TDM 004: WASHED ASHORE

[erkumods]

TDM 004: WASHED ASHORE

Arrival This time, you come out of the water. While the Augur reboots, the Nameless Island's own inherent energy draws people in. It's like being suspended between realities and walking through a rift in dimensions. It may make you sick, or that might be the motion of the ocean, lifting you and carrying you to shore. Waterlogged and covered in sand, new arrivals will be greeted by robots who welcome them with towels and bracelet devices. The A5 card is already loaded up. Inventory will be found a day later, wrapped up haphazardly and delivered to each person's makeshift home. ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● I. Feel the friendship! Recent arrivals and visitors to the beach may notice a sudden influx of hundreds of bright red crustaceans crawling (and coupling) across the sand. It's crab mating season, as it turns out, it's a regular invasion! To keep the beach a pleasant place to gather for the island's inhabitants, the robots are offering credits to especially enterprising crab-catchers. Grab a bucket and get to work! Be sure to watch out for their pinch, mind you. Their little claws are tiny, but that doesn’t mean they don’t hurt. Surprisingly, there is another effect that even the robots don't anticipate: islanders who are pinched by the crabs find themselves feeling instantly buddy-buddy with the next person they spot. Did you just become best friends?! Get pinched one too many times, however, and those feelings may sour into a crabby mood, indeed. If you are feeling particularly vengeful (or just hungry), the little crabs do make for delicious gumbo. Once cooked, they have no side effects whatsoever. ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● II. Phallus Phestival Although the Augur is offline and supplies are scarce, the robots of Erku are still eager to make their run-down little island a welcoming place for the new arrivals. To that end, they have arranged a three day festival to boost morale and promote the generation of plenty of Eros energy to assist in the restoration of the damaged and decayed parts of the city. The robots claim that this celebration was once a cornerstone of the long-lost civilization of the island. By the dawn of the first day, every island resident will find at their doorstep (or tent flap, mobile suit, etc) the traditional costume of the ancient islanders to wear to the festival. It appears to be... a giant sheet? There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to the sometimes garish colors and patterns of the fabric, but at least the robots have uploaded instructions on how to wear it to your bracelet device. Attendees will find food (mostly crab-flavored), confections, and household necessities in rather suggestive shapes, as well as goods you might find handy to complete your A5 squares: sex toys, pervertibles, sexy maid outfits, and the like. While islanders are welcome to set up shop on the festival grounds and sell (or charge) whatever they like, all items from the robots are offered up for free to those who wear their traditional island garb! ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● III. Fireside Adventures Each night of the festival is wrapped up in style with an enormous bonfire on the beach, where drinks, fruity cocktails, and lively music appropriate for dancing is all provided at no cost by the robots. Even if you’re not usually much of a dancer, the longer you stand by the fire and allow it to warm your limbs, the more you feel like moving! Not only that, but everyone is looking quite beautiful by the firelight, are they not? If you’ve grown tired - or if dancing just isn’t your thing - you might prefer to sit back and swap stories on one of the many driftwood log benches the robots have prepared for seating. Or, maybe you’d prefer to rough it for the night in one of the beachside canvas tents. Better claim one quick, though, or be prepared to share… there’s only one sleeping bag! ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● N A V I G A T I O N

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ingrid brandl galatea | fe:3h

[eques]

( crab knight )

[ look, when knights have been tasked a quest, then they must do it most earnestly. and that's what ingrid's set out to do when she's been asked to help out with the crab infestation on the beach. and while she refuses to use her family heirloom to make her life easier (her father would be sorely upset if she were to use lúin for something as mundane as catching crabs), she uses her next best weapon.

armed with a net and a pail, she's sitting atop her white pegasus, swooping down gracefully and scooping a netful of crabs every time. her grin is wide, very much pleased with this plan of action. effortlessly catching crabs while not getting accidentally pinched by them? ]

Defenceless, are we?

