FFXVI really takes your hand and says 'come with me', then shows you a world that is broken and full of pain and heartache and selfishness and cruelty. It shows you the terrible things people are willing to do to each other for no good reason, it shows you how how leaders can be short sighed and foolish in their earnest desire to do the right thing for their people, and that causes no less pain then when they are corrupted and arrogant and vain monsters. It shows you how people's cruelty all to often is born of a world that beats them down that gives them no other choice but to be cruel if they want to survive.
And then it asks: is this worth saving? Is this worth protecting? Wouldn’t it be better if you just let it all go? Let it all be destroyed, and broken apart, and lost? Wouldn’t it be enough to just end the pain? Wouldn’t that be salvation?
And in the same breath it answers, no because salvation isn’t the point. Humanity is cruel, greedy, fractious and hateful and it always will be. Just as humanity is kind, generous, united and loving and always will be. Even as the world falls apart The Dame fights to keep Northreach together, even as monsters beat down her gates Martha takes in refugees and escaped slaves and refuses to stop, even as nations crumble and bandits flourish the Dragoons still battle for the sake of their people and country, while the Crusebreakers keep struggling to free the innocent and protect the weak. Even as Joshua is hacking up blood, even as his body is shutting down he keeps walking forward at Clive’s side inevitably, inexorably to the end, because he loves his brother and refuses to give him up to Ultima’s scheme.
FFXVI tells you that there are no promises, not guarantees, that the only people who can promise salvation are the ones who want to sell it. FFXVI says that no one is assured victory, or safety, or paradise. The point is not to save the world from it’s evils. The point is that we fight to try and reach the next dawn with the people we love. Humanity can never create a perfect world because we are imperfect creatures, but the battle to make a better world, a kinder world, a more free world, a more gentle more fair, more loving world is what defines us.
As I slowly become more and more obsessed with this game I have started to notice symbolism and patterns within the storytelling. Apples, as it turns out, was the one that I noticed first. They're narratively tied to the Bearers and their freedom, as it is an apple that first introduces us to the concept.
When the unnamed Bearer drops the apple, Clive picks it up and cleans it before returning it to him. As a first-time player, ideally, you would have no idea of what Clive's fate will become for the next thirteen years but it seems significant that this exchange takes place. Given what Clive ultimately sacrifices for Valesthia and all of its magic users, it's a lovely bit of woven foreshadowing. His offering of the apple to the Bearer is a reflection of his later gift to all of humanity, the freedom to choose how they live.
It's a long journey to getting there, however. When we meet Clive thirteen years later, he is not free. Even when Cid whisks him and Jill away from Sanbreque and the Iron Blood, he is not free. Clive is a slave to his desire for revenge, to his depression and self-hatred.
His turning away from Cid's offer of an apple is symbolically tied to his inability to break free of his own guilt and desire for vengeance. And it's slowly, but surely, strangling him.
Not that those apples are sweet. Freedom is a bitter thing at times, especially when you have nothing. The apples grown in the hideaway are bitter things, sour and unappetizing. Cid is the only one who eats them because Cid understands this. Freedom won't feed you, clothe you or put a roof over your head. Freedom is hard work and in the early days it's not sweet. That's what they're building towards, because freedom, when the work is put in, is better than anything the ones who hold your chains can offer.
Just like how those apples that were grown in the deadlands, with time, dedication and ingenuity, do become sweet. Martelle died protecting the trees that would bear these apples just as the cursebreakers currently fight and die for their freedom and the freedom of all bearers. In Final Fantasy XVI they are inextricably linked. It's significant that they are just one of the many souvenirs displayed in Clive's Solar.
It feels a bit embarassing I feel to rewatch the same like 5 cutscenes and still realize you've missed something, but uh
Since making this post I have since come to a bit better understanding of things.
Previously, when I first watched the cutscenes, I kind of just glossed over the times Terence says "Your highness" and "My lord" instead.
