Wonder Woman Beyond #8

[Glippernip]

WONDER WOMAN BEYOND #8

Three’s a Crowd

Written by Dean Grey
Edited by Joel Sawyer



I’ve spent over three weeks combing this large city for any trace of her and now I’ve found it. Her scent lingers mainly around the business district and the north side of Gateway City. I know the streets she walks, the shortcuts she takes. Soon, so very soon, we’ll meet again and I can make her pay for her interference.

Because of her, Baqir Al-Asad lies in the safety of prison, outside of my reach. I could’ve clawed him away piece by piece if the new Wonder Woman hadn’t gotten in the way. When I find her, she’ll be sorry. I’m going to claw that meddling bitch apart beyond recognition.

[Glippernip]

The Nikolaos household, north side of Gateway City, CA.....

“When’s she coming back home,” Nathan Nemos asked his aunt. The 15-year-old, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, leaned his skinny body against the washing machine.

“Aphrodite was going to be gone for just a few days, dear, she’ll probably be back by tomorrow or so,” Natalie Nemos-Nikolaos explained, still in her work clothes even though she came home about an hour ago.

The average looking woman, her dark brown hair in a loose pony tail, was folding the day’s laundry and added, “It’s for the best. She’s been cooped up here for so long I think it was starting to get to her....and me quite frankly. Aphrodite showed up at my workplace almost every day last week! She’s beginning to drive me crazy. I think it’ll do us all some good if she gets out of the house for a little while.”
“Did Aphrodite say where she was going,” Nathan questioned as he helped his aunt fold some of the towels and sheets in the small laundry room.
“No, but wherever it is I hope she can just relax and enjoy the time to herself. It’s got to be hard for her Nathan. She was once a goddess literally existing among the heavens. Now as she loses her powers more and more each day she’s slowly becoming mortal.”

Nathan nodded his pretty, boyishly cute face and softly replied, “I just hope Aphrodite knows we’ll both love her whether she’s a goddess or not.”

Natalie put the last of the laundry into the basket next to the dryer and turned to Nathan. “And speaking of time to ourselves, young man, how about we go out for dinner tonight,” she asked, having put her hand on her nephew’s combed, jet-black hair.

“Dinner,” Nathan asked, his light-blue eyes lit up.

“Why not? We could both use a little break too, and it’ll give us a chance to catch up with one another,” Natalie replied. “It’s Friday, so you don’t have school tomorrow and I don’t have to go to work. What do you say?”

“Pizza, Aunt Lee?”

“You got it, dear.”

“Aunt Lee, you are so schway,” Nathan Nemos replied in his usual way, slightly hyper and a bit feminine. He dashed to his bedroom and shouted, “Let me get my coat.”

[Glippernip]

Corinth, Greece.....

Rising about 1800 feet above the surrounding plain is a monolithic rock overseeing the Grecian city. It is called the acropolis of Corinth, commonly known as the Acrocorinth. At the highest point on the immense acropolis lies the temple of Aphrodite.

The sacred temple was once a glorious monument that was visited by worshippers in Ancient Greece with offerings and sacrifice so that they may find love. On this late fall-early winter’s day, the temple of Aphrodite is in ruins. Remnants of stone flooring that poked through tall, wild grass are now the only telltale signs where the love goddess’ temple stood.

The weather here this time of year is usually quite mild, but the sun was especially bright today and beat down on the many tourists that have gathered to walk along the grounds of Aphrodite’s temple.

Among the large murmuring crowd was an unbelievably attractive woman. She had curly, bright blonde hair and eyes as blue as the sea. Her flawless, curvy figure was loosely wrapped in a long, clean, white trench coat.

The lovely woman watched the group of people as they meandered around the temple....her temple. It was Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, and she had come here hoping to be reminded of days long past when Mount Olympus existed, and she, along with the other Olympians, ruled over the people of Greece.

This was an emotional visit for Aphrodite, so she decided to make her stunning form unseen by the crowd. In today’s times no one believes in Greek gods let alone worships them. They’re considered nothing more than myth. Aphrodite’s sullen face could clearly see this as the tourists laughed, talked, and played among the ruins, completely oblivious to its rich history.

And yet, every so often a couple, here and there, brought a bouquet of flowers or small trinkets and placed them within the temple’s perimeters. People may no longer believe in Aphrodite but they still honor the things she represents, love and beauty in all its many forms. The love goddess’ mood picked up a bit and she smiled the most perfect smile. Deep down in her heart she knew as she draws closer to becoming fully human and no longer a goddess, that love will always exist in the world no matter what.

