Chapter 84: There Are Other Ways
Out on the waters close to the island, the sea serpent kept thrashing around as Artemis held onto her rope as tight as she could.
"Is this the best you can do, beast?!" she boasted.
She tugged on the rope hard, forcing the beast to move forward toward the shore. Once she was close enough, Artemis climbed onto the serpent's head and struck it hard, causing it to cry out in pain as she leaped off. She turned back toward the serpent as it fell back into the water. She smirked with satisfaction before rushing off, hoping to catch up with the others and save Diana.
…
Back in the palace, Donna was thrown through a wall. She bounced on the ground before skidding to a stop. She looked up at Circe as she floated toward her, smirking as she raised a hand that was surging with God Killer energy. She fired a blast at her, prompting Donna to raise her bracelet to block it, staggering back as a result. Circe fired more blasts at her, seemingly toying with her as Donna staggered back while deflecting each blow. With one blast, she actually managed to knock Donna off her feet. She recovered quickly, though, landing on her hands before springing backward back onto her feet while avoiding more blasts. She landed near a fallen piece of rubble and promptly picked it up before tossing it toward Circe. Circe caught it with her magic before shattering it and turning the pieces into butterflies.
They all flew toward Donna, clouding her vision for a moment as she tried to get through then. As the last of the butterflies cleared, Donna looked up to see Circe quickly approaching her and socking her across the face. She hit the ground hard, shaking her head as Circe approached her. She sprang up and tried to punch her, only for Circe to grab the fist and twist her wrist. She winced in pain, dropping to one knee before trying to throw the other. Circe caught that one as well, keeping up the strain she was putting on Donna. Pushing through the pain, Donna leaped upward and kicked Circe in the face. This disoriented her enough for Donna to fly right into her, plowing her through another wall.
…
Meanwhile, Batman was doing his best to ignore the battle around him as he worked on resuscitating Diana. He started on chest compressions before performing mouth-to-mouth, hoping it would be enough to wake her up. It didn't seem to be working at first, until suddenly, Diana started coughing, signaling to Batman she was breathing again.
"Diana," he let out. "Come on, Diana, wake up."
Slowly but surely, Diana started opening her eyes, groaning in pain as she did.
"B…Bat…man…" she barely let out, still feeling drained from Circe's spell.
"Come on," He let out, about to help her up. "We have to find some way to reverse whatever Circe did to you."
"No…" she mustered. "... go… leave me…"
That caught Batman by surprise.
"You.. and the others… are better… without me…" Diana turned her head away in shame.
"No. That's not true. That's Circe messing with your head. She wants you to think yourself unworthy of your power, but she's wrong. You have to fight it, Diana."
…
Back with Donna, she threw Circe through another palace wall, taking them both outside as Donna flew them both to the ground, creating a massive crater as a result. Donna just kept wailing on Circe, punching her repeatedly in the face. Despite the multiple blows she was receiving, Circe maintained her usual sinister grin, as if she weren't hurting her at all.
"Is that all you've got?" She mocked.
Donna cried out in fury as she tried punching her again, only for Circe to disappear. Donna kept turning around, trying to find where she had gone.
"Show yourself, coward!"
Just then, Circe appeared behind Donna, placing a finger to the back of her head and shocking her with her new power. Donna cried out in pain before flying forward, tumbling across the ground. Circe got back on her feet, dusting herself as she approached Donna.
"Well, this was fun," She mused, raising a hand full of purple energy. "But I think I've had enough of you."
She tried to turn Donna into an animal, but the purple energy that surrounded Donna for a moment suddenly dissipated, much to her surprise.
"What?"
Donna smirked. "It would seem I'm immune to your tricks."
Circe scowled. "Hermes. Of course. Always trying to undermine my fun. No matter. When I get to actual god killing, he's first on the list."
"I promise you won't be killing anyone," Donna declared, getting back up herself.
"Wise up, child. You can't beat me. Now, why don't you stand down while I put this power to its proper use?"
As Circe spoke, Donna noted Artemis finally approaching, ducking behind a nearby tree and waiting for an opportunity to strike.
"If you really want to put that power to good use," Donna spoke up, hoping to keep Circe distracted. "You'll return it to Diana. It is hers by right."
