No way out.

Dragging the vessel out of the water had taken time.

When Diana had enough amazons with her, she had swum out to where the boat had capsized and tied a rope at its keel, tugging at it to make sure it was tight and unlikely to break off. Taking to the water’s surface, she waved to the warrior women still at the beach who gripped the rope and began the inhuman effort of pulling the boat to shore, one meter at a time.

Stepping onto the dry beach and wringing her hair dry as she came back to shore, Diana watched as the boat was pulled from the sea and grimaced once she spotted the damage in the clear sunlight. At some point when being pulled back and forth by the rough waters during the storm, the fishing boat had struck the stony outcrop under the waters, creating splintered scars into the wooden hull big enough that a person could have slipped through... Twice over. Running a hand over the damage, the princess winced, as did Alexa who stepped behind Diana to look at the fishing trolley now capsized on the sand.

“Even with our most skilled shipwrights, this damage will take days, maybe even a week.”

Hearing Alexa step past her to explore the boat more closely, Diana continued to wonder just HOW these people managed to come to her shores. Themyscira was by all accounts a non-existent island. A cypher, a mirage when seen by any sailor who crossed their borders. The only other who came here was Steve Trevor so long ago, and even THAT was a mystery still.

“What is this… Thing?” She heard Alexa ask, standing behind the stern of the ship staring up at the metal shaft with a propeller at its end.

“That’s a motor, the men of the outside world use that to propel the boat without the use of an oar.”

“A self-propelled boat…” Making her way around to the tipped over deck, the damage there was just as severe. Showing potholes where the cracks had pierced through completely, it was a miracle its crew survived at all. Finding their belongings in brightly coloured plastic containers strapped to the deck, Alexa had pulled out a knife and cut the straps and pulled free the two containers, setting them on the sand behind her.

“Need any help identifying anything else in the contents?” Asked Diana, getting a playfully dirty look from Alexa as she opened the first container.

“Are you implying I make for a poor archivist?” Still smiling, the red-haired woman rummaged through the contents of the container, finding spare clothes still left dry thanks to the seal of the container. “I shall have something for our queen later today, by the looks of things, none of this seems out of the ordinary for fisher… What in Hera’s name is this?”

Plucking out a small object no bigger than a whetstone, it was made of plastic and had a pair of thin wires that ended in little plastic buds. Smiling back, Diana left the woman to her own devices. Thanking the others for their aid, the guards she asked for assistance made their way back to their former duties while Diana took the path back to the city.

“So… Sending them back home under their own devices is out of the question then. I guess that leaves me with only one choice.”

Entering the city of Themyscira and walking her way through the streets to head back to her invisible jet, Diana looked around the city to find its occupants and sisters still in turmoil. Many grouped together, giving each other company as they endured the state of their appearance. Several still looked haggard, elderly, and diseased… It tore at Diana’s heart. And yet, there was the odd one out or two who’s beauty and youth were restored. When they passed by these groups of amazons, there was a look in their sunken eyes Diana noticed. If she didn’t know any better, she swore they were jealous.

“MY PRINCESS! MY PRINCESS!”

Her attention back on the street ahead of her, Diana found a pair of the royal guards running towards her direction.

“Euboea, Areto.” Called out Diana, waiting for the two to stop ahead of her and bow their helmeted heads in front of their princess. The two looked… Frail, their skin mottled and hanging off their limbs, they had taken to wearing silk scarves around their faces to hide their appearance, where even behind the veils Diana could see they looked withered with sunken and blistered flesh. Yet even so, they maintained their composure, clicking their heels together and stamping their spears to the ground in salute. “What troubles you, my sisters?”

“My princess, we have urgent news, you must see this.”

*

30 minute later…

It was hard to believe. With her hands at her sides and shaking her head, Diana found the engine compartment opened to the invisible jet, while carefully placed and organised on a soft furred rug just under the left wing were the disassembled components to the jet propulsion system. Rendering the vessel useless until it would be repaired. Whoever had done this KNEW how the flying machine could be rendered inoperable AND repaired in time by anyone who knew how. Each component sat undamaged on the fur rug along with the tools that let the culprit do so, and the instruction manual to the vessel kept pinned down with a rock to keep it from fluttering off to the winds.

“Suffering Sapho…” turning to the lone guard who stood nervous and looking away, Atana had a look in her glassy elderly eyes that could only be read as bafflement. “What happened here?”

