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Comments: |
This issue follows on from events in War of the Gods #2
and Hawkworld #16.
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Synopsis: |
At Circe's Lair, the sorceress is furious after her plan to absorb the magicians' powers has failed. Her aides Mikos and Guillermo arrive and ask her what is the matter. She tells them that there is a traitor in their midst as she has discovered that the Godly totems on the altar have been tampered with by someone. If she had not spotted one particular statue deliberately placed there in time, the mystics could have undone all her plans. The relic she now holds in her hands is not the one she had used when she had invoked the Hellfire curse! And there is only one person who could have switched them! Konrad Kaslak!
She storms into his quarters but finds he has disappeared. Just then a wounded Bana-Mighdall staggers in and says that the Amazon prisoners have been rescued by another Themysciran. A shocked Circe wonders how a Themysciran Amazon could have gotten inside her fortress without being spotted! How could she have even breached the wall of Chaos that umbrellas Paradise Island? The Bana-Mighdall Amazon does not know the answers, but continues to explain how Pythia had fought like a tiger and had caught them all by surprise. Circe is in no mood for the Bana-Mighdall's excuses and demands to know how Pythia could have navigated the maze of passageways in order to find her fellow Amazon sisters. The sheepish Bana-Mighdall replies that before she had fallen to Pythia, she had spotted Konrad Kaslak lurking in the shadows!
She continues to tell the enraged Circe that Pythia had also freed Julia Kapatelis. The frustrated sorceress asks how long ago all of this had happened and is told the events had occurred sometime before she had cast her last spell and had been sleeping it off. Circe turns to Mikos and orders him to lead a pack of bestiamorphs into the surrounding jungles to track down the escaped prisoners. She adds that they can kill the Amazons if they want, as long as they bring back Kaslak alive.
As Mikos turns to leave he murmurs to Guillermo that Dr. Psycho had been right all along about the traitor in their midst. Circe overhears this and demands to know what he is talking about. A nervous Mikos stammers that Circe had warned him not to trust the dwarf because he liked fooling around with people's heads. Psycho had told Mikos about a traitor but refused to reveal who it was to anyone other than the sorceress. Circe had been sleeping at the time and she had expressly ordered Mikos not to wake her.
Circe ponders this revelation about Kaslak, who had not only aided Pythia in releasing Julia and the other Amazons but had also switched the relics on the altar. But why? However, it certainly explained why Dr. Psycho was no longer answering her calls now she has awakened! She then turns to the Bana-Mighdall and says that she had expected more of her and her sisters. The Amazon cowers in fear as Circe raises her hands and summons a fireball of energy. But instead of punishing the Amazon she blasts Mikos to ashes! The sorceress then orders the relieved Amazon to locate the missing prisoners or suffer the same fate!
Meanwhile in Gotham City passersby look up and see what appears to be Hawkwoman flying across the sky. They wonder what she is doing here in Gotham and assume that because of recent reports of Wonder Woman being in the vicinity, Hawkwoman has come to bring her to justice. According to the media the two heroines "really hate each other!".
High
up on a rooftop Batman waits patiently for Wonder Woman. He sees Hawkwoman touch
down and says that he is busy right now as he is waiting for someone. Hawkwoman
removes her helmet to reveal it is actually WOnder Woman in disguise! She explains
that Hawkman and Hawkwoman had felt she might be able to travel without interference
this way. She was supposed to return the costume after visiting Keystone City
to speak with Hermes but the God had already departed by the time she got there.
Batman nods and says that the police had reported trying to corner the God at some apartment building but he had disappeared before they got to him. He asks where the Thanagarians are now and Wonder Woman says that they are back in Keystone. She had not wanted them to know about the Dark Knight's involvement with her, a wanted fugitive, nor compromise his relationship with his peers. He thanks her for her noble gesture but assures her that it was not necessary.
Wonder Woman then asks if he had managed to locate the Goblet. Batman seems surprised as he had assumed Ed Indelicato would have already spoken to Diana and brought her up to speed on recent events, but the Amazon Princess replies that she and the inspector had not spoken for a while now. Batman explains how a gangster named Maxie Zeus had stolen it. He then hands over the stolen Goblet and explains that he had taken the liberty of running a few tests on it. He adds that she will not like what he has discovered.
He hands over his paperwork and continues to tell her how he had done a little research into the records of a deceased Egyptologist and Archaeologist friend of the Blue Beetle, named Dr. Daniel Garrett. Something was hampering Batman's access to the Justice League Mainframe but he had finally got through. He had then matched some of the data with that from Julia's Turkish Dig which originally unearthed the Goblet.
Batman then tells a shocked Wonder Woman that the Goblet is not after all the one used to drug her mother over three millennia ago! In fact it was forged somewhere in Egypt less than one year ago! Also, this was not the original Patina either. He had found traces of an outer casing that covered the Goblet about two weeks previously - around the time Queen Hippolyta had disappeared. Even with his rudimentary knowledge of Archaeology and Metallurgy, the evidence is quite clear to Batman. He cannot understand how Professor Kapatelis and all the other scientists could have been so wrong about the Goblet's authenticity.
