//------------------------------// // In the Face of War // Story: Let Them Wonder // by Onomonopia //------------------------------// 'NO!' The roar of Hades ripped through Zod's mind, causing Zod to curse as he held a hand to his head. Sensing her chance to attack, Diana kicked with one leg and caught Zod in a very tender area. Zod wheezed as he doubled over, dropping Sunset and giving up his pressure on Diana while he staggered back. Diana was on her feet a second later and started unloading into Zod's face with rights and lefts. "Sunset, are ya alright?" Applejack called out as she and the other girls rushed over to Sunset's side, except for Dash, who was staying as far away from Zod as possible. "I'm...I'm fine," Sunset comforted her friends as they helped her back up. Sunset then turned her gaze back to the battle, where Zod had managed to gain the upper hand again against Diana. Sunset spied Diana's sword and rushed over to it, but when she reached down to grab it a hand stopped her. "What are you doing Applejack, I have to get in there and--" "And what? Get yerself killed?!" Applejack screamed at her friend. "Sunset, this is a battle between monsters! None of us can even keep up with what's happening! Ya shouldn't be anywhere near these two! None of us should! Why in the Sam Hill would ya risk yer life fer-? "Because I owe Diana my life. Now let...GO!" Sunset hurled Applejack off of her with a strength that none of the girls knew she possessed. Sunset snatched up the sword before racing back towards the battle. "We need to help her! That darned fool is gonna get herself killed!" Applejack said to the others. "Come on girls, let's-" "By all means," Zod said as he appeared before Applejack and grabbed her by the throat, then knocking the other girls to the ground with a simple wave of his free hand. "Enter then battle. Give me a reason to kill you before you could even blink." Wonder Woman appeared behind Zod a second later and managed to get the lasso around Zod's neck. And despite how strong he was, even Zod couldn't break free of its power. Wonder Woman then chopped Zods arm with her hand, forcing him to let go of the girl. "This is between us, Zod!" Wonder Woman roared as she rocketed Zod across the field faster than anyone could register, tightening her lasso around hos throat. "Answer me, Zod! Why does Hades keep sending you undead bastards here?! Why did you try to kill Sunset?!" Wonder Woman roared as she yanked on the lasso while repeatedly punching Zod in the face for good measure. "Hades wants her magic! Why did you try to kill her?!" "I do not give a damn what Hades wants! No one controls Zod!" Zod roared before reaching up and grabbing hold of Diana's arms, flinging her over his head and slamming her into the ground at his feet. He then reached up and unraveled the lasso from his throat, snarling down at it before he tossed it to the side. "But I'll kill that girl and any others you care about just to make you suffer. Just watch as you writhe before I extinguish your pathetic life." "Not on my watch, Zod. You've been killed before and I will do it again!" Wonder Woman promised before rocketing herself into Zod's gut, following with an uppercut to the jaw that staggered Zod. "Diana! Catch!" Sunset called out as she tossed the sword to Diana. Wonder Woman held out her hand and caught the blade out of the air, twirling it in her grasp before she went on the offensive. Zod was forced to duck and dodge out of the way of each sword swing, for every time he tried to retaliate Wonder Woman was ready and deflected the attempt at a comeback. Zod threw a punch at Diana's head with supersonic speeds, but a lifetime of training gave Wonder Woman the reflexes to duck the attack and retaliate with a sword swing that cleaved Zod's arm from his body. Zod howled in pain as his severed limb fell to the dirt, spewing dust from his wound just as Grundy had done before him. "Do you see, Zod? You are not alive. You are still in the grasp of Hades, no matter how hard you try to escape," Wonder Woman informed Zod, who glared down at his missing limb before glaring at Wonder Woman with crimson eyes. "Now surrender, and I promise that I will send you back to Hades as painlessly as I can." "Dear God that speed. Wait a sec, yer going to kill him?" Applejack asked from the sidelines as her friends helped her up. Wonder Woman cast a glance to see that the girls were horrified by the thought of what she was going to do. "But, yer such a good person! Why would ya-?" "Because he is not alive," Diana said loudly enough so that all in the arena could hear. "He was revived just to do the bidding of a god. He has barely any flesh and blood, as you can clearly see. All I will be doing when I slay him, is send his soul back to the dark depths from whence it came." "Empty threats, Wonder Woman," Zod spat with a crazed smile on his face. "Because how will you be able to kill me...when you're far to busy saving all of them?!" Zod then rocketed into the sky as he spoke, a laughter of pure insanity echoing over the playing field as he