Zidane Tribal

Zidane Tribal (ジタン・トライバル, Jitan Toraibaru, /zɪˈdɑːn/) is the main protagonist of Final Fantasy IX. Unlike VII and VIII, which had its protagonists created before the story, Zidane and other characters were designed after the creation of the game's plot.^[2] Both Zidane and Vivi's size and age were made to be less than the characters from these titles. He was one of the original three characters to be revealed, along with Vivi and Steiner. He was conceived and written by Hironobu Sakaguchi, while his appearance was designed by Yoshitaka Amano and re-interpreted by Toshiyuki Itahana.^[3][4] The womanizing aspect of his character was conceived by Hiroyuki Ito. Sakaguchi described him as a person who "likes girls and doesn't care for much", lacking any real objective and being carefree, but a key character nonetheless.

Zidane has shoulder-length blonde hair, blue eyes, and a prehensile monkey-like tail, as shown in game when he uses it to evade Steiner.^[5] He wields either two daggers or a single swallow-blade. In trance form, Zidane's hair becomes longer, and his clothing is replaced with pink fur. Zidane is identified as a thief, and has the unique ability to steal items from enemies. Due to being considered the main character of Final Fantasy IX, the stealing mechanic was made more important than in previous games, meaning that players have the opportunity to acquire valuable items earlier than normal by stealing them from enemies.^[5]

He was redesigned by Tetsuya Nomura in Dissidia Final Fantasy.^[6] He is voiced by Romi Park and Bryce Papenbrook in the Japanese and English versions of Dissidia respectively.^[7]

At the age of sixteen, he becomes involved in a scheme to kidnap Princess Garnet XVII of Alexandria, which Regent Cid organized to distance her from her increasingly war-like adoptive mother, Queen Brahne.^[8] Zidane first encounters Garnet when she tries to sneak out of the palace, and, at her request, promises to do his best to kidnap her.^[9][10] He takes an instant liking to her and does not hesitate to flirt with her throughout the game. Zidane naturally adopts his role as party leader, and his personality draws many characters to him throughout the game. Near the end of the game, it is revealed that Zidane is a Genome who Garland created on the planet Terra to replace Kuja as a more powerful "Angel of Death".^[11][12] Jealous of his successor, Kuja cast Zidane down to Gaia, where he was found and adopted by Baku and his group of thieves, Tantalus. At the end of the game, after Kuja rescues the party from the Iifa Tree, Zidane chooses to go back inside it to save his archrival, and is pursued by its tendrils. For nearly a year, it is believed that he did not survive, but he reappears in Alexandria in the epilogue. In addition to his original appearance, Zidane is the hero representing Final Fantasy IX in Dissidia Final Fantasy. Along with the entire cast, Zidane reappears in the prequel Dissidia 012.^[13] He also appears in Itadaki Street Portable as a playable character. He is also featured in the rhythm game Theatrhythm Final Fantasy as the main character representing Final Fantasy IX.^[14] In Dissidia Final Fantasy, Zidane was featured alongsuide Cloud Strife, Squall Leonhart, and Tidus as figurines to celebrate the series' 20th anniversary.^[6]

Vivi Ornitier

Vivi Ornitier (ビビ・オルニティア, Bibi Orunitia) first appears at the beginning of the game, becoming embroiled in Tantalus's plan to kidnap Princess Garnet when he travels to Alexandria to attend a performance of the play I Want to be Your Canary.^[15] After the group finds Queen Brahne's Black Mage factory in Dali, he remains with them to search for the truth about his origins. It is later revealed that Black Mages are mindless footsoldiers that Kuja manufactured and supplies to Queen Brahne to aid her in conquering the Mist Continent. Vivi wishes to find out the truth about his origins and the reason for his existence, fearing his purpose is nothing more than to be a soulless killing machine. He also does not understand why he is different from the rest of the Black Mages, including why he shows emotions when other Black Mages, including the Black Waltzes, do not.^[16] Later on in the game, Kuja and the Black Mages reveal the truth to him in the Black Mage Village. He learns that most Black Mages "stop" after one year, which is equivalent to death in humans.^[17] A conversation with the Black Mage leader suggests that Vivi was a prototype built to "last longer".^[18] Vivi does not appear in the epilogue, but the screen cuts to black to display his ending monologue. Instead, seven other black mages who look exactly like him appear at Garnet's seventeenth birthday celebration in Alexandria, one of whom identifies himself to Puck as "Vivi's son". Through his messages during the ending scenes, Vivi thanks Zidane for their adventures and the lessons of life, and bids everyone farewell. It is implied that he died due to his limited lifespan.

