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TDM 015: IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PARADISE
| TDM 015: IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PARADISE |
00. Arrival You come out of the water, the Nameless Island's own inherent energy drawing people in. It's like being suspended between realities and abruptly pushed from behind through a rift in dimensions. It may make you sick, or that might be the motion of the ocean, lifting you to the surface 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. If you don’t manage to get away from them quickly enough, they may even usher you toward the Laid Bare Spa, where new arrivals will be offered free massages, a sauna, hairstyling, and their clothing may come up permanently missing. But you will be given a complimentary towel to leave with if needed! Feel free to explore the Island, though there isn’t much to see beyond what arrivals before you have helped to rebuild. Most of the buildings are abandoned and in dire need of repair, and beyond the city lingers a thick fog that obscures much of the wilderness from view. Wander too far into this fog, and you will find yourself mysteriously looping back to where you began, your memories of what you were doing and how you got there erased. With that in mind, it may be wise to stake your claim on a place to live in the now, whether a rundown apartment in the City, a tent on the beach, a bed in the barracks, or your own space at the House of Worship. Your inventory will be found a day later, wrapped up haphazardly and delivered to each person's makeshift home. I. Beach Episode Welcome to your beautiful and sunny island paradise, Erku! ...wait, it's sunny? That's right! For about two weeks, the Island will enjoy unusually warm and clear weather, just perfect for enjoying the cool waters of the beach. Don't swim out too far, however, lest you stray into hazardous choppy waters or get lost in the fog that still lingers beyond the peaceful cove. Just stay close, and you're golden! Once again, friendly robots have erected beachside food stalls for grilling fish and crabs, and encourage any enterprising Islanders to help hawk foods for credits. If gutting and cleaning fish isn't your forte, however, never fear. The robots are recruiting for a very important task! You see, they have very thoughtfully set up swimming and snorkeling lessons for any Islanders who are doubting their skills at staying afloat, or who just want to have some fun in the waves. There is only one complication: the robots are too heavy to swim. Enter, you! Earn credits by instructing your fellow Islanders in the marvels of the ocean. Not just swimming and snorkeling, but also fishing, clam digging, and sand castle art - among other things - are valuable skills you can sell. II. Sand Sport For the more competitive sort, the robots of Erku are happy to share a bit of culture from the planet's ancient past: wet sand wrestling! Volunteers (or any innocent Islander roped off the beach by an enthusiastic 'bot) don their skimpiest swimwear and duke it out for dominance in the wet sand by trying to throw their opponent outside of a ring. Knock-outs count as an automatic lose, so be careful! Oh, and no worries if you aren't particularly strong. Before the match, competitors are offered a a special drink - simply named "The Creamy" - an ancient recipe which is said to temporarily increase your strength and vitality. One shot of this, and anyone could take on Goliath! (And not just in a fight.) By the way… those who lose the competition are mysteriously compelled to accompany the victor for the day, waiting on them hand and foot, anticipating and fulfilling their needs before they are spoken. Did the 'bots forget to mention that? III. Graciously Given Gifts While swimming in the nude is completely acceptable on the Island, the robots know that many residents still (for some reason) value their modesty. That is why they are happy to encourage beachside revelry and communion by making sure scanty swimwear is readily available to Islanders who are in need of something to cover up with - while still showing off your assets, of course. Islanders may purchase for themselves, but they are especially encouraged to gift swimwear to their fellow Islanders... in fact, any swimwear to be given as a gift is free! Not only is it a lovely gesture to let a friend or lover know you appreciate their body, but also, swimwear received as a gift is said to be very good luck in wet sand wrestling competitions. Naturally, the robots are sensitive to the emotional needs of their organic charges, and thus they wouldn't want any new, recent, or less personable arrivals to the Island to feel left out for not receiving gifts. That's why some Islanders will find surprise swimsuits in pretty gift wrap sitting on their literal or metaphorical doorstep… addressed with love from a random Islander! With thoughtfully written messages included, of course, usually complimenting the recipient's figure in graphic and/or poetic terms. If you have any manners, surely you'll find these mystery admirers and thank them for the lovely gift! (If you're really a person of culture, maybe you'll even show it off for them.) N A V I G A T I O N |
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"More. I don't know their precise age, but I'd wager at least three or four thousand. Except for Flayn: I'm not entirely sure how old she is."
