(Ororo POV)
"What are you thinking about, Ororo?" Ainet asks me.
"I was thinking about what T'Challa said," I tell her.
"What did the young warrior tell you, child of the sky?" she asks me.
"He told me that while my gesture was kind, it was ill thought out and therefore caused a lot of damage to many other villages."
I am ashamed. T'Challa and I have been wandering through Kenya for weeks now, and on our way, right at the border to Tanzania, we encountered the Uzuri people. They told me that they had seen my arrival in their dreams; 'the coming of the goddess Ororo' is what they said. At first, I was confused and looked at T'Challa for guidance. But he said that since I was a woman now, I was free to make my own decisions. So I decided to follow them to their village. I was welcomed here; everyone sees me and calls me a goddess. Well, everyone, but T'Challa. I don't know what it is, but he has been observing me closely in the last couple of weeks, and I thought he was testing me.
Ainet Mwangi, the village priestess of the Uzuri people, has welcomed me. Just a few days ago, the village was going through a terrible drought. I knew I could help; I had been practising with T'Challa and had improved. So I helped. I commanded rain to fall around the village for days, just to help them, water their crops and save them from the drought. But by doing this, I threw off the natural order of nature, and droughts formed over numerous other villages, and hundreds of animals were killed. T'Challa has left, looking to see whether he could help the other villages.
"And do you regret your decision to help us, Ororo?" Ainet asks me.
"No... maybe a bit," I admit. I might have improved the situation here in Uzuri, but I made it so much worse for many others.
"Hoho, there is nothing wrong with feeling bad for causing others harm. Even if a good intention was the reason for it. What matters now is how you respond to this. Listen to the young warrior, he is wise beyond his years."
"I know. T'Challa's great, isn't he?" I sigh.
"I can sense something great in him. He has a great destiny. But be warned, child of the sky, his path is filled with challenges, hardships and maybe even people you might not like. Are you ready for that?" Ainet says, and makes me nervous.
"Do you mean, he might leave me?"
"No. The young warrior's future is hidden from me. When I say he has a great destiny, I don't mean that I have seen it, but I have a long life of experience to tell me when I see someone of great importance. T'Challa's thoughts and future are his own."
What does that mean? Would he leave? No. No, he wouldn't, he told me so. Over the weeks of travelling together, T'Challa has expressed his desire to learn from me and for me to learn from him. I feel like he is hiding something behind that wish, but not anything bad. As a prince, he must have learned a lot already, and he wants to teach me. I think he doesn't really expect to learn anything from me, and only said that to make me feel better. I walk up the hill and wait for him to return.
As the sun sets on the horizon, I see T'Challa's figure approach from a distance. He walks up to me and looks down at me, since he is quite a bit taller than I am. I lose myself in his eyes, and we embrace.
"How was your day, white lioness?" he asks me.
"Stressful."
"I can imagine. Do you want to talk about it?"
"Mm-hmm." I nod my head.
We spend a long time talking, at least I do, and he listens. We look at the stars like we did when we first met, and I load everything on him that I had on my chest. When I'm finally finished, we just lie in the grass and don't say anything for a while.
"So, what did you learn?" T'Challa asks me.
"Learn? From what?"
"From this experience?"
"I should learn something from this? I need to become better, stronger, and learn to control my power better to help people effectively." I say, and he nods.
"Yes, but there's more."
"More?" I ask.
"You're not a god, Ororo. At least, not yet."
"I'm... I know that, it's just... the Uzuri call me that..."
"I know. But it's good to remember that. You have the gift of godhead passed from your ancestors, but you will need time and training, and even then, it will be a perilous path. Right now, you're a human, with special DNA that grants you powers over the weather and, of course, magic, also from your ancestors." T'Challa reveals to me.
"I... so they are right?"
"In a way, yes. But don't think that it will happen overnight. What happened here is regrettable, and you made a mistake, but I know you have a heart of gold and only mean well, which is why I will protect that heart with all my power. I wanted us to learn from one another and grow that way. I don't want you to be unprepared when the world crashes through our door."
I listen to his words and nod.
"I'll work hard, T'Challa."
"I know."
.
The time passed, and after that day, I committed to training and understanding my powers better. T'Challa, as I found out, knew more about my powers than I did myself, and he spent a lot of time explaining them to me.
"You see, Ororo, you are what the world calls 'mutants' or homo superior. Homo superior have many distinctive traits regarding biology, physiology, and genetics from homo sapiens. Homo superior can have wildly varying biologies depending on the nature of their mutation. Mutation is caused by something called the X-Gene in the homo superiors DNA. Mutations normally manifest themselves during puberty, often due to a traumatic event. Some exhibit their mutations at birth, while others do not manifest their powers until adulthood. In your case, you were gifted with an incredible power that goes well with your heritage from your mother's side.
As it will be classified, you will become an Omega Level mutant with psionic power to control all forms and facets of the weather and atmosphere. One of the primary sources of her powers on Earth is the electromagnetic field, so you can imagine what you will be capable of. Your inherent raw power and potential are something that I would classify as nigh-infinite, or even incalculable. All you need is training and knowledge."
