An hour went by with the entire group conversing with one another. The foreign forces listened intently, still trying to find traces of malice in Ether's actions and words.
But he was of pure heart. Unable to hold them as his enemy despite killing some of his own Variants. Because he was aware they didn't want to be here, the fear in their eyes told him.
When the noon sun hung overhead, two Infinus Ferals brought over some more prisoners. Settling them down around Ether, then standing guard.
"Hey, Ferals," he called out to them. "Did you spot any Abaki while coming over?"
One of them bowed their head. "Yes, a horde of them. Do you want us to bring some to you?"
Ether nodded, then turned to Netero. "Do you want to join the Wild Hunt? Take this opportunity to view your attackers as your allies."
Netero was hesitant at first. He rose up from the sitting prisoners, showing off his slowly transforming skin. Color crept into his frame, swaying him away from the pale white that reminded him of his birthplace.
The same Feral from earlier walked closer to Netero, then held out a hand. "Come with us, Feral. But this isn't an invitation to flee, if you do we'll hunt you down and kill you."
Instead of taking this as a threat, Netero ignored it and joined the Ferals. Choosing to befriend his enemies instead of wishing them death. The complete opposite of what Hitirus preached.
As he stepped out of the crowd, three other Ferals rose up. Following close behind Netero in hopes of learning a little more about what sets them aside from a regular Feral.
Upon seeing these new figures, the original two felt uneasy. As if something bad was going to happen, but they knew better. Ether wanted to test their ability to trust an enemy.
And they intended to show they were loyal and trustworthy enough to hold their end of the deal. It was all up to the Scalers if they could do their end.
Once all of them were gathered, they took off sprinting in the direction of the Abaki horde. Eager to pounce and hunt together, almost like an actual pack.
Ether turned to face the crowd again. "So, how do the Yarnin remember their fallen?"
"That's a funny question," a female Zegus replied. "Are you trying to remember us after you kill us?"
"Huh? No," Ether shook his head. "I want to treat all Yarnin Variants that died today as if they were in Yarno. As long as I am here, all of you are respected and treated as an Imbushkin."
"Mmm," the Zegus narrowed her eyes. She couldn't tell if it was a trick or a sincere question, but she cave in regardless. "Cover the dead in something flammable, then ignite it. We often have Thawed pray in order to gift them to the Nine."
When she finished talking, the center of Ether's green eyes sparked like a darker green fire. It was his Yonie side trying to ooze out of its cage, showing how interested he was.
Ether's hands came down to the grass beneath him, getting ready to start a small fire. That's when he noticed there were two big eyes looking up at him. Each one filled with curiosity.
"Ah!" Ether's voice transitioned almost seamlessly into a Yonie's voice. "Y - Yonie (Boy)? Nessebe te kiki (Do you want to join)?"
The Yonie poked his head out of the underground utopia, looking around at the wide array of Variants around him. He took note at where his friends were hiding, then applied it to the surface.
He pointed at Hylo. "Yo... vah (what)? Vah vushvu (What are you)?"
"Venmei, Shora (Neither, Ether). Cul kilo (Does something bother you)?" Ether replied.
"Shoooraaa," the Yonie continued to point at Hylo. "Veppei, veppei (hurts, hurts)!" He grabbed his head and pretended to be injured. "Veppei ehboo (Hurts my friend)!"
The Zegus from earlier glanced between the Threshers. "Hold on, you speak perfect Icitru. Are you..?"
While Ether waved at Hylo to walk over, he nodded. "Yes, I'm part Thresher. As you can imagine, its difficult. Knowing other Variants can put me down at any moment and all. But the worst comes personally."
She nodded. "I - I see. You don't seem to be too bothered, though."
"Because I do a good job at suppressing it," Ether reached for the Yonie's cheeks. Then he rubbed them, activating the little one's 'love vision.' "I rarely get to interact with other Threshers, for starters."
A Thawed laughed. "Don't ever come to Olavin-Faa's outskirts. There are mega families everywhere you look. I remember a Feral friend of mine accidentally slipped and got stuck inside a hole."
"I'm Heliou, by the way," the Thawed introduced himself. "I recall you wanted to learn some more Yarnin traditions, right?"
Ether leaned closer to Heliou, locking eyes with him to ensure he understood his full attention was on him. Other Variants listened, waiting to hear if he messed up or sparked a memory.
"Threshers are celebrated in the Trilogy... well, most of it. Conqueror hasn't celebrated much. Each day is just... wake up, get yelled at, fight each other, strongest move on and the weakest recover," Heliou sighed.
"N - nevermind, that isn't part of this. Where was I..?" he continued.
"You were talking about Threshers being celebrated," a random voice from the crowd replied.
Heliou nodded. "Threshers, right! There's this Yomie, her name is Neva, she owns the biggest mega family in Yarno. Every now and then she brings some of her Threshers to cities so they could cheer others up."
Ether gasped, unsure if what he just heard was fantasy. An action the Yonie beneath him mimicked. He gasped as well, opening his eyes even wider and showing them alternate colors.
"They also paint the Yonies' hairs different colors and Yomies bring their offspring to other families in hopes of getting them imprinted with other Threshers," another random voice called out.
"Wow," Ether placed his hand over the Yonie's crown. "Those sound fun, I might go to one. Do they eat anything interesting?"
"Speaking of eating!" a Feral announced their return.
Each Feral that left to hunt returned with an Abaki over their shoulder. The beasts had a greener taint to their fur, setting them apart from their Etek Dur cousins.
"All right, looks like we will talk over a nice meal," Ether spoke to the crowd. "Ferals, you guys did great. Grab an Abaki or two, then share it with the other Ferals. I'll skin and cook the rest."