Event || The Festival of Light

[eternitymods]

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.

Comments

Re: Exposition

[acapriciousreaper]

Kuja is pulled out of his reminiscence by the voice of a child beside him. His tail twitches in mild agitation, and he reflects, briefly, on how he seems to be attracting children, of late. "I do. They're present on my world, as well. I don't know if they're the same, but we've... met, on a few occasions."
He points to one of the figures. "That would be Shiva, the Queen of Winter, Odin the Destroyer, Atomos the Ever-Ravening, er- what on earth did they do to Leviathan? The most famous of course is Bahamut, the Wyrm-King, who seems to be the primary subject of the painting since his wings form the background."

[4got10]

The sign of agitation doesn't go unnoticed by Chara, but they don't intend to leave quite yet. This person at the very least seems to know something about what they're looking at. They're familiar with at least some of the figures here, unlike Chara where everything here is weird and new.

"So they're like gods? Or guardians?"

[acapriciousreaper]

The agitation, at least, seems to be fading, borne more from not expecting to be interrupted than any particular malice. "I suppose some worship them like gods. Eidolons are... creatures, born from magic. They don't exist in the traditional sense, but can be summoned through complex rituals to perform tasks, though some people have a talent for doing it without the sacrifice and ceremony. Given the power they possess, it's usually to aid in battle. I'm not certain how powerful Summoners are here, but at least on my world they were formidable opponents. A single summoning would be sufficient to lay waste to a city, or an entire fleet of ships."

[4got10]

Chara thinks on that for a while. They understand magic, and they understand monsters, but in a way this is pretty distinct from either of the ways Chara understands those. They look at the paintings of the Eidolons, quietly, for a moment.

"So they don't really have a will of their own?" Chara asks, arms crossed as they keep looking over the creatures. "Will they just respond to any kind of summon, if the person who can do it is strong enough? Or does it have to be something specific to get them to intervene in a fight?"

[acapriciousreaper]

Kuja crosses his arms, looking up at the wall and... remembering. "An eidolon has the will to contract with a summoner, or reject them. In that sense, they have wills and personalities of their own. But once an Eidolon is summoned, or... otherwise ensorcelled, they will obey their caller's orders, for good or ill."

[4got10]

"Can it be interrupted?" Chara asks, tearing their eyes from the painting to actually look at the person they're speaking to. "If it's some form of magic, it can't be perfect. There has to be some kind of way to defend against it."

[acapriciousreaper]

"Here? I don't know. I'm not a summoner. Though I expect any fortification against magical harm would work, whether it be a defensive enchantment, on up to an antimagic field." He pauses, looking down at the... boy? girl?... does it matter? Child.
"More effective methods exist, but they're either extraordinarily complicated and thus, not applicable in the context of self-defense, or else, as far as I'm aware, unique. And you are?"

[4got10]

"Me? I'm human, can't you tell?" Chara says, smiling, popping their hands into the pockets of their jacket.

"My name's Chara. I sort of just popped in here with the last group of people who we're floating in dreams."

[acapriciousreaper]

There's a little snort of an almost-chuckle at the retort. "Kuja. And you most likely can tell that I'm... not. It seems we're on the same airship, if you've just arrived as well."

[4got10]

"Well that's a let down. Here I was hoping I'd get to grow a tail when I get older." They've started this ball rolling. Might as well keep the joke going for a minute.

"It's...something, isn't it? I didn't really think it was this possible to be so far from home. It's a lot to take in and..." they pause for a moment, wondering if they should even go on. "I'm not used to seeing so much magic."

From humans, at least. Monsters back home used magic constantly. It was almost mundane for the monsters. Humans though. They hated magic. It reminded them too much of monsters. And the wizards who used it were just like the monsters, to be hated and scorned.

It's a weird feeling, seeing humans and everything not human interacting as well as they do. Of seeing a surface world that has an acceptance and use of magic.

[acapriciousreaper]

"It can be jarring, I suppose, coming to a new world where everything is different from what you're used to. I might be significantly upset at having lost all my magic, but at the very least I'm not the only one starting from the top."

[4got10]

"We're pretty much all back at zero, no matter who we are," Chara says, running a hand briefly through their hair. "It's kind of like an adventure. Or a new start."

No matter how much you may not have wanted a new start. An adventure is a far better way to consider this. They pause for a moment.

"Was magic common in your world too? People used it often?"

[acapriciousreaper]

"That's the optimist's way of looking at it, I suppose. I'm trying to see it the same way."
He tilts his head, at the question. "Very common. There were many positive sides to it; airship travel, healing magic I suppose. Of course, when something is commonplace, it's usually used for war. But I suppose that's inevitable. As long as there's two people left on the face of the earth, someone's going to want someone else dead."

[4got10]

"What's the point of having a knife if you're not going to use it to cut," Chara says dryly, eyes darting back to the Eidolon painting. They get it. It's a point about the world they know can't be argued. Violence will always exist somewhere, in some way.

They stay silent a few more seconds before saying, "I wonder how bad things are going to get, now that we're here. We're a bunch of strangers just running around the world. We weren't meant to be here. That's going to cause problems, right?"

[acapriciousreaper]

"Hmph. If we weren't 'meant' to be here, then by all means, I say we kick up our feet. Dig right in, strike up the band, perform a damned symphony titled 'I'm here, get used to it!'"
He sighs. "What's 'meant to happen' is only very seldom related to what actually occurs."

