it was in his hand, then slammed it into the ground, releasing the magic.

Stephen: "To protect our world."

There was a landscape shot of New York, with many newer buildings recently constructed out in the distance, rising high up into the sky.

Wong and Stephen were sitting together in a lodge, with Wong having his face slightly cut up as Stephen looked at him with a pleading expression on his face.

"You cannot control everything, Strange," Wong informed him.

Stephen was standing on a rooftop, looking out in the distance as the city changed before his eyes. The sky was grey as lots of structures floated up in the air and dissolved into pieces that went in different directions.

Wong: "You opened the door between universes..."

Wong was standing with other sorcerers, staring in horror at something in the distance.

Wong: "And we don't know who or what will walk through it."

Christine Palmer walked out of a chapel wearing a white dress, a surprised expression on her face as she stared forwards with the crowds in surprise.

In the streets of a city, people were running as fast as they could between the parked cars of traffic, a young woman named America Chavez with them as she tried to get away from the threat.

In a darkened room, Wanda Maximoff sat cross-legged and floated in the air, her hands out as if she was meditating. There was a circle of candles on the floor around her as she was dressed in her new Scarlet Witch outfit, which included sleeves and a darkened color, courtesy of the other witch watching from the corner with a wide, evil smile on her face.

Wanda opened her eyes on her blank face.

Stephen: "Wanda..."

Stephen was walking with Wanda, along with Roxas Cooper and Xion Eclipse. The small group was walking through the trees back to Wanda and Vision's house, with Wanda, Roxas, and Xion sharing small smiles while Stephen tried to keep his face serious.

"What do you know about the Multiverse?" Stephen asked Wanda as they walked. "Between our lessons, you must've done your own research."

"Not much," Wanda admitted, looking at Stephen. "Just the stuff we heard from Ven and the boys last Christmas. But, Vizh does have his own theories."

Stephen and Wong stood together at a temple with other magical beings. They all ran forwards in front of the temple as they watched winds surging towards them, forming a gigantic grey storm.

Wanda: "Of course, he believes that it's dangerous."

The sorcerers and magical beings stood up and watched the surging clouds, including a minotaur. The clouds got closer and started to cover the ground they were standing.

Stephen: "He was right."

Stephen stared out in surprise at the new development at the temple.

Wanda was with Stephen, Roxas, and Xion, standing together just outside her and Visions house.

"If I have to come out of retirement, I will," Wanda promised Stephen. She looked down. "But..."

"What's wrong?" Stephen asked.

Wanda sighed out.

"You break the rules, and become the hero," Wanda admitted. "I do it, and become the enemy. I don't wanna sound like a sad kid, but... that doesn't seem fair, does it?"

"She's got a point, Strange," Xion admitted.

"Yeah, despite everything she's done, she still gets a pretty bad wrap," Roxas agreed. "Honestly, I can see why she wouldn't have come back."

Stephen stood with Wanda and Vision, both of them giving him determined expressions. He looked over at Roxas and Xion, who also had determined expressions on their faces.

"You guys don't have to do this," Stephen said. "I mean, the Multiverse is something that we know frighteningly little about, and I can't guarantee your safeties. It'll be dangerous, and there's a chance countless lives could be lost if we fail."

"Hmm, let me think about it," Roxas remarked.

He looked up for a second before looking back at Stephen.

"I'm still in," Roxas said.

"Me, too," Xion agreed. "If our friends are going headfirst into danger, then we're gonna do what we can to help."

Stephen stood with America Chavez and Christine, and they all looked up at a metal door with a crank as it opened up. They all looked through that door to see the nexus between universes, which included various structures, along with a large brick station.

There was a flash of green fire, causing a large blast. Roxas and Xion yelled out as they were tossed aside, and Maleficent's evil laughter cackled through the flames, which also knocked Vision aside. Stephen, America Chavez, and Xion tried rushing forwards, but they were restrained by red energy, before green fire blasted them back once more. With another loud flash, the green fire flared brightly, and the room became still.

Vanitas Jordan and Riku Boreanas winced as they pressed their hands against the ground, pushing themselves up. The two Keyblade Masters got to their feet and looked around, seeing the vast city of Quadratum around them, the buildings reaching up high into the sky, possibly even higher than New York.

"This is it..." Riku said, looking up into the sky.