Vivi's name in English was originally Vivi Ornitier in the Final Fantasy IX manual, though this was changed in the Greatest Hits re-release. Vivi is kind and of pure heart, yet is also obedient, indecisive, and introverted.^[19] He is a Black Mage, a class of magic user who employs fire, ice, lightning, and other elements into magic.^[20] His character design was meant to strike a balance between realism and a comic-like style, while taking inspiration from the style employed for the characters in The Dark Crystal.^[21] Vivi's appearance is based on the black mage characters from previous Final Fantasy games. He wears a blue outfit and a tall hat, and has no facial features beyond a set of yellow eyes. When designing Final Fantasy IX, the designers made a point of designing a part of the world around Vivi due to him being a key character in the story.^[22] An early scene in the game features various characters posing as members of a play; while he does not participate in the final version, a previous version has him participating after Zidane convinces him to in order to avoid being arrested.^[23]

In addition to the original game, Vivi appears in Kingdom Hearts II. He also appears in manuals for both Dissidia Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy Origins. He is also featured in the rhythm game Theatrhythm Final Fantasy as a subcharacter representing Final Fantasy IX.^[24] As well, various figurines based on him have been released.^[25]

Since appearing in Final Fantasy IX, Vivi has received largely positive reception. During the 2006 Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, Edge editor Margaret Robertson used Vivi as an example of an emotionally engaging character in the Final Fantasy series, stating that gamers knew that something tragic would happen with Vivi in the end.^[26]

In Kingdom Hearts II, Vivi is voiced by Ikue Ōtani in the Japanese version and Melissa Disney in the English version. In World of Final Fantasy he is voiced by Kath Soucie in English instead.

Adelbert Steiner

Adelbert Steiner (アデルバート・スタイナー, Aderubāto Sutainā) is the Captain of the Knights of Pluto, the only group of male soldiers in Alexandria's military force. Steiner is unusual amongst Final Fantasy characters in that while the game allows the player to choose his name, the chosen name becomes his surname instead of his first name. For instance, if the player entered the name "Steve", he would be called "Captain Adelbert Steve". This also makes him one of the few Final Fantasy characters to be called by both the first and last name given in the game's manual during actual gameplay.

Steiner wears a full suit of heavy armour throughout the game, giving him a bulky appearance. His armour is often remarked on by others, such as when Zidane refers to him as "Rusty" early on in the game. Steiner only seems to mind this once, though his armour never actually appears damaged or ill-maintained.

Steiner meets Zidane and the Tantalus group during their performance of the play I Want to be Your Canary. He follows the Tantalus group after their "kidnapping" of Princess Garnet because of his oath to protect her from danger. He joins forces with Zidane, whom he hates due to being a thief, but is willing to put up with just about anything to ensure Garnet's safety. When the party learns of the Queen's role in the attacks on Burmecia, Steiner questions his loyalty, as he does not believe such horrible deeds could be committed by the person he dedicated his life to defending. He resolves this conflict by transferring his loyalty fully to Garnet.

Despite his grouchy demeanor and disdain for most members of the group, Steiner has a humble respect for Vivi, admiring his magical abilities and referring to him as "Master Vivi". When both Steiner and Vivi are in the party, Steiner has access to the Magic Sword ability, which allow Vivi to charge Steiner's sword with the power of his black magic abilities, although MP consumption is limited to Steiner alone.

Steiner's love interest is his ex-rival, General Beatrix, which occurs as a result of Eiko's failed love letter to Zidane, presented in a comedy of errors fashion. As the game progresses, Steiner's experiences and resolution of personal conflicts allow his personality to soften somewhat towards the end and he is able to form not only a respectful friendship with Zidane but also a relationship with Beatrix.

Garnet Til Alexandros XVII / Dagger

Garnet Til Alexandros XVII (ガーネット・ティル・アレクサンドロス17世, Gānetto tiru Arekusandorosu Jūnanasei), is the heroine of Final Fantasy IX. She is the Princess of Alexandria, one of four major nations located on Gaia's Mist Continent, and the only heir to the royal throne. She is well spoken and highly educated and possesses a strong will. However, due to her sheltered upbringing, she is also shy and quite naive. In battle, she can cast white magic and summon eidolons.

Princess Garnet was born in Madain Sari, the "Village of the Summoners" located on Outer Continent, and was originally known as Sarah. Garland and the Invincible attacked and destroyed Madain Sari before Garnet's sixth birthday; the Invincible appeared to her as an "eyeball" in the sky. She and her mother fled from the village on a small boat and traveled to Mist Continent. Her mother did not survive and died at an unknown point before the boat wrecked in Alexandria Harbor, where Doctor Tot found them. Coincidentally, the girl looked almost identical to Alexandria's former Princess Garnet, who had died shortly beforehand due to illness. However, the child had a horn. As an alternative to publicly announcing the death of Alexandria's beloved Princess, the King of Alexandria ordered the child's horn be removed and that she would assume Princess Garnet's identity. Garnet has repressed her memories of her former life in Madain Sari; the only remaining memories she has of her former life are a recurring nightmare involving her escape from the village's destruction and "Melodies of Life", a song that only she and Eiko know.

The King of Alexandria died some time before the beginning of the game, leaving Queen Brahne in control of Alexandria and Garnet as the sole heir to the throne. On her fifteenth birthday, a year before the beginning of the game, Kuja appeared in the Castle; ever since Kuja's initial arrival at Alexandria Castle, Queen Brahne's behavior had become more hostile. Upon hearing that the theater troupe Tantalus would be performing her favorite play, Lord Avon's I Want to be Your Canary, in Alexandria on her sixteenth birthday, Garnet resolved to stow away on board the Prima Vista, Tantalus' theater ship, as it returned to its home port in Lindblum. There, she could consult with her father's friend Regent Cid Fabool IX about her adoptive mother's radical behavior. However, she was unaware that Cid had requested Tantalus to kidnap her because he feared Queen Brahne's erratic behavior and wanted Garnet away from her. After their escape, Garnet assumes the alias of Dagger to keep a low profile amongst commoners, a name she continues to employ for the majority of the game. The robe that Garnet wears to conceal her identity during her escape is white trimmed with red triangles, which is the design of the typical White Mages' robe. Despite this visual cue, Garnet's role in battle is more suited towards Summoning with White Magic as a supplement, which directly contrasts to Eiko, who is best suited towards White Magic with Summoning as a supplement.