[ ofc they are, ingrid. they're crabs. but hopefully, with this, there's going to be a feast for dinner tonight! those little metal things did promise her that she can keep whatever she catches, and she intends to do so.

she swings her net to catch a few more, accidentally swatting an unfortunate fellow crab-catcher. oops? ]

( nsfw mukbang )

[ guess who doesn't care if the corn dog she's eating is shaped like a dick?

ingrid's never one to refuse food especially when it's being offered for free; after all, that's akin to rejecting the blessings of the goddess and she'd rather not let it go to waste if no one decides to take it. which is why she's wandering around the island with an armful of food and is still popping by every food stall she can find, quite wide-eyed at the selection of edibles she can find.

once in a while, she'll be exclaiming something in the lines of: ]

It's a banana dipped in chocolate? But what are those colourful little things scattered on top?

[ or: ]

Sausage? Covered in cake batter and then fried? How fascinating.

[ or: ]

Oh, goodness! Spun candy? And in such curious shapes too.

[ why yes, they're all dick-shaped and all on a stick and she's accepting all of them (even putting them in her mouth) without batting an eyelash. ]

( wildcard )

[ have something else in mind? feel free to put up a different starter or pm me to discuss things! ]

mukbang

[nobiliteatime]

[ There are very, very few things in the world that can make Ferdinand von Aegir, noblest of nobles and perhaps the most loquacious as well, utterly speechless. But the sight of one of his allies (at least, according to what memories he possesses), and one he's regarded as a very paragon of the sort of respectability expected of knights and the nobility at that, eating a chocolate-covered banana with such gusto...

Yes, speechless is certainly one of the many words that can be used to describe him right now. Flustered would be another one. ]

I... [ He genuinely struggles to come up with the words, bringing a hand up to his forehead. ] I see you are not allowing the food that has been so generously provided to us to go to waste.

[ There. That's a much more graceful way of putting things than "please stop, Ingrid, my noble brain can't take this." ]

[eques]

Ferdinand!

[ ingrid chokes on her banana at the sight of ferdinand, covering her mouth to keep herself from coughing out in front of him. she didn't think the others were here at the festival; then again, perhaps she should've conducted herself better as befitting a knight of fódlan even in a strange world like this. no use trying to hide the food she's hoarded, though.

please give her a moment to regain her composure and also swallow down the food in her mouth. it wouldn't do them any good if she were to spit them out on a friend. ]

Yes, [ she says, offering him a sheepish smile. ] They have delicacies that I've never seen in Fódlan.

[ shaped as a man's ... thing. but that little embarrassing detail aside, whoever decided to coat bananas in chocolate is a genius. she'll take note of that for future reference. ] ... You surprised me. I didn't know you were here.

[nobiliteatime]

[ He winces in sympathy as she nearly chokes on that banana, averting his gaze so as to spare both of them the awkwardness of him watching her inhale what's left of it. Not to worry, Ingrid, he's already seen plenty of much worse breaches of noble conduct. ]

Yes, delicacies. They are certainly cleverly designed.

[ He's too proper to approach the phallic nature of the food in any manner other than an oblique one, of course. He quickly changes the subject. ]

Ah, you must forgive me for surprising you. I had tried to catch your attention a few stalls back, but you were rather intently searching for something, and I lost sight of you in the crowd.

[eques]

[ a part of her is very grateful that it's ferdinand who found her like this. despite his uninhibited nature, he's the poster child of nobility through and through and will be very discreet about this incident. even now, he's avoiding it altogether, preferring to choose what to comment on and what to say.

another part of her is mortified that it's ferdinand who found her like this. if only because of his high standards from those of noble birth. like her.

but since he's moving on from the subject of her food and their rather diverting shape, she's moving on, too. it's the only way to avoid this rather awkward topic and talk about something else. ]

Oh, I wasn't really searching for anything specific. I was simply looking around. [ strange island with its strange food and even stranger, er, customs. ] You should've called my attention. You know I would've turned around.

[nobiliteatime]

[ If Ferdinand could read Ingrid's troubled mind, he'd probably reassure her that no matter how much food she may have inhaled, it pales in comparison to the wake of devastation left by Constance's merciless slaughter of his cookies meant for tea parties. Alas, he has no such ability, so she may not ever get to hear that particular story.

