Magic Fireflies are characters in The Messenger. They are a species of tiny flying creatures, and they help Ninja progress through his adventure by revealing pathways through time. The Magic Fireflies during the Butterfly Matriarch fight assist Ninja by changing the arena to 16-bit and by transforming into blue cannon plants. Ninja can also attack them for free Cloudstep.
One particular Magic Firefly joins Ninja on his journey after he defeats the Butterfly Matriarch. This firefly acts as an inventory item, lifting the curse on Monk and giving Ninja access to the Corrupted Future.
Magic Fireflies are tiny balls of blue light in the shape of a flame, with a blue outer edge and a white center. They have two tiny white wings (but a close-up reveals they have four tiny light blue wings with white veins). Magic Fireflies are sometimes surrounded by a ring or box of blue sparkles, and when the Magic Firefly is slashed, the ring or box expands to reveal a pathway through time.
A Magic Firefly uses her magic to reveal the 8-bit era version of the Butterfly Matriarch.
A particularly courageous Magic Firefly takes her chance to warn Ninja that the Butterfly Matriarch is dangerous, flying around the Matriarch with a time ring to reveal the Matriarch's bat form. This Magic Firefly flies away only after the Butterfly Matriarch threatens her.
The Magic Firefly that joins Ninja's journey hops out of Ninja's inventory when the duo encounters the cursed Monk. The Magic Firefly recalls Monk's good deed of restoring Rivière Turquoise and then takes the initiative to remove Monk's curse.
The Magic Fireflies in the Corrupted Future hide in fear and only come out of hiding after Ninja's Magic Firefly calls out to them. These Magic Fireflies also reveal pathways through time. While exploring the Corrupted Future, Ninja frees different Magic Fireflies stuck in chunks of amber, and they show their appreciation by flying to blocked-off walls. Ninja slashes the fireflies to open up new routes.
Besides the Magic Firefly that reveals Butterfly Matriarch's bat form and the Magic Firefly that joins Ninja's journey (which might be the same Magic Firefly), Magic Fireflies are not very talkative, not speaking a single word even if Ninja slashes them.
Main Story[]
Ninja gains Cloudstep from Magic Fireflies but nothing else in his first trip through Autumn Hills.
As Ninja travels through Autumn Hills, he passes by three Magic Fireflies flying around in a tall room. He can slash them for Cloudstep, but nothing else notable happens. Again, Ninja passes by two Magic Fireflies in Quillshroom Marsh, but slashing them does nothing notable besides giving Cloudstep. It's not until Ninja gains the power to freely time travel that the Magic Fireflies serve a more useful gameplay purpose. Once Ninja gains the power to freely time travel, Magic Fireflies in Autumn Hills and Quillshroom Marsh gain a tiny ring of light around them, exposing the opposite era within the ring. If Ninja slashes the Magic Fireflies, the ring expands, which allows Ninja to more easily progress through the level by utilizing the layout of the opposite era within the ring.
A Magic Firefly warns Ninja not to approach the Butterfly Matriarch.
Eventually, Ninja travels to Rivière Turquoise, where he again encounters Magic Fireflies he can slash to progress through the level. He reaches the final room of Rivière Turquoise where he meets the Butterfly Matriarch. From off-screen, a Magic Firefly warns Ninja that the Butterfly Matriarch is not what she seems. The firefly arrives on scene and shines her light brightly as she flies around different sections of the Matriarch to expose the Matriarch's bat form of the 8-bit era. The Magic Firefly explains that the Butterfly Matriarch is plagued by an ugly monster and that Ninja must rid the Matriarch of this evil; the firefly then flies off after being threatened by the Matriarch.
A blue cannon plant left behind by a Magic Firefly.
During the 8-bit sections of the Butterfly Matriarch fight, a Magic Firefly will periodically arrive on scene. When the Magic Firefly is attacked by Ninja, the arena changes from 8-bit to 16-bit, which causes the Butterfly Matriarch to scatter a shower of dust particles. The dust particles reveal hidden platforms, platforms required for Ninja to reach the upper part of the arena to attack the Matriarch. When the Butterfly Matriarch leaves the arena, a Magic Firefly arrives on scene and transforms into a blue cannon plant, which Ninja can enter to be launched to the next arena. After Ninja defeats the Butterfly Matriarch and rids her of her curse, she gifts Ninja with a Magic Firefly to accompany him on his journey, which serves as an inventory item.