After twins Zorn and Thorn forcefully extract her eidolons later in the game, Garnet admits she had been afraid of her summoning powers. After hearing about what happened in Cleyra with Odin and the orders to execute her after the eidolons were extracted from her, Garnet resolves to utilize her powers to help cure her mother of greed. Soon after, the party encounters the thunder god Ramuh, who helps Garnet decide to release her true powers in order to summon her eidolons. After this point in the story, Garnet can learn to summon every eidolon extracted from her, and even some that she gains during the story, such as the water dragon god Leviathan.

Garnet is crowned Queen following Queen Brahne's death. During her coronation, Kuja attacks with Bahamut, forcing Garnet to draw out the legendary eidolon Alexander, who is summoned with help from Eiko. Alexander destroys Bahamut, but Garland takes control of the Invincible and uses it to eliminate Alexander, destroying much of Alexandria in the process. As a result of this trauma and stress, Garnet becomes mute in her depression until she comes to terms with her emotions late in the game. While in this psychological state, she often has difficulty concentrating during battle, resulting in occasionally failing to perform actions such as White Magic and Summoning.^[27] She is also unable to go into Trance and does not pose at the end of battles.

After the events in Kuja's palace, the party returns to Lindblum only to find that Queen Garnet has gone missing. Zidane knows where she is, and rushes off to Alexandria Kingdom. There, he finds Garnet at her mother's grave, contemplating her path in life. After an impassioned speech to Zidane, Garnet snatches his dagger, the same one that helped her in picking an alias, and slices off most of her hair, symbolizing the severing of ties to her former weak self.

Event designer Kazuhiko Aoki felt that the scene where Garnet cuts her hair was important to the story of Final Fantasy IX. He explains that it is a quiet moment among the action and was important to the game's pacing. Aoki was worried about how Garnet would be handled with this and told the writers that they would have to effectively write two Garnets, one with long hair and one with short hair. Event planner Nobuaki Komoto found this difficult, adding that players tended to have different images of Garnet in their heads. He felt that a person's thoughts on the character are reflected by which depiction they think of. While the development team referred to her as Dagger, the nickname she chooses to disguise her identity, most players still referred to her as Garnet.^[28] Garnet was first revealed in a Coca-Cola advertisement featuring other characters from Final Fantasy IX.^[29] Garnet also appears in Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia, where she is voiced by Mamiko Noto.^[30]

Amarant Coral

Amarant Coral is the last character to join the party. His name in the Japanese version of the game is Salamander Coral (サラマンダー・コーラル, Saramandā Kōraru), a possible reference to the Salamander's portrayal in mythology, as he is known as "The Flaming Amarant" ("The Flaming Salamander").^[31] In the game, Amarant is also known as "Red"^[32] and "Scarlet Hair" in his introductory battle. He fights using gloves or knuckles, like the monk character class in other Final Fantasy games, but also possesses the "Throw" command, which is normally associated with the ninja class. He holds a grudge against Zidane, the reasons of which are initially undisclosed. Amarant's combative nature and arrogant attitude often leads to conflict, but eventually his personality begins to change as a result of Zidane's influence.^[33]

Amarant lives by a harsh code where "only the strong survive", and finds meaning in life through combat. Very little is revealed regarding his extended past; even he can only recall that his first real memory is "of the face of a guy I had to fight".^[34] The warrior he wanted to challenge was Zidane, but he never got the chance to until meeting him in Madain Sari while tracking down Garnet alongside Lani. Lani seems to have a crush on him, but Amarant is seemingly unaware of this.

Amarant's reputation as a fighter made him feared in Treno, so King, the owner of one of Treno's waterfront mansions and auction house, hired him as a security guard. When Zidane raids the mansion, he frames Amarant, who becomes a wanted man with a considerable bounty on his head. This is shown in the inn in Treno, where a wanted poster of him can be seen. Amarant does not divulge this information until a conversation with Freya outside the auction house in Disc 3, and keeps the reasoning for his grudge towards Zidane, who does not remember him, secret for a significant portion of the game. Afterwards, Amarant works as a mercenary for hire. Queen Brahne later summons him to retrieve Princess Garnet's pendant and assassinate Vivi, and he takes the job after learning that Zidane is traveling with them. However, another bounty hunter, Lani, arrives first and holds Eiko hostage, demanding that Garnet relinquish the pendant. Compelled by a sense of fairness,^[35] Amarant ambushes the pair and saves Eiko. He challenges Lani, who gives up the pendant and retreats. He then duels with Zidane; after losing the fight, he returns the pendant and demands that Zidane deliver the finishing blow. Zidane refuses, and, confused by his mercy,^[36] Amarant decides to follow him to understand his power.^[37]

