“Ah, forgive me. It is just strange for me to think of my wife as an aspect of another woman.” He could not help but smile at his own words.

“Well, if you care to make it truly strange, you could say you have a dozen more wives than you think you do.”

His dark eyes went wide for a moment as he looked around, and then back at me. “Truly, a man would find it hard to be so blessed?” he coughed softly.

I just smiled at him. “T’Challa son of T’Chaka, you don’t have any idea how marvelously attractive that silver soul of yours is to us. We all love you, so just be who you are and everything will be fine.”

He took another deep breath. “Well, thank you for not appearing in your High Guard form and making this even more awkward.”

I just laughed. “I am anything but unfamiliar with how awkward that can make people feel, T’Challa. As for changes... mmm...” I trailed off thoughtfully. “I think it is time for the Black Panther of Wakanda to become more.”

“What do you mean?” he asked intently.

“Storm is a goddess, T’Challa,” I told him calmly. “A lot of people do not realize what that means. Many consider her the wife of the Black Panther of Wakanda, but from the perspective of Gaia, Wakanda is merely a random patch of ground the Rain Queen of Terra has chosen to dwell upon. Osebo Himself is much less important to Gaia than Storm is, and with the War of Seven Spheres, Storm has firmly set herself on the Eternal Road and is truly a goddess, if only a minor one, or demigoddess.

“The Black Panther is merely the mortal king the goddess is married to.” I looked at him with raised eyebrows. “It does not mean she loves you less, but there is a marked difference in your status in the eyes of the powerful.

“She does not care about your status or your throne. She loves you for your silver soul and the righteousness that empowers you. She enjoys being your queen and helping your people, guiding them to lead Africa to new heights.

“But marriages work best when both powers are equals, and while you are among the greatest of mortal men, T’Challa, you are not her equal. In the eyes of the Land, your entire nation is likely not her equal.”

He did not take that as a hit to his ego, having digested the truth of that long ago. “And you wield this level of power, too?” he asked shortly.

“I don’t have her ties with the weather, be it planetary or solar, and I don’t have the bloodline of a god running through me. Her perspective is unique, despite what we share. She is far more tied to the planet than I am, as a result. She informed you that I am a Spider Totem.”

“Yes. Anasazi’s ways are mischievous at best,” he half-smiled.

“Anasazi is the Grandfather of the Weavers, and likely responsible for Peter and the others. MY Patron is the Widow of the Web.”

His eyes opened just slightly. “That... is a much more ominous name, if I remember it from my teachers correctly.”

“Other Spider Totems are tools and toys for the Weavers, but the schemes of the Weavers extend across multiple universes, for the Underweb reaches all. I am not a tool; I am a weapon, pure and simple, and so my place is not here among people. It is out doing what a weapon is meant to do, so that everyone else can enjoy their lives.” My smile was lopsided. “I have a great deal of power, T’Challa. I am fully aware of how much power I have, and I am also absolutely certain of what that power is meant to be used for.

“So, you needn’t worry about me, or your wife, or the rest of us. You need to worry about you.” I sat back and looked up at the stars. “Your skills are at the highest of the world, as is your intellect, your fighting ability, and the depth of your heart. You are a wonderful man, T’Challa, but if you want to stand equal by the side of Terra’s Storm, you must be more.

“There is a phrase out there about mortals, and becoming more.

“When the Horrid Hordes of Hordak run rampant ‘cross the world,

“When the Ancient Armies of Acheron slaughter all by slaying sword,

“When the Baleful Gaze of B’aalgeron turns all about him to cold dead bone,

“Will you call upon the magic to live, or will you fight alone?”

I dropped my eyes back down to his. “I do not know if you need such power to protect Wakanda, T’Challa. But I do know you need it to stand equal with your wife.

“Your people live close to your ancestors and your gods. They can give you the power to stand with her, and start your Walk on the Road Eternal with her... a Road that will one day encompass far more than Wakanda.

“And I also know this... the challenges the world is going to face are going to increase, not decrease. Even now the Skrulls try to get the Shi’ar and Kree to come to war, and the Kree are not uninterested in the fight. The Crux are trying to make a champion of their own in the afterlife to spread their creed, uncaring of the hate it inspires. Galactic-class threats are coming, and events which could shake the universe or destroy it.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“And that’s not even counting the cross-alternity stuff that keeps getting dumped on us by the multiverse, because we seem to be able to handle it.

“There is preparation, and then there is preparation. The High Guard does it best, as you well know, but some things...” I just shrugged. “The Great Bear and the Hag are protecting the world and the universe from things Outside. What is the King of Wakanda doing?”

He managed to smile slightly. “Those two are old monsters. You have seen the power they have displayed. Should I hope to rival them?”

I just smirked. “Small secret, T’Challa. That power they have? They went out and earned it, took it themselves. They didn’t have a whole country behind them, and their ancestors backing them. They are Forsaken. They didn’t have the magic to reach for, so they have to fight alone.”

