melodiesoflife | Prelude || The Festival Of Light

Prelude || The Festival Of Light

Characters: All the "Heroes of Light."
Where: Aqures Ixen.
When: The 3rd of August, final day of the Festival of Light. The Heroes of Light will awaken early in the morning.
Summary: The Heroes of Light awaken in Aqures Ixen and are informed by their assigned Moogles of what the situation and what their destinies are. This a log for them to react to the situation, meet each other and optionally participate in activities provided by the Festival of Light.
Warning: N/A

Where you were or what you were doing— It does not really matter. Not any more. Within an instant, the world around you collapses. Reality twists and shatters... Or maybe you are the one who is collapsing and shattering away from reality as you knew it. No matter what the answer is, it will only take a few seconds for you to find yourself sinking into a void, your world vanishing into the distance. There is nothing but darkness as far as the eye can see. Even you feel different: all the powers you might once have had, are now gone. It is silent, cold and it feels as though life itself is slipping out of you.

At this moment, when it looks as though nothing but a never-ending void awaits you, a red Crystal forms before you. In this void, its warmth compels you to grab it. Upon doing so, you can hear a soft, soothing voice speaking:

"Wake up."

Soon, the void itself vanishes and is replaced by distant noises of engines. Had it all been nothing more than a dream? The soothing voice repeats its call one more time, but is soon replaced with a much less graceful "Wake up, Kupo!" Hand clutched on your Crystal, the call of the Moogle may finally wake you up. But you are no longer in your world, nor in the void. You are before the Crystal of Fire, in the third district of a city called Aqures Ixen. At this point, you may realize the engine noise actually originates from an Airship flying low over the city and headed to dock beneath the castle. As if it wasn't strange enough, your clothes have changed as well. They are now a reflection of the Jobs you are wielding. Last but not least, you are surrounded by Moogles, small and fluffy creatures who are more than happy to tell you about everything you want to know, about your 'destiny' as a Hero of Light, about what awaits you.

Or at least, they will tell you everything they do know, which isn't much in the end.

Thankfully, there doesn't seem to be any citizens aside from Moogles in the vicinity. Indeed, the population of Aqures Ixen seems to be busy elsewhere in the city-- The Moogle will tell you there currently an event named the Festival of Light, which most people are attending. But you are not alone! It probably will not be long before you realize there are plenty of people like you all around, and if somehow you do not realize it, the Moogle who woke you up will be more than happy to inform you there are others like you around. Maybe with their help, you will be able to find out what is happening to you.

— Final Day —
The Festival of Light is a yearly event held at Aqures Ixen to celebrate the victory of the "Heroes of Light" over the "Calamity from the Skies" two thousands years ago, or so do the legends say. Whether people believe in the legends or not, this is an occasion for them to have fun and spend time with family and friends. The Festival is held from the 28th of July to the 3rd of August.

Unfortunately, most attractions and events are over by the third of August. Yet, there is enough to do, should the newly arrived Heroes of Light favor spending time looking at the attractions rather than panicking about their situation. The festival ends at midnight.

Theater Play
— Ninth District || 14:00 —

There is a large theater stage installed in the 9th district-- It is probably only temporary by the look of it. There is quite a crowd seated to watch the play about to unfold, as well as numerous people standing beneath the seats or sitting on the ceilings because they couldn't get a seat. After the audience grows quiet, a woman with long silver hair and green-ish skin steps onto the stage to address the audience.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Tonight's performance is a story that takes place long, long ago! At the time when the Ancients reigned over the planet, when the Calamities from the Skies landed on this world and waged war against all forms of life. When our story begins, the Ancients are on the brink of extinction and gathering the last of their forces to fight. And now people of Aqures Ixen and visitors from distant lands, we proudly present 'The 4 Heroes of Light'!"

After this, the play starts and will last for roughly one hour and a half. The main characters appear to be four Heroes of Light, respectively dressed as a Warrior, Monk, Black Mage and White Mage. Other characters include the Calamity from the Skies played by the silver-haired woman, an Ancient scientist and the Princess of Crystallis. The story appears to be a highly romanticized version of the tale the Moogles told the characters earlier. As the play unfolds, there is a love story between one of the Heroes of Light, the Warrior, and the Princess of Crystallis. At the end of the play, the Heroes of Light successfully defeat the Calamity from the Skies, but the Warrior has to sacrifice himself and die in order to protect the Princess of Crystallis.

Culinary Attractions
— Fourteenth District || Anytime —
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 world-- People from Balicea, Aerilon, Esdham, Flence, etc. There is even a stand held by former inhabitants of the Empire. All kind of food from all over the world 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 until midnight!

Competitions
— Tenth & Eight District || 18:00 —

At 18:00, there will be a Blitzball match opposing the teams of Aqures Ixen and Balicea in the Blitzball Stadium. It is more of an exposition match, with nothing to be won aside from glory. Anyone is free to enter the stadium to watch the match. Following this, people - playable characters included - will be allowed to play some Blitzball Match on their own, if they want to try.

