Chapter Text
The sharp sound of rumbling bombs blasting from above brought Shuri out of the strange daze she was in. It had felt as if she had been floating weightlessly. She blinked her blurred vision coming back into focus as she looked around the room that she was in. Shuri looked around her surroundings slowly, one moment K’uk’ulkan held her close, whispering something in her ear, and the next she was sitting in what looked to be someone's home.
She was sitting on the floor on a pile of blankets and cushions with the strong smell of incense wafting around her and the taste of sea salt on her tongue, it made her feel too dizzy to stand right away.
The home had a small wooden table with chairs, a dark red hammock, and cubby-like shelving that held several scrolls that Shuri’s fingers instantly twitched at seeing. There were also dozens of Mesoamerican artifacts that Shuri could tell from just a look that they dated as far back as the 16th century, but they also looked to be in perfect condition.
What had really caught her eye was the giant wall of murals all along the back of the hut. Shuri stood to get a closer look at them, but abruptly stopped when she realized she wasn’t wearing the clothing she had come down in. She was wearing a billowing white dress with the most intricate jade beaded collar that she had ever seen. Carefully, Shuri grazed her fingers over the beads, wondering briefly how one would even put it on. It was beyond beautiful, but the amount of collarbone she was showing was a bit embarrassing though.
With a shake of her head, Shuri walked over to the murals to inspect them closer. Recognizing a lot of it from her dreams, but the one that shook her the most was the one at the end where it showed a Man with winged ankles entangled with a black panther.
Her fingers shook as she touched this particular painting. Real and alive under her hand.
“ I painted that, the day you left me. It was the last painting I ever did.”
Shuri whipped her head back towards the entrance to see Na- no, K’uk’ulkan standing there. A small smile gracing his features. He had taken his serpent's helm off, but he still had an aura about him that made him imposing. She swallowed thickly as he got closer to her. He really looks exactly like Namor. Or I suppose Namor looks like him. “I don’t think I’m who you think I am.”
“You are.” Was his simple yet firm response. The God placed a hand on her lower back and led her to the beginning of the mural. “ Would you like for me to tell you our story?”
“I-”
The cacophony of gunfire and explosions from above contrast starkly against the calm blue glow and warm firelight of the hut. Shuri glanced at the entrance nervously, hoping her brother and Namor were safe.
Warm fingers slide across her chin and bring her gaze back to K’uk’ulkan. He looked so untroubled by what was happening outside that it gave Shuri conflicting emotions of calm and turmoil swirling within her.
In the end Shuri’s curiosity won out when K’uk’ulkan asked her again. She nodded her head once, tensely, and he gave her a mesmerizing smile that sent her heart beat wildly in her chest. With her being so close she noticed the details of his jade jewelry; the straight septum in his nose, and the large square earspools on his curiously pointed ears.
The God K’uk’ulkan and the mortal Namor, continued to merge and separate in her mind's eye.
It was altogether dizzying.
Kulkukan lifted a hand to one corner of the mural depicting a large feathered serpent amongst his people, not with the cool blue skin that Shuri had come to recognize but a warm brown. She could almost feel the sun on her skin, the smell of the fresh turned earth so long ago. “ Once, many years ago, I created and ruled a kingdom on the surface, Talokan. There was a wealth of resources, food, ore, medicine, enough to be distributed freely and without greed. My people thrived.”
His hand moved to show another scene, similar but with a violence that made Shuri’s blood go cold. The memory of screams echoing across time. “ And then the conquistadors came. Believing in their,” The God scoffed softly, “ their own divinity, that what was freely given should belong to them alone, because their god told it was so. They killed so many of my people…and in return I killed so many of them.” He was calm in this moment, but Shuri could see the rage pouring from his eyes.
“I took the dead and moved my city so that my people could have a much better life in death, to better protect our traditions, our stories, our resources. A daughter of a Goddess called Bast, who came from a land an ocean away, heard of my plight and came to our aid.” Shuri looked to K’uk’ulkan in shock, hearing the name of the Goddess her family worshiped to come from his lips. The God simply looked back at her with a soft adoring look, tilting his head towards a mural that showed a man wearing a serpent's helm on his knees and a woman reaching down to him, wearing a dress similar to the one Shuri was wearing.
