Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Riri Williams contacts her friend Xavier King to let him know what's happening in Wakanda. She enthuses about the wi-fi speed and other tech like the multifunctional Kimoyo Beads. But Xavier wants to know about the food in Wakanda and stuff like that. But she has to cut the call short because she's wanted in a meeting with Shuri and Silhouette. Silhouette refers to the other 2 as Shuriri because they go together so well. Neither of them appreciate it.
They want to discuss finding Wellspring Of Power gateway. Riri displays a hologram map she got from Dr Strange (#8) which locates the target. Sil explains what her brother Midnight's Fire and the others in the Ten Rings gang are trying to do. The pair were among a group of children who their grandmother Tai believed were special and could be sacrificed to gain unlimited power from the Wellspring. (See New Warriors v1 #22-25 for more details.) Silhouette thinks her brother Aaron must have found another way to access the power. Riri mentions that Eclipse of the Ten Rings turned people into zombies (#7), and last issue's shadow monsters were draining life from Wakandans. They agree that the Rings intend to use other people's life force as the sacrifice.
They also agree to head for the target area immediately. Ironheart suggests she could fly there carrying Sil, cloaked, and Shuri has flight and cloaking abilities of her own. But Princess Shuri says they can travel in comfort in a Wakandan hi-tech ground vehicle. So they do.
On the way Silhouette explains why she's helping them against her brother - to save Aaron from his own power-lust. She also throws in that her older brother always thought he knew better than her. Shuri says her father always treated her and her older brother T'Challa as equals - her current advisors are not so wise. Riri has to admit her father and stepfather are both dead. She never knew her real father but she got on real well with her stepdad. Sil says their mother gave them up for adoption as babies to hide them from Tai. Riri mentions that Midnight's Fire kept talking to her about destiny and fathers.
All this sharing is interrupted by a zombie hitting the windshield. They get out of the car and are surrounded by the walking dead and walking shadows who seem more difficult to beat than previously. Silhouette wagers it's due to being close to the Wellspring. Shuri asks the others not to kill the zombies because they are innocent Wakandans. Then she has to save Ironheart from a shadow being, but in the process gets knocked down and injured herself. Things look black for our heroines ...
... but then General Okoye of the Dora Milaje joins the fight. As head of Security she tracked the Princess here. Ironheart lifts injured Shuri clear of the battle to where she can blast the enemy from safety. And returns to the fray, where the foe is soon routed.
Riri proposes to go an a cloaked scouting flight. Shuri points out that she too is injured, but IH goes anyway. Shuri complains that Riri is so stubborn. Okoye sarcastically agrees that dealing with such a stubborn person is so difficult. Sil tells Okoye about the Shuriri name, and the General laughs.
Ironheart returns having located a large energy source. They walk there and see an upside-down pyramid city supported above what is obviously the Wellspring. Silhouette uses *her* power to take them inside via the Darkforce Dimension. IH thermally detects 10 people gathered together in 1 spot. Sil fades into the shadows to Darkforce travel again and spies on the meeting of 10 masked and cloaked (in real cloaks) people. 2 of them unmask as Midnight's Fire and Eclipse, and then another man unmasks and speaks too.
Silhouette rebounds back to her 3 allies. She tells Riri that the 3rd man looked a lot like *her*. Is she *sure* her father's dead?