When Pamela awakens, the world around her had changed drastically.
They were no longer in the cave, and they were completely surrounded by the corpses of at least thirty other robot men. Diana was on her knees beside her, head bowed and a single tear falling quietly down her cheek as she was seemingly praying under her breath.
"Ow…" Pamela's voice is a rough croak, but it might as well have been as loud as a gunshot by how far Diana jumped away from her when she heard it.
She's over the shock quickly and helps Pamela sit up. "What… how…"
It's easy to guess what happened, but Pamela is nowhere near ready to talk about it. "Never mind me, do you still have the note?"
Diana blinks dumbly at her but pulls it from her breastplate. Pamela takes it from her and reads the note aloud.
Founded by the dad of Great A, let's go see a play!
"I think this is one of yours." She says while struggling to stand. Diana is quick to help her, grabbing her arm and pulling her up, but apparently Pamela wasn't going to get away with what happened.
"You were dead."
She hides her wince and tries to act surprised. "Pardon?"
"You were dead. You were hit in the head, you stopped breathing, your heart stopped." Diana's eyes are wide and confused, and she still held her arm tightly.
"Well, I'm not dead anymore." She can't look at her reaction. "Let's hurry back to the jet and get out of here before more of these stupid things show up."
Pamela feels sick as she walks away, pulling herself from Diana's grip.
The canyon is eerily quiet as they make their way back, only stopping a few times so Pamela can gather a few plants to make a salve for their welts. She only remembers to ask Diana about their next location once they are climbing into the invisible jet.
"Northern Macedonia, specifically the Roman Amphitheater in Heraclea. It's one of my favorite places to visit." By that point, Diana seemed to just accept that the incident was not going to be a talking point any time soon.
Pamela was sure this reprieve wouldn't last long, but she was still grateful for it. It was hard to ignore how dejected Diana sounded though.
As they take off, Pamela focuses on the herbs she gathered and encourages them to give her what she needs. She tears them up after coaxing them to create a surplus of the healing compounds in their leaves before placing them in one of the gallon jugs of water they had brought with. The salve doesn't thicken like she wants it too, but for what they need it is good enough.
She cuts up her ruined shirt and wets the scraps before taking them to Diana. "Here, these will help with the pain."
"No thank you. I heal fast." Diana rejects them politely, but Pamela hasn't the patience for her bravo.
"So do I, but it doesn't mean my welts hurt any less right now." She takes up one of Diana's arms before the woman can protest again, and as she tries to wrench her arm back Pamela slaps one of the rags onto her shoulder, covering several of the painful looking bruises.
Diana flinches, but as the salve works its magic she lets out a small sigh. "That does feel good."
"It's the numbing agent." Pamela smiles as she applies another rag to Diana's other shoulder. "There's plenty more where this came from, so use as much as you need."
The Amazon doesn't say anything as Pamela moves her hair to the side and puts the last rag over the back of her neck, but she can still feel the question brewing in the woman's mind.
"I had never really cared to go into medicine, but I ended up learning a thing or two after several years sparing with Batman and his flock of robins."
"You're good at it." Diana comments. "I'm already feeling better, and the salve doesn't have a harsh smell. I know many people that avoid creams and ointments due to their sense of smell. Why not pursue that instead of cleaning products?"
"I find medicine, especially in the US, to be far too politically regulated. Certain medicines or plant materials have stigmas attached to them, and due to this they are practically blacklisted from the medical market, no matter how well they work."
Diana contemplates that for a moment. "It would still do the world a whole lot of good, to have someone with your skills and knowledge working in the medical field."
"Bettering humanity has never been high on my to-do list, Diana." She chides, removing the slightly bloodied rags so the Amazon's arms aren't completely numbed. "Are there any other areas that got hit badly? Like where your armor is thinner?"
Diana swivels her seat and reveals her poor upper thighs, which had no armor at all. They were covered in angry welts, and without a second thought Pamela bends down and begins covering the worst with the clean side of the rags.
She can hear Diana swallow harshly. "What of your wounds? You weren't wearing armor at all. You must be covered in them."
"You have me there," Pamela gives her a reassuring smile. "I'll tend to myself once you're done."
"You can tend to yourself now." Diana took the remaining rags from her hands. "I'll finish up here."
"But the numbing…"
"I'll only use them for a short time and rinse my hands after. Now go. I know they're more painful than you're putting on."
There was no arguing there; the welts hurt like a bitch. So, Pamela simply shook her head and retreated to the back of the Jet. It took a while to cover all the welts, but the relief she felt from the loss of pain was well worth the effort. She chanced a glance in the little hand mirror she had brought with just and was forced to accept the fact that she was going to get a lot of stares for the next day or so.
When she returned to the cockpit, Diana had neatly folded the rags and placed them next to her seat.
"Feeling better?" She asked.
"Much." Pamela responded, picking up the rags and tossing them into the back with the rest of their things. "How long till we reach Heraclea?"
