Given her divine position as Goddess of Trade and Wealth, one could tell from the title alone that it was primarily supportive in nature. If she only relied on the abilities her godhood provided, she'd likely rank at the bottom of the council, agreeing with whatever others said without any real authority.
Originally, Thea had planned to keep a low profile for a few days. However, Highfather raising this topic forced her to scrap that plan.
With Highfather's power, seeing through her true capabilities wouldn't be difficult. He knew Thea's real strength and was encouraging this—the implication was crystal clear.
Highfather wanted her to demonstrate her combat prowess to the council. Obviously not by fighting all of them—taking on eight at once would be impossible. Perhaps Darkseid could manage it, but Thea certainly couldn't. She could only pick one New God to showcase her abilities. Divine status elevated one's level of existence, but didn't directly correlate to combat power.
In Thea's assessment, the several specialized New Gods—aside from Metron who didn't participate in combat at all—had real combat abilities roughly equivalent to her previous mid-tier demigod level. Perhaps their long exposure to the Source and their respective divine positions granted them some new abilities, but it wouldn't change the overall picture.
Highfather surely wasn't asking her to challenge them, which left the three legion commanders. These three appeared roughly equal to Thea—most likely they'd also waited until peak demigod status before ascending, then spent countless years commanding legions against Darkseid's armies, so their combat experience wouldn't be lacking either.
Who should she challenge? Orion, Highfather's favorite, was immediately crossed off Thea's list. Picking a fight with the boss's protégé on her first day would be idiotic.
The archer Bekka was also eliminated. After ascending to godhood, the benefits and talents from her previous Moon Goddess patronage had automatically been revoked. She couldn't wield the Silver Moon Bow comfortably anymore, and even if she could, pulling out an Old God's weapon on New God territory would be inappropriate.
That left only Darkseid's defector, Lightray... wait, no. She corrected herself—Makkari, the God of Lightning. This one knew he was different from the native New Genesis inhabitants and had deliberately kept a low profile.
To demonstrate her prowess without making too many enemies, this guy with shallow roots was the perfect target.
This wasn't a formal challenge—no need for handshakes and polite greetings. Her gaze rested on Makkari for just a few seconds, and the gods understood her intention.
Makkari kept a low profile, sure, but his strength was undeniably formidable. Whether fighting Highfather's forces in the past or now on their side, no one could deny his combat ability.
"Young goddess, Makkari isn't so—" Orion, gripping his massive hammer, had barely started speaking when the towering Bekka pulled him aside. The other gods automatically moved to the flanks.
Fight right here? Thea glanced around—the gods' posture suggested they weren't worried about combat damaging this place. If they weren't concerned, she certainly wouldn't be either.
Makkari walked out of the crowd stiffly, extending both hands to the sides and pulling a lightning-wreathed spear from the void. He assumed a ready stance, waiting for Thea to attack first.
Just like that? Thea was speechless. She'd already tried—her armor and holy sword wouldn't manifest here. In this Fourth World, her only protection was the ceremonial dress of the Goddess of Trade and Wealth.
And her opponent? Sealed tight in blue-black full-body armor, while she wore this outfit that exposed her arms and back. Their defensive capabilities weren't even in the same league.
This must be the price later arrivals paid when challenging veterans. Thea considered it briefly but didn't mind much. This was a sparring match, not a death match. His defector status made his position awkward—he wouldn't use lethal force, and she didn't need to grind him into the dirt either.
As long as they fought to a draw, they'd both satisfy the assembled gods.
His title was God of Lightning, not God of Thunder—a subtle but crucial difference. Especially since Thea had experienced Zeus's divine majesty through multiple channels, she knew Makkari's godhood had severe limitations. Yet he still ranked as one of Highfather's three legion commanders, relying not on his divine position but on combat prowess. Considering Apokolips's law of the jungle, rising from mountains of corpses, he'd definitely earned his rank through raw power.
Thea compared several tactical approaches and decided on the safest method.
Her opponent had rich combat experience, and lightning—however limited—still carried the characteristic of speed. He'd be quick. Using bow and arrows for ranged combat would actually be a good choice, but doing so would seem like a slight against Bekka.
Thea settled for her second option. She used divine power as the framework with lightning magic layered over it. A whip crackling with azure light appeared in her hand.
When first learning combat skills, she rarely used whips. However, after spending so much time with Catwoman and Barbara, she'd developed some expertise with this weapon.
First—it looked good! This was many female heroes' weapon of choice. Wearing a dress while wielding a whip, making enemies cry with a casual flick of the wrist—the visual was far more elegant than scrambling around with a bow.
Second—for Thea personally, archery required both hands, while a whip needed only one. This freed her other hand to cast spells. Gods had high magical resistance, true, but not immunity. Some spells could still deliver decisive strikes at critical moments.
The arc-crackling whip danced through a few practice swings. Thea then infused her unique divine power into it. Lightning magic mixed with the brilliance of jewels created a dazzling display. Forget everything else—just the sound and light effects alone were worth appreciating.
The watching gods either donned helmets or employed various methods to shield themselves. Mere flashing lights couldn't faze them.
Facing Thea's aura directly, Makkari felt a hint of pressure. As the saying went, no deity was a fool—he could figure out why Thea had chosen him.
Winning or losing didn't matter much, but he absolutely couldn't afford to lose. Seeing Thea's preparations complete, Makkari abandoned any pretense of seniority and transformed into a bolt of lightning, launching his attack.
Unfortunately, he struck empty air. While flourishing her whip, Thea had used the dazzling light as cover to cast a high-level invisibility spell early on, hiding her true body fifteen feet to the side.
As Makkari's strike hit nothing, she quickly seized the opportunity. Her whip lashed toward the God of Lightning with fierce electrical light.
Whip users were rare these days, but not unheard of. At the very least, Makkari had seen Lashina, one of Granny Goodness's Furies from Apokolips, use whips in training. He wasn't unfamiliar with this weapon.
If he blocked directly, the whip's flexible nature would still reach him. Regardless of actual damage, losing the first exchange would definitely affect his momentum.
Yet Thea had calculated this strike carefully—the angle was tricky, covering front, back, left, and right within the attack range. Makkari could only ascend into the air to evade.
Her opponent struck air once and dodged again, giving Thea valuable time to build her early advantage.
Dealing with speed-focused opponents—she had experience with that. Similar to fighting Cheetah before, she unleashed a barrage of slowing spells.