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The Kingdoms gather for the opening ritual and blessings in the Sacred Grove to mark the start of the Beltane festival.

The Opening Ceremony

Beltane, or Gaelic May Day, is a fire festival centered around the beginning of summer. For the Kingdoms, however, it is one of the great four seasonal holidays the Druids celebrate wholesale, calling for months of preparation to offer a plethora of events for the community. On Saturday, the busy weekend began by Druid Elder Supply inviting everyone to the Sacred Grove to initiate a rite of blessing invoking the 12 (player-based) Subpaths:

"Welcome, everyone. Tonight, we gather under the spirit of Beltane, the festival of fire, renewal, joy, and living growth. On behalf of the Druids, I warmly welcome all subpaths, all clans, and members of the community, whether you are here with us tonight or with us in spirit. I also want to thank the Archon team, the judges, the tutors, the event hosts, the donators, and everyone who gave their time, coins, gifts, work, and care to help make this festival possible.

"Beltane reminds us that a community stays alive through shared fire, shared friendship, and shared hope. Every person here is a part of that light, and every act of kindness helps keep this very world magical. May this festival bring warmth to your heart, joy to your spirit, and blessing to your path.

"We will now celebrate the opening of the festival with the presence of all subpaths; we will open with a ritual to welcome the season of Beltane. Thank you all for being here, and helping make this place special."

The representatives of the 12 paths then offered their individual aspects and blessings up to the sacred fire and the spirits of Beltane.

Supply: [Stands before the sacred flame, calling root, flame, and spirit to awaken the circle.] Tonight, we gather beneath the living sky, between root and flame, between blossom and breath, to welcome Beltane.

Neja: [Bows in quiet reverence, bringing the peace of the Monks.] This is the turning of warmth. This is the season of fire and flowering. This is the hour when the earth remembers her abundance, and the heart remembers its song.
Aliviah: [Turns gracefully toward the flame, offering the Muses' gift of song and beauty.] Let this circle be made holy by our presence, and let our presence be made worthy by truth, joy, and reverence.

All: We gather in peace. We gather in flame. I call upon the rising light, the spark of new beginnings, the golden promise of dawn.

HoneyLatte: [Lowers their head to the flame, bringing the balance of the Geomancers to this gathering.] I call upon the green earth, the fields in bloom, the sacred body of life returning in fullness.
Massacre: [Bows before the fire, offering the spirit and healing of the Shamans.] I call upon the wild winds that carry laughter, pollen, and prophecy, and stir the soul from sleep.
MzBitz: [Turns toward the sacred flame, carrying the watchful blessing of the Rangers.] I call upon the bright waters, gentle and deep, that nourish root, heart, and dream.
Chongde: [Bows in silent grace, bringing the hidden loyalty of the Spies into the circle.] I call upon the living fire, the flame that does not only burn, but blesses, transforms, and renews.
Baltzen: [Bows warmly toward the flame, offering the goodwill and abundance of the Merchants.] I call upon the old ones, the keepers of memory, the quiet voices that walk beside our path unseen.
Shivani: [steps toward the sacred flame with strength, carrying the courage of the Barbarians.] I call upon the joy of union, the weaving of hand to hand, spirit to spirit, life to life.
Lyones: [Bows with discipline and honor, bringing the protection of the Chongun.] I call upon courage, that we may step into the season unafraid, with open hearts and steady feet.
Cruelty: [Bows with calm respect, offering the wisdom and presence of the Do.] I call upon beauty, found in blossom, flame, song, and soul, that we may remember what is sacred.

Neja: I call upon abundance, not only of harvest to come, but of kindness, friendship, and shared blessings. The Monks offer peace and devotion to this celebration.
Aliviah: I call upon protection, that this gathering may be guarded from harm, and held in warmth and goodwill. The Muses offer song, beauty, and inspiration to this celebration.
EmoWind: The circle is awakened. The flame is witnessed. The season is welcomed. The Diviners honor this celebration with vision and reverence.
HoneyLatte: On this night of Beltane, we honor life in its fullness. We honor growth, desire, beauty, courage, and joy. The Geomancers honor this celebration through the earth, balance, and sacred flow.
Massacre: We honor the ancient fire that lives in the world, and the answering fire that lives in us. The Shamans offer spirit, healing, and blessing to this celebration.
MzBitz: May this fire burn away what is weary. May it strengthen what is true. May it bless all those who stand within this circle. The Rangers honor this celebration with watchful hearts and steady hands.

