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uzumaki-rebellion · 6 months ago

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"King Killmonger: The Golden Jaguar Chapter 9"

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"You're beautiful, you're wonderful! Incredible, I love you so You're beautiful! Each moment spent with you is simply wonderful This love I have for you, girl, it's incredible And I don't know what I'd do If I can't be with you The world could not go on so every night I pray If the Lord should come for me before I wake I wouldn't want to go if I can't see your face Can't hold you close What good would Heaven be? If the angels came for me I'd tell them no"

Michael Jackson – "Heaven Can Wait"

The king and queen rose early at approximately seven in the morning to shower and eat a quick breakfast of porridge, scrambled eggs and fried crocodile sausage. They chose to wear periwinkle blue linen pants and tight long-sleeved shirts to protect them from the sun that was supposed to warm the entire day without rain for once. Stylish and functional, their fits looked good enough for a royal cocktail party. Yani carefully placed her queen's isicholo on her head. Her crown was meant for all public appearances, no matter the occasion.

Okoye was adamant that they were escorted to the market on the water and also when they walked on land again. That meant four Dora Milaje canoes flanked Yani's and N'Jadaka's river paddling. The Royal Talon Fighter would be on stand-by in the air on remote if the royal couple had to be swept away from overzealous crowds.

N'Jadaka had hoped he and Yani could blend in discreetly with the people, but his aura was hard to hide behind shades and covered locs. It was better to just be open about their appearances. He walked like royalty and his presence alone jarred people in person, especially up close.

They were both excited to start their trip downriver right away. Ayo had arranged for them to have lunch at a secured location inland and stinger aircraft flown by his hand-picked Onyx Squad would track them on the water hidden behind their spectral camouflage.

He helped Yani climb into their canoe and he settled in behind her. They worked in tandem rowing with the oars for ten miles and he eventually told Yani to stop rowing so she could rest her arms and take in the views before they arrived to their destination. He paddled at a leisurely pace. Yani stuck her hand in the cool emerald water and glanced back at him occasionally with a huge smile on her face. He looked all around pleased that the weather was perfect. Directly in front of their canoe at fifty feet was Okoye. Behind them was Ayo, and on their sides were Quamba and Aneka. He knew they were having fun with them by the slips of grins that he caught on their faces whenever Yani squealed about the beauty of the landscape on the wide river, snapping more holo-pics with her kimoyo beads.

To their right lurking just above the surface were a pair of crocodiles that ignored them as they floated by. Everything around them was wide open, green and lush. Yani waved her hands with thrilled abandon.

"I see it! I see it!" she said.

N'Jadaka could already smell the odors of cooked food, fresh fish, sweet foods, and smoking grills. Music peppered the air in the distance and there were already river boat vendors shouting about their wares for sell all across the wide body of water. Quaint floating shops shaped the throughway for all the customer boats floating about. Larger craft shops and riverside cafes closer to shore were propped up on stilts. Entire families rowed long boats to shop for seafood, crocodile meat, chicken, goat, or beef, rice, vegetables and fruits plucked from the rainforest. Entire platters of cooked combination meals were already being served hot and it was only a quarter past nine. Sparkly trinkets, hand-crafted rugs, colorful rainbows of fabric and jewelry were sold too. It reminded N'Jadaka of a Moroccan-styled Open Air Bazaar except it all took place on the river itself.

River security riding on sleek Wakandan-styled personal watercraft jetted over to Okoye and she gave them instructions on how they would proceed through the floating market. Five more security watercrafts took their direction from their boss and N'Jadaka paddled them forward.

Word spread fast.

Vendors and customers gaped openly at the king and queen. No one there was told of their arrival. Only the river security team was notified and there were emergency contingency plans on their route there. Luckily, the people were respectful. Many tried to pretend it wasn't a big deal to have royalty floating near them shopping for goods like regular citizens.

The colors and aroma of the market dazzled the eye and nose. The sounds of laughter and shouts to buy goods kept Yani enthralled. He noticed a large Ferris wheel on a pier that reached across the water filled with all kinds of amusements. Tall metal poles held an aerial tram ride that carried six people at a time over the treetops. There was also a zipline that shot couples down an exciting adventure below the grand heights of the outer emergent layer of broad-leaf forest trees that had lived for almost one thousand years.

An elderly vendor in one of the floating shops waved his thin dark carob-brown arm to get Yani's attention so she could taste a sample of his fresh chocolate candies. Yani gobbled down what looked like a piece of fudge with coconut and peanuts in it. She leaned back and handed a sample to him. He ate it and the chocolate had a kick to it as it melted on his tongue. The peanuts were roasted in cayenne pepper infused honey and the fresh grated coconut was soft.

Yani purchased a pound of it using her kimoyo beads, tapping it against the small yellow screen floating above the vendor's beads. She tucked the candy inside the water-proof bags she brought to collect souvenirs. Easing in among the other customers they enjoyed strong thick coffee with a springy layered flatbread smothered in cherry butter. They licked fingers, sipped, and spoke choppy D'Ja, a River Tribe dialect, to the proprietor floating next to their canoe with the help of their translator buds. The River Tribe territory was inside Birnin D'Jata and because the Panther Tribe and River Tribe ancestral territory overlapped, D'Ja was often used as a universal tongue since they shared a similar linguistic root.

N'Jadaka paddled further into the throng of small boats, some shaped like micro-sized catamarans carved from wood that could hold up to four people and their goods in the center. Yani inspected bananas, mangoes, passion fruit, papayas, loquats, and various tree nuts before buying two pounds of fried plantain chips from a young woman who couldn't stop fawning over meeting the queen in person. He watched his wife nibble fried fish nuggets and barter over sweetbread stuffed with sweet vanilla cream.

"Yani, you'll be too full to eat lunch at the restaurant later," he said.

She crammed half of the sweetbread in her mouth and flushed it down with chocolate goat's milk.

"I'll make room," she said stuffing the other half of bread into her mouth.

The two older women who sold Yani the sweetbread grinned at the king. One of them clucked her tongue at him in a friendly way.

"Kumkani, it has been a long time since we have had a good round queen. It is propper to fatten up your wife. It makes her even more beautiful than she already is. Here we call Queen Yani our special daughter because she looks like us with lighter skin. Do not deny her the pleasure of food. A fat woman is a gorgeous woman who is loved," she said.

N'Jadaka burst out laughing at the openness.

"Fatten her up, huh?" he said.

The woman nodded emphatically and stuffed another bag of sweetbread into Yani's hand.

"I promise you kumkani, make her a bigger woman and you will never have any problems in your life."

He sampled the bread and stayed away from any more sweets. However, he did put another small round sweetbread in Yani's hand. Good elderly women never steered him wrong and he always enjoyed big women. Another thirty pounds on Yani might be the move, he thought.

"There's so much to see here…almost too much. I can't believe this goes on every day," Yani said.

Their security made sure they had plenty of room to maneuver and that made it easier for him to control the canoe and keep it from bumping into boats crammed close to theirs and the Doras. Vendor after vendor slid their boats against each other trying to sway customers their way. From an outsider's perspective it looked chaotic to N'Jadaka, but there was a natural rhythm to the dense population sharing water space. A pretty woman in a faded green dress and short close-cropped hair floated next to their boat under Okoye's watchful eye so that Yani could check out her supply of fresh flowers picked from the forest floor earlier that morning. N'Jadaka paid for several bouquets delighting the vendor. He allowed her to take a picture of him and Yani. Aneka snapped the holo-pic with her kimoyo and transferred the image to the woman so she could be in the photo too. Once Yani had her fill of shopping on the water and filling their canoe and all of their Dora Milaje's canoes too, they went to the pier, tied their canoe, and had one of the River security men guard their things from prying eyes.

Helping his wife out of the canoe, they were met with people holding up their kimoyo's to record their travel onto the land. Some observers seemed to just want a chance to catch a whiff of Yani's walking by air, because her perfume attracted oglers like bees waltzing to a honeycomb. Okoye and Quamba shooed folks away, but didn't deny them holo-vids under Yani's command. No citizen had become unruly and she didn't feel the need to stop them from capturing her image. Okoye warned them to stay at a respectful distance from the couple. Yani pulled a light blue shawl over her shoulders and they walked hand-in-hand up the steps that led to a busy amusement area. People played all manner of games like shooting long water guns at fish and crocodile images, and fished directly from the pier. Some ate ice cream and other treats as they watched visitors chatter and scream on spinning rides or amuse themselves being entertained by magicians and a puppet show for children. There was a line of thrill- seekers waiting to ride the zip line. A group of young musicians played instruments and sang songs for tips. The large Ferris wheel took up the far end of the pier. Scattered throughout were picnic tables where people could eat their bought food or just relax and enjoy the weather and a view of the wide river below.

They made it a point to visit each entertainment stall and snack station to say hello to the people they ruled over. Yani greeted children who shyly waved at her and giggled when she asked for their names and spoke to their parents. N'Jadaka shook hands and did his part to be cordial like his wife.

The zip line attendant allowed them to cut in the front of the line much to the insistence of the thirty people already waiting before them. Okoye and Ayo rode it first to place themselves at the final destination point before he and Yani went down. He walked up the stairs that took them to the top of the platform where a young man eagerly strapped them into the double seats. Yani held the thin strap in front of them and yelped when they were pushed down. They were so high up. Their legs dangled above the emergent layer and then there was a gentle downward swoosh as the zipline carried them through the opening in the canopy. Yani laughed and yelled her loudest to hear her voice travel across the scenery. Both their stomachs dropped. He laughed too and enjoyed the view flying past them while keeping his hand on Yani's isicholo to keep it from flying off. At the very bottom of the forest floor, Okoye and Ayo stood watching them disembark. Waiting for Aneka and Quamba to reach them, they decided to ride the aerial tram to see other parts of the forest that would also return them back up to the top where the market was, saving them a tiresome hike up the stairs or using the long escalator that ferried people back to the starting point. They rode in their own tram with the Doras in front and behind them in separate transports.

