They left the forge to find Diana waiting for them outside the building.
Diana tossed Steve a harness with a wooden sword and shield. "Come. We shall see how you fare with the weapons of my people."
Steve shrugged. "Lead the way." he said, slinging the harness over his shoulders. It had felt light in his hands, and when he put it on, it was as if he was carrying a single feather upon his back.
She led him to a valley, where many Amazons practiced with their weapons, all of which were some form of metal.
Diana drew her own sword from a sheathe at her hip, and pulled her shield from her back. "Familiarize yourself with your equipment. We shall begin when you are ready."
Steve drew his own sword and shield. "I can't help but notice we're the only ones using wooden gear."
Diana nodded. "Quite perceptive. We do not provide weapons of war without first earning them. The set we use is meant for children."
Steve looked down at his gear. It appeared normal-sized. "Let me guess," He asked. "Some sort of enchantment?"
Diana smiled, and nodded again. "As I said, you are quite perceptive!" She took a step forward, and swung her sword at him. He raised his shield to block, and the two objects collided with a heavy wooden "clack!"
Steve turned, shoving the shield away from himself, causing Diana to stumble. "Whatever happened to me being ready?" He asked as he took a swipe at her knees, which she leapt over, and rolled to land on her feet, facing Steve.
"You best of all should know that fights are rarely fair!" She jabbed at his chest with a mighty thrust of her sword. The angle cut between his guard, and it was all he could do to turn in time to avoid the tip. But the stab was not Diana's objective. She punched him in the ribs with the edge of her shield, knocking the wind out of him. Then, she shoved the biceps of her sword arm under his chin, grabbed his sword-arm with her shield-arm, and swept his legs, knocking Steve to the grass.
She dropped her sword, and landed on top of him, wrapping his head tightly with her sword-arm, and gripping at his elbow with her shield hand. "Do you yield?" She demanded, as if she'd expected to win.
Steve chuckled. "I could do this all day!" And bucked his hips into the air, throwing Diana forward just enough for him to slip out and get back to his feet as she tumbled away in surprise. Both of their swords lay discarded on the floor, but they both had their shields. Steve jumped into the air, aiming the edge of his shield at the center of Diana's. The two wooden discs splintered at contact, but did not break. Diana stepped back, and looked in astonishment at the gash that had developed in the center of her shield, right down a carving of Medusa's face.
Steve didn't miss a beat, he slung his shield through the air like a frisbee. The look on Diana's face betrayed the concept that she should've seen this coming, but hadn't. The shield clocked her in the side of the jaw, and landed her straight on her back. Steve grabbed one of the swords from where it lay, and bounded towards Diana. He held the tip to her neck. "Do you yield?" He demanded.
Diana didn't even answer, she just twisted her body to get her neck out of the way, driving the tip of the sword into the ground. She grabbed his wrist with both hands, and kicked the backs of his unprotected ankles, knocking both feet out from under him. She wrapped one leg around his arm, and shoved the other foot under his head. Then, slowly, but powerfully, she pushed her pelvis into his elbow.
The pain in his arm was immense, but he endured. "Do you yield?" She demanded, puffing with effort. Steve's only response was an escalating roar of effort. To the surprise of the gathering crowd, he began to lift Diana off of the ground with only his right arm. The muscles and veins on the arm bulged with the strain, but he began to roll towards her.
"Your highness!" A woman shouted as she ran towards the spot where Hercules had sat to watch the fight. Steve, Diana, and the crowd turned to the sound. "There has been an accident in the Penetralium!"
"Then there is no time to waste!" Hercules said as he stood, all joviality washed from his features. "Come!" He said, gesturing to Steve, Diana, and the gathered crowd. The pair untangled themselves, and followed the king to a flattened dome-shaped building in the center of the city area that had almost its entire roof caved-in along the edges.
"What happened?" Hercules asked the guard at the entrance.
"We were repairing one of the traps, and the ceiling collapsed! We had ten soldiers inside, all of them are pinned underneath the stone!" Hercules adjusted his wrist-braces, and turned his head to Steve and Diana. "I'm going to lift the slab! When I have it high enough, get in there and pull them out!"
Steve nodded. "How long do you think you can hold it?" He asked, looking the rubble up and down. The largest piece had to be several yards wide, and weigh several tons.
Hercules stepped up to the collapsed roof, squatted, and gripped the edge. "As long as I have to!" He gritted his teeth, and deadlifted the slab with a low grunt deep in his throat. Steve caught sight of the first woman immediately, and ran to pull her out. Diana and another dashed for the next two.
As they pulled out more, Hercules walked deeper into the rubble, kicking aside chunks as necessary, and lifting the largest piece higher with each step. Steve and Diana cleared away the rubble covering the last guard, and pulled her out together.
"That's the last of them!" Diana shouted to her father as she and Steve cleared the edge of the building.
Hercules struggled to nod. "Stand back!" He said, straining with the effort as he worked his way to the center of the roof. He stepped onto a raised dais in the center of the building, and bent down as far as he could, then unleashed himself explosively, nearly jumping as he slung the disc of the roof away from the ruined building, and into the ocean with a mighty SPLASH! Once it was done, he dusted his hands off, and flashed an awed Steve Rogers a shining grin. "All in a day's work, my boy!"