At the nickname, Zero cringed. Sweety was not a term he took lightly. Not even his mother, who he loved dearly, could call him by such a name. Thankfully, the Unai seemed satisfied by his answers and soon vanished into the forest.

I think it unwise to pursue at this point, my lord.

Akina, the sound was bitter and filled with frustration. Did I not tell you to keep my posted of all company, mother included.

Zero, Akina's voice whispered throughout Zero's mind, she does not seek your companionship right now. If you were to seek her out, you would put all in grave danger. The one she trains with needs her guidance. When the first door opens, then, and only then, will I aid you in finding her.

So you hind information from me, assuming I can't be trusted with such knowledge? His arms slid over his chest in defiance.

My lord, it's not that I don't trust you. I just... we can't have you softening up to your sisters. If you gave them any indication that your mother was on the island, you know they would go find her--Reno more so than Ryna.

He commented nothing, still seething from Akina's betrayal.

Zero, my lord, you must understand the situation I am in.

Am I not your master, your lord. Did you not swear an oath to me?

Yes.

Then why lie? Why protect her?

It's... complicated. Although I am sworn by oath and blood to you, I still--technically--serve her. As a princess of darkness and hell, her rule and dictation tends to outweigh the rules of a master. If she were not princess, I would not be in conflict.

Funny, Zero smirked though his eyes remained locked on the position the scent came from. I thought I too was royal. Am I not a prince?

Akina found himself at a loss of words. The young man was right. He, like his mother, was of royal blood. Since Aleu never took the throne, she never accepted the title queen. Perplexed and defeated, Akina uttered her remorseful apology.

You need to learn to trust me.

You give away information all too easy, my lord. You need to keep that tongue of yours still.

And if I did that, we would have a Forest Unai stalk us. I have no intention of wasting her efforts. She's here to find Rory's sister, Faline. Abilene cannot have her mind stretched across two tasks--figuring out my loyalties and finding a missing Unai.

Your words have merit. I do understand your position. I suppose if I were in your position, I too would have made the same choices.

With an exhale, Zero glanced down at the katana. "So I wait."

Yes. Wait. When the time comes, she will let me know. I envision it'll be within the next moon or two. The forest holds many secrets Aleu isn't someone to lose track of her goal. Why, years ago she searched endlessly for the man who appeared in her dreams. That man being your father. Aleu will stop at nothing to find what she wants. And, with age and grace, her abilities have truly been honed to near perfection.

---------- Post added 11-18-2015 at 09:48 AM ----------

"Awww," her lip quivered at the comment. She didn't like the idea of minnows being the bottom of the food chain. Her brows furrowed at the realization of such a thing. Why did Ryna label her a minnow? And why did Rory get to be a seal? And how come Ryna was a shark!

Cheeks puffing out, she was just about to complain when her head fell beneath the water. Eyes wide with wonder, she watched as Rory made her retreat. Paddling to the water's surface, she growled. "Ooooh you wanna play it that way," she huffed. "Well you better watch out! This minnow is upgrading to the mighty... MANO SLAYO!"

Ryna, who had taken a seat on the sandy beach stifled a laugh. "Mano slayo? What in heaven's kind of name is that?" Pulling her hair from the bun, she let it lay against her back. In no time the warm sun would dry it until it shined like the freshly blushed fur of a black cat.

Shrugging her shoulders, the blonde forced her eyeballs to drift apart. It was one of her many weird antics--the ability to make one's eyes look derpy as hell.

Rolling her eyes, Ryna reclined back onto the towel she brought. With a light sigh, she closed her eyes and allowed th sun to kiss her white skin. With any luck, she might get the first tan of the season! Or she would burn and become a crispy red lobster. At this point, any color--burnt or not--would do.

Wiggling her butt, Reno made her way over toward Rory. Only, before she could gum the woman to death, a familiar face emerged from the forest. "ABI!" Lunging forward, the blonde broke from the water. Naturally, Ryna was in the line of fire and went from being kinda-dry to completely soaked.

"Reno," she moaned. "Why... why."

"ABI!" Latching onto the other Unai, Reno's grin widened. "Come play in the water or be a poo poo boring head like Ryna!" Not forcing the woman to follow her, Reno released the Forest Unai and went back toward the water's edge.

"Rory!" Her hands flailed a mile a minute. "Come bury me in sand. I wanna be a zombie and break from my sandy grave and then hunt you all down!"

Rolling up on her elbows, Ryna scoffed. "Zombies can't talk Reno. I think you should pick another dead creature to play."

Pouting, she turned her large puppy-dog eyes to Rory. "I don't know what else rises from the ground. What else could I be?"