Final Fantasy XIV (TV Series)

Final Fantasy XIV (titled onscreen as Final Fantasy XIV: The TV Series) is an animated steampunk action-adventure television series created by Naoki Yoshida and Nobuaki Komoto. It was produced by the French animation studio Fortiche under the supervision of Square Enix, and distributed by Netflix.
The series was released to widespread acclaim, with praise directed at its animation, story, faithfulness to the original, action sequences, characters, emotional weight, sound, and voice acting. Some have noted the series' appeal both to casual viewers who have never played League of Legends and to long-time fans of the game. It also set the record as Netflix's highest-rated series at the time within a week of its premiere, ranked first on the Netflix Top 10 Chart in 52 countries, and ranked second on the chart in the United States. Several critics and publications considered it one of the best video game adaptations ever made.
==STORY PLOT:==
Final Fantasy XIV is set on Hydaelyn, a fictional world of diverse environments across multiple continents, focused on the region of Eorzea. In the Seventh Umbral Calamity, the elder primal Bahamut escaped from his prison, an ancient space station called Dalamud, unleashing an apocalypse across Eorzea. Five years later, Aria Kemp, an ambitious adventurer, arrives in the recovering Eorzea to pursue a journey that shall be wracked with hardship and adventure, one that will also determine the fate of all of Hydaelyn.
==CAST & CHARACTERS:==
===Main Characters ===
*Hailee Steinfeld as Aria Kemp/The Warrior of Light
*Colin Ryan as Alphinaud Leveilleur
*Amy Bolton as Minfilia Warde
*Peter Bramhill as Thancred Waters
*Robyn Addison as Y'shtola Rhul
*Laura Post as Moenbryda Wilifsunnwyn 
*Taliesin Jaffe as Ricardo Waters and Nabriales 
*Robert Vernon as Estinien Wyrmblood/Varlineau 
*Bethan Walker as Alisaie Leveilleur
*Timothy Watson as Urianger Augurelt
*Laura Aikman as Lyse Hext 
*Emma Ballantine as Ryne 
===Recurring Characters ===
*Blake Ritson as Aymeric de Borel
*Lydia Leonard as Lucia Junius
*Nigel Pilkington as Papalymo Totolymo
*Gwilym Lee as Cid Garlond
*Joe Dempsie as Ardbert Hylfyst/The Warrior of Darkness
*Jean Gilpin as Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn
*Andrew Koji as Hien Rijin
*Eleanor Matsuura as Yugiri Mistwalker
*Nigel Betts as Gosetsu Daito
*Beatriz Romilly as Sadu Heavensflame
*Stephen Critchlow as Edmont de Fortemps
*Jason LaShea as Haurchefant Greystone
*Stefano Braschi as Emmanellain de Fortemps
*Nick Boulton as Raubahn Aldynn
*Anthony Howell as Fourchenault Leveilleur
*Gemma Whelan as Ameliance Leveilleur
*Hannah Arterton as Kan-E-Senna
*Joe Dempsie as Arenvald Lentinus
*Carina Reeves as Tataru Taru
*Mela Lee as Yda Hext
*Sheila Steafel as Master Matoya
*Ashley Johnson as Noraxia
===Antagonists/Former Antagonists ===
*René Zagger as Solus zos Galvus/Emet-Selch
*Alec Newman as Lahabrea
*Matt Stokoe as Elidibus
*Matt McCooey as Fandaniel/Amon/Hermes
*Gemma Whelan as Igeyorhm
*Edward Dogliani as Vauthry
*David Rintoul as Ran'jit
*Michael Maloney as Varis zos Galvus
*Luke Allen-Gale as Zenos yae Galvus
*Annabel Scholey as Fordola rem Lupis
*Andrew Rannells as Oskar White
*Naoko Mori as Yotsuyu goe Brutus
*James Goode as Grynewaht pyr Arvina
*Michael McElhatton as Gaius van Baelsar 
*Alison Lees-Taylor as Livia sas Junius 
*Kevin Michael Richardson as Rhitahtyn sas Arvina
*John Heffernan as Nero tol Scaeva
*Siobhan Hewlett as Lady Iceheart/ Ysayle
*Antony Byrne as Ilberd Feare
*Noshir Dalal as Osuke Abiko 
*Brian Protheroe as Archibishop Thordan VII
*Nicholas Boulton as Ser Zephirin de Valhourdin
*Rosie Day as Meteion
==EPISODES:==
=== Season 1 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	Close to Home 	In the world of Hydaelyn, the nation of Eorzea fights to repel an invasion from the expansionist and technologically advanced Garlean Empire, who use Project Meteor to summon the meteor Dalamud. In the Battle of Carteneau, Dalamud is revealed to be a prison for the creature Bahamut, who begins laying waste to Eorzea in the "Seventh Umbral Calamity". The famous mage Louisiox Leveilleur attempts to stop Bahamut, leading both of them to vanish. Five years later, Aria Fay, a middle-aged human with amnesia, arrives in the city-state of Gridania to become an adventurer. En route, she has a vision of herself in battle with a man in masked robes. Aria buys equipment and joins the Lancer's guild led by Ywain, who informs her that the Twelveswoods surrounding Gridania have become dangerous due to the Calamity corrupting it's spirits, as well as skirmishes with the local Ixali tribe. After undergoing much training and menial tasks, Aria encounters a similar masked man from her vision, who unleashes a clay golem on her. Two strangers named Yda and Papalymo help her defeat the golem, and their presence triggers Aria to have visions of a strange talking crystal.
2 	To Guard a Guardian 	In flashbacks, Aria is revealed to have been present in the Battle of Carteneau and caught in Louisoix's teleporting spell that he used to save the lives of everyone present. She suffered amnesia as a side-effect of the spell and does not remember some of her past, but is able to recall her kind parents and her childhood dreams of adventuring. In the present, Aria continues working for Gridania in the hopes of obtaining answers to her visions. After killing the bandit Janremi Blackheart, who was robbing Gridania's stables, Aria learns that the Ixali plan to assault the sacred Guardian Tree will and alerts the Wood Wailers, Gridania's defenders. Aria joins the ensuing battle but is confronted and wounded by the masked mage. Papalmyo heals Aria, who defeats and kills the mage with Yda's aid. The mage drops a black crystal, which gives Aria another vision that causes her to pass out. She awakens to find the battle won, and is led into an audience with Kan-E-Senna, leader of Gridania's government, the Seedseeker council. She appoints Aria as Gridania's emissary as her reward.
3 	Call of the Sea 	Kan-E-Senna sends Aria to Limsa Lominsa, a pirate-filled marine city-state led by Admiral Merlwyb, and Ul’dah, a wealthy and corruption-rampant city led by Sultana Nanmo Ul Namo and Raubahn Aldynn, her faithful bodyguard and general. Both leaders accept Aria's invitations for memorial services for the fallen at Carteneau. During her journey, Aria meets the sarcastic Miqo'te conjurer Y'shtola Rhul in Limsa Lominsa, and the charming Thancred Waters in Ul'Dah. Aria declines further services as envoy and continues her lancer training. She also begins a rivarly with a hot-tempered rogue lancer named Foulques. Meanwhile, the Garlean Empire is paralyzed by a succession crisis caused by the elderly Emperor Solus zos Galvus falling ill. Wanting to take advantage of Eorzea’s disunity, the XIVth Imperial Legion led by Legatus Gaius van Baelsar, a leader of the previous Garlean invasion, set out to conquer Eorzea on their own. His spymaster Nero tol Scaeva kills an Eorzean mole in their ranks, while Gaius oversees the expedition of a mysterious weapon.
4 	Proof of Might 	Ywain explains that Foulques believes that the skill to harness a lance is to be forged in the heat of battle, while Ywain's teaching specify that one must remain calm and composed to master the lance. Aria follows Ywain's beliefs and chooses not to retaliate against Foulques when he interferes in her trials. During the penultimate trial, she saves him from a creature that attacks them. Foulques is humilated and becomes progressively unhinged, culminating when he attacks a group of novice lancers in the Twelveswoods. Aria rescues them and confronts the deranged Foulques, who, after a fierce duel, falls to his death. Ywain declares Aria's training complete, and she is visited once again by Yda and Papalymo. They reveal themselves as members of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, a secret society who safeguard Eorzea, and convince her to follow them to their headquarts, the Waking Sands. Their leader Minfilia Warde greets Aria and reveals her visions are the Echo, a power marking chosen representatives of Hydaelyn, the deity for whom the world is named and the crystal Aria saw.
5 	The Scions of the Seventh Dawn	To gain her trust, Minfila has Aria use the Echo on her, revealing Minfilla was a disciple of Louisiox and wants to continue his legacy with the Scions. Aria meets the other Scions: the receptionist Tataru Taru, Thancred and his twin brother Ricardo, Y'shtola, and the mysterous arcanist Elezen Urianger Augurelt. Aria also meets the young Arenvald Lentinus, a refugee from Ala Mhigo, a territory conquered by the Garlean Empire. Aria quickly grows adjusted to life amongst the Scions and bonds with them, especially Arenvald and the Waters brothers. Minfila explains that the masked man Aria encountered was one of the Ascians, hooded beings hellbent on causing chaos that imperils all of Hydaelyn for unknown reasons. Most Ascians are immortals, and the one Aria killed was a low-ranking minion. She also explans the tribes summon primals, aetherial deities which drain the land's life-sustaining energy, and "temper" (brainwash) the beasts into worshipping it. After more training, Aria, Arenvald, and the Waters brothers are sent to investigate abducations and crystal thefts in Thanalan, the territory around Ul'dah.
6 	Lord of the Inferno 	In Thanalan, Aria, Arenvald, Thancred and Ricardo go to Little Ala Mhigo, a refugee for Ala Mhigan refugees, which Aria seems to remember. Arenvald confines on how he was born from rape by a Garlean soldier, which drove his mother to abandon him and forced Arenvald to grow up alone. The Scions learn that Amalj'aa tribe were responsible for the abducations, seeking sacrifices for their primal, Ifrit. The four eventually find a corrupt priest who helped with the abductions and force him to help them set up an ambush to capture the Amalj'aa. While Arenvald and the Waters brothers recruit the Immortal Flames, Minfilla introduces Aria to Materia, a special type of crystal which Aria uses to enhance her spear. The ambush goes awry when a traitor in the Immortal Flames alerts the Amalj'aa, who capture the group to sacrifice them to Ifrit. When Aria and Arenvald's Echos blocks Ifrit's brainwashing, the fiery primal battles them. Ifrit uses "Infernal Nails" to empower himself and slay the two, which is revealed to be a vision from Aria's Echo; in their actual battle, Aria and Arenvald destroy the Nails and defeat Ifrit.
7 	A Hero in the Making 	Ifrit's defeat is witnessed by Nero and another one of Gaius' lieutenants, Livia sas Junius. Livia is romantically obsessed with Gaius and believes Aria may pose a threat to his conquest, so she asks him for permission to eliminate her. Gaius declines, but secretly has Nero continue spying on the Scions. Meanwhile, Aria and Arenvald are hailed as heroes for defeating Ifrit. Aria takes a break by attending the Carteneau memorial services with Ricardo, with whom she grows close to. Aria's visions continue, seeing an Ascian reveling at the chaos caused by Bahamut's awakening at Carteneau. They encounter Louisiox's grandchildren, the arrogant Alphinaud and the hot-tempered Alisaie, who part ways over their strained relationship. Afterwards, Aria joins Gridania's grand company and is rewarded with a Chococo mount, whom she names "Lily". She works with them to rescue two engineers, Biggs and Wedge, from Garleans. A dying Garlean recognizes Aria, who has another vision revealing that she, in fact, fought alongside the Garleans at Carteneau.
8 	Into the Beast's Maw 	Ricardo explains that pureblood Garleans have a third eye, which Aria lacks, and surmises that Aria must have been a conscript from a conquered territory. Aria realizes that her homeland is Ala Mhigo, and asks Ricardo to hide the revelations from her vision to the others until she is ready to reveal them. Biggs and Wedge go under the Scions' protection, and Minfila sends Aria, Yda and Papalymo to forge relations with the Sylphs, a peaceful tribe whose radical faction had once summoned the thundery primal Ramuh against the Garleans. After several menial and embarrassing tasks, the trio learn that the Sylph elder, Frixio, has gone missing. Joined by the adventurous Sylph Noraxia, Aria, Yda and Papalymo eventually find him being held captive in a cave by the Ascian that Aria saw at Carteneau, Lahabrea, who intends to feed Frixio to a creature called Graffias. Lahabrea is intrigued by Aria's Echo and tests her against Graffias, which she slays, and departs. Papalymo and Yda return Frixio to his people while Noraxia joins the Scions.
9 	Skeletons in Her Closet 	At Ricardo's advice, Aria reveals her parentage to Arenvald, a fellow Ala Mhigo, and asks him to see if her parents escaped Ala Mhigo. Minfilia obtains two leads on where Lahabrea might be and sends the Waters brothers to pursue one in Little Ala Mhigo, while Aria and Noraxia pursue the other in the Twelveswoods. Noraxia relates to Aria how she felt helpless at Frixio's appearance and wishes to overcome that vulnerability. The two investigate a series of murders of women that leads them to Haukke Manor. They learn the culprit is the once beautiful Lady Amandine, who was disfigured in the Calamity. She subsequently began to hold rites of rejuvenation at the urging of masked men, which involve the spilling of maiden blood. Aria, Noraxia and Wood Wailers storm Haukke Manor and put down Amandine. The Ascian responsible, Nabriales, appears. Annoyed by their interference, Nabriales brutally kills everyone except Noraxia and Aria, whom he grievously wounds as he leaves. Noraxia narrowly manages to heal Aria, a feat that boosts her confidence.
10 	Lord of Crags 	Aria, Noraxia, Thancred and Ricardo return to the Waking Sands with no leads on Lahabrea. Minfila sends Aria, Ricardo, Y'shtola, and Noraxia to thwart the Kobold tribe's efforts to summon their primal, Titan. The four seek advice from the retired primal-fighting Company of Heroes, who initate a lengthy series of trials disguised as banquet preparations, including fighting a dragon to obtain a lost cheese shipment. Eventually, the company's leader reveals the way to the Kobolds' hideout, just as Titan is summoned. After a grueling battle, Aria, Y'shtola, Noraxia and Ricardo narrowly defeat Titan. In the aftermath, they notice Nero and Rhitahtyn sas Arvina, Gaius' best soldier, observing them, alongside Lahabrea. Realizing the Ascians and Garleans are working together, Y'shtola and Noraxia go back to the Waking Sands. Ricardo and Aria spend the night together to celebrate and begin to fall in love. The next morning, they use magical envelopes that Minfila gave them to teleport to the Waking Sands, only to find corpses everywhere and Livia holding Noraxia hostage.
11 	All Good Things 	In flashbacks, Nabriales tells Lahabrea of what happened at Haukke Manor, and they visit Gaius at his stronghold, the Praetorium. Lahabrea tells him of the Echo, which Nero believes can be used to empower their mysterious weapon. Gaius sends Livia to the Waking Sands to take prisoners who hold the Echo. She and her soldiers raid the Waking Sands and offer to spare the Scions if Minfilia surrenders; Minfilia does, only to watch as the Garleans massacre the Scions anyways. In the present, Livia offers to spare Noraxia if Aria and Ricardo surrender. Knowing she will not keep her word, Noraxia resists and Livia executes her. Enraged, Aria and Ricardo overpower Livia, forcing her to flee. Afterwards, Aria and Ricardo take shelter at a church near Little Ala Mhigo. Aided by the gravetender Marques, Ricardo prepares funeral rites for his comrades while Aria returns Noraxia's body to her tribe. When Aria returns to the church, Ricardo reveals that he has recruited an emergency contact Minfilia had: the Roegadyn marauder Moenbryda Wilfsunnwyn.
12 	He Who Waited Behind 	Moenbryda and Ricardo explain that the former is an experienced adventurer and trusted friend of the Scions, especially Urianger and Yda. Surmising that they were among those captured by the Garleans, Moenbryda, Aria and Ricardo debate how to rescue them when a Garlean squad led by Nero suddenly storms the church. The Scions fight them off with the unexpected aid of Alphinaud, who reveals that Marques is actually the amnestic Cid Garlond. Cid is an Garlean engineer, Eorzean defector, and genius inventor, who had been missing since the Calamity five years ago. Alphinaud then reveals that the Ixal have summoned their primal, Garuda, and that Cid's lost airship, the Enterprise, will be required if the surviving Scions are to reach the primal. With no leads on their comrades' whereabouts, the remaining Scions agree to neutralize Garuda before finding them. The Enterprise's last location was the snowy mountains of Coerthas, home of the reclusive Ishgardian nation. There, Aria happens upon an armored man, who is carrying a mysterious eye that reacts to Aria's presence.
13 	Into the Dragon's Maw 	Ser Alberic of the Ishgardians meets Aria and explains that the man she encountered was Estinien Wyrmblood, the Azure Dragoon, Ishgard's finest dragon-hunter. Isghard has waged the "Dragonsong War" with the dragons of Dravania led by the Great Wyrm Nidhogg for a thousand years, and he offers to teach Aria the way of the Dragoons. Wanting to be stronger, Aria accepts while the others search for the ''Enterprise''. Aria obtains Dragoon armor and learns how to fight dragons effectively, earning Estinien's attention. Estinien reveals that he lost his family to Nidhogg twenty years ago. Seeking revenge, he took Nidhogg's eye (a relic of Ishgard since the war started) so that he would specifically target him and spare Ishgard his wrath. Eventually, Alberic deems Aria ready to help Estinien, who has become corrupted by Nidhogg's influence (as a dragon's eyes are the source of their power). Aria duels Estinien to a stalemate, until the eye's power makes him disappear. Alberic honors Aria as a full-fledged Azure Dragoon, and she returns to her friends with her confidence restored.
14 	The Heretic among Us 	The Ishgardians of Corethas, especially Inquisitor Guillaime, are disgusted by Alberic's willingness to grant the title of Azure Dragoon to an outsider and refuse to help her. The Scions eventually befriend Ishgardian commander named Haurchefant Greystone, who reports that the Enterprise crashed in the Stone Vigil, a fortress overrun by dragons, but they need special permission to enter. When Haurchefant, Moenbryda and Aria stop Guillaime from executing a suspected heretic, Ishgardians who side with Dravania led by Lady Iceheart, he hinders their efforts. Alphinaud and Ricardo investigate Guillaime and discover he is actually an imposter and heretic. Haurchefant and his soldiers corner "Guillaime", who transforms into a dragon and attacks them until Aria and Moenbryda kill him. Afterwards, the Scions and Cid obtain permission to enter the Stone Vigil. Meanwhile, a Garlean squadron led by Livia track the Scions to Coerthas. Gaius had instructed her to wait for Rhitahtyn to arrive, but an impatient Livia orders her soldiers to confront Aria without him.
15 	In Pursuit of the Past 	Aria, Ricardo, Alphinaud, Moenbryda and Cid enter the Stone Vigil at night and attempt to sneak past the dragons towards the Enterprise. However, Livia and her men ambush them and accidently alert the dragons, who slaughter the Garleans while Livia barely escape alive. The distraction allows the Scions and Cid to reach the Enterprise. Lahabrea intercepts them and, not wanting Aria to defeat Garuda, empowers a gigantic dragon, Isgebind, to attack her. The Scions slay Isgebind and Cid manages to repair the Enterprise, flying it to Gridania. To breach Garuda's barrier, the Enterprise needs a corruped crystal. Thinking it will be a short errand, Alphinaud goes to find it while Aria uses the opportunity to grieve for Noraxia. To calm her, Ricardo and Moenbryda take her to the Gold Saucer, an amusement park near Ul'dah, where Ricardo and Aria kiss. Meanwhile, Gaius is angered at the needless deaths of his soldiers and berates Livia for her recklessness. Livia becomes unhinged and takes her anger out on the Scions, whom she is interrogating for information on the Echo.
16 	Lady of the Vortex 	Alphinaud eventually returns with the corrupted crystal, and Cid is able to fully repair the Enterprise. En route to Garuda, Aria uses the Echo to help Cid remember his past: his father Midas perished during a failed experiment and Gaius raised Cid as his ward. Cid was disgusted at Garlemald's use of Magitek warmachina and fled to Eorzea, vowing to use technology for freedom instead of oppression. After breaching the barrier, the Scions confront and defeat Garuda, who torments Amalj'aa and Kobold prisons of war into resummoning Ifrit and Titan, intending to consume their aether. However, Gaius and Lahabrea arrive with their mysterious weapon: the "Ultima Weapon", which absorbs all three primals to increase it's power. The Scions and Cid flee aboard the Enterprise as Gaius announces his intentions to eradicate the primals and force Eorzea into submission with the Ultima Weapon. Cid explains that the machine is an Allagan design, from the previously ruling Allagan Empire that died out centuries ago; Aria realizes Lahabrea gave it to Gaius for his own ends.
17 	Eyes on the Empire 	The Scions and Cid regroup at the Waking Sands to plot their next move, where they are unexpectedly reunited with Arenvald and Thancred. The pair reveal that they have spent the days since the raid searching for the captured Scions, whom they learned are being held at Castrum Centri, in neutral Mor Dhana. The Scions and Cid travel to Mor Dhana, where they find Biggs and Wedge have taken shelter in Revenant's Toll, a neutral adventuring hub. The group disguise themselves to infiltrate Castrum Centri by stealing uniforms and a Magitek walker from an imperial patrol. Ricardo and Aria respectively confess their love for the other to Thancred and Arenvald, who convince them to confess after the rescue. Meanwhile, Livia waterboards Y'shtola, electrocutes Urianger, and severely beats Papalymo to learn more of the Echo. During Papalymo's torture, an enraged Yda breaks free and fights Livia, but the latter overpowers her. Livia also threatens to execute Tataru in front of Minfilia, who calls her bluff, knowing Gaius wants them alive. Furious, Livia severs Minfilia's left hand.
18 	Escape from Castrum Centri 	The disguised Scions and Cid infiltrate Castrum Centri and find their friends. When Livia comes to check on the prisoners, Moenbryda, enraged at seeing Urianger's tortured state, fights Livia until reinforcements force Moenbryda to flee. Meanwhile, Thancred murders Ricardo in front of the Scions. Lahabrea reveals that he is possessing Thancred's body, having used him to find the Waking Sands and lure the Scions into a trap. He easily overpowers them, indiscriminately slaughtering dozens of Gaius's soldiers in his pursuit. Meanwhile, Nero confronts Cid and reveals that he plans to kill Cid for outdoing him in both engineering and Gaius's admiration. Nero is interrupted and injured by Lahabrea's rampage, allowing Cid to reach the Enterprise, pick up the Scions, and escape the Castrum. Furious at Lahabrea's sadistic destruction, Gaius severs ties with the Ascians. Aria and the Scions are devastated by Ricardo's death, but are forced to hold back their grief when they learn that Gaius has issued the Eorzean leaders with an ultimatum: surrender, or be annihilated by the Ultima Weapon.
19 	Operation Archon 	At the Sultana's chambers in Ul'dah, Merlwyb, Raubahn, and Kan-E-Senna are about to choose surrender, when Minfilia and Alphinaud burst in and persuade them to resist. The three city-states renew their alliance and plan a massive counter-offensive: Operation Archon. The next day, the first phase of the operation is executed, with Aria being sent to Cape Westwind, an imperial outpost near the Waking Sands. Rhitahtyn has arrived for an inspection, and it is hoped that his death will inflict a crippling blow to the XII Legion. Aria, using her grief for Ricardo to fuel her rage and power, breaks into Cape Westwind and confronts Rhitahtyn, who orders his outmatched soldiers to flee. They do so, but then return to help their commander and are slain by Aria. Enraged, Rhitahtyn is empowered by a mysterious emotion-fueled energy. Aria narrowly defeats Rhitahtyn, but he burns both himself and Aria alive in a last-ditch effort; Aria slays Rhitahtyn and collapses from her burns. The unconscious Aria is retrieved by the Eorzean Alliance and narrowly revived at the Waking Sands.
20 	Rock the Castrum 	By the time Aria has recovered from her wounds, Operation Archon has progressed to it's final stages. Aria mourns for Ricardo at a makeshift grave with Minfilia, then rides on Lily to rejoin the fight. She meets with Raubahn, who has led the Immortal Flames in a siege on Castrum Meridianum. The Praetorium is protected by a Magitek shield generator, so Aria, Moenbryda, Cid and Yda infiltrate the Castrum to destroy it. While the women draw the imperials' attention, Cid takes over a Magitek walker and blasts his way to the generator. Livia, dispatched by Gaius to defend the Praetorium, confronts Cid aboard her own Magitek walker, the White Eft, which Cid manages to outmaneuver and destroy, forcing her to eject. After Cid and the Scions destroy the generator, Livia attacks again on foot, only to be beaten to death by Aria, Yda and Moenbryda to avenge Noraxia's murder. With the shields down, Cid prepares the Enterprise for the final assault on the Praetorium. Papalymo, Y'shtola, Arenvald, and Urianger arrive to help, while Alphinaud's inexperience forces him to stay behind.
21 	The Ultimate Weapon Part One 	The Scions and Cid arrive at the Praetorium and fight their way to Gaius's command center. Gaius appeals to Cid's childhood and offers both him and Aria a place by his side. He declares it is the duty of the strong to shepherd the weak, asserting that Eorzea was his by right. Aria and Cid angrily reject Gaius, who retreats and leaves them to deal with a new Magitek prototype, the Mark II Magitek Colossus, and Nero. The Scions destroy the Colossus, blast their way deeper into the Praetorium using hijacked Magitek walkers, and defeat Nero, forcing him to flee the Praetorium. As the Scions close in on the Ultima Weapon, Gaius separates Aria from the group with a force field and duels her, but narrowly loses; he retreats and pilots the Ultima Weapon, which overpowers the Scions. However, Hydaelyn intervenes and strips all three primals from the Weapon. Lahabrea appears and reveals Aria's adventures have made her strong enough to retrieve Hydaelyn's blessing. To circumvent this, and against Gaius's objections, he activates a hidden power in the Weapon: Ultima, destroying the entire Praetorium.
22 	The Ultimate Weapon Part Two 	Lahabrea leaves after Hydaelyn exhausts her blessing to enable the group to survive Ultima, while Nero barely escapes the blast radius. Enraged at his losses, Gaius swears to kill Lahabrea after he deals with the Scions. When the Ultima Weapon still fails to overcome the Scions, Lahabrea forcibly attempts to unleash Ultima a second time. Hearing Hydaelyn's voice, Aria finds the strength to break her limits and cast a spell powerful enough to destroy the Ultima Weapon, incapacitating Gaius. When Lahabrea returns, the Scions are too exhausted to face him, so Aria sends them away and confronts him alone. Lahabrea reveals the Ascians have orchestrated the Umbral Calamaties as part of a process to resurrect their god, Zodiark, and that he wanted Ultima to cause another one. Lahabrea easily defeats Aria, but Hydaelyn intervenes again and unlocks the full power of her blessing; Aria revives and purges Lahabrea from Thancred's body, fulfilling the vision from the first episode. As the Praetorium explodes, Aria escapes with the unconscious Thancred on Lily, who was sent by the Scions to help, leaving Gaius for dead.
23 	A New Era 	In flashbacks, while stopping a band of Ala Mhigans from summoning their primal Rhalgr, Thancred is possessed by Lahabrea and later forced to watch Ricardo's murder. After Lahabrea's defeat, a traumatized Thancred awakens in the Waking Sands and mourns his brother. Minfilia takes him to Ricardo's grave for closure, while Alphinaud formally joins the Scions. They and Cid attend a victory celebration in Gridania, where the Alliance leaders proclaim Aria as the new "Warrior of Light", the legendary warriors from Carteneau, permanently establish the Eorzean alliance, and declare the Seventh Astral Era. Meanwhile, the infuriated Lahabrea survives his purging and plays chess with a white-robed Ascian named Elidibus to calm down and explain Hydaelyn's unprecented intervention. Nabriales arrives to mock Lahabrea, who challenges him to do better. In a mid-credits scene, the victory celebrations are interrupted by the roar of an unknown primal. In a post-credits scene, Arenvald reveals to Aria that her parents did not escape the Garlean occupation in Ala Mhigo.
=== Season 2 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	Moving On 	A month after Gaius's defeat, Thancred laments his childhood, when he and Ricardo lived as street urchins in Ul'dah until they were taken in by Louisiox into his organization, the Circle of Knowing, after a failed attempt to rob him. Facing increasing scrutiny and pressure to align with one of the three allied city-states, the Scions follow Alphinaud's suggestion to relocate to Revenant's Toll. Having heard rumors that her adoptive mother F'lhaminn, who was presumed dead after the Calamity, is still alive, Minfilia asks for aid in finding her before they leave. Alphinaud, Thancred, Aria and Minfilia follow the latest rumor in the regions surrounding Limsa Lominsa. Minfilia reveals that she lost her father when she was young and looked up to Louisiox, leading her to found the Scions. To their surprise, they find F'lhaminn alive, having remained hidden since the Calamity. Reuniting with her daughter, F'lhaminn agrees to join the Scions in a non-combat role. As the Scions prepare to leave for Revenant's Toll, they recieve word that a new primal has been summoned.
