Kadyn stared blankly at the wall, the trauma of last night still haunting her like the worst nightmare there is. The scene of families who were there to simply plead for the safety of their loved ones turned into savages with merely a few words. A loving mother, still cradling her baby a moment ago, plunging her teeth into the flesh of another the next minute. A caring father consoling his two boys turned into a barbarian who is willing to slaughter other people's children just to protect his own.
If this is the true face of humanity, a race of creatures willing to turn uncivilized just for the sake of their immediate loved ones, then what does it mean to be human? If a few words and a threat can turn civility into savagery, then what does it truly say about KD-554? Although unfathomable, a part of Kadyn, with shame, could only concede that there could be a sliver of truth to her philosophy. Maybe being human is not as black and white as Kadyn saw it.
[Kadyn] - "I had always asked myself... Was I a monster? Or perhaps, I had been as human as possible without knowing it. "
Whispered Kadyn as she sat on her bed with a blank expression.
Facing her, Mike's ghost listened silently to her faint words. The thought of wanting to brush aside the curly hair blocking her eyes crossed Mike's mind, yet he knew he could not act on it.
[Kadyn] - "Back then, when I first lost you, I thought if you had only given me a child, I would've been human, been more than the weapon I was born as. Yet, yesterday, I saw something... I saw myself in the eyes of those blood-soaked mothers at the town square. I'm ashamed to say– I may have called them sick, but if I were in their shoes– this is what I would've done. "
Whispered Kadyn before looking away.
It was the type of confession she would only ever make toward Mike. Yet, due to the nature of her words, even Kadyn felt ashamed to look at Mike directly.
[Mike] - "KD-554 represents a dark truth of humanity, yet she pushes it to the extreme in her egotistic and selfish ambitions. She wants a world that reflects her in her flawed nature while sharing the same hatred she carries. What you saw yesterday was a crafted narrative in which she knew she would win. "
Said Mike in a sincere tone.
[Kadyn] - "A crafted narrative? "
Whispered Kadyn with an unconvinced look in her eyes.
[Mike] - "You know why I or anyone in the cyberknight order usually take so much precaution in hiding our power? Even during the last days of the Luciferian Sundering, I fought Michele under the palace, and not out in the open. Do you know why? "
Said Mike as he gently raised his hand and pointed at the door.
Kadyn followed his direction and stared at the blank door. For a moment, she didn't understand Mike's meaning, but she soon heard murmurs coming from the other side.
It was late in the night, so most of the people in the group were asleep except for Michalis and Christos, who were standing guard. Yet, the two Marines were praying and chanting words of prayers to Athena.
[Michalis] - "Dear Goddess Athena, the great pantheon of war, please lend us your protection. May these souls by our sides survive this horror under your blessing. "
Chanted Michalis as he knelt on one knee.
As soon as Michalis was done, he immediately stood up to let Christos finish the prayer.
[Christos] - "As for us, we shall endure. We shall fight, as long as your light reaches us. We, your devoted warriors of the 9th fleet, shall sacrifice our flesh to the cause just as you did to absolve this world of sin. "
Chanted Christos with closed eyes.
Back in the room, Mike stared back at Kadyn and saw that she had clearly heard what these two said.
[Mike] - "The people saw Astroboy's power. This fear is what drove them to abandon their humanity. When faced with the wrath of a God, the descent into savagery is a small price to pay for many. But when given the chance to fight back, how many do you think last night will turn on each other instead of storming KD-554's tower? "
Kadyn breathed heavily, as if Mike's words had suddenly restored her faith in humanity.
[Kadyn] - "Nearly all will fight against her tyranny. But... they still turned on each other. There could've been a better way... "
Said Kadyn, her voice trembling.
[Mike] - "You are wrong– You are among the few who don't fear people like me. But to the others, just like these two Spartan Marines, a God is a concept that is unfathomable to the mind. They can't see the path you can in that situation. "
Though Mike's explanation was satisfactory, Kadyn still buried her head behind her knees with a guilty look in her eyes.
[Kadyn] - "I just wish I could've saved more people. If I were the only person who could see through the manipulation of last night, that means all those who died could've been saved by me one way or another. Yet... I barely saved less than twenty-eight people. "
Said Kadyn before letting out a few sobs.
[Mike] - "KD-554 might have proven humanity's dark side, but you proved its bright side. You are the one jumping in there to save as many as you can, because you represent the other truth of humanity. Savagery might be nature, but humanity is a choice. You made the choice to stay and defend your ideas while you had every reason to run. "
Said Mike with an optimistic smile as he tried to comfort Kadyn.
