Chapter Text
When you take one God and two Devastations and put them together and make them fall in love a lot of good things will usually happen: Fun things, naughty things, surprising things and joyful things. Usually. But also, when you put two Devastations together who are susceptible and sensitive to the changing and ebb of power all around them, one more so then the other, you might end up with days where egos clash too and sometimes their inherently violent nature breaks through, ending in a fight. Usually it´s nothing that a little bit of sparring can´t cure, especially with the ever vigilant eye of their own God to keep them in check and reign them back in when things get too violent in the heat of the moment. Oftentimes they just spar for fun, Xie Lian is a Martial God born for fight after all and he craves the challenge of it just as much as his Devastations sometimes crave violence.
Hua Cheng is the most powerful of the three of them in terms of raw unbridled power and a force to be reckoned with with a saber, especially his E-Ming, not to mention his butterflies while Xie Lian is an expert of any weapon you would put into his hands, the sword merely being his favorite, not the only one he has mastered. The Martial God might be a lightweight when it came to spiritual powers, him giving up on his way of cultivation for love and the lack of followers the reason for this, but what he lacked in raw power he made up for with pure skill and grace. He Xuan used no weapons but his own powers and a small dagger he kept in his sleeve, usually for cutting his fingers for drawing arrays, and while he might have the upper hand over Hua Cheng in his own, waterlogged domain he was at a disadvantage whenever they spared on dry ground. But that didn´t necessarily mean that Hua Cheng would be the one to win their fights. After all, posing as the Earthmaster for centuries meant Black Water Sinking Ships had to know his way around seals and sigils and arrays of any kind, first to keep himself hidden and second to give the appearance of actually controlling an element that wasn´t his own. Being a scholar at heart still he had taken to the task like a fish to water…and he sure as hell wasn´t above using whatever nasty tricks he learned from the old scrolls he loved to study so much.
He Xuan was a trickster when they played –Xie Lian called it sparring, but really, it was more for fun then actual training, a way for them to get rid of some energy- not so much caring about winning but just about causing as much mischief as possible. Like transforming Xie Lian´s sword into a fish midstrike, confusing the God and Hua Cheng, who was about to pary, enough for Crimson Rain Sought Flower to actually get smacked in the face with a trout. He Xuan did have to forfeit this win though as he was laughing too hard to even keep standing, barely managing to conjure up a small bubble of water for the poor fish when Xie Lian was worried that it would suffocate.
Hua Cheng did have his moments of mischief too, he loved using his butterflies to try and distract them, having them fly underneath their clothes to tickle –worked against He Xuan, who always denied being ticklish- or try and lift up their robes –worked against Xie Lian, who, even after decades of marriage, simply couldn´t let go of his last bits of modesty-. He also loved to shapeshift midfight, transforming himself into a variety of animal shapes or whatever else might be useful at the moment, the shape of a small, one eyed fox his favorite because it never failed to make Xie Lian coo at him in delight, happily putting away his sword to pet the soft fur on his belly instead. Hua Cheng called it a tactic, He Xuan called it a shameless ploy to be called cute. Usually right before he started to scratch behind Hua Cheng´s ears.
Xie Lian insisted that he´d never use any kind of such unfair tricks …after all, he didn´t need to, the only thing he ever had to do to make his husbands lose their concentration was to smile at them after all. Or ´accidentially´ brush too close. Or maybe quickly pull them close enough for a kiss. And no matter how much He Xuan and Hua Cheng tried to call him out on this he always insisted on it being an accident, just his affection for his husbands being too much to control, wide eyed and innocent but for his smile, which would have made any fox spirit proud.
This was when they were happy, just playing around in the sunshine with not a single care in the world for once, leaving all work and responsibilities behind them for a couple of hours, usually ending with them snuggling together, watching the sunset before He Xuan would inevitably declare himself starving and insist on being fed. Usually around the same time that Xie Lian would yawn and start to look drowsy.
But this time they weren´t playing.
Hua Cheng barely manages to dodge the next wave of waterlogged dirt He Xuan throws at him, the soft earth made lethal by countless splintered trees and branches sticking out of it at weird angles, moving as unpredictable as their master. His dice had done him dirty this time, depositing the both of them in the midst of a desolate stretch of land during torrential rain, giving He Xuan an advantage even though there were no actual bodies of water around. And as long as there was enough water to saturate the earth he was directing it was basically just a more solid wave for him, as easy as if they were fighting on the beach.
Hua Cheng hisses in pain as something bites his leg, his sabre automatically swinging down and severing the spine of one of Black Water´s bone fish, sneakily hidden between bits of greenery and dirt. It´s the second time already he has been bitten, sharp, poisonous teeth still logged into the thick flesh right beneath his knee, the long dead remnant of a fish still heeding it´s master´s orders even though it´s nothing more then bits of a boney head by now. It mirrors the position of the one that had been on his other leg already and Hua Cheng can feel himself slow down slightly due to the numbing effect oft he poison Black Water liked to use on their teeth. It won´t kill him –no poison could- but he knew from painful experience that it would force him to slow down enough to be an easy catch for Black Water. Which meant he was running out of time..