"The air is so clean and so different from Zana. Smell it?" Yani asked.

He nodded.

Far below a herd of domesticated water buffalo crossed a section of the Ibukun and Yani sighed.

"We are so blessed," she said in awe.

He stroked her cheek and kissed her.

"Happy?" he asked.

"Very."

Yani rubbed his arm.

"Let's go and find the restaurant. You're running low on batteries and wearing your hungry face," she said.

N'Jadaka clasped her hand and on their return to the market pier, Okoye guided them through a tumultuous boardwalk filled with shoppers and other citizens simply going about their regular day. They were gawked at and plenty of people stopped in their tracks to watch them pass. Yani's isicholo gave her a regal bearing that was gentler to take in as opposed to his larger-than-life figure. A few children ran up and handed Yani flowers and handmade bracelets. She accepted the flowers and sniffed their fragrance. N'Jadaka helped her put on the bracelets after Okoye scanned them for anything strange. The king didn't sense any oddities, but appreciated Okoye's thorough nature.

Ayo hustled them away to give them room for sightseeing the land-based shops and various cafes filled to the brim with men and women enjoying brunch on sidewalk seating. Most people stood up immediately the moment they realized who they were seeing, and others froze, too stunned to do anything but stare.

"This is the establishment, kumkani and ukumkanikazi. The proprietor's name is Lungile Chilza. His family has run this business for over fifty years. His wife, Nomble Chilza is the head chef," Okoye said.

Lungile and Nomble stood waiting for them at the front entrance. Nomble wore a pale green chef's hat and matching chef's apron. Her dark skin was without blemish for her age and her smile held white teeth with small gaps in them that made her look even more youthful. Lungile was a robust man with hair whiter than soft cotton that floated like a cloud three inches off his scalp. His ebony skin was shiny and smooth like his wife's.

Yani stepped forward first and greeted them both. She shook their hands and the older couple gushed over her before N'Jadaka was brought forward. He elicited nervous energy in them both. Giving a heartfelt smile that relaxed them, N'Jadaka held out his hand to Lungile and the man shook it firmly.

"King N'Jadaka…Queen Yani, my wife has prepared a wonderful meal for you. Come inside, please, make yourself comfortable. We have you seated at our best table."

Lungile held out his hand inviting them in. Okoye and Ayo stepped in first to inspect the place and gestured for them to enter. Yani sauntered in first and they immediately noticed the exquisite artwork on the walls. Landscape paintings of the Ibukun River and portraits of Birnin D'Jata life at night.

"Here…sit here, please," Nomble said.

N'Jadaka reached to pull out the chair for Yani, but Lungile beat him too it, his pudgy yet spritely frame eager to please. Yani sat down and Nomble admired the isicholo on her head.

"Your crown is so lovely Queen Yani. I enjoyed watching your nuptials to the king. It was all that everyone talked about."

"Thank you, Nkosikazi Chilza," Yani said.

"Please, call me Nomble, daughter. You are family here," Nomble said.

The other patrons in the restaurant peeked at them, but then went about eating their own meals when his eyes cast out to take in more of the restaurant décor. Lungile poured them refreshing cool glasses of chilled passion fruit juice along with glasses of water.

"Would you like anything stronger, kumkani? We have a wide array of wines and other beverages."

"This is fine for me. Yani would you like anything else?"

"I'd like a glass of your best wine from this region," Yani said.

Lungile clapped his hands thrilled that she wanted to try something else from their place.

"My wife has cooked you both a delicate smoked pork brisket smothered in a mango glaze with some savory greens and our famous spicy plantains. I will bring you a glass of D'Jata's most popular white wine that will tickle your tastebuds, my queen."

"Spicy plantains? My father Prince N'Jobu cooked those all the time for me and my mother," N'Jadaka said.

Lungile patted his chest with pride.

"Your father used to come to our restaurant when he spent time here as a teenager. My wife taught him our special recipe to make them."

"Then I have her to thank for making my belly happy when I was a child."

Lungile beamed and his wife returned to their table carrying two platters of finger foods to start their meal.

"The king loves your plantains. Prince N'Jobu cooked it for him and is mother," Lungile gushed.

Nomble cheesed hard, her cheeks rising up higher than the sun outside.

"I think in another life your father would've been a wonderful chef. He was a quick learner and loved food. He would fly here all the time with your grandparents and…."

Nomble stopped talking.

"Finish what you were about to say," N'Jadaka said.

"I do not want to upset you kumkani."

"You won't."

"I was going to say your uncle's name. My apologies for making that mistake."

"No need to apologize. My family held this place in high regard. It's why I brought my wife here. To enjoy what my father loved."

Nomble nodded quickly and her eyes watered, fearful of upsetting the king despite what he said. He reached out and held her hand.

"No reason to get upset Mama Nomble. I take no offense and look forward to chowing down on the best pork brisket in Birnin D'Jata," he said.

Nomble trembled with his hand covering hers. His touch shook her up and she wiped her eyes. Yani stood up and gave the woman a hug.

"He means what he says Mama Nomble," Yani said.

"Eh eh…the king and queen have called me Mama…me a humble cook," Nomble said.

"Who said you were humble?' N'Jadaka joked, "I heard you brag on your food to rival the chefs in the double palace."

A few patrons eavesdropping laughed at his comment and Nomble held her cheeks.

"Brag on yourself!" N'Jadaka said.

"Yes, I am the best!' Nomble conceded and even Lungile laughed with her. "Let me get the rest of your food. Baba, keep them entertained until I return."

N'Jadaka glanced at the window of the restaurant. A crowd of people stole glances at them, pressing their noses to the glass.

"I will close the blinds to give you privacy," Lungile said.

"No. Let them watch. Queen Yani doesn't want any special attention other than ones needed for safety. We are customers like anyone else."

"No…no kumkani, you are our guests. This meal is our treat."

"I insist on paying. Let me contribute to your continued success."

Lungile wanted to shake his head, but N'Jadaka's voice was commanding and the man grew nervous at the idea of pressing the matter.

Nomble returned with four servers. Three held large platters of food and a fourth carried a warm bowl of lemon water and hand towels to clean their hands. The food was placed on the table along with plates and bowls. Two servers helped him and Yani wash and dry their hands.

"Mama Nomble…Baba Lungile…you will join us, won't you?" Yani asked.

The elderly couple looked shocked at the request. A bottle of white wine was brought over to their table. Yani waved a hand to get the attention of another server.

"Please bring two more plates, bowls and wine glasses for Mama Nomble and Baba Lungile," Yani said.

The server hurried away and N'Jadaka stood to pull back the chairs across from them for the elders. Nomble handed her chef's hat and apron to another server. Her silvery-white hair was styled in puffy Nubian knots. She took her seat next to her husband and N'Jadaka helped push their chairs closer to the food-laden table. Lungile gave instructions to another server to take his place as the host and Nomble gave instructions to her other cooks to continue working without her.

"A toast," N'Jadaka said after he poured glasses of wine for his hosts.

Glasses clinked and the wine tasted crisp and delightfully elegant. A perfect pairing with pork. Yani shared their day in the market and the older couple sat spellbound listening to his wife rave about their honeymoon thus far. N'Jadaka discussed the history of the river market with Lungile full of enthusiasm, and after a couple of glasses of wine and delectable food, all four of them chatted like lifelong friends catching up. Loquacious and energetic, Nomble and Lungile were avid historians and prideful people. N'Jadaka learned more about the River Tribe in one sitting than he ever did reading about it or hearing tidbits from Nakia. The Chilza's were happy to answer any question they had, and Yani had plenty more over dessert.

"There are so many breathtaking places throughout D'Jata," Yani stated over another glass of dessert wine that was nearly empty, "We hiked above the waterfall near Ekuqaleni and it looked so unreal above the trees."

"Ekuqaleni is a very special place to the River Tribe. It is where the Panther Tribe and River Tribe made their truce before the final war of binding us all together with King Bashenga," Nomble said.

N'Jadaka offered to pour more after-dinner wine for her, but she held up a hand and latched her eyes onto Yani's.

"We were told our tribe had a habit of intermarrying with yours," N'Jadaka said.

"Elder Bhira's niece and your cousin carried on the tradition. In a way, you've also carried it," Nomble said.

"How so?"

Nomble folded her plump fingers on the table and smiled at Yani first before wrenching her eyes away to gaze at the king.

"She is a child of Mama Wati. As was your mother kumkani. We see the Lost Tribe as our kin. Other tribes in Wakanda do not agree, but we do. In our oldest creation stories they say that a lost child from outside will return here and raise an empire."

"Empire?" N'Jadaka chuckled.

Yani studied his face carefully. It was a touchy subject with her since their return from the states. Several African nations surrounding them accused him of that so often that it became a narrative that carried far and wide on the continent.

"I have no plans for empire, and I've never read in our books about creation where someone comes back here to do that," he said.

Lungile patted his wife's hand and Nomble grinned.

"Not your Panther Tribe stories, kumkani, ours. My people of this region," Nomble corrected.

"Tell us your story," Yani asked.

"I have taken up much of the talking, I will let my husband share that."

Nomble looked at Lungile and he cleared his throat.

"We used to think they were fables…myths that we told our people in times of war, famine or intertribal disagreements that may have led to more war. I suppose every culture in the world has a story about a savior of some kind appearing to redress all wrongs. Isn't that what the Christians out there believe their Jesus will do? In Wakanda, Bast is the great cosmic mother who birthed daughters and sons that she planted like seeds on this earth. One of her daughters, Mama Wati, was planted near here before there was any water in the world at all. The Ibukun River that we know of today used to be a big dry gorge that stretched all the way to where the sea is now. Bast spit on her precious seed, and our water goddess sprang forth fully formed. This is why every newly married king must offer his seed back to her in a burning ceremony before he can taste the fruits of his wife—"

"Lungile! Sthhh! Must you say that in front of our queen?" Nomble scolded before covering her mouth with embarrassment.

