647/Mystic Meeting, no reading of the last minutes.

Mystic Meeting, no reading of the last minutes.
Date of Scene:	20 March 2020
Location:	Sanctum Santorum
Synopsis:	Zat and Strange plan and argue
Cast of Characters:	Stephen Strange, Zatanna Zatara

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Stephen Strange has posed:
    Stephen stands within the sanctum sanctorum and with what could be described as 'normal clothes' the man wears currently, a long casual cashmere sweater goes down to his thumbs, loose and comfortable. He wears a pair of simple slacks and a pair of slip on dock shoes.

    The wizard has summoned Zatanna, and a few others but no one else might have responded to his call and as such, he's standing at the front of a fireplace, arm proped up on the mantle as he looks at the green and blue flames licking off the wood, filing the warm with a coolness that can only be called, comforting.

    There is a serving platter set between two old red wingback chairs that have seen better days and yet are plush with stuffing and smooth with old worn leather. On the silver platter is a large cat face mug with steam rising in soft whisps, betraying the heat of the brown drink within and inviting Zatanna to lift and drink the agreeable aroma.

    "Guess you're the only one to make it tonight." Strange notes with a shrug.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"You know, you could tell a girl that the dress code is casual when you send out the invitations, Strange." comes Zatanna's warm tones as she appears, dressed in her 'work' garb of corsetted waistcoat, unitard, fishnets and tuxedo jacket. Tipping her top hat to the side, she looks around the Sanctum. "Reminds me of Shadowcrest." she admits as she moves to one of the wingback chairs.

There's a certain stiffness in her step, though. Someone may still be miffed about the beaches of Genosha. Waving her finger around the rim of the mug, she finally takes it to settle her own mug to sip from it. "The message sounded urgent, though."

She's at least respecting that he's the Sorcerer Supreme and listening when he says he's having an issue. "What's going on?"

Stephen Strange has posed:
Doctor Strange says, "I could, but, where's the fun in that? Also, you're going to wear what you're going to wear either way." Stephen says with a glaze over his older grey eyes and he runs his hand through his hair, sticking it back over his ears and he lowers his hand while pushing away from the mantle.

    "You know the issues in Genosha weren't mystical, at least not on the onset, but there was something between the physical and the realms of death." Stephen says with a look to Zatanna and then beyond. "Illyana helped me shatter the barrier that was set in place to trap the souls of the Genoshan dead." The wizard remarks before he moves to sit in the other, adjacent chair, but he stays on the end, hunched over his hands idly messing with his scars on his fingers.

    "We don't know who, what or even what purpose this barrier was created for." Stephen says looking up to Zatanna, a hint of fear flashing across the sorcerer's face, and a sense of pleading, he isn't sure what to do about it.
"

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"I /do/ have casual clothes. Especially a sweater and jeans set that's just cute in situations like this." Zatanna responds stubboringly, a small smirk pulling at the corner of her mouth at the older mage. "If Illyana had an issue, she would have said something -- it wasn't like she wasn't right there, Stephen." She reaches up to pinch the bridge of her nose.

Don't argue. Don't start a fight. Build a bridge. Right. Bridge building. Fingers set upon her own mug, Zatanna drums them idly in thought. "It's just that we could have traced that barrier..." she stops herself. "...no. It's okay. Happened for a reason. Other things to deal with. Not putting it on the backburner, but I'll wait until others are ready to tackle it with me."

She straightens herself up, and sips from the mug. "I'm sure you didn't call this meeting to discuss that -- otherwise, John would be here for me to slap again." A sly little smile is offered at that, "Since I know better than to try to slap you." she winks, "Water under the bridge. Now, you going to tell me why you called me over? I'm waiting for the midnight launch of the new Animal Crossing game."

Better than saying she's waiting for Doom: Eternal, right?

Stephen Strange has posed:
    "I know she'd talk, but this was something immediate, someone or something was waiting for the attack so they could capitalize on the deaths, or at least the sudden influx of souls into the world of the dead. It was deliberate." Stephen muses as he stays on his chair and he looks to Zatanna, "This was before you were trying to scry a robot, though I did fear that scrying it would act as a beacon or worse for whatever set that barrier." The sorcerer frowns again, ruining the curves of his goatee in the motion, "That's why I'm talking to you, because of the barrier used to trap the dead. I didn't think at the time of tracking who created it, but only instead of allowing the dead to move onto their next planes. I had to act and fast." He admits he might not have had the foresight to do more than he did, but he was also drowning in the souls at the time and Illyana was the one who broke and saved the day.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
Oh, okay. They are talking about this. "You know, you could have put something out before I decided to get people together to go try to find out." Zatanna says with a frown. "I felt like it was a whole 'lets wait til she's there and then tell her she can't do this' power trippy type thing. And apparently I should have gotten more information from Illyana. She can be stubborn on that front sometimes." the young sorceress admits.

She tucks her legs over each other and considers. "I know I have to keep my powers in check, Strange. But when something like that happens... it was as if you were baiting me to prove you wrong and damn the consequence." And she's the one that flinched and pulled back. She looks down into the liquid in the mug.

"I apologize if I came across as a brat, but I felt helpless to assist in any way, and when I finally thought I'd found a way...." she makes a shrugging motion with her shoulders.