"And let her squander it like she has for a century?" Circe replied dismissively. "She could've ruled Man's World, and Mount Olympus. Instead, she squandered it playing nursemaid to mortals. It's pathetic."
"It says to me Diana is more worthy to wield that power than you will ever be."
"So you say," Circe replied, rolling her eyes before charging her fingers with energy. "But in my hands, it's gonna be so much fun."
As Circe kept boasting, Artemis started making her way toward Circe and leaped into the air. She kicked Circe in the back, sending her flying and prompting Donna to fly forward, punching her in the face. As Circe sailed upward, she grabbed Circe by the ankle and spun her around before tossing her back into the palace, with part of it crashing down on top of her. Donna smirked in satisfaction as Artemis approached, raising an eyebrow at the sight of Donna floating in the air.
"You can fly now?" She inquired.
"It's a long story," Donna replied. "Come on, let's ensure she doesn't hurt anyone else."
The two ran toward Circe, who was picking herself up from the rubble. She scowled at the two Amazons as they approached. Finally having enough, she stepped forward and struck her wrists together, creating a shockwave that knocked the two of them back. The second they hit the ground, two large hands made of sand shot out of the ground, grabbing both of them and holding them tight. They both struggled in the grip of the hands as Circe approached, her confident demeanor returning.
"My magic may not be able to affect you directly," Circe remarked, her hands surging with electricity. "But there are other ways of having fun."
…
Meanwhile, Batman helped Diana get to her feet, his cape tied around her to work as a makeshift dress as she leaned on Batman's shoulder.
"I'll… only slow you… down…" Diana mustered, still feeling weak. "Please… leave me…"
"Not happening," Batman told her. "We're getting you out of here, and we're gonna stop Circe."
As they kept moving, Diana's strength gave out, causing her to collapse. Batman tried to help her up again, but she put a hand to his chest, stopping him.
"Please… go… I'll only… slow you down…"
"I won't abandon you," Batman insisted, reaching into his belt and pulling out the root Circe provided. "Take this. It's Moly Root. It won't restore your powers, but it should protect you from Circe's magic."
"No," she replied, pushing his hand back. "You need it… more than I do…"
"I'm not the one clinging to life. You're the only one who can stop Circe.
"I only… make things worse… for everyone…" She mustered, still visibly weakened. "Alexa… Barbara… Caitlin… I hurt them all…"
"None of those were your fault. You can't let Circe mess with your head."
"She showed me the truth… that my mission… was for my benefit…"
"If that were true, you wouldn't be feeling shame over that. The fact that you care about hurting people is proof she's wrong."
"I won't… let anyone else be hurt… because of me…"
"No!" Batman cried out. "I won't let you give up on yourself! I won't let him wi-" he caught himself, calming down a bit. "I won't let her beat you."
"She already has…"Diana let out, looking down at her hand. "She took… everything… left me with nothing…" She closed her eyes and lowered her head. "... I'm no-"
Before she could finish her thought, the sounds of familiar screams rang out. Diana froze up, turning toward the source of the screams, dreading how familiar they were.
"Artemis… Donna…"
"That's right," Batman continued, grabbing her by the shoulders as Diana turned back to him. "They're here because they believe in you. That your mission is worth fighting for. If you stay here feeling sorry for yourself, Circe's going to kill them. And then she's going to kill us, and anyone else that stands in her way. Your friends need you, Diana. The world needs Wonder Woman."
Diana looked conflicted, but the thought of her friends being in danger was too much to ignore. Finally, a look of determination came on her face.
"Help me stand."
…
Back in the throne room, Artemis and Donna were strung up by chains hanging from the ceiling. Circe kept shocking them with the God Killer energy. She smiled maliciously as they cried out in agony. After a few moments, she killed the energy, they hung there limply as Circe looked on with cruel intent.
"You know, I was going to just kill Wonder Woman outright," Circe told them. "But with you two here, I can keep her around and make her watch me torture you two for the next few years. I could use a hobby."
"Do your worst, witch," Artemis shot back. "You won't break an Amazon warrior."
"I don't know," Circe remarked, floating up to her. "I was able to break your precious princess." She kept tapping Artemis' head, causing the energy to shock her repeatedly. "So I should have. No. Problem. With you."