Lungile lifted his hands palms up and stared at his wife.

"Aye…Mama…it is part of the story they have asked me to tell."

Yani laughed and tilted her head. Her eyes twinkled.

"Go on, Baba…tell us more," Yani encouraged.

Nomble rolled her eyes and sat back in her chair with her arm thrown over the back of it, her body turned toward her husband. Lungile slowed his cadence, making his voice sound more dramatic with the telling.

"Mama Wati made the great trek through Wakanda leaving water in her wake, creating all of our lakes and rivers and waterfalls until she reached our empty ocean and gave the world all of the liquid you see all over the planet. She was given dominion over all the water that birthed all the creatures in the sea and even mankind. She is the goddess of childbirth and healing. She is the goddess who cradled the first man and first woman on this earth. The Panther Tribe says that Bast is the mother of us all, but in our ancient stories that were written on the sides of cliff walls in a language we don't even speak anymore, she is actually the grandmother. Mama Wati is our ancient mother. She is your mother too," Lungile said with conviction.

The older man's voice grew softer. He sipped some dessert wine and looked down at his fingers.

"In the dark days, when the slavers came to this continent, we in Wakanda didn't always have secure boarders or have the full capabilities to make our shield dome just yet. The border tribe protected all of us. They are some of our fiercest fighters. We were still warring with the nations along our borders and knew we had to close ourselves off from the rest of the world in order to prevent more bloodshed and other countries discovering our secret. Mama, you tell the rest, you know it better than me," Lungile said.

Nomble turned back to Yani and N'Jadaka.

"Well…there are several versions of a prophecy that have been handed down, and depending on which clan you talk to, it is said that a child of ours…a Wakandan…would come to us from the outside world and help protect the entire nation by creating a vast empire by absorbing other tribes into our fold. No one believed it of course because we had closed ourselves off for centuries. We were never slaves to anyone so it would be impossible for Wakandan blood to leave our borders…let alone return to conquer other nations and rule over them. But here is the most interesting part, and this comes from the eastern faction of our region…"

N'Jadaka glanced at Yani and his wife's eyes were as big as plums. She had leaned forward in her seat. He reached over and rubbed the middle of her back. Nomble palmed her hands together, warming up to her addition of the story.

"The people there say that it's not one child who will return, but actually two from very different places in the world who will guide the hand in the building of a future empire. Unfortunately, the stories never say when this will happen."

"Well it can't be me or in my time because I'm the only person to return here with Wakandan lineage from the outside that shifted the culture… and like I said, empire building is not on my agenda," N'Jadaka said.

Nomble nodded her head.

"The prophecy says that it will happen in a time of great distress, and I think you have already fulfilled it when you fought the alien intruders. You are powerful enough for two people, kumkani," Nomble said.

"Or," N'Jadaka said, "My greatest grandfather already fulfilled the myth by uniting all the tribes during the great battles back in the day. Remember, he was still an outsider to your people until he married Queen Tiye, your tribal member. Their first child was born outside of this territory and brought back to your people."

"True, true," Nomble said, "But the elders of long ago had many stories and who knows, we could be living out what was told long ago and choose to ignore it because we think myths and fairy tales are for children."

N'Jadaka thought of the stories he was raised with back in Oakland. Believing in fairy tales from his father brought him an entire kingdom to rule. As far as he was concerned, fairy tales held kernels of truth. Had he fulfilled the legends on their cliff walls and whispers around long ago campfires? If two children were supposed to come back…

Riki and Joba.

His heart thumped a little faster. His two youngest children came from two very different places in the world. They had Wakandan blood through him.

Lungile lifted his wine glass and his hand shook slightly. He was a little tipsy.

"To King N'Jadaka Udaku and also our first ruler, King Bashenga…two great kings who helped save the nation twice…our myths who sprang to life!" Lungile said.

N'Jadaka and Yani raised their glasses for a final toast.

A pregnant customer headed for the exit with her husband and Yani stopped them to ask how far along she was. The expectant mother shared that she was seven months along. After they left, servers began lighting candles on all the tables. Yani checked her kimoyo beads.

"We have been here for three hours. Taking up all your time," Yani said.

"Stay as long as you like, in fact, stay for the dancing," Nomble said.

"Dancing?" N'Jadak glanced around at the dining area. The Chilza's restaurant had nothing but tables and chairs for eating.

"Come see…in the back," Lungile said.

He ushered them with their Doras who finished eating their own meal hours ago to a door that led to another section of the restaurant that was set up with a bar and a dance floor. A bartender and a few waiters prepared for an evening crowd. D.J. equipment was set up in a corner and a woman behind the D.J. booth fiddled with a soundboard. Everyone stopped what they were doing to set their eyes on the king and queen.

The walls were decorated with giant pink flamingoes and 3D blue lagoons that gave the space a marshland setting that didn't match the décor in the restaurant. Nomble noticed the confusion on N'Jadaka's face.

"In three weeks the pink flamingoes flock here before they set off for Birnin S'Yan's beaches, right before the Mama Wati celebrations. It is a spectacular sight. Vast numbers, over two hundred thousand alone flock to Umbono Lake and then migrate through our territory," Nomble said.

"What do you think, kumkani, hmm?" Lungile said, wiggling his hips and holding his hands out like he had a dancing partner, "You and our wonderful queen enjoying a night of music and dancing together?"

N'Jadaka waved his hand. He rubbed his stomach and reached for Yani's hand, pulling her next to him.

"You have fed us beyond capacity. Your reputation as a master chef has been proven Mama Nomble and because of that, we'll probably start to nod off. Another time," he said.

Yani released his hand and held Nomble's shoulders, "Thank you for your hospitality and the fantastic food. We will come again real soon and bring our children."

"That would be our honor, ukumkanikazi. Please let us show you out," Nomble said.

Lungile rushed off to the back of the bar and met them outside later carrying another bottle of top shelf wine and a small tan biodegradable container.

"A gift from us. Enjoy it tonight. Our best wine you enjoyed and some spicy plantains to snack on later. It is Mama Wati's favorite offering outside of sugary sweets and flowers. Give some to the river and she will taste that you know her as your own," Lungile said.

N'Jadaka took the gifts. The Dora Milaje blocked off the street as the royal couple said their final goodbyes. The evening patrons studied their interactions and Okoye summoned the Royal Talon Fighter to fly above them for a gravitational pick up. The tracker beam pulled them into the aircraft and Yani hugged N'Jadaka's waist.

"Today was so beautiful," Yani said.

She settled in their comfortable couch in the back and they watched their flight across the boardwalk. Ayo traced her fingers on the viewscreen across from them to lift the six canoes they used that were stuffed with all of their river market shopping. A gravitational force field kept the canoes stuck against the bottom of the aircraft.

They arrived at the treehouse encampment in time to catch a new display of stars above the river tributary. The canoes were lowered onto the ground with them and Yani picked out items that could go onto their houseboat, and the rest that would be stored on the Talon Fighter. The Doras worked quickly and the canoes were pulled back up to the aircraft.

"Remember to leave two canoes at the houseboat. We'll need the extra for when the children join us," N'Jadaka instructed Aneka.

Yani pulled off her isicholo and walked up the stairs into the treehouse.

"I am beat," she sighed.

She tucked her crown inside the special hat box made for it that locked by her fingerprint. Too tired to bathe or do anything else, they slipped off their clothes and went to bed early. They cuddled and listened to the night song of nocturnal creatures.

"Okoye had a hard time today, yeah?" Yani said in the darkness of the room.

The faint light of stars appeared above the skylight. He stroked Yani's arm.

"She doesn't like us to mingle with citizens in the streets for long. Too much unpredictability and one thing that woman wants is to control every security move."

"It looked like she had a little fun, even though she was strict."

"Yeah, they all did I think."

"Imagine being forced to canoe on a lovely day and fly across tree tops," Yani said.

"The nerve of us making her do all that," N'Jadaka teased.

"I know right? Her having to eat chocolate and cake samples because the queen couldn't make up her mind which tasted better."

"You also demanded that she eat that jumbo fried shrimp plate while on duty at the restaurant."

"I expect our security personnel to comply with my wishes at all times."

"You are a cruel ruler. They will ask to have your head cut off!"

They giggled together.

"Tomorrow we will simply relax, read, and nap…deal?' he said.

"Deal."

Yani lifted her head and pressed her lips softly against his.

"I love you so much," she whispered.

"I love you, too."

Yani drifted off to sleep before he did. When she had slept for a least an hour peacefully, he detached from her and pulled on a robe. He needed to check the grounds before he could fall asleep and decompress from the day alone.

"I know your big asses aren't on that furniture," N'Jadaka scolded.

S'Bu and Unathi lounged on the outdoor couch. Unathi jumped up at the sound of his voice and quickly leapt from the couch to scurry onto a thatch of soft grass near the treehouse. S'Bu rolled over on his belly.

"Nah, man. Get down and go sleep somewhere else. Y'all ain't slick. Now I know what you do when we aren't watching. Go on now…get."

N'Jadaka clapped his hands and S'Bu joined the other panther.

"Watch my wife. Stay here," he said in Wakandan.

Both panthers ambled over to either side of the staircase entrance of the treehouse and watched him move quietly around the perimeter. He sniffed the air and used his own special nocturnal vision to check for movement of any animals. He had been warned that crocodiles sometimes crawled onto the land to sleep under their outdoor furniture often, attracted by the energy of the place. There were protective barriers and warning systems in place to let them know if any had snuck into their area.

Nothing was out of order.

The moon finally rose above the trees. A halo of colorful hazy light surrounded it indicating new rain to come in a few days. It was a good sign. He and Yani would be floating on their houseboat and could enjoy the patter of raindrops falling on the lake they would anchor down in for a week.