He then asks Wonder Woman if she understands what it all means but the Amazon Princess can do nothing but stare in stunned silence at the test results...
Elsewhere in a secret secure military facility Phyllis Haller is being escorted down a corridor by General Yedziniak and several guards. She complains about this "cloak and dagger" routine and demands to know where they are going but Yedziniak replies that she is only being told what she needs to know. The General adds that he is quite familiar with her views on the military and has read about how, based on her U.N. visit to Themyscira, she considers the Amazon way of life to be vastly superior to their own. She had even learned to speak their dialogue had she not?
As they approach a guarded room, he continues to tell her that how she conducts herself in the next few minutes will determine just where exactly her loyalty lay in this "holy war". He opens the door to reveal the critically injured Phillipus lying in a bed on life support. A shocked Phyllis says that she had understood the Amazon Captain was already dead and Yedziniak replies that it had been a necessary cover story in case any of her Amazon sisters tried to rescue her. They now intend to find out everything they can from their prisoner and this is where Phyllis can help them. She turns and scowls at him, realising that if she refuses she will be charged with treason...
Elsewhere at Hanscom AFB in a room watched over by a stern looking guard, the still bound Steve sits next to Etta on a couch as they watch a TV broadcast by the White House Press Secretary. He tells the gathered journalists that the President wishes to assure the people of Syria that the recent cowardly attacks on their country were in no way implemented or sanctioned by either the United States or Israel. All the evidence points once again to them being acts of terrorism by Themyscira. He continues that America does not know why the Amazon Nation has chosen to commit such vile acts but the U.S.A. will not tolerate it.
Etta turns to Steve and whispers that this confirms what she had overheard the guards talking about - that the U.S. intends to bomb Paradise Island! A shocked Steve cannot believe his ears and says that even if their planes make it through the magic wall that protects Themyscira, their electronic equipment will be neutralised the second they get over the island. It would be a suicide attack! He and Etta have to find a way to stop Yedziniak! Etta replies that nobody is going to listen to them after their so-called "fraternisation" with the enemy. If they try anything they will be accused of treason! Still, even Etta acknowledges that they cannot simply let the attack happen. Her voice trails off as and as Steve asks what the matter is, she appears to be deep in thought...
Somewhere over the ocean a patrolling military jet sees a red, blue and gold blur zoom past the cockpit window but they cannot get a reading on the object because it is too small and moving too fast. However, it appeared to be heading southeast towards North Africa. Unknown to the pilots, the "object" is in fact none other than the speeding Amazon Princess herself...
Meanwhile in Beacon Hill, Massachusetts, at the Kapatelis Residence, Captain Ablamsky is talking with a police lieutenant. Nearby are the body bags containing the two slaughtered police officers who had been guarding Vanessa. Ablamsky is told that there is no sign of the girl anywhere. A surviving officer had apparently described the attacker as being an Amazon, or at least a Woman, although he had been in a very bad state. The Police Captain ponders the words of the medical examiner, who had said that he thought the officer was simply delirious and it was clear that the attacker had been some sort of animal - like a big cat - possibly a Cheetah...
At that moment at the African Meeting House in Boston, Ed Indelicato arrives and switches on the light, hearing a strange growling sound. As the lights come on he tells the waiting Cheetah that she can come out of the shadows and that he has come unarmed as requested. She slinks out from the shadows and snarls that she must speak with Wonder Woman and that he must take her to the Amazon Princess at once. He replies that Wonder Woman has become a fugitive now but she snaps back that she knows he has been helping Diana, trying to track down the whereabouts of the Themysciran Goblet in Gotham, which is hardly his normal jurisdiction!
He concedes but tells Cheetah that he does not know where Wonder Woman is right now. However, if Cheetah tells him what her message is he will agree to relay it on to Diana, because he just wants to ensure that Vanessa is OK. Cheetah replies that there is far more at stake here than just the life of one insipid teenager! The fate of the entire world is on the line! She growls as she steps towards him...
Hundreds
of miles away in the depths of the Amazon rain forest, Circe's bestiamorphs
charge through the undergrowth in pursuit of Julia and the escaping Amazons.
Timandra tells Pythia that the creatures seem to be everywhere and as she has
the power of flight, she should carry Julia and Epione back to Themyscira while
she and Mnemosyne cover their backs. Epione protests that she should stay too
but Mnemosyne reminds her that she is Themyscira's chief healer. At this time
of great suffering her abilities are needed there. Julia then interrupts,
saying that it is not fair but Pythia agrees and assures her two Amazon sisters
that she will return for them just as soon as she has seen Julia and Epione
to safety.
As Pythia grabs the two women and flies high up into the sky, Timandra and Mnemosyne use the automatic weapons they have stolen to shoot down a couple of flying bestiamorphs trying to intercept Pythia...
