Ada faced Athena with the utmost confidence. Many gods couldn't believe Athena was pushed back by some human. Meanwhile, Ares couldn't believe what he had witnessed.
"What the? What did that woman do just now?"
Hermes rubs his chin as he answers his brother's question.
"There was probably some kinetic force behind Ada's forcefield that repelled Athena."
In the arena, Athena chuckles, to the surprise of the gods.
"I see now. Your wings have a magnetic mechanism when they intercept each other. Creating a field of polarity that will repel any of my attacks. Am I correct?"
Ada answers with amusement, "Oh my! I can see why you're the goddess of wisdom. By learning about magnetism, you can shift the polarity by manipulating the pull of the vector field. Thus, my defensive technique, Integral Magnet Field!"
Many of the humans gasped in amazement at their champion's creativity.
Lady Byron grasp her hands in joy, "Yes! Very good, Ada!"
Then a familiar voice is heard above Lady Byron.
"Ahahaha, that's Ada for you! Always quick with her thinking!"
Lady Bryon turns her head to see none other than Charles Babbage.
"Babbage?!"
Charles Babbage looks down and smiles, "Oho, Lady Bryon! Such a pleasant day, wouldn't you agree?"
Lady Byron only nodded as she turned her focus back on the match.
Arachne, Stheno, and Euryale cheer on Ada.
"Come on, Ada! Kick her ass!"
"Win this one for my baby sister, Medusa!"
"Make her pay for her sins!"
Then the hopes of humanity were dashed when Athena laughed softly yet sinisterly.
"I will admit, you're a crafty one, human. But one will fall like all who defy me."
Then in a flash, Athena disappeared right before Ada's eyes.
The humans shared Ada's bewilderment.
"W-what? Where did she go," Ada questioned?
Suddenly, Reginleif appeared to warn Ada.
"ADA, BEHIND YOU!"
Unfortunately, felt a searing pain on the left side of her back. Ada collapsed to her knees as she felt her seeping out of her wound and staining her armor. She hears Athena's voice behind her.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk- such a pitiful design. Even Daedalus's inventions were tasteful than this scrap heap," Athena said mockingly.
Ada quickly shot up to her feet and turned to face her opponent. However, Ada gets slashed on the side of her abdomen.
"Ahn," Ada yelled in pain.
She stumbles back as she clutches her side. As she stares at Athena, she notices two things that catch her by surprise. The first one was her spear, or at least what was once her spear. Now in her hand is a lightning-bladed gladius. But the thing that caught Ada's eyes the most it's that the irises of Athena's eyes changed to purple.
Then Heimdall echoed from his horn.
"Another direct hit from the goddess of wisdom! No matter how hard Ada Lovelace tried to get the upper hand, Athena proved that she'll be one step ahead."
Ada sighed, "I-I don't understand. What happened to your spear, and why did your eyes change color?"
Athena smirks at the human's pitful questioning but will humor her.
"You see, Ada, my weapon isn't just a spear. It can also become a gladius when I will it to be. That is the capability of Divine Treasure, Minerva. As for my eyes..."
Athena runs toward her opponent, ready to attack.
"You will have to figure it out!"
Ada stares in shock as she sees five versions of Athena.
'Can she duplicate herself,' Ada questioned in her mind.
The Athena duplicates rush forward with a series of sword strikes at the programmer. Ada desperately dodged to the best of her suit's ability but felt every cut on her armor.
"Reginleif! Activate boosters, hurry!" Ada commanded
With that, Ada rockets into the air with her mechanized boots. Ada catches her breath as she sees her opponents looking up at her.
"Ada Lovelace has taken to the skies due to Athena's relentless onslaught. Let's keep an eye on this, ladies and gentlemen," Heimdall commented on the action in the arena.
Ada's mind begins to race as she doesn't know what to do next.
'How is this possible? Of all the data I collected on her, it didn't mention anything that involved duplication. Unless...'
Ada then brings up Reginlief and asks her, "Reginleif, can Athena use illusions?"
The valkyrie AI nodded, "Yes, that ability is called Athena Machanitis."
"Machanitis?" Ada questioned
Reginleif explains, "You see, when her eyes become purple, and you gaze into them, she can make you see things had felt real."
