A/N: Back to Aureo's POV.

  I'm sure he's doing fine...

  -x-X-x-

  Aureo absently notes Sophia's pet moving to help her maintain her bance, even as they all rise up out of the cavern together. Admittedly his attention is on other things at this point, but he's still gd that she didn't fall off. Despite their difference in opinions, it's not like he wants any harm to come to her or her pet Otherworlder. They had saved his life, after all.

  … Still, the goddess' soft personality was going to get her killed one of these days. For a so-called Goddess of Wisdom, she didn't actually seem very wise. After they were done here and he took them to his father's realm, he would have to convince her to stay there, deep beneath the ocean depths where most mortals dared not tread. Indeed, the idea of retreating to Oceanus' Kingdom had been brought up at that summit all that time ago, back before he was betrayed and captured. If only he'd agreed, so many more of his peers and friends would still be alive.

  No use crying over spilt milk though, now was there? He would avenge them. Every mortal in Goldriver would die for the blood the God Hunters spilt in those catacombs beneath the Temple District. If he had more time, Aureo might go further still and drown the entire region in blood… but no. The annihition of the city would have to do, and then he would take Sophia and her pet to his father.

  They would be allowed to ask their questions, as well as tell Oceanus exactly what they knew, but Aureo doubted they would actually be allowed to leave his father's domain once they entered it. Certainly not with him advocating for their confinement. Really, it would be for their own good… or rather, it would be for Sophia's own good.

  Aureo didn't really care what happened to her Otherworlder Pet so long as she kept it on a short leash. But Sophia… Sophia, for all her silly thoughts, was a beautiful young goddess. Aureo wasn't entirely sure if he really believed she was the daughter of Law at this point even now, but if she was… well, there was something to be said about a possible union between the two of them, wasn't there?

  That's why he'd been willing to entertain her constant arguing back down in the cavern. His mind was set and he had no intentions of changing it, but his father always said it was better to let a goddess talk herself in circles and tire herself out rather than shutting her down completely. Made them less likely to make a nuisance of themselves.

  He just-

  "-ureo! Aureo please! What's happening?! What are you doing?!"

  Aureo twitches, letting out an aggravated sigh as Sophia's words reach him even over the rumbling, shaking, and grinding taking pce around them. They've risen high above the city now, a massive pilr of wet stone looming over the entirety of Goldriver. As he looks down at the city below, the River God can make out all sorts of mortals scurrying about like the ants they are. The entire city is shaking ominously at this point, so he's not surprised that they're running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

  … However, he doesn't like them going for the gates. Even as he turns to answer Sophia, Aureo pulses out his will and wet earth explodes upwards at the gates of the city, blocking them off completely. Meanwhile, the river entrances are simirly blocked by massive walls of water rising unnaturally out of the river and creating thirty foot tall waves that loom as high as the walls.

  "I am reciming what is rightfully mine, Sophia. As I said, Goldriver is not the city… it is the river. And the river will remain long after the city is gone."

  The goddess looks lost and bewildered, staring around at what he's doing with wide eyes.

  "I don't… I don't understand. This power…"

  Ah. Now he sees why she's confused. Aureo gets it, really he does. After all, he's spent centuries cultivating a certain… image.

  "It doesn't make much sense, does it? I'm just supposed to be a Minor God of the River, no?"

  He grins, exulting in the rush that comes with getting to reveal his true potential to someone after all this time.

  "I've been working on this for a long, long time, Sophia. Goldriver is me and I am Goldriver. The water is my domain and always has been. But I asked myself… why stop at just the river? Why not see just how far I could expand?"

  He got the idea from his father, actually. Not directly though. Oceanus had talked often and frequently whenever they spoke about how Aureo couldn't remain 'just' a River God forever. There was a system to these kinds of things, and eventually he would be welcomed into his father's realm, where he would move to the frontlines of the never-ending war that the God of the Seas and Winds was having with his fellow water-based deities.

  There, Aureo was expected to carve out a section of the seas for himself from his father's enemies, becoming just another one of his father's lieutenants in an ever-growing army.

  … Needless to say, that idea had never truly interested Aureo very much. Fighting other Sea Gods and Goddesses for territory, struggling to build his own underwater kingdom. Aureo had never been all that inclined to follow in his father's footsteps. Especially when living it up in his river, surrounded by peaceful peers and grateful mortals, was so much more fun.

  So he'd thought to himself… what if he could break the cycle. What if he didn't need to leave his river and enter the sea to become more powerful in his domain? What if he could make the nd around his river… an extension of his river?

  "It's an aquifer, Sophia! He's turned the ground under the city into one great aquifer!"

  Aureo's eyes flicker to the Otherworlder as despite being right next to the goddess, he has to shout to be heard. Sophia's pet is quicker on the uptake than he'd thought, really. The goddess' eyes widen and Aureo chuckles, letting his grin widen at the same time.

  "Your pet has hit the nail on the head, Sophia! I've been feeding water from my river into the ground here for centuries. Oh, but it's not just one great big aquifer… its yers and yers of aquifers, one after the other, expanding outwards in all directions including deep, deep beneath the earth!"

  The expression on Sophia's face as her jaw drops open is honestly precious. Aureo can't help but preen a little bit, enjoying her shock and awe. And hey… maybe he could score some points with the goddess by telling her the true purpose of his little scheme.

  "I intended for it to be a hidden defense, you know. All this time, all that effort… it's not like I WANTED to just throw the mortals away or anything like that. This city… I built it up just as much as they did! I gave them everything! I was ready to defend them from anyone and everyone too, if only they'd bothered to ask. But no… they took my generosity and SPAT on it."

