[SWE] Festival of Lights - 313 PC

Festival of Lights This year's festival arrives without pomp and circumstance. Perhaps it's the coming war, or maybe it's the turbulence that has rippled through so many of the regions since the season's beginning. It does not appear to be a good time for Ludo's favourite party. Fuck that though, we're doing it anyway. News about the festivities will arrive on whispers and rumours; a sweet scent coming from the (usually fragrant, but in a different way) Feverlands; dancing lights; music and laughter. And when you get there as well, it will be to a veritable feast. Granted, if you look too closely, you'll notice that all of the items are sweets or candies or desserts, and some of them seem familiar. At least, they are if you left anything on your doorsteps for the spirits. Eat, drink, be merry. But above all, remember why you're here. Welcome to this year's Festival of Lights! This SWE is open to Naturals and Outlanders alike, and for the first time, is being held in the Feverlands! Please come and hang your lanterns to remember those your characters have lost. This thread will remain open until the end of the month, at which time perhaps Ludo will appear to choose its favourite lantern, and to bestow a gift. This is the main lantern-hanging thread. Feel free to have off-shoot threads for other activities if you like!

AMUN

When Amun heard the news that the Festival of Lights was still going to happen, he'd gathered up his lantern for Sam, which was shaped like an open book with a candle as the spine. Then the potter had placed his illusory cloth over his face. Disguising his features just in case someone tried to make trouble, he'd put on his most durable boots and clothes.

Picking his way through the muck of the swamp, he grimaced. Following the scent of sweets that his Ascended nose could just barely make out. When he arrived at the festival grounds, he eyed the assorted sweet before snorting. Finding a nearby tree, he reached up to hang his lantern on the outskirts of the party, before going to lean against the trunk he'd chosen.

Call it all my mistake
Long as you let me go

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD & SKYLARK <3

Maea

And it feels like fear
Like I'll disappear

Maea had no such disguise to shield herself with. Only her ratty old coat with its fraying cuffs and deep hood, that did a decent job of hiding the pallor of her skin in shadow. She kept her hands tucked into the sleeves as she trudged up to the Festival, following in her brother's wake but keeping enough distance between them that anyone who recognized her might overlook any connections between them.

She still followed him to his tree, though, carrying her own seashell lantern in the crook of an arm. It had been created in the memory of herself, of who she used to be before death had claimed her. No ghosts would likely come to pay her a visit anyway, save perhaps the ghosts of memories past. But that was as it should be; this year, it was time to mourn herself, so that she might put the old to rest and move on.

"Care for company, or would you rather be alone for a bit?" she asked Amun softly, and hovered in indecision until she knew whether to settle in more comfortably, or perhaps leave for another shady tree to hide beneath. There were plenty of them, and she wouldn't mind.

Gets so hard to steer
Yet I go on

Lilliane

I know I'm just a girl, but can I change lives?

Guided by rumors and the sweet smell, Lilliane was on her way to the Festival of Lights as well. Misplaced within a swamp like this, the scent was easy to follow. As were the lights. Although she wished she had shoes better suited to the environment.

Once she arrived, Lilliane took a look at the feast laid out for them. Noticing a few familiar ones, she smiled slightly. It was nice to know they were used for a good thing.

Then she headed over to one of the trees with her lantern. Simple, with a wood frame and thin paper spun around, painted with blue flowers. But it fit its purpose. Even though it was not meant to shine for a dead person. The one she made it for was still alive. Far away, in a place she could not return to. Maybe it was the death of their bond which she mourned. It had died long before she got whisked away to Caido. But maybe this was needed to put it to rest.

If I am nothing, if I am trying, I think I can

Coding base by Sky

A party, the winds and waves seemed to whisper. A remembrance. A wake.

The currents drew Hadama and his young friend away from the familiar coast of Torchline and around the southern horn to the swampy eastern shore, and the mermanta was glad of the company to lighten the journey.

His lantern trailed in the water behind him as they arrived; the glass squid's airbladder filled with glowing plankton and enough air to help it float. He tied it off to an underwater log and swam closer to shore, emerald eyes alight with interest at the delicious smells that wafted from the tables set frustratingly out of reach of the water. And... were those some of the pastries that Melita had helped him procure? But there were so many other fascinating treats besides that he was soon distracted by trying to guess what some of the confections were.

