THEMYSCIRA – TEMPLE OF ATHENA
Within the marble sanctum of the goddess, the temple's high chamber glowed faintly with the soft blue of incense fires and divine oil lamps. The oracles knelt, their heads bowed, lips moving in silent trance as their eyes glowed faintly—unfocused, glassy.
Suddenly—
Gasp!
As one, the oracles snapped back to themselves, inhaling as if nearly drowned. Their bodies trembled, slick with sweat, as if chilled despite the sacred warmth of the chamber.
Shaky on their feet, the seers staggered from the shrine into the pale sun beyond the colonnade, just as a figure ascended the steps—Lyssipe, armored lightly, but with purpose in her stride.
"You don't look great, Aretha. Same for the rest of you." Lyssipe smirked faintly, arms crossed as she studied their ashen faces.
The oracle called Aretha glared faintly. She had the tan-bronze skin common among the Amazons, but her most disturbing feature—the lack of irises—gave her gaze an eerie, unnatural quality. In the right light, her eyes looked like polished marble.
"This is no time for your humor, Lyssipe," Aretha said coldly, moving to an altar near an open window. She snatched a vial of blue-green liquid, uncorked it, and downed it in a single breath.
"Is it about our new… guest?" Lyssipe asked, her smirk fading. "Or the Athenians?"
"Neither. The stranger is… something else. A blank slate. No readable aura, no malice—thank the Fates. If he did bear us hatred, I don't believe anything on this island could stop him."
Aretha's hands shook slightly. Lyssipe couldn't tell whether it was the effect of the draught or the memory of the giant warrior she was referring to.
"The Athenians aren't the threat. I saw nothing of them. What troubles me—what terrifies me—is Olympus."
"Olympus?" Lyssipe raised a brow. "What, Poseidon? Heracles?"
"Neither! Will you let me finish?" Aretha snapped, her voice breaking. She steadied herself and exhaled deeply.
Lyssipe raised her hands in mock surrender.
"A war is coming," Aretha continued, voice low. "Not like the Titanomachy… not like anything before. This is not Olympus against Olympus. It is something from beyond. Something that seeks to invade our world."
"A foreign war…? You mean other gods?" Lyssipe asked, her voice now serious, her brow furrowed in dread.
"Yes… but not as you think," Aretha whispered, moving to a stool by a window and lowering herself with visible fatigue. The other oracles sat close, some still shivering from their visions.
"It's—"
"Wait," Lyssipe interrupted. "The Queen should hear this firsthand. I'll bring her. Meet us in her chambers, and say nothing of this to anyone."
"Understood," Aretha murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.
THEMYSCIRA – PALACE COURTYARD
Hippolyta, Agape, and Antiope strode through the fog-laced grove back toward the palace, the mists curling around their feet like living spirits.
"So let me get this straight," Antiope said, brow raised. "He just… fell from the sky, saved you all in the middle of a war, and your solution was to lock him in a dungeon?"
"Yes," Agape replied simply, walking beside her.
"What were you thinking?" Antiope asked, turning to Hippolyta with frustration. "He could have turned on us!"
Hippolyta's expression darkened. "And what would you have had me do? You were nearly killed by Theseus, and Heracles was bearing down upon us. Bring a strange male god—or whatever he is—into the palace? No. That was not a risk I would take."
"I understand, sister," Antiope replied, exhaling. "But if he had turned on us, we would have been slaughtered. Even if he was bluffing about reading minds… Agape treated him like a god. And he didn't correct her."
Antiope wrapped an arm around Agape with mock reverence.
"Forgive our ignorance, divine one. We humbly request your celestial guidance," she intoned sarcastically.
"I never said that!" Agape snapped, pulling away.
Hippolyta chuckled lightly, the sound rare and soft—like sunlight breaking through stormclouds.
"My Queen!" a voice called from the distance.
Lyssipe approached at a run. She bowed quickly, her tone urgent.
"I figured I might find you here. Oh—greetings, Antiope. Good to see you up and walking."
"Slow down, Lyssipe," Antiope said. "What's the rush?"
"Emergency," Lyssipe said flatly. "The oracles."
Hippolyta's smile vanished. She exchanged glances with Agape and Antiope.
"Is it the Athenians?" she asked.
"No. No movement from the shores. The oracles saw nothing there."
Agape smirked. Antiope's shoulders slumped slightly.
So he wasn't bluffing, Agape thought.
"Then what?" Hippolyta pressed.
"It's better if you hear it from Aretha herself," Lyssipe said.
"Very well. Lead us."
THEMYSCIRA – ROYAL CHAMBER
"A war?" Hippolyta asked, her voice calm but grim.
"This is no mere war, my Queen," Aretha replied. "It is an invasion. One not confined to Olympus… but one that spans the entire world."
Silence fell across the chamber.
"I know not the hour, nor the shape of the threat—but not even the gods see it clearly. However… Athena mentioned a new god. That may mean it draws near."
"A new god?" Agape echoed.
Aretha nodded.
At the mention, Hippolyta's expression changed. She turned to Antiope, who was already staring at her.
"This is not our war," the Queen declared, though her voice lacked conviction. "We need not involve ourselves."
"I'm afraid we don't have a choice," Aretha said gently. "If we remain neutral, we may lose Olympus's protection. Without that—every nation of man will descend on us like vultures."
"But what of the goddesses?" Agape asked. "They've always defended us."
"They do not rule Olympus," Hippolyta said quietly. "And they cannot shield us alone."
"How was Athena?" Antiope asked suddenly, her tone strangely soft.
Everyone turned toward her. Hippolyta looked at Aretha intently, her breath still.
Aretha frowned, puzzled by the question.
"She seemed… fine. Why do you ask?"
"No reason," Antiope said, turning away as she lowered herself onto the edge of the bed, lost in thought.