Wonder Woman: Obsolete (part 1) (Patreon)

(Due to the nature of this story and that it takes a little while to get to the sexy stuff, I will be posting part 2 of this story tomorrow. Enjoy!)

A metal arm the size of a refrigerator drove Wonder Woman to a knee and several inches into the cobbled road. The ground around her cracked, townsfolk crying out in fear and retreating from the amazon and the massive metal man attacking her. This town had seen plenty of war and its people knew when to flee to safety.

Diana gasped, cringing with effort and discomfort. Before she could spring away, her automaton opponent slammed its other fist down, trying to simply shove her flat and pound on her at its leisure. She resisted, but her arms quivered, legs flexed. The metal man was incredibly strong and its sheer girth made every blow exponentially more powerful. Diana hadn’t considered it likely that men could make weapons that could give her pause, but now she was quickly rethinking that assumption.

This shouldn’t even have been her fight. After the debacle with Ares, she’d promised she wouldn’t become involved in the affairs of men. There had been notable times where her conscience simply hadn’t allowed her to remain on the sidelines, but this time she’d had no practical choice.

On an archeological trip to newly discovered ruins in Brazil, the site and the nearby town had been repeatedly attacked by forces rebellious to the current local government. It was a consistent problem in that part of the world, rebels rising up to overthrow the corrupt government, only to continue the cycle by creating a new government as corrupt as the one they’d deposed. Different groups were always fighting each other, attacking towns to resupply or punish the townsfolk for supporting their enemies.

Diana had stopped the first attack with ease. Irregular troops with rifles and submachine guns were no match for her and she’d sent them running with barely anyone in town being the wiser.

But now, a week after the attack, a new group had come. They were armed with technology beyond conventional armies, well-coordinated and striking without warning. They weren’t locals and had made no demands; they’d simply attacked.

Gears in the robot’s arms groaned as it met Diana strength for strength. The mechanical creation was dull green with a squat torso, rivets lining its thick armored plating. It was broad and squared, looking like a giant trashcan with arms, rockets, cannons, and other weapons bristling on its back. There were a pair of megaphones on either shoulder and as the struggle continued, a voice blared through them. It was rough and it crackled through the horned speakers, but it was female, with a hint of a German accent.

“Secure her, men! Take her while she is distracted!”

The voice was familiar, but Diana didn’t have time to place it. While she was pinned down by the robot, men with handheld weapons were swarming in from the sides, flanking her. Several of them fired their weapons and Diana was struck with arcs of electricity that made her cry out, body clenching in agony. It wasn’t enough to put her down, but it was enough to hurt her and make it clear she couldn’t stay there.

“Increase the charge!” the voice from the megaphones commanded, “She’s more durable than—”

Before the voice could finish, Diana exploded upwards with a cry of effort, throwing the robot’s arms off her and causing the machine to stagger back a step. For an instant she stood posed and powerful, the cherry red of her breastplate gleaming, bare arms and legs flexed. The metal creature was mighty, but facing it was a creature of power, grace, and beauty, filled with the legacy of the old gods and shining with their light. She was smaller, soft and feminine, even outdated in her short amazon skirt and bronze age armor, but the robot looked like a cheap toy at that moment, a clumsy brute of pig iron and cobbled parts.

The princess launched herself forward with a cry and her Amazonian sword plunged into the robot’s steel gullet like it was an aluminum can. She dragged the blade up, cutting towards the top of the machine’s squat head, but before she could pry the wound wide the men around them opened fire once again. Several blasts struck Diana and she cried out in frustration, her armor only providing a conductor for the electric charge. She sprang off the robot and took to the air, swooping around to drive through the groups of men like a bowling ball through pins.

She never got close. As soon as she sprang overhead, the robot’s arm shot out with surprising speed and caught her by the legs, stopping her before she could escape.

Diana’s eyes widened with surprise before the robot swung her overhead and slammed her face down into the pavement. She grunted in pain, almost losing her grip on her sword, her body smashing into cobbled stones and pounding them to gravel.

“Very good,” the voice came through the speakers, “Now into that building, I think. Third from the left.”

Before Diana could gather herself, she was slung around like a rag doll then thrown overhand, sent flying towards the town’s two-story hotel. She struck the corner of the building and smashed through in an explosion of stucco and brick to be sent tumbling along the street. Bit of the hotel clattered off of other buildings, smashing windows and punching holes through walls. Cries of pain and terror rang out from people hiding inside the buildings.

