melodiesofeternity | Event || The Festival of Light

Event || The Festival of Light

Who: Everyone!
When: August 18th - 25th
Where: The Empire
What: The Festival of Light is here! Feel free to use any of these prompts. NPCs tag will come sometimes this week. Please mention it in your top-level if you'd rather not be tagged by a random NPC.
Warnings/Notes: N/A

EXPOSITION OF THE FESTIVAL OF LIGHT
— Third District || August 18th – August 25th || 10:00 to 23:00 —
The museums in the 03rd District are open to visitors and are home to many relics predating written history. A lot of those old relics are items of archaeological interest or look like they could be really advanced technologies if they weren't broken beyond repair. Prototypes for Magitek Armor of a new age are exposed, alongside fragments of what are believed to belong to the legendary WEAPONs, machines that belong to the same category than Ultima WEAPON.

The section for Eidolons has all the Eidolons the characters have met so far as well as others yet undiscovered displaying on a gigantic wall-covering painting. The largest Eidolon on the painting appears to be a dragon some characters may recognize as Bahamut, he is so big he dwarves the other Eidolons and should one pay attention, his wings are actually the background of the painting.

Interestingly, someone has doodled something that looks like Ultros over Leviathan on the painting...

SUNNY STARLIGHT
— Ninth District || August 22nd – August 25th || 07:00 to 19:00 —
Do you really believe because it’s summer, you can escape the beauty and magnificence of Christmas? Think again. There is one thing all the nations on Vaikuntha are of one mind on: the wait from the December 26th of a year to the December 24th of the next is too long. This is why a band of Moogles, Lalafells, Bangaas and Zoras from all across the Empire have occupied half of the Ninth District. Decorated trees, Christmas music, people dressed as Santa Claus (and probably dying because of the heat), fake gift boxes as well as a very large and pretty box for donations all await you!

Kids below the age of 15 will all receive a gift if they come: plushies made in the likeness of the main villains of numbered Final Fantasy games! And when you press the button hidden on their stomach, they speak a random line. Who doesn't want a Sephiroth plushie saying "You are a puppet" or a Jecht one repeating "Cry, cry, cry" all day long?

It's like a dream come true!

MIDNIGHT AIRSHIP
— Twelfth District || August 20th – August 24th || 23:00 to 06:00 —
For the late sleepers, it is possible to board a special airship prepared by Hypellos to party up in the sky. The Airship flies all around the Imperial Territories and should characters so desire, they can ask to stop by one of the two other cities. Whether they want to dance, to eat or to enjoy the view, it might be a very fun and relaxing activity. It is also a very good place from where to watch the fireworks… Or to scout for an incoming Tarutaru and her weapon toy.

Note that all the personnel onboard are Hypellos. They are very serviceable and nice, but can try the patience of those not used to their accent. Of note, one Hypello is green and appears to be angrily stalking anyone heading for the "Sunny Starlight" event. He is quite sneaky though and will always manage to get away before being approached.

MOGNET EXPOSITION
— Ninth District || August 22nd – August August 25th || 07:00 to 19:00 —
The half of the Ninth District not occupied by Christmas fanatics is occupied by the Moogles working for the Imperial section of Mognet. Split for the regular Mognet for a decade, Imperial Mognet has managed to thrive. Imperial iMog Slates have all sorts of functions other iMog Slates could only dream of, such as games, grammar check and that kind of stuff. All of those things can be visited at the exposition! Not only that, but the Moogles are also putting on display things that have nothing to do with Mognet but more to do with Moogles themselves.

Come and visit the exposition to discover the rich and amazing culture of the Moogles! Kupo Nuts, Fur Dye, Fake Kupo Nuts, Pom Shiner, Carved Kupo Nuts, booklets titled "How to Use Your Cuteness to Exploit People," Mognet Bags, Deluxe Kupo Nuts, Sheets to Prepare Future Strikes, Mog Beds, Explosive Kupo Nuts, Kupo Champagne—

There is no end to what might be learned from Moogles!

CHOCOBO RACES
— Sen Riqeaux || August 23rd || 15:00 to 20:00 —
A Chocobo Race will be held all around the city! Will you compete? Shall you win? There are no prizes as all the money earned through the race is given to the Safety of Sparks Golsaucia movement. Those participating can bring their own Chocobo or get a temporary one from the people organizing the race. It will be a very bad Chocobo though, so they shouldn’t expect to win… Beware the Hamsters and Marlboro during the race though. It’d be a real shame to end up getting eaten while racing.

