Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

The Wayne Legacy: Rise

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 15:

Wayne Manor

Bruce had packed the katana in its box and put on the necklace Talia had given him. Despite their differences, he knew Talia would never give him anything that would hurt him.

Talia and Diana had confirmed that black magic was present in Gotham. If there was some source of black magic, he knew it was highly probable it would find its way to his twin, the only magical being in Gotham City as far as he knew.

Bruce had considered calling his British acquaintance but dismissed the idea, considering it only as a last resort because John Constantine tended to cause more trouble than he solved.

Of all the colorful characters Bruce had run across during his time with the League of Shadows, Constantine was perhaps the most powerful he had met, also the most dangerous. He was possibly suicidal, an alcoholic who used his powers as he wished without any regard to the consequences.

Talia found him amusing. Bruce did not.

Before he could straighten up the residence for Diana’s visit, his phone rang. To his surprise, it was his twin.

He instantly became alert, and his stomach seemed to sink as a chill swept through his body. Diana would not have called back so soon unless there was a problem. She was never one to pick up the phone and chat.

“What happened?” he asked, hearing the background and deducing Diana was in a helicopter.

“Bruce, a woman appeared in my office. She literally appeared and disappeared in front of me. She is a witch of some sort and has made Kara sick. We are taking her to the isolation chamber at the manor now. Eliza is already en route.”

Bruce felt dread at the news but even more dread at Diana’s tone of voice. She was afraid and bordering on hysteria. He had only heard this a few times in his life and every one revolved around Kara being seriously ill.

“Diana… what do you need me to do?” He asked.

“Come to the manor. Bring your newly acquired items, Bruce. I’m not sure what to do but if she could reach Kara in the Tower, the manor won’t be secure either. Bring the magic sword and help me defend her. Just please hurry!” She exclaimed, obviously distraught.

“I’m leaving now.” Bruce assured her and hung up, grabbing the long wooden crate. On his way to the front door, he stopped by his bedroom, opening the secure closet and grabbing his special suit. He had no idea what he was going to face but if it involved someone as dangerous as Diana described, Bruce wanted to be as prepared as he was able.

He pushed his Benz to the limit, taking curves at ninety miles an hour and nearly two hundred miles an hour on straightaways.

He was stopped at the manor’s main gate by the regular armed guards that usually screened visitors but unlike the last time he was here, Bruce was not waved through. The men seemed tense, and Bruce noticed other guards rushing around the bricked walls of the estate.

“I need to get through.” Bruce told the guard who had approached; a younger man, most likely former military judging by how confidently he carried the assault rifle in his hands.

“The manor is on lockdown.” The man said, as if that explained everything.

“You know who I am.” Bruce argued. “Get out of my way.”

The young man nodded. “I do know who you are, Mr. Wayne, but the last time we let you in, you stole Kara’s plane and caused quite a bit of trouble for us. She was not happy meaning Diana was not happy. Diana said we weren’t to let you in if Kara was home and she is due to land in forty-five seconds.”

Bruce thought of fighting his way through. It would be quite simple to do but harder to explain later on. “Call Alfred or Diana. My sister asked me here.”

The guard looked at the one in the booth and shrugged his shoulders. The man in the guardhouse took a radio.

“Main gate to Spartan. Drifter is requesting access to the manor. Mechanic is about to land, and we are in level one lockdown. Request instructions.”

“This is Nike, code 0804KEW, let him in. Deny all other access. Permission to use deadly force if necessary.” Bruce heard Diana’s voice on the other end.

If it weren’t for the situation, he would have rolled his eyes. Kara’s security call sign had been Mechanic since she was six-years-old. Leave it to Diana to name herself after the goddess of victory. The code was Kara’s birthday and initials.

As he pulled up to the front of the manor, a helicopter was landing behind the house and there was one in the distance, moving rapidly.

When he reached the front door, it was opened by a pale and worried Alfred, who looked relieved to see him for the first time since he had returned to Gotham.

“Steve, John and Diana have just landed with Kara. Eliza is right behind them.” Alfred told him with no preamble.

The two men raced to the back of the manor and watched the occupants of the first chopper disembark as quickly as possible. Diana stepped out first, followed by John Diggle who had Kara in his arms, then Steve Trevor. As soon as they were clear, the chopper took off to make room for the one hovering not far away containing Eliza.