Wonder Woman quickly started to move, not badly hurt, but the hotel wasn’t as fortunate. With much of its corner support gone, the building shifted to that side. Beams not meant to hold the weight groaned then gave way, the roof crumpling. More cries of fear rang out from the occupants as one corner of the hotel collapsed on itself. The destruction wasn’t complete but the building was clearly ruined, tilting to one side and staying only precariously upright.

As Diana stumbled to her feet, shaking off her daze, the robot stomped towards her, followed by swarms of men. She glared at them, ready to face them all. With two deft moves she placed her shield on her back and her sword in its sheath over her shoulder, then moved her hand to her hip. She uncoiled her golden lasso, the strands glowing like the sun as it came to her hand.

She drew it back, a lasso formed to throw across the robot’s shoulders, and a weighted net of metal threads smacked into her back, looping around her and tangling her arms.

Diana gasped in surprise. Before she could struggle, a thick chord attached to the back of the net pumped thousands of volts through the metal mesh. She threw her head back and cried out in pain, gripping the strands of wire but unable to pull free as her body flexed into a rictus. Arcs of electricity jumped from link to link, throwing out sparks, crackling over the sound of her cries.

Another massive robot, identical to the first, stepped into the street, the net and chord linked to a cannon on its shoulder. Flanked by more ground troops carrying blasters and other strange weapons, it advanced on the stricken amazon, while the first robot approached from the other side, surrounding her.

Chest thrust out, arcs of electricity and sparks jumping off the net and her shining armor, Diana fell to her knees in the street.

“This is a battle you cannot win, Wonder Woman.” The female voice said through the speakers, “Stop fighting. Accept your fate.”

Diana clenched her eyes closed, calling on her divine strength. She was alone, without Steve or her sisters, purposeless other than her man’s world’s occupation, and for a moment the offer seemed tempting. But she refused to lie down and die.

Forcing her muscles to fight through the current, she drew her arms apart. Her fists clenched arms shaking, her cries stopping as she gritted her teeth. Then, with a supreme force of effort, she brought her bracers together with a bell-like chime.

The clash of the bracelets sent out a shockwave of godly light and force that shattered every nearby window, throwing every attacking soldier off his feet. The robots staggered back, almost up ended, and the hotel gave way entirely, collapsing in a cloud of dust. Ears were left ringing, her attackers blinded as well as stunned.

Out of the dust from the hotel, Diana stood and tore the net in half with a swift jerk, then threw it aside. Chest heaving, fists balled at her sides, she glared at the robot before her, features hard with righteous fury.

“Your metal men are impressive, whoever you are,” she growled in her rolling accent, “But it will take more than this to destroy me.”

The robot swayed in place, gears grinding as it steadied itself. It looked drunken, the occasional spark flicking out of the long cut Diana had dragged through its chest. Around it, the foot soldiers groaned, blinking rapidly and glazed in the eyes, clumsy in their movements like boxers trying to get up before the ten count.

Yet, despite all that, the voice from the speakers was cool, even amused.

“Yes, indeed, you are quite formidable,” the electronic voice said lightly, “It’s possible you could defeat my devices, machines, and my mercenaries. It could even be an interesting experiment.”

Diana narrowed her eyes at the wry tone.

“But tell me,” the voice continued, “About them. How will they fare through this continued battle?”

The robot lifted an arm, pointing.

Diana looked.

From the hotel, badly injured townsfolk were stumbling from the destroyed hotel, coughing and covered in dust. To a man they were hunched, some carrying the injured, others injured themselves, clothes torn, ravaged, wounds caked with red, wet dirt. A few of them crawled, wide eyed and shocked, others groaned or cried in sheer fright.

Diana grew pale, dark, almond-shaped widening in horror. Her lips parted and she stood frozen, breath caught in her throat.

The pitiful group hobbled away, occasionally looking over their shoulders in fear. There had been many more in the hotel. Most had fled when the battle began, but Diana’s stomach sank as she realized more had to be inside. More that were never coming out.

“Did you forget, Wonder Woman, in all your heroics,” the voice said, “The people you were trying to protect?”