While with the party, Amarant remains aloof and dismissive, to the point of not performing a victory dance after battle. His "lone wolf" persona culminates during the raid on Ipsen's Castle, where he seeks to prove that working alone "beats working in a team any day",^[38] and sets off in search of a set of mirrors alone. However, after finding the mirrors, Amarant falls and nearly dies; he is saved by Zidane, who had re-entered the castle after making it out with the party, but noticed that Amarant had not. Amarant is again confused by Zidane's willingness to help him,^[39] and his personality gradually begins to change under Zidane's influence, as after this he begins to perform a victory dance after battles.^[33] On Terra, Amarant concludes that "blind pursuit of power is a meaningless vice".^[40]

Freya Crescent

Freya Crescent (フライヤ・クレセント, Furaiya Kuresento, /ˈfraɪə/) is Burmecian, a race of anthropomorphic rats who mainly live in the cities of Burmecia and Cleyra. Her name is homonymous with that of the Norse goddess Freyja, while her surname is homonymous with the English word crescent.

Her character design was meant to strike a balance between realism and a comic-like style, while taking inspiration from the style employed for the characters in The Dark Crystal.^[21] She was initially known as Freija.^[41] Her class is Dragon Knight.^[42]

Unlike the Dragon Knights of other Final Fantasy games, Freya possesses a set of special skills in addition to her job's traditional ability — a common theme in Final Fantasy IX. These skills are known as "Dragoon" skills and offer a range of attack, healing, and status-changing effects.

Freya is originally from Burmecia, but when met in the game, she has not been home for years. When the man she loved, Sir Fratley, left on a mission but never returned, she left home to find out what became of him, promising never to return until she found the truth. After a period in Lindblum, she left to wander the world. Freya returns to Lindblum to compete in the "Festival of the Hunt" around the same time that Zidane and Tantalus return from their mission to kidnap Garnet.

Freya reunites with Sir Fratley during Alexandria's attack on Cleyra, only for him to reveal that he has lost his memory and does not remember her. During her search, she prepared herself for the worst; knowing that he is alive was relief for her, even if he had no memory of her.

During the ending scenes of the game, Freya reunited with Fratley again, having returned to Burmecia to help with the reconstruction. He has not yet regained his lost memories and it is unclear if he will, but despite this, he finds himself falling in love again with her.

Quina Quen

Quina Quen (クイナ・クゥエン, Kuina Kūen) is an eighty-nine-year-old Qu of indeterminate gender. However, despite being given the pronoun of "s/he", they have masculine pronouns such as "him" and "his" attributed to them, giving the impression they are male). They live primarily in the Mist Continent's Qu's Marsh. Their master, Quale, wants Quina to travel the world so that they will learn that there is more to life than food. Like the rest of the Qu Tribe, Quina speaks in broken English. Quina's unique ability is called Blue Magic, or Blu Magic in the battle menu, which allows them to use enemy abilities acquired in battle by using the Eat command on certain enemies. Quina's philosophy is that there are only two things: "things you can eat and things you no can eat". Their favorite food is frogs. Quina is separated from the rest of the party at several points in the game.

During Disc 1 of the game, Quina is an optional character. They join the party in the first disc if the player travels to Qu's Marsh near the Lindblum Dragon's Gate. If the player does not recruit Quina here, they can be recruited in the same place during Disc 2, at which point having them in the party is mandatory requirement to find a way to get to the Outer Continent and progress through the game.

Quina's motive for joining the party is not out of a desire to save the world, but rather as an opportunity to taste different foods from all around Gaia. As a result, they do not hold a particularly high interest in the events that unfold during the course of the story, unless food is involved. Despite this, they fight alongside Zidane and the rest of the party to achieve their goal of saving it from Brahne and Kuja.

Later in the game, Zidane, Vivi, and Quina can visit Quan's dwelling, where Quina will see a whole room of nonexistent food. Upon moving outside, Quina, Vivi, and Quale meet with Quan's ghost, which Zidane cannot see. Quan commends both Vivi and Quina for their imaginations and reprimands Quale for seeing the world too literally. It is at this point that Quina fully understands what they have gotten out of traveling with Zidane and decides that they want to travel the world in search of "yummy-yummies". Quina's role in the rest of the game is limited to a secondary role except in the ending, where they are seen in the kitchen of Alexandria Castle, preparing a feast for Garnet's seventeenth birthday celebration.

Eiko Carol

Eiko Carol (エーコ・キャルオル, Ēko Kyaruoru) is one of the playable characters that joins the party in the second disc of the game. She is the only person who appears in the game with a Summoner's Horn. While Eiko and Garnet both share White Magic and Summoner abilities, Eiko primarily uses white magic and her summoner powers taking a secondary role, as indicated by the order of her skills on the battle menu. Her summon abilities are usually holy-based summons or summons that add supporting effects. Some examples are Phoenix, which revives unconscious party members, and Madeen, which deals Holy damage.

She is a six year old girl and one of the two last surviving Summoners of Madain Sari, the other being Garnet. Eiko's family was not in Madain Sari when it was destroyed, and returned to its ruins four years later when Eiko was young. Eiko's parents died when she was three years old, leaving her grandfather to raise her, but he died when she was five years old. Following his death, the moogles in the area took her in. She became very mature for her age and helped them, stealing food from the nearby village of Conde Petie for them when needed. Zidane and the rest of the party find her caught in a tree after she fled the scene of one of her thefts. After helping her get down, she shows them Madain Sari and decides to join the party, despite her grandfather having told her not to leave until she was sixteen. Eiko develops a crush on Zidane, and considers Garnet to be her rival for his affections, though gives up her pursuit of him after learning that Zidane's true affections lie mainly with Garnet.