Diana entered the house with an unfamiliar look on her face. Bruce hadn’t seen it often, but he recognized it. It was the look she reserved when Kara had become extremely sick in the past… one of absolute horror.

Diana and Dig preceded the others to the elevator with Kara, leaving the other three to wait because there wasn’t room for all of them.

Once they were all in the basement, Bruce finally got a good look at Kara. She met his eyes but had no reaction. She was pale and sweating, her face wet and her hair soaked. She was shivering, her arms wrapped around herself. Bruce had only seen her like this once. Her major illnesses usually crept up on her: a sneeze, a sore throat, a low grade fever that after several hours got progressively worse.

But this was very different. This had deliberate evil written all over it.

Once Kara and Diana were settled in the isolation room, the men turned around so Diana could help her sister out of her drenched clothes into a gown.

Kara took a deep breath as Diana placed a blanket on her, one that emitted cold, designed to bring her body temperature down quickly without the need for ice packs.

“Ahh! I hate this!” Kara yelled, her voice breaking. “Di, what’s wrong? I was feeling good, I swear I was! I didn’t have a cough or anything! What did I do wrong?!”

Kara eyes were filled with pain as she cried out to her sister, her teeth chattering.

Diana laid a hand on Kara’s cheek. “Eliza will be here shortly. We will fix this. Don’t worry, Sweetie. I know it hurts but we will get through this.”

Eliza raced in from the elevator and suited up quickly, entering the room, and strapping instruments to Kara, beginning an IV and hanging fluid, checking her body temperature and taking blood samples.

“I think she may have been poisoned.” Diana whispered to Eliza.

Elia looked sharply at her. “This has the symptoms of an aggressive virus, not poison… unless a virus was released into the air vents or perhaps introduced to her by a drink? Did the bacteria alerts pick up anything? Where was she?”

“She was in her office…” Diana answered, before she elaborated, knowing Eliza needed all the information she could get. “Eliza, a woman came to my office, a woman who was from the place I was born. She literally appeared and disappeared in front of my eyes, and I have no idea how. She could have been invisible for all I know. She threatened Kara if I didn’t do something for her and then left. Dig called me not a minute after that saying Kara had begun running a fever.”

An alert sounded on the machine Eliza had placed Kara’s blood sample in. Eliza took a memory card from the device and plugged it into the computer.

“Magic, huh?” Eliza replied, then shook her head. “This isn’t magic, Diana. This is biological. Whatever has happened, it is ravaging her T cells. I’m going to start her on antibiotics but… whoever this woman is, she did something that had nothing to do with magic. This looks like a strain of meningococcemia transmitted through liquid. Did this woman have any contact with Kara?”

Diana shrugged her shoulders. “She claimed to be a witch or goddess, said some outlandish things about where I was born, told me I was a goddess and my ‘celestial light’ had kept Kara alive all these years.”

Their quiet conversation was cut short when Kara twisted from the bed to vomit on the floor.

“Kara!” Diana rushed to her side and helped her straighten back onto the bed, tucking the cold blanket around her.

Eliza patted Diana for her to move out of the way. “I need to start antibiotics and I’m going to need to… I may need to do an experimental treatment I have never tried before to keep her alive.”

Diana nodded. “Do whatever you must.”

“I don’t suppose you have any way of getting in touch with this… witch and forcing her to tell you exactly what virus she exposed Kara to?” Eliza asked as she continued to setup the IVs to administer the antibiotics and other medications.

“I will find her. Can you treat this? What is this experimental treatment you speak of?” Diana asked, her voice breaking.

“It would mean giving her stem cell treatments while she is receiving antibiotics to treat a current virus. Remember when we found her, we had to treat her with medication to beat the virus and then we gave her a bone marrow transplant. This would be giving her stem cell treatment therapy while she is fighting a virus.” Eliza answered without slowing any of the procedures she was doing. “I have worked on it for years as a last option and I mean that. It should only be used as a last option. It is a fine line we would be walking, and I have no guarantee that it will work. In theory, it should, but this is Kara, not some bacteria and blood samples under a microscope.”

Diana looked at her pale sister. She could tell Kara was frightened and about to vomit again. The older sister rushed to her and helped her lean over the side to keep the bed clean.

“Diana?” Kara whispered, voice shaking, eyes glazed.

“Yes, Sweetie?”

