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- - -
Diana felt the burn of anger. It simmered at the edge of her senses, creeping in like tendrils.
The anger was not her own. She knew it wasn't. This boiling rage was venom seeping into her blood. The influence of the towering beast before her.
As Ares continued his slow advance, his dark armor shimmered with smoke and shadow. Hate poured off of him like water, steaming, rising in the air. It carried through the Amazons and Varangians like a plague. Diana could see it, the shift in their bearing, how the people bristled around her.
They felt the same thing she did. They felt the rage of war.
Ares was close now. The villagers were fleeing, running deeper into the island. The Amazons and Varangians remained gathered on the docks, armed, armored, and ready to fight.
Diana did not feel at ease. Not even with Thor at her side.
Ares loomed over them now. It was Nubia who marched forth to face him first, going to the edge of the dock. Spear in hand, she stood in the shadow of the Olympian god, fearless, stalwart. Embodying the very spirit of the Amazons.
"Why have you come, Lord Ares? The Daughters of Themyscira have no quarrel with the God of War!"
The air shook as the armored giant laughed. Blood red eyes shone under the spiked helm, staring down. Hateful and deadly. Behind him, above him, the darkened sky flashed with lightning. The rumbling of thunder followed, wavering down to Diana's bones.
"I think not, Amazon. I say your kind has great quarrel with me." Ares growled. His voice was deep, so deep, booming from the dark space of his helm. He sounded more creature than man. "Your own princess brings dishonor to Olympus. Allowing a foreign god and his band of savages to raid and plunder the domain of Zeus. Letting that god defile her. To say nothing of her followers, taking these filthy barbarians to bed."
Many of the Varangians rose up in jeers and curses, Sven among them, shaking shields and spears and axes in boastful mockery. Diana's friends, Penthiselea especially, were not afraid to join them.
Ares paid them no mind - like they were vermin at his feet. His focus was on Diana… before shifting over to Thor.
"You are a long way from home, Asgardian. How meager is the blood of Odin that his spawn can only inspire such ragged company?"
Thor gripped his battle-axe tightly, his face set in a stony snarl.
"I travel where I please. The Odinson needs no one's permission, least of all yours." Thor shouted back. "And my men follow the old ways. They fight with bravery and honor. I wouldn't trade one of them for a thousand gods of war."
Meanwhile, Nubia and other Amazons turned their attention to him. Their faces were varied, some looking shocked, others repulsed, others still curious. Nubia looked stricken, now recognizing what Diana had long known - Thor had the touch of the old gods, clear in his shape, his standing, his effortless power. The Amazon captain narrowed her eyes at the burly Varangian leader, scrutinizing… but this was fleeting. She and the rest quickly turned their focus back to Ares.
Another bout of laughter rumbled through the air. Ares raised his arm and shadow erupted from his hand. The darkness took shape, reaching up towards the darkened sky. It thickened, turning solid. A sword of black steel, glimmering with slivers of red. The same hateful red as his eyes.
"Such insolence from one so spent. I can taste your power, Odinson. The blood of the old gods runs thin through your veins."
Thor scowled. The ferocity in his eyes was new to Diana. It was sharper, more menacing than the passions he'd shown to her.
Diana watched her lover stomp forward to stand beside Nubia. The Asgardian raised his battle-axe, pointing Jarnbjorn threateningly at the giant, armored shadow.
"I have slain larger and fiercer beasts than you, Olympian. Ageless terrors from realms not even Zeus could conquer!"
"I am not Zeus, boy. I am rage and hate and death. I was there at the dawn of man, when the first life was taken. I was there when the first village was burned, when the first city was sacked, when the first fortress was pulled to the ground. I am WAR!"
Ares moved quickly - far too quickly for something of his size. He raised his arm high, flipping his dark blade in his hand. The blade pointed down, right over Thor and Nubia.
Diana didn't think - her shout came on instinct. A warning that almost came too late. Nubia whirled around to face her, perplexed… but only for an instant. Nubia's confusion turned to shock as Thor tackled the Amazon captain over the edge of the dock… right as Ares' sword came down.
The mass of dark steel crashed over the wooden walkway. The sheer force made splinters of it and sent Amazons and Varangians flying back.
Diana hit the water. Darkness swallowed her up.
- - -
Ares drew his blade from the salty waters. His weapon hissed as steam came off the blackened steel.
Down below, Amazons and those northern savages shouted and thrashed in the waters, while the ones on land scurried away like rodents, breaking for the meager shacks and huts that made up the fishing village. Watching them flee brought some amusement… but the God of War found himself wanting.
