Author's Note: Not much to put up here other than; I'm not dead and neither is the story.

Enjoy!

-o-

Chapter 10: Not That Different

-o-

-o-

Toriko

-o-

I followed behind my companion, stumbling slightly, as I was half dragged, half lead like an animal on a leash until we were inside the large stone dwelling. The 'treatment' I was receiving was slowly beginning to wear down my last nerve. I was being lead around like a hatchling, and by a fellow Nestmate that was even younger than myself! We were deep within the structure when that nerve finally gave way, and I jerked my to one side before rearing back slightly in an attempt to break free.

"Enough!" I snapped, deciding to bring a talon up and wedge it between her tail and my neck, effectively breaking her hold on me. "I'm a Servant. Not an animal to be led about like some domesticated canine!"

She paused, turning to face me and said nothing at first—instead choosing to shoot me a glare that could rot the bark from a tree. She maintained that glare for some time, looking me up and down as if studying every feather on me—but still, she remained silent.

I stared back at her defiantly, slowly becoming all the more unnerved at her lack of an answer. Apart from her glare, she showed no other emotion and something about that bothered me all the more. "What? Why are you staring at me like that?" I finally asked, feeling that she wouldn't break her silence if I didn't first.

She took a moment longer to study me before her horns began to glow a soft cyan green, signaling the use of her extra sense. "You're a Servant you say? Then start acting like a Servant! What I've been seeing is disgraceful to our kind!" She raged. "Did something happen while I was speaking to our Master?" She took a deep breath, a breath I thought was to calm herself only for her to come back with an onslaught of criticism, one after the other. "What is going on, Brother? Did something else break up there other than your horns?" She asked as she extended a wing and buffeted me with it in the head. "You're change in attitude has been plenty noticeable since all of this began after you changed that Human! First you start answering to that 'Tor-eeko' word he's been calling you like some sort of pet. Then you go as far as to give him that infuriating name you have. And now, to top it all off, you go and kill the Master's Knights! Are you going Feral or something?!"

"What are you going on about?" I growled. "They would have killed him had I not intervened! Have you forgotten the purpose behind all of this? The Human's safety is paramount! You heard it from the Master yourself! You were there when he told me!" I yelled back, slamming a paw against the ground for emphasis. "And I didn't kill them. They aren't even alive damnit!"

"That's far from the point, Brother! If dismembered enough a Knight becomes nothing more than an empty husk." she said with a flourish of a paw. "The Master was not pleased to hear you had destroyed as many Knights as you had. Knights that will have to be replaced! Humans that will have to be captured to replace them! Also—" she brought her tail around and brought it down on the crown of my head like a club—not so softly I might add—"That is for making me lie to our Master a second time for you! I had to convince him that it was a split-second decision you made in the heat of the moment." I brought a paw up to rub at my head while grinding my gums together to halt myself from striking her back in return.

My Nestmate had flown up to the Master's Spire to inform him of what I had done—what I had to do. While he was anything but pleased at having lost a small militia at my paw, her 'lie', as she was calling it, was enough to convince him that my actions were required to ensure the Human's safety—an order given to me by the Master himself. She had remained up there speaking with him until the sky began to darken, whatever else being said was unknown to me.

"It wasn't a lie. You didn't lie. I did what had to be done to keep him alive. Had I not, he would have died. Had he died, there would have been consequences and those consequences would have befallen me. Not you! Have you forgotten the repercussions I'll face if he dies?"

She let out a long, loud groan. "You aren't thinking before you act. You're taking his 'orders' too far. Do you honestly believe he'd expect you to turn on his Knights?" she asked, shaking her head in disbelief. "You're taking these orders too far, and too literally. Now he's going to have to send out even more Servants than he would for tonight's hunt. Servants that, if injured like you were, will be injured because of what you did!"

I said nothing, I just sat there fuming and brooding. Honestly, what could I say to that? Nothing; because what she said was true. The Master, who had just used the siren to summon Servants for the hunt, now needed to summon extra Servants to compensate for the Knight I destroyed. If those extra Nestmates came back harmed it would be because of me. I sat down on my haunches and brought my paws up to drag them down my face in frustration. "Then what! What should I have done. What would you have—" I paused, internally answering my own question.

