Chapter 81: Puppeteer
The streets of DC were filled with chaos and terror. Citizens ran for cover as cars were overturned and the ground shook. Then, a woman in a yellow and black bodysuit that towered over the buildings rounded the corner and scowled down at the city below. She slammed her fist against the side of a building, causing glass to rain down on the city below. The people ran for cover, hoping to avoid the razor-sharp glass heading their way.
"That's right!" she called out. "Run!"
She then kicked a car into the air, sending it flying. As the crowds kept fleeing, a group of them were right in the path of the flying car. Just then, a golden lasso wrapped around the vehicle, stopping it from hitting the people. One of the citizens looked up, seeing none other than Wonder Woman floating over them holding the car with her lasso. Turning back toward the towering woman, Wonder Woman spun the car around, chucking it back at the woman. She held up her arm, shielding herself from the attack as the car was crushed upon impact before falling to the ground. Wonder Woman flew toward the giant woman, steeling herself as she approached.
"Why are you doing this, Giganta?" Wonder Woman demanded. "What do you hope to gain from this destruction?"
"Maybe I'm just hoping for a little attention," Giganta remarked, slamming her fist into her hand. "Or maybe I'm just looking to pummel you."
Giganta then proceeded to try and swat Wonder Woman out of the sky, prompting her to dodge the attack and dove down toward Giganta's legs. She pulled out her lasso and threw it toward her leg. It wrapped around as Diana tried to fly around her, but Giganta caught sight of it.
"Oh no you don't," Giganta challenged, raising her leg so the lasso would miss.
She then kicked Diana, sending her flying across the street. She collided with one of the parked cars, falling to the ground as Giganta walked over to her. Diana shook her head in pain as Giganta prepared to punch her. However, watching from a nearby rooftop, Artemis, clad in red armor, leaped down toward the ground. She touched down right in front of Diana and drew her sword, stabbing it right into Giganta's fist. She cried out in pain before recoiling, grabbing her hand in pain.
"That was but a taste, giant," Artemis challenged. "Surrender now, lest you want more."
"Who are you supposed to be?" Giganta asked. "Wonder Woman's groupie?"
"I am Artemis. Wonder Woman's sister in arms. Any foe of hers is an enemy of mine."
"Fine by me."
Giganta stepped forward and tried slamming her foot down on both of them. Thinking instinctively, Wonder Woman flew forward, grabbing Artemis and moving her out of the way before the foot could make contact. Giganta grunted in fury, turning around and chasing after them. As the citizens ran for cover, a little girl fell behind and was about to be trampled underfoot. However, Wonder Woman's lasso shot out and wrapped around the girl, pulling her away just as she was about to be stepped on, and into the arms of Donna Troy, who had taken up the lasso as it was discarded.
"It's alright," she reassured, pulling the lasso off her. "You're safe now, little sister."
"But you're not my sister," the girl told her.
Donna paused for a moment, before moving to return the girl to her parents. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman kept hold of Artemis as they kept a step ahead of Giganta.
"She is a persistent foe," Artemis commended. "How do you suggest we defeat her?"
"We strike at her from multiple angles. You take high, Donna and I will take low."
Artemis nodded as she gripped Diana's hand. Diana then veered upward, out of the way of Giganta's attack. She then spun Artemis around before launching her at Giganta's face. Giganta tried to swat at her, but Artemis quickly grabbed one of the fingers, vaulted over it, and sailed right toward Giganta's head. She struck a knee out so she could strike her right between the eyes. She then flipped off, landing on Giganta's shoulder as she staggered backward.
At the same time, Diana flew down toward where Donna was, ensuring that civilians were out of harm's way.
"Donna!" Diana cried out. "Lasso!"