Not in such a way where I thought he would never say them. Rather, I was a bit wrapped up in my frustration with FF16's writing and certain inconsistencies. So I sort of just kind of decided in my mind that Terence would predominantly use "my prince" with the occasional "your highness" thrown in, with "my prince" being a bit of a sneaky way to get to put certain implications into a form of address in public (and used how you'd expect in private).
However, combing through the instances Terence addresses Dion...
(Rest of my thoughts under the cut)
Okay, so to begin with, Terence only uses 4 different forms of address over the course of the in game cutscenes (ordered by frequency of usage):
"My prince"
"Your highness"
"My lord"
"Dion"
Save the members of the imperial household, the following are the forms of address used by other side characters from Sanbreque:
"The prince" (used by a soldier on the battlefield when Bahamut arrived at the battle of Belenus Tor. Not addressing Dion directly, just talking about him)
"Prince Dion" (used by the council of elders. Not addressing Dion directly, just talking about him)
"His highness" (used by the council of elders and Harpocrates. Not addressing Dion directly, just talking about him)
"Your highness" (used by imperial soldiers/guards/dragoons and Harpocrates when addressing him directly)
"Your radiance" (Spoken by one of Dion's dragoons/guards. Notably, it's used to refer to Dion only once, after the rest of the imperial household is dead)
We see a simple "Dion" often used by members of the imperial household, or occasionally by those he has granted permission for such informal address (such as Joshua and Clive before they depart for Origin). Outside of these instances, Terence is the only person from Sanbreque who ever directly refers to Dion by "Dion". In fact, half of his direct terms of address to Dion are unique to him during the in game cutscenes.
So, that's the first bit of note. I couldn't find an instance of anyone else using "my lord" or "my prince" when addressing Dion directly aside from Terence. While there is a probability I feel that others (perhaps servants) use "my lord" for Dion, I feel that there's a non zero chance that "my prince" is a term that only Terence uses. I'll get into that more in a bit though.
Let us pivot, for a moment, to every time Terence addresses Dion directly, and the circumstances surrounding these.
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At the battle of Belenus Tor, Dion and Terence stand at the cliffside overlooking the battle below, and Odin ahead. Terence addresses Dion as "Your Higness".
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After Dion withdraws from the battle, Terence enters his tent. He addresses Dion by "Your Highness".
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While they sit (more or less) in the corner of the captain's tent, Terence attends to Dion's wounds and wraps his bandages. He addresses Dion as "my prince".
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After a soldier/knight informs Dion of Olivier's ascension to the position of Emperor and relays to him his father's orders, Terence dismisses the messenger. It's after the messenger leaves the tent that Dion says his name, and Terence addresses him as "my prince".
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After Joshua, Jote, and any other attendants/servants leave the room where Joshua and Dion held their meeting, Dion calls Terence's name. Terence addresses him as "my prince".
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After Dion asks him if he believes what he's about to do (make a move to get rid of Olivier and Anabella) is wrong, Terence gives his answer. He addresses Dion here as "Your Highness".
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After delivering his men their orders, Dion makes his way to where Terence is in the hall. Once Terence is finished instructing one of the men to build a pyre in the courtyard, Dion approaches him, calling his name. Terence responds in turn, addressing him by "My Lord".
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After Dion instructs him to find Kihel, the medicine girl, and ensure her safety (so as to help Dion repay his debt to her), Terence grabs his shoulders. He addresses Dion as "Dion".
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Just before the two part ways, after Terence agrees to do as Dion instructs him, Dion says farewell to Terence. When responding in turn, Terence addresses him as "my prince".
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Here is the pattern I've recently noticed:
Terence almost always addresses Dion as "Your Highness" when they are around others, and/or when the moment is formal.
Terence pretty much always addresses Dion as "my prince" when they are alone, and/or when the moment is more informal.
I found myself a bit embarassed that I hadn't realized this before now. Terence always uses "my prince" when they're having a moment alone.
