A/N: Disclaimer: Refer back to Chapter 1.

WARNING: OOC, CRUDE LANGUAGE, SUGGESTIVE SITUATIONS

Chapter 3: Turbulence

Serph rushed to the control room with narrowed eyes.

"What's going on?" he asked sternly.

The captain of the ship looked at him with an equally-narrowed pair of eyes, "Sir, we've picked up a massive storm up ahead. It's an Arctic Cyclone. It's wreaking havoc on our sensors. What are your orders?"

Serph gritted his teeth, "How long?"

The captain's blue eyes burned through his silver ones, "A few hours."

Serph growled, "How far are we from the nearest land?"

"A day."

'Damn!' Serph thought; what was he supposed to do now?

Turn back? If he did, he'd come back a failure. He gritted his teeth; there was nothing more than he loathed than failing…

But if he didn't, the lives of his tribesmen could be at risk.

But still…! He was but a day to the nearest new land! A new land that was…unknown…How it beckoned for him…It was but his objective…

It was pity that he couldn't reach it…

He sighed internally. No; the lives of his men were more important. There was no sense in risking them in that storm.

"Sir! It's coming! It'll be here in an hour!"

Serph's thoughts were interrupted as he heard the helmsman, "I thought it wouldn't be here for a few more hours!" he said, growling.

The helmsman looked at him steadfastly, "It's a major storm growing at an accelerated rate!"

"Turn the ship around! Get us out of here!" he said resolutely.

"You heard the leader!" yelled the captain.

Serph, ignoring the orders being given for the ship's turnaround, walked over to the glass window and there looked outside. The skies had long grown dim and they looked displeased…It was as if the gods were angry…

He listened…but there wasn't as much as a slight noise outside.

"The calm before the storm…" he spoke ominously.

At that thought, his hair stood on one end. He had a bad feeling about this storm.

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The ship rocked back and forth violently, as it struggled amongst the maelstrom. The storm had been abnormally strong and had caught their infantile ship.

The waves roared furiously, shaking their ship the way a livid mother would shake a defenseless child.

Serph looked all around him. The crew was stabilizing the ship within but the furniture, the supplies and other things literally flew within the ship. All was disheveled. Serph held on to a pole, thinking on the next course of action when he suddenly thought of one thing.

Argilla.

This was serious.

The ship might capsize…

People could be thrown overboard.

And worse, the ship could take in water and sink.

Serph looked through the glass once more and there, stared with wide silver eyes the full fury of the storm. He could hear the roar of the thunder and the crackle of lightning. The winds beat against the ship in utter indignation, emitting a low and eerie howl in the air.

The waves were in sheer fury and anger that they seemed to churn the ship without reserve, as if to toy within their midst…and in effect, toying with their lives. The aforesaid waves swerved and swirled around their helpless vessel, like the way a hungry predator would circle an injured and wounded prey…

Serph blinked at he heard the deafening siren.

"Captain! The hull had been breached! We're taking in water!"

Serph gritted his teeth. He had to find Argilla! Fast!

And so, not wanting to hear what the captain would say, he dashed from there and quickly navigated the ship, his hands gripping whatever railing or support he could as the ship continued to heavily and tumultuously rock.

'Argilla…!'

He made his way through the halls and there saw his other tribesmen, fleeing from the rapidly water-filling rooms. He cursed; the ship was probably sinking!

Damn it!

"Stay calm!" he yelled as he saw the crew of the ship.

"Presence of minds soldiers!" he yelled, "I want this ship water-free in half an hour you got that!?" he yelled, glaring at his men who had all ceased their panic-stricken states and looked at him.

Serph nodded, "Move it!" he yelled.

And there, he dashed out of the halls. He had looked left and right but he couldn't find her! Where was she!?

'Argilla…! Where are you…?'

He approached her cabin's location and growled; the place was already filled with water and it now reached up to his waist.

He then heard the distant gushing of water and there, as he turned, did he see, a mad rush of water headed for his direction. He cursed and took a deep breath. In a matter of seconds, water had invaded the entire hall.

Underwater, he pushed Argilla's door open and there found it to be empty. He cursed inwardly. Wasting on time, he swam for the small space on the ceiling and there took another breath.

Willing his limbs to move faster than they never had before, he swam fluidly out of the vessel but there could not bring himself to leave it.