2 	Hail to the King, Kupo 	Disappointed by Lahabrea's failure to enact the Calamity and wanting to speed up the process, Nabriales approaches the Mooglesguard, the only combat-oriented members of the mostly defenseless Moogle tribe. He teaches the Mooglesguard primal summoning so they can summon their primal, Good King Moggle Mog XII. The moogle Kuplo Kopp disapproves of this and asks for aid in dispatching the King. Aria, Moenbryda, Yda and Papalymo travel to the Twelveswood and escort Kuplo Kopp to Thornmarch, the King's lair, where they are confronted by the Mooglesguard, who summon Mog XII. Aria manages to kill Mog XII and the defeated Mooglesguard flee into the forest. Aria and her group return to the Waking Sands to find Elidibus talking to Minfilia. He introduces himself as the Ascians' emissary and one of their leaders, revealing that only Aria and Minfila are able to see him because of their Echos. His cryptic statements about the Echo prompt Aria to ask for the Ascians' motivations. In response, Elidibus offers answers if both women step into a dimensional rift that he creates, which they cautiously do.
3 	The Gifted 	Elidibus, Minfilia and Aria are teleported to the Chrysalis, where the Ascians gather for their meetings. Elidibus challenges Minfilia to a game of chess and promises to reveal the Ascians' motivations if she wins. Minfilia accepts, and Elidibus summons several monsters and low-ranking Ascians for Aria to fight as they play. Elidibus reveals that Lahabrea is not in his prime, having lost much of his sanity. Therefore, Nabriales wants to replace Lahabrea as an Ascian paragon, and Elidibus has agreed to this if he can prove himself better by killing Aria. To emotionally imbalance Aria, Nabriales has taken Ricardo's corpse as his vessel. Despite this, Aria is able to defeat Nabriales with the power of Hydaelyn's blessing. The inexperienced Minfilia loses the game to Elidibus, who goes on a tirade against Hydaelyn, describing her as a parasite that is "corrupting" the world and revealing that the Ascians intend to return it to the way it was before Hydaelyn was ever created. Elidibus has difficulty describing it and abruptly leaves, after which the Scions move to Revenant's Toll.
4 	The Mother of Exiles 	A humiliated Nabriales pleads for a second chance to defeat Aria and earn his place as an Ascian paragon. Elidibus secretly reveals to Lahabrea that he is tricking Nabriales to make him know his place. Meanwhile, the Scions receive word of refugees led by shinobi Yugiri Mistwalker arriving from Doma, a far east region recently conquered by the Garlean Empire. Their request for asylum in Ul'dah is denied by Sultana Nanamo, as Ul'dah is already overflowed and she is politically struggling to keep her position against Ul'dah's ruling Syndicate, including the corrupt lalafells Lolorito Nanarito and Teledji Adeledji. Instead, Alphinaud agrees to have Yugiri and the other refugees moved to Revenant's toll, where they will work for the Scions, but a Doman family disappears. Alphinaud expresses a desire to follow in his grandfather's footsteps and make meaningful change to Eorzea, though he annoys Aria with his arrogance. Meanwhile, Y'shtola discovers that an Ascian is teaching the watery Sahagin tribe, who despise the Lominsans for taking their territory, to summon their primal, Leviathan.
5 	Lord of the Whorl 	Y'shtola reports her findings to the Scions, who in turn alert Merlwyb and her Maelstrom soldiers. A grateful Yugiri joins them in infiltrating the Sapsa Spawning Grounds, where Merlwyb kills the head priest to stop the summoning ritual, only for the priest to transfer their soul into another Sahagin and complete it anyways. Merlwyb re-kills the priest and Aria surmises that transferring a soul is part of the Echo's powers. When Aria tells Urianger of this theory, he becomes convinced that the Echo is key to understanding the Ascians. It is decided to use the corrupted crystal-loaded vessel Whorleater to fight Leviathan on solid ground and rob him of his command over water. Several of Merlwyb's soldiers join Aria, Papalymo, Yda and Y'shtola riding the Whorleater into open waters, where they successfully slay Leviathan. The Ascian that Y'shtola saw with the Sahagin appears and identifies himself as the sadistic Fandaniel, who admits that he wanted to see Leviathan flood Limsa Lominsca "for laughs". Later, in Ul'dah, Lolorito and Teledji meet to discuss "revolution".
6 	Revolution 	Alphinaud is slightly injured during riots among surprisingly well-armed Ala Mhigan refugees in Ul'dah. Believing that the riot was instigated by outside forces, Alphinaud decides to investigate alone rather than inform the Scions. He eventually finds the merchant who supplied the weapons and questions him until a male shinobi murders the merchant and attacks Alphinaud. Outmatched, Alphinaud teleports away using a magical envelope that Minfilia gave the Scions as a shortcut to the Waking Sands. He finally informs the Scions and is criticized by Aria and Minfilia for not asking for help. After Alphinaud describes the shinobi to Yugiri, she realizes that he resembles Osuke Abiko, the patriarch of the missing Doman family. They go to consult Nanamo and Raubahn, who surmise that Teledji manipulated the riots and hopes to monopolize artifacts discovered at Carteneau, including remnants of Omega, an ancient Allagan superweapon. Privately, Nanamo has a breakdown over the stress of being Sultana and is comforted by Raubahn.
7 	Lord of Levin 	The following day, Minfilia alerts the Scions that the Order of the Twin Adder (Gridania's Grand Company) witnessed Ramuh being summoned by renegade Slyphs. Aria, Yda, Y'shtola, Moenbryda and Papalymo meet with Kan-E-Senna, who notes that, unlike most primals, Ramuh is not inheritently violent and suggests negotiation before resorting to force. In the Black Shroud, the Slyphs use illusions to cause the Scions to become lost until Aria flies after them on Lily and breaks all of them free. The Scions eventually reach Ramuh, who challenges them to a trial by combat and judges them as worthy saviors upon his defeat, departing amicably. Ramuh's defeat is witnessed by a female Ascian, Igeyorhm. She reports to the others, who grow concerned at Aria's growing strength. Elidibus gives Nabriales permission to challenge Aria again. Meanwhile, Urianger shares his report on the Echo: the priest was able to be killed because he did not possess a crystal, unlike Ascians. He surmises that if an Ascian can be trapped inside a crystal-like aethereal prison, they can be permanently killed.
8 	Recruiting the Realm 	Alphinaud, believing that the three Grand Companies are not enough to protect Eorzea, establishes an ambitious plan to establish a realm-wide Grand Company that answers only to the Scions. Alphinaud and several Scions travel throughout Eorzea to recruit for Alphinaud's company, with Thancred recruiting the young Wilred, one of the Ala Mhigans he stopped from summoning Rhalgr. Wilred's actions had nearly caused his friends' deaths, and he seeks to make amends in the Crystral Braves. Arenvald recruits Ilberd Faere, a childhood friend of Raubahn and a fellow Ala Mhigan refugee, who suggests that the Crystal Braves could one day liberate their homeland. Y'shtola's sister, Y'mhitra, declines to join while Alphinaud secures the funding and approval of the Alliance leaders. Meanwhile, Aria, Yda and Moenbryda engage in a three-way spar to entertain the Doman children. After winning the brawl, Aria is ambushed by Nabriales but manages to defeat and decapitate him. Nabriales's soul retreats back to the Chrysalis.
9 	Brave New Companions 	After a humiliated Nabriales throws a temper tantrum that destroys much of the Chrysalis, an annoyed Elidibus reveals he had never intended to make him a paragon, explaining that Lahabrea's position is an irreplaceable one. He also refuses to move against the Scions, seeing them as useful pawns. Meanwhile, Urianger expedites his research and Aria receives news of supplies towards Revenant's Toll being intercepted by Lady Icehearts heretics. She goes to Coerthas and reunites with Haurchefant, who introduces her to Ser Aymeric of the Temple Knights of Ishgard and his second-in-command, Lucia. They seek aid with the Keeper of the Lake—the wreckage of Garlean airship Agrius, intertwined with the corpse of Midgardsormr, the draconic progenitor who repelled a massive Garlean advance fifteen years ago. In exchange, Haurchefant agrees to safeguard supply shipments to Revenant's Toll. Alphinaud heads the inauguration ceremony for his Grand Company, naming it the "Crystal Braves".
10 	Traitor in the Midst 	The Crystal Braves' first task is to investigate the "Ivy", a Garlean spy embedded in the Immortal Flames. During the investigation, the Scions are called in for an Alliance Council, learning that the Garlean war of succession has concluded with the crowning of Varis zos Galvus, the late emperor's grandson. Under his leadership, it is feared the Empire will soon resume its march upon Eorzea. The Braves discover that the Ivy is Raubahn's trusted advisor Eline Roaille after catching her talking to an imperial contact. She is arrested, but later freed by the shinobi that attacked Alphinaud. They go to Castrum Meridianum to be picked up by imperial forces, but the Scions and the Braves intercept them. During the fight, Yugiri unmasks the shinobi, confirming he is Osuke. He refuses to explain and escapes after the Braves subdue Eline and defeat the Garlean reinforcements. Osuke returns to Ul'dah and reports to Teledji, who is holding Osuke's family hostage to force his compliance. Meanwhile, Lahabrea and Igeyorhm secretly meet with Iceheart and offer her a way to end the Dragonsong War.
11 	The Instruments of Our Deliverance	The Crystal Braves and the Scions turn their attention towards Iceheart and search for her in Coerthas. They eventually locate Iceheart's hideout, Snowcloak, and storm it to capture her. They defeat many creatures, including a Yeti and a massive hound named Fenrir, and locate Iceheart, who believes that her actions are necessary to force peace between man and dragon, She uses aetheryte, a structure used for teleportation to escape the Scions. In Revenant's Toll, Moenbryda aids Urianger's research and develops white auracite, a material she has been researching for the purpose of capturing Ascian souls. By using it to channel a burst of concentrated aether into the aetheryte by which Iceheart escaped, she recreates the beacon at the opposite end and teleports Aria to Iceheart's location. Using her body as a vessel, Iceheart summons Shiva into herself and fights Aria. Though Aria defeats Shiva, Iceheart implies having a connection with Hydaelyn, bidding Aria to consult with Midgardsormr before escaping again.
12 	The Rising Chorus 	Aria decides to journey to the Keeper of the Lake and makes her way towards Midgardsormr's corpse, fighting her way through salvaging Garleans and other creatures. To Aria's shock, Midgardsormr still lives, slowly regenerating from his apparent death. He divulges that Nidhogg, one of his seven children, has rallied the Dravanian horde to renew their attack on Ishgard. He also reveals the reason that Minfilia and Aria have not heard from Hydaelyn since Lahabrea's defeat is because she has severely exhausted herself saving Aria from him. Wanting to test the Aria's worth and give Hydaelyn time to gather her strength, Midgardsormr seals away Hydaelyn's blessing. He also decides to observe Aria as a miniature dragon. They return to Revenant's Toll, where Moenbryda reveals that she has formulated a means of producing the staggering amount of aether required to destroy a captured Ascian soul─namely, by siphoning energy from the corrupted crystals. While doing so, Moenbryda and Aria are interrupted by Nabriales.
13 	Into the Dragon's Maw 	Lahabrea, angered that a sundered would attempt to usurp him, confronts Nabriales with the intention of killing him without Elidibus's approval. When Nabriales begs for mercy, Lahabrea gives him a final chance to kill Aria. Observing Aria from a distance, Nabriales senses that Hydaelyn's blessing is gone. He taunts Aria and Moenbryda, then breaks into Revenant's Toll and steals Louisiox's staff, Tupsimati, revealing his plans to use the power yet hidden within the staff to bring about a new "Rejoining". Nabriales kidnaps Minfilia and takes her into the Chrysalis, challenging Aria one last time. She and Moenbryda barely manage to defeat Nabriales and rescue Minfilia, but Moenbryda is severely wounded while shielding Aria from falling meteors. Minfilia traps the weakened Nabriales in white auracite, which Aria blasts with Tupsimati, but they do not have enough aether to kill the Ascian. Bleeding profusely, Moenbryda gives her life energy to power Tupsimati and shatter the auracite, killing herself and Nabriales.
14 	In Memory of a Friend 	In flashbacks, Urianger and Moenbryda spend their childhoods developing mutual eagerness. As young adults, Moenbryda and Urianger study under Louisiox and join his Circle of Knowing as Archons. The two quickly bond, eventually falling in love. However, Moenbryda is left confused and hurt when Louisiox leaves her behind in Sharlayan prior to his sacrifice at Carteneau. Urianger realizes that Louisiox wishes for Moenbryda to find her own path, free from the shadow of his influence, and does not visit her in Sharlayan. Moenbryda's parents encourage her hopes, and she undergoes Marauder combat training to become a part-time adventurer. Her happiness is eventually renewed when Minfilia asks her to become an emergency contact for the Scions. Moenbryda and Urianger reconnect after the escape from Castrum Centri. In the present, the Scions mourn Moenbryda's death, with Urianger expressing hope that she understood Louisiox in her last moments. He writes a letter to Moenbryda's parents to inform them of her death and breaks down in tears.
15 	The Steps of Faith 	While mourning Moenbryda together at her memorial outside Revenant's Toll, Aria and Yda notice the Dravanian Horde gathering in the skies and realize that Nidhogg is commencing his assault on Ishgard. Iceheart has weakened the arcane barriers on the Steps of Faith, Ishgard's main bridge. In an unprecedented move, Ishgard's ruler, Archbishop Thordan VII, reluctantly authorizes Aymeric to recruit outside aid. Minfilia and Alphinaud pledge the Scions' support, though all Alliance members decline due to Ishgard having isolated itself during the Garlean Empire's invasions. Aria recruits a band of adventurersYoshi P. confirmed that the adventurers portrayed were Cloud Strife, Aerith Gainsborough, Barret Wallace, Tifa Lockhart, Yuffie Kisaragi, Vincent Valentine, and Red XIII. and goes to Corethas, where reunites with Estinien, who has managed to control Nidhogg's influence. The Ishgardians, the adventurers, and the Scions confront Nidhogg's horde on the Steps of Faith. Vishap, one of Nidhogg's greatest and largest champions, destroys two of the three wards guarding Ishgard's gates. To protect the final ward, Lucia and her knights bear the brunt of Vishap's flames long enough for Aria and Estinien to slay Vishap, but Lucia is severely burned.
16 	The Least among Us 	Lucia's wounds are healed, but she suffers burns to her torso and right side of her face. A victory celebration is to be at Ul'dah the next week, hoping to return Ishgard to the Alliance. After the battle, Thancred learns that Wilred has gone missing and searchs for him with Yugiri in the Twelveswoods. They eventually find Wilred dead and are attacked by the murderer, Osuke. They stab each other until Osuke loses his right eye to Thancred and is forced to flee to Ul'dah. He breaks down in guilt for having murdered a young boy and berates Teledji, who threatens to murder Osuke's young son if he complains again. Meanwhile, Tataru feels useless as the Scions' receptionist and opts to become an Arcanist. Aria attempts to help her training, but it goes awry after Tataru is almost killed by a creature. Tataru aborts becoming an Arcanist and accepts her role as a receptionist. Returning to Revenant's Toll, Aria is informed by a hooded man of a planned expedition to the Crystal Tower, an ancient Allagan structure. She decides to join them to distract from her grief.
17 	Labyrinth of the Ancients 	The Crystal Tower expedition, aka NOAH (Nominated Observers of Artifacts Historical) is led by Cid, who explains that Crystal Tower has been asleep for the five thousand years since the Allagan Empire's fall. He has Aria gather flawless elemental crystals from the beast tribes across Eorzea so they can use them to breach the Tower's elemental defenses; while doing so, the hooded man observes her. Also joining the expedition is Biggs and Wedge, as well as Sharlayan scholar G'raha Tia, who takes command of NOAH. Upon breaching the outer defenses, they pass through the Labyrinth of the Ancients, where an unexpectedly large amount of Allagan defenses awaits them, including Phlegethon, the leader of a failed Allagan rebellion who was kept as an experiment. After defeating Phlegethon, NOAH arrives at the seemingly impenetrable front gates of Syrcus Tower. Two strangers named Doga and Unei arrive and offer their aid. Meanwhile, the Ascians hold a meeting to discuss Nabriales's death. Elidibus reveals he has made contact with a Scion and sends Fandaniel to observe NOAH.
18 	Syrcus Tower 	Doga and Unei open the gate with ease, prompting the hooded man to appear and reveal himself as Nero, who has secretly come to steal the massive power source at the top of the tower. Nero reveals that Allagan royals may open the gate, prompting Doga and Unei to confess that they are clones of Allagan sages who have been charged with stopping Xande, the mad emperor who was revived with the reemerged tower and seeks to sacrifice the world to the Void in pursuit of immortality. NOAH changes their objective to stopping Xande and sealing the Crystal Tower from those who would use its power for nefarious means. Fandaniel observes them as they fight through Xande's forces, including the Allagan technologist Amon (whose voice is strikingly similar to that of Fandaniel) to confront him. After Xande is killed, a voidgate opens and the queen of the void, the Cloud of Darkness, confronts them. Doga and Unei try to nullify Xande's pact, but are instead dragged into the void along with Nero as the tower continues to widen the Voidgate.
19 	The World of Darkness 	Without Doga and Unei, NOAH cannot seal the tower. G'raha decides that they must open a voidgate of their own, and rescue the twins and Nero. While debating how to do so, Igeyorhm unexpectedly arrives and opens a voidgate. She declares her hatred of the void, saying that it is "her mistake". With no other options, NOAH reluctantly accepts Igeyorhm's aid while Fandaniel reports Igeyorhm's unauthorized intervention to Elidibus, who approves of it, explaining that the chaos brought by the void is not suitable for the "Rejoinings". Moving through the Void, they eventually reach the Cloud of Darkness and defeat her, but she is unkillable in the void. Doga and Unei reveal that G'raha is the last surviving descendant of the royal Allagan bloodline and thus has the power to break Xande's pact. They sacrifice themselves to allow the party, including Nero, to escape the Void. G'raha, with his newfound ability to control the Crystal Tower, resolves to seal himself inside until mankind can be trusted with its power. Igeyorhm departs afterwards, affirming that she and Aria are now enemies.
20 	The First Coil 	In the month since the primal roar at the end of the first season, the Alliance has unsuccessfully searched for it's origin. After the Crystal Tower expedition, Alphinaud's twin sister Alisaie has discovered a mysterious cavern system near Titan's domain, where she believes the roar came from. Alisaie has also recruited the adventurers that fought on the Steps of Faith, who are eager to explore the depths. Aria joins Alisaie and the adventurers as they explore the depths to find the primal and ensure that nearby Garlean forces do not obtain the Allagan technology Dalamud's still active defensive systems possess. After discovering a colossal wing, the group descends into the Ragnarok, a starship that jettisoned from Dalamud, using its drive cylinder as a makeshift elevator. At the bottom of a chasm, they find a fearsome dragon enslaved by the Allagans, Twintiana. After slaying Twintiana, they find a massive right hand, which a horrified Alisaie realizes is Bahamut's, revealing the roar was that of Bahamut, who is slowly being regenerated by the coils.
21 	The Second Coil 	Alisaie shuts down the coil and sees that are two more regenerating Bahamut. The group reports their findings to the Waking Sands, where Alphinaud appears and insisting on accompanying them, believing that Louisoix may still be alive and held prisoner by Bahamut. Aria, Alisaie, Alphinaud and the adventurers enter the second coil and encounter Nael van Darnus, the insane leader of the previous Garlean invasion, head of Project Meteor, and legatus of the VII Imperial Legion. Nael explains that he was killed by adventurers, but his spirit was revived by Bahamut, who named him Nael "Deus" Darnus. Descending deeper into the coils, the group is attacked by Nael; Alisaie shoots his helmet off, revealing Nael is in fact a white haired female Hyur highlander bearing the Garlemald birthmark. "Nael" transforms into a dragon-like monster and battles Aria and the adventurers, but is defeated. Regaining her sanity, she explains that she took on Nael's identity after their father (whom she murdered) sent him on a suicide mission. "Nael" is then executed by Louisoix, who is alive and serving Bahamut.
22 	The Final Coil 	Aria and her group listen as Louisiox reveals to his stunned grandchildren the origins of Bahamut: a fallen great wyrm of the ancient first brood, whom the dragons of Meracydia summoned as a primal against the Allagan invasion five thousand years ago, only for the deity to end up bound by the Allagans in Dalamud. Aria rejects his demands that they leave and shuts down the second coil, so Louisoix transforms into a phoenix and attacks them. Upon his defeat, Louisiox regains his sanity and explains what happened at Carteneau. During a failed attempt to summon the Twelve, Eorzea's guardian deities, Louisiox was infused with the power of a primal. He shattered Bahamut's form, but his spirit refused to perish and enthralled Louisoix. Bidding farewell to his grandchildren, Louisoix uses the last of his power to teleport everyone to the final coil. After defeating Bahamut's essence in the form of "Bahamut Prime", the coil is shut down, finally killing Bahamut. Afterwards, they hold a private memorial for Louisoix, whose revival they keep secret. Alisaie reconciles with Alphinaud and departs on her own journey.
23 	The Parting Glass 	Aria and Alphinaud arrive on Lily in time to attend the banquet in Ul'dah, where Nanamo summons Aria for a private meeting. Nanamo reveals her plans to dissolve the monarchy and make Ul'dah a democratic republic. However, Nanamo succumbs to poisoned wine and collapses; Teledji immediately accuses Aria and the Scions of regicide. Raubahn instead accuses Teledji, who arrogantly replies by mocking Nanamo; in a grief-fueled rage, Raubahn kills Teledji. He also tries to kill Lolorito, but Ilberd severs his left arm, revealing the Crystal Braves are actually in the pay of Lolorito. Most of the Scions stay behind to cover their escape from Osuke and the Crystal Braves, but Yda is killed when Ilberd snipes her with an arrow. Minfilia also elects to stay behind after hearing Hydaelyn's voice, only to be suddenly attacked by Lahabrea and Igeyorhm. Only Aria and a humbled Alphinaud escape, aided by Lily and Raubahn's adopted son Pipin Tarupin. Cid takes them to Coerthas, where Haurchefant grants them asylum. In a post credits scene, Elidibus speaks to the Scion he contacted: Urianger.
=== Season 3 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	Coming to Ishgard 	Tataru and Yugiri, having escaped the Crystal Braves at Revenant's Toll, rendezvous with Aria and Alphinaud at Corethas. As wards of Horse Fortemps, which Haurchefant is an illegitimate member of, the four Scions are allowed refuge within Ishgard. They meet Count Edmont Fortemps, House Fortemps' patriarch, who welcomes them. While exploring the city together, they pass by the Vault and learn of King Thordan I and his Knights Twelve, who took Nidhogg's original eye 1000 years ago in battle. In graditude, Alphinaud helps Edmont's young son Emmanellain spy on the Vanu Vanu tribe in the Sea of Clouds region, where they witness the summoning of their flying whale-like primal, Bismarck. Meanwhile, Lolorito consolidates power in Ul'dah. He imprisons Raubahn, keeps Osuke's family hostage, and calls off the deal Teledji had made with the Garleans to surrender Ul'dah to them in their upcoming invasion in exchange for ruling as the new Sultana. In the aetherical sea (where souls go to reincarnate after they die), Minfilia awakens and is met by Hydaelyn, who asks for her help.
2 	At the End of Our Hope 	Emmanellain is captured by the Vanu Vanu, and has to be saved by Alphinaud and Haurchefant. Meanwhile, Aria meets with Edmont's elder son Artoriel in Falcon's Nest, an Ishgardian outpost in the Coerthas Western Highlands, where the Ishgardians have tracked Iceheart's hiding place. Aria determines the hideout's location by following a lost heretic in the snow on Lily. However, an archer notices them and fatally shoots Lily. Enraged, Aria storms the hideout and massacres every heretic inside, including those who surrender. When Iceheart attempts to stop her, Aria brutally beats her and breaks her left arm. Midgardsormr interrupts, which prompts Iceheart to reveal she has the Echo, which allowed her to see the truth behind the Dragonsong War through the eyes of Hraesvelgr, one of the first brood. Aria dismisses Iceheart's justifications and knocks her unconscious, reminding her of the innocents who died at the Steps of Faith. Meanwhile, Papalymo is revealed to have escaped Ul'dah with Yda's body via teleportation. Papalymo buries Yda near Moenbryda's memorial, then sets off towards Ala Mhigo to fulfill Yda's last request.
3 	Divine Intervention 	Iceheart is taken into Ishgardian custody to be executed the following day. Returning to Ishgard, Aria discovers that Alphinaud and Tataru have been accused of heresy by the Heavens' Ward, Thordan's personal guard led by Ser Zephirin. Aymeric is unable to overrule the Heavens' Ward, and the only way to for Alphinaud and Tataru to prove their innocence is a trial by combat against two of the Heavens' Ward. Owing to his magical talents, Alphinaud must fight, but Tataru claims the right to name Aria as her champion. Aria and Alphinaud secure victory, and the former is summoned for a private audience with Thordan. He reveals that he had Alphinaud and Tataru arrested as part of a deal with Lahabrea and Igeyorhm, who offered their magicks to save Ishgard. Though he declines to reveal the deal's details, Thordan assures Aria that he intends to double-cross them later. When Haurchefant notices Aria's grief for Lily, he presents Aria with a gift: a fully trained black chocobo that is capable of flight. Aria tearfully thanks Haurchefant and names her "Moencardo" as rememberance for Ricardo and Moenbryda.
4 	Keeping the Flame Alive 	In flashbacks, Thordan meets with Igeyorhm, Lahabrea and Elidibus, who tempt him with promises of power from "Azys Lla". After the meeting, Elidibus chastises Lahabrea and Igeyorhm for attacking Minfilia, claiming Hydaelyn has gained an "advantage" from it. It is revealed that Igeyorhm has had her memories of the Ascians' goals stripped from her as punishment for botching an earlier "Rejoining", and is working to get them back. Meanwhile, Yugiri informs the Scions that Merlwyb received an anonymous tip detailing Raubahn's location. Yugiri, Aria, and Alphinaud find the dungeon where Raubahn is being held. Osuke and many Crystal Braves attempt to stop them from freeing Raubahn but are defeated. Ilberd forces Osuke to flood the room with poison gas. However, Aria finds that Osuke's family is imprisoned with Raubahn; hearing their cries, Osuke turns on Ilberd and shuts the gas off, forcing him to flee. With his family safe, Osuke surrenders to the Scions and is taken to the Waking Sands, where Yugiri judges him for his crimes and Raubahn demands answers.
5 	Alphinaud's Way 	Osuke explains that his family was intercepted by Teledji's thugs shortly before Yugiri and the other Domans left for Revenant's Toll, and that Teledji had him free Eline to advance his deal with the Garleans. Lolorito, wary of the Garleans, decided to usurp Teledji's plot and replaced Nanamo's intended poison with sleeping drugs. Osuke further reveals Yda's death to the group and that the other Scions remain missing. The Scions refuse to forgive Osuke for murdering Wilred; Yugiri exiles him back into Doma alone, promising to let his family reunite with him if he survives until the country's liberation. Heartbroken and tired of bloodshed, Alphinaud convinces Aria to help him try and negotiate an end to the Dragonsong War with Nidhogg. While Raubahn recovers, Alphinaud and Aria return to Ishgard, where Estinien overhears their plot and insists on accompanying them. Against Aria and Estinien's objections, Alphinaud decides that they need Iceheart as an intermediary. Meanwhile, Papalymo is found by a group of Crystal Braves, but he kills them all and continues towards Ala Mhigo.
6 	From One Heretic to Another 	Artoriel, who had not informed the public of Iceheart's arrest for security reasons, reluctantly allows her release after Estinien promises to kill Iceheart if she tries to escape. Alphinaud begins to heal Iceheart's wounds before Aria stops him out of spite. Iceheart reveals her past: born Ysayle Dangoulain, she first gained the Echo at a young age and recieved visions of Nidhogg's brother Hraesvelgr and Shiva, the entity she summoned into herself. When a massive avalanche destroyed her hometown and killed her family, a wandering Ysayle crossed path with Hraesvelgr and lived near the Dragons. At adulthood, some of her dragon friends were killed by the knights of the Holy See (Isghard's ruling church) and took up the name of "Lady Iceheart" to create a cult under the name of Shiva, Hraesvelgr's ancient lover. Admitting her extremist methods have failed, Ysayle notes that Nidhogg is too consumed with rage to be negotiated with. Instead, Alphinaud suggests that they find and parley with Hraesvelgr. Aria, Moencardo, Ysayle, Estinien, Alphinaud enter Dravania and rest for the night at the Tallfeather settlement.