'I should have done what she did. I should have just grabbed Wings and ran for it, just as she did. It was the sensible option instead of turning on the Nest and attacking the Master's Knights.'

I let out a sigh, letting my paws fall limply to the ground and hanging my head low in shame. "I get it, I should have done what you did. I should have just grabbed Win—the Human and run." I admitted. "I didn't think. Or at least I did, and I chose the Human over the Master's Knights, which is by extension part of the Master himself."

My Nestmate seemed to calm a little at my realization, believing she had made some sort of breakthrough. "Yes, that would have been a better option." She answered, placing her tail under my chin to raise my head. "I can understand why you did it; honestly Brother, I can. You wanted to keep the Human safe and, by extension, keep yourself safe. But you're taking these orders bestowed on you way, waaaay too far. What you truly should have done was let the Human die..."

I gave her a very flat look which spoke loads more than words would have.

"I know what you're going to say, Brother. 'I can't let the Human die,' and maybe you can't...but under the right circumstances, like this one, you could have. The Master doesn't expect you to turn on the Nest for a Human that will inevitably be killed. You just missed your opportunity to wash your paws of that creature out there and rid yourself of his company."

The tension between the two of us was slowly lifting, giving way to a far more lax atmosphere...until she mentioned Wings' eventual demise. It sent a chill up my spine, a sensation that felt as wrong as the thought of standing aside and watching the Hybrid be slaughtered in front of me.

"What is it that makes you so sure he will be...disposed of?" I asked, breeching a topic that I'd been avoiding for so long. What did she know that I didn't? She had finally seated herself on her haunches and I chose to do the same now that we weren't at each other's throats.

"It just makes the most sense," she answered. "If the Master chose to keep him alive he would be in constant danger while in the Nest. The Knights are essentially programed to attack anything with the markings you gave him. Not only that, but how could we inform everyone of our Nestmates of a single Marked-One that was off limits? Our Brothers and Sisters would either try to apprehend him, or kill him—likely the latter."

"Keeping him would require too much effort." I answered after I finally saw the boarder picture. He wasn't in an environment that would leave him alone long enough for him to live. Everything here is out to kill him.

She gave a single nod followed by a shrug. "Basically. Which is also why, in the end, it doesn't matter if something...unfortunate befalls him on the way to the Spire."

"...Right," was all I could say in response as I eyed her suspiciously. I had the undeniable feeling she was making a subtle suggestion, but couldn't know for sure without asking. She raised a brow at my one-word response.

"Why? Do you actually believe he'll be alive long enough to see the sun rise in the morning?" she asked with a laugh.

I stood, deciding to stretch my legs and wings as I prepared to exit the stone dwelling and return to Wings. "I hope not." I answered, trying to sound as genuine and honest as I could. Some part of me knew it was a lie. But not even I could understand why. My Nestmate's muzzle twisted into a crooked, victorious grin while her eyes squinted ever-so-slightly. She suddenly stood and began to slowly prowl towards me with a glint in her eyes.

"You're lying." was all she said with a predatory smile. Before I could protest I realized something I'd forgotten about when she'd first pulled me in here to talk. I glanced at her two horns that were still glowing a soft cyan and I swear I felt my innards squirm in anxiety.

Her horns. Linking to me at the start of our conversation. I had just knowingly lied to her. And she was as much aware of it as I was.

'Shit...', I cursed internally.

"Don't lie to me, Brother. I can sense it. I can feel it, I know you just lied," she said, still casually padding towards me as her horns began to glow more intensely with energy. She was trying to dig deeper into my mind, but was visibly struggling. "I can not for the life of me sense why you care about that Humans safety, and its likely you don't even know yourse—"

TORIKO! TORIKO, HELP!

The two of our ears perked at the shout as we twisted to face the opening of the stone dwelling. Darkness slowly began to encroach all around us as her link to me broke and the light of her horns faded. Neither of us budged, instead remain stiff and ridged while trying to hear...anything.

