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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:44:29 GMT -5
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:45:22 GMT -5
Wonder Woman
Issue #15: “Genesis” Part One
Written by Jayson Morriseau-Lussier
Cover by Roy Flinchum
Edited by John Elbe |
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:46:15 GMT -5
Diana of Themyscira was deep in thought. The past few weeks had been trying on her. The waves were crashing against the shores of the nation of her birth. She stood up as the wind whipped through her raven black hair.
The battle had left her battered but not defeated. She was nearly invincible much like Kal-El, but she had learned that ‘Man’s World’ was violent and cruel and often times, that’s what took its toll on her the most. She stood sentry as she watched the waves continue to come ashore…
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:47:03 GMT -5
Three Months Ago…
There was so much going on in the office that Harry Doyle seemed to be going out of his mind. “Will someone please tell me that they completed the Chasworth file?!” He hollered over the officer chatter.
“Diana was working that file, Harry.”
He clenched his fists as he nodded. “Okay fine… Where is she?” He looked around.
“She’s out in the field.” Cindy Angelosi looked at him as she pushed back a lock of brown hair out of her face.
“Where?” He seemed to calm down some
“Europe.”
“Why in the hell?!”
“She’s following a lead by the FBI.” She continued.
“Damn it.” He grumbled, but he knew that he didn’t have a leg to stand on because it was department policy to follow directives from the CIA and FBI. He just hated to have someone going over his head.
“There are some rogue meta-human activities that she’s following up on.” The phone rang and Cindy sat down at the desk to answer it. “Hello? Oh, well we were just talking about you Diana, where are you exactly?”
Harry tapped his foot. “Let me talk to her.”
“Just a minute, Harry.” She put her finger up to silence him. “I see, well make sure you get back here safely. Harry is going to blow a gasket if you don’t.” She laughed and nodded with a smile. “Thank you too, Diana. Mmm bye.”
Harry looked at her. “Where is she?”
“Greece, she’s following up on a lead there.”
“Greece.” He put his hand to his face as he looked at her. “Well, I guess I am going to need to make sure we have enough money to cover her expense report this time.” He grumbled as he headed back to his office.
“Yeah, well she is doing a great job so far; we’ve been able to track some of the most dangerous super-criminals in the world.”
“Well it certainly knocks those ‘super’ menaces like Superman, or that Wonder Woman down a peg or two. Of course there’s always the backlash of having the criminals decide to go after us instead of obsessing over those in capes.”
“I agree. But we are just doing our job.” She took out a Blackberry and accessed her email and sent a message to her fiancé. “I am going to be out of the office next week Harry.”
“Yeah I know you’re getting married.” He threw his hands up.
“Right.” She grinned.
“Yeah well, while you’re here then… get back to work.” He grouched.
She tossed her shoulder length hair to her right and turned around. Harry could be so anal when it came to work, but she knew that he had a good reason to be on edge. The world had an alarming amount of meta-human activity and it was their job to make sure that the meta-humans were properly contained before they became a danger to society.
That was the charge and the definition of the Department of Meta-Human Affairs and the primary objective when they became an independent unit from the DEO. So far they had focused on maintaining the subtle balance between humanity and threats that challenged their existence. She shuddered to think about all the problems that they had been able to quell, but their main concern was to make sure that if any of the “Supermen” ever went rouge that they could be dealt with swiftly and easily.
She just didn’t know if they could do it all at once…
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:48:11 GMT -5
Diana Prince adjusted her glasses as she looked around. Bruce had taught her that maintaining her secret identity was like guarding people that were in danger. Once it was lost you could not gain it back. She was troubled sometimes by Bruce though, because he seemed to be the most brilliant of men, but sometimes he could be so dark and cold. She didn’t really understand his problems, but she knew that he lost his parents when he was a youth. It was going to have to be a conversation that she had with him at some point in time.
She crossed the busy street in Athens trying to fit in, but the problem was that she was an Amazon and being six feet tall did seem to stand out more and more when you were around normal men and women that didn’t have the stature that she did.
“Excuse me, I am looking for Diana Prince?” There was voice from the crowd that seemed to speak out. It wasn’t the Hellenic language that she was hearing all around her it was well spoken English. She saw the man as he stepped closer to her and she recognized him as her contact here in Athens. “Dominick, I didn’t know if you would be actually here or not, it wasn’t clear on the message that you left.”
Dominick lifted a cigarette that he had pulled out of his shirt pocket and he nodded. “I thought you needed to know that there were things going down here that required your attention.” He pushed back a strand of hair that got into his eye as he looked at Diana who was dressed like a modern Hellenic woman. “You look well, Princess.” He puffed on his cigarette as he waited for her response.
