Chapter Ten: A Festival of Culture
The 52nd Vytal Festival, a celebration of over a century of peace and prosperity between the nations of Remnant. However, over the last twenty-five years, this peace has slowly been worn away. Everything from the White Fang's attack on Beacon twenty-four years ago to the recent Mistralese Civil War has shown that this peace is cracking. One more incident could shatter it.
It was the last day of class for Teams BLAC and AYST before the academy students were given a break to enjoy the festivities and tournament. They were on their way to their final class, when they saw a squad of Atlesian soldiers lined up at attention on the academy airship docks. They were in full dress with metals and all.
"What do you think that's about?" Cyrus asked.
"No idea…" Bianca trailed off. Her eyes went wide, and a huge smile came over her face. Before her friends knew it, she took off running.
Winter Schnee was inspecting the soldiers in line, by her side was her second-in-command Marcus Stallion. As they scrutinized the soldiers, they heard rapid footsteps approach them from behind.
"Aunt Winter!" Bianca yelled as she threw her arms around the older woman in a tight hug.
"My my, hello there Bianca," Winter said as she ruffled her niece's hair.
"Did ya miss me!?" Bianca asked, her large smile still adorning her face.
Winter smiled, "nope."
Bianca giggled at Winter's reply.
"I take it you know this girl ma'am?" Marcus said.
"She's one of my nieces," Winter replied.
"Hey auntie!" Alyssa called out as Team AYST and the remainder of Team BLAC walked up to them.
"And there's my other niece," Winter said with affection.
As the two teams walked up to Winter and Marcus, Roy split off and walked up to his father. He saluted him but was pulled into a hug by the older man. The soldiers around them looked a bit confused at the situation, but they quickly snapped back into attention as Winter shot them a stern look.
"So, what's with the formality?" Bianca inquired.
"Some VIPs are arriving for the festival," Winter said.
"Where from?" The younger girl inquired.
As Bianca asked this, a large airship descended from overhead, the thrust from its engine forcing the members of Teams BLAC and AYST to duck. Winter, Marcus and the soldiers were unfazed.
Winter looked to her nieces, "would you two and your friends please stand aside."
The two teams stepped behind the line of soldiers, by now a small crowd of curious onlookers had formed nearby. Alani and Yin noticed a symbol on the side of the airship, an orange circle surrounded by a brown kukui nut lei, inside the circle, a white hibiscus flower. The sigil of the Kamehameha Royal Family… Alani's family.
The ship landed, and two dozen soldiers marched out in a highly disciplined lock-step fashion, some had visible faunus traits. They were all heavily tattooed and dwarfed the Atlesian soldiers, the shortest was easily six-foot-three. Their armor was finely made hardened leather, their helmets were metal with feather crests and covered the entirety of their heads. They also wore lavalava skirts similar to Alani's, however the colors were flipped; white with orange hibiscus flowers. They formed up, a line on either side of the airship door, their spears held up, forming a makeshift archway.
"Make way for her highness, the Royal Princess, Haukea Kapua Kamehameha," one of the soldiers announced.
As she exited the airship, she held her head high and carried herself with an imposing presence, one that not only commanded respect, but also rivaled that of Winter.
The Royal Princess looked very much like Alani; brown hair and eyes and caramel skin. However, she was taller, slimmer, and her muscles more defined. Her hair was shorter as well, only shoulder length and shaved to stubble on the right side. Tribal tattoos adorned her lower lip and chin, forearms, and calves. She wore a fine sarong dress, much like the one Alani wore to the dance. Upon her head, she wore a crested feather helmet, known as a "Mahiole", with a matching long feather cloak draped around her shoulders, called an "'Ahu 'ula". All her clothing was primarily orange with white accents, on her dress, these accents were in the shape of hibiscus flowers.
Winter and Marcus snapped to attention and delivered salutes to Haukea, "Greetings, I am General Winter Schnee, commander of the Atlesian Army and Headmistress of Atlas Academy. To my right is my second-in-command; Major Marcus Stallion, commander of the Atlesian Specialist Corps."