“I did not expect to find you here,” a deep voice said from behind Aphrodite.

A sharp chill raced up the love goddess’ spine. She recognized his voice instantly, yet refused to turn around. Aphrodite crossed her slender arms and her face took on an angered look.

“Why wouldn’t I be here,” the love goddess bitterly questioned, still not turning to face him. “This is one of my last temples. This is all I have left of Ancient Greece....or will you take that from me too?”

“If the Olympians never tried to stand in my way, none of this would have had to happen,” he coldly replied.

“You will not win,” Aphrodite said in a raised tone. She finally turned around to face him, her arms still crossed. Roughly ten feet away from her stood Ares, the Greek god of war.

[Glippernip]

The city streets of Gateway City.....

Natalie Nemos-Nikolaos and her nephew, Nathan, had just finished their late night supper at one of the best pizzerias in Gateway City. They spent the last two hours eating, reminiscing, and having a great time. But now, as the night rolls on, the two headed for home bundled up in their winter jackets.

Being a Friday night, the streets are filled with hover cars and more traditional cars. The holographic neon signs high above lit up the almost empty sidewalks. The chilly weather is keeping most people indoors. Natalie and Nathan cut through a series of alleyways which led right to the block Natalie’s house was on. It was in these very alleyways that Natalie Nemos-Nikolaos first found Wonder Woman’s Magic Lasso not that long ago.

Halfway through the narrow, darkened, lightly lit alleyways Natalie and Nathan heard several garbage cans slam to the ground up ahead. Startled, the pair stopped for a moment but assumed it was just a cat or something. Then both of them heard it. In the shadows, a heavy, slow breathing mixed with low growls, like that of an animal. Natalie put her arm out and braced Nathan to get back.

“I knew we’d see each other again,” a gravelly female voice said amidst the darkness.

Natalie’s dark blue eyes widened and the worry could be seen all over her average looking face. Out from the shadows she slowly walked, past stacks of old food crates and scattered trash, into the glow cast by a faint overhead light.

Her long, fluid form was completely covered in flaxen-haired fur, black spots running all over her toned body. The tuft of white fur on her throat and abdomen stood out among all the darkness. She appeared to be more animal than woman. The long, black-ringed tail behind her aggressively twitched, and the large, black nasal passages on her feline face flared as she lowly growled, “I don’t know how you’re changing your appearance, but I know it’s you. I know you’re the new Wonder Woman....the scent is exactly the same.”

“The Cheetah,” Natalie whispered to herself in disbelief.

[Glippernip]

At that moment, on the Acrocorinth, in Greece.....

Ares stood there, visible only to Aphrodite, among the unsuspecting tourists that visited what’s left of her ancient temple. His imposing, muscular form was dressed in his traditional Grecian-styled armor. Dark blue and dark violet, it covered his entire body. His detailed, horse-plumed helmet shadowed his face and only allowed his red, glowing eyes to be seen.

The midday sun shined down on the the two gods while they stared at each other for what seemed like forever. So much history between them. So much tension. Face to face, words unspoken until Ares said in his deep voice, “You are the only Olympian to still exist because I wish it to be.”

“I know,” Aphrodite softly replied, then paused. “I’m helping the new Wonder Woman.”

“I know,” Ares replied back, then paused. He slowly ogled at Aphrodite’s beautiful form dressed in a bright trench coat and added, “You....look different.”

“No thanks to you,” she angrily said, once again having crossed her arms. “With Mount Olympus gone I’m slowly becoming human.” While his dark violet cape flapped in the breeze behind him, Aphrodite gazed for long moments at the parts of Ares’ body that scarcely showed through the war god’s armor. “You....look different as well.”

Underneath his dark helmet, Ares flashed a devilish grin. “Yes, I’ve taken on a somewhat mortal form myself.”

“Why,” Aphrodite asked as her lovely voice took on a troubled tone. “What can you gain from all of this? You may have control over the Amazons but all they can do is take over a small city at best. This doesn’t seem like you.”

“You know me too well,” Ares said, still smiling at Aphrodite.

“The Amazons serve another purpose,” the war god explained. “I’m channeling all the vast power I’ve acquired and using it to reopen Doom’s Doorway. But doing so weakens me and has left my body in this demigod state.”

