"Well, well, look who it is." Brene spoke with a bored, yet somewhat surprised tone as she stepped out the door. "My old apprentice."

Sure enough, only a few feet away from her, was Rai. The disturbed, confused dungeon-dweller she'd taken under her metaphorical wing all those years ago. Something that was ancient history now, and something she had no interest in remembering. They reminded the berserker of more... civilized times. Of times when she still had morals, inhibitions, a naivety about good and evil. All that crap she threw away for her new life back in the hut she just left.

Oh, and there was a Linoone there. It didn't take the rogue Breloom long to connect the dots, given that the other member of Veera's little 'friendship circle' was tied up in the shack behind her. It also didn't take her long to figure out how Rai factor into it, it was all fairly obvious to her. That said, she was still rather surprised to see him, of all mons, here.

"Finally worked up the courage to come face Brene the Berserker, did you?" She asked tauntingly. "I thought you'd be hiding away under Sebbie's legs by now."

"I was hoping I would not see you again, Brene." Rai replied with a sorrowful sigh. "Not like this..."

"Aww, what's the matter? Don't like the new me?" She grinned pridefully and outstretched her arms to her sides. "Way better than the stupid, naive, goodie two-pawed starry-eyed idiot I used to be. And a lot more fun. You should try it sometime, Rai."

"Been there. Done that." Rai replied harshly. He got a surprised look from Loona. She however remained silent as he continued. "You ought to know, you were the one who turned me away from that path."

Brene let out a very loud cackle at Rai's recollection. Once she finished, she grunted, and replied. "Indeed..."

She lazily cracked her neck bones, the loud cracks being heard by both of her uninvited guests. "Sooo..." She eventually spoke. "How did you manage to find me, anyway? Not very many outside of... well.. 'Certain circles', let us say, know where to find me."

Rai looked like he was going to say something, but this time, it was Loona who finally spoke up. "The maze takes us to where we need to be." She replied darkly.

"And does that include 'trapped in a dead end to get raped by some random citizens', I wonder?" Brene raised an eyebrow slowly.

"No, but 'coming here to save Loona's friends from your clutches' most certainly does." Rai shot back.

"More like 'coming here to your deaths', as that's all I'm hearing." Brene replied lazily and disinterestedly. She reached behind her with her mace, and casually scratched her own back lightly with the sharp spikes sticking out of it. "You know you are no match for me." She continued as she finished, and once again brought the weapon to her side. "You have a lot less experience than I do.You could never beat me even when I still did believe in a 'fair fight'." She rolled her eyes at the very notion of that last thought. "And not to mention, you're completely the wrong element. Or has wielding that sword for so long make you forget how typing works?"

Before Rai could respond, the villainous Breloom shifted her bored attention over to the Linoone standing behind him. "And I sincerely doubt your new girlfriend here can do much to help, if anything. After all..." A mocking smirk slowly appeared on her features.  "...If she could, would she not be doing this herself?"

Loona's already angry expression became even angrier, as she tried to come up with a retort. Yet, nothing came, for as much as she hated to admit it, the breloom bitch in front of her was correct. Seeing that she was going to get no reaction from her, Brene turned her attention back to the Raichu, who was still staring her down.

"Look, I'm in the middle of something here." Brene grumbled as she absentmindedly reached over with her free hand in between her legs, scratching the wet, itchy cunt that had been left moist from the rudely interrupted show she had been watching moments earlier. She let out a soft, but still audible moan as she lightly pleasured herself in front of them, before stopping and continuing. "So I'll tell you what: For old time's sake, I'll give you and your little piece of puss that's roped you out here one single chance: Turn around, and walk away."

The pair's eyebrows furrowed as the breloom continued her ultimatum. 

"Walk away, Rai. Shrink back to your guild, leave me be and never return. Don't worry," she raised a now rather moist hand to emphasize her point. "I won't strike you in the back or nuttin'. If you turn and walk away, I'll do the same and go back into my little funhouse. I keep doin' what I'm doin', and you saunter back off to good ol' Sebbie and we can all just get on with our miserable lives."

"All while you continue to harm Veera." Loona growled at her.

"And many more after that." Rai added in. Brene just groaned in response.