She realized numbly that it was K’uk’ulkan and B’alam. Shuri could almost feel the dirt and grass under her bare feet walking towards the distraught and broken God, sunlight filtering through the trees.
The next image he showed Shuri was of B’alam holding a blue plant, surrounded by people who bore the now familiar blue skin. “ She took the name B’alam, and with Chaac’s help, brought the ones slain back from the dead. Although they were forever altered.” At this Shuri could remember how the plant felt in her hands as she ground it into a paste, the smell sweet and briney.
K’uk’ulkan went quiet and Shuri turned to look at him, his face looking somber before finally turning to her. “ We fell in love.” He was no longer touching her, but she could feel his hands and lips everywhere. The heat of his eyes on her. The swell of her heart was about to burst. Shuri broke eye contact quickly to look back at the mural, her eyes locking onto that of a solitary black panther, large and lurking through the woods.
“...is that Bast?” Shuri pointed to the image, directing K’uk’ulkan’s burning gaze away from her.
“ Yes.” He hissed, with barely concealed contempt. “The Goddess did not approve of our union, and when she heard her daughter would stay in Talokan she became enraged.” He did not point to the next mural, but he didn’t have to as Shuri’s eyes caught on a feathered serpent in battle with a black panther. “ Bast threatened to reveal Talokan’s secrets if her daughter did not return, and I told her I would kill her if she harmed either Talokan or B’alam.”
An image of Bast roaring so loudly that ships were coming for Talokan. The people, now blue, ran into the ocean’s waves to hide. Shuri felt a peculiar feeling of shame, realizing that this was the reason that people still knew of Talokan’s existence. Even if it now sounded like some children’s story told before bed. “The Goddess stayed true to her word, and I had to move Talokan yet again, this time into the depths of the ocean.”
He placed a hand solidly on an image depicting Bast, broken into seven pieces. K’uk’ulkan floating, body coiled, above her. “ …and I stayed true to my word as well.”
“But how can you kill a god?” Shuri asked breathlessly, a rush of grief hitting her so strongly that she reached out and grabbed onto the God’s arm mindlessly. The thought of her own mothers death, Ramonda, suddenly at the forefront of her mind. She felt like she could have drowned within that grief.
“It is not a true death. I simply took her body away for a time.” K’uk’ulkan placed a hand gently over hers, and the familiar warmth of his hand brought her some comfort. “ In the end Bast still got what she wanted. Ek B’alam could not forgive what I had done and I would not apologize because of what her mother had done to my people. However, because she understood the magnitude of her mothers actions.” He turned to Shuri, moving his hands to her shoulders to turn her to face him as well. “…she said she would one day return and we would be reunited as one again.”
Shuri stuttered out a panicked response as he brought her closer to him. “B-but I’m not her!”
The God didn’t seem to hear her, as he pressed his forehead against hers and the familiarity of it had Shuri fluttering her eyes shut. The memory of this gesture being done a thousand times before overwhelming her senses.
“You are her and you will stay here with me. Just as you promised.” He whispered and leaned down to kiss her, and she almost let him, but a familiar voice cut through the haze Shuri was in.
“SHURI!!”
She blinked at the sound of her name outside of the hut. Shuri recognized Namor’s voice and immediately pulled away from K’uk’ulkan. “I-I’m sorry. I have to-” Shuri turned and ran out of the hut. The beating of drums sounding from a distance.
Thankfully the cavern opening into Talokan wasn’t just a straight drop down. There were multiple intricate carved red platforms and walkways to make one's way down with glowing blue rocks embedded into the stone walls, along with the moon, kept everything well lit.
Down at the bottom, at the very center, Namor could see a round pool of water that reflected the full moon from up above. There was something else there as well, but Namor couldn’t quite make it out with how bright the moon's reflection was.
The problem was the amount of water making the pathways dangerous to walk on.
Bombs of fire and water exploded above them as they made their way down, pelting them with a mixture of heat and ice water. And although both of them were trying their best to keep from falling, it was T’Challa who was constantly slipping on to the ground with Namor hefting him back up.
“How are you not falling!?” T’Challa yelled, disgruntled after having fallen flat on his backside when jumping down to a different platform.
