Steve's body practically moved without thinking as he jumped to his feet, grabbed his shield, and leapt between the woman who had pulled him from the plane and the blue ball of energy. He'd barely regained consciousness when it ricocheted off his shield, and he nearly fell in the process, but he stood tall, and pulled his pistol from the holster at his hip.
He traced the pattern of one of the planes, and then fired five rounds in rapid succession. The cockpit's windows exploded with red, and the aircraft crashed into the sea. He turned his attention to the remaining plane, and holstered his pistol.
"Stay here!" the man said, forcefully, as he began running towards the final plane. Diana refused to heed his advice, and followed the man, easily keeping pace. He turned his head at her briefly, then took the edge of his shield in hand, leapt into the air, and hurled the disc towards the cliff-face. It bounced off a formation of rock, and flew towards the aircraft.
The warplane attempted to evade, but found more success in shooting at the shield, knocking it from its trajectory, where it landed on the beach in front of the woman, who picked it up, and threw it to Steve. "Hold it up, and towards me, keep it steady!" She shouted at him. He looked puzzled for a second, then complied. The woman leapt from the beach, and rebounded off the middle of the star at the center of the shield. She soared through the air with the grace of an angel, and broke off one of the craft's wings with a mighty punch, sending the wing and plane both into the sea. She landed on the edge of the surf, left knee and fist in the sand, right knee up, right hand in front of her face.
The man ran over to Diana, and proffered a hand to help her up. "Are you okay?" he asked, concern visible on his face. Diana took his hand gratefully, and pulled herself to her feet, the adrenaline high from the battle sending tremors through her body. He appeared to be pleasantly surprised by the strength of her grip.
"Yes." She replied. "Who are you?" she asked him.
"Ah," he said, as if momentarily taken aback. "Captain Steve Rogers, US Army." he replied.
She smiled a bit. "Diana, princess of Themyscira, at your service." She said, interest twinkling in her eyes.
Steve took note of her expression, but felt he needed to learn more about where he'd landed. "Do you live here?"
"Yes." She replied
Steve grimaced. "I'm sorry about that. If I'd known this island was inhabited..." he looked around at the island, as the confusion of its existence began to register in his mind. "Or... Here at all, I wouldn't have crashed here. Is there anyone else on this island?"
Diana nodded. "That vehicle," she asked, pointing to the large plane. "It shares markings with the attackers, but you have a different symbol on your uniform. Why is this?"
"I commandeered it from its original pilot." Steve said. "The plane is loaded with dangerous explosives, and he wanted to use them to kill a lot of innocent people. When I took it off-course, his friends in the other planes took exception, and followed me here. Is this island called Themyscira?"
They began to walk back to the plane as they conversed. "No, this is Paradise Island," Diana responded. "Capital of the Themysciran Archipelago. Do you have any friends, Captain Rogers? Someone who might come for you?" Steve appeared wary at that question, as if he suspected an ulterior motive.
"Yes," he replied in a measured tone. "My unit will be looking out for me, I'm actually surprised they didn't follow Hydra through the barrier." He paused for a second, and shook his head. "Why would you think that?" He muttered to himself. "You didn't even know this island was here!"
"Those craft, to whom do they belong?" Diana asked.
Steve pointed at the octopus with the human skull on the wing of one of the downed aircraft. "They're agents of Hydra." He said.
A look of puzzlement fell over Diana's face. "They follow a hydra?" She asked, clearly confused.
Steve shook his head. "No, that's just what they call themselves." He said. "They work... Or worked, for a man named Johann Schmidt, who worked for a man named Adolf Hitler."
"And who are they?" Diana queried.
"Guys who thought they could, and should, rule the world, no matter who they had to step on, or how high they had to pile the bodies of the innocent to get there." Steve's expression changed to a mixture of sorrow and anger.
Diana saw the change, but pressed further. "This Schmidt, you speak of him in the past tense."
Steve nodded. "Best I can tell, he's dead. Unless something else happened up there."
"So this Hitler, he started this war?"
Steve's face scrunched up a bit. "It's a bit more complicated, but that just about sums it up. He's a crazy man who wants to fight anyone who'd oppose him."
Diana's face hardened, her thoughts immediately turned to an old story her mother used to tell, about the god Ares. "Can you make this vessel worthy again?" She asked, pointing to the giant plane Steve had arrived in. He looked at the demolished hulk of the craft. "Probably not." He said. "I've never worked on something this big, and I'm not that great a mechanic, anyways."
"He won't be leaving, Diana." A sharp, commanding voice cut through the air, and Steve and Diana turned to see a platoon of Amazons with bowstrings taught and arrows nocked, led by Antiope, and Steve slowly raised his hands. "Not until the queen has questioned him and seen what lies this man has tried to sow. You!" Antiope pointed to Steve with her sword. "Disarm yourself. Hand your weapons to the girl!"
Steve disconnected his utility belt, and the harness that held his shield, allowing them to drop to the ground, where Diana retrieved them. An Amazon bound his hands with rope, and led him and Diana to the castle.
