The Panther and The Rose

by Difference-Equals-Normal

Briar Rose Stark is quiet, painfully shy, and definitely NOT a hero like her brother. But when the super villains are set free, and the world needs heroes, Briar doesn't have much choice to go beyond her shell and discover herself. But with danger at every turn, the real people she can count on come out. Especially a certain mysterious super-hero, calling himself the Black Panther.

14. Sleeping Beauty

Greetings, everyone. I apologize for the long wait for this chapter, or even a little note saying that I'll be late; I just didn't realize just how much scientific nerd-age was needed in this chapter. A lot of time was put in to make the particular problem seem real, so if it doesn't make sense or something else, sorry about that. Also, I had minor health scare (again!) but hopefully it's not the worst my doctor was expecting, and something that's easily fixed. Fingers crossed!

Anyway, enough about me! I have a new chapter out and I'm posting this thing with glee! (Well...it's a twisted glee...you'll see why soon.) Enjoy!

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Sleeping Beauty

I ached, plain and simple. My shoulders and back hurt the most, and I had pretty much lost all the feeling in my butt. To top all of that off, I had a dull thumping sensation in my head, plus a clogged up nose. Also, there was an annoying beeping noise that was slow and steady...slowly and steadily driving me nuts!

How I even got a wink of sleep with all of this going on is beyond me, and I was too drained to think normally.

Amidst my scattered thoughts, I felt something gently touch my shoulder before brushing against my cheek. There was a fruit-like scent in the air, tickling my nose and making my stomach growl lightly.

"Rise and shine, sleepy head." A voice whispered, and it took me a while to recognize it was T'Challa. Groggy with a lack of proper sleep, my eyelids peeled themselves open to a semi bright room. There was a dark shape looming at the corner of my vision, which soon sharpened into the man himself.

And I felt a little grateful that, despite what happened last night, he still cared about me.

"Hello." He greeted softly when he saw that I was awake enough.

"'lo." I replied hoarsely, the rough sound making me wince, "What time is it?"

"A little after sunrise." He answered as he helped me to sit up straight in the chair, "You have been asleep for nearly five hours or so." Huh. Here I thought I had less. My mouth grew wide as I gave a yawn and ran a hand through my hair, which I'm pretty sure didn't help my appearance. Then again, T'Challa didn't look all that better.

Once enough sleep had been rubbed out of my eyes, I felt T'Challa rest his hand on my shoulder again. When my hands dropped away and my head swivelled up to look at him, I noticed the glass of fruit-smelling liquid in his hand.

"Breakfast." He explained to my suspicious look, "A mixture of fruit and honey, and powdered vitamins." I made a low grumbling noise in the back of my throat, the giving the glass a pathetic look.

"I don't feel hungry." I told him weakly. T'Challa gave me a sympathetic look before glancing to the small body lying before us.

After Chanté and Hawkeye had told us what had happened to the children, we rushed to the hospital to get an better understanding. The doctors weren't so sure at first, but they were able to rule out some sort of airborne virus and the like, managing to pin it down to something inside the children's bodies. Well that was a bit of good news to everyone else, but we could only really celebrate until they were safe and wide awake.

I had been rather upset by the news, and after crying over the fact that—despite my best efforts—the children had suffered, I sat vigil beside the little girl with the doll. Nobody could get me to move away, not even for a few minutes; eventually they let me be, and at some point I must have fallen asleep. Come to think of it, that does explain why my body hurts so much.

Wordlessly, T'Challa offered me the beverage again. With a resigned sigh I accepted the glass and took a small sip, not exactly in the mood to be delighted with its taste. There was brief noise of a chair being scraped, but that was just T'Challa bringing one to my side, which he turned backwards and straddled the seat, resting his arms on the back. We didn't say a word to each other. I'm not even sure I could say something without breaking down again, but it didn't really matter that much. Just having his near was calming enough for me.

"How could I let this happen?" Ok, maybe he did have something to say after all.

"Pardon?" I inquired, resting the near empty glass in my lap and turning my head to look at him. The poor man just sat there, his eyes of the sleeping child, those golden eyes of his now dulled in despair and shame.

"How could I let this happened?" He repeated, not even looking at me, "I have not been a king for almost five months, and my arch enemy has invaded my homeland, and hurt innocent children in his efforts."

...Am I missing the part where he said this was his fault?

"I should have done something about him when I was crowned: these children could have been spared of his anger." He continued, running a hand over his face and sounding close to admitting defeat. Rather than indulge this silly belief of his, I did what any true friend would have done.

"Again, I ask your pardon." I addressed in a flat tone. His hand fell from his face, he turned to give me a tired-but-still-incredibly-dark look, and I raised a hand in defence.

"I'm just not seeing how this is your fault." I told him, "Seriously, all I've heard since I got here was 'N'Jadaka tortured the king' or 'the children have suffered in his village', and not once have I heard anything that pins the blame on your head."

"What about the part where if I had of taken care of N'Jadaka long before now, we would not be having this problem right now?" T'Challa replied with dry sarcasm. I simply rolled my eyes before giving him a lopsided grin.

"In that case, I guess I should be blaming myself for allowing Justin to hurt me so much." I theorized out loud and—predictably—T'Challa gave me a hard look and straightened up.

"Do not be so foolish." He objected in a most venomous tone, "It was his decision alone to hurt you, for his own purpose and sick delight. There is nothing that makes you anything other than his victim, as anyone with a mind will agree. Believing that you are to blame for all that he has done is utter nonsense! And...you..." He trailed off when he noticed both my cheeky-yet-king knowing smile and that I made him have an epiphany.

Having realized the wisdom of his own words, he dropped his head onto his arms with a loud sigh. Soon enough he gave a weak laugh, his shoulders moving with the motion.

"So what was that?" I teased him. His shoulders rose and fell with another laugh before lifting his head to give me a humoured look.

"I never said anything." He retorted playfully, making me quietly giggle at him.

"I thought so." I remarked as I offered him the last of my drink. He accepted it and down the rest in two gulps.

"And I wouldn't worry too much about N'Jadaka." I offered, "That guy has a whole bunch of karma coming after him, especially if I have a hand in it." T'Challa gave a small snort, so I lightly pushed at his shoulder. "Seriously: you should ask Hawkeye about my karma delivery skills. I guarantee he will wince and say 'let her do it'. Though, he might just shove me and say 'get to it'."

"I shall keep that in mind." He promised in an almost dry tone, then let out a low exhale. "But in all honesty, Rose: what can we do to stop N'Jadaka?"

"Not stoop to killing, for starters." I advised firmly, "That'd be exactly what he wants you to think; that killing him is your only option. There's always another way." T'Challa hummed softly in reply, so obviously lost in deep thought. I really hope he wasn't considering king him! If so, then his patron deity help him, I will break every bone in his body and then get really cranky! Before I could call him on that, however, W'Kabi entered the ward.

"Your Majesty." He greeted before giving a polite nod to me, "Miss Stark."

"Morning." I replied with a small smile, "I'd give you a wave, but I think my arms are about to fall off." Whether I intended for him to laugh or smile at my words, I couldn't really say, but he gave a smile anyway.

"I imagine as such." He surmised, "your sleeping position looked uncomfortable at best." My response was a non-committed grunt. Which made him shake his head in a friendly manner.

"Any news, W'Kabi?" T'Challa gently broke in, fighting back a smile of his own. I now felt better than I did earlier, since I had gotten T'Challa to smile in spite of all the bad things that have happened so far.

"They have returned, sire." His old friend replied. I looked between the both of them, feeling a little lost at the 'they' mentioned.

"After the doctors delivered their diagnosis—and you began your vigil—I sent a pair of scouts to see if there were any changes in N'Jadaka village." T'Challa explained to me and got to his feet, "Would you care to join?"

There was a polite refusal on my tongue, but logic got the better of me: until the doctors discovered what was wrong, I was better off out of their way. Besides, I may pick up a bit of evidence that may help solve the mystery sooner, if the cause was created by outsiders...or something like that.

"Sure." I nodded and rose to my own feet...and promptly fell over due to lack of proper feeling in my rear end.

######

After having the feeling return to my legs (and my pride a little bruised), I followed T'Challa and W'Kabi back to the palace, silently walking behind them as they began a conversation. I wasn't sure if I was privy to it, but I didn't pay attention anyway. My poor, tired little brain drowsily focused my attention to T'Challa, or rather how incredibly attractive he looked from behind as he walked.

:You poor tired thing, you.: My inner-self cooed sympathetically, :thinking of naughty things when you're not paying attention.: You're mocking me, aren't you?

:Damn straight!: Just making sure. After last night, you were rather—

:Heads up.: I had already walked into someone's back before I realized what the warning was. I staggered backwards a step before someone gently grabbed my elbows and steadied me.

"Perhaps you should go lie down."W'Kabi commented in a worried tone. I managed to grunt a little before a pair of people entered the room, and judging from the interesting get-up (that sort of made them look like walking grass stalks), I'd guess they were the scouts mentioned earlier.