“I’m seeing things. I thought I saw Bruce here. Has he come to say goodbye?” She asked softly as Diana helped her settle back on the bed.

Diana shook her head. “He has come to help me. I need to talk to him for a minute. I will be right back. Eliza will give you a bucket if you feel nauseated again.”

“I think I see Mom.” Kara told her, a smile on her face, then shook her head.

Diana felt a chill sweep over her. She had only seen Kara hallucinate through two illnesses in her life and both were when she came closest to dying.

“What’s going on?” Kara asked Diana once again, her eyes a little clearer, seemingly aware of her surroundings now.

Diana kissed her on her hot forehead, promising she would be right back and reluctantly walked out. She didn’t want to leave Kara but knew she needed to find this witch and force the truth out of her.

She found Bruce, Steve, Alfred and Dig standing quietly in a circle.

“What’s the word?” Steve asked immediately.

“Not good. Dig, could you do me a huge favor? In Kara’s room, there is a white dresser in her closet. Inside the top drawer is a stuffed giraffe. She used to hold it when she was very young and sick. Since she has grown, she still keeps it as a good luck charm. It needs to be in the room with her. Would you retrieve it for me?”

Dig nodded. “Of course, Diana.”

Once Dig was gone, Diana got to the point. She began telling the men what had happened when Bruce interrupted her.

“Maybe Steve should go retrieve something?” he suggested.

Diana scowled at her brother. “Steve knows everything. Did you think I would agree to marry him without telling him my secrets?”

“Just your secrets?” Bruce asked, a frown on his face.

Steve snorted. “I know you dress like a freak and jump on roofs at night, fighting criminals instead of calling the police. I don’t want that getting out any more than you do for Diana’s sake, so relax.”

Bruce took a deep breath. “That wasn’t your secret to tell, Diana.”

Diana took a deep breath to hold in her rage. “I don’t remember us pinky swearing on it. I told you I wouldn’t turn you into the police. I will tell what I want, to whoever the hell I want. If you don’t want it getting out then maybe…”

Alfred cleared his throat. “John will only take so long, so can we get to the point?”

Diana rolled her shoulders, forcing herself to calm down. She was furious but taking it out on the first available target would do no good.

Diana explained all that had happened in her office, what the woman had said and what Eliza’s diagnosis was. “She tells me I am a goddess who has beaten fate by keeping Kara alive all these years with my celestial light. She may have power, but she seems nuts.”

“A goddess?” Bruce mumbled. “Actually, that would explain a lot.”

Diana looked sharply at him, and he shrugged. She sighed and asked, “Did you bring your weapons?”

“They are in my car out front.” He replied.

“Get them and meet me around back. I’m going to grab my sword before Dig gets back. Alfred, hold my lasso but stay inside. I’ll let you know if I need it.”

“I’ll grab a gun, or six.” Steve offered.

Diana placed a hand on his shoulder. “Steve, you have to stay with Kara. She is frightened. Until I know what is going on, I need you here.”

“Let Bruce stay, and I will use whatever weapons he has.”

“The hell you will. Stay here and protect my sister, Captain Trevor.” Bruce growled.

Steve stepped up to Bruce, but Diana moved between the two. “Please, Steve. I am asking you to stay with Kara. I will find out what I need to know and be back here.

“Alfred, order the guards to the walls. I want us left alone in the back.”

“How will you get her here?” Alfred asked.

“She wants me. She isn’t far.” Diana told him.

Bruce ran to the elevator to get his weapons from his car while Diana retrieved her sword and lasso from the vault, tossing the rope to Alfred who was waiting by the returning elevator door. The two hurried upstairs and once on the ground floor, Diana moved quickly, making it around to the back before Dig made his way down the stairs.

Alfred hid the lasso behind his back and motioned Dig to the elevator, asking him to stay downstairs by Kara’s side.

Bruce and Diana met in the back, Bruce wearing a green stone around his neck and a katana in his hand.

“What is special about that katana?” Diana asked him.

“It’s called Soultaker. It traps the souls of those it kills in its blade.” He responded, his tone flat as he looked around, on high alert.

Diana nodded, liking the sound of that. “I could have made use of that in the past. If I give the word, kill the bitch with it.”

“We need her alive, Diana.” Bruce told her.

His twin nodded. “For now.”

