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Rhea suddenly turned back and blinked with some disbelief, [break][break]

“You've actually trained with the man?” [break][break]

Oh, but that was a tantalizing prospect in and of itself. As embellished as the dog's talk of the gym leader was, such fantastical details always had kernels of truth in them. Maybe this sensei had a piercing gaze, sharp and discerning, and a booming voice that carried with it impassioned speech. Maybe he really did have some uncanny mastery over a Pokemon that was known to bleed lesser men dry. [break][break]

Or maybe Hitoshi was just fucking with her, but for once, Rhea trusted that this stranger she was working with was telling the truth. After all, the dog looked pleased a punch when he thought of his strong and skilled teacher, so much so that he didn't seem to notice something looming behind him, [break][break]

“Look out!” [break][break]

The warning came with a lunge and a forceful shove as she rushed up past Hitoshi. The steel of her gladius met the glinting metal of a longsword – no, wait, an Aegislash, Rhea realized as the deep purple scelara glared down at her. What kind of madman would actually fight with an Aegislash?[break][break]

This one, apparently, but fortunately for Rhea, his towering size and impressive blade could do little against the immutable calculus of pure and simple leverage. Rhea shoved back with an iron-knuckled grip on the pommel of her own weapon, her face mere inches away from the fullest part of the Aegislash's blade. She couldn't possibly overcome such a foe alone, she realized with some dread, but it was quite fortunate for her that she was in the presence of not one, but two quite capable swordsmen.

[break][break]




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All thoughts of hounding the self-righteous gym leader vanished when Kyogre finally loosed its apocalyptic ORIGIN PULSE. This was a god's might, Rhea realized, awed and horrified by the sheer force of beam that shot toward the ivory crater of Sootopolis. This was a creature that could end life as quickly as its nurturing rains brought it. [break][break]

Suddenly, the island trembled, as though it too were quaking in fear of the leviathan's might. Rhea would die here, she realized, unless she fucking moved, [break][break]

“Cain, get us out of here!” [break][break]

Jack was recalled in a flash of light as the Ceruledge looped an arm under Rhea's. One moment, she was watching the man and his Iron Crown leap away to (relative) safety. In the next, Rhea was consumed by the void-like PHANTOM FORCE, one foot into the nether realm that Cain had disappeared to when they first began their assault. [break][break]

Before she knew it, though, she was at the island's edge, emerging from the shadows next to a little dinghy that would ferry her to safety. She made quick work of climbing aboard even as the waters roiled fitfully around her. [break][break]

The man with the ashen Raikou at his side. Rhea would be back for him, she resolved, as she guided the craft away from the slab of rock crumbling into the sea. She would show the dark beast of lightning that its allegiance was ill-informed, and she would show it what it could achieve with someone that truly understood its might at their side.

[break][break]




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While Aurelie made some attempt at maintaining a veneer of composure, Rhea most certainly did not. She took the extended hand with a glad smile and slightly too-tight grip, [break][break]

“And I could say the same of you!” [break][break]

Because really, it wasn't every day that she had the pleasure of meeting someone who knew their claymores from their zweihanders (though God help Aurelie if she brought up the Landsknecht that utilized the latter, because that would likely send Rhea prattling on about those mercenaries of yore for hours). And really, she was so excited to be in the presence of a fellow enthusiast that she completely missed the flush now warming Aurelie's cheeks. [break][break]

Instead, Rhea's line of sight followed the bladesmith's as she turned to the counter, the nothing could have stopped the delighted squeal that clawed its way out of the woman's throat when she finally spied the blade itself, [break][break]

“Oh, it is magnificent!” [break][break]

The tasteful scroll-work on the sheath, the incredibly thoughtful craftsmanship, the perfect balance of length and weight; it was so much more than Rhea could have ever expected. This red-headed craftsman was a goddamn saint, [break][break]

“Oh yes, Arceus willing!” Rhea replied with what was probably a little too much cheer, considering the context, “I've never been the most discrete, truth be told.” [break][break]

She walked past Aurelie and toward the blade resting on the counter, and slowly, reverently, traced her fingers across the looping designs along the greatsword's sheath.

