Wonder Woman #218

The Red Tornado guest-stars in "Revolt of the Wonder Weapons."

"Revolt Of The Wonder Weapons"

Having recently regained her super powers, Wonder Woman is tasked with completing several trials to prove her worthiness to rejoin the Justice League of America. Her seventh trial is monitored by the Red Tornado. Having spied a tenement fire from her office window, Diana Prince changes into her Wonder Woman costume. Summoning her invisible jet, Wonder Woman is stunned when it suddenly crashes into the East River. Casting her lasso out to snag a pylon on the Queensboro Bridge, Wonder Woman snaps across several city blocks, to arrive at the scene of the blaze. Lassoing the top two floors of the burning tenement, Wonder Woman draws the fire out with her magic lasso, and deposits it into the East River. Across town, a grateful man, newly elected Chairman Of The Board, at his company, appoints Damon Celestris to the board of directors. Using a machine of his own design, Celestris is able to broadcast the power of positive thought into his clients, giving them the self-confidence to achieve their goals.

Of late, though, every time Wonder Woman comes within close proximity to Celestris' machine, it overloads and explodes. Out of spite for constantly having to repair his machine, Celestris broadcasts negative thoughts into Wonder Woman, centering on the usage of her equipment. Wonder Woman asks her mother, Queen Hippolyta, to aid her in retrieving her invisible jet. While consulting her mother, on Themyscira, Wonder Woman spies a fellow Amazon falling from a cliff side. Wonder Woman hurls her magic lasso, only to have it wind itself around her. Using the power of the magic lasso, Wonder Woman commands herself to rescue the falling amazon. Though it isn't pretty, Wonder Woman manages to break the Amazon's fall. Consulting the Magic Sphere, Wonder Woman and Queen Hippolyta see the face of Celestris, though neither recognize him. The Red Tornado observes Wonder Woman's attempt to thwart a simple bank heist. Throwing her tiara causes it to boomerang back on her.

Blocking bullets with her bracelets deflects the gunfire into the crowds of bystanders. Only by relying on her Amazon strength is she able to resolve the conflict. Seeing Celestris' face on the front page of the local paper, Wonder Woman attends his rally in the park. When the stage collapses under Celestris, Wonder Woman saves him. Celestris confesses to tampering with Wonder Woman's mind. Marshaling her indomitable will, Wonder Woman overcomes Celestris' mental blocks, and is able to lasso him. Wonder Woman discovers that she herself was the source of the will power Celestris' machine was harvesting, then instilling in others. It was due to her deep concentration, whenever she brought her weapons to bear, that kept causing the machine to overload. By barring Wonder Woman's ability to use her weapons, Celestris was actually depriving his machine of the "fuel" it required to operate. The case closed, the Red Tornado recommends Wonder Woman's reinstatement in the Justice League of America.

"Give Her Liberty-- And Give Her Death!"

Batman, the Flash, Green Arrow, Superman, and Hawkman argue over who should monitor Wonder Woman's eighth trial. Suddenly, the Phantom Stranger appears, stating that he already has. The Justice League of America watch Wonder Woman's eighth trial play out in the Phantom Stranger's crystal ball. Frustrated over his constant failure, Felix Faust summons demons to instruct him. The demon's provide Faust with a mystic tome, and a cryptic message. On a tour of Ellis Island, Diana Prince sees the Statue of Liberty come to life, and begin attacking the crowds of bystanders. Prince pitches herself into the river, where she changes into her Wonder Woman costume. Wonder Woman binds the Statue of Liberty with her magic lasso, but it refuses to obey her commands. The Statue of Liberty suddenly shrinks in stature, slipping the bonds of the lasso. Wonder Woman becomes aware of a strange sound, that has the cadence of human speech.

The still shrinking Statue of Liberty soars up into the sky, and flies away. Wonder Woman pursues the Statue of Liberty in her invisible jet. The Statue of Liberty flies to the old World's Fair grounds on Long Island. As Wonder Woman closes on the Statue of Liberty, manacles appear around her wrists. Bound by the power of a man, Faust, Wonder Woman loses her Amazon strength. The Statue of Liberty, now no taller than Wonder Woman, fells the Amazon Princess with a spike from it's crown. Wonder Woman awakens, bound within Faust's Death-House. Faust is now wearing the Statue of Liberty as an amulet. Faust reveals that Statue of Liberty is not just a symbol of liberty but that it actually houses the spirit of liberty, as well. With it in his possession, Faust will be able to enslave humanity. Before she can be overcome by the poison gas within the chamber, Wonder Woman mimics the sound of Faust's incantations. Suddenly, her manacles disappear.

Faust conjures a barred barrier between himself and Wonder Woman, but the Amazon Princess merely barrels through it. Continuing to mimic the sound of Faust's incantation, Wonder Woman reverses the enchantment on the Statue of Liberty, causing it to slowly begin growing again. Wonder Woman uses her magic lasso to nullify Faust's enchantments. Desperately, Faust resorts to a simple mystic bolt to fell Wonder Woman. Using her bracelets, Wonder Woman deflects the bolt back at Faust, defeating him. The case closed, Wonder Woman returns the Statue of Liberty to it's proper location. With the tale told, the Justice League of America notice that the Phantom Stranger has disappeared. Batman states that, once again, Wonder Woman has proven she's ready to return to their ranks. Superman, though, is bothered that the team was completely unaware of the Felix Faust situation. The Man of Steel worries that when she really needs them, the Justice League of America will not be there for Wonder Woman.