glared down with eyes burning like the sun. Wonder Woman realized what he was about to do and kicked off towards Zod, rocketing towards him at max speed. "Now all of you can die!" Wonder Woman came to a stop as she crossed both of her arms, preparing to deflect the blast of heat vision with her bracelets. Zod let out another cackle as he took aim...before shooting his heat vision straight up into the air. Wonder Woman had just a moment to wonder what he was doing, before she realized that his blast had removed all the clouds...and allowed the sunlight to come pouring down. "Oh Hera, help me," Wonder Woman whispered before Zod roared and hurled himself at her, driving his fist into her stomach with greater power than before. Diana spat out blood before Zod drove his knee into her face, sending her hurtling back into the ground. The entire school shook from the force of the impact, kicking up torrents of dirt and dust that blinded the petrified spectators. "Yes...bathe me in your light. Restore my strength that Hades stole from me," Zod laughed as he floated down, watching with a smile as a bloodied Wonder Woman pulled herself out of the crater her body had made, shaking with both pain and rage as she took up her blade once more. Yet before she could even take a step forward, Zod appeared beside her and drove his fist into her face. Wonder Woman was slammed back into the ground once more, where Zod began to wail on her with his single fist while a smile of malice stained his face. "Hey ugly!" Zod turned his head and reached up with his hand to catch the lasso that had been hurled at him, catching Sunset completely off guard. Zod then lightly tugged the lasso, which resulted in Sunset being yanked off her feet and right into the hand of the general. "Still interfering, child?" Zod asked before driving Sunset into the dirt next to Diana. Sunset let out a weak cough before going limp, causing Diana's eyes to go wide before she snarled up at Zod. Zod kicked her in the chest and sent her flying across the field once more, before he used his speed to appear behind her and drive her skull into the ground. 'I...can't beat him,' she realized as Zod threw another punch into her stomach. 'Gods help me, he's getting stronger with each second while I can barely...what do I do?' 'Give in, my student. You are not using your full power. Embrace my title...and end this fool's battle. If not for your sake...for hers.' Diana the gazed down at her student before turning her eyes towards the terrified expressions of every person in the stands. And then she knew what she had to do. Wonder Woman let out a roar of absolute fury before spinning around and slamming her fist into the side of Zod's head, knocking him straight to the dirt. Diana then reached down and removed both of her bracelets from her arms, tossing them to the side before reaching up with both hands. A blast of lightning descended from on high and charged her body with electricity, causing her eyes to turn a blue that mirrored the lightning, and her body began to glow with an unearthly power. But there was also something else...something every person in the stadium felt as they gazed upon Diana. For everyone watching the battle suddenly felt the urge to rise up and fight alongside Wonder Woman...to the bloody death. But Diana held up a hand when people began to rise, before she marched upon Zod. Zod sneered as he rose back up and threw a punch at Diana, but to his horror she caught his fist with one hand while the other reintroduced itself to his face. A sickening crunch could be heard as Zod staggered backwards, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Shaking the doubts from his mind he spun and unleashed his heat vision upon Wonder Woman, but the wonder shot lightning from her eyes that intercepted the blasts of heat. An explosion was generated by the two powers meeting, and it hurled the two gods away from each other. "A pretty trick, using the lightning and clouds to make yourself appear more powerful," Zod mocked with a sneer. Wonder Woman remained silent, letting the look of absolute wrath on her face speak for her. Zod then glared up at the dark clouds that had reformed overhead. "But you cannot keep me out of the sun forever. Come Wonder Woman, let us take this battle between us two to where it belongs! In the heavens!" Zod hurled himself into the sky and above the clouds as he said this. He then spun around and let his eyes glow red as he awaited Wonder Woman to burst through the cloud cover. He was so focused on awaiting her arrival that he was caught completely off guard when a boot slammed into the back of his head. "What?!" he screamed as he spun around to find Wonder Woman floating behind him, her hands soaked in blood. "How did you get here so fast?! How did I not-?" Wonder Woman cut him off by driving her fist into his face, shattering his nose while also hurling Zod across the sky. Zod righted himself in time to receive another blow to the face that nearly shattered his jaw. Zod roared in fury as he unleashed his heat vision upon Wonder Woman