Dorian arrived in Proxima, widely dubbed across the galaxy as the Gate Planet System. It earned this title because it was situated exactly between the Core Rim and the Mid Rim, while belonging entirely to neither jurisdiction. A massive, endless flow of transportation, commercial freighters, and even the main physical hubs of the galactic network passed directly through this sector.
Just like any major hub world, it boasted a staggeringly diverse population. Walking through the bustling spaceport, Dorian saw alien races and exotic cybernetic augmentations he had absolutely never seen before.
Ratik stepped up beside him and tapped his shoulder. "Come. Let us get you rested in the hotel."
On their way to the accommodation, sitting alone in the spacious back seat of a luxurious hover car, Dorian watched the heavy industrial cityscape roll by. Suddenly, the ethereal, glowing figure of Dionysus floated into the cabin. The God of Wine lounged lazily in mid-air, holding a spectral goblet of nectar.
"Why is the location of your next concert such a gloomy place, darling?" Dionysus asked, taking a slow sip from his cup. He floated right through the glass window, curiously observing a nearby dock worker carrying several heavy cargo crates on his back.
Dorian smiled softly, looking out the window at the towering metal structures. "My dad always brought us gifts from here back in the day. It is very close to the mining planet he used to work at."
Dionysus hummed, swirling his drink with a thoughtful expression. "Say, darling. In my world, miners had the absolute knack for throwing massive parties and drinking all night long. Does this planet happen to have a specialty wine?"
…
The next night, brilliant fireworks popped high in the Proxima sky.
The chosen venue was a colossal arena where professional grav-ball was usually played. The towering, tiered stadium seats held around five hundred thousand people, while the ground field and the hovering VVIP platforms added hundreds of thousands more to the sheer capacity.
Outside the glowing stadium gates, a local system reporter was currently live on the air, broadcasting the chaotic energy of the queuing fans to the rest of the planet.
"We are coming to you live from the Proxima Grand Arena!" the reporter shouted over the deafening cheers of the crowd behind her. "This historic event has been completely sold out. The queue stretches for miles down the commercial sector. To handle a crowd of this unprecedented magnitude, Proxima's essential workers, including the local forces and emergency medical responders, have all been heavily deployed across the district to maintain absolute safety."
The reporter signaled her hovering camera drone to follow her as she walked over to a group of jumping, brightly dressed fans.
"Excuse me!" the reporter called out with a bright smile. "Can we interview you for a second?"
A young man covered in glowing Percival merchandise excitedly leaned toward the microphone. "Yes! Absolutely!"
"How excited are you for tonight's show?"
"I am completely losing my mind!" the fan screamed happily. "We all saw the viral clip from the Sela concert! The way he made that acoustic song entirely on the spot was legendary. I brought a huge holographic sign with my saddest life story written on it. I am really hoping he picks me from the crowd so I can be the subject of his next masterpiece!"
The reporter laughed gracefully, turning back to face the camera lens. "There you have it, folks. A concert experience like never before. Back to you in the studio!"
…
High above the roaring crowd, in the plush, thickly carpeted hallway leading to the VVIP floating platforms, the Round Table Studio development team was currently engaged in a heated debate.
Almost all of them were wearing stiff, clearly newly bought formal suits. They looked entirely out of their element, constantly adjusting their tight collars and nervously tugging at their cuffs.
Except for Logan.
The lead programmer had completely ignored the unspoken dress code. He was casually rocking his favorite vintage band T-shirt underneath a faded denim jacket, looking exactly like he was about to head to a dive bar rather than the most exclusive concert of the decade.
Liseli let out an exasperated sigh, crossing her arms. "Logan, we literally already talked about this. You are in a VVIP box! You have to dress up!"
"It's a music concert, guys!" Logan argued loudly, completely unbothered by the stares of the wealthy socialites passing by. "We are going to be jumping around in there for like two hours! I want to be physically comfortable. You guys look like penguins."
Ross Dalle sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "To be fair... I'm technically on Logan's side. I have my Percival merch shirt layered under this suit just in case I need to quickly adapt. Hehe."