Donnie acknowledged, throwing the lasso out to Diana as she flew to the other side of Giganta. Both of them pulled on the lasso as hard as they could as Giganta staggered back. She finally approached the lasso, tripping on it and falling backward toward the ground. She hit the ground hard, leaving a massive crater in the middle of the street. She tried to pick herself up, but Diana's lasso wrapped around her wrists, tightening and causing her to wince as she looked up at Wonder Woman.
"Yield, Giganta," Wonder Woman demanded.
Seeing she was beaten, Giganta relented, shrinking down to normal size as the police arrived to take her into custody. While Donna and Artemis both beamed with pride at their accomplishment, Diana looked off to the side, Diana happened to glance off to the side, seeing some citizens discussing her in a negative light.
"Never had freaks like these before these 'heroes'."
"They have any idea how much it's gonna cost to fix this?"
"Freaks, all of them."
Hearing all of this, Diana lowered her head in shame as she felt her presence was more of a negative for the world than a positive. She started walking away with Artemis and Donna, secretly wondering to herself if she was still doing good in Man's World.
…
Unbeknownst to Wonder Woman and her allies, the events that had transpired were being observed from a secluded fortress by a sinister figure through a vibrant orb of light.
"How amusing," the figure mused. "It seems our little Princess is having a bad time. "Oh, if only there were someone who could make it all better. Or better yet…"
A wave of the figure's hand dissipated the orb, revealing a beautiful woman with auburn hair dressed in a green toga that had a slit up to her thigh and a purple cloak that reached down to the ground. Her face had a sinister grin as she mused over Diana's misfortune. This was none other than the rogue enchantress, Circe.
"Someone to take advantage of this…"
…
Back at the Embassy, Diana retreated into her office, pouring herself into a stack of paperwork to keep herself busy. As she kept working, there was a knock at the door.
"Diana?" Donna's voice called out.
"It's open," Diana replied.
Donna entered the room, walking over to her desk.
"Are you alright? You seemed to leave the battle a bit disheartened. Is there something wrong?"
"No, I've just… " Diana set her pen down. "I haven't felt the same zeal I used to. I usually feel a sense of pride with helping people but now… now I wonder if that's even a good thing."
"What?" Donna let out, taking a seat across from her. "Of course it is. You've done more good for this world than most people can even dream of. I can't imagine why you would think otherwise," Donna then thought of something. "Is this because of what happened to you under the control of those monsters?"
Diana said nothing, all but confirming what Donna suspected.
"Diana, that wasn't you. You were possessed. You cannot blame yourself for what happened."
"Can't I? Those demons brought out thoughts and emotions that were already inside us. So knowing some… part of me that took sick delight in causing people pain…" she leaned back in her chair. "It's not a thought I relish."
"You're too hard on yourself. You are not those things. You're a caring hero and friend, and you need to remember that."
Diana looked up at her, visibly uncertain about the situation. Donna took note of her demeanor and paused for a moment, wondering how to help her. Suddenly, an idea came to mind.
"Tell you what," she spoke, standing up. "Why don't you take a break? We can head out into town. I have been wanting to check out that… What did you call it? Like a marketplace?"
Diana chuckled in response. "You mean, a mall?"
This time, it was Donna's turn to laugh. "Yes, a mall. What do you say?"
Diana paused for a moment to think about the idea. Finally, a small smile graced her face. "Very well. Let me finish this up real quick, then we can go."
"Excellent. I'll grab Artemis."
Donna turned to leave, allowing Diana to return to her work. While Donna's words brought some comfort, her thoughts were still on her past actions and how they put her entire mission in Man's World into question.
…
Countless miles away on the island of Aeaea, a crack team of archeologists were hard at work excavating a new set of ancient Greek-style ruins that had recently been uncovered. While archeologists examined the ruins themselves, diggers began work around the ruins, uncovering various pieces of pottery and other notable artifacts. Supervising the excavation were the two lead archeologists, Doctors Julia Kapatelis and Helena Sandsmark. They were cataloguing the various artifacts that were being uncovered, with much delight on their faces.
