Superman: Mythos

by Jaxumus

A wild series of events lead to Superman's exile and imprisonment at the hands of Queen Maxima, in a ploy to attain her very own super-heir. What follows and precedes is the Man of Steel's most mythic adventure yet. Thrills, feats and fun culminate in an epic for the ages. Truly following in the footsteps of heroes of old, Superman supplants himself as the definitive American Myth.

10. The Sandsmarks

Superman: Mythos #10 "The Sandsmarks"

Ding Dong! The doorbell of a sleepy Gateway City high-rise rang. Waiting patiently on the apartment steps were Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Kara Zor-El. Some muffled yelling could be heard from inside until the thump of angry footsteps came up to the door. The door swung open to reveal a middle-aged woman with glasses, banged brown hair, wearing professional attire. She took one look at the crew on her doorstep and turned back inside her home with a sigh.

"Cassie!" She shouted up the stairs to the second floor. "Some friends of yours are here!"

"Th-thank you, Dr. Sandsmark, we-" Kara began.

"Look, Supergirl, right?" the woman asked. Kara nodded. "All I ask is that you keep the voices down in the house and keep the superheroing outside. Got it?"
"Y-yes, ma'am," Kara and Jimmy replied in unison, while Lois simply chuckled.

"This is good actually, anything to get my daughter out of the house. I've got six more calls to get to later today…" Dr. Sandsmark said before a pause. She looked to Lois, "Do I know you?"

"Lois Lane, Daily Planet," Lois introduced herself, holding out her hand.

"Dr. Helena Sandsmark, Gateway City Museum of Antiquities. It's a pleasure," Helena said, shaking Lois' hand. "I did an interview with the Planet a few years back. It wasn't with you though…"

"Was the interviewer a big bumbling buffoon of a man?" Lois asked.

Helena chuckled, "now that you mention it. Yes, yes he was."

"That's Clark Joseph Kent, for ya," Lois said. "He was real proud of that piece he did about your work at Artemisia."

"I'm not sure why," Helena said. "Take it from a woman who reads ancient poetry all day long, that man's prose is so damn flowery."

Lois laughed, clutching the railing as she wiped away a tear. "Oh, I like you," Lois said, taking out a card from her jacket and handing it to Helena. "Here's my card. Let's keep in touch. Maybe we can get you an updated story some time soon. One with less authorial self-aggrandizing, I assure you."

"I'm looking forward to it, Miss Lane," Helena said, accepting her card.

"And I'm Jim-" Jimmy began.

"Cassie!" Helena shouted. "Don't keep these people waiting!"
"Coming, Mom!" A teen girl's voice rang from upstairs, followed by swift footsteps. Soon the girl appeared at the top of the stairs. Cassie Sandsmark stood there triumphantly, with her long blonde hair and bulky headphones around her neck. She wore a bright red, blue, and gold Wonder Woman tank top, under an unzipped brown sweatshirt with the sleeves rolled up to show off her Amazonian bracers. Over her legs she wore star embroidered leggings and red sneakers on her feet.

"Kara!" she cried, leaping down the entire flight of stairs in a single bound. She slipped past her mother, through the doorway, and wrapped Kara in a hug. "It's been way too long!" She paused, looking over Kara's shoulder at Jimmy and Lois. "What's with the stiffs?"

"They're with me," Kara said, unwrapping Cassie's arms from around her body and holding her hands tight. "Cassie, we need your help."

"Really? What for?" Cassie asked.

"Superman is missing," Lois butted in. "Over a month now."

"No way…" Cassie began. "You know what, now that you mention it. I haven't seen Diana in a while either. But it's not like she calls me or anything. I don't think she knows how to use a cellphone."

"That's because they're probably in the same place," Kara continued. "Both their trails go cold over Themyscira. We need you to get us there."

"Ha, me?" Cassie said with a nervous chuckle. "I've only gotten there on my own by accident. Every other time I've been with Diana."

"Then you know how to get there. Great, let's go," Lois said, growing impatient.

