The heroes take off after the rapidly-moving blue ball, following it to Peabody Park.
The park is filled with mounds of snow: the remnants of the past few days freak snowstorms were dumped here by the snow removal crews. Since temperatures have gradually been on the rise, this is actually one of the few places where there are still deposits of the white stuff left.
The blue ball travels parallel to the ground until it comes upon an opaque, shimmering blue dome, about 10 feet across and five feet high. When the blue orb impacts the dome, both disappear revealing a sitting Doctor Stephen Strange, who looks up at you and rises to his feet.
"Thank you for coming so quickly. There isn't much time.", he tells you. "A planar rift has developed, allowing other-dimensional creatures to spill out into our reality. I can repair the damage, but it will take some time. I need to clear the area of innocent bystanders first, then I'll need you to keep the creatures at bay until I can send them back and seal the rift." With that, he begins gesturing the somatic components of a magic spell while continuing to fill you in...it's a little like watching some warped version of interpretive dance...
"This spell will remove all animal life native to this plane from the area of the park, except for us. I will then seal off the park, so it will be just us and the nether-dimensional creatures inside the arcane safety perimeter I establish. The longer you can keep these invading forces at bay, the better the chance I have of finding the right spell to send them home and close the rift."
As he completes a set of gestures, a bright green light appears in the distance and seems to grow. As it approaches, it appears to be a bluish-green wall of force, with several humans, squirels, brids, and other small creatures pasted to the outside of it. The dome of force expands rapidly from the green light where it originated only a moment ago and you feel a slight breeze as it passes over...or is it through?...you.
The green light near the center of the park eventually disappears, but you can no longer see out of the park. A blue-green wall seems to dominate the periphery, from horizon to zenith, in every direction you look.
"There", Strange says, pointing off in the distance towards where you saw the blue-green light originate moments ago, "is where you will find the rift."
Intuition checks and actions, please!
CUT SCENE
An old house we've seen before...
The one Rad walked by shortly after arriving in NYC...
The same one Willy Lumpkin has delivered an endless mound of unchecked mail to...
The same one Bubbles was perched on the night he ended up meeting the Avengers...
Inside...
A body of a middle-aged male sits, unmoving, in a corner chair, covered with a fine layer of dust. Suddenly, his eyes open...
END CUT SCENE
intuition