Meanwhile above the deserts of Egypt where the City of Bana-Mighdall once stood, Wonder Woman flies through the sky being pulled along by the Goblet, around which she has tied her lasso. After Batman's revelation about the forgery, everything is beginning to make sense at last to Diana. She can feel the energy from the chalice drawing her towards its birthplace.
It suddenly plunges down towards the shifting sands below and Wonder Woman lets it continue to lead her as it dives into the desert. As it zig zags through the sands continuing downwards, she struggles to hold on during the wild ride, preparing herself for what lies ahead and knowing that she may have already lost the element of surprise.
At last she bursts through the roof of a temple. As she looks around her expecting to be confronted by a squadron of guards at any moment she can see markings on the walls. The hieroglyphics do not look like Mighdallic pictograms though and she begins to wonder if her theory is perhaps wrong.
Suddenly the alien known as Lobo flies backwards through a nearby wall having been punched by an unseen opponent. As he crashes down on the floor in front of Wonder Woman she hears a voice and turns to see Shim'Tar step through the hole in the wall! Lobo quickly gets to his feet and facing her, warns Wonder Woman to get out of the way as he intends to deal with Shim'Tar. The Amazon Princess replies that Shim'Tar may well hold the secret to the whereabouts of her mother and for him to back off, but Lobo does not care. He slaps her out of the way as he advances on the waiting Shim'Tar.
He punches the Bana-Mighdall Champion, sending her flying backwards but before he can press home his attack he finds himself bound in Wonder Woman's golden lasso. A frustrated Diana asks him if violence is the only language he understands?
Just then half a dozen Bana-Mighdall warriors appear from nowhere and surround them both. Lobo smiles and says that if she lets him go he will deal with "these sorority babes" while she goes after Shim'Tar. A reluctant Amazon Princess releases him and as the alien launches himself into the Bana-Mighdall Amazons, Wonder Woman races after Shim'Tar.
She slams into her foe from behind and demands to know
what has happened to her mother, Hippolyta. However, Shim'Tar quickly recovers
and savagely kicks Wonder Woman in the gut, saying that Diana is no match for
her. "Before, my power was greater then yours and now it is greater still!"
Wonder Woman too quickly regains her senses and leaping to her feet punches Shim'Tar hard, responding that she is not the same addled Amazon whom had been caught by surprise back in Bana-Mighdall. She admits that there seems to be change in Shim'Tar since they had last fought, including her opponent's language skills, but this time she is ready for the fight!
Not far way Lobo is enjoying himself as he brutally smashes his way through the Bana-Mighdall warriors. He yells at Wonder Woman that he likes her fighting talk and will look forward to taking her down next! Shim'Tar sees what appears to be a moment of distraction in Diana's face and seizes the advantage, punching Wonder Woman across the face. But the Amazon Princess is feigning and re-positioning herself, she unhooks her lasso, throwing it around her foe and saying that Hestia's lasso will now finish Shim'Tar as it had done in their previous encounter.
But to Wonder Woman's surprise the lasso has no effect and grabbing it, Shim'Tar uses it as leverage to hurl Diana up into the stone ceiling above, smashing her head into it! Wonder Woman cannot understand why the lasso has had no effect or indeed how her foe can be even stronger than before! As Shim'Tar enjoys throwing the helpless Wonder Woman around, slamming her into another wall, Diana realises that the change in her foe is far more comprehensive than she could have imagined. Even Shim'Tar's fighting style has changed, almost as if she can anticipate Diana's every move!
Shim'Tar gloats "Ha! And you were to be Queen Hippolyta's great hope for salvation! Wait until she sees what a pathetic child she trained! Like mother like daughter!". Shim'Tar's words sting Wonder Woman and enraged, the Amazon Princess demands to know where her mother is "before I topple this entire temple down on everyone's head!". Lobo yells back that even though he does not know Wonder Woman, even he can see she is bluffing because she does not have the guts to back up that kind of threat! He adds that as soon as he has dealt with the last of the Bana-Mighdall warriors he will take care of Shim'Tar.
Shim'Tar agrees with Lobo's assessment of Wonder Woman's threat and raises her weapon. She sneers that Diana's misguided morality betrays her and that she does not have the spine to be a true champion! Shim'Tar pulls the trigger and the weapon unleashes a deadly barrage of energy at Wonder Woman. Instinctively the Amazon Princess raises her bracelets, determined not to lose the battle and deflects the blast directly back at her surprised opponent!
The energy beam strikes Shim'Tar directly and she screams in agony as her armour is shattered into pieces. Around them the other Bana-Mighdall Amazons let out a similar scream but even among this cacophony of female voices, Wonder Woman's keen hearing can make out one voice in particular. She stares down in sheer horror at the smoking body of her opponent lying lifelessly on the floor...an opponent who is revealed to be none other than her own mother, Hippolyta!
Again, Wonder Woman's keen hunter's ears single out one voice...one all too familiar voice...her own...which like the blinding light that suddenly engulfs her, shoots out like a bright flare in the darkness...and is suddenly extinguished!
To be continued in War of the Gods #3
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