As Lord Fried'rich passed out of his sight behind the sliding door, Imakarum wondered just what the true thrust of the Fifth Zoalord's words had been. Lord Fried'rich couldn't really be implying that Kenji had had anything to do with the failure of the Zoanoids that Imakarum had sent to watch over him and make sure that he was safe, could he? No, that would not have made any sense. Kenji was young, and he had never been taught how to command more than one Zoanoid at once: his mind would not have been able to cope with the strain, Imakarum was sure, and so it was best not to have the temptation there in the first place. Kenji did sometimes overestimate his own strength when his desire to please grew particularly strong, Imakarum knew. Putting those thoughts out of his mind, Imakarum turned and walked back to the laboratory where Kenji was resting while he healed.
While saddened that Kenji had been hurt again, he knew that his son would be able to recover from this latest ordeal. He still had the protection of the other Zoalords and Imakarum himself. Kenji would always be able to count on Imakarum's protection; nothing would ever stop him from watching over his son. It was what Miaka would have wanted, and more than that it was what he wanted.
Kenji was so small and helpless, in spite of the fact that his son possessed the powers and abilities of a Zoalord. Lord Alkanphel had made it quite clear that Kenji's powers as a Zoalord were only half as strong as a fully developed Zoalord like himself or Lord Fried'rich. Kenji was essentially a Proto-Zoalord who had had its lifespan extended to match that of a true Zoalord. Whenever he considered asking Lord Hamilcal to reprocess Kenji so that his son would have the full powers of a Zoalord, Imakarum would always stop short of actually requesting that very thing. There was no real reason for him to request that of Lord Hamilcal: Kenji was powerful enough to enjoy himself, and since he had never had a chance to fully experience the power of a true Zoalord, he had no way to know what it was that he was missing.
And so Imakarum was satisfied to let Kenji remain as he was, safe within the walls of Chronos. There was only the matter of finding more competent Zoanoids to watch over Kenji when he was out on an assignment where Kenji's presence would be a hindrance to his mission. That task would most likely occupy a fair amount of his time, and with Kenji unconscious in the processing-tank, there was really no better time than now to do what he had to do.
Imakarum thought that he would try recruiting Hyper Zoanoids to be Kenji's guardians when he himself had to be elsewhere. However, there was the simple fact that all of the Hyper Zoanoids within Cloud Tower belonged to Lord Fried'rich. Imakarum would have to consult with Chronos Japan's Overlord before he made any precipitous decisions—especially those regarding the elite soldiers of Chronos Japan.
Patting the processing-tank that held Kenji's sleeping form, Imakarum turned and left the laboratory. He needed to find a group of Hyper Zoanoids that Lord Fried'rich would let him use to keep Kenji safe during those times that he had to leave him behind. The negotiations probably wouldn't take much time, as Lord Fried'rich was a gentle and understanding person. Sometimes Imakarum thought that Lord Fried'rich lacked the constitution of a true Zoalord, but at times like these he was thankful that the Fifth Zoalord had retained so much humanity as to care about the welfare of those weaker than himself.
XxXxX
As he made his way back to his room, Ryan couldn't help but think back on the aggressively weird things that had just happened to him, but there wasn't really any question in his mind that it had been real.
)Hey, if you think it was weird for you, kid, then what do you think it was like for me? I'm the one who doesn't have a body anymore, remember?(
)Yeah, and I'm the one who so generously offered to share my brain with you. So button it; I want to get some sleep, and I don't want you bugging me while I'm trying to doze off.(
)Fine; whatever. Enjoy your rest, kid.(
Blinking as he came back to himself, Ryan noticed the wall he was heading towards just a bit too late to do anything but walk into it and bang his nose.
"Ow."
"Ryan, are you all right?" Mizuki asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Ryan said, as he winked and made an effort to grin rakishly at Mizuki. "I guess I just wasn't paying attention to the big, solid wall right in front of me."
"I guess you really weren't," Mizuki said, giggling softly. "Just make sure you pay attention from now on—I wouldn't want you hurting yourself."
"Yeah, there are plenty of people waiting in line to do that," Ryan said, winking at Mizuki again. "I wouldn't want to deprive them of the opportunity. Anyway, I'm feeling a little bushed, so I'm going to go take a nap."
"All right, Ryan. I'll tell Sho and Agito not to bother you."
"Thanks, Miz; you're wonderful."
)You know, kid, you're disturbingly good at covering your tracks like that.(
)I thought I told you I didn't want to talk to you.(
)Don't be pissy, kid. Besides, you really shouldn't try to cover things like this up—from what I've been seeing, these guys are your friends. Well, all except for Makashima. With how he acts, I don't think that guy has any real friends.(
)I. Need. Sleep.(
)Fine. Talk to you later.(
Moving out of the way just before he'd have banged his left shoulder on the threshold of his door, Ryan opened said door and stepped into his room. The bed, fluffy and inviting and right in front of him, was the only thing that Ryan cared about now that he was back here. Sparing some attention to kick the door closed behind him, Ryan untucked his shirt and pulled it off. Tossing it behind him even as he made for the bed, Ryan kicked off his shoes and left them where they dropped. Yawning as he pulled off his pants, Ryan sat down on the bed at last. Yanking his pants off of his legs, Ryan tossed them onto the floor and got under the covers. Pulling the covers up to his neck, Ryan fell asleep just as quickly as if someone had hit him over the head with a sledgehammer.