It hit Diana harder than any blow by Ares or these metal creations. She slowly turned back to the damaged robot, brow lowered and stern, but she didn’t attack. Her fists clenched at her sides, lasso still in hand, she stayed where she was, tense but still.

The voice noticed immediately. She made a pleased sound.

“Yes, let’s not do anything rash for now,” she said, “I would rather this battle were over, but if you move too suddenly, my men will have to respond and, well… that would not be good.”

The mercenaries around Wonder Woman began to make their way back to their feet, shaken but snapping out of it. They picked up their weapons and put them to their shoulders but stepped well back from the amazon. They never took their eyes off her, their fingers on the triggers of their weapons.

Diana eyed them with a similar expression, chin lowered, wary.

“Who are you?” she demanded of the robot, “Why are you doing this?”

“That will become clear very soon,” the speaker said, “What’s more important is the fact that there are 14,789 people that live in this town. In two and a half minutes of battle, I estimate we’ve destroyed 8% of the buildings and infrastructure.”

Diana narrowed her eyes, “You did. Not me.”

As she said this, cumbersome, metal footfalls rang off the buildings, growing louder and closer. A third robot was lumbering toward the stand-off.

“It takes two to dance, Wonder Woman,” the voice continued, “By my most conservative calculations, continued battle will reduce 87% of the town’s streets and architecture. 6,523 badly injured, 796 dead before you’re brought down. If you’re victorious, my projections are even more catastrophic.”

Diana swallowed, looking slowly over her shoulder at the forces gathering around her. She was in the center of a crossfire between around 50 mercenaries armed with weapons her bracelet and shield conducted rather than deflected. Three of the large, surprisingly versatile robots loomed over her, ready to attack. She was being cornered, in more ways than one.

“I have additional forces with heavier ordinance standing by. It will be a very epic struggle, but not what I would recommend, for the sake of the people living here.”

Diana cocked her head. She heard the rumble of diesel engines, the crackling of tires over the cobbled streets. This town had a few small cars, but rarely did a large truck come through to deliver goods, and certainly not a fleet of them.

Reinforcements. Whoever this woman was, she wasn’t lying.

A small wrinkle knitted in Diana’s brow, betraying her worry through her stern glare.

“And… what would you recommend?” she said, her tone low and guarded.

“We stop fighting, of course,” the voice replied, “A temporary agreement of nonaggression.”

There was a heavy pause.

“While we discuss the terms of your surrender. And captivity.”

Diana’s eyes narrowed, her gaze sweeping across her gathered attackers. She had suspected an offer of that sort, but now she knew for sure. Whoever this was intended to take her alive, a prisoner. The soldiers had been armed with weapons designed to be effective against her as well as to subdue rather than kill. They had been prepared for her, attacked her purposefully where she would have to pull her punches. This wasn’t a chance encounter.

She turned her eyes back to the robot, “This was never about the town. You came here for me.”

“Indeed,” the voice crackled back, “I have no interest in the town whatsoever. Once you are subdued, there will be no point at all for my forces to remain. I will leave as soon as you are safely in my custody.”

Diana stayed perfectly still, outwardly confident and forbidding, but inside in utter turmoil. Forty years ago, this choice would have been made in moments: an amazon never surrenders. There were many things she would negotiate, but never that. Now, however, she knew nothing was that simple.

For a long, long time she believed mankind was simply lost, that a hero, a hero like her, could set things right by striking down the right creatures, fighting the right battles. She’d been so naïve. Even with the purest of intentions, her power could cause more harm than good. In fact, the most tragic of man’s woes were nothing she could cut with a sword or bind with a lasso. She couldn’t punch hunger, greed, prejudice, or petty cruelty.

She’d come to man’s world on a hero’s quest and now it was over, with no way to return home. She had no quest, no purpose, no home, and no one in this world that was like her or truly knew her. She simply didn’t belong. She was an outsider, bringing carnage to this town by her very presence.

Diana slowly looked away, the little muscles in the side of her jaw working.

“It is your choice, Wonder Woman,” the voice said patiently, “Attack and the destruction continues or agree and we can simply talk.”