"Quadratum," Vanitas agreed.

Riku and Vanitas then stood on a large, brick structure that was floating in the sky, along with Stephen, Vision, Roxas, Xion, and America Chavez.

"I don't come and mess with you when you're on your missions, pal!" Vanitas angrily snapped at Strange.

"Please, V, something really bad is happening," Roxas insisted. "And Strange seems to think you're the best hope we've got."

"Why do I need to be here?" Riku asked.

"Maleficent's back," Xion informed them.

"Oh, so, you need people with experience fighting her," Riku assessed.

"Where's Wanda?" Vanitas asked with a curious frown.

Stephen, America, Vision, Roxas, and Xion shared worried looks, which Riku and Vanitas obviously noticed. Stephen looked at Vanitas.

"That's what we need your help with," Stephen said.

His eyebrows still furrowed, Vanitas's eyes widened in worry for his partner in telepathy.

Vanitas was now standing with Stephen in a room at the Sanctum, Karl Mordo standing nearby in green robes, his hair made into dreadlocks.

"I'm sorry, Stephen," Mordo said, not sounding sorry at all.

Stephen stood in the streets of New York, watching through the grey sky as the buildings all shifted and changed in response to something big.

Mordo: "Your desecration of reality..."

Stephen and Vanitas both had clamps put around their wrists, restraining them both since Vanitas would be a "witness"

Mordo: "Will not go unpunished."

Stephen and Vanitas were surrounded by many robots that reminded Vanitas too much of Ultron, and they were led through a grand room and up a large set of stairs. The two heroes looked around in confusion as the robots led them up the stairs. They walked through a corridor out into a gigantic room with a raised wall on the end. There were many stairs on top of the wall, and a gigantic window behind the chairs, illuminating the people sitting in the seats.

Stephen and Vanitas's eyes widened at the people, and they even cocked their heads to the side in surprise.

A Man with a British accent: "We should tell them the truth."

"Something tells me I'm gonna be saying this a lot," Vanitas said, his eyes still wide as he stared up at the British man. "But what the fu..."

Xion stood with Roxas and Vanitas, and all three of them looked at her hands in amazement as bright, golden lights surged around her hands, becoming solid and gaseous more and more by the second. The lights faded, and Xion looked up, sharing stupefied expressions with Roxas and Vanitas.

"Okay, that's on me for not figuring out sooner that Sora could have been an Enhanced," Vanitas admitted.

"But... what was that?" Xion asked.

"Golden energy," a familiar voice called out.

The trio turned around, and their eyes widened.

A man a bit taller than all three of them walked forwards, followed by a brunette young woman. The two of them were wearing the same black leather suits that Vanitas and Roxas wore during battle, with the man having orange lines and a shurikan on the chest of his suit, while the woman had pink lines and a heart on the chest of her suit. The main thing that garnered their attentions was that the man looked exactly like Roxas, with the same blonde hair on a slightly more mature face.

"I think I can explain a few things to you guys," this taller Roxas said as he and the woman reached the trio.

Roxas, Xion, and Vanitas all looked up in amazement and surprise at the two newcomers.

"Again," Vanitas said. "What the fu..."

Stephen and America Chavez dropped down through part of a forest, and Stephen grabbed onto her as they dropped through the Mirror Dimension, trying to protect her. The sorcerer yelled out as the Mirror Dimension made lines across his face, pushing the very fabric of his body around.

Riku stood with Roxas, Xion, and Vanitas on the brick structure in the nexus between. Vision stood behind them as they all looked out at the surging land, each of them still surprised from what all had just happened.

"We go to another dimension for five minutes, and everything goes to shit," Riku commented.

"Actually, you guys have been gone for two and a half months," Xion admitted.

"Really?" Vanitas asked. "Man, time works especially weirdly between dimensions." He winced. "Man, I hope that Sora's not older than me now."

"That's the first thing that comes to mind with you?" Roxas asked.

"This is important to discuss?" Vision asked the quartet of teenagers, annoyed at their banter in this serious situation.

"Sorry," Riku, Vanitas, Xion, and Roxas all simultaneously said, flushing in embarrassment.

Stephen stood in what looked like the the observatory in the Sanctum Sanctorum, but it was much darker. The entire back wall was gone, revealing the swirling storms caused by the Multiverse. Strange watched as a Variant of himself, one dressed in dark robes and with a paler face, stepped across the other side of the room, holding his hands behind his back. Stephen looked at the darker Strange in surprise, while Strange smirked at him.