“Face me, Witch!” Diana screamed as soon as she stepped onto the back lawn of the manor. The area had been cleared of security, and only Bruce was beside her. They looked like casual young adults, Diana in her elegant pantsuit and Bruce in black jeans and a white t-shirt.

The only difference between the twins and other young adults were the swords in their hands, Diana carrying her broadsword and Bruce wielding a deadly katana.

Nothing happened, irritating Diana greatly. “I know you are watching. I can sense your presence. You want to speak to me, then speak. Every second you waste is another torture I will inflict on you!”

“Remember we need her alive.” Bruce whispered, feeling the need to remind her again.

The air in front of them shimmered and there she was, the witch from Diana’s office who called herself Hecate.

“Before you have any ideas of using that sword, I would remind you that I am the only one who can take you where you need to go to save your sister.” She said confidently, a smug expression on her face.

It made the witch’s scream all that much more satisfying when Diana thrust her sword into her thigh, exiting the back of her leg and into the ground, effectively pinning her in place.

Diana grabbed the woman’s chin and forced her to meet her eyes. All of Hecate’s bravado was gone, the witch was now terrified.

“I may need you alive, but I don’t need you in one piece. Remember you need my sister alive to not meet the same fate.” The enraged woman whispered to the witch. “If she dies, you will be struck down by my brother’s sword. Do you recognize it? Can you feel it? Once you are dead there will be no returning to Hades for you, not even as a dead soul. You will be trapped in that blade for all eternity.”

Bruce laid the tip of the blade even with Hecate’s throat. The witch swallowed in terror as she felt its dark power, yearning for her soul.

“We have nothing to lose.” Bruce told her, his voice low. “My little sister is dying and if she does, you will go with her. You have signed your own death warrant and will be sent to your own personal hell until the end of days.”

The witch shook her head, trying not to shake and gain some semblance of control in this situation. “You wouldn’t dare. Take your blades from me…”

Hecate screamed again, loud enough that her voice hurt Bruce’s ears. Diana had removed her sword, only to pierce it into the witch’s right side, just underneath her ribs.

“So far I have avoided vital areas, I can do this indefinitely, keep you alive until I grant the mercy of death and I am not merciful.” Diana warned her. “Your magic has no power over us, or you would have used it by now.

“Tell me what you did to Kara and reverse it, or the torture has just begun.”

The woman hesitated and Diana twisted the sword still buried in her. Hecate screamed, her legs going out from under her as she fell to her knees, Diana’s sword now tearing at vital organs as the witch collapsed.

“Bruce, use your sword and cut her throat… trap her soul.” Diana ordered. “We will find a cure ourselves.”

Bruce ran the blade across her throat drawing the slightest amount of blood and Hecate raised her hands, pleading for him to stop and trying to move her throat away from the blade.

“Speak bitch, NOW!” Diana ordered.

“I exposed her to a virus, not airborne but liquid, slipped in her green tea, a strain from the Amazon rainforest. I thought it was appropriate.” The broken woman replied hastily.

“Why? She has nothing to do with this!” Diana shrieked.

“I want my land back! I want my home back, my family back! You are the only one capable of defeating Cronus and I thought you may need some encouragement. She is your only weakness and I used it!” Hecate answered back angrily.

“She is now your weakness.” Diana told her. “Cure her.”

“I can’t!” the witch replied, tears streaming down her face.

“Alfred!” Diana yelled.

Alfred hurriedly walked out of the house, carrying the golden lasso. He placed it in Diana’s free hand, and it was quickly wrapped around Hecate’s shoulders three times, binding her upper body and glowing as bright as the sun. Satisfied the woman was restrained, Diana removed her sword, blood spilling from the wound and dripping from the instrument of death.

“Please… let me lie down.” The red-headed woman begged quietly.

Diana pulled her straighter, leaving Hecate hanging from the lasso directly in front of the enraged brunette. “My sister is vomiting, feverish, hallucinating. You haven’t begun to feel the pain I will inflict on you. The truth now. Can you heal her?”

“No!”

“Tell me the truth!” Diana hissed.

“I cannot lie. It is pitiful that you do not know this. Do you know whose sword you carry? Do you know who gifted the Amazons with that lasso?” Hecate replied, gasping in pain.

“Do I look like I give a damn?” Diana yelled. “You did this! You can undo it!”

