location: celebration site | | status: open to anyone
The blonde’s soft, golden locks were pulled back from her porcelain face and plaited with yellow and white wildflowers gathered from her garden; she wore a simple, pure white dress with a high neck and voluminous sleeves fitted at the wrist with a cream-colored apron wrapped around her waist. It had been ages since Panacea felt that little spark of joy— dare I say excitement in her chest. While it was more like anxiety, it was a welcome change from the heavy grief she had been carrying since her mother passed merely a month ago. The standard side of loneliness was also lessened thanks in part of the crowd of happy and joyful people celebrating the festival of light and harvest. It seemed to be contagious.
Pan was busy sorting out small stacks of wild flowers traditionally used to decorate one’s hair or lapel in recognition of the fertile season of early Summer when she noticed someone approach her table out of the corner of her eye. “Merry meet,” Pan said warmly as she raised her head to gaze at the person who came to a stop. “It’s such a lovely and festive evening, isn’t it?”
The talks about peace between humans and elves didn’t go as King Aylard of Gwynn had hoped, but they didn’t end in war either, which was good. Right as everyone was starting to think about packing their things and leaving, an announcement was made. As a way of showing their respect for elven culture and wishing to make a step towards being on more friendly terms with the King Elgeiros of Aereithel, King Aylard invited everyone to stay a little bit longer for the Festival of Light and Harvest. It was an elven celebration and it was as old as Erethide itself.
The day with the shortest night of the year came and the air that day was warm and pleasant, the Sun had started its descent when people filled the streets and were heading to a hill just a little bit outside of the city. Since the early morning people were running around like busy bees, getting ready, making preparations, they could now relax and enjoy the festivities. Chatter, laughter and singing could be heard everywhere, especially the closer you got to the hill. The road to the celebration site was full with people, snaking up the hill through the woods until you reached a clearing at the top of it. There were many tables full with food, barrels of ale and mead, benches and tables, a metal barrel on a pole, made by the city’s blacksmith, filled with wood, waiting for it to be lit up, just like the unlit bonfire in the center of the clearing. A band of bards had already started their performances and young ladies were dancing to the upbeat music.
It didn’t take long for King Elgeiros to grace everyone with his presence. In Elysia lighting the bonfire usually fell upon the one, who people of Elysia had voted to be the most fitting for it - they had done a great selfless deed, helped the city or helped the people somehow. But this year, since the royal Ren’Layn family was in Elysia, the honor to do it fell upon King Elgeiros. With a short, but inspiring speech he lit up the bonfire thus fully starting the celebration.
𝔚𝔥𝔞𝔱: Festival of Light and Harvest
𝔚𝔥𝔢𝔫: the shortest night of the year
𝔚𝔥𝔶: to leave the previous year in the past, start fresh and so the next year would be just as fertile if not more
𝔇𝔢𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔰: Amao, Trylas and Yafel — the deities of Day/Light, Harvest and Fertility
ℭ𝔩𝔬𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤: simple clothing (everyone wears it, commoners and nobles alike) and in light colours (usually white, beige or light grey) with a few colourful accents, women – flowy dresses, men – simple trousers and white shirts
𝔄𝔠𝔠𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔬𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔰: women wear wildflowers in their hair or flower crowns, men tend to pin a flower or a couple of oak leaves to their clothes (usually to their chest)
𝔇𝔢𝔠𝔬𝔯𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰: flowers, ferns, little bouquets of rye or wheat, branches of rowan, oak and birch trees, wreaths of oak branches around front doors or gates, streets are lit up, torches stuck in ground that light up the path to the big bonfire at the top of a hill
𝔗𝔯𝔞𝔡𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔥𝔬𝔴 𝔦𝔱 𝔞𝔩𝔩 𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔭𝔢𝔫𝔰:
Everything starts in the morning - people are getting ready, gathering flowers, branches and leaves, making decorations and decorating their homes, getting food and drinks ready for the evening.
In the evening people dress accordingly and head out of the city to the nearby hill, where the festivities will take place. Why hill? Because that way, when the bonfire is lit, it will carry the light further and over all the crop fields.
At this night there is no discrimination or fighting - everyone, who wants to participate, are welcome to join the festivities, no matter if you’re a human or an elf.
On the way there you can already hear people singing songs where they are looking back at the previous year and celebrating the new one, and they are singing about the three deities that people will focus on during this celebration.
When the sun sets, a large bonfire is started and it is kept going until the sunrise. People gather there to watch the old wood which has been collected throughout the past months go up in flames. As you do that, people bring something from the past year to burn in the fire. It is believed that whatever gets burnt will be set free and you’ll be able to let go of the ghosts of your past and start into a fresh new year.
One must not sleep until the sun rises. It is believed if you sleep tonight, you’ll sleep for the rest of the year.
After that people sing, dance, mingle, play games, eat the food they made (baked, made, gathered, etc.).
The traditional drinks are mead and ale.
This is believed to be a magical night and you can predict the future. It is not mandatory to participate in these future telling shenanigans, but it is fun to do.