"Things just got out of hand," Strange said in a cracky voice, smirking at his less evil counterpart.

A figure similar to Captain Marvel burst through a wall and flew forwards. She flew towards Wanda and blasted out energy. Wanda raised her hand and cast a shield to block, and ended up getting knocked back when the energy hit her shield.

"I can't do it, I don't have the strength!" Vanitas shouted to Stephen.

At the temple, energy burst throughout the area, sending people flying as they were knocked through the air from the blast. America stood with two others, staring up in wide eyed surprise at the situation.

Stephen held his side and looked up at the same thing that the archers were pointing their bows at.

Maleficent: "Thanks to the Darkhold, you do not have the power to defeat me, not when I am much stronger than when we last met."

"Look out!" America shouted to Stephen, pointing at something behind him.

Stephen turned around to see Gargantos lift up a city bus with his tentacles. The large squid monster threw the bus at Stephen, but he cast magic to make a shield appear around himself. He then turned that shield, changing it to a buzz saw that cut the buss in half, so that it didn't harm him or America.

Maleficent: "And with my power over your friend..."

Stephen looked up at a statue of himself in front of the Sanctum Sanctorum. He frowned at it.

Roxas, Xion, and Vision all frowned at Maleficent as she stood across from them in a large, open field. Wanda was standing behind Maleficent in her darker suit, frowning at the three of them. There were sparks of green flames over her eyes, showing the full range of Maleficent's control.

"She is mine," Maleficent cockily announced, nothing but pure insanity in her voice.

"Get away from her, you bitch!" Roxas growled to Maleficent, a little internally happy that he did a movie reference without help from Vanitas.

"Give me back my wife!" Vision shouted at Maleficent, trying not to become lost in his anger.

Roxas and Xion charged together to face Maleficent, who was laughing cockily and insanity. The evil sorceress raised up her staff, which was dispersing green flames. Roxas twirled his Keyblades and jumped up into the air, while Xion gripped her Keyblade in one hand, and made a golden shield appear over her other arm. The two heroes lunged towards the villain, ready to do everything to help their friend.

Wanda sat cross-legged in the living room of a house that resembled hers from Westview. The living room was slightly wrecked as she sat with her eyes closed, looking like she was meditating. Another Wanda stepped up to Wanda in surprise, especially at the expression on her other self's face. The Wanda sitting down had a very sad expression on her face with her eyes closed, and Wanda from this universe stepped up to her, a scratch on her face.

The normally dressed Wanda placed her hand on the face of the Wanda in the battle suit. She frowned when she looked into the battle-suited Wanda, and heard her own voice very faintly yelling, "Help me! I'm not in control!"

Stephen and Vanitas backed up from Mordo, who swung a blade at them. Stephen caught the blade with his shackles, using it to try to break out.

The temple exploded in a large blast.

America charged forwards, jumping off of a large table. She yelled out as she raised a fist and swung it at someone.

Vision yelled out in pure rage as he blasted a laser out of his forehead at Maleficent.

A large gathering of red energy was dispersed, sending two people flying back through the air.

Gargantos was in the city of New York, and a Variant of Stephen was facing off against him. There was an orange rope of energy around him, and the Defender Strange jumped forwards in flips, dodging the large squid's tentacles as he kept fighting.

Roxas and Xion both rolled forwards to dodge a blast of green fire. The battle couple worked together, with Roxas blasting lightning out of his fingers at Maleficent before Xion raised a golden shield in front of both of them. She then made a platform appear behind herself. The couple shared a quick peck of their lips before Roxas used that platform to jump up in the air, going over Maleficent's head to strike at the villainess from above.

A Wanda dressed in normal clothes had blood on half her face. She held up her hand and released some magic, trying to face off against something.

"Strange!" Wong bellowed, holding onto the side of a mountain.

A different variant of Strange, one that was much more pale skinned and looked like a zombie, stood in a grey area and had black wisps resembling demons flying around itself. Riku yelled out as he lunged at this version of Strange and swung Braveheart, but this evil Strange ducked underneath the strike, letting Riku roll across the ground away from him.