Eiko has a guardian female moogle named of Mog. During an extraction of Eiko's eidolons, Mog goes into a trance to protect Eiko and transforms into Madeen. After the battle, she gives Eiko the ribbon she wore so she can summon her at will. After defeating Kuja, one of the final scenes in the game shows Eiko referring to Cid and Hilda as her parents. Although the Regent had never established an adoption, his wife, Hilda, acknowledges it.

In World of Final Fantasy, she is voiced by Hisako Kanemoto in Japanese and Michaela Jill Murphy in English.

Kuja

Kuja (クジャ) is the main antagonist of Final Fantasy IX. He is a gunrunner obsessed with power and is ambitious, cruel, narcissistic, and ruthless. He is well versed in the arts, having a great fondness for classical works such as Lord Avon's play I Want to be Your Canary.

Kuja was the first Genome with a soul, having been created to be Garland's "angel of death". He hides his tail in an attempt to be rid of his past and be independent. Garland also created Zidane, who was supposed to eventually grow more powerful than Kuja, and gave Kuja a limited lifespan so that he would die shortly afterwards, deeming him too dangerous to live longer than needed. Kuja reacted to this by dumping Zidane on Gaia. He then proceeded to wreak havoc on Gaia, plotting to gain the power to overthrow him. Garland intervened when Kuja tried to obtain the eidolon Alexander, stating that he lost sight of his mission. Kuja then became determined to obtain an eidolon more powerful than Alexander to kill Garland. In the present, he kidnaps Eiko at the Desert Palace and attempts to extract her Eidolons in the catacombs within Mount Gulug. Though this attempt fails because of Mog going into Trance, Kuja realizes the true potential of Trance, as it is set off by a hatred for one's environment. He then absorbs the souls of the Invincible to gain more power. He confronts Zidane and his party on Terra after they have fight Garland. After the battle, Kuja enters Trance and casts Ultima, overwhelming the party. He then kicks Garland off a cliff, but Garland's voice telepathically remains within Zidane and Kuja's minds. Kuja's ego shatters after Garland tells him that he is not immortal like he thought, and the resulting panic and rage leads him to destroy his homeworld of Terra. Deeming it "unfair" for the world to exist without him, Kuja plans to destroy the crystal that life originates from in order to destroy all life. Garland does not fade away until after the party is halfway through Memoria. Kuja enters Memoria, which seemingly appears due to Terra's destruction, and attempts to destroy the crystal only to be confronted by Zidane and his party. After the fight, Kuja casts Ultima again, declaring that it is not fair for everyone else to live if he must die. This time, Zidane and his party are sent to the Hill of Despair and the crystal is destroyed, prompting Necron's appearance. The party manages to defeat Necron, saving the world and preventing Gaia's assimilation into Terra. Kuja decides to save them by teleporting them out of the Iifa tree. Zidane decides to save Kuja, but when he reaches Kuja, he realizes that his whole life was misguided. The following scene shows the Iifa Tree's roots converging on them; while Zidane is shown alive in the ending, Kuja's fate is unknown, though it is presumed he is still alive and has reformed, given his subsequent appearances in later Final Fantasy games.

Kuja is the villain representing Final Fantasy IX in Dissidia: Final Fantasy and its sequels Dissidia 012 and Dissidia NT. In the latter two games, he appears to have reformed. In these games, he is voiced by Akira Ishida in Japanese and JD Cullum in English.

Queen Brahne

Brahne (ブラネ, Burane) is the queen of Alexandria and Garnet's adoptive mother. As Garnet testifies several times throughout the game, she was formerly a kind and well-liked ruler of the kingdom. However, around the time of Garnet's fifteenth birthday, the King died and Kuja began appearing around the royal palace. Over the next year, Garnet began to notice changes in her mother's behavior. In reality, Kuja had convinced Brahne to begin creating an army of Black Mages to wage war on the kingdoms of the Mist Continent; Lindblum, Burmecia, and Cleyra. Kuja also told her of the summoning powers that Garnet possessed, which acted to fuel her greed. Kuja claims that Brahne wanted to wage a war of conquest, and that he merely "gave her a little push", suggesting that he exploited her grief over the king's death to manipulate her into carrying out his goals.

Because of this revelation, Brahne orders Zorn and Thorn to extract the eidolons from Princess Garnet, then execute her for treason against Alexandria. The twins are able to successfully extract the eidolons, but flee after being found by Zidane and the others. After being intercepted by the Queen's knight Beatrix, the party explains the Queen's orders to execute the Princess. Beatrix realizes it was Brahne's greed that utilized the Dark Matter to summon Odin upon Cleyra, killing hundreds of Cleyrans. Beatrix then vows to help bring the Queen to her senses, joining Zidane in his struggles against the Alexandrian military.

Later on, at the Iifa Tree, Brahne summons Bahamut in an attempt to kill Kuja, but Garland's airship the Invincible appears and redirects the eidolon's attack on Brahne's armada, killing countless soldiers and forcing Brahne to retreat. On a nearby beach, Brahne realizes how foolish she had been under Kuja's control and asks Garnet for forgiveness. She then dies in her arms, which enrages the party against Kuja for manipulating the kingdoms.