The march to the castle was not short, but Steve did not tire. He was both eager, and a little scared, to meet the ruler of this island. It seemed strange to him that its inhabitants would speak oddly-accented (For their dialect sounded as though it were a blend of many), yet perfect English, yet would also use bows, arrows, and swords as primary weapons. Steve also noted that he saw not a single man aside from himself on the island yet. Maybe it was a matriarchal society. Maybe the men lived on another island. T
hose thoughts were banished as he caught a glimpse of the palace, the sight of which drew him to the firm conclusion that these people had taken immense influence from the Greeks. The Amazons led Steve into the palace. Diana followed closely behind the leader, with his equipment held carefully in her arms.
As they entered the throne-room, Steve saw two thrones atop the dais, with two figures concealed by shadow sat in the ornate chairs.
"So," a female voice, this one smooth, and motherly in tone said, as its owner, a tall, blonde woman in a crown, walked forward from the shadows. "A man has come to Themyscira, bringing invaders with him. He shall speak before us, and explain."
Steve opened his mouth to talk, but in a flash, the queen whipped a length of rope in his direction, where the tightly-woven cord wrapped itself around him. Steve didn't struggle, but he could tell the rope was very strong. Then, the rope began to glow, and Steve knew something strange was happening.
"What is your name?" The queen asked him.
"Captain Steven Grant Rogers, United States Army, Serial Number 0-204192." He responded, as quickly as she asked the question.
"Why are you here, captain?" She asked, eyes narrowing.
"I didn't intend to be. I was trying to crash the plane I arrived on into the ocean." He replied. Steve continued. "I'd actually like to apologize for that, I didn't mean to bring conflict to your shores. If I'd known this island was here, I'd have flown past it."
The queen appeared taken aback, as if she wasn't expecting this response. "Who do you serve?" She asked, suspicion obvious in her tone.
"Legally? Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States, and my superior officers in the United States military. Ultimately? The people of the United States of America."
"And those men who followed you, whose vehicles shared the symbols of the one you arrived in, who do they serve?"
"Directly, they served Johann Schmidt, head of an organization called HYDRA. His immediate superior is Adolf Hitler, the current leader of Germany."
"And these Germans are your enemies?"
"Yes, ma'am. They're a lot of people's enemies, right now."
"And why is this?"
Steve took an inward breath. "Because they and their allies are at war with the rest of the world." He said. "Best I can tell, they want to rule it, and they don't care who they have to kill to achieve that goal."
"And how did you come into possession of one of their vehicles?"
"I commandeered it from Schmidt, shortly before he..." Steve paused. The queen raised an expectant eyebrow, but that expression was replaced with surprise when he continued. "I'm not really sure what happened, I think he disintegrated himself."
"What was the purpose of the vehicle you arrived in?"
"To deliver high-explosive missiles to kill a lot of innocent people the world over."
"Are the explosives on that plane a threat to Themyscira?"
"I can't say. They haven't detonated yet, but I don't know if their triggers might malfunction or not. I'd say the best course of action would be to push the plane out to sea and sink it."
The queen stood silent, pondering before speaking again. "Captain Rogers, your compatriots in your army, will they come for you?"
"If I know them, they're already looking for me now."
The queen turned to glance at the figure shrouded in shadow, then back to Steve. "And this war you speak of, what has come of it?"
Steve's gaze fell before he responded. "Millions dead. More injured, who knows how many still to come. We even have intel that the Germans have been rounding up and executing civilians, or starving them, or working them to death. Sometimes all three. Men, women, children... They don't really care who, if you're in their way, they want you dead."
Diana's features grew cold, as did the queen's. "How did this war start?" Diana asked, breaking the silence, and earning her a look of reproach from the queen.
Steve turned his head to look directly at her. "Well, a while ago, there was a 'War to end all wars.' That didn't exactly work out. Then, a group of lunatics came to power again, and decided they either wanted to rule the world or end it if they couldn't have their way. Some people, including myself, took exception to that line of thinking."
The queen turned once more to the shadowed figure on the throne behind her. "Any questions, my king?" From the shadows stepped a man in a golden helmet, wearing nothing more than a sash of green and gold across his chest to hold up his shorts of the same colors.
The man was as well-toned as the women of the island, but far more muscular, and very tall, even compared to the impressive women of the island. His bearded face held a wry smile, but his eyes held concern. "If you return to your compatriots," the man said in a warm, booming voice. "Would you promise not to divulge the location of this nation?"
Steve immediately replied; "Yes."
"And," the king continued. "If you return to this war, do you believe your efforts will help to end it?"
"Sir, if there's even the slightest chance my efforts could help, it would be worth it to me."
"Then I have a question for you, Hippolyta." The king said, turning to the queen. "Why have we not already released this young man?" He said with a jolly grin upon his face.
The general who had led the group who captured Steve turned the king and Hippolyta aside. "There must be some trickery abound if he is able to resist the Lasso of Hestia."
The queen shot a quizzical glance at the general. "What would make you suggest such a thing?" She asked.
The general looked at Steve suspiciously. "No man has ever stood questioning without the slightest hint of resistance. He must be employing a vile sorcery, or be of divine origin to do such a thing!"
The king smiled, and gave a chuckle. "There is one possibility that you are overlooking, Antiope."
The general looked at the king with mild contempt. "And what might that be, Hercules?"
Hercules' grin grew broad. "That the lad is just that honest."