Anissa Pierce is the daughter of King Jefferson. She succeeded her father as queen after he was murdered by the White Martians.
History
Death of the King
Anissa's brother Prince Jacob was murdered a White Martian wearing Zala Jor-El's form.[1] Their father went to Amazonia to ensure their support for a retaliation against the El's, but on the voyage home King Jefferson and his men were ambushed again a Martian disguised as Zala, who tore through the ship and stabbed King Jefferson through the heart with a broken piece of wood. Dying, King Jefferson told Constantine that Anissa was Queen now and she would need him to help her rule.[2]
Becoming Queen
Following her coronation, Anissa declared war on the Els, believing that Zala was responsible for her father and brother's deaths.[3]
Anissa, her sister Princess Jennifer and the Kingdom of Storms' army joined with Queen Hippolyta and the Amazons and marched on the Castle of El. Along the way they were attacked by the Lady of the Forest, a witch who guarded the path through Hobb Forest for the El's, but they were saved by the Green Man. Once they reached the castle, Hippolyta asked Queen Lara to peacefully surrender to avoid bloodshed, promising that she and Zala would not be harmed despite Anissa's demands that the Els pay for what they did. Lara refused and murdered Hippolyta with her heat vision.[4]
For a moment, everyone stood frozen with shock. The Amazons attempted to attack Lara, but she flew into the air and escaped. Prince Kal-El crashed down to Earth in front of the armies and Hippolyta's grief-stricken daughter Diana ordered them to attack him. The El's army rode out to defend him, but Anissa blasted them with thunder and broke their charge. The Kingdom of Storms and Amazons charged the disorganised El's, but their charge was also broken by the arrival of the Bat-Prince riding on a dragon. With all sense of discipline destroyed, the battle descended into a chaotic melee.
The Martian War
Suddenly Lara was tackled down to Earth by her exact doppleganger. The battle paused as the three armies stopped fighting and for a moment stared in silent shock at the two Lara's. One of the Lara's was shot in the chest with a flaming crossbow bolt and burst into flames. She transformed into a white-skinned monster, revealing "her" true nature as a White Martian, and flew away.[5]
The leaders of the armies gathered at the edge of the battlefield, where the El's Master-at-arms Alfred revealed that he was also an alien. Diana tried to attack him but the El princes defended him and convinced her to use a magic rope to compel him to tell the truth. Alfred assured them that he meant none of them any harm and John suggested that they that they all take a moment to calm down and reassess the situation. Diana turned her anger on him, saying that everything that had happened is the fault of him and his prophecy. Privately, John agreed with her, believing that he had lead both Jefferson and Anissa astray. Anissa and Jennifer briefly defended him, until Jacob stumbled over to them. They were overjoyed to see him but realised Constantine must have some something terrible to bring him back and Anissa demanded to know what it was.
Lara invited Diana and Anissa to a conference to discuss the newly discovered threat, allowing them to bring their soldiers into the city to receive succour. The three queens, joined by the Lady of the Forest; questioned Alfred, who was still bound in the rope. He revealed that his true name was J'onn J'onzz from the planet Mars, and the monster they had seen was a White Martian, the enemy of his people, the Greens. He told them that the White Martians wanted to take Earth after a war between their peoples had devastated Mars. Anissa realised that everything that had happened had been part of a plot by the Whites to get the potential threats of the Amazons, Kryptonians and Pierces to destroy each other and leave the way open to conquer Earth. Lara proposed that they unite their kingdoms to oppose the invaders.[6]
The queens did not initially trust J'onn, and kept him imprisoned and bound in the rope. After he was attacked and almost killed in his cell by one of the Whites, they decided to release him and take his advice, setting up multiple fire-based defences to hold the invaders at bay. Anissa oversaw the building of massive bonfires to protect the soldiers of all three armies and secured a vast quantity of wood from the Lady of the Forest.[7]
Scorched Earth
Constantine and the advisors for the other kingdoms came up with a plan to defeat the White Martians once and for all by luring them to the dormant volcano and triggering an eruption; where Diana and the El's would battle them when they had been severely weakened by the flaming lava. That night, the Martians somehow brought down the bonfires surrounding the castle, but the Amazon defenders were ready for them and kept them pinned down. A messenger rode to the castle to tell them the Martians were attacking and so Anissa and Jennifer rode out to positions near the mountain as planned, while Jacob stayed behind to protect the castle.
The El's and Diana dove into the middle of the battle and drew the Martians away to the volcano. When they had surrounded it Anissa and and Jennifer summoned an earthquake and a huge bolt of lightning to trigger the eruption. The Martians were doused in lava and severely injured or killed, but the El's and Amazon were unharmed, protected by their powers. They easily defeated the Martians and Lara banished the survivors to a Realm of Phantoms. A week later, the three kingdoms united into a League to defend against any other threats.[8]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Magic: All members of the Pierce Family are born with the magical ability to control some aspect of storms.
- Sound Manipulation: Anissa can control thunder and create powerful sonic booms.[9]
- Geokinesis: Anissa can channel her thunder through the Earth to create localised earthquakes.[5]
- Sound Manipulation: Anissa can control thunder and create powerful sonic booms.[9]
Abilities
Notes
- Thunder was created by Judd Winick and Tom Raney, first appearing in Outsiders (Volume 3) #1. However, the Dark Knights of Steel version of Thunder first appeared in Dark Knights of Steel #2 by Tom Taylor and Yasmine Putri.
Related
- 7 Appearances of Anissa Pierce (Dark Knights of Steel)
- 4 Images featuring Anissa Pierce (Dark Knights of Steel)
- Quotations by or about Anissa Pierce (Dark Knights of Steel)
- Character Gallery: Anissa Pierce (Dark Knights of Steel)
Footnotes
  This character has been a member of the Justice League of America, or the Justice League in any of its various incarnations, sworn by a duty to act as guardians of America and the world by using their skills and/or superpowers to protect Earth from the clutches of both interstellar and domestic threats. |