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Diana didn’t recognize where she was. She looked around, the first thing she tried to find was any sign of her opponent. But it looks like she just appeared here by herself. There was a forest in front of her, but turning around she saw she was on tip of a hill overlooking a suburb. Could this be some sort of plan set forth by Circe? It would help explain the sudden teleportation. But no, something about that just didn’t feel right. Putting her sword back near her waist and throwing her shield over her back, she started moving down the hill and walked around the nearest house to knock on the front door.
When it opened, she faced a young black boy who put his cell phone in his pocket. He looked strangely at her, followed by a question she wasn’t expecting. “Why are you dressed like Wonder Woman?”
“Because I am.” Diana raised an eyebrow back at the young boy.
“Well, seeing as how she is a fictional character, I have to disagree. Unless you’re going to some sort of convention.” He responded, shrugging his shoulders. As he talked to the woman, his sister slowly and quietly came out of her room and tried to look down to see who her brother was talking to. She did wonder why this stranger was dressed like a comic character, but her eyes were drawn to the sword at her side. In her head, she tried to find a natural way to talk to the woman downstairs and ask her something she would no doubt think make the stranger think she was crazy.
Deciding not to argue with the boy, Diana moved on and asked what she was originally planning on asking. “I…got lost. I was wondering if anyone here could tell me where I am.”
“Mitchell Street.” The boy answered. “Not too far away from Detroit city hall if you keep going that way for a couple of miles and turn left.” He pointed to Diana’s left. He looked outside behind the woman in front of him. “Where’s your car?”
“I don’t have one. I decided it was a good day to walk.” Diana told him. Again, shrugging his shoulders, he waved goodbye and closed the door. Turning around, she stepped off the porch and began walking towards the street. Detroit, not where she thought she would be visiting today. But of course, there is the other piece of crucial information. This appeared to be a different universe, one where she technically exists but as a fictional character.
But before she could think about this for too long, she heard someone yell. “Excuse me!” Stopping and turning around, she saw a young girl come out of the house she was just at. Jogging to get to her quickly, she saw a look on her face that she was unfortunately seen plenty of times before. One of fear and desperation. “Is that a real sword?” She pointed to Diana’s weapon.
“Yes it is.” Was all she could say before the young girl started talking again.
“Listen, I’m sure you think I’m going to sound crazy, but I’m being hunted! I need to do something to try and stop it and the only thing I can think of is to try and kill it before it gets to me- “
“Slow down!” Diana softly put a hand on the young girl’s shoulder. She took a few deep breaths as she tried to clear her mind and focus. “Who is trying to hurt you?”
She shook her head. “Not who. It’s an…it. I think he said a sex demon.” She looked back up at Diana. “I know, but please hear me out! A few days ago, I was at this party with some old friends, back from college for the summer. Started talking with this guy, and he seemed liked a good guy. We…ended up doing stuff in his car. Afterwards, he tied me up and we waited until it showed up.” She put her hands on her face as she remembered thinking back to the first time seeing. “I couldn’t believe what it was, but he let me go and told me that the only way to get rid of it is to have sex with someone else. Afterwards, I tried to push it out of my mind, maybe it was some sort of weird dream or something. But it kept following me, walking after me. I just finished going all the way across the town, waiting for it to get close enough where I could then drive away fast and leave it. It can only walk, but it won’t be long…”
Diana listened in silence, paying attention to the fear in the young girl’s voice. After she had stopped talking, she needed to clarify something. “When did you do this? Leave this creature across town I mean.”
“I literally just came back a few minutes before I saw you talking to my brother.” She held her arms as she responded.
“Listen, I believe you.” She made sure she was looking her in the eye as she said that. “I have a plan. But I need you to tell me anything else you can that can give me an understanding of this creature.” She let the girl lead her to her car in the driveway and listened as a more solid plan started to take shape.
******
Zatanna’s blue jacket hit the ground as she squatted down. She was right in front the spot that Wonder Woman was last seen, fighting some unknown invader. Donna Troy stood nearby, arms crossed as she looked concerned yet determined and focused. But there was also a layer of fatigue underneath that she was trying to hide. “Do you think this might be Circe’s doing?” She asked the backwards speaking sorceress.
“Right now, I’m assuming nothing.” Taking off her hat, she reached inside and pulled out a small vial. Opening it up, she said “Tcelloc.” Donna watched as glowing air filled the small vial. Shutting it close, Zatanna stood up and turned to face the young warrior. “I’m not quite sure what kind of magic we are dealing with. That is, if this is magic at all. Could be some sort of alien technology, but I will need to take a further look into this to be certain.”
