SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for the lead story in Injustice 2 Annual #1 by K. Perkins, Tom Taylor, Marco Santucci, Jamal Campbell, David Yardin, J. Nanjan and Wes Abbott, on sale now

The world of Injustice showcases a very recognizable world to fans of the DC Universe, but with some major changes along the way. While the fate of the world was forever changed when The Joker forced Superman to kill his wife and unborn child, flashbacks to years earlier show that this Earth was always a much more violent and dangerous place than what we’re used to. This week’s Injustice 2 Annual #1 gives us a peek back at the history of Wonder Woman, how she met this world’s Steve Trevor -- and how a deadly betrayal tainted her view of man’s world, forever.

Man’s War

We’ve seen a lot of Wonder Woman origins in the past couple of years: The Legend of Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman: Earth One, Wonder Woman: The True Amazon and the movie, and this story starts out along the same lines. Diana of Themyscira is the daughter of Hippolyta, trained to be great warrior but without a war to fight so long as the Amazons remains secluded. All that changes when a handsome American pilot crash lands off the coast of Themyscira and tells them of the war happening all around the world and while the Amazons are suspicious, Diana sees this as her calling to head out into the world and become Wonder Woman.

So far, so good, right? Wonder Woman becomes a sensation for the Allies and serves not just as a warrior but as a symbol to inspire the good guys to win the war. She even falls in love with Steve Trevor and when he goes too far interrogating a German soldier, she offers a solution to his problem. The Allies can’t anticipate what the Nazis are doing if they can’t get the prisoners to talk, but if they return to Paradise Island, they can retrieve the Lasso of Hestia and use it to turn the tide of the war.

“The Right Side”

Wonder Woman returns home to speak to her mother about using the Lasso in the war, and while Hippolyta denies the request, the other half of their plan is already in action as Steve Trevor sneaks into the chambers where the Lasso is held. However, he is surprised by Calliope, and a startled Steve Trevor turns and shoots her through the chest. As she dies, she reveals she was helping him, choosing to follow Diana over Hippolyta. While Steve attempts to flee Themyscira with the Lasso, he’s stopped by Hippolyta and her army and though Diana tries to defend him, she soon learns of Calliope’s death and becomes enraged.

Binding him once again the Lasso of Hestia, Diana learns that they didn’t ask Steve the right questions when they first interrogated him and soon learn that everything he said is true... to him. When asked what side he fights on, he answers, “The right side, ma’am. I’m an American soldier for the allies” and while there wasn’t a lie there, it wasn’t the whole truth. When he said “The right side,” he meant the Nazis, while the statement about being an American soldier for the Allies was also true, because he was a spy. Learning this, Diana wraps the Lasso around his throat and says that it is her duty to protect the world, and by killing him, she’s making it ever so slightly safer.

God of War

This revelation puts so much of Wonder Woman’s Injustice characterization into a better context, with a clearer focus. While most incarnations of Wonder Woman are driven by compassion, the Injustice world’s Diana seemed to be a lot more vengeful and aggressive. When the time came and Superman made moves towards setting up his Regime, Wonder Woman was right there not only helping him, but encouraging him. Ares himself even worried about what would happen if Diana got into Superman’s head and convinced him to follow her ways because it would ultimately lead to the end of all war, albeit in a fascistic totalitarian manner.

While some characters have shown for room for redemption following the first Injustice — The Flash and Green Lantern have both made amends for their role in The Regime — Wonder Woman doesn’t show any signs of wanting to back down or change course, regardless of how the world sees her following Superman’s deposal at the end of Injustice: Gods Among Us. This is a Wonder Woman unlike any we’ve seen before and it all stems back to a broken heart at the hands of the first man she ever met.