The Asgardian, for all his boasting, proved to be no challenge at all. Neither had the Princess of the Amazons. An ignoble end was better than either deserved. Still… Ares would have enjoyed a proper fight.
He swung his sword down again, sweeping the blade through the forest of barbarian tents that lined the beach, erasing them from the sands. Spilling blood wasn't the purpose here, but to show these mortals the power they faced. They had to learn: Olympus would suffer no slights from such lowly men.
His enjoyment was only made greater when he felt the presence of his lovely sorceress, Circe. He could not see her, but he could sense her on his shoulder. Her smooth, feminine voice slithered into his ear.
"Look at them scatter, love. These Amazons have been allowed free reign for far too long. They should be made to know their place. Show them the wrath of war!"
Ares swung his sword again, a powerful arc down into the sea, cleaving the barbarian's ship in two. The weight and force of his strike was like a meteor, sending water and wood flying.
"They are getting to know me quite well, I'd say." He boasted, watching with satisfaction as the mortals put up a paltry defense.
A brave few sent spears and arrows to meet him - all striking uselessly upon his dark plate armor. The effort itself had only damned them further - Ares could feel his strength growing. Their violence nourished him.
The God of War marched on. A scant few still stood to fight him, Amazon and savage. But none could stop him. He moved into the main village now, stomping homes flat as he went.
Delos, the birthplace of Apollo, the Olympian mused. Ares had never liked Apollo. The island matched his opinion of him: sparse. A forest, a lake, a single village and dock, some old temple ruins… it was almost not worth his time.
"The Princess and her Asgardian mongrel still live." Ares noted to Circe, frowning. "I would have felt it if I ended them."
"Good. A quick death is too merciful. Let them taste the shame of defying Olympus before Hades takes them." Circe spat.
"It would be my honor… should they dare face me." Ares turned back towards the shores and the ruin he'd made of the docks. The Amazons and their barbarian pets were regrouping - a pitiful sight. He bellowed down at them. "Princess! Odinson! You disappoint me! Traitors and invaders should be more fun to kill! Show me Themysciran wrath! Show me Asgardian strength! Come and fight! I'm waiting!"
- - -
Diana sucked in precious air as she crawled onto the beach. Her vision was stuck in a blur, even after she swept her soaking hair from her face. She wiped the seawater from her eyes.
Chaos. Destruction. War.
Those were the sounds that thundered in her ears. They rattled down to her bones.
"Diana!" A voice broke through, stunning her to clarity. Deep, masculine, familiar… and rooted with concern.
Diana felt a flash of comfort then, even as she felt a large hand grab her by the arm. Hoisted to her feet, she was greeted by Thor's beautiful face. Nubia was there beside him, looking just as relieved. Both were as soaked as she was.
"I'm fine." She assured her lover. She turned towards Nubia. "Glad you're still alive."
"Likewise, sister. The Queen would have my head otherwise." The Amazon captain let out a curse as she took in the sight of Ares wreaking havoc on land. The towering shadow was carving destruction into the very earth. "How in Hera's name are we going to stop him?"
The earth shook, a terrible roar splitting the air as Ares drove his sword down again. Now the dark steel was burning red with fire, blackening the very soil. The violence was savage, senseless, so feral that Diana wondered if the armored giant even spawned from a place so mighty as Mt. Olympus.
"I… I don't think we can." Diana confessed. "We don't have the numbers… and even if we did, none of our weapons could put a scratch on him."
"Mine might." Thor hefted up Jarnbjorn. Droplets of water glittered upon the flat of the axe's blade. "If anything can make a god bleed, it's URU steel."
"That's not just any god, Asgardian." Nubia warned him. Diana noted her sister's tone had softened some towards the muscle-bound blond. "The longer we fight him, the stronger he gets. Conflict is his domain."
Thor's face hardened as he fixed his gaze on Ares. Another tremble rolled through the earth and sea. The armored giant swept his sword through another row of buildings, turning them to rubble.
"Then we must finish him quickly then." Thor's voice was like steel. Solid and sharp.
Diana saw the conviction in his eyes, burning hot. Before she could stop him, Thor broke forward, clutching Jarnbjorn tight in both hands.
Her lover was running, running. Straight towards Ares.
- - -
Thor stormed up the beach, trudging through the splintered wreck of the docks. Up ahead, the Olympian behemoth loomed. Still absorbed in raining destruction upon Delos.
Some of Thor's men were still standing, along with a dozen or so Amazons. They were putting up a fight to the best of their ability - but sadly their efforts were in vain. Arrows, spears, swords, axes - everything they threw at Ares may as well have been twigs and pebbles.
