To help with how long it's taken me to update, there are some notes bolded near the end of this chapter to jog your memory.

"Her son. Hippolyta's son." Io watched as the Amazon's around her blinked or frowned or both at Nione announcement.

"Hippolyta doesn't have a son," corrected Kara.

"You are wrong. She did." Nione straightened her robes. "His name is Thrax, son of Ares, and he wants Hippolyta's head."

Kara stood with crossed arms alone with the 'Demon Donna' as one guard described her. It was a slip of the tongue that earned her a month of armor cleaning duty. Kara did not entirely agree with the statement since the one possessing her wasn't a demon, but that was getting into semantics. Thrax-Donna—as Kara preferred—paced the confines of her (his?) cell. The cell now resembled a cage; Io had instructed a few of her subordinates to bring in more bars so Kara could reinforce the enclosure.

"Have you brought word from Nione?" The figure at the doorway sucked in a breath then shuffled up to Kara. The Kryptonian felt a presence at her right hand that pulled at it without touching as if drawn by gravity.

Cassandra folded her hands together as she stood with her blonde compatriot. "She scares me."

"It's not a 'she'. I mean… it is Donna's body, but that's not what's in there."

"Do you believe Nione? That it's this Thrax person?" Thrax-Donna stopped at the mention of his own name. It created a shiver down Kara's spine when she connected with the creature's eyes.

"I have no reason to doubt Nione. That doesn't mean, however, I didn't keep Io from her own personal quest to question the older Amazons on their knowledge of this," Kara's nose crinkled in disgust, "creature's existence."

"I would expect nothing less."

Kara released a snort then guided Cassandra out of the room by a touch of her fingers to the back of Cassandra's arm right above the elbow. "That thing's not going anywhere. Let's go find Nione and Diana. See if they found a spell or something to fix this."

Cassandra stepped out of Kara's reach. "Can we?"

Kara released a shaky breath. "We must."

X

Hippolyta wrung her hands as she paced the dirt floor of her tent. Tomorrow was the wedding and the whole island was celebrating. Her chest constricted at the sound of fluttering fabric that was the entrance off her tent. When it stayed closed, she huffed and dug the ball of right foot into the ground. "Get ahold of yourself, your Majesty. You're getting married soon." A few more minutes of pacing and huffing ended with her taking her crown off and stripping. Only her tunic and sandals remained when the tent fluttered again, but instead of the wind it was Derinoe.

"Queen Hippolyta."

"Derinoe? You cannot be here."

"You cannot marry him." The anguish in Derinoe's eyes made Hippolyta falter in her steps. Her gaze fell from her lover's face to her own outstretched arms. With a steadying breath she stiffened into a regal stance and placed her arms at her sides.

"We had this conversation before, Derinoe."

"This is different. This is about your safety."

"My safety?" Realization came to Hippolyta as the words left her mouth. "Your jealousy is blinding you."

"It is not." The strength and confidence in Derinoe's voice made Hippolyta's eyes flutter and her mouth to open to make room for an inhale. "The prince has planned on killing you before the wedding. Once you're dead, he and his men will move."

Her eyes dropped to the ground at the break in Derinoe's voice. "And you know this, how?"

"Some of his men got drunk and bragged to their comrades. The other part, I assumed."

"Maybe you assumed too much."

"Or..." Hippolyta stiffened at the warm air hitting her face; it smelled like wine and something spiced. "I assumed just enough."

"I know that look." Hippolyta jumped and turned in frustration at the woman who interrupted her memory. "Forgive me, my queen," Philippus said while in a deep bow to where her upper torso was parallel to the floor.

"General," Hippolyta brushed a fallen strand of her hair into place behind the crown, "what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Your daughter asked me to find you."

"And what does my daughter need?"

"She would not say, except that it pertained to Princess Donna. Her countenance was hopeful. Perhaps she has found a way to restore Princess Donna's soul?"

"We can only hope. First, I need to speak to Derinoe."

When Hippolyta was in reach of the door to the throne room, Philippus grasped her wrist with her fingertips. "What is happening is not your fault."

"You are correct, Philippus, it is not. We cannot say the same about what happened millennia ago."

"We could not have known what the prince was planning."

"That is true. I can say this though, you and Derinoe's instincts were correct about him and I did not listen. Derinoe was cursed because of my lack of caution and occasional impetuousness."

"She saved your life."

"And lost the life she could have had with me."

"Is that what you regret the most?"

Hippolyta took Philippus' hand in her left and removed it from her wrist. "It is so much more than that." The general waited the proper number of footsteps before following her queen.

X

Kara and Cassandra entered the library to find Diana hunched over several opened scrolls. The crinkles around her eyes reminded Kara of Donna in a flash of memory during one of their rare missions together.