A figure that looked even more like a zombie floated up into the air, using Dark Magic to make four extra arms appear on each side of its body. This figure yelled out as Dark Magic surged out from around him. Riku and Ares, the God of War, stood on the ground in front of this figure, their hands raised as they held onto their weapons. Riku was holding Braveheart and Ares was wielding a large, two handed sword, both of them ready to protect the others.

Doctor Strange and the Keybladers in the Multiverse of Madness

Vanitas: "My name... Is Vanitas Francis Jordan..."

Everyone looked at Vanitas in amazement as energy that he had never wielded before was released, showing just how powerful he was at the moment. The villains looked at him with their jaws dropped in surprise, while the heroes softly gasped in relief.

Ares smiled in pride at his son.

Vanitas raised his hand up and summoned his Keyblade, his eyes glowing slightly from his energy.

"I am..." Vanitas said. "The youngest Keyblade Master in decades... A wielder of the Infinity Stones... an Avenger... a very good friend... A son of Ares, the god of war..."

He looked up at the villains and frowned in determination.

"And the whooper. Of all. Your. Asses!"

Vanitas twirled his Keyblade in preparation and held his weapon out to the side. The ravenette charged forwards and yelled out in preparation as he lunged forwards, ready to face all of these threats and protect his friends.

Chapter Text

Stephen Strange was with Wanda Maximoff, Roxas Cooper, and Xion Eclipse. The three of them were walking between the trees in the orchard, right back towards Wanda and Vision's house. Stephen had a serious expression on his face as he looked at the other three, knowing that the situation was time sensitive.

"The Multiverse..." Stephen started to say.

In an underground station with brick walls, Stephen stood in his battle suit, alongside Vanitas Jordan, America Chavez, and a variant of Christine Palmer. They all watched as a large port-like door opened up, spewing bright, blue light that covered all of them. The door opened up more and more, revealing more of the nexus between realities, which showed a large, open space with various bricked structures floating within.

Stephen and Vanitas stood in the doorway and watched the structures float along them, looking right at the station with a glowing podium, a floating magic book right above it.

Stephen: "... Is life or death."

At Kamar-Taj, large explosions burst along the archways and structures, sending all of the sorcerers flying as they were wounded. They managed to survive, before green, flaming spears flew down and pierced their torsos, finishing some of them off.

Wong and Riku Boreanas stood up, scratches and wounds on their faces as they stood in the flames, glaring at the threat in front of them. Riku tried raising his hand to summon his Keyblade, but then he yelled out as green fire burned his hand, keeping him from doing so.

Stephen: "We could use an Avenger."

Wanda was in a darkened room, cross-legged and floating above the ground in the center of a circle of candles. Her suit was darker and her fingers were blackened, and blood was pooling out of her nose. Maleficent walked around the floating Wanda, laughing victoriously as her puppet followed through with the ritual.

Wanda opened her eyes.

"There are other Avengers," Wanda pointed out as she, Stephen, Roxas, and Xion continued walking between the trees.

"We got no problem helping out," Roxas said, Xion nodding in agreement.

"It'll get you back on a lunch box," Stephen told Wanda in a pleading manner.

Wanda smirked slightly, amused by the notion, but still looking at the sorcerer like he was an idiot.

"Dude, she never left," Xion pointed out. She cocked her head to the side as she looked at Stephen "You don't go shopping that much, do you?"

"Not much, no," Stephen admitted.

Wanda was floating in the mountains with a dangerous expression on her face. She spun in the air and blasted her scarlet magic out of her hands. Maleficent floated behind her in the air on her half boulder, blasting her green flames at the same structure, annoyance on her face.

Vanitas and Riku yelled out in surprise and shock as they fell through a large, green space, passing by bolts of lightning and random spurges of black. Riku exclaimed in pain as a bolt of lightning hit him in the back, shocking him quite a bit. The two Keyblade Masters continued yelling out as they dropped through the random green space, before suddenly exclaiming in pain as they hit the ground hard.

Vanitas and Riku winced in pain before raising their heads. They were surprised to see Stephen, Vision, Roxas, Xion, America, and Wong in front of them, standing with a young man with great hair, and random sorcerers around them.

Vanitas panted and pushed himself into a sitting position.

"I feel I was denied..." Vanitas panted out, annoyance on his face. "Critical... Need-to-know... information."

Stephen frowned.