7 	Lord of the Hive 	As Alphinaud's group continues their journey, Ysayle tries to apologize for Lily's death. Though Aria sympathizes with her losses, she does not feel reget for killing Ysayle's heretics and refuses to let her ride Moencardo. Tensions between Estinien and Ysayle grow as they pass a site which Ysayle claims is a relic of when Dragons and Man lived in peace, which Estinien dismisses as lies. They reach the tower of Anyx Trine, where Hraesvelgr's daughter, Vidofnir, lives. Vidofnir is unable to abandon his post to guide them to Sohm Al, the only way to the upper parts of Dravania, because the nearby Gnath tribe has summoned their primal, Ravana. Ysayle and Aria provoke the Gnath into capturing them as sacrifices for Ravana, allowing Ysayle to use the nearby aetheryte to transform into Shiva again. Ravana, however, defeats Shiva. Aria takes over fighting Ravana and manages to defeat him. Ysayle is surprised at Shiva's loss, having believed she was stronger than any primal, but rejoins the others as Vidofnir helps them reach Sohm Al. However, Nidhogg's minions stand in their way.
8 	Beyond the Clouds 	Vidofnir explains that Sohm Al is revered by the dragons as both holy ground and resting place. Nidhogg's minions will not tolerate their intrusion, and Vidofnir refuses to help Alphinaud's group fight his kin. Ysayle, Estinien, Aria and Alphinaud battle their way through both dragons and man-eating plants until Nidhogg's consort, Tioman, confronts them. Ysayle pleads with Tioman to let them pass in peace, but Estinien cuts her off and attacks Tioman, who is killed by Aria. Estinien senses Nidhogg's increasing rage through the eye, and the group enters the Churning Mists. They encounter a band of Moogles who hide from Alphinaud's group, but re-emerge after Kuplo Kopp, who had moved here after the Thornmarch incident, recognizes Aria. Chieftain Moglin assigns the group to hours of menial tasks while his Moogles repair the horn used to summon Hraesvelgr. The group heads towards Zenith, a majestic fortress in Hraesvelgr's domain, and sets up camp for the night. Alphinaud and Aria reminisce about their past and fallen friends, while Papalymo arrives in Ala Mhigo and searches for a woman named "Lyse".
9 	Heart of Ice 	The next morning, Alphinaud's group rides to the top of Zenith. Hraesvelgr answers the call of the horn, but dismisses Ysayle's claims to be Shiva reborn, revealing that the "Shiva" she communes with is just a primal that her faith created. Hraesvelgr speaks of Midgardsormr's arrival on the star. Of his seven children, Hraesvelgr, Ratatoskr, and Nidhogg settled in Eorzea. Nidhogg distrusted mortals after ancient Allag slew Bahamut and imprisoned Tiamat. Shiva had Hraesvelgr devour her, so their souls would be linked forever. The ensuing peace ended when King Thordan I and his knights murdered Ratatoskr, consuming her eyes for power. Nidhogg, in his fury, slew King Thordan, swearing undying vengeance on his descendants. Hraesvelgr rejects peace, judging Nidhogg's cause just. Leaving a completely disillusioned Ysayle behind, Estinien declares that only Nidhogg's death can end the Dragonsong War. Aria, Alphinaud and Estinien visit Cid, who has set up in Ishgard with Biggs and Wedge. They begin constructing airships to reach Nidhogg's abode, the Aery, when Tataru arrives with news of the Sultana.
10 	Awakening in Ul'dah 	Yugiri has information that Meriel, the sultana's former lady-in-waiting, is hiding somewhere in the Silver Bazaar just outside of Ul'Dah. Just as the Scions and Raubahn find her, Lolorito personally appears. He explains the true events of the coup: Teledji, Lolorito's main rival on the Syndicate, offered to let Lolorito take his place as chairman of the Syndicate while he became Sultana. Lolorito was dismayed by Teledji's deal with the Garleans and altered his plan to cripple the Royalists, stop Nanamo's planned abdication, slay his main rival, and consolidate his power; he claims he would have freed the Scions if they had surrendered. When Ilberd wanted Raubahn executed, Lolorito deemed him a liability and anonymously tipped off Merlwyb to Raubahn's location so he could be rid of Ilberd. Lolorito gives Nanamo's antidote to Raubahn, who reluctantly spares him and aids Nanamo in returning to rule. Afterwards, Alphinaud gathers the remaining loyal braves and announces his intent to disband the organization; instead, they choose to stay with Alphinaud, restoring his confidence.
11 	Into the Aery 	Aria and Alphinaud return to Ishgard to find that Cid has finished working on the airships. Aymeric is unable to join them due to his responsibilities in the city and Estinien believes the mission is too dangerous for Alphinaud to come as well. Instead, Aria and Estinien fly to the Aery with Haurchefant, who is eager to see the war end. An aerial encounter with Nidhogg separates Aria and Haurchefant from Estinien. The two fight their way through the Aery's defenses and eventually arrive at Nidhogg's perch. Estinien uses the power of the eye to protect them from Nidhogg's wrath, and Aria is able to overpower Nidhogg. He attempts to fly away, but Estinien jumps onto him and uses his lance to stab out Nidhogg's remaining eye, killing him. Afterwards, Aria and Estinien report to Hrasevelgr, who admits to giving Nidhogg one of his eyes after King Thordan's knights took both of Nidhogg's, leaving the second eye's whereabouts unknown. Meanwhile, Lahabrea is revealed to be teaching the Heavens' Ward to become primals. In exchange, Lahabrea orders Thordan to kill Aria.
12 	A Knight's Calling 	When Ysayle's heretics start a riot in Ishgard, she returns to dissade them. Aria and Estinien allow her to leave Ishgard in peace, then reveal the truth of the war to Aymeric, who is revealed to be Thordan's illegitimate son. Aymeric confronts Thordan, who admits that he and his ancestors knowingly decieved the people for the past thousand years and refuses to allow him to reveal the truth. Thordan has Zephirin imprison Aymeric for his "heresy". Meanwhile, Aria, Lucia, Haurchefaunt, Alphinaud and Estinien rally the Temple Knights and commoners to overthrow Thordan. The pyromaniac Ser Charibert catches wind of this plot and a revolt ensues throughout Ishgard. Aria, Haurchefant and Alphinaud fight through the Heavens' Ward, including Charibert, to arrest Thordan while the Temple Knights free Aymeric. When Aria and Haurchefant confront Thordan, a transformed Zephirin throws a spear at Aria from behind. Haurchefant notices and tries to stop the spear, which impales him; Alphinaud fails to heal Haurchefant, who dies in Aria's arms as Thordan and the Heavens' Ward escape on their airship.
13 	Bolt, Chain, and Island 	In Ala Mhigo, Papalymo finds Lyse, who breaks down in tears after he tells her of Yda's death. The devastated Scions and House Fortemps mourn Haurchefant, with Aria swearing revenge. Alphinaud surmises that the Heavens' Ward are using their bodies as vessels for the souls of King Thordan's Knights, just as Ysayle did with Shiva. Aria and Alphinaud follow Thordan's airship, the Soleil, to the Sea of Clouds, where they find that the VII Imperial Legion led by Regula van Hydrus also seeks "Azys Lla". Aria and Alphinaud protect a passive Vanu Vanu tribe from the Garleans, and learn that the only key to Azys Lla is with Bismarck. Cid equips the Enterprise with the required chains and ballistae to restrain Bismarck, allowing Aria to slay him and obtain the key. The Soleil then arrives, and Thordan orders Zephirin to kill Aria for the key. Aria overpowers and nearly kills Zephirin, but is then subdued by Lahabrea and Igeyorhm. Lahabrea mockingly reveals Minfilia's apparent death to Aria and tosses her to the clouds below; though Moencardo rescues her, the Soleil escapes and uses the key to enter Azys Lla.
14 	A Difference of Opinion 	Believing that Lahabrea may have been lying, the physically and mentally exhausted Aria hides Minfilia's apparent death from Alphinaud and attempts to rest at the Vanu Vanu village, only to find it under attack by the Garleans, who are led by Emperor Varis himself. Varis reveals Azys Lla is an ancient facility that the Allagans used to bind primals to their will, which the Garleans seek to replicate. Aria sends Alphinaud away on Moencardo to seek help and, to stall the Garleans from slaughtering the Vanu Vanu, challenges Varis to a duel. Seeing her fatigue, Varis accepts and is able to overpower her. Before the Garleans can execute Aria, Alphinaud returns with Lucia, who opens fire with a magitek walker. Varis retreats with Regula, calling Lucia a "traitor" and vowing that he and Aria will meet again. Lucia reveals to Alphinaud and Aria that she is Livia's sister. She was sent as a spy to Isghard, but fell in love with Aymeric and chose to abandon Lucia and the Empire for him. Blocked by Azys Lla's protection barrier, the Scions turn back to Ishgard. After a night's rest, Aria awakens the next morning to find that Tataru has gone missing.
15 	Lost in the Lifestream 	In flashbacks, Elidibus sees potential in Urianger's demeanor and intelligence. Lahabrea, seeking reprisal for his earlier defeat and Nabriales' death, decides instead to murder Urianger, but Elidibus stops him and plays chess with Urianger. Lahabrea still wants to kill a Scion, so Urianger tells him of the Scions being at the banquet in Ul'dah and that Minfilia's death would cripple them. Lahabrea goes there with Igeyorhm and attacks Minfilia, though her body vanishes in a bright light afterwards. Urianger thus earns Elidibus' trust, becomes his liaison, and is allowed to search for his friends in peace. After the meeting with Thordan, Elidibus believes Aria is no longer a threat without Hydaelyn's blessing, though Lahabrea disagrees. In the presentTaking place a week later, following the events of the Dark Knight special., Urianger surmises that Y'shtola invoked a forbidden teleportation magick and was sent into the Lifestream, where she will die if she stays for too long. Alphinaud, Tataru, and Aria obtain the aid of Y'shtola's sister, who lives in Gridania. With her aether, Kan-E-Senna performs a ritual that extracts Y'shtola from the Lifestream intact.
16 	An Illuminati Incident 	Y'shtola reunites with her friends, is given a new outfit by Tataru, and learns of the recent events. She suggests that her mentor, Matoya, may be able to build an aetheric ram strong enough to break through Azys Lla's barrier. They journey to the west of Dravnia atop Moencardo, during which Aria confesses what Lahabrea told her about Minfilia; both Alphinaud and Y'shtola are content that he was lying. Aria, Alphinaud and Y'shtola arrive in the Dravanian Hinterlands, a former colony of Sharlayan which has now been taken over by friendly goblins. In exchange for passage through the settlement of Idyllshire, the goblin Snowfix asks them to rescue his friend Brayflox (who Aria had met while retrieving the cheese shipment for the Company of Heroes) from the Illuminati, a secretive organization of goblins who strive for domination of the world's technologies. The Scions rescue Brayflox and leave Idyllshire for Matoya's cave. Meanwhile, Papalymo takes Lyse, who is revealed to be Yda's sister, to Yda's grave. After mourning, Lyse puts on Yda's mask (which Papalymo kept) and vows to preserve her sister's memory.
17 	Forbidden Knowledge 	Y'shtola reunites with Matoya in her cave. Matoya shares a tale of her work on a device known as an aetheric converger, and how it led to a bitter falling-out between her and her peers. The fruits of her research were apparently compiled within a tome which now lies sealed within the Great Gubal Library, which was abandoned in the face of Garlean invasion. The tome lies within the forsaken section of the library, where Matoya warns that many magical defenses are in place. When Aria, Y'shtola and Alphinaud go there, Igeyorhm activates the defenses and forces them to fight their way to the tome, during which they hear sounds of ice magic and Igeyorhm launching attacks at an unseen opponent. Eventually, the Scions retrieve the tome and Aria has an Echo vision of Elidibus stripping a tearful Igeyorhm of her memories of the Ascians' origins for botching the Rejoining in a place called "the Thirteenth". As the Scions leave, they find Igeyorhm subduing her attacker, who is revealed to be Ysayle, and preparing to kill her.
18 	Thawing of a Heart of Ice 	As a child, Ysayle's family are rejected asylum in Ishgard shortly before the avalanche destroys her hometown. In the present, Ysayle stops her heretics from rioting in Ishgard, declares the Dragonsong War over, and orders them to disband. However, some heretics seek vengeance against Ishgard and Aria for their losses. Ysayle reveals the truth behind the war to them and recalls how Aria went on her rampage because of Lily's death, explaining that their hatred will only invite more suffering. The heretics stand down and Ysayle, knowing that she would not be welcome in Ishgard for the bloodshed she caused, consults Hraesvelgr for a new purpose. Learning his brood witnessed Aria heading to the Great Gubal Library and that an Ascian was also spotted there, Ysayle convinces Hraesvelgr to fly her to the library, where she fights Igeyorhm and is eventually overpowered. As she is about to execute Ysayle, Igeyorhm is decapitated from behind by Aria, whom Alphinaud has persuaded to help. After Igeyorhm's soul flees, a reinvigorated Ysayle swears to help her stop Thordan.
19 	The First Flight of the Excelsior	With the tome, Matoya creates the aetheric ram and Aria's group returns to Ishgard, where Ysayle insists on not wearing a disguise and allows herself to be heckled by some commoners, including a young girl who lost her elder brother to Iceheart's attacks. Alphinaud surmises that Nidhogg's eye will provide enough to power the aetheric ram, which Cid places upon the new and improved Enterprise Excelsior. Urianger arrives to gift Aria a white auracite, found among Moenbryda lost effects. After goodbyes to their allies, Cid, Ysayle, Y'shtola, Alphinaud, Estinien, and Aria journey to Azys Lla, revealed to be a floating colony, and break through the barrier. During the flight, Aria and Alphinaud forgive Ysayle and ask her to join the Scions after Thordan is defeated. Ysayle's reply is interrupted when Cid spots the new Garlean flagship, the Gration, which had been waiting for the Scions to break the barrier. It opens fire on the Enterprise Excelsior, which crashes on Azys Lla. Aria awakens to find that Estinien shielded the group with Nidhogg's eye, but the white auracite was destroyed.
20 	Systematic Exploration 	After arriving on Azys Lla, Thordan and the Heavens' Ward are gleefully guided through the facility by Fandaniel, who is nostalgic for Allagan technology and ruins. Thordan and the Heavens' Ward are increasingly annoyed with Fandaniel's showboating and attention for detail at the experiments they pass. Fandaniel reveals that Azys Lla is a prison for the Warring Triad, a trio of Sixth Astral Era primals, and proposes that they can provide Thordan the power he was promised. When Zephirin notices the Gration and Enterprise Excelsior arriving, Thordan orders Fandaniel to immediately teleport them to the looming Allagan flagship. After doing so, Fandaniel appears before the Scions and gives a bewildered Aria another white auracite before disappearing. Meanwhile, Papalymo and Lyse learn that the Scions have been exonerated for the Sultana's poisoning. Rather than return to them, however, they decide to remain in hiding to investigate a faction within the Ala Mhigan Resistance known as "the Masks" and their mysterious leader, the Griffin.
21 	Fetters of Lament 	The Scions do not trust Fandaniel but have no other options left to kill the Ascians than to rely on his white auracite. They find an active guidance node, which guides the Scions through the quadrants of Azys Lla and reveals that Thordan is headed to the Aetherochemical Research Facility on the flagship. The Scions cannot fly there as Aria had left Moencardo behind in Ishgard for her safety and Ysayle believes she cannot summon Shiva without crystals. Regula and the VI Legion eventually notice that the Scions survived, and a battle ensues. Regula withdraws and heads for the flagship, while Aria continues alone, taking Nidhogg's eye with her, and the others hold off Garlean reinforcements. Aria finds an imprisoned Tiamat, who reveals that she was seduced by the promises of the Ascians to summon Bahamut as a primal and willingly endures her imprisonment in guilt. Midgardsormr reappears and, finally convinced of Aria's worthiness, allows her to restore Hydaelyn's blessing. After Aria briefly hears Minfilia's voice mixed with Hydaelyn's, Midgardsormr transforms into a mount and flies Aria to the flagship.
22 	Heavensward Part One 	Lahabrea senses that Hydaelyn's blessing has been restored to Aria and goes to Igeyorhm, who has taken a new body; both agree that she must be immediately dealt with. They consider slaughtering the Scions first, but decide to conserve their strength for Aria and await her on the flagship. Ysayle notices the Ascians and is able to transform into Shiva, carrying Estinien to the flagship. The other Scions help Cid repair the Enterprise Excelsior. Meanwhile, Aria fights her way through the Aetherochemical Research Facility, defeating both Allagan experiments and Garleans, including Regula, who flees the flagship. She is eventually confronted by Igeyorhm and Lahabrea, and overpowers them. Lahabrea and Igeyorhm fuse into an Ascian Prime, but are still defeated. To avenge Ricardo and Minfilia, Aria traps Lahabrea in Fandaniel's white auracite and shatters it with the power of Nidhogg's eye, killing him. Thordan arrives, absorbing Nidhogg's other eye and the weakened Igeyorhm, and with their aether transforms into King Thordan, a primal powered by a millennium of Ishgardian prayer.
23 	Heavensward Part Two 	Aria meets Thordan and the Heavens' Ward in battle. Despite their combined power, they are all slain by Aria, except Zephirin, who channels the mysterious emotion-based energy that Rhitahtyn used to heal his wounds. After an intense duel, Aria manages to kill Zephirin just as Ysayle and Estinien arrive. Estinien, relieved, intends to seal away Nidhogg's eyes, but Nidhogg's still-lingering spirit exploits this lapse and possesses him, reforming his body in it's prime and attacking Aria. Ysayle, as Shiva, fights Nidhogg to buy time for Aria to escape and is killed. The Gration attacks again, only to be destroyed by Nidhogg, leaving Regula and the VI Legion stranded in Azys Lla. The devastated Scions return to Ishgard, where Midgardsormr warns that Nidhogg will return to resume the war. As Thordan's illegitimate son, Aymeric becomes acting ruler, and Ishgard rejoins the Alliance. Aria and Alphinaud mourn at Haurchefant's grave, swearing to save Estinien. In a post-credits scene, Fandaniel hides his glee in reporting Igeyorhm and Lahabrea's deaths to Elidibus, who subsequently recruits the "Warriors of Darkness".
=== Dark Knight Series ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	Our End 	Throughout her journey, Aria grows increasingly traumatized and unstable with the losses of her friends. In Ishgard, Aria searches for the missing TataruTataru had disappeared at the end of the episode "A Difference of Opinion. and stumbles upon the corpse of a man executed during a trial by combat arranged by Thordan-allied knights. Touching a mysterious crystal near the body, Aria blacks out and wakes up to find the "corpse" rising and introducing himself as Fray. He explains that he is a Dark Knight, warriors who embrace their inner darkness to punish the guilty as they see fit regardles of the law, and that darkness is now building up in Aria due to her touching his crystal. They soon hear screams of Tataru being kidnapped by the Thordan-allied knights, who are implied to be rapists. Embracing her darkness, Aria slaughters the knights, including those who surrender, in front of horrified civilians and Alphinaud. When Tataru also becomes terrified of the blood-soaked Aria, she goes on a destructive rant about her burdens and then leaves with Fray, opting to follow the path of the Dark Knight despite his warnings about it's burdens.
2 	As Goes Light, So Goes Darkness	Tataru and Alphinaud answer to Aymeric and Edmont for Aria's rampage. The trio realize that Aria is mentally succumbing to the weight of her burdens and losses. Feeling that Haurchefaunt would want him to help Aria, Edmont works with them to research Fray, learning that Fray was an orphan of the Brume and was put on the Dark Knight's path when his future master found him plotting revenge over the body of a friend unjustly executed by the Holy See. He proved an inquisitive student eager to study both the book-bound and physical aspects. Meanwhile, Fray and Aria journey to Little Ala Mhigo, where a merchant asks Aria to retrieve his stolen goods from the Amalj'aa encampment. Aria and Fray slaughter the Amalj'aa, but heavily damage the goods, causing the merchant to demand compensation. Livid, Fray severely beats the merchant and leaves to commune with Aria. She hears a voice repeating "Serve...Save...Slave...Slay..." Fray claims that sacrifice is to renounce that which binds you and suggests that Aria give up the path of the dark knight before it becomes too much of a burden, but she wishes to continue.
3 	Our Answer 	Alphinaud, Edmont, and Tataru retrace Aria's rampage in Ishgard and come across the site where she met Fray; they become frantic upon seeing something and surmise that Aria will appear at the fort where she met Haurchefant, and have the knights there search for Aria in Coerthas. Meanwhile, Fray and Aria go to Coerthas, where a knight finds Aria and tells her that she is facing allegations of talking to a corpse in Ishgard. They go to Haurchefant's fort, where Fray has attacked and injured everyone there, including Alphinaud and Tataru, who call Fray by Aria's name; the real Fray was dead when they first met, and the Fray that Aria has journeyed with is a manifestation of her darkness and trauma. Fray attempts to take over Aria's body and they fight; Edmont assures Aria that she will always be a hero that Eorzea will respect, and Aria forces Fray into another communion. Fray has a change of heart and decides to stay inside Aria's head, watching her darkness stability grow. Aria reconciles with her friends and oversees Fray being properly buried.
4 	The Wages of Mercy 	In flashbacks, Sidurgu Orl and his family flee Doma and seek refuge in Ishgard. Due to misconceptions of Au Ra being of Dravanian descent, they were slaughtered indiscriminately, but Sidurgu was saved by the dark knight Ompagne Deepblack, who trained Sidurgu and Fray in his ways. After Ompagne's death, Sidurgu and Fray search for the meaning of "The Flame of the Abyss" mentioned by their master on his deathbed, and interfere in the Holy See's pursuit of a young Elezen girl by the name of Rielle. Fray is captured and executed, while Sidurgu escapes with Rielle. In the present, after Fray's funeral, Aria affirms to Alphinaud and Tataru that she has accepted her burdens, but wishes to have some time alone before they resume their search for the Scions and Thordan. She is ambushed by Knights seeking revenge for her massacre at Ishgard; she kills all but one knight, whom she spares, but he is then killed by Sidurgu. Seeing that Aria is another dark knight, they share a drink at a tavern in Ishgard. He introduces Aria to Rielle and asks for her help.
5 	For Those We Have Lost 	Aymeric, who is working to halt the Holy See's influence, confronts the woman who ordered the Temple Knights to pursue Rielle and execute Fray: Ystride de Caulignont, who still holds considerable authority and rebuffs his objections. Since Ystride appears to be convinced that Rielle is some sort of abomination, Sidurgu wishes to determine if there is anything unusual about her. Whilst being pursued by Ystride's knights, Aria and Sidurgu consult the friendly Vanu Vanus, Kan-E-Senna's brother E–Sumi–Yan, and Vidofnir. They are eventually confronted by Ystride, who challenges the trio to a trial by combat the following day, threatening to have her knights murder Alphinaud and Tataru if they refuse. As she leaves, Rielle cries out to Ystride and is revealed to be her daughter. Rielle explains that her father was a heretic who had been consuming dragon blood for years. After killing him, Ystride realized her daughter shared the heretics' blood. With religious zeal, Ystride locked away her daughter for her entire childhood out of fear of what she might become.
6 	Absolution 	Though annoyed that Rielle hid her past from them, Sidurgu and Aria affirm their desire to help and be rid of Ystride. At the dragons' advice, the trio visit the moogles in the Sea of Clouds, where Rielle soon goes missing. After the moogles claim to have kidnapped Rielle, Sidurgu flies into a rage, beats the moogles, and cites his oath as a dark knight when asked why he protects Rielle, prompting the moogles to burst into song, extolling the virtues of love. Rielle, who faked her kidnapping, accused Sidurgu of only caring about his own quest for vengeance and not her. Sidurgu agrees, and says that after they win the trial by combat, Rielle is free to do as she pleases. The next day, Aria, Sidurgu and Rielle meet Ystride for the trial, defeating her and killing all of her remaining knights. Seeking "absolution", Ystride vows to never stop hunting Rielle, forcing Sidurgu to kill Ystride. Afterwards, Rielle chooses to remain with Sidurgu, while a now stable Aria feels she has mastered the darkness within her and returns her to friends as a dark knight rather than a dragoon.
=== Season 4 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	An Uncertain Future 	Three weeks after Thordan's defeat, the Scions are still searching for their remaining comrades. Unrest has grown in Ishgard due to tensions with the Holy See's clergy, who are poised to lose their influence now that Thordan is gone. Desperate to secure a lasting peace with Dravania before Nidhogg strikes again, Aymeric has Aria fly Lucia on Moencardo for a meeting with Viodfnir, who is noncommittal towards peace. In Idyllshire, the Scions are met by Alphinaud and Alisaie's lalafell Sharlayan mentor, Krile Baldesion, who possesses the Echo. With Matoya's aid, Krile is able to trace the aetheric essence of Thancred, who was caught in Y'shtola's teleport spell at Ul'dah. They find him at the Gnath stronghold, where the Gnath have summoned Ravana once more. However, Ravana is quickly dispatched by the Warriors of Darkness, revealed to be a band of adventurers. After a brief fight, the Warriors withdraw. Thancred reunites with his friends, revealing the nearby Vath tribe took him in after he emerged in the wilderness. Meanwhile, Aymeric is stabbed in the face by a clergyman.
2 	As Goes Light, So Goes Darkness 	Aymeric survives his assassination attempt with extensive scarring to the right side of his face. Across the city, a rebel action calling themselves the "True Brothers of the Faith" stage an open revolt and set fire to most of the city, before taking hostages and sealing themselves in the Vault. Though weakened, Aymeric takes command of the Temple Knights and leads them and the Scions in an armed assault on the Vault. While Aymeric stalls the rebel leader, a knight named Simeonard, the Scions rescue the hostages and then help him kill Simeonard. The last rebel, a priest, takes Maelie, the young girl that had heckled Ysayle earlier, hostage and tosses her over a balcony; Vidofnir, who had come to warn Ishgard of Nidhogg's movements, sees this and saves Maelie, providing hope for peace in the minds of onlookers. Afterwards, Y'shtola observes that Thancred's aetheric flow has been disrupted, preventing him from wielding all magicks, teleportation included. He is updated on recent events, and is dismayed that the Scions chose to spare Osuke.
3 	The Word of the Mother 	In flashbacks, F'lhaminn is separated from Tataru while fleeing Revenant's Toll and is forced to kill a Crystal Brave that attacks her. She returns to where she had hidden after the Calamity until the situation calms down. In the present, F'lhaminn reunites with Aria and insists on helping to find Minfilia. Krile learns that Minfilia was also caught in Y'shtola's spell, and surmises Minfilia was teleported away by Hydaelyn into the aetherical sea. Matoya grants Y'shtola, F'lhaminn, Thancred, and Aria access to the Antitower, which can grant direct access to the aetherical sea. After they fight through it's guardians, Hydaelyn summons Aria and F'lhaminn. Minfilia appears and reveals that she gave up her soul to Hydaelyn, becoming her avatar. Through Minfilia, Hydaelyn explains that her battle with Zodiark, split the planet into thirteen reflections. The Ascians have so far orchestrated seven "Rejoinings" to merge each shard into Zodiark and weaken Hydaelyn, with Igeyorhm having botched the first on the Thirteenth shard. F'lhaminn tearfully bids farewell to her daughter and returns to the Scions with Aria.
4 	One Final Journey 	In flashbacks, F'lhaminn and her husband, Niellefresne, accidentally kill Minfilia's father, Warburton, during a stunt in Ul'dah. Guilt-ridden, Niellefresne attempts to use the magical Heartstrike dagger to revive Warburton, only to be assassinated by thieves. F'lhaminn takes Minfilia as her child as penance for her role in the tragedy. Minfilia treats F'lhaminn coldly at first but eventually warms up to her. In the present, the grief-stricken Scions mourn Minfilia's sacrifice; Thancred has a emotional breakdown over his inability to save people and Alphinaud begins to suffer one as well until Matoya snaps him out of it. She suggests hiding Minfilia's sacrifice from the other Scions, but Aria refuses. F'lhaminn finds Thancred and tells him Minfilia's past. For closure, F'lhaminn asks him and Aria to accompany her to the Church of Saint Adama Landama, where Niellefresne is buried. Together, they bury a gemstone that had special meaning to Minfilia and say their final goodbyes. Tired of losing their friends, Aria and Alphinaud affirm that they will save Estinien from Nidhogg at all costs.