"Well, yeah." She waved her hand around in the air in a small circle dismissively at the two's words as she rolled her eyes in annoyance. "In this world, it's used or be used, after all. The strong use the weak. The citizens use the savages. The Guildies, or at least the ones with half a brain cell to work with, use the citizens, and the Nobles use the Guildies. And Guildies use other Guildies. Something I learned the hard way." Brene put a special emphasis on the word 'hard', just in case the implication wasn't clear enough to the two mons in front of her of whom she clearly thought less off. Her eyes narrowed as she stared at her former pupil. "... A lesson I see you still haven't learned yet-"

"I learned it well enough!" Rai shouted back angrily, taking even Loona slightly by surprise. "I learned it back when I was still a slave. When my master beat me day after day until I was his submissive little cocksleeve, when the meat hunter that killed him tried to pawn me off to the last Sandstone lord for a piece of poke. I learned it here in the maze when I broke free of him. But, in this maze, I learned something else. I learned that it doesn't have to be use or be used. I learned that it is the way it is, because we allow it to be that way. I learned another way, from someone that clearly isn't you. I learned that it won't end until we make a stand."

"Oh please." Brene rolled her eyes at Rai's profound nonsense. "Seb tried exactly that, and he's a human! And if he couldn't change things, what makes you think you can?!"

"Wait..." Loona spoke softly to Rai upon learning the revelation. "Your guildmaster is a-"
Rai however, either didn't hear his partner, or at the very least had his attention focused elsewhere. Loona didn't know which as she was rudely interrupted by him.

"To hell with the humans!" Rai shouted even louder than before, his expression now one of pure rage. "To hell with this Tarusshit about we mons not being able to do anything by ourselves and needing humans to save us from all of our ills, and then drop some 'technology' on us before they fuck off back whereever! To hell with that crap!"

Brene stood silent, before laughing out loud in a mocking laugh. Rai's expression didn't change however as he watched his so-called 'teacher'.

"You're starting to sound more like that fool Anders." The breloom gave a chuckle before continuing. "Have you caught him yet, I wonder? Or is your guild too busy doing nothing to deal with him?" She asked sarcastically.

"Anders maybe a wanted murderer..." Rai growled. "But even I will admit that he has a point. At some point, we have to decide our own destinies. And for me, that day..."

Rai's hand reached for his blade, which up until now had remained safely in its scabbard. He quickly drew it, the iron making a loud 'slish' as it was ripped from the safety of its holder and exposed to the open air of the maze. Its metal gleamed in the sunlight as he held it out in front of him, its sharp and foreboding point now facing directly at the breloom. "Is today!"

"Yes yes yes this is all profound and everything." Brene replied boredly. "But if you think you were going to come here and talk me down out of this... 'darkness' that I've ... 'fallen into'." She in turn swung her mace around in her hand threateningly, as a counter-display to her former student drawing his own weapon. The spiked peice of Iron swing in the air in circles expertly yet lazily, as she was not putting much effort into the display. "You're sorely mistaken." She finished as she stopped twirling her mace after a few such spins.

Rai's eyes narrowed at this response.

"Then you are truely lost." He replied with a sorrowful sigh.

"Well finally! The last snorlax crosses the finish line at long last." Brene said with the same annoyed boredom she'd been using this whole exchange. "So you're really doing this? You still have time to back out."

"Not in your life." Rai shot down her offer as he got into a battle stance, his sword held out in front of him at the ready, his feet spread apart ready to move on a moment's notice. "I will do what I must, then."

Brene's bored expression melted into a frown. "Alright then..."

Suddenly, it morphed into the malicious snarl she was so infamous for. An insane, open mouthed, snaggletoothed grin of a snarl that would scare even the bravest of mons. Rai barely had time to process it however, as she shouted. 

"Don't say I didn't warn you!"

In an instant, she leapt from her spot, the mace above her head as she flew towards her target. She brought it down, determined to bash her ex student's brains in and splatter them across the better part of the Sands. However, she did not get that chance, as Rai quickly moved his blade to meet and block her attack, the middle of the blade and the stick of the mace meeting with a loud iron clank.
Loona stumbled back in shock from the attack, and quickly back stepped out of the way of the pair. As much as she wanted to, she knew she wasn't going to be of much use in this fight, so she quickly found some cover behind one of the walls of the maze and watched on as the pair continued their struggle.

"Oh good! For a second I thought this was going to be too easy." Brene shouted.

With a roar, Rai pushed his blade against her mace in a burst of energy, pushing her away. Brene was forced back temporarily but kept her footing. Rai took a retaliatory swing at his former teacher, but she skillfully ducked out of the way. She brought the spiked mace around in an attempt to strike the side of the Raichu's head, only for the electric rat to bat it away with the blunt side of his blade. He tried to bring the dull side of the blade to the side of her neck, but she blocked it. Their weapons once again locked and ground against one another.

"Still keeping that side dull, I see?" Brene raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Just in case I need to knock someone out instead of kill them." Rai replied.

