Cyberknight: One Path

⁕ Athena (part 1)

[Athena] - "Your ability killed so many of my men! Pay with your life, you cowardly bastard! "

Yelled Athena as she charged up a bolt of lightning in her hands.

As the ground shook inside the city with Athena's attack, the defenders were suddenly falling to the combined firepower of the five imperial fleet and their marines. In a matter of minutes, the defenders were wiped out inside the city.

In the aftermath of the battle, while other commanders celebrated with parties on their ships, Athena spent the time roaming the shattered city. Inside a medical camp, Athena helped carry a wounded man on a stretcher to his bed. Then, with a sorry look on her face, she kneeled beside the bed of a dying marine and held his hand in hers.

[Spartan Marine] - "I don't want to die... "

Said the marine in a weak voice.

[Athena] - "I'm sorry... But I am no Goddess. If I were one, I could've saved you. "

Said Athena in a sorrowful voice.

[Spartan Marine] - "I know you aren't, lord Athena. We can see your face from your helmet; you are human, like the rest of us. Unlike actual Gods who have no concern for the suffering of a mortal man, only a human cares enough to comfort another in his final moments. "

Said the marines in a reassuring voice.

At that moment, the reason why Mike cut apart the lower half of the helmet struck Athena in her heart. The connection to one's own humanity is how you are reminded of your mission as a cyberknight. Every breath she took was the same, unfiltered, ash-filled air her fellow men breathed. Every word she uttered was from her own mouth and not through the robotic voice of the helmet speaker. And each sensation on her flesh is the same, unprotected sensation as that of the common mortal man. It was this humbling design which allowed Athena to never forget what she is fighting for. Silently, Athena stayed beside the dying marine until he drew his last breath.

[Officer] - "Lord Athena, official battle order from the high command. We are to divert our forces to the Sea of Japan for a possible counterattack. What are your orders? "

Said the officers as he saluted Athena.

At this point, Athena was beyond tired after a day of fighting and saving lives. She looked at the marine in front of her, whose body was already draped over by a white cloth, and stood up with renewed determination. If a mortal man like him, who knew he could die at any minute on the field, decided to fight and die for the Imperial cause, then what excuse does Athena have not to fight harder?

[Athena] - "We strike at sunrise, where our bronze will be their only light. "

As Athena exited the medical tent, rows of her men rallied to cheer in her name, with even the wounded showing up in their wheelchairs or walking sticks to see her.

"Lord Athena, the Goddess of War of the 9th fleet, the Guardian Angel of the worthy! Glory to you and the National Empire! We, the men of the 9th, will always follow your lead to hell and back! "

Screamed the crowd in unison.

Suddenly, the men under Athena saluted her with some even bowing down out of respect. However, instead of standing proud without a word, Athena reacted by saluting her men back before taking off her helmet to reveal her real face to her men for the first time.

[Athena] - "Men, today has been a tough battle for all of you. Let us have a moment of silence for those who have fallen. As your commander, I promise you today's tragedy will not be repeated again in our future conflicts. "

Said Athena as she kneeled on one knee and paid respect to the dead.

There, at that moment, Athena cemented herself as the commander her men will follow to their graves. Not a single person reacted to the fact that she was just a young woman because they could all see she was a great warrior at heart. Thus, the 9th fleet fought hard in the Cleansing Crusade under Athena's leadership, scoring many great victories while also being the most humane. Out of the 21 fleets, the 9th was the only one that cared about the civilians and the preservation of lives in the war.