"Well?" T'Challa immediately asked, slipping into his regal self. They immediately began to deliver reports of what they saw, but in a language I didn't understand. That's ok; I'm sure T'Challa or W'Kabi will give me the translation afterwards. For the moment, I'll try to sleep while standing and with my eyes open.

"Rose?"

"I'm awake!" I yelped, jolting my body awake, "I wasn't sleeping: a fly flew into my eye, so I tried suffocating it by closing my eyelids." W'Kabi chuckled in amusement while T'Challa simply smiled.

"A fly?" He repeated teasingly, "Really?"

"That's what happened, and I'm sticking to it." I answered. I could almost hear him think 'you sad, strange little person' as he shook his head, so I retaliated by sticking my tongue out at him, though it may have been more effective without the large yawn afterwards.

"Sorry 'bout that." I apologized, "So, what's the news?" At my question, the pair of them exchanged a look, and I couldn't help it—I gave them a whiney look as my shoulders slumped forwards. "Wha-huh-huh-hut?" I whined at them both, "Don't tell me something bad."

"Well...it is not particularly good." T'Challa started with a sheepish expression, complete with rubbing the back of his neck. Something which did nothing to persuade me otherwise. "The older people of the village did not seem all that distraught that the children have disappeared." He explained properly, "According to the scouts, they actually looked somewhat relieved."

"Given the condition those kids are in—my guess is those folks are just glad the kids aren't there to suffer anymore." I thought out loud, "Where they any better?"

"The men were." W'Kabi answered, "The women did not look as better as they did, but they do not look to suffer the fate of the children. Perhaps the women and children were harmed to face the men to fulfil whatever N'Jadaka has ordered." If that was so, then this bastard was crueller than I thought, and I definitely couldn't wait to help karma deliver its retribution.

"There is more." W'Kabi continued, "The scuts also saw a pair of Americans in the village, along with two crates—their sides emblazoned with a bird in a circle."

...

I swear I heard a pin drop somewhere as what he just said worked its way through my brain: the bird in a circle symbol...could it be S.H.I.E.L.D.? They were the only ones to use such a symbol. Wait—could these be the missing stuff that little creep mentioned months ago?

"Did they see anything else on those crates?" I asked them both. Wordlessly, T'Challa walked over to a nearby table. When he came back, in his hands was a computer tablet with a photo already displayed. He handed the tablet to me, and I got a good look at those crates.

"Good Heavens, Miss Stark!" W'Kabi exclaimed in a slightly frightful tone.

"Rose, you've gone pale." T'Challa informed me, taking the tablet away from me and passing it to W'Kabi before wrapping his arms around me. "Are you alright?" He pressed his hand to my forehead to check for a fever. When he didn't one, the back of his hand brushed against my cheek, his face etched with tremendous worry and concern.

"I'm Ok." I squeaked, my voice hitting a high-pitched tone. "I think I need a rest."

"Clearly." T'Challa agreed, "I shall take you to your room immediately."

"No, no!" I soothed hurriedly, "It's ok; I can get there myself. Really." As he attempted to find his next words, I had already slipped from his arms and started backing away, "Really, T'Challa: I can get there fine." He didn't looked convinced at all, but he reluctantly let me go on my own.

Once I was out of earshot and eyesight, I ran—not to my temporary room to sleep, but to the Quinjet. When I saw what was on those crates, not only did I confirm they were S.H.I.E.L.D. property, but the second labels...the contents of those two crates changed everything.

The good news? I knew what to do.

######

The afternoon rays began to shine down on Wakanda, their golden amber fingers painting a beautiful glow over the trees, bushes, and made the buildings glitter like diamonds. Any other man would stop and stare at his surroundings, marvelling at the natural beauty the world could hold.

But I could not bring myself to do so, not when the memory of my beloved Rose swam in front of my eyes, and how she reacted to that photograph. I had never seen her pale like that as long as I have known her, not even when she had been exceptionally upset. At first I had assumed that something in the image has caused such a reaction, but perhaps the lack of proper sleep and food had finally gotten the better of her.

Whatever the cause, I can only pray she does not overtax herself, or do anything foolish.

:Perhaps I should slip something into her next meal?: I questioned myself, :If only so she can get a proper sleep.: True, she will possibly be upset afterwards that I had drugged her, but when she realizes that stress was not going to help her—or us—she may forgive me for the slight deceit. Maybe.

As I continued to debate my choice in regards to Rose, I was vaguely aware of walking into my private gymnasium, which I had allowed both Captain Rogers and Hawkeye to use themselves. And where I had left them this morning.

Predictably, when I entered the chamber, the good captain was still active: the only difference is that he was now using the punching bags. Hawkeye apparently decided that he had practiced enough archery, and was going through his quiver and taking stock.

"So how'd it go?" He called to me, not even looking up from his work, "Get Starky to move yet?"

"Indeed." I nodded, "She is now resting in her room, getting a proper sleep." Hawkeye then raised his head and gave me an indescribable smile, one that made me question (for the umpteenth time) his sanity, but thankfully he said nothing else before returning to his work.

"So what's our next move?" Captain America asked, not once looking away from his exercise, "Do we go after this joker or what?" Despite the light derogative name, the captain knew how personal this would become, and that N'Jadaka was not an easy person to get past. If we were to wind thus battle, then much care was needed to ensure our victory.

Of course, there was the matter of the poor children. The doctors could not find the cause for them suddenly becoming comatose, and they have warned me that unless they find the case of an antidote in time, then the children's future looked grim.

And the only one to know what has happened to them is the man I fear the most.

"I realize that time is of the essence for the children, but we must tread lightly and with great care if we are to find a cure for them." I spoke as I moved over to the wall beside the captain, just as the door behind me opened.

"Morning, Little Miss Stormy." Hawkeye greeted jovially, soon followed by a shark yelp as a small crack was heard, after which Hawkeye gave a little whine. Ororo was never one for jokes about her powers, especially when the crack was made by someone she did not know all that well.

Thinking about Ororo made me think about last night, and the argument Rose and I had. In my heart, I knew that I should have made a mention of my past history to her—if only to stop her from getting any ideas that may have crushed her spirits. But clearly, my decision bit back with a vengeance, and as a result Rose let herself believe that I was still in love with Ororo, and upset herself for nothing...which led me neatly back to it being my fault for not telling her sooner.

:Remarkable, how large my faults seem when I have hurt Rose in some manner.: I commented to myself before brining my attention to the situation at hand.

"I heard that you sent scouts to watch over the village last night?" Ororo asked me, catching the attentions of Captain America and Hawkeye, the latter even forgetting about the pain on his arm to hear what came next.

"I did; they returned this morning, and there have been developments." I informed the three of them as a large computer monitor appeared from behind the wall, displaying a satellite image of Wakanda and its surrounding lands. The image zoomed in towards the land west, where the village lies at the edge of the grasslands and the jungles.

Remembering that village, and the memories it held, brought unpleasant chills down my spine and drew a shaky breath from my lips. I had never admitted this to anyone else—besides Rose—but facing N'Jadaka scares me more than anything. What I had never told her, however, was the extent of my fear. True, I am afraid of what my former friend is capable of doing now since I last saw him, but the true root of my fear was about Rose and her safety. If he were to discover her, and exploit her fears...

I shook myself from the dark implications of that thought just as Captain America asked, "That's it—the village?"

"Indeed." I exhaled lowly as various images of the villages interior became the focus point, "These are surveillance images my scouts managed to procure. It appears that all who live there do not like having a fiend overtaking their homes."

"No kidding." Hawkeye commented dryly, "Especially if he went after the kids and women to get his point across. Man, I'm tempted to leave this guy locked in a room with Starky."

"Oh?" Ororo inquired curiously. Thankfully, no one had noticed how tense I had become at his suggestion. He could never understand how dangerous N'Jadaka could be, even more so when he is desperate or maddened. That I knew all too well.

"Yeah: believe it or not, she's really—" Hawkeye cut himself off with a loud whistle before pointing to one of the images, "Hold the phones. Are those two who I think they are?" My curiosity peaked despite my schooled façade, and enlarged the particular image he was pointing to. There was not anything remarkable about the content, but it did show the two Americans I mentioned to Rose; a male and a female. Though...there was a slight resemblance to...no, it couldn't be.

"Aw, crud. It is them." Hawkeye groaned, rubbing his hand against his forehead. I could only look at him in confusion, Ororo and Captain America doing the same. When I had seen the image earlier, I had dismissed them as nobody important enough to warrant concern. But if Hawkeye is acting like this, perhaps there was more to these two than I thought.

"You know them?" The captain asked the archer, the question bringing a sarcastic laugh from the latter.

"Unfortunately." Hawkeye replied, his tone taking on a venomous edge, "Before I quit S.H.I.E.L.D., I had a mission where I had to monitor those two idiots, and that's the kindest name I'm ever gonna give them." The explanation did nothing in the way of telling us who they were, aside from being an interest to SHIELD. But given his description of them, I imagine it was anything but a pleasant mission.