"This dig has proven more successful than I could have imagined," Julia remarked before turning to Helena. "Thank you again for agreeing to help me on this, Helena."
"Really, I should be thanking you, Dr. Kapatelis," Helena replied enthusiastically. "This site has proven more promising than we could've ever imagined. We'll be uncovering relics for weeks."
"I'm sure our benefactor will be happy to hear that. Speaking of which, I need to call him and update him on our progress. Mind keeping an eye on things?"
"Of course," Helena reassured, allowing Julia to depart.
…
On the far side of the ruins, some of the diggers were carefully removing some cups and pieces of pottery from the ground, boxing them up for transport back to the States. As one of the workers wiped his brow, he looked up and saw the shape of someone off in the distance. He squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look at whoever was standing there.
"Someone there?" he called out.
The figure just raised a hand, some strange purple energy emanating from it. All of a sudden, the workers all cried out in horror.
…
Elsewhere, Julia made it into her tent where she took a seat and turned on her computer's webcam. After a few moments, the screen turned on, allowing her to initiate a video call with the primary benefactor for the entire dig, Bruce Wayne.
"Mr. Wayne," she addressed. "Can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear, Dr. Kapatelis. How goes everything?"
"Fantastic. The artifacts uncovered here seem to date back to a short time after the Trojan War. I can't wait to begin translating the texts we've found. Just imagine the history we can learn from them."
"I look forward to learning what you find. The discoveries made there will be a great addition to the Gotham Natural History Museum."
"I'm glad to hear that. We should be loading our first shipment pretty soon. You should expect it in-"
Before she could finish, there was a loud screaming coming from outside the tent. Julia turned toward the exit in concern while Bruce watched on.
"Doctor? What's going on?"
"I… I'm not sure."
Julia decided to head outside to investigate the source of the screams. As she made her way outside, she was shocked by the sight of several of the workers running in fear as they were set upon by what appeared to be giant birds with metallic beaks. They descended on the dig site, causing the workers to flee in terror. They wreaked havoc on the site, destroying equipment and artifacts alike, as well as attacking anyone within range. One of them swooped down and landed on one of the workers, crushing him and causing him to cry out in pain as the bird let out a cry of fury.
All the while, Julia was watching this in shock and horror. Almost immediately, she rushed back into the tent.
"Mr. Wayne!" she cried out. "There's these… giant birds attacking the site! They're attacking everyone! Send help please-!"
Just then, one of the birds' beaks struck through the roof of the tent.
…
Inside his office at Wayne Enterprises, Bruce could do nothing but watch as the screen went static, Julia's panicked face the last thing he saw before losing the connection. He then pressed a few buttons, rewinding the footage to get a better look at what attacked Julia. After rewinding a bit, he stopped the footage, seeing the metal beak breaking through the roof. He narrowed his eyes before hitting his intercom.
"Clara, clear my schedule for the day. I'm heading out."
"Is everything alright, Mr. Wayne?"
"Just looking into something for a friend."
After signing off, he got out of his chair and made his way over to a nearby shelf, his eyes on a clock set up there. She moved the hands so it read 10:47, allowing the shelf to open up, revealing an elevator on the other side. He entered the elevator and pressed a button, causing it to close up and take him down to a sub level. After a few moments, he arrived at the level, the elevator opening up to reveal a white underground bunker. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a remote and pressed a button on it. This allowed a metal case to rise from the floor and open up, revealing the Batman suit inside.
…
Meanwhile, Diana was out with Artemis and Donna at a local mall. She mostly remained silent as she watched Artemis and Donna shop. Donna had retreated into a changing room to try on some outfits she had picked out while Artemis skimmed through the various articles of clothing on sale. Artemis held up a shirt with a heart logo on it.
"Do women truly go out in public in these things?" She sneered. "I wouldn't use this for target practice."
"Be fortunate you didn't join me when I set out in WWI," Diana remarked. "I could barely move in those clothes, much less fight in them."
