Loyalty [Dianite]

C H A P T E R • T H R E E

Riley was confused, and a little afraid, and would continue to feel so for the better part of a week. But the people of the Isles were kind people, and gradually she lost her fear of being kicked out to survive on her own, and began to build friendships with them. Tom and Jordan took her on a tour of the islands, with Alice and Karl tagging along for part of it. Their island was the only one that Riley had been yet to set foot on, and as such, she was curious to see it. The park that could be reached via bridge from their island was beautiful, with everything set out in perfect order, and barely a blade of grass out of place. The trees and gardens were perfectly manicured, and the pond in the middle was so still and calm it could have been mistaken for glass. The main body of their island was not so ornately decorated, with the exception of Karl's temple to Mianite, which Alice swore was technically not part of their island.

"I'll take you to the door of the temple," said Karl, eyeing Riley with some hesitance. "Maybe you can go in, one day. If you accept Mianite as your god."

"I've been in, and I'm not Team Mianite," Tom interjected, with a grin at Karl.

"And that ended well, didn't it," Karl rolled his eyes. "It's exactly why I'm being more cautious now."

"Its okay," said Riley. "I can see it perfectly well from here. It looks amazing, did you build it yourself?"

"No, he didn't," said Alice.

"Yes I did!" Karl retorted. "Why is it so hard to believe? Your brother's the one who can't build to save his life, not me."

"But Tom built his house, and the volcano room," said Riley, before Tom could object to this.

"Have you seen his temple though?" Asked Karl.

"His temple?" Riley wondered.

"No, she hasn't seen anything since you lot are worried I'll corrupt her or something," Tom chuckled, shaking his head. "You don't need to defend me Riley, although I do appreciate it. I tried to build an epic entrance that looked like a giant skull for my temple, and I ended up needing the wizards to help me out."

"Who is your temple for?" Riley asked him. "Are you team Ianite or Mianite?"

"Woah, question for another day," Jordan interrupted, and Riley sighed, wishing they would just tell her the whole story. It had been almost a week now, but it was as though Jordan was still trying to protect her from something. She just wished she knew what. Her eyes met Tom's, but he turned away a little sadly, and Riley felt bad for him once again. She knew well by now that the sadness was uncharacteristic of him.

"I want to hear it," she insisted stubbornly, folding her arms. "Why can't he tell me?"

"Jordan's afraid of what he doesn't understand," said Tom, turning his gaze to meet the Ianitee's, with a sudden fire in his eyes. "Which is ironic, since he's supposed to represent the balance between order and chaos. Seems like all he wants these days is order."

"You know that's not true Tom," Jordan sighed. "And we talked about this. Riley isn't ready to deal with the kind of trouble you'll lead her into. She only just got here, and she was pretty shaken up for the first few days."

"Please don't fight, guys," Alice sighed, laying a hand on her brother's arm, her eyes seeking out Jordan's, trying to pacify the two of them. "Why don't you ask Riley yourself what she wants? She's right here, you know."

"Thank you, Alice," said Riley quietly, and the brunette girl smiled at her. "I just want to know the full story of what's going on here. You say there are gods, Mianite the god of order, and Ianite the goddess of balance, are they the only gods?"