"HOW ABOUT A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR THE LEADING ROLE OF THIS EVENING'S MARVELOUS SHOW!" Nemean's voice bellowed throughout Polaris, but the sprite was nowhere to be seen-- not that she'd likely be that noticable if she were here in the flesh, that is, given how small she is.

Instead, Nemean was replaced with a tiny crow darting back and forth through the air, wings fluttering. Under her failed spell, she tried to take lead as Nemean herself instead of doing it with magic, and the crow did wide loop-de-loops and dives through the air.

"LETS NOT FORGET OUR SENSATIONAL SUPPORTING CAST!" Eve's beak opened to continue the monologue, but only Nemean's reverberating voice came out, echoing far and wide throughout the room as the little crow swept across the herd of other contestants and the crowd.

"AND FINALLY, THE GRAND ORCHESTRATOR OF THIS WONDROUS SHOW! THE STUPENDOUS, THE GLAMOROUS, THE A-A-AMAZINGLY MIRACULOUS-" Eve came to a point, billowing up into the air miraculously.

"NEMEAN!"

.... and then there was silence.

Eve fluttered back down to the ground in front of the judges where she'd began, bowed her tiny head. "Thank you," she croaked, in a voice that was starkly much quieter to the mimicry's monologue, before she went fluttering back to the alcove she came from.

Brothers aren't simply close,

This... Sebastian wasn't sure about this.

Ever since setting Eridanus on fire, the Panther had been hesitant to use his Magic for fear of causing another crisis. But Rift was going to the Competition, and he wanted to support his brother. And it was another chance to practice his Magic, get it under control.

So he watched, cheered for Pride, squinted to see the paraside, Cowered back from Elspet's fire, felt pity for the cat. Raised his voice and cheered loudly for his dear brother, squinted and looked away from the little black cat. Felt pity for the massive hybrid, and felt vague curiosity about the crow.

And then it was his turn. He stood, from where he sat, and shook himself, pulling on his Magic. Little embers smoked along his fur, sizzling out just as quickly and leaving him in a shroud of smoke. It wasn't nearly as dark and as pluming as he would have wanted, but it was still there, obscuring his form as he trotted forward to stand before the judges.

brothers are knit together

Brothers aren't simply close,

There, he knew what to do next.

'Owowowow'
Heat singed through him, as the thin fur of his pawpads and ears began to glow white hot. The whites of his eyes glowed around his golden irises, the scarred flesh of his throat glowing as well.

The glow stood out starkly against the smoke that obscured him, giving him the effect that he had wanted. Not, perhaps, to the point that he had been wishing for - for that, he would have needed nice, dark, pluming smoke, but it was good enough. And when he spoke, it was with a deep glow that spilled from his throat.

"My name is Sebastian, Guardian of Eridanus. Brother of Rift, King of her Kingdom."

brothers are knit together

Brothers aren't simply close,

Internally, he cringed at his new voice. If they had such things, he would compared it to the sound of a pack a day, fifty year smoker - all low rasps and breathless sounds. But he couldn't let it show, not when he was going strong.

And he wanted to finish with a flare, and so he searched deep inside himself, a flame igniting in his throat. Head tilted back, jaw dropping as he aimed his head high - breathing a gout of flame straight overhead, careful not to hit anyone or anything.

And it burned, oh, it burned, tearing at his weak throat. But it was worth it, the flame pluming overhead in a way that sent heat rushing over him. He cut it off, wheezing, and inclined his head to the judges before whirling, trotting off to sit by Rift's side.

brothers are knit together

Palefur watched the final participants with no real visible reaction, just simply sitting calmly, with her tail curled around her paws, staring down at the performers below. Once they were all finished, she closed her eyes and replayed some of the stronger performances in her head. "Hmmm...it is time now for us to decide the winner, yes?"

She already knew who she wanted to be in first. She turned towards the others judges. "I would say that the hybrid Aure should be given the title. The performance was impressive and powerful. He performed each spell with ease and grace. I would say...for the next strongest performer, we should consider the last one...however..."

She glanced off at the area where the medics were waiting. "I feel as if we had seen the performance before. The gorilla's magic was similar and a little more impressive. However, we cannot forget about the cat that made the Spire. It was hard to see, true, but I've never seen anything quite like that before." She thought for a moment, humming softly to herself as she considered. "I think we should give Wilder the second place with Sebastian in third. His performance was a tad stronger, but hers was more creative and original. What do you think?"

@Aster @Kin-Kin

"Speech."

Kin-Kin watched the show with an even expression, her ears pricked forward as she took in the sights and... well... the stories. Pride's show wove words with magic in a way that she was sure was very impressive, except that a couple of his spells didn't seem to go off.

And then the... worm....? brought disaster with it. or at least, she thought it had. Medics were called, and Kin-Kin was fairly certain that its show didn't count.

After that, came the gorilla with its searing heat and bellowing roar. Kin-Kin watched, and her brows perked upright at the... well... it was impressive, she had to admit. But equally, Kin-Kin found herself shuddering at the thought of willingly setting herself on fire.

