35. Squall Meets Laguna (VIII)
'Ward. Kiros. And that's probably...'
It was always inevitable that Squall would meet Laguna at some point during the events of Final Fantasy VIII, given his experience of events from the man's life during a number of dream sequences. It doesn't happen until quite late in the chronology of the plot, but the moment where the game's two stories finally become one does not disappoint. After Rinoa returns to earth after being rescued in space by Squall, she is surrounded by Esthar soldiers due to the threat she may pose to mankind, given her susceptibility to Sorceress Ultimecia's possession skills. Scared of her powers, she acquiesces to their demands to be sealed away, only for Squall to reject the idea and rescue her after initially going along with it. Invited to meet Esthar's President after this, Squall comes face to face with Laguna, the man who was elected to the position seventeen years earlier, and the two develop a plan in tandem with scientist Dr. Odine to defeat Ultimecia once and for all. The fact that the game all but flat out confirms (through dialogue with Kiros and Ward, as well as the fact that there would be no reason for Ellone to make Squall bear witness to the life of a man not connected to him in any way) that Laguna is Squall's father makes their meeting all the more fateful and rewarding.
34. An Assortment Of Sacrifices (II)
'All those who live must someday die. It is our fate'
In terms of death and destruction, Final Fantasy II is one of the darkest games in the entire series. As mentioned earlier on, almost every supporting character perishes at some point, accompanied by an emotional scene that motivates the party (and the player) further in their quest to oppose the malevolent actions of the Palamecian Empire. It begins with Scott, a Prince who perishes in the game's first hour after passing information about Borghen's betrayal of the Kingdom of Fynn to player character Firion. Next comes Josef, a resistance sympathiser who escorts the party across a snowfield in search of an item they require, only to use his immense physical strength to hold up a large boulder (triggered by Borghen) long enough for the rest of the party to escape from a cave, leaving behind a young daughter. Minwu comes next. Having earlier accompanied the party on their travels for a period, the mage is dispatched by the dying King of Fynn to locate the tome for the powerful Ultima spell, using the last of his immense magical power and dying to break the seal around it for the party's use after they are tasked with locating him when he doesn't return. Other supporting characters such as the airship creator Cid are then killed by a creation of the Empire known as the cyclone, inside which the party meets a dragoon named Ricard. His demise is perhaps the most tragic of all given that he is the last dragoon of the Kingdom of Deist, as he sacrifices himself to get the party out of a tough spot despite promising his friend's widow and her son that he would return. Unlike many other games in the series (most notably Final Fantasy IV), the dead in this instance stay dead and do not come back (though they do appear in the previously mentioned afterlife adventure called the Soul of Rebirth in remakes of the game), making each heroic demise all the more hard-hitting.
33. The Nibelheim Incident (VII)
'Out of my way. I'm going to see my mother'
The story of how Sephiroth's insanity began is narrated by Cloud in a first-person flashback sequence early on in Final Fantasy VII, as his allies seek to understand his connection to the superhuman being that they become aware of during their escape from Shinra's headquarters. Cloud tells the story falsely, believing himself to have been an elite member of SOLDIER tasked with accompanying Sephiroth to the Mako reactor in his hometown of Nibelheim, where monsters had been appearing. It is later revealed that this was actually Zack; a friend of Cloud's whose identity he assumed in the mission's aftermath, though the game's spiky-haired protagonist was present as a helmeted infantryman. With Cloud's childhood acquaintance Tifa hired as a guide, the superhuman Sephiroth effortlessly completes his task before discovering both Mako-infused humanoid creations and a sealed door in the reactor marked 'Jenova', the name he has been told belonged to his mother. Wondering if he was created artificially like the humanoids, Sephiroth immerses himself in a week of research in a mansion in the town once used by Shinra, discovering Jenova's origins and formulating his belief that he is the last of the ancient Cetra race and should be a godlike figure rather than a military pawn. Setting the town on fire (resulting in the iconic image of him walking through the flames), Sephiroth sets off for the reactor once more to reunite with his 'mother', immobilising Zack and Tifa (whose father is killed in the blaze) when they separately attempt to stop him. He is then opposed by the lowly Cloud, who somehow manages to send Sephiroth into the Lifestream, a place where he subsequently spends five years acquiring knowledge and power to aid his future quest for world destruction.
32. Rachel's Brief Revival (VI)
'I have to go now. I'll always love you. You must now cast off the anguish you've been harbouring inside for so long. Today I set your heart free. You must learn to love yourself again, and regain your self-respect'
Treasure hunter Locke Cole is introduced early in Final Fantasy VI as a member of the anti-Empire resistance movement (the Returners) sent to exfiltrate the mysterious Terra from the town of Narshe, where the Empire's forces are searching for her in the wake of her breaking free from their mind control. Viewed as a common thief by most (a characterisation he despises), Locke is actually a brave individual dedicated to his goals. After successfully getting Terra out of her predicament he rescues Celes, a supposedly disgraced General of the Empire, from captivity during his escape from a city under siege. Despite initially questioning her loyalty, he begins to develop affection for her, though it is complicated by his past. This past is explored towards the end of the game, as following Kefka's reshaping of the world, Locke, not knowing of Celes' fate, seeks to spend whatever time he has left with his first love, Rachel, a woman killed by the Empire (but preserved in state by a herbologist) after being injured in an accident that was Locke's fault. Hearing of an Esper named Phoenix that can revive the dead; he seeks it out and succeeds in acquiring its power, only to discover that it will give just Rachel a few minutes of life before she passes on once again. With these moments, she selflessly tells him not to feel guilty and dwell on the past, imploring him to move on with his life and give his love to the person who now dwells in his heart Celes who has grown to love him too.
31. Gabranth's Redemption (XII)
'Even a stray has pride! Here I pay my debt'
The concept of conflict between two brothers wasn't exactly new to the series when the writers of Final Fantasy XII decided to use it, but the relationship between identical twins Basch and Noah (Gabranth) is perhaps the franchise's best use of sibling rivalry, and its development is one of the game's best elements. Separated in their youth by the invasion of their home, Basch became a knight of Dalmasca whilst Gabranth became a Judge Magister of the Archadian Empire, accelerating the Archadian conquest of Dalmasca by posing as his brother and murdering its King, ensuring the Kingdom's downfall and Basch's imprisonment for regicide. Despite this, Gabranth is not completely without honour, seeking (in tandem with Judge Drace) to protect his emperor's youngest son, Larsa, from becoming as merciless and destructive as his heir Vayne has become. Vayne's murder of the emperor and assumption of his position forces Gabranth to display loyalty to the man, however, beginning with the execution of the dissenting Drace. Meanwhile, Basch joins the player's party after being freed from captivity, seeking to clear his name and triumphing over Gabranth in battle on two occasions before the Judge realises the error of his ways and turns on Vayne, who, in a Nethicite-enhanced form, effortlessly cuts him down. Basch and the rest of the party eventually triumph over Vayne, but Gabranth is past the point of no return. On his death bed, having reclaimed his pride and honour, he implores his twin brother to take his place and continue his mission to protect Larsa, who can unite the world in peace as the next Emperor.