The scene at the battle of Belenus Tor was a formal moment which occured just before Dion joined the battle. Even if we presume no one was close enough to hear Dion and Terence, it is just simply not the time for informalities. Terence chose not to make his affection known by referring to him as "my prince" (in a way that would be formal on the surface, but hold deeper meaning belief), but to wish Dion luck ("Greagor's breath fill your wings") as he moved to jump off the cliff and prime. The way he whispered this (compared to the volume of his earlier lines) is what tells us that these are the words of Terence, Dion's friend and lover, as opposed to Sir Terence, second in command of the Holy Knights Dragoon.
When Terence enters the captain's tent after Dion withdraws from the battle, we can see the tent is open to the rest of camp, and guards are posted inside the tent at its entrance. Dion is also in plain view of the opening. This is a more formal scene, as we see Terence cross his arms in saltute (as is customary of the imperial soldiers when greeting their superiors) both before and after his audience with Dion.
The scene which contains their oncscreen kiss is the first time Terence refers to Dion as "my prince". And not only are they more or less towards the far corner of the tent, the tent's entrance is closed (which can be seen more clearly when Joshua and Jote enter). This is not necessarily the first scene we find Dion and Terence alone, but it is in an enclosed space where it wouldn't be particularly easy to hear everything they're saying (the tent is spacious, and they tend to speak at lower volume when they speak most informally compared to talking business). It's also notable that the very first time Terence addresses Dion as "my prince" is during a vulnerable moment most wouldn't be privy to. Terence is not acting as Dion's second in command as he wraps his bandages and bids him to consider his health, but acting on his roles as Dion's personal attendant and lover/friend. Though they sort of straddle the line between acting on the informal side and engaging in imperial dragoon business during this scene, it is as a whole (before Joshua enters the tent) that they act more familiar than they do under most circumstances. Terence speaks of his wishes for Dion's safety/good health openly (contrasting the delivery of his final line before Dion enters the battle at Belenus Tor). Dion expresses a bit of unprecendented vulnerability when confessing to Terence his woes relating to battles ahead and his father's choices, and talks about how he (as Bahamut) must appear as the light in the sky for his people (code: there's not much chance to worry about his own health when the people require him as a symbol of the empire, and he may yet need to prime in the comming battles). The informality of this moment (and the fact that the two are alone) is punctuated by the kiss, when Dion sees Terence's face and momentarily loses his careful self control in the middle of their discussion.
Then, the second time Terence refers to Dion as "my prince" occurs during the same sets of scenes. Though Dion removes Terence's hand, removes himself from being so physically close to Terence, and the two each attempt to resume "business as usual", we can still get a sense of the overall informality of the scene with the two of them alone. For one, as Dion is plotting out the next moves of the empire, the republic, and their respective forces, Terence sort of quips/adds "At least you don't have to fight Titan?" This causes Dion to let out a "Would that I didn't have to do battle at all". Neither of these lines would be spoken to other soldiers or anyone with a notable position. Then, there's the way the two act after the messenger leaves the tent. Terence goes back from "commander" mode to sort of...lingering. He stands aside the table he'd had both hands on only prior, kind of casually (though cautiously) touches the edges with his fingers. Then, when Dion calls his name in that lower tone, he takes a step closer to the side of the table Dion is on, angles himself to face him more, settles his fingers a bit farther in on the table's surface, and responds with "my prince". (For reasons I'll get to in a moment) I surmise that he responds with "my prince" as opposed to "your highness" or "my lord" because they are alone, and because of Dion's usage of his first name. Perhaps it is that Terence initially assumed Dion might request comfort from him, given how Dion's currently trying to handle all this bad news? Regardless, with how quickly he shifts in Dion's direction and responds with "my prince" (sort of like he was hanging on Dion's every word), I feel it's clear that he both expected Dion to ask something of him, and was ready to do whatever he could to help. I also don't believe it's impossible that Terence used "my prince" in this moment while we were alone to convey his affection, and to get across to Dion his intentions here (that he's in his corner and cares about him), but that's also just speculation on my part. Anywho
The scene between them post Joshua and Dion's meeting is interesting to me because Terence uses both "my prince" and "your highness" to address Dion while they're alone here. This scene in particular is the reason for why I've been specifying between "formal" and "informal" moments thus far, and (along with the previous scene) sparked a bit of a theory I have regarding Dion's manner of addressing Terence. While asking myself what the difference is between this scene and the tent scene (why Terence uses "my prince" throughout the tent scene, but switches his address in the post meeting scene), I came to a particular conclusion.
