Archbishop Rhea simply stared, her eyes never leaving the blue haired young man that stood before her. She had forgotten where she stood, that the ebon mercenary had brought a Blood Demon with him, or that it was the middle of the day. She simply could not take her eyes or mind off of his face, his fingers… off of him.
She didn't often speak of it, but she had delivered this child herself. She had helped Jeralt's poor, sickly wife birth this child, and at her request, gave him what little she had left to give, the both of them at death's door, sweating from the heat of the Eternal Flames. How could she of all people have missed this?
Jeralt had met and courted a woman with hunter green hair named Ethniu, who he affectionately called 'Etty' or 'Etta'. How in all of the days of him parading her around the Monastery, marrying her, loving and caring for her and spending his days with her, had she missed that Ethniu wasn't human? Not only not human, but the single farthest thing from it?
Did Jeralt know? Was her former Captain of the Knights aware that he had courted and procreated with the single creature that she wanted dead? Did he do it to spite her? Her mind was racing at a mile a minute, and it all came down to one thing.
Cetanu.
Regardless of any of the other variables, it all led to right here, right now. The young man in front of her was a Fleshcrafter, a direct descendant of Ethniu, her oldest and most vile childe. If she struck him down now, and his purple haired friend, she could grow closer and closer to ridding herself and Fodlan of these demons.
"Yuri, give us the room."
The words came from Cetanu, who commanded the other demon with an oddly dire tone. Sensing the volatile air in the room, he bowed and quickly obliged, fully aware that most of his inhuman abilities weren't meant for combat, but manipulation and seduction. He was a lover, not a fighter.
With the room to themselves, the two of them simply stood and stared at each other. Within seconds, Cetanu reached for his hip, pulling the Sword of the Creator and inhaling. It was all done slowly, so that Rhea could follow him.
He slammed the bony blade into the ground, snapping his mantle off as he reached for his waist. He pulled the blue dagger, his anchor, from his waist and laid it on the ground slowly, atop his mantle. All the while, the two of them never broke eye contact. The pair of earthy orbs, one blue and one green, simply stared at each other like trees looking over a lake that could do naught but reflect the trees' form.
Standing uninhibited and unable to call upon the power of the strongest weapon in all of Fodlan, Cetanu simply continued to stare.
He watched as Rhea slowly followed suit, dropping her cape to the ground and removing her elaborate head dress, placing both in a neat pile on the ground. She was garbed in but her long, formfitting white gown, but Cetanu could tell that the attire wouldn't hinder her. He knew better than that.
The door behind Cetanu opened, and he made no motion to turn away from Rhea, to break eye contact. He simply flexed his nostrils once, able to smell that the person who entered the room was nervous, young and human. It was likely some servant or clergyman who was confused as to why the ex-mercenary professor of the Blue Lions was standing across from the Archbishop, both of them missing a layer of clothing, tension hanging in the air.
"L-Lady Rhea?"
The voice was meek and worried, holding a tone that belied it's origin and allowed Cetanu to learn about the speaker. A child, male, short, and Almyran. Odd that there would be an Almyran servant who sounded so incredibly worried about the woman sitting atop the land that held back his own so greatly. It was almost amusing to him.
"It's all right Cyril. I just need to have a word with the Professor."
Her tone was soft, motherly as always, and her lips spread in a smile, despite her eyes never leaving the fleshcrafting demon. A nervous whimper, and then a grunt. Soon, the door closed, the room devoid of any other lifeforms.
Cetanu allowed his fingers to roll, flexing them in anticipation. He inhaled one more time, his lips slowly spreading into a smile. He was looking forward to this.
Pain erupted through his jaw.
Cetanu grunted, crashing into a wall and bouncing off, rebounding to his feet and taking a fighting stance out of pure instinct, seeing Rhea standing in the same spot, her hands folded in the same fashion. Cetanu narrowed his eyes. Was she truly that fast?
He wasn't buying it, approaching slowly and switching stances to a more fluid, defensive stance, his hands open and ready to parry any attack that came his way. He watched Rhea carefully, his eyes looking for even the slightest shift. If even a hair on her body moved, he'd be able to see it.
