Chapter Twelve: Wrath of the Gods Part Three
Ares spent a sufficient amount of time observing the fallacies and the flaws of the entire human race. One could say he spent countless lifetimes in an honest attempt to piece together the results of his observations. Many years and many generations passed before Ares had received a proper measure of all of humanity. He could not deny it any longer.
It was perfectly obvious to all other than the ignorant.
The natural and most obvious state humanity fell into happened to be a sufficient amount of chaos. Chaos beyond anything any rational being or any god could even imagine. It took very little to provoke a war and to fuel Ares in his quest to spread it through the entire world. Conflicts raged on for generations and many individuals had long since forgotten what they had been about in the first place.
Ares had little doubt should they remember the root conflict of many wars, they would have been appalled to think such a war had been raged. But, Ares took steps to ensure his domain remained strong. Humans did not think in a rational manner at all. He focused on them and focused on stirring up their flaws in a hot fire.
'And now, the most innocent can be stirred up into war, given the proper motivation, and the proper reasoning. Especially if they believe their livelihoods are threatened.'
A sleepy and quaint little farm town descended into absolute chaos. Ares stormed the mansion and took back what was his. He looked on at the armor and realized once it had been put on, no one would be able to stand in his way.
The energies surrounding him in the air made Ares crack into a more devious smile and he turned to the legions of men he commanded. Soon these armies would grow, and once he had control of one of the fiercest military commanders the universe ever knew then Earth would be plunged into a great state of war. Humanity had yet to experience the great war which would draw it to its natural conclusion, at least not yet.
Ares intended for them to reach that final state. He stood up straight, chest puffed out when he faced his followers. These men made of stone, dropped down to their knees to face their general .Ares peered down at them, a devious smile flickered over his face.
"You may rise."
The stone warriors rose to their feet and turned to properly face Ares. The God of War puffed out his chest and looked towards the warriors who surrounded him.
"Some of you have known the consequence of war and the great losses which is to come with it," Ares said. He clapped his hand together and the men responded to them.
They all rested in the palm of his hand. Ares could do what he wished to them and they would have no choice but to obey his requests. The God of War stared down at them and smiled.
"Now, we begin the next phase now I will lead you," Ares said. "And soon I will find the means to bring true war. They panic now, but they haven't experienced anything yet. Countrysides will burn, people will be trampled, and homes will be demolished. There will not be a rock which they can hide underneath, a hero which can save them."
Ares manipulated the stone guardians and they all dropped to their knees. They couldn't help but obey his every word and for good reason. They remained and would always be a direct extension of his will. Once they ceased to have a purpose, they would just cease to be.
"My armor has finally returned to me after being stolen," Ares said. "Now, I lead an invincible charge where their decimation will finally be at hand."
The loud raucous cheers continued to escalate. Ares enjoyed having an audience, especially one which he manipulated to his every move. The God of War soaked in every precious moment, but why stand in the midst of this mansion and give speeches to his soldiers. Especially when there was work to be done.
The God of War closed his eyes and a sense flickered over him. There was a long pause which followed him.
"So, the Amazons have arrived."
Ares sensed the General of their armies. She talked a good game and boasted of glories, but Ares saw through her harsh façade. She would have decimated more people in her path if Artemis had the strength. She was much like her goddess counterpart. Bold, but at the same time insufficient, and she saw really not a threat to Ares at his full power.
"It matters not," Ares said. "March out with your heads held high my brothers in arms. And join them out in Smallville. Join them to cause their decimation."
Soon the army would be enough to decimate whatever resistance the Amazon and the two Kryptonians had put together. The fact the Amazons had been summoned changed very little. It just gave Ares more bodies to stack to the sky when his victory was at hand.
Ares pulled the helmet over his face. Only glowing red eyes became visible on the other side of the helmet. A sword clutched within his hand, ready to spill the blood of all who dared face him down in defiance. Ares only had one word to spill out.
"Onward."
The doors of the mansion where Ares addressed his followers busted open. The legions of stone soldiers all walked forward and marched their way into Smallville. No one could stop the legions of men who were going to move forward. Not even the Amazons, especially when Ares wore the armor.
The God of War stood taller and prouder than he ever stood before. He would prove the gods to have been foolish when naming a group of warrior women as their champions. They will all break, none could stand up and face the might of Ares. And in his mind, might meant right and might was power. Glory was at hand and he would not rest until success would come.
'Time to decimate them all.'
Artemis took a step back and saw one of the tallest stone warriors. The Amazon's expression reminded many of her namesake and how fierce she became when focused in battle. A small trickle of blood oozed down her cheek from the battle. To many, it might have been a problem, but to her, it was merely a wound of war and a necessity.
The stone warrior lumbered forward in an attempt to take out his adversaries. Artemis saw it in his eyes, the ego and the desire Ares always had to prove himself. Artemis would prove the fallacy in this. She drew back an arrow and fire it right between the eyes of the monster. He stepped back and lifted his arm.
"Hit them with everything you have, my sisters!" Artemis yelled. She extended her sword. "Everything, thin his ranks!"
Three of the Amazons moved in succession to manage to attack. Their swords hit different points on the tallest of the guards. One struck the back of the neck, the others when for the arms, and the others took the knees. The guardian could only defend one of the spots at once, leaving one open for an attack.
One of the guardians lifted up a large chunk of the ground and supercharged it into a ball of glowing magma. The magma flew forward towards them and threatened to burn the Amazons.
Kara jumped in front of the magma ball and used her super breath to blow it out of the way. She kicked up a steady wind until the temperature dropped slightly enough and then dropped to the ground which sent several pieces of sharp ice dropping to the ground.
The Kryptonian Survivor scooped up the ice daggers in her hand and flipped them in the air. She brought the point of the dagger down on the side of the neck of one of the creatures and bounced up towards said enemy.
Clark took a step back from one of them. One of them sent a huge wrecking ball at him. Clark blocked the wrecking ball and punched it back at the creature. The wrecking ball whipped back and took out three of them at the same time.
He couldn't really pat himself on the back too much. One of those creatures hoisted up his hand and launched a blazing inferno at Clark. Clark crouched down to avoid the fire before he popped back up and nailed a succession of punches at the creature.
The stone warrior wobbled on his feet. Clark grabbed the warrior and punched the lights out of him.
"They just keep coming," Clark said.
Artemis blocked the sword and nailed him with a kick to the chest to knock him down to the ground.
"Then you should just keep fighting," Artemis said. "But, if it's becoming too much for you, then leave now. We'll handle them all."
Clark ignored the very obvious slight from Artemis. He wasn't about to give up the battle, not if he could help it. Punches strung together with Clark channeling just enough of his energy. The initial plan to use the medallions to transport them back was not working due to the power having shielded them.
"We're feeding into him!" Kara yelled. She adopted a more defensive stance. "The more we fight, the stronger he gets."
Diana's mind clicked with something. One of the giant stone soldiers tried to nail her in the side of the head. Diana blocked his punch and kicked back to send him down to the ground.
"That's because he has the armor," Diana said. She blocked another attack and jumped up to nail her adversary with one fluid shot.
One of her sisters had been knocked down onto the ground. The warrior woman jumped in and dragged the Amazon out of the way. The Amazon took a deep breath, looking very annoyed in the process. She gave Diana a look as if to say she's fine.
"It's impossible," Artemis said.
"Yes, it should be, but somehow he found it," Diana said. "And I'm sure my mother has told you what it means if Ares reclaims his armor."
Only a stiff nod from Artemis told Diana she knew exactly what it meant and why they should be very nervous by now. The general of the Amazon Armies aimed her latest punch against the shoulder of one of the goons and dropped him back onto the ground. She drew back her latest attack and punched at him again.
"Yes, I know," Artemis said. "But, I'm afraid I'm not sure what to do. If they keep fighting us, we're going to have to keep fighting back, or we're going to be destroyed."