This being that Dion predominantly (as far as the cutscenes are concerned, at least) refers to Terence by name in informal moments.
Which, I feel this does make sense. Prince Dion himself is often pretty formal in public. He refers to all of the dominants (even upon recognizing Joshua's identity) by their Eikon, he refers to Harpocrates as "Master Harpocrates" during their reunion, and he addresses his own father by "your radiance" and "sire" (even in the same scenes where Sylvestre refers to him by simply "Dion"). We also never see him refer to any of his dragoons/subordinants by name in the cutscenes either. Instead, he often gives them commands or simply says "you" when addressing them. Olivier and Anabella, as people he doesn't like or respect, are two people he often avoids addressing directly in the presence of others.
So, if simply "Terence" is Dion's chosen informal way of addressing Terence (given he never uses it before either of the scenes where the two are explicitly alone together and in a less formal setting), then I feel it's possible that Dion's usage of Terence's given name (when they're alone) informs Terence of how casual it's acceptable for him to be around Dion.
Terence acts at his most familiar just after they kiss in the tent. Dion apologizes to him, calls him by name, and Terence's emotions are clear upon his face as he tells his lover that he will always be his loyal servant. They're both equally vulnerable in this brief moment.
If this theory of mine is true, it also means that Terence responded with "my prince" in the tent instead of "your highness" (after the messenger delivered the news of Olivier's ascension) because he was responding in turn to Dion calling him by name. Had Dion simply commanded him or addressed him as "you" or even addressed him as "Sir Terence", perhaps it is that Terence would have addressed Dion as "your highness" in that moment instead? After all, via Terence's body language after dismissing the messenger, we can see that the moment is a bit fragile—that it's not so simple as to either go back as they were just before the messenger entered the tent, or to guage whether it's a moment for formalities and thought put towards status.
With that in mind, I'd like to return back to the post Joshua/Dion meeting scene to answer the question I posed earlier.
Why does Terence swap between "my prince" and "your highness" during this scene?
Well, as to why he chooses to initially refer to Dion as "my prince" there, I believe that he did so both because they were alone, and because Dion specifically called him "Terence" (thus he assumed this was a fine/safe moment to refer to Dion this way). However, I feel that he uses "your highness" when answering Dion's question for the same reason he corrects himself in that scene, choosing to say something along the lines of "You will always have the support of your dragoons" instead of "I will always support you". No matter what specific reason Terence had for choosing to say one line over the other, I feel it significant that he doesn't say "You will always have the support of your dragoons, my prince". Terence is actively choosing to speak in a formal manner in this moment, and I think this is further evidence towards the idea of "my prince" being a form of address restricted to private moments (not to mention how he's trying not to center himself and his feelings when Dion asks if he thinks his future actions are wrong).
Now, for the scene in the republic, which ends with the two parting ways. This scene contains the largest range of forms of address in regards to people talking to Dion. A dragoon calls him "your Radiance" (a form of address used exclusively for the emperor in Sanbreque), and Terence uses three different forms of address (two of which he's never used in the cutscenes before this scene). This is the first and only scene where Dion refers to Terence by his given name when they're not alone together, and the first time Terence doesn't respond in turn with "my prince" when Dion addresses him this way.