"Find anything of help?" Diana sighed loudly. "I'll take that as a no."

"Nione left for the temple to see if there were books on what can be done."

"What if there isn't anything?" Cassandra sucked in a breath with wide eyes after the question slipped out.

When Kara saw the anger on Diana's face, she knew it needed to be diverted to protect the other blonde. "She has a point." Like she hoped, it turned on her. "If Thrax can't be removed, we need to have another plan. We can't allow a body of Donna's power to be fueled by a sociopathic mass murderer."

"We will find a way."

"You need to have a plan B."

"I do not. We will figure it out."

"I thought I was the hopeful saccharine one amongst us? Turns out it's you right now."

The table shook as Diana slammed her hands down. "I am not killing my baby sister!"

"That is not your baby sister. That is not Donna in there!" Kara cleared her throat. "Diana, that is a monster who plans to kill your mother, you, and anyone else who gets in his way."

"We're not killing her." Diana shook her head. "We're not destroying Donna's body. There has to be a way to remove Thrax and restore Donna."

"How do you know Donna isn't in the Elysian Fields at peace? Why would she want to return if she's there?"

"Because she isn't." Kara, Diana, and Cassandra jumped as Nione strode into the library carrying two tomes with her.

"Where is she?" asked Diana.

"Tartarus." The air was sucked out of the room. Nione set the tomes down and opened them to specific pages. "I passed your mother," she said in Diana's direction, "on my way here. I assume she's going to visit Penelope."

"It's not Penelope," corrected Kara. "Her name is Derinoe."

Nione blinked. "I haven't heard that name in years." She blinked again. "Anyway. I am unsure of the specifics of the spell Circe used so I cannot be certain, but there is a chance it went awry. If Derinoe is the orchestrator of this mess then I am certain this was not the planned outcome. Derinoe would never want that Amazon-killing-maniac running around in our princess's body no less."

"Then what happened?"

Nione ran her index finger across her lips at Kara's question. "It's no small secret Hades has kept Thrax as his personal prisoner. Kind of like monkey in cage. It was as much his punishment as it was Ares' for daring to defy Olympus. Once I know what is in the spell, I can give a better answer. The only thing I cannot understand is how Donna, whom Hermes confirmed was in the Elysian Fields, could have gotten mixed up with Thrax?"

"Maybe the spell wasn't specific enough," said Cassandra. "Or maybe it was sabotaged? Or maybe this is what they wanted all along?"

When Nione smiled, Kara reached out and ran her hand over Cassandra's shoulder. "We need to find Circe," she said with a smile when Cassandra leaned into her. "Queen Hippolyta will speak with this Derinoe, but she wasn't the only one involved. The question is, how do we summon Circe?"

Nione had a mischievous grin. "I have an idea, but first," she said with a snap of her fingers, "I believe Cassandra is pivotal in defeating Thrax."

"She is?"

"I am?"

Nione nodded at Kara and Cassandra. "Thrax was the first born of Ares and a monster raised to be the destroyer of all those Ares hated. But Cassandra…" The demigoddess flinched at what Nione would say next. "Cassandra is the daughter of Ares. She was born to wield his title, someday. You would not think that is important, but it is. Ares—at the time of Thrax's conception—was at war with Olympus and thus the Amazons. He was blinded by rage and bloodthirst. Over the years, through various wars and peacetimes, Ares' bloodthirst waned. Cassandra was conceived when War was his most peaceful."

"And that makes a difference?" asked Kara.

Nione nodded again. "For mortals, how a child are conceived has no effect on who the child will become. A child conceived from rape could be the most delightful person, especially if he or she is raised well. While a child conceived in a loving home could turn out to be a potential serial killer. There is no way to know who and what the child will become." She cleared her throat and opened one of the tomes to a specific page. "Gods are different, at least of the Grecian and Bana-Migdhal variety. How their offspring is conceived can and will determine much of their temperament, this is in addition to how they are raised. I cannot tell you the circumstances of his conception, only Hippolyta can, but I can say he was raised to be a shedder of much blood."

Diana set her hands on the table and leaned over to get a clear look at the writing Nione was pointing to. "How does this relate to Cassandra?"

"Her and Thrax share blood. I think we can use her to dispel Thrax from Donna's body and give him a temporary corporeal form."

"I'm sensing a then or however, here."

Nione's lips twitched, as if holding back a smirk, before pursing with concern along with her furrowed brow. "And then we must return Thrax's wicked soul to its rightful place."

"How?"

"The Underworld. We must go to it. We must go to Hades. It is the only way."

