Superman, Son of Hippolyta - A T-Rexcellent Reviews Fanfiction
I of course own no DC Comics properties or characters and make no money off of this, I am merely a giant DC Fan who wants to share my stories with all of you.
Chapter 25: Maternal Instincts
On the Island of Themyscira, inside the Prince's Royal Chambers…
"He still hasn't woken up yet?" Hippolyta asked Philippus as she stood on guard by her son's door, for the third time she had walked by his room this evening, the second time in the last hour to be precise, before casting a quick glance into her son's chambers where Kal still lay unconscious on his bed after being moved from Epione's Medical Ward earlier when they were finally finished checking him over for injuries.
The healer had already informed her that the prince was remarkably unharmed, both from the earlier battle with Harpies and their feathered forces… as well as however the Tartarus he had managed to summon that spontaneous fiery explosion on the beach.
No cuts, no burns, no bruises, and no broken bones either… and all in in spite of the fact that Kal had actually flung himself off a cliff in his earlier pursuit of the Sisters of the Storm, a pursuit that ended in Zeus's three airborne harlots dead on the shore of Themyscira and her son kneeling in the sand, his skin glowing like a burning out ember in a dying fire.
Her Little Fallingstar had become a literal Fallingstar this evening, with all speed and firepower to prove it.
First super speed, then shooting fire from his eyes, then super jumping and now huge fiery supernovas at his command. At this rate, Hippolyta wouldn't be surprised if Kal started flying soon, as ridiculous as that might sound to other ears…
The clothes Kal had been wearing had been reduced to ashes by his fiery fury and had been replaced by new ones she had gotten for him, but otherwise, her son was fine and for that, Hippolyta knew she should be immensely relieved… except for the small, minor fact that he had not yet woken up from his comatose state, much to her maternal distress.
Distress that continued as Philippus answered her thrice repeated question with another sad shake of her head. "No, Hippolyta, I'm afraid not, he stirs, sometimes, he murmurs and says things in his sleep every now and then, but otherwise..."
"He says things?" Hippolyta asked, looking surprised, glancing back at her son lying on his bed, quiet. "What does he say?"
"I cannot tell most of the time, but it sounds like a name." Philippus said as she remembered what the word that was, the word her student kept on repeating in his sleep. "…Rao… I think."
"Rao…" Hippolyta repeated slowly, reciting the strange, almost alien word on both her tongue and inside her mind, the more she thought about it, the more it sounded strangely familiar to the Amazon Queen, but where had she heard it before…
Rao… Rao…
Then she remembered, the recollection struck her like one of Artemis hunting arrows had gone straight through her heart…
"Be safe my son, may Rao's light watch over you wherever you go."
A cold chill of dread ran down the Amazon's Queen usually rigid spine as the nearly forgotten final prayer of a certain blue eyed and blonde-haired women echoed inside her mind, a woman who the Amazon Queen had never met in person, but whose brief memory had haunted Hippolyta since that night Kal had come into her life.
Just like it did whenever she went to go check on the pod, she kept hidden and locked away in the deepest, darkest levels of the palace… where the shades of the past like to linger…
"I love you Kal, my beautiful boy."
Shaking sudden the cold, shivering sensation out of her body and briefly praying to all of the Goddesses of the Olympian Pantheon that Philippus did not notice her momentary discomfort, Hippolyta made her way to her… son's bed and sat down by his right side.
At his left, lay Krypto, her son's ever present and loyal White Wolfdog. The albino canine was currently curled up at her son's side, his head on his paws and his furry tail hanging limply off the side of the bed, the animal had followed them as they had carried Kal's unconscious body from the beach to the medical ward and now finally, to his bedroom, where it had remained since, not moving an inch.
As she sat down, Hippolyta felt her eyes lock with Krypto's for a brief moment as the White Wolfdog let lifted his head and nudged Kal's left arm in attempt to wake him, to no avail, before whimpering in defeat and laying his head back down again.
To see such a normally proud and fierce creature such as Krypto look so distraught and helpless, was not only sad, but a feeling that the Queen of the Amazons could definitely relate to in that moment and so, not knowing what else to do, the equally distraught and helpless Hippolyta just sighed and stared at her son's face.
Hippolyta looked down at Kal's young boyish face, hoping with every passing second that his eyes would open up to reveal those shining blue stars of his that she loved to see every day, but sadly, they did not open.
"How goes the clean-up of the Training Grounds of Athena, Philippus?" Hippolyta asked with another sigh, once again putting on the queenly mask as she turned to face her general, second in command and oldest friend.
"All but finished your majesty, repairs have been made to most of the damaged buildings by now and the injured have all been treated by Epione's healers." Philippus reported in her usual military manner, before adding in a more sympathetic tone. "Fortunately for us, there were no losses on our side in the battle against the Harpies forces, thanks in large part to our prince's brave actions."
"Yes." Hippolyta nodded before looking back to her son's still unconscious form. "Thanks to Kal."
The Queen of the Amazons could still vividly recall her son acting with the efficiency of a trained warrior twice his age in the earlier battle, moving through the chaos filled field at lighting fast speed, slicing through scores of Stymphalian Storks with deadly precision and ending the conflict in their tribe's favour before the Amazons could suffer even a single life lost to their tribe.
As a warrior woman raised by her elder sisters to love the thrill of the fight, the sight had been breathtaking to her, beautiful even, but as mother and a queen with the responsibility to protect her daughter and her tribe at all costs, it had also unnerved her as well…
If Kal could butcher an entire flock of giant killer birds all by himself, could he do the same to a horde of Barbarians, or even… a tribe of Amazons…
…and he was still only a boy, imagine what he could do once he became a man…
But then, Hippolyta did not have to imagine it, she had seen such carnage before with her own eyes when Greece fell…
The nightmarish image of a dark-haired youth with blood red eyes, a bloodthirsty expression on his face and with dead Amazon warriors lying at his feet, flashed through her mind and Hippolyta repressed another cold shudder as her old tormentor's words rang through ears, along with the screams of her dying sisters.
"Listen to it Hippolyta! Listen to the song of death Thrax plays as he slaughters your sisters for their defiance!"
"Is our son not a virtuoso of violence! My queen!? Is he not the perfect blend of Barbarian strength and Amazonian skill?!"
"Despite your pointless attempts to defy me Hippolyta, I want you to know that I will forever be grateful, for this child you have given me."
Even after all this time, Hippolyta could still remember every one of Hercules cruel compliments during what be their final battle before the Fall of Ancient Greece, the pride in his voice as that Demigod brute spoke of their… son to her…
…Thrax.
The Barbarian bastard heir he had forced her to bare for him, who after her escape, he had raised into the perfect psychopathic prince, who even as they spoke and fought one another, was busy slaughtering her remaining sisters with sadistic glee, the living insult to what was left of their tribe and shameful stain upon her family's royal legacy…
… but not for much longer… she swore it upon her mother's memory and her position as Queen of the Amazons, her dead sisters would be avenged… and her honour would be restored…
… she swore it as she stood defiantly before the Demigod who had once imprisoned and violated her, as they duked it out amongst the burning ruins of her mother's Amazonian Empire, in what would end up being her tribe's exodus from the Greek World to Themyscira, in order to finally escape the foul clutches of his Barbarian horde for good… or so they had hoped at the time…
… but before she left the World of Man behind her forever, Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons and Daughter of Otrera, would have the last laugh that day…
"I gave you nothing Hercules!"