While this moment seemingly contradicts my assertion that Dion only uses simply "Terence" during informal moments, I feel the answer is a bit more nuanced. No, he's not alone, and he says it before the knight Terence just gave orders to has even left (so we can't yet rely on the argument that Dion said this assuming no one was listening). However, it's not as if Dion very confidently walks up to Terence after spotting him and calls him by name. I do not personally feel as if this scene is showing us that he often calls Terence by name (and name only) in the precense of the dragoons/others. Rather, we get to watch Dion sort of hesitate, steel himself, wait until Terence has dismissed his subordinate before he makes his move. I don't feel that it's a stretch to say that Dion (at minimum) took that moment there to decide how he'd approach Terence. I believe calling him "Terence" here was a purposeful choice rather than something he does commonly.
Now, as for my personal explanation for "why" Dion chose to address Terence this way. I think it makes sense for him not to just go "you" as he did with one of his dragoons earlier in the scene, or to just give a command such as "come with me". Terence is busy when Dion sets his eyes on him, so using Terence's name I feel makes it exactly clear who it is he's addressing. After all, he wants to talk with Terence specifically. As for why Dion did not use "Sir Terence" to keep the formality? I cannot say for sure. It is perhaps a writing/localization error, or perhaps the writers chose not to do this because we never see Dion use "Sir [name]" to refer to any of his subbordinates during the cutscenes. Personally? I like to believe that Dion uses simply "Terence" because he began to let the formalities slip a bit here (either as a result of Sanbreque's destruction and status not mattering quite as much as before, or because he was too focused on getting his audience with Terence here to worry about it), or because he intended to imply through this form of address that he wished to speak to Terence alone (it's also not unlikely that he's done this before in the presence of other dragoons when summoning Terence's lone presence in the past).
As for Terence's usage of "My lord" instead of "My prince" here, I have a couple explanations. First, since this is a more public moment where we are shown Terence playing his role as the second-in-command of the Holy Knights Dragoon, I feel he decided against using "my prince" due to recognizing the moment for what it was. Second, assuming it isn't a writing inconsistency, my personal theory for his usage of "my lord" as opposed to "your highness" is related to why I feel that one of the dragoons referred to Dion as "your radiance" just moments prior.
Sanbreque, by all rights, has fallen by this point in the story. The capitol is destroyed, a lot of people died, and the ruling powers of the imperial household are dead (it's unclear if the council of elders is even alive). Given that his dragoons were willing to follow him when he actively decided to bare steel against the emperor, declare the empress treasonous and defy Sylvestre, I think that dragoon addressed him as "Your Radiance" to make his own stance clear. Or, to be more specific, I believe that this tells us that the remaining knights dragoon most likely regard Dion as their emperor, regardless of whether Dion is currently or can assume that role. And I believe Terence calls him "my lord" for a similar reason here while they're around others.
Where the other knights dragoon see Dion as their emperor, it is perhaps that Terence intends to convey his servitude underneath the formalities. "My lord" to me feels more like a form of address from a servant to their master (which, Terence is still very much Dion's attendant/servant, along with his other roles). If that dragoon intended to say "We follow only you, seeing you as our rightful leader and emperor" with that form of address, then perhaps Terence intended to say "no matter what has happened, I am still your loyal servant".
Now, for Terence's usage of "Dion". As I previously mentioned, this is the first and only time during the cutscenes that Terence addresses Dion by name in any setting. At this point, the two can safely be considered "alone" together. The knight Terence gave his orders to is gone, Lord Byron and everyone else in the room from earlier are preoccupied with their orders and goals, and the hall is visibly empty save for the two of them. The two also walk a fair bit aways from the doorway, making them not visible to those inside the room, and meaning it would be harder to hear their conversation from inside the room. This setup allows for Dion and Terence to act a bit more informally/familiar than they might under other circumstances. A second main reason for Terence's choice to refer to Dion so informally (aside from the fact that no one is listening/watching), lies in that he is reacting to Dion's words.