Aphrodite smirked her extremely attractive face and shook her head. “Nonsense. Doom’s Doorway was destroyed long ago, Ares.”

Ares’ smile widened and turned sinister. He laughed and loudly boasted, “I know....I’m using my power to reform it!”

Aphrodite’s face dropped and she became speechless.

“You see, the Amazons are meant to protect me, to be my bodyguards if you will,” Ares explained, his deep voice getting excited. “Doom’s Doorway is what I’ll use to control the world.”

“All the evils of the world exist there,” Aphrodite upsettingly said, a sense of urgency in her vibrant blue eyes. “Once they’re set free no one can stop them.”

“I know!!” Ares roared with wild laughter. “I have gained great power from the all the wars and violence on earth, but I want more!”

The war god’s mood suddenly shifted from dark joy to a growing rage. Ares aggressively pointed at the many tourists that stood around them. “These foolish mortals will worship me directly once again. They will offer sacrifice and prayers to me in return for their safety. If they do not then I will set the beasts beyond Doom’s Doorway upon them,” he explained while his red eyes burned with wrath. “I will gain followers one way or another, Aphrodite. Through war, devastation, or fear it matters not, but these mortals will worship me!”

“Ares, this is madness!” Aphrodite pleaded.

A wicked female voice interrupted the pair’s heated discussion. “I know you wanted to gain control of the Amazons, Ares, but Doom’s Doorway?....that’s news to me.”

Aphrodite stared straight ahead at her and gave the newly arrived woman an irritated look and Ares turned to the face the familiar voice. In the not so far distance was the daughter of the Titan Helios....Circe the sorceress.

[Glippernip]

The darkened alleyways of Gateway City.....

Angela Colletti and her husband, Christian, were petty criminals that thought they would make it big when they began to work for arms dealer, drug trafficker, and terrorist liaison Baqir Al-Asad. They were wrong. A deal went bad and Christian Colletti ended up dead at the hands of Asad. Angela spliced herself with concentrated cheetah DNA and went after the man that murdered her husband. Her revenge never came to fruition because the new Wonder Woman arrived and prevented it. Now Angela Colletti, as the Cheetah, is looking to repay the superheroine in the worst way imaginable.

“Aunt Lee?” Nathan Nemos nervously asked as he stood next to his aunt. He knew who the Cheetah was from the description he read about her in the newspaper several weeks back.

“Nathan, get behind me,” Natalie warned, not taking her eyes off the Cheetah.

“Aunt Lee?” Nathan asked again, unease in his voice, being transfixed on the black-spotted, pale yellow fur of the woman only 15 feet away.

“Nathan, get behind me,” Natalie loudly ordered, this time in a much more stern tone. Nathan Nemos slowly backed away off to his aunt’s right side.

“Yes, boy,” the Cheetah grinned, which exposed her pointed, bloodstained teeth, “listen to your aunt. You wouldn’t want to get hurt would you?”

“Angela, we don’t need to to do this,” Natalie softly said as she tried to calm the cheetah-like woman down.

“You know not to call me that anymore, I’m the Cheetah now!”

Natalie took a step back as the Cheetah took two steps forward.

“I need to buy some time,” Natalie thought to herself. “Maybe the Cheetah doesn’t know I only have my powers when I’m wearing Wonder Woman’s bracelets. Maybe I can bluff my way out of this.”

Natalie stood a little straighter, gestured toward the cheetah-like woman, and in as confident a voice as she could muster said, “I’m warning you, I’ve had a lot of time to practice with my powers. You wouldn’t find it so easy a fight this time.”

The Cheetah’s keen, yellow, catlike eyes narrowed in on Natalie. Her long, black-ringed tail wildly twitched from side to side and the sharp claws on her hands fully extended. “Bitch, I’m going to make you regret you ever met me,” she barked.

“I have no other choice,” Natalie thought to herself, “she’s going to strike any second. I’ll just have to take a chance and transform right now.”

[Glippernip]

As fast as she could, Natalie Nemos-Nikolaos pulled the Magic Lasso from her purse, quickly whirled it above her head, and began bringing the glowing, golden lariat’s loop down over her body. Completely enveloped in glittering, golden light, Natalie’s form started to change. Seeing this, the Cheetah let out a high-pitched, broken growl and rushed at Natalie.

