If Rui had been stronger, then he wouldn't have had to force the serpent to fight Transcendents. The serpent was virtually invincible against any non-Transcendent army, as far as Rui was concerned. Whether it was a laminar worldship, the Web of War, or any other war super asset, Jormungandr could crush them all.
Verses were his one and only weakness, and because Rui couldn't protect Gaia, the serpent had been forced to fight a self-destructive battle against the Divine Mothers.
Rui had indeed grown very strong over the many years of his life, but he realized he was still too weak. Too weak for Project Water. And too weak to protect the things that he wanted to protect.
It was a source of anger for him.
RUMBLE!!!!!
He channeled the rage into his movements. Not letting it control him, but using it to squeeze out every ounce of latent power within his body, focusing all of it to fight the strongest Divine Mother.
