The clash of the gods continued. Ares surged at Diana; blue blade of war clashing against that of the demigoddess' physical yet magical blade. The blades locked. Ares summed his strength and started to push Diana down...and he then reached out and resurrected the soldiers that Diana had already killed. They spirits rejoined their bodies; hellish shrieks emanated from them. Diana super punched Ares in the groin. God or no god; he felt that. He fell to a knee and his energy blade was further knocked aside due to this action. She then did a spinning back fast, also with super speed and strength; the Amazon put as much power into that blow as she could. It was a solid hit. It shattered his nearly indestructible armor. He cried out and fell back. His energy blade disappeared. He fell to his back. Diana yelled out a cry of power and took to the air; she came down with her katana ready to run him through but he vanished in a blaze of blue light. Her sword only stabbed the ground. She stood and spun to face these undead grotesqueries that she intended to keep the way she'd dispatched them. It wouldn't be a problem. With Ares' direct link to them severed they returned to the netherworld.

Diana stood. Another round in the eternal fight had been fought. And this time those crazies would stay dead as she had originally rendered them. With the god of war gone - for now - Diana would focus on the more earthly aspects of her current mission - although she had now proven in fact Ares was in fact involved. How much didn't really matter. What was important now was continuing to pull on the thread of how much damage he had done here and stop it where possible.

She pushed deeper into the bush yet. What she truly needed to do was find General Ogas and change the balance of things here. She still wanted to return to Adika's village and keep things moving there. She couldn't explain it but there was something about Adika that intrigued her. She couldn't help it, but it had heightened after his family had been killed.

I will be back for you my friend. I will.

The tireless Amazon still had plenty of Cameroonian territory to cover before securing the border itself. She would respect US desire to not enter Nigerian territory but if the job needed her to go into it than she would.

She ran throughout the remainder of the night in the bush. She didn't encounter any more enemy but they could just as well be on alert due to Ares or for other reasons.

Most did not understand Zeus' divine will when it came to how Diana and Ares dealt with each other. It wasn't about dominion but rather balance. There would never be a true victor in their fight until Zeus willed otherwise - and in five thousand years he hadn't. Diana and Ares were of equal power level, although Diana being second in power only to Zeus himself was ultimately more powerful than Ares. The other gods and demigods were like angel equivalents. And there were countless other similar beings throughout the multiverse that rivaled them in power. They could be demons wizards dragons or aliens. And in five thousand years Diana had fought them all.

As she ran through the bush she thought of her current lover, Jennifer King. She was a British national and artist like her. It had been Jenny that had pulled the bisexual warrior from her previous civilian life as an antiquities dealer. Jenny did know that Diana was Wonder Woman, or WW as she had nicknamed her. They had dated for nearly three years and Diana had only told Jenny in the last year that was WW. Jenny still had a hard time processing the fact that Diana was essentially the daughter of God or might as well have been.

She was continuing to make her way north in the bush when she heard something from ahead. She stopped and went low in the nighttime bush. She reached out with her power and found a solitary form - a male form - moving in the bush. He was not aware of her. He seemed different to her somehow. Pulling off her lasso she moved to encircle him. If she could restrain him early on she could interrogate him more effectively.

She indeed circled him effectively and came up behind him in the bush. There was nobody else around. She threw out the lasso and tied him up with it. He cried out as Diana then yanked him back to her in the bush darkness. It quickly brightened as the lasso powered up. He saw her and gasped.

"Who are you?"

He tried to resist. The lasso burned into his soul without hesitation. He cried out but it broke him down.

"Trevor; Steven Rockwell Trevor."

"And what are you doing out here Steven Rockwell Trevor?"

Again he resisted; and again the lasso burned into him.

"Jesus..."

Diana was patient as ever. They were in no danger and she was immortal. She had all the time in the world whereas he most certainly did not.

"I'm...CIA. I'm CIA."

She frowned at that. "CIA? I'm already serving the US on the job here. Why are you 'really' here?"

He resisted again - the lasso ever reminded him of that error. "I've been here for two years. I'm on a long term deep cover operation."

"Why?"

He didn't resist so much this time, as he realized it was futile. "Stability ops. We don't want 9/11 to happen again."

Satisfied that was all the vital intel he had to give up she removed the lasso from him; he gasped in relief as he was mentally freed from its awesome power.

He blinked his eyes a few times at her then recollection dawned on him. The lasso could dull the mind like that sometimes due to its coercive properties.

"Wonder Woman?"

"That's right." She offered him a hand and helped him to stand.

"I never thought I would encounter you of all people."

"Well you have. I have vital intel - Ares is behind this violence here."

Western governments were definitely aware of her fellow god. She had made certain of that early on.

"That's a very bad thing."

"It is."

He sighed and looked around the gloom. "I'm tired Wonder Woman. Do you care if I get some Zs?"

"Go ahead. I'll keep the watch."

"We can take turns-"

"I don't tire."

"Right."

They found a small clearing. Diana dropped her lit lasso to the ground where it doubly served as a magical light source.

"Nifty."

As things were quiet for the moment Diana pulled out a phone and called Jenny now that she had been on her mind more.

"Princess Di - is that you?" her girlfriend jokingly referred to her as, in obvious reference to the late princess of Wales.

"Yeah it's me."

