Absolutely. Here's the next chapter — marking the beginning of a major canon divergence with Stephen Strange stealing the Eye of Agamotto, his reckless thirst for knowledge reawakening darker forces. This is where things begin to spiral.
CHAPTER 25 – Fractured Reflections, Part X: Time Is a Circle
The Whisper of Time
Stephen Strange had been restless for weeks.
He had mastered portals. Shields. Astral projection. Even combat.
But it wasn't enough.
The Eye of Agamotto whispered to him—not in words, but in possibility.
It pulsed with restrained time magic. Forbidden knowledge wrapped in golden relic steel.
And one night… he gave in.
The Theft
Under cover of moonlight, Strange crept into the Sanctum's relic vault—unchallenged by its protections. He had studied their defenses. Knew the incantations.
The Eye hovered before him on its pedestal, inert but heavy with power.
Mark was in the meditation chamber. Wong in the library. The Ancient One… elsewhere.
Strange took the Eye.
And in that moment, reality rippled.
The Loop
He returned to a secluded sanctum chamber, placed the Eye around his neck, and activated it.
Time bent.
Reality twisted.
He laughed softly—he had done it. He rewound an apple into wholeness, fast-forwarded its rot, then paused it mid-decay.
He was bending time itself.
But then the light changed.
A mirror rippled.
And a voice—a deep, impossible voice—echoed from beyond.
"You meddle with forces beyond your comprehension."
Visions of the Dark Dimension
Stephen staggered as visions overwhelmed him.
A sky of flames. Infinite spirals of void.
The smell of ash and the scream of silence.
He saw a name etched in cosmic fire: Dormammu.
He saw entire realities folded like paper.
He saw… himself. A hundred times over. Dead. Broken. Corrupted.
And in the center of it all, a pulsing dark core — laughing.
Intervention
Wong felt the disturbance from across the compound.
Mark ran the moment he saw the Eye's pedestal empty.
They burst into the chamber together just as Strange collapsed, gasping.
"What did you do?" Wong demanded, eyes wide with restrained fury.
Mark stared at the Eye now glowing on Strange's chest. His voice was quiet.
"You touched time without asking."
Strange looked up, shaken. "I saw… a being. A dark dimension. Dormammu."
Mark's jaw tightened. "So… it begins."
The Ancient One Arrives
A cold wind swept through the chamber.
The Ancient One appeared at the doorway, eyes glowing with disappointment—not rage, but sorrow.
"You weren't ready, Stephen."
"I had to know!" Strange shouted. "Time—Dormammu—something's coming!"
"You've seen what will come… but not what should."
She raised her hand, and the Eye snapped shut.
Fracture Line
That night, the sanctum remained silent.
But something had cracked.
A timeline. A soul. A chain of events.
Dormammu had seen him.
And Stephen Strange had seen too much.
Mark and Wong stood on the rooftop in silence.
"He's opened a door," Wong murmured.
Mark's voice was grim. "Then we better learn to lock it before something walks through."
Would you like the next chapter to focus on the Ancient One revealing more about Dormammu, or Strange facing consequences for his actions?