"Well, yeah, but…" Cassie began. "I don't think you guys are gonna like it."

Cassie led the group up to the top floor of the apartment and out onto the roof of the building. A storm was brewing over the pink horizon of the coastal city and a light drizzle had begun overhead.

"Good, he's already out," Cassie said to herself as she gathered everyone around her.

"He?" Lois questioned.

"My dad…" Cassie said as loud thunder cracked while flashes of lightning danced across the sky.

"Your dad is-" Jimmy began.

"Yeah, Zeus, Jupiter, King of the Gods," Cassie said. "Now, everyone, hold hands." Cassie took Kara and Lois' hands while they each took one of Jimmy's. Together they stood in a circle while Cassie closed her eyes and began to whisper. Above them, the storm swirled and the rain picked up. Her whispers grew louder, "come on Dad, come on Dad…"

Lightning stuck just off the side of the building, followed by a rumbling thunder that shook the building. Jimmy nearly lept out of the circle. "Are we sure this is safe?" He asked, raising his voice in order to speak over the increasing rainfall.

"Nope!" Cassie shouted back. Then, another lightning bolt struck, this time directly on top of them. Each was blinded by impossibly white light as their bodies grew numb and evaporated off the roof of the building. In an instant, they had vanished, leaving nothing but a smoking trail in their wake.

Meanwhile, in Themyscira, the court of Hippolyta was caught in heated debate.

"There is no doubt about it," Artemis began, limping out into the center of the council chamber. Her midsection was bandaged and her arm was in a sling, still recovering from her encounter with Maxima. "Only the magic of a witch could have fooled us all. And there's only one witch who's foolish enough to do it!"

"You are more than correct, sister," Hippolyta spoke from her throne. "The divine sorceress, Circe, has tormented us for far too long from her place of exile. I shall convene with mighty Zeus to have her punishment changed to reflect something more permanent."

Nubia stepped in, she too was wrapped in bandages. "When, my queen, have the gods shown to change their minds? To go back on their word? Father Zeus will not budge, if he did, it would make him look weak. Not to mention the remaining Titans. The destruction of a daughter of Helios will not bode well for their uneasy alliance with Olympus."

"Well put, sister," Artemis continued, before looking back up to Hippolyta. "And what of your daughter, my queen? We cannot let her rot in the degrepid halls of that witch! Send us to Sorca, at last the Amazons shall wage war on New Aeaea! It's time we be the ones who dispense the divine justice of the gods!"

"Silence!" Hippolyta shouted. "Aside from the needless losses an assault on Sorca would entail, it will invoke the wrath of the Titans down upon us as well. This shall be a rescue mission, nothing more, nothing less. To bring back my daughter and leave the witch to her exile."

Artemis grunted, angrily clutching her side in pain. "Who then? Who then, my queen, shall go on this rescue mission?"

Then, thunder clapped from within the very halls of the palace, shaking it to its ancient foundation. The Amazonian council was blinded by a sudden burst of white light. When the light faded, standing in the center of the room amongst smoke and flame was Cassie Sandsmark alongside Kara, Lois, and Jimmy. After regaining their composure, the stunned Amazons quickly raised their weapons and closed in on the invaders.

"Stand down, sisters!" Hippolyta commanded. "It is one of our own!"

"Cassandra," Artemis muttered, raising her axe with her one good hand. "Ah yes, the Wonder Girl. And just like her mentor, she's brought with her a man…" She glared at Jimmy who nervously gave a wave. Her gaze then lingered over to Kara and Lois. "Along with two so-called women who have been corrupted by Man's World. This one even wears the mark of the Superman…"

"Enough Artemis. Let our sister speak," Hippolyta said. "Tell us, Cassandra, why have you come to us?"

Cassie hesitated, intimidated by the Amazonian eyes beating down on her.

"We're here to find Superman and Wonder Woman," Lois spoke up. "I assume that's why you're all here. Why you all seem to be at each other's throats. Believe me, I know what it's like."

"Who gave you permission to speak, mortal?" Artemis chided.