Throughout the game, Kuja refers to Queen Brahne as the "Elephant Lady", a sign that he does not value her more than a pawn. Brahne is shown being able to summon three different Eidolons throughout the game: Odin was summoned from the Dark Matter to destroy the kingdom of Cleyra; Atomos was summoned to destroy Lindblum, and Bahamut was summoned from Garnet at the Iifa Tree to kill Kuja. These eidolons originally belonged to Princess Garnet, but were extracted by Zorn and Thorn under the Queen's orders.

Zorn and Thorn

Zorn and Thorn are first seen in the castle at Alexandria when Garnet first escapes and they report it to Beatrix and Brahne. They have a habit of speaking in antimetabole, with Zorn speaking words in the proper order and Thorn reversing them. This pattern, however, is not present in the original Japanese release. The two act as field commanders, having been present during the attack on Burmecia issuing orders to the Black Mage Army. They also have the ability to extract Eidolons from summoners, and under Brahne's orders extract Garnet's Eidolons for her to use in her conquests. They later align themselves with Kuja after losing face with Brahne. They kidnap Eiko so Kuja can have access to her Eidolons, but are knocked down by Eiko and her newly discovered Eidolon Madeen. Kuja reveals that Zorn and Thorn are two halves of the double headed monster Meltigemini, which he uses to cover his escape as Zidane and company defeat them. Their origins are unknown, as is how long their tenure with Queen Brahne was. Since they were once part of a single entity, it is implied Kuja created them to facilitate Brahne's manipulation.

Garland

Garland (ガーランド, Gārando) was made leader of Terra when its original inhabitants went into their 'Deep Sleep'. He is responsible for overseeing the Genomes and creating the three "Angels of Death": Kuja, Zidane, and Mikoto. He was also responsible for the destruction of Madain Sari.

Garland is defeated at Pandemonium by Zidane and his party, only to be confronted by Kuja. Garland is too weak to fight back against him and is thrown to his death. However, his spirit lives on and assists the party during their journey through Memoria.

Garland is seemingly named after the main antagonist in Final Fantasy.

Necron

Necron (永遠の闇, Eien no Yami, lit. Eternal Darkness) is the game's final boss,. It is a multi-dimensional being that appears after Trance Kuja destroys the crystal, the source of life. With the crystal's destruction, Necron decides to proceed with its original task to return all existence to a "zero world", a world where nothing exists and there is no pain or sorrow. It is ultimately defeated by Zidane and the party, yet vows that it will exist as long as life does.

Tantalus

Baku, Blank, Cinna, Marcus, Ruby, and the Nero Brothers are Zidane's friends and fellow members of Tantalus. They pose as actors to steal various items. Despite Ruby being a member, she prefers to overlook the group's dealings as long she gets a chance to pursue her dream of being an actress. Blank, Cinna and Marcus join the party intermittently throughout Disc 1, making them technically player characters.

After Blank is petrified while escaping the Evil Forest early on in the game, Marcus sets out to look for a potion called SuperSoft to undo the petrification. They later return to Alexandria Castle to assist Zidane in escaping from Zorn and Thorn's clutches.

After the abduction of Garnet from Alexandria, Ruby is accidentally left inside the town, where she can be found for the remainder of the game. Ruby decides to open up a miniature theater in one of the back alleys of Alexandria. Sometimes when speaking with Moogles, Zidane will hear that Ruby has sent him a letter. One notable letter requests actors for her theater, which Zidane helps by introducing the idea to the star Lowell in Lindblum, who rushes off to Alexandria at once. However, once when he gets there, he says the theater is too small for a man of his talents. Ruby speaks in a Southern accent in the American version of the game, and is referred to by Garnet as the "lady with the strange accent". As well, Ruby and Blank seemingly have feelings for one another, but tend to show it in a rather aggressive way.

The Nero triplets are unique in appearance with dog-like heads and twin claws on each arm for hands. They appear as comic relief and often end their sentences with an exclamation mark. Unlike Zenero and Benero, Genero is not a member of Tantalus, instead reuniting with his brothers in Alexandria in Disk 3 after returning from his 'training'.

Baku is the leader of the Tantalus troup and acts as a cruel king in the play I Want to be Your Canary. He adopted Zidane when he was young after he found himself on a jetty at the Lindblum Grand Harbor without much knowledge of his origins. Baku is a strict leader who beats members who disobey him. When Cinna stays at South Gate to feast on bundt cake instead of returning to Lindblum to update the rest of the band on the search for a cure for Blank as Baku ordered, Baku beat him for disobeying. Zidane also relates how Baku beat him for leaving the band to search for his birthplace.

During an aerial battle at Memoria near the end of the game, Baku and several other Tantalus members can be seen onboard one of the defensive airships; this is their last appearance aside from the epilogue.

Beatrix

Beatrix is a general and head of the army of Alexandria. Her character design was meant to strike a balance between realism and a comic-like style, while taking inspiration from the style employed for the characters The Dark Crystal.^[21] Beatrix is known for her sword, Save the Queen, and for her powerful ability, Seiken. Her Seiken abilities are references to other Final Fantasy games, particularly VII's Climhazzard, which is one of Cloud Strife's Limit Breaks. Stock Break and Shock are similar to the Magic Knight abilities in Final Fantasy Tactics, while her other ability, Thunder Slash may also be a reference to it, as it is similar to Lightning Stab. Shock is also General Leo's special command in Final Fantasy VI.