She then let her finger rest on her head, causing energy to course through and making her grunt in pain. Donna hated what she was seeing, unable to keep quiet about it.
"Leave her alone!" Donna demanded.
"Oh, don't worry, Wonder Girl," Circe teased, turning toward her. "I haven't forgotten you."
She held a finger under her chin, lifting it up as she held her other hand that was charged with energy.
"It's just a matter of which one I toy with first," She started waving her hand between the two of them. "Eenie. Meenie. miney-"
Before she could make a choice, the Lasso of Truth wrapped around her wrist, pulling her away from the two of them. She turned to see Diana and Bruce holding the lasso together to pull her back.
"Stay away from them," Diana ordered, trying to sound strong despite her situation.
"You're still trying to resist me?" Circe responded, grabbing hold of the lasso. "Your determination would be admirable if it weren't so pathetic!"
She pulled hard on the lasso, whipping the two of them across the room as Circe pulled the lasso off. Batman rolled on the ground before throwing batarangs at her. She simply held out her hand and turned into doves that flew away. Circe then extended a glowing hand, causing the ground beneath Batman to turn into quicksand. He started sinking down, trying in vain to pull himself out. Circe smirked with intent as she sauntered over to him.
"You know, they say struggling in quicksand only makes you sink faster," She retorted. "So please, struggle all you want."
"You haven't won yet," Batman declared.
"Yet, is the key word," Circe remarked, kneeling down next to him. "However," she placed a hand to his cheek, stroking his face. "I could find other uses for you."
"Not interested," Batman practically snarled.
"Ooh. I love it when they think they have a choice. Makes it more fun for me."
"Circe!"
The witch turned to see Diana slowly picking herself back up.
"I won't… let you hurt them…" Diana mustered, trying to stand strong.
"Incredible," she remarked, firing her stolen God Killer energy at her. "You still think you can stand against me?" With every blast she fired, Diana tried to deflect it, staggering back hard as she did. "You can barely stand at all."
With one final blast, Diana was knocked to the ground, grunting in pain.
"It's embarrassing, honestly," Circe commented, not wanting to let up. "Just do us all a favor and stay down."
Diana blocked out the hateful words Circe was dishing out. Instead, she forced herself to get back to her feet, much to the surprise of Circe.
"You can do… whatever you want to me…" She let out, taking a fighting stance. "But you will not… hurt my friends."
"My, my," Circe mused. "Aren't we bold? You know, I had planned to just torture you for the next few years. But, since you've put up such a good fight," she charged her fingers with God Killer energy. "I'll go easy on you… and kill you now."
She fired a blast at Diana, prompting her to hold her hands up to her face as the blast made contact. The second the energy struck her, her entire body was bathed in the energy, much to the shock of the Amazons.
"Diana!" Donna cried out.
Circe smirked maliciously as she poured on the energy. However, she found that she was unable to stop firing the energy. She tried to pull her hand away, but was unable to. Suddenly, her second hand started shooting energy, much to her surprise.
"What… what's happening?!"
Just then, energy started shooting out of her eyes and mouth, causing her to cry out in pain. Artemis, Donna, and Batman all turned away from the bright light that was emanating from Diana's body. All at once, a shockwave shot out from Diana, knocking Circe back as the energy finally stopped pouring out. She hit the ground hard, picking herself up and trying to feel the God Killer energy. To her surprise, nothing was happening.
"What?"
She looked up, shocked to see the blinding light subside, and in its place, Diana standing proud and strong. Batman's cape dropped from her body, revealing that her Wonder Woman armor had been restored, with small bits of electricity surging on her bracelets. Artemis and Donna smiled widely in response to what had transpired, while Batman just smirked in response. Wonder Woman, meanwhile, opened her eyes, a confident smile gracing her face as she walked forward.
"No…" Circe let out, scrambling to get back to her feet. "No!"
She fired several energy bolts at Wonder Woman, but she raised her bracelets to deflect each and every one of them with minimal difficulty. In an instant, she dashed forward and punched Circe in the gut. She keeled over, allowing Diana to grab her by the hair and toss her into the air and through the ceiling. As Circe soared through the air, Wonder Woman flew upward and kicked Circe in the face, knocking her toward the forest just outside the palace. As she impacted on the ground, Diana flew back down into the palace, heading right toward Artemis and Donna and breaking their chains, freeing them.
