An Amazon Returns

Curia was over the skies of Queen City, having just finished meeting with her friends White Owl and Blue Blaze, and preparing to head back to the Watchtower for Justice League duty.  As she glided through the clouds, the communicator in her ear started beeping.

“Curia here,” she answered.

“Curia, my dear,” her adopted mother Queen Hippolyta, spoke on the other end.  “You are needed immediately back on Themiscyra.”

“Mother, what is it?” Curia noted the urgent tone in Hippolyta’s voice.

“I can’t say – trust me though, you need to be here now.  You’re going to want to be here for this.”

“Okay, on my way.”  Curia quickly hung up and called the Watchtower.  A familiar voice answered.

“Curia, are you running late again for Watchtower duty?”

“No, Batman,” she replied, “I just received an urgent call from Themiscyra.  My presence is needed there at once.  I’ll let you know once my business there is finished – the Queen wouldn’t say what it was all about.”

“Fine,” Bruce answered, “I’ll stay on and you can take my next shift whenever you return.”  His tone sounded disappointed and impatient.

“Thanks. Wonder Woman out.”  Curia hung up and set her sights on Paradise Island.  The whole time she was in the air, her thoughts were preoccupied with Hippolyta’s cryptic remarks.  She wondered what could be so important, and so mysterious, that she was afraid to tell her over the communicator?

About an hour later, the superheroine known to the world as Wonder Woman descended to the ground of Themiscyra, a few hundred feet from the palace.  Curia’s Amazon sisters acknowledged her arrival with waves and shouts as she made her way to the steps and up.

Some of the Amazon elders were waiting at the door as Curia entered; they accompanied her inside, and as they did, Curia whispered: “What’s this all about?”

“The Queen has been very secretive about all this, but whatever it is, it must be very important for all us Amazons,” one answered her.

Footsteps from the far end of the hall caused the collection of Amazons to go quiet.  As Queen Hippolyta entered, all of the Amazons, including Curia, fell to their knees in reverence to their monarch.

“Thank you all for coming, my Amazon daughters,” Hippolyta spoke loudly.  “Please remain on your knees, as I introduce the God of War.”

There were hushed whispers, most of them saying something along the lines of ‘Ares? What is he doing here?’  But the figure that walked into the room from behind the Queen’s throne was definitely not Ares.

It was a woman; her visage was concealed behind a large gold masked helmet with two curved horns protruding from the top.  She wore a large dark cloak covered in gray fur; beneath it was a top similar to Curia’s, adorned with a silver eagle.  Her skirt seemed to resemble a row of swords pointing downwards; her boots were made of gold, and she carried a large sword in one hand and a shield in the other.

“That’s not Ares!” a voice blurted out, and everyone turned to look for the source of the comment.
“No, Ares is dead.”  Everyone immediately turned back as the God of War spoke; her voice sounded strangely familiar to all.

Curia got to her feet, to the shock of her Amazon sisters, and strode forward.  “I don’t know who you are, or how you killed Ares, but the God of War is not welcome on Themiscyra.  We are a peaceful race and we intend to remain that.  Whatever your intentions, know that I and my sisters are ready to stand against you.”  Her tone was firm and forceful, without a hint of nerves.

“Wonder Woman,” the God of War replied.  “I see your reputation is well deserved.  You are an honor to the Amazon race.”  She paused for a moment.  “Do not assume that I am like Ares.  My intentions are not to bring war to Themiscyra.”

“If that is true,” Curia retorted, “then remove your helmet, and state your intentions clearly so that we may know who you are and why you have come.”

“Curia!” Hippolyta admonished.  “How dare you speak to an Olympian in such a fashion!”

“It’s alright, Hippolyta.  Curia has a right to know, as do all of the Amazons.  After all, that’s the reason why I came here.”  She sat her sword and shield on the floor beneath her, then her hands went to her helmet, lifting it off slowly.  As she did, her raven hair cascaded down to her shoulders.

“Diana!” Curia exclaimed.  “How in Hera’s name…” She dropped to her knees again, looking up in disbelief at the woman towering over her.  “This can’t be…you’re dead…I found your body, I brought you back here, we had a ceremony.” Her face was white with shock.