Kara hated to admit it, but she had a point. They had run into the ultimate paradox of war where no matter what, the fighting would have to continue in a loop which encircled them all until frustration followed. No one truly won any war, they only survived, and just rested until the next conflict reared its head. The Girl of Steel hoisted her hands into the air and clapped them together. She thought it would stall them.
She jumped down and tried to disarm one of the amulets. A flare of energy knocked Kara back. She flew back into the arms of Clark who held him up. He set Kara down onto the ground and the two locked hand to hand before they took them out.
Artemis watched, impressed beyond believe. The two of them managed to disable the fields through the combined force of flying at the armor-clad soldier. The blonde female reached it and grabbed the medallion off of the neck of the soldier where the dark haired man threw it into the air.
"Hera," Artemis muttered.
"Clark actually, and Kara," Diana said. She turned around and planted the point of the blade into the side of the head of her enemy.
"We only have to do this about three hundred more times, and the army should be defeated," Clark said. "But, there's got to be a better idea."
"There is," Artemis said. "We'll hold the line, go after Ares himself, rip his armor from him."
Take out the master and the slaves would follow, Clark liked the plan. Then again, the general of the Amazons would be strong.
The soldiers threw flaming daggers at Artemis. Artemis lifted up a shield to block the daggers before they impaled her. Sweat rolled down the face of the Amazon General and drippings of blood followed soon after. She forced the shield forward.
"Go, trust me!" Artemis yelled. "I can hold them off….just long enough….."
Clark, Kara, and Diana both nodded. The energy surrounding them showed Smallville was about ready to get ripped into pieces sooner rather than later.
"Where do we start?" Kara asked.
Diana closed her eyes and offered a momentary hum before pointing her hand forward. She had a pretty good idea where to go now.
The sleepy little farm village had been reduced to a burning mile of rubble. Several farm houses have been totaled and the fields had been torn up. Ares looked around and most of the people had fled. He smiled, the hunt was on.
The God of War broke into a smile and a few of his troops moved close around him.
"No war can be complete without causalities," Ares said. "Hunt those who have fled to the ends of this world and decimate them. We will finish burning this city to the ground, and the next war. We will have our moment in time."
"There will only be one casualty today."
Ares turned his head towards one side and came toe to toe with the Princess of the Amazons. He reminded of her mother in many ways. Bold, willing to foolishly fight for a moment's of peace, and very willing to die for her beliefs, no matter how fractured and how wrong they would be.
"Princess," Ares said. "Are you offering yourself up?"
"No," Diana said. "I'm here to put a stop to your campaign and stop you from causing any more death."
"Your funeral."
The Amazon Princess rushed forward with a blade extended. Ares used his arm to block the attack. He blocked the first two swings of the blade which crashed against the arm. The second swing, he reached up and grabbed Diana.
Diana struggled with the fingers of Ares gripping around her chin in a death grip type movement. The Amazon Princess couldn't have broken free even though she wanted to. And she did try, trying to kick out of the attack.
"Your arrogance astounds me, to really think you could fight me head on," Ares said.
"Have you caught glimpse of yourself in many mirrors?" Diana asked.
The hand of Ares closed around her throat and made Diana gasp. His strength enhanced and Diana had to summon all of the energy within herself to break free. She landed down on the ground, purple marks all over her throat. Diana adopted a battle stance.
"You think all about the darker parts of war," Diana said. "I agree, war has to be a necessity sometimes, it's unfortunate, and unavoidable."
"So you've finally grown some sense," Ares said. "It's a pity I'm going to have to break you in half."
Diana refused to yield to him despite the crushing grip around her throat.
"Oh, I think you've got some points, I've always did think you did…even if you were wrong with others," Diana said. "You looked fully at the dark side of war and neglected to look at the brighter side of war. The people who bravely fought to protect their loved ones. The ones who fought for peace."
Ares stared down Diana.
"Lending a helping hand to others in need is a huge part of war," Diana said. "And I have friends who will happily lend me a helping hand."
Ares turned around in time to see something rush at him at super speed. A huge punch clocked him in the side of the head. The god of war tipped over and dropped on the ground. Drops of blood spilled from his mouth when rolling over.
He looked up and saw the individual who faced him. Ares scowled and let out his declaration.
"The son of Jor-El."
Clark never ceased being sick of the comparisons which had been given by his father. He turned his attention towards the man question, the god in question. He caught Ares off guard once, it wouldn't happen in a second.
"I knew of your presence, but this is just too good to be true," Ares said. "I will crush you and the daughter of Hippolyta beneath my feet."
"You talk big, but way too much," Clark said.
Clark nailed Ares with a bone-rattling headbutt to empathize these words. All it caused Clark though was a ringing feeling through the side of his head. Ares leaned forward and hoisted Clark off the ground. He held Clark above his head and started to growl.
"I don't think you understand what I can do," Ares said. Clark's body began to shake when Ares continued to hold him high above the ground. "I don't think you've figured it out. Maybe I should spell it out for you because you have a little bit of difficulty ready between the lines."
"Maybe you should," Clark managed.
Ares continued his non-stop dangling of Clark above the ground. Clark's breathing escalated when the God of War was this close to planting him to the ground.
Kara swooped in and flew in circles around Ares and Clark. Ares stopped what he was doing to focus on her, and he blinked. Some of the carnage had been cleaned up around them.
"It doesn't matter," Kara said. "What you've done. In the end, there will always be people to stand up for what they believe in. Not because of the joy of war, but rather the glory of helping protect those closest to them."
"You have betrayed who you are," Ares said. "You've betrayed your bloodline…"
Kara's uppercut punch nailed Ares and caused him to drop Clark along with stopping his foul words. She narrowed those shimmering blue eyes towards him and beckoned him to come forward. She had heard about how she betrayed her bloodline so many times she almost believed it.
She grew beyond all expectations and became stronger. Kara caught him and backed him off again.
Diana saw a couple of cracks in the armor of Ares. She locked eyes with Clark, and they both nodded. If they put him through enough agony, the armor would come back.
"I'm going to fight just to protect those around me," Clark said. "You try to fill the void with mass carnage and destruction. You're pathetic, weak….because you have nothing to fight for, and nothing to live for."
Ares charged towards him. Clark and Kara locked hands and nailed him with a double attack which brought him back into the grip of Diana. Diana wrapped her arms around Ares and put the squeeze on the God of War.
"It's been what I've been telling you this entire time," Diana said. "It's been what my mother told you and all of the gods and goddesses. You can't win, because you refuse to see the bright light at the end of the tunnel. All you care about is the different ways humanity can destroy themselves! But what happens when they do? You're obsolete!"
"You Amazons…seal yourself away on an island," Ares breathed. "You don't have much faith in this world either."
"We all knew, most of us did, they would find a balance, just like we needed to as well," Diana said. Her eyes burned into a stare down at him. "Like you never did. You're not a God of War….you're a God of Carnage!"
Ares broke free, just in time for Clark to start to nail him with several vibrating punches to the side and to the lower back. The armor started to break off of his body.
Kara, Clark, and Diana all nailed Ares with the fullest force they could at the same time. The armor broke free from his body and flew into the air. It hit the ground at the feet of Ares and the God of War went flying himself in the exact opposite direction.
Off in the distance, the army of stone warriors Ares had brought to Smallville faded from the distance. The God of War had been left alone and he rolled over, balling up his fists in an agonizing howl.
It wasn't over, he wouldn't surrender, especially against these three.
Ares stood to his feet. How dare they attack him like this? They might have taken his armor, his army might have deserted him, but he still had power, and he would prove he didn't need an army or armor to crush them.
"You think you've won," Ares said. "If you think I've defeated me, then you have much to learn about war."
Ares withdrew a sword which could even cut Gods and rushed towards Kal-El with the blade. The blade shined in the light.