SHOPPING
— City's Outskirts || August 18th – August 25th || 07:00 - 20:00 —
On the city's outskirts are all manners of stalls by shoppers eager to make some money. You can find everything there: plushies, food, clothes, souvenirs, books and even cosmetics. Why, one of the merchant is even selling contact lenses covering nearly all of the rainbow's spectrum aside from green while another sells all kind of swords, even the supposed legendary Excalibur! This might be the perfect place to take on O'aka's Quest if you so wish!

MINI SPARKS GOLSAUCIA
— Eleventh District || August 19th – August 24th || Anytime —
Specially for the festival, stallholders from Sparks Golsaucia were invited and brought a few attractions to display what they can do. Noticeably, there is a shooting stand—Once again, a treasure chest game where characters are presented with ten chests and can open only one-- Prizes range from one Gils to gigantic plushies. The novelty this year is something called the "Kupo Boxes," Boxes you punch open and you get something: perhaps something wonderful like a 1 million gil ticket, more often than not though absolutely nothing. Will you try your chance? Be careful, your wallet might not survive it.

TOURNAMENTS
— Tenth District || August 19th – August 23rd || 10:00/15:00/20:00 —
There is a Blitzball Competition taking place during the Festival of Light! Characters are free to go and watch the matches, so long as they can pay for the tickets. At the same time, a Triple Triad competition is taking place. Characters are free to enter the Triple Triad tournament if they so wish. Characters who know Triple Triads have decent chances to win. And even if your characters lose, what matters is trying, right? There are no prizes to be won, as all money goes to the Triple Triad For Everyone associations.

CULINARY ATTRACTIONS
— Second District || August 18th – August 25th || 12:00 to 13:30 / 19:00 to 21:00 —
What would a festival be without free food and banquets? Not really a festival. In the fourteenth district, there is a banquet and many stands held by people from all over the Empire. All kind of food can be found here-- Refined food, pastries, cakes, cooked meals, etc. It's virtually impossible not to find something to like in all of this, and it's all free! There are, however, guards standing around on the lookout for Gourmands who would be tempted to ruin the fun for everyone. After what happened two years ago, better be careful.

THE OPERA
— Ninth District || August 18th - August 24th || 22:00 —
There is an opera every day for all to see for free, titled "A Goddess's Tears." It is a retelling of the creation myth, but shown from the (presumed) perspective of the Goddess of Death. The play depicts the Goddess as someone who started out as a rather sweet person, but whose life took such terrible turns she wished to die and resented life. Yet, death was too scary of a prospect for her and she couldn't choose what was better, Life or Death. As the play progresses, she decides both are equally terrible and resolves to create a world where those very notions shall no longer exist.

As the play unfolds, toward the ends the story becomes what people are more familiar with. However, rather than letting her die wordlessly, the four heroes appease the Goddess's soul by singing. As the four heroes sing, the Goddess smiles and sheds a single tear before passing away. It is said the play is very emotional, sensible people might want to pass on it.

HOUSING
— Fourteenth District || August 17th - August 27th || Anytime —
Before, after and during the Festival of Light, the characters will all need a place where they can rest. Thankfully for them, people coming with the Curti Center delegation are all given the keys to stay in one of the abandoned houses in the 14th District. Truth to be told however, those house look anything but abandoned. Why, it's as if people had been living in them up until very recently, given how either clean and ordered they are for some, or chaotic and neglected they are for others (Characters who were present in Melodies of Life will be able to notice the houses are nearly identical to what they were just before the time skip during endgame, though there are a few eerie differences).

At least, it's a good place to sleep!

ARDYNIAN DISCOVERY
— Fifteenth District || August 18th – August 25th || 10:00, 15:00, 20:00 —
Everyday, it will be possible to get wheeled motor vehicle driven by imperial soldiers and go visit one of the other cities, case in point, Ardynia! Not much is done over there for the Festival of Light, but it is worth checking out, if only for the Wizard and Jester Jobs. It is a thriving city with people from all over the Empire, and it appears to be something of a shopping center for the imperial region.