Little is known about Beatrix's past, except that she grew up in a middle-class family in the city of Treno. Visits to Alexandria led her to like the city. After her sixteenth birthday, she decided to move there and join its all-female army. This led to years of battle and intense training that allowed her to become a captain and, eventually, a general heading the Alexandrian army. During this time, she became acquainted with the head of the Knights of Pluto, Captain Adelbert Steiner.

Beatrix loyally served Queen Brahne as she waged war against the neighboring kingdoms. She initially serves as an antagonist to Zidane and his companions, facing them in battle on three occasions. It is unclear whether she had questioned the Queen until after the attack on Cleyra. Beatrix is finally convinced to defy the Queen during Zidane and company's rescue of Garnet in Alexandria. Along with Freya and Steiner, Beatrix remains behind to allow the rest of the party to escape, and their fate remains a mystery until late in the game.

After the Queen's death, Beatrix is again seen in Alexandria, this time serving under the newly crowned Garnet. Around this time, there is a complex miscommunication about a love letter written by Eiko to Zidane, presented in the style of a comedy of errors, ultimately resulting in a romance between Steiner and Beatrix.

During Kuja's attack on Alexandria, she and Steiner defend the city. However, she goes missing due to the chaos caused by the Eidolons, Bahamut and Alexander. It is later revealed that she survived and remained in Alexandria to help rebuild it.

General Beatrix later appears captaining the Red Rose alongside the airships of Lindblum to protect the Invincible as it enters Memoria. Following Necron's defeat, Beatrix appears to renounce her position as a knight and head of the Alexandrian army, until she is later confronted by Steiner, who pleads with her to stay so that they can "protect the queen together", at which point they officially begin their relationship. She is shown in the final sequence of the game holding Save the Queen with Steiner.

Regent Cid Fabool IX

Regent Cid Fabool IX (シド・ファブール9世, Shido Fabūru Kyūsei) is the present ruler of Lindblum, who was turned into an oglop by his wife, Hilda, because of his womanizing. He is an expert of technology who is fond of creating new airships. He was best friends with Garnet's father and ordered Tantalus to kidnap her out of concern for her safety, based on Brahne's erratic behavior.

After Lindblum is destroyed, Zidane and his party attempt to turn him back into a human, but fail, instead turning him into a frog. His restoration to human form is possible only after liberating Hilda from Mount Gulug, as it is revealed only the caster of the spell can reverse it.

At the end of the game, Cid and Hilda have seemingly adopted Eiko, as she calls them "father" and "mother", much to Cid's surprise.

Black Mages

Black Mages are mages created by Kuja who live in a forest on the Outer Continent as a hidden colony. They do not identify each other by name, but rather by the number of their manufacture. Their leader is No. 288. Unlike the other, golem-like mages seen throughout the game, they are capable of sentient thought, and are like Vivi in their uncertainty about the world. They are initially afraid of humans, believing that all humans want to use them for war. However, despite their origins, the Mages maintain a childlike wonder and optimism about the world. They seek to discover the wonders of life through several projects, such as the raising of their town Chocobo egg, which later hatches into a Chocobo they name Bobby Corwen. Later in the game, the colony realize their lifespans are limited to approximately one year and decide to help Kuja in exchange for an extension on their lives. However, Kuja was lying, and Zidane, Vivi, and the party help the village realize that what is important is how a person lives his or her life, not how long it is. Throughout the game, Vivi takes on a big brother role to the Black Mages, as he has seen more of the world than they have, and he has the power to help Zidane stand up to Kuja.

Black Waltzes

Kuja's production of the Black Mage dolls was supplemented with three versions of a more powerful model subsequently named the Black Waltzes, each iteration more powerful than the previous. They are named after the waltz, a type of ballroom dance that has three beats to the measure, signifying that there are exactly three of them. The Black Waltzes' appearance is similar to the Black Mages, but differs in that the Black Mages have a neutral appearance while the Black Waltzes have a stylized appearance. Black Waltzes also haveg black feathered wings. The individual appearance of the Black Waltzes varies slightly, and each model is more elegant and slender than the previous. For instance, Black Waltz no. 1 wears shabby clothing reminiscent of peasantry, Black Waltz no. 2 wears a long robe, and Black Waltz no. 3 wears a fur-lined coat. Black Waltz no. 2 is unique in that it sports a large set of antlers and constantly floats, having no visible legs.

Black Waltzes also differ from Black Mages in that they have been given free will from their creators. They do not consider themselves to be part of the Black Mage army, but rather that they are separate and superior to the "soulless dolls". Despite being able to think and reason, they do not truly exhibit emotions: instead they simulate them, a trait they share with ordinary Black Mages. The Waltzes were assigned to follow orders and answer directly to Queen Brahne, and were dispatched to capture Garnet and bring her back alive. In battle, they will not attack her, and when she is the last remaining character they will cast Sleep on her to capture her. Since their retrieval of Garnet is their only mission revealed in the game and each one is destroyed during this mission, it is unknown what capacity they serve the Queen beyond this function.

