Zola wanted to stay behind, but she had no idea where else to go. The surrounding area looked desolate—definitely not the kind of place where you could hail a cab. She could only turn to Hermes, who at least seemed relatively friendly.
The God of Speed and Thieves nearly had his nose bent out of shape by her words. When I was circling the Earth at faster-than-light speeds, these women didn't even exist yet!
Forcing down his irritation, he said, "Of course. Of course I can fly." With some bitterness, he picked up Zola and followed the others.
But they hadn't flown far before Zola had another question. "You don't seem to fly as fast as them?"
Though she wasn't a scientist and didn't have a speedometer, she'd clearly seen the sonic booms from Supergirl's flight.
As someone who'd received a modern education, she could at least recognize near-supersonic speeds when she saw them.
In contrast, Hermes carrying her was both slow and unstable—like comparing a wooden biplane to a fifth-generation fighter jet.
Hermes wanted nothing more than to drop her and let her fall to her death. But he could only think about it—there was too much at stake, and his scrawny arms and legs couldn't bear the consequences. When Zola pestered him with the question twice more, he had no choice but to answer.
Admitting inferiority to others—especially in his domain of speed—would mean instant death without question. Fortunately, Hermes' intelligence remained sharp. He quickly thought of a key point and explained patiently: "It's all for your sake. Your body can't withstand high-speed impact. Don't worry, they'll be fine. Let's just fly over slowly..."
Zola found this reasoning sound and accepted the answer readily.
Setting aside the slowly flying pair, the three women had already landed. Supergirl was fastest, Diana second, and Thea—not using her ring—came in last.
"Mother!" Diana spotted Hippolyta standing at the front of the group. Even the strong Goddess of War shed tears.
The innocent Supergirl seemed to think of her own family, growing somewhat emotional as well.
Thea didn't share such rich feelings. She first assessed the opposition.
At the center stood the woman who'd exchanged a blow with her ten minutes ago—Hera. The Queen of the Gods had arrived in full regalia, wearing an emerald floor-length gown and draped in a cloak woven from peacock feathers. The cloak was clearly high-grade, at least a superior divine artifact. The bracelets and earrings she wore all radiated divine power.
Hera stood with imposing dignity, looking at the Themysciran forces like ants. The javelins and bows of the warrior women seemed like toys to her, unworthy of attention.
To Hera's left stood a purple-skinned man. He wore no divine artifacts—just plain, unadorned clothing that looked worth next to nothing. Yet his casual attitude made her more wary. Not needing any artifacts meant his foundation ran deep.
Compared to him, the fully armed Hera seemed somewhat inferior. This man was undoubtedly Apollo, the Sun God.
The woman to Hera's right was quite interesting. Unlike the Sun God and the Queen of the Gods, she showed no fighting spirit whatsoever. She wore an ultra-short skirt, exposing large expanses of lotus-pink skin, and regarded everyone with a frivolous expression.
Queen Hera, Sun God Apollo, Eris the Goddess of Discord. Thea nodded to herself. The Goddess of Agriculture and her old friend Ares were both absent. Her side could definitely handle this lineup.
Watching Diana exchange a few brief words with Hippolyta, Thea relaxed and turned to pay her respects to the Amazon Queen.
Like Diana's greeting to Moira, Thea offered the courtesy of a junior to an elder.
"It's been a long time, Your Majesty. I'm delighted to see you're still in good health."
"The same to you, Diana's companion. You are also my child, and I sincerely thank you for the selfless help you've given Diana."
Seeing that Hera and the others showed no signs of immediate attack, Thea chatted idly with Hippolyta for a few moments before introducing Supergirl.
"This is our friend, Kara Danvers—like a sister to me." Thea pulled Supergirl beside her for the introduction.
"Themyscira welcomes you as well. I can see you're a brave warrior and a good person."
Thea could guess Hippolyta's thoughts well enough. With Themyscira facing catastrophe, she'd welcome anyone who came to help. Besides, Supergirl looked naive and pure—quite in line with Amazon traditions.
"Have you decided your order of death yet? Hades is waiting for you." Hera spoke first with overbearing arrogance.
Who on their side should respond? Thea and Diana glanced at Hippolyta, noticing the Queen looked somewhat ashamed. As the other woman confronting the legitimate wife, she naturally felt a bit guilty.
