Hey there! I'm back! I updated pretty quick this time didn't I? I was actually planning on posting this one with the last one but I decided to wait a bit. I don't have much at all to say about this chapter so you can get started right away! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Vesperia or the characters. I'm just borrowing them for a while.

Happy Reading!

Chapter Four: Stormy Seas

Estellise sighed as she stood at Flynn's side. The Commandant had allowed her to fill in as his lieutenant in Sodia's absence. Although even if Flynn hadn't granted her the status of temporary lieutenant she would have been at his side anyway. She was worried about the young knight. Since Yuri had gone missing, he wasn't eating much and she could tell by his wan face that he hadn't been sleeping well. That fact had been confirmed to her the night before when she had been woken by Flynn screaming Yuri's name in the middle of the night.

"Flynn are you sure you want to do this?" She asked, "Couldn't you just stay in Zaphias and have the Schwann brigade look for Yuri? You really don't look well."

Flynn shook his head, "I couldn't do that," He responded softly, "It's my fault Yuri's missing…I should have been there with him when he confronted Alexei."

"Flynn," Estellise said, "It's not your fault. I'm sure Yuri would yell at you for blaming yourself."

"I know," Flynn said, "But I can't help it…I'm worried about him."

"Commandant Flynn," Leblanc called as he walked up to the pair, "Lady Estellise. We've receive word that the area around Terca Lumireis is experiencing inclement weather. There have been reports of driving, sheet-like rain, strong winds and swells of up to three and a half meters sir. Sky to ground lightning has also been reported in that area sir. We should really reconsider until the weather calms."

"I cannot do that," Flynn said sharply, "My friend is out there somewhere and I will find him."

"But sir…" Leblanc said, "It's been four days odds are Lowell is…"

"Don't you dare say it!" Flynn exclaimed dangerously, "Yuri is still out there somewhere! Lieutenant Leblanc ready your brigade we embark in an hour!"

"Y-Yes Sir!" Leblanc stuttered as he saluted the young commandant. He had never seen Flynn act like that.

"Flynn," Estellise murmured, "We really should wait. It's dangerous to go out in such weather."

"We're running out of time," Flynn said, "If we don't find Yuri soon…we may never find him at all…I don't want my best friend to die…"

"I don't want Yuri to die either," Estellise said, "But I don't want anything to happen to you either. If you continue the way you have been…you'll hurt yourself."

"I'll be alright Lady Estellise," Flynn said, "We should get going."

Flynn sighed. Just as Leblanc had said, the weather around the center of the world was indeed bad. The rain was coming down in sheets and the waters were rough.

"This is crazy Flynn!" Estellise called out trying to be heard over the din of the weather, "You're not going to be able to find him under these conditions! Come in the cabin before you make yourself sick or fall overboard!"

"I can't give up yet!" Flynn yelled back, "I know this time we'll find him!" He was trying to keep himself optimistic but the foul weather could be seen as an omen that the raven-haired man was not going to ever be found. Flynn was trying to keep himself thinking that way but the weather in this part of the ocean was usually fair. Storms such as this one rarely occurred in the inner ocean. "Please Yuri…be out there somewhere…alive and well…" he thought.

He wasn't one to pray but he found the need to…for his best friend's well being. He wasn't sure if it was the rough seas or the fact that he was soaked to the bone or the fact that he hadn't slept much in the past four days but for whatever reason and extreme fatigue and weakness was setting in and holding strong. He gripped the edge of the ship as the dizziness brought him to his knees. "Maybe I should have listened to Lady Estellise..." He thought.

"Flynn!" Estellise cried as she saw a large swell approaching the bow, "Look out!"

Flynn looked up in time to see the nearly four meter swell nearly swallow the ship he was standing on. The next thing the young commandant knew he was surrounded on all sides by a suffocating black mass and his exhausted mind went blank.

"Flynn!" Estellise cried when she saw that when the water receded from the bow Flynn was nowhere to be seen. She quickly pounded on the cabin door, "Someone help! Help!"

"Lady Estellise," One of Flynn's knight called as he opened the door, "What's wrong?"

"Hurry…" She sobbed, "Flynn's fallen overboard! Hurry you need to save him!"

The knight wasted no time calling from reinforcements then leaping into the waters after his commander.

A few moments later the Knight broke the surface of the water struggling to hold Flynn's head above the water, "Hurry," He gasped as he held Flynn up to one of the knights on the deck, "He's not breathing…"

Estellise nearly cried as one of the other knights pulled the commandant to safety, "Let me help!" She cried, "Please! He can't die! I can't lose him too!"

