Chapter Ninety-Nine: The Black Panther Reborn

Nakia sought out Okoye, captain of the Royal Guard, and asked for her help in toppling Erik’s rule, but Okoye refused.

As captain of the Royal Guard, her loyalty could belong only to the king. Though T’Challa’s death filled her with profound grief, the teachings she had received since childhood would not allow her to rise against the Black Panther King.

With no other choice, Nakia left the kingdom of Wakanda with the queen and Princess Shuri. She intended to find M’Baku, chief of the Jabari tribe, because only he could rally his people to overthrow Erik’s rule.

Erik was formally crowned king of Wakanda.

He obtained the Black Panther armor and ordered the vibranium facility in Kansas sealed off. In secret, he handed Kansas over to Ultron and ordered him to build an army of vibranium robots.

Ultron slaughtered every Wakandan inside Kansas, then used Wakanda’s advanced technology and his own iron legion to manufacture a vibranium robot force, preparing to achieve his own ends.

No one else in Wakanda knew that Kansas had fallen under the control of this terrifying machine. The chiefs of the great tribes were still gathered in the royal hall for a meeting with Erik.

Erik laid out his plan to them: he would arm rebellions all over the world with vibranium weapons and set them against one another in a struggle for global dominance. He would make Wakanda into an empire on which the sun would never set.

Okoye stepped forward and opposed him. “Wakanda has endured in this world for so long precisely because we only wage war when it is absolutely necessary.”

“That was Wakanda in the past! But the world is changing, General! Elders, Wakanda’s advantage is being challenged. The outside world is catching up. Before long, Wakanda will either conquer others or be conquered. I would rather be the conqueror!” Wakabi supported Erik’s plan. He had long thought the old king far too conservative, hiding such mighty technology within the borders of a tiny nation.

“And what of King T’Chaka’s vengeance? Capturing the man who killed the old king is the very first thing we should be doing!” Okoye said.

“The old king’s revenge will be taken in time. But we have no word of Ulysses or the murderer now. Once we rule the world, finding him will be effortless,” Erik told them.

The great elders of the tribes all nodded, convinced by his words.

“Since you have all heard the order, then move!” Erik commanded.

...

Nakia brought Queen Ramonda and Princess Shuri to the lands of the Jabari tribe, who lived high in the snowy mountains, where the air was bitterly cold.

“Nakia, we cannot give the Heart-Shaped Herb to M’Baku. It will turn him into a demon!” the queen said. She did not trust the Jabari, whose beliefs differed from those of Wakanda.

“Nakia, you should take the Heart-Shaped Herb yourself,” the queen said, looking at her.

“I am only a spy. I have no army at my back. I have no chance of overthrowing Erik’s rule,” Nakia replied with quiet seriousness.

The queen could only sigh and, though reluctant, agreed with Nakia. The three continued on toward Jabari territory.

Then, without warning, a band of Jabari ape-men appeared. Roaring their battle cries in unison, they surrounded the three women.

They were taken to the Great White Ape Hall of the Jabari, where they met their chief, M’Baku.

M’Baku sat upon his throne, his wounds still unhealed. Looking at the three women, he guessed their purpose at once: they had likely come to Jabari seeking refuge from the new king’s purge.

“My son was murdered during the challenge rite!” Queen Ramonda said to him, grief and fury in her voice.

“The challenge was perfectly fair! I was there myself! That was not murder. That was defeat,” M’Baku replied.

“But...” Princess Shuri began, only for M’Baku to cut her off.

“Silence. This is no place for you to speak,” he said, glaring at her.

“O great ape M’Baku, this is why we have come,” Nakia said as she knelt and held out the Heart-Shaped Herb in both hands.

“We offer this to you. An outsider sits upon our throne, and only you can help us stop him,” Nakia said.

M’Baku rose in surprise. He had not expected these three women to come bearing the Heart-Shaped Herb. Clearly, they were truly desperate.

The queen and Princess Shuri both knelt as well, hoping for his aid.

“So be it. Come with me,” M’Baku said, leading the way out of the hall.

The three women rose and followed him.

M’Baku brought them to a temple on the mountain’s back slopes. Inside were two priestesses, kneeling beside a drift of snow in prayer.

At the center of the snow lay a man: T’Challa, the one who had been cast from the cliff during the king’s challenge.

The three women were stunned to see him. The queen rushed forward and touched her son. T’Challa was nearly frozen solid.

“Is he still alive?” Nakia asked.

“He is unconscious and barely clinging to life. One of our fishermen found him by the river. I happened to meet the fisherman on my way back, so I brought him here,” M’Baku said from the side.

“Why bury him in snow?” Princess Shuri demanded.

“It was the only way to keep him alive!” M’Baku said.

“We have to take him back to the laboratory. There I can save him!” Shuri said.

“Then take him. He will not last much longer. And do you really think you can still make it back to your laboratory?” M’Baku shot back.

Nakia suddenly had an idea. The queen thought of a solution: if they fed him a potion made from the Heart-Shaped Herb, it might save T’Challa.

Nakia produced the herb, and the queen borrowed the priestesses’ tools to crush it into juice. After heating it, they fed it to T’Challa. Then the three of them buried him beneath the snow.

They knelt nearby in prayer, hoping he would return from death itself.

T’Challa dreamed.

He saw a black panther perched in a tree. It leaped down and transformed into his father, T’Chaka.

“My child, you have come. Come home with me,” the old king said. Behind him stood the Black Panthers of every generation, all gazing at T’Challa.

“Why? Why did you not bring that boy home? Why, Father?” T’Challa asked.

“I... chose to ignore that fact,” the old king answered.

“You should not have abandoned him,” T’Challa said, looking at his father in disappointment.

“I chose the people. I chose Wakanda. Our future depends on...” the old king began to explain.

“You were wrong. All of you were wrong! Our mistake was turning a blind eye to the outside world. Our fear of it kept us from making the right choice,” T’Challa interrupted hotly.

“It cannot go on like this. I cannot remain here with you. As long as he sits on the throne, I cannot rest. He is a monster we created ourselves. I must reclaim the throne and set these wrongs right,” T’Challa said with unwavering resolve.

He sat bolt upright, gasping in great, desperate breaths of cold air. At last, he had awakened.

The queen’s tears turned to joy, and all three women wept as they rushed to embrace him.

M’Baku, too, nodded with satisfaction.

T’Challa looked around and asked them, “Could I have a blanket?”