The messenger shuffled hurriedly down the grand hallway, the tall white brigand following closely behind with long strides. As they reached the other end of the hall, instead of taking the stairs to the audience chamber, the younger man passed it and opened the doors leading outside to the bridge and the Cathedral. Kratos found this curious at first, but regardless, he continued to follow as they crossed the bridge.
Once inside the Cathedral, his guide took an immediate left towards a set of doors, leading Kratos through a series of hallways before coming to one that was flanked by two armored knights. The messenger approached one of the knights, saluting with his right hand while discreetly flashing a sealed document with his left.
"By order of the Archbishop, Lady Rhea has requested the presence of Lord Kratos. He is to be granted passage without delay or impediment. No screening for weapons is to be conducted."
The knight scrutinized the piece of parchment as though the messenger's words were an elaborate jest. However, once he'd read the document for himself, the guard returned the salute before turning to his partner. "Let them pass."
The second guard immediately went to unlock the doors behind him, but not before he shot Kratos a deeply suspicious look. Yet despite the troubling orders they'd been given, they let the brigand and his guide pass through without another word.
On the other side, there was a short hallway which led directly to the outside. The air grew colder as they stepped out, the tall walls of the Cathedral looming behind them. Straight in front of them was a sheer cliff, where the jagged rocks awaited far below them. To their left lay narrow stone steps, which had been carved into the side of the mountain, and led down and around the backside of the ridge.
"These stairs will lead you directly to the Archbishop," said the messenger, daring not to go beyond the point where the mouth of the hallway. "Oh, and please do mind your footing, as the wind here can be quite precarious at times. In the meantime, I shall be off." Without waiting for a response, the young man hurried back to the safety of the indoors, leaving Kratos to grunt in annoyance, before turning his attention back to the stairs. He had no idea why he was summoned, nor why he was summoned here of all places; but alas, if there was the possibility that Rhea had news regarding his return home, then he had no choice but to move forward.
He descended the hand-carved stairwell, and as he reached the bottom of the ridge, the stairs gave way to a flat and square opening. Sand covered the ground, with walls of sheer rock protruding on all sides of the field. Once it was fully in view, one of the first things Kratos noticed was the flash of neon green hair swirling as Rhea swung her sword and shield around as though she were fighting shadows.
No longer dressed in her appropriate garbs for an Archbishop, Rhea was now clad in pristine lightweight armor; and her expression she now wore was so far detached from what was usually a serene and composed demeanor, that any outsider would've been easily forgiven for thinking she was a completely different person.
She did not seem to take any notice of the Ghost of Sparta until she ended her routine with spinning flourish, pivoting one the heel of her foot before slashing through the air with a sharp whistle. With her back facing towards him, Kratos could see her taking short breaths as though Rhea was mildly winded from her exertion. After a moment, she straightened and turned to face him.
"Professor," she greeted him kindly, though there was a noticeable lack of formality in her voice as she sheathed her blade. "First, I would like to thank you for coming at such short notice. Given my duties as Archbishop, it is very rare that I am able to have some time solely for myself." Kratos said nothing, for he simply waited for the woman to get the point for why she'd summoned him. In response to this, Rhea merely smiled. "But alas, even with the limited time that I currently have, I wanted to use this opportunity to converse with you personally- just the two of us- without any prying eyes or ears."
The ever stone-faced God of War replied, his voice low, "And what is it that you seek from me?"
The Archbishop's smile didn't waver as she held his gaze. "As I understand it, you are quite familiar with war, are you not? Surely, as someone of your stature, you need to constantly train and hone your body, so that you may be ready for whatever conflict that may come to pass?"
Kratos broke eye contact as he considered her question. "Yes." He said before eying her distrustfully. "Though war is not what I seek."
"No, of course not." Rhea concurred, her expression becoming serious as she began to pace the sand. "Yet I see in you the many lifetimes of experience that war has brought upon you." She paused, her tone becoming more reflective. "We both possess a unique power to influence the world and guide it towards a lasting peace. This power is not just a gift, but a responsibility. Humans have always looked to those greater than themselves for salvation and guidance. Without us, they are lost sheep, prone to falling into chaos and despair. However, if we do not remain vigilant, then those who wish to usurp the order will bring ruin and suffering upon the innocent.
"And that is why," The Archbishop concluded before stopping dead in her tracks, and faced Kratos once more. "I have a favor to ask from you personally, Sir Kratos." She nodded to his left, and Kratos turned to see a rack of weapons placed in the corner of the square. "Would you grant me the honors of a sparring match? I wish to test my strength against someone of your caliber. It has been a long time since I had a worthy opponent aside from my dear Seteth." Kratos did not answer and simply looked at the weapons before she added, "And besides, I am sure that this would be an opportunity after being forced to hold back these past couple of months."
Kratos considered her offer, his eyes scanning the weapons on the rack. His gaze settled on a silver short sword, and after a moment's thought, he reached for it. As he did, he also opened the Guardian Shield, the only weapon that was with him when he fell into this realm. "Very well," he said, turning to face his opponent. "Let us begin."
At this, the woman cocked a smile. And then, in an instant, her expression changed to that of what Kratos had seen earlier, and in a flash, she held her own sword in her hand. Simultaneously, Rhea leaped at the man with blinding speed, but Kratos was ready, who deflected the blow with his shield. However, he continued to remain on the defensive as his opponent came at him with everything she had, but not once did he falter. It soon became clear to him that the woman came at him with the intention of winning, and he soon shifted his stance so as to enact a counteroffensive.