Haukea returned a formal bow, she didn't need to state her name herself as she had already been introduced. She quickly glanced over at Alani and shot her a sisterly smile before redirecting her attention.
After this brief introduction, four more people exited the airship, all men, and all wore the royal colors and brown kukui nut leis. Like the soldiers and Royal Princess, they were heavily tattooed. They were very large and muscular, the shortest of them was six-foot-four, and the tallest-six-foot-nine. Not a single one looked like they weighed less than two-fifty.
"Huh, Beacon doesn't look anything like how Alani described it," one of the men said.
"This isn't Beacon aivalea, this is Haven," another replied.
"My brothers, Princes Akamu Kai, Kaimana Lani, Kalani Hoku, and Keahi Kekoa," Haukea introduced them as they walked up to her.
"Aloha," one of the Royal Princess's brothers said as all four bowed respectfully before Winter.
Yin looked a bit nervous at seeing Alani's brothers. So, she wrapped her arm around his in an effort to make him relax a bit.
The four of them were also dressed formally, with Mahioles and Ahu 'ulas that matched not only each other, but also the Royal Princess's. Under the cloaks they wore no shirts and had on lavalava skirts. Each wore it in a different way; Akamu's was knee-length and bunched in the front, Kaimana wore his nearly down to his ankles and was pressed flat, Kalani's was tied at the side and stretched just below his knees, and Keahi wore his at a slight angle down to the right and tied it on his left side.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Winter stood at attention, her hands held behind her back, "Professor Vasilias sends his apologies since he couldn't be here to greet you."
"No apology is needed, I'm sure you headmasters lead busy lives," Haukea replied.
"Very well," Winter nodded, "how many people have you brought to the festival with you?"
"Let's see," Haukea thought to herself for a few moments, "artisans, bakers, a music and dance troop, and all the assistants they need, plus my warriors and people who simply wanted to experience another region… roughly a hundred persons."
"That's a bit less than we expected from a royal procession," Winter stated.
"Will it be a problem?" Haukea asked, "I don't want to inconvenience you or anyone else for that matter."
"No, everything will be fine," Winter replied, "my men and I will escort you to your quarters for the duration of your stay here in Mistral."
"If it's alright with you, my brothers and I would like to take a look around first," Haukea stated, "the captain of my guard can show us to our quarters once you've taken him there."
"Very well your highness," Winter replied.
Haukea turned to her soldiers, still standing along the path from the airship to where the Royal Princess currently was, "Captain Keone," she called.
One of the soldiers broke formation and marched up to Haukea. His feather crest was larger and more ornate than the others, indicating his higher rank. He switched his spear to his left hand before then placing his right fist over his heart and bowing his head. His lizard tail swayed slightly as he stood there.
"Take the men and follow the General and her soldiers, make sure our people don't get lost and that all arrive at the location we will be staying safely," she commanded.
"Yes, your highness," the captain obeyed.
"Alright men form up!" Marcus commanded.
The Atlesian soldiers lined up in two columns behind the major and waited for the visitors from the Southern Isles to follow.
The captain yelled out a command in his people's language, one similar to the one Major Stallion had just given his. The warriors formed up into two columns directly behind the Atlesian soldiers. The term 'warrior' doesn't quite fit the soldiers from the Southern Isles. They may be more brutish and primitive looking than their Atlesian counter-parts, but their discipline showed they were just as well trained as them. Winter looked impressed.
After the soldiers formed up, the people that had come along with Haukea and her brothers began exiting the airship and moved to follow their Atlesian escorts.
Winter turned away from the soldiers and civilians as they headed away from the airship. She walked up to her nieces, "it was nice to see you two again, but I'm afraid we'll have to catch up another day."
"It's all good auntie," Alyssa said.
"Yea," Bianca agreed, "if you have time give us a call and we'll come see you."
"I'll be sure to do that," Winter ruffled both girls' hair, earning yet another smile from Bianca and a purr from Alyssa.