All: By flame, by bloom, by breath, we welcome Beltane.

Chongde: Let laughter be sacred here. Let music be sacred here. The Spies honor this celebration in silence, loyalty, and shadowed grace.
Baltzen: Let dancing be sacred here. Let fellowship be sacred here. The Merchants offer goodwill, abundance, and fellowship to this celebration.
Shivani: May every step tonight be taken in blessing. The Barbarians honor this celebration with strength, courage, and fire.
Lyones: May every work spoken tonight be carried in warmth. The Chongun offer discipline, honor, and protection to this celebration.
Cruelty: May every heart gathered tonight leave brighter than it arrived. The Do honor this celebration with wisdom, presence, and respect.

All: So let it be. Twelve voices, one circle. Many paths, one flame. Beltane binds us in joy and blessing.

Supply: [Bows toward the sacred flame, carrying root, flame, and living spirit into the circle.] By earth below and stars above, by root and branch, by ember and blossom, I declare the Beltane Festival open. The Druids honor this celebration with root, flame, and living spirit.

All: Beltane is welcomed. The fire is lit. The festival begins.

Left: Propaganda's sneaky cut-off maneuver with his limestones versus Kailypvp quickly ends a round of Snake Attack in the Sacred Grove. (Screenshot courtesy of MzBitz.) Center: Lulaa and Syndei clash at Battle of the Bridge in the Sacred grove. Right: Kaleea calls out the rolls during Druid Bingo in the Mystic Garden.

Day one of Beltane

The Rangers started the festival off with a quick shimmy over to the arena set aside for a game of Snake Attack. "It's like the Nokia snake game," said host Harmonics, (who not only aged themselves but everyone present.) She described the game as rolling a 3-sided die to find out how many of your pieces may be lain on the field, with hope that the serpent of stones you create can keep growing while your opponent's cannot.

Because no Druid festival is without some manner of sporting bloodshed, the Merchants shifted everyone a little to the east to the infamous wooden blanks. Battle on the Bridge is a classic game where two combatants swipe mano y mano, armed with only a sheer veneer of luck and an Ilbon knife. Whoever casts Kamikaze first wins the match.

The presence of Bingo has become a welcome mainstay in the Kingdoms, and Beltane didn't dare leave it out. The Druids hosted and rolled the race to dab and match your card to the game board in order to win prizes.

Left: Zentzu comments from atop the lotus he found in the dark during Midnight Lotus at Twilight Embrace. Center: Nismo confers with a client during Druid and Diviner Fortune Reveal in Twilight Embrace. (Screenshot courtesy of BatSheba.) Right: The Druid Subpath banker, Epona, chances upon the quite dead Geomancer banker, ChuangTzu, ~~put to~~ taking a rest after the conclusion of Nature's Bounty. The reporter apologizes for not securing a screenshot of the actual Nature's Bounty event. (Screenshot courtesy of Supply.)

The Monks ushered everyone to Twilight Embrace for a game of Midnight Lotus. This unique game is described as a combination of lights-out and musical chairs, where players must fumble in the dark to not be the last one to stand on a lotus when the lights return.

Another fixture in the Druid festival scene is the reading of fortunes from Druids and Diviners. Twilight Embrace welcomed everyone to seek out readers of flowers, runes, and the arcane arts to procure answers to their hearts' questions.

The night closed out with sundry farm animals being summoned into the depths of Cluichi, with Qian acting as hostess for the Geomancers' Nature's Bounty. Smacking a simulacrum of an animal yielded the potential for tokens, which can be exchanged for sundry favors and boons from the Earth Dragon. If luck was particularly kind, participants were awarded a Ba Gua reading.