Stephen Strange has posed:
    "You were doing what you thought was right, and again, you are still right. I should have warned you, but I didn't realize you were doing something so proactive." Stephen admits as he straightens his spine and sits fully, thought still not against the back of the chair. "I was considering using you and your spell at that time to try and draw out those responsible, but that felt inappropriate and wrong." Stephen admits as he looks over at Illyana and frowns.

    "Who ever did it, is still out there, and they will do something else. This wasn't a one time thing I fear, though I have no true proof." Stephen frowns and takes in a deep breath only to push it out in a huff.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"We're heroes, we're supposed to be proactive." Zatanna offers, "I mean, we could be like other mages and sit on our hands and wait... but that isn't what my father did. And it's not what I'm going to do." she points out as Stephen speaks up and mentions the possible true motive. And despite the warmth of the room, Zatanna feels a chill that crawls her spine, and the young sorceress sits up. Her sapphire eyes narrow, lips setting into a thin line.

And when she speaks, it's with the frost that has crept through her frame. "You should have. Then we would at least have something more than what we have now." It's not said with malice. Or anger. It's a statement of fact. She would have been willing to make that possible sacrifice to get them the answers they needed.

"Then what's the next step? Do we sit and wait for the next major mutant population to fall? For them to hit Mutant Town?"

Stephen Strange has posed:
    "I am not going to sacrifice anyone Zatanna. Not one." Stephen says sharply, firmly, he's not going to allow that to become a debate. "We know something is wrong, and we know to keep our eyes and senses open and on high alert." The wizard notes.

    He stands up and steps closer to the odd flames and lowers his hand to brush against the feeling of non-fire. "I don't think it's mutant based, but more just the grand number of souls." Stephen surmises, mayhaps someone should speak to some of the higher death based deities or ... maybe...." Strange trails off. Maybe someone should speak to Eternity.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"If they're looking for populations, there are larger concentrations. With less resistance. Tokyo, Seoul. Genosha was chosen for a reason. It would be a catalyst." Zatanna responds thoughtfully as she blows out a breath. "It's clear we're missing a piece here. A big one." Folding her arms around her midsection, Zatanna narrows her eyes in thought. "We need to get everyone together, Stephen. This isn't a League thing. Or an Avengers thing. This is an everything thing."

"We can't solve this seperatedly. And we don't have Superman to rush in to make the bad guys go bye-bye." she closes her eyes at that thought, shaking her head in sadness. "You. Me. John. Illyana. Anyone that has abilities in magic, we should all be on this. And I'm madder than hell that I'm having to make the suggestion and you're not."

Stephen Strange has posed:
    "I don't want to put anyone at risk until I know what it is we're up against." Stephen says, turning from the fire to look at Zat and frowns. "I know you're pissed at me, I'm pissed at me, but this is my job. I can't have you not working on the issues here. Because I /can't/." Strange says with a sigh, he wants to be able to help everyone as much as he can, but he also can't, else someone else who shouldn't be in his position get placed there. Someone like Mordo, or John, or anyone who would abuse the role. "I do think you're right, everyone should be made at least aware and be more and more cautious, especially on the other sides of the dimensional barriers."

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"You cannot tell me that the powers that be are literally telling you to sit on you hands and watch like some Guardian of Oa at the moment, Stephen." That alone makes Zatanna even more frustrated. "We weren't given these powers just to watch. I know I was born into this -- but my father wasn't. And he did his part from the moment he opened da Vinci's diary and learned the secret."

She blows out her beath, frustrated. "Fine. We can't do anything. Then we'll inform. I'm working on a small problem right now. A young woman displaced from her dimension, and I'm trying to get her back. You know more of this than I do. Can't you use magicnet or something to get the information out to everyone so we can discuss it and come up with a plan?" she asks, sapphire eyes turning to follow the doctor and fire. "I don't understand the position you're in. But if we're just going to be support for the world, then dammit, let's be support."

Stephen Strange has posed:
    "I can't act in this world, I am a part of it, but the Vishanti code prevents me from affecting humanities path, I can only protect it from outside forces, like this threat we're facing now, but I don't want to loose anyone just to learn information. If you want you can join me in the other realm and maybe we can learn from the greater Deaths and find some mystical remnants of the barrier... But there's too many questions and not enough answers."

    Stephen ends up back where he was, leaning his tired frame against the mantle over the fireplace and he sighs to himself and his position. "I'm relying on you to help the world, I can't help it the way you can. I took an oath Zatanna, I simply can not break that." He says with a glance over his shoulder, a tortured man stuck in a position that he doesn't want yet he can not surrender due to some misguided beliefs.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"That's not an oath I could ever take." Zatanna admits, rising smoothly from her seat. "I guess I'm a bit more of a wild mage than one lets on, huh?" she asks. For a moment, there's a brief flicker of amusement in those sapphire eyes, but it's dismissed as she takes on a more determined mein. "I know I look like cheesecake, but don't doubt my abilities. I can handle it." There's a measure of self-assurance there as she moves to the mantle and sets the mug down. "But if you want me to get answers on this side? You have to let me bring it to bear. I'll go with you to the other side if it means you get to do something besides watch."

She sets her hand on the older man's elbow and lifts a brow. "But if you're really asking me to take point on this, then you're going to have to let me do it my way. And my way may be dangerous - but it'll get you the answers you need." Then she pauses, and gives his arm a squeeze. "I'd rather work with you on this." she points out. "Let's make this happen. We can set up a meeting for the mages here - I know there's a lot out here. I met a fair share of them at my party the other day."