As she ran through the city’s streets at the head of her small battalion, Ava recalled the first day of her training when Pheros had said that the ability to run quickly and tirelessly could mean the difference between victory and defeat. Never was that truer than now, as the three battalions raced towards the main gate, knowing that every minute more of their comrades were dying at the hands of the monsters.

At last, Ava and the other reinforcements arrived at the main gate, where a battalion of soldiers were desperately fighting for their lives. Ava stared up at their foes: huge humanoid creatures, with sharp teeth and one huge eye, their arms rippling with muscle, their hands as large as a man.

“Cyclopes,” muttered Narsus beside her, “I thought they were a myth.”

“Today, myth and reality are one,” replied Ava wryly.

“Attack! Keep them outside the city!” shouted Valeseus.

Valeseus’ battalion was first out the gate, followed by Tora’s soldiers. Ava’s small battalion brought up the rear and so took little part in the initial struggle. Under Valeseus' command the warriors of Athens formed up in front of the gate and fought the monsters back. Ava and her handful of soldiers positioned themselves on the right flank of the formation, beside Valeseus’ battalion.

“Hold your ground!” shouted Valeseus as the cyclopes readied themselves for another attack.

A blood-curling roar filled the air as the huge monsters charged towards the Athenian lines, the ground shaking beneath their monstrous feet.

“Lock shields!” Ava barked to her battalion, “spears at the ready! Hold your ground!”

A few moments later the cyclopes crashed into the Athenians, crushing soldiers beneath their feet and sweeping them aside with their huge arms.

“Take it down!” yelled Ava as one of the cyclopes attacked her battalion.

Her warriors viciously stabbed their spears into the monster, causing it to scream and thrash its limbs about, knocking several Athenians through the air. Ava dropped her spear and drew her sword, raising it high and slashing across the monster's midriff. Its flesh split open, showering Ava in gore. The cyclops sank to its knees, bellowing in pain. Ava took up her spear and rammed it straight through the monster’s eye, deep into its brain cavity. She withdrew her weapon from the cyclops’ head, ripping out the creature’s eyeball which had become stuck just below the head of her spear. Ava looked at it with disgust, lowering her spear and pushing the eyeball off with her foot.

“Reform! Close ranks!” Ava shouted to her soldiers. The brutal combat continued, and though the Athenians fought hard their numbers were dwindling, while the cyclopes kept coming. As Ava and her battalion brought down another cyclops, she heard a scream from the front of the Athenians’ lines. She looked in its direction and froze in horror as she saw Valeseus struggling in the hand of a cyclops. Despite his strength, Valeseus was helpless in the monster’s iron grip. The cyclops raised the hero high into the air and hurled him over the Athenian ranks. Ava watched in shock as Valeseus flew over her head and slammed against the city’s stone wall.

As Valeseus’ battered body landed at the foot of the wall, Ava broke formation and rushed to his side. She knelt beside him and gently removed his helmet. She looked down at him, her eyes wide in panic. Valeseus stared blankly up at the sky. Ava waited, silently begging Athena to spare the hero’s life. Valeseus did not move, his mouth hanging open and his eyes lifeless. Ava looked up and stared blankly at the wall in front of her.

She turned to see Narsus run up beside her. He looked down at Valeseus in dismay, then asked hesitantly, “Is he…”

“Yes, he’s dead,” replied Ava miserably. She stood up and the two of them hurried back to their battalion. Without Valeseus at their head, the Athenian soldiers began to falter in the face of their terrifying foes.

“To me, warriors of Athens! Hold the line!” shouted Tora, taking command without hesitation.

Her stern voice brought some discipline and determination back to the Athenians, but Ava saw the grim looks on her comrades’ faces. Though they stood firm, they were losing hope.

As they fought on, a messenger arrived at the back of the formation, shouting to Tora that the hydra had returned and were pushing back the Athenians’ southern forces. The city was under attack from all sides, and the Athenians were losing.

“Athena, deliver us from these monsters,” whispered Ava pleadingly, “give us victory!” She raised her voice as she repeated, “Give us victory!”