Diana looked around the still-standing buildings, her heart heavy. Most of the occupants were no doubt hidden, but every now and then she saw a face peak through a window or from behind a wall, checking to see why the sounds of battle had stopped. These people struggled in this place, relied on its buildings and roads for what little most of them had. She was certain she could find a way to defeat this tiny army, even if there were twice as many reinforcements as were already on the field. The trouble was there was no doubt the town would be annihilated in the process. Even if no one died in the crossfire, almost all their lives would be destroyed.

She clenched and unclenched her fists, forcing herself not to squirm like a nervous child.

“What is it to be, Wonder Woman?”

Diana closed her eyes. Suddenly very tired, she let her shoulders slump and let out a sigh, her troubled expression melting away with resignation. This was something she couldn’t punch, that all her power was useless against. Her fingers uncurled and she turned back to the robot, her head lowered.

“I agree to your proposal,” she said wearily, “And… am willing to discuss the terms of my surrender.”

“Good.” The voice replied.

There was a beat of silence. A few blocks away, Diana’s sharp hearing picked up the rumbling of diesel engines revving, heavy vehicles beginning to move. A group of load bearing trucks was rattling and bumping its way down the streets, on their way towards the amazon and her attackers.

The female voice returned, with the roar of the trucks in the background.

“Gentlemen, lower your weapons, please. The mechs can clear the street,” a whistle of hydraulics sounded in the background, “A stand down is in effect while Wonder Woman and I come to a reasonable agreement.”

The soldiers didn’t move at first. Still stiff with adrenaline, a few of them reluctantly peeled their eyes from their dangerous quarry to glance at each other, waiting to see if one of the others would move first. Only slowly did a few of them lower their weapons, taking careful steps back, and then others followed suit. None of them took their eyes off her, but they did as they were ordered and the walking tanks clunked away, creating space.

Wonder Woman managed to stay still and somewhat upright, but it was difficult not to fidget. Her enemies were moving around her, many of them behind her where she could only hear their footsteps. Her instincts were telling her to fight or run, but she had to stay where she was, listening to the approaching convoy, and knowing what would happen on its arrival.

In thirty seconds, a wide space had been opened around her, but surrounded by soldiers and the three automatons. It felt like she was on some sort of stage to be stared at by a hostile audience, with no lines to say and no moves to make. She could only wait for the other actor to arrive so the drama could begin.

She didn’t have to wait long. Almost as soon as the street was cleared, a soft topped military truck came around the corner, its rows of tires throwing up gravel despite its wide, lazy turn. The vehicle straightened out and rumbled towards Diana, as three identical trucks performed the same maneuver one after the other, mirroring the leader. Their beds rode low on the wheels, weighed down by their burdens.

Diana shifted her feet, closed her eyes for a moment to gather her courage, then lifted her head to stare solemnly at the approaching vehicles. She may have been banished from Themyscira, lost in a world where true honor had no meaning, but she would face this indignity as an amazon should.

The first truck crunched to a halt a dozen paces in front of her, but before the wheels had even stopped turning the passenger door in the cab opened. A blonde woman in riding boots, khaki trousers and button-down blouse hopped down to the ground just as the breaks finished squeaking. She bustled around the front of the vehicle, megaphone in hand.

“Step lively, gentlemen!” she called directions into the speaker, “The cameras will go here and here! Place the pulses directly behind them! Medical crews and containment teams are on standby here!”

As soon as the trucks came to a stop, more mercenaries dropped down from the backs and began unloading equipment, calling out instructions and echoing orders. Quickly the relative quiet of the ceasefire was filled with the thumping of crates on the ground, boots rushing about, the shouting voices of men at manual labor.

“No mistakes,” the woman called, “Bonuses for you all if this goes smoothly!”

Her voice had a clearer quality as she spoke directly into the megaphone, but Diana recognized the accent and the tone. It was the voice from the automaton.

Once the men were set on their business, the woman turned to face Diana with a sharp, purposeful gaze. Her eyes were a cold blue, cheeks rosy but with a sharp point to her nose and chin, her high eyebrows making her resting expression arch. A wisp of a smile spread her pouty lips but didn’t touch her eyes. She looked beautiful, angular, cunning, and familiar.

She stopped a few paces from the vehicle and brought the megaphone to her lips again, staring cooly at Diana over the horn.

“And here are again, Wonder Woman,” she paused, “Do you remember me?”