Moonlight sparkled on the tributary and he thought of the conversation with the Chilzas. They reiterated what he had been told about Ekuqaleni. It was a place of enchantment that made one feel that anything in life was possible for those who walked among the ancient trees. He understood why the people there considered it a healing place. There was a spiritual energy that pervaded it. It prodded the mind and body to recognize it.

It also made him feel like something would happen that would nudge him to some important discovery about himself. There was a power there that still made the hairs on his neck and arms rise like it did when he did his sabbatical at the Temple of Bast. This was a kindred power. He searched within his soul for reassurance from Bast herself. She rested within him quietly letting him settle into the expectation. Ogum slumbered in a deep repose, unbothered by the place.

Ekuqaleni was tranquility and contentment. A needed retreat from the responsibility of holding up a nation that dominated the political landscape of the outside world. It gave his wife joy, and whatever Yani wanted he would give it to her in abundance with more trips together out in nature.

He wandered about on a sort of meditative walk that cleansed the slate for that day. The staff would bring them breakfast in bed in the morning per his directions. Perhaps by noon he and Yani would frolic in the bigger pool of water, or maybe take a dip in the tributary. Sunbathe. Sleep. Make love.

The children crossed his mind. He missed them dearly, but he had to admit, time away from them and being alone with his wife was a dream come true. No wonder his parents snuck away to their bedroom as many times as they did when he was a child. It was good to be in solitude with your beloved and not have to worry about your child for a few hours. His parents had one child, but he had three and more energy depletion because of it. He couldn't even imagine his parents handling two more of him growing up.

Two more of him.

The Chilza's story still poked around in his mind. The possibility of Riki and Joba fulfilling some long ago legend bothered him. Unlike his own later childhood, N'Jadaka wanted his children to grow up knowing nothing but peace and security. He would be the only one of his new lineage that would experience war and have to build up nations to defend their own lands. One day all three of his children would have to do the mandatory military service required of all citizens. He would raise them to become whatever they wanted and whichever one took over the throne, he would become their counsel.

The idea flitted in his mind about whether or not he wanted them to even take on ruling the nation. All Udakus had been raised to one day take the throne. What if Riki or Joba didn't want to? Sydette was legally his daughter in the eyes of the ruling class, so she would also be considered for the role. But he knew all of the tribes would challenge her at Warrior Falls. Legal daughter or not, the elites preferred direct bloodlines. He couldn't see Yani allowing their eldest to fight five challengers. Sweet Pea was a gentle spirit who detested all violence. She had survived mercenaries holding guns to her body and being shot at as a baby. It wasn't in her to inflict harm. Truthfully, he just didn't see his children choosing that life anyway. Sydette wanted to be a scientist. Riki a rock star. Joba wanted to learn new languages and study art.

A tickling in his gut compelled him to walk closer to the water.

His mother told him a child was coming that would shake up the world. Maybe the throne wasn't meant for his three oldest, but for the one that wasn't there yet. His mother had been adamant that he look out for that new one because they would be something different. N'Jadaka wasn't seeking to build empire. But maybe the next Udaku from him would.

He hurried back into the treehouse and collected three pieces of spicy plantains from the container Lungile gave him. Returning to the tributary, he knelt down in the soft, moist earth and offered the plantains to the water. They floated away toward the center and were swept downstream quickly. Still kneeling, he lifted his palms up and stared at the water.

"Mama Wati, I offer you a gift. My mind is troubled with thoughts about my children. I was a man who sought retribution in this land, but instead I gained my soul and my family back. Bast raised me and Ogum chose me, but I feel as if you have touched my life more times than I can count without even knowing it. In Brazil I knew you as Yemanjá. With my Nana Jean, she called you Cymbee. I see traces of you in my wife. Back where she is from, they call her the Black mermaid. By nature, I am not a humble man. I come from a father who was as large as a god in my eyes until he was taken from me. But now I am here…on my knees in your domain, asking for guidance…a sign that all will be well with my family. If there is a child coming who is going to build an empire, help me understand why this needs to be…if it needs to be. I have killed and spilled blood all over the earth. I don't want that life for my children. I beg of you, under the eyes of Bast, your mother, and Ogum who wields the iron of war in my blood…please. Don't let my children ever have to see the destruction that war brings again. I want them to become who I could've become if…"

N'Jadaka's night vision caught sight of the crocodile much too late to move. It rose to the surface, black eyes shining with icy concentration. He heard and sensed movement behind him. Turning his head slowly, he found S'Bu and Unathi flanking him. They sat on their haunches in a relaxed stance and not one of protecting him from the predator.

N'Jadaka regarded the giant crocodile coolly as it ambled its big body slowly from the water. He held his breath and kept the springing of his panther suit at the tip of his one immediate thought. His natural recoil reflexes were kept still and he waited to see what the croc would do.

Bast moved and the pressure of her presence sat at the top of his head. Ogum remained submerged in inactivity. This was a Wakandan matter not needing his input.

The crocodile settled its mammoth head in front of N'Jadaka's bent knees. This wasn't an ambush at all. The creature could've snapped the king's head into its giant maw, and that should've been unlikely from jump since their encampment was surrounded by security detectors. A powerful system in the water was also on alert to prevent them from sneaking onto land without people knowing. There was even a force field deterrent set up for crocs and water vipers that gave a slight shock to help them move away from that section of the river. The eyeshine in the crocs slit pupils reflected an unnatural iridescent glow that grew brighter. Mighty jaws snapped open and the croc lunged forward, its heavy snout-tip pushing weighted pressure against N'Jadaka's chest before it disintegrated into a splash of cold river water onto his chest, waist, and thighs.

He threw his hands up and gasped, startled by the frigid water soaking his robe through to the skin underneath. N'Jadaka touched his chest and the cool liquid evaporated. His robe and skin were as dry as when he first approached the edge of the tributary. He exhaled relief and his body felt light and airy. The intrusive thoughts about his children's future turned into warmth and serenity. In his mind, Mama Wati let her presence be known. Nana Jean once told him that alligators and crocodiles held spiritual meaning. They existed in two worlds, the physical and spiritual. The land was the physical world, and the water they submerged in was the spiritual one. He took on the experience as a message that he was a part of those two worlds and he would have to trust the greater wisdom of the gods to carry him through.

S'Bu nudged his head against N'Jadaka's shoulder. The king lifted his arm and scratched the back of the big cat's ears.

"You two were letting me know it was okay. I understand," he said.

N'Jadaka stood up and tilted his head back. He bathed his face in moonlight and said a prayer for his parents. And his beloved Nana Jean.

Breakfast in bed was so good, Yani ate seconds and refused to get out of it until it hit high noon.

She bathed and put on a bikini, joining N'Jadaka outside to sunbathe while reading. She held a physical book in her hand and stretched her left arm above her head indulging in doing nothing. N'Jadaka read a physical book right next to her on the lounger couch wearing tight trunks that might as well had been briefs. It did nothing to hide all that he held between his legs, his dick print and balls outlined visibly. She peeked at his face. He'd been pretty quiet for most of the afternoon. They'd chatted a lot during breakfast and once they were in their own little worlds reading, no words had passed between them for two hours.

Yani placed her book on her chest and sighed to get N'Jadaka's attention. He turned the page of his book and scratched at a scar on his chest.

"Should we call the kids?" Yani asked.

"No."

N'Jadaka kept reading, not even looking at her.

"We've been sending them vids and pictures, but we haven't spoken to them directly since we left. You think they miss us?"

"I'm sure they do, but think about it. There are a ton of little cousins still in the palace on holiday with our family. They're busy running around and having fun. Probably preoccupied with the wedding gifts we gave them too."

His eyes scanned the pages on the book, but Yani caught the glint in his eye the moment she mentioned them. There was a little twitch in his jawline too, like he'd been waiting to talk about his pride and joy.

"Three days is a long time not talking to them. Maybe just a quick chat up?" Yani said.

"We agreed to five days of no direct contact. For us."

Yani turned on her side, her fully baked skin two shades darker and smelling like sweet coconut oil.

"Just five minutes. Not a minute more. I want to see their faces."

N'Jadaka dropped his book near his side and stared at her.

"Didn't we talk about not coddling them too much? This was an opportunity to build up character and self-reliance. They have an entire staff, three nannies, great-grandparents, aunties, uncles, and cousins keeping them occupied. I don't want to be one of those helicopter parents," he said.

Yani chewed her lip and squinted when a ray of bright sunlight struck her eye when he adjusted his separate couch back support to a lower position. It unblocked the sun from his bulky frame. He glanced over at her and the pout on her face made him smirk.

"Five minutes," he said.

Yani clapped her hands and wiggled in her seat. He tapped his kimoyo beads for all three children. Riki answered first. The eyes that stared back at them with his floating image looked just like his father's when he was annoyed.

"Baba, what is it now? You keep calling us," Riki whined.

"What?" Yani yelped.

She smacked N'Jadaka's arm. Joba and Sydette's images popped up next to Riki's.

"How many times has your father called you guys?" Yani asked.

"Four times today," Sydette sighed out with an equally annoyed tone.

"Four times?" Yani said. "But I was here and I didn't see him call anyone."

They'd eaten breakfast. Swam in the river, showered, sunbathed, read their books, ate lunch and…

Yani's lip curled into a grin. She'd gone to the restroom four times that day. He'd called the kids when she was inside the treehouse.

N'Jadaka quirked his lips and shrugged his shoulders.

"All this backchat you were doin' man, and here you are calling them behind my back."

"Can we make this quick please, Mama? I'm in the middle of something with Zuko and Balwe, and if I don't pay attention, Zuko will move one of my game pieces," Riki said.

Yani looked them all over one by one. Happy, healthy, and whole. Her perfect trio.

"I miss you. It's been a long time since I spoke to you all."