And then came a familiar face; as the cat stepped up on stage, she grinned back, and returned the wink, watching as he refracted the light into a rainbow, arcing above him. After that initial show, she held her breath for the rest of his performance, but... her smile wavered as things began to go south.

Before she knew it, he was curled up into a ball, is face hidden. Her smile faded to concern, her ears flickering back. It had been a while since she'd seen the cat, and she knew that when they'd first met he had been very easily afraid, but something about the way he'd swaggered up onto the stage earlier kept him on her mind.

Perhaps, she thought, I ought to go check on him later.

The next few acts blurred into one another. There was someone who grew a tree, someone who summoned mushrooms and golden wings which made the ghost of a knowing smile flicker across her lips.

The next she found herself straightening with surprise was when the aforementioned tree erupted into white-hot plasma. Her eyes narrowed slightly and she leaned forward to watch just a little closer.

As the cat's show ended, she gave a satisfied nod, the tip of her tail twitching. A good performance.

The next one was Huckleberry, and just seeing them was enough to conjure an encouraging smile. A smile which quickly died as the hybrid failed, again and again, and was soon unconscious. Another unfortunate competitor she'd have to check on later.

She looked up as the next competitor stormed onto the scene-- quite literally. The wolf found her smile returning as she watched them control the tornado with ease and skill, fill it with lights and then banish it with an impressive boom.

After that was... Nemean? Kin-Kin tensed, and looked up, before quickly realizing that it was only a bird, and all part of the show. She relaxed, watching the remainder of the bird's show with a disapproving expression before turning to the next competitor- the panther, striding out into the arena cloaked in smoke.

She watched as he began to glow, before breathing out a bout of fire.

She grinned and nodded, once again. Impressive.

And then it was over; the show done, and Kin-Kin let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She heard a voice at her side, and turned to see the young kitten that had also been tasked with judging the competition. Her ears flicked forward as she listened, then nodded. "The gorilla's felt more... Ya know... dangerous," she agreed, with a sparkle in her eye. "But I don't think that was all because of the magic."

The screaming had probably helped.

She thought some more. "I feel that Aure's performance is a given for first," she agreed. "And the little cat's performance was awfully impressive. She'd fit nicely into second place, I think. Which leaves our firebreathin' friend over here for third." She turned to glance at the dog- the final judge to have a say. "Whaddaya think?"

Tags:

OOC/Side Notes: N/A

@Aster

Aster remained laying down, resting, though Oliver was right when he said that she'd feel better within a few minutes. She watched the performances in expressionless silence, and waited for the other two judges to speak before even thinking over her opinion.

She liked Pride's, and she liked Elspet's. She liked Aure's and Rift's tree. She could barely see Wilder's performance (and was fairly certain she could just do the same) and Sebastian's just felt like he was copying Elspet. The dog shifted, grumbled, and sat back up. "Okay," she said simply.

"In first place, we have Auré. Congratulations," Aster sounded exhausted, and ultimately anti-climatic. Aster wanted to go to sleep. "In second place, Wilder. And in third place, Sebastian."

There was a pause. Aster blinked once, then twice. "Well done," she said absent-mindedly, then hobbled off elsewhere to nap off the lingering sickness.

WELL DONE TO WINNERS!
@Auré @Wilder @Sebastian

everyone else can now exit and claim magicka!
@Pride @Squick @Zevruu

exit aster

Kera furrowed her brow a little as the judge weakly announced the winners and then headed off. Bewildered, but also concerned, Kera stretched herself out before wandering towards Auré.

"Congratulations," she barked, cheerfully. "Great performance!" She didn't quite wait for a reply, however, wandering quickly off.

Kera had patrols to do, after all. She went bounding into the distance, leaving Polaris entirely.

exit kera

Aure watched the performances following his with a bright, eager gaze, despite the shortcomings the competitors may have faced. An impressive show of mimicry (he assumed) had come from the little crow, and a dark cat sauntered out with a display of fire --- which seemed just different enough from the screaming gorilla's not to be considered unoriginal. It was a spectacle, least to say.

So, when the three judges seemed to unanimously agree upon him as the first place winner, the wyvern recoiled. He blinked, peering across the crowd. One of the contestants --- the Lightbringer --- stepped forth to congratulate him, and all Aure's autopiloting brain could muster was a hurried "thanks."

Giggle had taught him many things, but apparently taking compliments was not one of them. Rounded ears flicking to and fro, the hybrid gave a quick nod and bow to the remaining two judges. "Thank you so much for the opportunity," he chirped as quickly as possible, then skittered back off into the crowd.

In hindsight, he'd wish he had stuck around to check up on Wilder and give a proper farewell. Unfortunately, Aure just simply took wing toward some quieter corner of Polaris.

;exit Aure

Eve shook herself out, taking a quick glance around Polaris. If she even considered congratulating any of the winners, it was ultimately unclear-- Eve had a mission to get herself into.

The crow leaned out of the alcove she parked herself into before she fluttered down, soaring above the crowd, and then along the crystal river. She hovered, searching-- again, unclear for what --before she dove further into the room and completely out of sight.

exit eve