"You forced that mongrel of yours upon me like a curse!"
"No! You stay away from him! Hippolyta! Stay away!"
"He is your son as well!"
"I have no son Hercules! And after today! I swear I never will again!"
The irony of her echoing last words to her Demigod tormentor now brought to her was not lost on the Amazon Queen as she sat there on her son's bed, staring at her Little Fallingstar's face, lost in her own thoughts.
Hippolyta remembered jumping aboard her personal Pegasus mount after saying that, the winged equine had been a gift from the Goddess Hera to aid in her fellow queen's escape from Amazonia when the time came to do so. A time which as far as Hippolyta was concerned, was right now, but not before she dealt with one last Barbarian…
Amazonian rider and winged beast took off into the reddened sky at a furious pace, a furious Hercules on his equally furious Manticore mount right on their tails, but the Queen of the Heavens was on Hippolyta's side that day and used her powers over the winds and sky to propel her steed faster through the air whilst making sure to slow Hercules's winged feline down as much as possible.
Onward they flew, over the chaos of war far down below, over the burned ruins of her mother's empire, even from such a great height, Hippolyta could see that most of her sisters had already evacuated the crumbling city to the escape ships waiting for them in the bay.
Ships that Hera had assured her, that with the aid of her brother's Poseidon's wife, Queen Amphitrite, and her power over the ocean winds and currents, would take the Amazons to their new homeland, a hidden island where their sisterhood would be protected from the rest of the world.
In fact, the only Amazons left in Amazonia where the ones who had bravely chosen to sacrifice themselves to hold off the Barbarian horde from following their sisters to their new homeland.
As she flew towards her destination, Hippolyta saw the last of her remaining sisters fall before the axe and sword of her son, the deranged Demigod Hercules had named Thrax, she saw the sadistic smile on his face as he did so, it was the same look Hercules had on the night when he had first violated her…
… the first time, but certainly not the last…
Having just witnessed the fall of what was left of her mother's kingdom and seeing the many butchered bodies of her Amazonian warriors littering its ruined remains, removed any hesitation in Hippolyta's mind about the choice she was about to make.
So, when she saw her target, standing all by himself, out in the open, amongst the carnage and devastation of her home, Hippolyta saw her chance and took it.
Leaping from the back of her Pegasus mount down to the battlefield far below, with the wind in her hair and hatred in her heart, Hippolyta pulled her sword out of her scabbard as she fell fast towards her son… and did what her mother had taught her do when it came to killing Barbarians.
"Always aim for the head."
Thrax must have felt her fast-approaching shadow fall over him because he turned to look up at her in that last moment of his wretched life, his shocked expression did not change her decision one bit, nor did it make her regret it afterwards either.
With Amazonian war cry and fuelled by feelings of rage and revenge, the Warrior Queen's blade swung true and took her own child's head off with one single clean slice.
As she landed on the battleground with a Nemean Lioness-like pounce, Hippolyta saw the decapitated body of her son fall to the ground, whilst his recently removed head rolled backwards to face her.
Hippolyta saw the light left Thrax's now lifeless face and she smiled in grim satisfaction at the sight, finally, the stain upon her honour as Queen of the Amazons was finally cleansed from this world and vengeance was now hers… at long last…
The Amazon Queen's reflection on her revenge was short lived however, as Hercules's distant roar of rage could be heard somewhere behind her, even over the hurricane force winds Hera had obviously summoned to stop him from reaching her, winds that were gradually forcing his Manticore mount to come crashing down to the ground.
Realizing that she did not have long before the brutish bastard got back up and came charging over to make her pay for what she had done to his horrid heir, Hippolyta quickly hacked Thrax's now headless body into smaller, much more manageable parts, before stuffing every last one of them into a large burlap sack, tied to the back of her Pegasus mount as it flew down to meet her.
After grabbing the Demigod's decapitated head and stuffing it into the impromptu body bag, Hippolyta's gruesome task was done and she once again took off on her winged equine into the darkened skies, heading towards the open sea, where she knew Hercules and his now crippled Manticore would not be able to follow her, where she knew her sister's fleet was now waiting for her.
But even as she flew almost out of sight of her burning homeland, her ruined empire and her own painful past, Hippolyta could still hear Hercules final haunting words to her as he reached spot where she had slain his son, his bastard blood still staining the ground beneath his feet.
"Go ahead and run Hippolyta! Run as fast and as far as you want! But make no mistake! I am going to find you! I WILL FIND ALL OF YOU!"
Despite still feeling quite high on her revenge over the favourite Son of Zeus, Hippolyta still could not repress the sense of dread that had formed in the pit of her stomach as those words echoed through her mind that day anymore than she could to during this moment of reminiscing.
But as the old saying goes, what is done, is done, there was no point dwelling on her choice now... on either of her choices…
As she quickly caught up with her Amazons fleet, Hippolyta remembered how they had all cheered for her as she flew above them, chanting her name and singing her praises as she led them to their new home, only stopping briefly to land on the deck of her lead ship in order to properly dispose of something… in a place where hopefully no one would ever find it…
Hippolyta recalled how she had stood tall upon the brow of her ship, bloody body bag in hand as the Box of Pandora was brought before her by Philippus and her soldiers.
Pandora's Box, one of the oldest Olympian artifacts in Grecian history, the Hephaestus forged container carved with ornate images of the pantheons past upon its golden surface, the legendary vessel that had once held all the evils of Man's World within it.
Though Hippolyta knew that as far as her Amazonian sisters were concerned, Man's World was plenty evil long before day came where the girl Pandora's curiosity finally got the better of her and she decided to open her accursed container, releasing all of the common evils that now plagued the mortal realm that were trapped inside it.
Now the box lay empty, with even Hope having long left it and this world, but that fact would not last for long, Hippolyta knew that to be certain, for soon, Pandora's Box would once again house a great evil within its sarcophagus-like confines.
Like her Pegasus mount, the ancient Olympian artifact had been yet another gift from the Queen of the Heavens, just before Hercules horde's last attack and the Great Exodus of Amazonia took place, much to Hippolyta's initial confusion at the time, for what use could her Amazons possibly have for an oversized container she had asked Hera, only for the Sky Goddess to smile slyly and simply say that she would figure it for herself out after the battle was over.
Still confused, Hippolyta simply nodded and ordered her equally confused sisters to load the great crate onto her lead ship, still not entirely sure what Hera words meant but choosing not to question the Sky Goddess generosity any further, if only not to occur her anger at refuting her gift.
She also chose not to question why the box, upon closer inspection, had the chains that once bound the Titan Prometheus to a cliff, which were coiled up inside it like a sleeping snake, inside it, but now she knew…
Now she understood what Hera meant for her to do, now she knew what the box's ultimate and final purpose was for… to lock away the curse Hercules had forced her bear all those years ago…
With Persephone having already dammed Thrax's soul to remain fused to his foul remains after death and with Amphitrite agreeing to use her oceanic powers to drag the chained container to the deepest, darkest depths of the Aegean Sea, there was only one thing left to do… throw out the trash.