“I’ll come with you. Whoever did this might go after you if they find out that you are trying to get her back.”
“I appreciate the concern, but you need your rest.” She softly smiled at the concerned mentee. “You can’t do anything for her if you are too exhausted to think straight. Get some rest. I’ll contact you if I need anything.” Reluctantly nodding her head, Donna turned away and walked into a building. She looked back and watched Zatanna disappear before her eyes. Turning forward, she walked in and up into the room she was supposed to sleep in last night.
Laying down on the bed, she did find that she was very tired. Her eyes closed instantly, but thoughts running through her mind stopped her from actually drifting off. Going through old foes, checking past experiences to see if any of them could give her a clue in the right direction. This kept going on and on until she had no choice but to get up off the bed. Deciding that she should go and confront Circe anyway, even if it is just to confirm that she didn’t do it, she walked across the room and opened the door.
But this isn’t the hallway. She was in a boiler room, dark shadows all over the walls with the faint orange glow of the fire from below. This time with a dagger in hand, she slowly turned and walked forward. Bursts of noise and rushing air, she kept her eyes trained for the slightest bit of movement. When she got to the end, there were stairs leading downward. They creaked as she stepped on them, one by one. Turning again once she was on the floor, she found herself staring at the boiler itself, fire burning bright and hot. The flames that she could see inside drew her forward, Donna not really sure why she is so interested in them. She stood right in front of it, mesmerized. Then she heard something to her right, turning and pointing the blade.
In front of her was a young girl, with blonde hair and an old dress. Couldn’t be older than eight, maybe ten at the most. The girl looked up at her, then she spoke. “He’s here. Using you to see.”
“Who’s here?” Donna asked her. The flames grew hotter, some of it peeking through the small openings of the boiler. The girl disappeared, and all she could hear was laughter. Getting louder, getting closer…
Donna jolted up, tense and still holding her dagger. She was back on her bed, where she thought she couldn’t fall asleep on. Slowly getting up and looking outside, she saw by the placement of the sun that a significant amount of time had passed. It appears that she had been asleep, some sort of nightmare. But it felt too real, not like any dreams she has had before. Shaking her head, thinking that she is just concerned about what is going on, the best thing she could think of was to leave Paradise Island. Not to go after Circe, but to try and rejoin her team and get back to doing something that will make her feel useful.
******
Closing the two doors, Diana turned around to look back at Nina sitting in a chair at the far end of the empty warehouse. “There is only one entrance here. The doors are unlocked, so once they open you should be able to see if this demon has found you.” Diana reached down to feel her lasso. Nina looked terrified despite being in the presence of a seasoned warrior.
“This is all my fault. How can I let this happen?” Nina looked down at the ground, thinking back to that night with the guy and the car.
Walking over to her, Diana heard what she said and decided to call out to her. “This is not your fault! He knew what he was doing and purposefully decided to give the burden to you.” Nina didn’t seem convinced, staring down at the ground with tears rolling down her face. Kneeling down on the ground, Diana placed a hand on the girl’s leg. “There are many things that can’t be controlled. You can do everything to prepare for any scenario you think might happen. But something will happen that you just can’t prepare for.”
Nina looked at Diana. She continued. “But that doesn’t mean that you have to give up. There is always a way to confront the danger and come out wiser for it. I give you my word that I won’t let anything happen to you.” She softly grabbed Nina’s hand, who seemed a little better now. Standing back up, Diana had one hand on her lasso and one hand on her sword. She watched the doors of the warehouse, waiting for signs of movement. Seconds became minutes. It didn’t take long for at least an hour to pass by. Diana walked around, moving and making sure she is in the moment. Nina stared at the door intensely, who knows what is going through her mind that can make her so focused. Just when the two began mentally preparing themselves for one hour to become two, they heard from the outside.
One of the doors slowly pushed open. Wider, until all Diana could see was the outside world. But Nina told her she wouldn’t be able to see it, only her. Looking at the young girl, her eyes widened, meaning this was it. Grabbing her lasso with both hands, she threw one end of the rope out to the left as she ran forward. Quickly circling around, she had both ends of the lasso in her hands. Turning, she could tell that it was pressed against something. Circling around, she started to wrap an invisible being in her lasso. By the way it was moving, it must have been forced down on its knees. Nina stood up, who could see it, which had taken the form of a naked old man, was struggling against the lasso as it was forced on the ground.
