Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Athena and her Squad

The zerglings quickly scoured the area and informed Athena the rest of her squad wasn’t back yet. They must still be trying to complete the mission to retrieve the piece of specimen the Imperial Research Academy scientist demanded. Using this opportunity, Athena made her way to one of the MSVs, hoping coming into contact with the human vehicle would unlock a structure or two for the Terrans. 

When no notification came, she had to admit she was quite disappointed. 

With the surroundings secure, Athena returned all the Zerg units back into the game. It would be quite unfortunate if her teammates saw her with the Zerg units. That would no doubt complicate things. 

As Athena’s mind wandered, her HUD suddenly reminded her that there was action coming from her 6 o’clock direction. This alert was followed by a familiar voice from her comms. 

“Private Dane. Is that you?” 

Athena grinned to herself and turned around. There, along the trees, were nine men in black and red power armor. The voice that she heard belonged to Corporal Huo, the leader of Athena’s squad and the head of this operation. 

Due to the lack of communications satellites and cell towers, squads sent on missions had to use radios to communicate with each other. She couldn’t contact the others previously due to distance. Now, that was no longer a problem. After all, they were still on the same radio frequency. 

Her squad was finally back, and it seemed like she could finally head back to the Imperial outpost. It was hardly a warm, welcoming home, but anywhere was better than out here. 

---

“Corporal!” Athena greeted the others as she emerged from behind the vehicle. Despite not being the same person as the zealot soldier, Athena received all the memories of her predecessor. She knew exactly how the old Athena would act in a situation like this. “Corporal Huo!”

“Athena? You…you’re alive! You made it back!” 

Corporal Huo, the squad leader, was a veteran NCO Athena had served with for two years. He was a middle-aged man who had neither a wife nor any kids. He mostly kept his personal affairs a secret, but rumors among the squad said that he came from a wealthy family who hoped he could become a general or an admiral and bring pride to his family. After he failed to get into a military or naval academy, his family gave up on him and instead focused on his younger brother. The man later joined the Imperial Army as a volunteer for reasons Athena never found out about.

Athena didn't know if these rumors were authentic, but she did know unlike her former self, Corporal Huo had zero intention of sacrificing his life for the Imperial cause. Honestly, that was only fair enough. As of a few hours ago, neither did she. 

The old Athena wasn’t a fan of the corporal though. She still obeyed his every command because it was her duty, but she had no respect for him. 

“Yes sir. I was able to follow the protocols and find my way back here. My apologies for not being able to help with the mission.” She explained before glancing at the soldiers that returned. Some of them had the cover for their helmets down and Athena couldn’t see their faces, but she could still see the serial numbers engraved on their armors. “Michael? Ren?”

Each squad had 12 soldiers, including the corporal serving as the battlefield commander of the squad. Athena’s own squad had taken some casualties since arriving on Morgo IV, but they were returned to full strength as they embarked on the mission. Now two of the men were missing. Given the dangerousness of the mission, what happened to the two was obvious.

Corporal Huo shook his head behind the transparent helmet. “They didn't make it.”

Athena sighed. Michael and Ren were two soldiers in the squad who were the closest to Athena. Michael was the squad machine gunner and Ren was the sharpshooter. The three of them were perhaps the best soldiers in the entire squad. They have survived countless firefights through the years. 

Although…in that case, what were the odds both of them died in a single battle? And if things got so dangerous, then how did everyone else in the squad emerge unscathed? Even some of the fresh recruits who were much more likely to make a mistake in the heat of the firefight returned alive when two veterans died. It wasn’t like the local animals were specifically picking on certain troops, right?

Those thoughts went through Athena’s head, but she didn't think much of it until her eyes landed on the armored plating of one of the troopers. There, lodged into the suit of power armor, were two bullet holes. 

Wait…what?

Athena frowned as her head continued to spin at a speed that impressed even herself. The two bullet holes didn't seem like the product of Defender rifles. They were too small for that. Most likely they were caused by a pistol. 

She was certain the holes weren’t there when they went on the mission. As a professional soldier, Athena always gave her full attention to the security checks she and her squad performed before leaving the outpost. She would never have missed two bullet holes on the forward plating that could’ve caused a fatal structure failure of the armor and killed the man inside. 

So the man was shot by a pistol twice while on this mission. Since Athena doubted the local animals were loaded with handguns, and given the fact that two of the veteran soldiers in the squad were somehow missing while everyone else made it, Athena suddenly arrived at a terrifying possibility. 

Her eyes landed on the other members of the squad once again. This time, she was paying attention, and she quickly realized something was very wrong. Even after confirming her identity, these men have yet to return their rifles to the holsters on the side of their armors and head for the transports. 

Instead, their rifles were distinctly aimed in her general direction and their armored fingers never strayed far from the triggers. None of them had their backs facing her. 

There was an awkward moment of silence as everyone in the squad simply stood there. Athena was a little taken aback by her realization, and the rest of the squad seemed equally nervous about and surprised by her presence. For a while, they didn't seem to know what to do, but that soon changed. An order that Athena couldn’t hear was given through a communication channel that didn't include her, and three of the troops in her squad advanced into a position such that they formed an L shape with both the other troops and the line of Blackbucks. Athena knew this setup all too well. These men were cutting off her retreat. They wanted to make sure she had nowhere to take cover when the shooting began. 