[Kadyn] - "But we need to win, Mike! This is survival; it's not going to prevent her from doing what she does. If this battle is my humanity against her savagery, but the humanity I carry is subject to the wrath of a God, then how could we win? I need hope, I need more than just words and concepts... I need... "
Said Kadyn with passion before stopping at the end.
Kadyn glanced at Mike's ghost before looking away as floods of painful memories invaded her mind.
[Kadyn] - "...You. "
Kadyn's word struck Mike like a blade shot directly into his heart. In that instant, Mike's stoic expression dropped as he realized that his words might carry weight on Kadyn's mind, but served no purpose in reality. In the end, as much as he tries to help, he is ultimately just a ghost with regrets of his own.
[Mike] - "Sigh... Lemon, can I also make a confession to you? "
Said Mike, his gaze dropping toward the ground in guilt and sadness.
Upon seeing Mike's dejected state, Kadyn quickly moved toward him to comfort him. It was extremely rare, even between them, that Mike showed this type of mood, as he is usually the indomitable man with an iron cage around his emotions.
[Kadyn] - "Go ahead. You don't need to hide anything. "
Said Kadyn in a gentle voice.
[Mike] - "I regret not listening to you back then. For once, I listened to my impulses instead of my logic. I should not have jumped at Sniper directly. Because of me, this world has been plunged into darkness, and many great people, such as Athena, have perished because of me. "
Said Mike in a voice filled with regret.
[Kadyn] - "That's not true. You killed that tyrant and prevented a worse fate for this world. "
[Mike] - "With thousands of cyberknights still bloody alive, not a single one showed up to help in moments like this. Astroboy was not even a top knight in the order, yet he was just allowed to be the judge and executioner of millions with no consequence. "
Said Mike with a spitful tone in his words.
Kadyn blinked, realizing that Mike was right. As the implications of his words settled in, Kadyn began to frown in anger and disgust at the inhumanity of the cyberknight order.
[Mike] - "Sadly, I was responsible for this. Twice, not to mention. "
Kadyn turned toward Mike in surprise, shocked at his claim.
[Mike] - "During the Luciferian Sundering, when Michele orchestrated the palace underground massacre, he killed many good, loyalist cyberknights. When I fought his forces, I, in turn, killed many good-natured traitor cyberknights that sided with him. The Sundering destroyed the noble core of the cyberknight order and left us with only the vile and selfish knights that crawled under the ruins and survived like cockroaches. "
Said Mike before shifting uncomfortably in his seat.
Kadyn, meanwhile, listened silently without judgment.
[Mike] - "Then, by the time I fought Sniper, I, alongside a few like Athena and Jerry, were the last cyberknights that still honoured the founding code of the order. When I died, so died the last shard of nobility in that order. So you see, I was responsible for this, and I should feel guilty a thousand times more than you should. "
Said Mike before finally lowering his eyes to the ground in shame.
Kadyn absorbed Mike's words silently, but there was no blame or judgment in her gaze. Mike is a dead man, yet he pulled her spirit out of so many spirals up until this point; She knew it was her turn to return the favour. In response, Kadyn sighed before gently shaking her head.
[Kadyn] - "Even when you phrase it like that, you are not the one at fault. We are humans, and we all make mistakes. What differentiates us from the rabid dogs like KD-554 is the fact that we own up to our mistakes. We strive to be better day after day, while people like her are stuck in the past. "
Said Kadyn with a comforting smile.
Kadyn raised her head, her gaze filled with sparkles of hope and determination.
[Kadyn] - "So, Darling, just as you had once told me; be brave and carry on. Even if no one is there to help us, even if hope is not visible, as long as you are by my side, I will not admit defeat. However, you too have to stay strong and continue to pump me full of inspiration. "
Said Kadyn as she leaned closer toward Mike and pretended to rest against him.
Though Mike smiled at Kadyn's attempt to inspire him, he was also puzzled by a certain word in her vocabulary that felt very nostalgic.
[Mike] - "Huh... Darling... You used to call me that all day when we were younger. What happened? "
Said Mike while rubbing his chin in recollection.
[Kadyn] - "Well, you did say you hated it. So I guess I just stopped and never picked on it until I randomly did now. "
Said Kadyn with a finger pressed against her mouth while she tried to remember.
[Mike] - "Not gonna lie, my younger self was such an unmoving stone wall. It's honestly very cute the way you say it. "
Said Mike as he turned to look at Kadyn.
[Kadyn] - "Really? Can I just continue then? Since you call me Lemon, imma call you 'Darling'. "
Said Kadyn while putting up a cute smile.