"None too pleasant, are they?" Ororo asked Hawkeye.

"Not in the least." He answered, his arms folding over his chest, "They're in the 'export business', meaning anything you want moved without other people knowing, these two were who to talk to. From people smuggling to drugs, weapons; you name it, they move it. Well, when they're sober."

"Sober?" I repeated uncertainly, "Do we really wish to know?"

"If we're going up against them, then yeah." The archer shrugged, sounding somewhat apologetic, "Sober, they are the best in black market smuggling. But then they spend their pay on drugs, and then things get interesting."

"How interesting are we talking about?" Captain America asked slowly.

"It's like someone's flipped a switch in their brains, and they become thieves. As good as they are at smuggling, they're even better at stealing. And I'm not talking about small stuff, uh-uh; they go big. Like, S.H.I.E.L.D. big." That struck an unsettling cord within me. I had expected them to be merely hired help that N'Jadaka found abroad. But this?

This raised the stakes greatly.

"Who are they?" Ororo questioned softly, her face showing the mixture disbelief, disgust and worry that was inside myself, and possibly the good captain. However, Hawkeye as not forthcoming with their names. In point of fact, he was rather sheepish.

"Hawkeye?" I began slowly. When the others looked as him, the purple archer became even more nervous.

"Um...you're not gonna believe me Or like it." He quietly admitted, "They're...cousins of Tony and Briar." The room fell so quiet, one could hear the insects chirping their melody from outside. Hawkeye just stood in front of us, looking very sheepish at the unwavering stares.

:Well...that does explain the resemblance.: I remarked to myself, though I am—admittedly—having trouble understanding how this could be. Neither Rose or Tony have mentioned anything in regards to their relatives; granted, I could understand why they would not, but this...

Fine, I admit that I am utterly clueless.

"They're...Briar and Tony's cousins?" Captain America repeated slowly, "But...h-how?"

"Well, they're from the mom's side of the family." Hawkeye explained to us all, "Maria Stark was the pride and joy of her family, much to her sister's jealousy. So as she became more of a somebody, her sister Joanna went further off the deep end."

"How far do you mean?" Ororo questioned. Hawkeye gave her a look before giving a long whistle that mimicked a plane falling from the sky, complete with hand gestures to create the 'explosion' at the end. The gesture caused Ororo to wince, and confuse the captain, so Hawkeye elaborated.

"Meaning Joanna decided to find comfort in alcohol and drugs." He explained, "Somehow, she managed to find a boyfriend—who, may I add, makes Keith Richards look like a clean saint—and then marry said boyfriend. You can imagine how happy the family was." I can, and I also could see why this particular side of the family was never brought up in conversations.

"Strange thing is, after Maria married Howard Stark, Joanna and her hubby Kyle went underground. Nobody ever saw them after that." Hawkeye continued, "Well, until Starky was born. Then things got really nasty." A sudden feeling of dread entered the pit of my stomach, a coldness racing through my veins, and I was scared of asking him what that meant.

"What happened?" Ororo asked for me, a look of worry on her face, mirroring that of the captains.

"To Briar? Nothing; she was too young to remember, in any case." Hawkeye assured the rest of us, "All that happened was that one day, Joanna and Kyle showed up at the Stark's house in New York, saying they wanted to make a clean slate. The Joanna saw baby Briar, well...it went south faster than you can blink. The drugs in Joanna must've triggered her maternal instincts or something, and she started to believe that Briar was her daughter, not Maria's.

"You can guess how well that went down; bad enough that Howard got S.H.I.E.L.D. involved, using an old favour to make sure his baby girl stayed safe, and that Joanna stayed well away from the family." Hawkeye finished, "S.H.I.E.L.D. kept the nut bags away, and Starky grew up to be the apple of Tony's eye...and the bombshell T'Challa can't look away from."

Both Ororo and Captain America snickered into their hands as I gave him an unamused look, to which he smiled cheekily and shrugged in a manner that was entirely unapologetic. However, I could not deny his claim: Rose has indeed grown into a beautiful young woman, and her kindness, bravery and shyness where only some of the many traits I loved about her.

"Anyway, getting back to the main issues; if this N'Jadaka guy's teamed up with the Gruesome Twosome, then things must be more serious than we think." Hawkeye addressed in a serious manner, "Judging by that photo, they look sober; so they're here as smugglers. So we need to figure out what they're either taking out of Wakanda or bringing in." At the mention, I remembered something else. Something I had discussed with Rose this morning.

I shrunk the image of Rose's relatives and brought up another, this one of the crates that made Rose paler than the moon.

"I think we may have that answer." I informed them all as I enlarged the image. As expected Hawkeye groaned at the sight of the crates., though Captain America looked at them curiously.

"Great. S.H.I.E.L.D. gear." The archer groaned, "This can't get any worse!" Ororo and I shared a flat look before I rolled my eyes as his theatrics. It was a bit strange, though, that the good captain was showing an interest in that particular image.

"Captain?" I questioned cautiously, attracting not only his attention but Ororo and Hawkeye's as well.

"Sorry, but I'm just thinking about something." He stated, giving one last look to the image before turning fully to us, "Months ago, when Briar had been kidnapped. Afterwards in the hospital, she told me that she overheard one of her kidnappers mention something about stolen S.H.I.E.L.D. equipment, or something like that."

"You think these are the same crates that Rose mentioned?" I asked him, feeling both curious and worried. There was no certain way of knowing whatever lay inside those crates, and I cannot risk something getting loose in my country, especially if it proves dangerous.

"It may be possible." The captain shrugged then turned back to the image, "But what we really need is to find out what's inside them."

"Agreed." I nodded, then gestured to the image, "There is something written on the side, but we have no clue what it means. But perhaps you might, Clint. After all, you were once a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent." Seeing my point, Hawkeye gave a small shrug.

I went through the images again, this time searching for one that held a better view of those crates. When I found the one I had shown Rose this morning, and enlarged it for the others to see, Hawkeye stood silent as he looked at the image...and broke into a huge grin. The three of us were startled, Ororo more so when he threw his arms around her waist and lifted her of the floor, spinning around with a happy and triumphant laugh.

"This just got a whole lot easier!" He crowed happily as he set Ororo back on her feet and pressed a kiss to her cheek, much to her surprise.

"Care to elaborate?" I asked him, my eyebrow raising as I gave him a look.

"Of all the crates we could get , we got the easier ones." Hawkeye declared. When he noticed that flat looks the rest of us were giving him, Hawkeye calmed down and began to properly explained himself. "Ok, you see the label on the side of the crates?" He questioned.

"You mean 'Project Spindle Thorn'. What of it?" I threw back.

"Spindle Thorn was from about 3 years ago; Fury's geek squad came across a flower—I know, pretty lame—but the thing was, it was way too dangerous to be handled normally. This flower caused instantaneous death if it came into contact with human skin. And somehow, they got it into their heads that they could reverse engineer it, or something, into a sedative."

A flower that causes instant death, and a few scientists wanted to create a sedative from it? Normally, I try to avoid having to understand Western scientists logic for most things, but this truly boggled the mind.

"Is that even possible?" Ororo pondered, her face awash with deep concern. Quite possibly, she could see the potential for great catastrophe on a grand scale.

"At first, it wasn't. Then the scientists found someone that understood biochemistry or whatever, and that person did more than expected" Hawkeye informed, "Not only did they create a sedative, but also a muscle-enhancer. From the same flower!" The more I heard, the more dubious I became. A sedative and muscle-enhancer from the same flower? There is no conceivable way for that to happen.

But it does carry a concern. If N'Jadaka has smuggled this project into Wakanda, then maybe he plants to cause greater damage than I thought.

"Well...the first thing we must do is get in touch with the creator." I declared, "If he designed this project, there must be a way to spot it. Then, hopefully, we can find a cure for the children."

"Agreed." Captain America nodded, the sentiment echoed by Ororo.

"There's just two things." Hawkeye added, "First , the 'guy' that created Project Spindle Thorn is a 'she'." ...Unexpected.

"And 'she' is actually none other than Little Miss Starky herself." He finished, and my stomach dropped painfully.

######

The amber afternoon sky had began to turn into evening, the stars appearing one by one. I had long ago found the evening sky in Wakanda to be the most beautiful time, but I could not bring myself to enjoy it tonight.

After hearing Hawkeye explain what awaited us in N'Jadaka village, and that Rose herself was responsible for its creation, I immediately set off to find her for information...and to understand why on Earth she would create such a thing.

I will not lie to myself be saying I was unmoved by this; I had so much difficulty trying to wrap my head around her involvement, and I could feel my heart and stomach twisting painfully in sadness. But I had to focus on protecting my kingdom: my personal feelings would have to wait.

I had not even stepped into the hallway that led to her chamber when a thought occurred to me. Rose had seen the crates this morning, and claimed she need a rest. Then Hawkeye had revealed that she had created this...could it be possible that she lied to cover her true destination? If so, then where would she really go to?