5 	For Those We Have Lost 	The next day, Alphinaud, Thancred, and Aria return to Ishgard, where Aymeric reveals he has scheduled a peace conference with Dravania in Falcon's Nest, to be attended by Vidofnir. They and Emmanellain are preparing for the conference when Aria is drugged by tampered wine. With Aria incapacitated, protestors cry for vengeance against the Dravanians, and Emmanellain, in a panic, commands a nearby knight to act. The knight misinterprets the order and shoots the protestors' leader with two arrows, severely injuring her and prompting several protestors to turn violent and injure Emmanellain's young servant, Honoroit. Emmanellain refuses to accept responsibility and lashes out at Thancred, who punches him and then recounts Ricardo's death, telling Emmanellain that he must live with the guilt as he is. When Aria wakes up, she and Alphinaud tell Aymeric the climate must be calmed before the conference can take place. Aymeric proposes a "Grand Melee" between Ishgard and Eorzea's three Grand Companies, hoping a victory will restore pride and unity for Ishgard.
6 	A Spectacle for the Ages 	Aria is selected to represent Ishgard in the Grand Melee, as well as Emmanellain, who has accepted fault for the riot at Falcon's Nest. He gives Aria armor representing House Fortemps, which reminds Aria of Haurchefant. In the Grand Melee, Raubahn, Merlwyb and Kan-E-Senna decide to personally represent their nations in the melee, with Raubahn eager for the opportunity to spar with Aria. Emmanellain and the Ishgard soldiers hold off the opposition, while Aria defeats Merlwyb in hand-to-hand combat and Kan-E-Senna in a magical duel. Finally, she enters a one-on-one sword duel with Raubahn and defeats him; Ishgard wins the melee and their pride is restored. Alphinaud leaves to lure away a cyclops that stumbled into the melee and runs into Estinien, who is trying to resist Nidhogg. When Alphinaud desperately tries to help him, Nidhogg recognizes him from Estinien's memories and, wanting to break him further, transforms into a mutated version of Estinien and attacks Alphinaud, who is able to flee into a nearby cave when the cyclops clashes with Nidhogg.
7 	For Those We Can Yet Save 	Nidhogg swiftly kills the cyclops and pursues Alphinaud into the cave. Alphinaud is unable to teleport away as his mana is regenerating from luring away the cyclops and he has run out of Waking Sands envelopes, forcing him to hide. Nidhogg eventually grows tired of the hunt and uses his dragon form to cause the cave to collapse, just as Alphinaud's mana returns and he teleports away. Meanwhile, the peace conference commences without incident and Vidofnir and Aymeric agree to peace, only for Nidhogg to appear and severely wound Vidofnir. Before leaving, Nidhogg declares that his next assault will be his last, promising Ishgard's total annihilation. Alphinaud arrives in time to help heal Vidofnir. Realizing that Nidhogg will never allow peace, Alphinaud, Aria and Aymeric decide to recruit Hraesvelgr to defeat Nidhogg, as he is too powerful for Aria to defeat on her own. Meanwhile, Papalymo begins to feel guilty about not returning to the Scions. He is about to express this to Lyse, when he learns that she wishes to find and kill Ilberd in revenge for Yda's death.
8 	An End to the Song 	Aria, Aymeric, and Alphinaud call Hraesvelgr with the horn on Zenith; he rebuffs their pleas until Midgardsormr finally convinces him that mankind has earned another chance. Hraesvelgr tests the trio's strength with a series of trials at Sohr Khai, Ratatoskr's home. They pass their trials, defeating Chieftain Moglin and Hraesvelgr himself, just as Nidhogg launches his final assault on Ishgard. Hraesvelgr fights Nidhogg, but is defeated; he temporarily passes on his eye to Aria, allowing her to defeat Nidhogg. Aided by the spirits of Ysayle and Haurchefant, Aria and Alphinaud remove Nidhogg's eyes from Estinien's armor and cast them into the Sea of Clouds, saving Estinien and destroying Nidhogg for good. The horde retreats in disarray, signaling the true end to the war. A recovering Estinien relinquishes his title as Azure Dragoon and departs to live his post-vengeance life. Aymeric establishes a parliamentary democracy in Ishgard led by both lowborn and highborn citizens. As Ishgard celebrates the war's end, the Warriors of Darkness arrive at the Sea of Clouds.
9 	Shadows of the First 	Thancred notices the Warriors of Darkness lurking around the site of Nidhogg's defeat and runs into Alisaie, who has also come to investigate the Warriors of Darkness. Their leader speaks with Elidibus, who talks of instigating a primal arms race and orders the Warriors to goad the Ixal into resummoning Garuda as they did Ravana earlier. Alisaie is spotted and wounded by the Warriors' archer, forcing Thancred to take her to Ishgard, interrupting the Scions's celebration of their victory. Aria, Alphinaud and several Ishgardian knights go to the mountains of Xelphatol, where they confront and kill the Ixali occultist overseeing the summoning ritual. The Warriors arrive soon after and reveal that they are from the First shard, in which the power of Light is superior to that of the dark. They bested two Ascians, only for their actions to trigger a "Flood of Light" that threatens to destroy the First. Elidibus took the Warriors to the Source, offering to save the First if the Warriors cause another Calamity there. After they leave, the Warriors' mage is revealed to be a disguised Urianger.
10 	The Beast That Mourned at the Heart of the Mountain	Alisaie, a red mage, recovers from her wounds and reunites with Aria and Alphinaud. They learn from Urianger, whom Alisaie has noticed resembles the Warriors' mage, that the Kobolds have become more aggressive recently. Aria and the Leveilleur twins encounter a young Kobold named Ga Bu, who reveals that the Kobold patriarch, Za Da, has been provoked by the Warriors into preparing another summoning of Titan. When his parents protested, Za Da decided to sacrifice them and use their bones to increase Titan's power. Aria, Ga Bu, and the Leveilleur twins confront Za Da in the Naval, Titan's summoning place, only to learn that he has already executed Ga Bu's parents. Ga Bu's heartbroken wailing for his parents to "wake up" prove fervent enough to summon a berserk Titan, who attacks everything in his path, including Kobolds. Aided by the adventurers she journeyed with in Bahamut's coils, who happened to be nearby, Aria once again defeats Titan. A traumatized and tempered Ga Bu is left in the care of the Limsa Lominsans.
11 	When We Were Free 	Alphinaud, who noticed a shipment of aetheryte in the Naval, tasks Urianger with tracking it's origins. He traces them to Little Ala Mhigo, where Aria and the Leveilleur twins hear rumors about the Griffin and begin to investigate him, learning that he has become a powerful leader in the revolutionary movement to free Ala Mhigo from the Garleans. They conclude that the Masks are planning to summon a primal and attend one of the Griffin's speeches, where they notice Lyse and Papalymo watching. Reuniting with his friends, Papalymo lies about what happened after the Ul'dah banquet, claiming that he and Yda both escaped alive and took shelter amongst the Resistance until the Scions were exonerated of the Sultana's poisoning. When he and Lyse reveal their investigation into the Griffin, Aria develops a theory and has the group consult Lolorito in Ul'dah. When Lolorito reveals that Teledji promised Ilberd that he would fund a campaign to liberate Ala Mhigo in exchange for betraying the Scions, and that Ilberd hated Raubahn for "abandoning" their people, Aria realizes that the Griffin is Ilberd.
12 	One Life for One World 	In flashbacks, after being betrayed by Osuke and Lolorito, Ilberd flees to Little Ala Mhigo and takes up his "Griffin" identity to turn the Masks into an effective paramilitary organization. He cooperates with the Warriors to harass the Beast Tribes into summoning their primals. In the present, the Scions learn of an impending summoning of Ifrit and encounter the Warriors, who attack and overpower them. Urianger arrives and turns on the Warriors, helping the Scions overpower them. The Warriors' leader, Ardbert, reveals they are already dead, having sacrificed their mortal bodies by stepping into the Source and put their souls in Crystals of Light. Aria counters with her own Crystal, causing everyone to be transported to Minfilia. Urianger reveals that, shortly after Moenbryda's death, the weakened Hydaelyn asked him to secure an avatar. Urianger knew that Minfilia would selflessly volunteer, so he had Lahabrea attack her at the Ul'dah banquet. At Urianger's suggestion, Minfilia accompanies the Warriors to the First to try to stop the Flood of Light.
13 	An Ending to Mark a New Beginning 	Urianger painfully justifies his actions to the Scions; recognizing that the Ascians are to blame, Thancred forgives Urianger. As the Scions leave Little Ala Mhigo, a resistance member recognizes "Yda", revealing her and her father fought to overpower Ala Mhigo's tyrannical King Theodric years ago. However, "Yda" has difficulty recalling certain details. Afterwards, the Scions debate who should replace Minfilia as their leader. Rather than holding to a strict hierarchy, Alphinaud proposes that each member should be allowed to pursue whatever activities they think would best serve to ensure the safety of the realm. Krile and Alisaie are welcomed as a fully fledged Scions. Y'shtola privately confronts Papalymo about "Yda", having sensed inconsistences with her aether. Papalymo admits that Yda truly is dead, promising an explanation when Lyse is ready to reveal herself in exchange for Aria's silence. Meanwhile, Elidibus meets with Ilberd and gifts him Nidhogg's eyes, which the Warriors had retrieved from the Sea of Clouds under his instructions.
14 	Enigma 	Alexander, a primal that takes the form of an enormous mechanical fortress, is summoned by the Illuminati outside of Idyllshire. Y'shtola and Cid investigate, learning that it is drawing aether from the hinterlands at a rate that will render the entire area lifeless within in a few days. Slowfix, his friend Roundrox, Biggs, Wedge and a stranger named Mide arrive to help Aria find a way inside of Alexander. While exploring, Aria encounters Quickthinx Allthoughts, the leader of the Illuminati, and his well-armed goblin followers. She fights her way through massive machines, including the watery "Living Liquid" and the "Manipulator". Aria eventually reaches Alexander's core, the Gordian Knot, and shuts it down to stop it from drawing aether. Aria's group also learns that Quickthinx seeks the Enigma Codex, and find the last piece of it held inside a glowing crystal, which they safekeep. Meanwhile, Elidibus holds a meeting with the remaining Ascians. He sends most of them, including Fandaniel, off to start Rejoinings on other shards, leaving the Source for himself and two others.
15 	A Gob in the Machine 	When the Illuminati resume their efforts to awaken Alexander, Aria assaults one of their camps. While she is away, Mide hands over the Enigma fragment to Quickthinx, who reveals that the author of the Codex was a woman who physically resembles Mide. Mide explains that, three years ago, she and several companions set out to summon Alexander and realize the perfect world described in the Enigma Codex, which Quickthinx intends to achieve. When their summoning subsequently failed, her companions were killed, and their leader, Mide's lover Dayan, absorbed into the primal's core. She admits to wanting to access Alexander's heart to speak to Dayan one last time, and that Roundrox has the ability to read the Codex. Aria later engages in battle with Quickthinx, who is in a flying machine, and defeats him, forcing him to flee. Aria arrives at Alexander's second core, where many machines that she previously fought, including the "Manipulator", combine into the powerful "Brute Justice". Aria defeats the Brute Justice and deactivates the core, only to realize that the Illuminati have kidnapped Roundrox.
16 	Of Endings and Beginnings 	Discovering that Alexander has time-travel properties, Aria's group realizes that Quickthinx wants to activate Alexander's third and final core, which would grant the Illuminati the ability to time travel. When Aria's group reaches Roundrox, she has been tormented into activating the Enigma Codex, allowing Alexander to travel back in time three years earlier, when Mide found him, then back to the present. Quickthinx reveals that time is a circle, an infinite loop, and the primal that Mide and her companions summoned three years ago was, in fact, the selfsame one that just bore them to the past. Aria breaks into Alexander's final core, where she is confronted by Alexander's essence in the form of Alexander Prime, and defeats it. When Quickthinx orders Alexander to take it to the past, Alexander itself defies his order and kills Quickthinx, then grows unstable without the Enigma Codex. Seeing Dayan in the core, Mide sacrifices herself by entering it and causing Alexander to disappear. With the crisis over, the Scions return to Revenant's Toll, where Elidibus is waiting.
17 	When the Bough Wakes 	Thancred, enraged at the Ascians for killing Ricardo and Minfilia, traps Elidibus in white auracite as soon as he sees him, but Elidibus immediately breaks free, explaining he is far more powerful than any Ascian they have fought. Over a game of chess with Aria, Elidibus introduces the Scions to a robed boy named Unukalhai, whom he asserts is not an Ascian. He expresses indifference to Igeyorhm's demise, but affirms that Lahabrea is irreplaceable. Elidibus reveals that Aria's battle with Thordan and the Heavens' Ward has weakened the Warring Triad's prisons on Azys Lla, and they are now close to breaking free. Though Elidibus would normally allow this, the chaos the primals would produce is not useful to the Rejoinings. Elidibus leaves and Unukalhai leads the Scions to Containment Bay S1T7, where the nature primal Sephirot is imprisoned. While Y'shtola and Urianger distracted the Garlean forces patrolling the area, Aria, Unukalhai, and Krile unseal and defeat Sephirot within its containment. Afterwards, an Echo vision by Aria reveals that Unukalhai is from the Thirteenth.
18 	Balance unto All 	Unukalhai explains that he was born with the Echo and was barely a child when Igeyorhm unleashed a "Flood of Darkness" upon his homeworld in a botched attempt to begin the Ascians' first Rejoining. Elidibus saved Unukalhai and explained the importance of maintaining the balance between light and darkness. Unukalhai continued to serve as Elidibus's disciple, swearing to never allow what happened to his world happen to any other. When told that the Ascians are actually repeating this, Unukalhai forbids the Scions from discussing it further. He leads the Scions to Containment Bay P1T6, where the balance primal Sophia is imprisoned. When Sophia almost manages to hypnotize Aria with her magick, Elidibus personally enters the fray and helps them defeat Sophia, before disappearing again. Regula appears soon after, revealing that Sophia hypnotized one of his soldiers into releasing her. Unukalhai criticizes the Garleans' attempts to control the power of the primals. Regula rebuffs this lecture, but leaves without a fight.
19 	The Fate of Stars 	In flashbacks, Regula is raised as the son of an influential Garlean family and becomes childhood friends with Varis. When the Garlean War of succession breaks out, Regula sides with Varis and helps him claim the throne. In gratitude, Varis appointed Regula as Legatus of the VI Imperial Legion. He also grows to idolize Gaius and considers leading the VI Legion to join his conquest of Eorzea, when word of his defeat reaches Garlemald. Varis, who also admired Gaius, dispatches Regula on a mission to obtain the power of primals in Azys Lla. After Nidhogg destroys the Graiton, they struggle to survive. In the present, Regula enters the Aetherochemical Research Facility with his remaining soldiers hoping to find the "Genesis Expression", one of the most powerful pieces of Allagan technology. This turns out to be a trap by Unukalhai, who removed the wards Urianger had placed to keep him out; Aria once again confronts Regula and defeats him, forcing him to flee. Afterwards, he learns that the VI Legion is nearly out of food and water.
20 	The Last Pillar to Fall 	When the fiery primal Zurvan, the last of the Warring Triad, begins to break free from his prison in Containment Bay Z1T9, the Scions arrive to stop him. Regula and his troops join them to defeat the primal, as well as Elidibus, who wants to ensure Unukalhai survives the encounter. During the battle, while Elidbius is momentarily distracted, Zurvan strikes at Unukalhai, who is saved when Regula sacrifices himself by taking the blow. Aria and Elidibus defeat Zurvan, ending the threat of the Warring Triad. Unukalhai now doubts his purpose due to not being able to fend for himself, and feels he can achieve his goal of saving worlds with Aria. While pleading with Unukalhai to stay with him, Elidibus impulsively removes his mask and accidentally reveals to the Scions that he is also a boy. After he leaves, Y'shtola surmises that there must be a third Ascian leader to manage the young Elidibus and the insane Lahabrea. Aria allows the defeated VI Legion to be airlifted out of Azys Lla so that Regula can be given a funeral in Garlemald, while Unukalhai is welcomed into the Scions.
21 	Griffin, Griffin on the Wall 	The Scions learn that Ilberd has led the Masks in a false flag assault on Baelsar's wall, the structure separating Gridania and Ala Mhigo, using Grand Company outfits, hoping that the attack will provoke Garlemald into declaring war on Eorzea. Papalymo, Lyse, Thancred, Alphinaud, Aria, and Yugiri infiltrate the wall to stop the Griffin. Lyse eventually finds the Griffin, confirms he is Ilberd, and attacks him to avenge Yda's death. Ilberd overpowers and stabs Lyse, but she heals her wounds with the mysterious emotion-based energy. Just as Aria arrives with Papalymo and Alphinaud, Lyse fatally wounds Ilberd, who then reveals his true plan: activating war machines to slaughter his comrades. Ilberd then sacrifices his life in a ritual to summon a nightmarish primal empowered by the prayers of his dying comrades and the might of Nidhogg's eyes. Fearing a disaster to rival the Calamity, Papalymo forces the Scions and Lyse to leave him. He uses Tupsimati to cast an ancient sealing ritual that temporarily confines the primal and buys time for a solution, at the cost of his life.
22 	Fly Free, My Pretty 	The Scions hastily organize an Alliance meeting about how to defeat Ilberd's primal before Papalymo's seal fades. Nero, who had vanished following the expedition into the Crystal Tower, reappears and proposes awakening the Allagan superweapon Omega from Carteneau's ruins. During the mission, a hulking Samurai, Gosetsu, arrives from Doma to reveal that Hien has requested Yugiri's return to her homeland. After Yurgiri persuades him to help them first, Gosetsu, Yugiri, Nero, Cid and the Scions go to where Nero found Omega, where they fend off an imperial squad led by the brutish Grynewaht. Cid, Nero and Lyse activate Omega just as Ilberd's primal, the massive dragon Shinryu, escapes from Papalymo's seal. A furious aerial battle ensues, ending when both crash down in Gyr Abania (Ala Mhigo's surrounding region) amidst a blinding explosion and disappear. In the aftermath, Nero agrees to stay and work with Cid to locate Omega and Shinryu, Gosetsu and Yugiri depart for Doma, while a mourning Lyse apologizes for her deception and agrees to reveal her story to the Scions.
23 	The Far Edge of Fate 	In flashbacks, Yda and Lyse's parents, Curtis and Arya Hext, help overthrow King Theodric. This victory was short-lived as the Garlean Empire invaded in the chaos following the revolution. Losing their parents in the ensuing violence, Lyse and Yda were forced to flee their homeland. After months of wandering and foraging off the land to survive, the sisters were found by Louisiox and Papalymo. After befriending Papalymo and learning combat, Lyse decided to return to Ala Mhigo to aid resistance, while Yda thought it was a lost cause and pleaded with Lyse to stay. Lyse, believing Yda was forsaking their parents' sacrifice, reacted furiously and abandoned her sister. In the present, Lyse visits Yda's memorial, admitting she wore Yda's mask to keep her sister's memory alive after she told Yda that she would "forget about her". Discarding the mask, Lyse vows to fight for their homeland under her true name. In a mid-credits scene, Ala Mhigo's ruler, Garlean prince Zenos yae Galvus, prepares for war. In a post-credits scene, Elidibus meets an unseen AscianYoshi P. confirmed that the Ascian portrayed in the post-credits scene is Emet-Selch. to discuss his memories and Lahabrea's death.
=== Season 5 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	Beyond the Great Wall 	In Garlemald, Emperor Varis gives a eulogy at Regula's funeral and then meets with his son, Zenos, in Ala Mhigo to warn him of the imminent war between Garlemald and Eorzea. Alliance leaders hope to aid Ala Mhigo both out of sympathy and as a strategic starting point. Raubahn dispatches Aria, Lyse, and the Scions to meet the Ala Mhigan Resistance, seeking support for an Alliance incursion. Arriving at Rhalgr's Reach, a major resistance stronghold, Aria expresses to Arenvald her hopes of finding her parents in their meeting with a major resistance leader, Conrad, only to realize from an Echo vision that Conrad is her father. Reuniting with his daughter, Conrad explains that Aria reached the minimum age for combat shortly after the Garleans began conscripting Ala Mhigans. When Conrad heard tales of a "Warrior of Light", he hoped it was Aria but could not leave Ala Mhigo to confirm this. Conrad also reveals that Aria's mother, Emilia, grew sick and died three years ago. He shows Aria her mother's belongings and pictures to give her closure.
2 	A Familiar Face Forgotten 	Aria bonds with Lyse as they aid resistance operations together, including sabotaging a Magitek shipment led by Grynewaht, who flees in humiliation. Zenos later demotes Grynewaht and reassigns him to Doma. Aria then goes with Lyse to her birthplace, Ala Gannha, where many Ala Mhigans have been conscripted into or willingly joined the Skulls, an elite fighting force commanded by Fordola rem Lupis and her second-in-command Oskar White. The Skulls are despised by Ala Mhigans, with Lyse developing a similar resentment after witnessing Fordola's troops beating an Ala Gannha villager for not giving enough tribute to her platoon. Attempting to inspire the locals, Lyse tells the story of her parents' deaths in more detail, causing Aria to have an Echo vision of that day. Aria was there fighting for the Garleans; while Arya and Curtis were distracted by Garleans, they were shot dead from behind by a conscript whom Lyse presumes is with the Skulls. Aria remembers that she herself was that conscript, and was subsequently celebrated by the Garleans for her killing of two major resistance leaders.
3 	In Crimson It Began 	After Lyse vows to avenge her parents by killing the conscript, a horrified and ashamed Aria runs off. Meanwhile, Fordola proposes a direct attack on Rhalgr's Reach to Zenos, who approves of it. While Aria is away, Zenos and the Skulls storm Rhalgr's Reach, killing many soldiers and injuring Conrad. Lyse attempts to stop them, but is nearly killed by Zenos; Y'shtola is seriously wounded while protecting her. Seeing the chaos, Aria returns to Rhalgr's Reach and overpowers Fordola, so Zenos confronts her. Aria is no match for the surprisingly powerful Zenos and is easily defeated. Unimpressed, Zenos withdraws and leaves the Resistance to lick their wounds. Y'shtola is comatose from her wounds and must stay in bed to recover, while Aria and Conrad need two days to recover. Aria does not tell Conrad of her killing of Lyse's parents and remains emotionally unbalanced with her secret. Unable to confront the Garleans head-on, Alphinaud suggests that the Scions foment revolution in Doma, Zenos' other province headed by the cruel Yotsuyu goe Brutus, to divide the Imperials' forces.
4 	In Memories We Walked 	Aria returns to Ishgard to reflect on her victories and failures. While reuniting with Sidurgu and Rielle, her soul crystal suddenly breaks in half. The culprit is a depressed young boy possessing physical features of Harchefaunt and Ysayle. He introduces himself as Myste, having sought to harness the aether of nearby natural sources for his own ends. Apologizing profusely, Myste promises to return it after he has used a portion to aid others. He claims to want to free those touched by sadness and despair from their burdens. Sidurgu believes that Myste is lying and wants to force him to return the aether he stole, but Aria and Rielle decide to go along with his plan. They encounter Emily, Zephirin's mourning sister, and Myste uses the aether to conjure an illusion of Zephirin for closure. Zephirin eventually fades into a portion of Aria's aether, which she takes. Myste wants to repeat this cycle four more times, and Aria leaves until he is ready to continue. She returns to her friends in Limsa Lominsa, where they arrange for a ship to take them towards Doma.
5 	It's Probably a Trap 	Aria, Lyse, Tataru, and the Leveilleur twins arrive in Kugane, a vast trade city en route to Doma. They find Lolorito's businessman, Hancock, who tips off the group to a contact that might know of a way to cross the Ruby Sea that separates Kugane from Doma proper. When their contact decides to betray them to the imperials, they are escorted to safety by Soroban, a member of the Kojin beast tribe, who agrees to help them reach Doma in exchange for arranging a trading deal between the Kojin and Hancock. Before leaving Kugane, the Scions reunite with Gosetsu, who got into trouble with the local authorities after having arranged transport to Doma for Yugiri, and joins them. To reach Doma, the Scions must cross the Ruby Sea and deal with a group of pirates, the Confederacy. Before leaving, Gosetsu notices Aria's emotional imbalance, and she confesses to him about killing Lyse's parents. As Myste watches from a distance, Gosetsu comforts Aria, assuring her that she is not that person anymore and that she can earn forgiveness from Lyse.
6 	Once More, to the Ruby Sea 	While Alphinaud and Tataru remain in Kugane, Aria, Lyse, Gosetsu, Soroban, and Alisaie cross into the Ruby Sea, during which Gosetsu recounts how he and his master Hien became separated after the previous failed rebellion, and that he does not know if Hien still lives. At the Ruby Sea, they discover the Empire is working with the Red Kojin, a mercenary combat oriented clan, while Soroban is from the peaceful oriented Blue Kojin clan. They stumble upon a meeting between Yostuyu, her new bodyguard Grynewaht, and a group of Domans. Yotsuyu, a native Doman who despises her people, begins forcing the Domans to murder each other until Gosetsu intervenes and allows himself to be arrested to stop it. The Scions and Soroban are unable to outright assassinate Yotsuyu as doing so would provoke an imperial response and set off towards the Confederacy. Alisaie makes a deal with them: if they can defeat the Red Kojin, who are ensuring that the Confederacy complies with the Garleans, then the pirates will stand up to fight the Empire.
7 	The Lord of the Revel 	While Gosetsu endures torture by Yotsuyu and Grynewaht, Aria, Lyse and Alisaie set off with Soroban to seek the Blue Kojin to gain aid in attacking the Red. Soroban performs a ritual that allows the women to breathe underwater, allowing them to reach the Kojins' domain. They fight their way into the Red Kojin’s sacred island and enter their vault, where the treasure reacts to their presence and summons Susano, the primal of the Red Kojin. Aided by the adventurers that helped her defeat Bahamut, who again happen to be nearby, Aria defeats Susano and breaks the Red Kojin's contract with the Garleans. Upon returning, they find that the Confederacy have kept their bargain and freed the village and Gosetsu from Yotsuyu's men. A furious Yotsuyu has Grynewaht slaughter a group of Red Kojin to take the legendary katana Ame no Habaki, which they had among their treasures, and plans to give it to Zenos. Though Gosetsu is badly wounded by his torture, he, Alisaie, and Lyse finally arrive in Doma, while the Confederacy sends a representative to connect with Alphinaud in Kugane.
8 	The Sister and Her Brother 	The Scions and Gosetsu arrive in the region of Yanxia, only to see the terrible conditions people are in. They meet up with the severely depleted Doma Liberation Front and reunite with Yugiri, whom Hien as asked to measure his peoples' will—if they desire freedom, he will return from exile to lead; if not, he will surrender himself to Garlemald to ease his people's suffering. They also find Osuke, who has been helping the resistance as per his deal with Yugiri. Lyse appreciates his work and decides not to blame him for Yda's death. While Gosetsu and the others plot their next move, Aria (unaware of his appearance at Kugane) again visits Myste, who has decided to visit Maelie in Ishgard and uses Aria's aether to make an illusion of her elder brother. Maelie is able to receive closure and both of them posthumously forgive Ysayle before Aria takes back her aether. Afterwards, Myste reveals that he knows of Aria's secret and asks her to confess to Lyse for their next trial. Back in Doma, Osuke and Yugiri witness villagers being taken for conscription and team up to rescue them.
9 	The Time between the Seconds 	In flashbacks, as a child, Zenos spends little time with Varis and his mother, Carosa, dies shortly after his birth. Varis blackmails a Doman swordsman into teaching Zenos the art of combat, but he eventually attempts to kill the boy. Zenos kills him instead and continues his training under Regula, but the experience left Zenos bleak and wishing for someone worthy of his mettle to come into his life. In the present, when a conflicted Aria returns to Doma, she learns that Zenos has arrived for an inspection. Against the others' wishes, Yugiri sets out to assassinate Zenos, and is joined by Aria and Osuke. After Yotsuyu gives Ame-no-Habakiri, he uses it to defeat Yugiri, Osuke and Aria after they ambush him. Intrigued by the fight Aria put up this time, Zenos reveals he had studied her after their encounter at Rhalgr's Reach, explaining that she was transferred to Nael van Darnus' legion shortly after her killing of Lyse's parents. The villagers that Yugiri and Osuke rescued return to stand up to Zenos, who departs, seeking a future and more intense clash with Aria.