"A few more hours. We'll be arriving late, so I was thinking we might just get there and turn in for the night?" Diana suggested. "While the break was… nice, I'd rather not have this person put the game on hold again."
"Agreed. It seems like this will be a single night thing so we might as well just stay in the Jet." She let out a small sigh. "It was nice to sleep in a real bed while it lasted."
Throughout the rest of the flight, they occasionally chatted back and forth about frivolous things. Diana explained that she loved plays and theater as a child on Themyscira and often visited the Amphitheatre in Heraclea to reminisce.
"It's most like the one back on Themyscira." She had said. "My sisters and I would put on plays or sing for each other all the time after jousting matches and tournaments."
"Sounds fun." Pamela smiled at the wistfulness in her voice.
This game was troublesome to say the least, but it at least had its upsides.
Upon arrival, Pamela applied the salve to herself and Diana one last time before they turned in for the night. They awoke later than either had planned to and blamed it on the previous day's excitement while sharing what little rations were left in the Jet.
There was a crowd of tourists all around the theatre when they arrived, so the two stuck close to each other as they searched the site for the next hint. They had changed into civilian clothes again in order to not cause a stir, but that also meant getting elbowed and shoved by strangers again.
"How is it that you dislike crowds but can dance with strangers in clubs and concerts?" Diana asks, teasing her lightly.
"The difference is expectation. I know what I'm getting into at a club or a concert. Crowds, on the other hand, are filled with wildcards." Pamela grumbles as she's body checked by a careless teenager. Diana is quick to support her and throw the boy a look that freezes him to the spot. He apologizes in another language before scurrying off into the crowd again. "And you said my game face was terrifying."
Diana gave a short laugh as they worked their way through the people and made it to the theater.
"Where do you think the hint might be?" She asked.
"I'm not sure. Hopefully it's out in the open like the last few times." Diana said as she looked about. They had made It to the very front of the theater now, and had been pushed near the wall by a tour group. "I'll go check the grounds while you check the seating. We'll meet back here in twenty?"
"Sounds like a plan." Pamela nodded and they split up.
Checking the stands was simple. She just walked up a few rows and would cross the entirety of the theater before climbing a few more and going back to the other side. She made it to the top without finding anything, so she headed back down, keeping her eyes open for anything she might have missed.
Once she was back on the first row of seats, just above the spot where Diana said to meet, Pamela saw a little slip of neatly folded paper just waiting for her on the ledge. Rolling her eyes, she took up the slip and unfolded it, reading it through.
Patron Athena, we build this temple for you~
Pamela knew it was a clue for Diana again, but even she could take a wild guess at the next location.
"Did you find anything?" Diana's voice startled her, calling from the stage below.
"Yeah," Pamela leaned over the stone ledge and showed her the note. "We'll be heading to Greece next, the Parthenon, I think."
Diana nods, and then there's a twinkle in her eye that Pamela has never seen before.
The woman takes three big steps back, which is easy to do now the tour groups have moved away from the center of the theater and takes a bow.
"Oh god…" Pamela quickly realizes what she's doing as Diana takes a great breath, gestures towards her and begins to bellow,
"Aphrodite, subtle of soul and deathless,
Daughter of God, weaver of wiles, I pray thee
Neither with care, dread Mistress, nor with anguish,
Slay thou my spirit!
But in pity hasten, come now if ever
From afar of old when my voice implored thee,
thou hast deigned to listen, leaving the golden
house of thy father
With thy chariot yoked; and with doves that drew thee,
Fair and fleet around the dark earth from heaven,
Dipping vibrant wings down the azure distance,
Through the mid-ether;
Very swift they came; and thou, gracious Vision
Leaned with face that smiled in immortal beauty
Leaned to me and asked, 'what misfortune threatened?
Why I had called thee?'
'What my frenzied heart craved in utter yearning,
Whom its wild desire would persuade to passion?
What disdainful charms, madly worshipped, slight thee?
Who wrongs thee, Sappho?'
'She that fain would fly, she shall quickly follow,
She that now rejects, yet with gifts shall woo thee,
She that needs the not, soon shall love to madness,
Love thee, the loth one!'
Come to see me now thus, Goddess, and release me
From distress and pain; and all my distracted
Heart would seek, du thou, once again fulfilling
Still be my ally!"
Pamela doesn't pretend to know what the poem means, but Diana throws herself into the performance with grand gestures and tone changes. She catches the attention of many others, who stop to watch her one-woman performance, and once she is done, they all clap for her.
Pamela can't help but laugh and discreetly grows a rose from the ground, plucks it, and tosses it down to the Amazon, who is quick to grab it and bow deeply.
They meet at the edge of the theater steps and Pamela is quick to tease. "What on earth was that?"
"One of my favorite poems," Diana explains while fitting the rose behind her ear. "By my favorite poet, Sappho. Her works are lyrical, though I haven't the voice to do them justice."
"Well, I think your voice was just fine." Pamela smiles as they lock arms and leave the theater.