Or at least he thought.
Lurching backwards on instinct, he watched Rhea's leg fly over his face. He cursed, rolling with the momentum to stand on his hands, pushing himself backwards as he flipped upright, the sight of Rhea's knuckles meeting him as he stood straight.
He put his arms up to block the attack, pain erupting through his forearms as he slid further back, closer to the door. He hadn't gotten in a shred of offense, his decades of physical training and constant combat meaning nothing as he struggled to defend himself against one woman.
He spread his arms to the side, balling his fists and darting forward. He threw a right cross, and Rhea simply caught his hand in hers, twisting it outwards. The Fleshcrafter grit his teeth at the pain, his arm rotating at the wrist up to the shoulder, twisting in the wrong direction as Cetanu slid himself forward, his elbow connecting with her chest and pushing her back.
She watched his arm return to normal, spinning like a wheel as it put the bones and flesh back into place in the blink of an eye, the fingers on his right hand rolling once more. She watched as Cetanu balled his fists, inhaling and charging her again, this time loosing a high left kick.
She brought up her right leg, blocking the attack with her shin before swinging her leg at the knee, wrapping it around his calf and twisting her body to the side.
Cetanu came off his feet, throwing through the air and sent into another wall. When he slid down, he noticed a small draconic statue on a pedestal, grabbing the stony lizard and whirling it at the woman to distract her. He was able to pick the pedestal up and charge Rhea by time she shattered the statue with her fist.
He swung the pillar like a massive club, the woman hopping in place and landing atop it, using her weight to force it to the ground. Cetanu dropped it, her left foot heading right at his face.
He used his forearm to block the attack, her foot weaving around his arm and jabbing at his chest. He used his opposite hand to catch her ankle, twisting and sending her off the pillar. She used the momentum to her advantage, kicking him in the chest with her opposite foot while airborne. He loosed her ankle and slid back as she rolled to her feet herself.
Rhea made the first move this time, closing in and throwing a left jab. Cetanu stepped back, lifting his left leg to throw a high kick. Rhea blocked with her right forearm, jabbing forward and striking Cetanu in the chest. He hopped off his remaining foot and flipped, using his right leg to try and kick Rhea. He only succeeded in breaking her guard for a split second.
He surged forth after returning to his feet, leading off with a right jab. He finally struck home, his knuckles finding purchase on the Archbishop's jaw, the mercenary watching anger run across her face. She rebounded and loosed a massive right cross, and Cetanu could see what appeared to be white scales across her fist and wrist.
He used his right forearm to block, pushing her fist down and making her lurch closer, where he shoved her back with a shoulder block before shifting his posture to throw a high right side kick. Rhea managed to recover quickly, catching his leg and wrapping her left arm around his calf.
Her opposite hand grabbed a handful of his shirt, pressing him up high before she fell forward and slammed him to the ground.
Cetanu felt the wind vanish from his lungs and his vision blank before he took notice of their position, his agile legs catching the Archbishop in a triangle choke, Cetanu applying even more pressure by using his right leg to hook under Rhea's abdomen as well, the woman wheezing and gritting her teeth as she cast him a deathly glare.
She shifted her lower body, pressing her legs with her knees and shifting her weight. Her feet were finally flat on the ground, and she began using the muscles in her legs and lower back to begin pulling her upper body up. It felt like a painfully slow process, but she managed to stand upright, again pressing Cetanu overhead before driving him to the ground for a second time.
The second impact took Cetanu's vision for a split second, Rhea freeing herself from his grip and standing over him, lifting her left leg and bringing it down, trying to drive her heel through Cetanu's skull.
The dazed mercenary wouldn't give in, catching her heel in his right hand and shoving down, curling his left leg before kicking her in the knee, taking her other leg out from under her. She recovered from the shock quickly, falling with her fist clenched and arm bent, ready to slice Cetanu's face with a quick elbow.
Cetanu rolled to the side, Rhea's elbow finding nothing but the ground, the mercenary pushing himself back toward Rhea while spinning, trying to drive his right knee into the small of her back. The Archbishop took her turn rolling, only she twisted while rolling forward, giving her a much better advantage.
