Harvest Festival

The roots of the festival are buried deep within the history of the first human tribes. It is said that, for the longest time, humans were only capable of hunting and gathering - the lands were far more dangerous back then, and settling down was almost impossible for larger groups. However, their destructive ways incurred the anger of the elves, who were inhabiting the woodlands where the human tribes hunted. After many years of skirmishes between the two races, the elves decided to teach humans the basics of agriculture, all in an attempt to encourage them to stop hunting the beasts of their forests. The plan was successful, and the first ever harvest was celebrated by both the human and the elven tribes. Ever since then, it has become a custom to have at least a small party every Autumn, as a sign of respect for the nature and earth, as well as a remembrance of the friendship between humans and elves.

When the pocket dimension of Exarhi was created, there was no such thing as seasons, or even daylight cycles; these were encoded inside the plane by its creator as light and temperature fluctuations that would repeat every year. The first Exalted mages thought that such things were too frivolous to require their attention, so for the first couple of years (almost an entire decade), the Exarhi plane was a city with everpresent light, the very sky shining with a pale color, as if the sun was covered by a blanked of white clouds. This attitude changed, however, when the Exarhi University was created; as the city grew and more children attended the university, the constant feeling of otherworldliness drove the mages insane bit by bit, day by day. It became necessary to create a proper simulation of day and night; after that was accomplished, the simulation of the four "normal" seasons followed closely.

The festival itself appeared after some members of the Council noticed how most of the students left the university during the Autumn breaks. After investigating the matter, they found out the reason was the various harvest festivals that took place across the Continent. Exarhi City was a town built for the sole purpose of sustaining the Council and the University and had no ties to things such as agriculture; the idea of hosting such a festivity did not occur to anyone until that point. The following year, the city welcomed its first ever holiday celebration, an attempt to keep the students close even during the Autumn break, as well as an opportunity to encourage non-Exalted to participate in Exalted-related activities. Needless to say that the festival was a success; ever since that year, the Council takes time to organize the city for the two-week-long celebrations, making sure everything is perfect for the tens of thousands of people that participate every day.

The harvest festival brings people together from all across the world; it encourages everyone to share their culture and knowledge, to inspire and be inspired by the rest of Meridian. If you want to take part in the festivities, you are required to file a request to the Council between the 15th and the 28th of Nekota, as these submissions need to be reviewed and vetoed by the Council before any planning can take place. Although there is no barrier of entry, the Council will look up your name, face and place of origin as a security measure. If you were banned from the festival in a prior year (or have a criminal record of any sort), the Council will automatically reject your request. Members of the Council will also perform inspections during the event in order to make sure you're not planning anything foul or dangerous.

From the 1st to the 7th of Barota (the following month), the Council will organize all accepted merchants and performers. Every stall, every shop, every dancing area will be carefully placed in a designated area in order to avoid congestion as much as possible. Although it is not officially recognized, the richer shopkeepers often donate sums of silver and gold in order to have their shop placed closer to the Plaza or the Square - the main points of interest for the festival. The Council also prepares the alleys and roads of the city with banners, magic lights and all sorts of art, coating the otherwise dull roads in all the colors the eye can see.

The celebrations begin on the 8th and last for two weeks, during which the City entrance restrictions are partially lifted. City guards are stationed at every portal entrance and are tasked with checking all the visitors - if they find toxic materials, contraband, weapons or anything dangerous, the items are confiscated and the culprit is permanently banned from entering the city. If any criminal is found by them, the guards will detain them and lock them inside the prison cells in the city underground tunnels - one of the most secure places across the Meridian.

During the festivities, everyone is free to roam the streets and watch the spectacles organized by people from all the corners of the world - the Serpentine Dancers of the Lizet, the strength tests of the highland dwarves, the displays of floral magic from the Ghuurad elves and many, many more. As the festival grows in popularity, more and more people become interested in showing their culture, each year building on top of the previous ones. Oftentimes, groups of students participate with their unique creations, such as glitter bombs (rockets that shoot into the sky and explode with colorful patterns) and temporary wall paint (easily washable after exactly fourteen days this is the perfect time for their craftiness to shine, not only because of the recognition they can achieve, but because the Council makes sure every student is properly rewarded for their contributions, both with money and with extracurricular credit.