So, with the same care someone would show a bag of garbage, Hippolyta dumped the bloody sack into the box, which was then sealed and bound with the same chains that had once held a Titan in place for longer than Hippolyta would like to really consider, and in a matter of moments, Pandora's Box was once again a container for evil, one that would never be opened again…
… as with a contemptuous kick, The Amazon Queen sent Pandora's Box careening over the side of her ship and watched without regret as it hit the water below with a single loud splash, before it quickly sank to the bottom of sea.
Where, eventually the ocean currents commanded by Amphitrite would take it far away, to what would be its final resting place, hidden somewhere deep in the Straits of Messina, to be forever guarded between Charybdis and Scylla, the two greatest sea monsters in Grecian history.
With her past quite literally buried at sea, Hippolyta turned away as soon as falling box was out of site and as far as she was concerned, out of her mind as well, remounted her Pegasus and left back up into the air, to lead her sisters to their new homeland, the Island of Themyscira and rest as they say, was ancient history…
Now here she was, the brave and fearless Queen of the Amazons, in the exact same position she swore she would never be in again, only ironically enough, the Daughter of Otrera did not find it in herself to regret breaking the vow she swore all these ago, not anymore anyway…
Because, I am not that person anymore, Hippolyta thought to herself as she stared at her son's young face, somehow, it seemed to have aged since this morning, his features more defined and worn, like he had lost some of his innocence since then, since they had told him of his destiny to one day face Hercules, the thought made her strangely sad, I am no longer Hippolyta, Warrior Queen of the Amazons, Ruler of the Amazonian Empire, Slayer of Barbarians and Conqueror of Man's World. Now, I am just Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons and Ruler of the Island of Themyscira, Protector of her People and Mother to the best son and daughter any woman could ever ask for.
"He'll be alright, Hippolyta." Philippus said suddenly, her firm, familiar tone breaking her queen out of her thoughts and memories as she stepped into the room to stand at the foot of her prince's bed. "Whatever happened with the Harpies on the beach, Hippolyta, it won't keep him down for long, Kal is a strong boy, stronger than I think any of us originally thought he was, he proved that to everyone today."
"Yes, he certainly did." Hippolyta agreed, a small smile appearing across the queen's face as she recalled her son besting the Messenger of the Gods in single combat, a thirteen-year-old Demigod prince defeating an Olympian in a friendly sparring session was something completely unheard in all of Ancient Greek history, not even Hercules could boast of doing that in his youth, My Little Fallingstar, you never stop surprising us, do you.
"My Queen."
Hippolyta felt her smile fall from her face as she turned and saw the Captain of the Queen's Circle, Alkyone appear in the doorway, once again dressed in her usual armoured attire, helmet over her bald head and her sword in hand, freshly sharpened as usual and ready to be swung at a moment's notice.
Out of the corner of her eye, Hippolyta saw Krypto raise his head from his paws, before flattening his ears back and baring his teeth in a soft growl as Alkyone entered her son's room "Hippolyta…"
"Captain Alkyone, why are you here?" Still remembering her very unpleasant surprise encounter with her elite guard's commanding officer in her royal chambers earlier that day, Hippolyta could not quite keep the frown off her face and the glare out of her eyes as she spoke to the overstepping Amazon.
If there was one major regret the once proud and now wise Warrior Queen had in her long rule over the Amazonian sisterhood, it was her inability to rein in some of her sisters more… unpleasant personal ambitions as well as placate their collective anger over their humiliating defeat and exile from Man's World…
…the world her tribe had once aimed to conquer in their Goddesses name and for all of womankind, back when Hippolyta still believed in such foolish ideas of Amazonian glory and conquest, before Hercules came and put an end to all of that with the near complete destruction of her mother's empire…
…What a beautiful dream it had been… and what an even lovelier lie it had all turned out to be…
Even without Hercules's intervention in her sister's campaign across Ancient Greece, Hippolyta was no longer too prideful to admit that their tribe's goal of total domination of the Greek World and possibly even beyond was never going to come to pass.
No matter how hard they fought to make their Amazonian Empire a reality and fought they did, the sad truth was that Man's World was far to populace, far to vast and far to divided to be conquered completely, in the last couple hundreds of years since making their new home on Themyscira, Hippolyta had watched from the shores of their island paradise as kingdom after kingdom, empire after empire tried to do the same thing and failed miserably.
Still, Hippolyta was not so naïve to think that there were not those among her sisterhood who still bitterly clung to the old ways of the once proud warrior women tribe they had been, who still dreamed the old dreams of Amazonian domination over mankind, and Hippolyta knew that Alkyone and her three circle sisters where chief among the ranks of that particular faction of her tribe.
It was the main reason she originally took Alkyone and her three friends on as her elite guards after their exodus from Amazonia, not out of any great affection for them or respect for their skills as warriors, but because as long as they were standing by her side, they could not effectively plot behind her back, allowing her to keep an eye on them and their less than palatable plans for the future...
Make no mistake, Hippolyta did not like keeping Alkyone and her three like-minded Amazons so close to her royal person, not since the day their people had first arrived on Themyscira, or to her children's person either for that matter, especially as her belligerent bodyguards had begun to make their intentions towards both her and her children more known as of late.
She had begun to take notice after Epione had told her everything her sister Myrto, Charis and Philomela had aid during their visit to her Medical Ward, just after the Chimera incident a few years ago, informing her about their pre-emptive plans for Kal if he should survive his future fight against Hercules.
The foreknowledge of the trio's murderous intentions had made the queen's blood boil with such maternal rage, almost to the point where she had nearly pulled her sword on her three bodyguards and attacked them on sight the next time, she saw them. But Hippolyta had learned long ago about the consequences of acting on her anger and making rash decisions based on it, the same lesson her son had seemingly learned from Hermes today during their flight and fight.
So, she took a deep breath, put on her queenly mask back on, and kept her weapon in her sheathe as she stood amongst her son's future would be assassins like she knew nothing of their plans, and she would go on pretending every day after.
Just like how she did when she fully began to realise the full extent of Alkyone's… interest in not just herself, but also her daughter, she had seen the way Alkyone had begun to look at Diana, she had seen the way her eyes lingered on Diana form just as she began the process of growing from a girl to a woman, the revolting revelation had made Hippolyta sick to her stomach, but once again, she kept calm and kept her feelings of anger and disgust under control.
For as much as she did not like having to turn a blind eye to her circle's more despicable plans and desires for the moment, Hippolyta knew that openly punishing them for their thoughts and feelings in regards to her children as well as the matter of their people's now more peaceful lives was not something she could do with clear justification, not without potentially dividing their sisterhood in half, which would play right into Hercules hands, especially if the four of them found out the truth about her daughter's origins.
Hippolyta had no doubt they would have immediately declared her to be a selfish and hypocritical tyrant for denying them the chance to reap their vengeance on Man's World after she had already taken hers on Hercules, before either publicly abandoning her or worse, leading a rebellion to overthrow her, leaving their tribe broken and weakened, when the Barbarian horde finally came to conqueror them once again.
As much as she did not like it, Hippolyta knew that she could not afford fight a war within her own tribe, not while their enemies waited just off their island's shore, always looking for any sign of weakness within her Amazons to exploit as they plotted her people's downfall and eternal damnation.