"Hmmph." Brene grunted as their weapons remained locked against one another. Still the soft sap I know..."

Rai didn't see her take a paw off her mace. He especially didn't see her curl it into a fist. It was only too late that he saw it, when the fist smashed into his face.

"And still an amateur!" She laughed gleefully as he was thrown back from the force of the punch. The large raichu landed on his back on the sands with a thud. Loona looked on, her look betraying her increasing worry of how this fight was going.

"Do you honestly think you'll win by playing by the rules?" Brene taunted. "Not a chance, kid."

"So... you want to play dirty, huh?" As Rai picked himself up, he covertly picked up some of the sand he was on into the palm of his paw. As he rose to his feet and Brene closed the distance, he waited. When she was within striking distance, he sprung his trap.
"FINE THEN!" He shouted as he threw the sand in her face, blinding her, leaving her open for a strike. The tip managed to strike her chest, leaving a scratch as she yelled out in pain.

Brene stumbled back, and patted her chest, seeing the green blood in her hand. Her face was one of rage, but it quickly melted into a confident smirk. Rai had held back, stopping himself from doing any real damage when he had the chance.
In her eyes, his mercy would be his undoing. However, now that he 'cheated...'

"Much better!" She yelled with faux encouragement. "Now I don't have to pretend to hold back!"

And in a flash, she was upon him yet again, and their weapons clashed once more. Sounds of iron against iron filled the air as Brene maniacly brought her mace to fully bear against her opponent, and it was all Rai could do but block and parry. She was no longer holding anything back, and so her attacks were faster and more frantic than before. She had Rai on the defensive now.

"Aww, what's the matter?!" Brene laughed as she took another swing, which Rai blocked and deflected just in time. "Giving up already?"

Rai just grunted in response.

Suddenly, Brene leapt backwards, her hand glowed with a green energy. Rai was worn out, so it took a few seconds for his mind to register what was going on. When it finally dawned on him, he raised his sword over his head and with a yell, ran at her.
But it was too late. Leaves appeared at the Breloom's side, and just as he was within striking distance, the leaves launched themselves at them at high speed. They slammed into his electric type flesh at high speed, the grass type attack drawing no blood but hurting his body nonetheless.

It was only about 5 leaves, but it felt like it had been twice or more of that. This attack hurt a lot. He clutched his bruised belly and grunted. 

"Magic Leaf?!" Rai knew the attack. But according to the knowledge he'd gained from his time in the guild, he knew darn well that this attack was not one a Breloom like her should have been able to learn. "But... but how?!"

"Surprised?" Brene laughed. "Don't be. Getting in with the underground slave trade let me in on a lot of things I could never have gotten as a mere guildie! Secret, highly illegal things. I got more to show you."

"Oh yeah? Well..." Rai stood to his feet, and gripped his sword tightly. "I have surprises too!"

"Oh this oughtta be good. Too bad I won't let you use them." Brene taunted as a large seed materialized in her right palm. She threw it at him with her strength. Rai leapt out of the way just in time before the Seed Bomb exploded on impact. 

As soon as he landed back on his feet, electricity started crackling up from his body as he charged his own attack. A thunderbolt. But his plan wasn't simply to launch a thunderbolt at her. No, he was going to do something else. Just as he was going to released he attack, he held out his sword in front of him, pointing it directly at his foe. The attack quickly jumped into the blade, and with a flash, the thunderbolt attack was released into a concentrated beam at the Breloom in front of him, a sort of 'Thunderbolt beam' of his own creation.

Brene saw it coming, and before it was launched, she crossed her arms in front of her to block the concentrated attack. The bolt flew through the air at full force, crackling the air as it hit its target. THe attack hit her full force, forcing the breloom back along the sand, but she stood firm and was not knocked off her feet. Yet, she was clearly not undamaged, as the attack left a large scorch mark on her arms.

Nonetheless when the bolt subsided, she dropped her arms, and grinned maliciously.

"Really, kid? Really?!" She chuckled. " That was your 'surprise?' A sword-launched thunderbolt?" Her chuckle evolved into a full on laugh before she continued. "Have you forgotten your typing already? Newsflash Rai, electricity is weak against grass, or did you just kind of think that the IRON would carry it over? Honestly kid, I don't know what you expected to accomplish with that."

She laughed another round before it subsided. She wiped a tear of laughter away from her face before she looked upon her prey once more and her eyes narrowed.

 "Well, that's enough of this now. You showed promise, but... now I'm just getting bored." She growls. "And I... HATE being bored." She scowls. "Time to end this."

