Zac and Lyla had returned to the guest house where Bella and Mimmi were waiting.
"Alright you two are grounded!" announced Mimmi.
"But why?" asked Zac.
"Well, both of you disobeyed our orders." Mimmi replied.
"What?! But we only went to the beach. We didn't go to any of those secret locations, I swear!" Lyla answered.
"But you still got into trouble," added Bella. "And Lyla, you lost your moon ring! How could that happen?"
"I was trying to befriend another mermaid. She wanted to take a look at my ring, then stole it off me!"
"Who is that mermaid you lot saw?" asked Mimmi.
"She said her name was Principal Santos," said Zac.
"Rita? She's decided to come onto land?" questioned Bella.
"You all know her?" asked Zac. "Because she's also my school principal."
"There are many things you don't know about mermaids Zac," replied Mimmi. "As I told you before, not all mermaids are good like us. Some are evil and want to destroy the human civilisation. Rita was once part of that villainous group."
"But why does she want to stop us?" questioned Zac.
"I don't really know," replied Bella. "But we have to get Lyla's moon ring back."
"How are we going to do that?" asked Lyla. "We don't even know where she might be."
"If I'm right, then Rita will either be on Mako Island or in her grotto that she made close to the Sun Coast rock pool. We'll head to the rock pool area first and then to Mako Island," announced Mimmi.
Zac and the mermaids then left the guest house and entered the water, swimming out to the beach. They sensed an underwater cave nearby and swam into it. Eventually, they saw an opening and swam upwards to reach it.
At Rita's grotto
Rita was alone resting inside the grotto when she heard the splash of water. She walked over to the pool and saw Zac and the mermaids emerge.
"Why are you all here?" she asked rudely.
"I'm here for my moon ring!" announced Lyla.
Rita was feeling apprehensive, as she questioned Zac. "You're a Rebel Mermaid just like them! But how?"
"I had no idea I was part merman until I fell into the Mako Island pool one full moon night. These mermaid girls found me and told me the whole story, about how my dad fell in love with a mermaid named Nerissa."
"I know her and trust me Zac, you don't want to associate yourself with her or her companions."
Zac was getting angry as he tried to use his powers, but Bella and Mimmi restrained him.
"Calm down Zac, I'm sure we can talk it over with her" Mimmi spoke.
"Why do you want to turn your back on us? And the hard work that we have done to try and keep the peace?" asked Bella.
"Because humans are inherently evil too! I've seen it with my own eyes!" protested Rita.
"Well then tell us more," commented Mimmi.
"It started when you and Bella were still out with Nerissa doing your so-called duties to protect the human civilisation. Back then, I was a kindergartener responsible for training young mermaid hatchlings so that they would have the skills to go off and be independent."
"So that's why you still like kids and became a school principal today," said Zac.
Rita was feeling upset as she tried to avoid thinking about her past memories.
"Unfortunately, the great drought starting in 1967 affected my plans. There were far fewer hatchlings that year and the Homeworld pod decided to abandon their nymph breeding program. I left my role as a Kindergartener and was alone."
"So that's why I was left to fend for myself. You should be ashamed of yourself!" yelled Lyla.
"Look, I'm sorry I wasn't there to teach you Lyla. If I had known you survived I would have tried to find you. But anyway, back to the story. I went onto land and met a handsome man, Harry Santos. I fell in love with him, and we wanted to live a life together."
"What happened to you two then?" asked Mimmi.
"Unfortunately, my Homeworld colleagues found out about our forbidden love. Veridia, one of the Mermaid council leaders, chastised me for it. She pointed out that his brother George was a leading figure in the fishing industry and highlighted all the controversial practices that he was involved with."
"But why are you alone now? Don't you want to fight back against those who hurt you?" questioned Bella.
"One day, when Harry and I were helping George with his fishing business, Veridia led an attack on us. She was trying to kill George, but Harry got in the way. I was devastated following the death of my loved one, and I didn't want anything to do with sea life from that point on."
"Surely, your experience must have made you realise how evil those Homeworld pod mermaids are." Mimmi commented.
"Well, I see that both sides have their flaws. I'm done talking with you lot and I don't want to see you in my home ever again!"
"Speaking of mermaid, I wonder what the school would think if their principal was one." Zac added.
"You're not serious?!" questioned Rita.
"I think he is," replied Lyla. "And I'll have my moon ring back!"
Rita begrudgingly handed Lyla her moon ring, as Zac and the mermaids then re-entered the pool to swim back home.