#theoldestreaper

[makesmestrange]

Wizards Don’t Fear the Reaper

@the-oldest-reaper​

Stephen Strange had given up trying to figure out how much time was passing.  It wasn’t that he didn’t care what was going on outside the walls of the Sanctum, he just knew that if there were any answers to how to deal with what was going on it would be found there.  The stored artifacts and the cache of knowledge about magic and the Stones were their only real hope when it came to fixing this situation.

In balance it was better than the alternatives.  The others had a small idea of what he’d done, looking through possibilities, but the details were something he’d kept from them.  He’d had to live through each one of them.  There were no words for what it was like to watch billions die over and over and over again.  Then he used the power to give them a chance at survival.  He knew the cost and did the bloodsoaked calculations.  The strain had been too much and he had run out of time to fully figure out how to deal with everything.  It didn’t help that anything involving all of the Stones threw in an element of chaos that even he couldn’t map.

Strange sighed as he shut the most recent book he was reading and went to take a sip of tea only to discover the cup was long empty.  He put the book down and decided to go through the trouble of making tea in order to give himself a small break.

He frowned when he heard a knocking on the Sanctum door.  Only the magically inclined or powerful beings could even see the place unless they were specifically directed here.  The Cloak of Levitation settled itself on his shoulders as Strange went to open the door.  That made it clear to him that whatever was on the other side of the door was powerful and possibly not friendly.

Strange opened the door and looked at his visitor.  “How may I help you?”

[devildog-punisher-blog]

Frank thought he heard something and his head snapped to his right. Maria was still laughing and so were his kids as they rode the carousel. He had to remind himself he was home now and not in a war zone. Lisa's laugh faltered as she looked at him.

Then the world exploded in gunfire.

He watched as the bullets ripped through his family. As Lisa fell from her painted pony Frank caught her. Well, he caught the bloody mess that was left of her. He could see Maria laying on the ground eyes open and staring. Frank Jr. was collapsed on his horse and gravity had its hold on him. He was starting to fall.

Then the world went black.

The moment repeated with Frank looking to the right. Again and again he watched that moment continue to repeat like a stuck record. It seemed endless and unchanging. He lost count of the unchanging repetitions.

Then the sound of a drum accompanied the event. It slowed and stopped. This time when his world went black instead of repeating he was standing in a hospital room. Strangers surrounded his body. They looked at machines. Tubes were coming out of him and his head was wrapped in a bandage.

The woman standing next to him looked so different from everyone else in the room.

"What's going on?" he asked. "Where's my wife? Where are my kids?"

@the-oldest-reaper

[devildog-punisher-blog]

@the-oldest-reaper

Frank Castle was glad to be home.  The familiar feeling of the New York streets under his boots and the smell of the city brought a sense of belonging to him that no other place in the world did.  Almost as if the city had missed him and was reminding him that he had work to do he saw a familiar figure as he approached his van.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Turk?” he asked as he approached.  Turk was a low level scum bag that popped up on Frank’s radar pretty often.  He’d never done anything bad enough to make Frank’s list and usually proved useful enough that the worst Frank ever gave him was a beating.  Not that Turk ever learned from it.

“Shit!  I was just gonna move it for you, man,” Turk said putting his hands up and backing away from the van.

Frank gave him a hard look.  His hand moved as fast as a striking snake and bounced Turk’s head off the front panel of the van.  “Try again,” he said.

“Look, I didn’t know it was yours,” Turk replied starting to whine a little.  “Honest mistake, come on, man.”

Frank grabbed Turk’s jacket with both hands and glared hard at him.  “Tell you what, I just got back so I’m feeling a little generous today.  I’m gonna let you walk away from this just for today.”  Turk started to thank him and Frank shook him to shut him up.  “You just gotta tell all your shitbag buddies that Punisher is back in town.  Whatever vacation they’ve been enjoying is officially over and I’m gonna be coming for all of them.  Got it?”

“Yeah, I got you, man.”

Frank shoved Turk away.  “Get gone!”

He watched Turk run away, stumbling a few times as Frank dug his keys out of his pocket.  Once the door was unlocked he pulled the Slim Jim and wedge out of the window before opening the door.  The back of the van had a mobile arsenal along with enough space for a body or two on the floor.  He liked to be prepared for contingencies.

The van was a little rough starting, but he figured he wouldn’t have a problem getting back to his safe house.  As he drove the fingers of his right hand felt at the bare spot on his left ring finger.  He figured Maria would understand, might even laugh about how bothered he was by its absence, but it felt wrong that he wasn’t wearing it.

When he glanced to his right to check the mirror in order to change lanes he saw the passenger seat was occupied.  “Fuck!” he shouted causing the van to swerve a little.  Homocidal New York drivers honked and shouted their opinions which he rewarded with shouts and a few gestures of his own.  “You scared the shit out of me,” he snapped.  The part of his brain still wired for survival spoke up and Frank’s attitude abruptly softened.  “Pardon the language, ma’am, I didn’t expect to see you.”

[devildog-punisher-blog]

@the-oldest-reaper

After the big fight with Thanos, Frank was both irritated and disappointed that they were still stuck here.  They did accomplish a few things that would pave the way for getting out, but it wasn’t the same thing.  Truth was if he had to breathe the same air as mass murderers and genocidal assholes, he preferred to be able to put a stop to their breathing.

Once they were back in their room Frank made coffee before checking to see if Matt’s punch did any significant damage.  His split lip had reopened, but that was the extent of it.  When the coffee was ready he poured a cup for Clint and put the rest in the thermos.  “I’ll take first watch,” he said when Clint was done with the cup.

As Clint settled down to sleep Frank saw him take his hearing aids out.  He wasn’t very noisy by nature, but it was good to know.  He cleaned the cup then settled down to watch and clean the guns he’d used.  It was important to keep his weapons in pristine condition.  All this magic stuff and superpowers was unreliable in his opinion.  His weapons just needed the proper care and they would never let him down.

“Didn’t expect to see you here,” he said when Death arrived.  He paused as he cleaned the barrel of his rifle to get a drink of coffee.  “What can I do for you ma’am?”

[irradiated-struldbrug]

The first time Bruce Banner saw Death he was seven years old. He was kneeling beside his mother in the driveway trying to get her to wake up. A spreading pool of blood was being drawn slowly from her head down the concrete, but the little boy didn't understand its significance. Nor did he understand why the woman all in black was silently regarding him. Later when the police and lawyers questioned him, he didn't even remember she was there.

The next time he saw Death he was standing beside his mother's gravestone. It had a blood stain on it from his father's head. It was twenty years to the day after the first time he'd seen her and once again his memory of her was gone.

The third time he saw Death she was standing in the observation booth. Just before he gave Betty a wink and his body was bombarded with gamma radiation he saw the woman all in black. He wondered if this time she was here for him. It was his last thought before his world was swallowed by pain and the color green.

When he woke the next day and made his way to Betty's hospital room, he saw the black clad woman in the room hovering near Betty. He knew who she was at that moment. "Please, take me instead," he said softly as he reached out to touch Betty's hand. The bruises and cut on her face made him close his eyes and look away from her. "Just-- take me."

@the-oldest-reaper