"Yes, including the Crest stones. Crest stones are the hearts of the dead." There's not really a nice way to put that, so Linhardt defaults to clinical language, "Yes. The Saints' Crests were gifts to allies of the Goddess. I'm not sure how they were given to us, though. There are also other Crests: One of the Heroes was turned into a Beast and erased from Church history." But not from the Adrestian archive, which is how Linhardt had figured out about Marianne.
"Your Crest was given to your ancestor by Solon's group after they slaughtered the rest of Sothis's children. They killed them and turned their bodies into Relics and Crests. Yes, Sothis is Seteth's mother, as well as Rhea's. And Indech's, but he doesn't speak to anyone."
'Oh yes, by the way, I also know where Saint Indech is and went to go see him.'
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Felix takes a moment to process this information about Crests and Crest stones, but it's the part about the slaughter that catches his attention. It makes a lot of other pieces fall into place that he didn't even really notice were out of place before. Like why Seteth is so protective of Flayn. And why Solon's group keeps trying to kill Byleth. But it makes some things make less sense.
"Isn't Sothis Flayn's mother, as well? She's Seteth's sister." Isn't she?
"I don't understand. If the Ten Elites were Rhea's enemies who killed most of her family and usurped their power to make weapons" --and by 'weapons' he means both the relics and the Crests themselves-- "why would the Church create a society where their descendants are in power?"
Felix tries not to think too hard yet about the fact that the monsters he so despises were responsible for his Crest. Responsible for Sylvain's Crest, and all the bullshit his family put him through over it. Mercedes, Ingrid, Dimitri...so many of his friends have suffered because of their Crests, products of murdered saints and stolen blood.
"...hmph. Unless it was a punishment. Our society isn't exactly kind or fair to anyone, noble or commoner. Or Rhea wanted us as cannon fodder against the inevitable return of Solon's people. But still, I don't see why Seteth and Flayn are so...nice to us."
Seteth can't secretly hate him, isn't grooming him for death against the shapeshifters' blades to protect his family...right?
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"Flayn is actually Seteth's daughter. They pretend she's his sister as part of the subterfuge. So Sothis is her grandmother." Which is why he'd unnerved Flayn so back in the academy, Linhardt supposes.
Linhardt raises an eyebrow at the supposition that Rhea essentially farmed them as cannon fodder. Even he hadn't jumped to that pessimistic a conclusion and he'd been about to aid in her murder back in Fodlan.
"I don't pretend to know about Rhea's reasoning and I think you should ask Flayn and Seteth about theirs directly. I can say that the decisions weren't uncontested: Macuil and Indech live but withdrew from human affairs. They believe we can't be trusted."
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"Huh. So she isn't really a 'Child of the Goddess' after all." Not that it makes much difference.
"Flayn is here as well? It's a shame I didn't see her earlier. She would have enjoyed the fruit slicing, I'm sure." Strange as she is, Flayn has a lot of wise things to say, just like her br--her father. Felix just had to cut through a pile of frivolous chores to find it. ...literally.
"I'll ask them, then. But what do you mean, human affairs? Are the saints not human?" They look human enough to him...
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"A grandchild, technically. Interesting to consider Sothis as a grandmother. It doesn't really seem to suit her." At least based on his understanding.
Now it's Linhardt's turn to give Felix a blank look. Fruit slicing? Then again, he hadn't talked to Flayn since leaving the academy and in his Fodlan, she's dead. So there's that.
He pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes. Really, Felix. They're literally the children of a Goddess and thousands of years old. How would they be human? Sylvain must be the brains of that duo; Linhardt never talked with either of them much.