Diana jumped in front of Ares to block his attempt to stab Kal-El and used her own sword to draw him back. Ares stepped back and opted to carve up the Amazon Princess with his feverish stabs instead. She blocked every single attack with the sword, and he deflected her assaults as far back as possible. They were going sword to sword in an attempt to get the better of each other. Both had been evenly matched for now.
Clark watched Diana move Ares into position. Kara had disappeared and returned. She threw him one of the purple medallions which had been used to recall the soldiers.
He realized the hint instantly. Diana pushed Ares back, and Clark spun him around.
"Let me pin a medal on you."
Ares realized it as well and also realized there was no way whatsoever to fight it. The medallion began to dig into his skin when Clark jammed it into him.
The God of War's entire body exploded into fire when the portal opened. The sword he wielded had been kicked from his hand from Diana and left behind to add insult to injury. He watched the son of Jor-El and the daughter of Hippolyta smiled at him when he had been sucked into oblivion.
"Hopefully you will learn your lesson, this time, Ares."
Ares cursed the day Diana had been sculpted before disappearing through the portal with a flash of energy.
A long time had passed. Diana looked around to see the entire army done and also a glimpse of her sisters coming over the horizon. In the end, all appeared to have ended well.
"I would highly suggest you head back to the Fortress to get checked out," Lara said.
"Diana, a quick word with you?"
Diana turned and saw Artemis. A part of her inwardly groaned because every single time Artemis wanted a quick word with her for whatever reason, it never ended in a way she would consider well. She stood tall and more importantly focused at the General of the Amazon Armies when she approached them.
"The Queen will want to hear about this," Artemis said. "About how all three of your fared…and yes, that includes you."
Her eyes brushed across Clark for a moment, looking at him in a way which she observed no other man in the past before turning away. She wasn't exactly repulsed by him, but Artemis was conflicted with how she felt.
"We'll be in touch."
Clark smiled. Sure Smallville looked like it had been hit by a major tornado, but in the end, everyone was safe, and that was all that mattered.
"So, Ares?" Diana asked.
"It wasn't pleasant," Kara said. "But, he'll likely survive on account of being a God."
Satisfied with her answer, Diana turned away and wondered what came next. It had felt rather exciting this adventure, despite the risk involved, and she was rather keen to have another. Although hopefully nothing this world changing.
Chapter Thirteen: Hero's Reward.
Artemis had certain perceptions she held on for a long time. She wouldn't go as far as a few Amazons who had left who had thought the Amazons should band together and slaughter all men. The extreme made them no better than the men who had victimized many women in the past. One could argue it made them worse, and as Hippolyta had told them multiple times in the past, it would just make them far worse than those monsters who would have enslaved and assaulted all women.
However, Artemis really didn't have many kind thoughts about a lot of men. She thought they were a necessary evil for the world. They could live, but she thought in the end, they would wilt underneath true conflict. Artemis had her own encounters with men, and for the most part, they didn't impress her. They weren't the evil type which soured many of her sisters to the entire gender as a whole.
Perception was an interesting thing as far as Artemis was concerned. It could have been changed in a blink of an eye. And she came to one crystal clear conclusion.
'There are exceptions to every rule,' Artemis thought to herself. Her lips curled into a very obvious and very knowing smile.
It was possible, and very probable her knowledge was a little bit outdated.
Diana walked up the road towards Artemis. She inclined her head and the two very strong women looked each other over. Artemis and Diana had butted heads a couple of times as a pair of very headstrong women would do in the past. Artemis respected the fact Diana challenged her, no matter how frustrating she was.
"Good morning, Princess."
The two of them tested their relationship through the tried and true battle arena.
"Did you speak to my mother?" Diana asked.
"She's…intrigued about the events today," Artemis said. "The goddesses are unhappy about Ares. They gave him a strict warning not to intervene and he broke it."
Artemis wondered why Hera didn't keep a closer eye on Ares after the last time he had messed with the Amazons, and tried to incite war. He was the one who gave a nudge to a break between the Amazons, and had caused a divide where a small tribe of man hating Amazons left. Not like most Amazons, who had been anxious around men, these had been dangerous women who wanted to slaughter every single man on Earth.
Despite her poor opinion, Artemis dare not go that extreme. And it was very galling to see these Amazons had been manipulated by Ares, their prejudices damning them.
"Why didn't she keep a closer eye on them?"
Hera turned towards the blonde who fought in the battle. She fought with a certain valor which impressed Artemis beyond all belief. That certain amount of respect made Artemis more inclined to speak with her.
"I haven't the slightest idea….Kara, isn't it?"
Kara responded with a nod of her head. Artemis's eyes scanned over. She saw Diana and Kara standing there, but she did not see the third man standing beside them.
"Yes," Kara said. "You would think he would be a security risk."
Artemis placed a hand underneath her chin, tilted her head back, and just allowed the most present sigh to pass through her lips. The moment the sigh passed through her hips and through her body, she turned the majority of her attention back towards Kara and Diana.
"There have been many mistakes made," Artemis said.
"Yes, I agree," Diana said. "I'm certain my mother will…register her displeasure regarding this."
Artemis smiled. Hippolyta praised the teachings of the goddesses, but behind the scenes, she had butted heads with them. The divine had this tendency to test the people around them.
"She just might," Artemis said. "If, you don't mind me for asking, where is your companion?"
"He is checking on his parents and friends," Diana said. "He'll be joining us in a moment….I'm sure he's sorry to keep you waiting."
Artemis smiled, not offended at the slightest. She supposed many might assume she would be. Artemis projected a hard exterior because she had to.
"No, it shows his valor to put the safety of others beside himself," Artemis said. "He didn't need to fight Ares. This wasn't his fight…"
A blur came up off to the side of Artemis. Artemis withdrew her sword in surprise and faced off against the young man who rushed up against her. She stalled and stepped back to get a closer look towards him.
"You might think it's not my fight, but I respectfully disagree," Clark said. "They target my town, my home, it's my fight."
The wreckage around Smallville demonstrated the ultimate price of the battle. No casualties, but many people who would be shaken. Smallville just picked up after the second meteor shower. It would frustrate many people, and for good reason to have to clean up all over again.
They were survivors, but there were only so many times where they could pick the pieces back up before everything frustrated them.
"It is," Artemis said. "And…you're proof I have some hope for…the fairer gender."
Clark could hardly suppress the smile. It was kind amusing how Artemis referred to men as "the fairer gender" where many around here at called women "the fairer sex". He wondered if it was tongue in cheek when she referred to it by that standard.
Diana's eyebrow's crinkled up in shock. If she didn't think it was physically impossible, she would have assumed Artemis had made a joke, but surely that would have been absurd. Diana turned from Clark and Kara.
"There's just one matter, the armor….."
"It's in a safe place," Clark said. "When, the Amazons arrange a place to secure it, and keep it out of the hands of Ares, we'll discuss moving it."
Artemis inclined her head in respect. She couldn't force the issue and make Clark relinquish the armor, because he won it through the spoils of war. All she could do was take her thoughts back to the Queen.
"I'm leaving to have a further more in depth discussion with Queen Hippolyta," Artemis said. "Once everything has been cleared, she might want to have a word with all three of it."
The shock increased in Diana's mind. She processed something many Amazons could not fathom.
"Are you referring to….."
"Yes, it's unprecedented," Artemis said. "Stand by. I'll be in touch."
Another attack swept all through Smallville and left the people in the town devastated. They couldn't even begin to describe the chaos which occurred, no matter how hard they tried. The citizens trickled back into town one on by one.
'I don't even want to pretend I know what's happening.'
A small part of Lois Lane did a small little dance at she survived this encounter. She stopped, due to not wanting to embarrass herself. One minute, she came face to face with some crazed looking stone guard things, and the next minute, she was about as far away from the carnage as possible.
Lois stepped over and peered down. She came across a piece of the sign which welcomed the people into Smallville. The frown deepened over her face when lifting the sign up and looking it over. The more she knew, the less she understood, or that was at least how she figured it out.