The second knight place Flynn on the deck of the ship and started to perform CPR on the young commander, "He'll be alright Lady Estellise," He said. Flynn started to cough and choke as vacant hazy blue eyes opened, "Commandant! Commandant Flynn! Are you alright!"

Flynn didn't respond. His blue eyes rolled up into his head as he lost consciousness again.

"Quick get him inside the cabin!" Estellise ordered.

"Lady Estellise," The first knight asked, "What should we do?"

"We are going to abort the mission and return to Zaphias," She said, "Flynn is in no condition to be out here like this."

"Alright," The second knight responded, "I'm going to go set off the flair then and tell the other boats that we're aborting."

"Thank you sir," Estellise said, "I will be sure to inform Flynn of your courageous deeds when he's well again."

"Ma'am!"

Estellise hurried to the captain's quarters of the ship after the first knight, "Is he really going to be alright?" She asked.

"Don't worry he'll be alright," The knight said, "He just needs to rest."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Do you want me to wait outside while you change his clothes?"

"Yes,"

Estellise stepped out of the small room. She was still scared. Even though she knew that Flynn was going to be alright she was still worried. She knew that the longer that Yuri was missing the longer Flynn would neglect his own health. She shuddered as she thought about what would happen to Flynn if Yuri never turned up again. She shut her eyes as she tried to stop the tears from falling.

Her thoughts were interrupted as something tugged at the bottom of her armor and whined. She looked down and saw Yuri's dog Repede sitting at her side, "What are we going to do Repede?" She asked as she knelt next to the dog, "Yuri's missing and Flynn's not well. What's going to happen to them?"

The dog whined in response. He seemed to have a good idea what was going on with his master and friend. The dog also knew who had caused Yuri to fall from the top of Zaude however he would take that secret to the grave with him. He had no way of telling the humans what had happened the last time they knew of Yuri's whereabouts.

"Lady Estellise, Flynn is all set," The knight said as he opened the door, "Flynn's probably not going to wake for a while, he's feverish."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Thank you. Come on Repede. We should care for him the best way we know how."

Flynn was confused when he came to in his bed. The last thing he remembered was a black mass swallowing him whole. He went to sit up but he was met by an intense dizziness and had to lie back down. "What happened?" He thought as he looked around the room, "Why am I back in Zaphias?"

"Oh Flynn you're awake," Estellise said softly, "I'm so glad."

"What happened?" Flynn asked softly.

"You collapsed and fell overboard," She responded, "As soon as we rescued you I gave the orders to return to Zaphias. You're running a fever right now and you're on bed rest until you're completely better."

"But the search missions," Flynn said.

"The Schwann brigade was kind enough to continue the missions," Estellise said, "And as soon as she saw you, Sodia decided against going on leave to help with the efforts as well. She said that she couldn't just leave the brigade without its commander and lieutenant. She's temporarily taken charge of your brigade."

"I see," Flynn said as he sighed, "I can't believe it…I did it again Estellise…I once again abandoned Yuri in his time of need…because of my weakness."

"Flynn this isn't your fault!" Estellise exclaimed, "You're ill. You shouldn't be worrying about anything except resting."

"I was stupid Estellise," Flynn muttered, "I was so worried about Yuri that I forgot about myself…I let myself get this way…If Yuri was here he would be reprimanding me to no end…I can imagine him yelling "what the hell do you think you're doing, Flynn?" We really need to find him Estellise…"

"I know we do," Estellise responded, "But for now, just get some rest."

Flynn sighed and shut his eyes. Four days of not sleeping well was taking its toll on him, "Estellise…how long has it been?" He asked, "Since Yuri went missing?"

"Today makes day five," She said, "You've been unconscious for about a day."

"I'm beginning to believe that Yuri's not coming back," Flynn muttered, "Odds are, his body is somewhere on the sea floor…Continuing the search would be pointless…"

"Flynn!" Estellise gasped, "How can you just give up?"

"Yuri's never gone missing for this long before," Flynn said, "There was one time he went missing for about a day but he's never done anything like this before. There's no trace of him anywhere near Zaude I mean unless he has wings that he never told anyone about we would have found around there."

"Do you think there's some chance that someone found him before we did?" Estellise said, "Phaeroh was seen in that area, could he have rescued Yuri?"

"I don't know…" Flynn whispered. His mind was beginning to shut down on him, "I'm going to get some sleep. Wake me if you get any information on Yuri's whereabouts."

"Okay," Estellise said, "Sleep well Flynn."

Estellise sighed as she placed a cold cloth on Flynn's forehead. She hoped that the young commandant would sleep well that night, he wasn't going get any better if he didn't rest.

