When Worlds Collide

Chapter 23

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.