"No," Cassie began. "She's right. We're here to help."

"Then the gods have spoken," Hipployta said. "Cassandra Sandsmark and the friends of Kal-El shall be the ones to save our princess, my daughter…"

"What?!" Artemis shouted. "My Queen, you cannot possibly trust them! Or even Cassandra herself! Need I remind you, she is not one of us! She is a spawn of Man's World. You should send-"

"You Artemis? I should send you?" Hipployta began. "Look at yourself. Nearly killed by one of Circe's thralls, allowing her to escape with Diana. What makes you think I could possibly rely on the likes of you to bring her back over Cassandra, daughter of Zeus himself?"

Artemis grunted before sitting back down amongst the rest of the council, arms crossed, still clutching her wounded side in pain.

"We humbly accept the mission, my Queen," Cassie said, falling to her knee before the queen. "W-we do, r-right?" She asked, looking up at the rest of the group.

"Yes, your highness, we accept," Kara said, taking to her knee beside Cassie. "We will bring Diana back, I promise."

"Tsk, we don't need your permission to do what's right, your worship," Lois said, neglecting to kneel, Jimmy following suit.

Hippolyta merely chuckled at their defiance. "Tis true, you do not need my permission. But you might need my rocket."

Later that day, the Amazonian engineers prepared the invisible rocket for launch. It was a massive ship, angled up at 90 degrees between two ancient support structures, one of which held a marble staircase all the way to the cockpit. The rocket was made of glass-like panels with holographic surfaces that refracted light in such a way that it appeared invisible. Kara and Cassie waited by the steps while Lois and Jimmy were being equipped for the mission by the Amazons due to their lack of raw abilities.

Lois was the first to arrive. She looked like an Amazon with her shoulderless breastplate, thigh-length battle skirt, and armored greaves. Her short dark hair was even done up in a Greek style bun. And, of course, her forearms were protected by the Amazonians' signature silver bracers. Both Cassie and Kara were impressed when the reporter turned warrior came their way. They were, however, somewhat less impressed by who followed her.

Jimmy too had been geared up in Amazonian garb. He matched with Lois quite well, right down to the breastplate and skirt. He walked less confidently than Lois towards the rocket, his freckled face bright red in embarrassment. He stumbled a bit as he approached, having to get used to the slightly elevated heels that his new greaves provided. Cassie and Kara tried to contain their giggles as he joined beside them. Lois smiled and patted her partner's shoulder. "Looking good Jim. You're a regular feminist icon in those."

"I'm honored," Jimmy mumbled, his head hung low.

"You should be," Nubia said, coming up to the group alongside Queen Hippolyta and Artemis. "Not only can that armor stop a bullet, but it has been enchanted to defend against Circe's magic."

"So you'll have a few more seconds to live while she finds a way to bypass our anti-magic," Artemis said, crossing her arms. "Us Amazons have never been too keen on spellcasting."

"With this…" Hippolyta began, taking a step forward and revealing a glimmering long sword from under her arm. "They won't need to be."

Cassie's eyes lit up upon seeing the sword. "Is that what I think it is?" she asked, reaching for the hilt of the blade.

"It is an aspect of the Sword of the goddess, Nemesis," Hippolyta explained. "The arbiter of divine retribution and antithesis to Hecate, the goddess of magic and witchcraft. It is merely a replica and contains only a fraction of the original's power. But, a fraction is all you will need to reverse whatever heinous spells Circe has concocted."

"Ow!" Cassie cried, pulling her steaming hand away from the hilt. "What gives?!"

"Hm, it is just as I thought. I'm sorry Cassandra, you cannot wield it," Hippolyta said. "I'm afraid you are not ready. Your conviction falters. Only those who are steadfast in their will to dispense justice can…" The Queen's eyes then fell to Kara.