'Welcome to the world of weird, population….me.'
Lois's frown deepened when looking over the sign once again and dropped it down. She came across a piece of a dislodged stone head.
'Charming.'
Lois rotated her gaze as far up the road as possible. She saw a group of people. A small family came across their truck, which had been flipped over. The mother had the arm around her son and while they knew they had to pick up the pieces.
"Why does this keep happening?"
Lois thought there had not been a more poignant question ever asked. She placed her hands against her pockets and let out the most frustrated sigh she could manage.
'Good question, little boy, good question.'
Trouble found Lois Lane, and she actually hoped for a change of pace when showing up in Smallville. She tried to ignore the weirdness and just go through the normal college stuff, well until getting kicked out of college. Then she just lingered around, being where she could be and offering a pleasant amount of snark all around.
There were times where she thought there was something extremely weird going on underneath her nose. Lois didn't even begin to guess what it is. She didn't want to know.
'I need to drink something…hard….before I think too much about what happened. You got your ass saved….maybe you ran out of there, and you don't remember it. But….there isn't someone who runs superfast plucking you off of the ground.'
Lois shook her head. Don't think too much indeed. She caught the eye of someone up of the road.
Chloe had so many questions, and not enough answers, which didn't put her in a good place. She brightened up when seeing Lois coming up the road. She rushed towards her and wrapped Lois up in a hug, holding her in tight embrace.
Lois wondered how a girl so tiny could be so destructive. Or have such a tight grip.
"Lois, are you okay?" Chloe asked.
"Yeah….well up until the point you started crushing my…ribcage," Lois said. "Ease up, Chloe, please, for my sake."
Chloe smiled in spite of herself and retracted the grip around Lois. Lois almost staggered back, and to think, she hadn't drunk anything today. Chloe caught her around the hand to prevent her from having the epic meeting of ass and asphalt.
"I must have missed you, the Kents said you were there at one moment, and you disappeared, and Clark was looking all over for you," Chloe said.
Lois smiled and shook her head, barely keeping the grin from spreading over her face.
"Ah, he does care," Lois said. "I'm going to have to send him a Christmas card."
Chloe shook her head.
'Well at least she's in a chipper mood,' Chloe thought. 'Time to find out what she knows…if she knows anything….I'm honestly surprised she hasn't put two and two together. Bless her, she tries to stay out of trouble, but she just doesn't do a very good job at it.'
Still, Chloe had best distract Lois from thinking too much.
"So?" Chloe asked. Lois's full attention turned towards Chloe.
"So, what?"
Somehow Chloe knew that was happening, and she couldn't really stop it.
"So, how did you get out of here?"
Lois looked thoughtful and shook her head in negative.
"You know something, I don't know," Lois said. She lifted her shoulders in one of the more obvious shrugs possible. "It's weird, one minute I was standing there, and the next minute I was standing….well way out on the other side of the county line. It happened before I could even finish."
Lois blinked and studied Chloe's face for any type of reaction. Chloe just continued to look back at Lois, a thoughtful expression crossing over her face.
"Come on, with all of your weird theories, surely you have some idea what happened," Lois said. "You've been delving into the weird and mysterious ever since you knew what the Internet was."
Chloe couldn't exactly deny that. She turned towards Lois and a wide grin crossed over the perky little blonde's face.
'Oh, say it, please don't say it,' Lois mentally pleaded.
"Maybe you have a guardian angel."
Lois groaned. She said it, Chloe just had to say the one thing which Lois didn't want her to say. She just had to say it, and now Lois shook her head in response. She turned towards Chloe who had one of those facial expressions where a person was struggling to break out into laughter. She fought against it every step of the way until Lois's scowl deepened.
"You just had to go with the guardian angel thing!" Lois yelled. "They don't…exist."
"Well, there are stories around Smallville of a mysterious savior, and I've….been pulled out of a really dangerous situation by someone mysterious," Chloe said. "Almost as mysterious as a guardian angel."
"What are you smoking, and where can I get some?" Lois asked. "Because, seriously…..I can use some."
Despite her flippant reaction to Chloe's commentary about Guardian Angels, Lois did have her ideas about what was going on. Sometimes she wondered about all of the oddness. She buried certain thoughts into her mind because they wrestled with her preconceived notions.
'Now you're just being absurd.'
Lois shoved the thought to the back burner. She decided to go with the fact she was very lucky to get out of here alive.
Helena Sandsmark paced around her museum and frowned. She picked up a piece of rubble which dropped upon the ground. Nothing of value, at least not anymore, the statues coming to life and trashing her museum proved about as much. The dark haired, curvy woman, adjusted her glasses before they slid off of the bridge of her nose and dropped down to the ground.
She waited for her guests to arrive. They had questions, and come to think of it, so did Helena. She crossed her arms and surveyed the damage.
'To think, I thought I was going to avoid this when moving my work out of Gotham and into Metropolis,' Helena thought. 'Guess, I'm either a magnet for trouble, or it's just something that can't really be avoided. Despite my best efforts to avoid it.'
Helena smiled and stood back to allow the janitor's their room to tidy up the museum. She leaned against a solid glass case and waited for her guests to arrive.
Diana was the first to go through the door. She dressed her work attire. It had been quite the interesting experience to have an Amazon Princess working for her. The fact her daughter, Cassandra, worshipped Diana caused her amusement.
"Helena, are you okay?" Diana asked. "I'm….I'd like to extend my apologizes on behalf of the Amazons and the sisterhood for putting you in danger. I'd like to promise it wouldn't happen again, but….."
Helena's finger pushed out and placed a finger on Diana's lips. This silenced the Amazon from speaking any further. Helena's glasses shifted down and caught Diana's gaze in a rather crystal clear look.
"Your efforts saved hundreds of lives, if not thousands," Helena said. "I heard on the news, they turned their attention to Smallville. What was there of all places?"
Helena's curiosity had been piqued regarding Smallville, and the numerous secrets it held. The latest meteor shower held even more rumors. Something crashed down, and many people whispered about the item crashing down being some kind of alien ship.
She was both terrified and excited about the prospect. How many of these amazing artifacts she came across which couldn't be explained had some kind of extra-terrestrial origin? The thought of it enticed her. Helena Sandsmark always had been excited by the mysterious, ever since she was a young girl.
"It's a very long story," Diana said.
Helena's lips curled into a knowing smile and placed a hand on Diana's wrist.
"Aren't they are?"
Helena's attention turned. She noticed the girl who wanted to meet her before all of the chaos happened earlier, Kara, walk in. She was tall, blonde, and beautiful. Helena found herself studying the attractive woman in front of her, but not as much as she kept her eye on the young man in front of her. He was the product of hard farm labor, not that there was anything wrong.
"This is Clark Kent," Diana said. "And this is his cousin, Kara."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Doctor Sandsmark," Clark said.
Helena greeted them with a warm smile and moved over to shake their hands.
"Oh, any friends of Diana are more than welcomed," Helena said. "It's a pleasure to meet both of you, and I understand you have some questions."
"Yes, if you don't mind," Clark said.
"Not at all," Helena said with a smile. "Why don't the four of us head up to my office? It's one of the few parts of the museum which aren't completely trashed."
Diana shook her head in slight bemusement. She was pretty glad to see Doctor Sandsmark took this entire situation in pretty good stride. She lead the way, with Kara following, and Clark bringing up the rear. They had a short walk where Doctor Sandsmark.
"Well, there's a bit of clutter, but given the property damage elsewhere in the museum….."
Clark shook his head and Helena cleared off a spot on her desk. Several chairs sat around the office for Clark, Diana, and Kara to take their positions in. Clark sat down in the center chair, across from Helena's desk, Kara sat down to Clark's right, and Diana sank down in the chair directly down to Clark's left.
"I have some pictures of the tablet, so you can take a closer look at it," Helena said. She scattered the photos down on the desk. "And if you can make something of it, all that much the better."