"They're not. Rhea and Seteth are dragons. Indech is more like a turtle? I have drawings from after we found him if you'd like to look. But they can change forms to look like us. Please be delicate if you raise this matter with Seteth: It's a source of emotion for him. Be clear it doesn't matter."
Does it? Hopefully not.
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At the blank look, Felix rolls his eyes. "Flayn likes to throw things at me to chop up in midair. I don't know why. But it did lead to some enlightening conversation, so I suppose it wasn't a complete waste of time. Anyway, the automata refused to give me any food until I taught a bunch of obnoxious strangers how to slice watermelon with a sword."
Listen, they could just have been very long-lived humans! Felix didn't know he knew anyone who wasn't human, give him a break. Little does Linhardt know that he's absolutely right about Sylvain being the brains between them in most things, but that's only because Sylvain is a hell of a lot smarter than he lets anyone give him credit for, the idiot.
"Dragons? Seteth's a dragon?" Felix blinks. He's only ever seen one dragon, and thought there was ever only one. And wasn't entirely convinced the Immaculate One was ever real to begin with, until they saw it in person at the battle of Garreg Mach. ...oh, that was probably--
"So the Immaculate One is Rhea? It can't be Seteth, he was elsewhere on the field when that dragon showed up to decimate your forces." There's no smug or contentious tone, here, just a factual statement--that's what happened. "I'd think Seteth would have used that kind of power once the war had dragged on long enough, though. Is Flayn a dragon as well?"
Then he gives Linhardt a funny look. Felix doesn't know him well at all, but he's never heard anything that made him think the mage was someone who would give half a shit about being delicate with someone's feelings. Hell, Linhardt's one of the few people Felix respects specifically for never bothering to coddle anyone or hold back what he thinks. Huh.
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Even if they deserve it.
"That's kind of them to introduce you to island life so gently." Linhardt sounds more amused by the food story than anything else. Given his experiences on Erku, he is.
"Yes, the Immaculate One is Rhea who is Saint Seiros. Seteth has a dragon's form, but until very recently an old injury prevented him from accessing it. I'm not entirely sure about Flayn." He isn't close enough to her to ask. Most of his conversations with Flayn have been fairly awkward, actually: Even when she'd been alive in his Fodlan, his primary interest in her had been discovering her secret and now he just... knows. So he's not sure what to say to her.
no subject
...okay, so maybe Felix understands some of Edelgard's motivations. That doesn't explain why someone like Seteth would go along with it, though...ugh.
Felix arches a brow. "Kind? If you say so." He's not even going to begin to mention the other notable introduction he had, in the sand wrestling ring.
"I'm surprised you haven't asked her, considering everything else you appear to know. That's an important tactical detail to just overlook. So Seteth has a dragon's form...was his injury healed here on the island?"
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"There are a number of rather disturbing things about this island: Being forced to perform work, while annoying, is pleasant in comparison." It's all relative.
Linhardt shakes his head. Felix has misunderstood.
"We did not share information for tactical reasons. It's fairly obvious that if we go home we'll be stripped of our memories. If we're not, what I've learned from Seteth is the least of what I could use for change in my Fodlan."
The jump in technology and scientific understanding alone would immediately put Adrestia nearly on par with the Agarthans.
Linhardt flushes slightly. He knows how Seteth 'earned' his 'healing'.
"Yes, it was."
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Now that Linhardt points it out, it does seem sort of obvious that they wouldn't remember any of this after they left, but he sure isn't going to give the mage the satisfaction of admitting that.
"Still, with your constant need to poke your nose into everyone else's business, sparing Flayn seems uncharacteristic. Unless she refused to speak with you, in which case, I don't blame her." Listen, he doesn't dislike Linhardt, and despite his major Crest has never been bullied into talking about it with him. He doesn't even sound annoyed. This is just how he is.
Felix narrows his eyes at the strange turn Linhardt's reactions have taken, but he has no idea why such a basic question with an equally basic response warrants blushing, of all things. He decides he doesn't care. "Then I suppose that may explain why he wasn't able to heal it back home."