Having Diana respond didn't seem appropriate either. As Zeus' daughter, at least nominally Hera had authority over her. Modern people might not care, but Amazons who followed ancient customs were quite restricted.
Now able to argue with even the Guardians of the Universe until they were dizzy, Thea's increased power left her without reservations. She stepped forward first. "Your Majesty, Queen of the Gods, no one will die in battle today. I'm absolutely certain of that."
Her words drew Hera's attention away from Diana. After a brief scan, Hera recognized her—wasn't this the one who'd fought her ten minutes ago? The encounter had been too rushed; Hera hadn't even seen whether her opponent was male or female. Now she could finally examine her properly.
Definitely a demigod, without question. But which pantheon this demigod belonged to, Hera couldn't quite tell. She seemed to have traces of the Greek pantheon, but also hints of the Egyptian pantheon, or perhaps another divine system entirely. For the moment, Hera couldn't make a determination.
Thea's multiple ascensions to heroic spirit had thoroughly purified and converted all her divine powers. Without tracing back to the source, her origins were impossible to discern.
She could be said to be traveling light now—like a newly born demigod. Even Hera, who commanded the powers of many gods, couldn't see through her background.
Still, the arrogant Hera gave her a sidelong glance. "You can't save them. Even with that Amazon, it won't make a difference." Of the two demigods, Hera at least acknowledged them with a look. Supergirl on the other side was magnificently ignored.
"How about we fight outside the island? There's not enough room here to really let loose." Thea genuinely disliked Themyscira's environment. The moment she'd entered, half her magic had been sealed again. Though her physical abilities remained, she didn't know if the island's restrictions had loosened or if Hera had tampered with them.
Besides, she had no desire to fight Hera. It would be completely pointless. You want to kill your stepson? Go ahead—just don't drag Diana into it. Keep your family drama to yourselves.
However, the other side had no intention of letting things end peacefully. Hera let out a cold laugh and pulled from her robes a deep brown seal carved with lightning. With a malicious laugh, she crushed it.
Thea—who could have passed for a grand mage in ancient times—immediately sensed it: Themyscira's entire anti-magic barrier had failed. Her super vision and magic fully returned.
But this was followed immediately by a sharp stabbing sensation in her heart. The feeling came and went quickly, but Thea realized something terrible had happened. She quickly retreated and turned around.
The Amazon warriors who'd been holding bows and spears now lay scattered across the ground. Hippolyta knelt on one knee. Even Diana's face was twisted in pain as she struggled to stay standing.
This was a special countermeasure specifically designed against Themyscira's barrier and inhabitants. Thea instantly understood. Her heart palpitation came from having lived on the island for half a year.
But this small magical impact meant nothing to her. Within two breaths she'd recovered to normal. Now only Supergirl and herself remained at full combat strength.
"How are you?" Thea didn't have time to worry about the other Themyscirans. She checked on Diana first.
She tried several healing spells experimentally, but unfortunately they had little effect. The attack targeted the entire island—the closer one's connection to the island, the greater the injury. The warrior women had fallen unconscious directly. Antiope and Hippolyta barely retained some awareness, but neither could fight in the short term.
Under Thea's continuous healing and expenditure of some willpower, Diana's condition stabilized somewhat. But she still couldn't sustain prolonged combat.
"Rest for now. Leave this to me." With her magic fully restored, Thea didn't mind exchanging a few blows with Hera.
Just as Thea was about to issue her challenge, Apollo stepped forward with supreme arrogance, not even turning his head as he said, "Hera, you're still so fond of petty tricks. Are these mortals worth such effort? Or have you fallen to their level?"
"Apollo, you will respect me! I am the Queen of the Gods!" Hera found Apollo's words too harsh and roared in extreme displeasure. But her voice carried a hint of weakness.
Apollo snorted coldly. His gaze swept over the enemies opposite—the pale-faced Diana made him shake his head. He ignored Supergirl entirely, then looked at Thea with some curiosity. "Your strength is acceptable. Will you be my opponent?"
Thea wouldn't mind exchanging a few moves with him. She could absorb sunlight too, though not as effectively as Kryptonians.
But if she faced Apollo, the magic-skilled Hera would naturally be left to Supergirl. That was hardly an optimal strategy.
