Chapter2: The Lost King

The characters in this story and the whole storyline are based on fan fiction inspired by Marvel comics. Dedicated to Stan Lee and Steve Ditko

On the outskirts of Wakanda’s border, in the torrential rain, a seemingly lifeless body washed up on the shore, being investigated by the authorities. The paramedics detected a faint pulse. He was being strapped to the stretcher as the senior officer, Detective Mbeki arrived for the briefing.

The officer present at the site:

“Male, between 35 – 40, scars all across his body, and stabbed 32 times, barely breathing with a fainting pulse.”

“32 times?” the tone dipped in shock at the cruelty the man suffered as he continued, “Any ID on him?”

“No.”

“Did the forensics team find anything yet?”

“No yet.”

“All right, report me back as soon as you get any information or when “John Doe” (referring to the victim) comes back to life.”

The ambulance took the victim away and the police secured the site as the fingers of the man flickered a little, showing some life was still left in him.

Meanwhile,

“T’Challa!” echoing the King’s name in a dark cave surrounded by cold rocks while his feet dipped in the water, he turned only to hear the echo calling his name over and over again but finding nothing.

“T’Challa!” – as if something trying to warn him, as he turned to the whisper this time, a giant serpent emerged coiling itself around him swiftly only for the whispers to alert him as he faced the serpent, looking hypnotized in his eyes.

“T’Challa!” he woke up to find himself sweating in the bed and realizing that it was all a dream, and it was Shuri who was calling her name over and over again.

“What are you doing in here?”

“I came to check on you. You seemed a bit lost all day…”

With a long and sad sign, he composed himself and thought about that dream again when Shuri interrupted him and said, “You know people of Wakanda are on your side, and they trust their King.”

“Do they?” – the question was not raised in disappointment but as a genuine query.

“You’re doing the best you can, T’Challa. Don’t let the burden of recent events cloud your judgment.”

T’Challa got up, robed himself, and walked toward the gallery of his room to look out of the window and noticed a father carrying his daughter in his arms who was sleeping as he seemed to have wound up his work and was probably carrying her home. At that moment, his eyes glimmered with hope as he said, “You know, Shuri, what’s the heart of Wakanda?”

She looked at him as if trying to hear his thoughts when he continued, “It’s the people of Wakanda. Everyone thinks it’s the vibranium, or the heart-shaped herb but it’s the people and their faith in us. And I will not let anything or anyone betray it.”

Shuri nodded in agreement as she bowed and was about to say something but refrained from it thinking to wait until morning. T’Challa sensed her resistance and stopped her, “But you didn’t come here to only check on me, did you?”

“No, but it can wait till morning, you should get some sleep.”

“After you tell me what’s the matter.”

“There has been a very strange murder in the city.”

“And…?” T’Challa enquiring more.

“The body was identified as the ex-minister from our father’s council… he was found smeared in a large pool of his blood with his limbs twisted to form an Ouroboros Mark.”

Fig: Ouroboros Mark

“His limbs arranged as the Ouroboros Mark?” The horror of the scenario dawned upon them.

T’Challa was shocked beyond words as Shuri continued to narrate, the rest of the scenario from the morning, a man being found who had the same mark carved into his wrist with a sharp object.

“How is the man now?”

“Still unconscious but recovering.”

Something struck in T’Challa’s mind. He was silent as Shuri grew anxious and asked,” What’s the matter, brother?”

He paused and said, “The ruthless assassination of a former minister, the recent abduction of children, and enigmatic vibranium-harvesting robots, are no ordinary incidents. It’s a complex web of malevolence that hints at a grand design unfolding before us. We need to find out what’s happening and who’s behind it before someone else gets hurt.”

They both decided to visit the victim who was stabbed multiple times, the next morning.

Next day at the hospital,

The barely breathing man lying in the hospital bed, surrounded by the numbing sound of machines around him, and the dripping sound of the infusion pump when his fingers flickered again as he attempted to open his eyes when the nurse on his bedside noticed it while his fear and dread filled eyes opened at once as he screamed,” T’Challa!” and the nurse rushed to get the doctor.

On the other side, the security council called for an emergency meeting where T’Challa’s ways were questioned, and the Queen Mother tried to pacify the situation but to no avail.

“No! you shouldn’t have opened the borders of Wakanda to the world, T’Challa! Look where you’ve gotten us now! Never in the history of our country, our children were in taken, our women felt unsafe nor did we have any intruders!” said the angry M’Baku. He further said,

“We have always been by your side, T’Challa but this is not what any of us had agreed to. The Council has no faith left in the King. Ask your mother, even she knows your decisions are leading Wakanda to its fall!”

The silence of the Queen Mother was louder than any words. Disappointed and hurt, TChalla said, “This is not the time to point fingers, M’Baku. It’s time to face it together! Does the Council want our children to remain secluded from the world and always live in a “safe bubble”? & go nowhere else ever?” he continued, “Keeping our borders closed is not a solution, and what happens when one of us does the same secretly? Our forefathers never taught us to live in fear but to face them. That’s what Wakanda represents! And that’s what the Black Panther represents!”

“But yes, I agree the recent events have not helped us at all but I am afraid there is new and far more dangerous looming over us. We don’t know anything yet but there are some forces at play and they intend to destroy Wakanda. This is the time, we put up a united front. All of us keep our eyes open. Something ominous is coming.”

He further said, “Last night Zuri T'Kana, a former minister from father’s council who was ex-communicated, was brutally murdered.”

Shock and distress filled the room. He informed them about the updates of the case and adjourned the meeting saying, “I need you all to be vigilant and united in the moment. Wakanda Forever!” Everyone rose and left the room while the Queen Mother teared up to the King and said, “He was ex-communicated but he was close to your father. He was very loyal to him, T’Challa.” He held her hand and assured her that he would find out who was behind it and would bring them to justice.

Suri and Okoye visited the hospital to find out more about the man as they reached there, they saw him begging to meet the king. Surprised as he heard their voice:

“Thank you, sister, we’ll take it from here.”

“I am glad to see you, Princess Shuri. The King is in danger.”

They both were taken aback and tried to enquire about the man more as he breathed heavily and in dire pain while speaking but told them how he got there.

Two days ago, he was from the Jabari tribe and was assigned to work with M’Baku’s council closely to monitor any threats in Wakanda when he got to know someone from the King’s council was trading with the Western powers and was trading state secrets and he was able to follow the trail of breadcrumbs which led to the former’s King’s ex-minister Zuri T'Kana who was trading some information with someone. When he went to his house to gather more evidence, he came face to face with a masked assassin who was placing the body of the minister in the pool of blood carefully. He tried to escape but the killer got hold of him and stabbed him 32 times and before he could react, he found himself lying on the borders of Wakanda. Before the murderer left, he carved something on his hand (which was the same symbol, found at the crime scene) and whispered in his ears, “Tell your king, that I’ll meet him soon and have him meet his father.”

Both Shuri and Oyoke were silent after listening to all this and when they asked him what his name was, he said, “Achebe.”