"Twilight of Bubbles and Beasts" - Poff

Amidst the bustle and charcoal-grilled aroma of Shilin Night Market, no one noticed when the first pale blue bubbles began to fall from the sky. Until a low, muffled cry, like distant thunder, pierced the night. Pedestrians hurrying along the street and motorcyclists stuck in traffic jams finally rolled down their windows and stopped, looking up. Three elephant-sized creatures were slowly entering the street. What set them apart was that their bodies weren't covered in rough, gray hide, but encased in what looked like the latest fashion trend: giant inflatable bubble coats, refracting a psychedelic sheen of pink and sky blue under the shifting neon lights. "Mommy, won't the elephants get hot wearing down jackets?" a little girl holding a balloon rubbed her eyes. These clumsy yet elegant "Poff Elephants" advanced to the rhythm of bagpipes and drums. As the lead giant elephant reached the plaza of the Taipei Performing Arts Center, it suddenly raised its twenty-meter-long trunk and sprayed a sky full of fine mist and bubbles. The water vapor and bubbles shattered in the late summer breeze, turning into a cool rain that fell into the tired eyes of everyone present. In that instant, the concrete city briefly retreated. Adults held each other's hands, finding long-lost innocence within the fairy tale woven by the bubbles.