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

[hatejakku]

It was easy to spoke Baiken, true enough, but she looked like she wanted to be alone. Finn didn't think it too wise to disturb her.

However, when he noticed something was up, the need to intervene outweighed his hesitance. "What's wrong?" he asks without much of greeting.

[garyoutensei]

"Get me... out of here," she spoke quietly, strained, and with shame clouding her tone. She didn't want to be helped, like this, to be seen this weak, but her legs were having trouble moving. Crawling through that rubble, unable to walk, dragging herself with one hand...

No. That wasn't here. She forced her eye open, with a small gasp, the hand on the rail now clinging to Finn's jacket.

[hatejakku]

That was not a reaction he expected from her, needless to say. With one very quick glance back at the WEAPONs, Finn puts a hand to her back, not too low or too high, and starts moving. He wants to get out of here quickly if they can without causing a scene, so his first few steps are a ground-eating trot he'd learned in the marches, testing to see if she could keep up like this. If so, they should be out of here in no time, but he'd slow up if he had to.

[garyoutensei]

It was a struggle, at first, to keep up with him, stumbling along, but eventually she managed to find her feet again. They still worked. They weren't...

Once outside, she pushed herself away from him, with more force than she'd meant to, falling to one knee as she clutched at eye. Her scar was burning, or at least felt like it was, fresh as the day it was made...

[hatejakku]

He did stumble back when she pushed him aside but caught himself and didn't really blame her for it. Finn really wanted to crowd over her and ask if she was all right, but that would be unwelcome.

So he stayed back and crouched down lower to the ground so he didn't tower over her either. His Chemist job was already active if she needed something, but otherwise, Finn watched for anyone coming towards them.

He was prepared to wait it out. Or leave if she started demanding it of him.

[garyoutensei]

After a moment or so, she literally just sat herself the rest of the way onto the floor, crossing her legs as she reached into her kimono to pull out her pipe... or attempted to, anyways, but her hand was shaking so badly she could hardly hold onto it, eventually dropping it before she clutched at her head once more.

She said nothing, but it was impossible to mistake this for anything else. Bared raw for Finn was a story without words... Especially when she tried to reach for the pipe again...

... but with her right arm. And upon realizing it, screaming loud enough to scratch up her throat, anger and agony mixing as one.

[hatejakku]

Okay, she was probably going to be pissed at him for doing this, but he was doing it anyway. Finn scuttled closer, not rising high enough to walk, and grabbed the pipe.

"It's all right," he said in a low voice but not soft, assuming she'd take that to be an insult if she wasn't insulted already. This thing wasn't all right, clearly, but this moment and the pipe and the world around them was. He offered the pipe to her left hand, trying to stay calm enough himself to be observant and confident. "It's all right. You ever heard of breathing exercises? Breathe in for four seconds through your nose, hold for seven, exhale through your mouth for eight."

She was probably going to hit him. He reckoned that would be an improvement.

[garyoutensei]

She knew the technique, but in her clouded panic, it was helpful to remember they existed.

Four. Seven. Eight.
Four. Seven. Eight.
Four. Seven. Eight.

Her mind focused on Finn. Someone in front of her, someone real. She clutched the pipe and his hand, both, holding tightly as she continued to breath. The haze in her eye started to recede. The heat around her from flames that didn't exist started to subside. The wet sensation of bleeding began to slowly disappear. Her right arm... she still wanted to flex it instinctively, to reach out for Finn with it. She flinched as it happened again. Why did it still feel like it was there? Why could she still feel that pain?

[hatejakku]

"Just breathe."

He wished he knew what triggered this. Maybe he'd be able to help more if he did. For now, he just felt a little useless as he held Baiken's hand with both of his. What Finn didn't expect was her not trying to hide the vulnerability, at least not yet. He wasn't about to reject the opportunity, though.

So he counted with her, trying to figure out what to do when she flinched again. Finn moved one hand from hers to her other shoulder, the one without the limb. He was getting an idea what this was about. If she couldn't reach out for him, he'd just reach for her. It was all right. Hopefully.

[garyoutensei]

It took several more moments, but eventually it seemed she was starting to calm down, if only slightly. She could still feel that phantom pains on her right sight, on an arm that was no longer there, but they were dulling, becoming easier to ignore, easier to realize they weren't actually real. No more flames, no more blood...

"I'm sorry..."

[hatejakku]

"You've got nothing to apologize for."

Finn was the one feeling sorry. He didn't really know what to do, but she seemed to be calming down now, at least. Now that she was talking, though- "What can I do to help?" If anything, that is.

He wanted to ask if she was feeling better now, but that just seemed like a stupid question.

[garyoutensei]

"Being here... is fine," which was usually against her nature, but Finn's tangible existence was what was helping anchor her to reality, and even she didn't have so much pride that she couldn't show some appreciation for that.

[hatejakku]

Oh. He let the surprise go quickly, willing to be there for her. Though he probably had a little smile on his face. He liked being let in, liked being able to help. He could do this much. "Then I'm here."

[garyoutensei]

A few moments later, Baiken's breathing has steadied. Slowly, her grip loosens, and she finds herself leaning back just slightly, casting an unfocused gaze skyward. She really wished Finn hadn't seen any of that, but... she was also still partially grateful he'd been there, rather than anyone else. She remains there in silence moments longer before taking her pipe and placing it back between her lips, though not stuffing or lighting it, just yet...

[hatejakku]

Now that she's calmed down, he feels more invading than helpful. Even so, he makes no move to leave or even really wants to. When she lets go, he allows himself to sit back more comfortably and just listens to the silence between them, still making sure people don't come over. He'll wait for her lead, if she gives any, and just takes the moment to quiet his own demons.

[garyoutensei]

"It never... goes away. Even here, so far away from home, those memories are burned like a scar into my mind...," Baiken spoke quietly, almost softly, a quality so far away from her usual tone.

"Those things in there... they shouldn't exist."

[hatejakku]

He can... definitely relate. "No," Finn says after a long moment. "No, they shouldn't. But you aren't alone. Sometimes the past just won't let go, but that's okay."

Or that's how he gets by, anyway. Bad things happened, bad things are still happening, and getting through it is okay, it's enough. He's still trying to grasp that one completely.

[garyoutensei]

"How many people like me... have those things created, huh? Wraiths left wandering, half-dead, with no place to return to..."

[hatejakku]

He hates this. Mostly because he's felt that, he understands it, and no one else should feel that way. But he's also a realist and a little pessimistic. He knows that others have gone through the same or worse and that the cycle never really ends.

"There's-... Too many... But a place doesn't matter as much as the people, though, right? You have people here."

[garyoutensei]

"Don't tell me what I have," Baiken's response, the words, felt like they should have been angrier, more venomous, but instead they were just sort of... hollow. Like something one would hear echoing in the back of their mind. The whispers of a ghost.

[hatejakku]

Oh. "No, you're right. I'm sorry." Didn't help the sting, though, unexpected as it was.

A part of him wanted to try again with flowery words of hope and light, but those probably wouldn't work on her. "At least we have the good moments in between." That was true enough. "Food and drink usually help after these sorts of things. My treat?"

[garyoutensei]

"They're bandages," Baiken remarked in that same tone, slightly turning her gaze back towards him.

"But right now, I could use a fresh bandage."

[hatejakku]

He let out a quiet, relieved breath and flashed her a small smile. "Bandages help heal wounds, though, right?" Yeah, probably not the right things to say to her. "Don't answer that. Let's go." He stood and offered a hand up.