"Three days isn't a long time, Mama," Joba said.

"To us it is. Neither one of us has been away from you all this long together. It feels uncomfortable sometimes," Yani said.

"But you're having fun, right?" Sydette asked.

"Yes Sweet Pea, we're having the best time—"

"Snack time everybody! Leave your toys and games where they are…what…what are you doing?" Umama said.

Their great-grandmother's face came into view.

"N'Jadaka, Yani…is everything okay?" Umama asked.

"We're fine, just checking in with the kids," N'Jadaka said.

"Again?" Umama said.

"I wanted to see their faces this time, Umama. Let them go have their snack."

"Okay, Mama, bye!" Riki said.

The call winked out.

"You sneaky cheater!" Yani said, pinching his arm. "Talking all that stoic shit and you're the one to break our pact."

"Okay, okay, I missed them a lot. They were on my mind all last night and part of today. Thinking about their future."

"Thinking about their future because of the story we heard last night?"

"Yeah. A part of me doesn't want them to carry the weight of the throne, and yet another part of me wants their legacy to be better than mine."

"You're going to be king for a very long time. We'll probably be great-grandparents before you even have to worry about succession."

"Even so, I can't be the Golden Jaguar forever. One of them may have to take the mantle while I'm still king."

Yani cradled his chin with her hand, the softness of his beard warmed by the sun.

"Listen to me. That's a long way away."

"I hear you. But you're right. It's nothing to worry about now."

He rolled over and placed his head on her stomach. She rubbed his head and untangled his locs on his back. Tension rested in his muscles. The future still rested on him. Yani hummed him a tune and stroked his forehead gently. The tautness in his muscles relaxed under her fingers.

Yani didn't like that he pondered too long on the children and their political future in Wakanda. They were finally a happy family unit and their children were living fruitful lives as normal children. At least as normal as royal children could be.

He needed something to get his mind off of politics and the march of time to come. She wanted to have fun with him and not waste their energy soothing fears.

"It's getting extra warm for me, I'm going to go cool off and rest indoors for a minute until the sun is behind the trees," she murmured in his ear.

"No, stay here. You've made me too comfortable. Don't leave now, it's not that hot."

"I'll be back. You can take this heat more than me right now. I want to fix my hair too, oil my scalp a little," she said.

He whined and pretended to throw a tantrum with his feet. She bent her head closer to his and kissed his forehead. Scooting off the couch, Yani headed for the treehouse and bee-lined to the bedroom where she rummaged through their belongings and pulled out a wig box. Inside was the red wig N'Jadaka loved. She shook the tresses and carried it into the restroom. Using a brush by the sink bowl, she smoothed the hair and fixed it on her head with a bit of hair sealant and a spritz of perfume on her body. She unfastened her bikini and pulled on a short silk bathing robe that rose above her thighs.

Staring at her face in the mirror, she added a little make-up and pink lip gloss. Debating about adding eyelashes, she eventually took the time to add some onto her top lid and made one final inspection of herself. Sexy, and she carried the aura of a different woman. That's what she wanted to be. Not the fretting mommy needing to check up on her kids. That woman could return when the children joined them in eleven days. She fixed the bit up lip gloss that ran over her lip line and decided to add one more detail before she left the treehouse. The bottle of lubricant on the open cupboard would help with what she needed to do.

After her preparations in the restroom, she returned to the outside where N'Jadaka rested with an arm over his eyes.

"Is this seat taken?" Yani said.

N'Jadaka lifted his arm and looked at her. The grin plastered on his lips thrilled her.

"My wife was planning to come back later," he said.

"Oh, well, I'll just find someplace else to sit."

"Nah, you can chill until she comes back. Long time no see, Toya."

Yani pushed back the hair on her shoulders.

"You don't mind if I sunbathe next you…nude, yeah?"

He patted the vacant seat next to his on the comfortable couch lounger. She took off the robe slowly and turned to place it on the end table next to the couch. Bending over further than she needed to, she allowed him to see the cherry-red anal plug heart she had inserted in the restroom. She crawled onto the couch knees first and settled in next to him, her toasted skin sparkly with mica chips from her coconut oil. He watched her recline and his gaze fell to her breasts.

"You sure this is okay?" she asked.

"Yeah."

Her right hand drifted to her vulva. Running her fingers gently around her clit, she kept her eyes on his face while he watched her hand play with her pussy. He reached over and played with her right breast, squeezing her nipple. They didn't speak. Yani dipped her fingers lower to open her labia. She made sure he saw that it glistened with her own arousal. The piercings they loved looked so pretty. Her inner labia fell open and the puffy engorgement made him groan. Yani stared at his swim trunks and the bulge there grew and stretched the material. She reached over and palmed it, feeling the girth inside harden under her touch. His fingers trailed down to her vulva and he bypassed her clit to finger her opening, her arousal making his digits sticky.

"Do you miss fucking me, kumkani?" she said, all breathy and low, as if she didn't want anyone else to hear them.

"Yesssss."

He moaned and slipped his trunks down, freeing his erection. The full mass of his dick had her sighing his royal title, exciting N'Jadaka more.

"Kumkani, I don't want to get you in trouble on your honeymoon. But I know you miss fucking me in the ass and stretching out my pussy."

She gripped his dick, squeezing it first to test how hard it was before sliding her hand up and down.

"I miss this big dick, kumkani. Let me make you happy."

"Shit…yes…keep squeezing it like that…"

He sat back and let her work her fingers around him. She nestled her index and thumb under the ridge of his tip and twisted it in tight half circles. It didn't take long for pre-cum to spill out. She stopped her movement to let him kick off his trunks all the way, and then continued pleasuring him. Her pussy was already acting up and the fullness of her anal plug hinted at the debauchery to come.

"Has your wife been good to you?"

N'Jadaka's lips were smooshed together; his focus lost on her hand getting slick from his pre-cum. His eyes became glassy and narrowed. She began to give his dick harder strokes up and down, loving the feel of her hand wetting up his shaft, making it sticky. Lowering her head, she darted the tip of her tongue in and out of his slit.

"Fuck!"

N'Jadaka's voiced carried over her head as it moved up and down, deep throating his dick. His right hand slid down her spine and around the curve of her ass to finger her pussy. He finger-fucked her, plowing his digits into her fast, wiggling them back and forth so he could hear how wet she was. She gasped when he spanked her hard. Rubbing on her backside, he moaned and thrust his hips up to shove his dick further into her throat. He pushed on her anal plug and fondled the shiny heart.

"Lemme stretch that pussy before my wife comes back," he whispered in her ear.

Yani obeyed, scrambling onto her knees and straddling his dick in reverse cowgirl. She wanted him to look at her anal plug in anticipation of stuffing his dick there in its place. Widening her thighs, she guided him inside her slippery entrance and the tightness in her ass doubled her pleasure with his dick stretching her out too.

"Kumkani, you feel so good in my tight little pussy," Yani huffed, meaning every word she said while looking over her shoulder at him.

N'Jadaka slapped her ass cheeks with a determined rhythm.

"Look at that ass…look at that big ass…tight pussy fucking me so good…grip that shit…yeah…grip it tighter…you a little grip monster on that thang girl…fuck…"

His words tumbled over each other and Yani bounced on his dick, flexing her back muscles to give him a view of the perfect arch.

"I missed your big dick, kumkani," Yani yelped.

"Ride that dick, baby…yes, ride it hard Toya…"

Yani twisted her hips from side to side so he could experience the pleasure of her cheeks bouncing as she moved. N'Jadaka kept smacking her ass and her backside grew hot and tingled with delicious pain. He rubbed both sides of her rump to give her skin a break from his slaps, but he continued again when she did slow winds all the way to the tip and back down. The slow motion dance on his dick had him shouting her name and cursing about how good it felt. Yani rose up again and leaned forward to let him watch her opening throb and grip the tip of his dick with syncopated squeezes that looked like sucking motions from her pussy. She practiced for weeks with her queen training on the erotic arts. Her instructor was a no-nonsense elder noblewoman who gave Yani silver balls of varying sizes to insert in her vagina and walk around with for hours using her pelvic floor muscles to grip them. Every time a ball fell out, she had to re-insert and try again or risk a scolding. Sex was a very serious matter in the royal lineage. Even N'Jadaka had to take lessons for his dick, tongue and fingers to please his new queen. Those tiresome lessons paid off as she made her man holler and grunt with pleasure. She gripped and released his tip in fast successive motions, twisting her body ever so slightly to change the angle. Her suction around the ridge was like the lure used to catch a big fish. Her husband gasped and clutched the cushion of the couch.

She dropped down on his length hard and used her walls to clench around the root of his dick while she fondled and squeezed his nutsack. He was literal putty in her hands only eliciting moans as she showed off her sex magic. Those queen lessons truly enhanced the natural gifts she already possessed, and helped her build up more stamina to handle the king. She did the ripple effect, using her walls to clench his dick in sections as she rose up and down slowly. Because he stretched her with his girth, N'Jadaka could watch her pussy lips kiss and pulse on every inch of his dick. She became more excited by the delicious feeling of fullness in her insides. His sounds of enjoyment rewarded her pussy with hot throbbing coming from his dick. Her perspiration increased from the furnace of his heavy body radiating so much heat.

The pressure of his dick tugging on her clit and the anal plug filling her up had Yani speaking in tongues. Her skin tingled all over and the heat from his blows to her ass cheeks created a perfect storm of pleasure for her that she couldn't hold onto anymore. Her pussy throbbed on a final thrust from him. A pulsing sensation raced up her spine and she trembled all over. Yani threw her head back and wailed out his name as her orgasm choked his dick and her own throat. Her voice echoed above the trees and shushed a few birds who had been chirping in the late afternoon sunlight.

When he couldn't take it anymore himself, N'Jadaka plucked the anal plug from her ass and pulled her down against him. Her back went into his chest and he spooned her for a few minutes, playing with her breasts and kissing her neck and shoulders before pushing his dick into her ass. She was ready for it, already keening and pulling her ass cheek to the side so he could watch his entry.