Namor had noticed that he felt more grounded and stable then ever before, but he didn’t have time to think on it when Shuri was somewhere below them. So instead he teased back, “Probably because I spend more time outside then crammed in those libraries of yours!”
“I get out!” T’Challa responded back indigently, before slamming into the back of Namor who was frozen still, and slipping back to the ground. There were two blue warriors standing before them, spears ready to attack. T’Challa went to raise the gun in his hand but Namor stopped him. He had wanted to test out a theory.
“ Leave us be. ”
When Namor spoke in Maya the Talokanil guards lowered their guard and gave Namor an assessing look. They then saluted to Namor, fingers splayed to look as if they were holding a sphere, before jumping with inhuman grace and strength to the higher platforms to attack the oncoming Hydra soldiers.
“How-”
A screaming soldier flailing as he fell to his death below cut off whatever T’Challa was about to ask.
“No time!” Namor called behind him as he continued on, not looking to see if T’Challa was following. Despite the two of them getting down into the spiral of Talokan’s entrance first, there were still soldiers making quick work of the distance between them.
Namor and T’Challa alternated between shooting back at them and continuing to make their way to the bottom. It wasn’t clear where Shuri was exactly, but Namor had the insane thought that he could sense her far below. That same instinct was telling him to hurry it up.
They came upon another Talokanil warrior, but before Namor could speak to her they were shot down by a spray of bullets. Both Namor and T’Challa dove for cover behind a square raised platform just before the spray was directed towards them.
“What do we do?!” T’Challa panically asked, holding the gun in his hand but unsure whether to fire or not. The gun being used by the soldier clearly having the advantage as compared to his handgun. When he received no answer T’Challa looked to the man next to him. “Namor?”
Namor sat frozen, staring at the downed warrior across from them, a simmering rage beginning to boil over. Without much thought, Namor dove towards the body as soon as the bullets ceased, the soldier with the gun quickly moving to load in another clip. Namor grabbed for the spear that was still limply held by the dead Talokanil, and with all of his strength launched the weapon at the soldier.
The spear stuck solidly in the Hydra soldier’s neck, forcing him to drop his gun as he reached up towards the spear in shock, stumbling off the edge of the walkway.
T’Challa looked over at Namor in amazement. “Nicely done, but why not use your gun?”
“Not sure.” Mumbled Namor, looking back to the warrior to see that the bullet wounds were beginning to seal shut. There was a small moment of relief as Namor realized the warrior would be standing again soon. Talokan had its own rules of physics it would seem.
He glanced down to a netted pouch filled with small hexagonal objects. A passing familiarity had him taking one out to get a closer look. The sides of it were covered with a blue tinted glass and it made a curious gurgling noise. They’re bombs. Namor thought distantly as a flash of orange caught his eye.
Across from them on another walkway, he saw the woman from the boat, the one that reminded him of a lionfish. She was being backed along the edge as three men with guns got closer to her. Namor had a feeling she would be fine, but he didn’t want to chance anything.
He placed the bomb back in the net and took the whole thing in his hand, swung the net in his hand to gain some momentum and tossed it towards the group. The bombs exploded on impact with a strong spray of sea water blasting them clean off of the walkway.
The lionfish woman looked at Namor in surprise, tilting her head down slowly in thanks.
T’Challa carefully stood up, looking between the woman and Namor. “Well that was-” Another explosion, this one of fire, went off near them and shook the ground enough to make T’Challa lose his balance.
However this time he had no ground to fall on.
Before Namor could even take a step forward, T’Challa slipped over the edge. “T’CHALLA!” There was a moment of horror as Namor ran to the edge, feeling helpless as he heard the man’s screams until it abruptly stopped.
Nervously, Namor looked over the edge and nearly collapsed in relief at the sight below.
T’Challa was still alive and in shock as he dangled from a single unwavering blue arm. It was the giant Namor had met on the boat. The warrior carefully placed T’Challa down next to him and looked up curiously at Namor.
“ Thank you my friend!” Namor called down in Maya, slipping his backpack off and tossing it down. “Please pass that to the man you had just caught.” The warrior easily caught the bag, gave it an interested once over before handing it off to a still stunned T’Challa. Switching back to english, “Stay there! I’ll come to you!”
He made it down a few platforms and walkways before T’Challa screamed up at him-
“Look out!!”