Ninja's Magic Firefly removes the Curse of Quills from Monk.
Ninja eventually returns to Quillshroom Marsh, where he re-encounters the Queen of Quills. The Magic Firefly in Ninja's possession flies on screen and recognizes the Queen of Quills as the monk who restored Rivière Turquoise centuries ago by bringing the Butterfly Matriarch. The firefly volunteers to remove the Monk's corruption and flies around the Queen of Quills, releasing a shower of blue sparkles. Monk is cured, but she is panicked, still in the same mindset as she was the moment she defeated the Primal Fear. The Magic Firefly tells Monk to calm down, explaining that she fell victim to the Curse of Quills. Monk asks why the Magic Firefly is here and if the Butterfly Matriarch is safe, and the Magic Firefly reassures Monk that everything is fine. Monk questions what she did while she was brainwashed, then takes her leave to talk to The Prophet. The Magic Firefly lets Ninja know that Monk will be fine and that there has never been a stronger Messenger.
Ninja's Magic Firefly calls out to the other Magic Fireflies who are hiding in fear.
Ninja eventually ventures into the Corrupted Future. If he does not have the Magic Firefly inventory item, he encounters a wall and cannot progress any further. However, if he does have the Magic Firefly, a cutscene occurs when he enters the Corrupted Future. Ninja's Magic Firefly hops out of Ninja's inventory and questions what kind of place the Corrupted Future is. She states she can sense some of her sisters, hiding in fear, and that she'll call out to them so that Ninja can cross the infected realm. The Magic Firefly lets out a burst of blue sparkles that spread outward and fade away.
Magic Fireflies of the Corrupted Future.
Because Ninja's Magic Firefly called out to her sisters, a Magic Firefly appears next to the first impassable wall of the Corrupted Future. Ninja slashes the new firefly to create a pathway through time. As Ninja traverses through the level, he encounters various Magic Fireflies next to impassable walls, and he encounters Magic Fireflies he must free from chunks of amber. After a Magic Firefly is freed from the amber, she flies to a specific impassable wall. Ninja slashes the various Magic Fireflies to make progress through the Corrupted Future.
Trivia[]
Magic Firefly is referred to as "MAGIC_FAIRY" in the dialogue files, and she is referred to as "Fairy" and "Luciole" in the picture files. "Luciole" is the French word for "firefly."
Magic Fireflies bear a striking resemblance to the fairies from The Legend of Zelda series. The datamined names of "MAGIC_FAIRY" and "Fairy" hint at their relationship.
When Ninja enters the Corrupted Future for the first time with the Magic Firefly in his inventory, a cutscene plays out with the Magic Firefly. However, the game does not save at this point. So if the player closes the game then opens the game, they'll be in the Corrupted Future, and the cutscene doesn't play out, even though it hasn't been truly triggered yet. If the player follows up by returning to the Tower of Time HQ then returning to the Corrupted Future, then the cutscene plays out as to be expected.
In New Game +, the player can select the Magic Firefly as one of Ninja's permanent inventory items. But even if the player chooses to do so, Ninja can still fight the Butterfly Matriarch to obtain a second Magic Firefly. Nothing out of the ordinary happens, though, and Ninja will continue to have a singular Magic Firefly in his inventory.
In "The Messenger - E3 2018 Extended Gameplay" video, the first section of Rivière Turquoise with Magic Fireflie(s) was altered. In the beta version, only one Magic Firefly flew back and forth across the corridor of spikes.[2] In the final game, three Magic Fireflies sit stationarily in place, making it easier to maneuver through compared to the beta version.
In "The Messenger Gameplay Demo - IGN Live E3 2018" video, two Magic Fireflies are seen in a swinging pendulum spikeball room in Quillshroom Marsh.[3] They do not appear in this room in the final version of the game.
