War of the Gods #4: Alternate Talk
DC Comics' four-issue War of the Gods mini-series (September 1991 - December 1991) was a company-wide crossover event celebrating Wonder Woman's 50th anniversary. Deadlines, as was often the case with these events, were tight, and writer/layout artist George Pérez had fallen dangerously behind on delivering the dialogue for the final, crucial issue. So to hedge his bets, editor Tom Peyer assigned me to take an emergency overnight pass on dialoguing the 40-page story so he would have something to print if George missed that last, absolute, drop dead deadline. Spoiler: He didn't, and the issue made it with George's dialogue... and six inkers scurrying to get it done in time. I've never compared my draft to the published version, but here's your chance...
PAGE ONE
1 Cap: New Olympus... where the harsh ring of steel upon steel mingles with the frenzied cries of beings crazed by bloodlust.
2 Cap: New Olympus... where the gods yet wage WAR!
3 Off panel: Uh-oh...
4 Cap: War that has raged across the heavens. War that has brought RUIN to lands of myth and realms beyond imagining.
5 Off panel: Are you SURE you’ve got the oscillograph calibrated CORRECTLY, Cave?
6 Cap: War which has disturbed heaven and threatened to lay waste to EARTH...
7 Woman: Cave? Do you READ me, Cave? Come in! This is IMPORTANT, Carson... ANSWER me!
8 Cap: ... And seen godly combatants pushed to the brink of insanity and BEYOND in their struggle for supremacy.
9 Cap: For power!
10 Woman: The power levels are spiking dangerously close to CRITICAL, Cave. What the devil is going ON down there?
11 Electric Balloon: CAVE CARSON here, reading you loud and clear, S.T.A.R. Labs...
12 Cave: ... Sorry for the DELAY, doc, but we want to be 100% on these readings we’re telemetering back to you. Finished checking your calibration, BULLDOZER?
13 Bulldozer: The oscillograph checks out A-OK, Cave.
14 Cave: Hear that, S.T.A.R.? The instrument’s just FINE...
15 Cave: ... It’s the WORLD that’s completely out of whack!
PAGES TWO - THREE
1 Cap: Meanwhile, hundreds of miles over the Earth... and high above New Olympus as well...
2 Cap: ... For the very COSMOS has been altered in the face of this devastating, magical war, changing reality... bringing about a CONVERGENCE of two realities where there should be but ONE!
3 Cap: Such is the might of the gods! Such is the awesome THREAT to ALL humanity...
4 Superman: Everything appears to be holding STEADY... so far! But there’s no telling how much longer the Earth can hold up under the incredible GRAVITATIONAL pull of New Olympus.
5 Starman: Man, who’d believe THIS, huh, Superman? I mean, evil goddesses starting wars between the REST of the gods... the HOME of the gods sharing an orbit with Earth... it’s INCREDIBLE!
6 Guy: Get REAL, willya, STARGEEK! You just been hanging out on Earth too long. You should see some’a the things I’VE...
7 Title: IN THE BEGINNING... THERE WAS THE END
8 Credits: The WAR OF THE GODS concludes
Plotted & Designed by GEORGE PERÈZ & RUSSELL BRAUN
Dialogued by PAUL KUPPERBERG
Pencilled by
Inked by
Lettered by ALBERT DeGUZMAN
Colored by GENE D’ANGELO
Editorially Assisted by BOB KAHAN
Edited by KAREN BERGER & TOM PEYER
9 Superman: SAVE IT, GARDNER! We’ve got more important things to do at the moment!
10 Guy: Yeah, right... BIG MAN! Like you could even be out here in DEEP SPACE if MY power ring didn’t give you a PROTECTIVE AURA!
11 Superman: All right-- this is SUPERMAN...
12 Cap: “... To ALL teams. If you’re all READY, ladies and gentlemen, we can get this show on the road.”
13 Cap: The ruins of the sorceress Circe’s castle:
14 Hawkman: Ready on your signal, Superman!
15 Deadshot: Damn straight! Let’s HIT those New Olympus CREEPS!
16 Cap: The Greek island of Aeaea:
17 From isle: The JUSTICE LEAGUE is likewise ready... prepared to do whatever we MUST to save Earth--
18 Manhunter: -- And AVENGE the memory of WONDER WOMAN’S SACRIFICE.
19 Cap: Dr. Fate’s Tower:
20 Dr. Fate/From Tower: It’s about to START... and not a moment too soon--
21 Fate: -- For the statis field holding Earth together against New Olympus’s gravitational pull won’t hold much longer.
22 Terry: It... it’s really going to happen, isn’t it, LILITH?
23 Lilith: Take it EASY, Terry. This IS going to work out.
24 Terry: HOW can you know that? How can ANYONE...?
PAGE FOUR
1 Cap: Circe’s castle:
2 Pantha: Why so QUIET, FLASH? Suffering a case of the nerves?
3 Flash: Naw, PANTHA... it’s OLD HAT for me to face off against a bunch’a ticked off gods!
4 Flash: What’d YOU think, huh? I don’t trust you and TERMINATOR teaming up, that’s what’s eating me, okay!
5 Red Star: Surely you do not believe Pantha would BETRAY humanity?
6 Flash: Wouldn’t you just hate to find out that she WOULD... AFTER the fact?
7 Red Star: We are ALL in this TOGETHER, tovarich. You would do well to REMEMBER that at this crucial moment.
8 Cap: Gotham City:
9 Robin: Fighting the Joker or the Scarecrow... THAT I can handle, but THIS... aren’t you ever SCARED, Batman?
10 Bats: Only a FOOL wouldn’t be afraid at a time like this, Robin. Everything else we’ve ever encountered PALES in comparison to this.
11 Robin: Yeah...
12 Radio (elec): ... ALL teams. If you’re all READY, ladies and gentlemen, we can get this show on the road.
13 Bats: Acknowledged, Superman!
14 Radio (elec): ... We can get this show on the road.
15 Aquaman (T): For the sake of Posiedonis... for ALL the Earth --
16 Aquaman (T): -- Here goes nothing...!
PAGE FIVE
1 Cap: Themyscira, now resting in the Earthly plane:
2 Cap: The fires burn BRIGHT upon this fabled land. Fires of CARNAGE, the aftermath of combat...
3 Cap: The fires of the FORGE--
SFX: KLANG!
