"The king will now have the strength of the Black Panther stripped away"
People heard among the sound of the drums, The queen Ramonda, Princess Shuri and the Royal Consort Anthony Edward Stark stood as they saw the fight about to begin, surrounded by the Dora Milaje and the elders of the country.
When Erik or rather N'Jadaka as was found, returned to Wakanda to challenge T'challa for The Throne, though the Queen kept on saying no he had accepted the challenge. And thus they stood there with fear but confidence, that their king will win.
T'challa panted as his powers were stripped, he then stood once he calmed, he glanced over towards his family, shuri looked smug, absolutely sure he will win, Ramonda was a mother and mothers are always afraid for their children but she showed it the least. With a nod of the head she told him to come to her victorious. Tony looked sad, he didn't want him to fight, this was the love of his life on the line for the sake of Bast. His distress was visible but his smile told him that his lover could trust the universe in his hand right on spot. And it gave him courage to right the wrong his father had committed, though for the country but wrong none the less.
"This is your last chance, throw down your weapons and we can handle this another way" says T'challa to give a final out to Erik. "I've waited my entire life waiting for this moment, I trained, I lied, I killed just to get here" anger is a poisonous encourager, Tony had always believed and this man was out for revenge of a lost father. While he had no doubts on his king's abilities, he was definitely not coming out of this unscathed.
Erik shed his armour and continued "i killed in America, Afghanistan, Iraq. I took life from my own brother's and sisters right here on this continent! And all this death, just so i could kill you" he seethes, all is quiet for a few seconds and then comes the line no one wanted to hear though now it couldn't have been avoided.
"Let the challenge begin"
The oh it begins, strikes come from both sides and to everyone's surprise Erik is holding his ground against T'challa almost overpowering him. Clashes against metal and shield continue for what seems like ages. Erik falls first and They let out a breath they didn't know they were holding. Tony is watching intently, seeing every move. How it isn't disciplined, Erik's fighting style, it is more like 'see the opening, hit the opening'. His skills are more survival based, learned in the field in the course of self protection, brute force to overpower and not with the intent to win....... But to kill.
Erik earns a slash to the face and T'challa to his legs and then to his sides, "SNAP OUT OF IT T'CHALLA" Shuri screams and Tony feels like he is about to cry, he has seen far worse but when it's personal, it's different. The power had turned against him, getting hits after hits and then.... The gut wrenching scene of the spear impaling his lover, Queen Romonda gasps and shuri whimpers. He is pretty sure tears are falling down his face. For him time is frozen, for him the world is ending.
The blade is lifted and before he could shout, Zuri stops the blade. Killmonger in rage stabs him and anger clouds T'challa.
"Never fight when anger rules you, fight when you have shaped the anger into passion" Tony remembers telling his husband once when his lover seemed a little frustrated over something gone wrong along the Wakandan borders. Right now the mockery towards his king not being worthy coming from someone so crude as one whose name is the promoter of death and killing seemed to seer anger inside of him. And he had leaned to forge anger to iron very early in life. 'calm down Tony, this isn't over, it will be ok. Bast protect my love' he kept on telling himself.
Shuri cries next to him "COME ON BROTHER", "is there nothing that can be done" he hears someone say but he hears no reply. T'challa is picked and his soul runs cold, this can't be happening, no no NO NOOO, he isn't sure if he screamed but in that moment he knew, he isn't going to see his lover again, once again the universe laughed as it stripped him of what he loved, of who he loved, like it has done before.
Nakia is urging them to leave, as he hears the vile voice of his lover's murderer say "i am the king now!". He speaks after for what seems like an eternity, "No you are not". Erik looks at him and smirks "Ah the infamous Tony Stark, the one my brother fell for, though i have to say, i see the reason why", Tony feels disgusted as he feels the Erik's eyes on him.