Namor turned his head just in time just in time to get socked in the jaw. The blow sent him reeling back, his sure footing the only thing keeping from falling, but that too was taken from him. A foot landed solidly square in the middle of his chest and he fell off the current walkway he was on and onto a platform that was luckily not too far below, but he landed on his back which knocked the air out of him.
The air came back slowly into his lungs at a painful crawl. A spray of sea water helped revive him enough to watch as his attacker jumped down to his level. Namor groaned in annoyance as he pushed himself up.
“Mr. Almehen.” Johann said in way of hello, standing stiffly with his hands behind his back as walked around Namor with a predatory stroll.
Namor sucked his teeth and spat out a bit of blood. “I was hoping you would have managed to die up there.”
“Sorry to disappoint.” The man gave Namor a feral manic grin, his mask of professional calm finally cracking. “These people seem to listen to you! I was thinking we could make a deal-”
“I think not.”
Johann clicked his tongue, looking more irritated that he was interrupted then by Namor’s instant decline. “A pity.”
As much as Namor disliked the man, he had to admit that the man was deadly fast. Namor barely managed to block the man's onslaught fists and kicks, the biting sting of each block showcasing how strong he was.
Johann's fighting style was calculated and precise. Almost clinical.
But Namor quickly saw the predictability of it.
There was a millisecond of an opening and Namor rushed in, pushing all of his weight into shoulder checking the man, toppling them both over the edge of the platform and into a shallow pool of water far below.
The water seemed to revive Namor as he got up much quicker than his last fall. He looked up and realized that they had fallen into the center pool that Namor had seen from up above. However it wasn’t very deep, atleast not where Namor was standing where it only reached up to his ankles as he stood near the edge.
It appeared that the rounded platform was slightly concave, the water going deeper the closer you got to the center of the circle. Well that’s what Namor theorized as he saw Johann, who had fallen further in, rise to stand with the water at mid calf. They both looked towards the center to see a strange blue glowing plant at the middle of the plateau.
Namor’s eyes widened at the sight, remembering his mothers story of Chaac’s gift to the people of Talokan. The plant that had brought the dead back to life. He realized with a chill that Johann seemed to know exactly what he was looking at, no longer interested in fighting Namor as the true prize stood before him.
Blindly, Johann walked towards the plant, walking deeper into the pool.
A raw instinct to stop him ripped through Namor, but he couldn’t even take a step forward when a few Hydra soldiers jumped onto the platform, sending waves of water to dance up into the air before falling back down. There would be no stopping Johann now.
There were four altogether and they all looked equally exhausted and beaten down, but Namor could tell that they still had a fight in them. At Least one more. And because it was their last one Namor knew it wouldn’t be an easy fight. He felt for his gun at his hip but quietly cursed to himself when he realized it was soaking wet from when he had fallen into the shallow pool.
“Well this just keeps getting better and better.” Namor muttered to himself.
As the soldiers closed in, and Namor’s mind was racing with possibly running instead of fighting, a spear came from above and struck through the water with a slap to stick firmly in the ground in front of Namor. The sudden appearance of the weapon momentarily stunning the group of men.
The spear was a mixture of jade and gold, Mayan hieroglyphics decorating its surface. Namor felt a familiar pull to it, but looked up to where it had come from, finding the Tigerfish woman giving him a small nod. The soldiers chose to move forward again, and Namor wasted no time in grabbing the spear and spinning it in his hand to prepare to fight.
It felt surprisingly light and balanced in Namor’s hand and made quick work of taking down the first soldier that chose to attack first. Stabbing the spear deep within the man's stomach with a yell and then yanking him to the side to rip him off of the platform.
Namor had fought with all types of weapons before within his life, but there was something about this one that made Namor feel like an expert. He swung the spear around, bringing the blunt cylindrical end of it crashing into the side of another soldier’s temple. There was a loud crunch as the hit landed before the soldier limply fell into the water.
One of the Hydra soldiers made the mistake of trying to grab the spear from Namor, who simply reverted to his normal fighting style and punched the man off of the plateau with a solid right hook.
The final soldier stumbled back keeping his distance. “If I’m going to die then you're coming with me!” He screamed in panic at Namor as he brought out a grenade, taking out the lynch pin. Namor took a few steps back, getting ready to flee, but as the man lifted his hand to throw the grenade an axe came flying through the air, cutting cleanly through the arm.