'Argilla could still be inside!' he mentally screamed.

Within minutes he had scoured what little of the ship was accessible to him. She wasn't in it. He was glad. She was well-trained. She would probably be outside! He just needed to confirm that she wasn't within the ship though.

That was the hard part.

And so, having searched the ship and having concluded that she wasn't in it, he swam for the top floors and was swept out of the ship completely and into the ocean.

A moment later, he raised his head from the sea and there saw with disdain as he saw the ship remain pitifully afloat within the storm. He looked left and right but he found no one. The water was freezing but he ignored it.

He narrowed his eyes as he saw many of his men floating the way he was within the water. He racked his brain for a way to save them…But there wasn't anything that they could hold onto for support. He didn't want to say it, but it would seem that it was every man for himself.

He cursed as he saw a huge wave come his way…and a second later, it engulfed him, the force of which slammed against his body roughly, painfully.

His pink-haired comrade was the last thing he thought of as he lost consciousness.

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Serph lazily opened his eyes trying to focus. Where was he? What happened? He blinked his eyes several times and there slowly sat up. He groaned; what had happened? He couldn't remember anything…

'Forget that!' he thought to himself, 'Where am I?'

He looked around and saw that he was lying on some sort of cushion. He inspected it closely and saw that it was a sleeping bag. And over his chest was thick fur. He arched an eyebrow; who had done this for him?

He sat up, unzipping the sleeping bag and looked around. He saw that he was within a small cave of ice.

There was a small burning lamp a few meters away from him. He raised an eyebrow, 'That's dangerous.'

It was. He knew that snow and ice had insulating properties. He knew that fires within an encased shelter made of ice that was unventilated could cause carbon monoxide poisoning. He was glad that whoever put him there wasn't stupid.

There were two small ventilation shafts within the cave; one on the ceiling a few meters away from him and another one in between what seemed to be the entrance and exit.

He let out a breath of relief; it was then that he felt a bit chilly. He made for the fur blanket once more and was about to drape it over his chest but stopped. His blood ran cold as he looked at himself. He blushed.

He took a peek of the rest of his body from within the thick sleeping bag and fur blanket and there, he froze, his eyes widened.

He was completely naked.

'Who did this?' he wondered, arching an eyebrow, his curiosity reaching its peak.

His silent contemplation did not go unheeded however as the doors began to open and there walked a person through it. Serph's eyes widened as he saw the person. He couldn't recognize him as he wore a thick fur-coat over his shoulders and over his head.

Serph waited for him to settle down and there, the aforesaid person turned to him.

"Serph!"

"You're awake!"

Serph froze, "Argilla? Is that you?"

She crawled over to him and pulled the fur from her head to reveal to him her cheerful face, "I'm so glad you're finally awake!"

There were so many questions that were swimming within Serph's head at that moment and he couldn't seem to express any of them.

Argilla saw his concerned look and there let her gloved hand touch his cold cheek, "You shouldn't be up like this. Lie back down." she instructed, pushing him lightly on the makeshift bed once more, "You've been unconscious for a day and a half now…"

"What happened?" he asked, as he looked at her seriously, his silver eyes gazing intently at hers, at a loss of the current situation that they faced.

She sighed and cast her face down, her smile disappearing. She paused for a moment and there looked at him once more, before fingering the fur blanket once more, tucking him in within comfortably, "Our ship sank…The storm tore it apart. Everyone was in the water…But just before the ship sank, I made for the lifeboats and got as many people as I could. I looked for you too but…I couldn't find you…Then, before I knew it, the whole ship had sunk…I couldn't see where the others went as they got swept away by the sea too."

Her hand went from the blanket to his face and lightly grazed her fingers through the smooth, yet chilly skin of his face, "I woke up on the boat, adrift…but I was alone…The storm had been over by then…I saw bodies afloat…but they were all corpses. No one else survived. Then, I found you. I thought…"

She sniffed as she paused, closing her eyes tight. Serph's heart raced; she thought that…

"I thought that you…had died…" she finished in a low whisper, her words laced with such emotions…

He said nothing…glad…that she cared for him so…

His hand stirred from within the blanket and there left it altogether. His hand felt hers and there squeezed her hand reassuringly, "You won't lose me Argilla…"

The pink-haired woman in front of him straightened up and there looked at him, wide-eyed. Serph read her eyes and there felt blood rush to his face. Why had he said that?