So as much as it pained her at times, Hippolyta kept Alkyone and fellow circle sisters close for now, until the time came when she could finally put them in their place, without fear of an uprising within the Amazonian ranks happening as a result, whether that place eventually be a cell or a grave, the warrior queen did not yet know, but she knew one day that she would find out.
As the old saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies even closer, even if their only your potential enemies yet, Hippolyta thought to herself as she glanced at Philippus, her general catching her gaze and moving to stand between herself and her circle captain.
"That's far enough Alkyone." Philippus warned, her hand on the pommel of her sword as she prevented the Captain of the Queen's Circle from getting any closer to their leader, or her son for that matter. "No one besides those the queen allows is permitted to come near the prince at this time, you shouldn't even be in his majesties room right now, captain."
If only you had been with me a few hours earlier Philippus, Hippolyta thought wishfully to herself, remembering what had happened earlier that day and feeling her anger towards her circle captain rising as she glanced at Kal's still unconscious face, the sight making her heart ache even more as she recalled Alkyone's earlier words, you don't have to pretend you love him, you don't have to pretend he's your son…
But I never pretended Kal, Hippolyta thought, smiling sadly at her son, I lied to you, I kept your origins secret from you, but I never pretended to love you, my Little Fallingstar…
As was expected, Alkyone did not take this unexpected order very well, as the circle captain glared her green eyes at her tribes general with barely contained contempt. "Move aside Philippus, let me pass, I am the Captain of the Queen's Circle, and I will-".
"-Stay exactly where you are, Alkyone." Hippolyta ordered, forcibly finishing Alkyone's sentence for her as her circle captain was left momentarily speechless by her queen's direct command. "It's past time you learnt where your boundaries are, captain."
Both towards me and to my children, Hippolyta privately finished in her head as she stared down her the dumbstruck leader of her elite guard. "Now I repeat, why are you here Alkyone? I ordered you and your circle sisters to patrol the island."
Like a dog who had just been unexpectedly kicked by its master, it took Alkyone a moment to process what had just happened, to realise just how thoroughly Hippolyta had shut her up, before she was able to finally find her voice again. "Forgive me for my intrusion, my queen, but you are needed outside the palace, many of our sisters are still anxious over the Harpies attack, they wish for you and General Philippus to reassure them that the island is no longer under threat."
Our home is always under threat Alkyone, that's why we remain hidden from the rest of Man's World, a world you and your sisters would have us wage war on, regardless of the devastation it would bring to our people, Hippolyta thought in annoyance to herself as she continued to glare at Alkyone for daring to intrude into her son's room without permission.
"You do not give our sisters enough credit, captain, the Amazons are not so easily scared, and they already have their reassurance, by the Goddess Hera herself, they do not need to hear it from either me or Philippus." Hippolyta firmly told the bald Amazon. "Besides, I am needed here Alkyone, with my son, now please, leave us."
As per usual whenever her requests were denied or her word was overruled by her few superiors, the Captain of the Queen's Circle could barely keep her anger contained as she suddenly looked down at the unconscious boy on the bed almost accusingly, as if Kal was somehow to blame for all of this, which in Alkyone's warped way of thinking, he most certainly was.
Moments passed and Alkyone remained exactly where she stood, her gaze glued to Kal's currently very vulnerable person, her eyes as dark as her intentions, Hippolyta was just about to repeat her order, when the bald Amazon finally spoke again. "I see, well then, your majesty, if the prince's safety is what currently troubles you, then allow me to… take care of him instead, so that you and Philippus may attend to the rest of our sisters."
Even before she finished her sentence, Hippolyta already knew that her answer was going to be the exact same one she gave to Alkyone's earlier… offer that day.
But something about the bald Amazon's particular choice of words made the warrior queen even more uneasy than when they were alone in her bedroom, Hippolyta felt her eyes fall upon Alkyone's unsheathed sword, before slowly putting her hand on the pommel of her own sword and moved even closer to Kal, trying to get between her circle captain and her Little Fallingstar.
"No Alkyone, I have made up my mind about this, I am staying here with my son and now I must ask you once again captain, to please leave us." Hippolyta ordered once more, her eyes hard and her tone absolute now.
But once again, Alkyone did not leave as she was ordered to, instead, the bald Amazon managed to push her way past Philippus and come even closer to the bed… and her queen's son. "Hippolyta, please, I must insist, I-"
SSSNNNAAARRRLLL!
Suddenly, Krypto leapt to his feet, his fangs fully bared, his hackles raised high and his eyes looking ferociously feral, as his long toothy jaws snapped and snarled savagely right in Alkyone's face, looking mere moments away from mauling the circle captain to death right then and there if she dared to come any closer to Kal.
Hippolyta saw Alkyone step back in surprise, as did Philippus, shock and even a little bit of fear appearing in their eyes, as certain as Hippolyta was that they could see it reflected in hers, Krypto was usually so calm and well behaved around their tribe, that it was easy to forget just how quickly the albino canine could turn into a wild beast at will whenever he felt her son was being threatened.
Speaking of threats, Alkyone did not take kindly to Krypto's obvious one towards herself, as the bald Amazon raised her sword high above her head and prepared to bring it down onto Krypto's neck, only to be blocked by Hippolyta's own blade at the last moment.
BANG!
The clash of Themysciran steel echoed throughout the room as Hippolyta furious eyes met with Alkyone's shocked ones, before Hippolyta used her blocked sword to force Alkyone's own back, which was soon followed by an all to awkward silence as the stunned circle captain quickly tried to think of something to say to her queen.
Unfortunately for Alkyone, Hippolyta wasn't the queen whose anger she needed to be worried about right now.
"Am I interrupting anything ladies?" A familiar female voice asked in a clearly rhetorical manner just before a powerful looking vine suddenly came out of nowhere and wrapped itself around the middle of Alkyone's sword, before with a strong backwards jerk, the long plant snapped the blade in half with ease, as though it was a wooden stick instead of a steel sword.
Doubly shocked now, Alkyone just stared down at her now far less lethal weapon in stunned surprise before gasping as another powerful looking vine suddenly wrapped itself around her throat and like a constricting snake, began to suffocate her as it effortlessly lifted her off the ground, causing the circle captain to drop her now broken sword as she struggled about in its green grasp.
"It's okay Hippolyta, Philippus, Krypto, I'll handle this." The female voice assured the two Amazons and the still growling White Wolfdog as the extended and seemingly animated vine holding Alkyone captive slowly swung the struggling women around to face the foliage's mistress.
"Well, that was emasculating for you, wasn't it Alkyone?" Persephone said as she smiled mockingly at the bald Amazon's current perilous predicament. "Careful captain, struggling only makes my vines grip grow both stronger and tighter."
Aside from Krypto's continuous low growling and Alkyone's desperate gasps for breath, all three Amazonian women were silent as the Queen of the Underworld entered the room, the vine currently holding the circle captain captive extending from the vine wrapped around her wrist as Persephone pulled the bald Amazon even closer to her as Alkyone continued to struggle in its green grasp.
"Now, call me touchy Alkyone, but I really don't like people who try to hurt dogs." Persephone all but growled at the bald women, a snarl on her face that was very reminiscent of her three headed pets.