“I can’t! She will die. She should have died years ago! I told you, only your celestial light, your divine essence, has kept her alive! It won’t be enough this time.”

Diana shook her head and squeezed the lasso tighter, making the woman’s wounds bleed more. “You know if she dies, you die. You would not have done this unless there is a way to cure her. A woman who wants her home back but is too much of a coward to fight herself has more self-preservation instincts than that.”

Hecate smiled grimly. “Home is the only chance. I told you the Moirai, those the world of men call the three Fates… only they can heal her. Only they can change her fate now. They are being held in Tartarus with the gods of Olympus and the rest of your people, including their queen… your mother. Fight your way into the underworld, free them and kill Cronus and they may grant this to you.”

“They will, or you are dead. There is no where you can go, no where you can hide from me.” Diana’s eyes were flashing, her rage showing in every nuance of expression. “After I do this, I am coming for you. I will use the sword my brother holds and trap your soul. You have damned yourself for eternity by threatening and assaulting my heart.”

Hecate coughed and spit blood on the ground. “Yes, I realize this, but it is worth the risk. You are the only one who can defeat Cronus. I suspect once we have what we both want, you will never step foot in my realm again.

“You need me to get to Themyscira where lies the tunnel from the underworld that Cronus dug to attack your people and the gods after your birth.”

“Themyscira is on another plane of existence?” Bruce asked.

Hecate shook her head. “It is on Earth but impossible to find. It is hidden by Zeus’s magic from the eyes of man. You will never find it nor reach it in time. I am the keeper of the gateways between the realms. Only I can send you there and bring you back here. You need me alive.

“Once you have returned, you are more than welcome to waste your time finding the island and chasing me into the Underworld, but you won’t.”

Bruce and Diana stared at the woman for a moment then at each other. They knew what they had to do. The witch had them where she wanted them. They could torture her for days, but Kara would die during that time.

Faced with Kara’s death, knowing Diana would have to fight a being that could possibly kill her, Bruce wondered if it would not be easier to run through Nanda Parbat and take possession of the Lazarus Pit. The idea of Kara being exposed frightened him, but the idea of losing both his sisters was more frightening.

The problem with the pit though was he didn’t want to do that to Kara. If Diana understood, she would not want to either, unless it was the only option.

Was it worth the risk though? Yes, Kara would be changed but she wouldn’t necessarily be evil. She would still be Kara, just touched by darkness… how much darkness would be the question.

Would she be like Talia, or worse? Could she be better and stay the same beacon of hope and happiness she always had been for the twins?

“What will we face there?” Bruce asked the witch, trying to get more information.

Hecate shrugged her shoulders. “I cannot be certain. I left as the war was still waging but the tide had turned against the Amazons and the gods. There were hundreds of cyclops, but many fell to Amazon swords. Cronus used his fellow Titans to weaken the gods before he subdued them in chains.

“When I left, I believe the Titans were dead, along with several gods. Many Amazons still lived, unconscious or incapacitated. The chains Cronus used were some dark magic I didn’t know, no doubt forged in the fires beneath Tartarus. You will have to fight your way to the center of Themyscira to the palace and locate the tunnel where Cronus first rose after your birth.

“He had minotaurs alongside of him, perhaps a hundred but I saw Ares and Artemis attacking and slaying many. He also had legendary monsters in great numbers, every one that had been cursed by the gods and abandoned, came to Cronus’s aid. Despite those numbers, the battle was even but eventually the defenders fell. Cronus has all the gods, with the exception of Poseidon, imprisoned.

“He wants you as well, Diana.

“He knows of the demigoddess, the one so gifted with the strength of all the gods, the ultimate weapon… the godkiller. He wants you in his cell, where he was kept for eons.

“He has never feared anyone, yet he fears you.

“Fighting your way to the palace will not be difficult. Most of his army stays close to him but there will be some on Themyscira. Once you reach the Underworld, the real battle begins.”

Diana and Bruce listened closely to the woman, not liking the idea of going in so blindly but realizing they probably wouldn’t have a choice.

“How do you know they lost, if you left in the middle of the battle?” Diana asked.

“I snuck back in, visited the Underworld afterward and saw Hades in chains in Tartarus. The gods and the remains of the Amazon nation were in chains as well. Cronus saw me though, and I barely escaped.”

