"When I was a boy, many long years ago, I yearned to stand tall as the heroes of eld. But like a fool seeking to pluck the star from the heavens, my every attempt to reprise their deeds fell short... And then, one day, an all but forgotten dream from my youth stood before me, in the flesh. So it was that a new adventure began..."

"Never─in the past, present, or future─have I found only happiness. To live is to be ever beset by hardships great and small. Yet it is in adversity we find the strength to strive for the next moment of peace, and the next, no matter what trials we face."

"We fought and we fought and we fought...until there was no one left to fight. We won...and now our world is being erased from existence."

"We did everything right, everything that was asked of us and still─still it came to this!"

"I don't remember when it was that I learned regret wasn't worth the bother. You get numb to it all over the years. The lost comrades, the broken promises, the abandoned principles─just more nagging burdens to ignore."

"Why did you spare me? Why? What have I done to deserve this mercy!?"

"I am not normally one for hollow posturing, but in this game of nations, such gestures carry weight."

"He has given his all for liege and land, and we will ask no more."

"Man should fight for the joy of it. To live, to eat, to breed─lesser beasts snap and howl at one another for this. Only man has the wisdom and the clarity to embrace violence for its own sake. For we who are born into this merciless, meaningless world, have but one candle of life to burn."

"Would you be “happier” had I a “good reason”? (Jullus: What?) If my motives met with your approval, would you no longer resent the outcome?"

"You came from beyond, didn't you!? From beyond the rift! How wonderfully exciting! What a brave and reckless and marvelous thing you did! You've the heart of a pixie, you do!"

"You're late! Late, late, late! I've been waiting for you to summon me ever since you came here! Waiting and waiting and waiting! But my sapling didn't so much as utter my name! Such a heartless thing he/she is! Cold and cruel and heartless!"

"[Rejoice and revel, for the Kingdom of Rainbows is forever young.]"

"Your kind is always so preoccupied with what lies ahead, and so we muddle your vision with fog and glamour. But such trickery is easy to see through. Stand very, very still. Think not of where you need to go, but where you are right now at this moment. At this time, in this place..."

"The hour is at hand! Behold but a sliver of my god's power! And from the deepest pit of the seven hells to the very pinnacle of the heavens, the world shall tremble! Unleash Ultima!"

"No lands must remain beyond our grasp. Go forth. Conquer. Rule."

"I am Solus zos Galvus, founding father of the Garlean Empire. And, under various guises, the architect of myriad other imperially inclined nations. As for my true identity... I am Emet-Selch. Ascian."

"Just once...might we not seek to find common ground? For good or ill, I am immortal. Provided I have the inclination, I can always begin anew. Scheme and conspire to my heart's content."

"(After Emet-Selch retrieves Y'shtola from the Lifestream) What a touching reunion that was. It fair brought a tear to the eye. But as we both know, such tender moments are nothing if not momentary. Before long, they will remember their many differences, and return to squabbling."

"Really. I have no need of deception─and even if I did, I assure you: you would find it quite indistinguishable from the truth."

"What? You thought ancient beings like us incapable of crying? Well, rest assured that if your heart can be broken, then so can mine!"

"Alas, it is not your grand scheme that will succeed, but ours."

"You cannot be entrusted with our legacy. I will bring back our brethren. Our friends. Our loved ones. The world belongs to us and us alone."

"Behold, the coming oblivion. 'Twas the end of our era, and the beginning of our great work."

"Fool. Who are you? No one. Nothing. Once I have reclaimed my heritage, my first act will be to expunge your stain from history's weave. My world will have no need for heroes."

"And you! Why waste your final moments in futile defiance? Weary wanderer─you've no fight left to fight! No life left to live!"

"In darkness seek joy. Surrender not to sadness, and see beyond despair. Walk free, and bear the light for others to follow."

"Please, Mother Hydaelyn! Hearken to our plea! Lend us Your divine Light! Why can You not hear us? Do our words no longer reach you?!"

"In uncertain times, naught but the simplest words of wisdom will suffice. That which lives is destined to die. Love leads to loss. Every beginning has an end. Treasure every moment, every step of your descent. And there in the depth where souls and stars rest─find your truth."

"Remember... remember us... Remember... that we once lived..."

"Take the flower. Walk free. For you are free─to go where you wish. To believe what you will."

"The thought of having to bear such a burden for a thousand thousand lives horrifies me. But I would never forsake my duty! I would never forsake my brethren! You do not know me! I've had my fill of your fiction. I will return to my duty...and you will not bother me again."

"Hear... Feel... Think."

"Crystal bearer... I am Hydaelyn. All made one."

"Yet rather than attain a sense of mastery, the more I understood, the more I came to hold the world and its miracles in awe. We too are miracles, each and every one of us. Born of the warm breath of life that traverses the heavens, swirling through eternity."

"You, who are our future... Tell me this and tell me true. Has your journey been good? Has it been worthwhile?"

"All is excruciating pain. I breathe fire and torment. I birth a world of suffering, to mire and plague. In one fleeting moment, lives come and go, ever moving towards the unknown. And in that fleeting moment, they cry for the answer to the question: Why, given life, are they meant to suffer. To die... As fragmented, imperfect beings, yours is a never-ending quest. A quest to find your purpose, knowing your end is assured. To find the strength to continue, when all strength has left you. To find joy, even as darkness descends... And amidst deepest despair, light everlasting."

"Alas, the question I posed to thee in Elpis hath remained unanswered these long years. I would hear thy response, Warrior of Light, shouldst thou emerge victorious."

"Yes, no cat must go uncuddled!"

"It's fiiine. Just work your magic! Magicks. Whichever."

"You name it, I've been punched by it."

"It requires equal levels of passion and patience."

"We define our worth, not the circumstances of our creation!"

"If this journey has taught me anything, it is the importance─and difficulty─of holding to one's convictions in the face of failure...of striving always to replace one's ignorance with knowledge."

"Ours is not a kind world, but it is beautiful. Always."

"And yet...no matter how many worlds have met their ends, with you and Alisaie beside me, there is nothing I fear. No ocean so vast I cannot cross."

"Our worlds may not live up to your lofty standards... But they are our worlds! Our homes! Full of life and love and hope! And we won't stand by and let you destroy them!"

"How can you even entertain such thoughts!? You owe your life to the Warrior of Light, and you don't get to die unless he/she says so."

"I could do with a little rampage myself."

"But more than that, the future you seek is not the past we loved. That is why we fought. And why I lost. But though you defeated me, my ideals are inviolate. Invincible."