Tellendor swung around, clashing with the first gauntlet. When they made contact, the gauntlet shattered into icy blue dust. Tellendor bounced back to Ether.
Talis swung his other fist, completely missing the spinning Ether as he spun behind him. Tellendor ran across his back, leaving a trial of tattered cloth and armor in its wake.
"Good one, I'll give you that!" Talis taunted.
Ether didn't want to hear it. He kicked his rival towards the wall. As he turned around, Ether dug Tellendor into his gut.
Talis swung at Ether, but he ducked below the hit before following it up with his own punch. It landed on his chin, turning Talis' entire head into a dazed skull.
Ether tore the weapon out, then slashed Talis' chest with it. Leaving more wounds to bleed from while he left. To him, Talis deserved to die a slow and painful death.
Now with his rival taken care of, Ether focused on escaping. After that heated interaction, he felt the wound get worse by the minute.
Tellendor drifted to rest as it fell into its sheath. Then Ether's other arm reached up to his shoulder. A hand closed a wound, Ether was ready to begin walking out of there.
He took the first step outside. Variants rose up to finish off the wounded challenger. Ether eyed them down, waiting to see what they were going to do.
One charged at Ether. They stopped before reaching him to allow their two-handed sword to strike his neck. But as the blade touched Ether, the head of his attacker came flying off.
He looked on, too tormented to care. After what happened in the farm, Ether became numb to it all.
Mostly unharmed, Ether stumbled towards the meeting point. His boots kicked dust and pebbles as he continued his path forward.
Footsteps from behind echoed in his ears. Another warrior tried to claim his life by stabbing his neck. But that wound appeared on the attacker's neck.
Blood spewed out like a bursted pipe, covering Ether's armor with red as he walked away.
Since that last attempt, everyone else didn't try. They knew better than to attack a Prime who had unlocked his Third Rule.
They followed him. Out the houses, towards the fields, and beside the Sky Beast. No one dared to attack.
Decka waited, his shield glowing a mystic white color while on his back. "You appear to have a following behind you, and a nasty wound. Get up and let's bring you home."
Ether's defeated eyes looked up at Decka. Then back at the crowd.
"Tell Kas he is an animal. Soon-to-be-killed. If anyone steps between us two, they will get butchered. That wasn't a threat, it was my honest word," Ether's voice thundered.
Pearl dropped from the Sky Beast to greet him. Her eyes went directly towards the wound, then towards his stance and over his armor.
"Little Yonie, I can heal you later. Let's go."
She opened her arms, allowing Ether to climb inside. Pearl then threw him onto the Sky Beast's back.
***
Now operating the beast, Pearl frequently looked down at the defeated Ether in her grasp. Her mind was full of curiosity and concern.
"Decka, I'm afraid Ether gets very damaged during combat. Too damaged, in fact. Is he fit to fight?" She asked.
"No, I can fight. Pearl, just trust me. I am capable," Ether quickly responded.
Decka kept his hands over Quinn's deepest wounds to stop the blood from rushing out. "She is correct, Ether. Most of the time, you were either badly injured or barely alive."
"Well," he sighed. "I never learned any actual Codes back then. It's probably the reason why."
Pearl hugged Ether tighter. "You're half Yonie. An adorable little guy that brings joy to everyone, especially your Yomie."
They fell silent for a moment. The cold breeze pressed onto their armors and sharply woke them up. What Pearl said about him made Ether feel uncomfortable. It was true, but also a truth he didn't want to accept.
"Well, it has gone quiet," Decka commented. "Pearl, how come you haven't reached absolute zero?"
That questioned startled her. She didn't know other Variants knew about such a trait, nor if they even cared about it.
"Absolute zero is defensive. Not really something to do all the time, it drains my coolers quickly. And I don't have a frigid place to call my own, so I have to hold back on using it," Pearl replied.
Quinn dug herself deeper into her lover's grasp. "Can't you suck up Ether's cold?"
"That belongs to him. There's something else that belongs to him I'd want to suck, but cold is off limits."
Her response stunned Ether, but not enough to make it noticeable. To the outside world, he was metal plates being protected by an almost fully matured Thawed.
"Krugi is down there, we are ready to land," Pearl announced.
Minutes later, the beast touched down on the pens. It lowered its body and extended its upper wings to allow the riders to get off.
"Sky Beasts, such smart creatures. You think they understand what we're saying?" Decka marveled.
"I don't know. I'll send Jakery out to give you new homes, I'll bring little Ether with me to his own."
Before Pearl and Ether could walk away from Decka and Quinn. Decka stopped them.
"Hey, I just wanted to say, thank you so much. I am reunited with my Quinn and gifted a Third Rule. Know I am forever in your debts. Do not be shy when contacting me," Decka thanked them.
Pearl nodded. "You're welcome. But also thank you for protecting Ether while he was coming back to us. He means a lot to me."
With that, both duos broke ways.
Ether and Pearl made their way back to his house, into the living room and through his bedroom door. The dead silent house felt frozen in time from earlier that morning.
No one was awake. Everything was still and quiet. Except for the couple of Variants.
Pearl carefully undid Ether's chest and stomach plates. Assessing the damage he endured during the entire confrontation.
"You look roughly beaten. What did you get struck by?" Pearl made conversation.
"That doesn't matter. What matters is who I saw. Talis, that fucker was there. He was the elite they were talking about," Ether grunted.
Pearl didn't seem surprised. She pressed wet towels on and around his wounds, trying to stop the bleeding from getting any worse.
"Why do you hate Talis so much?" Pearl asked.
Ether quickly shifted his eyes up to her. "I... don't know. It was just an unspoken rule that we were in a rivalry with one another. I don't know why, but I bet he does."
"Now," Ether sighed. "Why do you seem so interested in me?"
Pearl smirked. "You bring joy to me. I was a single child. The closest thing to a sibling I had was Cerus. Him and I were almost like real family, but Talis got in the way and discouraged us."
She gently placed a towel on the floor beside the bed. A mix of cold water and blood covered the space below them.
"But now away from Talis, and with you and Jakery, I feel happier. Probably it's your Yonie side, but I feel very attracted to you for some reason," Pearl responded.
Ether laid down on the bed, allowing himself to recover from the battle. He closed his eyes and imagined a world without this much hostility, one where everyone was nicer to one another.
"Do... you have any desires towards me?" Pearl randomly spoke.
"What?" Ether quickly opened his eyes. "What do you mean?"
Pearl's hair began to get wet for no reason. It meant she felt afraid or nervous.
"Like, would you like to start something with me? We don't have to reproduce, we can remain close friends," Pearl clarified.
Ether blankly stared at her. "I mean, we have slept on the same bed before. I'm fine with anything, you're a good girl."
Pearl smiled. "Can we try something new? Everyone is shut inside their homes right now, maybe we can lock ourselves in here and..."
"Are you implying you want to see me naked?" Ether raised an eyebrow.
She slowly nodded in response.
Ether thought about it for a moment. He remembered how fun it was when he and his former lover got passionate with one another, and the messes they made.
"I mean, sure. You've saved my life various times. You deserve a reward," Ether added.
Pearl looked at Ether, he seemed more relaxed now. As if he was waiting for something.
"It's a Yonie right in front of you. He is relaxed, stomach is showing, and he wants the gorgeous Thawed sitting beside him," Ether smiled.
Pearl grabbed the center of his leg armor's belt as she came down to exchange kisses with Ether. The two lost their senses as they celebrated a successful mission against the Light Legion.