[attr="class","snub-greyson"]They had not come here together, but side-by-side they now stood looking out into the vast ocean beyond, tense and eagerly waiting.

"Who are we to question the will of Gods?" But he knew that answer already. The man next to him, with all of his faults, was the chosen of such a God. How? He had little clue. What Greyson knew of Groudon was sparse, but the legendary was an unrelenting, literal force of nature. Its steps could shift continents, cause earthquakes, and churn the earth to its will. In retrospect it made sense that Matias was its chosen, as the man himself was a cataclysm walking. At least, the man he knew now. Once, he'd called Matias a friend, but no longer.

Was it really the influence of Groudon that had changed him? Or, had Groudon seen the man he was always meant to be and simply opened the pathway for him to become it?

He shakes his head free of those philosiphies. Leave it to the scholars, and the scientists, to figure out how and why the Avatars tick the way they do. He just needed to ensure he could stand against them, if it came down to it.

"Regardless of whether or not it's a good idea, our pride demands it, doesn't it? To stand against nature itself and tell it to go fuck itself."

It really was exciting.

[attr="class","matiasbase"]

[attr="class","snub-greyson"]Even if it wasn't Matias's intention to, Greyson couldn't help but feel patronized; nevertheless, he shrugs off the other man's comment.

"If you're waiting for a compliment on my end -- you'll be disappointed." He shakes his head, his next words coming even without conscious thought.

"For a man with that much power at your fingertips, you could affect real, positive change. You could reunite families separated by mountains, naturally fortify cities under the league's control, dig until you find new sources of water, so corporations don't strangle those left helpless, and so much more. But, alas, what I said to you all those months ago still reigns true, doesn't it?"

He gives the avatar a small, amused smile.

"You're just a cog in a perpetually spinning wheel."

He exhales a long breathe, attention shifting to the water that laps harmlessly against the pier.

"We don't need to play at being nice with one another. We're here to do one simple thing -- what even your

primal

nature demands -- and beat-back Kyogre. Anything else is simply a waste of time."

[attr="class","inner"]

[attr="class","bottom"]

[attr="class","snub-greyson"]Only half of the sky responds to Matias, and his patrons, power. The other half fills with rolling storm clouds as a

drizzle

begins to sporadically pour. He looks over to the man, shrouded in in the shade and under the pour of water, and says nothing.

If Matias was Hoenn's best hope -- they'd already lost.

Suddenly, the ocean surges to life, a great presence settling around them. From its depth, a massive form rises, slow and methodical despite the thrashing waves. It stares silently at the son of Groudon, but beneath that sapphire hide, a

primal

anger surges.

"Don't expect me to step if it goes to eat you."

Against the backdrop of their 'cooperation', a

hydro pump

shoots forth with the destructive force of mother nature itself.

[attr="class","inner"]

[attr="class","bottom"]

[attr="class","snub-greyson"]As the titans duke it out, Greyson surveys his options.

Primarily a combat and support specialist, he found that one, if not both paths, would not be easy here. Either way, he knew he would be in for a rough time; nevertheless, he moves to act.

Rummaging for an orb, he releases the Vespiquen. Her wings vibrate with enough intensity to be felt through the earth for a moment, before the fight overshadows that entirely.

"Calm the Kyogre!" He orders, eyes never leaving the clash.

Pheromones fill the space as she issues an

absolute decree

. With any luck, it would pause the legendary enough for Matias to get a hit or two in.

[attr="class","inner"]

[attr="class","bottom"]

[attr="class","snub-greyson"]Greyson can't help but reflect Matias's signature back at him.

"Tch."

He'll deal with him later.

Lips still in a sneer, he recalls Vespiquen, revealing the form of a much more suitable Pokemon. Swinging her lance in an arc, Zero releases a wave of

electric terrain

. As her

quark drive

begins to spin, she raises her blade and brings it down in an arc. Shadow pools into a

slash like night

, grazing the legendary, and cutting a line in the water for hundreds of feet.

Kyogre roars in pain, though the brunt of which was due to its ancient rival's

solar beam

.

calming its mind

, the water deity rears back and releases an

origin pulse

point-blank.

[attr="class","inner"]

[attr="class","bottom"]

[attr="class","snub-greyson"]Curses, more than he could ever admit to saying in a single sitting, die beneath the roar of the approaching

hurricane.

Violet hues narrow, mind racing against a literal disaster-level threat, before they settle on the metal shoulders of his Iron Valiant.

If this hurricane got beyond him than the city would not come out unscathed.

"ZERO!" He roars above the razor-sharp winds, catching her attention. The Paradox Pokémon looks up slowly and with rigid movements, her gaze falling on the approaching calamity with calm precision. Without missing a beat, she shifts a single step back, hips lowering as she fills her halberd with psychic energy.

Meanwhile, Greyson makes his own preparations, embracing the connection his

sygna suit

provides with the Comfey hidden beneath his sleeve: A dull peach and green-toned light pulses from beneath his coat, an aroma of flowers filtering the air around him, and a multi-colored crown of flowers floating above his head.

Pulling on that power, he wills a

helping hand

to empower his Iron Valiant, watching from behind as the the metallic frame tenses beneath gathered power. He tosses a dozen

flower shields

between themselves and the town, thinner with each iteration.

In a flash she releases a cross-shaped

psycho-cut

that tears the hurricane into four-parts. It lingers, for a moment longer, before slowly dissipating. Heated metal produces smoke as the Paradox Pokemon rights itself, staring back at the titans that duke it out.

Greyson's eyes instead linger with scathing anger at Matias for a moment longer than normal, before returning it to the fight.

They needed to wrap this up and quick, or there would be no Mossdeep in the end.

[attr="class","inner"]

[attr="class","bottom"]

[attr="class","postruinsartdrk"]

[attr="class","postruinsartlght"]

[attr="class","postruinstxt"]This battle was going to continue until there was nothing left of the city.

Matias's SOLAR BEAM strikes blubbery flesh, tossing the whale further back into bay. It lands with a massive splash, waves forming in the wake. Its groan of pain shakes the earth and stirs the wave, another ORIGIN PULSE firing off to the Groudon before it can fill the space between them.

Greyson, on the other hand, releases two more Pokémon to the field before moving to stand by them.

"Keep pushing it back out to sea." Greyson spills the words out between clenched teeth, eyes lifting to watch the battle, hoping that Matias was intelligent enough to comprehend what needed to be done. Unfortunately, he suspected Matias was too lost in his PRIMAL RAGE.

With an encroaching wave threatening the surf, he dishes out commands to his team.

"We'll play damage control. Try to reduce the damage to the surrounding area. Zero — assist Matias." A nod sends them to their tasks, the Iron Valiant racing atop her ELECTRIC TERRAIN after the titans.

The other two, a Lapras and Meowoscarda, tend to other tasks.

A wave of SHEER COLD freezes the incoming wave long enough for the FRENCY PLANT to bolster the natural defenses with massive roots, and vines, all the while a HELPING HAND assists them both.

He'd let Matias have his moment — for now.

[attr="class","postruinspkmn"]

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