once more, but this time the wonder didn't bother to deflect the attack. The heat vision struck her dead in the face, but to the horror of Zod she was completely un-phased by the attack. Zod bellowed once more as he channeled all of his power into a single punch and hurled it at Wonder Woman, catching her right in the forehead. The force of the impact blasted away all of the clouds around them and shook the city below, but once again Diana didn't even budge. "How...?" Zod asked with a new emotion in his voice: fear. Wonder Woman's response was to slam the hilt of her sword onto the top of his head and stagger him. She then drove her fist into his face, shattering the sky as Zod was sent hurtling down into the earth. The whole planet shook from the impact of Zod, terrifying the spectators when they saw Zod weakly pull himself out of the fifth crater that had been made on school grounds. "How?" Zod asked in a near whisper once more as Wonder Woman floated down in front of him, her hands dripping blood as she pointed her sword at his throat. "How are you...this powerful? You were not this strong before! What are you?!" The sky seemed to blacken as Diana smiled, a smile that showed she was reveling in what was transpiring. "What am I, Zod? I am Wonder Woman," she began before she plunged her blade right into the chest of Zod. Zod let out a roar of pain before Diana lifted the blade and Zod into the air, where the black clouds overhead began to tremble with the thought of what was to come. "I am an Amazon. I am a member of the Justice League. I am a champion for all." Then her gaze darkened. "But I have become so much more. I am now fueled by conflict. I can make a nation battle with itself through my sheer presence alone. Pain, strife and destruction...now makes me far more powerful than you could ever hope to be," she whispered to Zod, whose eyes had gone wide at her words. Diana then hefted Zod over her head, demanding that the heavens unleash their divine wrath upon him. And when the skies obeyed and unleashed a bolt of Zeus down towards her, did Wonder Woman roar her true name so that all could hear: "I am Diana Prince! And I am the Goddess of WAR!" The lightning then descended upon her blade and consumed Zod within its power. "A gods power revived you and a goddess power shall destroy you." The kryptonian let out one last roar before the lightning sent from Zeus himself burned him away into nothing. Wonder Woman then roared as she stuck her blade into the ground, channeling the lightning into the earth so that its power would not hurt anyone else. All eyes from the crowd were on the figure in the center of the stadium, who was being healed from her injuries by the destruction and rage that burned within her. But then as she turned her gaze to the people who were watching, she saw that most of them had looks of rage and hatred within them. Eyes that were ready for war. "No. I am not the same god he was," Wonder Woman whispered before she flew over to where her gauntlets lay. She slid them over her forearms once more and secured them shut, letting out a sigh as she felt her godly side being sealed away once more. As her divine power was sealed away, so was the desire for war that had begun to burn within the hearts of those that were watching. But as the rage and hatred faded, the teachers and students gazed around at the field. It had been completely destroyed in the battle between the two gods, and even though none of those in the crowd had been harmed during the battle, every eye still stared at Diana with absolute terror in their eyes. But Diana ignored their gazes while she retrieved her lasso, clipping it to her side before she collapsed to her knees. She remained kneeling in silence for minutes completely undisturbed. For no one on or off the field dared to get close to the woman in armor that was soaked in blood. No one, except for a single girl. "Um...Diana?" Sunset asked in a near whisper while she approached Diana at a snail's pace, fear and trepidation racing through her mind. She had never seen Diana like that before, even at her angriest. And the expression upon her teacher's face when she declared who she was, would give Sunset a new set of nightmares to deal with. "It's...you, right? You're back, right?" For a long moment Sunset wasn't sure if it was Diana or...the goddess...that knelt on the grass before her. But then Diana turned around with the same caring and loving smile that Sunset knew all too well. Sunset sighed in relief as her legs gave out on her and she collapsed to the ground, joining Diana in gazing around at all of the destruction that had been caused. "So...you're the Goddess of War, huh?" Sunset asked after a moment of silence. "Yeah...I think I can see that." "Really?" Diana asked with a tired smile. "You see me as powerful, terrifying, and causing destruction and strife wherever I go?" Sunset then glanced once more at all of the destruction around them, at the petrified faces in the crowd, and then up at the black clouds that still had yet to vanish. "After today...yeah. Totally."