10 	The Search for Lord Hien 	Before leaving for Ala Mhigo, Zenos berates Yotsuyu and demands that she restore order; she sends Grynewaht, who is eager for payback against Aria for his humiliations, to hunt down and destroy the Scions. With the people of Doma inspired to rise up against imperial rule, Yugiri, Lyse, Alisaie, Gosetseu and Aria go to the Azim Steppe region, home to the countless wandering Xaela tribes, to find Hien. Reuniting with Gosetsu and Yuguri, Hien reveals he has decided to enter the Nadaam – a ritual battle to claim leadership of the Xaela tribes and sit upon the Dawn Throne. He plans to represent the Mol tribe in the Nadaam, explaining that if he wins, Hien will earn the right to lead all of the Xaela tribes into liberating Doma. However, the group must first complete the trials of Bardam’s Mettle to become recognized warriors among the Xaela. Meanwhile, Estinien hears of how Nidhogg's eyes were used to create Shinryu. Feeling that Shinryu must be slain to end Nidhogg's legacy, he sets out towards Ala Mhigo to find and kill the primal.
11 	The Children of Azim 	It is decided that Gosetsu, Hien, Aria and Osuke will compete in the Nadaam for the Mol tribe, and the four enter a rite of passage retracing the footsteps of Bardaam the Brave, an ancient hero. After a strange and bewildering journey that ends with them subduing a wild yol (bird), they pass the trials. The group mingles with Xaela politics, including Magnai of the Oronir and Sadu of the Undying Dotharl; the latter has heard many legends of the "Warrior of Light" and is eager to face Aria at the Nadaam. Meanwhile, Myste abruptly appears before Aria despite not having been given any instructions on how to reach Doma. Unwilling to keep her secret any longer, Aria takes Lyse out into the forests and finally reveals the truth to Lyse, who reacts by nearly beating an unresisting Aria to death. Seeing this, Myste suffers a panic attack and unwittingly uses Aria's aether to create illusions of Lyse's family, including Yda. Lyse realizes that Aria is no longer the person who murdered her parents and tearfully apologizes to both Aria and her family as she calls for medical attention.
12 	Naadam 	Aria is now unable to attend the Nadaam due to the beating Lyse inflicted on her, and Hien cannot delay it to give Aria time to recover. Lyse reconciles with Aria, while Myste once again disappears. Aria explains the situation with Myste to her friends before realizing that Myste is no human, but is a manifestation of the emotional pain Aria has felt throughout her journey. She tells her story to Lyse, who concedes Aria has suffered more than Lyse ever could. To distract the competition in the Nadaam, the Mol tribe has one of their own disguise herself as Aria with her armor. During the ensuing battle, Sadu's enthusiasm fades when she realizes the "Aria" is fighting is an imposter and Magnai is subdued by Gosetsu and Osuke, allowing Hien to win the Nadaam. However, Grynewaht (who cannot see through the fake Aria's disguise) then arrives with an imperial battalion. Hien rallies the tribes and they defeat Grynewaht's forces, forcing him to flee again. The Mol take their rightfully won place upon the Dawn Throne and Hien convinces the tribes to help liberate Doma.
13 	The Orphans and the Broken Blade	A recovering Aria takes the aether that Myste used to recreate Lyse's family and returns to Doma, where Alphinaud has arrived to present Hien with a Far Eastern Alliance: the Confederacy, Doma, the Blue Kojin tribe, and now the Azim Steppe tribes. While the Alliance plans to assault Doma Castle, Yotsuyu's headquarters, Aria confronts Myste for hiding his nature from her. Myste explains his belief that the burdens that Aria has committed throughout her journey are too great for forgiveness, but Aria encourages him to prove this wrong by helping others. To that end, Myste meets with Rielle and Sidurgu, and creates a powerful illusion of Ompagne. After a test by combat, Ompagne admits to taking up Fray and Sidurgu because he saw in them a chance to make up for the countless boys that died under his command. Though wounded from the fight, Sidurgu's mood improves and Myste begins to see hope. Meanwhile, returning to Doma Castle in disgrace, Grynewaht begs Yotsuyu for one more chance to defeat Aria; Yotsuyu has him partake in an experiment that transforms him into a hulking Magitek monstrosity.
14 	The Die Is Cast 	Alphinaud lays out his plan to retake Doma Castle. After Lyse and the Doman irregulars carry out a series of diversionary attacks, the Xaela will launch a surprise attack on the castle's air defenses. The Leveilleur twins, Osuke and Yugiri will then disable the magitek field generators within the Dairyu Moon Gates, allowing the Confederate and Kojin naval forces to bombard the castle and secure the Doman Enclave. Finally, Hien's main host will advance upon the castle and deal with the imperial forces within. The plan is executed flawlessly: they defeat Yotsuyu's forces, Aria kills Grynewaht, and Hien confronts Yotsuyu in the throne room. In defiance, Yotsuyu collapses the castle atop them, but Gosetsu holds the ceiling up just long enough for the others to escape; both he and Yostuyu are presumed dead. Hien reclaims his kingdom and pledges to aid Ala Mhigo in kind. While Soroban and the Kojin search for Gosetsu and Yotsuyu's bodies, Alphinaud reveals that he had arranged for Osuke's family to be brought to Doma, and Osuke happily reunites with them.
15 	Rhalgr's Beacon 	While the Scions are away in Doma, Krile, Arenvald and the Resistance were escorting Y'shtola and several other wounded to the Rising Stones for further treatment when they were ambushed by the Skulls. Arenvald managed to protect Y'shtola but could not stop the Skulls from capturing Krile on Zenos' orders. Krile is brought before Zenos and later taken to a research facility. Thancred leaves to track down Krile shortly before Aria, the Leveilleur twins and Lyse return from Doma. They learn that news of Doma's liberation has lead to unrest within the imperial ranks. The Scions and Lyse join Conrad and Raubahn in executing a counter-attack on a key bridge, which will open up access towards the Ala Mhigan castle, where Zenos reigns. The Skulls, including Fordola and Oskar, defend the bridge, but are defeated and forced to flee. Afterwards, Conrad reveals his belief that his age (70) is catching up with him and that he is looking for a successor. He knows Aria has other responsibilities and his lieutenant M'naago Rahz has declined the position, so Conrad has settled upon Lyse to succeed him.
16 	The Lady of Bliss 	Conrad discusses his decision with Lyse, who believes she is too young and impulsive to assume the mantle of leadership, admitting that she nearly killed Aria. Conrad reveals that he knew all along that Aria killed Lyse's parents, feeling that Aria needed to bear the responsibility of telling Lyse himself. Their discussion is halted when they recieve word of a primal being summoned by the snake-like Qalyana tribe. Upon witnessing her daughter's death at the hands of Fordola and her Skulls, the broodmother's grief summoned Sri Lakshmi, the "Lady of Bliss", which begins hypnotizing the Qalyana into serving it. Aria confronts and kills Lakshmi, who was restoring the broodmother's daughter's body without her soul to ensure her obedience. The broodmother banishes Aria and withholds most of her tribe from continuing to fight for the resistance. Meanwhile, it is revealed that Krile is being experimented on by Garlean scientist Aulus mal Asina, who hopes to achieve fame by uncovering the secrets of the Echo. Zenos orders Fordola to partake in the experiment.
17 	Heavens Weep 	In flashbacks, Fordola is conscripted into the Skulls by Zenos' predecessor, Gaius. She is looked down as a "savage" by the Garleans, but befriends the Skulls Ansfrid, Oskar and Charlet. They make a pact to prove their people's worth to the Empire. In the present, the Eorzean Alliance and the Resistance set their sights on Specula Imperatoris. Alphinaud and Conrad lead the assault up to the main tower and convince the Skulls there, including Ansfrid, to surrender. Meanwhile, at the nearby Castrum Abania, Fordola, Oskar and Charlet receive orders from Zenos to use the Castrum's cannon to destroy the tower. Oskar defies Zenos to avoid friendly fire, but Fordola knocks him out and fires the cannon anyways, killing Ansfrid and hundreds more. Horrified, Alisaie and Aria search the rubble to find that Conrad has been fatally wounded by falling debris while saving Alphinaud. Before dying, Conrad has Lyse swear to lead the Resistance in his place. Meanwhile, Estinien arrives in Gyr Abania and sees the explosion. He goes to the Castrum and disables the cannon before Fordola can fire it again.
18 	The Price of Freedom 	Aria mourns her father with Lyse, who is filled with uncertainty about leading the Resistance. When the Resistance notices that Abania's cannon has been disabled, Raubahn orders an immediate assault on the Castrum, as their camps are within range of it's cannon. While Raubahn's men distract the Garleans, Lyse, Aria, and the Leveilleur twins go to infiltrate the Castrum's command center. Meanwhile, Zenos orders Oskar executed for disobeying him; Charlet takes up the task, but he instead frees Oskar and disappears. Completely disillusioned, Oskar leaves the Skulls and approaches Lyse's group, offering to defect to the Resistance. Though an enraged Lyse nearly kills him, she relents after he helps the group navigate the Castrum's ventilation system and reach the command center. Angered and hurt by Oskar's defection, Fordola justifies her actions as securing a place for their people within imperial society and announces that Zenos is preparing a "hunt" for Aria in the royal palace. Fordola, who now possesses supernatural agility, escapes after shooting Alphinaud in his left eye.
19 	Our Compromise 	Alphinaud is rushed to Rhalgr's Reach, where he lies comatose and his survival is rated as unlikely. The combined agony of her father's death and her best friend's seemingly mortal injury are too much for Aria to handle and she runs off. She is intercepted by Sidurgu and Rielle, who reveal that Myste came to Rhalgr's Reach and has started draining aether from nearby creatures. Aria, Sidurgu and Rielle search for Myste; the latter two find him first and are attacked by his illusions. Aria confronts Myste, who reveals his true plan to make the pain go away by living in a world filled with illusions, even if it means draining the aether of everything and everyone around them. As Myste tries to persuade Aria to accept this, Fray reappears to help Aria, and is given Sidurgu's sword. They defeat Myste's illusions, subdue him, and reclaim the last of Aria's aether. Rielle convinces Myste that he cannot dwell over the past and that the lost live on their memories. Fray forgives Myste, who accepts defeat and leaves a final illusion of Conrad for Aria, who regains her courage and vows to fight on.
20 	The Lady in Red 	While Aria is away, Raubahn attempts to dissuade Lyse from her doubts by taking her to his childhood home, where he recounts his life before the imperial occupation and recites a speech that he heard Curtis give, ending with the words "Liberty or Death". Reinvigorated, Lyse returns to Rhalgr's Reach, where she crafts a new outfit for herself and spars with Aria upon her return. Afterwards, they learn that many Skulls have surrendered to the Resistance, disillusioned with Fordola, and that Alisaie is missing. Oskar reveals a secret tunnel connecting Loch Seld and a well within the Ala Mhigan Quarter, allowing Raubahn to plan an infiltration mission to take the imperial research facility. Lyse and Raubahn pardon Oskar but arrest some Skulls for war crimes. Meanwhile, it is revealed that Aulus' experiments have given Fordola an artificial echo, thus making her a "Resonant". Zenos orders Aulus to give him the perfected version. Elsewhere, a devastated Alisaie finds Charlet, who regrets not stopping Fordola from killing their comrades. Disgusted by his self-pity, Alisaie stabs him with her rapier and leaves him for dead.
21 	The Resonant 	Alisaie returns to her friends and learns that Urianger has arrived with an aetheric siphon, capable of disabling Fordola's Echo powers. He gives it to Aria, but Alisaie secretly pickpockets it. Aria, Oskar, Lyse and Thancred take the tunnel into Ala Mhigo Quarters and sneak to the western gates, which they open to allow a full-scale assault by the Resistance. Determined to avenge Alphinaud, Alisaie confronts Fordola alone and spitefully tells her that the Resistance executed Oskar and the defecting Skulls. Both Fordola and Alisaie are empowered by the emotion-based energy and fight to the death. Alisaie disables Fordola's Echo and stabs out her left eye, but Fordola overpowers her before Oskar arrives, distracting Fordola and allowing Lyse and Aria to knock her out. Alisaie nearly beats the defenseless Fordola to death before Lyse and Oskar stop her, wanting to take Fordola prisoner. Livid, Alisaie nearly attacks them before Aria hugs her; Alisaie breaks down in Aria's arms. Krile is released from imperial custody, and scouting reports reveal that Zenos has imprisoned Shinryu at the top of the Ala Mhigan palace.
22 	Stormblood Part One 	In flashbacks, a scouting party finds Shinryu incapacitated from it's battle with Omega, and an intrigued Zenos has it transported into the palace's Royal Menagerie under the cover of dark. In the present, the Resistance and the Eorzean alliance launch a full-scale assault on the palace to depose Zenos, planning to safely dispose of Shinyru's prison in a bottomless pit afterwards. When the Garleans attempt to counter with an air strike, Hien arrives with air support and thwarts the attempt; the Alliance breaks into the capital, and Aulus is killed in the fighting. Aria finds Zenos in the throne room and the two duel a third time, with Aria finally overcoming Zenos. Delighted to have finally found a worthy opponent, Zenos retreats to Shinryu's prison, where he announces his beliefs that the thrill of battle overtakes all other purpose of life. Using his Resonant powers, Zenos fuses with Shinryu. Estinien arrives and reunites with Aria to help her defeat Shinryu. They are also joined by Sidurgu, whom Rielle has convinced to help, and Aria's adventurer friends, who once again happened to be nearby.
23 	Stormblood Part Two 	Estinien, Sidurgu, Aria and the adventurers confront Shinryu, who takes them up to a mysterious platform high up into the sky to do battle. After a grueling fight, Shinryu is slain and everyone falls safely onto the Royal Menagerie, as does Nidhogg's eyes, which Estinien immediately destroys. Defeated, Zenos bids his final farewell to Aria, his nemesis and his only real friend, and then slits his own throat with his katana before an arriving Lyse can stop him. With Zenos dead, Ala Mhigo's liberation is complete; it's people and the Eorzean Alliance celebrate their victory. Afterwards, Lyse officially leaves the Scions to focus full-time on Ala Mhigo, and to their surprise, Y'shtola arrives in time to join them. After learning Alphinaud's condition has improved, Aria goes to Ishgard and has a heartfelt meeting with Edmont. In a mid-credits scene, Elidibus plays chess with Varis (who has always been uncaring for Zenos due to his bloodlust) and offers an unseen proposal that shocks the Emperor. In a post-credits scene, Gosetsu and Yotsuyu are revealed to have survived Doma Castle's collapse.
=== Season 6 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	The Butcher's Blood 	A month after Ala Mhigo's liberation, Alphinaud is still comatose and Ala Mhigo is rebuilding from the war. As Lyse calls for a constitutional conference of local and tribal leaders. In a meeting with Aria and Oskar, Arenvald surmises that King Theodoric had his kinsmen cursed and cast into the depths not only to punish them for their imagined crimes, but to have them serve as guardians over his treasures. Hoping that the treasure could be used to rebuild Ala Mhigo, Aria and Arenvald enter the Drowned City of Skalla, where they defeat Theodoric's monsters and obtain the treasure. Aria, Lyse, Oskar, and Arenvald later visit Fordola's cell and find a still-vengeful Alisaie has snuck inside to kill her. Fordola claims to want nothing but death as this would unite Ala Mhigo, causing Alisaie to stand down. Aria then uses the Echo to see Fordola's past: Fordola's pro-Garlean father was murdered by an angry mob, driving her ambition to make the imperials respect her people. In turn, Fordola uses her Resonant powers to see Aria's past and is stunned that she was able to cope with her trauma and losses.
2 	Return of the Bull 	Sultana Nanamo summons Aria to a meeting, revealing her intentions to aid the Ala Mhigan restoration and releasing Raubahn from her service, knowing he longs to remain in his homeland. In order to accumulate the funds for a way that benefits both Ul'dah and Ala Mhigo, she reluctantly consults Lolorito. They decide to help restore the Saltery that was destroyed during the Garlean invasion, as its location close to Ala Mhigo and the surrounding region would boost the economy of both city-states. Later, Lyse's conference is derailed when the Qalyana broodmother, who feigned regret for summoning Lakshmi, resummons the primal, who begins tempering everyone present. Lyse and Oskar rush to Fordola's cell and convince her to help; together, Fordola and the Scions defeat Lakshmi and Fordola willingly returns to her cell. Afterwards, with an emotional farewell, Nanamo persuades Raubahn to return to lead his homeland, naming his son Pipin Flame Marshal in Raubahn's place. In Rhalgr's Reach, Alisaie visits Alphinaud and watches him awaken from his coma.
3 	Hope on the Waves 	Over the following week, Alisaie helps the weakened Alphinaud regain his physical and mental functions. After mostly recovering, Alphinaud joins Aria, Lyse and Yugiri in Kugane, where they learn from Hancock that Gosetsu and Yotsuyu were spotted in Kugane, prompting a legion of Garleans to hunt them down. With the aid of Soroban, the Scions, Lyse, Osuke and Yugiri track down Yotsuyu and Gosetsu, defeating the imperials. Gosetsu reveals that when the castle collapsed around them, he and Yotsuyu drifted for days at sea, before finally coming to rest on a desert island. Yotsuyu awoke bereft of her memory, and Gosetsu resolved to deliver her to Hien for his judgment. Hien, heeding Gosetsu, commutes her sentence for mental incompetence]]. However, an imperial delegation arrives with a Doman peace signal; Hien, Aria, Yugiri and Osuke ride out to meet them. Meanwhile, in Garlemald, word of Zenos' death spreads. Varis' advisors urge him to select a new heir, fearing a repeat of the Garlean succession crisis, until Varis presents them with an apparently still-living Zenos.
4 	Rise of a New Sun 	The imperials that Hien, Aria, Yugiri and Osuke meet are led by Asahi sas Brutus, Yotsuyu's stepbrother and Garlean ambassador. Claiming to represent the reformist Populares party, which opposes Garlean expansionism, Asahi suggests a prisoner exchange: Doman conscripts for Garlean prisoners of war, including Yotsuyu. His only demand is that Doma prevent any summonings in its territory. Hien readily agrees, but due to Yotsuyu's condition, denies her status as a Garlean citizen: if she regains her memories, she may join the exchange, otherwise she will remain. Asahi reluctantly accepts this and privately meets with Yotsuyu, whom Gosetsu now calls "Tsuyu", and leaves her a memento of her past to get her to regain her memory. As Asahi leaves, he privately confronts Aria, who has another Echo vision revealing that Asahi is actually a fervent admirer and secret lover of Zenos, having been saved by him years ago. He issues an ominous threat to an unintimidated Aria, who coldly informs him that Zenos considered her his one true friend.
5 	Gone Like the Morning Dew	Aria reports Asahi's threat to Hien and the Scions. Hien is determined to see the prisoner exchange through, but secretly has Yugiri and Osuke scout out Asahi's airship for where he holds the Doman conscripts. Later, Yotsuyu wanders off to retrieve Gosetsu's favorite fruit and runs into the villagers that had Yugiri and Osuke had rescued; they recognize and prepare to lynch Yotsuyu before Hien arrives with Gosetsu and explains the situation. During another meeting with Asahi, who requests Yotsuyu to be present, he brings their parents. Later that night, Yotsuyu again runs off as her memories fully return. As a child, after her parents died, she was sent to live with her aunt and uncle, who physically abused her and sold her into prostitution. She was sent by Doma's former viceroy to seduce Zenos and steal battle plans from him. When Yotsuyu admitted her hatred toward Doma to Zenos, he recruited and appointed her as viceroy. In the present, Yotsuyu prepares to commit suicide but runs into her parents, who openly discuss selling her again; Yotsuyu murders them in a rage and is congratulated by Asahi.
6 	The Primary Agreement 	The following day, the prisoner exchange takes place in Castrum Fluminis, where Aria, Yugiri, Hien, Alphinaud and Osuke meet with Asahi and his second-in-command, Maxima quo Priscus. Yostuyu, with her original personality restored, confronts the party and announces her intention to commit total genocide on the Doman people. Asahi then reveals the nearby crates contain aether-infused crystals; Yotsuyu draws on their energy and transforms into a powerful primal. As Asahi intended all along, this breaks the peace treaty, so he calls off the prisoner exchange. Yotsuyu names herself "Tsukiyomi" and turns her wrath on Aria for helping Hien overthrow her. While the Scions and Domans attempt to retrieve the Doman conscripts before Asahi can escape with them, Aria battles and eventually defeats Yotsuyu. A gloating Asahi returns to finish off Yostuyu, thinking Aria will uphold his diplomatic immunity, only for the enraged Aria to cut off his hands. Delighting in Asahi's screams of agony, Yotsuyu fatally impales him with her blades and dies peacefully; Asahi's final words are to inform Aria of Zenos' survival.
7 	Emissary of the Dawn 	In an Echo vision, Aria witnesses Zenos assigning Asahi to discredit the Populares and promote the warmongering Optimates faction by undermining peace with Doma. In the present, the prisoner exchange completes under Maxima, a loyal Populares member, who promises to carry Doma's peace treaty faithfully to the capital. Alphinaud joins him, hoping to survey Garlean politics. Zenos' personal guard downs their airship mid-flight, but a Garlean calling himself "Shadowhunter" rescues them. As they leave, the Shadowhunter is shown to be carrying Ascian masks. Meanwhile, Gosetsu grieves for Yotsuyu and her lost redemption. He decides to leave Hien's service, becoming a wandering monk to help the people of Doma on his own. The Scions and Lyse seek Zenos' grave, finding it empty, and suspect an Ascian has possessed his corpse. In Garlemald, Varis converses with "Zenos", who is revealed as Elidibus, having taken his body as part of his proposal to maintain stability within the Empire. Elidibus then goes to the Ascian he previously met to discuss his memories with and awakens him from his rest.
8 	Into the Deltascape 	While waiting for Alphinaud's return, Aria is informed by Biggs and Wedge that Cid and Nero have located a large atheric pool, where Omega is believed to be hiding. She arrives there with her adventurer friends, who once again happened to be nearby. After a chocobo-like creature bursts out of the pool, Midgardsormr stirs from his slumber to inform the group that Omega is capable of bringing forth life, and that the chocobo was one such creation. Cid names the creature "Alpha", and they dive into the pool and arrive in a dimension created by Omega, the Omegascape. Omega confronts the group and threatens to erase them from existence, forcing Aria and the adventurers to undergo six trials so Omega can attempt to understand humanity's strength. Aria's team arrives at the Deltascape and defeats their first two opponents: the serpent Alte Roite and the flamboyant queen Halicarnassus. Due to Omega's conditions, Aria goes alone to face Omega's third opponent: Sephiroth.Yoshi P. confirmed that this version of Sephiroth was from one of the alternate universes of FFVII Remake continuity. . After an intense duel, Aria manages to kill Sephiroth, but is exhausted from the battle and Omega stops the challenges to let her recover.
9 	Into the Sigmascape 	In flashbacks, Midgardsormr was a denizen on a distant planet, the Dragonstar, that came to be at war with the inhabitants of the planet Alphatron, the Omicrons. Alphatron's forces dispatched their superweapon, Omega, to neutralize him. Though Midgardsormr defeated Omega, he could not completely destroy it and was forced to flee his dying homeworld with his seven eggs. The weakened Midgardsormr landed on Hydaelyn, where he made a pact with the mothercrystal and hatched his seven children, reviving the dragon race in the new star. In the present, Omega scans the memories of Cloud's party, learning that Varis, in his prime as High Legatus, had conquered Aerith's homeland and killed most of her people, including Aerith's mother. Omega recreates this conquest, with the party defeating Varis and Aerith receiving closure with her mother. Their next opponent, the genocidal clown Kefka, is able to kill two of the adventurers, Red XIII and Tifa Lockhart before he is finally defeated. Omega attempts to goad Aria into unleashing her full potential by trapping her in an energy prism. Midgardsormr intervenes and uses the last of his strength to free Aria, forcing him into slumber once more.
10 	Into the Alphascape 	The adventurers mourn Red XIII and Tifa, with their leader, Cloud Strife, holding a ceremony and burial for them. When he returns for Omega's final set of tests, they defeat a simulacrum of Midgardsormr in his prime. Finally, Omega faces the group directly and is defeated with the interference of Cid's latest invention, the Omega Jammer. However, Omega is able to reboot and, still failing to understand them, Omega decided to reset the testing with new subjects, closing the dimensional rift and leaving Aria's group and Cid for dead. Alpha shrinks and is able to protect them with his power. Deciding that the answer it seeks must lie in Aria's body, Omega creates a male and female version of itself in Aria's image. After one last battle, Omega is decisively defeated and its form disintegrates after Cid explains that human resolve comes from the heart, not an experiment. The dimensional rift begins to collapse, but the group is evacuated by Hraesvelgr, who was called by Midgardsormr to help. Afterwards, Alpha is given leave by Cid to explore Eorzea.
11 	Feel the Burn 	When Aria returns from defeating Omega, she and Alisaie grow worried from Alphinaud's long silence. Thancred arranges a meeting with them and reveals he received a distorted transmission from Alphinaud, saying "The Burn". Immediately recognizing this as the name of a barren wasteland on the edge of Doma, Alisaie, Thancred and Aria travel there and enlist Hien's aid in searching for Alphinaud. A fierce sandstorm which scatters the group in all directions. Upon landing, Aria fights her way through hordes of fearsome desert creatures, as well as machina, inside what appear to be Allagan ruins. This culminated in an encounter with the fearsome "Mist Dragon", which Aria manages to slay before reuniting with the others at Maxima's crashed airship. They find no sign or leads of Alphinaud or the others, forcing them to return to Doma. Lyse arrives with an invitation for Hien to join the Alliance, which he agrees to do only after Doma's safety is ensured. Y'shtola surmises that the Burn is where the Allagans built Azys Lla, and that it has an impenetrable defense system like Azys Lla did.
12 	The Will of the Moon 	Needing a large amount of power to fuel the Allagan barriers, Hien, Aria, and Y'shtola go the Azim Steppe, where Hien suggests they can find such a power source at the House of the Crooked Coin in the northern hills. Since that place is sacred to the tribes, the trio asks Sadu for permission to enter. Sadu, still enraged at Aria for not coming to the Nadaam, demands they duel in exchange for permission to enter. Sadu and Aria cause much destruction, attracting the attention of Magnai and the Azim tribe. When Magnai attempts to interfere in the brawl, Hien and Y'shtola subdue him while Aria manages to defeat Sadu. Y'shtola goes to the House and is able to reactivate the Allagan device and begin to repower the Allagan shield. Meanwhile, at a camp of Resistance fighters, the Shadowhunter and Alphinaud arrive to find everyone dead without a sign of conflict. The Shadowhunter reveals that it was the work of a previously abandoned biological weapon of the Empire known as Black Rose, and Alphinaud surmises that the Ascian controlling Zenos (unaware it is Elidibus) was responsible.
13 	The Call 	Many Domans and Xaela tribes agree to Lyse's proposal to join the Eorzean alliance, and Hien takes leave to join an Eorzean leadership meeting in Ala Mhigo. They discuss plans to take down the Empire and more importantly the Ascians that work behind them. Thancred suggests subterfuge by spreading the word that the crown prince and heir to the throne is actually possessed by a dark force. The meeting is interrupted by a psychic disturbance that afflicts the Scions. Aria feels sucked into a dark void, where she hears a voice warning that history must change or else a "wave of light" will consume all life. It ends with a plea to "Throw open the gates", and Thancred collapses into a coma with the doctors unable to resuscitate him. Meanwhile, in Garlemald, Varis is met by the Ascian Elidibus awoke: Solus zos Galvus, who ridicules his grandson's hesitation to retake Ala Mhigo and reminds him that Solus founded the Garlean Empire "solely to spread the seeds of chaos". Irritated, Varis shoots Solus, who then possesses a clone of his body to end the discussion.
14 	A Defector's Tidings 	In flashbacks, Varis arranges the funeral of Solus and hatefully spits on his casket once left alone with it. In the present, the psychic disturbance repeats, causing Urianger and Y'shtola to also fall comatose. Krile, Aria and Alisaie go to Matoya's cave to repeat the method they used to locate Miniflia, but Krile finds that the aetheric trails of the Scions abruptly cut without going to the aetherical sea. Maxima, and many Populares, defect to Ala Mhigo. Alphinaud has stayed with Shadowhunter to investigate Ascian activity, while the Empire mobilizes to retake Ala Mhigo. Fearing there is not enough time to organize a defense, Raubahn and Lyse send word to every Alliance leader and plan to stall the invasion by negotiating with whoever Varis selects to command the assault. Meanwhile, Varis oversees the construction of a new Black Rose facility after the Shadowhunter had previously destroyed the old one. When Solus visits to compliment Varis, he rebuffs Solus and reminds him that he caused the Garlean civil war by his neglectance to name a successor. He is outraged when Solus reveals that it was a deliberate method of causing chaos to pursue the Rejoinings.