"She makes a good point, Artemis," Donna replied from the changing room. "Besides," She opened the door, revealing the golden top and matching skirt she was wearing. "Some of them look pretty good."
Both Diana and Artemis gave surprised looks at the outfit.
"It's certainly… bright," Artemis commented.
Donna looked down at the outfit, feeling uncertain of it.
"Perhaps it is a bit much. Hang on, I have extras."
She retreated into the dressing room, hoping to try on one of the other outfits she found. As she closed the door to the dressing room, Diana's JL communicator went off in her ear.
"Excuse me a moment," She said, stepping away for some privacy before answering the call. "Go ahead."
"Diana, it's Batman. I just received reports that an archeological site was attacked by strange creatures. The site was connected to Ancient Greece. Thought you might have some kind of insight."
"What kind of creatures?"
"Didn't get a good enough look. Most I saw was a metal beak."
That seemed to spark something in Diana's mind. "The Stymphalian Birds. Large man-eating birds with bronze beaks. I can't imagine what they'd be doing there."
"Doesn't matter. If those things aren't stopped-"
"Right," Diana cut off. "I'm on my way."
…
Back with Artemis and Donna, Donna stepped out of the dressing room, wearing a red tank top and blue shorts. Donna looked at herself in the mirror, still dissatisfied with her look. Artemis took note of her displeasure as she sat in a nearby chair trying to read a book.
"Is there something wrong with this particular look?" Artemis commented.
"It's… fine. It just isn't what I'm looking for. I want something that can… inspire."
That caused Artemis to cock an eyebrow. "Inspire what, exactly?"
Donna let out a breath. "Diana's been fighting in Man's World for decades. Inspired hope in so many people. I just… want to be able to do the same."
"And you believe a new outfit will help with that?" Artemis questioned as Donna retreated into the dressing room.
"Well, not alone," Donna admitted, closing the dressing room door. "But I want something that reassures people. Something that when people see it, they'll know they'll be alright."
"And you expect to find that in his place?" Artemis responded skeptically.
"Well… maybe not," Donna admitted as she peeked over the door with only her head and bare shoulders visible. "But I have to at least try."
Artemis shrugged before returning to her book. "If you insist."
"So, what are you reading?"
"A philosophy book from Diana's library," She replied, giving the book a frustrated look. "It makes absolutely no sense to me but… I want to try."
Donna smiled in response. "I'm sure Alexa would appreciate that."
Artemis returned the smile in kind, returning to her book as Donna went to try on her next outfit. At that moment, Diana approached the two, a serious look on her face.
"Artemis, Donna," she addressed. "I'm sorry, but I have to leave."
"Where are you going?" Artemis asked, getting up from her chair.
"There's a crisis occurring on a Greek Island. Stymphalian Birds are-"
"Stymphalian Birds?" Artemis repeated before smirking. "Sounds like a battle worthy of the muses."
"I appreciate your enthusiasm, but-"
"You brought us to Man's World to aid you in fighting for it," Donna spoke, emerging from the dressing room. "So that is what we're going to do now."
Donna stood before them in a red sleeveless shirt with stars adorning it, matching red pants, a yellow belt, and black boots. Both Diana and Artemis gazed at the outfit, genuinely impressed.
"Very well then," Diana relented. "Let us be off."
…
Before long, Diana and her allies loaded up in a Javelin and flew out toward Aeaea Island. They joined up with the Batwing and flew alongside Batman as they approached the island. As they flew overhead, Donna looked out the window, horrified by the destruction the creatures had caused. The birds themselves were no longer there, but the damage they inflicted was still very much present.
"Great Hera…" she let out.
Diana looked out the window, grimacing at the destruction on display. Both the Javelin and the Batwing touched down just a short distance from the site. They all got out, heading over to check on the survivors of the attack. Among them were Julia and Helena, the latter of whom was patching up a wound on the former's head.