“I am not going by that name Dom. What or who have you found?” She raised an eyebrow, as she looked him. She waved her hand and coughed as the wind had shifted the smoke into her face. “Could you put that out, please?”
“Yeah, sure.” He threw the cigarette to the ground. “Listen I don’t have a lot of time before I need to get back, but his name is Blackball.” He handed her a file. “He’s a smooth cat and you need to be careful because he doesn’t like your type much…”
She pursed her lips as she looked at him. “I know what you mean, but he doesn’t have a choice does he?”
“Not with Wonder Woman on his tail.”
“I told you I am not going by that name right now.”
“Sure sure, Princess, but whenever you get done play acting lemme know.” He looked at her sincerely. “There’s a lot of us in the resistance that really could use your help instead of helping you chase down the bad guys.”
Diana sighed. “I will when I have the time, Dom.” The Resistance for Greek Freedom was one of the few organizations that she actually agreed with. Greek politics didn’t really seem to be her forte but she recognized that the resistance group was always willing to stand by those brave enough to protest against oppressive and totalitarian forms of government. Greece had been under turmoil in the past, with all the political upheaval but she knew that people like Dominick would try and make a better future for those people that really seemed to care.
“I know you will, Diana.” He leaned over to offer her a gentle kiss to her cheek. “Thanks, I really do owe you one.”
She shook her head. “Actually you owe me several, but I’ll let you off.” She didn’t flinch. As she accepted his kiss.
“Right.” He nodded.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:48:47 GMT -5
Diana looked at the crowded plaza in the ancient acropolis. The pigeons scattered as the tourists walked to see the fabled sites. She looked around as her cell phone rang in her hand and she flipped it open.
“Prince here.”
“Diana, I’ve done the spectrum analysis you asked for.” Bruce Wayne stated.
“What did you find?”
“The results showed that it was a radiation decay of Metronium which is a very unstable isotope of a newly created table element.”
Diana raised an eyebrow. “Created by S.T.A.R. Labs?”
“Correct.”
“That fits in with my investigation then.” She retorted.
“It would seem to.” Bruce was in his detective personae and Diana had learned that you did not probe any further for information than the Dark Knight was willing to give because he was usually so thorough in his work. “Whoever possesses the radioactive substance has especially high clearance from the government and mostly from Dr. Ashlock.”
Diana had a hand to her chin as she gave thought to what he said, “Ashlock was once accused by the Feds for white collar offenses.”
“Yes, but the charges were dismissed for lack of evidence.” Bruce added.
“I see.” Diana seemed to understand what he was saying, but she was still suspicious in her own right.
“Good luck, Diana.” Wayne closed the line as she closed her flip open cell phone.
She had gone back to her hotel after her meeting with Dominick. She was very curious about what information she would find in the file he had given her. She thought that his intentions had always been good, but the fact of the matter was that she had a lot to think about. Bruce had said some things that gave her some leads and the information she had from Dominick would be crucial. She had been able to track the rogue metahuman to Greece, but the trail had gone cold. She needed to find something new or she would have to return to D.C. empty handed. Which wouldn’t bode well for her secret identity as Diana Prince. The new information she had could prove to be extremely helpful. She hoped.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:49:34 GMT -5
Bryce Holloway was a skilled man in the various forms of subterfuge. He had been able to avoid detection these past several weeks because of that. Due to the nature of his mission, there were numerous opportunities to try and implement his ultimate goal in the process by wiping the world of metahumans all together. He knew that the his goals were to try and discover the common traits for all the diseased class so that humanity would finally be free of the tyranny those monsters wielded by using their powers to lord over the common people of the world. The scope of what these “metahumans” had as far as powers were frighteningly clear. It would take someone with drive and determination like his to be successful at his mission.
He was reading a report that had been intercepted by his established links with the various worldwide network that included INTERPOL and the FBI. He was aware that the Department of Metahuman Affairs had an agent closely pursuing him. He thumbed through the report and to him at least, it seemed that the department had lost its sense of directive, but he did see an item of note that caught his attention….
D. Prince. Currently assigned to find the ‘Supermen Killer’.
He tapped his fingers deftly on his laptop as he brought up the current dossier on this Agent Prince. “Very interesting.” He said out loud as a female came in only wearing a terrycloth bathrobe in the Paris hotel that they were staying in.
“Hey Baby, when you coming to bed?” she asked in a sultry and seductive voice. She had just come from soaking in a bath full of suds. The remnants of those suds still covered her bare legs as she looked at him with a coy smile.
“I told you not to bother me while I am working.” He merely responded with some aggravation towards her.
