Cold.
Something cold and wet was insistently lapping against his ankles. It would disappear for a few seconds and return followed by a low hiss.
A dull throb was drumming against the side of his head. When he tried to lift it to look around, the throb quickly turned into a lance of white hot pain. Grimacing, he turned over onto his back and was greeted with the sight of a dark, star-speckled sky. After a moment, he realized he was lying on a beach, drenched from head-to-toe...he had no idea where he was. Hell, he had no idea who he was. He tried to recall anything he was supposed to know but all he was able to get from his mind was static like there was something there, but he had no access to it...like his mind had somehow closed in on itself. Was that sort of thing even possible? Apparently, otherwise, he wouldn't be having this problem.
As his consciousness threatened to slip away again, he thought he heard—or rather, felt—footsteps approaching. As his eyes slowly began to slide shut, he hears a voice. A woman's, commanding as it was sweet. He tried to force his eyes open but to no avail.
Please help me, he tried to say. All that came out was a disjointed slur.
"Hush. Don't talk," she said. Then he felt hands wrapping around his limbs and being lifted up.
"The sea spat him out, we shouldn't trust him. He could be a—"
Whatever else that other voice said, he no longer heard it. At the next moment, everything faded back to black.
☼☼☼
"What did you expect that I would just abandon him to his fate? Let the sea take him back in and let him be fodder for serpents?"
It was that voice again.
That meant that he was alive. This time, when he tried to open his eyes, it didn't take as much effort as before. Everything appeared blurry at first. When his vision cleared he turned his head this way and that, looking for the person who just spoke.
"No, of course not, my lady. Perhaps we should just keep a close watch on him."
"I'll see to it myself, thanks," she said flatly. She was standing next to a window, her face illuminated by late afternoon sunlight.
"Where am I?"
Her head turned towards him so suddenly that for a quick moment, he was sure her head was going to fly off her shoulders. For a fleeting second, she had a look of fierce intent which disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. She crossed the tiny room in three strides and halted next to the small cot he was lying on.
Up close, she looked less like a girl than someone who was actually in charge. The makeshift bed he was on was either lower than the standard or she was just really tall—the effect she had on him was hard to explain. He was awed and impressed at the same time.
"Who are you?" she asked, fixing him with a steely gaze. Steely wasn't the right word, though. Her eyes were a pale shade of violet that contrasted sharply with her black hair and bronzed complexion. Nevertheless, it achieved the desired effect because he answered her query as quickly as he could. "I don't know."
"I don't believe him."
Right then, they turned his attention to the other person in the room, the one she had been talking to when he woke up. It was a man, who looked as though he could be her brother, except for her arresting features.