"No one's able to translate it?" Clark asked.
"Not since we found it about five years back. It was buried in one of the less used areas in Egypt."
Clark frowned when thinking about it. To think, there was a piece of his Kryptonian heritage this close by, and he had no idea. Then again, given Clark's lack of passion about his heritage in the past, it was pretty much just as well.
"Many of the most brilliant minds looked at it," Diana said.
"Maybe mine can take a crack?"
Helena answered with a shrug.
"If you want to take a look at it, then by all means. I'm quite frankly stumped."
The images came up underneath Clark's nose. He studied it. Kara pressed against his shoulder and the two of them spent a couple of moments looking over it before Kara pointed out something.
"Look, it's…an image of a Nightwing," Kara said. "It's a creature of Kryptonian mythology which represents a dragon, of sorts."
"Well, that's fairly interesting," Helena said, sounding fairly sincere when she said her statement.
Clark closed his eyes for a couple of moments. He opened them up with a more clear mind to try and translate the item in front of him.
"Her salvation will be your reward."
Needless to say, despite coming up with a rough translation, some rather interesting questions had been raised. Questions which Clark would have preferred to have the answers to above everything else. They would just have to see what they could do next.
Just when they thought they had all of the answers, someone kept changing all the questions.
Kara returned to the Fortress for further study. Diana decided to lead Clark for a trip to her apartment. The Amazon gave him a smile, dripping with a small amount of mischief when they arrived.
"You know, we never did finish that coffee," Diana said. "And I think it would be a lot easier if we went and had it in my apartment."
Diana's car took a sharp turn. She drove it the short distance in between the museum and the apartment at a pretty breakneck pace which had Clark's lips curling into a smile.
"There's less of a chance of us getting attacked by some vengeful god at your apartment….."
Diana shook her head in response and pulled the car through the entrance into the parking garbage. She made her way towards a space and parked it. She turned, resting her hand on Clark's thigh when staring him straight in the eye.
"There should be less of a chance in theory, yes," Diana said. She smiled and smacked her lips together to make them wetter. "Let's hope there's less of a chance anyway."
Murphy was a force even an Amazon did not want to tempt.
Diana opened up the door and Clark got out. The two of them walked over towards a doorway leading up to a set of stairs.
"The elevator in this place never works," Diana said. "You don't mind walking up the stairs, do you?"
"No, not at all," Clark said.
Clark viewed Diana's ass encased in a pretty tight skirt when she sauntered up the steps towards her apartment. It was hard to take his eyes off of it, even though practiced moderation. Diana had a body which demanded attention, even from the most restrained man. And Clark found himself appreciating the female form more these days.
The Amazon Princess noticed his burning gaze, but didn't say anything. She reached into her purse for her keys and opened up the door without missing a beat. The door clicked open and Diana slipped inside the apartment, grabbing Clark around the hand to pull him inside.
"Sit down," Diana said invitingly.
Clark sat down on the couch, and Diana's leg brushed against his as he turned around. She sauntered over towards the counter and reached in to grab her coffee maker to fix a cup of coffee. Clark got a good look at her ass in that tight skirt, and her stocking clad legs. It was hard to keep himself at bay.
Still, he managed to hold back himself from delving into sweet, glorious temptation.
Kara did warn him this might happen to him when he embraced more of himself, he just didn't take her seriously.
Diana walked across the edge of the desk and leaned over to allow Clark a view down the front of her blouse. The Amazon Princess picked up something strong from him and her hormones, which had been restrained up until now, were just begging to join with Kal-El.
If she listened hard enough, Diana could have sworn she heard some giggling goddesses egging her on. The Amazon turned around and walked over towards the couch. She kicked her shoes off and sat down on the couch. She reclined back on the couch.
Clark realized Diana's bare stocking clad feet rested nearly upon his lap. She came just precious inches from touching.
"Here's the coffee, as promised," Diana said. "Hope it's to your liking."
Clark took a moment to drink the coffee.
"It's pretty good," Clark said.
"It's a drink worthy of the gods themselves, but then again, I might just be a slight bit biased," Diana said. She looked down at Clark, licking her lips. "But…you deserve thanks even more from what you did today. You saved many, and you stopped Ares from putting many more in the crossfire."
"I just did what anyone would do."
Diana raised a gentle hand and stopped Clark. Modesty was a virtue, but it could be annoying when it prevented people from accept credit where credit was due.
"No, you did what only a select few would do," Diana said. "Artemis can be stubborn about many things, but she's right. This wasn't your fight, but you fought it and you should be commended."
'Hera, if you don't want me to do this, then tell me, but otherwise, I'm going for this.'
Diana received a nudge, almost like some invisible force shoved her down into Clark's arms when she rose up from her knees on the couch. She straddled his lap with a smile.
"You're going to meet my mother soon enough," Diana said. "But, for now, you're going to be intimately involved with me."
Diana grabbed Clark by his shirt and kissed the ever living daylights out of it. Her kiss was of the lip bruising quality, at least for a normal man.
Clark returned the hot and heavy kiss. His hand strayed up Diana's skirt, rolling down her stocking clad thigh. Her thigh felt so good and strong, he couldn't wait to have them wrapped around them.
Diana's tongue sought entrance into Clark's mouth and she rolled her hands down, to explore his physique. There had been one part of the male antimony that she had been curious about and just had to explore.
Clark's throbbing hard penis slipped out of his pants. Diana eyed it with interest. She never eyed one of them up close in her life and she had been blown away by the sheer girth of this young man. She wrapped a hand around Clark's hard cock and stroked him a tiny bit. The massive prick swelled up between her fingers when she rubbed him.
"Diana," Clark groaned.
Diana clenched him to properly pump up and make him well. She couldn't quite tell what the groans coming from him meant.
"Does that feel good?" Diana asked. "I know of the theory, but I've never had any practical application. But, I guess you have to start somewhere."
"Yes, you do," Clark groaned.
Diana bent down and licked Clark's head. She tested to see what pleasure she could bring him. Her own pleasure doubled when Clark's cock rose in her hand, sliding up and down grasped in her fist. Diana kept up licking and sucking at his hard cock.
Clark groaned every time the wet and willing tongue of the Amazon Princess swirled around him. She coated his entire cock in salvia. The wet tongue made tingles go down Clark's body.
Then Diana stopped licking him. She put her warm, moist mouth around the head of his cock and gave him a suck. She rested one hand at the base of Clark's cock and the other hand at the balls. She worked him over before slipping more of his manhood deeper into her mouth.
The warm heaven surrounding his cock felt amazing. Diana gave him a few sucks. She stimulated the nerve endings all over his manhood and made Clark jump up.
Diana felt like she was being eased along by the power of Aphrodite herself when she pleasured this marvel of a man. The hero would have his own reward, and it would be within her mouth when she was done with him. She kicked up a rather intense little tempo, swirling her tongue all about Clark's massive prick. She hungered for more of him, and would get even more of him by the end of the day.
Clark looked down at her. She left the glasses on when bobbing up and down on his cock and she looked so hot.
"Mmm," Diana said. She pulled off of his cock, and left it well coated with her salvia. "We really don't want to waste a single drop of that, do we?"
"No," Clark groaned. "We don't."
Diana smiled and gave Clark's cock a nice little squeeze before pumping him. She reached up and unbuttoned the blouse she was wearing. Her large, first, breasts held up nicely in a lace bra. Clark's eyes followed the progress of these tanned globes when they had been revealed to them. She reached behind her and unclipped the bra.
Two large breasts bounced out. Clark caught them in his hand and felt them up. Those large breasts were wonderful in his hands. He could not get enough of them, he would not get enough of them.
Diana breathed heavily. Clark really treated her breasts with reverence, pleasuring them at all of the points. She slipped her skirt down to reveal a pair of panties. Clark pulled one of his hands from her and cupped her womanhood underneath her panties. The combination of rubbing her pussy and tits almost caused Diana to lose herself in pleasure.