“Aww baby, I am hot for you though…” She pouted her lip as she slowly opened up her robe for him.
Holloway didn’t flinch and didn’t bother to look at her as he took his .45 Magnum and fired at her. A second later she was crumpled to the floor. Death and his response both had been quick for her.
He got up from where he had been at and closed his laptop looking around him. Always being on the run made him suspicious of everyone and those that he didn’t use for information were expendable. He put on his sunglasses and stepped over the newly dropped corpse. “Pity, I was going to take you to America with me.” He laughed in a dark tone.
Truth and justice were always at odds with his power. It was a reckoning he would soon bring to those that deserved punishment.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:50:48 GMT -5
Diana had finally returned to her New York apartment after a few days. She thumbed through her bills. There were many things about man she could not quite come to grips with, and paying bills was one of them. She did find a letter, which seemed to be out of place with all the advertisements for pizza, quality hair care and better mortgage rates… She was tired of dealing with ‘junk mail,’ so when she came across a letter written by someone’s actual hand she opened it quickly:
Dear Miss Prince,
I want you to know my ex-husband has been put in prison for assault and attempted murder. Thanks for all of the advice you gave me. I also want to thank you for the time you took to listen to me when you didn’t have to. You really did save me and my children from being hurt or worse, killed. I owe you so much, but I wanted you to know that I did listen and got out when I should’ve. He told me when he gets out he’s going to come and kill me, but I have decided to move my kids and myself of the state and change our names.
Thank you so much. You are my guardian angel.
Forever yours,
Persia Knight.
Diana put the note down as she wiped a tear from her eye. It did mean a lot to her. All of the hours that she had put into volunteering at battered women’s shelters and counseling centers she rarely received feedback from the women that she had dedicated her life to protecting in her private life.
There was a bang of bright light and thunder that came from the kitchen on the other side of her apartment. She put down the note and went to see what had caused it. As she entered the room she saw a figure with dark black hair and dressed in ancient Greek attire. She instantly recognized who it was as she bowed before him. “Lord Hermes... How can I help you?”
“Zeus has determined that the forthcoming battle you are to have with this… ‘Supermen Killer’ will lead to great personal battle of ethics between your duty to us and your responsibilities with this corrupt government that you work for.” Hermes voice was unwavering as he looked at her.
“I am not sure I understand what you mean?” She could merely try and ask for clarification. The message from the gods lacked clarity at times, but rarely did they ever trifle with subterfuge.
“Your battle to come will test you Diana. You have been forewarned.” Hermes disappeared in the same brilliant light that he appeared in. Diana sat down, realizing that things had become a bit more complicated. She had no real idea what Hermes meant, but truly she would be on her guard. She certainly did not want to displease the gods for the sake of the United States government and would avoid placing herself in such a situation. She would continue to rely on faith to guide her. But in a lot of ways faith was often times not compatible with ‘real life’.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:51:19 GMT -5
Harry Doyle sat at his desk as he feverously smoked his cigarette. He had received a report from Diana Prince, which was extremely detailed in its content. Doyle hadn’t had the chance to review her entire report, but it appeared that she wasn’t able to track down the exact location of the killer yet or the suspected group he was involved with.
Doyle was a mid-level supervisor that believed in the bottom-line, and in his mind that equaled results. Doyle had never actually spoken with agent Prince but the two of them had corresponded through e-mail. He had found her to be extremely professional if not more so than any other agent that had worked for him in his fifteen years of service with the Federal Government. He was a penny pincher when it came to maintaining the department’s budget but he also recognized the importance of catching this assassin. It was their job and he did not take that responsibility lightly.
Doyle didn’t care about much else other then his work. His wife had left him a few years prior and that had pretty much had destroyed his world. Soon after she left him he found himself questioning everything about why it happened and how he could get her back. But truth be told, he really didn’t want her back. He really just wanted the stability that the relationship had offered. That’s when he completely threw himself into his work and shut off the outside world around him. He often felt like the last dedicated warrior of the department.
He put out his cigarette and reached for his coffee cup when a bright light lit up the office followed by an explosion that rocked the entire building. Doyle was ripped out of his chair as he was flung against a glass partition that cut into him like wet paper.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:51:45 GMT -5
Diana had decided to return to the department to meet with Steve Trevor as well as get advice about how to proceed and look for this killer.