Rai meanwhile knew he was out of options at this point. There was no turning her back anymore. And there was no turning back for him either. He flipped the blade around to use its sharp side. His former teacher was ironically right: Now was the time to end this.

With a soft sigh, he spoke under his breath.

"...I'm sorry, old teacher."

He knew this next attack, for better or for worse, would end it. This would be all or nothing. He had one last trick to try. He didn't use it before, as he was hoping to end this without killing or permanently injuring her, but he knew now that this was no longer an option. 
He charged his last attack: Agility. A move that would increase his own speed. His body glowed and sparked with power, as he dashed forward in blinding light. Brene readied her mace to strike, but when she saw what was coming, she knew she couldn't block this, nor should.

In less than a second, Rai was right next to his teacher. He took a swing, under the arm that held the mace. He'd take the swing, and cut it off. The sharpened blade swing through the air in an upward arc, its deadly edge heading towards its intended target at blinding speed.

Only to miss it by less than a hair. Brene had lifted her arm just in time to dodge the incoming attack and save her appendage from being sliced clean off. Rai's eyes went wide with shock and fear as the blade missed.

"Too bad." Brene spoke softly in his ear as the attack was still in motion. "My turn."

Rai had just barely brought the blade fully around before Brene likewise glowed, unleashing her own Agility attack. Rai had no time to block or react as a spike on the mace was driven into the back of his hand, pain shooting through his hand as the Iron bit deep into him. He let out at howl as the blade was ejected from his hand, flying high into the air and landing some distance away.

Rai took a step back, the sudden pain overwhelming his senses and situational awareness momentarily as he gripped the back of his hand. This opening was all Brene needed. With an unreal speed and force, she slammed the spike mace into his chest. Pain exploded from his ribs as he tried to yell out, yet the wind had been knocked right out of him so he could barely let out a whisper. The spike of the blunt weapon wasn't aligned with his chest, so it barely missed his vital organs, but nonetheless they pierced flesh and left scars where it it. That however was the least of Rai's problems, as the blunt force was so great that he was knocked backwards into the sands.

"NO!!" Loona yelled with shock and worry from over to the side where she was. Yet she was completely ignored by the two combatants. Her eyes darted around, and soon laid upon the sword that had been cast away. Rai struggled to arise to his feet, but a single toed crimson foot forced him back down. Brene looked upon her bested opponent with a victorious sneer. Rai finally found the air to cry out in pain as his aching body was forced back into the sands.

"Ya know..." She casually tapped her now bloody mace in her palms as she spoke. Despite the motion, the blood stuck to the sharp spikes that had dug into its victims flesh just moments before. "You once told me that your old master wished for you to die in your sleep." She let out a contemptous huff before continuing. "I had thought about granting that last request. Yaknow, for old time's sake. One last little favor to ya."

She leaned in, and for a moment, it looked like she was going to use her signature sleep spore again. However, a malicious snarl soon said otherwise before she even spoke the words.

"... But no. I think not."

Her hat opened up, just as it had some time before with the other intruder that had come across her, and just like before, a cloud of spores sprayed into the Raichu's face. However, the large electric rat did not feel the weight of his eyes close down upon him. Nor did he feel tired at all. He tried to move, to push her off and continue the fight. However, his body would no longer obey. He could barely twitch, let alone roll or get up. Realization hit both him and his observer: He'd been paralyzed. She'd opted to use a Stun Spore rather than a Sleep Spore.

"You've been a very, very bad boy, my old apprentice." Brene growled as she stood back up. She resumed her casual, yet now very threatening tapping of her mace in her palm. "Coming here, interrupting my fun. Trying to take my toys away from me. Seriously?!" Her tone turned into a hateful growl. "Why would I ever give you a quick death in your sleep?!" Suddenly, she grinned. But it was not one of reassurance. Quite the contrary, it was one of malicious intent and hunger. "Oh no, I'm gonna take my time with you, and smash you to bits. Piece. By. Bloody. Piece." Her grin grew into a full blown threatening, tooth-filled smile. A smile that would scare even the gods themselves. "And you're going to be awake for every. Pain. Filled. Moment." She looked to the sky, and gave out the most horrendous screeching laugh her body was capable of mustering, one which reverberated off the very walls. One which filled everyone who heard it, from the pair of victims inside her cabin to the little pichu wandering the maze with dread, not to mention her next soon to be victim, who had a look of absolute horror and regret etched on his face.

Once she was done, she stared back at him, and stepped off to the side. She eyed him down, as if wondering where to strike first. Her eyes finally stopped upon a certain area of his.

"Let's start with that-"

"NOO!!"