Chapter Text
The scent of salt and the sound of rushing water awoke her.
The ground she was laying on was hard, wet, and uneven. Occasionally, violent bursts of wind played with her hair. Her body was sore, her mind muddled.
Gem wrote it off as a dream. She merely believed her senses were playing tricks on her. When she opened her eyes, she knew she wasn't dreaming or at home, safe in her bed. Instead, she stared down into the darkness of the Void ahead.
Her heart began to race, her mind tried to catch up as she quickly hurried to her feet, taking in her surroundings. Stone, only stone, rugged and uneven like you'll find at the coast. Wild waves crashed against the stone, as they have always done, slowly working the stone until they'd formed the jagged ridges she stayed away from. They receded and returned, bolstered by the currents. The distant horizon barely existed, the muddy waters blending with the dark, roiling storm clouds.
Light pierced the darkness from behind and above.
Gem turned around. Her little coast wrapped around a tall near-conical structure. The gentle yellow stood in contrast to the darkness of the surroundings, as did the light it produced. Yet, instead of the single beam of light rotating, this light was ever-present. Softer. Its golden glow seemed to dance and flicker and calmed Gem's nerves.
Still, confusion wrapped around her. She hadn't expected to wake up here, wherever ‘here’ is. An island in the middle of the ocean, she presumed. An island in the middle of the ocean, just big enough for a lighthouse but with no docks in sight. There, where the never-ending waves wanted to break apart the island.
She closed her eyes and tried to recall. She had to be doing something before she woke up here. She was a school administrator, for crying out loud, she was always going to be busy. And yet, when she tried to recall her latest memories, they were stuck in a haze. She couldn't even remember how or who brought her to the island. She must've been dropped off here, because her clothes were dry.
fWhip popped up in her head, unannounced. He greeted his sister with a smile, perhaps with one of those smug grins she knew all too well. His voice echoed in her mind, telling her about his latest invention or teasing her about the size of her hat. She remembered laughing with him, her head upon his shoulder, his arms wrapped around her. She remembered the arguments, the glares, the insults hurled at each other - as easily said as they were later forgiven. They were siblings, after all, and they couldn’t stay mad at each other for long (except for the bit). He’d never tamed his ginger hair, always insisted on wearing that red scarf. She’d gifted him that scarf, a long time ago, and its color had started to fade and the fabric started to tear. He never seemed to mind.
Now, only his mournful smile and an echo of laughter remained.
The storm clouds still threatened to release their arsenal. It helped push Gem to seek out the lighthouse's entrance and its distractions within.
The door was open and Gem could enter.
The space was open. A kitchen set-up, counters set against the wall complete with a sink with dirty dishes and a fridge. A small table with two chairs stood in the middle. A spiral staircase followed the wall, presumably snaking all the way to the top, and beneath the space, a plain trapdoor sat. The space was lit by a buzzing industrial light set into the ceiling, a small cord running from the lightbulb case across the ceiling and disappearing behind the counters. The walls were as dull a gray as the skies and seas outside, but at least it was peaceful.
At least she wasn't alone here.
“Hello?” Gem called out. “Is somebody here?”
She waited, looking at the top of the stairs. She held her hands in her pockets; her keys weren’t there. No makeshift weapon in case whoever lived here turned out to be a creep. Other strategies swirled around in her mind as she vigilantly watched - and now heard footsteps coming down.
A man came down the stairs. One hand rested lightly on the railing, his footsteps light. Brown hair, neatly trimmed beard, and dark clothes that looked both functional and comfortable. Gem’s heart was beating in her throat when he came into view. On his part, the man seemed to pause when she came into view for him, and Gem caught a hint of confusion.
“Hello,” he said, quickly recovering from any surprise on his part. “Welcome to the Lighthouse. I’m Pix.”
“Gem,” she responded. Despite his general kind demeanor, she remained on high alert. “What is this place?”
“As I said, this is the Lighthouse,” Pix said. As he spoke, he calmly walked down the stairs. He put a sympathetic smile on his face, that was supposed to make her feel at ease. “You’ll get acclimated soon enough, don’t worry about that. Please, do take a seat.”
Cautiously, with nothing else to do, Gem sat down on one of the chairs. Still, she didn’t take her eyes off of Pix. He opened one of the cupboards and pulled out two cups, heating up some water in a kettle.
“Apologies if I’m not prepared to accommodate,” Pix said, “I wasn’t expecting you so soon.”
“So soon?” Gem muttered to herself. So Pix was expecting her? How, and why? More questions like these popped up in her head, more questions that she didn’t have answers for. More questions for Pix to answer.
He was calmly making tea. He had been expecting her, but maybe not so soon. He may not have been expecting her specifically, or maybe he did. This man, with his calm demeanor and kind smile, was an enigma waiting to be unpacked as well. He knew more - he had to, she was certain of it. He clearly had been living here, so he had to have some answers for her.
If only she could choose which questions to ask first.
Pix sat down opposite her. He placed two cups of tea on the table, one in front of her and one in front of him. He calmly sat down, put his clasped hands on the table and watched her patiently. Waiting for her to speak.
“I have questions.” The words shattered the silence as Gem blurted them out.
Pix nodded. “Naturally.”
“Where are we?”
“We are at the Lighthouse.”
That did not narrow it down. “Where is this lighthouse located?”
“Not anywhere you’re currently thinking of,” Pix responded. He paused, choosing his words carefully. “We’re not there anymore. We are elsewhere.”