„…sorry A-Xuan.“
With a small gesture his Butterflies regroup, going from passivley trying to hinder He Xuan´s advance to actively attacking him into a split second, forcing him to change course with a curse and pull back his wave, using it to shield himself from sharp wings instead of attacking Hua Cheng. His rage makes him sloppy, allowing some Butterflies to get past his defence and Hua Cheng can feel something in his chest contract painfully as he can feel them tear into Black Water´s flesh before the Devastation´s next hastily sketched sigil turns them into nothing but dust. He hates having to use his Butterflies on He Xuan, hates having to actually hurt him but he was left with no choice, the numbness in his legs spreading slowly but unstoppable, making him dangerously drowsy.
The momentary distraction of the Butterflies is enough for Crimson Rain to break through Black Water´s crumbling defense, E-Ming ready to knock out the raging Devastation for good…and he knows he made a grave mistake the moment he can see He Xuan´s face change from seemingly blind rage to triumphant, feral grin in a split second, those golden eyes dead and unrecognizable in his pale face streaked with dirt and blood. The other Devastation has ruthlessly taken advantage of his compromised field of vision and Hua Cheng sees the trap too late when his feet get sucked in by in earth suddenly turned soft and the dagger slipping out of He Xuan´s sleeve into his readily waiting hand is on the wrong side of his body for him to block with E-Ming without slicing the other Devastation in half. Hua Cheng feels his heart drop - Black Water going for his blind spots without a second thought, baiting and tricking him like this is not a good sign at all- and goes pliant, readying himself for the pain…and He Xuan hesitates.
It´s just a second, barely there but Hua Cheng has seen golden eyes flicker in recognition and horror, using the last of his momentum to crash into He Xuan, toppling them both onto the soft ground, Hua Cheng´s hands firmly around He Xuan´s wrists, pressing them down and making him let go of the dagger. Black Water´s face immediately turns feral again, snarling with wordless rage at Crimson rain atop of him, trying to buck him off but the soft mud underneath them that trapped Hua Cheng before turns into a disadvantage for him now, preventing him to get enough traction to throw the heavier Devastation off.
Hua Cheng is holding on for dear life, using his whole body to press Black Water into the mud. They have been in this position before many times whenever one of them needed the outlet of a true fight and usually this is enough to distract them and let them exhaust their energies in other ways but fighting. And so Hua Cheng hopes it will work this time too as he grinds down mercilessly, leaning down to bite He Xuan´s neck and force him into submission...only to flinch back with a curse, nearly losing bits of his ear when he gets too close to Black Water´s oh so white and oh so -sharp- teeth, the Devastation underneath him very clearly not in favor of any kind of solution that would lead to less bruises and more satisfaction for them both.
Hua Cheng looses hold of one of He Xuan´s wrists momentarily and this time the Devastation doens´t hesitate as he gropes for his lost dagger in the soft mud, not even caring that he grips it by the blade instead of the hilt cutting his own hand deeply when he swings the knife with unerring precision at Hua Cheng´s one good eye, ruthlessly taking advantage of one of Crimson Rain´s true weaknesses. Hua Cheng recoils involuntarily, and so the dagger only manages to catch him in the temple, splitting the skin and making Hua Cheng´s vision go red with blood, his head spinning dizzily from the sheer force of the blow. He can feel He Xuan slipping from underneath him now that his grip is gone and in a last desperate effort he calls for his Butterflies, having them pile onto Black Water until he is pressed down in the mud again, the only parts of him not covered by seething silver wings his face and his chest.
Hua Cheng clumsily wipes the blood from his eye with muddy fingers, his legs too numb by now to stand up and his head dizzy with more then He Xuan´s last blow. He knows he has run out of time, he needs to get Black Water Sinking Ships back under control now or he will loose conciousness, leaving the mad Devastation to do as he pleases. When he had grabbed onto a snappishly cruel He Xuan in Paradise Manor transporting them here he had hoped that this was just another one of his usual temper flares, triggered by whatever weird flux of power currently was bothering him and not one of his rare, true episodes of madness. No one knew what triggered those, not even He Xuan himself who was just as helpless to stop them as his lovers were. What they did know was this: He Xuan in a bad mood was like a sudden wave, dangerous to a degree and uncontrollable but over and gone just as quickly as it appeared once he found an outlet for his restless energies, usually a fight-turned-fuck with Hua Cheng. Black Water Sinking Ships in one of his mad rages was a typhoon, a coldly calculating, ruthless tempest that knew neither friend nor foe and would continue to wreak havoc for days until it had finally run it´s course, leaving nothing but destrcution in it´s wake.
And Hua Cheng knows there is only one way to stop him, as much as he hates it.