“They don’t have the power...” he murmured, his dark eyes suddenly thoughtful. “So, they use tools...”

“And so, they went out and grabbed some of the most powerful tools in existence to use. They are ungodly good tool-users. You, of course, do not need to rely on tools.”

“I see. You are saying that I can merely ask the Panther God... and my ancestors, for more power?”

“They are wise in establishing that those they choose as a King are strong enough to defend their people. However, the levels of threats today are not that of a foreign warrior or gunman, they have grown far beyond that.

“I will also say this... the power they can grant you will stem from them and will not be your own, it is true. In this, you will be acting much like a Priest or Shaman of old. But... it also gives you a very nice height from which to build your own power, starting that climb from a greater place.

“They will be teaching you control. And one thing more.” I tilted my head slightly. “Wakanda is close to its ancestors, and for all their famous reclusiveness, they are largely an honorable people.

“The Hag and the Great Bear seek to build a Nova Force for Terra, an Ultra Force. It must be built on a foundation of honorable souls, or it is going to destroy itself. Neither of them can truly speak with the dead and relate to them. So, to truly make such a power for Terra, they will need the aid of another... and that person must also be a truly honorable person, a grand silver soul who has the vision to embrace that dream and the willpower to make it come true.”

T’Challa stared at me, wondering if he had asked too much, and gone too far. At last he sighed, “From King of Wakanda, to... what? A King of the Ancestors?”

“Briggs is already grooming Tchernobog as the Death God to watch over those souls so that we don’t draw the ire of Death. I imagine he and Osebo will need to chat at some point if Wakanda wishes to come on board with the idea...”

“That would be an unprecedented level of Divine cooperation,” T’Challa smiled.

“Yes. I don’t know if it’s possible, given the Divine egos and the resentments the living carry into death. If they can’t make amends for the sake of future generations, it might not be possible.

“There IS a reason the Nova Force is so unique, after all. The Xandarans really are a good people down to their bones. The morally bankrupt among them are almost non-existent.”

“Do you believe it is something genetic?” he asked, curious at the phenomenon.

“It may well be. For all that they don’t mess with genetics, their Worldmind holds massive amounts of information on it, and their own genecode is as solid as a rock, if not super-enhanced. I believe they simply intended to use the Nova Force to empower them to greater degrees if needed...”

“Are they not empowering Ultra Cores now? Do we need such a Force?” he asked reasonably.

I just tilted my head to him. “They are using the blessing of the Phoenix and the power of the M’Kraan Crystal to form these Cores. How are those in any way something of our own?”

“Ah. Rather than the blessing of Divine or Cosmic powers to undertake something like this, you wish it to come from below, from the people themselves,” he nodded understanding. “That is a reason we can empathize with. The protection from a God of Death is simply that, a shield to ward off Death’s dissatisfaction.”

“Yes. The current system is a stopgap, a jumpstart, if you will. It is also a monstrously good idea, as it gives normal people the option of gaining tremendous power, without the randomness of genetics and superhero origin stories.”

“And you have other alternatives in addition.” He gestured at my face. “Those Ultraspecs. I understand there are significant costs to making them...”

“Yes, some very radical Isotopes with almost no uses except being food for them. In terms of value and rarity, ehhh, several hundred million dollars of raw materials that are nigh-impossible to find, they can only be made, and have no use that we know of except as food.”

“An expensive method of reproduction,” he said diplomatically. “I have seen my wife Energize rare Isotopes for us, but that is still significant.”

“With enough food, as a living creature, they can reproduce fairly quickly, but definitely not as fast as high technology. The benefits are worth it, of course, especially since they stack with most other natural or technological benefits.”

“Yes, you bestow them on the Ultra Corpsmen in lieu of those buckets from the Nova Corps,” he laughed softly. “I understand even Primus wears a set now!”

“He loves the visual amplification, and the extra focus and punch for his Primal Blast,” I nodded once. “Always nice to give the Big Guy a gift he can actually use and enjoy. He’s got a pretty extensive crazy socks collection now, after all...”

T’Challa grinned despite himself. “Ororo likes weaving custom robes for him. He wears them when he visits. But of course, you know that...” he remembered after the fact.

I just winked at him. “Which reminds me. Sama brought this to my attention recently. Do you know what a klyntar is?”

He frowned for a moment. “Not... something we have encountered?” he asked after a moment. “I recall a reference to it...”

“Alien database. Symbiotic lifeform,” I prodded him.

“Ah, yes, the shapechangers, a protoplasmic lifeform with fluidic bodymorphing capable of bestowing great powers upon their hosts, and making permanent genetic upgrades to them. They had a... severely mixed assessment, from what I recall?”

“Well, if you don’t feed them the right enzymes, they go looking for them in brains. Phenethylamine, for the records.” I could see him making a mental note. “Chocolate, soy, tofu, coffee, for reference. Sama and Briggs are working on a soy variety with great concentrations of it.”

T’Challa sat up slightly. “They have made contact with one?” he asked carefully.