4 Cap: -- Crafting weapons of destruction.
5 Cap: Of retribution!
6 Cap: The winds of war fanning the flames of death...
7 Cap: ... And causing to burn brighter still the fires in the hearts of the warrior gods!
8 Cap: But brightest of ALL fires that burn this day on Themyscira, home of the mighty Amazons--
9 Cap: -- Is THIS... the funeral pyre of the PRINCESS DIANA, whose death did herald the beginning of the END of this, the greatest war of all time!
10 Menelippe: Strange... how the fires YET burn...
11 Heracles: Why should it NOT, Menelippe? We mourn the mightiest Amazon warrior.
12 Heracles: We would have your prayers, priestess... for those YET to die!
13 Menelippe: You HAVE them, Heracles.
14 Menelippe: Still am I most sorely vexed by Diana’s pyre. ‘Tis most STRANGE... as though there were a MESSAGE in its flickering light...
15 Pythia: There are no words there. The pending battle has us all on edge.
16 Menelippe: Perhaps... perhaps...
17 Heracles: I care NOT... for until I have met the forces of CIRCE and avenged Hermes and my other fallen comrades--
PAGE SIX
1 Heracles: -- I shall hear naught but the rage within my heart!
2 Power Girl: SOME wake, huh, ladies?
3 Ice: Like nothing I’VE ever seen, POWER GIRL... and I come from a fairly UNUSUAL background myself.
4 Ice: Anyway, it’s almost over, right? I mean, pretty soon we’ll be heading into the final battle.
5 Hawkwoman: Not ALL of us, ICE. ONE of us has to stay with Diane’s pyre, and as one once possessed by a Thanagarian god, I’m the logical choice.
6 Hawkwoman: Seven devils, but I’d rather be going with you... to FIGHT...
7 Pariah: ... Until they are ALL gone... while I stand witness to their deaths... for if their assault is not doomed to FAIL, WHY have I not disappeared from their side?
8 Pariah: Such is my CURSE, Lady Quark... to stand witness to death! I... I am so afraid, Lady Quark!
9 Quark: STOP IT, PARIAH! This is no time to give in to your fears, not while... EH?!
10 Quark: ORACLE! What word do you bring?
11 Oracle: I fear there is not e’en a WHISPER upon the winds, Lady Quark... for Circe hath removed the gods from their RIGHTFUL plane of existence, where I might divine a hint!
12 Oracle: We can but WAIT... and pray...
13 Cap: Elsewhere upon Paradise Island:
14 Harbringer: How is she, EPIONE?
15 Epione: HIPPOLYTE is sick unto death, HARBRINGER... and for all my powers as a healer, I know NOT what to do for her!
16 Hippolyte (wavery): uuuhhnn she... uhhhh... sp- speaks... ooohh... let her re- return...
17 Healer: What is she SAYING...?
18 Harbringer: Your goddess is delirious, mourning the death of Diana...
PAGE SEVEN
1 Harbringer: ... As we’ll soon mourn the death of ALL things, if Circe has her will.
2 Harbringer (off): Perhaps Hippolyte is the LUCKY one among us, as she will not be conscious...
3 Cap: “... For what is to come...”
4 Mennelippe: Why... WHY do the flames disturb me SO...
5 Mennelippe (off): ... Beyond my sorrow at Princess Diana’s death? Am I but HYPNOTISED by the fire--
6 Mennelippe (off): -- Or... do I TRULY hear a voice, whispering to my heart? To my very SOUL...?
7 Cap: Please... HEAR me...
8 Cap: Tell me WHAT has happened to me!
9 Cap: ... please...
10 Deadman: Bizarre, huh, guys? She’s been YAKKIN’ it up ever since she got here to the WELL OF GAEA. Thing is, I can only HEAR her, but I can’t SEE her.
11 Stranger: Because she is not truly DEAD as are YOU, Boston Brand!
12 Deadman: I always figured dead was DEAD, Phantom Stranger. What makes this dame LESS dead’n me?
13 Cap: ... Won’t someone answer me...?
14 Stranger: It is the work of KLARION, THE WITCH-BOY... his interference with Circe’s spell saved Diana’s soul from meeting the same fate as her body.
15 Spectre: Yes, but she can not last long in this state of separation...
PAGE EIGHT
1 Cap: “... For if Circe’s plot succeeds, there shall be NO CLAY from which Diana can be REFORMED--
2 Cap: “-- But her REBIRTH must occur at the APPOINTED time, ‘ere the embers of her pyre can cool.
3 Cap: “And, while the fires have been kept alive longer than is NATURAL, it is NOT an ETERNAL flame...!”
4 Cap: Elsewhile, far from the Well of Gaea, upon New Olympus--
5 Cap: -- TROIA screams...
6 Cap: ... And the heroes of Earth RESPOND!
7 Lilith: TROIA’S CALLING... it’s TIME...
8 Fate: ... We must ASSEMBLE...
9 Superman: ... TO THE ATTACK...
10 Hawkman (burst): ... NOW!
11 Cap: And thus does it BEGINS...
12 Cap: ... As the greatest force of heroes ever assembled begins its assault upon the fortress of New Olympus.
13 Cap: From Themyscira.
14 Cap: From the darkness of outer space...
15 Guy: HEY! Wait for ME, you clowns! No way’s GUY GARDNER gonna be eatin’ ANYONE’S dust in this race!
PAGE NINE
1 Cap: ... They STRIKE as one at the gods themselves! Gods who the beings of as many worlds as there are pantheons once WORSHIPPED--
2 Cap: -- Whose war for DOMINANCE of the universe now threatens to destroy all that exists!
3 Flash: Make WAY, Starman! Let a REAL hero show you how its done!
4 Starman: YOU shove over, Flash, I’m not... UHNNN!
5 Hawkman: CAREFUL, everyone! We’ve got ENOUGH to worry about without getting in one another’s way!
SFX: THWAMM!
6 Cap: God against god...
SFX: KRAKK!
7 Cap: ... And man against god--
8 Elongated Man: We’re DOING it, guys ‘n’ dolls... keep MOVING!
9 Terminator: We don’t need YOU telling us our job, stretch!
10 Peacemaker: I SECOND that, DEATHSTROKE!
11 Manhunter: FOLLOW me, Justice League! We... UHNGG! A... a... FIRE... BLAST... it’s s- sapping my strength...
SFX: FHWOOOSH!