"Are you two alright?" she asked as they all landed on the ground.
"We're fine, Diana," Donna reassured. "It's you I'm concerned about."
"How did you reverse Circe's spell?" Artemis asked as Diana walked over to Batman.
"Moly Root," She answered, breaking the ground around Batman's legs in order to pull him out. "Consuming it at the same time as getting struck disrupted the spell and allowed me to absorb my power once again."
Artemis perked up at that, turning to Batman. "You gave Diana the Moly Root?"
"Had a feeling she'd need it more than me," Batman replied, getting back to his feet.
Artemis smiled in response. "... Thank you. For looking out for her."
"Don't thank me yet. We still have work to do."
"Batman is right," Wonder Woman agreed, walking over to them. "The Moly Root will only stave off this spell for a short time. We must destroy this spell at the source."
"What do you need us to do?" Artemis asked.
"There is a cauldron that allowed her to create this spell," Wonder Woman explained, reclaiming her lasso and placing it on her belt. "We need to destroy it. I'll keep her busy while you three destroy it."
"Let me help," Donna insisted, moving up to her. "She was able to overpower you before, she might do so again. I can help."
Diana turned to her, seeing the determination on her face. She smiled in response.
"I'd be happy to have you fight by my side," She declared, turning to Artemis and Batman. "Can you two deal with the cauldron?"
"You can count on us," Artemis promised.
Dina nodded as she and Donna flew off to confront Circe. Batman, meanwhile, reattached his cape before turning to Artemis.
"Come on," He instructed. "We don't have much time."
Artemis nodded as the two rushed off to end the evil enchantress' endeavors.
…
Out in the woods, Donna and Diana touched down where Circe had cratered, trying to catch sight of her.
"She couldn't have gotten far," Diana noted. "... So where is she?"
"Right here."
The two looked up, seeing Circe floating over them. They both took a battle-ready stance as she floated down.
"Surrender, witch," Donna demanded. "You have no power over us."
"True, I can't hurt you directly," Circe admitted. "But I have other methods."
She held up a glowing hand and held it out toward the woods. All at once, the animals that Batman had dealt with before emerged from the treeline, including the Chimera. She clenched her fist, turning the wolves, lions, and panthers into larger and more vicious versions of themselves, with sharper claws and teeth.
"Go," Circe ordered. "Defend your mistress."
The animals all charged forward, prompting Diana and Donna to spring into action. Donna quickly punched a wolf aside and kicked an oncoming panther in the face, knocking them back. All the while, Diana grabbed a lion by the face as it pounced at her, prompting her to lift it into the air before tossing it into the path of a few wolves. She then turned toward the Chimera, taking a stance as it snarled at her. It tried stabbing Diana with its tail, prompting her to side step it before grabbing the tail and spinning it around, sending it crashing into the trees. It got back up and roared at Diana before trying to run at her. It didn't get far, though, as Donna managed to grab it by the tail, causing it to stop dead in its tracks.
"Go!" She called out. "Get to Circe!"
Diana nodded, allowing her to fly off as Donna flipped around and landed on top of the Chimera, slamming it onto the ground. Wonder Woman, meanwhile, darted right at Circe, plowing right into her. The two crashed through the treeline, knocking down one tree after another as Diana wailed on Circe repeatedly, barely giving the witch a chance to respond. Finally, she grabbed Circe by the ankle and pulled her in close, striking her in the face so hard, she rocketed down to the ground, carving out much of the dirt below before coming to a stop. Diana dropped to the ground next to her, walking over and picking her up by the toga, holding her close to her face.
"You're not as strong when your victims maintain their resolve," Diana mocked. "Is your strength only dependent on the belittlement of those you deem inferior?"
Circe looked up at Diana, her usual confident smirk returning as she blasted Diana in the chest, knocking her back. She quickly recovered through, flipping around and landing on her feet before skidding to a stop.
"I have plenty of strength to spare, princess," Circe reassured, picking up a nearby branch.
She split it in half, using her magic to transform it into a pair of twin swords, which she gave a playful spin.
"But I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty."