Even Mike felt a surge of warmth at the sight of his wife's cute visage, despite being a ghost. However, with a better look at Kadyn, Mike suddenly noticed a detail even he was shocked by. For years, Kadyn's hair was a smooth bob cut with only barely noticeable curls at the edge, yet her current hair was a messy explosion of curls.
[Mike] - "You... You had curly hair? "
Screamed Mike, his face in shock.
Kadyn gasped, then, upon touching her messy hair, she realized that she had a literal bird nest of hair atop her scalp.
[Kadyn] - "Oh God! No, no, no! It's been so long since I last heat-treated my hair. Oh no, you are not supposed to see this! "
Said Kadyn in a panic as she tried to find something to cover her hair.
[Mike] - "For 8 years we've been together, I fucking never knew your real hair? "
Said Mike, flabbergasted at his own ignorance.
[Kadyn] - "Yeah, of course you'd not know. I never showed it to you. I had to keep it tidy so it could fit in my helmet. Ugh... this is such a mess. "
Said Kadyn as she wrapped her blanket over her head in embarassement.
[Mike] - "No, but like, it's cute! I'm not even bloody joking, that is fucking adorable compared to your regular hair. "
Screamed Mike with excitement.
[Kadyn] - "You for real? You liked my natural look the whole time? I did all this for nothing? "
Yelled Kadyn with a face of shock.
[Mike] - "You never asked me! How am I supposed to tell you? It's just exploding with cuteness, holy mother of Christ! "
Said Mike while clenching his fists in excitement.
Kadyn felt her cheeks grow red while heat flooded her chest.
[Kadyn] - "Well... If Darling likes it so much, then I'll keep it like this. However, I'm still going to have to manage it a little afterward. "
Whispered Kadyn while playing with her hair in embarassement.
The two acted like a pair of lovers still at the discovery stage, despite being married for a long time. Though Kadyn still hesitated to take the blanket off her head, she eventually pulled the blanket off her head and allowed Mike to see her real appearance. The moment felt magical as the couple who thought they had known all of each other's secrets somehow still found something unknown between them.
The next day, as Kadyn stepped out of her room, she was confronted with the whole squad, who seemed to be all waiting to see her. Just as in the old days, Oltevin was the first to jump at Kadyn before hugging her like a big teddy bear.
[Oltevin] - "Comrade little sister, I'm so glad to see that you are alright! McCree made it sound like you were dead! "
Said Oltevin, his voice a mix between laughing and crying.
[McCree] - "Stop spreadin' them misinformation like the Russian! I never said such damn things! If anything, I was the one most confident in her survival. "
Said McCree as he walked toward Kadyn.
Yet, McCree's statement turned a few eyes in his direction, considering his previous lack of faith in Kadyn.
[Senju] - "Kadyn-Sensei, I'm glad you are alright! "
Said Senju as he kneeled before Kadyn and bowed his head.
[Kadyn] - "You guys... I'm so lucky to have friends like you. Come here, you all! "
Said Kadyn, tears of joy flowing from her eyes.
Without hesitation, Senju and McCree also joined the hug while Dane and the rest watched with a smile, their heart warmed by the sight of the reunion. As the hug ended, Kadyn also walked toward the Marines who accompanied her friends.
[Michalis] - "Marine private Michalis, 42nd company, 1st division, 9th fleet. Under the Goddess's will, at your service, Arch-mother! "
Kadyn was shocked by the fact that the Marine called her 'Arch-mother', which is a nickname known exclusively to the World Forgers fleet, not the Falling Spartans.
[Christos] - "Marine medic Christos, 984th company, 6th division, 9th fleet. Under the Goddess's will, at your service, Arch-mother! "
Both Marines saluted Kadyn before she shook their hands with an awkward smile.
[Nilsson] - "Marine Captain Nilsson, 9th company, 2nd division, 6th fleet. It's a great honour to be of service to ya, Arch-mother. "
Saluted the Captain before carefully shaking Kadyn's hand, while making sure the blades on his finger armour don't cut her.
As Kadyn arrived in front of Voss, she immediately knew why the others were calling her by her nickname. Before Voss could speak, Kadyn immediately cut him off.
[Kadyn] - "Marine Captain Voss, 19th company, 1st division, World Forgers fleet. And I guess you are at my service or something? "
Said Kadyn with a clearly annoyed expression on her face.
On the side, even Nilsson placed his palm on his mouth, sensing that Voss was probably in trouble, judging by Kadyn's tone.