12 Swan: Hang on, Manhunter! I’m right behind you...!
PAGE TEN
1 Aphrodite: Curse you, HEPHAESTUS... why dost thou not act to ASSIST our cause! The humans are more powerful than we credited them...!
2 Hephaestus: What do you THINK I am doing, APHRODITE, mine arms plunged to the shoulders in flames!? Leave me BE, woman...
3 Hephaestus: ... Let me do what I DO...
4 Hephaestus: ... What I MUST!
5 Vulcan (no balloon): Your LAST chance, villain...
6 Vulcan: ... Turn me loose while you can still act upon your OWN free will!
7 Lobo: Ahhh, shut yer yap, VULCAN! Why the frazz should I be impressed with ANYTHING you got to say--
8 Lobo: -- When it’s ME holdin’ the breepin’ LEASH around YOUR frappin’ neck!
9 Vulcan: Because there are powers involved, Lobo, beyond even YOUR comprehension!
10 Lobo: oooOOOHH, I’m simply sha... shaking...
11 Lobo: Wh- what... what’s goin’ ON... why’d I feel so... so...
12 Vulcan: Sleepy?
13 Vulcan: Aye, Lobo. You deal with powers beyond your reckoning.
14 Lobo: Z Z Z z z z Z Z Z z z z Z Z Z
PAGE ELEVEN
1 Vulcan: Now, before Lobo awakens and interrupts us ANEW...
2 Black Adam: WHAT is this all about, old man? Why have you assembled me here with the boy, BILLY BATSON and these METAL MEN in this temple of ancient Egypt?
3 Shazam: Patience, BLACK ADAM...
4 Adam: NO! I am well OUT of patience, wizard! I’ll HAVE the truth and I’ll have it NOW!
5 Shazam: Very well, Black Adam...
6 Shazam: ... If such is your desire, so be it! The truth... it began in the year 940 B.C., as humanity reckons time. Then was I a young man, not yet fully schooled in the ways of sorcery, and come to the ancient city of BABYLON to learn, to PRESERVE the spirit of the greatest mind of its time.
7 Cap: “There did I present myself at the court of the great and wise old king, SOLOMON. Perhaps it was my eagerness to learn. Perhaps Solomon did take a LIKING to me...
8 Cap: “Whatever the case, he agreed to TUTOR me in my quest to seek out spirits from which I could cull the power that would enable me to form a champion. Together, we read the secret texts of other priests and wizards--
9 Cap: “-- And all the while, I came to LOVE the old king... but I knew his time was SHORT. He would give me what was needed...
10 Cap: “... But only upon his death-- because as he died, Solomon gave up to my spells a portion of his spirit.
11 Cap: “And thus did begin the spell of SHAZAM.
12 Cap: “With my friend and mentor dead and a portion of his spirit within my possession, I rode from Babylon to fulfill Solomon’s legacy and seek the REST of the spell...
PAGE TWELVE
1 Cap: “... From the edge of the river where ACHILLES drew his power.
2 Cap: “... From the world’s highest cliff, where ATLAS gave me of HIS strength.
3 Cap: “... From Rome, where I did partake of the might of HERCULES.
4 Cap: “... From great MERCURY, who gave of his godlike speed.
5 Cap: “... And, at last, from the FATHER of all gods, ZEUS, who blessed my endeavor even as he WARNED of the folly of FIVE GODDESSES!
6 Cap: “So endowed, I travelled to Egypt, for I believed the time for the coming of the champion was nigh.
7 Cap: “I was sorely wrong...”
8 Shazam: ... For YOU, Black Adam, were the RECIPIENT of that spell... a spell CORRUPTED by the Egyptian gods.
9 Shazam: Still, I was able to DEFEAT the evil you had become, and the gods who had given of their spirits lost all knowledge of the spell.
10 Shazam: But I did not. And so I waited for he who was to be my NEXT champion...
11 Shazam (off): ... The boy, BILLY BATSON... who the power of Shazam has made CAPTAIN MARVEL!
12 Shazam: But now, his powers have been NEGATED by the strife of the beings now engaged in this war!
13 Shazam: So too are YOUR powers endangered, Black Adam... particularly as DR. FATE has defeated the gods of Egypt.
14 Vulcan: And if you wish to survive, Black Adam, you must help us... resuscitate Captain Marvel!
15 Adam: WHAT?! INSANITY... and what is YOUR role in this, Son of Vulcan?
16 Vulcan: More than you know...
17 Lobo: Z Z Z z z z F Z Z A Z z z z
PAGE THIRTEEN
(TOM: For the life of me, and try as I might, PANELS 1 & 2 are a TOTAL MYSTERY to me... maybe we can leave ‘em blank and do a “Write Your Own Panels” contest...?)
1 Shazam: I will need to call again upon the powers of Solomon... Hercules.... Atlas... Zeus... Achilles... and Mercury.
2 Black Adam: Have I attempted to interfere with that task, old man?
3 Lobo: z z z Z Z Z z z z Z Z Z z z z
4 Vulcan: No, but old Shazam must tread CAREFULLY, else evil Circe learn of his plan and seek to tap that power for her own and divert it from OUR needs.
5 Black Adam: So? Would not Solomon and the rest cooperate ANEW if it meant an END to this war?
6 Cap: “But Shazam dare not go directly to them else Circe’s suspicions be aroused. But as fortune stands, he need not... and that is why these men of METAL are here. For into the one known as IRON went the soul of HERCULES...
7 Cap: “... Whilst ZEUS now inhabits the Metal Man called GOLD... ATLAS is in PLATINUM... ACHILLES resides in timid TIN... MERCURY in the Metal Man who bears his name...”
8 Shazam: Aye, and wise SOLOMON is here, in the soulless machine called LEAD.
9 Black Adam: Now I know what the problem is, WHAT part do you expect ME to play?
PAGE FOURTEEN
1 Harbringer (off): Since you thought to ASK, Black Adam...
2 Black Adam: WHO...?
3 Shazam (off): HARBRINGER! What WORD do you bring?
4 Harbringer: I need to be CERTAIN that all plots in motion to thwart Circe are so synchronized to stand the best chance for success.