Ada realizes something.
'So that's how she got behind me. She used her ability to make me think she teleported but exactly rushed behind me and attacked. Clever, but I'm got something special for her.'
Ada then said with a serious tone, "Reginleif, activate Protocol: SNV-51918!"
Reginleif protested, "What! Ada, your suit is at 56%! Activating it will drain your power source even more."
Ada calmly replied, "Trust me, okay. I know what I'm doing."
Reginleif merely sighed, "Very well, but keep her distracted while I activate the protocol."
Meanwhile, Athena is getting annoyed with Ada's stalling.
"You do know you're delaying the inevitable, don't you? I know what you're planning, and it will fail as usual. Just accept that this is the end and-"
Then Ada flies towards the goddess of wisdom. Ada's mechanized gauntlets glow in cyan energy.
"Megabyte Flash Punches," Ada yelled as she unleashed a torrent of punches toward Athena.
Athena blocks those jabs with her Aegis shield. As this goes on, the gods mock Ada for her futile attempts.
"Bahaha, this human woman is just embarrassing!"
"It's useless to defeat her! Just give up already!"
"Those punches aren't even making a dent on the Aegis!"
Nike joins in the berating.
"Hey, Ada, you might as well lay down and die! Hehehe!"
Meanwhile, Zeus cheered on his daughter with such vigor.
"Ohohohoho! That's my little princess! Daddy's proud of you, pumpkin!"
Ares, Itzpapotl, and Huitzilopochtli roll their eyes at Zeus's dramatics.
On the other side of Athena, Goll began the panic.
"I-it's no use. Ada is throwing everything she has, but Athena keeps countering everything!"
Then the four women saw something flying overhead.
Hera grinned, "Well, let's see Athena counter that."
Soon, all of the spectators began to look up at the sky. As Athena defends herself from Ada's punches, Perseus warns his goddess.
"Lady Athena! Look above!"
After shoving Ada away, Athena saw something that shocked her. In the air are mech suits of various colors and forms. All of the audience gasped in disbelief.
"By the heavens! Ada Lovelace summon all of these armors to her beck and call," Heimdall gasped.
Goll uttered as she was the suits, "Amazing."
Back in the arena, Athena smirked as she knew Ada's intent.
"So you thought distracting me and bringing more of your metal junk could beat me? Such nonsense," Athena berates.
Ada replied, "What can I say? I have a plan for everything, Athena, especially knocking arrogant gods like you down."
Then Ada and her mech suits charge toward the goddess. Athena's sword transforms back into a spear as Athena prepares to attack. Several suits attempted to attack Athena, but she dealt with them quickly and easily. Despite their best efforts, each armor was slain by Athena. At the same time, Ada began firing lasers to draw Athena's attention.
"This is unbelievable! While Athena is making quick work of Ada's mechs, Ada is slowly overwhelming the goddess of wisdom?! Could we see a miracle," Heimdall declared
Goll looked surprised and said to Hera and Brunhilde, "She got Athena on the ropes! Maybe we can win this yet?"
As Santa Muerte and Brunhilde look on with hope, Hera bows her head.
"No, it's over."
They looked at her with disbelief, and Brunhilde yelled, "What do you mean it's over!"
Hera sighed, "Athena has a move for this type of situation. And I tell you it is quite powerful."
In the arena, the mechs surround Athena; however, she smiled.
"Such a poor strategy, human."
She then raised her spear beside her head in her throwing position. Ada is puzzled by what her opponent is doing.
"What's this?"
Lightning engulfs the spear, filling all of the humans with dread. Athena breathed out calmly as she threw her weapon.
"Pallas."
Lightning spears zoomed through the air obliterating any armor they came into contact with. Then it headed toward Ada with the intent to gore her. In a desperate attempt, Ada caught the weapon in her hands, but the electricity was too much for her. Both Ada and Reginleif screamed in pain as they crashed back to the ground along with the debris.
"Incredible! Athena has destroyed all of the mechs with one attack," Heimdall exclaimed
Human onlookers watch in silence as Athena receives her weapon. Ada struggles to get up and notices parts of her helmet break off, revealing half of her face.
Athena glared coldly at her and said, "To think that she actually cared about you."