… … … Silence … … … which was followed with a scream, but no ordinary scream. It was comparable to an animal letting out a final shriek of terror and inevitability when they knew death was only moments away. As quickly as the cry for help was heard, it was whisked away on the wind. For a brief moment the only audible sound was my Nestmate's breathing along with the thudding of my heart in my ears...followed by what sounded like a scuffle happening just outside the stone dwelling in the distance.

'Toriko' — the name; reverberated in my mind along with the image of the only creature that used such a word.

I didn't hesitate a moment longer. I bolted for the exit in a full-on sprint.

It was something I'd reminded myself of when I had first transformed Wings.

'The rules set in place for one Servant dispatching another are strict, and punishable by death for good reason. The Master needs us—just as we need him. We do not exist to kill each other. We exist solely to serve him; hence why we are what we are. Why we are called what we are. We are Servants. Sworn to serve.'

It was this very rule that stopped me from killing the Servant-turned-Human right after his transformation. Too worried was I at the repercussions that would come from slaying a fellow Servant. I wouldn't have been able to prove he was a Human earlier and was the very reason I chose to seek out my Master's guidance. The last thing I wanted was to be thought of as a murderer of my own kind and suffer the same fate as those who had done such a thing.

For the first moment in my life—no. For the first time in my life this rule did—not—matter.

I exited the stone building and came to a sliding halt, taring up grass and dirt with my Nestmate just behind me. Across from us, on the other side of the clearing, was a truly ironic scenario playing out. I just caught the tail end of a small Servant as he scurried underneath a large mound of debris, a fully armored Servant hot on his tail like a cat chasing a mouse.

The Servant, who likely was answering the Master's summons to retrieve a Human sacrifice, was in a prostrate position, head low and hindquarters high as he raked the ground, trying to tear Wings out of hiding. Judging by his slightly greying feathers the Servant was an elder, and stood a full head taller than myself. He snarled as he stuffed a talon back into the rubble, dragging it outward but clearly coming up short. The elder, who was in pursuit of Wings, finally stood to his full height and looked positively furious as he let out something between a growl and a roar. He snarled something inaudible to me at Wings then took several steps back, placing one forepaw in front of the other and crouched slightly as if to brace himself for something. That 'something' became all too clear when he began bringing his tail around to take aim at the hole where Wings was hiding.

The scene was an all too familiar one with the only differences being the Human my Nestmate was hunting was now a small Servant, and instead of myself attempting to capture him I was watching from what felt like a third party perspective and fully aware of what was to come. I took several large steps forward, preparing to break in to a sprint when something clasped around the base of my tail like a vise. I twisted my head around with a surprised growl to see my Female companion's jaws firmly around my tail.

"No, Brother! Don't get involved!" she yelled, half pleading, half demanding while tugging at my tail in a futile attempt to restrain me. I glanced back at the Servant who'd just arrived to see the jewel at the tip of his tail begin to pulse as it drew in energy, and quite a bit of it I might add.

I knew what would come next, and I wouldn't allow it.

I snapped my tail to the side, taring it free from her mouth and broke in to a dead sprint. "No!" she yelled, but I was already halfway across the clearing when it reached my ears. At the same time a small Servant came charging out of hiding with an unintelligible scream. The bolt of energy sailed just over Wings' head, slamming into the place where he'd just been and detonated with enough force to send him sailing head-over-tail. He came to a tumbling halt on his back, staring up at the sky with his eyes rolling around in his head, clearly dazed from the concussive blast as this new Servant ran towards him to close the distance between the two of them.

I was three quarters of the way to intercept my Nestmate when, again, he brought his tail around, thrumming with energy as he drew it in. A pang of worry cut me deep as I, for a moment, believed that I wouldn't make it in time—that I was about to watch from a whole different perspective what I would have done to Wings when we had first met in the Guardian's Tomb.

There was little to no warning for my Nestmate, just an unintelligible, desperate scream that came from my throat.