"Hold still, Julia," Helena insisted. "I'm almost done."
"I'm fine, Helena, I assure you," Julia replied, trying to shoo her off.
"You're lucky to have gotten out of there alive."
"Excuse us," Diana spoke, getting their attention.
Everyone present was in shock to see the arrival of the heroes. Wonder Woman in particular.
"Oh my…" Julia let out in disbelief, standing up in shock.
"What happened here?" Batman asked, stepping forward. "Why did the birds attack?"
"We don't know," Helena spoke. "Everything was proceeding as scheduled when all of a sudden, those things attacked."
"They swooped in out of nowhere and began attacking everyone," Julia chimed in. "They also went after the artifacts, destroying nearly everything. Then they just… disappeared. No explanation as to why."
"Perhaps the birds felt the dig was a desecration of some kind," Donna suggested.
"But the Stymphalian Birds only reside in the Stymphalian swamps," Artemis shot down. "Why would they be all the way out here?"
"They could've been summoned by Echidna," Diana reasoned.
"But is she not imprisoned in the pits of Tartarus?" Donna inquired.
"She got out before. It is more than possible she could again," she turned toward the destruction that lay before her. "This would not be the first time she endangered innocents to get to me…"
Batman took note of her tone of voice. He could tell something was off, but couldn't dwell on it long.
"Have you unearthed anything that would warrant this kind of attention?"
"No," Julia answered, before suddenly remembering something. "But, a group of diggers went out to the far side of the ruins. They may have found something there."
"We'll start there."
Batman started heading out, with the others following after. Wonder Woman fell back for a moment, turning toward Helena and Julia with a look of remorse on her face.
"I am truly sorry for all of this."
"This is not your fault," Julia reassured, taking her hand. "You can't control the wills of others."
Diana paused, remaining unconvinced before leaving to join the others. As she walked off, neither she nor the others were aware they were being watched by a figure from the shadows. One who had a sinister grin on her face.
…
A few moments later, the heroes found the area the workers were digging at, finding only abandoned equipment and destroyed artifacts. Even a few ancient weapons in various states of condition lay strewn across the plain. Donna held up the remains of a clay pot, lamenting its loss.
"So much history destroyed," Donna commented. "What would Echidna have to gain from this? Or anyone for that matter."
"I couldn't say," Artemis commented, surveying the wrecked equipment. "There are those who simply enjoy mindless destruction. One can only wonder as to why."
"I'll tell you something I am wondering," Batman spoke up, walking toward them. "This is the site where the workers were attacked, right? So where are the bodies?"
"No doubt eaten by the beasts before they lay siege to the rest of the dig site," Artemis reasoned, turning to him.
"No," Wonder Woman shot down, causing the others to turn to her as she overlooked the area. "Batman is right. If the birds had killed the workers, there would be signs of blood and carnage. And yet, there is nothing."
"What could it mean?" Donna wondered, walking up to her.
"I'm not sure…"
"We should spread out," Batman suggested. "See if we can find any clues as to what happened to them. It might give us a lead as to where these creatures came from."
They all nodded, heading off in opposite directions. Batman however, decided to stick close to Diana, sensing her wavering feelings on the matter at hand.
"Should I be concerned about where your head's at?"
"No, I… I just have had a lot on my mind. Since being possessed by the sins… my convictions aren't what they should be."
"I can… only imagine what that must've been like… but we can't worry about that right now. We have a job to do and people who are counting on us."
Diana replied, slowly walking off while whispering to herself. "Lately I wonder if they even should-
Just then, a loud shrieking filled the air. The four of them looked up to see the Stymphalian Birds descending toward them, seemingly prepared for battle. Thinking fast, Batman threw several explosive Batarangs at the oncoming creatures, causing them to go off and disorient them enough so they crashed to the ground. Batman and Wonder Woman dove out of the way as they made contact. Artemis and Donna came running up to join them, the former drawing her sword in delight.