Ancient Greece
According to mythology, Athena was sent to Libya after birth to learn the ways of war. During her time on the island, she befriended a nymph named Pallas, and the two were inseparable. Until that faithful day.
The night before the festival
Athena returned to her quarters after ensuring that the track was in excellent condition for tomorrow's Olympic Festival.
Athena swept back her short white hair and sighed, "I don't understand why this festival is so important. The body is nothing without the mind, yet there's no festival celebrating the importance of intelligence. Whatever just have to get some rest for tomorrow."
She enters a small room with two beds on opposite sides. In the center is a window with red curtains. Next to the window is a beautiful young woman with tan skin with patches of sea-green scales on her arms and legs. She has long blue hair tied in a ponytail, topaz eyes, and wore a white toga dress.
Daughter of Triton
Pallas
"Pallas, what are you doing," Athena questioned her friend.
Pallas looks over and smiles, "Oh, Theny! You finally show up, huh?"
Athena was always annoyed with that nickname, but she brushed it aside.
Athena replied, "Yes, but why are you looking at the window?"
Pallas chuckled to herself, and she said, "Just stargazing. Wonder how the humans are doing, that's all."
Athena lay on her bed and moaned, "Seriously, Pallas. Why do you like those humans so much? I hold no ill will towards them, but I don't think their lives."
Pallas laughed, "Wow, so blunt! Perhaps, they should call you Athena, Goddess of Boring."
Then a pillow struck Pallas in the face.
Athena huffed, "I'm not boring!"
As the two goddesses prepare to sleep, Pallas asks Athena a question.
"Hey, Athena, when you leave and return to Olympus, what will you do?"
Athena thought about it for a moment and said, "I don't know. Maybe focused on my own studies and read books."
"Boooooooring," Pallas joked.
Athena scoffs, "Okay then! What will you do after I'm gone?"
Pallas smiled warmly, "I want to travel around Greece and possibly other lands and realms."
Athena asks curiously, "How come?"
Pallas said, "I simply want to go somewhere, you know. Do you know Tyr, the Norse god of war?"
Athena replied, "Yes, I heard of him."
Pallas continued to talk with a bright smile on her face.
"He's not like other gods. He's always fair, just, and open about new experiences. I know that for myself."
Athena can see the reasoning behind her best friend's thoughts.
"I guess it's not a bad thing. Now, we should get some sleep for tomorrow."
Pallas giggles, "Yeah, because I don't want no excuses when I beat you, Theny."
Athena laughed, "Not a chance in Helheim!"
The Next Day
It was a joyous day in Libya. The Olympic Festival brings many athletes to come and prove themselves. From Archery to marathon running and more. Sitting among the crowd is a young and muscular Zeus, Hera in a blue and purple dress, Aphrodite being assisted by cherubs, Ares, and Hermes.
"Oho, I can't wait to see my little girl in action. *Sniff* I'm so proud of her, " Zeus said while wiping away a tear.
Hera sighed in annoyance, "Yes, husband. You said that ten times already."
Ares mutters, "I don't know why you love her more than me. I was on your side during the war with Gaia but noooo. She's your favorite."
Then a ringmaster comes in front of the audience.
"Ladies and gentlemen, mortals and gods, now it's time for the mock battle!"
The crowd cheers as they prepare for this event. Then Athena and Pallas, in ceremonial armor, walked out to the center of the field. Both feel nervous yet ready.
"Hey, may the best goddess win, right," Pallas said to ease their nerves.
Athena gave a small nod at Pallas.
Then two servants walk toward the girls to give them their wooden spears and shields. Once they receive her 'weapons', the ringmaster is ready to begin.
"Now, salute to the mighty Zeus."
Athena and Pallas salute Zeus. Athena sees her father giving her a thumbs up and mouthing the words good luck. Athena smiled at the kind gesture.
After their salute, Athena and Pallas turn to face each other and get into their combat stances.
"Now, begin," the ringmaster exclaimed.
The young goddesses waste no time and charge at each other. Both dodge and weave through their attacks. Pallas lunged forward only to be pushed back by Athena's shield.
"Come on, princess! I believe in you," Zeus cheered for Athena.
