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TDM 004: WASHED ASHORE
| 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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[ Even if he hadn't planned to advance on him there was still some amount of satisfaction in watching him lose his footing. The smirk on his face was brief, but it certainly had been there. Perhaps it was that statement that wiped it from his face almost immediately: I don't even know which Dio you are! Any amusement he'd gotten out of it was replaced by confusion, his lips flattening into a thin line. ]
And just what is that supposed to mean? Which Dio am I...?
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[ Even as he'd voiced his suspicions the thought he was keeping at the furthest corners of his mind began to creep forward. If Diego was here why couldn't it have been Gyro instead? It's not really that Diego had actively done anything to cause him any harm before, he was simply... Unsettling? Unsavory? A reminder of something deeper?
Even as he thought and considered things, there was the wavering of his finger, lowering his hand slowly and scoffing over the idea that he wasn't meant to be dead at all. Gyro hadn't meant to be dead either, a lot of people didn't... why did Diego think he was so special? It's one of those annoying traits for sure. ]
After you were gone, Valentine had sought out another version of you to steal the corpse. A real vicious version... That ability of his was...
It doesn't matter now, it's all done.
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[ It was a quiet musing to himself, lip threatening to curl when he considered the fact that he'd sacrificed himself for absolutely nothing. He had died in vain and had nothing to show for it, nothing whatsoever. That joy he'd felt moments before was incredibly short-lived, Diego staring down at the floor of the tent with a rather dour look on his face. ]
Let me guess, you're the one that made sure it was 'done'?
[ Like two kicks in the gut, one from each of Johnny's newly functioning legs. ]
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[ Somehow seeing Diego's very honest reaction was strangely humanizing, well humanizing enough that Johnny felt comfortable enough to lean back to look at the ceiling of the tent and keeping himself propped up by his elbows. ]
You're the last person I really want to be stuck here with.
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[ He didn't know what to say, one of those rare moments that he was completely speechless. It was one thing to realise that he'd died for nothing and he certainly hadn't expected someone like Johnny to be thrilled by his presence.
I could have merely been disappointment in the way that things had turned out that struck him in such a way that he could almost feel his heart sinking. ]
...and when exactly did you start walking again?
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It doesn't matter now, does it? It wasn't soon enough, that's for sure...
[ It was growing more uncomfortable, and Johnny could feel himself faltering in keeping those emotions in check. ]
I need to get out of here, there's something I promised to do...
[ There was that feeble attempt to move onto his side to get up on his knees to try and stand to get out of this tent. ]
... You may have not been my favourite person, but I don't feel like you deserved to die either.
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It wasn't something he would have admitted out loud, but the way that he reached out rather suddenly to take Johnny by the wrist and pull him back down to the floor of the tent said enough. ]
You can't just say something like that and then leave! What could possibly be so important?
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Being pulled back down had him falling onto the ground with some hissed out curses. What the actual fuck Diego? Do you know how this feels when you're not sober?
He could've openly complained about this, but those curses had drowned out by the very audible sound of biting back another raw emotion instead. ]
Gyro's dead... I promised that I would take his body and horse back to his family, they deserve to have that much... He had people to go back to...
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Are you daft? Have you not noticed that this isn't the same place that you left? There's no body for you to take, not here. As much as I'm loath to admit it we're in the same situation here, in unfamiliar territory with no one else to rely on; don't waste your time on a fool's errand.
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[ Even as he snapped back with such, he felt that grip growing tighter, his brows knit and there was a shift to look over in Diego's direction ]
... Why are you fighting against this so much?
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I know you had to go through the same bloody thing I did when I got here, it's not as simple as catching a ride out of town with the first coach that passes by! How exactly do you intend to get home? The same way you came? Do you have even the faintest idea how any of the shit here works?
[ The more he talked the more he realised just how much was foreign to him and the thought of being left here alone became all the more bothersome to him. ]
This isn't about some petty need to best you for once, this is me trying to get this situation through your thick skull!
[ He didn't know when he'd brought himself to his knees, but he'd found himself hovering over the other's face as he continued to grip him. ]
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[ Although a thought came to mind, and he couldn't help that colour blooming over his face as he'd looked away with a click of his tongue. A weak attempt at pulling his hand away from Diego's hold. ]
What I do know though, is that I'm not going to do any of those things on that chart with you.
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[ Truthfully he hadn't been thinking about the bingo card, suddenly very aware of the implications as that colour spread over Johnny's face. ]
For the record, I wasn't asking you to, I'm sure anything you have on yours would be of little interest to me!
[ Naturally he was curious, but the way his lips pursed probably gave that thought process away. ]
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What would be in it for you, Dio?
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[ It was strangely sincere coming from him, Diego finally releasing the hold he hand on Johnny's arm. ]
...do you get it now or do I have to go on?
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[ With Diego relinquishing his wrist, he pulled it close to himself to rub at it absently as he tried to think this over. Honestly, it was making his head hurt, trying to work out the logistics.
Regardless, he got up to his knees again and now moved to get beside Diego and tugged at the sleeping bag. ]
I'm getting cold and tired... you kept me in here too long, so it's not like I could find another tent to go sleep in.
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[ His tone had far less bite than he'd intended, caught off guard by the implications of Johnny moving in and pulling on the sleeping bag. He narrowed his eyes slightly, trying to gauge whether his 'companion' was being serious or not. ]
It's hardly my fault that you happened to wander into my tent, but I suppose it works out in some capacity.
[ He shifted, unzipping the sleeping bag and allowing Johnny some leeway. He couldn't help but be concerned that this was just a ploy, something to keep him placated until the other man could make his escape. He mulled over it for a moment, letting out a huff of breath through his nose before finally speaking again. ]
The zipper stays on my side, if only to make sure that you don't take off in the cover of darkness. We can work the rest out in the morning, so we're in agreement that you aren't going anywhere, yes?
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[ It was mumbled as he waved a hand dismissively, already moving into the sleeping bag. ]
Don't make it weird Dio, I'm not moving once I go to sleep... so keep the zipper on your side if you want or whatever. I don't care right now.
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[ The fact was that even if he hadn't taken part in the festivities, he was just as tired as his rather unwanted companion. Perhaps that was the first good idea that Johnny had, rest. ]
And I'm not trying to make it weird, I'm trying to make it clear that we have an understanding. An agreement that will not be broken.