As she approached, she saw the building light up in an explosion that ripped a hole into the side of the government building. She quickly ducked into an abandoned ally near the Federal complex. She quickly twirled as she created an explosion of her own, and was instantly garbed in her more familiar attire as Wonder Woman. She immediately used the speed of Hermes and raced toward the burning building.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:52:44 GMT -5
The scene was chaos as she landed near the fire engine that had been quickly dispatched from a nearby firehouse. She looked up as and heard a man and woman that were both screaming for their lives trapped inside. She leapt into the air and flew to the top of the building and crashed through the window. She flung her shoulder into the door that all but disintegrated due to the sheer power at her disposal. She screamed through the flames, smoke and noise as she grabbed their hands. “Whatever you do not let go of my arms!” She flew down to the street below and put them down as gently as possible. The paramedics on the scene quickly came to tend to them.
She suddenly realized that Steve might be among the causalities. Again she took off into the air toward where her office had been just moments ago. She reentered the building, as the fire began to burn with a much greater ferocity. Steve was always trying to get her better acclimated with Man’s World, but this was certainly something she could never get use to. She hated the violence in their world, and swore that she would protect those that couldn’t protect themselves, and that included Steve. She looked around and covered her mouth as the smoke had started to become unbearable, even for her.
She did not see Trevor around anywhere, but she did see the mangled bodies of Harry Doyle and Cindy Angelosi, which had been pitted with shrapnel and glass that had embedded in their bodies. Her face was in utter horror as she muttered, “Great Hera.”
She gently picked up their bodies into her arms and she flew back down to the street where the disaster response teams had been assembled. She looked around as a policeman came to her. “Who did this, Wonder Woman?” His voice was exasperated. He didn’t know if she knew, but it made him feel better to at least ask.
“I don’t know.” Her fists were clenched as she looked at him. Her anger was unchecked at the moment. “But, I intend to bring them to justice when I find out.” With that she flew off toward the Themysciran Embassy where she was an ambassador to the United States. She had to see for with her own eyes that Steve was unharmed.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:53:52 GMT -5
Bryce Holloway saw the news and smiled with delight. Twenty-eight people had been killed in the blast. He hadn’t had the chance to find out if Prince had been in the blast, which would ultimately make his life a lot easier. He unfolded his laptop and looked at his e-mail program. His eyes opened a bit wider as he read the e-mail:
Panther,
Wonder Woman was spotted at the department building. There has been a severe change in direction from the original plans. Your mission is going to be altered somewhat.
Meet your contact at the United Nations Assembly Building to discuss.
-D.
This meant that things would progress with the appearance of Wonder Woman. It also meant that certain things would need to change in order to try and accomplish the overall goals of the group. A high-level meeting during mid-course could always lead to dangerous circumstances but being who he was, he wasn’t afraid.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:54:49 GMT -5
The New York City media had been a buzz of activity. There was much scrutiny concerning the security of the Federal building. Steve Trevor had seen these types of questions before whenever there had been a terrorist attack in the city. The fact that another attack had led to bloodshed angered him greatly, but the Angel in Shining Armor had rescued a few of the survivors. Diana had not taken the time to talk to anyone, because she had flown up to see if anyone had fled the scene. Unfortunately she was unable to locate anyone involved with the attack, which made locating the bomber much more difficult.
It had been nearly a day since Trevor had heard from Diana. He flipped open his cell phone and hit her speed dial number. “Hey Angel, I hadn’t heard from you and I wanted to be sure that you were okay, so please call me.” As soon as he closed his cell phone he turned around and saw Diana floating on the air above him. “I heard that you were in the middle of that fracas.”
She nodded in response. She looked tired but she answered him in her honest and plain tone when she was in the middle of a mission. “Well, yes. I was on my way back to the department when it was destroyed.”
“Any idea who it was?”
“I have an idea but it’s going to take some creative problem solving.” She mused for a moment. “I guess you didn’t show up for lunch either.” She smirked at him.
He chuckled. “I guess it’s a good thing that I didn’t, right?”
She countered. “Maybe, but I am glad that you weren’t hurt.”
“Maybe my heart is a little… but I’ll manage, Angel.”
She flew up a little higher in the sky and looked down at him. “You’ll be fine, Steve. I need to go talk to a friend for advice.”
He called out to her as she rose farther away. “Who, besides me?”
“He’s a Martian.”
“Oh…” She saw her slowly fly off and away and out of earshot. He sighed as he mumbled to himself. “I can’t ever seem to keep you in one spot at a time.” The sunlight was starting diminish some as New York City was busy as usual… as though there had been nothing ever wrong. The city that never slept did not do so this day either.
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Post by Romans Empire on Jun 4, 2007 1:56:26 GMT -5
Holloway was ready to take this to the next level as he stood on the steps of the United Nations building. He wore his black hair in a ponytail with his sunglasses on his face. His black coat and tie were a little out of place, but he knew that he wouldn’t be here too long. Either he would be dead or he would be given something that he would need to do on top of the mission that he was working already.