5 Harbringer: It is also VITAL that the woman, TROIA, be RESCUED from New Olympus!
6 Vulcan: How is THAT to be accomplished, Harbringer?
7 Harbringer: By YOU, HALCIBER FILIUS... son of Vulcan!
8 Vulcan: Are you sure of that? Circe knows me and my powers WELL. She will be PREPARED for me.
9 Harbringer (off): But WITHOUT you, the other heroes don’t stand a chance.
10 Vulcan: Then I must make a contingency plan of my OWN. For that, LOBO will come in handy--
11 Vulcan: -- Though he need not know in advance what might be...!
12 Lobo: Z Z Z z z z Z Z Z z z z Z Z Z
13 Cap: Meanwhile, somewhere upon the oceans of New Olympus:
14 Aquaman: I can’t believe I used to actually INVOKE the names of Poseidon and Neptune with RESPECT...
15 Aquaman: ... When all you BOTH are are petty TYRANTS!
16 Poseidon: Tyrants we may BE, Aquaman. But PETTY? NAY, human! We are GODS...
17 Poseidon (burst): GODS!
18 Aquaman: UHNNNGG!
19 Circe: YESSSssss
PAGE FIFTEEN
1 Circe: ‘Tis MOST delicious! The forces of humanity WEAKEN with each passing moment--
2 Circe: -- And e’en my fellow GODS stand little hope of defeating me. Am I not RIGHT, faithful PHOBOS?
3 Phobos: Ye- yes, mistress!
4 Circe: Oh, but think not I am UNGRATEFUL to THINE contribution of raw power, ERIS.
5 Eris: Wh- WHY doth thou BETRAY me thusly, Circe... when yo-you might take from TROIA...?
6 Circe: Ah, but I can NOT, Eris. Her TUNIC links her with the original Titans of Greece, the only beings PURER in essence than Hecate!
7 Circe: They have tried PROTECTING her, keeping her out of my reach...
8 Circe: ... But it matters NOT. Not whilst I have Eris for power... and the knowledge that once Olympus is destroyed--
9 Circe: -- There can be NO refuge for Donna Troy... and ANOTHER threat to Hecate’s rule shall be DESTROYED! Are you not PLEASED for me, Phobos?
10 Phobos: Mo- MORE than you mi- might KNOW, goddess...!
11 Cap: Areopagus:
12 Balloon: Dead
13 Ares: Ares doth bid thee FAREWELL, HARMONIA. You may rest at last...
14 Ares: ... At ONE with the cosmos...
15 Ares: ... Knowing that Ares doth LOVE you...
PAGE SIXTEEN
1 Mars: So very TOUCHING, Ares. Now, if thou art done with this tender moment, turn and FACE me... so that we might FINISH this at last!
2 Ares: Nay, MARS. I have lost my taste for combat.
3 Mars: Best you acquire it ANEW, Ares...
4 Mars: ... For I do not offer you CHOICE!
SFX: THWAM!
5 Ares: No, you do not. But think, Mars...
6 Ares: ... That we BOTH shall lose to Circe’s will by our continued combat...
7 Cap: Apokolips:
8 Cap: Where the newest of Earth’s pantheons resides. But what the gods of Apokolips lack in longevity compared to their Olympian or Asgaardian brethren...
9 Cap: ... They make up for in ferocity!
10 Darkseid: The hordes of NEW GENESIS COME...
11 Darkseid (burst): ... SO I CALL OUT... THE HUNGER DOGS!
12 Kalibak: AHEAD, Hunger Dogs... for Apokolips... for MIGHTY DARKSEID!
13 Lightray: Hit them HARD, soldiers of New Genesis! THIS could be the time we DESTROY the evil master of Apokolips!
14 Orion: Don’t count your victories before they’re WON, LIGHTRAY!
SFX: FHA-TOOM! FWHEEET!
PAGE SEVENTEEN
1 DeSaad: Mi- mighty Darkseid...? Master, there is something you should KNOW...
2 Darkseid: SILENCE, DeSaad! The only thing I wish to hear is the agonized cries of my foes in TORMENT!
3 DeSaad: Bu- but, master... the earth... and New Olympus...
4 Orion (burst): DARKSEID! COME AND FACE ME, MONSTER...!
SFX: VREET!
5 Darkseid: Do not presume to taunt me, Orion. I...
SFX: BOOOOM!
6 Darkseid: Who DARES...?
7 Fastbak: By the great darkness... NEVER did I think to see the day HE would willingly step foot upon Apokolips...!
8 Highfather: I come with hand extended in TRUCE, Darkseid.
9 Harbringer: Pray LISTEN to our words, lord of Apokolips. It is of the utmost urgency to BOTH your worlds.
10 Darkseid: You sue for peace, Highfather? I REJECT your...
11 Racer: NO! Let ALL be warned that DEATH this day rides the cosmic sky ways!
12 Orion: THE BLACK RACER...?
13 Racer: ALL here and upon all planes shall perish... if Apokolips and New Genesis does not come together!
PAGE EIGHTEEN
1 Darkseid: BEGONE, Black Racer! I take commands from NO being!
2 Highfather (off): Then listen to your HEART, Darkseid--
3 Highfather: -- If indeed a heart you have! Look to the heavens... see how worlds stand poised to collision. We MUST unite to fight our mutual foes!
4 Orion: The gods of New Genesis... allied with the Apokolipian scourge?
5 Harbringer: Yes, Orion... for the SALVATION of all creation!
6 Cap: Earth:
7 Harbringer: The alliances are forged on Apokolips... in Egypt... all across the universe--
8 Harbringer: -- Those who were foes just moments ago, are not allied against Circe!
9 Pariah: Bu- but... there will be NO victory. There can NOT be... not while I yet remain to observe the...
10 Quark: Stop your whining, Pariah, and look to the sky--
11 Cap: “-- Where Halciber Filius and Lobo race towards New Olympus! The final battle is about to begin...”
12 Quark: ... And I stand here, listening to Pariah whimper. NO MORE. If there’s a war to be fought, I’ll be a combatant, not a WITNESS!
13 Pariah: Oh, my... it WORSENS with every moment...
14 Batman (off): ... Winged harpies and bestiamorphs coming at us from New Olympus--
PAGE NINETEEN
1 Batman: -- That’s our cue to ATTACK!
2 Robin: What about US, Batman? Don’t WE get to play...?
3 Batman: PATIENCE, Robin--
4 Cap: “-- We’ll have OUR opportunity...
5 Cap: “... Once THE OUTSIDERS have taken first crack at them!”
6 Halo: WATCH where you fire those electrical blasts, BLACK LIGHTNING. I’m on YOUR side, remember?
7 Katana: Keep coming, beasts... if DEATH at the end of my BLADE is your goal!
8 Robin: Yah-HOO! I GOT one! I... I mean-- IT’S got ME!
9 Batman: Don’t worry, Robin--
10 Batman (off): -- You’re not going ANYWHERE!
SFX: KRANK!