Kara hesitated, reaching out for the blade, only to stay her hand to her chest. She did not know if she could do it, but even moreso, she was too afraid to try. She thought back to her last conversation with Clark, the deal they had made. She'd done a lot of thinking since then, and even more since he'd been gone. She wondered if being Supergirl all the time was just an excuse to forget her past and avoid starting a new future for herself. In a way, it was more selfish than splitting her life between Supergirl and Kara. She wasn't fighting for justice, she was fighting for nothing. Krypton is nothing.

"Gimme that thing," Lois spoke up, grabbing the hilt of the Nemesis sword with ease. She slashed it in the air before spinning it at her side and sheathing it to her hip. "Huh, lighter than I thought."

Kara smirked. Of course, Lois Lane is the most convicted woman she knew. If anyone was gonna wield it, I'd be her. Even Clark would have more trouble, she thought to herself.

"Very well," Hippolyta began. "Let us prepare for launch."

The group all filed into the cockpit of the invisible rocket. Inside was spacious, with two seats in front and two in back. Cassie and Kara took the front, while Lois and Jimmy took the back. Translucent buttons and control panels laid beneath the wide windshield and two steering yokes jutted out before Cassie and Kara.

"Um…" Cassie said aloud, growing overwhelmed by the numerous flashing controls.

"Not to worry," Hippolyta's voice echoed over the cockpit speakers. "The rocket has an auto-piloting system. In fact, it possesses a low level of sentience. So be kind."

"Awwwe," Cassie said, gently caressing the armrests of her seat.

"Great," Lois said from behind Cassie. "I suppose it will want a tip after this too huh?"

"Commencing countdown," Hippolyta radioed in. "May Tyche's blessings be upon you."

"I swear to God, you guys better be right about this," Lois said. "Or should I be swearing to Zeus in this instance?"

"I wouldn't," Cassie said. "My dad isn't the most reliable god, yours should do just fine."

"Launch in T-minus, 5 seconds…4…" Hippolyta began. Immediately, the massive jets at the bottom of the rocket ignited in white-hot flame. The entire craft began to rattle as a result. The group held on firmly to their restraints as they shook about in their seats.

"Is it too late to use the restroom?" Jimmy asked.

"Yes!" Lois, Kara, and Cassie said in unison.

"3…2…" Hippolyta continued. "1!"

The rocket blasted into the sky at an incredible speed, ripping straight through the atmosphere with ease and past the moon in a matter of seconds. Then, once out of Earth's gravitational field, the rocket initiated its light-speed engine. They jolted forward as the stars outside their windows became long streaks of white. A swirling vortex of blackened light formed in front of their windshield. They stretched and warped across space, passing hundreds of solar systems in a blink of an eye. Then, just as soon as it had started, everything stopped. The rocket jumped out of light-speed and before them was the washed out, tan-colored planet of Sorca, orbiting a distant yellow sun. They inched into its gravitational pull until they were gliding smoothly into its atmosphere. Fire sparked on the nose of the rocket, but it quickly calmed as they slowed to a soar over the vast empty plains of the uninhabited planet.

"Woo!" Cassie said, leaping out of her seat. "That was fun, right guys?"

"I-" Jimmy began, clutching his stomach, "no longer have to go to the restroom…"

"Look," Kara said, unbuckling from her seat and stepping up to the windshield. The rocket had come to a complete stop, hovering a few dozen feet from the ground. Below them, atop a lonesome hill, was a small homestead surrounded by a lush and exotic garden. But, atop the roof of the innocuous villa, was something devious. There were two women, both bound to stakes by mystic chains. The first was Diana, the second was the goddess Lethe in her physical anthropomorphic form which resembled that of a pale young girl. Circe had them strung up as if they were decorations, trophies to her triumph over gods and heroes.

"Disgusting…" Cassie muttered. "Let's go down there and show that witch who's boss," she said, cracking her knuckles.

"Easy, Cassie," Kara said, "even with the Sword of Nemesis, Circe still vastly outmatches us. We need Diana, and especially Lethe, if we're to stand a chance."

"Fair enough," Cassie said, slightly perturbed. "So Kar, what's the plan?"

"Cassie and I will draw Circe out," Kara began. "Lois and Jimmy, you'll sneak up behind her hut and free Diana and Lethe with the sword."