The answer came to me immediately and I changed direction.

It did not take me long to reach the Quinjet. My theory was also proven true by the sight of the lowered ramp and the interior light left on. My feet carried me to the edge of the ramp, but no further, and I could not bring myself to push my body onwards.

Could I do this? Could I honestly confront Rose—the most innocent and beautiful woman, whose secret strength knew no bounds—over her creation of a dangerous sedative, the same sedative that now lay waiting for destructive use against my own village? Could I look into her eyes and still see the young woman I love so dearly, or would I see someone or something else?

The thought alone scared me more than I ever imagined it could, almost as much as seeing my father being murdered in front of my eyes. I could feel my heart grow heavy as the realization that a new and different light was shining down on Rose and I do not known if my heart can withstand the pain.

:Being a bit melancholic, aren't we, old boy?: A voice deep inside me queried, :and all over your little flower's loyalty, as well. That is unlike you.:

A flare of anger rose from deep inside my chest: I am not questioning Rose's loyalty! I could never do that to a person who has risked the own safety to safeguard a home that wasn't theirs to protect, or run into a building overcome with gamma radiation or super villains, and again when teammates were in danger. If anything, I could only ask myself where did her loyalty, or courage, end. And what she would have to sacrifice to achieve that result?

Before I could think any ore, a light dawned on me, as if I had reached an answer I so desperately needed to hear: Rose is still the same woman I fell in love with, and it did not matter that she had a hand in creating something so dangerous, and for an organization who prided themselves of espionage. Not when it meant that she knew its weaknesses.

Satisfied of her loyalty, I finally made my body walk up the ramp of the shuttle and into the cabin, ready to speak to my beloved Rose.

######

When T'Challa entered the Quinjet, no sound was to be heard, not even hushed whispers. For the person inside was not the person he expected to see. Instead of his Rose, there was a young man, his face awash with fear and shame as he cowered in the sight of the great Panther King. Without needing to be told, the boy immediately told T'Challa everything.

Why he was there in the first place; what had been said between him and Rose; how she promised him the safety of this village from the ones responsible, and ultimately; where she had gone.

T'Challa granted the boy entrance into his kingdom, and to alert someone he could of the matter, before sending him on his way. The boy barely entered the gates and found one of the king's guards when a tremendous bellow of unlimited fury roared from the air shuttle, echoing throughout the village, terrifying those within.

It had been the wish of the king to protect his Rose from the dangers outside his kingdom, and he had failed.

"That little fool! What is she thinking?!" He snarled to the empty ship, and received no answer.

######

:Can I ask how you thought that doing this by yourself was a brilliant idea?!: I didn't have a good answer to that question, but all I could do was glare at the person holding the gun to my head. Let me go back to this morning where it all started.

After I had realized what those S.H.I.E.L.D. crates contained, I knew that I had to step in and fix the mess we were in, because what lay inside those crates was something that I had created.

OK, to be honest, I only partially created it...which doesn't really help explain things. Fine.

Three years ago, one of Fury's scientists went a bit...nutty, for a lack of a better word. And I didn't mean your average nutty; I'm talking the borderline psycho-loony-bat-crap-crazy-nutty sort of nutty. So much so that Fury has the guy committed to a top security mental ward and had the man's research seized.

That's when they came across Project Spindle Thorn.

It wasn't any ordinary pet project: this required serious nerd-age to calculate formulas, theories the whole shebang. The whole thing was so nerdy, not even Fury's brightest scientists could crack the first line of mumbo-jumbo, but that just meant he needed someone who not only spoke said mumbo-jumbo, but could translate it to a simpler language.

At which point in time was me, and I found the downside of being crazy smart, even for a Stark.

After getting brought up to speed by Fury, I was told to make sense of one man's madness, which wasn't too hard to do...but what I found had me questioning this guys sanity and humanity, plus my own faith in humanity. Even Fury was disturbed by what was going on with the nut bag's work, and he doesn't get like that all that often.

Getting to the point, the nut bag had come across a unique flower specimen, one that he found in the farthest, darkest part of the Amazon. What made it unique was that it secreted a filmy layer and when it came into contact with skin, it caused an agonizing death. Seriously. How something like this was ever created was beyond reasoning, but it existed all the same, and this particular scientist was intent of researching everything to it.

Reading said research to Fury, we found out that Mr. Whacky was attempting to change the natural deadly properties into a crazy strong sedative, and a muscle-enhancer of all things. The big problem was that while he did create the sedative, it was strong enough to put someone into an irreversible coma, something no medicine could counter. In the end, all you'd have left is a vegetable shell of someone who would be better off dead.

Giving how dangerous this was, even for Fury's tastes, I was given the task of finding 'someway' of fighting this thing. As if my Chemistry and Biochemistry classes for Oxford weren't hard enough. In the end (after months of splitting my time between here and there and doing homework) I was greeted with success. True, I ended up with a sedative that put people into comas, but this time there was a counter measure and an off switch.

The counter measure was easy enough: plenty of water, and I mean pah-lenty of it. A side effect of both the original poison and modified versions was that it caused major dehydration, pretty much sucking every drop of moisture in it could when inside a person. It was through a happy circumstance (read as a small accident involving a bottle full of good ol' H₂O) that showed that water not only reversed the effects of the dehydration at a phenomenal rate, but the hydrogen-to-oxygen ratio destabilized the poison/sedative molecules.

In English, the more water the infected person drank, the weaker the poison became, and with enough water there was a potential 80% of them waking from the 'sleep-like death', so to speak.

Sure, while that may have been all Jim fine and dandy, both Fury and I thought that more could be done about getting the poison/sedative out of the body with as little damage as possible.

I mentioned earlier that the nut bag's version of the sedative couldn't be reversed by medicine, but this guy didn't bank on two things: a girl called Briar Rose Stark, and nanotechnology.

Thanks to said technology, we had a safe way off getting rid of the poison/serum inside a body. After being carefully programmed for the task, the nanites would then be inserted into the body and go on to 'eat' the poison/sedative serum. Once done, they would then localize in a specific spot due to the 'return to sender' code, where they'd be extracted and dealt with. After that, the poor victim will wake up fine and dandy (a little woozy, but otherwise fine and dandy).

Of course, in typical S.H.I.E.L.D. fashion, after I did all the work, it was all put into deep storage, never to see daylight again (literally). Or so we'd all hoped.

Fast forwarding to today, I headed to the Quinjet to start my work, thankful that JARVIS had loaded my laptop among the supplies. Reason why is, thanks to a hunch I had ages ago, I had uploaded the original research to my computer, along with the codes necessary to active the nanites and control them.

All that was left was to get to those crates, which meant entering the village of almost-certain-death, avoiding the people inside who'll most likely kill me, and make it back out before they spot me. And if they didn't kill me, then T'Challa will most definitely do his best when he finds out that I went behind his back.

Well, as someone once said: into the belly of the beast.

During my efforts to get myself ready for a fun night of pain, I was visited by W'Kabi, who seemed rather surprised at the large mess I had created within the air shuttle. I explained the contents of the crates, and what I intended to do, he agreed to help me out. First he would check on the children; armed with my research notes, he and the doctors could determine if it was Project Spindle Thorn. If it was, then he had the codes to activate the nanites, and Wakanda even had its own supply of nanites if ever needed.

That was one worry off my back, but plenty more were still left.

My next task was to prepare for the worst, and that meant knowing everything about what I was going to face, and with what equipment. The latter was taken care of with a text message to Alenka, who responded almost immediately and with a lengthy list of what I could do with the magi-staff. When I saw what I really wanted to know, I felt another worry get ticked off my list.

As for the worst I could possibly be facing in that village, that was taken care of by afternoon. I had just finished packing what I needed when I was nearly attacked by a young man. Nearly being the key word; the poor thing was so shaky on his feet that he pretty much fell over with the lightest of tap. Using one half of the magi-staff, I was able to create a means of communication between us. Once he understood that I was going to N'Jadaka village to save the people there, he coughed up everything he knew.

Once he told me everything he could, the poor thing practically wilted to the floor. I told him to stay here; I knew if T'Challa brought the images to Hawkeye, he'd then know about my hand in the project, then he'd probably confront me on it.

:Too bad I won't be here for it.: I remarked to myself in guilt. Instead of doing to right thing going to T'Challa and telling him everything, I kept it secret and now plan to head into the lion's den he tried so hard to keep me from.

So, dressed in my original outfit, plus a short-sleeved jacket, I was ready to enter Hell.

Later on, when I look back at this mess, I realize that the only reason I did this was to keep T'Challa safe from his own demons. For that man, and all the good he's ever done for me, I'd find a part of me that I never knew I had.

######

It doesn't matter how much you prepare yourself; things that can go pear-shaped, will go pear-shaped, thanks to a little thing called Murphy's Law.