X

"Say the word and I'll slap that smirk right off her face." Philippus didn't react to Artemis's muttered threat as she shut the door of the room, but Scyleia couldn't suppress her snort. Phoebe elbowed her sister, but didn't bother to hide her matching smile. Several meters away from them stood Hippolyta. The light of the rising sun shone through the slits passing as the prison's windows with spotlight accuracy on the queen. Beautiful would be the word to use on Hippolyta. Not so much the word to use on Penelope. While the queen stood in warmth with a true air or regality, Penelope was bathed in greys and shadows. The purple circles around her eyes darkened under the lighting. Pure hatred stared at Hippolyta.

"Shall I begin this conversation then? Since it seems you have no intention of telling me anything."

"You do not get to tell me what my intentions are."

Hippolyta flinched. "You are locked up with a death sentence hanging over your head much like Damocles' sword. My intention is to see you executed."

"Except you cannot. Not while I possess Penelope's body." Phoebe stepped forward with a tightened grip on her spear the moment Derinoe began to run her hands over Penelope's waist. Scyleia stopped her with a grip to her bicep. "And it is such a lovely body."

Disgust pulled at Hippolyta's upper lip. "I am here because you asked me to be here. My daughter has called for me, as well. I would rather be with her than here. So," she made as if to leave, "if you have no purpose for my presence."

"Stop!" Hippolyta allowed her own smirk to grace her lips at the desperation in Derinoe's voice.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to see you. To see how you have changed."

Hippolyta frowned. "I am an immortal. We all are. I have not changed since we arrived on this blessed island."

"Blessed for you, for your daughter, for your people, for," her eyes flicked to Philippus, "those who love you. It is a curse for me. I who was transform all those years ago for saving you." Hippolyta's head bowed in shame. "You have changed. Every year since Diana's creation, you changed. I may have become a hermit amongst the jungle, but I still watched. You are right, we do not age. Change, however, is possible. Every year you grew more beautiful as your love for your daughter grew."

"What is it you want?" asked Hippolyta whose voice had tightened to a whisper after hearing Derinoe speak.

"Diana is not worthy of being our ambassador. Everyone knows how she is in-love with that man. If it was the Kryptonian, I would understand. It had to be a human though, a human man."

"That is why you did this? Because of my daughter's love for a mortal?"

Derinoe shook Penelope's head. "Revenge, at first. I wanted something powerful enough to kill your daughter and hurt you, but worthy enough to take her place. Donna was perfect. She loved no one outside of her people."

"Your full intention was to resurrect Donna herself?"

Derinoe pulled a face that if in her own body would be of irritation; instead, on Penelope's it came across as confusion. "Of course. Donna was perfect."

"Then they have not told you, Donna was not the one who came back. As you squat in that body, another does the same in Donna's."

Philippus and the others halfway shift to defensive poses when Penelope stands. "What do you mean?"

"Word reached me before Nione could speak with me, but she confirmed it. Thrax, my son with Ares, is the one who possesses Donna's body. He has every intention to exact his revenge on me and the others who sealed his death and his father's defeat."

"That is impossible. The spell was to call forth Donna in her entirety. Not that monster you birthed." Philippus could not see her queen's face, but guessed as to what it looked like as Hippolyta pulled her shoulders back.

"You are correct that I allowed myself to be seduced by a god who intended to impregnate me to exact his revenge upon his family. It is my fault I trusted Ares… Much like what happened to you." Philippus and Derinoe held matched expressions of surprise. "For both, I am truly sorry." She bowed her head along with apology. "That, however, is in the past. I cannot change it no matter how much I plead with Chronos to turn back the events of those years. Time moves forward despite any level of effort we put forth against it. And time is running out, the longer Thrax stays in Donna's body, the less likely we can remove him. That is why I need you to tell me what spell you used."

The anger on Penelope's face turned into a pained grimace. "If only to restore Donna's soul." Her fingers twirled the end of her hair as she sat back on her cot. "There are four main ingredients: the blood of one who's defeated death [taken in chapter 4], the bones of the deceased [stolen in chapter 5], the root of an ambrosia plant from an immortal's garden [received in chapter 2], and a priestess to enact the ceremony [Derinoe through the possession of Penelope].And it had to take place during our most holy week. There, are you happy now?"

"Not quite. How long do I have to reverse it?"

Penelope growled as she exhaled. "Til the end of the holy week. That gives you a little over five days."

Hippolyta gave her a slight bow of the head. "Thank you."

"That is, it?!" She yelled as Hippolyta walked away. "That is all you came for?" The queen did not react to the yelling or when it turned to incomprehensible raging. Philippus opened the door to find Artemis standing there with her two lieutenants. The three bowed to the exiting queen and entered the room with the others.

Artemis stared down the Derinoe-possessed Penelope. "We need to remove her from Penelope. I cannot stand looking at her until then," Artemis said with a clenched jaw.

Philippus patted her on the shoulder. "We will. Nione will find a way."