"Sure you two can handle Wicked yourselves?" Lois asked.

"No, we can't," Kara said, resolutely. "But we can buy you enough time to bust out our big guns."

"Alright! Let's do it!" Cassie cheered, opening up a bottom hatch in the back of the cockpit and abruptly leaping out of the rocket.

"Augh! Cassie!" Kara cried, running over to the ledge. She watched as Wonder Girl plummeted towards the earth before she stopped herself in midair and assumed flight. Kara sighed and turned to Lois and Jimmy. "Good luck." And with that she too jumped from the rocket and caught the air below. She floated down beside Cassie, both superheroines hovering a few yards away from Circe's front door.

"Hey witch!" Cassie shouted. "By the power of Father Zeus himself, I demand you show yourself! And end your imprisonment of Princess Diana and the Goddess Lethe!"

A soft chuckle could be heard within the shadow of the hut. "Ah yes, the sidekicks, I was wondering when you'd arrive…" Circe said, emerging from the darkness of her doorway, flanked by two lionesses. "Sorry little godling, your father has no power here. Hippolyta made sure of that," She chided before taking a lengthy sip of wine from her goblet.

"We don't need the power of a god to defeat the likes of you!" Kara said.

"That's just objectively false," Circe said with a laugh, before pointing an idle finger at Kara. "Come now, Supergirl, I thought you'd be a bit smarter than your cousin." A bolt of purple lightning shot forth from her fingertips and zigzagged towards Kara. Cassie quickly came between Supergirl and the bolt, blocking the magical attack with her crossed bracers.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Cassie cried. The silver of her bracers grew hot from absorbing the bolt, forcing Cassie to shake them cool as they steamed.

Circe sighed and rolled her eyes, unimpressed by the girls. "Pity…" she spoke, sending her lionesses forward. "Come here, children. Let's make this quick, shall we?"

Meanwhile, overhead, the invisible rocket glided stealthily over Circe's villa. It touched down in her backyard, allowing Lois and Jimmy to exit out onto the surface of the planet. Reaching the house, they climbed on top of the thatched roof and made their way towards the imposing pikes in which Diana and Lethe were chained.

A weakened Diana heard the rustling of bodies as the two climbed. She managed to open her weary eyes and peer down to spot Lois readying her blade in order to slash the magical chains. "By Hera," she spoke. "Lois, is that you?"

"What's the matter, princess?" Lois said to her with a smirk, "afraid I'm pulling off the look better than you? Unfortunately for the both of us I think Jimmy's got us beat."

Diana tilted her head further to see Jimmy roll clumsily onto the roof and run up beside Lois in his matching skirt. Diana let out a chuckle, despite it hurting her bruised rib cage. "Is that-?" she began.

"A little gift from your mom," Lois said, rearing back the Sword of Nemesis before striking it down across the glowing purple chains. Immediately the steel broke through the magical barrier and slashed through the metal links as if it were a normal chain. Diana collapsed down from the pike and into Jimmy's arms. The Amazonian quickly proved too heavy for the photographer, so he not so gracefully laid her down across the straw of the roof.

"Lethe…" Diana mumbled, pointing towards the second prisoner. The young girl hung motionless while bound in the chains. Her head hung low, her long dark hair concealing her face. Lois stepped up carefully toward the second pike and reared back her sword once more. The chains shattered and her lifeless body fell. This time, Jimmy was easily able to catch the girl, finding her to be eerily light, like a ghost in his arms.

"Umm…" Jimmy began, parting the girl's hair to see her sleeping eyes beneath. "Is she-?"

It was then her eyes shot open and her blank stair quickly turned to one of raging fury. "Where. Is. Circe?" The goddess spoke, her voice shattered into a thousand tones all speaking at once. Her words sent a ripple that shook the very planet they stood upon, while the sound of crashing waves grew closer and closer.