When I had finished my preparation and telling my would-be-kidnapper to stay, I left as the afternoon sky just started to turn into evening. Thanks to the directions I got from the young man, I was quietly slinking my way closer to N'Jadaka village.

My heart was beating so loud and powerfully I was sure anyone within a few miles could hear me, but they didn't. There weren't many guards around the perimeter, which made sneaking around just that little bit easier, but not by a whole lot. Careful to keep out of the campfires light, I inched my way to one of the larger thatched huts that had their backs facing the jungle and giant grass. According to my little bird, this was where the adults and older children were being kept when not being hurt.

Now, where was that little...ah, there it is.

Keeping an ear out, I gingerly pried the mismatching panel open. Peeking through the small slit and seeing no bad guys within, I carefully slid the panel open fully, the last of the sun's fading light revealing the frightened villagers within. They almost jumped in fright, but calmed down a little when I saw that I was just a young girl. I motioned them to stay quiet before whispering that I was there to help them escape, and that they needed to leave now. They would've said no until I told them about the children: it was easy after that.

Quietly in the darkening sky, they crept from their prison and crawled through the tall grass to the safety of the trees, there they could make a clean escape to the main village and to their children.

Of course, it would figure that as soon as they were gone and I started my search for the crates, I get busted and have a gun muzzle pressed to my head.

:Again, how the hell did you think this was a good idea?: My inner-self asked bitterly.

I was dragged into the light surrounding the campfire, catching the attentions of those standing by the warm flame. There was a group of five or six men, all tough and burly, clearly the mercenaries I was warned about. Talking to them were an American couple, dressed in matching black shirts, green camouflage pants and boots, it was clear they were the smugglers.

The male certainly looked imposing enough, with his shaved head and almost sinister sneer. It took all of my will power not to give him any sort of reaction. His lady friend couldn't be any more different: where he was tall and burly, she was small and slender, with a head full of long black hair. She turned to look at me, and her eyes went wide as mine. It was almost like looking into a mirror and seeing the reflection. Only my reflection was older by nearly 2 decades or more, and there was a dazed-yet-clearly-insane look in her eyes. And I definitely did not like the way she gazed fondly at me, or how it sent a nasty chill up my spine.

"Where did she come from?" The evil-looking man demanded, glaring at me like I was some diseased creature that dares to get close to him. Well, the feeling was mutual.

"Found her sneaking near the prisoners." My captor answered, gripping my forearm till I was positive it was either going to bruise heavily or simply break. "This the girl Killmonger wants?" Despite the seriousness of the predicament, I was curious about who was this Killmonger was. I thought N'Jadaka was the guy calling the shots here?

"Yes, that's her." The woman nodded in affirmation, still giving me that creepy fond gaze, while her partner walked to a stop in front of me, giving me a glare as he looked at me, clearly unimpressed with what he saw.

"Scrawny little brat." He sneered at me, "So, where's the big bad panther king?"

"Drop dead, ugly." I answered. A large hand wrapped itself around my neck and lifted me up till my toes barely touched the ground, and my throat felt like it would collapse from the pain.

"Watch your tongue, girl!" He snarled viciously before a small hand rested on his arm, stopping him from doing any more harm to me. Reluctantly, I was lowered to the ground, and he stalked away, ordering the men back to work. Mr Personality's girlfriend nodded to the man who captured me, and my arm was released from the vice grip. I so wanted to rub my forearm and neck, but I didn't want to show any sign of weakness; it might just get me killed by doing so.

"Don't mind Kyle, Briar." She smiled sweetly, clearly lost in her own little euphoria, "He'll calm down soon enough." Not likely, but I wasn't going to say otherwise while in front of her: she may look small, but I'm willing to bet she's just as deadly as her male friend. She then clasped my hand in hers and began leading me somewhere.

:Well, I never said this was going to be easy.: I reminded myself as Ms. Up-In-The-Clouds led me to a thatched hut larger than the other ones. If I had to guess, I'd say this was the chieftains home. The major problem was that I never found the crates; the young man from earlier never told me mostly because he never saw them. It'd take a miracle for me to find them now; my only other option would be to somehow get word out to T'Challa, but I refuse to put him in harms path, especially with N'Jadaka lurking around.

Ms. Up-In-The-Clouds entered, dragging me into the dark hut, save for two bunches of candles on the other side of the room, giving enough of its light to illuminate a large chair, and the outline of somebody sitting in said chair.

"Briar Stark, Killmonger." My 'guide' announced, the beginnings of sick glee spreading into her eyes. The person in the chair didn't move for a moment, then they began to rise from the shadows and letting me get a better look at them...and I barely bit back an expletive.

The person in the shadows was a man, though the more accurate description would be 'behemoth'. His head just brushed against the roof, his shoulder broad and rippling with muscles. If he had green skin, I could have easily mistaken him for the Hulk, but the jolly green man never looked at me like the cat that got the cream and the canary. Or the big cat that cornered its prey.

"Miss Stark." The behemoth greeted in a deep baritone voice, sending unpleasant chills through my body. My earlier assessment of him being a big cat was spot on; his tone was low and rumbling, like something a big cat would do when tearing into the soft underbelly of its prey.

"I see you have found my village with little trouble." He continued. Wait, his village? It suddenly dawned on me who this deadly giant was. The only man said to be a match in terms of intelligence and strength to T'Challa, and the one who dares to harm my friend and secret love.

N'Jadaka.

My fear should have doubled, tripled even, but all I could feel was a deep fiery hatred. This is the man who hurt T'Challa as a child, who haunted the king's memories, and terrifies him by being in the same country as his victim.

"You must be N'Jadaka." I acknowledged with as much polite venom as I could hold, "Frankly, I'm underwhelmed." My words only served to get a small chuckle.

"My! Such words from a young lady." He remarked in a darkly humoured tone as he stood in front of me. I craned my head back to give him a barely veiled look of hatred, something that only amused him even further. It didn't have the same effect on Ms. Up-In-The-Clouds, however. She looked absolutely horrified.

"Forgive her, Mr. Killmonger! Please!" She fell silent with N'Jadaka raised his hand, clearly not having the intention of harming me like she thought he was going to do.

"It is quite all right, Joanna." He soothed her. She looked very relieved at his words, though she gave me one hell of a dark look that warned never to do something like that again. Pfft, who did she think she was, my mother?

"You have quite the fiery attitude, little one." He continued, his hand curling underneath my chin and tilting my head further back, "I imagine that would be the work of a certain Panther King. Do you not agree, Joanna?"

"I do, indeed." She purred as she moved to stand beside me, "Quite obvious that he's rubbed off on her. I wonder how long it was take him to realize that his little lamb is missing?" I felt anger race through my veins as she talked about T'Challa and I like that. In fact, it was so tempting to knock her out for that.

"It should not be long, now." N'Jadaka answered, "Now that the trap has it's bait." Bait? What was...oh, great. Now I really put my foot into it!

"Ah, the truth is revealing itself to you now, isn't it?" The giant behemoth smiled, taking his hand away from my chin and stepped away, "You finally know that this was all a carefully laid plan to trap your precious Panther. And that you have stepped right into the place I had planned for you."

"Poor little thing." Joanna sniffled mockingly before breaking into an insane little laugh.

"What have you done?" I demanded them both, desperate to get what information I could and hopefully make an escape before it was too late for T'Challa. I'll never forgive myself if he gets hurt trying to save me.

"Since you are so eager to find out more." N'Jadaka mused, retaking his seat in the shadows, "This moment has been long in the making; the night I finally crush the Panther King in both spirit and body." Even in the darkness, I could feel his gaze rivet on me. His eyes felt so powerful, I started to shake in fear.

"It all began many years ago, when I was first exiled from my homeland, by the father of someone I once called brother." N'Jadaka explained to me, "My fury knew no bounds at the betrayal wrought upon me, so I began plotting ways to exact my revenge on the traitors."

"Considering what you did to T'Challa, I'm not surprised you were thrown out." I remarked bitterly despite my fear, and was rewarded when he gave an almost-all-too quiet growl in anger, meaning I hit a nerve.

"So, he has told you of what I did to him." He mused, his mask slipping back into place, "Of how I spoke words so cruelly, they broke his little spirit and reduced him to a snivelling weak child." My hands tightened themselves into fist, my nails biting into my palms as I tried to control my anger and keep a level head.

"Well, then, tell me this." N'Jadaka purred as he leaned forwards in his chair, his face only just illuminated by the candles glow, "Has he ever told you about the rest of his past?"

"I know enough of it to see him as the honourable man he is." I replied bitingly, "Something you know nothing about, clearly." My words earned a dark look from N'Jadaka, and an even darker look from Joanna. She put her hand on my already sore forearm and squeezed. I had to bite the inside of my lip not to cry out in pain. One look from N'Jadaka, however, and she let my arm go.

"Then you should know about his lady friend, Ororo, obviously." My 'host' continued, his calm mask slipping into place again, "Did he mention that they consummated their relationship when she was only 12?"