[4got10]

Chara laughs a little at the response. "I wouldn't mind lounging around for a while."

They don't know, really. If anything in life really has a purpose or meaning. There's a lot of times where it seemed like things about their past only made sense if there was a reason to it. To the suffering and the fear thrown at them. Yet, it seemed like the monsters themselves had shown them there was no reason at all but human meanness.

"You're right. Maybe it's best that way, too."

[acapriciousreaper]

Kuja reflects on that, for a moment, going quiet and taking in the sight of the Eidolon Wall. "Very possibly. You... asked if magic was common, in my world. Am I to take it to mean it is not, in yours?"

[4got10]

"...Not for humans, no, it isn't," Chara says, keeping their eyes on the wall as well. Not looking back over at Kuja. "It is for monsters though. They can use magic for all kinds of things. You won't really find them though, since the wizards imprisoned them within a mountain."

Quiet a moment more, wondering if they should even say the next part.

"For that, the humans came to fear the wizards who saved them during the war the humans had started with the monsters. If magic belonged to monsters, then what real difference was there between wizards and monsters."

[acapriciousreaper]

"Well, the obvious differences would be intelligence, general attitude towards living creatures, that sort of thing. It sounds like the wizards did a great service, locking them away. I can't imagine it working on Gaia, given the mist's ability to produce all manner of man-eating beasts. Still, it's easy for some people to fear what they don't understand. You'd think they could show some gratitude, but apparently not. Is it more than the humans reacting that way, or were other races a bit more sensible?"
This may, in fact, seem like a nonsensical series of statements. Possibly 'monster' has a different connotation?

[4got10]

"...Heh," Chara hangs their head a little, a smile crossing their face. It's a bitter, tired looking smile.

"I think the other races were....monsters aren't like they are here, from what I've learned. The monsters where I'm from are intelligent, and empathetic, and kind. The humans...it's hard to tell how hostilities started, but it always seemed like the humans feared the monsters, so they hated them, and they tried to drive them down. Because if you're something that sticks out and can be hated, you need to be driven down. It's like what they say about the nail that sticks out, you know?"

They pause. Then take a breath.

"Wizards aren't really different from humans. Not enough to be a different race, at least. They can just use magic. But that was enough to cause distrust, and fear. So it was enough to run down any wizards they could find. Even if they could use magic, they were small in population compared to humans."

"You know what I think about most humans," Chara keeps staring at the wall. "I think most humans want to be afraid of the things they don't understand, so they feel they can justify their hatred. Because there's a part of them that just wants to break anything that doesn't fit their mold. Among humans, I think that deep down there's only one motto that really matters: it's kill or be killed."

[acapriciousreaper]

To someone who is not an extremely bitter child, Kuja's lack of reaction may just come off as alarming. "I see. Well, suffice to say I don't think they'd be judged here, or on Gaia, for that matter. I could list the number of colorful and intelligent species that call Gaia home, but I doubt we have that much time. You could likely even study magic here, if you wanted, with these... Asterisk things."
He sighs. "Hah. 'Do unto others before they do unto you', then? It's as good a maxim as any, I suppose. Though from what I've seen, humans I have met are... not fundamentally decent, nor fundamentally wicked. Like the rest of us, they are, fundamentally, people, all the hero of their own story. Nobody ever thinks they're evil, save the mentally deranged. No, the worst evils are always done by short-sighted morons who think they can't possibly be wrong."

[4got10]

Chara has to actually think on that last bit a moment. As easy as it was for them to judge, it was true. How many of their worst plans, their worst possible actions, had they decided to take spur of the moment? Had taken because they didn't see any other option before them that they could use. It'd be easy to judge others, and not really think of other humans actually saw themselves.

That no one ever thinks they're evil though. Chara almost wants to laugh at that. How many times had they been told they were evil? How many times had they been led to believe that was true? That they really had no decency or worth in a good world. Then again, they're pretty sure that's not what Kuja means anyway. And they're right; anyone who actively thought their actions were wrong were either going to go insane, or already were.

And then there was the issue of the chaos caused by the King's declaration. Something that the King - apparently no matter who they were, or what universe they were from - would always come to regret.

They can't say much on the actual nature of humans. At the moment, they don't feel like they want to. About the first part though...

"...I think I will study it. It's not like I have too much else on my plate right now. Besides. Depending on how long we're here, it could come in handy."

[acapriciousreaper]

"I find it's an intensely rewarding use of my time. It's a pain learning it all over again, but there is a certain pleasure in having to challenge myself to cast a simple Fire again. As for how long we'll be here... I'm not certain I'd care to return. There's nothing for me on Gaia, I'm afraid..." And Terra's a ball of ash.
"Listen to me, spilling my soul to a complete stranger. Looking at this wall must be making me sentimental. I might also recommend you take up Summoning. It's an extraordinarily powerful branch of magic, and quite versatile. I knew the last two Summoners, briefly. I considered myself a powerful mage, but the pair of them were nearly my equal." Before Trance, at least.

[4got10]

Chara seems to relax and loosen up again. They turn to Chara, resting their chin on the palm of their hand.

"You sound like you must have been a real expert on magic where you're from," Chara says, and winks. "No chance you're taking students, huh?"

[acapriciousreaper]

Kuja snorts. "That could not have been more blatant flattery. I fear I'm as much a student as you would be, in this instance. However, I could pass along notes, I suppose. I lose nothing by doing so."