I CRASHED into my Brother with enough force, with enough momentum that it should have shattered bones. He, however, was protected by the armor he was dawning. The force was absolutely jarring, like I'd ran headlong into a mountain, only for the mountain to not budge a single talon's length. The crushing should my body made when I made contact with the elder's armor was drown out by the blast he had intended for Wings as it veered off course and into the side of the cliff just above us. My Nestmate went down, hard, in a plume of dust as he rolled two times before coming to a sudden rest. The force had driven him backwards twice the length of one of us Servants, carving out a small trench in the ground where he lay. I twisted to Wings who was staring up at me on his back, paws up in the air as if he'd intended to try and catch the blast of energy. The image of how that would have turned out for him crossed my mind, but I pushed it aside to focus on the more pressing matter.

"Get up, Wings! Run! Move!" I ordered, but he just lay there, shell-shocked from what had nearly happened. I lowered my head, nudging him with my snout to roll him on to his stomach before grabbing him by the scruff of his neck. I lifted him just enough so that he was standing on his own and gave him another shove, this time harder, hoping to entice him to move or run, or something—anything!

Movement from the trench where my Nestmate lay caught my eye and I turned to face him, fully aware of what I'd done and not entirely sure of what would come next. He was beginning to stand, shaking his head lightly back and forth to clear his vision when he opened his eyes. At first he looked shocked, stunned that what had struck him down was another member of the Nest, then he took on a look of utter resentment. A small rivulet of blood trickled from his nose to the ground in large drops as it already began forming a small pool on the floor beneath him. He brought a paw up to wipe the blood from his muzzle, letting out a hard snort to clear the rest of the blood from his nostrils.

He looked to me, then to Wings as if trying to understand why I had attacked him. Back where I'd broken free of the Female I could see her mouth hanging agape at what she'd just witnessed—a Servant shedding the blood of another. The elder snarled once, then hissed out "Damned feral!" before breaking in to a sprint with an angry gleam in his eyes.

I repositioned myself to stand in front of Wings who was now standing a short distance behind me with his back up against a wall with nowhere else to go. I decided to stand my ground, flaring my wings out slightly and shifting my weight forward to brace myself. I wouldn't meet him halfway. I'd already made the mistake of attacking him, and didn't want to be further seen as the aggressor.

With a running start he leapt at me. I was prepared to use his momentum against him when I was suddenly distracted by two more Servants diving towards me. The one leading let out a single shout: "Stop! Don't kill it, Brother!"

With my focus on the two of them the Servant caught me off-guard with a mid-air tackle, wrapping his forepaws around my shoulder and head and brought me down to the ground just as hard as when I had collided with him. Between his size and the added weight of his armor there was little I could do. We fell in to a pile of feathers and talons with me being the one underneath. I had landed on my side and was pinned as I desperately tried to roll over on to my stomach. While a poor choice to expose my belly to him, I was left with only one option: get on to my back and use my hindlegs to try and push his incredible weight off of me. I managed to roll on to my back and place both hindlegs against his abdomen and heaved with all my might. He was swinging his talons wildly at me while occasionally dipping his head down to gnash his jaws as he tried for my throat, though he was out of range with my hindlegs pressing him away from me. In the distance I could hear one of the other Servants shouting; "Stop!" but it fell on deaf ears. My legs finally began to fatigue under the strain of keeping his entire weight back and soon I began feeling them shake under his weight. Finally, they buckled, causing my legs to crumple inward and he darted forward to grab me by the throat.

"Get off of him!"

I couldn't locate where the shout had come from, but saw from my right peripheral as something small darted forward, leapt, and lunged for the larger Servant just as he was about to grab hold of me. Wings—not the Female who I had been traveling with—not one of the two Servants who had just arrived intercepted the elder. Wings. Of all the living things to be well within his right to watch me be mauled for stripping him of everything he had, everything he was, leapt for the Servant's head and managed to grab hold of his left ear. The Servant let out a loud yip as the sudden weight caused his head to veer off to the side. I took the opportunity to draw my leg in and threw out a plant a kick into his stomach. My action caused a brief memory to flash back to me of when I had returned from the Master to locate Wings. He had done something similar to me, kicking me in the snout for all he was worth. I made sure to flex my talons backwards to not spill the elder's guts all over me when my kick landed.