A feeling like an icy dagger plunged into my stomach, the information worming its way deep inside my mind. I mean, I knew that they were close...but this? No, N'Jadaka had to be lying to get me to turn against T'Challa! As much I tried to ignore the words, they dug their claws in deep into my mind, and my emotions began to go haywire. I tried to keep my face clear of my inner emotions, but that smug smile on his face told me that he saw his words cutting me deep and painfully, and decided to rub salt into my open emotional wounds.

"Or that they were once engaged to each other?" He added. My face twitched as it faltered, my throat beginning to feel tight and pinching as I came dangerously close to crying. I tried to take a deep breath to calm myself, but it was too late: N'Jadaka had found a chink in my armour, wormed his way through and broke me.

"You sick bastard." I whispered quietly, my anger trying its hardest to take back some control from the situation. "I won't let you use me to hurt T'Challa."

"Oh, my dear little child." N'Jadaka clucked with mock sympathy, even coming over to me and curling his fingers underneath my chin so I was forced to look up at him. "I already have." He responded, his eyes not leaving mine as he talked.

"You see, when your 'precious love' comes to rescue you, he will fight me in order to free you. When the battle starts, he will be injected with Project Spindle Thorn to crush his spirit, knowing that it was you who engineered its existence, while I use the muscle-enhancing version to cripple his body. So you see, little one, it is by your hand that the king's fate is sealed." With that, the last bit of my armour broke open, and something inside me broke.

I finally understood the depths of how evil N'Jadaka could really be, and my mistake in trying to solve this mess on my own and protect T'Challa could end up costing me dearly.

Seeing that I was finally broken by his words, N'Jadaka silently nodded to Joanna, who nodded back in some sort of silent code. She then wrapped her arm around my shoulders and led me out of the hut. I barely managed to keep track of where I was being led, but eventually I was brought to a rather modern mobile lab. Clearly, N'Jadaka thought of everything for his ultimate revenge.

:Sarcasm in the face of defeat. You poor thing.: My inner-self cooed sadly.

"Mr. Killmonger knew you would need the right equipment to work on your little present for the Panther king." Joanna explained as she switched on a few light switches and sat me on a swivel chair, "So he had us spare no expense." I didn't give her a response, though she continued speaking to me regardless.

"These are the crates containing your research notes and serum vials." She added, patting the two large crates in questions, "Mr. Killmonger will want his product soon, so you may want to get started right away." I finally turned my head towards her and gave her a dark look.

"So I'm not even allowed time to grieve over the fact that I just signed my friends death warrant?" I seethed at her, "How thoughtful of you all." I swear my neck should have snapped from the force Joanna put into slapping my face, instead I fell out of my chair and hit the cold floor with a thud. I will admit, the sting in my face was enough to bring a tear to my eye, but the feeling of my throat nearly being scratched out topped my range of pain as Joanna knelt over my body and wrapped her hand tightly around my neck.

"You little bitch!" She hissed angrily, "Is this the gratitude you show your mother?! I could have let those idiots out there kill you when they found you!"

"Too bad you didn't." I choked out, one hand curling around her wrist, my other scrambling to reach under my jacket for my—GOT IT! "And by the way?" I asked sarcastically, "You're not my mother." Before she could do anymore harm to me, I jammed my Taser into her side and pressed the button. Five seconds later she was out cold.

:...What the hell just happened?: My inner-self questioned. It felt good to stun some part of myself with what I can do. Still, the night wasn't over yet and no one was safe yet.

:So what now? What have you got planned? C'mon, TELL ME!: Instead of answering, I quickly fished a couple of zip-tie cuffs from one of the hidden pockets of my jacket and tied up Joanna. My luck seemed to be holding; the crates containing my research notes was large enough to hold her, so once it was empty I stuffed her inside and put the lid back on—loosely, though, so she could still breathe.

"Well, that's Little Miss Psycho taken care of." I breathed out in relief, casting a glance around the room.

:You do realize there are lot more problems out there than her, right?: My inner-self prodded, :Especially the problem where T'Challa is walking right into a death trap? And that N'Jadaka/Killmonger plans to use your little serum to do it?:

Well...that's the key, isn't it? All of this crazy revenge plot depended on that drug. Too bad for N'Jadaka; he never did read the fine print.

"Time to raise some karma." I smiled to myself and got down to work.

######

If there was a word to describe how T'Challa felt at the moment, it did not exist in any language to date. When the young man had told him that Rose had gone to save the rest of his village, he felt a raging despair that squeezed his heart in the most excruciatingly painful manner. There was even a brief moment where he was torn between fury of Rose doing something so foolishly dangerous, or humbled by her dedication and courage to protect him and his people.

The moment passed, and T'Challa stormed into the palace, alerting his allies that something had gone wrong. Barely able to concentrate through his fury, T'Challa somehow managed to tell them of Rose heading to the village of his most hated enemy, and why. Everyone was either stunned or horrified, though the king suspected that Hawkeye and Captain America felt more strongly than they were letting on.

Hawkeye demanded they leave immediately to rescue her, something T'Challa heartily agreed with. The captain, however, did not, as did many of the other council members. The captain reasoned that a plan was needed, otherwise Rose may be injured if they rushed to her side. Begrudgingly, they could see his point, and began to create a plan of attack-and-rescue.

No matter how much T'Challa tried to focus on safely retrieving his love, his heart roared to find her now, and stain the earth with the blood of those who have dared to harm her. His consciousness did its best to calm his raging heart, saying that Rose would never forgive herself if he was harmed while attempting to save her.

His consciousness also pointed out that if T'Challa did kill anyone that harmed her, Rose would never want to see him again, let alone return his love. The thought of Rose never wanting to be near a murderer chilled his heart, and the urge to run to her side was dampened. Just a little.

When she was safe and sound, however, he and Rose would have serious words about her recklessness as she sought to protect his village, especially when it could end up costing her life.

Several members of his council offered their opinions to aide their king, but there were those who did not, some even openly protesting to rescue the person responsible for the chaos in the first place. Rage fuelling his actions, T'Challa grabbed the front of the next one to protest and slammed them back against the wall, silencing them with a glare that could shake a mountain to rubble.

"Never doubt Rose's loyalty to my kingdom." He quietly spoke to the man, his voice carrying throughout the room. The man withered under his glare, lowering his eyes and quietly offering a murmured apology. Other council members, even his fellow Avengers, were shocked silent by the kings actions, all for the defence of a young woman who created a dangerous substance.

T'Challa let the man go and turned to the rest of the room when the doors flew open and a blur and black and green shot towards him, latching onto his waist with nearly enough force to lay him flat on the ground. As it was, T'Challa barely managed to keep his balance and look at whoever was holding him.

Before he could open his mouth, the person lifted their head, revealing a madly beaming Chanté. She immediately began to speak in rapid tongues.

"She's brilliant! Completely—no, utter—no, no, stupendously! She is stupendously brilliant!" She quickly praised, finally letting her king go as she literally bounced on the balls of her feet, so great was her excitement.

"I mean, I knew she was so gifted, but this?" She continued to beam, "This is genius, pure genius! It is brilliant, I tell you! Brilliant, brilliant, BRILLIANT!"

"Chanté!" The young Dora flinched at the sharp address, calming down as W'Kabi walked to stand beside her, a look of gentle chiding on his face.

"I believe His Highness already knows how intelligent Miss Stark is." He gently reminded her, then began to chuckle in delight, "Then again, given how in love he is with her, perhaps not." At this, Chanté could not help the soft coo of adoration, not the council members in favour of Rose could hold back their own chuckles.

"Ah, not that I'm not enjoying T'Challa blushing over Rose." Hawkeye chimed in, "But what is it that's made her a genius?" The purple archer's words brought the excitement back to Chanté, but she managed to compose herself as W'Kabi began to explain.

"Miss Stark had a theory as to what had befallen the children; a sedative she devised so many years ago." He spoke, "When she told this to me, she asked that I have the doctors examine the children to prove her right. To aide then, she had me deliver her research notes to them.

"The doctors looked at her notes and the children, and indeed confirm that it was her serum." He continued, "If it was to be proven true, Miss Stark also gave me the command codes to direct nanites to erase the serum completely from their bodies and revive them. The doctors have do so, and the children look to make a full recovery."

Many could not hold back a stunned murmur, chattering to each other about this latest development. Indeed, even T'Challa could not comprehend what he had just been told. But one thing was clear—Rose may have created the serum which had affected the children, but she had also created a means to destroy it from the body of the person tainted with it.

Not for the first time, or the last, T'Challa could only marvel at the foresight and intelligence Rose had shown in her work.

"That is not all." Chanté burst out happily, "As W'Kabi came to tell you, I ran into him: the children's families have arrived from N'Jadaka village. They say a young American woman liberated them. I can only imagine it was Briar, since she is the only young American woman in Wakanda, and that she is not here." At this, she raised an eyebrow at him in a questioning manner.