Still, her stock has not lowered any in his eyes. ]

Ah, you are quite correct. I did not wish to startle you, but perhaps I was too cautious in my approach.

[ She seems to regard him as one might regard an ally, which is certainly how he remembers her as well. Given how many people have expressed shock to even see him alive, he considers that a fair improvement. ]

But no matter. It is good to see you, even if these are not exactly the best of circumstances.

[eques]

[ constance is a menace. a cute menace, but a menace all the same. ]

You mean meeting on an island where we're tasked to do morally suspect actions?

[ to be honest, she'd rather fight the war all over again than do whatever these golems are suggesting her to do. the fact that ferdinand is greeting her as if it's been a while since they met makes her wonder when's the last time they've spoken or at least seen each other. ]

How is this place treating you, Ferdinand?

[ c'mon, like of all people to be brought here, he's certainly one of the last persons she would ever expect to find himself doing questionable acts. ]

Crab Knight

[livedtoserve]

[ Though it wasn't exactly going to earn her any credits, Mercedes was actually taking a different approach to the crab problem-rather than capturing them, she was doing her best to coax them back into the ocean, where they might be safe.

Of course, this was going terribly, and left her completely unaware besides the brief warning shadow when Ingrid swept down upon her, the net smacking the back of her head. ]

Hey!

[ She turned, covering her eyes from the sun, only to see a pegasus-a pegasus! And Ingrid! ]

Ingrid, is that truly you?

[ Normally she trusted her sight, and she'd grown used to seeing others from Fodlan, but she *had* just been hit in the back of the head. ]

[eques]

[ her first instinct is to apologise. she was too caught up in ensuring she eats plenty of crab meat tonight.

but the apology gets sidetracked for a moment, ingrid's eyebrows furrowing at the sight of a fellow classmate. ]

Mercedes? [ on this island, of all people? she immediately coaxes her pegasus to land back on the sand, jumping off of its back and rushing over to her. ] You're here, too?

[livedtoserve]

I am, yes.

[ Ingrid was a painful sight. The last time they'd met, it had been across a battlefield-and while Mercedes was more along the front charging Cornelia, she knew full well of her friend's fate.

Still, she offered a smile, albeit one with some hint of sadness behind it. ]

When did you get here, though? I thought the attacks brought all of us out of the woodwork these past few weeks-unless you've just arrived?

[eques]

[ mercedes's expression is a little trouble, uncertain of the reasons behind it, but ingrid returns her smile all the same. it's comforting to see a familiar face, especially on an island that demands too much from them. ]

I've just arrived today. [ the most unfortunate way, really. while she doesn't really dislike the sea, it doesn't mean that getting washed up on the shore is the best way to get to a certain destination. ] What attacks do you mean?

[ did the war reach this place as well? ]

[livedtoserve]

They were... bodies, I guess? Some sort of monsters.

[ It wasn't really clear to Mercedes just *what* the enemies were. ]

They came from the ocean, and didn't stop until they'd reached the hospital and attacked the Augur-oh! Which is some sort of god, I think? The robots seem to worship it, and it has power.

[ She looked a bit sheepish, now. ]

I wish I could tell you more, but the attack meant that the Augur hasn't really been doing much since not long after I arrived, and nobody has really explained it to me.

mukbang! ingie...

[brothered]

[So many people have been popping up, as of late? So many people. Felix has been half-expecting to run into Ingrid at every turn—and you know, finally running into her here, of all places, seems perfectly fitting. There's an astonishing amount of food! One can eat as much as they please! Felix is wearing what might just be the stupidest toga of all time!

Or: Everything is coming up Ingrid, and Felix can't even be terribly annoyed by it all. It's selfish, yes, but it's genuinely good to see her; she's obviously well, judging by the speed with which she's downing these, uh, strangely shaped treats, and that's really all that matters as Felix squares his shoulders and approaches.]

There's only one shape. Surely you've noticed.

[Whew! But he's not going to think about that, now that he's joining her at this stall—and giving all of this spun sugar on display a critical Look. So many colors, and all of them... are gross.]

Or not. I suppose there's enough food to distract you.