Diana blinked. In the midst of World War 2, a German scientist had pursued her, intent on not only proving the existence of Wonder Woman but capturing her for the war effort. A genius and Olympic athlete, she had become obsessed with using her Amazon prize to gain the recognition and rank she deserved in her male-dominated field. She had failed and the Nazis had shortly after removed the funding for her project.

One to let her inventions and flunkies do the grunt work, Diana had only seen the woman face to face on one occasion. The woman before her was ten years older, with a scar on one eyebrow, but her piercing gaze was the same.

“Fausta Garbles…?” Diana’s eyebrows rose.

Fausta’s smile turned up at the corners, “I see that you do. That’s good. It saves time from introductions.”

Diana stared, mouth agape. She had thought Fausta had either died in the war or been taken to a Russian prison camp after the Allied victory. Seeing this woman here was one of the last things she’d expected, much less with an army of mercenaries and armored machines at her back, continuing her mission from a decade before.

“A most wise decision to resolve this conflict civilly,” Fausta said, “Civilians shouldn’t be involved in what we do. I thank you for making this as easy and greatly limiting the collateral damage. It is commendable.”

Diana’s brow lowered at that. Her mouth closed, lips tightening.

“You would destroy this town…” she said bitterly, “Only to capture me?”

Fausta expression didn’t change; it might as well have been carved from marble. She stared back at Diana, considering her words.

Behind her, the mercenaries were setting up equipment. Several men carried a pair of film cameras, large, boxy devices on tripods, and set them down on either side of the lead truck. They spread the legs and locked them in place while even more men set down different, even larger devices behind the cameras. They looked like strange fish tanks, with coiled rods corkscrewing from one side to the other through fluid as blue as the sky.

“As I said, it takes two to dance,” Fausta said calmly, “I WILL overcome, subdue, and collect you, Wonder Woman. If this town is destroyed and the next town and one hundred other towns, it will be WE together that are responsible. I would much rather we came to a reasonable agreement, but I’m more than willing to bear the burden of the alternative. Are you?”

Diana’s jaw worked, her scowl dangerously close to a pout. Her dark eyes glittered with anger, burning into Fausta’s icy gaze.

Behind the German scientist, crews were now manning the cameras, checking the lenses, doing sound checks. Men with headphones stood behind them, peering through the lens. One swiveled towards Wonder Woman, the other Fausta, peering at the staring contest through the magic of television.

Once the cameras were ready, silence was called for and everyone grew still. The men’s paymaster had made it clear that she wanted these moments immortalized, every sound and nuance. In a few seconds, the battlefield was as quiet as a television set. The cameras rolled.

The silence rang in Diana’s ears, drawing her gaze from Fausta’s. She peered around uncertainly. All the men from the truck stared at her without making a sound. They crowded around the cameras or amongst the rubble of ruined buildings, watching to see how the legendary figure before them would respond, as if instinctively knowing they were watching history in the making.

Diana clenched her jaw, slowly looking over her shoulder. The soldiers watched her from their posts, weapons lowered but held at the ready. Many of them scowled, others grinning with anticipation or simply enjoying the feast for the eyes the Amazon’s body created for them. Behind them, further into the town, she could see more locals braving their way from their hiding places to peer out at the scene, watching to see if the battle would recommence.

And the black lenses of the cameras captured it all, their stares unrelenting.

Everyone was watching her, waiting to see who would win this battle of wills. It made Diana extremely uncomfortable, because she knew there was only one response she could give.

She looked back to Fausta and swallowed, trying for a resentful glare, but it was brittle. It broke after a moment and her gaze fell, brow furrowed beneath her golden tiara, pained. Her eyes fixed on the ground, no response coming from her lips.

The lack of response was an answer on its own. Fausta smiled and lowered the megaphone. She glanced over her shoulder at the cameramen, got a thumbs up to indicate they were rolling, then strode towards her cowed quarry.

As Fausta approached, the soldiers stiffened. Some raised their weapons, worried about a threat to their meal ticket, even beginning to call out.

Fausta waved them down without taking her eyes off her target. She stopped less than ten paces away, having no fear of the powerful creature before her.

“I thought not. Everyone has their weaknesses,” she sniffed, brisk and business-like, “Now I am prepared to hear your terms of surrender, Wonder Woman. Or would you prefer I presented my own first?”

