Some Micaiah Meta (TM): I feel like one of the aspects of her character that doesn’t often get explored nearly as much as it could be is the fact that before the past handful of years, Micaiah had never felt a strong loyalty to anything or anyone.
Before the Mad King’s War, not only was Daein little more than a backdrop for her work and transient survival (instead of, you know, a home to fight for), she even left Sothe behind out of fear of staying with someone for too long. Though Micaiah is clearly a caring person, it’s only recently in game that she decided to turn that care into commitment. So it kind of makes a lot of sense, in that respect, that she goes pretty damn hard with that commitment. It’s new, and strange, and I wonder if in some ways she needs to prove to herself that it’s real, after just a long time just... drifting.
It’s also interesting to compare her to some of the other Branded. Both Zelgius and Soren have very similar types of single-minded, I-would-do-terrible-things-for-you commitment, it’s just that it’s directed towards a single person, rather than a nation. I mean, Micaiah’s gratitude towards the people of Daein for their kindness is pretty similar to Soren’s gratitude towards Ike for his.
And beyond those three, there is so much in the Tellius games that is driven by devotion and duty. I think in contrast to many of these bonds being well established and defined long before the start of the first game (Titania to Greil, Soren to Ike, Nealuchi to Naesala, and on and on), Micaiah’s being recent and unfamiliar allows us to explore it in very interesting ways. Time and again we see Micaiah choosing to support Daein: choosing to join the Liberation Army and struggling with it, choosing to lead her country against the Laguz Alliance and struggling with it, being forced to define exactly how far her devotion extends.
Some devoted characters may struggle because of their loyalty (Zelgius dies, Lucia is captured, and Soren is forced to put up with Skrimir). Others struggle between two conflicting loyalties (Elincia is forced to chose her country over Lucia, Nasir and Ena betray some to stand by others, and Rafiel chooses to stand with Daein against his family), But they don’t often struggle with understanding and defining that loyalty in the first place.
It’s interesting stuff, and I feel like it adds a nice bit of complexity to a game that’s all about these conflicting and overlapping loyalties. It’s part of why she has always felt so much like the beating heart of Radiant Dawn to me, the way the Ike’s growing morality and leadership were so vital to the themes of Path of Radiance.