"D-did you seriously just purr?" Lucas asked his partner as Winter walked away from her nieces.
"I'm a Cat-faunus… it happens," Alyssa replied, she was slightly embarrassed.
Lucas chuckled at his partner. Her embarrassment turned to annoyance as she growled slightly at him.
Alani's siblings approached the two teams, AYST in particular. Haukea stood opposite her little sister, flanked either side by their brothers, her arms crossed and a serious look on her face. Alani placed her right fist over her heart and bowed her head respectfully. Haukea grasped her little sister and pulled her into a hug.
"It's nice to see you again little flower, and you too Yin," Haukea said as she pulled away from Alani and looked to Yin, "we've all missed you both."
"Yea, you don't call us enough!" Kaimana interjected loudly. His face was covered in tribal tattoos.
Alani's teammates and friends snickered at the 'little flower' comment, except for Yin.
Alani's face turned red from embarrassment, "come on, I told you to stop calling me that."
"You're our baby sister, no matter how much you ask, it's not gonna happen." Keahi said. His tattoo was similar to Alani's tribal sleeve, but it adorned his left arm rather than the right, like hers.
At this point, the remaining two brothers had made there way over to the rather nervous looking wolf-faunus that was Yin Okami. Akamu threw his arm around Yin, and Kalani stood over him in an intimidating fashion. Akamu's tattoos wrapped around his neck and biceps, while Kalani's adorned his right forearm and left calf.
"Hey there Okami," Akamu said, "you been treating our sister right?"
"Y-yeah, I have," Yin replied nervously.
"Come on guys," Alani walked over to Akamu and pulled his arm off her boyfriend, "you and father roughed up Yin enough already."
Akamu shrugged, "we're just looking out for our little sister."
Keahi nodded.
"So, are you two going to introduce us to your friends?" Haukea asked.
"Of course," Alani replied and motioned for her friends to come over to her, "these are our teammates, Ebony Tacari and Roy Stallion."
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you your highnesses," Ebony said. Both she and Roy bowed their heads respectively.
"Stallion? Any relation to the Major?" Haukea inquired.
"He's my father," Roy replied.
"And these are our friends, Bianca Rose, Alyssa Xiao Long, and the Grey Brothers; Cyrus and Lucas," Alani continued.
Bianca curtsied while her teammates all bowed their heads respectfully.
"Ah, I see one of you is of high society," Haukea said.
Bianca got a bit flustered, "my mother taught me that a lady should curtsy when meeting someone of high status."
"She taught you well then," Haukea stated.
As the Royal Princess turned back to Alani, Alyssa leaned over to Bianca. "Do you always have to show off when we meet rich people?"
Bianca chuckled, "yep."
Alyssa rolled her eyes and laughed lightly, "whatever B."
"So, what's with the monkey suit?" Kaimana asked as he pulled at the sleeve of Alani's uniform.
"It's Beacon's uniform," she informed her brother, "I have to wear it during school hours, with the exception of my combat class."
"It looks uncomfortable to me," he replied.
"It's actually quite pleasant to wear," Alani stated.
"Whatever you say little flower," Kaimana said.
Alani rolled her eyes at her brother when he called her by her unwanted nickname, but she smiled lightly nonetheless.
"I think it looks nice on her," Haukea stated, "however, back home, something like that may not be all too comfortable."
"Yea, I don't think these would mix well with the humidity," Alani chuckled.
Ebony pulled out her scroll to check it while her leader was reconnecting with family. Her blue and green eyes went wide when she noticed the time, "guys…"
All those within earshot looked at Ebony.
"I don't mean to break up the family reunion, but we're gonna be late for class if we don't get a move on," she said.
"Crap, I completely forgot," Alani replied. She turned back to her siblings, "I'm sorry, my friends and I have to leave, we'll talk later."
"It's alright little flower," Haukea said.
As the two groups split, Alani turned back to her siblings and called out to them, "aloha!"
