Justice League Femme

Chapter Thirty-Five: Wonder Woman

The sky above us was navy blue, freckled with numerous stars that looked more pink white pin-pricks. A full moon only made the night sky a little brighter, but the area of the Mojave Desert we were was still very dark. We were miles from Las Vegas, where the arena we were trapped in, was located. From what I could make out while we escaped, we were coming from a casino called "The House". Meta-Brawl was most likely an event the casino had hosted time and time again, and we were a special edition of its twisted tradition. But it felt as though this was the first time fighters had attempted to flee, or at least succeed in escaping.

There was a hollow feeling in my chest, like something was missing. I looked over the group: Kara, Barbara, Harley, Dinah, Nia, Kate, Mari, Zatanna, Mary, Jessica, Caitlin, Helena, Courtney, Mon-El, Cisco. But no Jesse. I frowned at them. I could see that there was at least a whisper of pain on their face. It was an expression I had known too long.

Mary Marvel looked over at me. By now, we were far enough away from any nearby towns or cities where Mary could safely transform back into her regular, teenaged form and had done so. "What...what do we do now?" she asked me. Her eyes were still reddened and glossy, as if she was holding back tears.

I let out a sigh. "Well, we still have to track down Brainiac," I explained, "if it weren't for Roulette and Plastique, we'd be on track." That rattled around in my mind. How did Roulette or Plastique, who disappeared by the time we found ourselves in the Meta-Brawl, know exactly where we were? Did someone inform them? But those were questions I realized that I would get little to no clear answers on. If I got any kind of answer, I'd almost call it a miracle. I rubbed the back of my neck, letting out a tired sigh. Suddenly, something grazed the pad of my fingers. My eyes widened at the change in touch. I moved my finger down to feel a rim of something tiny, with a kind of metal and plastic. I pulled it out of place, unlatching it. I looked down into the palm of my hand. It was an oval-shaped capsule with a neon-green liquid inside. I narrowed my eyes at the sight.

Before I could think much of it, I heard footsteps approach me. I looked back up to see Caitlin approach me. Her hazel eyes were still glossy, still drying from her tears. It was only a second before they trailed to my palm. She furrowed her eyebrows. "What is that?"

I shook my head. "I'm not sure. All I know is that it was attached to my neck." My eyes widened again at the realization. "Can you turn around?"

She nodded and faced away from me. I moved her auburn hair to the side. Right at the base of her neck, I saw the same capsule, but something about this capsule was different from mine. Unlike mine which had the liquid in it, her capsule was empty; a translucent veneer over her skin. I could feel a pang in my stomach. "Great Hera," I muttered under my breath before puting her hair back in its original position.

"Is everything okay, Diana?" Caitlin asked.

I strutted past her, making a beeline for Jessica. "Let me see your neck."

Jessica rose an eyebrow at me. "My neck?"

"Yes, the back of your neck."

Her eyes darted side to side, with a confused look on her face. "Uh, okay." She turned around, her brunette hair facing me. I pushed her locks to the side. There on her neck was the capsule. Just like Caitlin's, it had also been emptied.

"By the Gods!" I brushed my hand away, her hair falling back into place. I darted toward Harley and looked at the back of her neck, which was not covered by her dyed pigtails. Much like Jessica and Caitlin's capsules, hers was emptied. I ran over to Kate. My mind had to be playing games with me. This couldn't have been happening.

"Are you okay, Diana?" she asked, "you're running around like you need to stop Cheetah, or Ares, or somebody."

I shook my head and lifted up her hair.