Leran's Performance
The performance and even meeting Selena afterwards, were all great. Everyone enjoyed themselves, especially grandpa and Leran. It seemed like grandpa became one of her biggest admirers, but I wasn't sure if Leran could be toppled from the number one spot. He was crazy for Selena, unlike anyone I ever saw. The performance was over, we retired to our rooms to get some sleep.
Although the performance we came for ended, that wasn't the end of our little trip. We had the contests to attend. Moreover, I was signed up to one of them. To my surprise, uncle and aunt signed Leran up for the singing contest. Leran was still a kid, at least six years younger than me. He could speak, but I wasn't so sure about singing. 'I guess having fun is the most important part', I thought. We promised aunt and uncle we would attend the contest, which was supposed to take place shortly after noon.
Aunt Alicia also finished with my backpack, and gave it back to me the previous night. She said the Special Formation wasn't bad, and reduced the weight by about forty percent. She could place a better Formation, but the material wasn't the best and therefore it could break apart. The stronger a Formation was, the greater and more durable the material had to be in order to hold said Formation. Any Formation created by aunt would be great. Grandpa could probably do it as well, but since aunt already did it, there was no need to bother him.
After breakfast, we headed straight to the private room to watch the singing competition. Grandpa decided to pass on that, but he would be there for the endurance contest. "There are always three major contests each year. Although singing is really popular thanks to Selena", Suly said. I learned that there were no age restrictions for the singing contest, but the older kids didn't usually take part. That was due to the endurance contest. The endurance contest was really popular, and a lot of youngsters went for it. There was also a third contest, but its popularity was rather small compared to others. From what Suly said, kids had to display their abilities to the audience, and judges would choose the best out of the lot. "What do you mean by abilities?", I asked. "In simple terms, something a person was born with. It's not restricted to gifts at birth though. People can learn or acquire all sorts of things, and as long as it's unique, it can be entered into the contest", Suly replied.
"Does that mean Formations can be considered an ability?", I asked. Suly thought about it for a while, "That depends on how unique they are. If people haven't seen those Formations, then yes, I'd say you could enter. Let me give you an example, as you will no doubt spot that during the contest. Voltars can command electric energy, that is the ability they are born with. That is exactly what abilities mean. If you for example commanded electric energy, that would be your ability, right?". I nodded, and looked forward to the ability contest. Before that took place, the announcer stepped onto the stage and said, "Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the first annual contest, where young children can show off their talents and shine on a large stage! There are prizes to be won, and fame to be gained! Let's get it started!".
Kids of all races made their way towards the stage, and lined up before the announcer. "The first contest of the day is a singing contest! These youngsters have come forth to present their voices to this large audience. Please give them a warm welcome!", the announcer added. The crowd cheered, but it wasn't as loud as Selena's performance night. I guessed that many people came especially for her, and didn't stay to see the contests. From the looks of it, there were thirty kids standing on the stage. One of them was Leran, dressed in formal attire and looking all nervous. "Little Leran looks so great!", uncle exclaimed. Aunt slapped his head and said, "Be quiet will you? I want to hear everything". Aunt and uncle were really excited, I could tell. Their son was about to sing in front of a huge audience, of course they wanted Leran to look great. "Mom, did you make clothes for Leran?", I asked quietly. She smiled, "Is it that obvious? Leran looks cute, doesn't he? He is a bit shy though". I nodded and focused on the stage.
"The rules are very simple. Each contestant has up to five minutes to demonstrate their voice. We welcome additional acts such as dancing, but singing should be the main focus. There are four judges, who will rate the performance. The contestant with the highest score wins the main prize! In case we have a draw, the contestants will be asked to perform once more, but a different song. This will continue until we have a clear winner. Let the contest begin!", the announcer said and everyone left the stage as the crowd cheered.
A short while later, the first contestant was called onto the stage. Her name was Alin and she was a young Atol. The judges asked her to begin when she was ready, and silence filled the air. Alin sang with no music, and I could hear her voice clearly. It was very rough, loud and thick. 'She's not that great to be honest', I thought. A few minutes later, her performance ended, and the judges scored her. She didn't get good scores, but she didn't seem to mind at all.
One contestant after the other entered the stage, then sang something for the audience and the judges. Some were bad, and got laughed at by the audience. Some were quite good, and received really good scores from the judges. The fourteenth contestant was Leran. He slowly made his way towards the middle of the stage, but nervousness was clearly visible on his face. The judges asked Leran to perform whenever he was ready, and silence filled the Arena. Leran took a deep breath and started, "I feel.. like dancing tonight! ♪I wanna dance, dance, dance, dance into the night♪ I wanna move, move, move, move to the music all night♪ Don't wanna stop, stop, stop, stop till the sunrise♪ We gonna dance, dance, dance, dance till we fall!♪...". Leran's performance was something else. His voice was not bad, but the song and the way he danced around made me laugh. Not only me, others in the crowd laughed as well.
I wasn't laughing because Leran was bad, but because his performance was different and funny. I wasn't sure whether Leran was going for such a reaction or not. Uncle and aunt seemed happy about it though, they had smiles on their faces and watched with great attention. The funniest moment was when Leran used his tail to spring around the stage. Although he tripped a few times, I enjoyed it and thought it was a great performance.
At the end, the judges delivered their verdict. They said the performance was quite unique, and hence scored better due to that. But, Leran had a long way to go. His voice was still immature and he made a few mistakes. Although he scored well above average, he wouldn't win the contest. Still, I thought Leran was the best from what I saw. Perhaps others could perform better and had beautiful voices, but at least Leran tried to be unique and that was great. Leran seemed a bit disappointed he wouldn't win, but he left the stage with a smile.
"Which one of you came up with such a performance?", mom asked. Uncle replied proudly, "Of course it was me! I think it was great and unique. It's a shame Leran can't win, but he got great scores for his first try. He will try harder next time, I'm sure". "Did you see how great and happy he looked? That's my son over there", aunt Alicia added. Uncle and aunt hugged each other, and continued praising Leran. "Ahem", Suly interrupted them. "Yes, Suly is great too", uncle said. Suly just shook her head, and turned towards me. "I envy you so much. You don't have any siblings, so your mom focuses on you only", she said. I laughed drily but didn't reply.
The rest of the contest passed smoothly. There was one Slether that took part, and she was the winner ultimately. They had really great voices, and the judges as well as the audience were really impressed. Leran took the eighth place, which was great considering there were thirty contestants. Only the top three got a prize. The prize for second and third place was some lessons in singing, and a small monetary reward. The prize for the first place was a bit different. Besides the monetary prize, the winner got to meet and work with well known performers. This would further help that person develop their talents. Uncle Lazar left to get Leran, while we had our dinner. "The next contest is an ability contest. It will start in a while, so we have some time", Suly said. When Leran and uncle came back, we all congratulated him on his performance and expressed admiration. Leran was only a few years old, taking part and placing so high was a great success. Although he didn't win, he was a winner in our eyes.
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