And most importantly, discover the official headwear of Ardynia: the Fedora! It is said Archaeologists have imported this fashion trend to Ardynia when they pass by, but none know whether this is true or not. While most citizens have enough senses not to actually wear this dreaded hat, those who do wear it really look dumb doing so. And those who don't look dumb look like they'd make jokes about your pet's untimely demise while you're still crying about it.

Perhaps is is best to stay away.

PARASRAYA DISCOVERY
— Fifteenth District || August 18th – August 25th || 10:00, 15:00, 20:00 —
Everyday, it will be possible to get wheeled motor vehicle driven by imperial soldiers and go visit one of the other cities, case in point, Parasraya! Not much is done over there for the Festival of Light, but it is worth checking out, if only for the Archaeologist and Catmancer Jobs, as well as the Weapon Master Association. It is a technologically advanced yet small and cozy city...

... If it wasn't for a tragedy plaguing the city: cats, cats everywhere. If the meowing doesn't kill you, the constant flow of cats asking to be pet, fed and to sit on your lap might. You may even encounter a few tired citizens paying you money to take care of the cat infestation around their house. Others however are really defensive of the cats and will hunt anyone trying to bring harm to them. Of course, the source of all these cat-related troubles can be traced back to the origins of the Catmancer guild.

But, perhaps it is a story best left for another day.

FIREWORKS
— First District || August 18th – August 24th || Midnight —
Fireworks will be launched from the Castle starting 00:00 and will end at 01:00, everyday of the Festival. No matter where you are in the city, anyone should be able to watch them with ease if they so wish. Unfortunately, it means falling asleep before midnight may be a bit hard with all the noise. On the 25th, characters will be with dining with the Empress as the fireworks happen.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

A) The Exposition -

Bonnie can be seen flitting about the expo, eyeing the different pieces with an interest that her own moogle, Kuvon, seems to lack. Now and then he can be heard commenting on how her interest in scraps of metal that sit there and do nothing would be put to better use in the arts. Bonnie on the other hand has learned to tune him out a bit as she eyes the pieces of the WEAPONS, trying to recall if they look like anything the Heroes found in Palitutu's labs back home.

Of course, once she finds that doodle of Ultros she stops, her white face managing to blanche just a touch further.

B) Mognet Expo -
Bonnie does have to admit these Imperial moogles do seem to be on point. She was skeptical about the iMog slate when she was first exposed to it, and it seems that many of her gripes about it (besides the impersonalness of electronic mail over paper) have been addressed with the upgrades and innovations she's seeing here.

But the tech only keeps her focus for so long, as it does with all the other moogles in attendance. For once Kuvon and Bonnie are acting as one as they flit from booth to booth, trying some kupo nuts, gathering pamphlets, looking at new mail cap fashion, trying some kupo nuts, looking up the newest in pranking innovations, admiring artistic crafting and trying some kupo nuts. With all the swag the pair amass, it's very likely they might just bump into someone! Careful now!

C)The Opera -
Kuvon does eventually convince Bonnie to take in some of the artistic events going on at the festival, but perhaps going to the Opera wasn't the best plan. While the dancer moogle is clearly enjoying the show and commenting quietly on the staging and choreography, Bonnie has sunk into her seat as much as she can, finding the tale and the goddess all too familiar.

"Goddess? She wasn't a goddess, kupo~ She was a bad bad person kupo~"

Her mutterings get her shushed of course. Still, by the time the play comes to an end she's calmed a bit, her fears of a changed ending haven been proven wrong. If anything the ending has dredged up more familiar emotion than she expected as she sits there crying in a bout of ~~homesickness~~ reminiscence.

D) Parasraya -
The talk of new jobs caught Bonnie's ear, and Archaeologist and Catmancer both sounded interesting. Maybe not as interesting as Sky Pirate but she still wanted to give them a look. After all, Mary and the others would all encourage her to try to find her own way and not just copy everything her partner did, after all. No harm in trying. What's the worst that could happen?

Anyone walking through the streets and picking their way around the cats that fill them will hear a soft wailing, growing louder and then softer again. A mystery until one notices that the cat that just walked past holding a kitten by the scruff, that kitten has a decidedly moogleish pom and a cloth hood.

"Help me, kupoooo~"

Edited 2018-08-13 22:33 (UTC)

Kenichi had brought along his chocobo since he heard about the races and well, just to be safe if things went ugly. Kohaku looked around when she heard the cry for help, with Kenichi following suit.