Now to many men and women alike, getting so up close and personal with a Greek Goddess as gorgeous as Persephone would usually be both an honour and a visual pleasure, but not this time, not with those eerie ethereal blue eyes of hers glaring straight into Alkyone's twisted soul with cold tranquil fury.
"You know, normally, I can see the value in almost every soul I come across, you though, my clueless captain… may just be the exception to that rule." Persephone commented cruelly as she stared into Alkyone's eyes with a smirk, the circle captain eyes looking back at her with equal parts fear and fury as she continued struggle about, suspended in the air.
"What was that Alkyone? I couldn't hear you over your pathetic gasping." Persephone's words were spoken almost casually, but with a clear venomous undertone to her voice that showed as she continued her one-sided conversation with the restrained circle captain. "Well, I suppose it really doesn't matter anyway, now does it captain, I mean, you've never really had anything of value to say before, so why on my great grandmother Gaia's green earth would you start now?"
Alkyone's already red face darkened even more with anger at Persephone's insult, she tried to open her mouth to respond only for the vine's leaves to immediately shove themselves inside it, causing her to gag on plant matter whilst the Spring Goddess just continued smile smugly at her captive.
"Instead, captain, how about instead you just shut up for once, keep your overinflated opinion to yourself and listen to your betters for once in your long, miserable, but still very, very mortal life." Persephone suggested as she grasped Alkyone by the top of her helmeted head and leaned her even closer to her lovely locked one, so much so, that their faces were now just mere inches apart, gazes glaring into one another, though the Iron Queen's was far more powerful and intimidating.
"Because speaking as a ruler who does NOT like having to repeat herself to unruly souls, when your queen tells you to leave her and her son alone, you don't argue, you don't question it. You… Leave… Them… Alone." Persephone said those last words slowly and with great empathises, as if she was speaking to someone who was not intelligent enough to fully under them, this was not lost Alkyone of course, who suddenly found her strength back and redoubled her efforts to break free…
…only to stop when Persephone raised the tip of her broken blade back to her face with a seemingly bored expressed, holding the severed sword point in her hand as if its sharp edges couldn't cut into her skin, which they could not, before slowly dragging the tip across the circle captain's right cheek, drawing a fine line of blood, and carving through flesh in a wound that would most definitely leave a nasty looking scar…
Throughout all of this, neither Hippolyta or Philippus said anything, they exchanged mixed expressions, but that was it, neither spoke up for Alkyone or came to her defence as Persephone proceeded to maim her in front of them, not just because they both believed that she did in fact deserve it, but also because they both knew that trying to physically oppose Persephone was not the wisest decision.
"Do you understand now, Alkyone?" Persephone asked after she had finished one long, bloody line down the side of Alkyone's face, watching impassively as the circle captain struggled to hold her pain in, refusing to give the Spring Goddess the satisfaction of seeing her squirm…
… only to start squirming when Persephone began to cut another long line immediately above the first, doubling the amount of blood lost as well as the amount of pain she was feeling…
… finally, after the THIRD time long line cut across her cheek, the slow, shearing pain became too much for Alkyone to bear anymore and she very reluctantly nodded as best as she could in her leafy restraints, wincing as the desperate action caused the blade to cut even deeper into the flesh of her face.
"Good girl, you're finally learning." Persephone said patronisingly as she leaned back and pulled the now bloody blade away from Alkyone's face before patting her on the top of her helmeted head like one would a pet, though far less sincere in its affection. "I'm going to let you keep those scars as a reminder of this little lesson of ours, Alkyone, otherwise, I'm afraid I might have to remind you AGAIN, and we wouldn't want that now? Would we? Captain?"
Not even bothering to give Alkyone the opportunity to answer her redundant question, Persephone then turned and used her powerful vines to simply toss the circle captain through the open door and out of the prince's room, causing her to fall on her back and up against the opposing wall.
"Now leave, Alkyone, and do not come back unless you wish to see exactly why everyone calls me the Iron Queen." Persephone added coolly, her eyes glowing extra bright as she stared at the downed Amazon with cold disdain.
After a moment of finally catching her breath, Alkyone slowly stood up, glaring daggers, and holding a hand to her still bleeding cheek, a glare that was returned by Persephone tenfold, until finally, the humiliated Amazon skulked away in defeat down the hallway, blooding dripping from between her fingers and onto the floor in her wake.
The silence that followed Alkyone's departure was almost unbearable for the two remaining Amazons as the long and powerful looking vines, still covered in their sister's blood, retracted, and were reabsorbed into the green, leafy bracelets around Persephone's wrists as the Spring Goddess turned back to face them with still glowing, ominous eyes.
Bark!
Thank the Fates, the awkward silence was broken by a single soft bark of approval from Krypto, who had immediately lost his formerly fierce disposition after the circle captain had left, before panting up a storm at the sight of the Spring Goddess before him, his eyes wide and his tail wagging back and forth happily through the hair.
Persephone's eerie eyes ceased their intimidating glow as she smiled at the albino animal standing on the bed, before stepping closer and taking his furry face in her hands, causing Krypto's tail to wag even faster as he leaned into her touch as she scratched him underneath his jaws.
"Good boy Krypto, well done." Persephone cooed warmly at the canine and unlike with Alkyone, her pet talk had no hint of patronization in its tone this time, only genuine affection as the Mother of Hellhounds praised the White Wolfdog before her. "You're such a good guard dog, aren't you? Cerberus and his brothers would be very proud of you, just as much as I am."
"Queen Persephone?" Philippus asked with uncharacteristically uncertainly, even the Amazon's usually fearless general knew to step a fine line with the Queen of the Underworld, especially after what they just saw her do to Alkyone.
"General Philippus." Persephone said curtly, ceasing her petting of Krypto, falling back into her familiar role of a powerful and intimidating Underworld Queen. "If you would please be so kind, could you step outside for a moment and watch the prince's door, so that we don't have any more … unwanted visitors, I wish to speak with your leader… in private."
Philippus looked to her queen and friend to see if she should abide Persephone's request, Hippolyta quickly nodded and the Amazonian General reluctantly walked out of the room, the Spring Goddess watching her as she went until the door closed behind her.
Once it did, Hippolyta opened her mouth to ask what the Queen of the Underworld wanted, what she had come here for, but Persephone beat her to the punch as suddenly she turned back around, her eyes now fully focused on Kal.
"He still hasn't woken up yet?" Persephone asked, the Spring Goddess once intimidating gaze now showing genuine concern and empathy, unknowingly repeating the very same question Hippolyta herself had first said when she had entered her son's room.
The Queen of the Amazons only nodded sadly, appreciating Persephone's concern but watching with a slightly wary gaze as the Spring Goddess moved around the other side of the bed to examine her son more closely and unlike before with Alkyone, Krypto allowed the Underworld Queen to do so with nothing more than a watchful eye.
Hippolyta barely resisted the urge to say something when Persephone boldly placed her right hand upon Kal's face, caressing his cheek softly before moving her fingers down to touch his chest. Hippolyta watched as an ethereal emerald glow once again appeared in Persephone's eyes, though it was far less eerie and menacing this time, as well as being accompanied by a similar glow from her palm as the Spring Goddess seemingly searched through her son's very soul for whatever it was that keeping him unconscious.