"Yes, that's the spot, right there!" Diana breathed.
"I want to be inside you."
Diana shredded her panties and revealed her dripping moist womanhood. It had been smooth other than one small strip of black hair added for pleasure. She held her tanned thighs apart and sat down upon Clark's knees. Her breasts smacked him into place.
Her pussy called for him and made Clark groan in frustration.
His hard cock had been trapped between their warm, toned, bodies. Diana grasped it in her hand and squeezed him. A few more pumps hardened it.
"Well, all of your dreams are going to come true," Diana said. She licked her lips hard and fast. "I hope you're ready….because I know I am."
Diana rose up from Clark's hips and positioned him over her entrance. She slipped her moist lips around his hard, throbbing manhood and shoved him inside her, one inch at a time.
Clark groaned when feeling the warmth of Diana's dripping pussy slide down his manhood and ease him carefully inside of her. The throbbing manhood pushed hard inside Diana's wet pussy. She clamped down onto him when squeezing him.
"YES!" Diana hissed through her teeth. "Give me that big cock."
She bounced up, large breasts bouncing into his face. Clark's hands found their way on top of Diana's firm breasts and squeezed them. She smacked her wet flesh down onto his iron pole when working into her.
"You want my cock, well you're going to take it," Clark said. He grabbed her hips and pushed himself up against her.
Diana's wet pussy squeezed Clark when going all the way down on him. Her warm vice wrapped around him, squeezing him. Clark's hands rested on her hips when pushing further into her. They met each other with their bodies melding in between each other.
The structural integrity of Diana's couch had been put to the test. She slid down all the way to the base and clamped down onto the base of the young man's cock. Diana's pussy moistened him from the tip all the way to the base.
Their heated loins smacked together every time Diana rose up and came down. Clark groaned, burying himself into her. He ran his hands all over her body, greedily taking in those curves. Judging by the moans of pleasure Diana made, she enjoyed his hands, just as much as his hands enjoyed her.
"This feels so good!" Clark groaned.
"Oh, I know it does, and I live to make you feel good," Diana said. "Anything you want, that's what someone like you deserves."
Diana's orgasm hit her hard. It had been the first one she received with a male cock rammed firmly inside her body and made her tingle all the way. She rode him for everything he was worth, like the prime stallion she saw him as. Their wet skin kept slapping together when Diana kept going down.
Clark's groans continued. Diana's warm, toned body pressing against his made it amazing. Her breasts, her toned stomach, her hips, her legs, her pussy, everything was perfect. Oh, and he couldn't neglect her ass which he squeezed in his hands.
Diana's orgasm hit her one more time. She saturated Clark's cock from the tip all the way down to the base, tensing up around him.
"So good!" Clark groaned. "Fuck!"
The word coming out of Clark's mouth surprised Diana, because he didn't seem to be the type. Still, it made her loins throb.
Diana's wet pussy drove all the way down onto his manhood and tensed around the base of his cock. She wanted him deeper inside of her. So deep she would be screaming for more for days.
"Yes, that's what we're doing, Clark," Diana breathed in his ear. "And soon you're going to cum inside me. But, it won't be the last time."
Diana squeezed him tightly with her vaginal muscles. She said it in such a matter of fact matter Clark couldn't help himself. The pleasure churned up his balls.
The Amazon Princess smacked her thighs down onto the hot Kryptonian. His face rested between her breasts and worshipped them. Diana rewarded him by squeezing his cock, milking it for everything it was worth. She could feel it twitch inside of her. The thought of the rush of hot, milky, seed rushing into her body made Diana explode again with lust.
"Yes, right here," Diana breathed. "Cum for me, Kal-El."
Kal groaned when feeling his balls tense up. He was going to explode whether or not he wanted to or not. Diana would make sure of that. Tense thighs slapped against her body. Clark's hands rested on her muscular lower back and he had no choice.
"It's your fault," Clark groaned. "It can't help myself. I'm going to cum inside your wet, perfect pussy."
Diana came one more time at the thought of the heavy rush those big balls would load. Her entire body sized up with pleasure. She rode her own orgasm and his out with a furious vigor. Her wet thighs continued to slap up against her lover.
"Oh, God!" Clark groaned.
He sent a rush of cum splattering inside Diana's body. Diana smiled and pushed down onto him, milking every single last drop of seed from him.
Diana pulled off of him, smiling and turning around from him. The droplets of cum splattered against the apartment floor.
"I'm pretty sure we're not done."
Diana grabbed Clark's cock in a reverse hold while stroking him. She bent over the coffee table to show Clark her tight ass and dripping slit.
"No, we're not," Clark said. His cock grew painfully hard in Diana's grip.
Diana smiled. She always enjoyed some tension relief after a battle, although this was a chance of pace after doing it with her sisters for so often. A male perspective made things a bit more interesting.
He sank his cock against her and the mutual pleasuring returned anew.
Chapter Fourteen: No Man's Land.
Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons stepped out of the pavilion of the goddesses. No matter how long she oversaw her sisters on Themyscira, the majesty of the island increased with every single moment there. The Queen of the Amazons stepped out further. She could see some Amazons. Some of them relaxed after an intense day of training, others had continued to train. Others were about ready to go in with more training after a short break.
Never a dull island on the island, hidden away from the rest of the world, as they had a culture all of their own. Some of it was very fascinating, more so than Hippolyta could even describe. She had some regrets over the years, but it went with the territory.
Now it was time for Hippolyta to address the followers.
The Queen of the Amazons stepped into the line of sight of the woman. No sooner did she come into the line of sight of these particular women, all of them looked towards her. They blinked. Say what you want about the Queen of the Amazons, she always knew how to make an impact and to catch the attention of pretty much every person on the island.
"My queen?" Artemis asked.
"Yes," Hippolyta said. "Are the younger ones finished with their lessons for the day?"
"Yes," Artemis said. "Do you want to see them?"
Hippolyta smiled and motioned for Artemis to do so. She suspected all of the Amazons should have been here to talk about this particular situation. She leaned back a fraction of an inch and waited for the other Amazons to turn up.
The small group of Amazons walked in, two at a two time. Hippolyta spied her youngest daughter, Donna, among the rest of the group. She caught her daughter's eye and nodded. Donna looked about ready to ask a million questions. She was always full of life, and full of intrigue, even though she could be a handful sometimes. Much to the embarrassment of her older sister sometimes.
Hippolyta thought Diana had a very romanticized recollection about how she was as a young child. Boy, was Diana ever a handful, even though she matured over the years. They all had those periods of youth.
Rumors passed through the island of beautiful women just like any other places on Earth. Hippolyta heard the absurd rumors, and hoped to put them all to rest. It was simple nature to be honest. Hippolyta walked closer towards them and smiled.
"Have a seat," Hippolyta said. "Everything will be explained in due time."
The young Amazons settled down on the benches in front of them on the island. Hippolyta stepped in front of them and shifted over them with a smile. Artemis leaned off to the side and motioned for several of the members of the Royal Army to join them.
All of the heard the rumors, but out of the respect for her Queen, Artemis didn't clarify anything. She figured it would have been best left to the Queen of the Amazons. It would be best if Hippolyta explained it to them, because the Queen of the Amazons ruled with a more level head and a more level hand.
The Amazons muttered, talking in rumors. Artemis frowned, such behavior was not becoming for an army of Amazon warriors.
"Everyone listen to our queen!" Artemis yelled. "She has some important news for you, and she will clarify some rumors which have reached this island."
Artemis didn't really have the first clue as to who started the rumors about what happened in Man's World. All she knew was once she found out what one of her troops mentioned the encounter, they would have been worked hard in practice.
"Thank you," Hippolyta said. "As you know, my daughter, your princess, Diana, she has been sent to Man's World on an Excursion."
"Nothing has happened to her, has it?" one of the Amazons asked. "If one of them have….."