After an exchange of blocks and thrusts, Pallas uses her wooden spear and swipes Athena's leg to throw her off balance. Pallas rush towards her poise to defeat her.
'Sorry, Theny, but I'm winning this one!'
But out of nowhere, a bright light shines on Pallas's face. Pallas reared back and used her shield to block the light. Athena regained her footing and saw Pallas in a vulnerable position.
'Now's my chance! I'll throw my spear, and when she dodges it, I'll take her down with a hip toss.'
Athena mustered all of her strength and threw the spear at Pallas. Unfortunately, her plan never came to fruition.
Pallas gasped as she felt a sharp pain in her chest. She glances to see the spear through her chest. The audience was horrified, and Athena's eyes widened with fear.
"PALLAS!" Athena screamed as she ran to catch her friend befall she fell.
Zeus and Hera got up from their seats and rushed toward Athena. Athena ripped the spear from Pallas's chest and held her in her arms.
"I...I'm sorry, Pallas! I...I don't know h...how this happened," Athena whimpered as she hugged her dying friend.
Athena looks to Hera and Zeus.
"Father! Hera! HELP ME!"
Hera knelt to Pallas and ripped a piece of her dress to cover Pallas's wound.
"Husband! We need Asclepius here! Hurry!"
But Pallas weakly said, "S-stop."
Pallas's weary eyes fell on Athena, and she smiled.
"It's okay, Theny. It's *coughs* not your fault."
Athena cries, "But what about your dream? You want to go travel to see the world. I don't deserve this."
Pallas slowly puts her hand on one of Athena's tear-soaked cheeks.
"Again, it's not your fault. I know you'll be a great goddess. Just promise me that you'll care for humanity, will you?"
Athena nodded while trying to smile.
With that, Pallas slowly closed her eyes and her hand fell to the ground. Hera and Zeus hung their head while Athena sobbed over her dead body.
"Noooooooo! Please, I'm sorry! Pallas, I'm sorry! It's not fair! Forgive me!"
The crowd gathered around to mourn Pallas. The sky grieved as well as the rain came down on this somber event.
Current Day
As Athena look at Ada's suffering, she wonders about Pallas.
'Pallas, my friend, if you were alive to see what I have become. Would you despise me? Would you feel sad for the humans despite their arrogance brought them to this?'
Ada manages to get to his feet. At this time, all of the humans gave up hope. Lady Bryon cries as she knows that it could be the last time she will see her daughter.
Athena looked at Ada and asked, "Well, it seems this is the end of you, Ada Lovelace. Any last words?"
Ada smiled, "Any last words, huh? That's funny. Do you expect me to bow and graciously accept my death? Heh, you're funny. I respect you, Athena, but, sadly, you lost your way."
Athena is shocked that this human dared to judge her. Athena gritted her teeth as she raised her shield.
"Petrify."
Then the Aegis's eyes glow a green hue. Then slowly, Ada's armor became stone. Before becoming stone, Ada gave Athena a mischievous smile.
Goll drops to her knee and cries.
"Reginleif, no."
As the gods relish in their supposed victory, Athena walk towards the statue of Ada Lovelace.
"Foolish girl, you don't know anything about me. I carry the pride of my pantheon while you will die for those who never cared for you."
As she got to Ada's statue, she raised her shield and readied to destroy it.
"Perish."
As Athena brought down the shield, in a twist of fate, Ada's hand caught the shield.
"Gotcha," The statue said.
All of the gods and humans gasped in the utmost astonishment. Then Ada's stony appearance returns to how she is. Ada raised her other hand, and it started to radiate energy.
"Take this! Gigabyte Buster Punch!"
Ada delivers a powerful punch straight to the abdomen. Athena coughs up blood as she's sent flying into a wall.
Heimdall mumbled, "What...wha...WHAT?"
"Athena is down! The Daughter of Zeus and one of heaven's great generals has her back against the wall! This...this is unprecedented!"
Zeus muttered under his breath, "Athena?"
Athena felt the abdomen part of her armor break away after being hit with that massive punch. Athena gets to her feet and seething with pure hatred in her eyes.
As Ada and Athena stared into each others' eyes, they knew that this battle isn't for the sake of humanity. This fight is for the sake of their pride.
Next Time: Failure comes Wisdom