Moments of tense silence passed agonizingly slowly as Hippolyta watched and waited for Persephone to finish her quite literal soul searching, she was just about to speak up-
-when Persephone suddenly pulled her hand away from Kal's chest with a gasp as if she had been shocked by something, her eyes immediately ceasing to glow as she did so.
"Interesting." Hippolyta heard Persephone whisper, more to herself than to her fellow queen at that moment, as she kept her eyes focused solely on the prince's face while cradling her hand close to her heart. "Very interesting."
"What is it?" Hippolyta asked anxiously, barely able to keep herself composed anymore, talking to a fellow queen and a Greek Goddess be damned, she wanted to know why her child wouldn't wake up already. "Please Persephone, tell me what's wrong with him?"
"Nothing, there is nothing wrong with him Hippolyta." Persephone said finally after a long moment, quickly shaking herself out of whatever stupor her sneak peek into Kal's soul had put her in before turning to address the Amazonian women. "I detect no internal injury or sickness that your healers might have missed that could be the cause of his unconscious, nor anything supernatural either that could be keeping him asleep, like a spell or a curse." The Daughter of Demeter answered, speaking now with the professional air of someone who knew what they were talking about.
Sometimes, it was easy for Hippolyta to forget that amongst her many intimidating underworldly powers, the Greek Goddess of Spring and Rebirth also had the ability to detect any anomalies in a person's physical, mental, and spiritual health. It was just one of the numerous reasons her glares were so feared amongst both mortals and immortals alike, as the legends say she could inflict any sickness of the body or madness of the mind upon any poor unfortunate soul with a single glance.
Those legends were not true of course, Hippolyta knew that to be certain after being subjected to the Iron Queen's dreadful gaze more than once herself, as had several of her Amazonian sisters, Alkyone the most recent of them, she had felt fear, but no madness or sickness perforate her person.
But Hippolyta also knew that Persephone had made no real attempt to correct those rumours either before they became legendary facts long ago, the Mother of Hellhounds liked her fearsome reputation far too much to risk losing it by telling the truth.
The similarity to her own situation about risking to much by telling people the truth was not lost on Hippolyta at the moment. "Then… what is it?" She finally asked with uncertainty in her voice.
"Truthfully, nothing, he's simply exhausted Hippolyta, that… Supernova he unleashed on the beach really took everything out of him and his body is only just now recovering from it." The Lady of the Underworld continued to explain, before offering Hippolyta a surprisingly warm and reassuring smile. "Rest assured, whatever your Little Fallingstar did to put himself into this state Hippolyta, is ultimately nothing he won't sleep off, he will wake up soon, I promise you that."
At this honestly, very welcome information, Hippolyta finally allowed herself to sigh in something close to resembling relief, letting out a deep breath she had been holding since she had seen her son collapse on the island shore, amongst the charred remains of their enemies.
She may have sighed to soon though, as Persephone looked back down at Kal's still unconscious face, her expression thoughtful and contemplative than before, as if the boy was a puzzle she was trying to solve. "That's not the interesting thing, Hippolyta."
The Queen of the Amazons felt herself suck in the same breath of air she had been holding all eventing as the Spring Goddess continued. "I looked into your son's soul and saw exactly what you'd expect to see of someone his age." Persephone then smiled to herself as she recalled what she saw. "Innocence, child-like wonder, naivety, though that's fading fast, bravery, kindness, and a surprising amount of maturity as well, all in all, nothing I didn't sense from him the first time I met him."
The soft smile on the Spring Goddesses gorgeous face the faded away to a more thoughtful one again as she took a seat on the other side of Kal's bed, opposite of Hippolyta. "But it's not what I saw in your son's soul that is interesting Hippolyta, it's his very soul itself, its… nature."
"His soul's nature? What… what do you mean Persephone?" Hippolyta asked, not being able to keep the curiosity out of her voice, becoming less afraid and more intrigued now about what exactly Persephone saw.
"First off, he's powerful Hippolyta, like, more than he possibly should be for his age." Persephone could barely keep the disbelief out of her voice as she continued to speak to the now equally shocked Amazon woman. "He's barely into his teens yet, and he's already stronger than the average Amazon or Demigod should be, granted he's not quite at an Olympian's level just yet, but I have no doubt in time that he will be, when he becomes a man, he'll be as strong as Hercules… possibly even stronger."
Something about the idea of that happening, of Kal becoming even stronger than Hercules filled Hippolyta with both hope and fear for the future, even still, despite her concerns, she had to ask. "But their mores, isn't there Persephone?"
"Yes Hippolyta, there is more, though this part is a little harder for me to properly explain." Persephone said uncertainly as she once again closed her eyes and tried to recall what she had seen before opening them again and for the briefest of moments, Hippolyta thought she saw something resembling awe in the Spring Goddess eyes.
"I've looked into the souls of Humans, Gods, Amazons, Beasts, Giants, Sorceress's, Demigods, Titans, Monsters, and I've never seen anything like his since I became the Queen of the Underworld Hippolyta, it radiates fire and warmth, but it doesn't burn like a searing heat, it's… more like… the light of the sun, it soothes, it heals, it empowers… I swear… I could almost feel its power going into me for a moment."
Persephone looked back down at with Kal with even greater interest and appreciation than before, a warm, almost motherly smile appearing across her beautiful face. "It's unlike any other soul I've ever come across from this world Hippolyta, it's almost like he's not even from ours at all, it's amazing, its beautiful… he's beautiful."
Stunned beyond words, Hippolyta could only nod in silent agreement with Persephone as she turned to look back at her son's face with an even greater sense of wonder and pride than ever before, You never stop surprising us, my Little Fallingstar.
The following moments passed in silence as both women, both queens simply sat there, both watching over the boy who had become so precious so very quickly to both of them.
"Hippolyta, I came here because I wanted you to know that I am… sorry." The Spring Goddess said after a while, breaking the silence that had filled the room.
Still to shocked to speak, Hippolyta turned to see a remorseful expression form over Persephone's beautiful face as she stared at her with sincerity in her eyes. "What I mean, is that I am sorry for not being able to stop Zeus's plan to one free Hercules and his horde from the Underworld, please believe me, my husband and I really would stop it if we were able to, we don't want that bastard roaming free again any more than you or your sisters do, not after everything he has done."
"Furthermore, I also wanted to say that I am sorry for what I said… when I was… last here." The Queen of the Underworld added, sounding truly apologetic. "In retrospect, my parting words to you that evening might have been a bit… cruel, all things considered."
Blinking in surprise, Hippolyta still had enough presence of mind to give Persephone a slightly heated glare for her understatement, upon which, even the intimating Queen of the Underworld, looked slightly abashed. "Before I bound Thrax's spirit to what was left of his dismembered flesh, I looked into his soul and its nature, I can you this Hippolyta, there was nothing good about him or it, from the very beginning, he was born bad, just like his father before him was."
"Furthermore, I know what you did to him was not just for you, it was for your mother's fallen empire and all of your sisters who died that day as well, speaking as one powerful women's daughter to another Hippolyta, I understand that and given what that bastard and his father did to you, I can't really judge either, my family is no stranger to vengeance or kin killing, after all." The Spring Goddess admitted.
