Chapter 21. The Ethereal Spirit

Yuliah's limp body slid down his arms, and Ryas tightened his grip. Shaking her. "Yuliah..." He called, but only her head wobbled back and forth. With his face pressed against her chest, a steady but faint thump came from inside. He sighed, and with one free hand removed his clothes until all that remained were an undershirt.

Ryas approached the spring, and with one last pull, the shirt that hung from his broad shoulders dropped to the ground, It exposed his muscular backside and the defined muscles that outline his taut body. On his back inked in a fiery crimson, were two majestic birds, with their wings spread ready to take flight — the emblem of all Royal Geneoshi Males, who possessed the Ethereal Spirit.

Ryas waded into the cold spring with Yuliah, the water numbed his skin, and immediately the heat drained from both their bodies. He held her slightly above the water's surface, waiting for the temperature in her body to drop. When Yuliah's lips turned a blueish purple, her body jerked one last time. He released the Ethereal Spirit. A violet glow burst from his body. The water began to churn, and ripples broke across the still surface, and the cold spring turned hot, hot enough that Yuliah's pale skin flushed.

With his free hand Ryas placed it over Yuliah's body and the Ethereal Spirit split itself from him, and slowly crept onto Yuliah, dissolving into her. Ryas observed her closely, wondering what drove him to take this much of a risk, but seeing her beaten face twice its average size, his throat constricted. He hoped this would work.

Suddenly she jerked roughly and lifted above the water's surface. Ryas stumbled back and froze, as Yuliah's body bent back stiff, then thrashed around. Quickly he reached for Yuliah, pulled her into an embrace, and re-released the Ethereal Spirit; it erupted like a smoldering flame engulfing them both. His eyes took on the violet of the Ethereal Spirit, and he tried sensing for the energy force within Yuliah's body, but she continued to shake and thrash around while he desperately held onto her.

Unable to concentrate and link himself to the energy force, the Ethereal Spirit retracted. "Fuck!" Ryas tried again but still no success. It wasn't until his fourth attempt that he finally found it. It must have hidden within her blood. With his Ethereal Spirit, he linked himself to the life force inside of Yuliah, but the moment his consciousness touched her blood, his mind fell into complete darkness, and he found himself alone surrounded by the Universe.

In the dark's stillness, all the noise and distractions drowned out. The vastness and pull of the Universe stretched beyond his grasp.

"Ryasss!" It called. He spun around to see who it was, but there was no one.

"Ryas!" The voice called from right beside him. Twisting his head around, Ryas could see that there was no one still.

"RYAS!!" This time the voice echoed right inside of him. It awakened his Ethereal Spirit and melded him with the infinite power of the Cosmos. Together both forces surged through his body, turning his eyes a dark lavender, and he felt stronger than before.

All that he desired at that moment became real. His old-world restored to its glory. The Geneoshi Cities thrived, and his Royal family alive again. The Dark Ethereal Spirit, the Nomens, and the vile creatures from the Ethereal Forest were all dead. His hopes disappeared when the world of Man did, and with it Zehan, the whole Southern Kingdoms, and all the humans he came to know and cared for, Yuliah included. Sorrow shredded away his happiness.

He lived through multiple lives, past and future worlds, around and around endlessly, never-ending, until he couldn't bear it anymore.

"STOP!" Ryas tried to separate himself from the power of the Cosmos, but it linked with his Ethereal Spirit, and the more he struggled, the more it held on. Until finally, he pulled himself away from Yuliah's blood. Gasping for air, Ryas shut it out from his mind, afraid to let it in again.

Suddenly he stood in the spring again and looked down at Yuliah. The thick scabs on her face peeled back and dissolved, the punctures underneath closed up, and the dried blood turned wet then ran off her cheeks. All the dark bruises faded away and revealed two flush cheeks with a pair of small but plump lips.

There were few things Ryas considered beautiful in this world now, and Yuliah became number one. From the moment he lifted her veil to now, he changed. He raised Yuliah's body towards him, and Ryas stole for the first time when he pressed his lips against Yuliah's and tasted the sweetness of her mouth.