IMPOSSIBLE
As Minerva sat huddled in her secluded corner of the visiting team's locker room, she couldn't help but remember another World Championship four years ago. That time, she had been a rookie, being tested in front of the entire city. This time, she was a veteran, facing her last world championship before she retired to study a career.
Somehow, this world championship was the most nerve-wracking of them all for Minerva. All those other times, their victories had almost been a surprise. Now, it felt as if everyone expected the Olympians to win and set the world record of five consecutive championships. To say that Min felt a lot of pressure on her would be an understatement. That first time, only her city was watching. This time, the world was.
Earlier that day, the whole team had packed into hovercars and flown to the city of Diego, home of the opposing team. Although the Olympians had never played against them before, Diego had made it to this last game of the intercity playoffs. They would most likely be a formidable opponent.
Minerva closed her eyes, lost in her ritual of pre-game meditation. She was interrupted by the coach's call for the team to assemble, sending another sickening jolt of nerves through her. Min knew that she was ready to play, but it felt as if she never would be.
Min sat with her teammates, listening to their coach drone about game strategy and how they had made it this far and so on, but she could barely pay attention. She was called into focus, though, when the coach announced, "Now, let me turn you over to your team captain!"
Min stood up on one of the benches and faced her team. When she saw all of their expectant faces turned up toward her, filled with admiration and respect, Min felt a surge of warmth. She loved these people, and knew she couldn't let them down tonight. She took a deep breath and cleared her throat. Although social interaction was not Minerva's forte, strangely, she had no problem with public speaking. She had done lot of research for this particular pep talk, and hoped it would sound good.
"Well, I could just stand up here and repeat everything Coach said to us, but I won't. Because I would never be able to say it as well." Nervous laughter and a few whoops of applause came from her teammates. "I do, however, want to leave you with one thought." Min took another deep breath and continued. "Most of you probably know that our team was named after the nearby Olympic mountain range. But do you know what the word 'Olympians' really means?" She paused for effect. "Back in Rusty times, 'Olympian' was a special title given to only the very best athletes. The Olympians were the strongest and fastest humans on the planet. But the term dates back much longer than that. In ancient times, some of the pre-Rusties called their most powerful gods the Olympians. That's right, gods: those invisible superheroes in the sky. We know they don't exist, of course. But tonight, no matter what happens on the field, I want you to think one thing: We are athletes. We are gods. We are Olympians!"
The cheers from her team were deafening, although Min was used to facing crowds of hundreds of thousands. She received a few quick compliments on her speech, and then the whole team climbed up the steps, out of the underground locker room and onto the field. The flashes of a hundred hovercams greeted them. The crowd roared, and the Olympians were projected up onto the huge screen above, led by Min. Each found her starting position, and Min took the minute or so before the game started to size up their opponents.
They looked different from all the pretties back home, and Min remembered learning that each city had its own averaging group, based on the people who had lived there back in Rusty days. The Diegans looked quite elegant, all of them with the same dark brown hair and eyes. Their skin was a deeper olive than Minerva was used to seeing. The Olympians, with their varied coloring, probably looked quite rag-tag next to this unified machine. That was Min's last thought before the whistle blew.
Halftime
To say that the Diegans fought hard would be an understatement. They were the toughest team Min had ever faced. Every game she had played before felt like child's play now. The Olympians were down, two to one, just like the halftime of their first championship. Although she was thoroughly exhausted, Min knew that she still had time to save the game.
Final Minute
The Olympians hadn't scored again. This certainly wasn't due to lack of attempts. With the clock ticking down, Min had only one more chance to try and score again. Although this game had completely spent all of Min's energy, she did that amazing thing that every athlete is able to do under pressure: she found more within herself. Minerva sprinted at top speed toward the Diegan who was in possession of the ball and wrestled it away from her. She hurtled toward the goal with it, dodging the other team's defenders left and right. As the clock ticked down, Minerva made a last-ditch effort to tie up the game. She gave one of her famous game-winning shots, but Min could immediately tell that this one was rather sub-par for her. It was too slow, too predictable. Diego's goalie raised her hands in the air, almost calmly, and caught the ball.
The buzzer sounded, and cheers erupted. The fact that they weren't for her didn't completely register on Min's radar. The Diegans assembled, hugging, screaming, pumping the trophy up and down, but Min felt like she was watching it all from inside a glass box, completely removed from it all. The sound was muted, and all Min could really hear was the sound of her own pulse pounding in her ears. Gradually, what had happened began to make sense in Min's mind, and the feeling that swept over her was one of indescribable loss, humiliation, disappointment, and a thousand other emotions that Min was not used to. One thought overshadowed them all: this was her fault. If only she had been five percent quicker, ten percent more powerful...
This could not be happening. It was impossible.
Minerva Cable never failed.
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Ok, so now you know: "Min"=Dr. Cable. Tell me, did you guess that before? I feel at times I was making it obvious... please review!
So now for a real summary: this is the story of how Min becomes the woman who is Dr. Cable, followed by Part III: a short retelling of the original trilogy from Cable's point of view, but not without a few surprises! Tell me if you want more! I started this story a couple years ago, and I've noticed that since then, a couple other authors have tried to tackle this idea. I hope mine is still unique. (Also, I learned after I started this story that Scott already has a character named Minerva. Oops.)
-Fanna