  If only he'd seen the God Hunters coming, none of this would have happened. If only a single one of the city's leadership had reached out to him and warned him… but no. They'd been unanimous in their decision to stab him in the back and before he could do anything, his divine power had been suppressed and it didn't matter what hidden strength he'd had lurking under the city. All those months, the power to destroy his captors and anyone else who got in his way had been beneath Aureo's feet and he could do nothing.

  It was extremely vexing. Maddening, even. There was so much Aureo wished he could have done differently. So many things he thought of that might have changed the outcome. If he'd taken the threat more seriously, he could have evacuated all of his divine kin and peers to his father's realm via his river, allowing them to survive the God Hunters' malice. If he'd simply had even an ounce of forewarning, he could have blocked the God Hunters from entering Goldriver entirely and slew them all with his power.

  … But no. Instead, he'd been betrayed. Captured. Tortured. Made to watch as his peers were dismembered right before his eyes. No… there was no use thinking about what could have been. There was only what had been done… and what he was going to do about it now.

  Turning, Aureo's eyes alight upon Castle Goldriver. The rgest building in the city, towering over even the Cathedral in the Temple District. He's close to being at eyeline with its ramparts at the moment. It makes for a perfect pce to start. Lifting his arm, open palm facing upward, Aureo draws upon his divine power and domain… and curls his hand into a fist.

  Nothing happens for a moment… and then every window on the lowest level of the castle explodes at the same time, water gushing from it. And then the next level, and the third, and finally… the roof itself bursts up and then crumples inward as Aureo destroys the castle with all that power and water he'd stored up for centuries. People underestimated water more than they should. Even his river had cimed mortal lives over the years. Unfortunate accidents most of the time, or mortals killing each other for one reason or another.

  Still, water was nothing to scoff at. Drowning wasn't a fun way to go. Or so Aureo had been told, he'd never experienced it for himself.

  Sophia, somewhat predictably, screams in horror at the destruction. Nobody in that castle survived his attack, of that Aureo is sure. He is his domain and his domain is him… and that means he felt every single mortal his water touched as they were either crushed to death from the pressure or drowned slowly from the ck of air.

  As the castle crumbles into rubble, Sophia calls out to him once more.

  "Aureo, p-please! Surely you can stop now! The people who betrayed you were in that castle, r-right? Your vengeance is complete!"

  Even now she would try to bargain with him for the lives of mortal insects. Truly, his future bride was too kindhearted by half. Aureo would appreciate it more if this were a time of peace… but they're at war and Sophia doesn't quite seem to understand that yet.

  "No, far from it Sophia. I'm just getting started. Do you think every noble was in that castle? Many of them were, but many more tried to flee my wrath the moment they realized what was happening."

  Slowly, Aureo turns his attention towards the richest district in the city. Mansions and the like litter it. The wealth disparity between it and the rest of Goldriver is stark… but also meaningless. Why should Aureo care if one ant hill is particurly nicer looking than another? They were all just ants at the end of the day. Ants who had tricked him into treating them like they were his equals. Ants who had betrayed him and led to his confinement and torture for months and months.

  Aureo raises his hand again, preparing to let the water surge up from under the city and demolish this next section as well. He could do the entire city at once to be fair… but he wanted them to fear him in their final moments. He wanted those pathetic mortals to-

  He almost doesn't see it coming. Only his complete control over his own domain saves his life. The massive stone pilr they're currently standing on is technically part of his aquifer. Permeated with water through every inch of the rock and earth that made it up. Including the top of it where they're standing.

  As such, he feels Sophia's Otherworlder pet leave her side, taking a step that covers half the distance between them in half a second. Only instinct has Aureo conjuring up a shield of water that slows the lightning quick Otherworlder down just enough for him to twist his body out of the way of the Celestial Metal dagger the mortal is wielding.

  With a snarl, he bsts the Otherworlder back away from him, causing him to skid across the ptform. He'd been aware of the Celestial Metal that Sophia's pet wielded of course. The mortal could not have destroyed the runes suppressing Aureo's divine might nor cut apart the bars of his cell or the shackles encircling his limbs otherwise.

  However… he had to admit, not in a million years would he have thought the Otherworlder would have turned that weapon on HIM. Especially not when his loyalty to his goddess seemed so absolute. Snarling, Aureo gestures to Sophia.

  "Sophia! Control your dog!"

  Except when he looks at her… she doesn't look shocked by what her pet has just done. She doesn't have the look of surprise that Aureo would expect if the Otherworlder had acted of his own initiative. Almost… almost as though she'd given the order. Or at least given the go ahead.

  Aureo's jaw clenches, even as Sophia dares to look at him with big, teary, sorrow-filled eyes.

  "Please Aureo! Stand down! It doesn't have to be this way! Let's just leave! The people of Goldriver aren't our enemies… our true enemies are the gods behind the God Hunters. They're the ones who need to be stopped!"

  He actually does consider giving in for a second. Not because he agrees with her, but because there's an argument to be made about bringing them to his father's realm so that the Otherworlder can be neutralized and Sophia can be contained without any further personal risk to Aureo himself.

  … But no. No. He can deal with one pesky Otherworlder. And once he does, once he's done in Sophia's pet and put the goddess in her pce, he'll finish drowning this city in its own blood.

  Turning his full attention towards the Otherworlder, Aureo sneers… and calls upon his divine power to rend the mortal limb from limb.

  -x-X-x-

  A/N: Well, that escated quickly.

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