It wasn’t much, but her fierce battle-cry was enough to restore her comrades’ determination, at least for a moment. The battle raged on and eventually Ava and Narsus found themselves the last survivors of their battalion. Ava looked around at the dozens of mangled corpses strewn through the Athenians’ lines; beside her were those of Alydectes and Aelynda. The two haughty siblings had never shown Ava much kindness but they were still her fellow soldiers, comrades she had trained alongside for the past month, and she grieved at their loss. She looked over at Narsus, his expression surprisingly resolute.

“We’re doomed, Narsus,” Ava said sadly.

“Not yet we aren't,” he replied firmly, seeming not to notice the despair in her tone, “we have you.”

“We have me?” she asked skeptically, “what am I going to do?”

“You keep surprising us,” Narsus replied, deadly serious, “while we have you, there’s the hope that you’ll surprise us more than ever before. I’m counting on it.”

Despite the grim situation, Ava couldn’t help smiling amusedly at Narsus’ unshakeable faith in her. The smile fell from her face as she saw another cyclops charging towards her section of the battle-line. The monster crashed into the Athenians, kicked two warriors away with a sweep of its foot, then reached down towards Ava with its massive hand. She stepped back and drove her spear into the monster’s arm. With a cry of anger and pain, the cyclops seized Ava and raised her into the air, giving a final growl of rage before hurling her over the city wall. Ava saw rooftops fly past below her. Panic filled her as she began to descend, the stone-paved street rushing up towards her. She closed her eyes and braced for the inevitable and likely fatal impact. Her landing was surprisingly soft. She lay motionless for a while, too stunned to move. As she slowly and painfully came to her senses, she realized that she’d landed in a wagon of straw. She carefully raised herself to a sitting position and thanked Athena for saving her life with this unlikely fluke. She checked herself, finding that she was bruised from the landing but had no serious injuries. She climbed out of the wagon, determined to get back to the front lines. She was about to sprint off down the street when a hand suddenly seized her arm. Ava turned to the hand’s owner and saw a small man with an old, weathered face. He was a head shorter than her, but there was a solemn look in his eyes.

“Hero-” the man began.

“No!” snapped Ava, cutting him off, “I’m not a hero. Right now, I wish I was, I really do, but I’m not. Now, I need to get back to the front lines.”

“Ava, if you do nothing, your city will be destroyed!” the old man said urgently.

“If I do nothing?!” Ava cried angrily. “What do you think I’ve been doing? I've been fighting on the front lines against supernatural monsters!”

“That is not enough,” the old man insisted, “only with the Spear of Athena can you hope to defeat the monsters that assail your city.”

Ava stared at the man in confusion. “You mean the Spear of Athena that rests in the Goddess’ great temple?” she asked slowly.

The man nodded. Ava took a deep breath before continuing. “Haven't you heard, old man, that only one with the blood of the Gods in their veins can wield it. All mortals who touch it are burned to ash.”

“You have the blood of the Gods in your veins,” the old man replied firmly.

Ava stepped back in bewilderment. “You're wrong, I'm just a servant girl.”

“And if you take the Spear up and are not burned, will that prove to you that you are something more than a servant girl?”

Ava was silent for a few moments. “But... I'm not,” she insisted.

“Are you not prepared to risk the consequences to save your beloved city? Ava, are you prepared to risk your life for your city?”

“Of course!” Ava replied fiercely.

“Then take up the Spear,” said the old man, letting go of Ava's arm and walking away.

“Wait!” cried Ava, but the man disappeared into the shadows of the houses, leaving her alone in the silent street. She paused, considering what the old man had said. She did not believe a word he had said. She didn’t even know who he was, nor how he knew who she was. But despite all of that, he had made her wonder: why was she so good? How had she managed to surpass her fellow recruits so easily? How, on this very day, had she been able to behead hydra and slay cyclopes as if she had been doing it all her life? Could it be that she had divine blood in her? The chance was slim, very slim, but it was a chance. If it was a chance to save her beloved city, she was willing to take it. With her mind made up, she turned and set off towards the great temple of Athena.