Getting her sword, she looked at the bound pocket of air before her. Raising it up, she brought it down fast and felt it connect with something as it came down. Suddenly, she saw dark red blood gush out on the ground. The invisible body within the lasso fell down to the ground. Nine covered her mouth as she saw what Diana did to the demon stalking her for days. She could see all of it, and it shocked her. But there was also a great sense of relief. She could see that it was actually dead. She felt more tears rolling down her cheeks.
“You killed it.” Almost in disbelief. Then she rushed over and hugged Wonder Woman. “You killed it!” Diana hugged back with one arm, looking down at the growing puddle of blood.
“So it seems.” Diana let go of Nina, who was backing a way, not wanting to take her eyes off the body. As she got closer to the door, Diana looked and observed a growing pool as she wound her lasso back up. “We will need to move the body and bury it. I know of a way to do so that might hopefully prevent it from coming- “
The sound of skin being pierced cut the warrior off. Turning around, she saw the long blade of a machete coming out of Nina’s stomach. Blood dripped out of her mouth and down her chin. Looking down, she simply stared at the blade that had penetrated her body. It slowly pulled out, freeing the girl to fall down onto the ground, trying to cling onto the last shred of life in her body. The masked man from the island stepped inside the warehouse, staring at Diana through the holes in his mask. He recognized her all right. He could sense her, track her down to this place. She furiously glared at the killer who attacked the girl she promised she would protect. Pulling her sword out, she was ready to fight once more.
But neither one of them got a chance. In another flash of red, the two have left this other planet. Nina, left on the ground, looked up at the decapitated demon on the ground. She stared at it, mouth open, gargling through the blood coming out of her mouth. Then, in an instant, she became silent.
******
The demon possessing the decaying human body approached the servant. He turned around, standing amid a pile of dead human bodies. The servant spoke first. “Have you sent him?”
“Yes.” There was annoyance in the demon’s voice. Something that he picked up on.
“I take it that you still don’t like the idea of having him involved with this.”
“He is not one of us! He was a low life piece of shit human, given powers by the dream demons, who resisted our claim to power in Hell!” He spat on the ground, the saliva hitting one of the bodies. “Not to mention he tried to kill the boy!”
The servant titled his head and looked down in thought. “The boy…yes, I suppose he still has the mental maturity of one. But I would assume there would be some level of intelligent maturity after all those years.”
The demon in the human body growled. “That cunt will ruin this for all of us once he sees the chance to do so!”
“Calm yourself.” He narrowed his eyes. “I have taken precautions. I’m sure he will feel the urge to kill once again on that planet. But I made sure he can only do it through a particular way, to ensure his safety. If he ends up back on the planet, he will grab him and they will instantly be pulled back. Of course, there is no guarantee that he will be pulled back to that planet.”
The possessed still eyed the servant, studying him and wondering what else is going through his head. “What about the woman? She will prove to be a challenge if we allow her to live much longer.”
“I agree.” Kneeling down, he reached one finger down touched the blood beneath him. Swirling his finger around, he saw the faint image of Earth. But not their Earth, another one from a different dimension. “I have picked out a planet that has a suitable warrior to fight her.”
“Not one of us?” It growled angrily. “We have killed hundreds and thousands! We will put fear in her heart before we tear her flesh from her body!”
Looking back up at the demon, he shook his head. “I saw how she handles demons on the planet they were just on. She doesn’t scare easily. But this one…” His eyes were drawn to the image in the blood. “He will make her hesitate. Hopefully long enough to finish her quickly.” Standing back up, his bare foot stepped in the blood as he got to work making a vortex.
******
She held her sword up, but she was no longer in the warehouse. Looking around, Diana found herself on top of a very large building. Looking for an edge, she lowered her sword and moved towards it. Looking over to see what was below. As she did so, she found the walking bodies of people. No…they used to be people, but not anymore. Even from this distance, she could see their flesh has lost color, cuts and wounds were all over their bodies. Ripped clothes, missing limbs on some of them, these things circling the building were not alive. Not anymore.
She heard something move, turning around and pulling her shield around and in front of her. She stared at three men all armed with heavy firearms. None of them showed any expressions as they eyed each other. One of them, feeling comfortable that they were in control, spoke to the Amazon.
“How the fuck did you get up here?”
“I can’t explain.” Diana said truthfully. “But unless you insist on killing me, I would like to come in if only for a moment to collect my thoughts before moving out.”
They all stood still. One of them lowered his gun and stepped forward. He shook his head as he met her eyes. “Lady, unless you can outrun death, you won’t be going anywhere. None of us are, not with those things out there.” She looked back once again, the oblivious undead on the roads and ground below. Her sanctuary from them, the one thing making sure they don’t get her, is also her new prison.