The Servant let out a pained groan before releasing a dry and winded cough. I planted my legs against him once more and pushed backwards for all I was worth, causing him to stand upright on his hindlegs momentarily before toppling over on to his back. Wings was smart enough to release his grasp on him before he'd fallen, instead plopping to the ground on his stomach with his limbs spread outward in every direction. I rose up from the ground and leaned down to pluck him off the ground. With a flick of my head I sent Wings sailing behind me where I hoped he was safe. While not the most subtle way of moving him it was far more important to get him away from what was happening and as quickly as possible. Wings landed, rolling a few times before coming to a halt on his side. However, he was fine, and that's what mattered.

The elder had finally rolled back on his stomach to rise up from the ground with one of his paws placed against his underbelly as he, once again, squared off as if to charge me. Before either of us could do anything, a thick line of energy cut deep into the ground in front of the two of us, separating myself from my Nestmate that I'd just been fighting. I glanced off to the side to see the Female's tail-tip glowing and crackling with residual energy. "Enough! Both of you!" She barked. "The two of you are acting like fledglings!"

The elder and I continued staring each other down, glaring at one another while the two newly arriving Servants sprinted over to the elder Servant. "Brother! You didn't kill it already. Have you?"

He glanced at them momentarily before his eyes trained back on me. "No, I didn't have the opportunity!" he said with a groan. "This damned feral attacked me before I could finish the job!"

I let out an annoyed growl at what he had just called me, remembering that the Female had suggested the same thing earlier. I would not allow him, or anybody, to think of me as that, and I thought I may even be able to turn blame on the elder instead.

"I am not a feral!" I hissed. "You were about to kill this Servant!" I growled, gesturing with a paw at Wings who was a small distance behind me. "I did what was necessary to protect him, and in doing so, protect you from being sentenced to death for killing another Servant!"

"Griffon shit!" he snapped. "Are you blind?! That—that thing bears the Master's Mark! No Servant can be branded with that! He is a Human whelp somehow dawning our skin!"

One of the two Servants who'd just arrived took several steps forward to address the Elder. He seemed young, as did the other—roughly around my age or the Female's. "That's what we were told to tell you, Brother. We went to the Master just as you ordered. He's fully aware of the Human-turned-Servant," he said, gesturing towards Wings. "He said one of our Brothers are to bring him to the Spire, and he's to be unharmed." he informed as we all came forward to form a circle.

The elder tilted his head to the side to see around me, getting a better look at Wings who had stepped forward to be standing just behind me. "So, our Master is aware of this creature?" He asked. "How are you wearing our skin, Human?" he spat. All eyes turned to Wings, with myself glancing to him as well.

Wings took on a very flat expression. "Wearing your skin? I'm not wearing your skin, dumb bird! I'm stuck in this—this form!" he yelled, flaring his wings out for a moment only to have them collapse to the ground. I simply shook my head at his display.

" 'Dumb Bird?' " the elder Servant parroted before his jowls curled back. He took a single step forward before I let out a single deep and throaty growl which was enough to make him reconsider whatever he was about to do.

"Very well, so the creature is under the Master's protection. This doesn't take away from the fact that you attacked me in cold blood, and even drew some," the Elder said, using the feathers on his forepaw to wipe away the remaining blood dribbling out of his nose.

"I was told by the Master to protect the Hybrid with my life, or it would be my life. What choice did I have? Which poison would you have chosen, Brother?" I asked, deciding to take a seat on my haunches to hopefully help defuse the situation. He gave me a very disbelieving look, appearing very unconvinced. He turned his gaze to the Female, looking expectantly at her—likely considering her to be the voice of reason.

"He speaks the truth, Nestmate. I was there when the Master placed responsibility of the Human on him. He's to be delivered to him in one piece or he'll be in pieces. However," she said, glancing at me from the corner of her eye, "I do believe he is taking the order too seriously, or the Master is placing him under too much stress." Despite what she had said, he still appeared to be unconvinced.