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These soldiers, her own squad leader and comrades, wanted to kill her! The same people who she spent so much time getting back to wanted her dead! They have likely killed Michael and Ren as well. Why? Did they know she was controlling the Zerg and decided to strike first? No, that wouldn't make any sense! But then…why? None of this should be happening!

Athena snapped back to Corporal Huo, who had activated the second layer of the face shield in his helmet. Now, instead of seeing his face, Athena could only see the reflection of her own. 

“What the hell is going on here?” She snapped, her fear quickly overcome by anger. What did she ever do to them? From the memories she received from the old Athena, she didn't get along too well with everyone, but it was nothing that could make them want to shoot her! If her teammates wanted her dead, the least they could do was tell her why! 

Corporal Huo paused there for a second before letting out a sigh and dropping his facade. 

“Sorry, kid. It’s nothing personal. You never should have waited for us. You should’ve returned to the base by yourself. That might have made things better for you.”

He didn't draw his weapon. Athena was standing in front of one of the Blackbuck-class MSVs. If he tried to shoot her, his bullet could hit the vehicle. The two handgun bullet holes in the armor of one of his men would already be difficult enough to cover up. Another rifle bullet hole on an MSV would make things worse. 

To save himself and his team some further trouble, the Corporal preferred to let the three troops beside Athena do the job. 

He gestured at one of the riflemen, Private Dubois. The private, with a cold scoff on his cheeks, raised his Defender automatic rifle and took aim at Athena’s side. Unlike the Corporal, Private Dubois didn't feel bad about what he was about to do. If anything, he snickered at the corporal’s hesitance and her apology to Athena. 

Their squad had killed so many people in the past. What was so different about this young woman here? Sure, in the past they were shooting enemies and now they were about to gun down a comrade, but so what? Also, they were about to shoot her. What would hesitance and an apology do for someone who would be dead in seconds?  

Unfortunately for him, the private’s thoughts were rather short-lived. The next second, a single acidic spine pierced his face shield and his skull, putting an end to both the scoff on his lips and his life. 

---

Athena didn't expect the sudden betrayal by her own squad. She had her concerns about these men. Perhaps after spending some time together, they might sense that she was different than she was before. Perhaps they could make it difficult for her to desert from the Imperial Army when an opportunity presented itself. Yet she never thought there would be any trouble so soon. And such a violent reaction, no less. 

After all, they had no reason to suddenly turn on her. Yes. She was a different woman, but there was no way for them to know this. The only reason all of this could be happening was if they had their own reason to take her, or rather the old Athena, out. 

But the situation didn't allow her too much time to think things over. Under circumstances like this, there was no time for doubts or hesitation. There wasn’t even much time for fear. As Athena saw one of the Imperial soldiers raise his rifle in the corner of her eyes, she knew she had to act immediately. 

If these men wanted to kill her, then they could hardly blame her if she fought back and killed them in return. She would hardly take pleasure in this, but just like with the local animals, sometimes violence was the only solution. 

Moving as quickly as she could, Athena did something she had practiced so many times before in the last half an hour or so. She opened up the game and, within a split second, deployed her only queen between herself and the three Imperial troopers to her side. 

“Shield me!” She barked an order through the link between her and the queen, doing her best to keep the emotions out of her voice. 

As soon as it was deployed, the queen immediately jumped into action. Almost all of the Imperial soldiers had their weapons in Athena’s distinct direction, but only one of them, Private Dubois, had raised his weapon and was about to fire. This meant he was recognized as the greatest threat by the Zerg queen, and that earned the man a single acidic spine to the face. 

“What the…” The sudden appearance of the three-meter-tall queen caught Corporal Huo and the other seven troopers in the squad completely off guard. They had so many questions. What was this thing and where the hell did it come from? How did a monster this big just show up in front of them unnoticed? Was it teleporting? 

Some of these men were veterans, but even the most experienced and trained trooper would inevitably freeze for a second when they witnessed impossibility with their own eyes. 

This second of hesitation cost them greatly.

Unlike the others, Athena didn't waste a single moment. The deployed queen and the shock she caused brought her enough time to select the sixteen remaining zerglings and one drone in the game and deploy them into combat. This time, instead of shielding herself, she deployed the Zerg units right next to the remaining Imperials. 

“Kill them all!” She gave a single command to all the Zerg units before remembering something and pointing out Corporal Huo. “Actually…leave him alive. Kill the rest!”

As cruel as the order was, in that split second, Athena knew there was no way for her to take these troopers alive. First, she didn't have the numbers. The Zerg units she had were good at killing, not taking prisoners. These were still trained soldiers with firearms and grenades that, given the opportunity, could kill Zerg units or take her down. 

Even if she could take them alive at potentially a great cost, where could she hold them? She couldn’t take them back to Outpost Delta for obvious reasons. Leave them out in the wild to die to the elements, starvation, or the beasts? Now that was just cruelty. 

A part of Athena Hall thought she should feel concerned about giving the kill order, but the reality was that she felt very little. After all, she could clearly remember herself taking countless lives on the battlefield. Men. Women. Soldiers. Civilians. These were memories of the old Athena, but they still felt so real to the new Athena. For better or for worse, these memories allowed her to act as needed while experiencing relatively few moral burdens at the moment. 

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