Both severed arm and grenade fell off the side of the platform, the soldier stumbling along with them in shock. A second later the blast of the grenade went off, the distance keeping Namor unharmed.
He looked up towards the giant with the hammerhead shark helm, who merely shrugged in response to Namor’s look of shock.
With all the soldiers dealt with Namor whipped his head to where Johann was neck deep in water, struggling to get to the center to where the plant was. The sounds of beating drums steadily increased the closer he got to the plant. Namor looked up at the opening of the cave to see storm clouds closing in around the full moon before completely covering it.
Johann climbed up onto the small platform at the center, the drums sounding almost like thunder now, but he didn't seem to notice. His wide crazed eyes were too focused on what was in front of him
Ocean water began spilling into the opening from above, completely taking over Namor’s attention from Johann. We have to leave NOW. Namor dropped the weapon in his hand and he quickly jumped from the center plateau to another platform. His head quickly whipped around, all of his thoughts on finding Shuri until his eyes finally landed on a small hut.
She was there. He knew she was.
“SHURI!!”
Namor was instantly relieved to see Shuri running out of the hut a few moments later, looking relieved herself. She was still at a lower level then him and they both begin making their way to the other, him climbing down and her climbing up. The water rising just after her.
Unfortunately she was a lot like her brother in the sense that when she was just about to reach Namor she slipped with a yelp as a rush of seawater hit her from the side and slid off of the edge. She shot out both hands to grip onto the ledge just before she could fully fall off and looked down, realizing that the hut was not the lowest level of Talokan.
Down below, between all of the platforms was an even deeper part of the ocean, and Shuri could see the faint outlines of an underwater kingdom glittering softly below, like a cluster of stars in the night sky. There was a single bright sphere floating between them and the kingdom and Shuri’s memory momentarily blurred with the image of K’uk’ulkan floating in front of it, turning to look at her.
Come back to me, my love.
Shuri’s fingers slowly began to loosen its grip, the call of the deep becoming louder with the rising water.
A warm hand latched onto her wrist and yanked her back up onto the platform. Grounding her solidly to the present. She looked up to see Namor softly smiling at her.
“Hey princess.”
“Namor!”
In a surge of giddy relief at finally being back together, Shuri wrapped her arms around Namor’s neck to hold him close and the two shared a brief but affectionate kiss. Communicating everything that needed to be said in that moment.
From a distance an old God watched in somber understanding, whispering, “Ah…I see what you meant by ‘reuniting’ my love.”
With the drums sounding louder than before, K’uk’ulkan brought his attention to the center plateau where Johann had finally managed to climb up onto the ledge where the blue glowing plant was growing.
The God raised into the air with a hiss of his wings, flying a slow circle around the plateau, transforming with a blur of fabric and feathers into a giant feathered serpent, his large body coiling around the platform before stopping right before Johann.
A single low hum began to intertwine with beating drums up above, several dozens of blue Talokanil warriors standing stock still on various levels of platforms and walkways up above. One by one the warriors join the singing, the drumbeats getting louder from the sky above.
Johann quickly glanced away from the ancient God in front of him, realizing that not a single Hyrdra soldier was anywhere to be seen. He squared up his shoulders and looked back to K’uk’ulkan, who hadn't taken his eyes off of the intruder once. “This belongs to me! I made my way to this lost kingdom and I know the power of this plant. I was chosen to be here at this moment.”
“Belongs to you?” The serpent's mouth did not move as he spoke, but he narrowed his eyes at Johann. A low rumbling clicking in the back of his throat. “ Are you saying your god chose you to be here? ”
“I'm saying that I earned the right to take this plant.”
The humming turned into chanting, echoing throughout the cavern, until it reached an almost piercing pitch until it suddenly cut off.
During that time, both Namor and Shuri managed to climb up to T’Challa, but the sudden silence caused them all to stop to watch the interaction between Johann and K’uk’ulkan. They glanced up quickly to see the warriors suddenly gone.
Shuri gripped Namor's hand as she realized what Johann was standing in front of. "Chaac's gift." She whispered, her mind recalling a memory of how the plant had felt in her hand.