The five of them waved back and returned the parting phrase to their little sister.
The next day, the two teams headed into Mistral's Upper City to experience the festivities. However, Team AYST split with Team BLAC and went to meet with Alani's family for the time being.
Areas for the Vytal Festival were spread through all parts of the city, but the main section was in a large park in the Upper City. The festival was free of charge and open to anyone and everyone to attend. There were entire pathways of food vendors and game booths within the maze that was the main festival grounds. At one end was a large stage where various bands and musical groups from around Remnant played both traditional music from their homeland or currently popular songs. One thing that got Alyssa excited was that 'The Achieve Men' were headlining the day's concert. That group may be old and not as popular as they used to be, but they still drew large crowds of both older and younger fans.
Despite all this, the most popular part of the Vytal Festival was getting to see other cultures on display in all forms; clothing, painting, dances… martial arts. If it was culturally significant to a group of people and they were at the festival, then you could find it.
People came from all over Mistral, as well as the other Three Kingdoms and the many minor city and nation-states from around Remnant. From Sanctum, Mistral's north-westerly most and second largest city, came wrestlers and philosophers, a stark contrast to the musicians and poets who represented the kingdom's magnificent capital. The people of Sanctum looked more like those from Vale or Atlas than they did of their own kingdom. Vacuo doesn't have much of a unifying culture, Snake charmers, Cowboy's, and everything in between came from there. Technically, you could lump in those from the Southern Isles into this group, but they shared little to nothing with the cultures of the desert. Atlas was mainly represented by some of Remnant's finest scientists, alongside various young and eager inventors. Finally, there was Vale, represented mainly by its many artisans; cooks, painters, craftsmen, you name it.
With many nations, both major and minor coming to celebrate peace, there was a notable absence. No groups from Menagerie ever arrived for the festival. Despite the Belladonna Family's best efforts over the past decades, the people of their island didn't wish to participate in the celebration of over a century of "peace" that they had hardly got to experience. After all, many of the Faunus who live there now are the descendants of refugees of both the Great War and Faunus Rights Revolution, or are refugees themselves from the recent Mistralese Civil War.
"Well, what do you guys want to see or do first?" Bianca asked her team.
"Why don't we just take a look around and see what's here," Lucas suggested.
"Sounds good to me, although, I do want to see the Sanctumite Wrestlers at some point, maybe pick up some tips from them for unarmed combat," Cyrus said.
"But you're already great at unarmed combat," Bianca stated.
"Meh," Cyrus shrugged, "there's always room to improve."
"I don't really care what we check out, I'm just excited for The Achieve Men concert at the end of the day," Alyssa said.
"Only you would fangirl over a twenty-five-year-old boyband," Lucas said.
"Hey, what'd I say last time we talked about this?" Alyssa asked rhetorically.
"They're not old…" Lucas said with a roll of his eyes.
"They're 'classic'," Alyssa helped him finish the sentence.
Bianca and Cyrus jointly chuckled at their teammates for a moment, earning slight ire from the two of them.
"Let's get going guys," Bianca said as she began to walk into the festival grounds.
One of the first attractions Team BLAC came across was a Troupe of Vacuan performers. They occupied an open area with a main stage flanked by several other of their attractions. One of which was a young man in a turban who was juggling rather sharp knives. Another was an elderly man playing a flute which caused a cobra to rise out of the basket in front of him and sway hypnotically. In the corner of the main stage was a couple of people playing drum and chime like instruments, while in the center was a young woman moving, shaking, and twisting her hips and torso to the rhythm. She captivated many on lookers with her performance. Every shift in beat and rhythm of the music she followed flawlessly and seamlessly. Like her snake charming compatriot with his flute, the way she moved her body hypnotized many within her audience, particularly some of the men.
"That Vacuan Belly Dancing sure is something," Cyrus said as he and his teammates headed away from the Vacuan performers.
"I'll say," Alyssa replied, "you know… Luc, I think she had eyes for you."
