Loyalty [Dianite]

C H A P T E R • O N E

For the longest time, all she could remember was water.

Deep and dark, it swirled around her in an odd, almost comforting manner, but Riley wasn't sure if it was supposed to be comforting. Something wasn't right, she knew. With barely a recollection of who she was, or what she was doing there, her mind drifted in and out of consciousness. She attempted to stretch out her limbs in any direction, but with no reference point, she couldn't be sure her body was actually moving at all. But the barest hint of a thought crossed her mind, and with all her strength, she held on to her only hope.

She had to survive, because it was the only thing she knew how to do.

It could have been months, or merely minutes, that she floated there, but suddenly she felt her chest heave, and recognised the touch of someone else's hands on her arms, the tug of their warm skin a stark contrast to the cold which was all she'd known for so long. Her chest heaved again, and she blinked furiously, before realising she was coughing desperately for air. Her eyes took a while to adjust to the light, but when she could finally focus, she found herself face to face with a blue haired male, who was staring at her with brown eyes that were filled with worry. She stared back at him for a minute, filled with shock and confusion. She opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a strangled noise.

"Hey, shh, just breathe for a minute, yeah?" Blue hair finally spoke, giving her the barest of smiles. "Are you okay?"

Riley pondered the question, not really knowing how to answer, and eventually shrugged.

"Do you know how you got here?"

That, she knew the answer to.

"No," she croaked, surprised by the sound of her own voice. She winced a little, and began to stretch out her tired muscles, as though she was learning the feel of her limbs all over again.

"You must've hit your head or something," Blue hair sighed, and shook his head. "I have to say, you were the last thing I ever expected to wash up on the beach."

Riley glanced around her for the first time, finally recognising where she was. As he'd said, they were on a beach, and apparently, completely alone.  The water was lapping softly at the golden sand, and the sky above was as clear as anything, with hardly a cloud in sight. Academically, Riley knew it was beautiful, but for a girl who could barely remember what she looked like, the water in particular was a little frightening. She felt a sudden urge to move away from the softly flowing waves, lest they pull her under, and drag her breath from her lungs once again. Her companion startled at her sudden movements, but was quick enough to catch her as her flailing limbs almost knocked her off balance.

"Careful," he muttered, steadying her, and Riley found his hands on her shoulders slightly comforting. Although maybe, anything was better than the water. "Who are you?" Blue hair wondered, still gazing at her intently. The curious tone to his voice was very apparent, although he was speaking quietly, as though he was afraid to scare her.

"I'm Riley," said the girl, weakly. "I don't... I don't remember anything else."

"I'm Tom," the other returned, giving her a small smile. "Are you gonna be okay? Do you need to lie down? I can take you inside if you need."

"I feel like my head is vibrating," Riley muttered, "But I'll be okay, I think."

"That's good," said Tom, "Because knowing me, I'll probably drop you if I have to carry you."

"Well, I've already taken one hit to the head, so what's another?" Riley's tone was grumpy, but she was smiling. Tom's energy was the kind of energy she felt she could appreciate. "Why do you have blue hair?" She spoke before thinking, and felt her eyes widen in the hope that she hadn't offended him with her abruptness. Something of her old life seemed to return to her, in the form of a jolt of memory. She couldn't be so abrupt. People did not like it.

Tom, however, didn't seem to mind it. He only grinned at her cheekily.

"Why the hell not? Come to that, why do you have red and yellow hair?"

"I do?" Riley wondered, reaching for a strand of it, and pulling it over her shoulders to look.

"Yeah," said Tom. "It looks like it's on fire! I love it." He watched her examining it for a minute, before frowning. "Wait... you didn't know?"

"More like didn't remember," Riley sighed. "I have a feeling I should know a lot more about myself and who I am than I do right now."

"Damn, you really hit your head hard then, didn't you?" Tom shook his head. "You should probably meet the others. And get some dry clothes."

"The others?" Riley wondered, as Tom, still with one hand on her arm, helped her to stand, and pulled her along towards the beach house that bordered the edge of the sand dunes. "Where are we?"

Tom had been in somewhat of a hurry, but he paused, and turned to look at her.

"You know, none of us are entirely sure," he shrugged. "This, right here, is my Island, and this is my house." He gestured to the small building behind him. "There is a whole series of islands in this archipelago, and each time a new island rises from the depths of the sea, another person joins us. Either that, or something else drastic happens."

"So was there a new island before I came here?" Riley wondered.

"No," Tom frowned. "Not to my knowledge, anyway. Unless Cap knows something I don't..." he broke off, shaking his head. "Let's not get distracted again. I think we should find my sister, she'll likely have some clothes you can borrow until yours are dry."

Riley noticed for the first time the large trident sheathed at Tom's side, as he unfastened it, and tugged on Riley's arm again, pulling her around the side of the house, and out onto a small dock on the other side of the small island. Riley's eyes fell upon the impressive lighthouse that was built on the corner of Tom's island, but more to the point, a second island off in the distance.

"That's Jordan's Island," said Tom, sensing her question. "My sister Alice lives in the other direction, with her boyfriend, they have their own island." He pointed back behind them. "But Alice is likely to be over here, working on something or other with Jordan. They're both Ianitees, so..."

Riley was confused, because Tom appeared to believe this was enough of an explanation, but it really wasn't. She didn't understand, and wanted to ask more, but was struck by a more pressing matter - the fact that Tom apparently wanted her to go into the water again.

"I can't... go back in there," she stuttered, resisting his pull on her arm. Tom turned to look at her in surprise, before his eyes filled with concern, and he understood.

"That's okay," he said, sheathing his trident in his belt once again, and breathing out heavily. "We can take a boat."

A/N: we out here bangin heads and making stories happen! (Read: I finally found inspiration for a Dianite story and I'm gonna finish it if it's the last thing I do.)

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