Persephone looked back at Kal with a small almost sad smile. "I guess… meeting your Little Fallingstar and realising what his purpose was had made me a bit… upset at the time and in a moment of pettiness, I took it out on you, still, it was very unbecoming of me and for that Hippolyta… I do apologise."
Mouth opening and closing, Hippolyta just sat there in shock after hearing this unexpected apology from the Queen of the Underworld, who seemed genuinely remorseful for what she had said during their last meeting, before finally answering with a stiff nod. "Thank you, your majesty."
Greek Gods apologising to their worshippers? What strange times we live in?
Persephone gave the Amazonian queen a grateful smile, before looking back at Kal with a resigned sigh. "Hippolyta, I know now this might not be the best time to discuss this, but you and I do need to talk about what happened today with Harpies."
Hippolyta matched the Spring Goddess sad sigh with one of her own. "I know Persephone."
"You know Zeus, Hippolyta, I know Zeus." Persephone continued, her voice becoming slightly heated as she said the Thunder Gods name, once again, Hippolyta found herself feeling a certain amount of kinship with the Spring Goddess over their shared disdain for the misogynistic Ruler of Mount Olympus.
"He is as determined and single minded as a lightning bolt when it comes to his desires, meaning he isn't going to stop… until he gets what he wants." Persephone continued, glancing back at Kal, which did not go unnoticed by Hippolyta and the meaning behind it only increased the Amazon Queen's hatred for the King of the Olympians, something she did not think was even possible. "And whatever he wants Kal for, I think we both know it's not going to be good for anyone, especially your son."
Hippolyta said nothing, there was nothing to say, she knew Persephone was right.
"What's more, I'm afraid our brave Black Wolf can't stay a secret here anymore; the rest of the Greek Pantheon is going to hear about what happened today and when they do, they are going to want to see him for themselves and knowing my kin, I can't guarantee their interest in your son… will be completely benign."
Hippolyta still said nothing, it wasn't like she had not been thinking about all of these things earlier today in her bedroom before Alkyone had disturbed her, Rhea's Grace, watching her children spar together in the training grounds this morning felt like a lifetime ago, so much had changed since then… so very, very much…
"But… I think I might have a solution though, Hippolyta." Persephone said, seemingly getting to the point of this entire conflicting conversation. "One that will keep your Little Fallingstar safe… well… safer anyway."
That brought Hippolyta out of her melancholy musings for a moment as she blinked and looked back at Persephone with surprised eyes. "Y-You do?"
"Yes." Persephone agreed, though her tone seem somewhat uncertain now, almost as if she was feeling a little unsure to say exactly what her solution actually was. "I've been talking to my husband about this for a while now, before I came here today, I finally got him to agree to my proposal."
"Agree to what?" Hippolyta asked, sounding very confused now, she couldn't understand what Persephone was getting at-
"We are willing to foster Kal for you, Hippolyta." Persephone said quickly, almost so quick that for a moment, Hippolyta thought she might have actually misheard the Spring Goddess, but Persephone's serious expression told her she had not. "With your permission and in the best interests of your son's safety… I would like for Kal to come live with my husband and I… in the Underworld."
Greetings to all my fellow fanfic readers and writers, I hope you all enjoyed Superman, Son of Hippolyta Chapter 25: Maternal Instincts, what I hope was another interesting deep dive into Hippolyta's inner thoughts and backstory, giving you what I hope was a better understanding of what transpired during the Amazons Exodus from their original homeland of Amazonia to Themyscira and why the threat Hercules poses to Hippolyta is not only about what he'll do to her and sisters if he wins, but what he'll do to Diana and Kal as well.
To put it simply, Hippolyta killed Thrax out of a need for revenge against Hercules for enslaving her and her sisters, Hercules enslaved her and her sisters out of a need for revenge against Hera for tormenting him all his life and denying him his place on Olympus as the Greek God of Strength, Hera tormented Hercules out of a need for revenge for all the times Zeus abused and humiliated her.
As you may have guessed by this now, the cycle of revenge is a big theme in this story and it will continue to be so, because Hippolyta killed Hercules son right in front of him and soon, Hercules will find out Hippolyta has had another son of her own… needless to say, he's going to want to return the favour… as well make Hippolyta and her daughter give him some replacements…
Yeah… my version of Hercules is a real monster…
Now onto the topic of Thrax, who you may or may not have noticed, is a character who appears in Wonder Woman 2009, which is a DC film that I highly recommend, as it was one of this story's original inspirations.
However, there are three noticeable differences from my Thrax to the original DC Universe character though, first, and foremost, the Thrax in this story is the Son of both Hercules and Hippolyta, not the Son of Ares and Hippolyta like in the 2009 movie.
Secondly, following that different genetic link, my Thrax has blackish brown hair instead of white, once again taking after his father Hercules, who has blackish/brunette hair in this story, and finally, he most certainly did NOT end up as an eternal servant to Hades, but instead got his spirit bound to his carved-up body, then was locked away in Pandora's Box before finally being dumped at the bottom of the Aegean Sea, to be forgotten forever, at least we hope…
Given that what Hippolyta did to Thrax is considered quite legendary among Amazons, Barbarians and Olympians alike, you can now all better understand now why Kal being Hippolyta's son is so shocking and unbelievable to many people.
As always, I recommend my friend and Greek mythology expert Luke5921 Superman story, Kal Son of Odin which is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with some DC elements added into it, so if you are a fan of both Superman and Marvel, which I AM and I know many of you are, go check it out, it keeps getting better all the time.
Also, if any of you would like to support my work in other ventures, I have YouTube channel under the same name as my fanfic account, T-Rexcellent Reviews, if you are interested, please consider giving it a look, a like and subscription as it would really help me out.
Now onto answering some more fan questions from all of you guys…
Nu47781: Thank you, mate, your reviews, and questions are always a pleasure to see on my fanfiction page, as for the Great Lionel Luthor, Father of the Future Famous Lex Luthor, I honestly haven't decided yet mate, it could go either way at this point. Because, keep in mind, he hasn't really done anything evil yet, But I if I do give him one, I already do have a pretty rough idea of how his Redemption Arc in this series would go and ultimately end, it would be different from the show though.
Speaking of the show, I am currently in the process of watching all 10 seasons of Smallville in order to fully understand the character and how to portray him correctly in this story, but as for his future role, we will see how his introduction goes and what the story demands of him later on.
But to give you an idea of what Lionel's current role will be, well, Apollo's comparison to his own father Zeus wasn't just for chapter padding, Lionel represents what Zeus used to be before he went off the deep end after his family all but dethroned him as their king.
That is a cunning, charming but still very arrogant man, ruling high above the rest of the world, sometimes at the expense of other people, but nowhere near as paranoid, cruel, or even egomaniacal as Zeus has become since the Fall of Ancient Greece, right now, Lionel is the mortal king figure often visited by Greek Gods in the myths, desiring their power and favour.
Please keep that in mind for later, especially when Lionel finds out about who Apollo really is, along with the existence of Kal and the Amazons…
Lionel being introduced to Apollo alongside Giovanni Zatara was also no coincidence either, both men are meant to be good counterparts of Apollo's character, both his current and his former one.
First, you've got Giovanni, who like Apollo, is a talented, charismatic, and accomplished man possessing many physical and supernatural talents that allow them to fight very dangerous and powerful enemies, while also being a devoted husband and father to his wife and daughter, two things Apollo hasn't had the chance to be.