15 	Seiryu's Wall 	In flashbacks, the Shadowhunter and Alphinaud sabotage the Imperial facility where the Black Rose was being produced. They also discover a facility where clones of Solus are being created and destroy it. In doing so, Alphinaud earns both the Shadowhunter's respect and the knowledge of his true identity. In the present, Hien, Aria and Alisaie set out to test the Allagan barrier over the Burn. It is proven effective when it stops the Shadowhunter's vessel and forces him to land with Alphinaud, who has also fallen comatose. Aria notices a familiar mask on the Shadowhunter and realizes that he is actually Gaius Baelsar, who survived the destruction of the Ultima Weapon. Discarding his title of "van", Gaius swore revenge on the Ascians for deceiving him and took up the "Shadowhunter" persona, supplying himself with white auracite. He has killed two Ascians, Altima and Deudalaphon, and identified their leaders: Lahabrea, Elidibus, and the mysterious Emet-Selch. Gaius departs for Garlemald to further hamper Black Rose production and expose Zenos' possession.
16 	Parley on the Front Lines	In flashbacks, Solus tells Varis of his true identity as an Ascian and that the Empire is an Ascian ploy to sow discord and bring Calamity, admitting that as a sundered being, Varis could never earn his love. In the present, Aria arrives with Hien and Alisaie in Ala Mhigo just in time to be invited to sit in on the Eorzean Alliance’s negotiations with the Empire, who are represented by Varis himself. Varis dismantles every argument the Alliance leaders bring against him, citing their subjugation and harsh treatments of the beast tribes. After a short recess, at Alisaie and Aria's suggestion, the Alliance leaders plainly ask why Garlemald is waging war at all. Varis reveals the Alliance the Empire's true purpose and explains that the Ascians seek to undo the planet's sundering; their Calamities merge Shards back into the Source. He offers an alliance: permit Calamities to continue, until the reunited souls of mankind are strong enough to fight the Ascians directly. Aria furiously tells Varis that she and Gaius have already killed five Ascians; the Alliance unanimously refuses Varis's offer, and the Emperor departs to ready his army for war.
17 	The Face of War 	Chaos erupts from all sides as Varis and Elidibus begin their assault on the Ghimlyt Dark, a heavily fortified terrain that guards Ala Mhigo. The Alliance leaders personally take the field, as do Varis' bodyguards, Annia and Julia quo Soranus. Kan-E-Senna and other mages shield the Alliance from aerial bombardment. Osuke, Alisaie, Aria and Yugiri defeat and slay Annia and Juila, but the psychic disturbance returns and renders Alisaie comatose. Having suffered heavy casualties, the Garlean forces retreat, and Aria uses the reprieve to take Alisaie to safety at Revenant's Toll. Varis returns to the capital when rumors about "Zenos" spread, leaving Elidibus in command with dwindling morale amongst his troops. Cid later visits Aria to discuss Gaius' survival and the status of their friends, and they comfort each other. Estinien arrives soon after, having been asked by Aymeric to partake in the fighting. Meanwhile, a mysterious katana-wielding Ala Mhigan heads to the battlefield. He kills a Garlean soldier and transfers his soul into the soldier's body, and looks forward to a "reunion" with his "one true fiend".
18 	An Auspicious Encounter 	The tale of Aria's battle with Susano spreads throughout the Ruby Sea, prompting Soroban to ask Aria to journey to Hells' Lid, a volcanic island once home to a host of demons, where an unknown messenger has asked to meet her. Accompanied by Soroban and Tataru, Aria fights her way through the monsters of Hells' Lid, including a massive turtle sage, who upon his defeat transforms into a rather less intimidating tiny turtle. The turtle introduces himself as Genbu, the leader of the Four Lords, animals who have lived for a thousand years. The other three are the snow tiger Byakko, the phoenix Suzaku, and the serpentine dragon Seiryu. The Four Lords tell the tale of Koryu, an immensely powerful being that once threatened to bring calamity to the Ruby Sea, and was felled by the Four Lords with the aid of Tenzen, a legendary hero. However, Koryu could not be truly defeated, only sealed away for a time, and Genbu reveals that the wards sealing away Koryu are on the brink of collapse. For Aria to prove her worth, she must quell the aramitama (primal rage) within each Lord.
19 	Taming the White Tiger 	Byakko tells of how he had been cast out from his tribe due to his unusual white skin. As he lived alone for most his life, the tiger attained his auspice status but remained a hermit until Tenzen found him. They bonded over being outcasts, as Tenzen was also cast out of his society for possessing the Echo, which enabled Tenzen to speak to beasts. Byakko takes Aria back to the place of his birth, the Jade Stoa, where memories of his young life overcome the tiger and turn him into his rage form. After a vicious battle, in which Byakko pulls Aria into a tornado and turns his tiger form into an arm-cannon, Aria manages to defeat Byakko and quell his rage. Impressed, Byakko recalls the full details of the Four Lord's battle with Koryu, which ended with a mortally wounded Tenzen sacrificing himself to seal Koryu away. Before he died, Tenzen bequeathed to them a sacred crystal, which the auspices speculate may in fact be the source of their powers. While Aria prepares to battle the next Lord, Genbu offers to train Soroban on how to manage Koryu's wards, a proposal that he accepts.
20 	The Fire-bird Down Below 	To accelerate Soroban's training process, Genbu asks Aria to retrieve a relic known as the tamate-bako of geomancy, which has the power to manipulate time itself, and transform Soroban into an auspice, albeit until the magicks dissipate. They eventually find the box inside of Swallow's Compass, the ancient mausoleum of Ganen, the founder of the Kingdom of Doma and father of Far Eastern geomancy. Soroban opens it, becomes consumed by smoke, and transforms into an auspice already consumed by the aramitama. Aria subdues the rampaging Soroban and knocks him back into his senses. When an impressed Genbu compares Aria to Tenzen, Suzaku takes offense. She recounts how she was likened to the Firebird of legend, a being said to give immortality, and due to this was pursued relentlessly. When Susaku was treated with kindness by Tenzen, she fell in love with him and still grieves his death. Suzaku soon succumbs to her primal rage and fights Aria, whom she repeatedly refers to as Tenzen. Aria eventually defeats and calms down Suzaku, who declares Aria to be a worthy successor to Tenzen.
21 	Surpassing the Samurai 	As Soroban recovers from his fight with Aria, the wards holding Koryu begin to collapse. Seiryu meets with Aria and recalls how he lived on one of the islands in the Ruby Sea, until one day a great catastrophe befell the residents on the island and believed it to be because of the power of Seiryu. They began to rever Seiryu and sacrificed their loved ones to him to prevent another catastrophe until Seiryu banished them all. Over time the islanders believed the snake to be the root of their problems and had hired mercenaries to dispose of the Auspice until Tenzen came and defeated Seiryu, but spared him. Seiryu vowed to train tirelessly to claim victory in a future rematch, only to watch as Tenzen sacrificed himself to seal away Koryu. He brings Aria to his shrine, the Wreath of Snakes, where he succumbs to his primal rage and fights her as a dragon-snake hybrid creature. After an intense battle, in which Seiryu summons minions and multiple tidal waves, Aria defeats Seiryu. The two return in time to stand with the other Lords as Koryu's prison collapses.
22 	The Fifth Lord 	The Four Lords, Aria and Soroban stand together to restore the wards, only for Koryu to shatter them and emerge from his prison as a gigantic dragon. An aerial battle above the Rudy Sea ensues, in which Koryu kills Genbu and overpowers Aria and the other Lords. However, the tide turns when Soroban allows Genbu's spirit to inhabit his body, and the spirit of Tenzen appears to aid his former comrades. Together, they successfully force Koryu back into his prison and seal him inside. Genbu, still co-inhabiting Soroban's body, explains Soroban's soul endures thanks to his training and that his spirit will eventually pass on. Since the process takes up to 500 years, it will give Genbu plenty of time to train Soroban to be his successor. With the threat over, Tenzen locks eyes with Aria, who briefly sees Tenzen as herself as he returns to the aetherical sea.Yoshi P. confirmed that Aria is the reincarnation of Tenzen. Genbu rewards Aria with a massive treasure coffer to fill the Scions' finances, and the Four Lords bid farewell to her. When Aria returns to Revenant's Toll, she is alerted that Elidibus has arrived on the Ghimlyt Dark.
23 	A Requiem for Heroes 	Hien, Lyse and Yugiri confront Elidibus, but he shatters Hien's sword, severely injures Lyse, and kills Yugiri. Aria arrives in time to save Hien and prepares to duel Elidibus, only to be incapacitated by the psychic disturbance. She meets a mysterious hooded man, who beseeches that Aria return to the Crystal Tower, where a beacon has been placed for her. Before Elidibus can seize this opportunity to execute Aria, Estinien intervenes and fights him. When he too is outmatched, the katana-wielding soldier arrives and reveals himself as the real Zenos, having cheated death by possessing the Ala Mhigan with his Resonant powers. Unwilling to fight both Estinien and Zenos, Elidibus retreats. Aria awakens to find Lyse crippled, unable to fight or walk again. Both women attend Yugiri's funeral in Doma, where Hien reveals that Yugiri asked for Osuke to replace her as Hien's shinobi in the event of her death, and Osuke accepts. Afterwards, Aria vows to find the beacon at the Crystal Tower and bring her friends home. In a post-credits scene, Solus observes a city, the "Crystarium", and muses of a reunion with "Azem".
=== Season 7 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	City of the First 	Aria and Tataru find the beacon that the mysterious voice spoke of, and Aria is teleported to a region called Novrandt. She meets twins Lyna and Lyon, the leaders of the Crystarium's guard. They take Aria to the Crystarium's ruler: The Crystal Exarch, who reveals Aria is now on the First shard. The Exarch, calling for Aria, summoned the Scions by accident, who have lived years on the First, time passing differently between Shards. The Exarch explains the impending doom: rampant Light will trigger a Calamity, destroying the First and ending Source civilization. Emerging from the everlasting light are "Sin Eaters", who exist only to feast upon other people's aether and transform them into sin eaters as well. While exploring the city, Aria meets Feo Ul, an adventuresome pixie, and the shade of Ardbert, the leader of the Warriors of Darkness returned to the First. He explains that Minfilia and the others sacrificed themselves to halt the "Flood of Light." Ardbert was denied the chance and has been forced to witness Norvrandt's slow decline for the past century.
2 	The Time Left to Us 	In flashbacks, Alisaie arrives naked at the Crystarium due to the Exarch's summoning. This, along with the Exarch's demeanor and outfit, causes Alisaie to believe that the Exarch is a pedophile, so she beats up the Exarch until he magically restrains her and explains that her summoning was an accident. In the present, when asked by Aria about the fate of G'raha, remembering how he had sealed himself in the Crystal Tower, the Exarch denies knowing him. Since the Exarch is linked to the Crystal Tower and cannot leave it for along, he sends Aria to gather the Scions for his plan to save the First. She searches for Alisaie, who is aiding a hospice for sin eater victims in the region of Amh Araeng, where the Flood of Light was halted. With help from Tesleen, the hospice's head cartaker who has become close friends with Alisaie, Aria reunites with Alisaie. Later, a large group of sin eaters attack the hospice. Tesleen is stabbed and transformed into a sin eater while trying to defend one of her charges, Halric. Grief-stricken, Alisaie vows to eradicate the sin eaters and leaves with Aria for the Crystarium.
3 	Emergent Splendor 	In flashbacks, Alphinaud is summoned by the Exarch and greets him more warmly than Alisaie did. Aria next goes to the region of Kholousia, Novrandt's largest island, to find Alphinaud. After reuniting with him, Aria learns that is investigating Eulmore, a regional power that opposes The Crystarium. It is a city that is strangely ignored by sin eaters, and the rich are living out the last days in luxury while the poor either serve them or be thrown out. Aria and Alphinaud meet a boy named Kai-Shirr, who wants to get into the city to see his friends and fulfill the promise of being together again in paradise. The three pose as painters while being judged by Vauthry's twin jesters. Aria and Alphinaud gain access to Eulmore under the pretense of being servants to civilian Chai-Nuzz and his wife Dulia-Chai, but Kai-Shirr is rejected. They eventually meet Eulmore's leader, the grotesque Lord Vauthry, who has ordered Kai-Shirr to punish himself for trying to re-enter Eulmore by slitting his wrists. Alphinaud stops Kai-Shirr, publicly insults Vauthry, and leaves with him and Aria. Enraged, Vauthry vows to see Alphinaud and Aria killed.
4 	The Lightwardens 	Aria and the Leveilleur twins meet with the Exarch in the Crystal Tower, where he explains that the only way to stop the Flood of Light for good is to slay the First's five Lightwardens. Slaying a Lightwarden infects the slayer with its Light, creating another Lightwarden, but the Exarch surmises that Hydaelyn's Blessing will forestall this long enough for him to enact a secret plan to safely dispose of the Light. Soon after, Lyna and Lyon report that a nearby town, Holminster Switch, has come under attack by a swarm of sin eaters led by a Lightwarden. Aria, the Leveilleur twins, Lyon and Lyna battle their way through sin eaters, including Tesleen and her killer, and find the Lightwarden, which Aria manages to slay. Lakeland's sky goes dark for the first time in a century, leading the surviving villagers to hail Aria as the "Warrior of Darkness". An elderly and scarred Hume observes this and is stunned to see that Aria slew the Lightwarden without turning. He goes to report this to his "master", while Ardbert finally feels hope that his home might be saved.
5 	The Oracle of Light 	Aria goes to the Crystarium's libraries and learns that the Warriors of Darkness have been blamed for bringing on the flood through their actions as Warriors of Light. She also learns that Minfilia is revered as the "Oracle of Light" for stopping the Flood. Most of Minfilia's reincarnations fight Sin Eaters until their dying breaths, with the latest being captured by the elderly Hume, who is revealed to be Vauthry's general Ran'jit. Ran'jit visits the Exarch, explaining that Vauthry considers any attack on Sin Eaters an act of defiance against Vauthry, but the Exarch rebuffs his demand that he hand over Aria and Alphinaud. Instead, Aria, the Leveilleur twins, Lyon and Lyna rescue Minfilia from Ran'jit’s custody, believing she can help find the Lightwardens. During the mission, Aria overpowers Ran'jit, who is able to incapacitate her with a nerve strike after she is distracted protecting Alphinaud from his familiar, Gukumatz. Thancred, who is revealed to have taken Minfilia as his ward, intervenes and helps the Scions escape as Solus secretly watches them from above.
6 	Il Mheg, the Faerie Kingdom 	In flashbacks, while being summoned by the Exarch, Urianger witnesses a vision of how the surge of Light on the First amplifies the potency of the Black Rose on the Source, ending all life on the latter, including Aria. The Exarch grows impressed by Urianger's intellect and eventually decides to confide his plan to him. In the present, Thancred reunites with his friends, while Lyna and Lyon leave to prepare the Crystarium for Vauthry's retribution. The Scions flee Ran'jit's pursuit into Il Mheg, the home of the fae folk, the most prominent of whom are the pixies. The pixies summon powerful illusions to play tricks on the Scions until Aria summons Feo Ul to get them out of it. Afterwards, the Scions reunite with Urianger, who has been studying the specifics of Calamities. Urianger reveals the fae king Titania defeated a Lightwarden that had threatened Il Mheg, only to be corrupted by it's aether. Titania then locked himself in his castle to keep his people safe from harm. Four relics are required to enter the castle, and the Scions split up to retrieve them before Ran'jit's arrival.
7 	The Key to the Castle 	The pixies are motivated by Feo Ul to give up their artifact so they can watch the Scions be slaughtered by Titania for entertainment. To retrieve the second relic, the shell crown, Aria fights her way through the water-bound Fuath's domain, providing them the sport they desired and earning the shell crown for her trouble. They try to drown Aria afterwards, but Aria survives due to her underwater breathing skills and escapes with the shell crown. Meanwhile, the other Scions perform menial tasks for the friendly Nu Mou friendly fae folk and the sentient bird-like Amaro tribes for the next two relics. Aria learns that Thanrced is emotionally distant from Minfilia in fear that he will lose her "again". Aria also meets an Amaro named Seto, whom Ardbert reveals is his old mount. He originally belonged an abusive jeweler until Ardbert took him in and aroused his sentience with their adventurers. Seto has since mourned Ardbert's death, but Aria is interrupted from telling him about Ardbert's presence when Ran'jit's army is spotted closing in. She and the Scions hastily unlock Titania's castle gate and enter.
8 	Acht-la Ormh Inn 	After a hard-fought battle, in which Titania bombards the Scions with illusions and gigantic tree-like monsters, the Scions defeat Titania and Aria absorbs his aether. Feo Ul becomes King and uses his newfound powers to force Ran'jit and his army into retreat as the night sky returns to Il Mheg. When the Scions return to the Crystarium, they are met by Solus, who reveals himself as Emet-Selch, the third Ascian leader that Gaius had identified. He admits that the Flood of Light was his idea, and that he had the Ascians Mitron and Loghrif orchestrate it by manipulating the Warriors of Darkness. Genuinely intrigued with the group’s tenacity and wishing to continue observing them, he offers a truce, aid, and a deal: if Aria can successfully contain the aether of all five Lightwardens, Emet-Selch will gradually reveal the Ascians' true motives in their journey. The Scions hesitantly accept this and rest for the night. Meanwhile, on the Source, Gaius and his mercenary team infiltrate Garlemald to destroy Black Rose and encounter Estinien, who is convinced to accompany them.
9 	Into the Dark 	The Scions, accompanied by Emet-Selch, go to the Rak'tika Greatwood, where Y'shtola has adopted the name of Matoya and is now leading the Night's Blessed tribe in searching for the Third Lightwarden, while the Exarch goes to Eulmore to negotiate peace with Vauthry. After a tense reunion, the Scions explore the Ronkan Empire's ruins. Its protectors, the amazonian Viis, attack them but stand down upon seeing a seal that Urianger had received to earn their trust. The Scions and the Viis surmise that the Lightwarden is located in a sealed area known as the Qitana Ravel, and the only way to access it is to restore aether flow to a dangerous temple that is linked with the Ravel. As they explore, Aria urges Thancred to open up to Minfilia, but he refuses as he believes Minfilia will inevitably sacrifice himself against the Sin Eaters as her other incarnations did. He reveals that Ran'jit raised the other Minfilias, only to watch them die in his arms over and over agian. Meanwhile, some of the Night's Blessed tribe are poisoned by Ran'jit's men, who issue the tribe an ultimatum to give up the Scions or be left to die.
10 	Legend of the Not-so-hidden Temple	The Viis' leader, Almet, leads Y'shtola and Aria into a labyrinth filled magicked sentinels and perilous traps at every turn. At the end of the labyrinth is the switch restoring the flow of aether through the whole of the pyramid, thus opening the path through the Qitana Ravel. The Scions and the Viis are confronted by Ran'jit and his adjudant, who panics and offers them the antidote for the Night's Blessed if they are provided safe passage out of the temple. Disgusted by his cowardice, Ran'jit kills the adjudant and kicks both him and the antidote down a bottomless pit; Y'shtola tries to sacrifice herself by jumping into the pit and tossing the antidote to Aria, but is lifted back up by Emet-Selch. Ran'jit assumes that Emet-Selch is allied with the Scions and attacks him, only to be grievously wounded and teleported away by Gukumatz. The Scions begrudgingly thank Emet-Selch for his help, but still refuse to trust him. Meanwhile, in Garlemald, Zenos enters the capital palace and makes his way towards Varis and Elidibus, intending to reclaim his body from the latter.
11 	The Burden of Knowledge 	Ran'jit returns to Eulmore to tend to his injuries and is berated by Vauthry for his failure. He visits the graves of the previous Minfilia and momentarily contemplates suicide before Gukumatz comforts him. Back in the Greatwood, Emet-Selch grows tired of the Scions' ignorance to the Ascians' motives. Once the Scions enter the Qitana Revel, Emet-Selch teleports all of them past the sentinels so that they can immediately face the Lightwarden, which the Scions manage to slay. After Aria absorbs it's aether, she grows nauseous and begins to feel pain from the amount of Light within her. Though unimpressed, Emet-Selch lures the Scions to nearby murals and explains what they depict: Zodiark and Hydaelyn, who are not Gods but the eldest of primals. Zodiark was created to stop some terrible disaster, while Hydaelyn was created to keep Zodiark in check when others feared His power. Emet-Selch knows this tale because the unsundered world that the Ascians seek to restore with their Calamities is actually their own, leaving the Scions in shock.
12 	When It Rains 	The Scions rest for the night at the Crystarium and Aria has a nightmare about transforming into a Lightwarden. Meanwhile, in Eulmore, the Exarch meets with Vauthry. He tells the Exarch that the world is beyond redemption even if the Lightwardens are slain, and that the people of the First require the hand of a God to shepherd them beyond the edge. Realizing that Vauthry considers himself to be the said God, the Exarch rebuffs him and leaves after Vauthry reveals he has ordered sin eaters, which he is able to control, to attack the Crystarium. The next morning, the Scions join the ensuing battle with Lyna and Lyon. Though the sin eaters are eventually repulsed, many of the Crystarium's guards are slain and Lyon is cornered by a greater sin eater. Ardbert fails to save Lyon, who is stabbed and commits suicide to avoid becoming a sin eater. Thancred helps comfort the grief-stricken Lyna by recounting his own brother's death and how he was able to move on from it. Afterwards, the remaining Lightwardens remain hidden, and the Exarch sees no other option but to rejoin Minfilia with the Oracle of Light, which will kill her.
13 	Full Steam Ahead 	After the Scions leave for Amh Araeng, Emet-Selch visits the Exarch to question him about his motives and identity, but is rebuffed. The Scions find that Nabaath Areng, the place where the Oracle of Light stopped the flood, is inaccessible outside of restarting a trolley system powered by a Talos, a powerful artificially engineered golem. The group assists a local mining crew eager to restart the trolley and get the Talos up and running again. After much menial work, Thancred, Minfilia and Aria head for Nabaath Areng but are intercepted by a recovered Ran'jit and Gukumatz. Minfilia refuses to return to Ran'jit and tells him that the previous Minfilias would be ashamed at what he has become, enraging Ran'jit, who resolves to kill her. Thancred intervenes and forces Aria and Minfilia to continue on without him while he duels Ran'jit. Ran'jit fuses with Gukumatz and critically wounds Thancred, who employs stealth techniques to repeatedly injure Ran'jit until the fusion is undone and Gukumatz teleports Ran'jit away again. Thancred then collapses from his wounds.
14 	Crossroads 	Aria and Minfilia arrive in Nabaath Areng, where Minfilia uses her powers to make contact with the Oracle of Light, who bids the girl decide her own fate, willingly passes, and bequeaths her Oracle powers to Minfilia. Renamed Ryne by Thancred, who was found and nursed back to health by the mining crew, she locates the region's lightwarden in a site known as Malikah's Well. The Scions dive into the well, find the Lightwarden, and slay it. Light is restored to Amh Araeng, with the final Lightwarden being in Kholusia. However, Aria seriously struggles to contain the Light and Y'shtola presses Urianger for the Exarch's plan, which the Exarch had previously revealed to him. Urianger insists that he must not speak of it, and the Scions return to the Crystarium. Emet-Selch further rewards the group by revealing that of the Ascians, only he, Lahabrea and Elidibus survived the Sundering intact. The trio recruited the non-leader Ascians, such as Nabriales and Igeyorhm, by going to their shards and infusing them with the memories of their original counterparts.
15 	A Feast of Lies 	After suffering another nightmare and being comforted by Ardbert, Aria goes with the Scions to Eulmore. Aided by Kai-Shirr, the Scions learn that Meol, the food that Eulmore serves to its people, is actually made of sin eater flesh, the consumption of which apparently renders one susceptible to Vauthry's influence. The Scions storm Eulmore, where Vauthry ushers in the citizens and the jesters to attack them. The Scions subdue the citizens while Alphinaud and Alisaie kill the jesters after they admit to willingly serving Vauthry and force-feeding the Meol out of selfishness to remain in Eulmore. Aria, Thancred and Ryne are once again confronted by Ran'jit. Their battle descends to the Minfilias' graves, some of which Ran'jit accidentally destroys. Overcome with emotion, Ran'jit stands down and allows Thancred to fatally stab him. He, Aria and Ryne honor Ran'jit's last request and leave him to die in peace, but Gukumatz forcibly teleports Ran'jit away again. The Scions then enter Vauthry's chamber and discover that he, in fact, is the final Lightwarden; Vauthry sprouts wings and flees Eulmore, hiding atop Mount Gulg.
16 	Rich Veins of Hope 	The Scions, using Ryne’s power, are able to cure most of the citizens, including Chai-Nuzz and Dulia-Chai, and ask for their help in finding a way to reach Mount Gulg, the top of which Vauthry has ripped off and sent floating in the sky to make his new paradise. The wealthy of Eulmore accept their wrongdoings, welcome the poor back into Eulmore, and lend their aid to make amends. The Scions are unable to reach Mount Gulg by flight as Vauthry's sin eaters are guarding the air, so Chai-Nuzz, a Talos expert, proposes that they create a massive Talos that can actually grab hold of the floating city, and create a bridge that will allow the Scions to reach Vauthry. The sight of the people of the First working together causes Emet-Selch to reminisce about his people's capital, Amaurot. Emet-Selch tells Aria that his society was free from pain and war, but Aria dismisses this and angers Emet-Selch by telling him that his desire to bring back his people is only making them suffer. When the Talos' construction is eventually completed, two powerful sin eaters are sent down to destroy it.
17 	The Old Soldier 	In flashbacks, Ran'jit's father, Zal'bard, is visiting Eulmore's mayor when the Flood of Light begins. Zal'bard and Ran'jit act as one of the first lines of defense against the sin eaters that spread from the Light blasted areas of the Empty. Zal'bard serves as a general in Eulmore and fathers Ran'jit in order to pass on his techniques and magicks, training the young boy how to summon Gukumatz. Ran'jit was still a boy when his father formed an elite, anti-sin eater unit, known as the Sinbound. Zal'bard led the Sinbound to battle a Lightwarden and managed to slay it, only to then become one himself. Inheriting his father's positions, Ran'jit worked under the strategies of Minfilia's first reincarnation, with their goal being for Minfilia to put down his father, only for her to die in battle. Ran'jit is unable to bear the continued deaths of his wards, and thus submits to Vauthry's rule for peace with sin eaters. When Ran'jit is struck down in Eulmore, Gukumatz teleports him to Mount Gulg. Ran'jit begs Vauthry to let him die, but Vauthry instead punishes Ran'jit for his failures by transforming him and Gukumatz into sin eaters.
18 	Extinguishing the Last Light 	Ryne uses her powers to realize that the two sin eaters are Ran'jit and Gukumatz before the Scions finally manage to slay them both. Help then arrives in the unexpected form of the fae folk, who engage the sin eaters from the air and allow the Talos to safely complete its task of making a bridge to Mount Gulg. While the Scions hold off hordes of sin eaters, Aria confronts Vauthry at his inner sanctum and defeats him after a hard-fought battle; Vauthry dies in disbelief that he was not a God. As Aria absorbs his aether, an Echo vision reveals that Emet-Selch offered Vauthry's father a deal: bind a LightwardenConfirmed by Yoshi P. to be Zal'bard to his unborn son, and thus control sin eaters. The First's combined Light is too much, however, and Aria begins to transform. As the Exarch tries to absorb the excess Light and then flee between worlds, he is revealed as G'raha, who disguised himself so the others would not prevent his sacrifice. Emet-Selch stops G'raha, breaking his truce, as Aria has failed his test. He takes G'raha to the bottom of the Tempest, the ocean surrounding Kholusia, leaving Aria to transform.
19 	The Unbroken Thread 	Aria awakens in the Crystarium and learns from Ardbert that Ryne temporarily stabilized her, but the Light has returned to all Norvrandt's skies. Desperate for answers, Aria goes to the Exarch's private chambers in the Crystal Tower and learns that G'raha came from a timeline where a Light-supercharged Black Rose caused the Eighth Umbral Calamity. Battling societal breakdown, the Ironworks headed by Cid rallied those inspired by the Warrior. After two centuries, they opened the Crystal Tower, awakening G'raha from stasis. Combining powers from Alexander and Omega, they sent G'raha across time and worlds. Aria also learns that the Exarch told Urianger of his plan and pressured him to hide the truth. After a pep talk from Feo Ul and Ardbert, Aria decides to try and pursue Emet-Selch at The Tempest himself, but is stopped by the other Scions. Urianger apologizes for his deception and convinces Aria that swimming to the bottom would take too much time. Instead, they decide to use the First’s version of Bismarck, who is actually a fae disguised as an island in Kholusia.