[Voss] - "Y– Yes, Arch-mother. "
Said Voss in a panic before saluting her.
[Kadyn] - "Seriously, Captain, stop telling everyone to call me Arch-mother. My name is Kadyn, not that weird name you guys invented. "
Said Kadyn while tapping her index on Voss's chestplate.
[Voss] - "Understood, Arch-mother! "
[Kadyn] - "It's Kadyn! "
Exploded Kadyn in anger.
As Kadyn observed her surroundings, she realized that they were hiding in the underground level of an apartment. The windows were all sealed off with wood, while the door was bolted shut with a large metal plate. Overall, it could easily deter anyone from accidentally discovering their hideout.
[Kadyn] - "They sure did a good job, don't you think, Darling? "
[Mike] - "As a temporary measure, for sure. "
Yet, as Kadyn turned toward her comrades, she suddenly noticed a concerned look on everyone's face. With a grunt, Voss advanced toward Kadyn and signalled for her to sit down on the couch.
[Kadyn] - "So... Is there something wrong? "
"Oh God, it's the hair, it's so fucking atrocious that they are considering an intervention just by looking at it. "
Thought Kadyn in her mind as she sat down on the couch.
[Dane] - "Look, Kadyn, we noticed that you were acting strange recently. Like, even last night, you were talking to yourself in your room. You even screamed and woke us up. "
Kadyn's eyes widened in shock before she exchanged a sneak stare with Mike.
[Mike] - "Maybe just let them know. I can prove to them I'm real. "
[Kadyn] - "How? "
Whispered Kadyn with a worried look.
[Mike] - "Just do as I say and repeat my words after. "
Kadyn hesitated, but bravely stood up after a short consideration.
[Kadyn] - "I was speaking to Mike's ghost. My ability allowed him to exist in a form that only I can see and interact with. "
Kadyn's words shocked the room, with everyone thinking that she had finally lost it after all the trauma she had endured.
[Dane] - "I've read somewhere that people cope with trauma through hallucination. "
Whispered Dane to McCree and his team.
[Senju] - "Shit, you might be right... "
Said Senju with a worried expression in his eyes.
[Voss] - "Please, Arch-mother, I know you might be close to the Grand Knight, but I still urge you to show some respect toward the dead. "
Said Voss, offended by Kadyn's attitude toward his leader.
[Mike] - "I can prove it! I can... "
[Kadyn] - "I can prove it! I can tell you about things only the Grand Knight knows. "
Said Kadyn, repeating after Mike's words.
Kadyn approached Michalis, and Christos stared at the towering Marines in the eyes.
[Kadyn] - "The Falling Spartan fleet had an exchange program with the World Forgers, where your 7th, 10th and 16th companies were assigned on a secret week-long mission to fight the Antinoids with the World Forgers. Knight Marshal Athena is also just a young girl, aged only 19 by the start of the Cleansing Crusade. Your 1st Marine General Pantheon is like a dad to Athena, as he alone can speak to her on equal terms and serve as her confidante. "
The two Spartan Marines' mouths dropped in shock as they simply stared at Kadyn in silence, not knowing how to answer. Nilsson quickly began to sweat nervously as Kadyn advanced toward him, but she would not back down.
[Kadyn] - "The Ice Kraken fleet sent a few companies to assist in the palace siege, and your company is among the volunteers. Especially your company, Nilsson, the 9th company of the 2nd division, had suffered two catastrophic losses of lives. One at the start of the Crusade and one during the siege itself, where your company had– "
Nilsson raised his hand firmly and halted Kadyn midway through her sentence.
[Nilsson] - "I trust you. The Grand Knight greeted me personally after the siege, and you were not present in the meeting. Your information is accurate. "
Said Nilsson, desperate for Kadyn to stop digging at his painful past.
With a silent nod, Kadyn left Nilsson and moved toward Voss. However, Michalis and Christos couldn't unhear what Kadyn said about him. As they looked at their fellow Marine with compassion in their stare, Nilsson simply remained silent as his lips twitched uncontrollably with pain.
[Kadyn] - "Voss... the Grand Knight salutes you. You have done well during the siege and throughout the war. This medal... "
Said Kadyn before gently caressing her finger across Voss's awards under his rank plate.
[Kadyn] - "...I dropped it when I tried to give it to you because I was so bloody sleep-deprived. I said it before, and I'll say it again: The 19th company is a band of brothers forged from blood and steel. "
Said Kadyn while accidentally speaking in first person.