"Did you just quote Tremors: Aftershocks?" Stephen asked.

"You've seen Tremors: Aftershocks?" Vanitas happily and excitedly asked, ecstatic that someone finally understood one of his references.

Stephen and Vanitas stood together in a darkened Sanctum, watching the dark Strange walking in front of them on the other side of the room, the Darkhold at his side. Strange glared at them, and a third eye opened up on his forehead, showing the full range of his corruption. The two heroes looked at him in surprise.

"Okay..." Stephen announced.

"Let's kick your own ass," Vanitas announced.

Stephen sent a whip of orange energy at Strange, which grabbed onto the Darkhold. Strange used his own magic, making the whip slowly turn purple and blast Stephen back when it hit him. Vanitas slid under the now purple whip on his knees and blasted fire out of his hand at Strange.

"I'm not sure how I feel about saying this, but..." Roxas slowly said, bracing himself to tell Vision and Xion his opinion. "I think we need to kill Maleficent."

"I'm in," Vision quickly said without hesitation.

"I understand where you're coming from," Xion told her boyfriend. "If V really can't access those powers Strange mentioned, then we don't have a lot of options. But still, actively trying to kill her..."

She placed a hand on Vision's arm.

"And I know that you're uncertain about it, too," Xion said.

"I am, yes," Vision agreed. "But she has my wife and is practically torturing her. This is probably a leftover influence either from project CATARACT or Vanitas's abilities... but I won't hesitate if I need to."

In a large, gigantic atrium, a large blast of red energy was released, sending a figure flying back through the air.

Karl Mordo stood in front of Stephen and Vanitas, twirling his sword in preparation, while both heroes cursed over the fact that their shackles kept them from using their powers.

Roxas and Xion were in their battle suits, standing with Vision in the ruins of Kamar-Taj, facing Maleficent and Wanda across the rubble. Wong and Riku were wounded on the ground, and Maleficent was smirking victoriously while Wanda had another nosebleed.

"She is mine," Maleficent cockily announced, nothing but pure insanity in her voice.

"Get away from her, you bitch!" Roxas growled to Maleficent.

Roxas and Xion moved forwards, with Xion using a roll to move towards Wanda while Roxas blasted lightning at her from his fingers. Wanda deflected the blast with her magic, while Vision flew right towards Maleficent. Maleficent did a loud, maniacal laugh as she used her flames to block as Vision blasted his forehead laser at her.

Roxas was on the ground, wincing in pain next to Riku. Maleficent pointed her staff at the two teens, and started to blast fire at them.

"No!" Xion yelled out in terror.

She moved in front of her boyfriend and friend and raised her hands. All of a sudden, a golden shield surrounded them, protecting them as the fire was extinguished.

Before anyone could figure out what happened, an individual of average height dropped down between the downed group and Maleficent. He was dressed in the same black leather of the Keybladers, and had the same shurikan design on his chest as Roxas. He also had the same spiky, blonde hair as Roxas, but a slightly more mature face that was currently frowning at Maleficent.

"Am I that messed up, or is Roxas suddenly taller?" Riku slurred out in pain.

"Riku, I'm right next to you," Roxas said, his eyes still wide as he looked at the taller version of himself.

"I'm that messed up," Riku decided, nodding his head.

In the city of New York, the monster Gargantos was moving throughout the streets, going after America, who was panting desperately as she tried to get away from the monster. Wong spun in flips with his golden whip around him to dodge the monster's tentacles. Wong landed on his feet before launching his whip at Gargantos.

Shiny Heart, the Unleashed, was dressed in his own battle suit of black leather with green lines, with a hood on his head and his domino mask over his face. He stood on a building ledge and pulled America back, helping her dodge the tentacle strike of Gargantos. Shiny summoned his sword, Rusty Relic, and yelled out as he swung the blade, deflecting the monster's tentacle strike.

Wong and Riku were together in a darkened corridor, just as large fires burst to life in the various lanterns. A large monster roared at the two of them, the fire from the lantern showing its terrifying appearance.

"You gotta be shittin' me!" Riku exclaimed in surprise and a bit of fear.

Stephen and Vanitas held onto America, yelling out with her as they all fell through the Multiverse together. The two men, not used to this, yelled out as the fabric of reality changed by the second, which also made their bodies shift and morph in different ways.