[break][break]




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Rhea suddenly shuddered as lightning danced across the stormy sky. But of course, how could she have forgotten? Water was only one aspect of the storm; lightning was another, far more destructive part of it. [break][break]

At least she had been fortunate enough to bask in the presence of not one, but two gods on this momentous day, even if the Thunder Pokemon stood against her and wore a hide as dark as the rumbling clouds above. Hell, Rhea wasn't even particularly disappointed when the thunderous cat sent a flurry of ELECTRO BALLS whizzing toward the now-trembling Rotom, easily dispatching the murderous Jack and sending his unconscious body skidding across the rocky soil, [break][break]

“Swift indeed, though it is a shame you would debase a legend by shackling it to such a trite name.” [break][break]

Perhaps the lightning-born god would be better off in the hands of someone with a little more vision, but before Rhea could dwell on the thought, or move to strike again against the gym leader, a bright point of light suddenly cut through the gloom of the storm. [break][break]

Rhea suddenly turned toward it and saw again the glittering mouth of Kyogre, opened wide as it prepared for some fearful strike. She quickly glanced from it out to the open seas to try to discern where those dazzling rays of deep and brilliant blue might land. [break][break]

Had she failed to appease the sea god? Had the blood-letting not been enough? Or had Rhea simply been caught up in turbulent blood-lust, she slowly realized as the first bit of creeping fear for her own self-preservation started to kick in. Maybe it was folly to think that the god had cared for the actions of someone so far beneath their notice after all.

[break][break]




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One down, with more to go. [break][break]

Rhea briefly watched the Pyroar's corpse tumble into the churning sea, only half-content with this first bit of tribute offered to the sea god. The Rotom's cackling grew to a frenzied roar of laughter as it zipped toward the Gym Leader and his two remaining Pokemon, eager to pick off the next one, [break][break]

“I'll drag you all to the mouth of the leviathan!” Rhea screamed over the storm, chasing them in their flight across the island, “Your self-righteousness will see you swallowed whole!” [break][break]

A living legend crashed through the waves beyond, and Rhea cackled deliriously at the thought of that gleaming yellow eye watching this spectacle, this manic farce of warfare. Maybe the adrenaline had finally gone to her head, some distant bit of rationally cautioned from the back of Rhea's mind. Maybe years of killing for a living had finally broken her brain. Or maybe there really was something inspiring about the titanic Basin Pokemon's presence; perhaps that was worth examining later, when she wasn't slavering like a rabid dog, snapping and biting like she was in some feverish nightmare. [break][break]

Some distance away, Jack prepared to fire another powerful HYDRO PUMP at the fleeing man on his iron mount. While not quite so swept up in the moment as his trainer, the Rotom was far crueler, and grinned eagerly at the thought of sending the young gym leader to join his precious Pyroar at the bottom of the ocean.

[break][break]




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Rhea smiled, too, at the romance of the notion. To provide, to protect, to bring honor and glory to someone who had given you the gift of indefatigable purpose; there was a reason why domnei, spoken of by the old Paldean bards, persisted through antiquity, worming its way into the tales of Kalosian chevaliers and Galarian knights. For a moment, Rhea forgot the dark horrors of the tunnel as she considered similar tales of Kantonian and Johtonian swordsmen, [break][break]

“Good on you,” she replied easily, “For finding someone worth fighting for.” [break][break]

But she hadn't expected her companion to ask his own question in turn. She stopped her ambling trek through the tunnel and glanced back at him, [break][break]

“Oh, its most certainly the pay, if I'm being quite honest, but-” [break][break]

Cain raised a bladed arm to slice off another crumbling chunk of ore for his trainer to stow away, [break][break]

“The gods and the walking legends and the opportunity to run into such creatures certainly sweetened the pot.” [break][break]

She turned back to peer down the tunnel, as if one such being might materialize from somewhere out of the deep, lightless void, [break][break]