“Aunt Lee!” Nathan Nemos shouted. As the Magic Lasso’s loop reached Natalie’s waist, Nathan tackled his aunt from behind and knocked them both out of the way of the Cheetah’s deadly strike. Nathan felt his dark winter jacket go to shreds at his side as the Cheetah’s claws barely missed him.

In the cramped, shadowed alleyway, the momentum of Angela Colletti’s missed attack almost caused the catlike woman to collide with the oncoming brick wall. Off to the side on the cold, slick pavement, Nathan laid on top of his aunt. The Magic Lasso had just finished reaching Natalie’s feet as the two hit the ground. Natalie’s newly changed from finished shimmering and some of the residual light that danced and sparkled seemed to dispel through Nathan who still held onto his aunt.

“I’m sorry about that Aunt Lee. The Cheetah tried to attack you when you were changing,” Nathan apologized. As the last several glints of magical light went through him, Nathan hurriedly helped his aunt up.

“It’s okay, dear. Now that I’m fully transformed and have my powers I can handle her,” Natalie assuredly replied. Her now beautiful, curvaceously tall body was dressed as Wonder Woman; golden tiara, star-spangled briefs, red white-striped boots, and all. She looked at her nephew and cautiously added, “Just stay behind me.”

Before Natalie finished her sentence a quick burst of air rushed by and her right arm stung as it was slashed twice. Another rush of air this time from the left but Wonder Woman blocked the deadly claws on the silver bracelets she wore on her wrists; the very source of the new Wonder Woman’s powers.

The Cheetah reappeared and stopped close by, as her claws dripped with Natalie’s blood. The new Wonder Woman held her cut up arm and the cheetah-like woman grinned and lowly growled, “I thought you said it wouldn’t be so easy a fight this ti -- umphh.”

In a blur of patriotic red, white, blue, and gold, a fist rammed into the Cheetah. The woman who used to be called Angela Colletti gasped and was forced back into the brick wall so hard, the wall cracked and indented where her spotted, feline form made contact.

She stood over the crumpled Cheetah’s long, lean body. Natalie still held her stinging, mangled arm, and smiled back, “Two can play at that game. I’m just as fast as you if not faster.”

The Cheetah, through visible pain, let out an angry, rumbling growl. In an instant she was gone from sight. Nothing, no sign of her at all. Then immediately, the cheetah-like woman struck from the left, the right, then the left again, seconds apart, each time her dangerous claws getting blocked on Wonder Woman’s silver bracelets.

The Cheetah once again appeared a few yards from the new Wonder Woman and stopped. Both women paused and stood their ground, each waiting for the other’s next move. Nathan Nemos, well behind his aunt, nervously watched.

“I warned you Angela, I’ve gotten much better with my abilities and can handle myself,” the new Wonder Woman confidently said, her toned arms raised and ready, her silver bracelets catching a bit of the dim lights overhead.

The Cheetah’s rib cage noticeably expanded and contracted and her deep breathing could seen in the cold night air. She flexed her clawed hands and stretched each blood-covered finger one by one. The cheetah-like woman smiled at Natalie then at the young man behind her. “You can handle yourself,” the Cheetah playfully repeated, “but what about the boy?”

In a quick burst of air, sharp claws raced past Nathan Nemos and his throat was sliced all at once.

“Nathan?!” Natalie screamed as her nephew dropped to the ground, blood beginning to spurt from his thin neck.

[Glippernip]

The Acropolis of Corinth, Greece.....

“Witch, how did you escape,” Ares yelled.

“I have survived thousands and thousands of years with my magic. Do you think your foolish tricks would hold me,” Circe haughtily replied. She was dressed in Grecian-styled, dark green robes and her hands, scantily clad body, and feet were adorned with jewelry. “But now I see why you wanted me out of the way. In your new, demigod state you can be affected by my magic, for I can turn any mortal man into any animal of my choosing.”

Aphrodite remained silent but took turns giving both Ares and Circe disgusted glances as each would talk. The many tourists that gathered on this sun-filled afternoon had no idea of the chaos going on at the moment, as three godlike beings argued among them.

Circe let out a wild laugh. Her exotic face filled with mirth, while she played with the golden necklaces and charms around her slender neck. “The Fates are truly on my side,” the sorceress exclaimed. “What shall I turn you into Ares? A horse, a pig, or the dog that you are?”