"Bitch I love it…I love when you let me fuck you in the ass…taking all this dick…"

His voice sounded bewildered and hungry for release. She gripped the cushion on the couch and held still, letting him pump wild thrusts into her.

"Just letting me fuck you like this…nasty little bitch…fucking the king's dick…I'm all up in there…fuck!"

"Your wife will be back soon," she said, urging him on to glory.

"Tryna rush me like I'm scared of being caught?"

"Aren't you, kumkani? The queen wouldn't be happy to see you fucking one of your secret women."

"I think she'd like watching me fuck you."

Yani gasped as he slowed down his thrusts and played with her breasts.

"I think her pussy would get wet watching this big ass dick stretching you…watching you cream all over me Toya…"

He stroked her clit, plucking at the piercing there. His breath warmed her earlobe and he nibbled on the outer shell of her ear.

"Or maybe you'd like to watch me fuck my wife like this. She takes dick so good in the ass."

"Yeah?"

Yani shuddered as her skin combusted with the fire of her lust listening to his words.

"My wife is the best. Before we were married…back when we were on an island together, she used to let me fuck her in the ass all the time. She has a nice big bubble. Niggas been after her for years and still want her. But she's mine and she lets me do anything I want to her. When I fuck her pussy, it weeps on my dick…"

Yani gasped. Listening to him talk about her in the third person was such a turn on. N'Jadaka had transformed into a trickster, changing the power dynamic of their encounter. She had come down from the treehouse to seduce and drive him crazy and he flipped it on her. He shifted their position, forcing her on her knees with her ass up and her head down. He kept a hand on the back of her neck and fucked her ass with slow hard thrusts. Each time he smacked against her rump, the slapping sound was loud and disrespectful to her ears.

"My wife is such a good girl. She knows to get on her knees without me asking so I can cum all over her pretty face. She'll lick up every drop of cum I give her. And she can take my dick so deep…lemme show you how I fuck her ass deep, Toya."

Yani began whimpering. The nerve endings in her ass were on high alert and her clit twitched.

"I took her to an opera in Zana and she let me fuck her ass right in the theater booth. She hiked her dress up and got on the floor and let me fuck her like that, even though there were nobles in the sections next to us. Feel it? Feel how I fucked her ass, Toya?"

"Yes!"

Yani cried out and she squirted on the couch. The sudden release heightened everything.

"I'm making you squirt, baby?"

The tone of his voice was so raspy that Yani's body squirted again, harder, making a complete mess on the couch.

"I'ma nut in you so deep. Let you have what my wife gets…yeah…feel all that? Your king is balls deep in that ass."

He pressed a hand on the arch of her back, and then gripped her hips with both hands.

"Taking it so good…that's a good girl…that's it…let your king fuck that ass…ooohhh….'bout to nut…fuck…here it comes…here it comes…shit…here it comes!"

He thrust hard once more and shot hot cum with curses flying from his mouth. Yani took it all and fell over in a satisfied lump when he finished. Her entire vulva throbbed and her clit still pulsed with anticipation.

He allowed her to rest a few minutes. She lifted from the couch and smoothed the hair on her wig. His dick was still hard.

"Come on," he said, lifting her up in his arms and cradling her against his chest.

"Where are we going?"

"Inside."

"But the queen…"

"She'll just have to deal with her man fucking his lover on their bed."

Yani held onto his neck tight. He bounded up the treehouse stairs and carried her into the bedroom.

"Wait here," he said.

She listened to him shuffle into the restroom and run water to clean his dick off. He returned and stroked his dick with fresh lubricant on it. Yani admired his body. He had always been a beautiful man. From the moment she first laid eyes on him, N'Jadaka was the finest chiseled specimen of man she had ever seen. The scars on his body actually enhanced his beauty and that man knew he was physical perfection just by the way he preened in front of her.

He lowered himself to the bedding and held her close to him.

"I will show you how I make love to her," he said.

He kissed her forehead with lips so soft that she forgot that he was her husband. The scent of his skin reminded her of honeysuckle blooming and she held onto his shoulders feeling safe in his arms. He rubbed his nose against hers making her smile.

"I love you," he said.

Yani pressed her lips against his and savored the softness. Oh how she fought to have this man! From the naysayers back home to the nobles who questioned her worthiness, Yani held onto her husband tight, feeling his heartbeat against her chest. Her tongue twisted around his and the joy in her heart thrummed throughout her body, raising the temperature on her skin and causing her pores to sweat even more. Their combined heat raised her arousal. He bit the side of her neck with those sharp slugs and Yani gasped, her eyes glued to the opening in the ceiling.

N'Jadaka penetrated her pussy with a quick motion in his hips and he marinated inside of her, keeping his kisses deep and wet inside her mouth. Her walls contracted when he pushed in further, accommodating him with intense slick heat.

He sucked in a breath when she squeezed around him tighter. His claw necklace dangled above her nose. She raised her legs up and held her thighs. N'Jadaka raised up on his hands and watched his dick go slowly in and out of her pussy. The focused concentration gave her joyful shivers. He loved looking at her body while he made love, and kept checking in with her by staring at her face. Swiveling his hips he slowed down his pumps and drops of sweat fell on her from his chest.

"Show me how much you love me," she begged.

N'Jadaka inhaled and then huffed out puffs of frantic air. The pussy clenching was getting to him. Yani absorbed the yearning he had to make her cum again while he stretched her out. Her clit was engorged and sat there fat and gorgeous like a precious jewel.

He was so big everywhere. His body. His dick. His personality. His legacy. His love.

Yani had shaped him and the world he conquered. No two people had ever wielded the power they did together all over the globe. His power over her body flowed out in hot waves across her tender skin. Her breasts bounced with his thrusts and his eyes darted down to watch. He loved every inch of her and she could see that clearly in those cunning brown eyes. She panted. He was too much. In the end of all their intimate encounters he was always too much. God, what a blessing.

He hit a spot inside of her that made her scream his name that became exaltations to heaven. N'Jadaka watched her face as she came on his dick and she felt him swell and spill inside of her. Looking down at their wet messy joining, his dick pulsed and so did his balls.

Yani let go of her thighs and let her orgasm cascade over any thoughts of anything outside of Ekuqaleni. All that mattered was them. Right there. Right now.

She gave herself permission to forget her children and the rest of the world.

N'Jadaka was all that she would live and breathe for in that moment. They were perfect and divine and meant to make love for a lifetime.

Attendants carried away the last of Yani's personal belongings she used in Ekuqaleni.

N'Jadaka conferred with their Dora Milaje and she took a final walk past the treehouse and into the forest. Their houseboat was ready for the next part of their honeymoon and all that was left was to give instructions to their personal staff and notify the palace that they were leaving within the hour.

"Don't go far," N'Jadaka called out.

"I won't," she said, waving at him.

She wandered past the large mineral pool and headed over to the mini waterfall that fed into the stream that attracted the best butterflies because of all the lovely flowers that beckoned with their nectar. The long wrap-around cornflower-blue dress she wore brushed past her ankles and a gentle breeze blew across her face. The coolness from the canopy gave her skin a break from the sun as she rounded a bend in the stream to get one last look at the mini waterfall.

In her peripheral, she caught sight of something dark and low to the ground. She pretended not to see the panther cub until two others popped out on her side next to it, all three watching her walk along the damp path of forest floor dirt in her sandals. Above the canopy she could hear and feel the vibration of the Royal Talon Fighter leaving Ekuqaleni.

"I'm going to ignore you because you aren't real and you won't harm me," she said out loud, throwing her voice over her shoulder at the cubs.

There was no sense looking at them, they would only disappear after a few minutes anyway. Whatever magic or spirits that lived in the forest would stay there. Yani was leaving in thirty minutes.

"Where are you?" N'Jadaka asked.

His image floated above her wrist. She stopped walking to catch her breath.

"Not far. I wanted to see the little waterfall and maybe collect some flowers before we leave," she said.

"Do that, then head on back. I'll wait for you at the firepit," he said.

She tapped her beads and his image winked out. Bending down to pluck the best flowers, one of the cubs brushed against her leg. She yelped and jumped back, not expecting it to be real flesh and blood at all. It purred loudly and rubbed against her ankles, its cute little tail flicking with agitation.

Should she pick it up?

Yani glanced around. The other two cubs sat on their haunches watching her…and waited.

What harm could befall her if she bent down to test if it were a solid thing?

N'Jadaka waited for her. All she had to do was walk away and leave with happy memories. They weren't real, just a trick of the mind. She decided to forgo touching and spun around to head back to her husband.

The cub jumped in front of her path and rubbed himself back and forth against both of her ankles. She felt the warmth from its chunky body. It opened its mouth and gave a weak kittenish yawp, showing its tiny baby teeth. Too cute. It stared up at her with cute eyes and cute whiskers.

Yani bent down and the first cub ran in front of her, looking back to see if she still locked eyes on it. It gave that pitiful baby panther cry again and the two other cubs ran toward them and ran around her in a circle, rubbing their little warm bodies against her ankles too. They jumped away when she tried to pet them, and ran in front of her a few feet, looking back to check her stance. She walked forward when they ambled back to her, but the closer she got, they ran ahead of her again and stopped. Yani got the message.

They wanted her to follow them.

Running ahead of her in the opposite direction she needed to go, Yani had a decision to make once more. Go with them or stay?

N'Jadaka knew where she was. If she sensed danger, she could scream and tap her beads, and he would come to her rescue within seconds with his enhanced speed. She could follow them and if they led her to someplace sketchy, she would put up the force field that was embedded in her beads to protect her until her husband arrived. Ekuqaleni never showed her any harm or made her feel unsafe. Panthers were the Udaku's animal guides. If she left without seeing where they went, the curiosity would get the better of her and ruin her honeymoon. She tapped her beads.