"At last the monsters show themselves," Artemis mused. "They will pay for what has transpired here."
With that, she charged forward toward one of the birds. It tried snapping its beach at her, but she deflected the attacks with her sword, easily keeping the creature at bay. Noting the futility in the attack, the bird rose into the air, flapping its massive wings and sending strong gusts of wind at Artemis. She tried to stand her ground, but that soon proved to be in vain as she was knocked off her feet and sent flying.
Seeing this, Wonder Woman flew up from behind the bird and threw her lasso around its neck, pulling hard on it. This caused the bird to take off into the air, pulling Wonder Woman up into the air behind it. Wonder Woman kept her grip on the lasso as she climbed up it. She eventually reached the bird's head, slamming her fist into the side of it repeatedly. This caused the bird to cry out in pain as it suddenly took a nosedive down to the ground.
Meanwhile, Donna slowly backed away as one of the massive birds stared her down. It tried striking at her with its beak, but Donna just held up her arm, causing it to strike at her bracelet. She then used her opportunity to strike the bird in the eye, disorienting it as it stumbled back. Donna took her chance to run forward and drop to the ground, sliding underneath the bird and grabbing a spear that had been long since discarded. She then turned around and chucked it into the back of the bird, causing it to cry out in pain before turning around to face Donna. It tried snapping at her, but Donna leaped up and over the beak before running along its back and grabbing ahold of the spear and leaping into the air. Just as the bird turned around, Donna fell toward him, slamming the end of her spear into its face, knocking it back.
At the same time, Batman was running from one of the birds as it chased after him. Acting fast, he pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it in the bird's face. It went off, disorienting the bird enough that he could fire a grappling line onto a nearby pillar and zip up into the air. He threw several exploding batarangs along the back of the bird, causing it to cry out in pain. It then suddenly spun around and rammed right into the pillar, destroying it and sending Batman flying through the air.
…
While all that was going on, Diana was still duking it out with the bird as they sailed toward the ground. The bird then spun around mid air, throwing Diana off before flipping around and stabilizing itself. Wonder Woman landed on her feet, skidding to a stop as she readied her sword. She looked up at the looming creature, noting her lasso still around its neck. The bird then dove toward Wonder Woman, prompting her to leap up and dart toward the bird in kind. She swung her sword out at the creature, slashing it at the wing. It cried out in pain before falling to the ground. Diana dove after it, grabbing hold of the lasso and pulling on it hard to draw the creature in close. This allowed her to knee the monster in the throat, allowing her to reclaim the lasso as the bird plummeted to the ground below.
It hit the earth with a massive crash, creating a large crater in the process. Diana retracted her lasso, hooking it onto her belt before floating down toward the creature and pointing her sword at it. As she got in close though, the bird started glowing and changing shape. Diana raised an eyebrow as she got in close to investigate. She landed on the ground as the bird began shrinking down. Its feathers changed into skin, the wings and talons into arms and legs, and the beak into a face. Diana's face quickly became shocked as the bird turned into a man, more specifically, one of the workers that had gone missing before.
"What on…"
Before Wonder Woman could comment further, a beam of energy struck her from behind, causing her to cry out in pain before dropping her sword and falling to the ground. Diana let out a groan of pain as the mystery figure walked up to her. She held up her hand, encompassing Wonder Woman's lasso so she could pull it toward her. Before Diana could pick herself up, the figure blasted at her again, keeping her pinned to the ground. She cried out in pain as the energy surged through her body. After a few seconds, the energy cut out, allowing Wonder Woman to drop to the ground once more. She only had the strength to look up and see the woman who was responsible, holding her lasso in one hand while purple energy surged in the other.
"Aww, not feeling well?" she taunted. "Well don't worry. Circe's here now. And when I'm done, you won't have to worry about hurting anyone ever again."
The last thing Diana saw was another surge of energy healing her way, making her cry out in pain once more before everything went black.