To Kill Gods or Die Trying

Chapter 48-Frostfall Festival

December 25th, 2304

"Like, it's Christmas!" Rachel cheers like a giddy child.

"Yeah, yeah, let's get to it. Everyone ready?" Margot asks.

"Where's the brat?" Sess asks.

"Hey, guys! Wait up!" Scotty yells across the grand hall.

We can't help but laugh at his ridiculousness. "Seriously guys? I thought we were all gonna do it!" he snaps.

"Well, that's the reason we didn't," Margot refutes chuckling.

Scotty wears the red, white, and green striped Frostfall skin on his casual clothes and the Saint Nathaniel's cap on his head. Coming from a dungeon-hunting background, I'm not surprised the little dork is actually using his drops.

"Whatever, I'm still wearing this," he says sassily.

"If it makes you feel better, we took our Santa hats with us. The skin is a bit much though. I'd rather not look like a walking candy cane," I say. Everyone laughs. "Havanna, go ahead and teleport us to the Capital. Let's get this party started."

"When will our teleportation shrine be active?" Cecelia asks.

"Give it a month," Havanna replies. I've put her in charge of the operation.

A teleportation shrine is like a crystal for dungeons but more complicated. It allows for up to 50 players to be teleported to a specific location if another shrine is there. The places we use the most are the Capital downtown, Capital Plaza, the seaport, and Yulgir village. Without a shrine, you have to travel by foot, or either be nice to a powerful Spellcaster or Wizard who can use teleportation magic.

We end up in the Capital Plaza.

"FOOD!" Rachel growls.

"Jeez," Mack says stepping back.

"Well, well, well. Would you look at what everyone is wearing?" Scotty says with a stupid grin. Literally everyone is wearing that dumb candy cane skin on their clothes—actually making us look dumb, standing out with brown and beige.

Embarrassed, we equip the Christmas skin and blend in with the crowd. I guess it's not just Scotty.

"Let's begin," I say boldly.

Event 1: Tree Lighting:

The first event is the great Tree Lighting in the Capital. The gigantic 250-foot oak-pine tree hybrid is our seasonal clock. It's green in the summer, warm colors in the fall, no leaves in the winter, colorful blossoming flowers in the spring, and back to green leaves in the summer.

We walk to the heart of the city where luminous ornaments fall from the sky to be caught, thrown, and stuck to the branches. Players and NPCs alike gather to catch the descending orbs and chuck them as high as possible.

I watch a child on his father's shoulders toss a glowing red ornament about five feet but misses. The father catches another for the defeated toddler, hands it to him, and lifts the child up so he can throw the ornament for it to stick to the tree. The father and child smile in delight. I grin.

"Watch this, guys," I say with a sneer as I put my hand out and catch a glowing yellow ornament. My friends turn their attention to me. "Feather Sword!" I cry. I chuck the sphere to the sky. It accurately sticks to the top of the tree. Everyone stares at me. I shrug.

"Wooow Ben," Havanna chastises.

"Using your abilities, cheapshot," Essej adds.

"Hey, there's no rule against it," I refute. Most of the people, NPCs and players alike, are throwing about less than 60 feet. I've thrown my orb 200.