For the next few minutes Jellal could hear nothing but the sound of his own rapid heartbeat. Taking a deep breath, he dove under. He found Romeo straining against something at the bottom of the pool. At first Jellal thought it might have been a tree branch or a vine that Romeo caught his foot on, but looking closer, he saw that someone was down there and trying to drown him. Jellal couldn't make out who it was, but he could see well enough to strike the wicked person right across the face with his knife, forcing him or her to release the boy.

Then Jellal grabbed his brother and surfaced, swimming toward land while keeping Romeo's head above water. By the time they made it back, Romeo had gone limp and unconscious which made the young man's heart rate sound like a clap of thunder. He desperately laid the boy down on his back and began to perform mouth to mouth on him.

"Breathe!" He meant it as command but it sounded more like a plea. "Breathe! Just take a breath! Breathe! Breathe! Breathe damn it!"

Finally Romeo started to cough and throw up water. After giving his little brother a few seconds to catch his breath, the poor man couldn't wait any longer. He carefully put his arms around his neck, feeling both overwhelmed and relieved.

"Je...Jellal." Romeo choked as he came to and instinctively put his own arms around his older brother for safety, sobbing into his shoulder.

"You're okay Romeo." Jellal panted. "You're okay. Everything's alright now. I'm here. I won't let you die. Ever."

For a moment all the two brothers could do was just sit there on the ground and hold each other, trying to emotionally recover from the near death experience that they had just gone through. Romeo was crying but it was Jellal who had been the most frightened. He wasn't sure what he would have done if he had failed to save the boy. He was the oldest child, it was his obligation to protect the youngest one. To make sure nothing would happen to him when they're father couldn't be there, and he had almost failed that obligation.

"Jellal." Romeo finally said when it occurred to him that there was no one else here. "Where's Wendy?"

It took a few seconds before Jellal even thought about Wendy. That's right, she had run off to find out what that strange sound was. With Romeo still in his arms, Jellal quickened his pace and started to look for the girl.

"Wendy!" He called. "Wendy where are you?"

No response. He walked into the tall grass while carrying Romeo, his eyes scanning the entire area for just one sign of her. But there was nothing. Nothing at all. She had completely vanished without a trace.

But wait! There was something that had been left behind. Jellal found foot prints, small ones that would typically belong to a young girl. He followed the tracks and then studied how they changed. They stopped, and he found a torn piece of fabric found among the foot prints. Panic appeared in his heart again as his brain made a terrifying deduction.

"Where is she Jellal?" Romeo asked sounding scared. "Where is she? She ran off to get help, right? Or she hid because she got scared or something? She's alright, right? Tell me she's alright!"

But Jellal didn't know if he could. Without a word, he took Romeo home to their father and then informed Grandeeney of what happened. It wasn't long before she had everyone looking high and low for Wendy. Searching the whole savanna and the whole jungle if they had to.

"We have to find her." The giantess declared. "She could be hurt. Oh my poor darling."

Jellal was beside himself with guilt.

"Forgive me Grandeeney." He said on his knees, unable to face her. "I should have gone after her the instant she ran off but Romeo was drowning and-"

And someone was trying to drown him. In all the panic, he had forgotten that detail. It wasn't some random drowning, someone had deliberately tried to kill his brother, and it's in that exact moment Wendy goes missing. Coincidence? He thought not.

"Excuse me Grandeeney, I need to go back and look at something."

"That is not necessary Jellal." Faust spoke up. "Because as of now you are dismissed from your service toward my family."

"What?!"

"Faust what is the meaning of this?" Grandeeney spoke up. "You cannot dismiss Jellal, he is the greatest warrior in our unit and our most loyal ally."

"Yet my niece disappeared on his watch."

"But it couldn't have been helped Faust." Grandeeney said. "Romeo was drowning."

"He should have made sure my niece was safe before going to rescue the boy. The priorities to the heir of this tribe must always come first. There can be no exceptions."

"I can understand that sir." Jellal said. "But at least give me a chance to correct my mistake. Allow me to redeem myself by letting me aid the search for Wendy."

"No, you failed to protect my niece, therefore we can never trust you again. Although I never really trusted you with her in the first place."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well how safe is Wendy really when she's around you? For all we know, she could have run away just to get away from you. Maybe she thought you were a threat to her."

"That's ridiculous. Why would she think that?"

"I've seen how you look at her, how you touch her. What dirty little thoughts have been going through your mind, I wonder."

The revulsion and rage was instant in Jellal.

