"Send word to the masters currently in the Hong Kong and London Sanctum." I ordered Natasha. "Tell them that I will be sending the Prime Guardians shortly."

"As you wish Mast-, Doctor Strange." Natasha bowed and left to send the message.

She was a faithful apprentices, and I saw a lot of potential in her. I was still teaching her to become a powerful sorceress, now that she had grasped the basics.

Her motives for learning magic were simple: she was looking for a way to heal from her wounds, and let go of her past.

She didn't show a humongous desire to obtain power. She instead wanted peace and calm, and she found that while learning the mystic arts.

My OmniSight Aegis: The shield that sees all magic, had three major power houses on Earth, channeling energy from the very Earth itself to give me insight to the magic in DC.

These were the places where I had decided to build the Sanctums, assigning apprentice sorcerers the duty of guarding the powerhouse from any sort of meddling, especially now that I had discovered anti-magic.

There was no doubt that power-hungry sorcerers like Felix Faust would try to acquire the power for themselves, or "righteous" sorcerers like Zatanna would try to shut it down for some reason.

I still regarded Zatanna as a friend, even though we had a different outlook on my situation. She had a good reason to try and send me back to the Marvel Multiverse, but I doubted that she would succeed.

I was more powerful and knowledgeable in the mystics, and I couldn't let her outwit me. I figured that DC was better, with lesser consequences when it came to magic, and I wanted to exist their as Doctor Strange.

The locations of the Sanctums were: the New York Sanctum in Greenpoint, the London Sanctum, and the Hong Kong Sanctum.

I had taken the liberty to recruit masters from the locales, assigning them the duty to recruit more sorcerers and teach them the art of the mystics. I had misled them to believe that guarding and protecting the sanctum would bring their lives and families good fortunes.

I however had told them that I would be sending the Prime Guardians of each Sanctum, who would have been refined in the art of the mystics, and would be competent enough to guard their sanctum.

That was my original goal with my three apprentices, but it didn't work out. One betrayed me, and the other bailed on me. Only Natasha remained.

But I had a contingency in mind.

Now that I was planning to leave for Gotham in the hopes of tracking Felix and retrieving the Scroll, I needed to leave the Prime Guardians in charge.

Natasha closed the door to the meditation chamber as she left.

I was about to perform a small ritual, and the timing was perfect.

I put my palms together, as if about to pray and channeled from the energy imbued in the Eye of Agamotto. I moved my fingers to create a triangular shape with my hands, close to my chest.

Then, suddenly, I stretched my hands forward, and a dark mist flowed outwards from both my outstretched hands and my forehead.

The dark mists flowed for sometime, while taking the forms of the demon brothers I had absorbed. Finally, the Demons Three appeared while looking infuriated and defiled. Their expressions made them look more grotesque and fear-inspiring than ever.

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"You savage bastard!" Ghast yelled, angrily. His voice rumbled in the chamber, filling it with the threatening aura that came with it. "I will see to it that you are nothing but bones."

Anticipating their obvious next move, I pulled around the flickering candles and formed a ritual circle around them, using the candles while intensifying their glow.

"Don't even think about." I told them as they prepared to use their powers. "I have already taken your magic away. It's inside me, and you are just my puppets."

"The circle is to keep you from running away, and I don't feel like I'm in the mood to chase you." I added.

"What sorcery?!" Rath gasped as he tried to create some magic, but failed. "Can you feel it to Abnegazar?"

"Yes. It's still there, but faint." Abnegazar noted.

"How could he take our powers away?" Rath asked.

"The three of you possess the power of the elements. Not far from my own magic." I explained. "Earth, fire, and, water, are all things I can control, and absorbing you juiced me up a lot."

"I have absolute control over all of you, and there is nothing you can do about it." I added.

"Silence you mortal!" Abnegazar hissed. "Let's see how confidently you will speak to us with your head bowed down to the Earth. Release us from this cage and see."

"Do we really have to do this the hard way?" I asked, hoping to skip the obvious. "I know you can feel your compulsion to obey me. Why not just accept that I am your Master and let it be so."

"We have no masters mortal. We are the masters." Ghast spit out. "Don't think, even for a second, that you can control us."

"Oh. But I can." I said while casting a spell to produce three carefully thought out illusions.

"The Green Bell of Uthool, the Silver Wheel of Nyorlath and the Red Jar of Calythos." I said as I finished my spell, gotten from the Book of the Vishanti.

"What?!!" They gasped in unison as they examined the artifacts floating in the air. They look exactly like what they would imagine, so long as I implanted the idea into their minds.

That was the essence of the spell. To cast an illusion of what one expects to see, so long as they imagine it. A spell that depended on what the demons were thinking, that's why I made sure to mention the three magic artifacts that bind their power.

"With these ancient artifacts, I can control you as I wish, if I choose to release you from your curse." I said to the Demons. "I took the liberty to collect these artifacts for that very reason. Was it not the deal?"

"Yes." Abnegazar sighed. "Whoever has the artifacts has the ability to control us."

"Well then, let's make a deal. Shall we?" I said, plainly.

"What do you want?" Rath asked, sounding less threatening this time.

"I want to use you and your power." I said.

"The power you have taken from us?" Abnegazar asked.

"You are ancient beings, of great power, and as such, I can't completely nullify your magic with my anti-magic." I explained. "I however can limit it, even from a far."

That was true, so long as I maintained my connection to the Demons Three constantly. If that were to change, I could lose my control over their abilities.

"Which means that, I can gift any of you your powers, if need be." I added.

"What service do you need from us, and what do we get in return?" Ghast asked. "It better be fun."

"Guard duty." I said. "In return, you get your freedom, and a new fate. One where you are free to execute your will as you please, without any hindrances."

"I will free you from the curse of the Timeless Ones." I clarified. "And you shall roam the Earths as you please."

"Liar." Ghast screamed. "Why would you doom humanity, while you are one of them?"

"I couldn't care less about whether humans live or die." I lied (probably). "All I desire is to accomplish my goals."

"Including, guarding three major mystical locations on Earth. They are sources of great power that will undoubtedly attract a lot of unwanted attention." I said.

"Well, even if we did chose to accept your deal, we cannot exist separately." Abnegazar explained.

"Magic always has a loophole, and in this case, I know what it is that will keep you separated." I said.

It was speculative, but I had a thought. I had absorbed all of the Demons Three brothers and established a connection with each one of them while taking control of them.

With all of them connected to me, it meant that they existed as one within me, hence they weren't separate, even if they were to be at the different, physical, l locations.

"Do we have a deal?" I asked, knowing all too well the implications of letting lose the Demons on Earth.

But they were the perfect Prime Guardians, who could guard my Sanctums from anyone who sought the power within.

I had no doubt that they would accept. I already had control over them.

"No. We don't." Abnegazar said, with a confident voice. "We shall instead take the wheel, jar and bell, and destroy you and the rest of the Earth!"

That caught me off guard for a moment. I hadn't expected a decline. But I controlled them, and they didn't have a say in the matter.

"It was never a request." I said, showing domination. "You shall heed my commands."