All of the Amazons wore the same incredulous expression as Curia.  Diana reached down and tapped Curia on the shoulder.

“Stand, my sister.  Come with me; we have much to discuss.”  Diana turned to her mother.  “You will explain to the rest of the Amazons?”

“I will,” the Queen responded.  Diana picked her items back up and motioned to Curia, and the two walked out the back of the throne room, down a corridor and into a private, unoccupied room.  Once the door closed behind them, the two women embraced; as they hugged, tears streamed down Curia’s face.

“Please, please, tell me this is real, that you’re truly alive,” Curia begged, unable to control the flow of tears.

“It’s real.  Please, sit with me, sister.  I have so much to tell you.”  Diana moved to a nearby sofa, as Curia followed to sit next to her.  “First, I must apologize for putting you and the other Amazons through so much grief.  There were so many times I wanted to come to you, find you, and tell you what was happening.”

“So Warqueen didn’t kill you after all?”

“In a physical sense, yes, she did.  That body – the same body that was recovered by Faust – was killed, murdered without a thought by that alien.  In that instant, my spirit was transported to Hades, and my journey back began.”

“How long have you been back?”

“A couple of years – but most of that time I was busy with Olympus-type stuff.  It turns out that I wasn’t really made from clay – Zeus is my father.  And a powerful threat to Olympus asserted itself, and in that conflict I was forced to kill Ares and thus assumed his position as the God of War.”

“Wow,” Curia breathed.  “So, does this mean you’re back now? As Wonder Woman?”

“No.  YOU, Curia, are Wonder Woman, and nothing is changing.  Olympus demands my primary attention these days.  But that doesn’t mean I can’t be here if you need me.  I’ve been watching you, watching you grow as an Amazon, as a heroine, and I must say that I’m proud and pleased with what I’ve seen.  I was watching the Amazon Odyssey from Olympus with the rest of the gods.  What you pulled off then – I don’t know if I would have done as well as you did.  You are truly worthy of the title of Wonder Woman, Curia.”

“How can you be the God of War? I know you – you eschew violence, except as a last resort.  You can’t be the one responsible for worldwide conflict, it’s just not you!”

“Just because I am the God of War doesn’t mean I have to be like Ares.  As a matter of fact, if it were up to me, I would be known as the God of Peace and Justice.  ‘God of War’ is a title, just like ‘Wonder Woman’ is.  Who I am is what matters, same as you.  If it’s up to me, there will be less and less worldwide conflict.  But that’s my battle.  Just because I carry a sword doesn’t mean I have to use it.”

“I know I will have a lot more questions.  Right now I can only think of one – how can I help you, Diana, God of War?”

“By continuing to be who you are, Curia, Wonder Woman.  You are much wiser than you were when I first met you; you have learned from your failures, and built on your successes.  You have learned to work with others, much better than I ever did.  Your friends – Tania, Chryseis, and Athena in particular – are powerful allies, and I’ve seen what the four of you can accomplish together, it’s remarkable.  And I’ve watched you stand up to the men of the League, much better than I did.  I know you will continue to be not just a fine representative of the Amazons, but for women.”

“Is the world to know of your return? Or the League?”

“That remains to be seen.  I think the world as we know it would be better off not knowing of the existence of a God of War.  And as far as the League is concerned, I think one Amazon is all they can handle.” She smiled.  “I can’t stay much longer, but I will be in touch often.  And if you need me, I’ll feel your thoughts and help if I’m able.”

“The day I heard you were dead was the worst day of my life, Diana.  Today might just be the happiest.”  Curia embraced her mentor and friend once more.  “Your secret is safe with me as long as you wish, Diana.”

“I know it is.  That’s one thing you were always quite good at – keeping secrets.  Maybe a day will come when they won’t need to be kept.” Diana finally let go of the embrace.  “Save your other questions, and I promise I’ll answer them the next time we meet.”

Curia watched as Diana walked out of the room.  In that instant, a huge weight was lifted.  She had been living in Diana’s shadow for so long, she had forgotten what it was like before; and hearing her mentor’s appraisal of her own accomplishments felt like a complete confirmation that she had really made it, that she truly was worthy of being Wonder Woman after all!