"So, what? It was too dangerous
for me to fight against Iron Man
and Black Widow last year because
I was too young and it was too
dangerous, but now some alien dude
wants to destroy the planet and I'm
suddenly totally cool to fight?"
Sequel to...
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CHAPTER TWELVE | PROBLEM-SOLUTION
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i found the muse in myself. and i loved her fiercely.
-among the goddesses: an epic // annie finch
__________
Bella had seen all the news stories last year about Wakanda being far richer than they'd ever let on in history, but seeing it with her own eyes was another story all together. The buildings were unlike anything she'd ever seen, and she had no idea how they were just able to keep all of this a secret for so long.
"Captain Rogers." The heavily accented voice belonged to a tall, handsome man with a neatly trimmed beard. He was flanked by two women, tall and beautiful and decked in intricate, gorgeous red armor. "It's good to see you."
"Same to you," Steve said, reaching out to shake the man's hand. "Unfortunate it's always under circumstances like this."
The king of Wakanda smiled and chuckled. "We told the world the truth because we want to help."
"And we can't thank you enough for that." Steve glanced back at Bella and beckoned her over. When she shuffled over, he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "This is Bella. She needs your help tracking someone down."
T'challa nodded, and his face was a solemn, unreadable facade — the perfect example of a king. "Follow us. We can discuss the matter in depth inside."
Bella had been in some nice places throughout her lifetime, but the Wakandan Palace was like nothing she'd ever seen — in person or in a movie. Her mouth dropped open at the sight of the tapestries, tall windows, and high ceilings. It was like a dream. A dream she never wanted to wake up from.
T'challa and his guards led Steve and Bella into an elevator, which led into an underground chamber bigger than the entrance hall to the palace.
"Wow," Bella gasped, causing one of the guards to smirk and shoot a wink at her.
A girl around Bella's age with long braids tied atop her head was sitting at a worktable, bent over a tablet. Around her, machines were working up a storm, firing lasers and cutting pieces of metal into odd, weaponlike shapes.
"So, tell me about who you need to track down."
Bella bit the inside of her cheek. "His name is Kazimir Vasiliev. About a year ago, I sent his brother to jail for a string of rapes. Six months ago, his brother was killed in prison by another prisoner. I think he's targeting me for it."
"What do you mean targeting?" T'challa asked her.
Bella let out a shaking sigh and closed her eyes. All she could see was Peter, looking at her like she was a complete stranger. All she could hear was her brother's voice, not recognizing hers. All she could smell was the dust that had collected across all of her furniture back in her apartment. All she could feel was the weight of being erased from the memories of her loved ones. It was crippling.