"B-Bonnie?!" The pom and hood clearly stood out and Kenichi dismounted to aid in her rescue. As much as he was tempted to take a photo of this interesting scene, he decided to spare her this time. He crouched down and extend his hand.

"Hey there, mama cat, you, uh, mind letting go of her? She's not one of your kittens."

Cecil the moogle who followed after tilted his head. Did he honestly expect this cat to actually understand him?

The mama cat was a fairly large one. Not exceptionally or monstrously so, but clearly an elder amongst her tribe. She cocked her head curiously at the man, Bonnie whimpering a bit as she rocked in the cat's grip. She looked unharmed. The only damage was a critical blow to her pride.

But after a pause, whether the cat understood or not, it decided to set Bonnie down and then wandered off like all of this was it's own idea. Bonnie was left sitting there on her fluffy rump, shivering on the comedic side of shellshock.

Kohaku kept an eye on the cat as it skulked away. Kenichi let out a sigh of relief. He really didn't want to fight a cat, especially when Bonnie would be in the crossfire. Speaking of the moogle, he carefully picked her up and gave her a pat on the head. (Not the pom, as he learned quickly not to do from watching his kids.)

"It's alright. She's gone now."

Bonnie just sort of...remained flopped as the cat abandoned her and left her behind. She was just as limp as one as Kenichi picked her up but the gentle pats seemed to revive her right as rain.

"Weh, Mister Kenichi~ Thank you so much, kupo~ When that cat bit down on me I couldn't move~ It almost felt like I was being brought home, kupo~"

"Do...moogles carry their babies by the scruff like cats?" Kenichi thought out loud as he glanced at Cecil, who caught up to them. His moogle just shot him a look in disbelief and said nothing.

"Anyway, I'm glad you're alright, Bonnie. You know, you don't have to add Mister to my name, right?"

Bonnie shook her head, "Not really, kupo. But our bodies are a little catlike so the scruff is there. We're not cats of course, kupo." The last part is added with a strong layer of 'and don't you dare think otherwise'.

"Mmm, I know, but it just feels right, kupo. Like Mary is Mary but Miss Saori is Miss Saori. Mmm, but after all that I got lost too. Which way is the Catmancer guild, kupo?"

"Th-that's very good to know," Kenichi could only nod to confirm that he got that message.

"You thinking about the trying out Catmancer too? I was actually heading over there myself. Care to join me?"

Much like most things moogle, it wasn't a particularly surefire thing with them. Mostly just the sort of thing that tended to crop up in the most absurd ways. And eager to forget her recent humiliation for the moment, Bonnie nodded eagerly at his offer.

"Yes, kupo! And maybe you can watch my back so no more big mommy cats sneak up on me, kupo." She fussed a bit, she was sure she could have stopped the cat if she saw her coming! "I wanted to visit the Archaeologist guild too, kupo, if there's time."

"Alright, I think you'll be safer if you stayed up here with me," he said as he got back on his chocobo. "I doubt any cat would be bold enough to steal you from on top a chocobo. And Kohaku will make sure that won't happen, right?"

They were met with a loud Kweh! in agreement. Kenichi chuckled and pat Kohaku on the head before he spurred her to move.

"So...would this be a bad time to ask if it's alright if I brought one of these cats home? I promise no mom cats."

Bonnie nodded and fluttered up onto the back of the chocobo, settling in comfortably. "That should be fine, kupo. It just caught me off guard is all." It's hard to say what she could have done even so since she wouldn't have wanted to hurt the cat, and perhaps it's for the best that she wasn't knocked out of the sky by it.

"I guess if we both join the guild we'll both be bringing home cats, kupo."

With the volume of moogles, it's hard not to bump into one on occasion, even if Chara is doing their best to check themselves. They try and right Bonnie after the moogle bumps into them, checking that they're okay.

"Sorry about that!" Chara says, "I should've watched where I was going."

"Kupo!" Bonnie flails briefly, juggling an expertly carved wooden kupo nut between her paws before finally securing it close to herself. "Ah! No, kupo, it was my fault. I wasn't looking where I was going, kupo."

Kuvon huffs but he says nothing. With nothing broken there's no leverage to try to extort kupo nuts out of Chara. The same thought flits through Bonnie's mind as well but she's resolved to be better behaved lately.