Logan threw his hands up, looking entirely vindicated. "See! Dalle gets it! Come on, guys, let's just take off our clothes and actually be comfortable!"
Bem's eyes went wide as several high-society patrons walking past turned their heads in absolute shock at Logan's booming suggestion.
"He means the suit jackets!" Bem quickly yelled, waving his hands frantically to clear the misunderstanding for anyone close enough to overhear them. "He means taking off the suits, not his entire clothes! Just the suits!"
Logan smirked mischievously. "I don't mind taking off both."
Absolute chaos immediately erupted within the RTS team. The junior employees were already incredibly nervous about being surrounded by billionaires, and their department heads aggressively bickering in the hallway wasn't helping the situation.
Kasavin, holding the tickets, just pinched the bridge of his nose in sheer exhaustion. He walked up to the smartly dressed VVIP usher.
"Yes," Kasavin sighed heavily, handing over the tickets. "Unfortunately, I am with them."
…
Several minutes later, the stadium lights dimmed, and the opening artist finally took the stage. It was Reka Oll, a rapidly rising pop-rock artist who had recently exploded in popularity after Composer Percival had written and produced her breakout track.
"HEEEELLLLLOOOOO PROXIMA!!!" Reka screamed into the microphone, instantly igniting the stadium.
Down in the dressing rooms, Percival was casually shrugging into a stylish, tailored jacket.
Ratik stood near the doorway, tapping her datapad. "So, I see we are planning another 'surprise' performance for tonight's setlist as well?"
Percival adjusted his cuffs and offered a wide smile. "Of course."
"Well, at least you actually told me about it this time around," Ratik muttered, still slightly traumatized from Sela. "Alright. Relax and stay loose. Reka just started her opening set. Do you want me to bring up a monitor so you can see her performance?"
Percival shook his head, pulling his silver mask from its padded case. "No need. It is going to be great."
Ratik paused, an eyebrow raised. "You have a lot of trust in a rookie opener facing a crowd of half a million people."
Dorian smirked, slipping the mask over the upper half of his face. "She's singing my song, Ratik. Of course it's going to be great."
Ratik let out a massive, highly exaggerated eye roll. "Alright, Mr. Ego. I'll be at the soundboard."
As Ratik stepped out and the heavy door clicked shut, the ambient lighting in the dressing room suddenly shifted, taking on a warm, rosy hue. A beautiful, ethereal projection floated into existence beside him.
The Goddess of Love, Aphrodite, smiled down at him, her eyes sparkling with divine amusement. "Another spontaneous musical performance today, little godling?"
Dorian chuckled, grabbing his acoustic guitar case. "I'll be counting on your boons for my charm tonight, Lady Aphrodite."
Before stepping out, Dorian mentally summoned his System interface. The golden numbers materialized in front of his eyes.
[Current Resonance Points: 34,215,800]
Dorian's breath hitched. He stared at the staggering number in absolute awe. The compounding virality of the Sela concert, combined with the utterly massive, galaxy-wide cultural explosion of Pokémon: FireRed and LeafGreen, had pushed his income into the stratosphere.
Based on the momentum of a single concert alone, he was harvesting points on a god-like scale.
…
Hours passed in a blur of blinding lasers and deafening applause. The energy inside the Proxima Grand Arena was a living, breathing entity, completely under the absolute control of the man on the stage.
As the concert reached the very end of its colossal setlist, the stadium lights dimmed to a deep, moody blue.
Percival stood perfectly still at the center of the platform. He gripped the vintage chrome microphone stand with both hands, leaning in incredibly close to the mesh. When he sang, his voice was entirely stripped of its usual smooth polish. It was gritty, low, and laced with a dangerous, magnetic sort of intimacy.
[Michael Bublé – Feeling Good]
"Birds flying high, you know how I feel..."
A massive, echoing cheer erupted from the five hundred thousand fans at the very first line. Behind Percival, the sprawling live orchestra sat in complete silence, their instruments raised and on standby.
"Sun in the sky, you know how I feel..."
The sheer vocal charisma washed over the arena. The entire audience collectively held their breath, completely mesmerized by the quiet, heavy tension building in the air.