"N'Jadaka, I see the panther cubs again," she whispered into the beads.

"Stay where you are, I'll be there in a minute."

"They rubbed against my legs. They seem real."

"Do not touch them," he said.

"Okay. I'll wait here."

It would take him at least fifteen minutes to walk there.

The cubs ran ahead of her again, much further this time. They still looked back at her to make sure she had eyes on them.

Wait.

Yani tapped her foot and glanced over her shoulder. N'Jadaka was taking too long coming to her. The cubs padded further south. She took a few steps forward to keep them in her eyesight as they passed through some low fronds off the path she had taken.

"Hurry N'Jadaka," she muttered under her breath, not wanting to cause the cubs to disappear before he arrived. Although he couldn't see them, he could sense them, and it would be better to have him go with her on a wild goose chase. Or a panther chase.

She couldn't see them ahead of her anymore and took a chance following. Nothing in her gut felt weird and she wasn't afraid.

She quickly caught up to them and they began to run. They weren't as fast as her and she lifted the hem of her dress to keep from tripping on it. The shade around her seemed to grow darker the further she went and she brushed away low hanging branches, vines and brush to keep up.

Ahead of her was a clearing and she caught sight of the cubs running as fast as their little legs could carry them. She started laughing, feeling the air on her skin rush by, and the wonderful physical sensation of her leg muscles stretching in a good sprint. To her right was a part of the tributary that led to the main river of the Ibukun, and that shocked her because it meant that she had run further than she thought. Twenty miles.

Yani took in her surroundings and checked her kimoyos. There was no way she should've been able to run that far in under fifteen seconds.

"Yani, where are you?" N'Jadaka's voice broke her reverie.

"I'm here!" she said, looking at his floating image.

It winked out and Yani stared at the three panther cubs still running ahead of her. Several yards ahead of them, next to the riverbank sat three serene-looking River Tribe women on a rug in a circle. They're eyes were closed tight as if in a deep meditation session and they stood up the moment Yani appeared. They all wore lavender headwraps twisted in the style of their people. Two wore sleeveless long purple and turquoise dresses and the other had short sleeves on her pale turquoise long dress. The purple rug under their feet was five feet in diameter with white swirling lines and white dots that looked like tiny stars. A lit candle floated inside a bowl filled with water at the bottom of the carpet. The flame flickered and Yani noticed that sky was the color of lilac and amethysts and that could only occur there at sunset.

"Wait…wait…this can't be. It's still morning," Yani said.

The panther cubs ran directly toward the women and before Yani could reach them, each cub ran through the bottom of each woman's dress and vanished.

"Are you real?" Yani asked.

The woman in the white dress smiled.

"Yes Queen Yani, we are very real," she said.

"Were those panther cubs…?"

The woman in the white dress stepped forward but kept her feet on the rug.

"Our apologies, kumkanikazi. I am Jabulile. That is Khanyisile, and she is Nolwazi. We had to get your attention without upsetting the king. He gave an edict that no one was to disturb you on your honeymoon, so we were unable to come to you directly. Using avatars allowed us to get close to you. We had hoped to catch you alone and draw you out here to meet us without the king becoming angry."

"Why do you need to see me?"

"The oracle requests an audience with you."

"Oracle? What oracle?"

"Nolwandle…the mother of oceans. She received an urgent message from the other side and Mama Wati has given permission to let it pass through her. You must go to Nolwandle as soon as possible. But the king must not know about this or else Bast will find out," Khanyisile said.

Yani took a step back.

"If you are afraid of Bast finding out, then are you trying to do something bad behind her back?"

Nolwazi clasped her hands together in a beseeching motion, "Kumkanikazi, the Grandmother of us all must not know about this because she does not like messages about the future reaching human ears. There is order in all divine things coming to pass, but if humans know things ahead of that time, they may disrupt the pattern she has set forth."

"I want my husband with me. I don't go anywhere alone without him by my side."

Jabulile nodded with understanding, but her eyes pleaded for Yani to heed their words.

"You must see Nolwandle, within three days. She can only be a vessel for the message that long, or else it will cause her great bodily harm and mental distress. Today will be her first day. It will be to your detriment to ignore her call. A message like this has traveled through souls to get to you, my dear queen."

Yani gestured toward the sky.

"You could be tricking me," Yani said.

All three women shook their heads.

"It would be a sin for us to trick anyone," Jabulile said, "We do not mean to frighten you, but I beg you Queen Yani. Heed our words daughter. Go to Mama Wati's statue at the mouth of Warrior Falls, past the great Manta Ray monument. Look at her face at the first light of the morning and it will show you the path to the Oracle. If you do not receive this message, the Udaku bloodline will come into jeopardy, and so will the fate of our country."

Jabulile held out her hand. Her words startled Yani and she reached out to the woman. Jabulile clasped Yani's hand and pulled her onto the beautiful rug.

"Oh God!" Yani cried out.

Her body felt like it was rushing through a powerful vortex of pure light and loud sounds that rattled her eardrums. After a few seconds she saw the figure of a dark-skinned woman sitting crossed-legged with a crackling fire in front of her. The woman's eyes rose from the flickering flames and stared right through Yani.

"Come daughter…Mama Wati protects you here…come Black mermaid…I have a message for you…come quickly…"

Yani's body whipped back at an angle and it felt like she was about to do a backflip or split in half trying to do so.

"Easy kumkanikazi, you are here with us again," Jabulile said, still holding Yani's hands.

Yani stumbled back off of the rug. The women stepped off of it too, and Jabulile rolled it up.

"Find your way to her…your bloodline is in danger if you don't," Jabulile said. "Go to Mama Wati's statue. Let her show you the way."

The women lowered their heads to Yani and walked toward a canoe waiting for them halfway out of the water. The tucked the rug inside and each woman climbed inside quietly with Jabulile in the center. The other two women paddled them downriver.

Yani watched them and caught her breath.

"Yani!"

Yani whipped her head around toward N'Jadaka's voice and it was morning once more. She checked her kimoyo beads. It was the same time as when she had first spotted the panther cubs. Glancing around, she was back at the mini waterfall with flowers still clasped in her fingers.

Her husband smiled and walked toward her.

"Ready to leave?" he said.

He held out his hand and she threaded her fingers with his, her body trembling.

"You okay, Yani?"

"It's just a little chillier in the shade. That rainy weather must be on the way," she said.

"Don't matter, we'll be snuggled up and floating in blissful waters."

Yani walked out of Ekuqaleni trying to figure out a way to go to Warrior Falls sooner without raising any suspicions in her husband. The weight of something extraordinary depended on her carrying it in secrecy. That was something she promised N'Jadaka she would never have with him. Secrets.

"Onward, " he said, and Yani stayed by his side.

Chapter 10 HERE.

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sihaya74 · 2 years ago

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NEW The Lessons of Bryan Fuller's Hannibal S1:E2 -- WELL, THAT'S JUST TERRIFIC, GOD...

Lessons of Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal

S1:E2 – WELL, THAT’S JUST TERRIFIC, GOD…

An amuse-bouche is the name for a small dish served in restaurants prior to beginning a meal. It is not an appetizer – especially not in the eyes of some Americans, who expect appetizers so large they are served on platters and perhaps with some sort of celebratory song or souvenir. An amuse-bouche can be eaten in one or two bites. A patron never orders an amuse-bouche – it is selected by the chef and usually provided to diners free of charge. It is meant to be a hint of things to come – the culinary equivalent of an elevator pitch. This is what you can expect going forward – this flavor profile, this style, this sense of weight or lightness, these notes, this feeling the food creates.

“Amuse-Bouche” is also the name of S1:E2 of Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal. The first episode was titled “Apéritif” – which is, of course, a drink served before dinner, usually alcoholic, meant to whet the appetite. Sometimes, the apéritif and the amuse-bouche are served together. In the case of Hannibal, they are not.

Fuller wrote S1:E1 solo. SI:E2 was written by Jim Danger Gray, who also worked on Fuller’s Pushing Daisies (another one of the most beautiful and moving series ever filmed, in my opinion) and is best known for his work on Orange Is the New Black.

If S1:E1 was meant to whet our appetites, it handily succeeds. If S1:E2 is meant to give us a sense of what to expect going forward in both Season 1 and the entire series, it succeeds mightily as well. Before I discuss the content of the episode and the lesson nestled in the savory morsels of this amuse-bouche, I must give a little context about “adaptation.”

I often cannot decide what is harder for authors – to write completely original content that they dredge up from the basements of their brains, from the secret closets of their heart, out from under the beds of their childhood memories, scavenged from the garage sales of their teen and adult years… Or is it harder to adapt the original material from another author – to take something from the basement and closets of another person and try to merge it into something of their own. Take the original author’s coat and cut off the lapels and sleeves – add on more stylish sleeves without the old-school suede patches on the elbows (which I actually like and think we should bring back) and lapels with jazzy details and a bigger buttonhole to accommodate all the things the adapter would like to thread through it. I have not decided which is harder. I have done both. They both require a lot of research and patience. Considering all of human existence is one long story – considering each of our lives adds a new chapter to the Great Story as it is always being written – perhaps original writing and adaptation are the same thing. If we ever actually hit “THE END” of existence, maybe we’ll find out.

I took a course on adaptation in grad school. It focused on the adaptation of the Robin Hood legend from the first ballads of the 1400s up until the most recent film and television adaptations – and all the Robins of Huntingtons and Loxleys and Errol Flynns and Sean Conneries and Kevin Costners and Jonas Armstrongs and Russell Crowes along the way – and there have been more and there will always be. One of the things we discussed with every adaptation we read or viewed was of course how the adapting author had changed the original content and then we set about guessing WHY… Often the reasons an adapting author changed content was simply time-dependent – incorporating new inventions and paradigms that had appeared in time since Robin first entered the Greenwood. But sometimes the changes made were deeply related to the new author’s own themes �� the points he/she/they wanted to make with the characters, with the story, with the symbols. Trust me, a lot can be done symbolically with a bow and an arrow.

