Her graduate student lecture was over and Dr. Helena Sandsmark made her way back to her office. On her way she passed various artifacts and other ancient relics. She swelled with pride every time she stepped foot into the Cultural Antiquities section of the Gateway City Museum since she had conceived of much of it herself. Through her hard work and dedication the Gateway City Museum was an appealing tourist destination and it meant a lot to her that the general public had a place to come and be educated as a form of entertainment.
Turning the corner to her office, the doctor stopped dead in her tracks and her pleasant mood changed abruptly. Before leaving for her lecture, she had turned off the lights and locked the door behind her. But now she stood looking at her office with the door opened ever so slightly and the lights on. A queasy feeling knotted up in the pit of her stomach, knowing full well some of her favorite private pieces were inside. Dr. Sandsmark didn’t know what she would do if these gifts as well as findings were gone. She tentatively approached the door and peaked her head inside.
“Hello?” The doctor cautiously announced, before sticking her head through the door.
Dr. Sandsmark exhaled in relief when she saw the imposing figure of Wonder Woman standing in the corner with an ancient Amazonian statue in her hands. She stood in the doorway and watched as Diana silently studied the details of the statue, knowing full well why the Amazonian heroine was attracted to this specific piece of ancient artwork. It featured Wonder Woman’s own mother, Hippolyta, in classic Amazonian battle armor with her foot on a muscular male warrior, her sword pointed down at his neck.
“Hello, Dr. Sandsmark. I let myself into your office.” Diana said, still studying the statue in her hands.
“I can see that. It’s not that I don’t appreciate it when you drop by unannounced, but, Diana, you can make an appointment with my assistant. Or just call me at home and we can talk.” Helena said, walking over to Diana. She looked down at the statue of Hippolyta and then noticed the troubled look on Diana’s face.
“Helena, I am sorry for breaking into your office but I had to see this statue.” Diana said as she sat the statue down on the desk. Her face told the doctor that this was not a social call.
“When you discovered this statue in southern Alabama it caused quite the stir on Themyscira. An Amazonian representative was sent immediately to investigate since my mother thought it somehow dealt with a long-lost Amazonian tribe that had left the island centuries ago. This representative had checked in with me after meeting the miner who had found it. She said that he wasn’t much help and that she was going to head back to her motel, still hoping something would have turned up in that town or the surrounding towns that would have any hints to what would have happened to this missing Amazon tribe. After two days of not hearing from her I tried to contact her but she hasn’t responded. I contacted the motel she was staying in and they said she left to look into other towns. But it isn’t like her to not update her status.”
“Maybe her communication device has been damaged somehow?” Helena suggested. She then looked at Diana warily, "Diana, who was this representative that your mother sent?
“That crossed my mind but my source assured me the communication device was working perfectly. It had just been shut off," Diana said, her eyes were cast down. She had a worried look on her face that shook the doctor. If Wonder Woman was worried about something, then things were definitely looking grim. Finally, Diana turned around and looked at her longtime friend, "And the Amazon that has gone missing is my sister, Donna Troy."
"That’s terrible!” Dr. Sandsmark asked.
"Well, that's not the worst of it, Helena," Diana replied, "I have also learned that other successful, career-driven women have gone missing in this very area. Not enough to warrant a full-blown investigation but every five years or so there has been a pattern of disappearances in this region.”
"So what are you going to do?"
“My original plan was to go there and turn over every square inch of that town and the surrounding area until I found Donna and the other missing women. If I didn’t find her there then I was going to do the same to every town around it. But I was quickly persuaded that the image of Wonder Woman threatening simple townsfolk wouldn’t look good for the Amazons’ image.” Diana said through gritted teeth, "It is most annoying."
“By this mysterious Oracle?” Dr. Sandsmark asked.
“Yes. I was quickly persuaded to go in undercover and that is where you come in. I need your advice on how to blend in with the other members of the United States South. I’ve heard it is far different from the Northern cities.” Diana stated.
“That can be an understate…” Dr. Sandsmark chuckled before she saw movement out of the corner of her eye near the door.
“You’re going undercover!” an excited voice exclaimed from the doorway. Diana and Dr. Sandsmark turned to see it belonged to Cassandra Sandsmark, Helena’s teenage daughter, “That’s awesome! I already have so many ideas!”
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