Artemis of the Bana Midghall was a sight to behold, her thigh length red hair twirling behind her in a tight braid, as she twisted and weaved between the rows of terracotta soldiers. They were more of an annoyance than a threat, and her sights were set on the witch Circe in the middle of the green enclave, who was now gleefully directing her magical creations to slow down the Justice League.
"Come forth my beautifool varriors, vee will surely vin!" Circe laughed and had the gall to do a pirouette as the Flash got tackled by a gnarly garden gnome. Artemis felt her ire rise and she growled. Just wait right there witch, and I'll teach you a masterclass in comedy.
Circe had been causing trouble in the mortal realm and the Justice League had requested assistance from Themyscira. The Queens Hippolyta and Anahid had chosen to send Artemis. Diana was still out of action, recovering from an injury she'd taken during Darkseid's most recent invasion of Earth. Artemis had wordlessly accepted her task, pushing down her contempt for the world of man. She'd had a duty to perform.
Kal-El of Krypton, known to most as Superman, fought on the opposite side of the battle, lasering off the heads of beloved cartoon characters come to life. When he'd joined the battle, he'd been hesitant to harm a cute Jerry that had sauntered upto him. His mindset rapidly changed when the little rodent had exploded in his face, releasing a cloud of vile smelling gas that would have decapacitated a normal human.
He finished up with the hellish toons, dispatching the very last one with freeze breath followed by a punch that shattered the ice. Sorry Johnny Bravo. His eyes drifted to Artemis. She was such a skilled warrior. Her actions were a deadly, choreographed dance, and no opponent could stay alive in front of her blade for longer than a few seconds. But as highly trained as she was, she still had all the limitations of a human body. In this battle, however, she'd donned the winged sandals of Hermes and the Gauntlet of Atlas, wielding a sword forged by Hephaestus himself. Kal guessed that her power level now would just about rival his own. Although she looks a heck of a lot better than me using it. She hadn't spoken a word to anyone other than the female Leaguers since she'd joined the League on the battlefield, and upon enquiry, a bemused J'onn had explained to a dumbfounded Superman her vehement hate of the male kind. What a shame, she possesses such beauty and ferocity.
With Artemis' input and help, they wrapped up the fight in a few hours. Shayera had to physically restrain Artemis from lopping off Circe's head like a block of butter. Most of the the League had already left, leaving only him, Shayera, Artemis, and J'onn at the scene to wrap up things. And Clark thus found himself stuck, explaining restraint on the battlefield to a deadly woman. One who hated the very sight of any man, much less someone named Superman. Thanks a bunch for the name, Lois.
"Tell me, man," Artemis sneered. "Your brilliant strategy is to let your opponent live so that they can try to kill you another day?"
"It's easy to kill your enemy, Amazon, but to do so would mean that you are no better than your what you seek to destroy. We spare their lives because it is just, and we present them before the law or a higher authority, which in Circe's case happens to be your gods."
"Don't presume to teach justice to me, you arrogant child! I have lived for thousands of years, and I've read and learned more about justice than you could ever hope to! This is a battlefield, and in such a place, one has leave to kill their enemy. You took away my right to kill my enemy. I shall not forget this slight, Superman."
Artemis whirled around and stalked away from Clark, who was left standing there, quite confused. "But what did I do? It was Shayera who..."
He heard Shayera urgently whisper from across the enclave, "You can heal from an injury Clark, not me, poor Thanagarian that I am."
He looked at her pleading eyes, and nodded. "You owe me, Shay," he mouthed to her, and she eagerly nodded, her orange hair bobbing up and down, smiling widely at the prospect of not having to die at the hands of a furious Amazon. "Anything you want, Clark! You're the best!"
A sudden explosion above them drew their attention and they saw an old man floating above them, clothed in black. Clark scanned his body's composition and paled. Artemis launched off without a warning and flew in sword first towards the man.
"Artemis! No! Wait!" Clark shouted and launched himself into the air, trying to head her off. But just as Clark grabbed her shoulder, her sword struck the old man's ribcage and he gave Artemis a chilling smile. He began glowing and golden light rays leaked from cracks on his skin. Clark firmly grabbed Artemis and drew her in, shielding her with his body just as the explosion rolled over them both.
Shayera had watched in horror as Clark raced towards Artemis, and stood there helplessly as the two were consumed by a ball of energy. She heard Circe cackle and gloat.
"That read headed one, she falls for the oldest tricks! Teleportation! Hahaha hehehe!" she wiped tears from her eyes and clutched her stomach, laughing. Shayera gave her a disgusted look and swung her mace at Circe's head. The witch went down like a rock in a pond. Man was that satisfying!
Zatanna materialised in front of her, startling her and J'onn. "I detected a powerful spell here, what's going on?" she asked.
"Circe," Shayera glumly replied. "She caught Clark and Artemis in a powerful teleportation spell."