A bit of red flushed across Lucas's face, "whatever," he said, sounding slightly annoyed.
A sly smile came across Alyssa's face, "oh wait, I forgot, the only girl you like is Tawney."
"What? We're just friends," Lucas said.
"Mhmm, sure… I sensed you two together at the dance," Alyssa said playfully.
"She was alone, and I offered to dance with her, that's all that happened," Lucas stated.
"Whatever you say Luc, whatever you say," Alyssa teased.
"You're a regular lady's man, aren't you?" Cyrus poked his brother with his elbow.
Lucas rolled his eyes and chuckled lightly at his teammates.
Team BLAC continued to make their way through the maze of tents and booths, browsing various crafts and enjoying music and dances of the many cultures in attendance. However, one in particular caught Cyrus's attention. A band from Southern Vale were playing a song that had some Latin flare to it.
When they finished the song, Cyrus approached one of the band members, "I liked that song, it had great rhythm. What's it called?"
"'Slowly'," he replied.
The band's drummer smacked his instrument, 'ba dum tss.'
More than one patrol of Atlesian soldiers passed by Team BLAC as they perused the festival grounds. Despite being on the job, they took time to enjoy the sights and sounds they were assigned to protect. After they passed by a small squad led by a rather large soldier in what looked to be powered armor, they turned a corner and ran into a somewhat familiar face. Arslan Altan. She was typing something on her scroll when she noticed the team of students.
"Hey Professor Altan," Bianca waved.
"It's 'Master' actually," she pocketed her scroll.
"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean too…" Bianca began to say.
"It's fine, you didn't know," Arslan smiled, "it happens every now and again."
"So, what are you doing at the festival, I would think Haven's head combat professor would be busy prepping her students for the tournament?" Alyssa inquired.
"My students have prepared enough," Arslan stated, "like you all, they've been training for months for this. Some, years even."
"Well, make sure to tell 'em to go easy on us then," Cyrus joked.
It was quiet for a moment as Arslan had a stern look on her face. A nervous look came over Cyrus's face as Arslan stared right through him. She chuckled lightly.
"Even if I did, I doubt they would." She paused, "Sierra especially, she's been looking forward to this for the last two years. Ever since Ember beat her in the finals of the last tournament."
"Professor Haze never told us she won a Vytal Tournament?" Bianca said.
"She won the previous tournament as well." Arslan stated, "she was my best student before she left for Beacon."
"Why'd she leave Mistral?" Lucas asked.
"That's… a long story," Arslan's tone dropped a bit, "we didn't exactly see eye to eye back then."
"Oh, we're sorry to hear that," Bianca said.
"There's no need to be sorry, we've since reconciled," Arslan said.
"Well, that's good to hear." Bianca stated.
"Alright, well, I have to get going," Arslan began to walk away from Team BLAC. Before she left sight however, she quickly turned around, "Alyssa, tell your mother I said hello."
"Will do," Alyssa replied with a casual two-finger salute.
Team BLAC continued to enjoy the sights and sounds of other cultures, even sampling some of their cuisine. After a while, they reached the attraction Cyrus wished to see. The Sanctumite Wrestlers. In truth wrestlers weren't the only martial artists from Sanctum, there were others as well, but Wrestling, and its more violent cousin, Pankration, is what Sanctum is known for.
Along with the main stage of wrestlers, there was a second area with people dressed like ancient soldiers. Armor of bronze and weapons of iron, four were dressed identically, while a fifth was more ornate looking; His armor was sculpted to look like a muscular chest and his helmet had a large crimson crest atop it.
An older gentleman was standing on the stage, surrounded by onlookers. He wore the typical martial arts uniform or 'gi'. He looked over the crowd, which now included Team BLAC, for a moment before he spoke.
He signaled for two people to join him, both wore similar outfits. "Modern Sanctumite Wrestling is purely a combat sport, some of it's techniques could be used in self-defense, but for the purposes of the military or huntsmen, it is not suitable."