11 Circe: WHAT...?
12 Circe: Something... something is AMISS. SPEAK to your mistress, Eris-- TELL me what is wrong!
13 Eris: Uhhhnng... I... I know NOT, Circe...
14 Phobos: Oooo, I like this not, my goddess!
15 Circe: NO!
16 Eris (burst): AIIIIIEEEEeeeeeeeeeeee
SFX: FZZZAAAZZZ
PAGE TWENTY
1 Vulcan: So ‘tis the beginning of the END, Circe... for with Eris DESTROYED, your source of power is...
2 Deathstroke: STOP making speeches and get ON with it, Halciber Filius!
3 Vulcan: So shall it be, Deathstroke. Have AT you, Circe!
4 Circe: Oh, but you ARE a fool, Son of Vulcan. Just--
5 Circe (off): -- DIE! HAHAHAHAHAHAH
SFX: SKRAKK!
6 Hephaestus: AHHHHahhhHHHH... must keep... the fire... bu- BURNING...
7 Aphrodite: Hephaestus?
8 Hephaestus (burst): ... BURNING!
9 Aphrodite: BY THE ELDER GODS... NO!
10 Cap: Themyscira:
11 Menalippe: The flames of Diana’s pyre LEAP... as though ALIVE!
12 Harbringer: It is HAPPENING, Amazons! We must HURRY...
13 Shazam: ... For the time is nigh to speak the SPELL of SHAZAM...
14 Harbringer: ... And ATTACK!
15 Pariah: Farewell, Harbringer...
NEW PAGE TEN
1 Cap: -- The battles which rage across heaven and earth and every realm in between bathe a myriad of battlefields in BLOOD!
2 Cap: Where is there that is SAFE from death and destruction?
3 Cap: Surely not here upon Themyscira, where warriors of the Amazon guard ready for their assault--
4 Cap: -- A descent into the HEART of the world!
5 Cap: Nor is there safety to be found at their far and dark destination, where HERACLES stands poised.
6 Cap: Readied... HUNGRY for combat of his own...
7 Heracles: Long enough have I been a PRISONER of Atlas’s trickery, forced to hold Themyscira ALOFT upon my back--
8 Cap: ... Thirsting for a taste of that which has been denied him in his captivity!
9 Heracles: -- To keep reign upon my RAGE whilst I was forced to serve!
10 Heracles: But now... NOW I am free--
SFX: KREeekKK!
11 Heracles: -- And, by all that is holy, I WILL find those to PAY for... ZOUNDS!
12 Heracles (burst): FOUL CHARON--?!
13 Charon: Hee hee hee! WELCOME, dear Heracles... to thine OWN death!
14 Heracles: NAY, boatman-- I shall be crossing the dark river Styx... but WITHOUT YOUR wretched help!
15 Charon: GHARRRGHH!
SFX: CHOK!
NEW PAGE ELEVEN
1 Amazon: We have come to the very GATES of hell to fight by your side, great Heracles! But our destination lies on the FAR side of the Styx...
2 Amazon: ... And Charon’s boat will not hold enough of our number to make the crossing in time!
3 Heracles: This I know, Amazon...
4 Heracles: ... UHHNNN!...
SFX: KRAK!
SFX: THOOOM!
5 Heracles: ... And I am prepared with a PLAN!
6 Heracles: FOLLOW ME, warriors of Themyscira... though Hades itself be our destination--
7 Heracles: -- And death in combat our destinies!
8 Cap: New Olympus:
9 Minerva: Man, this place is LOUSY with gods... no matter how many we get, they just KEEP coming at us!
10 Robotman: Imagine that... GODS in New Olympus, of ALL things!
PAGE TWENTY-THREE
1 Quark: Why are you hesitating, Lobo? Aren’t there any victims to your liking?
2 Lobo: Wanna come a little CLOSER and mouth off, Quark?
3 Jupiter: DIE, Kryptonian!
4 Superman: Count Vertigo-- what the devil’s going on down there!
5 Vertigo: The WORST you can imagine, Superman--
6 Cap: “-- It looks as though Circe is triumphant!”
7 Circe: Dead, Son of Vulcan, you are of NO good to your comrades...
8 Circe: ... But I might still find use for thee, fallen god. In your very ESSENCE--
9 Circe: -- Energies that shall sustain me in my... my... HOLD! Something is SORELY amiss!
10 Circe: Halciber Filius’s energies... not... not RIGHT...
11 Circe (whisper): No!
12 Circe (burst): NOOOooo
SFX: KRAKADOOOOM!
13 Circe: Wh- who... DARES...?!
14 Lobo: The one...
15 Lobo: ... The ONLY...
PAGE TWENTY-FOUR
1 Lobo: ... ME!
2 Lobo: And you wanna know what’s REALLY cool about that? I got the Troia babe ALL to myself!
3 Flash: Ohmigod! That LOON’S got DONNA!
4 Dove: At least she is OUT of Circe’s control and that, after all, is what is IMPORTANT!
5 Dove: And NOW-- while Circe is DISTRACTED...
6 Circe: Distracted? Oh, NO, DOVE... never TOO distracted to encase an annoyance in a DEMON SHIELD!
7 Quark: Don’t just STAND there, Lobo... MOVE!
8 Lobo: BITE me, babe! I don’t march to NO feeb’s drum, even*
SFX: POIT!
9 Circe: CURSE you all... you shall PAY for your effrontery!
10 Phobos: Mi- mistress Circe, LOOK--
11 Cap: “-- The SKIES have come alive!”
12 Mars (ghostly): HEED US, ALL YE GODS AND MEN ALIKE! The time for fighting has ENDED... the battle which all have fought so bravely must CEASE!