“I… I do not know your highness.” Answered the guard, her eyes shifting back and forth as if trying to search for a memory. “I… Remember guarding your invisible chariot, then… That.” She answered, pointing to the rug.

“Atala, do you know what time it is? How long ago do you remember this and now?”

Lowering her head, the woman looked in turmoil, scratching her helm with her fingers instinctively as she tried to piece her memories together. “It… It is near dusk now my Princess, but twas mid-day when I closed my eyes, for me it felt like a split second.”

Looking back to the three guards, Diana regained her composure. “I shall want an investigation to determine who has done this. In the meantime, please tell Atalanta she may forgo her blacksmithing duties to assist me in repairs.”

The trio of guards stamped their spears and turned to leave, leaving Diana alone to mull over her favorite jet with its guts sitting on a blanket in front of her. Making a face of confusion and turning her attention back to her disassembled jet after seeing the guards leave, Diana sighed. “Boston… What are you planning?”

*

Shoved roughly into the cell with the bars slammed shut behind him, Gary nearly lost his footing from how harshly he had been pushed into the dank cold stone room. Turning around quickly, he found a spear tip at his neck the instant he looked to take a step forward. Inside the cell behind him, his father panted and wheezed. Sitting on a wooden bench with his grandson sitting next to him with his hands in his lap. Looking back at the crone who stood imperiously in front of him in polished brass and leather armor and accompanied by several guards of her own, Alkyone scowled back at the three in contempt.

“This is where you will be detained until we determine how to be rid of you.” Explained the Amazonian general, raising her chin, the woman narrowed her sunken eyes and curled her thin lip in disgust. “Personally, I’d have tossed you back into the waters with or without your ship.”

Backing away, Gary joined his son and father at the bench and pulled his son close around his arm, trying to help him keep calm. The sight of which made the red eyed Amazon woman hiss in disgust and turn to the guard assigned there.

“Here is will they will be detained and here is where they will stay. I do NOT want them wandering around the splendour of our paradise, be sure to keep them quiet… The little one was noisy enough as it was dragging them here.”

Stamping her spear’s pommel against the stone floor and clicking her heels together, the guard nodded. “As you command general.”

Hearing the gate to the dungeon slam shut up on the stone staircase leading to the dungeons, Gary found he was alone, save for his family and the angry looking old woman in armor staring daggers at him. Slumping his shoulders, Gary patted his son on the shoulder and tried to give a smile to keep his spirits up.

“Daddy, where are we?”

“I don’t know Harper, I really don’t know.”

“Was that Wonder Woman with’em?” Asked the elderly man at the furthest of the bench. “She said that lady on the horse was her mum.”

Scratching his cheek in thought, Gary was rather surprised by that. He had heard of Wonder Woman, even saw her on television, but never thought she would look so… Amazing in person. But if this was her home island, it really made his head spin with questions. She claimed her home was a paradise, yet the first thing he was met with were spears and swords threatening him and his son. Everyone looked so old and callous. Just what was going on?

“Damn she’s a hard-nosed bitch ain’t she?”

Sitting up in confusion to the guard speaking in a thick Brooklyn accent, the trio looked over to the guard who was staring back at the dungeon’s keep door with a dirty smirk.

“I’ve seen some nasty Karen’s in my day, but that one wins the hotline for the manager’s office.” Turning her attention to the family on the bench, the guard shrugged her shoulders. “Personally, if this place grew more cucumbers than lettuce you’d get some happier ladies in the morning, if you know what I’m sayin.” She chuckled with a wink.

Rearing back in his seat, Phin sputtered out a laugh, wincing his eyes shut at the joke while Gary found himself doing the same, levity lifting him out of his worries. Seeing the child giggle, not understanding the joke but finding the laughter infectious, the guard put down her spear and shield to crouch down and see him at face level, holding her head up with her thin, elderly looking hands.

“Hey there kiddo, ya hungry?” Seeing him smile and nod his head, the guard smiled back. Getting up to her feet she rummaged for the keys at her belt and opened their cell. “Well then, let’s get you outta here and get some orange slices.”

“B-But… That lady told you to keep us here.”

Rolling her eyes and blowing a raspberry with her tongue out, the guard gave him a look.

“Please… What she gonna do? Make me do jumpin jacks in my undies? NO ONE wants to see an old biddy do that, that’s a punishment that hurts everyone... Those thing thangin around like a pair of week-old socks… SO! Who wants to get a bite to eat?”