"Well? Why are we not mounting a rescue attempt?" She demanded, something her king could only smile at. It had been clear that a quick yet incredibly firm bound of friendship had been created between the two girls, as demonstrated by the fierce loyalty to the other if they were slighted by anyone.

"We are planning that now." He assured her, "However, I admit to not being as patient as I would like to be. Especially knowing where it is Rose has gone; it does not help that we know nothing of what lies in waiting for us." At this, Chanté grew serious, her trained Dora Milaje side taking over.

"Good thing I am here, then." She declared, "I spoke to all the parents before I ran into W'Kabi about what they knew: there are 12 mercenaries, two Americans, N'Jadaka himself and now Briar. They have limited weapons and ammunition—my guess is that whatever N'Jadaka has planned, he has put all of his faith and efforts in to so that it will work."

Her theory did not sit well with T'Challa; if N'Jadaka has put so much faith into Rose's serum, then it may mean that he has become more desperate for his revenge than anyone had thought. Knowing that Rose was likely held at that monster's mercy...

That tipped the Panther King over the edge.

:Plans be damned!: He snarled to himself before verbally issuing orders to ready the Dora Milaje and warriors for battle. It was past the time for plans and discussions. His Rose was in danger, and the Black Panther will raise Hell till she was safe and alive in his arms.

######

It was near midnight as my forces silently approached the village I had so hoped never to set foot in again; the memories were too raw, despite having been made when I was a small boy. Even now, I could see in my mind's eye the village as it had been then: the small huts forming a loose circle around the chieftain's hut, the central grounds where they all gathered around a fire to tell stories and cook their meals.

What was once my almost second home was now a stark reminder than blood is thicker than water, and that hatred does not give into friendship so easily.

Before I could become too lost in memories, the grass on either side of me shifted as Captain America and Hawkeye quietly appeared, their faces set grim but determined. I knew that not too far away, the Dora Milaje and warriors made their own ways closer to the village, closing in and cutting off the escape routes, trapping everyone inside. Ororo had wanted to come as well, but her powers would be better suited to protect my village while most of its defensive force was here with me.

What Chanté had reported was true; there were limited armed mercenaries, some patrolling the edges of the village, the rest inside likely to protect N'Jadaka and the two Americans. My blood boiled in rage at the very thought of my Rose being at their mercy. If Hawkeye's words are true, then there was an all too real threat of Joanna hurting Rose, if she did not act the way Joanna wanted her to.

:Oh, Rose. What have you gotten yourself into?: I asked myself in despair, but found no clear answer to ease my nerves.

"So, how do we move?" Hawkeye whispered to me, "Personally, I'm all for picking them off one at a time, then rain hell on this N'Jadaka guy till he coughs up Starky. But that's just me."

"A nice plan, but it has a lot of problems." The captain informed him just as quietly, "If N'Jadaka is a good a fighter as Panther says, then he'll hear the first arrow coming and send up the alarm." Hawkeye made a low grumble in the back of his throat, his frustration catching. I could not sit here and wait for an opportunity to show itself: Rose could be badly hurt and in need of medical attention.

Or she could be terrified out of her wits, either by Joanna's hand or by N'Jadaka and his cruel words, and crying for me to save her, to comfort her, to protect her from N'Jadaka.

I said nothing as I stood up tall, shocking my comrades, and began stalking to the village centre, aware that my fellow Avengers followed close behind. My warriors did not move from their positions, but kept a close eye for the sign that I was in danger, though I hardly cared about my safety right now.

All I cared about was Rose.

"N'JADAKA!" I bellowed in fury, the sound echoing throughout the small village. The mercenaries jumped at my roar, clearly realizing the danger they had put themselves into and that it was far too late for them to run.

As I came closer to the central fire, a figure emerged from the chieftain's hut, someone I knew only from my past and as the source of so much chaos these last few days. As tall as a tree, and as wide as a mountain, N'Jadaka was as skilled a warrior as I, and as intelligent. But he lacked something; the drive to protect someone cherished from the clutches of great evil. I came to a stop a few feet from the fire, the captain and archer standing on my sides, while N'Jadaka gave me a smug grin—an act I wished nothing more than to strike from his face.

"Well, that is quite the entrance, old friend." He greeted, "Such rage to someone you call a brother."

"Where is she?" I demanded, not giving his words of familiar memories another thought, "Where is Rose Stark?"

"The girl?" he asked in feigned confusion, "I have no clue. Are you sure she came this way at all?"

"You baited her, you snivelling coward!" I snarled furiously, "You lured her into your web, using innocent children and deception to harm my friend, rather than bring the fight directly to me. You have no honour." He did not respond with words, the darkening anger on his face making up for his silence. If I remembered anything about him, N'Jadaka loathed any who demeaned his sense of honour, at least his perverted sense of the word.

He turned to one of his men—the male American—who nodded and disappeared into the hut behind him. The man soon returned, dragging a struggling Rose—a little bruised and hurt, but otherwise in one whole piece. She seemed to be cursing the man holding her, but when she saw me, her eyes shone bright in relief and happiness.

"T'Challa!" She called out, "Cap, Hawk!" The man gave her arm a sharp tug, eliciting a cry of pain from Rose. Before any of us could rush to her side, N'Jadaka walked to her side and grabbed her arm, dragging her towards us.

"Have your play thing." He growled ominously, "I have no further use for her." With that, he practically threw Rose towards us, her body hitting the ground with a heavy thud. As fast as lightning, Hawkeye had an arrow notched and aimed at the hateful man, keeping him and anyone else at bay while Rose scrambled to her feet and hurried towards us. My heart nearly wept in relief as I opened my arms to her, Rose immediately rushing into my embrace, my soul eternally grateful that she was where she rightfully belonged: by my side and close to my heart. Rose gave a small choked sob of relief as I held her close, her face burying into my chest and breathing deeply.

"Are you alright, Rose?" I asked in a soft tone, mindful that she was still in danger. She gave a nod, her hands coming to rest against my chest as she lifted her head, a grateful yet surprised gleam in her eyes.

"You came, for me?" She whispered in a confused tone, and it was all I could do not to give into my urge to kiss her.

"I will fight my demons to keep you safe, Rose. Never forget that." I replied softly. A small smile wobbled onto her face, lifting the heaviness from my shoulders. But then her expression began to change, her happiness turning to fear.

"T'Challa, you've gotta run. Now!" She urged me, even attempting to pull away to get her point across, "It's not safe here! Run!" Captain America and Hawkeye heard her distressing plea, and silently agreed that it was time to leave, and quickly.

"Let us leave." I declared out loud as I pulled Rose close to my body, "We have who we came for." As I began to turn, using my body to shield Rose from his view, I nearly missed N'Jadaka growl 'So do I', before everything started moving slower and slower.

There was a muffled bang, Captain America shouted a warning. I pulled Rose closer against me, but I was knocked aside and a shrill yelp pierced the air just as Hawkeye's arrow shooting towards whoever committed this cowardly act. I regained myself and turned to see if Rose was unharmed, but the words died in my throat to give way to me shout of panic. For Rose stood beside me, her face sporting an uncomprehending look, her mouth parted as she gasped, all the work of the dart buried in her thigh.

Time caught up rapidly as I gathered her into my arms, carefully lowering her to the ground as the captain and Hawkeye knelt beside us. My Dora Milaje sprang from the shadows like an angry pack of lionesses and gathered around us, creating a defensive circle.

"Rose? Rose?! Look at me!" I begged her, removing the dart from her leg and tossing it away. She was lost for a few moments as she regained her breath, then she raised her eyes to meet mine. I was surprised to find an almost calm acceptance mingle with her shock in her bright hazel eyes.

"I-I'm ok." She murmured in assurance, even as the colour began to drain from her skin, "I'm ok, T'Challa."

"No, you are not." I admonished and pulled her so her head rested against my breaking heart, "Why must you always hurt yourself when protecting me?" She gave a small smile, on that always made my heart beat that little bit faster and warmed my whole body.

"Because I like you too much to see you get hurt." She answered softly. I could only give a weak chuckle at her words, keeping one arm around her body as my other hand came to brush a stray lock of her hair back from her face.

"Ahem." Hawkeye politely coughed, making Rose and I look at him. "I hate to break up the sappy moment." He addressed before turning his head to glare at someone beyond the guard surrounding us, "But what are we going to do about the creep that just shot her?"

At his words, the peaceful bubble around us shattered, and the love in my veins was replaced by a staggering fury.

N'Jadaka had tried to attack me, and Rose was left to suffer instead. This would not go unanswered.

"Keep her safe." I ordered them as I carefully placed her in Captain America's arms, "I will deal with the coward." Both the captain and Hawkeye gave me concerned looks silently hoping that I did nothing foolish. I could not make that promise, but I will made sure that N'Jadaka suffers greatly for hurting my dearest love.

"T'Challa?" Rose whimpered in confusion, and I prayed that Captain America sheltered her from what is about to transpire.

