74 Friends, Love, Training, and Relaxation

The next day, T'Challa spoke in the midst of the burned-down buildings to his people, recounting what had transpired the day before.

After that, he announced another mourning period in Wakanda and apologized to his fellow countrymen for his failure. Although no one really blamed him, he still wore a pained expression on his face.

Later that day Okoye appeared at our home and invited us to the palace. Son we were now on our way there, strolling through the quiet golden city.

As we walked past the burned-down comic store, a memorial had already been set up for all the people who had died that day, especially the shamans.

Wakanda had lost its mightiest weapon with the deaths, and for a spiritual people like the Wakandans, this must have been the greatest loss since the founding of their nation.

I stopped, closed my eyes, and prayed for the souls of the departed and the burned-down comic store, receiving confused looks from Wanda and Pietro in the process.

"What are you doing? Are you still mourning over the comic book store?" asked Wanda, shaking her head.

"N- No, since spirits are real in Wakanda, I'm praying for the lives lost, of course," I replied, trying to look sincerely at her. Though she raised an eyebrow and appeared skeptical, she still nodded, and we continued walking.

Looking at the stiff Pietro who was walking the whole time quietly I say, "I'm probably not the only one who should pray, though. T'Chaka will probably speak with Pietro about his relationship with Shuri."

My words made Pietro freeze in place. In an instant, he closed his eyes, clenched his hands together, and began muttering something under his breath.

Yeah, good luck, man. You can be the greatest hero, but that's nothing against a protective father. I looked at him with a worried expression, wishing him the strength of all the past Panthers.

As if reading my mind, Wanda rolled her eyes at us and started walking forward. I smiled at her behavior and start to follow her.

After Pietro woke up, Shuri basically told him everything about what happened after he lost consciousness and after conducting more "tests" on him, Shuri finally allowed him to go home, only for Okoye to show up there and frighten him to death before inviting us to the palace.

---

After a few minutes, we arrived at the palace and were escorted inside by Okoye.

As always, the elders and the royal family were present. When T'Challa saw us, he immediately stood up from his throne and walked forward. His new aura was extremely powerful and dense, and I could feel the beast within him waiting to be unleashed against those who would endanger his country.

Next to me, I noticed Pietro tensing up a bit, just as he did with the Hulk. So, it seemed I was right—he could truly sense or feel people's energy.

T'Challa extended his hand for a handshake and said, "Yesterday, I didn't have a chance to thank you since you disappeared, but... thank you for everything."

His words puzzled the elders and his family. He probably didn't inform them about the cause of the transformation, and they only knew that Wanda saved the old King and Pietro helped against Killmonger and stopped the flames. Actually I'm fine with it since, if they believe he achieved it completely by his on or with the help of their god they would never question him again.

"No problem, but that was always a part of you. I simply opened the gates." I said quietly, while shaking his hand. He nodded with a smile and called for Shuri, who held a small chest in her hands.

T'Challa opened it, revealing eight Panther emblems made of vibranium. He took three and placed one in each of our hands, saying, "These emblems represent the full support of the royal family of Wakanda and the country itself. Our home is now your home."

We gladly accepted them and received applause from the elders and the royal family, while the Dora Milaje hit their spears on the floor as a sign of respect.

Afterwards, Ramonda and T'Chaka came forward to express their gratitude too. Then they finally turned their attention to Pietro. T'Chaka had a frightened expression while Ramonda appeared calm.

They only invited him to speak with them about Shuri this evening, a request he couldn't refuse. So Pietro simply nodded without saying anything, almost like a robot. Which made me chuckle, resulting in an elbow strike from Wanda. However, since I saw it coming, I endured it like a real man.

Afterwards, T'Challa promised us a party after the mourning period is over, and we could finally leave the palace. Stepping outside, we saw the five individuals for whom the other emblems were prepared.

Steve, Bucky, Sam, Natasha, and Bruce stood in front of us, looking like they were dressed up for the Oscars or some similar event. Upon seeing us, particularly me, the atmosphere became tense.

I sighed and said, "Hello everyone."

Steve stepped forward and said, "Hello, Blake. We finally met again and I hope we get the chance to talk about our differences in the near future."

"Yeah, my door is always open if someone truly wants to talk with me," I replied with a smile, causing Natasha to look a bit guilty.

Steve nodded, and Okoye led them inside without any comments from the other members of the Exvengers.

