17.2

"Diana, Egeria – MENALIPPE – how is it you come to be here? Have men returned to invade Themyscira? Have you been lost in the battle? Why have you not been judged worthy of Elysium?"

"Antiope!" Menalippe rushes toward her sister, greeting her not in the awkward embrace of the world of men, but in the trusting, intimate connection traditional among Amazons: Right hand to left shoulder, left hands clasped at the wrist in the faith that each offers herself unarmed as well as in memory of their enslavement; and by a sign of respect and unity with heads bowed, foreheads touching.

"Sister, Themyscira is safe. We are not among the dead. We have traveled into Hades on a journey...a mission of rescue."

"You live? Thank the gods. I pray you have not entered into a fools journey on my behalf. In my death", she looks toward Diana, "I secured our most precious blessing." Approaching her Aunt, the two welcome one another in the same manner as all Amazons; but as their heads bow and touch, Antiope whispers: "Diana. The God Killer."

"Yes, my Aunt. Now I understand." Even as Egeria steps forward to greet her General, Antiope and Diana grasp hands until the final moment.

"I seek to restore wrongs that I have caused...an unnecessary death. Menalippe and Egeria accompany me although it is not their duty. I alone am responsible for my actions."

"And what actions are these, niece? Does Ares still threaten the world of man, and all that is above?"

"No, I fulfilled the sacred duty of the Amazons and slayed the God of War; just as you trained me, Antiope. But my companion – Steve Trevor – was compelled into action that lead to his death only due to my mistakes. If not for my failure he would not have died. We are here to return him to his world."

"That man who brought the intruders? He is not worthy of you. Did Hippolyta agree to this folly?"

"She... understands. As I hope will you."

"Diana, you are better than this. You have more to offer than placing yourself, along with Menalippe and Egeria in danger for the benefit of a mortal; a mortal that is now judged to the eternal hopelessness of the Asphodel Meadows. Look around you; there is no more 'Steve'; there are only lost and suffering souls with no purpose other than to obey the bidding of even the most minor gods of the Underworld. You must leave this place. Return from where you entered."

"That way is destroyed, sister" offered Menalippe. "We cannot go back. But surely you are not condemned to this grey void?"

"The Judges honor me with a place in Elysium. I now know Diana has fulfilled her destiny and continues on the path for which she has been prepared. There is no more I can do."

"We honor the gods in their wisdom. I have come to assure your sacrifice will be forever remembered and honored among all of Themyscira. You are mourned and missed by all. Without you at her side, as you always have been, Hippolyta feels a great loss. And I...I wish to thank you. And to apologize I was not by your side when I was most needed..."

Antiope approaches her sister, grasping her by both shoulders, steadily gazing into her eyes. "My loss is inconsequential. I have trained you; and Diana; and Egeria and Philippus and Euobea and many others. Your place is now with them. Continue to honor Hippolyta and strengthen Themyscira. If you fulfill this duty, I can think of no higher tribute to my memory."

"General..." Egeria awkwardly interjects, alert for attack, "all that reside here are...nothing more than forms and shadows...yet despite our best efforts we could not defeat their attack. How do you remain as yourself, as we all remember you; and vanquish these forces when our actions have little effect? Do the beings of this realm cower in the presence of one from Elysium?"

"No, all in the Underworld are equal. Only our judgments vary. The Asphodel Meadows consist of the lost. The horizon; the skies; the surface we stand on are not as they appear but only illusions necessary to comprehend a formless void. All who dwell here have been stripped of redemption but are cursed with the memory of hope. They seek relief in any way possible knowing release will never occur. But in you; in those who have not been judged; all possibilities continue to exist. In desperation they seek to drag you into their midst, to take from you what they most want and will present themselves as your greatest uncertainty; your hidden fear; your anger or hope or love; any feeling or passion they no longer posses in an effort to once again be whole. You would have never won the battle because you were fighting the opponent you perceived without; the true fight is within. A skilled enemy will always look for your weakness; and that is often not the weakness you believe it to be."

"But you have no weakness, General."

"No, that is not true. All my life I have trained for battle. Prepared for the return of Ares; or Hercules; or any men who believe it is their right; merely by reasoning that they are men; who will attempt to take from us all that they, by being men, can ravage and claim but never truly hold. That is my passion and purpose that the mass of the Asphodel Meadows seeks to take. My demons; the beings I see among the void; are always on the attack, searching to claim what I have trained myself to never again lose. So in their attacks, they only make me stronger. But each of you sees her own demons and fights her own battle. Only you can measure their effect not by defending what they most desire; but by committing to what they can no longer possess. But now we must leave; I may have weakened their efforts but they will soon recover. I can direct you as far as the marsh at the edge of the River Styx. There will be challenges but Charon can be bribed to return you to the surface."

"I will not depart without Steve. It is my duty."

Antiope turns toward her niece. "Among the realms of the Underworld all souls are confined to the place they have been judged; I was able to pass between Elysium and the Asphodel Meadows only because of my love for each of you, and by the connection of all Amazons. No soul that has been judged can leave the Underworld unless Hades himself sets him free. What you ask is impossible. If Hades learns I have crossed the barrier he will be outraged; just as if he learns mortals are wondering about his kingdom. We must find a way for you to exit; I must return to my realm; and we must avoid his wrath."

"Perhaps Steve has not yet been judged? Antiope, will you lead us to the Theater of Judgment?"

"You have taken this too far. Forget this foolishness, Diana. Around you are nothing but lost, mindless souls no longer with identity or passion. All they were is gone. What remains – the forces that clawed and dragged and nearly overcame you – is the forsaken mass of lives misused. Even adrift within the whole, each knows the isolation of what may have been. It is sorrow and heartbreak that rises up, that sees in you all they have lost; they attack not in anger but by desperation."

"No, Steve is not here. I can feel it."

"This," Menlippe began, "is unwise. We have granted you every consideration; Antiope herself has come to your aid. Only by the blessings of the gods did she appear to show us the way. Please accept the truth."

"Diana, I fear my training has not only drawn from you your greatest strengths, but encouraged a misplaced determination. You must learn a victory can be gained by walking away from a battle just as readily as we engage in the fight."

"General, the...surface is becoming unstable.: Egeria warns; "I believe it will rise up against us soon."

"Menalippe, are you certain the way you entered is impassable?"

"It is collapsed under layers of stone. Egeria almost lost her life."

"The entrance to the underworld by the Rivers is guarded by the most fearsome creatures of all Hades. I will accompany you through the Asphodel Meadows but am confined within the eternal realms. Without my help you must defeat or evade all challenges for you to depart. However along that way also lies the Theater of Judgment. Diana, will you abandon this recklessness if the Judges affirm this Steve is no longer of the world of man, but has passed into these realms?"

"I will not depart without knowing."

"Then we must proceed. The void surrounding us gains strength; and Hades is ever aware of all that enter his kingdom."