He had been given the proper credentials by his contact, which allowed him entry inside the building. He sat down and waited to speak with the mysterious benefactor.
“Mr. Holloway, the Ambassador will speak with you now.” A leggy blonde stepped out as she smiled. Holloway instantly judged her to be a bimbo and possibly someone that he could ‘use’ later.
“Thank you.” He stood up as he walked into the office with her. The lady put a hand on his shoulder as he looked over at her. “If you think anything like that about me again, I’ll break your face.” He winced as her grip on his shoulder had been much more than he anticipated. She was obviously a metahuman. She was the very thing that he had been hunting down.
“Simply amazing isn’t she?” a voice came from behind a behind a huge leather chair that faced a bay window that overlooked the bustling metropolis of New York.
“Apparently.” He grunted.
“Let him go, please.” An elderly man turned around as he looked at him. He was the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. “Pricilla meet Bryce. Bryce, meet my student and newest edition to the metahuman community.” He chuckled and stood as he walked to him. “No, I am not replacing you. I know that’s the first thing you were about to ask.” Bryce rubbed his shoulder and then his hand as he looked at the Ambassador.
“I suppose if you see me as dispensable.” Bryce retorted with apparent indignation in his voice that was a sign of annoyance more than anything else.
“Well your little demonstration at the Federal building has stirred quite a hornet’s nest.”
Holloway nodded. “True, but I was trying to eliminate a primary target.”
“Well there were twenty-eight people killed… You’ve made my job here extremely difficult.”
Holloway folded his arms as he followed the man’s logic. “Yes, I know you’re the US Ambassador to the UN.” He spoke plainly.
“Then you know what kind of problems you’ve given me.” He growled out.
“I am aware that I’ve carried out the missions that you’ve given me each time.”
“Yes, that’s the only reason I’ve not killed you yet.” The Ambassador’s tone was just as plain as Holloway’s.
“Your wasting time with petty idle threats.”
“Then you will need to kill Wonder Woman!!” He stood up, “I’ve had you engineered to be the model exception to the genetic scum that we’re trying to get rid of. Imperfection disgusts me! Can you possibly imagine how I feel about failure?” Again the Ambassador’s tone was low and guarded.
“If I’ve failed, it was because I failed to recognize that my mission has only been hindered by misdirection and subterfuge. He took out his gun as he aimed at the head of the diplomat and he discharged the gun. But as a streak of lightening Priscilla jumped to the Ambassador’s aid before the bullet could smash into its intended target. His ‘secretary’ had been able to move him out of the way using her super-human abilities. Instead the stray bullet smashed through the glass of the bay window.
“You’ve made a very huge mistake!!” The Ambassador screamed at the top of his lungs. He pointed at Holloway with his finger as Priscilla tried to send a roundhouse kick to his head. But this time he was ready for the attack, he grabbed her and sent his elbow into her leg that with great superhuman ability that he also possessed which allowed him to shatter the femur bone in her leg. She screamed out in horror as he picked her up and flung her out of the busted bay window. She fell screaming to her death many feet below. He then picked up the Ambassador off the floor.
The diplomat begged for his life. “Please don’t do this!”
“You have helped create me and my mission, but I am going to be taking this mission into my own hands for good.” He pulled the Ambassador’s head around his neck until it snapped. His eyes slowly fell back into his head and his body went limp from the instant death that Holloway had given him. Holloway flung the corpse to the floor as he screamed out. It was as if the screaming signified to the world that Pandora’s box had been opened and trouble had been unleashed to the world.
The commotion had alerted the UN Security to the Ambassador’s office. When the cops came with their guns drawn all they saw was the dead ambassador sprawled out on the floor of his office with his neck clearly broken. The wind blew hard into the office from the broken window.
“Good God, what in the Hell happened here?!” One of the cops exclaimed as they both looked at each other with obvious disgust and panic in their eyes. Neither had seen such a sight and they were both completely dumbfounded. One of the security guards pointed to the huge leather chair that had a knife pierced through the back and a note attached to it. The security guard took the note as he read its ominous message to the recipient:
Wonder Woman!
I am the Dark Panther! Your presence is an abomination to everything whole and pure to the human race! Face me Wonder Woman so that I can send you back to your Gods PERMANENTLY!!!!
-The Panther!
Both men looked at each other. “Good Lord Almighty.” the older security guard looked at the younger one. “We better call the Chief…"
TO BE CONTINUED!!!
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Post by mockingbird on Aug 3, 2011 15:32:39 GMT -5
To let us know what you think of this issue, please visit the letters page here!
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