Bonnie sure is agile. Chara's almost a little surprised; despite their size, agility wasn't something they would have been sure about for the moogles until they saw it.

"It's alright," Chara replies, smiling. "I'm the bigger of us. I probably should've kept a better eye out."

Chara looks around, smiling. "You guys are pretty amazing, huh? You're pretty inventive, at least. Are you from this world, like the other moogles?"

The nice thing about moogles is with all their fluff and low mass they tend to take impacts with little damage, a lot like bumblebees. Still, no collision is generally preferable.

"Ah no, I'm from Crystallis, kupo. Kuvon is from this world though and he was assigned to help me out." The two are getting on a little better now but Kuvon huffs just a little and busies himself with some ballet drills while the two chat.

"But you're right. Since we moogles are so small and weak we have to be clever. Like this kupo nut." She unscrews the top of the wooden replica to show it's hollow inside. "You could put a stinkbomb in here and trick someone into thinking it's a real kupo nut. They won't know until it's too late, fufufu."

"Crystallis. That's the world people think came before this one, right?" At least that's what Chara remembers reading in the notes that one person posted up for all of them.

"That's pretty slick, partner," Chara says, smiling. "I guess I'll have to pay more attention in case I ever try one."

They pause for a moment, then says, "Can I ask you a question? About moogles, I mean? Where you're from, did moogles just naturally end up following people around or getting assigned to them, or is it just here?"

Bonnie nods, "It makes sense from what I've seen, kupo. There's a bunch of things in this world that remind me of home. A lot of the places seem like they're named for the Heroes of my world, kupo."

She looks a bit homesick for a moment but at Chara's followup question she brightens up, "Well, not all of us, kupo. A lot of use just lived in the world or worked for Mognet, but yes, we were also charged with supporting the Heroes who were summoned to our world by the Crystal. I don't really know how it was all decided and everything, kupo, but we were able to help them manage and store and change their Jobs."

She frowned, her little brow furrowing as she tried to remember, "I think Mary said that they found a mural about the first Heroes, and how moogles came to be because of them, kupo..."

Bad bad person...?

[ A woman who had been sitting by Bonnie finally spoke when it all ended. The dress she was wearing was very elegant and looked quite expensive— If only based on the way she was dressed, it was safe to assume she was either quite rich or important. That or she was a noble. ]

Good and evil... Can you truly apply such notions to this?

[Bonnie glances up at the woman, her ears and pom swinging back just a touch in caution as she tales this stranger in. There's definitely enough presence here to put her on edge.]

W-well, she tried to kill everyone, kupo. And she stole the body of a friend to do it. That's pretty evil, kupo.

Stole the body of a friend...?

[ The woman looks down at the Moogle. ]

There is no such things written in the legends.

Kupo, maybe this world is different from mine but...

[The moogle frowns and shifts.]

There's lots of things here that remind me of home in ways I don't think are coincidence, kupo. And if our worlds are linked that way then it might be what the legends are based on. I'm not saying they got them wrong or left things out on purpose but....that's the way it went, kupo...

[She blinks and then looks up at the pretty lady.]

Ah! I'm sorry, kupo! I didn't mean to say anything about your culture. I'm Bonnie, kupo.

You are an otherworlder, then.

[ A pause. ]

Gods and Goddesses, if they exist, are nothing but beings whose powers and comprehension are beyond the grasp of common mortal. Legends build individuals as gods and goddesses.

[Bonnie nods. It's not really an area of expertise but she's at least been adjacent to enough conversations on the topic to understand what this pretty lady means.]

I think on some worlds they consider the Eidolons gods. It makes sense, kupo. But calling someone a god also feels like, ummmm, like it's saying what they've done is okay, kupo, no matter how bad it might have been.

[She's not sure how well she put her feeling. She just knows that thinking of Kalki being worshiped makes her whiskers stand on end. It's an icky feeling.]

Gods are neither good nor evil. I do not think it is as simple as saying what one of them did is okay or not okay.

Mmmm, maybe, but everyone was pretty much in agreement that Kalki was evil, kupo. Palitutu too. And they did give them chances to change their ways, to help them.

[The moogle shakes her head.]

If she's just a story to you then I guess you think differently about her, but sometimes I still have nightmares about what she tried to do to my world, kupo.

[And what she did manage to do on the way was part of that nightmare fuel too.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Event || The Festival of Light

Bonnie - OTA

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The Opera

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