“And besides, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to fight the best the League has to offer. I hear that Mossdeep's gym leader is quite the swordsman.” [break][break]

The life of a mercenary was one Rhea had carved out for herself with blood and sweat and tears; at this point, fighting was both the means and the ends, the point and purpose of it all. She couldn't imagine living without the thrill of clashing steel, without the exhilaration of living every day with her life on the line. Nothing truly compared to it, she thought, until she remembered of a few choice faces marred by blood, broken and beaten, with one of them missing an eye. [break][break]

Rhea unconsciously quickened her pace down the tunnel, suddenly feeling as though she were being watched.

[break][break]




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The lion's roar echoed with an intensity Rhea almost couldn't fathom, howling through the storm and joining the chorus of thunder that rang out from on high. A crack! like a gunshot sounded as the cliff-side all around them began to collapse. [break][break]

No, no! The bastard was getting away! Cain's attack was rebuffed with ease and Jack was sent tumbling through the air by the force of the Pyroar's call. This whole thing was going to shit, slipping through her fingers, and that drove Rhea's rage to impossible heights. She charged forward, stumbling with bellicose ire, caring only for the execution of her foe, [break][break]

“Look alive, you sorry bastards!” she called to her ghosts, “Don't you dare let him escape!” [break][break]

The Ceruledge staggered to his feet, glaring at their foes, until his head suddenly snapped to watch something in the distance with wide-eyed horror, [break][break]

“What are you standing around for?! Come on-!” [break][break]

But then Rhea saw it, too. A yellow eye, rimmed with red, cresting through the tumultuous waves. A hungry maw split open, lined with jagged teeth, and Rhea stared, momentarily stunned, into the yawning hellmouth of the super-ancient creature. [break][break]

She had heard reports of Kyogre's existance in Hoenn, of course she had; the thing was fitful and violent and to be avoided at all costs. But to finally see it, here? In Rhea's hour of need? [break][break]

The Rocket's face peeled into a slow, delirious grin. [break][break]

This had to be a sign, of course. A living legend had graced her with its presence; it was here to watch her triumph, and conquer, and shed blood in its name, like generations upon generations of people had done in exaltation of gods in bygone eras. Rhea would honor the leviathan's name in the only way she knew how, [break][break]

“Jack, to me!” [break][break]

Rhea lunged forward toward the staggering Pyroar, weakened by its own furious roar. She idly wondered if the predator could appreciate her logic of singling out the weak link, of cornering haggard prey, as the Rotom rejoined her side. After all, that was survival of the fittest, wasn't it? The very same logic by which the lion thrived and prospered, [break][break]

“Now, HYDRO PUMP!” [break][break]

Empowered by the thundering storm, the element of water would be the perfect exaltation of Kyogre's glory. Rhea's eyes darted manically from her quarry to the oceanic god, as if to silently ask if the creature was watching, watching this violence done by and for its awe-inspiring glory, as the HYDRO PUMP collided with, and with its empowered force, lanced though the lion's side.

[break][break]




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Rhea screamed, her vision briefly flashing to white as the PSYCHOCK rocked her skull. The delicate tissue housed beneath was alight with pain and impossible disorientation as she stopped and clutched her head, [break][break]

“Bastard!” [break][break]

The rain began to come down with torrential force, and as the last of the tingling pain began to ebb away, Rhea glared at the Gym Leader through the curtain of water that had begun to envelop them, [break][break]

“Self-righteous fucker!” [break][break]

Cain tried to break away from the Type: Null, only to find himself lurching toward the jaws of the lion, [break][break]

“You try running over this!” [break][break]

And though the lion had turned its attention elsewhere, its pursuer had not done the same. Jack practically squealed with delight as he aimed a SHOCK WAVE at the lunging Aslan, and in the chaotic shower of sparks that followed, the little ghost zipped forward to close in on the melee. [break][break]

Cain, on the other hand, opted for a different approach. He swung his bladed arm again toward the Type: Null with a fiery BITTER BLADE, hoping to drive the man-made Pokemon back and create some distance. [break][break]

But again, Rhea's attention was drawn away by the sight of blue, by the churning ocean mirroring her vicious rage, and by the sound of something breaking. The storm around them howled with bellicose fury as a few rocks from the cliff side began to tumble down their way. Rhea would have to be quick if she wanted to steal away this so-called “Champion's” life before the storm did.