He stepped aside and allowed the two martial artists to demonstrate some techniques. They grasped each other by the shoulders and leaned in on one another. At the command of the man, they began to struggle against one another in an attempt to take the other down. They fought for leverage. When one gained the advantage, they slammed the other to the ground and pinned their opponent.
The wrestlers separated as the man walked back to the center of the stage, "no need to worry folks, the stage has been padded and is completely safe for this demonstration. Now, as you could see, neither fighter made use of anything but grappling and pins, our art is much tamer than it used to be."
He ordered two more people to his position. Both wore heavy padding on their heads, torsos and shins, along with padded gloves on their hands. "Pankration goes back to the founding of the Republic of Sanctum, over eight-hundred years ago. It was created as a means of defense should a Legionnaire lose his weapons in battle," he motioned to the area the five men in armor were addressing a few on lookers, "if you wish to learn more about Sanctum's legions, we've brought a few reenactors with us."
The man stepped aside once more and allowed the two people beside him to take center stage. Rather than start locked up on one another, they squared up their bodies to each other. Their fight truly was more violent. Heavy jabs and uppercuts were thrown, followed by stunning heel kicks. Before long they closed to grapple. One fighter picked up the other under the his arm and leg, and slammed them to the ground, before then throwing several punches into their head. They separated at the command of the man, one got up significantly slower than the other.
"As you can see by that demonstration, Pankration is more versatile in its techniques, making use of kicking and punching, along with grappling. However, rather than pin an opponent, the martial artist continues to attack them until commanded to stop or until their opponent can no longer fight back." He looked around the crowd, some of the people looked shocked at the aggressiveness of the martial art they had just seen, but more so were fascinated. "For huntsmen, military, or law enforcement personnel wishing to learn better hand to hand skills, this maybe the martial art for you. In fact, it is taught as a mandatory course at Sanctum Academy Combat School, and many others, both in and around the City of Sanctum."
After the demonstration concluded, flyers were passed out by the wrestlers. They advertised that they would be giving free beginners lessons, during the course of the festival, for anyone who wished to learn either modern wrestling or Pankration. Cyrus was among the first to take one.
The day continued for Team BLAC when towards the end they ran into Team AYST where the representatives of the Southern Isles were setup. Together the two teams settled in to watch whatever Alani's people had to offer.
"You guys are in for a show," Alani said, and Yin nodded in agreement.
"Why? What's gonna happen?" Bianca inquired.
"Just watch," Alani smiled.
Both male and female dancers took the stage, among them were the youngest of Alani's older brothers, Kalani and Keahi. The group treated their audience to a pair of dances. First a hula dance and then another dance known as an 'ote'a. They were vastly different; the hula being slower and more fluid, with both male and female dancers performing the same moves, while the 'ote'a was very fast, with the female dance being centered on the hips and torso, and the male version on the thighs and knees.
After the dancers vacated the stage, a man and several other people came on. Most had instruments, which included ukuleles, pahu drums, and some brass instruments as well. The man proceeded to sing as the people around him played their instruments. He sang in his native tongue, while a screen above and behind the band provided a translation. The song was derived from the mythology of the islands, a story of how one of their gods fished the islands from the sea for them to live, lassoed the sun to give the people longer days, and stole fire to warm their homes.
Alani turned to her friends, "they didn't say it before hand, but that song is called 'Mihi Mai Ra'."
A few more performances took place. One of which was an amazing show of fire dancing, followed by a large man with a beautiful voice singing and playing the ukulele. After these, Alani's sister stepped on the stage.
She was followed by all four of her brothers and half a dozen of their royal guards. The warriors didn't have their helmets on though, while Alani's brothers wore nothing but their lavalavas and the shorts beneath them. Haukea was also dressed differently, wearing a simple chest wrap and lavalava as apposed to her sarong she wore the previous day; however, she did still wear her feather helmet and cloak.