The mutterings of the Amazons made Hippolyta very tense. There had already been a split where rogue Amazons left the island, led by Hippolyta's sister, Antiope, a thought which plagued her to his very day.
"Nothing has happened to your princess," Hippolyta said. "Nothing she cannot handle at any rate."
Hippolyta thought the rumors riled them up a sufficient amount and the lack of information was going to rile them up even more. She looked upon the heavens to prey to the gods. In time, Hippolyta intended to dispel all of the frustrated notions they have all received. She knew even with the blessing of the goddesses, the rumors of the latest arrival would stir them up.
'It's always a fine line to walk.'
"My daughter has met a remarkable young man, and yes, I know some of you have had less than appealing encounters with men,' Hippolyta said. "Be that as it may, I trust all of you to be on your best and most respectable behaviors when Diana's new companion returns to her with this island."
One of the Amazons blurted out. "A man is coming to the island?"
There had never been talk of such a thing. Men had been forbidden to come to this island. Many of the women on the island had suffered hardships from men in past lives, where they had been reborn, reforged. Hippolyta suffered her own share of bad experiences with men. The thoughts of past encounters with the likes of Ares, Hades, Hercules, and many others turned her stomach.
Still, she was inclined to give anyone a benefit of the doubt. Judging either gender by the actions of a few would be bad.
"Yes, he is, Hera has decreed it," Hippolyta said. "Both our island and the world of men owe him a great deal of gratitude."
The skepticism spread through the army of Amazons. They wondered how any man could potentially have earned their gratitude. A second passed when the Amazons started to look at each other and some of their mutterings grew rather dark.
"You'll find we owe him, even though he will be valiant enough not to demand payment," Artemis said. "Ares and his latest campaign have been foiled."
The news caused the Amazons to descend down into a horrified round of mumblings. It happened, at least until the moment where Hippolyta cleared her throat a second or so later.
"Remain calm," Hippolyta said. "And he won't give you any reason to doubt his intentions. And I trust my sisters will not give him any reason to think less than highly of us."
The other Amazons looked away. Some of them had allowed their attitudes on men to be soured, and some had left the island because Hippolyta decided not to declare war on them. The Amazons all descended into rapid fire murmuring with each other.
"And if I haven't missed my guess," Hippolyta said. "He should have been arriving right about now…."
A flash of light appeared to announce the arrival. The Amazons stepped back to get a better look. Their Princess arrived first. All of the Amazons looked on in awe when Diana marched out of the portal with the usual poise one expected from the Amazon Princess. She continued her march forward with a light smile on her face.
An attractive blonde followed out of the portal. She was tall, beautiful, and could fit in with the Amazons just as well. Some of the women looked on in awe, with a younger Princess staring at her for a long moment and offering a smile.
Last, but certainly not least, the young man known as Kal-El stepped out. He dressed in a black shirt and a pair of tight black pants. The Amazons followed his progress. He had been built like a God, and a couple of them thought about reconsidering their thoughts about men.
"Kal-El," Hippolyta said. "It's an honor to meet the man who has captured my daughter's eye."
The young man smiled and inclined his head in a very respectful manner towards the Queen.
"The honor is all mine, Queen Hippolyta."
Clark Kent took in the surroundings around him. The architecture was something which he had not seen outside of textbooks which talked about the exploits of the various Greek Gods. He turned towards Diana, to make this particular observation.
"Well, it appears the inspiration was pretty much on point," Diana said. "The buildings are built to last because there are chances for attacks every day."
Both of the Kryptonians looked a tad bit nervous. Especially given Clark's nature where he got dragged into some pretty bad situations, and where the most dangerous attacks.
"How often does an attack occur?" Kara asked.
Diana turned around, keeping her arm locked upon Clark's. She shook her head to think about it.
"Well, it's not like an attack happens every day," Diana said. "Some people consider this particular island to be a challenge though. They want to be the ones to break the Amazons, to tame them."
"Well, you're not easily tamed," Clark said with a knowing smile.
Diana offered him a smile back. She could see some of the Amazons, the younger ones especially, given Clark the eye. Some of them had been rescued from villages which had been ravaged. They had been too young to know some of the cruelties of the world.
The Princess preyed they never found out the worst things in the world, even though ignorance could not be a shield forever. She just hoped they learned of the wonders of the world before the honors.
It was the hope of Diana, Hippolyta, Artemis, and several others, they could get hardened from the cruelties of the world and strengthened. Some of them had the potential to be valiant warriors.
Occasionally, Amazons took excursions to Man's World to check up on the progress of how it well. One could argue how the outside world had gone through many changes in recent past where they had matured a fair bit, although they still had a long way to go before they were free of flaws.
Diana sighed, some unfortunately had allowed the training to their heads. They looked flawless, but the Amazons were no strangers to ignorance. It was one of the reasons because of the break, even though Diana was too young to remember it, and her mother and Artemis had been reluctant to discuss it.
"So, did you get lost in your thoughts?" Clark asked.
"No, I'm just thinking about how both of our cultures have a lot to learn from each other," Diana said. "But, we remain isolated."
"Being ignorant of the world outside of you never ends well, no matter what the people," Kara said. "Not to mention there's a wide universe out there."
"A mistake from Krypton?" Diana asked.
Kara answered with a sigh. It wasn't just Krypton's mistake, it was Krypton's undoing.
"Yes, our government unfortunately didn't listen to some glaring warning signs until it's much too late," Kara said. "I know your sisters are prideful and stubborn, but I think being in isolation for so long isn't healthy. What if Ares had decided to come straight to the island?"
Diana sighed.
"You have a point."
Kara did have a point, even though her sisters were a bit fixed in their ways. They claimed because of the fact they had the divine blessing of Hera and the rest of the goddesses, there are trouble.
"You do have a point," Hippolyta said. She walked up next to them. "And I fear….we've been living in ignorance for too long."
"Do you intend to do something about it, Mother?" Diana asked.
Hippolyta looked in her daughter's soft blue eyes. As battle hardened as Diana was, there were still challenges which the Amazon Princess needed to overcome. And one day, she would overcome each and every one of them.
"Let's focus on our celebration, and I'll deal with the nasty matter of politics later," Hippolyta said. She turned her attention towards the young man in front of her. "Let me know if there's anything you can do to make your stay a bit more enjoyable, Kal-El?"
"The honor of visiting your beautiful home is it's own reward," Clark said.
"I'm glad our hospitality is appreciated," Hippolyta said. "And I do hope you haven't taken offense to how my sisters may act. Many have never lain eyes upon a man in a non-hostile setting."
Hippolyta smiled. She could see what her daughter had seen in him. She turned around and walked off which left Clark, Kara, and Diana.
"Well, it looks like you've caught the eye of the Queen," Kara said.
"Are you serious…my mother…she's….." Diana said. She started to stammer.
Thinking about her mother being with Clark was a bit too much for Diana to bare right now.
"Relax, I'm pretty sure it's not going to happen for a while," Kara said. "If it ever does, but…..your mother looks very interested, and she isn't the only one."
Kara turned around and saw the smiling Amazon who had been peering at the bushes. She grew red around the ears when realizing Kara had looked directly at her. She jumped up with an unfortunate little yelp and scrambled over, almost tripping over her feet.
"Hello," Kara said with a smile. "Donna, right?"
Diana put her hands on her hips and gave Donna the "big sister glare of doom."
"Donna, you shouldn't be rude," Diana said. "Say hello to Kal and Kara."
"Hey, it's…well it's an honor to meet you," Donna said. "So, you fought alongside Diana against Ares and his nasty, evil army, didn't you?"
Kara could have cracked a grin at the way she said it. She leaned closer towards Donna.
"It was an amazing battle," Kara said.
"I really wish I would have been there to see it," Donna said.
Diana looked towards Donna a few seconds later. Donna shrunk underneath the empowering gaze of her sister. She noticed Kara with a knowing smile on her face. The taller blonde mouthed the word "busted" out of the corner of her mouth.
