"I'm leaving, Diana Prince. Hold fast to the belief in your heart. We'll meet again in a hundred years."
Their lips parted. Thea gently caressed Diana's cheek. Neither of them was the shy type—they let go of each other cleanly and without hesitation.
"I'll be waiting. I want to hear you sing that song again…"
It wasn't life and death, but Diana still couldn't hide the sadness in her voice.
Thea drew Zeus' lightning arrow, pulled the bow to its limit, and chanted the special incantation, activating the runic array inscribed on the shaft.
In her eyes, it felt like submitting an application to a higher authority—only with Zeus' approval could the arrow open a temporal passage. Lucky for her this was the rule; otherwise, she would never dare fire this thing casually. Imagine loosing an arrow and suddenly teleporting mid-battle—who could handle that?
The arrow shot forward at full speed. Not far from them, a deep-blue portal unfurled in midair. With its divine energy completely drained, the arrow dissolved back into the quiver.
"Take care!" Thea waved cheerfully at Diana.
"You take care as well. I'll be here, waiting in a hundred years."
Diana's tone returned to its usual calm.
After confirming she hadn't forgotten anything, Thea stepped into the temporal passage.
This trip was different from the previous two. The first time, she had traveled aboard Gideon's time ship—a passenger without control. The second time, she had been pulled in by an explosion—equally uncontrollable.
This time, she had received Zeus' personal approval. She retained full mobility. She finally had the chance to observe things properly. She couldn't take a leisurely stroll, sure, but she also didn't need to run like the Flash being chased by a rabid dog.
The view inside the time stream was a beauty few ever witnessed.
Using her Time Council clearance, Thea examined what happened after her departure.
She first checked Diana's fate. Diana buried the villagers in the small village and did not participate in the subsequent battles. But the timeline beyond that was blurred—as if erased. The divine signature was familiar. Very familiar.
Clearly Zeus' handiwork.
Why? He doesn't want me to know what happens next?
Since she couldn't watch Diana, she switched to observe the others. Without Thea or Diana's interference, Ludendorff lived peacefully until 1937. Thea nodded.
That made sense.
Him dying in 1918 was always a weird movie-only event. He had once been a presidential candidate for the Nazi Party—he shouldn't have died that early.
But when she looked at Steve Trevor's fate, she froze in shock.
Without the support of two superpowered women, Steve still managed to seize the poison-gas plane—but it didn't explode mid-air like in the film. Instead, it crashed at the border of France and Spain.
Toxic gas spread across all of Europe.
One billion people were infected worldwide. Asia and the Americas suffered less, but Europe was devastated. Conservative estimates put the death toll above twenty million—women, children, wounded soldiers. This was the mysterious event recorded in history as the Spanish Flu.
This massive outbreak broke Europe's spine.
World War I had lasted four years and killed just over ten million. But patriotic Captain Steve Trevor's single accident had caused more damage than the entire war—crippling Europe's military and economic potential for a generation.
American politicians secretly rejoiced while publicly distancing themselves from the disaster. They quietly sent agents to retrieve Steve's body.
After a hidden tug-of-war with other forces, they finally secured the unconscious Steve. He had no idea he had just performed the greatest "service" imaginable for his country. Because of his accident, the European powers were too weakened to resist Germany during World War II—giving the United States the perfect chance to play savior.
Civilization's flame shifted to the Americas.
But Steve never woke. During the crash, he had been at the very center of the gas cloud—and the explosion. Burns and poison ravaged his body simultaneously. The two lethal forces reacted, creating a new chemical transformation inside him. His body was slowly altered.
He didn't awaken until the 1980s.
In recognition of the "immense contribution" he had unknowingly made to American dominance, the administration promoted him directly to Colonel. His unwavering loyalty made him the perfect candidate to establish the Eye of Providence (ARGUS prototype)—a process that continued well into 2008, the time of Thea's original era.
Thea stared grimly at a photo of Steve being sworn in as Colonel. Gone was the handsome young man of 1918. In his place stood something no longer human—an altered patriot whose physiology had changed completely.
Comparing his later life with the memories she retained, she confirmed he had no recollection of their shared adventure.
Her magic had worked.
"Unbelievable… The infamous Spanish Flu was caused by Steve? Was it coincidence… or destiny?"
Inside the time stream, her memory remained perfectly clear, immune to alteration. The truth was unmistakable. She had participated in the real event.
The movie storyline… that must have belonged to a parallel universe.
"It's all over…"
Thea shook her head and stopped watching. The rest followed the history she already knew.
With Time Council authority, she easily located her departure point and stepped toward it.
…
"Where… am I?"
Thea stepped out of the time portal with satisfaction, expecting to return to Purgatory Island—only to see a barren field covered in weeds, with several massive stone columns nearby.
This had nothing to do with the island.
Now infused with divinity and no longer a clueless mortal, she could sense instinctively that this was indeed her correct timeline.
She examined the stone pillars—familiar carvings, familiar letters.
Greece?
But in the modern world, with the sun overhead, she didn't dare fly directly—what if a satellite caught her? She activated the Eye of Horus and searched for locals.
The people seemed… not wealthy. Some rode small farm trucks carrying goods; others were elderly folk out for walks with children.
Judging from their clothing and complexion, they didn't look European.
Finally, she spotted a middle-aged woman with high nose, deep-set eyes, a backpack, and a tourist vibe. Relying on her charm and polite tone, Thea managed to extract the information she needed.
She was in Turkey—modern-day Ephesus, known in the Bible as Ephesus, an ancient city.
The barren field she emerged onto was the remains of the world-famous Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders.
Thea felt an urge to cover her face.
No doubt the Moon Goddess had secretly meddled with her exit point—playing the tragedy card.
Your goddess' once-glorious temple is now a ruin. As her chosen champion… shouldn't you pay your respects?
With a heart full of mixed emotions, Thea took her leave of the friendly tourist and checked into a nearby hotel.
Thanks to Colonel Steve, America had become the world's superpower—English could get her through almost anywhere.
The hotel owner knew some English. With gestures and words, Thea finally managed to borrow a phone to make an international call.