At the same time, a Triple Triad competition will be taking place in the eight district, in the campus of the university. Characters are free to enter the Triple Triad tournament, and if they do so they will be given very basic cards and explained the rules. With low level cards and whatsoever no experience, odds are that they may lose to much more experienced and competitive players, but what matters is trying, right? Whilst no characters may recognize him yet, it is notable that one of the NPCs, Wedge, is taking part in the competition. It's just a shame knowing he will lose in the semi-finals.

Trano Golsaucia's Stands
— Eleventh District || Anytime —
Specially for the occasions, stallholders from Trano Golsaucia traveled to Aqures Ixen and brought a few attractions to display what they can do. Noticeably, they brought Chocobos and will organize numerous races throughout the day, on an improvised tracks running around the houses. The Heroes of Light are more than welcome to try and bet, should they want to lose (or multiply) what few Gils they have. If they feel adventurous, they may even try to enter one of the races and ride a Chocobo-- At their own risks.

Aside from this, there are some more attractions worthy of attention. There is a shooting stand-- Coincidentally, all the targets are vaguely similar to the main antagonists of numbered Final Fantasy games. There is a treasure chest game, where characters are presented with ten chests and can open only one-- Prizes range from one Gils to gigantic plushie. There is also a fortune teller Moogle, it is notable that his predictions will always include either the character suffering hell or dying soon, in one form or another. Hopefully this moogle is just a scam.

Fireworks
— First District || 23:00 —

What better way to conclude a festival than fireworks? Fireworks will be launched from the Castle of Aqures Ixen starting 23:00, and will end at midnight, at the same time than the festival. No matter where you are in the city, anyone should be able to watch them easilly if they so wish. Unfortunately, it means falling asleep before midnight may be a bit hard with all the noise.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

“I don't think I'd make a very good pirate...”

She's also not sure why he'd want a little girl on his pirate crew anyway. Ib doesn't know anything about sailing. She's never even been on a boat.

“What's the 'Sunny?' Was that the name of your boat?”

"Yeah! The Thousand Sunny! It's a gigantic lion boat! It's got everything the ship of the Pirate King needs! A lawn of grass, a huge fridge, plenty of space to play hide and seek and listen to songs and parties!"

He stops in his tracks, hopping back a few steps to take the girl by the wrist. His grin goes wide, nodding his head as he tugs her along to help her keep pace towards the stables.

"Won't know until you try! So you'll be in my crew! Maybe we can find what you're good at when we set to sea!"

Lion boat? Hide and seek? Songs and parties and a big lawn to play on? Is he describing a pirate ship or a summer camp? She allows herself to led along, but is getting more and more skeptical about this 'pirate' thing.

"Um, I thought pirates just went around and attacked other boats and stole stuff..."

The young Captain can't help but give the girl a rather puzzled look. He doesn't stop, however, finally closing the distance between them and the entrance to their destination.

"That's part of it. Being a pirate means being truly free out on the ocean. Having adventures, living each day to its fullest, and living a life full of freedom from people telling you to do this or that. That's what being a pirate really means."

“So you just travel around doing whatever you like?”

She can certainly see a lot of good sides to that, but still.... there are too many people she wouldn't want to leave behind.

“Don't you ever miss your friends and family?”

"Miss 'em?"

Luffy can't help but laugh happily at the question. She doesn't know his situation, and he certainly doesn't mean to be rude. Once his laughter settles, he returns to giving her his all too familiar bright and reassuring grin.

"My nakama ARE my family. They're the ones who sail with me. I miss 'em a lot here, but I know I'll see 'em again some day! I'll find a way out of here, and when I do, we'll go back to sailing just like we used to!"

At first she outs when he laughs, but as she listens to him a warm smile grows on her face. Then she nods firmly.

“Yeah. I'm sure my parents are worried. And I have a friend that I can't leave behind no matter what!”

They just had to stay positive. Keep looking. And never give up.

“We'll get back home someday. We all will!”

"That's right! Until then, we'll have plenty of adventures! We'll see the world, sing and dance, drink and eat, and have all sorts of fun memories together!"

Grinning like an idiot, the youthful pirate laughs enough that his whole body shivers with excitement. This feeling of camaraderie, this togetherness in the vast unknown, it was making Luffy itch for exploration. First things first, the Chocobos needed to be seen!

When he enters the large building, the lad is taken aback with the strange birds, tugging on Ib so that they can get a closer look as they race by.

"Wow! Look at all the funny lookin' birds!"

He doesn't have to tug very hard, she's just as eager to look at the chocobos. Suddenly she points at several birds in a nearby pen, waiting for their races.

“Oh, look! Some of them are different colors! I wonder if they'd let us pet them...?”

Luffy waves his arms towards the birds, hoping to signal them as a few begin to trot over to where he and Ib stand. "Look! Look, look! They're coming over!"