"For those of you who don't know, my name is Haukea Kapua, Royal Princes of Kamehameha Island. I hope you all have enjoyed these demonstrations of our culture in the Southern Isles," Haukea said. "I know many of you don't know of us, but my people are trying our best to open up to the rest of the world after over a century of isolation. Now, what you are about to see is something very special in my culture, the Haka. It is something preformed before we go into battle and for many special occasions. I assure you this is for the latter," she smiled and gained a collective laugh from the audience. "This goes out especially to my little sister, Princess Alani Kapua, who will be competing in the Vytal Tournament," Haukea pointed her hand towards her sister, causing the younger girl to gain a blush of embarrassment. The Royal Princess looked Alani in the eyes and made a fist, "Kia Mate Toa."
Haukea turned to those standing behind her. All were at attention, even her brothers. "Ki aro. Kia whakaronga, kia mau!"
"Hī!" Everyone but Haukea widened their bases and placed their hands on their waists.
"Ringaringa e torōna kei waho hoki mai!" Haukea shouted.
Kss kss, the warriors and princes blew shots of air out of their mouths as they began to stomp their feet and smack their chests.
Haukea joined them, "Tika tonu!"
"U - e!" The warriors and princes replied.
"Tika tonu!" Haukea shouted once more.
"U - e!" Those behind her replied.
They all chanted together now, stomping their feet and slapping their chest in perfect unison and great rhythm.
"Tika tonu atu ki a koe, e tama!" They all slapped their thighs in unison, one of the warriors even jumped in the air as they did.
"Hiki nei koe aku whakaaro, pakia! He hiki aha to hiki? He hiki roa to hiki? I a ha hā!" They began to do other movements with their arms that resembled punching or flexing.
"E tama, te uaua ana! E tama, te mārō!" They moved their arms in front of their chests and faces in a circular motion.
"Roa ina hoki ra! Te tohe o te uaua na! E tāu nei!" They smacked their left forearm, pointed straight out with both hands, then punched upward with their right fist while they slapped that arms bicep with their left hand, and then smacked their chests one last time.
Āna Kss! Āna Kss! Āna Kss! Aue... Hī!" They pulled their arms across their chests three times before finishing in their original stances.
When they finished their performance, most of those on stage bore their teeth and tongue and made an aggressive threatening expression.
The audience stood their silent for a moment, unsure of what they had seen, but soon they broke out into a cheer. All those on stage stood up straight and bowed their heads in gratitude towards their audience.
Haukea stepped forward to address the audience, "Thank you all. This was the Haka of our island, there are many others, every one of the five islands has one specific to it. Even some families have their own. This one you just witnessed is known as 'Tika Tonu'."
The day was starting to come to an end and Teams BLAC and AYST made their way down to the main concert stage. Bands and musical groups had been performing there for the better part of the day, but it was soon time for the day's main event. The Achieve Men.
The crowd gathered for the show was a large one, it seemed like everyone in the festival was at the concert. As the music played people began to dance and sing along. Even Lucas found the time enjoyable though he wasn't a fan of "old" bands. However, Alyssa was the most excited member of the two teams. The day was a fun one for everyone and it would end on a high note.
As the people of the kingdoms were enjoying the first day of the Vytal Festival, Rouge was back in her base going over a recent update from her informant. Around the maiden was Rommel and his officers, Albus and his templar captains, and the Dusk Twins; Jet and Nilah.
"What news does Lioness have to report?" Rouge asked.
Rommel placed his scroll on the table everyone was sitting around. It produced a three-dimensional map of Mistral with certain streets and alleys highlighted. "Zey have provided us vith a detailed map of zee patrol routes Atlesian soldiers vill be taking for zee duration of zee festival. Zee lower city, zee academy, und everything in between."
"Good, good," Rouge said. "Rommel, Albus, have your men begin final preparations, we're going to strike when the tournament and festival have concluded."
"Why not strike now?" Albus asked.
Rouge chuckled, "I actually like the Vytal Festival, I may even keep it around after we've built the world anew. We'll let the kingdoms have their fun for now, for the hour of their demise is right around the corner."