"Just what the hell are you implying?!" He demanded to know.

"Faust I will not hear this!" Grandeeney cried out in terrified disgust. "How dare you accuse Jellal of such a thing! Apologize-"

Suddenly Faust drew back and struck Grandeeney right across her face, knocking her down.

"How dare you address me in such a manner! I am your chief! You will speak to me with respect, you overgrown freak of nature!"

Jellal was instantly at Grandeeney's side and helping her back onto her feet while giving Faust a hate-filled glare.

"I want you out of here now Jellal! And you Grandeeney will watch your tongue from now on or you'll be leaving as well!"

"Yes sir." Grandeeney replied meekly. Normally she wouldn't take this kind of abuse, but she couldn't risk losing her position here, for if she did, that would mean leaving Wendy and the giantess wouldn't risk that for anything in the world.

Jellal said nothing, but he did leave as commanded. However he would not give up his search for Wendy. Dismissed or not, long ago, Jellal had made a promise to Wendy's father as he lay bleeding to death on the ground. With his last breath, the former chief pleaded with the boy to look after and protect his daughter no matter what, calling him the most loyal and true warrior he had ever known. Jellal then swore a sacred oath to guard the chieftess to be with his life and he intended to keep that oath.

But he had to be clever and discreet about this. Since the death of Chief Baldur, Jellal had always suspected treachery among the tribe and at the moment he didn't know who to trust. So he waited until the pitch black of night to slip out of his hut and begin his search.

Taking his spear, a satchel of important items, and a lit torch, he went back to the scene of the disappearance and carefully studied the footprints that had been made in the dirt. He discovered that there had been two sets of foot prints. One small, obviously Wendy's, and the other much bigger. Big like a man's. Then after examining the shape change of Wendy's foot prints, he deduced that there had been struggle here, which could only mean one thing. Wendy had been taken.

"I knew it." He said out loud.

"Knew what?"

Jellal was suddenly startled by the unexpected appearance of another. Though his panic faded quickly when he turned around to see that it was only Romeo.

"For goodness sake! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!" He snapped. "What are you doing out here anyway? You should be home in bed!"

"I saw you sneak out and I knew you were going to find Wendy. I wanted to go with you."

"Go home Romeo. This is man's work."

"I'm a man."

"No you're a boy."

"I'm thirteen. Father says that's the beginning of manhood."

"You're still too young to be out here like this. Now I'm taking you home right now and-"

"No!" He declared stamping his foot. "I'm going to find Wendy! She's my fiancé, right? You said do yourself! Well isn't it my duty as her future husband to find her?"

"Romeo you almost drowned today and you haven't completed training on combat, tracking, or anything relating to that. You're in no condition to go on a search and rescue."

"I don't care! Wendy is my best friend and I'm not just going to wait around and do nothing! I'm going to go out and find her! With it or without your help! And you can take me home and tell Father, and keep me locked inside but I'll just find a way out and look for her on my own!"

Jellal could tell by Romeo's eyes that he meant every word of that. One way or another, he was going to somehow participate in this rescue mission and at this point Jellal had only two choices. Let the boy join him which would give him a better chance of survival or forcibly take him home, and then later Romeo could sneak out, look alone, and end up killed.

"Fine. You can search with me, for now." He said. "And you are to do exactly as I say. I mean it, you wander off or disobey me just once, and I'm taking you straight home and tying you to your bed if I have to."

"Okay." Romeo nodded. "Now what do you know? What have you found so far?"

"Well I don't want to alarm you but I have reason to believe that Wendy was abducted. Earlier today, whoever pulled you underwater, I think it was meant to distract me so someone could grab her."

"You don't think..." Romeo paused fearfully. "You don't think they'd hurt Wendy, do you?"

Again Jellal didn't know if he could answer that question, but he didn't want to scare his brother. He quickly changed the subject.

"Why don't you tell me about that person who tried to drown you? Did you get a good look at who it was?"

"No. I had my eyes closed the entire time. I was too scared to look."

"Alright, then we'll have to rely on these tracks since they're the only clues we have to work with." Jellal raised the torch higher up so the both of them could see where they walked. "Stay close Romeo and pray that all will be well."

"Jellal."

"Yes Romeo?"

"Wendy isn't going to die out here like her father did right?"

"Don't think like that Romeo. Just look. Look for any clue or sign of her."

And with that said, the brothers set off into the night seeking out their friend and praying from the bottom of their hearts that she would be found before it was too late.