The rainbow assortment of birds were unlike anything he'd ever seen. Luffy has seen some strange things in his journeys, though they did sort of remind him of Vivi's companion Karou. At least these birds didn't look too much like giant ducks.

"Wonder how hard it is to ride 'em."

She reaches her hand out through a gap in the fence, trying to reach the birds that are coming closer. She's hoping to pet one.

“I bet it's like riding a horse.”

Finally one comes close enough for her to just reach the feathers on it's wing.

“Oh! They're so soft!”

Luffy nods his head excitedly, stroking the beak of a closer bird as it comes within range of his arm.

"Yeah, these guys would be a waste to eat! They've got strong lookin' legs. I bet they can run crazy fast!"

He hops a bit more up on the fence, giving himself a better distance in which to pet the bird. It starts to call out, eyes closing with it's beak opening as if it were smiling.

"Shame my Doctor isn't here. He'd be able to talk to these guys real easy."

"Well, they run races right? So they have to be fast. I bet you're very fast aren't you?"

That last bit was directed to the chocobo she's currently petting. It seems to be enjoying the attention. But she pauses to look at Luffy in surprise.

"Your doctor can talk to birds?"

"Yeah. He can talk to all sorts of animals. He's a reindeer, so he's able to talk with wildlife, no problem."

Luffy continues to pet the bird as he speaks, stating the facts the he knows to be true. It doesn't strike him odd or taboo to say such things, not really knowing that in other places such things were impossible and nothing more than fancy or the conjuring of an overactive imagination.

"Your doctor is a reindeer?"

Ib frowns and considers this for a few moments. Something about that doesn't make sense. After a few moments, she asks a slow question.

"How does he.... do doctor things.... with hooves?"

She's trying to picture it right now.

"Yup! He's got hooves, but he's also got hands. He only has them when he makes himself more human, though."

Again, he says it as if it's supposed to just make sense, humming while he continues to pet the birds in front of him.

"You don't have Devil's Fruits where you're from, do you?"

"When he makes himself more human....?"

His answer only raises further questions. Can reindeer do that? Are they talking about magic reindeer here? Part of her sort of hopes he's talking about magic reindeer.

"What's a Devil's Fruit?"

"Yup! He's able to go from being a reindeer to a reindeer-human."

Hopping down from the fencing, he puts a hand on his hip while the other adjusts the straw hat atop his head.

"Devil's Fruits are these magical items spread all across the world that I'm from. If you eat one, you're given strange powers, sometimes making you really strong or letting you do crazy things that normal people can't do. But.. They're cursed. If you eat one, you'll always sink in the ocean, no matter how hard you swim. A lot of pirates in the world have eaten them, so it makes being a pirate even more dangerous.

Chopper, the doctor on my crew, ate the Human-Human fruit when he was still just a little reindeer. It lets him talk to humans and animals, and he can make himself look human, too. He's still big and hairy when he does, though, but he's really smart so he's found all these ways to make his powers even cooler!"

"That sounds.... dangerous."

She assumes that pirates probably spend a lot of time out on the ocean. Not being able to swim would be tough. Still, strange powers could certainly be useful.

"Do you think it's worth it? Eating one of those fruits, I mean?"

"I don't think so. The powers I have help a lot, but I don't think people eating them is a good thing. They can cause a lot of problems, and most people that find them don't use their powers right."

Luffy sighs softly, plucking a finger at his bottom lip as he pouts.

"Most people use the Devil Fruits to scare people. Keep 'em as slaves, or even try and hurt others who aren't involved in war or piracy. Those kind of people don't know what it means to be a true pirate, or even a real Marine for that matter."

Ib nods.

"People like that definitely shouldn't get powers like that. But I don't think I'd eat one either."

She's having a hard enough time figuring out this hero of light business. She turns around and leans her back against the fence.

"So what kind of powers did you get?"

Luffy grumbles under his breath, giving a pluck of his cheek as his good mood goes sour at the question.

"I ate the Gum Gum fruit. It turned my body into rubber. But for some stupid reason, since I got here, I haven't been able to stretch like I'm supposed to!!

"It doesn't work anymore?"

She tilts her head thoughtfully.

"Did you try asking you moogle? Maybe he knows what's going on."

"When people come here, they don't get to use their powers. That's what Pakku told me. He's my moogle. So.. No stretching or being able to do impressions and stuff."

He was a bit sad at not being able to use the curse of the fruit, but it isn't the sort of thing that Luffy can solely rely on. Being able to survive here would be more about strength and brain-power, one of which he has in spades.

"I'm sure I'll find out how to get them back some day. For now, I'm just a hard-hitting pirate."

Ib smiles at him. She really admires how well he's handling this whole situation.

"I still believe we'll all get back home when this is over. Once we find the queen and save this place they won't need heroes anymore."

Prelude || The Festival Of Light

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)