“You definitely aren’t afraid of speaking your mind, are you?” Dr. Strange seemed amused at me.

“No.”

“Even if it cut you off from my library?” he prodded.

“That isn’t the case, as you’re fishing for replies because you’re testing me for something. If your vanity and ego mattered, I’d just grunt and keep doing what I am doing until you gave up in boredom at my ignorant self.”

“And you are totally capable of analyzing me, holding on a conversation, and reading three books on arcane topics at the same time,” he pointed out.

“I r total idjit, I r. It all fer show. Don’ mean nuthin’, hur hur hur,” I replied to that in proper brain-dead fashion, as there was a sudden swing and rearranging of the complex 4D geometry getting worked out around me. Of course, the 5D stuff was a bit harder to draw in 3D space... “See? Jes dumb stuff, hur hur hur...”

He was trying not to smile. “Would it be fair to say that you are considerably more intelligent than you let most people believe?” he asked me.

“Yes.”

When I didn’t say any more, he half-smiled and went on, “How do your judge yourself, compared to others?”

“I don’t judge myself, I Assay and compare Stat lines. Dealer says I haven’t met someone smarter than I am yet, at least among the people we both know.”

His smile slipped into something more thoughtful. “That... is an impressive statement,” he noted.

“It is. But it doesn’t make allowances for all the other factors which affect intelligence, particularly growth factors and innate Talents of one sort or another. In raw, pure muscle Intelligence factors, I haven’t met anyone smarter than I am. It doesn’t mean they aren’t there, and I know it.”

“Interesting...”

“You’re just begging me to tell you, aren’t you?”

“Well, I won’t say no...” he half-smiled. “That kind of assessment normally tends to be pretty subjective...”

“Then you’re using inefficient magic, or not interpreting the data correctly.” I flicked a Holo-screen up in front of him. “There’s you.”

=============

Doctor Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme of Terra

Male Powered Human/3

Expert/8; Vishanti Sorcerer/18; Vishanti Monk/4

Strength: 11->13

Dexterity: 15->16 (10)

Constitution: 12->15

Intelligence: 18->26 (28)

Wisdom: 10->14

Charisma: 14->16

Notable Talents/Traits: Natural Sorcerer, Sorcerous Affinity; Gifted Sorcerer; Nerve Damage, Will of Magic

============

It certainly wasn’t everything, but it summed up a lot. He eyed it with a mixture of disbelief and wariness.

“These are based on the Core Disciplines Rating system?” he finally asked thoughtfully.

“Magic is a transpsionic discipline, so the Stats port over smoothly. Yes,” I confirmed.

“If I recall correctly, the standard human scale goes from 3 to 20?”

“As a One, yes. 10 or 11 is basically the Human average.” He looked at his hands, and the trembling in his fingers.

“Could you... explain these ‘traits’?” he asked me quietly.

“You’ve got Two Talents, a Trait, a Flaw, and a Gift there. They are ALL centered on Sorcery, which is incredible, and why you are so much better at magic than, say, Wong, who has studied for almost two decades more than you.

“Of course, Master Wong is a Vishanti Monk primary, not a Sorcerer main, so it follows you’re a better Caster anyway. His Talents aren’t in magic, either.” He was actually a Natural Cook, much to his disbelief... but he’d been making a lot of crazy meals with Dealer lately, and the last dinner party for extradimensionals he had helped Stephen host had been a smash hit.

“Natural Sorcerer means your Casting Stat is treated as four points higher in terms of the Level you can gain as a Sorcerer. You are a born genius and you’ve invested heavily in getting smarter and applying mental disciplines, so that means that you have an open road to post-Twenty and Legendary Status. You can be as powerful as, oh, Merlin or Agamotto if you keep pressing forwards.

“Sorcerous Affinity means you have a +1 Caster Level bonus when using Sorcery. Gifted Sorcerer means you have a +2 Casting Stat bonus for purposes of learning anything to do with Sorcery, Spellcraft, bonus magical power, understanding new spells, and so forth.

“Nerve Damage is a Flaw that gives you -6 to Dexterity for purposes of fine motor control with your hands. It catalyzed your Gift of Will of Magic, which is a +2 to all saving throws and Contested Checks involving magic.”

He looked down at his trembling fingers again. “So, if I were to heal my hands...?” he asked softly.

“Your inability to use your hands means you stepped beyond using or needing them to wield your magic, sharpening your Will instead of depending on your body. Remove the Flaw, and the Gift you gave yourself to compensate for it will naturally be lost as well.”

“As something is taken away, so something is given,” he murmured under his breath.

“Exactly.”

“And yourself?” he asked archly.

