The wait passed in a flash. At eight o'clock sharp, the ceiling lights all went out at once, plunging the entire auditorium into darkness.
No one panicked, because everyone understood that the performance had officially begun!
With a soft click, the projector switched on, casting images of Lugia and Ho-Oh onto the curtain.
Under the audience's gaze, the curtain slowly rose. As Lugia and Ho-Oh vanished, a brightly lit, magnificent stage was revealed behind them. The next second, grand, stirring music rang out around the audience!
Beneath the spotlight, as though a shower of golden rain were falling, a young woman dressed in an exquisite black kimono stood at center stage in her finery and slowly began to dance.
Xia You rubbed his arms.
The instant the music started, goosebumps had risen all over him.
The opening had so much atmosphere, and the music sounded wonderful. It had clearly been carefully designed!
He turned toward Erika and saw that she, too, had sat up straight. This opening seemed to have caught her interest as well.
Seeing Xia You look over, she nodded. "This performance really does seem worth looking forward to!"
"Definitely."
Amid this atmosphere, the woman covered the corner of her mouth with her sleeve and slowly began to speak. "Long, long ago, the people of Ecruteak built two great towers in this city. Those two towers were-"
"The Bell Tower!"
As the woman spoke this name, the pillar to her left suddenly lit up, and a magnificent nine-story tower was projected onto it.
"And the Bell Tower!"
No sooner had she finished speaking than the pillar on the right lit up as well, revealing another soaring tower.
"One day, two Legendary Pokémon came here from far away: Ho-Oh, the rainbow deity, and Lugia, the god of the sea..."