Then you've got Lionel who represents Apollo's past ambitious desires, his overly ego driven nature and his more ruthless tendencies, while also being a father to a son he had extremely high expectations of, before ultimately realising his mistakes as a parent, something Lionel obviously hasn't done yet.
As for Lionel and Apollo's relationship going forward, you can expect it to have echoes of Clark and Lex's friendship in the early seasons of Smallville…
magical fan18: Thank you my T-Rexcellent friend and as a fellow fan of magic myself, I'm glad that you loved my version of the famous quote from Superman vs The Elite, which is one of my favourite DC movies of all time for the record and I highly recommend everyone who reads my story to go watch it if you haven't already… like right now.
As for the future and quite probably final confrontation between Kal and the Queen's Circle, it's pretty much preordained at this point, as I've made it plainly clear Alkyone and her sisters will simply not be dissuaded from trying to kill Kal the moment they think the Amazons no longer need him or worse, if they think he's become an even bigger threat than to the tribe than even Hercules.
Which is a very real possibility going forward and one of the reasons Kal has subconsciously tried to keep most of his powers under wraps and appear on the same strength and power level of everyone else his around him.
Yes, you read that right, Kal has been intentionally holding back all this time and he is starting to realise that there is more going on around him then he originally thought, he has been since all the way back in the Only Trivial Sacrifices chapter, though admittedly, it's been mostly subconscious up to this point.
Remember, he's still a child and very trusting of those he's grown up with, he's not going to think the adults around him might have nefarious intentions for him, though, that will change very soon due to the benefits of having super hearing, a power that no one knows he currently has and having the natural heightened intelligence that comes from being the son of a truly brilliant Kryptonian scientist.
As for Alkyone and her Circle Sisters planned assassination on Kal, I think it's safe to say its not going to go nearly as well as they think, but the Queen's Circle sincerely cannot even consider the possibility that this plan might backfire on them in a truly horrific way, this sort of reckless confidence is equal parts them underestimating Kal's abilities and also the four of them overestimating their own as well.
Remember, the Queen's Circle view themselves as the most powerful and skilled warriors on the island, second only to their queen, individually or as a team, they are very dangerous, but not nearly as much as they think they are.
Furthermore, their prides in their positions and their natural Amazonian egos are not going to allow them to even consider the possibility that Kal might not only catch onto their plans beforehand, but that he might actually outmanoeuvre the four of them as well.
As you can probably guess from Kal's future dialogue, that is very much the case here, though unlike with the Elite, it might not just be a very scary act to teach a very important moral lesson, regardless, one day, Alkyone and her sisters will reap exactly what they have sown and their prideful arrogance in underestimating Kal will come back and bite them in the worst way imaginable.
Durkasmurf: Dwam indeed, Alkyone, that bald chick is certainly insane, as I've mentioned previously, Alkyone is meant to act as a female counterpart to Hercules.
Both are considered to be exceptionally skilled and dangerous warriors, though Hercules is obviously even more so being a Demigod with some extra emphasis on the God part.
Both are considered outcasts among their own kind, for being naturally unpleasant and murderous people, that being most of the Amazons for Alkyone and most of the Olympians for Hercules.
Both are the leaders of their own armies, Alkyone's circle sisters as well as her fellow likeminded Amazons and Hercules being his Demigod relatives as well as his Barbarian horde.
Both have the ambition of taking over Themyscira and then all of Man's World for the good of their respective genders, with little to no regard for the consequences this would have on anyone else, including their own people.
Both want Hippolyta and her daughter to satisfy their own carnal desires, though Hercules openly admits it's mainly for revenge after Hippolyta killed his son and for Alkyone, she thinks its love when it really is just lust.
For both Hercules and Alkyone, Hippolyta and Diana's thoughts/feelings about the latter's twisted obsessions don't really matter, in their eyes, the Queen and the Princess aren't people, their prizes to be won.
Both of them want Kal dead for different reasons, Hercules in revenge for Hippolyta killing his son Thrax and Alkyone for taking what she sees as her place in her Queen's heart.
Both of them underestimate Kal and overestimate themselves, which as you have probably guessed, will play a role in both of their eventual downfalls.
Guest: Thank you for pointing out my terminology mistake in Divine Interventions about entering over exiting the earth's atmosphere, that was a long-standing error on my part, and I appreciate you making me aware of it, rest assured, it has corrected now, thanks to you.
My List of References featured in this Chapter.
1. Hippolyta flashback about her fight with Hercules during the Amazon's Exodus from Ancient Greece before killing her son Thrax is a reference to Hippolyta's fight with Ares during the Amazon's battle with the God of War in Ancient Greece before killing her son Thrax from Wonder Woman 2009.
2. Thrax's character design and attire is based mostly off of his character's design and attire from Wonder Woman 2009.
3. Hippolyta remembering her mother's lesson about killing Barbarians, too. "Always aim for the head." Before decapitating her son Thrax is a reference to Thor remembering to kill Thanos by aiming for the head this time from Avengers: Endgame.
4. Hercules declaration to Hippolyta that he will find her and her sisters no matter how far they run is a reference to D-Stroy's declaration to Ty that he will find him and his friends no matter how far they run from Dinotrux Supercharged Season 2 Episode 7: Bad Build.
5. The design for Pandora's Box is based on its design from God of War III.
6. The Chains of Prometheus being wrapped around Pandora's Box after it becomes Thrax's tomb is a reference to Ahmanet's Sarcophagus having chains wrapped around it from The Mummy 2017.
7. Thrax's tomb being dropped into the sea and hidden somewhere deep in the Straits of Messina is a reference to Megatron's remains being dropped into the sea and hidden somewhere deep in the Laurentian Abyss from Transformers 2007.
Now please allow me to thank all of you who have followed, favourited, and especially reviewed this story so far.
Big thanks to SuperWonderStan, ManOfSteel, Luke5921, cabrera1234, Joel, HeartOfChaos13, GR8ER3241, Kalel4444, JustAnotherIntern14, Erika Lopes, SilveerKnighT, SuperKamiGuest, dakota, Shall-lin, d,Chinook, MoonKnight030, StevenBodner, Daka, evolution-500, Goldenhue, welcome007, Dak, Arik Kkuznetsov, Yeye anaawangazia, HaywireEagle, TheCrackKing, Artimuos Sen, CrazyCaz, Bashleyz, Falcon6, Al, 80sarcades, Vahn, Djberneman, XxGargantuaxX, beastblau12, epantoja521, Supabec, gomezgerman17, give-evil-a-win, justareader21, ed, Ltbutterfly287, Barbatos, DaddysLiitleGirl, Bigreader in the Omniverse, Lightbringer616, 698capa, Andy, hehelove1, major wallace, NexusPrime42, Silverwingzz, nu47781, myafroatemydog, Major Wallace, Durkasmurf, magical fan18, freelook, freelook, vtorx, WilliaMUSKLx See, Hyprhnk and all of my other unnamed guest reviewers.
Please keep the kind reviews coming guys, their what fuels these chapters and to all my other readers, if you write me some kind reviews in the future, then you can be seeing your name here to, until next time this is T-Rexcellent Reviews signing off.