"Breeze driftin' on by, you know how I feel..."
Invisible to the mortal eyes of the crowd, the ethereal figure of Aphrodite floated gracefully right beside him. The Goddess of Love took it upon herself to act as the maestro of the show. With a deeply entertained, commanding smile, she pointed her delicate finger directly at Percival.
"It's a new dawn..."
Aphrodite smoothly swept her hand toward the orchestra pit. In perfect sync, a single violin let out a sharp, piercing note that echoed across the silent stadium.
She pointed back at Percival.
"It's a new day..."
A flick of the Goddess's wrist back to the pit. Another lone, haunting violin echo.
"It's a new life..." Percival murmured, his voice rumbling through the heavy subwoofers. "For me."
Aphrodite gracefully raised both of her hands high into the air. Following her unseen command, the entire string section of the orchestra drew their bows, holding a tense, suspended, vibrating note that set everyone's teeth on edge. The anticipation was absolutely agonizing.
"And I'm feeling..." Percival paused for a fraction of a second.
"Good."
Aphrodite violently dropped her hands.
BAM!
Heavily compressed blasts of trumpets and trombones viciously stabbed through the moody atmosphere, instantly shattering the tension. The explosive brass section hit with the force of a kinetic strike, immediately followed by the roar of the crowd losing their absolute minds.
"I'm feeling good!" Percival completely changed the way he sang. He abandoned the gritty, whispered intimacy, forcefully pushing into a rich, resonant chest voice. It possessed Broadway-level projection, flawlessly slicing straight through the massive, blaring brass section without being drowned out for a single second.
"Fish in the sea, you know how I feel..."
As he sang, Percival casually lifted a hand and pointed directly at a young woman in the front row.
Aphrodite's divine charm instantly flared, riding the soundwaves of his voice. The targeted fan let out a hysterical, ecstatic shriek, clutching her face as her knees gave out. The sheer intensity of the interaction sent a massive, physical ripple of screaming fans surging through the pit.
"River running free, you know how I feel... Blossom on a tree, you know how I feel..."
The rhythm section locked tightly into a swinging, infectious groove. Percival rode the beat with impeccable phrasing. Despite the explosive horns, the blinding lights, and the screaming of half a million people, he sounded completely at ease, perfectly anchored in the absolute center of the storm.
"Dragonfly out in the sun, you know what I mean, don't you know?"
His delivery was completely saturated in a newfound, undeniable power. He was actively demanding that the world acknowledge his presence.
"Butterflies all havin' fun... You know what I mean."
It was a staggering display of commanding awareness. He held the entire stadium in the palm of his hand, playing their emotions like an instrument.
"Sleep in peace when day is done, that's what I mean!"
The band began to pick up the swagger, the tempo subtly shifting, driving the energy higher and higher toward the final crescendo.
"And this old world is a new world!" Percival belted, stepping away from the mic stand and projecting pure, unfiltered triumph into the night sky. "And a bold world, for me... For me!"
The massive, driving jazz rhythm section entirely took over the arena. The heavy thump of a walking upright bass intertwined with snapping snare drums, while a frantic, swirling tornado of orchestral strings carried the explosive song into the stratosphere.
The track seamlessly transitioned from a tense, moody standoff into an absolute, unapologetic strut. It was the pure, distilled sound of total confidence.
As the song expanded toward its massive climax, Percival gripped the microphone stand, completely taking over the atmosphere.
"Stars, when you shine, you know how I feel...Scent of the pine, you know how I feel..."
Leaving the mic stand behind, Percival walked confidently toward the very edge of the stage. The sheer wave of rhythmic, deafening cheers from the half-million fans had practically become an organic instrument in the mix, perfectly backing the swinging jazz beat.
"Oh, freedom is mine, and I know how I feel!"
The arena exploded into a seismic wall of sound. The brass section hit its absolute peak. The trumpets screamed in their highest register, while the strings swirled furiously in a dramatic, cinematic crescendo.
Percival threw his head back, holding out the legendary vocal run with flawless breath control.
"It's a new dawn... it's a new day... It's a new life!"
He let the music swell, riding the crest of the orchestral wave.