I didn't understand all he was talking about at first, but I understood that he had a very high opinion of me and my powers. We started small, trying to learn from my mistake during the drought in the Uzuri village. T'Challa taught me about the Earth, how the weather was created, and the different longitudes and latitudes. He started to teach me maths, physics, and geography. I found geography to be particularly easy and enjoyable to learn, but the other things were hard. T'Challa took his time and explained everything in great detail, telling me the applications of it through practical uses of my power.
I learned to create storms in different areas, so as not to disrupt the natural weather in a large area. And as my control grew, we expanded our range, allowing me to be more precise.
T'Challa was a great teacher, with impeccable understanding of science, logistics, and much more. He had the demeanour of a great king already, and when he talked to crowds, he managed to capture their attention and make them follow him. That's how he did it with the different villages we visited. I would sit there and watch him interact with the people and listen to their problems, promising to do something about it and asking me to help him, if we could do it right away.
And then, we started my physical training. I didn't think I would need it, and at first didn't want to do it. But he told me to try to prevent him from touching me. I thought he was joking at first and used the wind to push him back. But he moved to the side and ran forward, tapping my forehead with his finger, before I even understood what was happening. He was so fast, and his movements were so fluid and graceful. After several failed attempts to stop him from touching me, I relented and we started training.
Our journey took us further south, to the plains of Tanzania, where we met more tribes who seemed to have expected me and started to worship me. I told them that I wasn't who they thought I was, but stopped doing that after realising that it wasn't working. I learned to use my powers and control the weather to combat droughts in large areas without disrupting the natural climate. T'Challa taught me about the locations we were at and continued to teach me whenever I wanted. He didn't want to push me too far and allowed me to walk at my own pace. For nearly a year, we stayed at the Uzuri village before continuing from there to Tanzania, and after that, further. We travelled from the Serengeti Plains to Ngorongoro, Lake Manyara and Mount Kilimanjaro. In all other countries around Lake Victoria, we saved countless lives while doing so.
.
"T'Challa?" I called after seeing him missing from the bed.
I slipped into his bed a few months ago, and since I haven't been making advances as of yet, he hasn't denied it. I have been growing during these years, and with me, my feelings as well.
"Hmm?"
I find a small note with a beautiful flower at the side of the bed with my name on it. I open it and see it is a letter addressed to me.
___
{Good morning, Hadari Yao. (Walker of Clouds)
I have left early to arrange something. Wear something nice today, and I hope to meet you at the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro when the sun is highest.}
___
He had to arrange something this early? What could it be? I get out of bed and start the day as I always do, with some exercise. T'Challa does the same, and while he doesn't seem to gain much from it, he says that it builds discipline, and discipline makes us free. So I do it as well. Compared to three years ago, although it hasn't been a full three years yet, I have become far stronger and confident. I do my exercises and do the moves and some shadowboxing, as T'Challa calls it. Finally, after an hour, I am finished and go for a nice cool wash, to rinse off the dirt and sweat.
He said I should wear something nice today, so I do just that. Looking at the sun, I nod and control the wind to fly through the air and make my way towards the peak of Kilimanjaro. I get nostalgic thinking about the first time we trained flying. And now, I can do it almost unconsciously. I fly up the large mountain and look around the area, trying to find T'Challa.
"What... is this?"
Instead of finding T'Challa, I find something else. A large carpet is laid on the ground, and a beautiful wooden table stands on it. On the table are a lot of my favourite fruits and dishes I like the most. I go over and smell the delicious fragrance of the still-warm dishes. This has to have been done recently. There are flowers all around, also my favourites, lovely chairs and something cold to drink. Before I can fully understand what is happening, I feel strong arms wrap around me from behind, and I can't help but smile.
"T'Challa."
"Hello, love... happy birthday."
...
"This was... delicious, T'Challa. Thank you."
"It was my pleasure."
"To think that you remembered." I smile.
"I can't forget, it's one of the things I am incapable of."
"One of the few things." I correct him.
"On the contrary."
"When did you prepare this?" I ask him. "We were together most of the time."
"I prepared it a few days ago and cooked the food early this morning. It had to be special."
"Why? You always go above and beyond for my birthday. Why did this have to be special?" I ask him.
"Because, I think it is time."
"Time? Time for what?"
"Time for us to move back to civilisation and to take the next step in our studies," T'Challa says.
"So we'll move back... I'll miss this." I sigh.
"We can come back whenever you please, Ororo. You know that."
I smile and think back to our time. Suddenly, I get an idea and look at him mischievously.
"I know that look. What are you planning?" he asks.
"I don't know what you mean, my prince. I was just wondering..."
"Wondering what?"
"What you said when we met in Kenya during our second night together..."
"..."
"How do you propose we could make this last day here memorable?"
"..."
_________________________________________
So we move back to civilisation for the next and final part of T'Challa's and Ororo's studies and development. We'll also meet new characters then.
I hope you enjoyed it.