Left: TipJar announces the misfortune following an invocation of Erato during a game of The Ten in Cluichi. Center: Kiyoji recounts his hard-learned lesson for everyone at Tales Around the Fire in Twilight Embrace. Right: Xevu admits to criminal negligence and possibly premeditated manslaughter at the beginning of Deadliest Poison in Twilight Embrace.

Day two of Beltane

The second day of Beltane either began in joy or devastation depending on one's fortune during the Muse's The Ten in Cluichi. Players struggled to roll the dice to get across a finish line, all the while being harangued and hindered by the invocation of the ten Muse goddesses.

The Druids calmed it all down with a cozy flame in Twilight Embrace for a time of Tales Around the Fire. Speakers had only three minutes to share their tale, with this year's theme being "hardest lessons to learn."

One would think the community would have learned by now not to volunteer for taste testing toxic appetizers the Shamans cook up. Nonetheless, Deadliest Poison ensued off to the west in a niche of Twilight Embrace. Failing to roll a number over the host's meant the player succumbed to the poison of the treat being offered, and another failure of a saving roll for the antidote eliminated them from the round.

Left: Tyrra and Raymon swipe at each other among a crowd of combatants at Do Kendo Royale held in Mystic Garden. Center: Alys chimes off during the closing rites for the Beltane celebration in the Mystic Garden. Right: King ChaeRi passes through the Kugnae Gathering with his personal guards on the way home from visiting the Beltane festival grounds.

Samurang Showdown is a battle of luck and maneuvering, where battlers must be able to cast Venom, Curse, and Jolt on one another before the other can, all the while ensuring the spells remain active. The Chongun hosted tandem battles in Sacred Grove for massive entertainment.

Not be be outdone, the final event of the festival went to the Do. Kendo Royale is a particularly bloody sport, where an entire crowd of people are summarily armed with Ilbon knives and allowed to swipe furiously at one another until only one remained spared from a Kamikaze.

Two Samurang Showdown matches are held in tandem in the Sacred Grove while King ChaeRi and the Nangen entourage watch on below.

The closing ceremony

After two riveting days, the fire was almost burned out, and the circle that was made needed to be closed for the season. Supply lead the Druids to finalize the rites for the occasion:

Supply: [Stands before the sacred flame, gathering the last warmth of Beltane into the circle.] As this festival comes to a close, we gather once more in gratitude for the fire, the laughter, the freindship, and the blessings shared among us.

Tyrra: [Bows toward the sacred flame, honoring all those who came together in joy.] We give thanks for every path that joined us, for every hand that helped, for every heart that brought warmth, and for every voice that kept this celebration alive.

Alys: [Turns gently toward the circle, carrying peace into the closing hour.] May the light of Beltane remain with us, not only in flame, but in kindness, courage, beauty, and the bonds we carry forward.

Beithan: [Lowers their head in reverence, offering farewell to the season's fire.] May what was renewed tonight continue to grow. May what was blessed tonight remain protected. May what was shared tonight be remembered with joy.

Vangki: [Raises their gaze to the sacred flame, carrying the last blessing into the circle.] May all who came here tonight leave with warmth in their hearts, peace in their spirits, and blessings on their path.

Supply: The fire has been honored. The circle has been blessed. The festival has been shared in friendship and goodwill.

All: By flame, by bloom, by breath, we give thanks for Beltane.

Tyrra: May the earth beneath us remain steady.

Alys: May the winds around us carry peace!

Beithan: May the waters within us remain gentle.

Vangki: May the fire before us remain bright!

Supply: Thank you for joining us once again, and for helping making this celebration warm, joyful, and meaningful. Your presence, your friendship, and your spirit are what keep these festivals alive. May the blessings of Beltane remain with you, until we meet again beneath another sacred season. I now declare the Beltane Festival closed.

All: Beltane is honored. The fire is remembered. The blessings remain.

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- Shiori "Chongde" Sato reporting