Johnny allows himself to be dragged, Nova alternately clinging on and paddling awkwardly, until finally they're pulled back ashore - the wave that comes over him next wakes him back up, is he drowning again, fuck, fuck, what's happening - but it's just recoil, it recedes, and the monster is gone, Daine's coming toward them, he's okay. He's alive.

How extremely novel.

He rolls onto his side, curling up, coughing out a stream of water and shuddering uncontrollably. Nova looks like a drowned rat, but he's glad to see her okay, and she presses close to him again, burrowing into his waterlogged shirt.

He hoists himself up partway, looks up at Daine, standing there against the sun.

"Daine," he murmurs in quiet awe. "What did you-" He breaks off to cough more, his body convulsing - he's still worn and weathered but he's starting to come back to himself now that he's sitting in the sun at least, relatively unmolested. "That was amazing. How did you do that?"

Without waiting for an answer he looks back to Mako, reaches out and braces a hand on her shoulder. "You," he says, "are fucking crazy. Thank you."

And that comes from the bottom of his heart.