13 Ares (ghostly): This we, the gods of war, do DECREE!
14 Harbringer: Are you telling us that Circe’s menace is ended...?
PAGE TWENTY-FIVE
1 Mars (ghostly/off): Were that it were SO, Harbringer!
2 Jupiter: Then to cease battling is MADNESS, Mars!
3 Ares (ghostly): THINK, Jupiter! Circe hath become enabled of FEEDING off energies of DESTRUCTION!
4 Ares (ghostly): Thine combat makes her MIGHTY--
5 Ares (ghostly/off): -- But to make PEACE will be to STARVE her!
6 Peacemaker: But... but we MUST fight!
7 Ipathime: Circe MUST be showing fear at Ares’s words, Heracles...?
8 Heracles: She is defiant as ever, Ipathime. It makes one wonder at what she has planned...?
9 Off panel: We... WE can... uhnnn!... tell you, Heracles...
10 Heracles: Hades... Pluto... the gods of hell! You appear as pained as any of your unfortunate charges.
11 Hades: Th- that we... we ARE--
12 Hades: -- For e’en as we s- s- speak... Circe... doth wrest control... of one FINAL part of Olympus...
13 Cap: “... Of the UNDERWORLD!
14 Cap: “She takes its powers as her own, causing the river Styx itself to TERMBLE...
15 Cap: “... And the tormented souls of the dead to writhe in agony greater than ANY we lords of hell might inflict. But worse, oh, Heracles--
16 Cap: “-- Far WORSE is that she CALLS upon the dead to RISE from the underworld’s depths to COME to her aid...
PAGE TWENTY-SIX
1 Cap: “... For the dead will fight her war against all logic that LIVING man and god might apply to the truce for which Ares and Mars call...”
2 Neptune: Surely Circe has gone MAD with ambition!
3 Poseiden: Can even SHE hope to control so great and foul a force as an army of the dead...?
4 Aquaman: She’s crazy enough to TRY... LOOK!
5 Aquagirl (eerie): Aaaquamaan... is that you I hear, Aquaman? It’s ME, Aquaman... AQUAGIRL...
6 Beetle (eerie): TED KORD! You TOOK my identity as BLUE BEETLE... now it’s MY turn to take YOU!
7 Beetle: EEEEYEEW!
8 Katma: Look, ABIN SUR. It’s Guy Gardner-- PRETENDER to the Corps.
9 Abin Sur: BAH! HE was never a SERIOUS choice to wield the ring, KATMA TUI!
10 Guy: Sez YOU, zomboid!
11 Circe (burst): HA HA HA HA HA! ARISE, my lovely army of the dead... ARISE--
12 Circe (off): -- And live again... to DESTROY one and all... and help make Circe VICTORIOUS!
PAGE TWENTY-SEVEN
1 Cap: The hosts of hell are EVERYWHERE, overflowing even Doom’s Doorway, the entryway to hell itself...
2 Amazon: FIGHT ON, sisters! Let not a single demon or bestiamorph pass our blades ALIVE!
3 Power Girl: I feel so blasted HELPLESS just standing here. We SHOULD be doing something.
4 Hawkwoman: We CAN’T, Power Girl... not until we receive word.
5 Ice: You’re WRONG, Hawkwoman--
6 Ice: -- There IS something I can do...
7 Ice (off): ... Even if it’s just to SEAL the doorway with a wall of ice!
8 Dr. Fate: HAWKWOMAN! The method to defeat Circe is at hand, but I need your help... and time is of the essence!
9 Hawkwoman: DOCTOR FATE... and AZURE. Just tell us what we have to do!
10 Menalippe: The flames of Diana’s pyre are DYING, great Hippolyte. Soon, there shall be nothing left...
11 Hippolyte: N- no... ‘ere ‘tis too late... help me to the pyre...
12 Hippolyte: ... To my Diana.
13 Pariah: It’s all HOPELESS. What can she possibly do?
14 Harbinger: The goddess Hippolyte CREATED Diana from the very clay of the Earth, Pariah--
PAGE TWENTY-EIGHT
1 Harbinger: -- Calling upon the gods to come together and ENDOW that earthern figure with life and great powers.
2 Harbinger: Thus was Princess Diana born out of their UNITY... and it’s such unity that can finally put a stop to Circe!
3 Hippolyte: Diana...
4 Hippolyte: ... From the earth thou didst once come...
5 Hippolyte: ... To the earth thou didst RETURN...
6 Shazam (off): Do you FEEL the POWER of the gods, Black Adam? It LIVES within these metallic shells, the power that gave BIRTH to YOU and to CAPTAIN MARVEL...
7 Hippolyte: ... From my HEART whilst thou come again!
8 Shazam: ... The power of Solomon, Hercules, Achilles, Zeus, Atlas, and Mercury to create a great CHAMPION...
9 Hippolyte: Live, Diana.
10 Hippolyte (whisper): Live!
11 Shazam: ... THE champion who shall deliver us from Circe’s evil! SPEAK, Billy Batson. Speak my name.
12 Billy: S- s- s -
PAGE TWENTY-NINE
Panel 1: duh, dunno what’s happening here...
1 Cap: Dr. Fate’s Tower:
2 From tower: What’s HAPPENING out there, Madame Xanadu?
3 2nd from tower: It is difficult to say, Lilith...
4 Xanadu: ... I know only that some greater force is asserting DOMINANCE on the magical plane! Is there anytime you might do, Zatanna?
5 Xanadu: ZATANNA...?! What is WRONG?
6 Zatanna: It... it CAN’T be, Lilith... but he’s here--
7 Zatanna (off/burst): -- My father ZATARA... RISEN FROM THE GRAVE!
SFX: fhaTWOOOOSH!
8 Spectre (ghostly): He but LOOKS to be your late father, mistress of magic...
SFX: SRKATK!
9 Spectre (ghostly): ... But it is, in reality, a magical simulation, crafted by Circe to prolong the conflict that feeds her black power.
10 Xanadu: It is all OVER now, Zatanna.
11 Spectre (ghostly): Were that such was TRUE, Madame Xanadu. But the end has not yet come--
12 Cap: “-- But it is CLOSE... so very close, as the Earth and New Olympus draw ever nearer to collision...
13 Cap: “... And ultimate destruction!”
PAGE THIRTY
1 Cap: New Olympus:
2 Circe (burst): NO!
3 Circe: The FOOLS... did they believe they might proceed WITHOUT my knowledge? CURSE Hippolyte and her presumptuous lot... I shall DESTROY her ‘ere the Princess Diana can be REBORN!