Rhea was quick to respond to his counterattack, and eventually both blades became locked at the hilt. At this, both combatants thrusted their shields towards each other with the intention of knocking the other off balance. As a result, both blades ended up becoming pinched between the fighters' shields, and it was at that moment when Kratos could finally look directly into Rhea's eyes as the thrill of combat enthralled her. Though the moment was brief, the Spartan was keenly aware of the hint of darkness and insanity that sat deep within the Archbishop's gaze, and almost as similar to the one Kratos had seen in Dimitri.
Eventually, Rhea broke the staring contest, taking the opportune moment to inspect Kratos up close from his head to his chest. Kratos could hear the ever faintest of "mmmm," from the Archbishop before jumping away and bringing her sword and shield back into a defensive position. A faint smile had formed on her lips, and the two combatants circled the sand-covered arena before going at each other again.
As the fight went on, her attacks had begun to wane in both strength and speed, while Kratos' endurance continued to maintain. Noticing how she was starting to lose steam, Rhea's frustration only grew as Kratos took advantage of every opening. Finally, with a powerful shield bash, he sent her stumbling backward, and her frustration boiled over. With a fierce cry, she launched herself at the Spartan, who met her charge, and their swords clashing once more. With a final powerful strike, Kratos deflected and sent the Archbishop's sword flying across the arena and held his own to her throat.
Panting heavily, Rhea fell to one knee while using her shield to support herself. Beads of sweat covered her face, her chest heaving as she looked up at Kratos, and the calm in his eyes contrasted sharply with her own frustration and exhaustion.
"It may seem that," Rhea panted, gazing back down at the ground. "You are far stronger that I'd originally imagined."
Upon seeing that his foe has conceded the fight, Kratos lowered his weapon and retracted his guardian shield before holding out his hand to her. "You have fought well."
Hearing this caused the Archbishop to let out an involuntary chuckle. "Did I, now?" Eventually, she looked up to see the hand offered to her, and took it. Once she was back on her feet, she said, "Thank you, Sir Kratos. You have done me a great service with this duel of ours."
The Ghost of Sparta cocked his head. "In what way?" He inquired.
Before answering, Rhea turned to where her sword had been flung, and slowly walked over to pick it back up. Upon doing so, she calmly wiped the blade of any sediments off with her sleeve and returned it to her scabbard.
"I will not lie to you, Master Kratos." She said, her back facing him once again. "I have been consulting with some of my best mages, and unfortunately, I have been told that there is currently no way of sending you to whence you came." She turns around, her expression somber. "For now, you are bound to this world."
Kratos narrowed his eyes, his jaw tightening. "And how long have you known this?"
"Only a week," Rhea admitted. "I wanted to be certain before I told you. But believe me when I tell you this, Sir Kratos, there is no other place I'd rather you be than not here." Her eyes shot daggers at the brigand. "Words cannot describe how much trouble you and Mimir's presence has caused. I knew that from the very beginning, I would not be able to control or deceive you to do my bidding without proper incentive to do so. But now it has become clear that there is nothing left I have to offer you, and…" She swallowed hard before continuing, "After today, I had to be certain that there was no other way."
"No other way before what?" Kratos asked guardedly, his grip tightening on the sword.
The Archbishop closed her eyes and sighed heavily. "Before I told you the truth and voided our agreement."
"Void it?" The Spartan found himself saying without thinking.
Rhea nodded. "I never wished to make you our enemy, Sir Kratos." She scowled deeply at him. "But make no mistake, there is too much at stake for me right now to simply throw away due to your interference. And all that I ever asked is that you stay out of my way and keep your meddling to a minimum, because you do not have even the slightest idea about the kinds of evils that I hold at bay every waking day."
Kratos thought for a moment. "Does it involve the children?"
The Archbishop was taken aback slightly by the question. "What about the children?"
"You said that there was too much at stake." Kratos elaborated. "Do any of those ambitions happen to involve the students?"
Rhea was stunned. "...So, you do care for these mortals."
"Do not change the subject," Kratos told her. "We had agreed that I would look after your students so long as they are placed in my care, and nothing more. And I intend to honor that agreement." He gives her a cold stare. "Is that not what you wanted? Because if, however, whatever you are planning puts them directly in mortal peril for the sake of gaining what you seek, then I will do everything within my power to stop you."
Her expression remained unchanged due to the latter words Kratos had told her, but eventually it did soften as she contemplated everything else he'd said. After a long and tense moment, Rhea nodded reluctantly. "Yes," she said quietly. "I do want this. And also…" She looks at him with a deep sense of reverence. "I swear upon my mother's name that the students have absolutely nothing to do with my goals and ambitions. I will do all that I can to make sure they are safe."
Kratos studied her for a moment, then gave a curt nod. "It is settled then. See to it that you do." He turned to leave, but was stopped as the Archbishop called out to him.
"Oh, and Lord Kratos?" From the steps leading up to the Cathedral, he looked back as the green-haired woman folded her hands in front of her and offered the Spartan a warm smile. "If it is of no inconvenience, perhaps we could find the time to spar against each other more regularly?"
Kratos considered her request briefly before responding, "Very well. I will make time." Without another word, he turned and began ascending the stone steps.