Golden boots crunched on the black sands, the owner making his way towards the shattered gate of the city. The glow of the moon reflected off of his polished armor, the golden sheen nearly blinding to anyone who would look at it directly. His helmeted head turned to look at the spirals of glass pillars and stone rubble that had fallen to block the entrance, a small spark of yellow electricity dancing between the thin horns on his forehead as he hummed in thought. A single strip of fabric billowed in the wind behind him, his scarf a royal purple that matched the faint glow of his ‘X’ shaped visor.

“Surely that isn’t enough to impede you,” came a low, yet feminine voice.

He turned towards the voice, his two companions finally catching up to him. The one who had spoken, a woman, walked towards the blockade. Long legs carried her gracefully, her slender frame completely encased in a carapace of armor so black that she was almost invisible in the night. Were it not for the orange, four-pointed star over her left eye that fiercely glowed like an ember or the mantle of flowing magma that flowed down her shoulders and back, of course. She towered over the Golden Shutok, tilting her head and causing the ornamental meteors attached to her horns to sway to and fro on their chains.

The Golden Shutok shook his head. “I was waiting for you two. You know we never go at it alone,” he replied, his smirk almost visible behind his helmet.

The woman scoffed, lava slowly dripping from her body and pooling around her boots. She raised her hand and aimed at the rubble, the ground rumbling for a moment before a fissure split the ground apart. The pile of glass and rock softly sank into it, the glow of the Earth’s inner crust briefly lighting the area as the wreckage sank into the depths. In a matter of seconds, the scar was closed, the pathway into the ruins now easily cleared for the group.

The final member of the party made a soft noise as if clearing his throat. Both the Golden Shutok and Black Shutok acknowledged him, letting him lead the way into the town. His armor was a happy medium between the two, a bright enough ivory that he easily stood out even in the night, but dull enough that he wasn’t gaudy. A silky blue robe swayed behind him, speckled with tiny diamond shapes. He was furiously tapping away at the touch screen of some datapad, armored fingers clinking away as he looked around and surveyed the area. His helmet was teardrop-shaped, the point ending at the back of his head. A wide mask seemed to cover most of his face, shaped like an icy blue snowflake cut into thirds.

The trio walked through the streets of Lowlam, occasionally pointing something out that the White Shutok would quickly analyze and then record. It was obvious that this wasn’t their first time surveying a disaster like this. They moved like a trained team, quickly making their way through Lowlam’s main road.

“Seems like most of the Fifth Breeds were immediately taken care of,” Gold commented, pausing to kneel next to a crystalized Honno that seemed to have been trapped in the middle of feasting on someone. “Is it the same type of glass as the desert?”

White made his way to one of the large pillars that had sprouted, tapping the backs of his knuckles against it. He dragged one finger down the side, a high-pitched squeal like nails on a chalkboard sounding out. “No, this is pure carbon. Nonsilicate” he mused in his shrill voice.

Gold gave a confused tilted of his head, still squatting on his knees.

“Diamond, not glass,” White explained, his voice irritable.

“Ah, you could have just said that,” Gold said, standing up. “We aren’t your usual laboratory peons.”

Black snorted, placing a hand on her hip. “He’s right you know, you could stand to relax when it’s just us. We have no one else out here to perform for.”

A low sigh was all that White replied with, making his way towards the collapsed building in the center of town. “We can make idle conversation on the way back to Radiance. I’m much more concerned with what happened here.”

Gold looked at Black, raising his hands and shrugging. He knew quite well that White was always like this, business or not. He followed at the end of the group, his purple visor scanning around the area for any signs of life; friend or foe.

A sudden whine sounded through the air, quickly transforming into a loud growl. A bear-sized Honno was patrolling the rooftops, several pairs of eyes on its canine head blinking rapidly at the group. It roared again, showing the unfazed group its enormous fangs before it leaped across the entire road and toward the opposite building.

Except, it didn’t even make it halfway across.

A bolt of brilliant and golden lightning streaked across the sky, instantly vaporizing the Honno and turning it to ashes that quickly dispersed and disappeared among the dark sand. Gold hadn’t even paused, and neither Black nor White seemed at all distracted by how quickly it had come and go.

White made his way up the stairs, pulling the datapad out from under his arm as his head tilted up. Standing before him was the hulking Honno that had destroyed the building, frozen in perpetual agony as its eye socket sat empty, unblinking. He walked right up to it, not an ounce of fear in his posture as he typed something on his screen. Black moved past him and inside the inner parts of the building, looking around for any other clues.

Gold let out a low whistle, crossing his arms over his chest as he stood at the bottom of the stairs. “Third Breed huh? Even most of our Exterminators struggle with these,” he remarked. “What do you two think? Skilled Shutok or just a remarkable Birth?”

A loud crack caused him to quickly look to his left, Black having arrived from inside while holding onto one of the large chunks of gemstone like it weighed nothing. She carelessly let it fall to the floor, the crystal holding strong against the impact. Gold and White met her in the middle, the group circling it.

Inside was a young girl, teenage by her size and complexion. Her face seemed to be contorted in fear as if whatever she had seen had petrified her like a Gorgon.

Black looked up and met the gaze of her two companions, hands on her hips. “I think most Shutok would have the control to avoid catching innocents in their field of fire. My hypothesis is a Birth. Stronger than average, too.”

White turned to Gold, nodding as he typed out one final statement. “Agreed. I don’t think I’ve seen any Birth capable of leveling a city. Or that,” he stated, pointing up at the crystalline hand that now clutched a rotting eyeball, coated in dried blood.

“Looks like we’ve got another problem to worry about.” Gold sighed, following the others and heading back down the steps through what remained of Lowlam.” A drop of water splashed on the top of his head, the golden man pausing to look up as he held out his hand. Slowly it began to sprinkle, showering the desert with the first rain it had seen in months. “Guess we should get moving. I’d rather not have to fly through this.”

Black turned to face him, the rain droplets sizzling as they came into contact with her fiery mantle and creating small wisps of steam. “You could always make it stop.”

Gold let the small pool of water that had formed in his palm fall through his fingers, walking past her and letting a melancholy sigh escape from his lungs as he shook his head.

“Nah, we’ve violated Mother Nature enough as it stands.”