"Grrr! Hold still so I can turn you into the pestering flies that you are!" Circe roared, firing blast upon blast of magic at Kara and Cassie as they swarmed her. The two girls flew circles around the witch, evading each of her shots, trying to buy enough time for her reckoning. Luckly, the time had finally come. Circe paused her attacks upon feeling the shift in the air. A moist wind blew in from the west, peppering the crystal trees and dunes of sand in dew. Her attention withdrew from the young heroines and towards her home.

Suddenly, the front walls of the small building crashed down to make way for a tidal wave of rushing water. The water barreled down the hillside and thinned into a focused geyser aimed directly at Circe. Kara and Cassie landed a few feet away in time to see the gallons upon gallons of water strike the witch head on. She was consumed by the rocketing water as it pushed her body against the ground and kept her there with an incredible amount of pressing force. A gargled scream could scarcely be heard beneath the crashing of the waves. Eventually, the watery attack died down and the runoff formed into a river at the empty bason in which it once flowed.

Circe, nearly flattened to the ground, managed to sit back up and hurl at least a gallon of water up herself. It was then she realized she couldn't move her arms and legs. She looked down to see her body wrapped in a glowing golden string. Standing before her was Diana, wielding her Lasso of Truth, alongside Lethe, her arm outstretched to control the river, and Lois, with the tip of her Sword of Nemesis resting beneath Circe's chin. Jimmy was a few feet to the side, snapping pictures of the whole affair, while Kara and Cassie joined the line of women and goddesses staring down at the witch they'd defeated.

"Congratulations…" Circe sneered, spitting up some more water. "Do you want a medal?"

"Where is Kal-El?" Diana asked, tightening her lasso. "The Lasso of Hestia compels you to reveal the truth."

Circe laughed. "All you women, worried about one man. It's no wonder the Amazons disowned you, Princess."

Diana furrowed her brow and tightened her grip once more. Circe winced, the lasso scalding her skin.

"Gah! Fine…" she said, refusing to resist the power of Hestia any longer. "Well, he's probably escaped that moon by now."

"What moon?" Kara asked.

"I didn't bother with the details. That harlot, Maxima, was merely a tool for us; get Superman off world, leave the Princess to me…" Circe was forced to explain.

"Who's us?" Diana questioned.

"Myself, and Lex Luthor, of course," Circe revealed with a smile. "A most capable accompless, as far as mortal men are concerned."

"Luthor, that snake," Lois said, pressing the flat edge of her blade to Circe's neck. "He played us back in Metropolis, we should have known! God, I'm so stupid! What the hell is he planning?"

"Don't know for sure," Circe said. "Again, I didn't bother with the details that didn't concern myself."

"How on-brand," Cassie snarked.

"You should be thankful we didn't go for you, little Zeus-spawn," Circe snapped at Cassie. The lasso burned her skin once more. "All I know is that he needed Superman off world while he set a trap, to then be sprung upon his return. You best hurry, I sense the Man of Steel is on his way home now."

"Indeed," Lethe spoke, her voice having softened but still full of divine presence. "The currents of the cosmos predict his return at any moment. You must leave now and intercept his voyage."

"But what about-?" Cassie began.

"Circe?" Lethe said. "I will deal with the sorceress. I will make sure my waters never flow upon this accursed planet ever again. And I will inform Lord Hades of this heinous treachery. And he is not as quick to forgive as I."

Circe laughed while Diana returned her lasso to her side. "Let Hades do his worst. Even he does not have the right to end me," Circe taunted. "Just as the deathless gods above, I will remain, Diana. Long after the pitiful likes of Lex Luthor and Queen Maxima. I will always be here to torment you Amazonians and your Olympian caretakers. Until the wrath of the Titans befals this realm once more, I will remain! I will-"

Circe's tirade was cut short when Jimmy Olsen stepped forward from the line and delivered a meaty punch to her face, knocking the exhausted sorceress out. Jimmy shook his hand in pain, while Diana patted him on the shoulder. The women all laughed, even Lethe managed to chuckle.

"Now then," Diana spoke to the group. "It's time to stop Kal-El from getting home."