"I had thought you possessed a shred of honour, N'Jadaka." I scolded as I stepped from between my Dora Milaje and towards my foe, "But it is clear that your cowardice no know bounds. Attacking when my back was tuned, and hurting an innocent young woman?"

"Anything to get your attention, of course." He sneered, "I have waited nearly 12 years to avenge my father's death at the hands of your father. It is a shame that M'Baku killed him; taking your last living family member would have made your pain that much sweeter.

"But to discover your little flower, who you devote so much time and affection for?" He continued, and my blood boiled in anger. How did he—never mind, I cannot let my mind wonder now.

"Truly, I am surprised at you." N'Jadaka admonished, "She is not a strong woman like your former fiancée, nor is she strikingly beautiful. And she cannot keep herself out of trouble, especially when she has created it herself. As you will soon bear witness."

Reaching his hand into one of his pockets, N'Jadaka pulled out a small vial of an almost see through green liquid. Behind me, I could hear Hawkeye curse and explain that it was the serum, and I readied myself in response. I would not let myself be taken by surprise again and risk another innocent life.

"Take a good look, Panther King." N'Jadaka ordered, "This will be the instrument of your undoing, and the ultimate act of revenge: defeating you with the strength-enhancer that your dear sweet Briar created." As he spoke, the pieces began to fall into their places to produce the bigger image.

Allowing himself to be seen so close to my home, N'Jadaka knew that I would come to protect my kingdom, where I was at my strongest yet most vulnerable. He also knew about Rose and Project Spindle Thorn—more than likely, he was the one responsible for her attempted kidnappings. A dark and sharp drilled into my stomach; if I had not brought Rose was me, she would have been left all alone as N'Jadaka arranged another kidnapping. And I would never have known until it was far too late.

"You will never win, N'Jadaka." I told him, "No matter what you use. I will always defeat you."

"Let us test that theory, shall we?" My former friend proposed as he unscrewed the lid and downed the entire content of the vial. Once the last drop was consumed, my opponent crushed the vial in his hand as a savage and maniacal grin spreading across his face.

"Your fate is sealed, old friend." He crowed in triumph, "My victory is assured, thanks in large to you little flower. And now..." He trailed off as a feminine dark chuckle filled the air, followed by a small groan. I had only just turned to see what was going on, instead I caught rose in my arms, holding her steady as she caught her breath again.

"You've won nothing, N'Jadaka." She chuckled between her wheezing gasp, "Only a one-way ticket straight the Hell, courtesy of me." The serum was not paring the poor woman any relief, but she carried through the pain, reaching for some vital step in her mind.

"You made two mistakes: the first was believing everything you read in the research notes." She proclaimed as she reached into her gear pouch and retrieved her magic staff—which was glowing?!

"The second mistake was underestimating a Stark." She finished, a look of triumph on her exhausted face, "especially when you've pissed them off." Without any warning, she raised her staff in her enemy's direction and unleashed a golden orb that shined with as much intensity as the sun itself, nearly blinding all present.

"One more thing, N'Jadaka." Rose called as the light faded away, "The serum become explosive when its tainted." N'Jadaka could only stare at her in confusion, but the high-pitched whine soon brought her point across, just as everything began to happen at once.

Just as N'Jadaka began to advance towards us, the ground shuddered violently with the force of a large explosion, everyone being knocked to their feet. The mercenaries were caught off guard and fell to my forces as they descended upon the village. Some of them were swift to recover, attempting to fight back, until one of the huts caught on fire.

The air was becoming thick with smoke and ash, making it almost impossible to navigate. My first thought was to find Rose in the pandemonium, but with the smoke and chaos, it would be hard. I staggered into the cacophony of sound and fire, dodging stray bullets, arrows and spear as both sides battled each other, but I cared not for the fight but for Rose. A sharp scream mingled with the noise of warfare—Rose!

Desperately, I fought through the smoke, fires and battle, searching for Rose. I followed the sounds of her screams to the other side of the battlefield, watching the hulking back of N'Jadaka as he ran into the jungle. It was not till I heard Rose's scream that I knew why.

N'Jadaka was chasing Rose, to kill her!

Fear spurred me after them, my legs pumping as fast as they could be pushed. I hit the edge of the jungle at a dead run, leaping into the branches to cover more ground and track my quarry faster. I caught sight of N'Jadaka as he hefted a fallen tree limb above his head and threw it, roaring in savage fury and a feminine cry of pain answered. Without thinking, I propelled myself forward a battle cry. N'Jadaka turned as I threw my claws hands forward, taking a feral satisfaction as they tore through the flesh on his face.

I barely touched the ground before I was attacking my foe with a primal rage I had never felt before, the animal inside of me glorying in each roar of pain as my prey began to suffer for harming the woman I love. Time lost all meaning as the battle raged on, until my foe scored a glancing blow against my ribs.

I felt no pain as I landed in a crouch, watching my foe's movements. N'Jadaka was breathing heavily, several deep gashes across his face and body, the blood dripping from his wounds. His eyes met mine, and his fury knew no limits. Neither did mine.

Fate, however, decided to interfere before either of us could mount another attack.

N'Jadaka had barely taken a step towards me when his body stiffened, shaking by an unknown force. His face expressed his disbelief and confusion, before his eyes rolled into the back of his skull, his body expelling a staggered breath and falling to his knees, then unto his back. And he did not rise again, his chest rising and falling in shallow breaths.

The air became quiet, the distant sounds of the village on fire and an approaching storm sounding more like a dream. The seconds ticked by as the adrenaline slowed inside me, and the realization dawned on me.

That was it. N'Jadaka was finished.

My surprise and triumph did no last when I heard the softest of pained moans, reminding me that Rose was around here, possibly hurt. Turning away from my fallen nightmare, I took to the tree branches and searched desperately for her, shouting for her to call back. There was only another soft moan, but thanks to it, I was able to find my Rose.

Every fibre in my body froze when I did find her, laying on the ground with a heavy tree limb pinning her down.

"ROSE!" I cried, leaping down to race to her side. My strength moved the fallen limb as if it were a small twig, and I knelt beside my Rose, so desperate to hold her close but so afraid to hurt her any more. Please, do not let her die. Not now.

"Rose?" My voice croaked, my eyes blurring with tears. Her face looked so serene, as if she were merely asleep. I felt my entire body clench painfully, praying to the Panther God that she was not...she was not...

My prayers were answered as her eyelids fluttered, and began to open. Her brown orbs were dazed, but somehow she managed to find me in the darkness, and she gave a wake smile.

"You called?" She softly teased, gaining a watery chuckle from me. She moved her hands underneath her, attempting to sit up, but I gingerly pulled her into my arms and cradled her close to my heart. My nose buried into her hair, her scent filling my head with a welcoming assurance. Rose leaned against me, her soft breathing filling my heart with happiness. I felt a delicate hand on my chest, making me look down at Rose. My heart began to freeze at the look of sadness on her face as tears started to appear in her eyes.

"T'Challa, I'm so sorry for everything." She apologized softly, "If I hadn't of created the serum, this wouldn't have happened."

"Do not worry, Rose." I hastily assured her stroking her face with tender caresses, "Everything is all right now. N'Jadaka will not harm anyone ever again. We are safe." Rose gave a soft smile, but the sadness did not disappear from her face.

"You're safe, T'Challa." She corrected, and a fresh wave of fear rolled throughout my body, and I could feel my tears begin to fall onto her cheeks.

"Rose?" I could barely say before my emotions got the better of me. She gazed up at me in sadness, but she accepted whatever fate had been given to her to endure.

"I couldn't let him keep hurting you." She explained softly, "so I tricked him, and kept him from using it on you. This is the price I have to pay to stop him." Her hand lifted to my cheek, her thumb brushing away my tears with the same tenderness I had shown her when she cried in the past. My own hand covered hers, holding it as if it were my only life line.

"This was not your burden to bear." I whispered in a broken voice, feeling my heart start to shatter. How could she do this, before I had the chance to finally tell her...

"Hey." Her voice dragged my attention back to her, the darkness in her eyes beginning to grow as she slipped further away from me.

"It'll be ok." She promised with a smile. I could only give a pathetically small laugh at her assurance. The air tense as Rose gave a weak and pain-filled cough, and it tore me apart that I couldn't do more to ease the pain.

"T'Challa?" Rose whispered weakly, her voice growing softer and softer.

"Yes, my Rose?" I watched her as she tried to say something, but finally the darkness in her eyes finally won, her eyes fluttered closed and her body fell limp in my arms.

My heart finally broke, and I wept into her body. When my tears were not enough, I threw my face to the heavens and voiced my great pain and love for the woman who did everything to protect me, and paid the ultimate price.

Oh, my Rose. If I could only tell you that I love you...

---

See? I told you I was going to posting this with twisted glee! But just think: the next chapter is the finale of this mini arc, then an interlude, then back to the regular story. Which, I can honestly, say I am looking really forward to, because I'll be introducing a new character! Yay! Who is it? Uh-uh, no spoilers yet! Tee-hee-hee; this is gonna be good!