Adventure Forward : Feel-good Fantasies

Myths

Arriving back at the Sky Emporium, they sighed. Maybe they'd take a break for now, maybe go ahead and chat with.. Naen? If they were right, Cyalm did mention him before.
Seeing Solgon, they gave him a brief wave from outside of the Tutorial Center before going on the jump pad that led up to the Bonus Level shop.

It felt quite strange knowing that they could get bonus levels and go through them, but ultimately the threads they would find would serve little purpose other than being decorative.
They'll give him credit, it's a very creative idea. But it hardly struck them as being a lucrative career.

Walking in, they were greeted with a whistling Naen as he cleaned a counter, putting away the cloth at the sight of Tailor.
"Greetings, welcome to the Bonus Level shop. Levels are purchased here at the front counter, if you'd like, you can view all of them by entering the door to your left."

Green, green everywhere.
That was the first thing they took notice of besides Naen's symbol, a green 6-pointed star, and what he wore.
They smiled at him, attempting to spark small talk. "Quite the establishment you have here."

They noticed the coffee equipment behind him, did this place act as a cafe, too?

"Yes. Cyalm gave me the job and I graciously accepted, quite the gentleman that one."
He didn't seem to make much eye contact, probably not used to being talked to, or the fact that he has no visible eyes.

Growing curious, Tailor got more daring.
"How many visitors do you get? And- how long have you been working here, if you don't mind me asking?"
He hummed, looking to his fingers to count and thought about it for a few more seconds than they liked.

"Around a century. Sold levels after their builders wanted me to advertise their creations and got this job. Eventually I was sought out by Cyalm and that's how I'm here. As for visitors.."
He trailed off, taking a breath and continuing.
"Not many come here, not as often as they did anyway."

Their expression fell, walking over to him and sitting on a stool. "I'm sorry about that."
He gave them a tired smile.
"No need, Solgon empathizes with me, the poor fellow is quite lonely himself."

Before the awkwardness set in, they asked one more question.
"So, why don't we talk a little bit more about ourselves?"

Time had passed and before they knew it, they were talking to him about past memories they didn't even know about.
"- And that's why I stopped going there. Not to mention the color was tacky."
He chuckled. "I can't expect anything less from a business that stands on stilts for height."

They fought a snicker at his analogy, glancing behind them to see Cyalm.
Turning fully, Naen looked up to find him leaning against the entrance.
"Well Naen, like them?"
He nodded. "Yes sir."

He then turned his gaze toward the Tailor.
"Think you're ready to open the next door?"
They mumbled a small 'mhm' and bid him a quick farewell before following the Point.

With the previous three's symbols acquired, the door glowed and opened to reveal a library, with large bookshelves lining the walls.
"Be sure to keep quiet, yes?"

They nodded, and the pair walked inside as the door closed behind them.
As they looked around to explore, they noticed Cyalm walking away.
Waiting a while, they thought they might catch up after a few minutes.

Just as they were about to turn the corner, they heard a conversation between him and someone else.
Now, eavesdropping wasn't nice, but this might be useful, so they crouched down and peeked from behind the bookshelf.

"- You're not giving me any proper answers, how exactly did you come to know about Celesteal?"
They could see Anshine and Cyalm talking to each other, the former being visibly upset.

"I already told you, I found them throughout my travels, their power was greater than I could ever imagine, hence why I brought in a second Tailor." He replied calmly.

"I can't bring myself to believe you if you don't give me any details."

"I don't need your faith, I need the Tailor's." He responded coldly.

Anshine fell silent, his symbol's light dimming. "Is that so?"

"You and Ulipse are very much alike, causing nothing but trouble."

They argued back and forth for a bit more until Cyalm went deeper into the library past Anshine.
'Maybe later,' They told themselves. 'I'll tell him I heard it all.'

Tailor looked through the books until the Point eventually came back.
"I think it's about time you go onto the next world, yes?"
They nodded, not bothering to bring themselves to give him a verbal response.
"Let me direct you then, come along."

Through the bookshelves, they came across a tent with books surrounding it, a small electric lantern lit on one pile of them.
A wooden sign hung from the ceiling, written in fancy calligraphy with the words 'Enchanted Myth Gaiety'.
"Go along, and if you slide down, let it happen. Arrolin tends to change entrances."
They looked at him, confused.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Enter and find out."

Thankfully, whatever slide Cyalm was referring to wasn't how they entered, instead, they felt a gradual change in their surroundings before turning and being greeted by a wide area full of creatures that felt straight out of storybooks and fairytales.

Noticing a figure surrounded by these creatures, they walked up to them.
As they got closer, the figure became.. Bigger, not that everyone was the same size as them, they had grown used to all of the Points being taller, or shorter in Cyalm's case.

They also noticed a tail coming from them, which they avoided stepping on, afraid of causing a violent reaction.

Arrolin, or at least who they assumed was her, greeted them with a small smile.
"Welcome to our humble home! I take it you're the tailor, yeah?"

They fought back a laugh seeing the fairies pull at her clothes.
"Yep, that's me."

"I'm kind of.." She looked up and down on her body, just absolutely swarmed by them. "Occupied right now, you think you can get some threads while I work them out of my own?"

"Sure, no problem!"

Leaving Arrolin to fend for herself, they walked around and saw dragons resting in caves above, bringing whatever gold and jewelry to their own hoard.
They saw what was in store first hand after following a trail to get a thread, and promptly rushed out when they were told to.

Aside from the fire breathers, they also ventured underwater, seeing mermaids and sirens bicker amongst themselves as they hurriedly swam away after acquiring a thread from the Kraken's domain.

Honestly, they were quite unsure of how they were still alive, but they didn't care!

Now having collected all the threads, they walked back to greet Arrolin, who pried the last fairy off of her just in time.

"Alright then! I presume you want to go through my challenge course now?"
They nodded, and with a very enthusiastic clap of her hands, the whole vibe of the place changed.

Tailor secretly prayed that there wasn't going to be any octopi, dragons or anything else chasing them during the course, and thankfully nothing did.

Landing on the ground, she sang loud praises at their speed and precision.

"Completed with elegance and finesse, definitely the type of Tailor I want to root for!"
Arrolin said, making way for them to grab the symbol, the warm heat from acquiring it making them let out a sigh.

"I aim to please, thanks Arrolin."

"After this, you'll be headed to Cell Barranca, which would be my pal Mino's world! If you'd like, I could give you some company."
She tapped her foot on the floor, eagerly awaiting a response.

"Ooh, that so? I'd be happy to have you come along."

"Aw, yeah!" She pumped her fists into the air. "Speaking of, we can go there now! Why waste time?"

"Oh, well I was just-"
They were cut off before they knew it, transported by Arrolin back to the Emporium.