Diana shook her head then swung, striking the woman on the head with a large crack, sending her to the ground.

Bruce looked at the red head on the ground bleeding from her leg and side, her dark dress in tatters and her hair wild. She certainly did not look like a fearsome witch now.

“Diana, a word in private.”

Diana left the woman bound on the ground and walked six feet away with Bruce.

“I don’t have a choice.” Diana said, hoping to halt any objection he might have.

“You might.” Bruce told her, resigning himself.

Diana raised an eyebrow, waiting for more.

“I know of a place, a pit of water that could possibly heal Kara… for a price.” He told her.

Diana’s eyes widened. She wanted to scream at him for not telling her this sooner but at the moment she was too excited. “Whatever the price, I will pay it.”

“The price is her soul.” Bruce said bluntly.

Diana stiffened hearing that, her eyes narrowed as she argued, “Whoever owns this pit can have my soul, or I can simply take it from them.”

Bruce shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that, Diana. These waters can heal but the greater the injury the more of its power it takes. It can even raise the dead but what returns is not… human… at least as human as they were before.

“We would need to journey to the Himalayas. With the extent of her illness and the time we have left, I doubt she would survive. It would be her dead body that was resurrected. Physically, she would live but her soul would be warped, twisted beyond recognition. It may not even be her soul that emerges.”

Diana was silent for a moment, taking this all in.

“I never wanted to tell you this.” Bruce continued softly, though obviously upset. “I would never have told you this if there was any other way. I never wanted that type of existence for Kara.

“But what Hecate is proposing… it’s dangerous. I have no problem with the danger. I’ve always said I would walk through hell by your side, and it sounds like that is what we are going to do. But if we fail, Kara dies. There is no coming back for any of us. It’s your decision, Diana. I would beg you not to use the pit but… it is your call.”

Diana nodded, closing her eyes, deep in thought. Going to the place she was born, where others like her had resided, where monsters of legend now roamed, was extremely dangerous. If they failed, at least she wouldn’t have to live without Kara, because they would both be gone from this world.

She was saddened knowing Kara would never get to experience all she wanted. She would never go to Paris, or the pyramids, or London. She would never go walk the Amazon rainforest, never see the Carnival in Rio or visit New Orleans during Mardi Gras. She would never see the Grand Canyon.

She would never have a pet like she wanted growing up. She would never play in the snow.

And Diana wouldn’t be by her side as she experienced the world through Kara’s eyes.

Diana also knew Bruce wouldn’t lie to her, despite their differences. She wouldn’t, she couldn’t risk Kara’s light, her soul.

The answer was simple. Diana would do what she always did… win.

In the past when Kara was deathly ill, all she could do was watch and pray. This time was different.

Opening her eyes, she looked at her brother’s expectant face. “I don’t want to risk her soul. I told her when she was little, I would fight the sun in the sky for her. Nothing has changed.

“So the two of us, against a host of monsters and the most vicious god in mythology… I don’t suppose you would take a gun.”

Bruce shook his head. “Diana, I couldn’t make myself fire a gun. I’m sorry but I would freeze.”

Diana suspected as much. “How many of those metal bats can you carry on your suit?”

“Thirty, plus eight grenades, a grappling pistol with a very sharp end, and a few other tricks. Not enough to take down an army. I suspect this katana is my best option.”

Diana was not surprised. “I’ve never seen you with a katana. How good are you?”

“Very good.” Bruce told her.

“And will you kill?” She asked him, her eyes intent.

“Monsters who have attacked my twin sister, gods who wish to prevent us from saving our light? I’ll bathe in their blood.” Bruce promised with no hesitation.

Diana nodded. “Two swords, a shield and a lasso against possibly an army of monsters. I wonder how many grenades and guns I can carry. I’ve never fought anything that could be as strong as I am, much less, multiple enemies. I don’t want to be unprepared.”

“You won’t be.” John Diggle’s voice came out of the darkness.

Jumping back, they turned quickly as Dig walked up behind the two. They were shocked, not having heard him and both trying to think of excuses for the bleeding woman on the ground.

“I’m guessing it is very hard to sneak up on you two.” Diggle pointed out. “Considering the conversation and the bleeding woman on the ground, I’m not surprised your minds are elsewhere.”

The twins looked at the man, not knowing how much he had heard and kicking themselves for not paying more attention.