Diana narrowed her eyes, taking a fighting stance as Circe charged at her. She swung her swords at her, but Diana used her bracelets to deflect the strikes as she began backing away. After blocking one strike, Wonder Woman quickly kicked Circe in the chest, knocking her back and dropping one of the swords. Circe fell to the ground, slowly picking herself up as she glanced at her fallen sword. Wonder Woman took note of this, prompting stomping on the sword and shattering it. This time, it was Wonder Woman's turn to smirk confidently as she pulled out her lasso, giving it a crack as she prepared to continue the fight.
…
Back inside the palace, Batman and Artemis made their way back into the potion room, hoping to find some way of disrupting Circe's spell. Upon reaching the room, they immediately spotted the cauldron, still bubbling from the spell Circe concocted.
"So that's the source of all this trouble," Artemis remarked, pounding her fist.
Batman pulled out a few of his explosive batarangs. "I'm not sure if the ordinance I have will be enough to destroy it."
Artemis looked around, seeing a pair of twin axes as a coat of arms nearby, causing her to smile."Use what you have. Leave the rest to me."
…
Back with Wonder Woman, she continued clashing her lasso against Circe's sword. She shot it out like a whip to clash against Circe's blade repeatedly. Circe quickly got in close, trying to bring her sword down on her, but Wonder Woman quickly brought up the lasso to block the blade. The two struggled against each other, neither willing to give up. Thinking fast, Wonder Woman kicked Circe in the stomach before leaping backward. She then landed on the ground before shooting her lasso out, allowing the lasso to wrap around the sword and pull it out of her hand, sending it flying away from them.
Enraged, Circe pulled a chunk of rock out of the ground with one hand and used the second to shatter it. She then used her magic to shatter the fragments into daggers, which she shot out at Wonder Woman. She spun her lasso around, deflecting each and every one as they came close. Once the amount of daggers died down, she shot the lasso out at Circe herself, wrapping around her and allowing Wonder Woman to pull her in close. Once Circe got back in close, Wonder Woman uppercutted her in the face, knocking her into the air. Wonder Woman then darted upward past Circe, yanking on the lasso again to pull her in close so she could kick her in the gut. As she flew out, Wonder Woman pulled on the lasso, spinning her around before tossing her toward the ground, cratering hard.
Diana flew down, seeing Circe grunting in pain as she threw the lasso around her again, keeping her restrained.
"Must feel good…" Circe mocked. "Being the one in control."
Diana glared at her. "If you think you can mess with my head again, you're mistaken."
"Am I? What's changed? So you got your power back, but that doesn't change what you've done. The lives you've ruined. The pain you caused. It's a part of you now. And it will never. Go. Away."
Diana's fist clenched in response, everything in her resisting the urge to lash out.
"So, go ahead. Pummel me to a pulp all you want. It doesn't matter. At the end of the day, you still ruin the lives of everyone you come into contact with. You're as much of a villain as me."
At that last comment, Diana lashed out, sending a fist flying to her face. Circe braced herself for the impact… only for it to never come. She opened her eyes, seeing that Wonder Woman's fist was a few inches from her face. Instead, Diana simply grabbed her stolen circlet from Circe's head and proceeded to place it on her own.
"You're wrong about me," She declared. "I have caused pain, I will not deny that. But these mistakes do not define me. I will carry the mistakes I've made with me, but not as a mark of shame, but as motivation to become better," She glared down at him. "You can no longer control me."
…
Back in the potion room, Batman threw several explosive batarangs all over the cauldron, hoping they would do the most damage. One after another, the explosions rang out, causing small cracks to build up with each detonation. As the cauldron kept suffering one explosion after another, Artemis took one of the axes off the wall and ran toward the cauldron, leaping into the air. She brings the ax down hard on the cauldron, the impact being so hard as to shatter it into pieces. Upon its destruction, a wave of energy shot out, pulsing out past them and throughout the entire island.
…
"Don't think you've won yet, princess," Circe taunted. "Sooner or later, that Moly Root will lose its power, and when that-"
Just then, a wave of energy sailed across the island, lightly hitting them and causing Diana's body to glow for a moment, much to their surprise.
"What?!" Circe let out in shock. "This isn't possible."
"It is, Circe," Diana declared. "Your magic has been dispelled from this island. You have no more power here."
Circe scowled in rage, causing her hands to glow as she used her magic to force the lasso off and knock Wonder Woman back. She hit the ground before picking herself up, her body surging with energy.