[break][break]




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The storm was finally catching up with them. Rhea glowered at her foe as the first few drops of rain began to fall all around them, [break][break]

“Out of my league?” [break][break]

The Iron Crown's glower matched her own. She stumbled back a half-step at the force of the telekinetic shove, but she marched another three steps forward with a defiant snarl, [break][break]

“Is that so, Mister High-and-Mighty?” [break][break]

He obviously didn't know what he had gotten himself into, and that ignorance would cost the man dearly. A shadow moved somewhere behind the Type: Null, and in a flash, Cain emerged with a glinting blade-arm extended, [break][break]

“Quite frankly-!” Rhea lunged with the Rotom not far behind, the ghost laughing and chattering like a madman, “I don't think you know the first thing about me!” [break][break]

Jack sailed toward the Pyroar at the Gym Leader's other side and eyed the Pokemon with a malicious grin. An OMINOUS WIND followed in the creature's wake, as if it too were a part of the rapidly approaching storm. [break][break]

Distantly, from somewhere in the waters beyond them, Rhea thought she caught the glimpse of a blue dorsal fin. Was that- no, it couldn't have been. She was just seeing things, surely, as she moved to strike the Gym Leader with her blade.

[break][break]




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Life-bringer, life-ender; the sea and its storms were fickle things, and so too was the god that brought them. [break][break]

Rhea's eyes darted warily from the young man and his Pokemon to the storm-wall that was rapidly closing in on them. From her hiding spot beneath a jagged outcropping, the mercenary was mostly concealed, but the cliffside behind her shuddered with the force of some battle occurring elsewhere on the island. She would have to move, and quickly, or else she and her Pokemon would be crushed beneath the rubble, [break][break]

“Suppose we ought to make our move, eh lads?” [break][break]

She tilted her head to the Ceruledge crouched by her side, and to the Rotom hovering close. The little ghostly sprite, alight in a blue-ish glow, cackled with some cheeky malevolence. The swordsman, on the other hand, was as silent as a grave, and behind those eyes of ghost-light, Rhea was unsure if her most familiar companion was just as unsure as she was. [break][break]

Hesitation would get them nowhere, though. They had a valuable target ahead of them. [break][break]

Rhea lifted the black scarf wrapped around her neck and raised it to obscure her face. With a quick hand gesture, Cain melted away into inky darkness, moving unseen by the power of his PHANTOM FORCE. The knight and her sprite were determined to take a more direct approach. [break][break]

With a few long, quiet strides, Rhea slipped out from her hiding place with the little sprite at her side, unsheathing her gladius and sweeping her sword-arm out to the side, pointing the tip of the blade toward the young gym leader in challenge. A classic broad ward; the antagonistic display was sure to hold the man's attention, [break][break]

“'Lo!” she called with mock friendliness, “You're awfully close to our neck of the woods, aren't you?”

[break][break]




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Rhea's eyes drifted from Cain, standing triumphant over the crumpled body of some dead, unrecognizable Pokemon, to the nearby owner, a half-melted ranger now drained of his blood, frozen in a morbid tableau of suffering until his body would eventually degrade into nothing. She had always preferred jobs that allowed her to play the role of the warrior or the bodyguard to the ones that had her play the part of the butcher. [break][break]

She broke off a loose chunk of ore jutting from the wall with her hands, dumping it into her own bag alongside a couple of scraps the Ceruledge had scrounged up, [break][break]

“I don't blame them.” [break][break]

A half-truth, because Rhea, in their shoes, would have been far too curious to pass up a blade such as this if it were offered to her. But that did beg the question – [break][break]

“What made you take it up, then?”

[break][break]




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