Seeing they were still stunned by his presence, he explained. “Kara asked me to come get you, Diana. When I saw a woman appear out of thin air and you proceeded to stab her through the leg, I thought I should pay attention. Alfred didn’t seem to mind me watching since he walked by me with a golden rope that started glowing in your hands. I’m guessing that’s grandma’s rope, huh?”

The twins looked toward Alfred who appeared unapologetic. “Kara’s life is at stake. You need help. Secrets aren’t important right now. Besides, he signed a non-disclosure agreement and who would believe this anyway?”

Diana studied Dig, saw the calm, but focused look on his face.

She shook her head, not wanting to risk his life. “John, this involves things…”

Dig raised his hand to stop her. “Monsters, mythological beings, gods and titans and Amazons, stuff like that? I don’t need a long explanation. Like Alfred said, I signed a non-disclosure agreement. I don’t spill secrets, Diana. I told you when you hired me, I would protect Kara with my life. I can’t do anything for her here. I won’t pretend to understand this but if there is something that can cure her, I’m going to be by your side, and we are going to get it or die trying. You may be the boss, but this isn’t up for discussion.”

Diana took a deep, shuddering breath, smiling at him thankfully. She nodded, feeling a tear slide unexpectedly down her cheek. “Thank you, Dig. Grab tac gear and all the weapons you can carry on you and in a duffle bag. Grenade launchers would be good, high capacity guns, anything you can think of that will kill something big.”

“I’ll meet you on the first floor in ten minutes.” Dig told her, racing back into the manor and up the stairs.

Diana picked the witch up off the ground and slung her over her shoulder. Hecate groaned at the pressure and jostling of her wounds, but the bleeding seemed to have stopped for the moment, probably healing as fast as Diana would.

Taking the woman still bound in the lasso to the parlor, she dumped her on the floor. Bruce handed Alfred his katana.

“If she tries anything or even starts to whisper something, cut her throat and we will find another way.” He instructed his mentor.

They realized Hecate was conscious when she laughed then coughed. “Why would I try anything? You are doing exactly what I want.”

Bruce ignored her and took his bag in front of the entrance, then proceeded down to the basement.

Diana was already in the basement by Kara’s side while Eliza examined her. Kara looked horrible, her face ashen, her hair and body still soaked with sweat.

“Diana? What did I do wrong?” she asked plaintively.

“Nothing, sweetie. This is my fault. A woman from where I was born poisoned you… there is a cure, and I am going to get it. When I return, you will never be sick again. You just have to hold on until I get back.”

“No! Where are you going?! Don’t leave me, Diana… please stay with me!” Diana’s heart broke at the pain and fear in her sister’s voice.

“I can’t help you here. You must trust me. I will return.” She said, hoping she could calm her.

“It’s dangerous, isn’t it?” Kara asked frantically. “You said a woman who came from where you were born… if she poisoned me, she must want you to do something for a cure, right? So it’s dangerous. Don’t do it for me. Just stay with me. Eliza can beat this. I just need you here. Please don’t leave me!”

“I will not let you die, my heart… not now, not ever.” Diana kissed Kara’s forehead. “Listen to Eliza, stay calm. Steve and Alfred will be here until I return. It shouldn’t take long. Try to relax and save your strength, okay?”

“Don’t tell Tommy… or Barbara or Alex.” Kara whispered, her eyes closing. “I don’t want any of them to see me like this. Tell Alfred not to tell them.”

Diana nodded and kissed Kara once more.

She stepped out of the isolation room with Eliza behind her. “A virus from South America, slipped into her drink by a madwoman. Any chance of identifying it and finding a cure?”

Eliza shook her head, her eyes red. “Diana, whatever this is, its ravaging her immune system. I wouldn’t have time to find a cure even if I did know exactly what it was. She doesn’t have much time. Her fever is 104 and her lungs are filling with fluid. Her muscles are becoming rigid. I’m going to have to place her under and intubate soon to give her any chance.”

Diana placed a hand on Eliza’s shoulder. “In the past, I could do nothing. Now I can but I need you to keep her alive. Place her on life support, a ventilator, do whatever it takes but keep her alive, Eliza. I will have a cure for her, and this will never happen again.”

Eliza looked back at Kara in the clear room and shook her head. “I can keep her alive, maybe three days. Her heart is strong, but if I have to put her on complete life support, her brain activity will cease.”