4 Superman: GREAT SCOTT!
5 Superman (T): Circe’s sent that blast headed for Themyscira on Earth... and seeing as I’m the only one around with the necessary speed and invulnerability--
6 Superman (T): -- It looks like I’M elected to INTERCEPT it!
7 Superman (T): I just wish I wasn’t VULNERABLE to magi...
8 Superman (burst): ARRRRRHHH!
9 Menalippe: What is that... in the sky...?
10 Hippolyte: I call upon the gods to BURN into thee their power...
11 Off panel (burst): HIPPOLYTE!
12 Menalippe: FLEE, my queen... ‘ere Circe’s evil STRIKES...
PAGE THIRTY-ONE
1 Capt. Marvel (burst): S H A Z A M !
SFX: BLAM!
2 Cap: Solomon... Hercules... Achilles... Zeus... Atlas... Mercury... into the fragile form of Billy Batson flows the powers of these deities in the Egyptian temple--
3 Cap: -- Even as Circe’s magic strikes at its intended target on Themyscira... an attack that WOULD have proved successful...
4 Cap: ... Save for the unmatched COURAGE of Menalippe!
SFX: SKOOOM!
5 Cap: And, at that selfsame instant, upon New Olympus:
6 Phobos: CIRCE DISAPPEARS! WHY do you leave... leaving faithful Phobos at the MERCY of your enemies...?!
7 Dove: Gasp! D- Don Hall... the ORIGINAL Dove...!
8 Cap: This is LIMBO, where rests the tree-like form of CRONUS, the TITAN who sired the king of gods, Zeus.
9 Cap: To this place between all places the magical energies unleashed CONVERGE...
10 Cap: ... Bringing forth CIRCE.
11 Cap: TROIA.
12 Cap: And the PRINCESS DIANA reborn!
13 Diana: Stand and FACE me, Circe... it’s time you and I settled this. Once and for all!
PAGE THIRTY-TWO
1 Cap: Egypt:
2 Black Adam: It pains me to play a POSITIVE role in your rebirth, Captain Marvel, but I... I... EH?! WHAT is happening...?
3 Adam: OF COURSE! You TRICKED me, old man! CURSE your withered hide, you...*
4 Shazam: I did what MUST be done, Black Adam, for the good of the world--
5 Shazam: -- And the continuation of the CHAMPION! Farewell, Captain Marvel. May the gods be with you always...
6 Capt.: Thank you, great wizard. I’ll sure try to live up to your faith in me!
7 Zeus: This we do know full well, Captain Marvel, else we would contribute NOT our very essences to thine rebirth.
8 Capt.: Holy Moley! The gods’ve been FREED from captivity!
9 Hercules: Aye, Captain Marvel, thanks to Shazam’s spell. We are PLEASED you did survive Circe’s plot.
10 Solomon: You do represent the true embodiment of the union of the Greek and Roman pantheons... thus did Circe seek to destroy you in thine form of Billy Batson--
11 Solomon: -- Before the power and purity of the Shazam alliance could be rejoined! Now, we LEAVE you, Captain Marvel...
12 Capt.: Wow! But... what about the Metal Men, Harbinger?
13 Harbinger: Come, Captain Marvel. We must go--
14 Harbinger (off): -- As for them, the fates of these emptied vessels have YET to be decided.
15 Harbinger (from burst): As for OUR fates...
16 Cap: “... They await us upon the island home of the Amazons, Themyscira...”
PAGE THIRTY-THREE
1 Capt.: Whew! SOME trip... but how am I supposed to help out heroes of YOUR caliber...?
2 Dr. Fate: Like Ice, Firestorm, Power Girl and the REST of us here, Captain Marvel, YOUR powers are based in the SUPERNATURAL.
3 Firestorm: Indeed... save for the woman you call Hawkwoman.
4 Azure: Ahh, but she was TOUCHED to the soul by a goddess of her native world who possessed her.
5 Orion: We’re AGREED, then, that we’ve ALL been brought here for the SAME purpose.
6 Hawkwoman: Including a highly UNLIKELY ally. With the Son of Vulcan dead, we have a PROXY who’s been temporarilly endowed with his powers.
7 Capt.: HIM?!
8 Lobo (mumbling): Soon as I can... MOVE again... somebody’s... gonna GET it...
9 Harbinger: You’re awfully quiet, Pariah. How are you?
10 Pariah: No matter what happens, I shall live to bear witness to events.
11 Pariah: Poor Menalippe is dead...
12 Pariah: ... And, oh, how I ENVY her...
13 Cap: Limbo:
14 Circe: I shall have your HEAD, cursed Amazon! THIS time I shall DESTROY you so thoroughly, there can be no hope of REBIRTH!
15 Diana: UHHHN!
SFX: THWAMM!
16 Circe (burst): DIE, AMAZON... DIE!
SFX: KRAKK!
PAGE THIRTY-FOUR
1 Circe: N- no... WHAT is happening... my magic can barely REACH you... as though it is being...
2 Circe (off): ... ABSORBED...?
3 Troia: It’s CRONUS’S doing, Diana... HE’S affecting Circe’s magic!
4 Diana: I think I... ugh!... understand what’s happening, Donna...
SFX: SKRATT!
5 Cap: “... Earth and New Olympus are drawing even CLOSER to one another...
6 Cap: “... The end is at hand...”
7 Phobos: CLEARLY Circe is dead... and good riddance to her! Phobos is better off WITHOUT her--
8 Phobos: -- And well AWAY from this conflict!
9 Cap: “... The end is at hand...”
10 Pariah: Nooooo... th- the pain... BEGINS... pain I know all too well... heralding...
11 Cap: “... The end is at hand...”
12 Diana: ... And now I must fulfill the REASON for my rebirth!
13 Troia: That’s RIGHT, Diana. It’s TIME... do it NOW!
14 Diana: We’re THROUGH playing games, Circe-- if you’re going to kill me, do it NOW. Come and GET me, witch!
15 Circe: Oh, I SHALL, Amazon... I shall see you DIE, most horribly!
SFX: KA-FOOOM!
PAGE THIRTY-FIVE
1 Diana: NO, Circe... it’s NOT going to be that way... not so long as I hold HARMONIA’S TALISMAN!
2 Troia: Uhhh... yo- you’re DOING it, Diana... the talisman... DIVERTING Circe’s magic... into my TUNIC...
3 Circe: ‘Tis a mere TRINKET, Amazon... compared to the ALMIGHTY power of Circe!
4 Circe: Do you HEAR me, Amazon! CIRCE IS ALL POWERFUL!
5 Stranger: Hold STRONG, Princess Diana! Circe’s power is indeed VULNERABLE to defeat...
6 Stranger: ... For you have ALLIES upon Earth... allies whose links with the gods are STRONG... and who FEED you that power from their very hearts!
