Chapter Sixteen: Echoes Beyond the Fog

The Field collapsed.

Not with violence, not with the howling distortion that accompanied the start of a game, but with quiet surrender. Like a dream finally letting go.

Shuri stood in the center of nothing.

The twilight village was gone. The board was gone. The weight of watching eyes had vanished, replaced by an eerie, cosmic stillness. For the first time in days—or hours, or years depending on the Field's logic—she was alone.

Then came the light.

A silver coin hovered before her, spinning slowly in the air. No longer a token of survival or choice. It was something else now.

A **promise**.

The Fieldmaster appeared behind it, lounging on a floating throne made of broken game pieces. His eyes glittered like dice mid-roll.

> "You made your choice, Shuri. Now the Field answers."

He snapped his fingers. The coin dropped into her palm.

And then—

**Reality bent.**

---

**Elsewhere—on the Spectators' Balcony**

Wong turned away first, his expression unreadable.

> "Her wish is being processed. Let's hope she understands what it'll cost."

"Everyone's wish costs something," Mobius muttered, leaning back.

Darcy blinked. "Wait. She *won*—shouldn't this be the easy part?"

The Divergent chuckled, swirling tea that now shimmered gold. "Winning in the Field never means rest. It means *evolution*."

Overseer Vanta remained silent, watching the threads of possibility converge.

One glowed brighter than the others.

---

**Inside the Wish**

Shuri fell.

Or was she flying?

Images wrapped around her like an AI dreaming—scenes of Wakanda, of her family, of empty council chambers and thrones filled by the wrong people. Her heartbeat thrummed with the rhythm of change.

She saw herself speaking—not in a lab, not behind closed doors—but at the UN, on global broadcasts, on the frontlines of innovation and diplomacy.

A voice. A presence. A storm no one could ignore.

> "No more shadows," she whispered. "No more second-guessing."

The coin in her hand burned gold.

When her feet touched ground again, she stood in a reformed room: a blend of lab and royal chamber, mirrors gleaming with potential timelines. Every reflection showed a different version of herself—scientist, ruler, warrior, ghost.

But only one walked forward.

The real her.

She stepped through.

---

**Back in the Field**

The village did not return.

Instead, a stage built itself from light and ash. A single spotlight illuminated the empty ground.

The Fieldmaster clapped slowly.

> "A wish fulfilled. A voice found. Now…"

He raised a finger.

> "...let's see how it echoes through the next game."

A gust of wind blew across the platform.

A new shadow landed on the edge of the Field.

Lithe. Quick. Watching with wide, analytical eyes.

**Peter Parker.**

Player Three.

The web-slinger rose, cracking his knuckles.

> "Okay. This is weird even for me."

From the balcony above, Darcy grinned. "Showtime, Spider-Boy."

The Field reset, warping into something new—a city suspended upside down, neon-lit and silent, crawling with illusions and doubts.

Peter stared up at it, swallowing hard.

> "Okay, brain... don't fail me now."

---

**End of Chapter Sixteen**