20 	To Storm-tossed Seas 	Feo Ul helps the group convince Bismarck to aid in transporting them all to the bottom of the ocean to where the Tempest is located along with clearing the water from the area so they can more easily breathe and travel. Upon their arrival, the group earns the trust of a local group of Sahagin, known as the Ondo on the First, and they assist the Scions with locating a massive city that had recently appeared from nowhere on the bottom of the ocean floor. The Scions assume the Ondo are being rhetorical until they witness the city for themselves; Y'shtola realizes that it is actually a simulacrum of Amaurot conjured by Emet-Selch, complete with citizen simulacra. Meanwhile, on the Source, Elidibus plays chess with Varis in an attempt to convince him to order an assault on Revenant's Toll and assassinate the sleeping Scions. Before Varis can give the order, Zenos breaks into the throne room and confronts them, enraged that Varis would "spoil" his hunt with the Black Rose. Elidibus refuses to give Zenos his body back and, wary of Zenos's strength, forces Varis to help him battle Zenos.
21 	The City of the Ancients 	The Scions explore the city and learn that the disaster that the Ancients faced is the "Final Days", where their emotions and unchecked energies of creation created monstrous beasts. The Ancients beseeched their leaders—the Convocation of Fourteen, Emet-Selch among them—for salvation. A self-aware simulacrum, Hythlodaeus, says three-quarters of Ancients willingly sacrificed themselves, creating and empowering Zodiark, saving and restoring the world. The Convocation planned to sacrifice later life to revive these Ancients. Dissident Ancients, wishing to let new life grow independently, summoned Hydaelyn to imprison Zodiark. During their struggle, Hydaelyn sundered all of creation into thirteen shards, leaving Zodiark imprisoned on the Source's moon until the Ascians could fix him by sacrificing the shards under the belief that Zodiark could restore their world once more. Hythlodaeus is able to notice Ardbert and reveals to Aria that Ardbert is actually the First's shard of her original soul. Eventually, the Scions ascertain Emet-Selch's location in Amaurot's capital building and set out to confront him.
22 	Shadowbringers Part One 	Emet-Selch confronts the Scions and refuses their demand that he give up the Exarch, since he believes that G'raha's knowledge of time travel could speed up the Rejoinings. When Alphinaud asserts that the people of the Source and it's shards are no different than the Ancients and thus deserve to live, Emet-Selch takes offense and tests the Scions again with an illusion of Amaurot's destruction. The Scions survive, but Emet-Selch remains unimpressed, defeats them all, and watches Aria succumb to the light. However, Ardbert merges into Aria's soul and heals her; in this rejoining, Emet-Selch briefly sees Aria an an Ancient. G'raha reappears and re-enacts his summoning ritual to bring forth "Champions from beyond the rift", who turn out to be Aria's adventurer friends. Emet-Selch battles Aria, her adventurer friends, and the Scions under his true name, Hades. The Scions stall Hades with white auracite, allowing Aria to unleash the Lightwardens' aether and impale Hades with Ardbert's light-infused axe. Hades accepts his defeat, asking Aria to remember his people before dying.
23 	Shadowbringers Part Two 	The Scions return to the Crystarium with G'raha, where they celebrate their victory, while Ardbert reunites with his friends in the afterlife. G'raha apologizes for his deception to Aria, who forgives him. After she leaves, it is revealed that G'raha is in love with her, having idolized Aria over the centuries. Meanwhile, Estinien and Gaius infiltrate the Garlean palace to destroy the Black Rose and find the carnage left by Zenos's rampage. The trail leads Estinien and Gaius to the throne room, where they find that Elidibus, now the last unsundered Ascian, has fled Garlemald and allowed Zenos to take back his body after sensing Emet-Selch's death. Zenos, now aware of the Source's true origins from Elidibus, murders Varis to ensure that nobody will interfere with his desired rematch with Aria. In a mid-credits scene, Elidibus mourns over Emet-Selch at Zodiark's prison on the moon, where he vows to avenge both him and Lahabrea by using the "Warriors of Light". In a post-credit scene, Ryne and Thancred scout out the Empty and discover the first sin eater, the dormant Eden, in the distance.
=== Season 8 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	The Journey of the Unsundered 	In flashbacks, the youngest member of the Convocation, Themis, bids farewell to the other members as he sacrifices himself to become Zodiark's heart. Emet-Selch and Apollo, who holds the seat of Azem in the Convocation, learn that their best friend Hythlodaeus also intends to sacrifice himself. Emet-Selch pleads with Hythlodaeus but decides not to stop him. Apollo denounces the sacrifices and abandons both the Convocation and Emet-Selch, who tearfully denounces him as a "traitor". Later, Emet-Selch, Elidibus and Lahabrea escape the Sundering in a portal that opens near the former, creating memory crystals to remember their purpose as they work to restore Zodiark. After founding the Garlean Empire as Solus and growing close to his son Lucius, Emet-Selch considers giving the Sundered a chance but gives up after Lucius dies at a young age. Lahabrea, mentally broken by seeing his sundered son, takes glee in the suffering of sundered beings and alienates his unsundered comrades. In the present, Elidibus confides to the Watcher, a mysterious being on the moon, his fear of suffering Lahabrea's fate.
2 	A Grand Adventure 	G'raha searches for a way to return the Scions home before their bodies wither away on the Source, learning of a reclusive master of soulcraft named Beq Lugg. G'raha, Aria, Y'shtola and Urianger go to her mansion and fight their way through Beq Lugg's creations until Beq Lugg agrees to help them. Beq Lugg and G'raha work out a method to send the stranded Scions back to the Source using crystals infused with G'raha's blood. They create spirit vessels for each Scion, plus an additional one for G'raha, intending to take the first as a safety precaution. However, Beq Lugg warns that drawing upon the Crystal Tower's energy to such a degree will eventually cause G'raha's body to completely crystalize. Meanwhile, Chai-Nuzz is appointed as Eulmore's new mayor with the aid of Alphinaud and Alisaie, and pursues reforms to satisfy both the rich and the poor. Aria temporarily visits the Source to be updated on what has happened while she was away and is reunited with Estinien, whom Tataru reveals she had "blackmailed" into investigating the Black Rose production.
3 	Vows of Virtue, Deeds of Cruelty	In flashbacks, after witnessing Varis's murder, Gaius and Estinien try to fight Zenos to no avail. Bored, he leaves as Varis's guards arrive and wrongly accuse Gaius and Estinien of murdering the Emperor. The two separately fight their way out, with Estinien running into and destroying a prototype imperial machine resembling the Ultima Weapon. In the present, with Varis dead and no heirs to assume the throne, Garlemald collapses into another civil war. As Zenos watches the chaos, he is approached by the hooded Fandaniel. Aria returns to the Source, where Lyna reports sighting of a "Warrior of Light" clearing out the remaining sin eaters. Aria and G'raha agree it is time to clear the names of Ardbert and his companions by revealing the truth of the Flood of Darkness to the people; during the gathering, Ardbert approaches, claiming that it was "the will of the star" that brought him back. Ardbert announces his intention to help the people become "Warriors of Light". The Scions surmise that Elidibus has taken over Ardbert's body, with Y'shtola suggesting that the group search for answers in the Qitana Revel.
4 	A Sleep Disturbed 	The Scions journey to Qitana Revel without Thancred, who collapses from strain due to the Scions' bodies beginning to waste away on the Source. Thancred later learns of G'raha's love for Aria and tells G'raha about her tragic romance with Ricardo. Meanwhile, the other Scions seek help from the Viis in scouting out the Qitana Revel. After besting it's guardians, they discover the tomb of the archmage Tiuna, a legendary hero of Ronka who possessed a gift similar to the Echo. Y'shtola surmises that her gift was awakened by a starshower, similar to one they had seen during Emet-Selch's recreation of the Final Days. The Scions find Elidibus battling the remaining sin eaters in the Greatwoods and confront him; he admits to impersonating Ardbert for his own ends and cryptically states that he intends to challenge the "hope" Aria provides with his own. Though Alphinaud tries to have Elidibus reconsider his actions in light of Emet-Selch's dying words, Elidibus rebuffs them and suggests that if they want to understand his conviction, they should explore Amaurot.
5 	Echoes of a Fallen Star 	The Scions return to Amaurot and question it's citizen-shades about how to learn of the Convocation; they suggest going to Anamnesis Anyder. Entering the ancient library, they fight off hordes of hostile benthos and find archives detailing the events of the Sundering. They learn of Venat, the leader of the ancient dissidents who sacrificed herself to becoming Hydaeyln's heart. Aria finds an archive of a conversation between Venat and one of her followers, who mention that Themis held the seat of Elidibus in the Convocation; Urianger concludes that the Elidibus they face must be Themis' successor in the Convocation, though he is unsure if the Convocation could have had time to appoint one. Returning to the Crystarium, they witness Elidibus summon a starshower to awaken the Echoes of it's citizens, revealing that the Echo is a trace of the Ancients' power, not a gift from Hydaelyn. Meanwhile, Fandaniel offers an alliance with Zenos, promising him an improved spectacle for his rematch with Aria. Zenos kills his way back to the palace and destroys most of the other contenders for the throne.
6 	Faded Memories 	Over the following three days, G'raha's body continues to crystalize from his work and the Scions undertake menial tasks in helping the Crystarium's citizens to see what effects Elidibus had on them. Aria eventually goes to check on Y'shtola at Anamnesis Anyder, only to find her unconscious and Elidibus waiting. He issues her an ultimatum: agree to a "test" or watch him execute Y'shtola. Aria agrees to the former and is put through a twisted re-telling of her story, where she battles simulacrums of her former enemies and friends, including that of Elidibus when he was in Zenos' body. Eventually, Elidibus fights Aria directly and is overpowered. Y'shtola intervenes, deducing that Elidibus is, in fact, a primal of his original self as Themis, who separated himself from Zodiark to aid the Convocation. Furthermore, Elidibus is the original source of the "Warrior of Light" legend, exploiting that faith to gain power. When Y'shtola brings up Elidibus' fading memories and suggests that he no longer remembers why he fights, Elidibus angrily declares that he will always remember his duty before departing.
7 	Hope's Confluence 	Aria finds crystals scattered throughout Amaurot and runs into Hythlodaeus, who explains that they are Convocation members' memory crystals. When Aria picks up Azem's crystal, Hythlodaeus reveals that Aria and Ardbert are shards of Apollo. Meanwhile, Elidibus attacks G'raha and Beq Lugg, stealing a prototype vessel with G'raha's blood and memories to control the Crystal Tower. He summons hundreds of spectral "Warriors of Light" to impede the Scions. Aria eventually reaches the Tower and fights Elidibus, who takes the form of the legendary "Warrior of Light". Azem's crystal is revealed to have the ability to summon "champions beyond the rift", with which Aria summons her adventurer friends. When Elidibus banishes them to the void, Aria summons another ally: Emet-Selch, who brings the group back to the Tower before fading away. G'raha uses the Tower as white auracite, trapping Elidibus inside. Out of pity, Aria gives the defeated Elidibus the crystals so he can regain his memories. G'raha admits his love for Aria and requests "one last journey" before G'raha's exertions fully crystalize his body, killing him.
8 	Reflections in Crystal 	With Elidibus gone and the spirit vessels ready, the Scions say their farewells to their friends throughout the First: Alisaie visits Halric and recieves closure on Tesleen's death, Alphinaud visits Chai-Nuzz and Dulia-Chai in Eulmore, Y'shtola passes on leadership of the Night's Blessed to her second-in-command Runar, Aria allows Ardbert to have a reunion with Seto, Thancred tells Ryne that she is ready to fend for herself. Finally, Lyna replaces her adoptive father as the Crystarium's leader and arranges a goodbye ceremony outside the Crystal Tower. Aria returns to the Source, restores their allies, and she awakens the G'raha of the Source from his stasis in the Tower; remembering how he had confessed his love to Aria, the two kiss and G'raha joins the Scions. Meanwhile, Fandaniel, revealed to be possessing Asahi's corpse, explains to Zenos the full details of the Sundering and the Calamities before sensing the death of Elidibus. Delighted to be free of the Unsundered, Fandaniel vows to spread chaos throughout Eorzea.
9 	In the Middle of Nowhere 	Before leaving the First, Ryne asks Aria to return for a favor, which Aria does just as Gaius had arrived at Revenant's Toll to recruit her. Ryne goes to the Empty, where she introduces Aria to the first dormant sin eater, Eden. She explains that Urianger and Thancred had earlier theorized that Eden's power could be used to restore the First and remove it's light. The two go to Eden's core, where Ryne attempts to gain control of the sin eater. It wakes up and resists Ryne, with Aria defeating the "Eden Prime" guardian and then going to the roof to deal with an arriving airborne foe, revealed to be a teenage girl. They subdue and tie up the girl, then begin to use Eden's power to draw out aether of a specific element, though this will unleash a creature that Aria will have to defeat. By restoring each element, Ryne hopes to restore the Empty. Eden, as directed by Ryne, extracts huge quantities of water-aspected aether while Aria calls upon her memories of Leviathan. Aria defeats Leviathan, as well as a manifestation of Titan for it's earth aspected aether, before Ryne stops to rest.
10 	Life Finds a Way 	The girl wakes up and reveals her name is Gaia, a former resident of Eulmore, though she has no memory of recent events. Gaia attributes her arcane powers to a voice inside her head that she refers to as 'the Faerie", which told her to make contact with Eden. Ryne decides to bring Gaia with her to Eden, though the Faerie has no reactions to this, and continues drawing out elements with Aria. A manifestation of Ramuh is defeated for lightning-aspected aether, as well as Ifrit and Garuda for their fire and wind aspects. Soon after, a dark aura manifests around Gaia and coalesces into an ominous floating glyph, which begins summoning sin eaters until Aria destroys it. In order to revitalize the element of ice, this time using Shiva as a basis for the summoning, Ryne proposes summoning the First's Shiva unto herself as Ysayle did. When Ryne does, she loses control and fights Aria, who defeats and frees Ryne with the aid of Gaia. Plant-life starts to be restored around the Empty, and the three women decide to take another break; Ryne and Gaia develop a friendship.
11 	Worlds Apart 	Gaia, Ryne and Aria return to Eden and battle a manifestation of the Cloud of Darkness for it's darkness-aspected aether. Suddenly, an Ascian emerges from Eden and introduces himself as Mitron, one of the Ascians that Emet-Selch sent to rejoin the First. Mitron was engulfed in Light by Ardbert's attacks and was transformed into Eden, thereby causing the Flood of Light. Over the following century, Mitron remained trapped within Eden, desperately calling out to Loghrif, who had since been reborn as Gaia. She refuses to cooperate with Mitron, merges with her into an Ascian Prime and announces his intent to create a utopia within Eden solely for them. Mitron transforms their Ascian Prime into Eden's Promise; Aria is able to defeat it and slay Mitron, who transforms Gaia into the "Oracle of Darkness" before dying. Despite Gaia's Ascian powers being restored, Aria still defeats Gaia and knocks her back to her senses. Afterwards, Gaia decides to focus on building a brighter future in the Crystarium with Ryne. Her work done, Aria returns to the Source, only to learn that a Scion has died in her absence.
12 	Ruby Doomsday 	In flashbacks, after being defeated by Aria, Gaius freed himself from the Praetorium's rubble and tried to escape, but the stronghold exploded. Severely wounded, Gaius was confronted by Valdeaulin, a member of the Order of the Twin Adder whose family had been murdered by the Empire's Black Rose tests. The two agreed that Valdeaulin could execute Gaius once the Ascians had been defeated, and became traveling companions. In the present, Gaius teams up with Raubahn to create a strike team to destroy the renewed Ultima Weapon project. Failing to recruit Aria before she leaves, Gaius settles with Arenvald, who helps him recruit, Cid, Nero, and Fordola. Their meeting with Raubahn is halted when they receive news that the heavily-armed "Ruby Weapon" has been deployed to attack Ala Mhigo. The group, joined by Estinien, engage the Ruby Weapon, which uses "Optimized Ultima" to cause an explosion that kills Arenvald and incapacitates everyone but Estinien. The Weapon begins to activate "Oversoul", but Estinien stops this by ripping open it's armor and pulling out it's pilot, a young au ra girl.
13 	From the Ruins 	Joined by Biggs and Wedge, Cid and Nero examine the captured Ruby Weapon, seeing it is equipped with a synthetic auracite system, Oversoul, designed to forcibly supplant the consciousness of the pilot with data collected from experienced soldiers. The data was collected via magitek devices akin to soul crystals affixed to the magitek armor of high-ranking officials. Meanwhile, Gaius recognizes the Ruby Weapon's pilot as Milisandia, one of Gaius's five adopted children. Under interrogation, Milisandia explains that she and her siblings, Alfonse, Rex, Aille, and Ricon, are part of the reformed VII Legiom, now led by Valens van Varro, a former engineer who worked under Nero's command and is resentfully jealous of Gaius and his achievements. Milisandia is later attacked by an unseen assailant, who severs one of her horns and delivers it to Valens. He shows it to her siblings as proof that the Eorzeans tortured Milisandia to death after capturing her, then has Alfonse and Rex relocated to VII headquarters in the town of Terncliff.
14 	Sleep Now in Sapphire 	Gaius, Fordola, Nero, Cid, Milisandia and Raubahn meet to debate their next move. Milisandia knows of the VII headquarters in Terncliff, but Gaius does not wish to assault it out of fear that Valens will force one of his children to pilot a Weapon. Nero's proposal of using Ruby Weapon to liberate Terncliff and is accepted after he promises to avoid unnecessary civilian casualties. With Fordola as co-pilot, Nero heads to Terncliff, where Valens forces Alfonse to pilot the Sapphire Weapon. A battle ensues, with Alfonse sacrificing himself with Oversoul to unleash Regula's combat data. Despite this, Nero still destroys the Weapon and liberates Terncliff. Gaius and his team enter Terncliff, where Nero is reprimanded for not waiting for a stealth approach. Valens has Rex tortured for losing the Sapphire Weapon, while other two Weapons, Diamond and Emerald, are relocated. Rex, Ricon and Allie despise Valens' cruelty and consider rebelling against him. Later, Nero finds a device in Terncliff used to contact Valens and taunts the latter.
15 	Blood of Emerald 	Rex overhears a meeting with Valens and the assailant who stole Milisandia's horn, revealed to be Fandaniel. After Fandaniel insults his family and mentions faking Milisandia's death, Rex enters the room, punches Fandaniel, and disrespects Valens for lying to him. Valens uncharacteristically reacts calmly and does not punish Rex, instead locking him in his quarters with Ricon. Later, the Emerald Weapon is located within Castrum Marinum and infiltrate Gaius' team infiltrate it without Nero (as the area is too small for the Ruby Weapon to enter). They battle the Emerald Weapon and discover that it's pilot is Allie, whom Valens forced to pilot the Weapon under the threat of killing both Ricon and Rex. Allie sacrifices herself with Oversoul before Estinien can extract her from the Weapon, which uses Gaius' combat data and unleashes a manifestation of "The Black Wolf" (Gaius' nickname as Legatus). After an intense fight, the group manages to destroy the Emerald Weapon and escape the collapsing Castrum aboard the Ruby Weapon. Devastated, Gaius mourns his losses with Milisandia upon his return to Terncliff.
16 	Aggressive Negotiations 	Rex and Ricon realize what Valens has done upon noticing Allie's absence and rebel, but Rex is imprisoned and tortured by Valens, who plans to use Ricon as the Diamond Weapon's pilot. Meanwhile, Aria returns to the Source and is informed by a mourning Alphinaud of Arenvald's death. Guilt-ridden that she did not stay to prevent this, Aria and Alphinaud go to Terncliff and offer their assistance to Gaius and his group. Valens later contacts Gaius to issue an ultimatum: surrender himself, Aria, and Milisandia to him, or he will execute Rex and Ricon. Gaius agrees, planning to have Alphinaud, Valdeaulin, Estinien and Fordola mount a stealth mission to rescue his children while he, Aria and Milisandia distract Valens. At the Exchange, Fandaniel reveals himself as the mastermind behind Valens to both parties, and his distraction allows Estinien's group to rescue the captive Ricon and Rex, but one of their captors fatally shoots Valdeaulin. In the ensuing chaos, Valens is overpowered and retreats into the Diamond Weapon. Fandaniel traps him inside and activates Oversoul, killing Valens and causing a massive explosion.
17 	Duty in the Sky with Diamond 	Fandaniel sends the Diamond Weapon, which has Zenos' combat data, to the skies, intending to have it rampage across the continent. The Weapon's explosion kills Ricon and incapacitates Aria and most of the group; Estinien is able to grab onto the Weapon as it flies off and contacts Nero, who rushes to aid him with the Ruby Weapon. When the Diamond Weapon nearly kills Estinien and severely damages the Ruby Weapon, Nero is left with no choice but to unleash Oversoul, which kills him and unleashes a manifestation of Nael van Darnus; both Weapons are destroyed in the ensuing destruction while Estinien barely survives. In the aftermath, Rex and Milisandia are left as Gaius' last living children. After accepting the surrender of the VII Legion's remaining soldiers, Gaius holds a funeral for his children, Nero, Valdeaulin and Arenvald to honor their sacrifices. Gaius takes charge of Terncliff, vowing to spend the rest of his life making up for the sins he committed during his time in the Empire. Aria and Alphinaud make peace with Gaius and go their separate ways, while Fandaniel reports the events to Zenos.
18 	Forget Us Not 	Three weeks after thwarting the Ultima Weapon project, the Scions have been searching for a cure to primal tempering. Alisaie, G'raha and Aria investigate Azys Lla, where they find archived data on eikonic (Primal) corruption authored by the Allagan researcher Owen. With the aid of Garlond Ironworks, a company that Cid founded after regaining his memory, they are able to decipher Owen's research and develop a spell which G'raha augments with his memory transference. Alisaie cures Ga Bu of his tempering. Joined by Alphinaud and Y'shtola, they gain Matoya's help in creating a Mother Porxie to mass-produce proxies for their allies' use in ending the primal threat in using them to cure the tempered. During their journey, Aria and G'raha consolidate their love as G'raha reveals details of how Aria inspired him during his centuries-long tenure as the Crystal Exarch. Aria considers proposing to G'raha but decides that the time is not yet right. She also requests that Krile and Tataru track down Estinien and ask him to join the Scions.
19 	The Admiral's Resolve 	Aria, G'raha and the Leveilleur twins meet Merlwyb in Limsa Lominsa and inform her about the tempering cure. Merlwyb proposes using the tempering cure on the kobold patriarch Za Da, using herself and the beastmen's stolen crystals as bait to draw him out. After Ga Bu expresses a desire to join their mission, Alisaie refuses to let him endanger himself by coming along; Ga Bu sneaks out of the city and follows Alisaie against her will. Entering the Navel, the Scions restrain Za Da and fight off the kobolds until the treatment cures him. Although Za Da is guilt-ridden over the crimes he committed against his kin, he refuses to forget the many betrayals his people have suffered until Merlwyb offers her life in exchange for peace. Ga Bu reveals himself and pleads with Za Da, who spares Merlwyb and agrees to trust in mankind one last time. The Scions begin to celebrate before learning that mysterious towers of Garlean design have begun popping up all over the world. An Alliance meeting in Ala Mhigo ensues, before they notice an enormous dragon entering the city.
20 	Righteous Indignation 	The dragon's rider, Fandaniel, explains that he had been waiting for the Scions to kill the Unsundered Ascians so that he could be free to pursue his true goal: restarting the Final Days to destroy all life. He reveals that his dragon is "Lunar Bahamut", a corrupted version of the primal, threatens to raze cities worldwide should Aria refuse to face Zenos again. With Alisaie and G'raha, Alphinaud reunites with Estinien in Ishgard and brings him to Ayzs Lla to consult the great wyrm Tiamat about Lunar Bahamut. Breaking her physical and mental bindings, the shame and tempering from summoning Bahamut, they secure her aid. Meanwhile, Aria returns to Amaurot to find information on Fandaniel and encounters another sundered Ascian, Pashtarot, who reveals that the low-ranking Ascians have committed mass suicide in response to the Ascians' defeat. He explains that Fandaniel was always unstable and that his shard was recruited from the Allagan empire. Pashtarot also surmises that the only way Fandaniel can restart the Final Days is by killing Zodiark. Aria then uses white auracite to kill Pashtarot at the latter's request.
21 	The Flames of War 	Just as Tiamat is freed, a linkpearl communication from Urianger alerts the Scions that Lunar Bahamut has been sighted leading a host─including dragons─in the direction of Paglth'an, the Amalj'aa homeland. Determined to atone for past sins, Tiamat immediately takes to the sky with Estinien on her back. The three Grand Companies join in the defense of Paglth'an against Fandaniel's army, the Telophoroi, consisting of individuals (especially Garleans) tempered by Fandaniel's towers and his Lunar primals. During the battle, Estinien and Tiamat ground Lunar Bahamut, allowing Alisaie, Aria, G'raha and Y'shtola to slay it. Afterwards, Fandaniel informs Zenos of the setback at their headquarters in Garlemald, now in ruins. Krile departs for Sharlayan to find experts in aetherological research and petition the ruling Forum's aid in uncovering the Telophoroi's true motives and neutralizing Fandaniel's towers. As this leaves the Scions a member short, Krile once again invites Estinien to join the organization; to Aria and Alphinaud's happiness, he accepts.
22 	The Envoy 	A week after the battle of Paglth'an, delegates from the beast tribes have been invited to an Alliance meeting in Ala Mhigo. The Alliance and Tribes set aside their differences, and unite as the Grand Company of Eorzea, a dream long nurtured by Alphinaud. Afterwards, an envoy arrives from Sharlayn, revealed to be Alisaie and Alphinaud's father, Fourchenault. When the Scions come to the Alliance meeting so that the twins can reunite with Fourchenault, he declares that Sharlayan will not aid in Eorzea's conflict, dismissing the Final Days as unfounded propaganda. When Alisaie and Alphinaud try to reason with their father, he disowns his children for their "barbaric behavior". Aria punches Fourchenault out of anger, prompting him to vow that he will not visit again. G'raha, citing his own experience with keeping secrets, surmises that Fourchenault knows more than he is letting on. Soon after, the Telophoroi march upon Carteneau Flats, with the Grand Company of Eorzea and Scions mobilizing to defend aetherial confluences there.
23 	Death unto Dawn 	During the battle at Carteneau, Fandaniel sends in his Lunar primals. Urianger, Y'shtola and Thancred defeat Lunar Susano; Alphinaud and G'raha defeat Lunar Ravana; and Aria and Estinien defeat Lunar Ifrit. Meanwhile, Alisaie is confronted by and forced to fight Fandaniel to the death. Although Fandaniel is able to critically wound Alisaie with his wind magicks, Alisaie manages to repeatedly stab Fandaniel until the latter withdraws. Alisaie is found and healed by Alphinaud. In the aftermath, the Scions message Krile to get them passage into Old Sharlayan so they can investigate Fourchenault's suspicious claims. As the Scions learn the Towers drain the land of aether, Aria sees a strange female apparition, who warns her of the coming apocalypse. In a mid-credits scene, the Watcher, revealed to be a servant of Hydaelyn, observes Zodiark's prison on the moon and dreads the return of the Final Days. In a post-credits scene, Fandaniel prepares to open the "gate of the gods", while Zenos discards his katanas for a scythe, honing his skills for the rematch he demands.
=== Season 9 ===
Episode	Episode Title 	Plot
1 	Old Sharlayan, New to You 	After Krile gets permission for the Scions to enter New Sharlayan, Aria, the twins, Estinien, G'raha, Y'shtola, Thancred and Urianger board an airship. En route to Sharlayan, the Scions are visited by the female apparition, who reveals herself as Hydaelyn. She tries to assure them of Her sincerity despite having concealed Her primal nature, promising them at Her goal is, and has always been, to stop the Final Days. After touring Sharlayan and obtaining an apartment, the Scions split into two groups: Thancred, Urianger, Estinien and Aria travel to the region of Thavnair, seeking its alchemists, who are developing an anti-tempering ward. The other Scions stay in Sharlayan, learning that the Forum has been moving knowledge and supplies into Labyrinthos, an underground storage facility. G'raha also discovers that Hydaelyn told the Forum about the Final Days 200 years ago. The Forum eventually catches the Scions and forces them into a meeting for judgment. The Scions avoid deportation but are placed under supervision to ensure they stop their investigations.
2 	The Satrap of Radz-at-Han 	After recovering from aetherial sickness that the Scions gained when using experimental aetheryte to reach Thanavir, Aria's group visits the Great Works where the Hannish alchemists are developing an amulet with dragon scales to protect against Telophoroi's enthrallment. After assisting the alchemists in finishing the talisman, the satrap of Radz-at-Han, Ahewann, grants an audience for the Scions. Estinien, due to his connection to Nidhogg, senses that the satrap is actually a figurehead for Vrtra, one of the First Brood. Vrtra admits that he has ruled Thanavir for centuries and used simulacrums (such as a boy named Varshahn) to travel around. Vrtra offers to supply his warding scales to enable the Grand Company of Eorzea to assault Garlemald if the Scions destroy Fandaniel's nearby Tower of Zot. Aria and head alchemist Nidhana test a ward inside the nearby Tower of Zot, where the latter is captured by Fandaniel, who reveals his true identity: the Allagan technologist Amon, having placed a clone of himself inside the Crystal Tower after his recruitment by Emet-Selch.
