Synopsis
Following a whole year and a half with Balamb Garden unable to enter Galbadia, Garden funds were strained. It was the perfect time for a potential new investor, Dr. Gerin Vasken of the University of Perennahill, to make contact. He was received while on business in Balamb Town, and was invited in for a tour of the academy.
It was now 16AW, and Hallowsfall, (a holiday celebrating the survival of the human race after the first Lunar Cry), was celebrated with heavy fanfare in the ballroom. All residents of Garden were welcome, with the staff and faculty recruiting some additional cadets to serve food and drinks. Guests were encouraged to attend the festivities in costume, and games, food and a live orchestral band were featured for entertainment.
Not all went as planned. Vasken, an avid (and unfortunately for Balamb Garden – unhinged) student of the occult was really after a Cursed Lamp in the Headmaster’s Office. This artefact, while harmlessly given to the previous headmaster Cid Kramer as a gift, was ancient and infused with a dark presence. It was the phylactery of the GF Diablos, who had been cast out by his siblings for his crimes and sealed away in the material plane.
He incapacitated Acting Headmaster Faelyn Landum, and then junctioned Diablos, who gave him more power than he knew what to do with. Vasken proceeded to terrorize the academy, turning some cadets against their fellows with a special ability granted by his dark patron: Mindwarp.
Eventually he challenged all of Garden and took back his lended powers, reversing the mind warping effect. Vasken was betrayed and killed by Diablos who then was subdued and defeated by Garden and their GFs.
Episodes
- Hallowsfall: A Most Welcome Guest
- Hallowsfall: Dark Dealings
- Hallowsfall: Deck the Halls
- Hallowsfall: Festival Night
- Hallowsfall: Rikriel VS Quistis & Kairah
- Hallowsfall: Theia VS Ark
- Hallowsfall: Jacob & Cadets VS Irvine, Kairah, Rikriel & Quistis
- Hallowsfall: Krysn VS Brogan & Kei
- Hallowsfall: End Draws Near
- Hallowsfall: Vividarium et Intervigilum et Viator
Aftermath
The Hallowsfall debacle left the infrastructure of Balamb Garden in shambles, with damages far beyond Garden’s ability to repair in their current financial state. Perhaps just as impactful was the psychological damage the event caused its residents, as many cadets, staff & faculty were killed in what was essentially their home. Dr. Nazca, garden’s chief psychologist and councilor, had her office full at nearly all hours of the day for several weeks. The attack blindsided everyone, and many residents found it hard to continue trusting in Garden’s leadership and effectiveness. While the slow repairs began on Garden fixtures and systems, the dark day of Hallowsfall in 16AW will be felt for a long time.
Trivia
Trivia