"It's a new life... for me...And I'm feeling... goooood!"
He let out a soaring, triumphant final note, a stratospheric belt that completely enveloped the Proxima Grand Arena. It was a pure, classic Hollywood ending, or, given the current universe, a perfect Selanian ending.
The stadium lights flared to maximum brightness on the final brass sting. The crowd roared so loudly the concrete foundations of the arena physically shook.
In the midst of the absolute hysteria, a neon-pink piece of undergarment suddenly sailed through the air and landed squarely on the edge of the stage. A highly trained, deeply exhausted stagehand immediately rushed out of the shadows with a long hook, expertly snatching the bra away before it could become a tripping hazard.
Hovering right beside Percival, the ethereal projection of Aphrodite rested a hand on her cheek, a delighted smirk crossing her divine features.
"My, my," the Goddess of Love purred, her eyes sparkling. "You certainly have a lot of love in the air tonight, my little godling."
Percival chuckled softly under his breath and threw a cheeky, dramatic wink toward the front row.
Because of the angle and the blinding stage lights, a young woman pressed against the security rail completely misunderstood the gesture, absolutely convinced the Composer had just winked directly at her. Her legs instantly gave out, and she swooned right into the arms of the screaming fans beside her.
Percival raised his microphone, his voice booming with electric charisma.
"HOW IS YOUR NIGHT, PROXIMA!!!"
The hundred thousands of fans answered with a chaotic, unified scream that sounded like a Category 5 hurricane making landfall.
"WOW," Percival laughed, stepping back and playfully tapping the earpiece hidden beneath his hair. "Let's see... my sound engineers are currently checking the decibel dosimeters... Oh. Oh, wow. Louder than Sela, they say!"
The crowd responded exactly as expected, letting out another massive, ego-fueled roar to secure their victory in the unspoken interplanetary rivalry.
A stagehand tossed a fresh white towel from the wings. Percival caught it perfectly. He dabbed the heavy sweat from his neck and the lower half of his face.
He walked back to the edge of the platform and looked down at the sea of people. "Can I sit down?"
"YES!!" the stadium screamed back.
Percival gracefully dropped down, letting his legs dangle over the edge of the massive stage, just as he had done days prior.
"Huuftt," Percival sighed into the mic, his tone instantly shifting from a larger-than-life superstar to a casual, grounded friend. "That was a fun one. Pretty sure someone threw out their bra at me, too."
A massive wave of laughter rippled through the arena, instantly easing the heavy, adrenaline-fueled atmosphere.
While the crowd was busy laughing, Percival smoothly pulled the microphone an inch away from his mouth. He shot a quick, subtle glance toward the camera pit crew positioned just below him.
"Guys all ready?" he whispered off-mic.
The floor director, looking slightly stressed but prepared, shot him a firm thumbs-up. Somewhere backstage, Ratik was undoubtedly watching the monitors with a bottle of antacids in her hand.
Percival smiled beneath his silver mask. It was time for another surprise Q&A.
⋘ 𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒂.. .⋙
🎮:
- Stardwey Valley: Completed.
- Hades: Completed.
- Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen: Completed.
- Sky: Children of the Light: ◌ Loading…
🎬:
-
♬:
- Your Song – Elton John (ch.9)
- A Lovely Night – La La Land (ch.20)
- Merry Go Round of Life – Howl's Moving Castle (ch.25)
- Small Fragile Hearts – Victor Lundberg (ch. 27)
- Skyfall – Adele (ch. 29)
- No Time To Die – Billie Eilish (ch. 30)
- Yesterday – The Beatles (ch. 32)
- Lovely – Billie Eilish, Khalid (ch. 47)
- Best Part – H.E.R. feat. Daniel Caesar (ch. 67)
- Lovely Day – Bill Withers (ch. 68)
- My Song – Labi Siffre (ch. 75)
- Isn't She Lovely – Stevie Wonder (ch. 89)
- Gotta Catch 'Em All – Pokémon OST (ch. 90)
- Don't Stop Me Now – Queens (ch. 102)
- Grow As We Go – Ben Platt (ch. 102)
- Feeling Good – Michael Bublé (ch. 104)