The feathered serpent let out a warm chuckle that reverberated throughout the caves, sea water continuing to fall around them. “ Then by all means. Claim your reward, oh chosen one.”
Without waiting a second longer, Johann kneeled down and yanked on the plant, but it didn’t budge. He didn’t get a second chance to pull again.
A bolt of lighting shot directly from above and straight down at Johann, continuously hitting the spot over and over again. The sound and light were so violently assaulting that the trio that were still watching, pressed themselves as close as they could to the wall behind them. And just as the singing had abruptly stopped before, so did the lighting.
What was left of Johann was a burnt and mutilated body, although his clothing was perfectly intact. His face was a bright red and bloody mess. He had fallen back into the surrounding water on the platform and to their horror they realized he was still alive as he took a ragged breath in.
“...ha..il…” Was all Johann could manage to say before several blue hands reached up from beneath the surface of the water and dragged him down beneath.
K’uk’ulkan instantly brought his attention back to Shuri, slithering his way to them until he reached the platform they were on. He changed back into his human form, the body and tail of the snake shrinking and forminging into the cloth of his cloak.
After setting his feet down, the water having risen to ankle deep now, he strode straight to Shuri and pulled her into him, muffling her surprised yelp with a firm kiss. That only lasted a brief moment before Namor yanked Shuri back behind him, scowling at the mirror version of himself. The God didn’t give him any attention as he continued to stare at Shuri, his eyes memorizing the details of her face.
The water rose to their knees before K’uk’ulkan finally tore his eyes away to finally look at Namor, not saying a single word to him but Namor seemed to understand the intense expression on his face.
“It will be different.” Namor promised in earnest. Not an ounce of fear on his face despite the water being at waist level now.
The God gave him one nod of acknowledgement before turning back to Shuri, his eyes softening with a small smile on his face that made him look heartbreakingly human. “ Until we meet again…B’alam.” He raised his hand to them and everything disappeared in a flash of white light.
A collection of images assaulted them in rapid succession, a blend of moving murals and reality.
Images of Talokan as it was in the beginning before the sea rushed to cover and hide the kingdom from the world.
Of people thriving and alive.
To being massacred in their own home.
And then being brought back to life, their brown skin turning blue.
The final image was that of a man wearing a serpent's helm on his knees reaching towards a woman wearing a black panther’s helm reaching down to him.
Water rushed around them, pushing them further onto the sandy beach and waking them up from their strange slumber. One moment they were in Talokan, the next they were on a beach. Namor let out a sigh of relief when he recognized the beach they were on, which was not too far off from the town they had originally met in.
He looked down to see Shuri wrapped in his arms, lifting her head up to rest her chin on his chest. His heart swelled at the sight of her smile.
T’Challa was the first to hop back to his feet as the couple took their time to sit up. He ran into the waves to grab his hat that had been snatched away with the surf. “I can't believe this survived the trip!”
He managed to grab it and quickly flipped it over to fit on top of his head. Only to be immediately drenched with more sea water. T’Challa stood frozen with the water continuously dripping from his hat before ripping it back off of his head, his nerves finally getting the better of him.
“We almost got killed!” He pointed accusingly at both Shuri and Namor who were finally standing, trying their best not to laugh at the clearly freaked out T’Challa. “AND we have nothing to show of our adventures because we saw Talokan all of what 10 minutes? Well I guess that was a waste of time.”
Namor hummed thoughtfully and wrapped an arm around Shuri. She looked up to see him looking lovingly at her and she knew her face mirrored his. “I wouldn’t say that.” They both leaned into the other sharing a kiss that felt almost overwhelming with how long it truly took for them to find one another.
T’Challa instantly made a loud gagging noise that didn’t seem to phase the couple as they only deepened the kiss. The brother rolled his eyes, “Oh please,” and placed his hat back on his head only to be sent sputtering as he was drenched in seawater again. “HOW?!”
As they finally left the beach to make the trek back to town, the sun gleamed brightly on the intricate jade beadwork of Shuri’s dress.
On the Isle de Talokan
A bush jostled violently until a man burst through it, touching his chest until he was content that he had been unharmed. With his red vest still intact, Luis let out a giant sigh of relief that turned into a yell of excitement. “I’m alive!”
He glanced around looking a little dazed but still smiling.
“How am I going to get home?”