Maybe I should really speak with Steve and the others in the near future to bury the hatchet and not get into a heavy mood every time we meet since there are bigger problems coming for us.

But that would have to come after dealing with my eye problem. The first thing on my agenda after getting home is to contact the Ancient One. The only issue is that I don't have her number...

---

~~~ Six months later ~~~

"So, remember, you need to feel the vibrations of the baseball bat and evade the attack, or it will hit you," I said while standing behind Pietro, who sat on the ground wearing a blindfold.

"Wait, if you hit me with it, I'll go KO again, so be gentle," said the frightened speedster.

"Don't worry, I will heal you afterwards, so concentrate!" Saying this, I swing the bat down mercilessly, like Negan, and Pietro manages to evade the attacks by shifting his head while still sitting.

After ten swings, I stopped. This time he managed to evade all of them. The last times, I could hit him at least once, sending him flying a few times.

He takes off his blindfold and looks at me like a puppy that needs some pats on the head. "Well done, it seems you finally have the hang of it," I say, stretching out my hand to help him stand up from the ground. He smiles back and nods, accepting my hand.

I always knew he could do it; his way of sensing things was just a lot different than mine. While I could feel people's chakra, he could feel the vibrations or energy from people, like from the Hulk or T'Challa.

"You did it, Pietro." Shuri came running and gave him a hug and a bottle of water... but nothing for me, who swung the baseball bat at her boyfriend all day...

After Pietro spoke with her parents, their relationship became official, and they started dating openly without Okoye hunting them down. I saw Pietro already running around accessory stores, choosing some small round objects for him and her.

Hearing a bit of applause from the three women sitting on the veranda, he gave them a thumbs up while still hugging Shuri.

So i left the lovebirds behind to give them space and walked to Wanda, Yao, and Okoye, who were drinking tea on this beautiful day on the veranda.

After I sat down, Wanda poured me some tea and continued chatting with the other women. She wore wider clothes now, because she was already pregnant in her seventh month, clearly shown her big round stomach. Nevertheless, it took nothing away from her beauty.

After Wakanda calmed down, I also used my ravens to track down Yao, who was in a village in Tibet, healing some children, and contacted her there.

Afterward, she came by, and we tried to solve the blindness using magic. The only problem was that I couldn't use my chakra to heal my eyes like the magicians do, and I also couldn't draw power from the universe and dimensions to shape them for something to heal me...

Yao tried to use her magic to trigger something, but that didn't work either. She said it's probably because my power comes not from this world and has some rules attached to it that couldn't be easily bypassed.

So, I was back to square one and so I concentrated my efforts on strengthening my body and mind, to not relying too much on my Mangekyou Sharingan in the future.

While I was at it, I also started training Pietro and Wanda more, as they could be my greatest help in the upcoming events. I began teaching Wanda Nordic runes, which she was a natural talent in it and is already surpassing me in it.

It seems like chaos magic comes with instructions on how to use the runes perfectly...

While Wanda mastered the runes, Pietro and I focused on training our stamina, using a lot of energy and chakra throughout the day and sparring from time to time. I also taught him new things, like how to effectively sense beings his way, that he mastered today.

Occasionally, T'Challa would come by and train with us in his new form. It seems like he doesn't need his suit anymore and is planning to give the armor to someone else.

But since Shuri can't find a way to replicate the heart-shaped herb yet, he is waiting for her to achieve that before passing the Black Panther mantle.

He also mentioned that the superhero team is doing great, and he will take Pietro next week on some kind of mission in Egypt to stop some ancient mutant. He also gathered various people for his team, even someone from the X-Men like Storm.

That's really great because we have a better chance of stopping MCU villains like Thanos or anyone else with the mutants working alongside us.

The other person who comes nearly every second day is Yao after I contracted her. She is nowadays drinking tea with Wanda or helping her control her magic. She also said she would help deliver the baby when the time comes since she can basically can do anything after such a long lifespan.

So, after Yao helps people around the world, she comes by and spends time with Wanda. Since she is a really calm and relaxed character, I have no problem with her here.

To sum up the last six months, nothing bad has happened, and everything is going great for the time being. These days are filled with love, friends, training, and relaxation, allowing me to truly unwind and enjoy life.

So I closed my eyes and enjoy the taste of the delicious tea. When I opened them again, everyone around the table is staring at something on the table. Sitting there is a raven with golden eyes and golden runes adorning its body.

*Gaah* "The goddess of death is coming and the end is following her." *Gaah*