Only Jarnbjorn could leave a mark. Thor knew this in his bones. His URU steel was their only chance.
The Exile raced further up the beach, barreling past one half of his war galley, past piles of rubble, past dozens of broken bodies. He recognized a face. Bjorn, his second, was among the dead. He was slumped against a half-destroyed pillar, empty eyes looking off into nothing. His pale beard was spotted with blood.
Thor slowed… but only for a moment. He couldn't allow the pain of regret to distract him. He moved on, turning regret into rage… and focusing it all on Ares.
He entered the village, dipping through wrecked homes and shacks. Drawing closer and closer to his target, until he was standing in the god's shadow.
Twenty feet tall, wreathed in dark plate, skin covered in smoke and shadow. This was the God of War. The longer Thor looked the more his blood boiled. The more he hated.
Ares gave a cry as he struck at the ground again, making scars in the earth. He hadn't noticed Thor yet. This would be the Odinson's advantage.
Most of the village had been turned to ruin, but enough structure remained standing to provide him some cover. Thor slipped into what was left of a home - and frowned as he came upon a children's toy. A noble warrior carved from wood.
All this mindless destruction… and for what?
Thor couldn't ignore the guilt gripping his heart then. It stung even through his anger. He claimed to fight with honor, to find redemption following the old way… but how many cities had fallen to him since his exile? How many fortresses? How many villages just like this one?
Every battle he'd fought, every prize he'd plundered… Was he truly any better than Ares?
Thor did not want to dwell on that. He moved on, slipping into the next half-standing home as the ground shook under his feet. There he found beds. A large one, big enough for a man and his wife. And a smaller one beside it. A child's bed.
What Ares was doing now, Thor had been prepared to do just days before. He and his men, so eager and ready to raid another island of its riches. The strong take what they want, he himself had said. The only reason he didn't that day was because of Diana. Because the Princess had traded her dignity to keep the island safe from him.
Thor felt the weight of realization then. Perhaps his exile had been no mistake. Perhaps it was exactly what he deserved. Perhaps… he truly wasn't worthy.
Regret held his heart now, tendrils wrapping tight and slithering deeper. Even worse was the shame, cold and bitter at the back of his throat. But it all soon gave way to the simmering burn of his rage.
Thor Odinson had been no hero. Not to Asgard. Not to the people of this island. And not to Diana.
Today, though… Today he could their champion.
Through the doorway, Thor saw Ares' sandaled feet. The massive soles kicked up clouds of dust as they shifted across the ground. Then he saw it - the tendon at the heel. That would be where he would start. Surely Jarnbjorn was sharp enough. One good swing was all he needed to bring the God of War to his knees.
A stretch of open space extended between Thor and his target. A straight sprint to Ares. He could make it. Thor steeled his nerves and charged.
His legs pumped with all the force he could muster, propelling him faster than any mortal man. He raced closer, closer, closer to Ares' heel. So close that he could see the bumps and lines of skin, even through the dark haze covering Ares.
Thor raised his battle-axe with both hands, winding up for a brutal strike. One that held all his rage and power.
But the giant Ares shifted on his feet. Turning to face him. The towering Olympian looked down.
A mocking laugh boomed as Jarnbjorn arced down and struck an empty patch of soil. Thor tried to wrench his weapon free, but it was too late. An instant later, a dark mass rushed up to meet Thor. The god's foot.
The force of the kick stripped nearly all senses from the Asgardian. Sight, sound, hearing, all clouded as Thor's head rattled. The only thing he knew for sure was that he felt weightless. He was flying. He flew back, back, back, until finally he collided with something solid. Whether it was a ruined home or the earth itself, Thor did not know, but he struck it hard. He scraped along the ground, dragging, dragging through dirt and stone until he finally came to a stop.
Pain. There was pain all over. Aching through his skin, through his muscles, deep in his bones. It was a small relief - pain meant he was alive.
Thor groaned and cracked his eyes open.
He saw the darkened sky, gray clouds swirling overhead, lightning flashing through. And he saw Ares, blood red eyes glowing beneath his black, spiked helm. The god's voice cracked like the breaking earth.
"So disappointing. But such is the stock of Asgard."
The God of War took his sword of shadow with both hands, turning the blade towards the earth. He held it right over Thor.
The exiled prince grimaced. His whole body seared with pain as he tried to rise, tried to fight. He couldn't fail the people of this island. He couldn't fail Diana.
Then his world darkened when Ares brought his sword down.