"Toriko's telling the truth." came the small voice of Wings. Every head glanced down towards him, and then to me as they all—excluding the Female—silently repeated the word he'd chosen to be my name. I had half a mind to tell Wings to shut up for calling me that amongst so many of my kind, but decided to cover that after this entire debacle was taken care of.

Wings began to pace forward until he was standing before the much large Servant, causing him to crane his head upwards to speak directly to him. "If you need any more evidence than that, why don't you go to your Leader and ask him yourself!" He shot back, stamping a paw on the ground to drive his point home. The elder's hackles visibly rose after Wings' little outburst. I used a talon and placed it in front of him, slowly dragging him backwards and behind me once more.

"We could actually do that," the Female said, turning to the elder with the suggestion. All eyes turned to her. "You could go up there and ask him yourself if you need more proof, and I can accompany you up there," she said, but not before eyeing me critically. "I would like to know just how important this Human is to the Master, and whether or not its necessary for my Nestmate to get physical with another for the safety of the Human."

Something about that worried me, or the implications behind it did. "I agree," I said, really just wanting the three new arrivals to leave. "I have orders to fulfill, and night is fast approaching. I'd like to have him to the Master before the Sun falls any further behind the Nest's walls."

The entire party nodded, even Wings, as the Elder and his two companions turned and began spreading their wings. His two companions took to the sky, and just before the Elder did the same he glanced over his shoulder at me. "By the way, Brother. This isn't over." he said coldly. "For blindsiding me as you did, you and I will be meeting in the Arena once your orders have been completed. You and I have unfinished business after today." He brought a paw up again, checking his nose before spreading his wings and taking to the Sky upward towards the Spire.

The Female was prepared to follow behind him when she paused in her steps. "I'll be right behind you three!" she called out. "I need to have some words with my Nestmate." The three seemed uninterested with whatever it was she wanted to speak to me about. I, however, felt a pang of anxiety as she turned and began approaching me in far too calm of a canter. With each step she took it seemed she was placing more of her weight down on her paws.

"First, you're given a once in a life time opportunity when the Knights attacked that Human to rid yourself of his company and put an end to all of this absurdity," she began as her voice seemed to raise an octave with every word before she was simply shouting at me. "Then, I go as far as to tell you to consider your actions before rushing forward. And finally, when the perfect excuse comes why you reasonably couldn't have carried out the Master's orders; you charge forward and attack one of your Nestmates!" she yelled, now practically muzzle to muzzle with me. "All this," she said, raising a paw and gesturing to our surroundings—but mostly towards Wings—"could have been done and over with if you'd only stayed out of that Servant's way!"

She had spoken loud enough for anyone in the surrounding area to hear her, including Wings who's ears had flattened out on his head as he curled in on himself. I gave him a pitying look before turning my attention back to her, this time feeling personally insulted that she thought my actions came from poor judgment. I knew exactly what I was doing.

"What was I supposed to do?!" I barked back, equally furious. "I wasn't going to stand by idly and watch him be killed right in front—"

...I paused. Not because of what I was about to say. Not because I was openly admitting to defend Wings, but because of something I'd head Wings say when he'd first been transformed and I was berating him for his actions. I could even remember the exact words that he'd said about stepping in to challenge me when I'd attempted to take on of his 'people'...

"Not intervene? I wasn't going to stand by idly, again, and watch another Trico take one of my people from me like you animals did nearly a full moon ago!"

The irony of all this was...difficult to describe. Here I was, just like Wings had been not too long ago, defending my actions in how I'd intervened to save a life despite the consequences that could arise from it. She said nothing as she stared me down, having finally taken a couple steps back and giving me some breathing room. Finally, I decided to just say it, not caring what she'd think.

"I'm not going to stand by, idly, and watch him be killed. I've already done enough to him."

She gave me a single harrumph before turning her back on me and walked to where the other Servants had taken flight. "You feel guilty? That's ridiculous. He brought this on himself." She crouched low, ready to take off before making one last request. "I'm going to speak with the Master and make sure nothing that just happened is blown out of proportion. If you see my flying overhead then find a way to signal me to your location."

And just like that, she took off into the sky. I wasn't entirely sure if she planned on coming back or not. And to be quite frank, I didn't really care. She was going forward to consult with the Master most likely, and I was going to push forward with my mission.