At night young, unmarried women wearing a flower crown go running through a forest or an apple orchard and the young while unmarried men are catching them. The man who catches her will be her future husband.
Not long before the sunrise ladies go to the nearest apple tree to throw their flower crown into it – how many times the crown falls to the ground, that many years you have left until you will marry.
If you wish to be healthy and beautiful, bath naked in the morning dew as the sun rises after the solstice night.
Ferns blossom on the shortest night of the year and finding a fern flower will bring you luck and fortune (but everyone knows ferns don’t bloom, yet couples tend to disappear into the woods for some time... ;) ).
—SUMMARY
The event will start on 6th July at 10 PM GMT+3 / 8PM GMT / 2PM CST. We’re posting this event in advance so you have time to get ready for it – plot new threads, etc.
An official post will be made once the event starts.
The event will go for about 3 weeks, but we will do a poll on discord asking you if you wish the event to be longer.
The main focus should be on the event threads, but you’re also welcome to continue the old ones.
If you have any questions, feel free to message the main, ask in the discord server or message any of the admins privately!
If you are feeling creative and want to post aesthetics or outfits, you’re welcome to use the erethide.event tag.
After the Festival of Light and Harvest, people expected their lives to return to normal. A fresh start, that was what the festival represented. But there were troubling rumors not long after--people disappearing, families reporting that someone had not returned home after a night in the city. The city guard reassured everyone that there was nothing to be afraid of, and while those closest to the vanished people were skeptical--concerned for those that were lost, the city as a whole seemed to accept this.
It was a quiet night, the stars shining brightly against a black sky. People could be found wandering the streets of the city, music drifted from taverns--mixing with the sounds of laughter and conversations from within.
Until a scream cut through the frivolities.
It didn’t take long for a crowd to form around the body on the outskirts of the town--and when eyes finally turned away from the gruesome scene on the cobblestone, they turned to the Templar who stood over it.
Was it them? Did they do it? No, the Templars protect us. But why else would they be here?
The whispers grew louder, and even when more from the Order dispersed the crowd, they continued, spreading among the city. Rumors turned to suspicion and finally the Order called a meeting in the center of the city to explain the situation.
When the rumors of Elysian citizens disappearing reached the Order, we sent out Templars to investigate. To seek out the truth and find those who were reported missing.
While that statement alone was enough to surprise most people, what was said next shocked more.
This is not the first body to be discovered. And while it is too early in the investigation to know for sure, we strongly suspect that blood magic is at play. As such, it is our current belief that those behind the disappearances--and subsequent deaths--are none other than the mage rebellion, who have been known to harbor blood mages among their ranks.
Fear, suspicion, outrage. All these emotions and more come from the crowd, who demanded answers--demanded that the culprits be brought to face justice. A raised hand is enough to silence the shouts.
It has become clear to the Order that this situation is too much for the city guard to handle. It was under their watch that this was allowed to happen. As such, the Order and its loyal Templars will be taking over the investigation. A curfew is in affect until those responsible are caught. Interrogations will be held. Questions will be answered. So long as you are not aiding those among the rebellion, you have nothing to fear.
The meeting is disbanded, many who walk home now look upon their neighbors with suspicion. Could they be a rebel? Did they do this?
It didn’t take long for the rebellion to respond in kind.
Lacking the sheer power the Order holds, no official meeting is held. But that doesn’t stop the rebels from getting their side of the story out. Flyers began turning up around the city (despite the best efforts of the Order), telling a drastically different story.
Among the five bodies discovered by the Order, three of them were mages. A detail they chose to leave out of their little speech. They claim to be investigating the disappearances to protect the city. Or perhaps they simply mean to protect themselves.
The Order have killed before and hide behind a display of righteousness to cover up their crimes against mages. The rebellion will not sit back while the Templars seize control.
It is a short statement, but it is enough to turn some suspicious eyes towards the Knights who now patrolled the streets. Fingers are pointed, accusations thrown. All while both the Order and the rebellion plot their next move.
With two possible culprits, which one is behind these heinous crimes? Or is there someone else lurking in the shadows?
The die has been cast, and in times such as these, who can you trust?
---SUMMARY
Over the past several weeks, people have been disappearing from Elysia. After five bodies were discovered, The Templar Order stepped in to take control of the city, naming the mage rebellion as those responsible, while the rebellion has accused the Order of being behind it, saying the investigation is simply a grab for power. With two warring sides, the citizens of Elysia find themselves caught in the middle.
The event will start on August 27th at 10 pm gmt+3 / 8pm gmt / 2pm cst, we are once again posting this early so everyone can get a head start on plots and we will make an official post when the event starts!
While we do encourage everyone to plot among each other and perhaps make some bigger moves than usual, especially among the various factions found throughout Elysia, please run any major plots by an admin!
This event will last about three weeks, due to everyone’s schedules, we will once again ask if the group would like the event to last longer.
The main focus should be on event threads, but you are free to continue old threads!
If you have any questions, feel free to message the main, ask in the discord server or message any of the admins privately!