"Something tells me I'm gonna be saying this a lot," Vanitas panted out, he, Stephen, and America laying together on a patch of grass. "But what the fu..."

Wanda stood in an empty space that had the appearance of her living room. The walls were illuminated by a large, green light, with a large projection of her own head over her, made out of green fire. Wanda glared up at the projection of her own head before looking at a screen, which showed her Maleficent's smirking face.

"Let. Me. Out!" Wanda angrily demanded.

Roxas and Vision stood together in a large atrium, the two of them standing next to a column and watching Xion practice with the Other Roxas. Xion formed a ball of golden energy in her hands and threw it towards the Other Roxas. The Other Roxas caught it and did a flip in the air, throwing it back towards her. Xion winced and raised her hands, making a golden shield appear in front of herself, wincing as the orb hit the shield.

Vision looked down sadly, and Roxas gave his synthetic friend a pat on the arm.

"We're gonna get her back," Roxas assured Vision. "I promise. We're not gonna let that bitch get away with this."

Vision nodded gratefully.

America was trapped in a large, blue room, suspended in a cage of glass walls. Christine stood in front of her cage and encouraged America on. America yelled out as she rammed her fist against the glass.

"Stephen Strange, Vanitas Jordan," Mordo announced. "The Illuminati will see you now."

Stephen and Vanitas stepped forwards down a small hallway and into a large room, looking up at a set of seats on a tall podium, all of them illuminated by light from the window behind them.

Stephen cocked his head in surprise at the sight of the people above them, while Vanitas's eyes widened in surprise.

"Again," Vanitas said, his eyes wide as he looked at the members of the Illuminati above them. "What the fu..."

The Other Roxas jumped in a flip, yelling out as he landed on his feet. He flicked his wrist in the direction of the threat, sending an arrow in the direction of the enemy.

Wong: "The fate of the Multiverse..."

Wong and Riku were together in the darkened chamber where multiple beasts were gathering. Wong had the shields over his arms that he quickly converted into swords. Riku summoned Braveheart and stood in his battle stance. Near them, Wanda stood on top of a podium, red magic surging underneath her hands. Maleficent just looked at the approaching monsters with a smirk, seeing them as the newest addition to her army.

Wong: "... Depends on us."

Stephen and Vanitas stood with Wong at the bottom of a set of stairs. Sorcerers surrounded them on all sides, standing ready for the incoming threat.

"No pressure, then," Stephen sarcastically remarked to Wong.

"Let's get ready to kick some ass," Vanitas announced, looking up into the air.

Stephen stood in a specific room and blasted energy out of his hands, which took the appearance of metal snakes as they surged towards the threat.

Roxas: "We fight for what we believe in..."

Riku dodged an overhead strike from a large beast, then yelled out as he blasted it with Dark Firaga. The Keyblade Master surged forwards to dodge the strike, ending up next to Ares, who had just cut off the head of another demon.

Roxas: "No matter what anyone thinks or says..."

A zombie version of Stephen stood on a snowy mountaintop, the heavy winds and flowing snow making it difficult for him to walk. Vanitas followed behind him and kept his distance, admittedly put off by the zombie's appearance.

Darkened spirits flew around the zombie in circles, making Vanitas yell out in surprise, not having expected this. Stephen raised his decaying hand up to his face, amazed at his accomplishment.

Roxas: "To protect the people we care about."

Wanda, still dressed in her darkened suit with her appearance changed, turned away from her very confused Variant. Wanda's eyes widened when she saw Vision standing in front of her, and she sighed out in relief as she hurried up to her husband. She immediately wrapped her arms around him in relief, and pressed her head into his shoulder. Vision wrapped his arms back around her and returned her hug, never wanting to let go.

Other Wanda, along with her Tommy and Billy, all frowned in confusion.

"That's what it means to be a hero," Roxas told Other Roxas, frowning up at his taller Variant.

Other Roxas furrowed his eyebrows, still not understanding the anger from his shorter counterpart.

Shiny jumped back in a flip, dodging it as Gargantos tossed a lamp post in his direction. After landing on his feet, Shiny pointed his hand at the large monster, shooting a cable out of his wrist gauntlet that caught onto one of the tentacles. The genetic clone yelled out as he gripped his cable with both hands and pulled as hard as he could.