Diana said nothing, glaring scathingly at Fausta’s boots. She had no doubt the obsessed scientist would do exactly what she said, level a hundred towns to capture her. She knew she could win a battle, most likely, but even in winning she would lose. The people of this town would lose.

She raised her gaze to Fausta’s once more, sullen. The German had planned this. She had known Diana’s regrets from the World Wars, all the villages and towns she couldn’t save, and had targeted her in this place specifically. It was a cunning trap, a master stroke, so much so that even recognizing the trap for what it was, there was nothing the prey could do to counter it.

For all her power, Wonder Woman, champion of the Amazons, daughter of the Greek Gods, was beaten, conquered in both will and mind. There was only one choice she could make.

She lowered her eyes, suddenly tired.

“My terms are…” Diana sighed, “My terms are that you leave this place. Cause no more harm to this town or its people. Do that and I will leave with you. I will not struggle.”

There was silence. A rat scurried out of a caved in section of hotel and sent a small rock clattering onto the street. The sound rang out, suddenly loud amidst the quiet.

Fausta pursed her lips and nodded slowly, considering the offer.

“Very well,” she said, “I will agree to your terms. And more.”

The villainess drew several steps closer, her boots crunching on gravel and broken glass. She stopped a few feet from the Amazon, almost close enough to reach out and touch her.

Fausta’s cold gaze narrowed, “I will do more for this town than you ever could. Or ever have. Within a week, I will have this place entirely rebuilt and repaired. I will compensate the townsfolk for their temporary loss of occupation and see to first rate medical care for the injured. I will also not only repair but improve every bridge within a 45-kilometer radius.”

Diana blinked at the villainess’s generosity. But Fausta wasn’t done.

“Within a month, I will do the same for three neighboring villages,” the villainess recited like she was reading from a list, “I will also use my own devices and expense to shield this town and neighboring farms from any external attack, indefinitely. It will be an oasis of peace amidst any internal or foreign war. If I fail to meet these provisions, you are free from any agreement made here today.”

Staring at the German, Diana slowly frowned. Fausta wouldn’t simply be kind for the sake of it. Any charity from her would come with a price.

It quickly followed.

“However, in return, I will require your immediate and complete surrender,” Fausta said, “You will immediately deliver yourself, as well as all weapons, tools, armor, and personal effects, into my keeping for an indefinite period of my choosing.”

Diana was very still. It felt like the entire world was shrinking around her.

Fausta strolled closer, continuing her terms.

“During this period, you will be a prisoner, remaining in whatever domicile I provide you. You will cooperate with any interviews and obey any directives which I deem to be necessary. You will also submit to any medical, scientific, or recreational procedure or activity that I choose, with the understanding that your unique capabilities are to be studied, emulated, and replicated. You will respond immediately to my summons and will have no rights or privileges that I do not explicitly grant to you.”

Diana started to lower her head, but Fausta cupped her chin and lifted it back up. Her gaze bore into the Amazon’s sad, lidded eyes.

“To finalize our arrangement,” the villainess’s grin grew, “I will require a statement of your agreement to each of these terms, including a formal admission of defeat and surrender, while under the influence of your lasso of Hestia.”

Toned, slender arms that could have torn Fausta limb from limb hung at Diana’s sides. She could have destroyed the villainess in any number of ways, but instead her mortal enemy all but held her in the palm of her hand.

Every ounce of Amazon pride revolted at the thought of submission, but Fausta truly could do more for this town and its town than she ever could. Her warrior’s pride and her resistance to any form of ownership wouldn’t rebuild this town if it was destroyed, wouldn’t improve the lives of its occupants. On the contrary, her refusal to forsake them would doom not only this place, but possibly others as well.

But still, it was daunting to give up something that was such a massive part of herself, to trade her eternal defiance for obedience.

“Such are my terms, Wonder Woman,” Fausta said, “They will all be agreed to or there is no agreement. Do you accept or shall we annihilate this town?”

The decision hurt less than Diana expected. In truth, she was already despondent, weary, and somewhat numb. She didn’t have the strength left to feel more than a twinge of shame. She had already surrendered; this was just agreeing to the consequences.

“Yes…” Wonder Woman spoke slowly, as if she was sounding out the words, “I… a-accept your conditions.”

She lowered her eyes, like a regretful child.

“I hereby surrender… as agreed.”