To put this into perspective, the empire is currently in ruins, it's all hands on deck fending off Ultima's akhashic (who have taken the lives of many capable men and innocents alike), and Dion has just suggested that Terence leave "in the middle of a war" (as he puts it) to find some random girl. This moment is an unprecendented moment of sort of "insubbordinance" for Terence. He doesn't simply follow Dion's orders, rather he grabs Dion by the shoulders and looks him in the eyes, speaks to him as if this command of Dion's is just simply unheard of. This is Terence being informal and familiar, yes, but very serious. He thinks it's a bad idea for him to leave during such a critical time, he doesn't want to leave Dion's side, and it's because he is so close to Dion that he can appeal to him in this manner and oppose the order directly. It takes Dion standing strong, making it clear that he needs to fulfill his duty to the people alone, and letting Terence know that he's not making the decision to do this (to send him away and face Ultima alone) lightly before Terence accepts the order. Then, it takes Dion saying farewell before Terence finally lets go of his shoulders (or, well, shoves him, rather).
Which, of course, leads into Terence's final form of addressing Dion. In addition to context clues telling us this scene is a more informal one, where the two are alone together and able to be more familiar, and in addition to Terence matching the informality of Dion's "Farewell, Terence" (using only his given name as a form of address) with his own farewell, this moment is critical because it's their final parting. It is the last moment they may see each other, and both of them are very aware of this. And though Terence between the two of them cries openly at the end of this scene, their parting leaves them both in tears.
This is all to say that it's significant that Terence addresses Dion as "my prince" in the end as opposed to anything else. This form of address is for only Dion, meant for his ears and his ears alone, meaning Terence is conveying more here than simply "yes, my superior, I shall follow your order". As others before me have surmised, it is very well significant that he says "my prince" while others refer to him as "Your Radiance", perhaps conveying something similar to when he said "my lord" earlier ("I will always be your loyal servant, and to me you will always be my prince" when put together perhaps?). And I also believe that the usage of "my prince" here also conveys Terence's affection here, as close to an "I love you" he can get without saying so out loud.
(This is just a side note/fun fact, but the informality of their talk in the hallway vs the formality inside the room is also present in the japanese version's diaologue as well. Like the english version, Dion addresses Terence by simply "Terence", while Terence addresses him in turn with a formal "Dion-sama". Where Terence in the eng ver uses a simple "Dion" after grabbing Dion's shoulders, he yet uses the formal "Dion-sama" in the jp ver. Instead of saying "farewell, Terence" as in eng, Dion in the jp ver tells him "Thank you". It is in this moment Terence in jp drops the "sama" and says simply "Dion. Please be safe." I feel while both versions went about the scene a bit differently with their dialogue, they still ultimately convey similar things. As far as I gather, Terence in JP is even more formal in his speaking than his Eng counterpart, so the fact that he drops the "sama" and calls Dion by name at the very end (instead of calling him "your highness") is a very significant thing.)
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Now. After all that, I can sort of retackle what I talked about in the previous post I linked earlier (one where the subject requires updating based on my newly accepted knowledge). I do still maintain (for the record) that Dion prefers for Terence to address him by name when they have a moment alone and can afford to be informal. I personally really like the idea that Terence (as "just some guy" compared to him) kind of grounds him, and is someone who can make Dion feel like he is simply a man that Terence loves and understands wholly rather than just a prince or Eikon for once. However, since "my prince" is a special term of address reserved for when they're alone, I think that Dion likes it more than I implied in that earlier post. I think he is aware of how special the form of address is, can feel the intent behind its usage, and that Terence's feelings of care and love (as well as reverence) are clearly conveyed to Dion through it. This, by default, also makes this form of address important to Dion to hear as well.
With that also being said, though, I do headcanon that (depending on his mood) there are times where this address does feel too formal, clashing with Dion's wants during a particular moment. It is still possible I feel, even if only used in private, for Terence to use "my prince" to the point that Dion is all but begging for Terence to call him by name and drop all hints of status and societal roles for a moment.