"Let's kick these demon bastards' asses," Ares announced, standing back to back with Riku, demons all around them.

"You are definitely V's father," Riku commented, he and Ares standing ready with their blades.

Vanitas and Stephen quickly moved back from Mordo, who tried swinging his blade at them. Vanitas dodged a slash before Mordo swung his blade at Stephen. Stephen managed to catch the sword with his shackles, trying to use it to break out.

America ducked as an Air Soldier flew over her head, then Xion blasted it with an orb of golden energy. The Heartless hit the ground, and America yelled out as she stomped on the monster, taking it out.

"Heartless," America said. "The one beast I haven't encountered so far throughout the Multiverse."

"I can't tell if that's a good thing or a bad thing," Xion admitted, taking out a Soldier. "They're big in numbers, but they're easy to destroy."

Vanitas walked forwards with a determined expression on his face, his eyes glowing to signify his new, immense power. A demon with a blade for an arm roared and appeared behind him, trying to swing the blade. Vanitas stopped, and the demon froze in place. Vanitas then raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The demon then turned its arm around and stepped itself through the chin, the blade coming out of the top of its head.

The demon roared out in pain before Vanitas snapped his fingers again. The demon then slashed forwards, cutting his own face in half. It promptly fell to the ground, dead. Vanitas kept marching towards Maleficent.

America charged forwards, jumping off of a large table. She yelled out as she raised a fist and swung it at someone.

Wanda yelled out as she was forcibly pulled through the air, back to the raised podium in the center of the chamber. She was dragged through the air, with Maleficent catching her neck and making her choke. Maleficent looked at Wanda with a bored expression, while Wanda glared at the fairy in anger.

"You bitch!" Wanda snapped.

"Flattery won't free you, my dear," Maleficent informed her.

Maleficent raised her staff, with the orb on top glowing a bright green light.

"The first one failed," Maleficent announced, moving the orb closer to the struggling Wanda's head. "This one will be successful."

Vanitas stood with Wanda in what looked like her living room. They both looked up in surprise as the green projection of her head glared down at the two heroes, growling at them like a wild animal.

"What does it say about me that I still find you attractive looking like this?" Vanitas asked Wanda with his eyebrows furrowed, pointing up at the growling projection.

Vision flew forwards in the darkened chamber, yelling out as he chased after Maleficent. Heartless and Demons tried charging or lunging at him, but Vision easily either phased through them or punched them aside. His main attention on Maleficent, Vision yelled out in pure anger as he blasted a beam out of his forehead at the evil fairy. Maleficent laughed maniacally once again as she deflected the beam with a shield conjured from her staff.

Riku and Wong yelled out as they held onto the side of the mountain, fighting against the surging winds and snow that tried desperately to knock them off. Riku held onto Braveheart while Wong held onto the mountain with both hands. The two of them panted in and out as they looked up towards the top of the mountain, Riku cursing himself for moving towards the danger.

Wanda held onto her head with both hands, dropped down onto her knees. She yelled out in pure agony, pain wracking every part of her body. Maleficent kept her hand pointed at Wanda, laughing loudly and in further insanity.

The zombie Stephen pulled the blackened spirits towards himself, gathering them around and taking control of them. Vanitas stepped forwards and looked at Stephen, wincing slightly at how decayed the man's face was. Stephen looked at him, and the both of them looked towards the mountain in the distance. Stephen and Vanitas shared a look before Vanitas summoned his boots.

The two of them took to the skies and started flying towards the mountain, ready to help their friends.

Doctor Strange and the Keybladers in the Multiverse of Madness

Vanitas, Roxas, Xion, Riku, Wong, America, and Vision all stood together while Stephen was on the ground, slightly wounded from all the battles. More and more demons started to appear within the chambers, while Heartless appeared to fill in the gaps, each of them being either ground Heartless or flying ones. The chamber itself even changed its appearance, with the brick and ceramic shifting from the influence of green fire, changing the patterns and designs on the walls.

"If you're tryin' to improve the place, it's not working," Vanitas remarked.

The new army of demons and Heartless continued to gather within the area, with the demons roaring out at the team gathered at the front of the chamber. The group shared looks and nods of the head before Stephen winced, pushing himself to his feet. He nodded with them, many of them put off by his sudden zombie appearance, before they all stood ready against all of the monsters, ready to protect their friends.