"I think I had enough trouble as it is," Diana said. "I would have hated to have pulled you out of the fire when you got a bit too overzealous for your own good."
Donna's look of protest made things pretty amusing all things considered. Diana turned away from her sister, and took Kal by the arm.
"So, are you ready to continue your tour of the island? There's a nice stream a bit away from here where we can relax."
Hippolyta positioned herself on her throne for a couple of moments. She had put herself in deep thought like she had during many instances in the past. The Queen of the Amazon's arched her head towards the direction of the opened door and frowned the second when doors opened.
"Mother?"
The Queen addressed her daughter.
"Yes, Diana," Hippolyta said. "I apologize for running off prematurely, but….it's been a long day, and I have a feeling things are going to get tougher now."
"It is, isn't it?" Diana asked. She stepped closer towards her mother, closing the gap in between the two of them. "Kara and Clark are exploring on their own. They're a couple of ancient runes….they want to take a look at….not sure if it has anything to do with their heritage."
"It's worth a look," Hippolyta said. "They haven't had any trouble with any of our sisters, have they?"
Diana shook her head in negative.
"They asked a few questions, but beyond that, nothing much. They have kept themselves respectful."
Hippolyta rose to a standing position and turned around. Diana frowned and followed the progress of her mother who looked out the highest window and frowned in response. She was in deep thought.
"There's been discontent," Hippolyta said. "It hasn't just been from this island's shore, but beyond…there's a storm coming. Ares might have just been the tip of it….we're going to either stand taller than ever before, or we're going to fall separately."
"Mother?" Diana asked.
Hippolyta turned towards her daughter and placed a hand on them.
"I'm going to have to talk in depth with the goddesses," Hippolyta said. "They say they cannot say what's going on though."
Diana frowned when she thought about what her mother said? Did the goddesses refuse to answer Hippolyta's questions because they thought she should stand on her own two feet? Or perhaps, because they honestly didn't know the answer to her inquiries, regardless though, either way sounded like it would be a fit.
"I've made my decision," Diana said. "I'm going to spend time at Metropolis University this fall, with Clark and Kara."
"If that's what you want," Hippolyta said. Diana responded with a swift nod. "And that's what you need to do. To be honest, I'm glad you've made this decision on your own."
Hippolyta remembered the day Diana came into existence. She had grown into that young, mostly innocent, cute little girl into a rather beautiful young woman. It took a very long time for Hippolyta to realize she needed to loosen the chains on Diana.
The door had been halfway open. Clark peered in for a moment.
"I'm not interrupting anything private, am I?" Clark asked.
"No, as a matter of fact, we were just about to walk down to dinner," Hippolyta said. "Would you do the honor of leading us down to the head table?"
"It would be an honor."
With the Queen on one arm, and the Princess on another arm, Clark escorted them towards the table. A generous feast already been set out and the aroma of the food caused Clark to smile when approaching the area at the end of the table.
Kara smiled at Clark and she joined the four of them. Donna walked behind Kara.
"So, do you think Donna might be able to join you?" Clark asked Diana.
Hippolyta decided to jump in and answer the question for her daughter.
"Should Donna do well on her studies her on the island within the next few months, I see no reason why she can't attend school on the main land," Hippolyta said.
Donna almost squealed in response. Hippolyta turned towards her daughter who had fell back into line.
"Such behavior is unbecoming from a Princess," Diana said.
"Need I remind you how you acted when you earned the right to wear your armor," Hippolyta said.
Diana shut up in an instant. The look on her face resembled someone who had her favorite toy taken away from her in a flurry. It almost was very amusing, actually no almost about it, it was very, very amusing to see that particular look on her face.
Everyone dug into the fast, ready for the speech being given by their Queen. Hippolyta waited for them to eat enough.
'This speech would be easier to digest with a sufficient amount food,' Hippolyta thought to herself, a brief smile spreading over her face. 'Much easier, as it seems.'
"My sisters, hear me," Hippolyta said. All of their eyes locked onto the Queen of the Amazons. "You've heard by now the results of Princess Diana's adventure. And a very real danger has been brought to our attention. Our seclusion protected us for a time, but it nearly cost us everything."
Hippolyta drew in her breath and then leaned closer towards the edge of the table.
"Had my daughter not been present, everything would have ended differently," Hippolyta said. "We need to be prepared for the threats which visit us at home, but the threats everywhere should be acknowledge. It is no longer a problem with the outside world, with Man's World, it is a problem with our entire world."
Hippolyta looked at her sisters and their intense mumbling.
"Therefore, my daughter will be making an extended excursion to the outside world, and she may not be the other one," Hippolyta said. "Diplomacy is the future of our sisterhood. We cannot wait for them to change. We must be a shining example and inspire peace, rather than incite conflict."
Many of the Amazons looked thoughtful, while others looked doubtful this was going to work. Still, Hippolyta had her mind made up. She would lead them forward.
"I know it is a rough and very challenging road for many of us to lead," Hippolyta added. "However, I'm confident if we can take this road together than there is nothing we can't accomplish."
The words of the Amazon Queen hit them very hard. It was obvious she had a plan and things were going to be a lot different around here. Whether it would be different for the better, or different the worse.
"She most certainly commands a presence," Kara murmured out of the corner of her mouth to Diana.
Diana smiled.
"That she does, that she does."
Lex Luthor recovered from the latest attack on the mansion. He wanted an excuse to do some slight remodeling for a long time, although really nothing like this.
A meteor mutant attack seemed to be the most likely culprit. They always seemed to be in the center of everything. The meteor shower happened to always be the center of everything strange which went on the town.
'And with a second meteor shower, there's going to be a fresh bash coming up in the next several months,' Lex thought. 'It may be intriguing to study them fresh.'
Lex scratched his chin. Another thought had visited the young man. Perhaps it had been foolish to think such a thing, but he had these ideas.
'Could it not have been a meteor mutant afterall?' Lex thought, more to himself than anyone else. 'Is it at all possible something extremely supernatural could have been afoot?'
Lex considered the option. He passed the workmen who had gone down the stairs to repair the door which he ended up going through. A trip to the doctor yielded no results, not even a concussion.
'Time to retire for a bit.'
Lex reached the entrance of his study and opened up the door. No sooner did he get inside, he came across none other than Milton Fine. Fine, who had disappeared several weeks back, saw it fit to reappear in the study. He reclined on Lex's favorite chair and casually read a book.
"For a classic, this doesn't have the quality I assumed it would," Fine said. He flipped through a couple more pages. "It's a bit of a disappointment if I had to say so myself. Shakespeare seems to age poorly, especially when you stack him up against a wider spectrum of literature."
"Well, Doctor Fine," Lex said. "May I interest you in a glass of brandy? Because it seems as if you've made yourself at home."
Fine flipped the book shut and dropped it onto the table. He rose to his full height and stared down Lex.
"Give me one reason why I shouldn't call security?" Lex asked.
"You haven't because you won't, because deep down you want to know why I'm here," Fine said. He continued to look the young man straight in the eye. "You and I, we do have a fair amount in common, namely the fact you weren't really allowed in on Lionel's secrets. He knew all about what you've been trying to find out for some time, even though he dismissed through thoughts as childish delusions."
Lex's eyes remained burned onto Fine's face. The man gave Lex no real reason to trust him.
"The man may have had his reasons, I don't know them," Fine said. "But, just think, the potential which had been squandered…..I believe we have much to learn from each other."
"What are you talking about?" Lex asked.
"How would you like to enlighten yourself beyond all humans and help save the world?" Fine asked.
Lex wasn't going to lie, it seemed like an intriguing proposition. Fine wasn't finished proposing though.
"And how would it be if answers you sought had been under your nose this entire time?"
Now Lex's intrigue increased tenfold. Curiosity hit him hard and fast.
"Tell me more."