"This isn't over, 'Wonder Woman, '" She promised, starting to disappear in a blinding light. "Not by a long shot."
In an instant, Circe was gone, much to Diana's dismay. At the same time, the Chimera was through the trees and onto the ground next to Diana, who looked up to see Donna floating over her.
"Did I miss something?" Donna asked.
Diana offered a playful smile in response. However, the two suddenly caught the attention of the Chimera, which started shifting back into a normal human being.
Donna looked on in astonishment as she landed next to Diana.
"Destroying the cauldron did more than destroy the spell on you," She noted.
"It dissipated all the magic Circe had concocted on the island. All those that had been transformed into her beats are now returning to their former selves," Diana smiled widely at the thought. "They're free…"
…
Sometime later, the four regrouped, looking over the hordes of untransformed humans. Men and women from countless different eras and countries were gathered all in one place, reeling and confused by what had transpired. Batman was off by himself, coordinating with Kari and the DEO while the three Amazons spoke amongst themselves.
"Circe has cursed so many," Donna noted. "What's going to happen to them?"
"Batman said that the DEO will work to find out where they all belong," Diana explained. "It will be no small undertaking, though. Many of these people have been stranded here for decades. Centuries even."
"Your DEO certainly has their work cut out for them," Artemis commented. "I hope they're up to the task."
"Kari assured me they were. Though also satisfaction that wasn't her department."
"At any rate, all those lost souls would be mindless animals if it weren't for a certain someone," Donna jeered playfully. "Almost as if she actually did make a difference in the world. Wouldn't you say, Diana?"
"Alright, alright, your point has been made," Diana let out a sigh in response. "I suppose I was so fixated on my past mistakes, it was hard to look past them and see the truth. At least one not manipulated by Circe."
"Shame she got away," Artemis lamented, looking down at her newly claimed ax. "I would've had her head on a spike for what she did to you."
"I believe you may yet get your chance. She made it very clear she is not yet done with me."
"I only wish we could've restored all your power before the cauldron was destroyed," Donna lamented, looking down at her hands. "Now a portion is trapped within me."
Diana then took her hands, causing Donna to look up to her.
"And I can think of no one more deserving of it," Diana told her. "It's because of you and Artemis that I found a reason to fight back. Learning you two were willing to go to such lengths to help me… it was inspiring. You inspired me to reclaim my power."
Donna couldn't help but smile in response. Almost instantly, the two hugged, with Artemis smiling at the sight. As the two embraced, Diana looked up, seeing Batman happen to glance over for a moment before turning away. This caught her attention as she and Donna broke apart.
"Excuse me a moment," she said before flying off.
Donna watched as Diana flew off. She then glanced at Artemis, still holding her new ax.
"Are you seriously considering keeping that?" Donna asked.
"It's the spoils of war, sister," Artemis told her. "Besides… I like it."
Diana, meanwhile, flew up to Batman as he was finishing up with Kari over comms.
"Thanks, Kari," He said. "We'll remain on standby until relief arrives."
He hung up, turning toward Diana as she touched down.
"Everything set up?" She asked.
"DEO relief forces should be here soon. They've got their work cut out for them."
"I can imagine," Diana commented, a moment of silence lasted between them before she spoke up again. "I never got to thank you. For helping me."
Batman remained silent for a second. "Just doing what needed to be done."
He started to turn away before Diana spoke again.
"It was more than that, though," that got him to stop. "You clearly said 'him' when you were trying to rouse me from my state of helplessness… something like that happened to you once before… didn't it?"
Batman just stood there, the memories flooding back to him. He was hesitant to share, but when it came to Diana… he knew she'd understand.
"... someone… a monster… tried to break good people the same way Circe tried to break you. Tearing them down, humiliating them… all to prove a point…"
Diana stood there attentively, taking in what she had heard. "Did he…"
"... no. They were too strong…" Batman lowered his head. "Stronger than I was…"
That caught Diana by surprise. She didn't say anything, though, letting Batman continue.
"... He made it a joke… laughed it off… and something inside me… broke. I came so close…" he clenched his fist. "I wanted to end it…"
Suddenly, he felt someone grab his hand. He turned to see Diana holding it with a comforting smile.