She sighed, "Please Yuri…be out there somewhere for Flynn's sake, as well as mine…" She prayed silently.

Khroma sighed as dawn broke on the sixth day since the dark-haired boy's rescue. Yuri's fever had finally broken and the stab wound was healing nicely. But she was worried about what would happen when the boy woke up. She knew that Yuri would be eager to find his friends and the likelihood of him venturing out alone despite the wound was high. And while the wound was starting to scab over it wouldn't take much for it to reopen. She had been instructed to leave on the morning of the sixth day but she was reluctant to leave. Yuri's body had been through a lot in the past six days due to the wound and she wanted to make sure he was alright. She was almost tempted to call for one of the castle's healers to heal the wound but she would obey Duke's orders for a little while longer. Duke would be back to take Dein Nomos back from Yuri that evening and if the tell-tale signs of the rather severe injury that the boy had sustained were not present, Duke would not be pleased.

She checked the wound one last time then replaced Yuri's shirt and jacket. She left the belt on the bed it was normally tied right where the wound was and she didn't want to aggravate it. She then left a special gummy on the small table as well as the medication she had been using to prevent infection.

She then placed her hand on Yuri's forehead, "Good luck Yuri Lowell," She whispered. She placed a book beside Yuri's head then left the room.

Flynn felt a bit better the next time he woke up. He found Sodia and Estellise sitting in his room talking quietly. He couldn't make out what they were saying but both girls looked upset and it didn't bode well.

"What's going on?" He asked as he sat up.

"Captain!" Sodia exclaimed, "You're awake!"

"Flynn, how are you feeling?" Estellise asked.

"What were you two talking about?" Flynn asked.

"We were just discussing what happened at Zaude," Estellise said.

"I see," Flynn muttered, "So there's still no word?"

"We've just heard rumors sir," Sodia said, "And none of them are from reliable sources."

Flynn sighed, "Sodia," he said, "I want you to issue a warrant for Yuri Lowell's arrest."

"Flynn!" Estellise cried.

"Make it high priority and have it distributed to every town," Flynn said, "I'm sorry Lady Estellise. If by some chance Yuri had been rescued this will be the quickest way to find him."

"I understand," Estellise said, "It is a good idea…I just hope he's alright…"

There was a knock at the door, "Come in," Flynn called.

"Captain," Witcher called as he entered the room, "Alexei's personal attendant, Khroma, is requesting a meeting. What should I tell her? You're still not well."

"It's fine," Flynn said as he sat up a bit straighter, "As long as she doesn't a bit of informality I can meet with her."

"Alright," Witcher said, "I'll send her in."

"Commandant," Khroma greeted as she entered the room, "I'm sorry to bother you while you are ill."

"What is it Khroma?" Flynn asked.

"After the whole issue with Alexei, I will be stepping down from my post," She said, "There are other matters that I must attend to."

"Alright," Flynn said, "I'll start the paperwork just as soon as I'm well again."

"Thank you commandant," Khroma said, "And there is one more thing. I received word that the child you are searching for had been rescued and will be returning to Zaphias later this evening. Whether the word is true or not I cannot confirm, for now, it is just hearsay."

"Thank you Khroma," Flynn said, "Once I am well I will formally discharge you from the service."

"Get well soon commandant," Khroma said as she bowed then left the room.

"Do you think what she said is true?" Estellise asked.

"I really hope so," Flynn muttered, "Is this one of the rumors you heard?"

"No," Sodia said, "We've heard nothing of this sort. All of the rumors we heard have been completely ridiculous. Like the rumor that Yuri had been rescued by mermen and is now living in a cave on some remote island. What should we do about it sir?"

"If you want I can go walk Repede around the Lower Quarter later on," Estellise said, "He's been down lately. Perhaps a walk around the Lower Quarter will help to cheer him up."

"That sounds like a good idea," Sodia said, "Flynn's ill so he wouldn't be able to investigate and…I doubt Lowell would want to see me…Lowell also seems to trust Estelle…I mean Lady Estellise…"

"You can call me Estelle, Sodia," Estellise said, "I really don't mind."

"It's decided then," Flynn said, "Lady Estellise will patrol the Lower Quarter after sundown tonight with Repede." He paused, "Hopefully the rumor is true…"

Poor Flynn's really having a hard time. The lack of sleep and proper nutrition is really starting to catch up with him. And Estelle is trying to stay strong too but how much longer until she cracks under pressure? What were Sodia and Estellise talking about though, we may never know. This story is nearly done there's maybe one or two chapters left to write. I hope everyone is enjoying it so far! Until next time!

Ex-Shark-V-005