3 	In the Dark of the Tower 	Aria's group returns to Sharlayan to convene for the upcoming assault on the Tower of Zot. While taking some time alone, Aria is approached by a Hydaelyn-possessed Krile, who shows her a flower that glows near strong emotion. Aria surmises that the mysterious emotion-based energy is linked to this and asks for details, but Hydaelyn relinquishes her possession and leaves. Protected by the warding scales, the Scions destroy the Tower of Zot and rescue Nidhana; they find a severed arm as its core and learn that it was transporting aether towards Teleophori's main tower in Garlemald, the Tower of Babil. A grateful Vrtra supplies the warding scales to the Grand Company of Eorzea, who gather in Ala Mhigo to prepare for an invasion of Garlemald. Knowing that the Empire is in ruins, they prioritize humanitarian efforts before assaulting the Tower of Babil. While preparing to leave Sharlayan, Aria encounters the twins' mother, Ameliance, who reveals herself a major financier for the Scions. She also reveals that Fourchenault has not officially disowned his children.
4 	A Frosty Reception 	Protected from tempering, the Scions march on the ruins of Garlemald alongside the Ilsabard detachment, including Lucia, Emmanellain, the Far Eastern tribes, and many others. A battle ensues against the tempered IIIrd Legion led by Vergilia van Corculum. Before the battle, Thancred is sent to plant explosives in the IIIrd Legion's camp and does so successfully. Vergilla and her soldiers are subdued, held captive in the Grand Companies' base camp, and treated for their tempering. Aria, Alisaie, and Alphinaud scout for survivors in Garlemald's ruins and encounter the Garlean Licinia and her sick younger sister, who explain that the vast majority of the nation became tempered after hearing Varis' voice over their radios. Alphinaud tries to earn their trust, but the mistrusting sisters soon abandon them and are slaughtered by the tempered. Devastated, the twins and Aria return to base camp, where a young Garlean soldier named Jullus is caught stealing provisions. Despite his initial hostility, he is eventually persuaded to take Aria and the twins to parley with his commander.
5 	Alea Iacta Est 	Aria and the twins meet Quintus van Cinna, Legatus of the Ist Legion, who is leading survivors in Tertium, one of the capital's train stations. Quintus explains that Zenos and Fandaniel manipulated the legions into a civil war, after which he rallied the other survivors and had all captured tempered put to death. Though his forces are desitude and starving, Quintus refuses to accept Eorzean aid out of pride and blackmails Aria into helping them using Alisaie and Alphinaud as hostages. Aria and Jullus scout for supplies, during which Aria learns that Jullus was forced to slaughter his tempered family. Aria eventually takes Jullus to the Eorzean camp to negotiate terms, only for Quintus to then order an attack on the camp. Before a battle can ensue, news arrives that the Xth Legion─the reinforcements Quintus had been expecting─have instead agreed to a truce with the Grand Company of Eorzea. Quintus commands his soldiers to comply with the Xth's wishes and orders Alphinaud and Alisaie to be released. Quintus then commits suicide rather than live to see the Empire die out.
6 	In from the Cold 	Heartbroken from their leader's death, the remaining Garleans give up resisting and join the Eorzeans at their camp. Jullus begins to bond with Emmanellain before Varis' voice rings out from the radios and tempers the Garleans. Before Aria can save Emmanellain from being backstabbed by a Garlean, Fandaniel appears and teleports her away; Emmanellain dies in Estinien's arms. Aria awakens to find that Fandaniel used Aulus mal Asina's soul-swapping technology to place her into a Garlean soldier's body. Fandaniel reveals that Varis' voice is from Anima, a primal created from Varis' corpse. Zenos then uses his Resonant powers to take over Aria's body and sets out to slaughter the Scions and entice her into a rematch, while Fandaniel leaves the weakened Aria to fend for herself. Zenos encounters Sadu, who wants to spar with Aria again. Amused by her eagerness for battle, Zenos fights and kills Sadu, who manages to briefly knock him unconscious with a massive explosion. Sadu's sacrifice gives Aria enough time to arrive at the camp and tackle Zenos; Fandaniel swaps their bodies back and leaves with Zenos.
7 	Gateway of the Gods 	In a flashforward, Edmont receives a letter from Lucia about Emmanellain's death and mourns with Artoriel. Jullus and the other Garleans are subdued while a traumatized Aria reveals Anima's revelations to her friends. Thancred and Estinien have a heart-to-heart with Aria, reminiscing about their pasts and encounters with Emmanellain and Sadu until Aria is reinvigorated. Using Garlemald's train tracks, the Scions join the Eorzeans in launching a full-scale assault on the Tower of Babil. Fighting past tempered soldiers and all manner of monstrosities, the Scions breach the top of the tower and defeat Anima, putting Varis to rest. The Scions confront Zenos and Fandaniel, who reveal the purpose of the towers: gathering enough aether to destroy Zodiark's prison on the moon. With Anima's death, the aether is unleashed and all but one of Zodiark's seals on the moon are destroyed. This forces Fandaniel and Zenos to teleport themselves to the moon to finish the job, while the Hydaelyn-possessed Krile arrives and helps Aria gain access to the moon, instructing her to find the Watcher.
8 	The Martyr 	Aria goes to a tower near Zodiark's prison and encounters the Watcher, who reveals that the damage to Zodiark's prison has caused the restless spirits of sacrificed ancients to wander the moon, preventing him from repairing the seals. Aria puts them to rest, encountering the spirit of the real Hythlodaeus, before Fandaniel and Zenos arrive at the last seal and destroy it. Zenos reveals to Aria that Fandaniel promised him the power of Zodiark to replace Shinyru's for their duel. Aria explains that she will not kill Zodiark because doing so will resume the Final Days, causing Zenos to realize that Zodiark will not bring him the duel he desires. Fandaniel then betrays Zenos and possesses the incomplete primal himself; Zenos retaliates by helping Aria fight Fandaniel. Aria uses Azem's crystal to call upon her adventurer friends and they defeat Zodiark together. The Watcher then prepares to seal away Zodiark once more, only for Fandaniel to force Zodiark to plunge it's claws into it's own chest, killing them both and restarting the Final Days anyways. After Aria hears a female voice delighting in Zodiark's death, Zenos departs, unwilling to duel Aria while she is distracted by the oncoming apocalypse.
9 	Heart of the Matter 	Y'shtola, Thancred and Urianger rejoin Aria on the moon, where they consult the Watcher about the Final Days. The Watcher explains that the phenomenon had struck in places where aether currents were weakest, and over time, it even affected celestial aether currents that surrounded the world. When that happened, the whole planet was affected by the phenomenon. The Watcher also reveals that the moon doubles as an evacuation vessel if the Final Days return. He calls the Warrior's flower an "elpis", bidding them to remember this. The Watcher then directs the Scions to the rabbit-like Loporrits, created by Hydaelyn to prepare the moon for evacuating "Etheirys", the star's Ancient name. However, the Loporrits are woefully ignorant of modern Etheirys, derailing their preparations. They say the other shards' residents cannot be saved, and will die when the Source is destroyed. The Scions eventually persuade the Loporrits to consider other options. While Urianger stays behind as an envoy for the Loporrits, the other Scions return home to confront the Final Days.
10 	Under His Wing 	The Scions reconvene and learn that monsters resembling the first Final Days' horrors are attacking Thavnair, where the skies have turned red as in Emet-Selch's recreation. They learn these "Blasphemies" manifest from people consumed by despair, which erases their souls. Ahewann is slain in the chaos while protecting a merchant, and the twins help a young merchant named Matsya save an orphaned baby from Blasphemies. When Vrtra learns of Ahewann's death, he is forced to reveal himself to protect his people, who accept him despite Vrtra's fear that he would have been viewed as a monster. After the situation calms down, Fourchenault and the Forum arrive, officially announce the evacuation of the star, and encourage mankind to prepare. Unwilling to abandon their home, the Scions try to deduce the underlying cause and fundamental nature of the Final Days. G'raha suggests that Aria consult the essence of Elidibus, who is still trapped in the Crystal Tower on the First, and is the only living witness left to the Final Days.
11 	Hope Upon a Flower 	While the Scions go to help the Forum's evacuation efforts, Aria returns the First, where she reunites with Ryne and her other allies before entering the Crystal Tower and summoning Elidibus, who has sensed Zodiark's death. Not wanting the Final Days to claim another civilization and grateful for having his memories restored, Elidibus names "Elpis" a place, where new life concepts were safety tested, and recalls seeing Aria in Elpis before the sundering. He thus consumes the last of his soul-energy to send Aria back in time to seek Hermes, Fandaniel's identity before he took the seat. Before dying, Elidibus warns that Aria cannot inflict meaningful change to the past, as the future she must return to must have the Final Days in it. Aria encounters the energetic Hythlodaeus and Emet-Selch, who assume that she is a familiar of Azem. They reveal that Thanatos, the previous Fandaniel, has recently stepped down and they are here to see if Hermes would be a suitable replacement. Aria, Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus seek out Hermes and find him talking to a peculiar blue-haired girl with avian features that he calls "Meteion".
12 	Verdict and Execution 	Hermes explains to Aria, Emet-Selch, and Hythlodaeus that Meteion is an empathic creation linked to a collective of identical Meteia sent to distant stars via dynamis, an energy linked to emotions, to ask other beings what gives life meaning. Aria realizes that dynamis is the mysterious emotion-based energy she has seen throughout her journey and tours the facility with the Ancients to better understand Hermes' mindset. After subduing and euthanizing out-of-control experimental creatures, the trio witness Hermes in agony over having to kill creatures when their lives had just begun and surmise that he is emotionally unstable. The group eventually encounters Venat, the previous Azem, whom Aria recognizes as Hydaelyn's original self. Venat recognizes the signs of her protection magics on Aria despite having never met her at this point in time. Aria then confesses that she is a time-traveler and reveals the future to everyone; Emet-Selch refuses to believe it and storms out with Hythlodaeus, while an intrigued Venat opts to question and "test" Aria.
13 	A Flower upon Your Return 	Venat questions Aria about her time as an adventurer in Eorzea and of Venat's own actions as Hydaelyn, eventually sparring with her to a stalemate. Hythlodaeus eventually returns with Emet-Selch, who has reluctantly agreed to investigate Aria's claims. They inform Hermes, who surmises that Dynamis may have something to do with the Final Days. Hermes also reveals received several mixed reports as well as news of some Meteia being lost in dynamis currents. Meteion, whose has suffered breakdowns due to reports from her Meteia sisters, becomes erratic and runs off. The group eventually manages to corner Meteion, whom Emet-Selch intends to have the Convocation examine. Not wanting Meteion to be harmed, bitter over his colleagues' casual anthropocentrism, and desperate to see the results of Meteion's test, Hermes transforms into a wind-like monster with Ancient magics and flies off with Meteion to Ktisis Hyperboreia, Eplis' largest facility. Emet-Selch's group pursues him there, where releases the specimens from the facility in an attempt to delay the party.
14 	Thou Must Live, Die and Know	Emet-Selch, Aria, Venat and Hythlodaeus fight their way to Hermes and defeat him just as Meteion issues her report. Under the thrall of her sisters' hivemind, Meteion announces that, with every planet they found dying or dead, the Meteia have concluded that life is suffering and should end. She leaves for the edge of the universe, where their despair will unleash the Final Days; Hermes covers Meteion's escape and uses a device, the Kairos, to erase the memories of everyone present. Venat and Aria escape while Hermes, Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus forget all recent events. With full knowledge of what caused the Final Days, Aria leaves for her own timeline. En route, she has a vision of Venat during the first Final Days. With no way to reach Meteion and feeling that Aria's future is the best hope for salvation, Venat pursues her destiny as Hydaelyn. Aria witnesses Venat leading her dissidents, sundering the world, and bearing the pain of the Calamities as they weaken Hydaelyn. Aria also learns that Venat opened the portal near Emet-Selch so that he would be Unsundered and drive events to match Aria's future.
15 	As the Heavens Burn 	Aria returns to Revenant's Toll, where she learns from Krile and Tataru that the Forum is relocating Thavnairian refugees to Garlemald. Having learned of Fandaniel's device within the Tower of Babil, the Forum intends to utilize it to teleport them to the moon, with the Scions serving as escorts. In Garlemald, the skies turn red as the Final Days arrive and hordes of ravenous beasts are created. Aria arrives to find the remnants of the Ist Legion locked in fierce combat alongside the Scions with the Blasphemies, and helps her comrades dispatch them with the unexpected aid of Zenos, who came to fight beasts until Aria was ready to face him. Jullus confronts Zenos for destroying the Empire by killing Varis, and he admits that Varis' death was for nothing. Zenos departs after Alisaie tells him that even though Zenos's path has led him to great strength, if he continues to indulge himself in his single-minded pursuit of a battle with Aria at the expense of all else, he will always be alone. Aria tells her friends about the Final Days' origins, and they leave Garlemald to inform the Forum.
16 	Going Underground 	Urianger returns from the moon with the Lopporits, joining the Scions in addressing the Forum. Alphinaud bargains with the Forum: in return for helping the Forum complete it's evacuation starship (the existence of which he had earlier surmised), the Forum must let the Scions speak with Hydaelyn and vote on letting the Scions use the ship for their own ends at the cost of abandoning the evacuation plan. In desperation, the Forum agrees and unveils the Ragnarok, the starship constructed in secret at Labyrinthos. The Scions meet chief engineer Kokkol Dankkol, who reports that the starship is inert due to issues with it's engine, tasking the Scions with gathering materials from across Eorzea. The Scions arrange a world-wide leadership meeting in Gridania, with Fourchenault as the Forum's representative once again, to gather materials as well as help in completing the starship's destruction. En route, Fourchenault reconciles with his children, admitting he feigned disowning them to get them to cease their quest. Upon arrival, the Scions find the city in flames and Blasphemies rampaging.
17 	The Shrieking Land 	In flashbacks, Kan-E-Senna and her siblings, Gridania's other Seedsekers A-Ruhn-Senna and Raya-O-Senna discuss the effects of the Final Days on the Twelveswoods. Attempting to contact the elementals for advice, the trio are bombarded with their agonizing shrieks as the elementals are being torn apart by the Final Days. In immense pain and despair, A-Ruhn-Senna transforms into a spider-like Blasphemy, slaughters his mortified siblings, and attacks the city just as Eorzea's leaders arrive. Merlwyb and Fourchenault are mauled by Blasphemies, and Hien is killed defending a group of Gridanian children. Nanamo is nearly killed by A-Ruhn-Senna before Raubahn sacrifices his life to put down the Blasphemy and save her. The Scions and their allies manage to evacuate only a third of Gridania's people before being forced to escape. While Merlwyb barely survives at the cost of half her face, Fourchenault is unable to be healed. Before dying in his children's arms, Fourchenault tells Alisaie and Alphinaud of the Aitascope, the device with which the Forum uses to gain access to the aetherical sea and communicate with Hydaelyn.
18 	Bonds of Adamant(ite) 	The Scions are left with little time to grieve their latest losses as the Forum quickly authorizes them to use the Aitascope at Fourchenault's dying wish. En route, Urianger encounters Moenbryda's parents, who are helping repair the Ragnarok and whom Urianger had cut contact with since Moenbryda's death. Moenbryda's parents forgive and embrace Urianger, who finally clears the regrets he had carried from Moenbryda's death. Urianger then joins the Scions in entering the aetherical sea through the Aitascope, where they encounter and fight the souls of their dead enemies (including Livia, Ilberd, Rhitahtyn, and Lahabrea) with the aid of their allies' souls (including Moenbryda Papalymo, Haurchefant, and Minfilia). The Scions also defeat Fandaniel's soul in his Amon form with the aid of Ysayle's spirit, with Aria restoring his memories as Hermes before Amon is dragged into oblivion by Asahi (angered by Fandaniel's use of his body to deceive Zenos). The Scions finally reach the Mothercrystal and speak to it before realizing that Hydaelyn is actually a separate entity from it.
19 	Her Children, One and All 	In flashbacks, shortly after the Sixth Umbral Calamity, the Ascians decide that Hydaelyn is weakened enough for Emet-Selch to confront. Aware of Sharlayan's connections to Hydaelyn, Emet-Selch sneaks into the Aitascope and converses with Hydaelyn, who admits that the Sundering was not accidental as he had assumed. Enraged, Emet-Selch battles Hydaelyn until he is banished by a spell charged from the Mothercrystal, revealed to be a separate, vast repository of aether. Severely weakened from the battle and her subsequent blessing of Aria, Hydaelyn is forced to rely on Minfilia's sacrifice to persevere. In the present, Hydaelyn greets the Scions and then challenges them to prove that they can stop the Final Days by defeating Her. The Scions emerge victorious, and Hydaelyn gifts Aria some of Her power with "the ability to form the formless" and a crystal pointing to the Meteia's nest. Hydaelyn also admits that she went through with the Sundering to give the Sundered easier access to dynamis, hoping it could defeat the Meteia. With her purpose finally fulfilled, Hydaelyn fades from existence.
20 	Unto the Heavens 	Zenos returns to the Royal Menagerie and ponders the truth behind Alisaie's words to him. Upon returning to Sharlayan, allies from all over Eorzea to finish construction on the Ragnarok, which still needs a power source. With the help of un-tempered Tribes and the Loporrits who cooperate to summon uncorrupted Primals to fuel the Ragnarok, the Scions reach the edge of the universe: Ultima Thule. Before leaving, Aria is supplied with teleporters that can be used for emergencies to instantly return anyone to the Ragnarok if needed. Meteion intercepts them, nearly killing all aboard, before Thancred attacks Meteion and vanishes. The Scions and the Loporrits awaken to find that Thancred's action made Ultima Thule survivable at the cost of his form. They surmise that Ultima Thule is a region of space where dynamis is so concentrated and potent that emotion dictates reality. Aria secretly tells the Loporrits about her teleporter before setting out with the others to find Meteion. Meanwhile, Krile is informed that an "intruder" has come to Sharlayan demanding to speak with a Scion.
21 	You're Not Alone 	The Scions find spectres of dead worlds visited by Meteion. These include Midgardsormr's dragon kin; the Omnicron cybernetic race who had created Omega; and the Ea, beings of science that utilized their knowledge to shed their flesh. One by one, the Scions sacrifice themselves so the others can proceed, until only Aria remains. Unable to resurrect the Scions without wasting Hydaelyn's last gift, Aria continues onto Meteion's nest alone, hearing voices from her journey. Meteion tries to make Aria succumb to her despair, but she uses Azem's crystal, empowered by Hydaelyn's Light, to revive Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus, who create a field of elpis, radiating hope. This anchors Ultima Thule and allows the Scions to be resurrected, restoring Meteion's original personality in the process. She begs them to stop her sisters before they take her away. Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus then willingly die; Emet-Selch assures Aria that many further adventures await her. As the Scions pursue Meteion, an unseen flying creature breaks into Ultima Thule and follows the Scions' trail, easily battering all Meteia and specters that stand in it's way.
22 	Endwalker Part One 	The Meteia subject the Scions to shades of various worlds they had encountered; one that had succumbed to rot and pollution, another that destroyed itself with war, and lastly a world that had removed all struggle in their lives and so grew apathetic and suicidal. Frustrated by the Scions' stubbornness and their declaration to always help one another when they fell, the Meteia declare despair will always eclipse hope, and merge into the Endsinger. When the Scions are overpowered, Aria uses the device to teleport them away and faces the Endsinger alone. Suddenly, the flying creature arrives and reveals itself as Zenos in the form of Shinryu. Zenos explains that he made a deal with Krile in which he absorbed the Mothercrystal's remaining aether to reassume Shinryu's form and aid Aria in defeating the Endsinger in exchange for their rematch. After using Azem's crystal to summon her adventurer friends once more, they and Zenos battle the Endsinger, who nearly kills them before the Scions' prayers empower Aria and her allies, allowing them to defeat and kill the Endsinger.
23 	Endwalker Part Two 	After the battle, Aria shares her memories with Meteion, now the last living Meteia, who understands that Hermes' question has no single answer. Her hope rekindled, Meteion sings a song of hope to echo throughout creation and departs peacefully. Zenos returns to human form and confronts Aria, admitting the thrill of battle is the only thing that gives his life meaning, and suggests this applies to both Sadu and Aria. Aria agrees to duel Zenos one last time and barely defeats him. Before dying, Zenos uses the last of his strength to summon a teleporter for Aria to return to the Ragnarok. The Scions barely manage to heal Aria while returning home. Having averted the Final Days and brought peace to the star, the Scions formally disband, but secretly remain connected should the need arise. In the aftermath, Doma becomes a democracy, Gridania's reconstruction begins, Nanamo and Lyse attend Raubahn's funeral, and Aria proposes to G'raha, who accepts and later marries Aria in the "Ceremony of Eternal Bonding". In a post-credits scene, Aria and G'raha happily spar on a private island bought by Tataru.
==DIFFERENCES FROM THE GAME==
=== A Realm Reborn ===
*The Warrior of Light is given a name, Aria Kemp, and a gradually revealed backstory as an Ala Mhigan.
*A completely original Scion, Ricardo Waters, is introduced in the first season and plays a prominent role. His corpse is used as Nabriales's vessel in season 2.
*Livia sas Junius and Nabriales are given much bigger and more antagonistic roles.
*The Lancer and Dragoon storyline are adapted into the first season.
*The Titan/Company of Heroes questline is skipped in a Spongebob-style "X hours later" narration.
*The Corrupted Crystal questline is done off-screen by Alphinaud.
*The choboco mount that the player gains whilst joining the Grand Company is named "Lily" by Aria.
*Noraxia is now present at the Haukke Manor arc, which is now orchestrated by Nabriales rather than two nameless Ascian minions.
*Moenbryda is introduced far earlier in the series, being one of Aria's closest companions until her eventual death.
*The first Ala Mhigan arc with Wilred is done (mostly) off-screen by Thancred.
*Many dungeons and filler quests have been skipped, including the first three dungeons of the game.
*The Scions are given brutal treatment during their captivity in Castrum Centri, with Minfilia even losing her left hand; in the game, very little torture is shown or implied.
*The adventurers that players fight alongside in most instance duties have been replaced with characters from Final Fantasy VII.
*Yda and Lyse Hext are now completely separate characters, with Yda dying in the Ul'dah banquet; in the game, none of the Scions died in the banquet.
*Midgardsormr now clarifies in his confrontation with Aria that Hydaelyn has become severely weakened whilst giving Aria her blessing.
*Fandaniel and Igeyorhm are introduced earlier.
*Another original character, Osuke Abiko, is introduced, working as Teledji's blackmailed shinobi enforcer and major antagonist of season 2.
=== Heavensward ===
*The first confrontation with Iceheart is completely changed, resulting in Lily's death and Aria severely beating and capturing Iceheart.
*Details of how exactly Minfilia became the Word of the Mother was shown.
*Urianger's role as a liason to the Ascians and in orchestrating Minfilia's ascension is expanded upon.
*Teledji's motives in overthrowing the Sultana are expanded upon and Lolorito's reasons for turning on him are expanded upon.
*Ser Zephirin and Igeyorhm are given a slightly bigger roles, with Zephirin having two one-on-one battles with Aria following the events of the Vault and using Dynamis in the second.
*The encounter with Emperor Varis is completely changed and made more intense.
*Fandaniel is the one who supplies the white auracite, foreshadowing his later role as a rogue Ascian.
*The deaths of Lahabrea and Igeyorhm have been swapped, with each Ascian receiving the other's fate.
*Iceheart/Ysayle's role is greatly expanded, with a solo episode dedicated to her backstory.
*Ysayle's death and the destruction of the Gration is completely changed, with Nidhogg performing both deeds after taking Estinien as his vessel.
*Alphinaud is the one to lure away the cyclops from the Grand Melee instead of Thancred, and has a dangerous run-in with the possessed Estinien.
*Papalymo's role is greatly expanded, undergoing a subplot to recruit Lyse from Ala Mhigo as Yda's last wish.
*Lyse and Yda's backstory is expanded upon, and Lyse is introduced much earlier.
*Elidibus now appears personally for the Warring Triad arc, and gets some earlier fleshing out.
*The confrontation with the Griffin is somewhat changed, with Lyse having a one-on-one fight with him and using Dynamis to win when she nearly loses.
=== Stormblood ===
*Aria's full backstory is revealed: she is the daughter of Conrad and Emilia Kemp, being conscripted into the Garlean Army at the minimum age. She was later transferred to Nael van Darnus's Legion, where she lost her memories due to Louisiox's spell and decided to become an adventurer, a life-long dream of hers. Emilia died three years before the events of season 5.
*The deaths of Lyse's parents are expanded upon and changed with the revelation that Aria killed them during her time as a conscript.
*The Stormblood Dark Knight storyline has been incorporated into the MSQ.
*Aria does not attend the Nadaam in this version and is replaced by a decoy of Aria to distract the competition. 
*Alphinaud is the Twin injured in the confrontation with Fordola instead of Alisaie, and his injures are far worse, to the point where he loses an eye and is comatose for the rest of the base story.
*Dynamis makes another early appearance when a rage-driven Alisaie confronts Fordola to avenge her brother's supposedly mortal wound.
*Charlet, the Blasphemy in Endwalker's healer role quest, is introduced earlier and given more fleshing out in season 5.
*Another new character, Oskar White, is introduced. He is the second-in-command of the Skulls and a close friend of Fordola, playing a major role in the last third of season 5.
*In addition to the adventurers, Aria is joined by Estinien and Sidurgu for the final showdown against Shinyru.
*Unlike in the game, Aria does not idlily stand by as Asahi beats the defenseless Yotsuyu, and cuts off his hands.
*The mob that comes during the 5.1 MSQ to kill Fordola is replaced with Alisaie attempting to murder Fordola alone.
*The funeral of Solus zos Galvus has been moved to the Stormblood patches storyline in season 6.
*Many of Omega's trials are removed or changed, with the battle with High Legatus Varis from the Bozja storyline being moved into the Alphascape.
*It is now confirmed that the masks Gaius/Shadowhunter were holding were those of Altima and Deudalaphon, whom Gaius subsequently killed with white auracite.
*The Four Lords trial series has been implemented, but the Ivalice raid series (as well as Bozja) have been removed.
*The battle with Elidibus/Zenos is completely changed, with both Estinien and the real Zenos joining the Fray, Lyse crippled, and Yugiri outright killed.
=== Shadowbringers ===
*Another new character, Lyon, is introduced. He is Lyna's twin brother and co-leader of the Crystarium's guard.
*All battles with Ran'jit are overhauled except the one with Thancred. Y'shtola's fakeout death in the second encounter is removed.
*The Qitana Ravel dungeon is mostly skipped thanks to Emet-Selch's teleporting aid.
*Ran'jit's backstory, including his relations with Gukumatz and the Minfilia incarnations, are dedicated to a solo episode.
*Emet-Selch speaks all his optional dialogue during the monologue shortly before "A Feast of Lies", and details the process of converting sundered Ascians.
*The fetch quests in the Trolley storyline are skipped in a Spongebob-style "X hours later" narration.
*Ran'jit no longer dies in the final battle in Eulmore, but is instead saved by Gukumatz, only for Vauthry to turn both of them into sin eaters.
*G'raha Tia is revealed to be in love with Aria by the end of the season.
*Season 8 opens with an episode foreshadowing Elidibus's identity, an expansion of Lahabrea's descent into madness, and a cameo for the Watcher.
*The savage mode of Eden's Promise 12 with the Oracle of Darkness is adapted into the TV series.
*The Trial series with the Weapons is implemented into the MSQ and almost completely changed, with Fandaniel being the mastermind behind Valens, multiple characters (including Arenvald and Nero) dying during the arc despite never appearing in-game during it, and Aria being absent for most of it.
*The sundered Ascians are revealed to have committed mass suicide after the deaths of the Unsundered, with Pashtarot personally killed by Aria at her request.
*Fandaniel's plan to resume the Final Days by killing Zodiark is surmised by the Scions much earlier.
*Alisaie has a one-on-one fight with Fandaniel during the battle at Carteneau.
=== Endwalker ===
*Instead of Zenos harming nobody in the body change sequence, both Emmanellain and Sadu are killed in the chaos of it.
*Zenos now fights alongside the Warrior of Light in the battle against Zodiark rather than simply watching.
*There is a now an outbreak of the Final Days in Gridania that results in the deaths of many named characters, greatly increasing the stakes.
*A flashback establishes that Emet-Selch had made a failed attempt on Hydaelyn's life, adding to the reasons of her inaction in earlier seasons.
*Aria and G'raha marry at the season's end.
Category:TV Series