"But you didn't," She surmised. "Did you?"
"... No… but seeing what happened to them… I couldn't let it happen again…"
Diana let out a sigh. "It seems we all have regrets…"
"The price with this job… we can't save everyone…"
"A hard truth to accept, as I have come to find… but I've also accepted that those… failings shouldn't be an anchor holding us back… but a reason to keep us moving forward. To keep trying to help those we can."
"Not the easiest thing in the world to do," Batman lamented.
"Perhaps… but we are fortunate we don't have to endure the battle alone."
Batman glanced down, seeing she was still holding his hand. He then looked up, taking surprising comfort in the sincerity emanating from her face.
"It… helps," Batman admitted, cracking a small smile.
As the two stood there, Artemis and Donna watched from a distance, playfully smiling at the moment of happiness their sister had found.
…
Later, once the DEO had come to take control of the situation, the four returned home. Diana found herself back at the Embassy, finally feeling more like herself than she had in a long time. She went back into her office, about to turn the lights on, when she saw someone sitting at her desk with their feet up. The outline looked somewhat familiar to Diana.
"Flash?" She asked, flipping on the lights.
As the lights went on, though, it was someone else entirely.
"Sorry, sis," Hermes spoke, giving a tip of his helmet. "I'm the OG speedster."
"Hermes," Diana let out in surprise, giving a bow in response. "To what do I owe the honor?"
"I wanted to check on you." He hopped up from the desk, removing his helmet to reveal his human persona. He adjusted his glasses, giving her a once-over. "Olympus was worried old CC had done you in. But I knew our little God Killer wouldn't be done in by some megalomaniacal nymph sorceress."
"I… didn't realize I had such an audience."
Hermes let out a loud, high-pitched laugh.
"Oh, Dawling, Olympus is always watching, especially when it comes to you." He leaned forward, a serious expression crossing his face. "There are rough roads ahead, with twists and turns you can't face alone. In the words of Jorge Rivera-Herrans' version of Aeolus, keep your friends close, and your enemies closer."
Diana gave a dubious look. "What exactly do the gods have in store for me? Or Earth?"
Hermes just giggled again, twirling his helmet on the tips of his fingers. "Spoilers. Besides, foresight is Apollo's thing, not mine."
"Then what can you tell me?" Diana asked, crossing her arms.
Hermes caught his helmet, toying with one of the bolts.
"Just this. Enemies wear the guise of friends, so choose wisely."
With a snap of his fingers, he then vanished before her eyes, leaving Diana curious as to the meaning of his words.
…
At the offices of the Daily Planet, Clark Kent was sitting at his desk, speaking to someone on the phone.
"Uh-huh," Clark replied. "Really? Well, thank you. You've been a huge help."
Clark then hung up the phone before returning to his computer. As he started typing, a piece of paper dropped onto his desk.
"Read it and weep, Smallville," Lois remarked, causing Clark to look up at her.
"And this is?"
"The latest Pulitzer Prize-winning material straight from the desk of Lois Lane. Thought I'd give you a little sneak peek."
Clark read over the article, smiling in response.
"Great as usual," He commended, handing her back the paper. "Though there are only two t's in Titanic."
"Didn't know super spellcheck was one of your superpowers," Lois remarked.
"No, but I did place first in the Smallville Elementary Spelling Bee."
"Ma Kent must be so proud," Lois retorted before glancing at Clark's computer. "Whatcha working on?"
"Call it a side project. You remember the Particle Accelerator explosion in Central City?"
"Uh… yeah. Kinda old news, don't ya think, Kent?"
"Maybe, but lately I've had some questions about that night, so I started digging. I just got off the phone with one of STAR Labs' old employees, Hartley Rathaway. He said that he realized a flaw in the Particle Accelerator's systems before the activation, but when he brought it to Wells' attention, he had him fired."
That got Lois' attention. "So Wells knew there was a chance the thing could blow, but turned it on anyway."
"Or worse… he wanted it to blow."
"Now there's a crazy theory."
"I know. Problem is, I don't know what he'd have to gain from creating a city full of metahumans."
Suddenly, a thought popped into Lois's head. "Or maybe…" She leaned over and pressed a few keys on his computer. "Just one."
Clark looked at the screen, seeing that on it was a picture of the Flash.