"How are things over there in hell?"

Jenny was a proud Brit and considered UK culture the best in history. She was a big Brexit supporter. Diana could go either way on the matter.

"As you might expect." Diana sensed that Trevor was listening to her conversation but sensed no malice from him or his heart. "Ares is here."

"Jesus H. Christ Diana..."

Diana didn't like making her worry. "Nothing to worry about here. The Prince and the King will get through this." As they both had royalty titles for surnames they also joked about that too.

Jenny gave a nervous laugh to Diana's words. "Diana..."

"You know I'm more powerful than he is. Besides - we've warred for five thousand years across the universes. We will do this for many more."

Jenny remained silent. "Jenny?"

"Just be careful Diana - and come back to me."

"Of course I will."

"Your word?"

"As an Amazonian warrior yes."

"Very well, Princess of Themyscira; I believe you. I love you."

"I love you too Jenny."

She sat near the lit lasso on the ground.

"Aren't you worried that I might find out who that person you care about is?" Trevor asked, not pretending to be asleep.

"No."

"Why not?"

She issued a look of death with her sky blue eyes. "Because if you hurt Jenny in any way I'll kill you - very slowly. And because I'm an immortal demigod I could make that last a very long time."

He paled at the thought. "Or I could just let Ares have you-"

"I get it." She grinned at that matter being resolved. "Did you know that I was awake?"

She scoffed and warmed her hands over the lasso that now offered heat plus light, just like a bush fire.

He sat up to join her. "Of course I knew Agent Trevor. But I know the real reason."

"Why's that?"

"You lusted for my body."

"I..."

"I was born to rival Aphrodite in terms of all things beautiful."

He cleared his throat. "You're not very humble are you?"

"It's a fact. Zeus - god almighty - told me this directly."

"Your father?"

"Yes, and father of all - even you Steven Trevor."

"God and I uh aren't on good terms."

"Many aren't. It's all part of the journey called existence."

"You're philosophical too."

"I was meant to have Athena's wisdom and be faster than Hermes and be stronger than Hercules."

"A pantheon of one; wow."

"The modern term is certified badass."

He smiled. "I like that."

"This is man's world. Man will say anything to bed an Amazon. Zeus made us to be the ideal women."

"So you hate men. Got it."

"You misunderstand. Men do not deserve an Amazon; but I do not hate men. I've been with many. We Amazons don't care for the sexual labels your cultures use but the best fit term for me would be bisexual."

"Noted. Have you ever done orgies?"

She scoffed, actually insulted. "Of course. They are most transcendental experiences."

He looked down at the lit rope still coiled up on the ground and giving off unnatural heat. "I'm sorry for the lusting bit-"

"It's okay."

"Really?"

"Yes. I can tell that you are a good man. The lasso - along with my empathic/telepathic powers - could tell that early on."

"You...can read minds?"

"To a point. The lasso completes the link and perfects it."

"I see."

"There's no way that you could."

"Right."

He looked at her hands. She offered him her hands in response. "Take them. You know that you want to."

"You're joking?"

"No."

He did. They felt like any woman's hands. But they were nearly perfect, like the rest of her. Of course he knew about the legendary Wonder Woman; who didn't? But to be actually sitting alone with her in the bush was something else entirely.

He looked up into her eyes. She nodded. He touched and caressed her hands. "These hands have saved the world many times. They've loved, killed-"

"And created. I'm an artist now."

"I see. You definitely are a woman of wonder."

She smiled. "I'm 'the' woman of wonder, actually."

How the hell can I possibly argue against that? He thought.

"Do you have anyone Agent Trevor?"

"Steven. No; not for a while."

She nodded and then stood. She then removed her tiara and dropped it to the ground. "What're you doing?"

She then removed her bracelets and dropped them to the ground. "Wonder Woman..." She set a quieting finger to her lips. "Diana," she said. She then removed her boots - and then her torso armor.

She then stood before him naked; her lasso's light gently highlighting her form - a form that was as close to perfection as anyone would ever hope to be.

"You can actually be with me this night or have it only be a dream. Your choice."

"What about Jenny?"

"Jenny I love - but I am also Amazon. We are not hung up on such things."

He still hesitated; he longed for her. He burned for her. She was the forbidden fruit that he so wanted to devour.

"Do you want to be able to say that you slept with Wonder Woman or not?"

"This isn't a trick?"

"No. Amazon's honor."

Trevor undressed and walked over to her. He took her hands into his. Their breath was hot on each other in the equally hot bush. She pushed her body against him. He took some of her long black hair into his hand and inhaled its scent deeply.

She whispered into his ear, "We shall be bonded after this night Steven. You won't forget it in the days ahead; ever." She wasn't an oracle but did speak prophetically.

He kissed her gently. Their arms went around each other. His fingers traveled down her back - and its perfect skin and shaping. She did the same to him. Something was already happening to them and on a deeper level. And they had only just met. She had to already know about this in ways that he did not.

Between the kisses and touches they found their way down to the ground by the magical rope and made love.

Diana ultimately wanted to bring him with her to London to meet Jenny - and have a magical threesome with them; it had been nearly a century since she'd done that. Diana believed that Jenny would ultimately do it if Diana was there. Trevor was handsome a patriot and a good man. Diana was an expert at reading people. Time would tell.