Each Black Waltz casts magic of a level and Black Magic element corresponding to their numbers, Black Waltz no. 1 casts "Blizzard", Black Waltz no. 2 casts "Fira", and Black Waltz no. 3 casts "Thundaga". Black Waltz no. 1, uncharacteristic to typical Black Mages, has the ability to summon a monster, Sealion, to aid him in battle. Black Waltz no. 2 proves to be powerful enough to survive its first encounter with the party, but after being heavily damaged, its mental capacity is severely affected and it is unable to process any thoughts beyond its mission. Black Waltz no. 3 also demonstrates skill in piloting small airships.

Artemicion

Artemicion is a purple and black Moogle who runs the Mognet mail delivery syndicate. He relies on Zidane and his friends to deliver mail after he uses up all of Mognet Central's supply of Superslick to oil his fur, depleting it and causing the machinery to break down. Artemicion also appears as a member of a group of bandits in Crystal Chronicles and as a shopkeeper in Kingdom Hearts II in the world Space Paranoids.

Stiltzkin

Stiltzkin (スティルツキン, Sutirutsukin) is a world-travelling Moogle who wears tiger-striped clothing. He appears throughout the game at various locations and sells Zidane and company various useful items to finance his journey. He also sends letters to other moogles to fill them in on recent events in the world.

Stiltzkin also appears in the Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles series. A different moogle with the same name appears in Kingdom Hearts II.

Puck

Puck is a runaway prince of Burmecia who prefers to keep a low profile and disguises himself as a meddling street urchin. Vivi befriends him when they meet in Alexandria while trying to sneak into the play I Want to be Your Canary. Later in the game, he discovers the amnesiac Sir Fratley and brings him to Cleyra, where they help defend their people. However, he escapes with Fratley before Cleyra is destroyed and his father can talk to him.

It is assumed that once Burmecia is rebuilt, Puck will assume the throne due to his father's death.

Sir Fratley

Sir Fratley is Freya's long-lost love. As a dragon knight, he went out on a journey to improve his combat skills, but never returned. He appears later in Cleyra with no memory of his past or Freya. In the end, he professes his love to her as Burmecia is being rebuilt.

Doctor Tot

Doctor Tot is a scholar from Alexandria who was Garnet's tutor when she was a little girl. He later moved to Treno once Queen Brahne began acting strangely. He first appears when he helps Zidane and his party in Disc 2; they often consult him on important matters because of his extensive knowledge. He later helps Eiko write a love letter to Zidane that eventually gets misplaced.

Lady Hilda

Lady Hilda is Cid's wife, who turned him into an oglop for his womanizing. After transforming him, she escaped Lindblum on his latest airship, which he named the "Hilda Garde". Kuja later captures her and uses the Hilda Garde for his own purposes, ending up revealing his destructive plans for Gaia to her.

Lani

Lani is a bounty hunter that Queen Brahne hires to retrieve Garnet's Pendant and kill the black mage travelling with her. She initially works with Amarant, whom she calls "Red", but later finds herself at odds with him when Amarant disapproves of her "unfair" methods of reaching her objective. Eventually, she sees the error in her ways and can be found living in Madain Sari with Eiko's moogles by the end of the game. She wields a large bladed axe-like weapon and uses Black Magic. She also appeared in Lindblum, where she stayed at the Inn and participated in the Festival of the Hunt, as noted in the scorekeeping window at the top of the screen during the event.

Soulcage

The source of the mist which plagues Gaia, Soulcage is an undead being who has existed for nearly a thousand years and resembles a tree. He oversees the physical manifestation of the Iifa Tree and its functions, utilizing the by-product of mist to incense the will to fight in civilization. Strangely, he "cannot lie", leading to some revelations in the plot.

Mikoto

Mikoto is a female genome whom the heroes rescue from Terra and bring back to Gaia. By the end of the game, she becomes the interest of the Black Mage Village. Aside from Kuja and Zidane, she is the only other Genome Garland imbued with a soul and is like their sister. In the game, it is stated that she was to be a third 'Angel of Death' if Kuja and Zidane were to die before completing their tasks. At the end of the game, she tells Kuja that his actions were wrong, but he would be remembered by the Genomes for giving them hope.

Bobby Corwen

Bobby Corwen is a chocobo found in the Black Mage Village. Bobby is originally shown as an egg being cared for by two Black Mages, as one of the signs that the Black Mages in the village are capable of emotion and independent thought. He is kept in a small hut in the northeast corner of the village. The name Bobby Corwen is a play on words and reference to Final Fantasy V, the first two letters of each word making Boco, the name of Bartz's Chocobo in the fifth installment. Bobby Corwen later grows an attachment to one of the Genomes when they come to live in the Black Mage Village.

The Genomes

The Genomes are a race of soulless beings on Terra who Garland created to be the vessels for the sleeping souls of Terra after Gaia was assimilated. Kuja, Zidane, and Mikoto are technically Genomes, but Garland gave them souls, thus making them mortal. This difference generates a wide gap between them and their emotionless brethren, one that Mikoto comes to find troubling as she involves herself with Zidane. When Kuja enters Trance and begins destroying Terra, Zidane and the others selflessly risk their lives to transport the Genomes to Gaia, where they begin new lives with the hidden Black Mages. Mikoto stays with the Genomes to oversee their new lives, although she is still unsure about how right Zidane was to take them from Terra to Gaia.