7 Diana: I... I FEEL it, Phantom Stranger... their strength is what keeps me GOING--
8 Diana (off): -- SIPHONING Circe’s energies... directing them through Donna Troy’s tunic...
9 Diana (off): ... DRAINING the witch goddess of her power!
10 Circe (burst): AAAaaaarrrRRRRRrrrr
PAGE THIRTY-SIX
1 Deathstroke: Those... CREATURES are slowing down, Crinson Fox... getting easier to DETSROY!
2 Fox: Let us not look zee gifthorse in zee mouth, mon amì...!
SFX: KA-BLAM!
3 Guy: Put me DOWN, ya cadaverous creep or I’ll... HUH?! He’s DISINTEGRATIN’--
4 Guy: -- Guess I REALLY must’a SCARED him, huh?
5 Hephaestus: Wha- what... is... happening... Hippolyte...
6 Hippolyte: The FINAL confrontation transpires in Limbo, brave Hephaestus...
7 Hippolyte: ... And that would not have been possible were it not for YOU keeping the fire of Diana’s pyre burning.
8 Hephaestus: Th- then I die... happy... good queen...
9 Circe (burst): AIIIIEEEEEEeeeee th- the... PAIN... TEARING at my flesh...
10 Circe: ... EATING AT MY SOUL!
11 Circe: OOOoooooOOOoooo what is HAPPENING to meeeee
12 Diana: YES, Donna! It’s WORKING... it’s all up to YOU now!
13 Hecate: YOU... HAVE... DESTROYED... ME!
PAGE THIRTY-SEVEN
1 Hecate: YOU SHALL REGRET YOUR INTERFERENCE, AMAZON!
2 Diana: NO, HECATE... for with your separation from Circe’s physical form, you’ve become vulnerable to my magic lasso--
3 Diana: -- To Cronus’s power here in limbo...
4 Diana: ... To being CONSUMED by the power of Troia’s tunic and its connection to the Titans of old!
5 Diana: It’s YOU who will regret this, Hecate... YOU!
6 Cap: And limbo explodes in light and sound...
7 Cap: ... An event so mighty, it is visible from all corners of Earth and New Olympus alike...
8 Elongated Man: Wow!
9 Metamorpho: You can say that again, man!
10 Jupiter: Can it BE? Is it truly OVER?
11 Athena: I can no longer sense Circe’s existence upon ANY plane...!
12 Off panel: ‘Tis done indeed, my friends--
13 Hera: EH? WHO...?
14 Zeus: -- Save for the final disposition of Cronus’s fate!
15 Flash: Yeow! It’s ZEUS... the big cheese of the gods!
PAGE THIRTY-EIGHT
1 Zeus: Cronus’s soul hath long been trapped in limbo, but the power of Troia’s tunic and its connection to the Titans of old has served to RELEASE him--
2 Zeus (off): -- And draw his spirit into the unknown VASTNESS beyond her magical garb!
3 Troia: FAREWELL, Cronus! I can feel your joy at your newfound freedom... I’m pleased I could be PART of it!
4 Zeus: Lovely Hera. ‘Tis good that we can be together again.
5 Jupiter: WE have much to discuss, Jupiter.
6 Zeus: Nay, Jupiter. Olympus belongs again to the Roman pantheon. We of Greece are to follow our father Cronus into the unknown!
7 Pythia: Olympus is shortly to return to its otherdimensional plane, Heracles.
8 Heracles: Aye, Pythia, and I go with it.
9 Heracles: Tell Hippolyte farewell... that Heracles will think of her always...
10 Heracles: ... And shall keep her in his heart...
11 Hawkwoman: EVERYBODY! Unless you want to wind up LEAVING this plane of existence with Olympus--
12 Cap: “-- It’s time we hauled ourselves back to Earth...
13 Cap: “... BEFORE everything disappears!”
PAGE THIRTY-NINE
1 Cap: Troia.
2 Cap: Upon her back rested the salvation from the destruction of all existence.
3 Cap: Now...
4 Cap: ... The end has been averted. The universe has returned to where it was before this all began--
5 Donna: Oh!
6 Donna: Te- Terry...?
7 Terry: Hey, you okay, honey? Sounded like you were having a hell of a NIGHTMARE.
8 Donna: It... it felt so REAL... but everything’s NORMAL out there, isn’t it?
9 Terry: ‘Course it is, Donna. Why wouldn’t it be?
10 Donna (off): Lord... I wouldn’t even know WHERE to begin telling you about it...
11 Superman (off): The battle’s over... and now comes the WORST part--
12 Superman: -- Burying the DEAD. So, Harbinger, what’s going to happen next?
13 Harbinger: Things will return to the way they were, before Circe launched her plot...
14 Harbinger: ... As I must now leave, Superman. Farewell...
PAGE FORTY
1 Superman: Farewell, Harbinger...
2 Cap: “And behind the Man of Steel, fabled Themyscira vanishes back into the mists from whence they came.
3 Cap: “Firestorm finds himself returned to the farthest reaches of outer space...
4 Cap: “... As Apokolips is yet again fated to yield to the cruel tyrany of its master, Darkseid.
5 Cap: “Those, such as Lobo who did serve the battle well, find themselves returned places familiar to them...”
6 Quark (T): Sigh! He’s happy as a beast who’s been thrown some raw meat... it’s just as well his memory’s been wiped CLEAN of his part in the war of the gods...
7 Cap: “Brave Halciber Filius, who gave his life in combat against Circe receives the greatest reward... a place of HONOR in the ELYSIAN FIELDS of the underworld.
8 Cap: “Other places and beings face less happy fates... as the Argopaeus crumbles to dust--
9 Cap: “-- A fate shared by old Shazam’s Egyptian temple.
10 Cap: “And Pariah.
11 Cap: “Poor, sorrowful Pariah, destined to forever roam the universe...
12 Cap: “... Drawn to wherever death and pain await...”
13 Stranger: ... For such is his fate and his punishment! And now he is gone, for Earth is at PEACE and all may rest...
14 Stranger: ... Until they are plunged into conflict, as will happen again... I know, for I am the Phantom Stranger...!
15 Cap: The AFTERMATH of THE WAR OF THE GODS... in WONDER WOMAN #?!
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