Chrys

Swimming all the way around Stormbreak and to the Feverlands had been quite the task. It was rare for Chrys to head so far away from the Underwater City, but watching the festival would hopefully be worth the effort. And at least she didn't have to do the whole thing alone.

When they arrived, Chrys tied her lantern to an underwater root, not too far from Hadama's lantern. Then she headed closer to the shore as well, watching the people on the shore with curiosity. Of course the treats were intriguing as well, and she would definitely get someone to bring a few over to them at a later point.

Then she got a good look at the lanterns hung in the trees. "Look, that one is made from wood! And it's not burning away." she said, to Hadama, pointing at one of the lanterns in the tree. Even among the lanterns made by the landpeople, there were big differences. This was bound to be an interesting evening.

Code base by Sky

He followed the direction of Chrysaora's finger and examined the lantern as best he could from a distance. "Yes... and the sides are made from paper. I wonder how it keeps from burning?" A curious puzzle, and the mermanta tilted his head in thought as his attention was drawn to other lanterns hung from tree branches and poles throughout the swampy clearing.

"Ah.That one is made of metal and glass," he said, with quiet satisfaction in his voice as he pointed out another lantern to his friend. "Sensible, for containing fire." An uncommon element beneath the waves, but not unknown to the seasmiths.

Still, his attention soon wandered back to the sweet tables. "What did you leave out for Ludo this year?"

DEIMOS

Festivities again; embarking through the haze of rumors and speculations, until his hands grasped hold of all the lanterns in his possession. Each year they grew in number, and each time it compelled strangleholds of emotions – sorrow and anguish that they were gone from his life, and some manner of peace that they were, at least, away from the impending danger of the future.

He brought neither companion – safely tucked in Halo – and the trace of the Feverlands was renewed, alive, and as he neared the feast table he snorted in recognition of the chocolates they’d made far earlier in the season. Entirely too distracted, he only took a few from the table, before surveying the rest of the surroundings, perhaps looking for those familiar, while he sought out a space to hang tokens of his lost brethren.

i'm in the mood to dissolve in the sky

Lena

and sweetest in the gale is heard
and sore must be the storm

She’d been to the festival before; by way of tradition, when it stoked into reaches of Stormbreak in childhood, purposeful, meaningful, to share in the shards of ancestors and those who’d come before her. She’d never arrived for someone like her sister – the close, tight-knit bond, the way it had been severed and cut and diminished within the blink of an eye, the rumble of a Tower collapsing, down, down, down…

Brave and stalwart, her fingers didn’t shake as they held Sera’s painted lantern, the fixtures of dragons and engineering designated on its sides. Instead, she held her head high, and listened to the wind billow through the Feverlands, watched as others milled about, circulating the table and the feast. She couldn’t bring herself to glance or snag at the food now, not with a belly full of apprehension, and maybe a wish, a dream, to see her sibling again.

Simply to say goodbye.

that could abash the little bird
that kept so many warm

chaele

worship like a dog

Between their skull mask and mud-stained skirts, Chaele has made something of a home for themself in the Feverlands. It is not a long journey from their last camp site, now flooded by the swamp’s fickle waters, and the shaman has come prepared.

The wings of moths and butterflies, plucked from the hunted insects’ bodies, are flattened onto the paper walls of the lantern with a dried paste of water, flour, and nectar. They are placed meticulously close but without overlapping, causing the light to shine out between them in a winding, spidering pattern. The light itself is intermittent, a gentle flashing from the abdomens of fireflies trapped within.

They attach the lantern on a free branch, carefully guiding it to steadiness where it hangs. The sweet nectar and delicate protein will surely attract other hungry denizens of the marsh eventually, breaking down the paper and freeing those trapped within. So it will return to the earth, as all the dead do.