Diana shook her head. “No matter what, keep her alive even if it means using your new treatment. If I’m not back in three days, it means I am dead.

“Bruce will be with me and Dig is coming too. We will succeed. I will accept nothing less.”

Steve walked up to her, arms raised. “Wait a minute, where are you going?”

“To the land where I was born. The bitch who did this to Kara says there are three women there, the Fates, who can save her. I am going to get them and kill anyone who gets in my way. Bruce and John are coming with me.”

“I’m coming too.” Steve said immediately.

Diana placed her hands on his shoulders. “I’m sorry my love, but you can’t. You have to be here for Kara. I need you to be strong for her.

“And if we fail… the company needs you… you and Silver. The two of you will be co-owners of Wayne Enterprises. There are directions Alfred has for you in the event something ever happened to Kara and me.”

“Hell, no! If John Diggle is going, then I am too.” Steve exclaimed.

Diana shook her head. “I need you here, Steve. Please! I need to know you are here with my heart. Please protect her. She is at her weakest now. I can’t be here for her for the first time ever. It falls to you.

“I will return. Have faith in me, okay?”

Steve took a deep breath and though deeply bothered, he saw the entreaty in her eyes and now he saw uncertainty, so he nodded. “Fine, but if you don’t make it back in three days, I’m going to find some magical freaks myself and come after you.”

“I have no doubt you would.” She said, her relief apparent. “I must prepare. Time is not on our side.”

Steve watched the door to the room Diana kept her artifacts open and, as she walked in, Bruce Wayne walked out, wearing a dark, bat suit.

Steve would normally make some sort of sarcastic comment about the man’s appearance, but he just didn’t have it in him.

Everything was going to hell. Kara was fine this morning, now she was dying before his eyes. On top of that, Diana was traveling with her freak brother and Kara’s special forces bodyguard to face who knew what in a desperate attempt to save her.

And all he could do was stay here and watch helplessly.

Bruce stood by his side, watching Kara on the bed, her eyes closed but showing pain. He didn’t say a word, nor did Steve as they stood in silence.

The artifact room opened, and Steve lost his breath. When he first saw Diana’s armor, he had thought it was hot and asked her to model it for him.

He had none of those thoughts now. The armor was the same but on her, it was no longer sexy. Sexy was the farthest thing from his mind. She was breathtaking… and frightening.

Her thin body seemed fuller in the armor, her lean muscles rippled. The long bracelets that covered her forearms no longer looked like jewelry one might see at a renaissance fair. Her armor was darker than he originally thought, the blue skirt a darker shade and the red closer to blood than he had remembered.

The tiara on her head did not look like one that belonged on a princess. It was a warrior’s crown, and he could swear there were old blood stains on it.

The armored boots were surprisingly quieter than he expected but still made her presence known.

The biggest change was her face. She looked fierce, like an avenging archangel from biblical paintings, complete with the deadly sword and copper shield on her back.

She stopped near him but said nothing, instead looking at Kara. Her face fell, then hardened once more.

Steve saw a side of Diana he had never seen before. Her intense love and power, the drive to do whatever it took to protect her loved ones, especially the little blonde who carried her heart, was on full display right now and it was awe inspiring.

This was a woman who could lead armies into hell, and they would follow her gladly.

She moved to the elevator quickly, Bruce in his Halloween costume following.

Upstairs, John Diggle waited next to Alfred who was still holding the sword against the bound woman’s throat.

Dig was dressed in one of Kara’s prototype battle suits, with multiple guns attached to his legs, two assault rifles on his back and grenades and ammo around his waist. His head was covered completely in a black, form-fitting helmet, even the eyes were shaded with lenses that had multiple purposes.

He took his eyes off the bleeding woman when he heard heavy boots moving in his direction.

The sight of the cowled and caped man Dig knew to be Bruce Wayne would have left him surprised, but it was Diana Wayne’s appearance that shocked him.

This was not the polite Diana Wayne, CEO of the largest company in the world who always had a charming smile and a warm greeting for everyone she came across. This was not the sharp business woman who could outmaneuver any competitor in the world or the king maker behind many of the political decisions of multiple nations.

This was a woman out for blood who would not be denied.

Diana dragged the woman up from the floor and unwrapped her lasso. “Okay, witch, take us to Themyscira.”