Thea returned his cold smile. "First beat my little sister, then we'll talk. Kara, teach him a lesson!"
"Huh?—!"
Not only was Apollo surprised—Supergirl herself looked astonished. That purple-skinned guy across from them looked incredibly cocky. Could I really...?
"Don't worry, he's no match for you." Seeing Supergirl's bitter expression, Thea quickly encouraged her. Then, without giving her time to react, she pushed her forward.
Apart from the day Parallax had attacked Coast City and the axe-wielding brute's assault, this could be considered Supergirl's third proper battle. She clenched both fists. Her modest chest rose and fell slightly with deep breaths.
After enduring Fiora's rigorous training, Supergirl's combat finally showed some form. No longer using unrefined, instinct-driven combat, she adopted a balanced offensive-defensive stance, waiting for the enemy to attack first.
"Ha ha—!" Supergirl's slightly nervous appearance drew waves of mocking laughter from Apollo. Laughing while pointing at her, he said, "A child! They actually sent a child to be my opponent!"
"Watch your attack power. She's just a mortal—killing her is fine. The rest are mine. I want to deal with them personally!" Hera said viciously.
Apollo shook his head, looking at the nervous Supergirl—whose eyes had gone a bit blank—with some pity.
What value did such an opponent have in proving he could inherit the throne of the God King? Utterly boring. He'd thought coming to Themyscira would bring a great battle, but Hera had opened with a killing move. He couldn't demonstrate the Sun God's might at all. This frustrated Apollo greatly.
Casually throwing a sphere of scorching light at Supergirl, in Apollo's experience no mortal could withstand his attack. He turned back with waning interest.
But after two steps, he noticed something wrong and stopped abruptly, whipping around.
The dust cleared. Supergirl still maintained her previous posture. Apollo's attack had been too fast—she hadn't even reacted before being hit square on. Yet the seemingly fierce move hadn't injured Supergirl. Insensitive as she was to her own energy, she only vaguely felt she'd gained some kind of benefit.
But how was this possible? The purple-skinned guy's attack had looked so powerful, yet why hadn't it hurt her?
With so little combat experience, Supergirl never thought about the sunlight connection. If it had been Superman or Fiora, they would have understood immediately.
She lacked combat experience, but Apollo on the opposite side had plenty. He didn't know about Kryptonians, though.
Watching Supergirl's cautious, guarded appearance, the usually intelligent Apollo was completely baffled. Battle-hardened as he was, he was certain he'd hit his target. Yet seeing his opponent completely unharmed wasn't fake either. What's going on here?
Unable to figure it out, he fired another shot. This time Apollo was somewhat serious. Bending slightly and curling his arm in a charging motion, he suddenly thrust his right hand up.
A deep yellow energy beam filled with massive amounts of light and heat surged toward Supergirl with overwhelming momentum.
This time it wasn't a sneak attack. Supergirl managed to react. Based on past combat experience, she should either counter with heat vision or dodge. But her combat instincts told her she didn't need to counter—just tank it. Perfectly safe, actually beneficial to her body. A total power-up.
Already quite simple-minded, Supergirl was thoroughly confused. But relying on combat instinct was the House of El family tradition. Without thinking, she closed her eyes and charged straight into the energy beam.
"Boom—" A massive sound. Apollo watched as Supergirl—aside from her disheveled appearance—once again emerged completely unharmed. He was utterly dumbfounded. He'd anticipated several possible responses—dodging, counterattacking—those choices wouldn't be surprising.
But Supergirl's reaction completely blindsided him. How had she responded? She'd frozen for a moment, then chosen to ram the attack with her body. Apollo didn't even know what to say anymore.
Thea burst out laughing at the sight. Diana, who also knew about Kryptonian traits, smiled as well.
Now realizing her opponent's attacks couldn't hurt her—in fact, they replenished substantial energy—Supergirl might be naive, but she wasn't stupid.
She guessed his attacks were related to the yellow sun. His two attacks had been completely absorbed by Supergirl's body. Her energy had surged noticeably.
To accumulate this much power from sunbathing would take considerable time.
Always feeling overshadowed by her more experienced cousin, Supergirl felt a surge of genuine confidence for the first time. She laughed with delight.