Ares’ dark, armored form immediately glowed a violent, dark red. His eyes smoldered like fire. “You’ll do no such thing, witch!” In an instant, Ares blasted Circe with direct bolt of staggering energy. Circe screamed and simultaneously dropped to the ground. Her body laid twisted and motionless underneath her dark green robes, except for her fingers which slightly twitched.

The sorceress began to quietly whisper ancient, mystical words as blood ran down her mouth. Ares stood over her pain-stricken form while his hands once again radiated a deep crimson. “Witch, I may have taken on a somewhat mortal form, but I am by no means without power. You will learn that the hard way.”

Before the war god could strike, Circe’s hushed spell had taken effect and she was instantly surrounded in dazzling light, then simply vanished elsewhere. Far, far away, on a familiar stone floor Circe manifested. She materialized on her knees and braced her disoriented, damaged body up with her arms. “Ares....you dog....I will make you pay for double crossing me. Uhh....you won’t....get away with this.....”

Circe, daughter of the Titan Helios, collapsed in the safety of her own island. Her body laid unconscious, wounded, and bleeding.

“The witch won’t get far,” Ares said enraged under his breath as he turned to Aphrodite. “I’m warning you Aphrodite, you share in her fate if you stand in my way.”

“We’ll see about that,” the love goddess challenged. “The new Wonder Woman will stop you.”

“We’ll see about that,” Ares angrily replied in a raised tone.

Aphrodite gave the war god a long, stern look, focused on her voluptuous body for a moment, then dematerialized to another place. Ares waited for a short time then walked to the spot where Aphrodite had stood and smelled the last traces of her scent. He deeply inhaled the intoxicating smells of sea foam on crashing waves mixed with fragrant blooms.

His glowing, red eyes dimmed a bit. “I gave you fair warning,” Ares whispered in his deep voice, as he also dematerialized elsewhere.

[Glippernip]

When the fight in the narrow alleyways first started, the new Wonder Woman was clearly winning over the Cheetah. Now that Nathan Nemos has been seriously maimed, Natalie’s attention is split and the woman once known as Angela Colletti now has the upper hand.

“Say goodbye to the boy while you still can,” the Cheetah smirked. Wonder Woman rushed into the cheetah-like woman and slammed her against the brick wall. Natalie pinned her sliced forearm up into the Cheetah’s neck, and eye to eye the new Wonder Woman said quite seriously, “If he dies, you die.”

On the ground, Nathan let out several faint coughs and gags as he desperately held his lacerated throat. Natalie turned and saw so much blood running from her nephew’s neck that his winter jacket and the clothes underneath were almost entirely red. The new Wonder Woman’s full chest, then her shoulders were clawed almost at the same time. Natalie fought through the searing pain as best she could. Wonder Woman cocked her arm back ready to land a punch but was stopped from behind by the Cheetah’s long tail which tightly coiled around the superheroine’s arm.

Nathan, trying so hard to stay conscious, let out several more coughs. Natalie turned to her nephew then to the Cheetah. “I’ve got to get her out of here,” Natalie thought to herself, still entwined with the Cheetah’s constricting tail. “I’ve got to help Nathan, now, before he bleeds to death.”

The new Wonder Woman swiftly took Angela Colletti’s head in her hands and forcefully slammed it into the brick wall immediately behind her....once, twice, three times. This seemed to work as the Cheetah became quite dazed. Wonder Woman grabbed the cheetah-like woman by the white tuft of fur on her upper abdomen, arched back her own, tall body, and with great strength threw the Cheetah high into the air.

Like a thrown baseball, the Cheetah arced up and away for miles and miles while she screamed the whole distance. As the new Wonder woman watched the flailing cheetah-like woman literally disappear from sight, Natalie sarcastically said under her breath, “Let’s see you land on your feet from that fall.”

Natalie then immediately rushed to her nephew’s aid, who was now keeled over on the the bloodied pavement.

“Nathan,” she asked, clearly panicked. Natalie carefully propped him up and saw the deep cuts on his neck. She almost couldn’t look. She could actually see bone underneath the tattered flesh. Natalie applied pressure to her nephew’s throat to help stop the rapid bleeding.

“Nathan?!” she asked again almost shouting. But Nathan’s light-blue eyes had rolled back into his head and he was unresponsive. His skinny body was getting colder and colder and he became limp and quite still.

“Nathan!?!”

...............To be continued.