[Hey, hi, his grumpy self missed his old friend... missed teasing his old friend about her bottomless stomach...]

[eques]

[ now that's one face she's not expecting to see on this island. after all, felix isn't exactly the type of person who's well-suited for this kind of place. then again, none of them are—except maybe sylvain. so to say she's surprised and quite glad to see felix is an understatement, one that she hides behind an expression of exasperation mid-chew. ]

Yes, I've noticed, Felix. Thank you for reminding me.

[ look man, she's been ignoring and trying to forget about it for the past hour or so, focusing mainly on how delicious the food are despite its, well, shape. and of course, he simply had to point it out to her.

she sighs, pushing away any lingering thoughts about the food and instead turning to him to ask who else is on the island when her eyes land on his clothes. an eyebrow rises as she takes another bite of her corndog. ]

What are you wearing?

[brothered]

[This is how he shows his affection, or... something. He is how he is! And she is how she is, which is why he can't even pretend to be surprised when she hones right in on his current outfit. Ma'am, he loves you dearly, but can you, like... can you not...

...Except that she did, and so Felix casts a quick glance down at his attire before looking right off to the side.]

It was given to us, [he snaps, one hand going right to his hip. Defensive!] I didn't see the point in wearing it, but Sylvain insisted.

[Sylvain was pumped about matching, because he is a foole—and Felix gave in, although whether he did so to shut Sylvain up or to snag some free food, well? No one will ever know. Don't @ him. Anyway, enjoy this oh-so Felix-y huff.]

I suppose he'll find one for you, as well.

[Get hype!]

[eques]

[ they've been friends for over twenty years. he should know by now that she can't ever.

hearing that it's sylvain's idea somehow doesn't surprise her. of the four of them, he's the one who'd jump into this sort of ideas with enthusiasm and bulldoze through everyone else's opinions while felix is often the unfortunate victim who has to deal with it. no, she doesn't envy him at all. ]

No, thank you. I'm quite content with what I'm currently wearing.

[ never mind that wearing her armour is quite stifling in this heat and humidity.

ingrid smiles widely when the metal vendor thing hands her the spun candy on a stick, gesturing for another one for felix. he better eat it, or else. ]

So you're here and Sylvain's here, too. Does that mean His Highness is also around?

[brothered]

[Being the (not-so-)secretly soft one sure does suck, especially when there are, like, three or so people who see through his tsun ways. Woe is Felix, stuck in this toga for the remainder of the day! Woe is Felix, watching his friend order another dick-shaped treat and knowing, in his heart of hearts, that he's going to wind up carrying it for her. For her. Hell no he's not eating it, fight him in front of everyone in this makeshift marketplace... but as that is a bridge he has yet to cross:]

Of course he is.

[Unfortunately is unspoken, but clearly implied—though it isn't as strong a sentiment as it once was. Winning the war helped; Felix is coming to terms with... things.]

So is Annette, along with others from the Alliance—and the Empire. [A pause, then, before Felix looks back, finally deigning to fully face her so he can gauge her reaction.] Edelgard is here.

[Welcome to sex island, Ingrid. Is she dead in your timeline, too... something fun to ponder before that robot holds out its newest creation to Felix, who promptly looks Offended.]

mukbang... also

[acquaint]

[ it was honestly a matter of time before ingrid showed up? like they've been three for four now and sylvain was counting down the days to seeing ingrid again, as much as the alternative would have been better. none of them are where they should be, most of them remember different things—it's a big mess that he hasn't been able to puzzle out yet, but well. she's here now, and sylvain can't help but smile at the sight of her roving the stalls with her armful of food. never change, ingie. ]

Right? You get your meat and your dessert all in one. [ sylvain steps up next to her, sporting his own awful toga that they were gifted earlier in the day. ] Convenient, isn't it?

[ he asks the vendor for three, taking one for himself and handing the other two to her with a softer smile. ]

Good to see you, Ingrid.