“I am a Twelve, a mix of Alchemist, Vizard, and Arcane Fist Levels.” Among others. Might be downplaying things a wee bit, let’s not make him antsy, or mention Ur-Priest and Mystic Theurge, shall we? “My Alchemy is in the modern tradition, and my Totem status basically warps everything and forces me to center things upon it.” I lifted up two fingers, letting sparks dance and pop between them. “A standard Totem-user would likely go with training as a melee or physical ranged weapon specialist, infiltration skills, and so forth. I consider the ability to generate electricity the most valuable of those abilities, and that’s what I make use of.”

“You are saying you are smarter than I am.” Said with just the right amount of petulance from a fellow genius.

“Yes. You have more natural talent for Sorcery than I do, however. Talent is like a specialization, and can easily trump broad ability.”

“So, I am the most talented Sorcerer on the planet?” he queried, looking at his hands.

“Perhaps to the point that magic itself might have conspired to set you on the path.” He blinked at me in shock. “A true genius, with the Sorcerous Talents and Traits atop that, and you became a doctor. Mmm.” I let him think about that on his own. “It’s the second-highest magical Talent I’ve seen personally.”

That got his attention. “Someone has greater magical Talent than me?”

“Does that surprise you?”

He considered that for a moment. “No,” he said slowly, “I don’t think it does. Certainly those people conferred by Fate with gifts for magic can be incredibly strong...”

“Exactly. I’d say you are as Talented as a ‘normal human’ can get. Are you aware of Wanda Maximoff?”

“The Scarlet Witch? The young woman with the Avengers?” he asked archly. “Isn’t she a mutant?”

“Her Mutant Ability is The Scarlet Witch.” His face changed at the mention of that. “Odd you mention ‘conferred by Fate’, as I believe there is only one such Witch at a time, and there’s been a century or more since the last one wreaked havoc in the world of mystics.”

“The Scarlet Witch is the most powerful natural Chaos magic wielder alive!” he murmured in consternation.

“Most talented,” I corrected him mildly, still not turning around. “Power you still have to come into, unless you are burning off your soul or something.”

“Ah.” He sighed heavily, acquiescing. “Should I take her under tutelage?” he wondered aloud.

“She’s been taking lessons from Dealer. A Vishanti Sorcerer isn’t going to be of much help to her, especially one relying on Intellect. She’s a Charisma-Caster, her magic gets stronger with her emotions. I believe you would find her exceptionally frustrating to instruct, as your styles are polar opposites.”

“One self-taught Caster teaching another?” he sighed. “At least Dealer is a disciplined student in her own way, although her fascination with cards is strange...”

I smirked silently. “They do a lot of dancing, Dealer says. Wanda is not a books person. Her normal reaction to a reading assignment is to go take a nap, watch a soap opera, listen to her favorite music, go for a walk, go shopping, go out to eat, go see a movie, take another nap, visit a friend, bug someone trying to work...”

“Spend hours looking up crib notes from others and passing them off as her own...” he sighed knowingly.

“Oh, you’ve met good students like her?” I smiled widely.

“They are a special kind of person,” he agreed. “I take it she’s not dumb, she just has a different focus?”

“What she believes in tends to come true. She has thus automatically learned to believe in herself and her desires and have a strong will, rather than analyzing and pushing or pulling at magic to make things happen. As I recall from the stories in Stack Four, Scarlet Witches tend to get pushed and pushed and pushed, and then they finally go berserk and get put down after they really push back.” I trailed off with a sarcastic note, “Of course, history is written by those still alive. I’m sure those Witches would have had other stories to tell.”

“Doubtless,” he agreed. He was about to say more, when something beeped on him.

The same thing beeped on Dealer across the road, as I’d given her the Crystal Vaccine back when I came back. She picked it up and looked at it.

The Herald of Galactus has arrived.

Behind me, Dr. Strange sucked in a breath.

“Yes?” I asked, thinking about that.

One, it meant Sama knew about Galactus, surprise, surprise. Two, they had the means to sense the Herald, probably the Silver Surfer, before he got to Earth.

Three, the odds they weren’t prepared for that contingency was slim to none.

“Some... very, very bad news. Of the worst kind. I need to make a call.”

He actually didn’t leave, and I actually kept right on working. No reason not to, as it eased my headaches as throbbing multi-aspect migraines of profound thought were teased and worried apart by little nuggets of comprehension.

It was so nice I didn’t actually need to Cast right now.

“This is Stephen Strange. Ah, yes, hello. Yes, I understand you are busy.” He listened to the short, sharp words being said on the other hand. “Truly? Do you need any help from me? Ah, well, that is... good news? Thank you for your time.”

He hung up and stared at the phone in his hands for a moment. “That woman is dangerous,” he muttered at last.