'Damn!'

"What I meant was…erm…I…errr…I won't die that easily." he finished nervously, trying his best to sound confident, his hand immediately retreating from hers.

"I mean, come on. Give me a little credit." he said, blushing a bit, "I mean, I do lead Embryon after all."

She rolled her eyes, "Right…"

Serph blushed once more but said nothing. Again, they were engulfed in an uncomfortable silence.

It was Argilla now, who chose to break the silence. She shook her head, "It's possible that others may have survived but I have yet to find them. When I saw you, I immediately took you with me in the boat and there I looked for land. I paddled there and well…I looked for shelter…I found none so I made one…This is the second one I built…"

Serph arched an eyebrow; the second shelter…? This one took a lot of effort to do…She must've worked very hard to make it…

"How were you able to…make it?"

Argilla chuckled, "This was hard to do…It took me almost the whole of yesterday to make it…Then, there was you." She sighed, "I had to warm your body up slowly…After I made the first shelter, I left you in it. You were unconscious at the time…I went back to the boat and I looked for anything that might have been washed ashore. We are lucky that I was able to find useful stuff from the ship…I found a sleeping bag…a few tools…a small box of rations from the galley…That's it. I had to improvise everything else…even the lamp." she finished with a sigh as she pointed to the small lamp within the small cave.

Serph could feel himself shrinking even smaller in comparison to her…She was so smart…and strong. He sighed; had nothing really changed between them? He was beginning to feel his worth plummet.

At Muladhara, he had been hailed as strong and decisive; steadfast and quick-witted. His tribesmen admired and respected him. He had led his tribe to victory…He was at his prime then. And it was then that he felt outmost pride…not at himself but at what he had been able to accomplish with his hard work and his ever loyal comrades…

He felt accomplished then. He felt happy. He felt as though he had worth…not just in his tribesmen's eyes…but most importantly, worth within her eyes.

But here, out in the open, in the face of the unknown, with no one else around…he found his skill and his mental acumen severely lacking.

That was what made him feel distraught at the moment.

Here, out in the open, in the face of the unknown, where his strength and wisdom as leader were needed most, his weakness prevailed.

He was weak.

She, on the other hand, was strong. Sure, she was silent and usually stood only by the sidelines…She wasn't an attention-seeker either. But wherever it counted, she never failed to deliver.

Like now.

She had saved his life. She had been able to sustain their lives and now had given them shelter…

He then remembered something else…

He blushed, "Erm…Argilla…?"

"Yeah Serph?" she asked him attentively, her pink eyes looking intently at his silver ones.

"Where are…my clothes…?" he coughed uncomfortably.

Argilla blushed at that and scratched the back of her head, "They're outside Serph. I'll get them…You were suffering from light hypothermia so…I had to…um…remove them from you…I'm sorry…" she stammered, her face flushed red, her pink eyes darting left and right, but never once settling on his face or eyes.

Serph stifled a small laugh. Even if he were in a most mortifying position, he deemed that it worth it…as long as he could see the blush on her face.

There might be hope for him yet!

'I wouldn't count on it though…'

Argilla then backed away from him, "You're doing better today…so, I'll just bring you your clothes back." she said, still blushing, "Erm…we need to plan our next move."

And with that, she was gone.

He stared at the icy ceiling and there smiled…Maybe it wouldn't be too bad being with her, stranded here…

She came back a moment later with his uniform and his arctic gear and handed them to him, "Here Serph. I brought you something else too. This is the skin of an animal I killed yesterday. It'll keep you warm. I'll be…outside if you need me…" she said, blushing a bit as she saw his bare chest.

She then crawled closer to him.

Serph's blood rushed to his face; what was she doing?

Argilla grabbed his blanket and there put it up on his chest once more, "Don't do that Serph…" she rasped huskily, "You might get cold…"

'You could warm me up…' his inner self suggested naughtily.

"I could. But, I wouldn't want to cramp your bedding space Serph." she smiled warmly with no trace of malice or aloofness in her voice.

Serph cursed inwardly. Did he just say that out loud?

'Damn…' he thought with a small wince.

But then, he stiffened. She didn't even consider that as a…flirting statement?

Well, it just goes to show him what she thought of him…and how she saw him. His heart sank even lower.

Argilla then nodded, "I'll be outside then."

And with that, he found himself alone.

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