"I am Anthony Edward Stark, the Royal Consort and thus a member of the Royal Family, I- on this ground where my king won his title, challenge you for the Throne!", his voice was icy, his walls down. The merchant of death had been unleashed. "y-you will fight me?!" Erik looks offended and amused all together. "when the trained 'king' of Wakanda couldn't defeat me, you, an American billionaire, raised like a flower in the high towers, think you can defeat me!?", Erik was straight up laughing right now. Ramonda kept on urging Tony to stop, Shuri pleaded she could not lose another today. And while their worries were justified, as he wasn't enhanced and his suit was a tanker on him, the suit made him formidable. He created the suit. He was far more than just the suit.
The Wakandans are stronger because they trained, he has trained with T'challa.
The Wakandans are stronger because of vibranium, he has his own Vibranium weapons.... The wedding gifts, the sign of protection.
The Wakandans were enhanced because of the Black Panther's powers and Bast's blessing. Though not everyone had the poowers of black panther every true Wakandan at heart was blessed by Bast. And so he was too.
He couldn't protect his love, but he could damn well avenge it. Avenge his fallen. Whatever it took.
When Erik finished laughing, he looked at him and said "listen to the forlorn queen stark, don't give her so much to grieve in a day that she passes", "you dare speak about my mother like that vermin!" Tony growls. "you dare speak to your king like that! After all you are the Royal Consort right, Consort of the king of Wakanda. I hope you know you are as smart as they say", Tony absolutely loathes the idea being put infront of him, offended that he thinks he is anyone's but T'challa's.
"Do you accept the challenge or not?" Tony asks, Erik simply scowls "if you have a deathwish, one more won't weigh on my conscience. You choose death over the riches of living with the king, alright. Tho it's a shame to be losing such a beauty". Tony turns to his Mother in law and sister in law, who are still asking him to run away with them, to not fight to not 'go', he knew they weren't referring to him going in the fight, it was him joining his lover. For once they didn't want them to be together so soon. "believe in bast Umama. We owe it to him" and he comes down the stone stairs into the water his lover's blood is mixed with.
He takes his shirt off, feeling Erik's gaze on him who seems to be ogling him without even hiding it, 'disgusting' Tony thinks.
He is very well build mind you, he did heavy weight lifting during and out of work and did learn martial arts. But that doesn't mean was a sculpture to lust over, Erik says, "You are no enhanced, that i know. The herb only ever works on Wakandans, it kills the rest, so lets see what fight you pull through without your blasters"
His weapons are brought to him, blades that attach to his arms that can widen and become a shield, not nanotechnology simply creativity on his part. He remembers family, he remembers friends, he remembers children, he remembers enemies and he remembers lover. They take their stance and this time Ramonda comes forward and gives Tony the nod before she says -
"let the challenge begin".
Erik attacks and Tony defends and slaps Erik over his cut with the flat surface of the blade, just to make it sting. Erik becomes irritated and attacks again, just like he had with T'challa. The man didn't have many moves, he simply knew when to use which one. A man with a pattern is easy to defeat if the pattern becomes known. Tony turns the blades into shields and sees an opportunity to kick Erik when his Torso is open. Erik reels back and anger starts to cloud his judgement. 'good' Tony thinks. He starts attacking more viciously and Tony gives and takes a few more hits. After a few minutes of being kicked down Erik is gone into a frenzy state of rage and asks as he sits "How can you, an outsider stand against me like that, what are you!?", Tony stands against him with poise of a feline, and the deadliness of the same. He replies "It is because, before you were powered by your intent to kill, your sorrow and grief was all turned to force against the face of my king. But now that resides with me. The intent to kill the killer of my king" in a deep growl.
"He never wished to kill you, the man that he is he never wished to harm you, giving you ways out since your arrival. Had he wished to, you wouldn't last a minute, it was the death of zuri that took a toll on him. Yes indeed I'm not a Wakandan by birth but Bast accepts anyone as her child who calls upon her with a heart worth the name of this country, i cannot be blessed by the panther god, but the goddess is a mother Killmonger, he comes whenever her child calls "
He walks in front of him and the deity herself shadows his back, everyone gasps as they see the image of Bast behind Tony. Looking over him. He continues "As for 'what i am?' i am Anthony Stark the husband of T'challa... ", he raises his blade against Erik's throat in a warning "... And the king of Wakanda".