I let out a heavy exhale as the adrenalin began to exit my body, leaving me to feel shaky, drained, and aware of the bumps and bruises I had sustained in the tussle I had with the elder. I turned to Wings to look at him—really look at him, look through him and beyond for what he was, not what I saw.

He was a Human—sort of. My enemy—more or less now, I couldn't tell. But above all...he was just a fledgling, or a child as I had heard him call the Humans of his age. His actions, and his actions alone, might have lead him to where he was now but in the end...he was just a fledgling.

He was innocent...

"You alright?" I finally asked after my mind was about as clear as it was going to get. In the fading light I could see his feathers were tinged red with blood, likely from reopening his wounds the Knights had given him. All in all, he look rather disheveled, worn...and depressed. He didn't respond to me, instead just chose to silently stare up at me. "C'mon." I said, using my tail to direct him towards the body of water just behind us. "Lets get a drink so we can move out. I haven't seen you drink or eat anything since you arrived here, and if I'm feeling it I'm sure you are by now too." He gave me a single nod as we padded side by side towards the pool of water, neither one of us saying anything to each other.

I drank deeply and silently, trying to think of nothing, but failing. There was one particular thing on my mind and I wanted it answered. I finally pulled away from the water to glance down at Wings who was staring into the water at his reflection. "Why did you help me?" I asked, causing his one ear to flicker. He eventually lost interest in his reflection and glanced up to me questioningly. "I took you from your home. I stripped you of your body. Why help me after what I've done to you?"

For a few moments he said nothing before responding, sounding very numb. "Well, I guess for the same reason you intervened. I wasn't going to just...watch." A small grin spread across his face, something he'd occasionally do before saying something teasingly...or stupid. "Maybe we're not that different from each other." I said nothing, not knowing how to respond to that for the life of me, and partially agreeing with it. I had, after all, defended my actions with the same logic he had used when he stopped me from taking one of his Village people.

"Besides," he continued, the grin falling from his muzzle and his tone falling back into that numb one. "You might have gotten me stuck like this, but we don't know what your Leader can do. Maybe he'll be willing to help me."

I felt a pang of guilt. I almost wanted to tell him that what the Female had said, that the Master may be able to return him to his body, was only said for his cooperation. I knew better though, and I didn't want to see his reaction when he learned the Master likely couldn't do such a thing. But then again, what do I know of the Master's abilities?

"Why so glum?" I asked, more to get as far away from the subject than anything else.

He stared back down into the pool of water avoiding eye contact with me, even going as far as to avoid it in the water's reflection when I came to stare into it from above him. After a few more moments, he asked: "If you hadn't come...if she had come instead of you...would she have just let me die?"

I hoped to get away from such a serious topic, only to run headlong into another one.

I could lie to him, but what good will it do at this point? If anything, he needs to know who he could trust, and who he can't...

"Yes." I answered plainly. He cringed a little bit in the water's reflection.

"Why do you Tric—Servants hate us so much? Why would one of you just...let something like that happen?" he asked. "I remember what you said earlier, that it's your job, but this goes deeper than just a job. I don't think I could let my greatest enemy just...die in front of me. Not even you." He paused for a moment as if he were thinking something over before he continued speaking. "Well...maybe I could have before all of this. But that was before realizing how sentient you Trico are."

I paused for a moment to consider whether or not I should actually answer that question, but decided against it. Some things were better left unsaid. "Maybe when you're...older...I'll tell you," I said, sticking out my tongue out at him in jest. He responded with a heavy eyeroll, finally glancing at me in the water's reflection. "Now lets start moving. We only have a little ways to go with the route I have in mind."

Some things are better left unsaid. After all, I was already hiding from him the fact that it was the Female Servant who had taken his friend—something I desperately wanted to remain secret. After all, What was the harm in keeping one more secret from him?

If he wasn't privy to knowing it was the Female that forced him to later intervene with my taking the 'child' from his village like I'd originally intended, then he definitely didn't need to know of the history between Servant and Humans in the long forgotten past.