Chaele had mostly eaten wingless insects for the past day, so they are delighted to discover the assortment laid out for the festival. Having not engaged in the tradition that so many others have, they approach the table with fresh eyes. Their attention is immediately drawn by some sort of mammalian skeleton made of hardened sugar, the red cake within resembling wet innards. Without hesitation they snap off one of the ribs and raise it beneath their ivory mask, sucking idly on the candy shard as they look silently over the gathering crowd.

at the shrine of my lies

Code blatantly stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Pihu

When Pihu heard about the Festival, she had immediately headed over to the Feverlands. She followed a pair of merpeople around the coast, flying high above them. As they approached and she saw the vast spread before them, she dipped below to croak at Hadama. Ye want me to nab some treats for ye and yer lady friend? Croaking again, she darted away towards the nearest table.

Shifting back to human, she grabbed a handful of candies with a quiet squeal. Popping them into her mouth all at once, she hopped up on the table next to them and surveyed the displays. She hadn't brought a lantern herself, so she just looked from one to the other.

They say these are the golden years
But I wish I could disappear

AMUN

They'd passed the trip mostly in silence, so when Maea spoke up by Amun's side, he glanced over at her. Nodding at her, offer, he smiled for a fraction of a second. "Company would be more than welcome." He slung an arm over her shoulders to give them a squeeze, though he didn't leave it there long.

Pointing at the lantern she carried, he inclined his head to her. "It's beautiful. Who is it for?" Looking around at the crowds that were beginning to gather, he scratched his chin. "And where would you like to hang it up?"

Taking a step forward, he winced at the squelching sound his boot made as he landed in yet more mud. "Why do you think Ludo chose this region for the festival? This place doesn't seem like one of its usual haunts." He jerked his chin at the, well, swamplands all around them.

Call it all my mistake
Long as you let me go

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD & SKYLARK <3

DARKEYE

Not the strongest win the battle —

Darkeye first looked at the whole thing from the back. He recognized some faces. But he did not want to address them. He gave them a moment before he tapped each of them on the shoulder (Deimos, Maea, Pihu, Lena, Lilliane) and gave Chris a curt nod. He didn't know if he should wait for Melita. So he hesitated briefly. But then he took out the colorful lantern made of different colors of colored stones from the river near the Gysire and lit the candle. It was clear for whom it was made. Rexanna and Bastien. They were both on it. In colorful clothes as well as a golden crown for Rexanna. The light broke into different colors and was good to recognize them. He wanted to talk to Bastien, but he didn't know him long enough. If he won, he would politely decline and let someone else do the honors. It was his sign to show respect to Bastien and Rexanna. Darkeye took a few steps back and saw all the lanterns Deimos had with him. He stood next to Deimos. "Shall I help you hang your lanterns?" he said Quietly.

— the smartest do

Coding base by Sky

Maea

And it feels like fear
Like I'll disappear

Smiling softly Maea settled in beside Amun, returning his squeeze with a hand at his back. She remained close enough to him that their arms might touch; a pale shadow of quiet support, should he have need of it.

Nodding to Darkeye as the stout man passed by, she returned her attention to Amun and the lantern. "Thank you. As is yours. This - it's for myself," she replied with a wry quirk of the mouth. "I think it's about time I accept what happened. That I died. That people mourned me" - she nudged his hand with quiet gratitude and acknowledgement, fully aware that her brother would have been one of them - "and then moved on. Trying to return to how things were, and who I was.... it's futile."

Turning, she reached up and balanced the delicate lantern in a nook between two branches of the tree, and studied the effect with tilted head. It stook out like a sore thumb in the dark, against the rough bark. Seashells and polished seaglass, silvery driftwood and a single candle lit within; she had constructed the lantern with purpose and method, and looking at it now was a bittersweet and painful thing.

"Why here? Hmm... because it's gloomy, perhaps? Reminds me a bit of Ludo's Woods. Of course that's in the Greatwood, and not everyone is welcome there."

Drifting off for a moment, Maea returned with two cups of some dark amber liquid that may or may not be alcohol. Extending one to her brother, she raised hers in a toast.
"To Sam," she said simply, "and to the foolish girl who tried to drown her sorrows, and wound up drowning herself. May they rest in peace."

Was it strange and morbid? Of course. But then again, so was her entire existence.

Gets so hard to steer
Yet I go on