And a lot can be done with a mentally unstable profiler and his cannibal psychiatrist who has become bewitched by his intriguing patient.

Harris’ original content in the four books that comprise the Hannibal series: Red Dragon, The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, and Hannibal Rising – is so meaty and nourishing, an adapting author can cook with it for years and always have new meals to present to an audience. Though the books vary in quality (Hannibal Rising gets a bad rap – but I feel it has parts that flash through with Harris’ brilliance that make it worth a read), they are, as a whole, gorgeous and thoroughly enjoyable – especially for fellow English majors. Harris throws in the literary references like tinsel on a Christmas tree – the allusions sparkle with dazzling specificity that warm the English major’s heart. And if you might be an aspiring writer and want to know about ending chapters, go read Harris – particularly RD and SOTL. Good God, that man can end a chapter – some of them make you cry, some of them knock the wind out of you, some of them make you thrill with wonder at what a gift Harris has. He really is an amazing writer.

I would imagine that one of the issues that always arose in Fuller’s writing room was what to keep from Harris and what to save for later and what was best not to tackle and how to change what was pulled out. It the metaphor is a dish – how to maintain the original flavor but tweak it – how to make it his own, and the own of the writers who cooked up the mains of each episode and added the garnishes with, I imagine, nervous love.

“Amuse-Bouche” is a perfect example of new content and original content blended into a new dish – a perfect succotash of theme and symbol that smacks of the Hannibal Lecter of the Harris-Times but is spiced with the umami of the Fuller-Years.

The Will Graham is our same Will Graham of Red Dragon, although most of the content of the entire series of Hannibal is a prequel to Red Dragon, even though elements of all four of Harris’ books are interwoven and transformed. The Will Graham of “Amuse-Bouche” is still shaky after his killing of Garrett Jacob Hobbs in the family kitchen. He is shaky not about the act itself, but about the feelings he has toward the act – the subject of his and Hannibal’s discussion at the end of the episode and the scene in which the lesson I have chosen lies.

One of the things I love most about Fuller’s Hannibal is the expansion into the crime scene investigators that assist Jack Crawford at the BAU. In Harris’ books, these investigators are given a little character development; Jimmy Price is most paid attention to. He even graduates from Red Dragon into The Silence of the Lambs, which is impressive. Clarice Starling studies as a Forensic Fellow under Jimmy. He teaches her everything he knows about fingerprinting. In case you didn’t know, Jimmy Price is the World Champion of Fingerprinting. He receives decapitated hands at the BAU every day from all over the country because he is just that good at pulling prints, even under the worst of circumstances. Brian Zeller and Beverly Katz get a little attention from Harris – a slight competitive rivalry between Will and Zeller is hinted at, just a breath of it, in fact.

Fuller and the other writers take Team Sassy Science, as we #Fannibals call them (and Zeller and Price are alternately called Preller and Science Husbands 😊), and give them idiosyncrasies and agency and personalities. Zeller is a bit of a know-it-all who hates being proven wrong. Jimmy is an adorable ball of sarcasm and practicality. Bev Katz is badass, but sweet. It is she who makes the first overtures at friendship with Will, and I submit to you, she has the best chance of being successful. Zeller is jealous of Will and Jimmy seems too awed or confused by Will. Bev nails Will down to reality for a brief time. The Will-Bev friendship is truly one of my favorite things in the series.

As is the plot with our murderer in this episode, Eldon Stammets. Stammets is named after real-life American mycologist, Paul Stamets, who is an advocate of medicinal fungi and founder of the company, Fungi Perfecti, which sells mushroom supplements for all the things that ail the human body and mind.

If you don’t know about the mushrooms, I, being a mere layperson, cannot tell you. All I can say is, learn about the mushrooms. It will blow your mind.

If there is anything that has been threaded through the buttonhole of this very fine jacket of an episode, it is a mushroom – new-bloomed and dotted with thoughtful dew.

The killer, Eldon Stammets, is obsessed with fungi and their mycelium; he is deeply fascinated by how their structure mimics the human brain. It’s all about connection. He murders ten people by way of triggering diabetic ketoacidosis and then uses their bodies as the fertilizer and growth medium for families of shroomy fellows. Towards the end of “Amuse-Bouche,” Stammets kidnaps the comatose Abigail Hobbs. His intention is to “plant” the poor girl and sprout fungi from her decomposing remains; this, he believes, will allow Will Graham to communicate with her.

Needless to say, Will does not buy Stammets’ human-to-mushroom translation theory, and he promptly shoots and wounds Stammets, who is then arrested, ending the killer’s reign of fungitastic terror.

After Stammets’ arrest, a wobbly Will goes to see Hannibal, still disturbed by his thoughts. The hallucinations of Garrett Jacob Hobbs he has been experiencing since the beginning of the episode have ebbed away for the time being, leaving behind the detritus of Will’s feelings about the bloody scene in the Hobbs’ kitchen.

This is where our lesson is from, my friends. The dialogue is as follows:

HANNIBAL: It wasn’t the act of killing Hobbs that got you down, was it? Did you really feel so bad because killing him felt so good?

WILL GRAHAM: I liked killing Hobbs.

HANNIBAL: Killing must feel good to God, too. He does it all the time, and are we not created in his image?

WILL GRAHAM: Depends who you ask.

HANNIBAL: God’s terrific. He dropped a church roof on thirty-four of his worshippers last Wednesday night in Texas, while they sang a hymn.

WILL GRAHAM: Did God feel good about that?

HANNIBAL: He felt powerful (Danger Gray 46).

In Harris’ Red Dragon, this actually occurs in a letter Dr. Lecter writes to Will – a letter Will reads after his family has escaped the wrath of Francis Dolarhyde, and after Francis has made a very charred example of Freddy Lounds. In his letter. Dr. Lecter makes it a point to refer to Will’s killing of Hobbs as a “murder.” Dr. Lecter writes, speaking of God, “He’d let you have Hobbs…He’d let you have measly Hobbs. He won’t begrudge you one measly murder” (Harris Red Dragon 342).

In Fuller’s series, Hannibal is careful not to refer to Hobbs’ death as “murder,” but he does call Hobbs Will’s “victim,” which Will immediately refutes. Will is not yet ready to accept the killer instinct inside him, so Fuller’s Hannibal is rightfully more careful with his phrasing. Harris’ Hannibal, the gorgeous original, is a bit more of a rabble-rouser, even in the quiet moments. Either one will bite you in the face when you least expect it.

The thing that most intrigues me about this dialogue is how Hannibal calls God “terrific.” This word is not used in Harris’ text. It was added in by Michael Mann, who directed, and also wrote the screenplay for Manhunter. And it might seem like one little word doesn’t make much of a difference, but I assure you it does. Why is God “terrific?”

It is important to remember that “terrific” is one of those words that has been tarted up through the centuries to sound more pleasing than its initial definition. When we call something “terrific” now, we mean it’s something really good, amazing, awesome. That movie, that song, the winning goal at the end of the football match, all these things are terrific. But…there is the other, more sinister, more archaic definition of “terrific.”

“TERRIFIC (adj.) – causing terror” (Oxford Languages).

From the Latin, terrere – to frighten.

I believe that Hannibal means that God is “terrific” in both senses of the word. God’s indiscriminate cruelty causes terror, but also is a wonderful thing to Hannibal because of its chaotic nature. Will’s killing of Hobbs feels good to him because he is dispensing righteous justice to a psychopathic murderer. But Hannibal compares Will’s killing of Hobbs to God’s dispatching of myriad humans. God kills randomly and almost ironically simply to feel his own power. And while Hannibal is very selective about his victims, all of his murders have an ironic edge sharp enough to slash throats with. Hannibal is not God, but he appreciates God’s sense of humor. By making this comparison, Hannibal is priming Will’s mind for future murders – simply by making the argument, “kill more people and you will feel like a god. Come. Come be a god with me…”

And so, my friends, the lesson?

It is a tried and true one, but it never loses its flavor.

LIVE NOW. LIVE TODAY. DO IT NOW. There may never be a tomorrow.

However you want to phrase it – “baby, there’s a bomb hanging over our heads” OR carpe diem or YOLO or whatever the kids say these days…the lesson is to live your life to the fullest. To experience everything – to take the risks, to make a fool of yourself, to go outside your comfort zone, to do the things you want to do no matter who or what gets in your way.

One of William Blake’s themes that made its way into Harris’ work and then byway of adaptation into Fuller’s Hannibal is the eternal question – if God is a loving god, why does he let bad things happen to good people? Blake found an answer that suited him and he was good with it. The answer that Harris seems to come to and the one that is expressed into the episodes of Hannibal is that God is a lover of chaos.

Not surprisingly, so is Hannibal Lecter. Barney Matthews, Hannibal’s orderly in the BSHCI (played by the amazing Frankie Faison in on-screen portrayals) tells Clarice in the book Hannibal, “Dr. Lecter has no interest in hypothesis. He doesn’t believe in syllogism, or synthesis, or any absolute;” when Clarice asks what Dr. Lecter believes in, Barney replies, “Chaos” (Harris Hannibal 89-90).

The point is, whether it is God or chaos or a suave cannibal in a three-piece suit, your death is coming. Enjoy life now. All but too soon, a roof could fall on you.

References:

Danger Gray, Jim. Writer. “Amuse-Bouche.” Hannibal, season 1, episode 2, Chiswick Productions, 2012.

Harris, Thomas. Hannibal. New York, Delacorte Press, 1999.

Harris, Thomas. Red Dragon. New York, Berkley, 2000.

“Terrific.” Oxford Languages, 2022.

#lessonsofhannibal #hannibal #fannibals #fannibalfamilyforever

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