He Xuan knows what´s coming when Hua Cheng´s Butterflies tear apart the last bits of the tattered robe over his chest, exposing his tattoos...and with them the seal he had cut into his own flesh so long ago, able to seal his core fully and make him essentially powerless. He had put it there to keep his powers hidden while masking himself as the Earthmaster..and he had kept it there exactly for these types of situations, when he was too far gone for his lovers to reach him and they needed a way to stop him for good.
"...A-Cheng..."
Hua Cheng can feel something in his chest tear in pain at the familar endearment, usually reserved for softer things then this when they´re gentle with each other, not trying to tear each other apart, He Xuan´s plea so hard to ignore even after all that happened today. Hua Cheng knows that what he is about to do will hurt, worse then all the damage his Butterflies could ever do...but Crimson Rain Sought Flower knows he can´t trust He Xuan right now, as much as he loves him.
"I´m sorry A-Xuan..believe me this hurts me more then it hurts you."
"Hn. I doubt that." Black Water Sinking Ship´s voice is as cold as the abyss, all pretense of vulnerability and repentence gone the instant he can see they have no effect on Hua Cheng kneeling over him. His golden eyes are filled with nothing but hatred, something old and insane stirring at the bottom of the Abyss, teeth bared in a snarl as he tries in vain to get out from underneath the Butterflies and Hua Cheng closes his eye as he pushes the ball of energy he has gathered between his hands right into the center of He Xuan´s chest, activating the seal.
He Xuan screams, his body going tight as a bowstring in one violent, powerful jerk, finally throwing Hua Cheng of of him, thrashing helplessly in the Butterfly´s relentless grip as the seals energy pours through his body like molten gold , blocking of each and every accupoint needed to access his spiritual core, one after the other.
Hua Cheng is curled tightly into a ball next to him, hands pressed to his ears in an useless effort to block out the screams. The whole process will only take a few seconds but to Hua Cheng it feels like eternity and only when He Xuan finally grows silent again does he open his eye, clumsily wiping at the tear tracks on his mudstreaked face as he crawls over to his lover, laying motionlessly on the soft ground. He Xuan is as still as the dead, unmoving and unbreathing but his eyes are still open when Hua Cheng uses the last bit of his strength to pull him close and drag him into his lap, his now dim, light brown eyes confused and hurt and lost, ripping what was left of Hua Cheng´s heart into shreds.
"I´m sorry YuYu, I had to.."
He gets no response to his broken apology, He Xuan´s eyes growing dimmer while the last bits of inhibiting energy course through his body, locking him down completely and he grows slack in Hua Cheng´s arms, eyes finally falling closed. Hua Cheng pulls him even closer, gently kissing his closed eyelids and putting their foreheads together while closing his own eye in exhaustion, feverently wishing for Xie Lian to be there with them. He must be worried sick by now, left behind at home because both Devastations plainly refuse to have him anywhere near when they fight, always scared of accidentially getting him caught in the crossfire. And Hua Cheng will not call for him until He Xuan wakes and is himself again as much as it hurts to be alone right now. As small as it is there is always the theoretical danger of madness still burning behind He Xuan´s eyes when he wakes. And even when his powers are locked away and he can´t do any physical harm he would still be dangerous, having intimate knowledge of their deepest secrets and deepest fears...and He Xuan would rather burn his own ashes then subject them to this, Hua Cheng knows.
And so he has his Butterflies drag them close to a boulder that survived their fight to lean against, his lower body completely useless by now, paralyzed by the poison of He Xuan´s fish. He aches all over, bruised and cut and bitten and poisoned and as much as he tries to stay awake he must have dozed off for a while at some point, waking to the feel of gentle fingertips at his temple, cold and soft and for a moment he thinks that Xie Lian must have found them anyway. But when he opes his weary eye, caked with blood and swollen from the blow to his temple there are only dull, light brown eyes instead of his prince´s amber one´s to look at. He Xuan is awake and crying, absolutely silent, no sobs or hiccups to betray him, just tears running down his face in big fat drops as he gently strokes Hua Cheng´s face.
And dull his eyes might be, devoid of the usual power laying behind them, but they´re clear and full of remorse and self-hatred and before He Xuan can open his mouth and start apologizing Hua Cheng pulls him in, tilting his head so he can kiss him, fiercely and hungrily, greedily licking at the soft insides of He Xuan´s mouth and biting at the soft flesh of his lips until they both can taste fresh blood, as salty as the sea.
´It´s alright´ the kiss says, `We are what we are´ and ´I love you´.
When they finally break apart there is a little less pain in He Xuan´s eyes even though it will need a lot more reassurance and kindness from the people he loves before he will be able to let go of this as just another unfortunate episode in his life that has been dealt with and left no permanent harm. But Hua Cheng does not have to do this by himself and he is in dire need of some loving reassurance himself, having been forced to hurt He Xuan so...and so he pulls him close again for another, soft kiss before groping for his dice, relief and exhaustion evident in his voice.
"...let´s go home Yuyu?"
"...yes. Lets."