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| Wonder Woman v2 | ||||
| Issue # | 6 | |||
| Cover Date | July 1987 | |||
| * Release Date | April 2, 1987 | |||
| Previous Issue | Wonder Woman v2 #5 | |||
| Next Issue | Wonder Woman v2 #7 | |||
"Powerplay"
- Written by Len Wein, George Pérez
- Pencils: George Pérez
- Inks: Bruce D. Patterson
- Colors: Tatjana Wood
- Letters: John Costanza
Synopsis
News channels discuss Tolliver's hostile takeover of a nuclear base, calling it the "Ares Assault". It is revealed that the same thing is occurring on the Soviet side of things, with a Soviet general taking over a nuclear base.
Back in the military base, Ares gloats about his plans to start a nuclear war and taunts Diana and her friends, before vanishing. Steve, Etta and Michaelis use gas grenades to disorient the soldiers while Diana rushes Tolliver. Gunfight breaks out, and Diana struggles as Deimos' venomous bite continues to weaken her.
As Tolliver rushes to the control chamber, Diana, in rage, cries out to Ares, calling him a coward for not facing her and hiding behind a "miserable mad mortal". Suddenly, in a flash of light, she disappears.
Steve corners Tolliver, who is seconds away from launching the missiles. As Steve shoots through the general, killing him, Tolliver cries out a prayer to Ares, which is answered when he rises from the dead seconds later as a decaying ghoul and attacks Steve.
Diana finds herself in a dark void, where Ares appears before her, answering her challenge. Ares reveals his intent to usurp the world from Zeus, slaying his father as Zeus did to Chronos and Chronos did to Uranus. The nuclear cataclysm he intends to cause would be a testament to his power.
Back in Themyscira, the plants begin to die and the Amazons grow withered and old as the spell of immortality fades. Hippolyte fears her daughter is dead, but Philippus reassures her that there is still hope.
Diana battles Ares in the void, but he is far too powerful. Ares reveals he is capable of destroying Diana with a thought, but desires to teach her humility. He grabs Diana by the throat and demands that she acknowledge him as the greatest of all gods.
Diana smashes the amulet of Harmonia into Ares' face, vaporising his head in a blast of magic and freeing her from his grasp, but Ares' head reforms and he sets fire to Diana in rage.
Back at the nuclear base, the ghoulish corpses of Ares' worshippers attack as Diana's allies attempt to shut down the nuclear missiles.
Beneath Olympus, the goddesses hold onto hope in Diana still, refusing to cross into the underworld.
Amidst Ares' fire, Diana rises to her feet, defying the war god once again. She flies out of the flames, and, to Ares' rage and shock, ensnares the war god in her Lasso of Truth.
Ares witnesses a true vision of his ultimate victory - nuclear cataclysm laying waste to the world. But the war god's joy quickly fades when he realises that he is left alone in an empty world, his kingdom nothing more than ashes. Ares weeps as, without humans to worship him, his power vanishes. The Aeropagus crumbles into dust and nothingness, carrying Ares down with it.
As the Lasso of Truth falls from his body, Ares is stricken with horror and despair that his own dreams of glory would lead to nothing. Diana pleads with Ares to stop the plan, and Ares agrees, taking the amulet of Harmonia from Diana with the intent of ending his own plans.
Just as a reanimated Tolliver is about to launch the missiles, Ares' magic suddenly leaves him and he burns up and dies for good, his last words asking in despair why his god had abandoned him.
Back in the void, Ares reveals to Diana that he has stopped his plans and restored balance to the world. He declares that he will no longer interfere with the affairs of mortals, and that it will be up to Diana to save humanity from themselves. He returns Diana to the world of man, before leaving her with a final warning that if she fails in her mission, he will return.
Back in the military base, General Hillary and his men cater to Diana's injured allies. It is revealed that Michaelis died trying to save Julia and Etta. Steve then emerges from a room, carrying Diana's unconscious body.