[eques]

[ how is that awful, it's very cute.

and it's the first thing that ingrid notices when sylvain steps up next to her, unable to hide her amusement and letting out a chuckle. look, she's been giving a piece of cloth too and some instructions on how to wear it, but she's given up on trying it on, clumsy as she is when it comes to anything else but putting armour on. ]

You make it sound like we haven't seen each other for a while, Sylvain. [ she accepts her share with a smile. ] Don't tell me you've been walking around wearing that?

[ she can't see how that would be very attractive to the girls he's been flirting with. ]

[acquaint]

[ listen, if ingrid expressed any hint at all that she wanted to wear a toga with them, sylvain would help her with it. but this is ingrid, the same ingrid who only suffered through mercedes' makeover for the ball because no one can actually say no to mercedes, so the chances of her actually wanting to wear one is undoubtedly slim. it's fine, seeing her in her armor feels a little bit like being back home again, so he will let this opportunity pass.

anyway, he visibly deflates at what she says, a long-suffering sigh leaving him as he all but drapes his tall ass self over her shoulders. ]

Oh, Ingie... these few months here have been miserable without you. [ he laments, while sneaking a bite of her chocolate banana. ] This robe is all I've had to brighten up my days until you got here. Every night I fall asleep to the dulcet tones of Felix calling me a fool, it almost makes me miss your lectures.

[eques]

[ at least one thing hasn't changed: sylvain's a dead weight, with or without armour.

ingrid tries to shrug him off, her mouth pulling to a thin line when he takes a bite of her banana when he currently has one in hand. he's clearly being dramatic and she would've happily railed at him as she usually would, but his remark catches her attention and gets her to pause.

and no, it's not the remark about falling asleep to felix's verbal abuses and missing her own. ]

Few months? [ she glances at him sideways with a frown, head tilted in question. ] What do you mean "few months"? I've seen you only a day ago.

[acquaint]

[ he's definitely being dramatic, yes. is he going to stop? no. but he does sober up a little at what she says, straightening up and taking most of his weight off her shoulders. he's only talked about this to two others so far, and it's still a lot to take in after just arriving. but this is ingrid, and he's never been good at lying to her either, so— ]

Humor me, [ he says, nibbling on his corndog as he watches her expression. ] Before you got here, did we win the war back home?

[madjesty]

[ Ah, yes. Somewhere, somehow, he always knew Ingrid was one bad day away from snapping at one of the very troublesome trio of Faerghan idiots she constantly she has to deal with, but Dimitri never thought he would be the first option. Goodbye, cruel world?

Okay, maybe it's not his time to go yet, and maybe an accidental swat from Ingrid wouldn't be enough to end him, anyway, but had it been a spear instead of--

... wait. Ingrid? ]

Ah, that was a close call...!

[ After that initial second of double-taking, he regains his composure, and the smile that seems to come a little easier, these days. At this point, it doesn't surprise him so much to see any more familiar faces, and though their... ah, circumstances aren't the best, he's always happy to see his childhood friend. ]

[eques]

[ look, if she were to rank the person most likely to get swatted away with a net by herself in their group, dimitri would rank third after sylvain and felix. and not just because he's her sovereign and not someone she should be casually smacking around. so really, he should rest easy.

she feels terribly guilty as well when she realises whose head her net connected with, so much so that ingrid jumps off of her horse to personally check on dimitri. she has to make sure she didn't crack his royal crown, you know. ]

Your Highness! My apologies, I didn't see you at all.

[ yes, it's strange that she didn't, considering it's dimitri and not bernadetta or lysithea. ] Are you injured?

crab people;

[byleth]

[ Hm. It seems he's tangled in a net. That's probably his fault for standing so still, waiting for his lure to respond to whatever lurks in the ocean, but he can't imagine he looks particularly "crab-like." He'll just chock it up to bad aim as he looks around for his captor, only to spot Ingrid barreling towards him. Now, that's unexpected. ]

You were close.

[ He's trying to be encouraging here. They're not that far from the nearest crab after all, and even after all these years, he can't quite drop the instructor role. ]

A few more meters to the left.

[ His fingers catch in the netting, calmly helping to untangle and free himself. Thankfully, his lure is still stagnant, but more importantly- he's relieved to see a familiar face here after all his wandering up and down the coast. ]

Catching dinner?