Elsewhere. He said it as though it held great importance, as though it was an acceptable answer. Who was this man to tell her which locations or regions she had been thinking about?
Who was he, anyway?
“Who are you?” she then asked. “What do you do here? Do you work here?”
“I’m the Vigil Keeper,” Pix calmly explained. “Some would say ‘Lighthouse Keeper’, instead. That’s the original title.”
“Vigil Keeper.” She enunciated the words, tasting them - trying them out. It felt important, somehow. “What are you keeping vigil over?”
“Everything. Everyone. Even you.”
Gem watched in silence, trying to make sense of everything. As Pix took a sip from his cup of tea, she tried to connect everything in a satisfactory manner. Yet, some threads only led to loose ends. She was missing too much information still, and it frustrated her to no end. Fortunately - or perhaps unfortunately - the man sitting opposite her was willing to speak, but only in riddles.
“Even me?” Gem wondered, hoping for an answer that would unravel the mystery.
Pix nodded, a modest smile on his face. “As far as I know, you’re still part of ‘everyone’. Even here.”
Even here. In a lighthouse at an unknown location, with a patient enigmatic man she’d never seen before who elicited more questions for every answer he gave.
“Why am I here?” Gem then asked, her voice at a little lower volume.
Pix, who had so diligently and promptly answered every question so far, now paused and carefully considered his words.
“Because you want to be here,” he said. “Those who come here, tend to come here voluntarily. I’m assuming the same applies to you.”
Gem shook her head. I didn’t, she wanted to say. These two simple words were stuck in her throat. I didn’t, but she couldn’t lie. Not when she had no idea what had happened to her, or why she awoke here, or even whether or not she agreed to this.
She couldn’t have agreed to this, right?
“I don’t remember,” rolled out of her mouth instead.
Pix nodded, giving her a sympathetic smile. “That memory will come back.”
Hopefully, though she wasn’t sure if that was possible. All she had to go off of was the word of a man who had been here for at least a while.
“You came here willingly,” she said, trying not to make it sound like a question.
“I did.”
“What for?”
The sympathy did not leave his smile, though his gaze became wistful and sorrow crept onto his face. “I… I don’t think I’m ready to talk about it again. At a later time, I promise I’ll explain.”
“Why did you come here?”
Something rushed through her veins. The sense that something has shifted - she wasn’t asking about her own situation and the helplessness of it anymore. Instead, she pried. She wasn’t proud of it, but it kept her mind from wandering too far. Besides, if she was staying here until some sort of boat or ship arrived, it would do her well to get to know the person she’d be living with.
Pix did not disappoint.
“To escape. To be a Lighthouse Keeper,” he answered solemnly. “I’m rather partial to calling myself a ‘Vigil Keeper’, but you can claim whichever term you prefer.”
“I’m not a lighthouse keeper,” Gem quickly pointed out. “Or a vigil keeper.”
“Not yet,” Pix corrected her. “That’s why we’re both here at the same time. I’ll show you the ropes, so that you’ll know what to do.”
Silence hung between them. She wasn’t a lighthouse keeper, but he’d show her the ropes. He’d teach her.
She wanted to push back. Then again, even she knew that pushing and antagonizing the only person who had any answers was not a good idea. That, and a small part of her - small, unassuming, hopeful - recognized something in his eyes. Something that she couldn’t quite place, something she couldn’t decipher. Something that already tied them together in some way.
“Is that why I’m here?” she then asked. “To join you? To replace you?”
That wistful smile returned.
“I know this is confusing,” he said. “The first few days are the worst, but it’ll get better. You’ll remember why you came. I’m not sure if I’ll be a good teacher, but I’ll try my best. Everything will fall into place.”
“And if it doesn’t?” What if she didn’t remember? What if she would never know why she had come or was sent here? What if she had the chance to return home? She would have been taught all these things she may never need. Pix would be alone again.
“It will,” he said with the patient and calm confidence of a father trying to explain the vastness of the universe to a child. “Even the questions that will never be answered. You’ll learn how to deal with them.”
Pix waited a second before he drank the rest of the tea. He glanced at the cup in front of Gem, and she lowered her gaze as well. It had been untouched so far.
He looked up at her again. “I’ll give you some time to let it sink in. When you’re ready, you’ll find me one floor up.” He stood up. “Take as long as you need.”
With one last comforting nod, he took his empty cup of tea and placed it with the rest of the dirty dishes in the sink. Then, he climbed the stairs and disappeared from view. After Gem heard a door close, she placed her hands against her head and allowed her mind to run wild.
What was going on?
Other than that one question, it remained quiet. One question, that captured all other questions and smashed them together, generalized and vague enough not to be able to conjure the answer. What was going on?
She awoke on an island with no idea how (or why) she arrived there, or where this even was located. The island had a lighthouse where Lighthouse Keeper Pix lived. He answered her questions. Though satisfactory, these answers elicited more questions. These facts, however, could not paint a clear picture. It contributed to her confusion, her mind barely able to make sense of it all as it was drawn to another question: why was she here?
You’ve got this, fWhip’s phantom voice muttered in her ear. She pictured his brilliant smile as though she’d seen it yesterday and nearly placed her hand on her shoulder where she imagined he’d place his. If anyone can unravel this mystery, it’s you.
Gem nodded to herself. She could unravel this mystery. She just needed some time and some more clues.
Those clues were guarded by the Lighthouse Keeper.