She slammed her right knee into Cetanu's skull, his neck snapping back as she reached forward, grabbing his arms by the elbows and lifting him.
Cetanu flipped with the momentum, sitting atop the Archbishop's shoulders before flipping back, flinging the green haired woman overhead. She twisted with the momentum and landed on her feet at the same time as Cetanu, the duo both turning around and throwing high left kicks at the same time.
Their shins collided, a lower kick from the same leg following, and then a mid kick. The duo continued to throw kicks with the same leg in the same direction, their minds almost in sync as they continued to wage war.
Both legs hit the ground at the same time, Cetanu stomping forward with a double fisted strike. Rhea stepped back, pressing her right hand on Cetanu's extended arm to vault herself into the air, right over and behind the ebon garbed mercenary.
She swung her right fist, Cetanu ducking on instinct, pressing his hands to the ground and jabbing his legs back. Rhea leaped forward rolling over Cetanu and twisting as he returned to his feet. The Fiend simply watched her, all shreds of his previous human like emotion long gone. In this moment, he was once again the war machine he grew up as. Only, he had a smile on his face.
Rhea made the next move, throwing a high left kick. Cetanu moved to parry the attack, block it and then strike, but he shifted his body at the last second, stepping forward and wrapping his right arm around her thigh in and underhook grip, pressing her above himself and grabbing her other leg.
Rhea could feel her heart race in her chest, her fingers moving to jab Cetanu in the eye, claw as his ears, something to stop the impending impact. Her aim was shaken by him pressing her even higher into the air, the added height giving her a little more leeway. She snapped her legs at his shoulder blades, shaking his grip as she fell to the ground, landing on her feet.
She slammed both of her fists into his chest, the force making him stumble back. She whirled around, using all of the force she could muster to throw a spinning right heel kick. She wanted to land this strike so bad. She wanted to see the monster's skull smashed beneath her heel.
Her heart lurched in her chest when he weaved below the attack. He rose up, his fists balled, his posture tensed for a massive strike of some form, and suddenly… he stopped.
Rhea froze as well, confused as to why he wouldn't strike her. She made the first move, struck the first blow. She slammed him into a wall, pressed and slammed him both multiple times amongst other strikes. She got in far more offense, and bar her last miss, she had his number the entire time. Why stop?
She watched him diffuse, walking past her and collecting his mantle, his dagger, and the Sword of the Creator. He inhaled deeply before turning to her and simply dropping to one knee. He bowed his head and pressed one fist to the ground, saying nothing before he simply rose to his feet and departed.
She could feel her hands twitch. Why did he just leave? Why didn't he strike her down? Capture her? Why didn't he at the least explain himself? Who did he think he was? He was just an inhuman beast that owed his life to her, that owed everything to her. He had no right to deny her a proper defeat, or even an explanation. She was the one closest to the Goddess, none had the right to deny her anything.
Cetanu stood in a forest, far, far away from the Monastery. He needed to be alone, without his students, brothers in arms, his progeny. He needed this solitude. Even his inner Fiend and Sothis both ignored him at this moment, his emotions far too out of control.
He threw his head back and roared, a monstrous bellow that shook the ground around him, scattering birds and animals far and wide. That battle wasn't supposed to go that way. It was the greatest match he'd ever had, and suddenly, he was going to win. All he had to do was finish throwing his body into that last leaping knee strike and he'd have defeated Rhea.
He didn't want that. He wanted her to defeat him, give him something to strive towards. If he could defeat Rhea, even once out of a hundred times, than he wouldn't be satisfied. He couldn't be this powerful. He even avoided using weapons or his magick, albeit the one instance. He needed to push Rhea to attack him with everything she had. He needed to see her in her full glory.
He stared at the night sky, frowning. His chest heaved as he began to breath again, realizing that he needed to focus on his mission. He needed to fight Miklan, wrest the lance from him and return to the Monastery to celebrate with his students. He began to walk back towards Garreg Mach with a rather upsetting thought on his mind.
All he wanted was for someone to defeat him, somehow, someway.