Yet, her slip-up rang true to Voss's heart as it carried the same tone as Mike's voice. Voss is not a superstitious person who'd believe in ghosts and Gods, but these words spoken to him in person by Mike moved the stoic soldier in his heart. At the end of the Luciferian Sundering, Voss was a man broken by the combat that had left many of his brothers dead. The 19th company was among the only five companies that had survived out of the twenty elite companies of the 1st World Forgers division. Yet, Mike, instead of resting after carrying the loyalist side on his back, went down to the field to pass out awards to his men.
Voss will not forget the moment Mike tried to stick his medal to his chest. Mike passed out from exhaustion right before Voss, yet the words he spoke before collapsing were forever ingrained in Voss's memory. As Kadyn uttered these exact words now, Voss's heart had already decided for him. Ghost or not, Kadyn is the rightful bearer of his lord's legacy, and thus, as a soldier, he will interpret her every word as truth.
[Voss] - "Lord Grand Knight, allow me to serve. "
Said Voss as he kneeled down and bowed his head toward Kadyn as if she were Mike.
The rest of the room was perplexed by the ease with which Kadyn had managed to convince each Marine of her claims. Barely anyone on McCree or Dane's side was superstitious enough to believe her, yet the Marines' reaction convinced them that there could be more than meets the eye.
[McCree] - "Then, what do ya suggest? If ya can communicate with the dead, then how about the ghostman himself provide us with some information on this mess? "
Said McCree as he crossed his arms.
Senju and Dane nodded their heads slightly in agreement with McCree's words.
[Kadyn] - "Mike at least knows who is where and what is what. "
Said Kadyn as she headed toward a diner table.
As the others followed her, she turned toward the Marines and raised her finger.
[Kadyn] - "Anyone got a map of the city? "
[Michalis] - "Right here! "
Said Michalis without hesitation as he threw his holographic projector to Kadyn.
[Nilsson] - "How would ya have a map of the city? Have ya been here before? "
Said Nilsson, surprised.
[Michalis] - "The Falling Spartans have a habit of mapping out a place of operation on an individual level before contact. Our tactics require that we often drop into warzones as individuals instead of a group, so cartography is a must for all of us in our fleet. "
Meanwhile, Kadyn pointed at the map's different areas and explained to the others where each of the main targets was situated.
[Kadyn] - "According to Mike's own scouting action and knowledge in the cyberknight order, we have two cyberknights to deal with on our hands. The first is a Gemini cyberknight by the name of Dan. His ability to generate and stack cubes of invisible matter is what's blocking the city and trapping us in here. Take him out, and we get out. "
Said Kadyn as she pointed at the lower spiral of the Central Tower.
[Kadyn] - "Then, our big bad guy is Astroboy, a Grand Cardinal knight with one single ability: the power to produce and manipulate kinetic energy. Stay as far away from him as possible, as you all have seen what he can do! "
The people surrounding the table, including the Marines, all nodded in agreement that Astroboy is to be avoided at all costs.
[Kadyn] - "And finally, our main asshole, KD-554. She used to be a sister of mine, but she went crazy and wants to fuck up the world, bla bla... You know the deal with those crazy bitches. Anyway, taking her down will end this madness, but we need a proper plan. I'm not strong enough to defeat her after she got a new body, so another approach will be necessary. "
Dane, in response, rubbed his mouth nervously, knowing he was the idiot responsible for building KD-554 her new body back in Trump City. As the hours went on, Mike, through Kadyn's body, conveyed his plan and information to the rest of the group. By the arrival of night, a plan had materialized, though the odds were not in their favour. Nonetheless, with brave hearts, the men agreed to follow through with the plan, starting tomorrow at dawn.
As the large group dispersed to get their probably last decent rest, Kadyn remained at the table and stared proudly at the endless lines across the city drawn throughout the day. She was happy that there could be light at the end of the tunnel.
[Kadyn] - "What a day... Luckily, you knew so much about our enemies. "
Said Kadyn as she glanced at Mike, who was standing arms-crossed like a proper leader by her side.
[Mike] - "I usually wouldn't know so much. But Astroboy, that arrogant little prick, was one of the knights I personally sacked for his shitty temper. He once tried to challenge me because I had wounded his pride, so I sent him to the ICU and then demoted him. Guess he went downhill quite hard afterward since he now had to lick KD-554's boots. "
Kadyn smirked in amusement.
[Kadyn] - "It feels nice knowing you had fucked him up before. If I get the chance this time, I'll make sure even the devil can't tell his body apart from dust. "
Said Kadyn enthusiastically.
[Mike] - "If things go according to plan, that is. "
To be continued...