uvu

The Exarch cares more about the Warrior of Light than his own place in history. He is willing for the Source and the First to both remember him as a traitor if it means the Warrior lives to carry on bringing Hope to people.

G'raha Tia, when you met him, wanted so much to be even a footnote in a hero's story that he was willing to constantly throw himself into harm's way in the Crystal Tower and the World of Darkness. His biggest dream was to be remembered as someone the Warrior of Light found helpful.

And now as the Crystal Exarch he's willing to throw his dream away, to be known as the worst of villains, just for you. Just because he knows there's only one way to get rid of the Light and he wants you to not feel guilty over his death. Because he knows losing another friend might just be the last push that breaks him.

But the death of a villain? A death that would end the Eighth Umbral Calamity and free the Scions to return hom? You might mourn him briefly, or wonder what made him so willing to double-cross the world, but then you'd move on.

-Rabbits not giving a shit about your "laws of science":

greater disgrace.

Thordan was a bloody menace and he needed to be stopped by any means necessary. He was a threat to Ishgard, and Aymeric did the right thing in ordering his death. Yet. At the end of the day...

However justified it was, and for all of Thordan's crimes - not least of which was having Aymeric arrested and possibly even tortured for the simple crime of wanting the pointless bloodshed to end! - it still leaves Aymeric with his father's blood on his hands. A bastard son (punished for a sin that wasn't his) who murdered his father by proxy.

I think it weighs on him more than he lets on.

One of the Garlean soldiers who was MEANT to be fighting the Ishgardian soldiers had bugged out apparently and was instead fighting against his own people while standing side by side with Aymeric

and we joked that not unlike Lucia, this random goon from Garlemald took one look at Aymeric and went, "Nevermind, actually, I immediately defect and am turning my life around for you."

given that my own WoL was also from Garlemald and also had a similar reaction to Aymeric, we joked that if we just sent him to Garlemald for a week, they'd reform into a republic again

i know Garlemald is... kinda fucked forever now, but i have an idea to raise morale and shift the national consciousness towards the appropriate tone of "Boy, our country fucked up but we gotta rebuild now."

just

just send Aymeric

He is adopted into a family of nobles when he comes from, possibly, a low born mother who was possibly forced into sleeping with a powerful man like Thordan. Had to keep quiet about it and possibly lose her son right after giving birth. Aymeric grew up hearing rumours about being a bastard, about not deserving his life, about how lucky he is, how he was probably a mistake.

And now he is the only one alive to carry on the Borel name, becomes the lord commander of the temple knights at a very young age, then lord speaker of Ishgard, slayer of Fafnir, unifier of dragons and men after a thousand year of war. All this while he grows up hearing he will never be good enough. Imagine how insecure that must make him. Having achieved so much will not make him think "wow, I really am amazing. Sure showed them!" It will just stress him out even more, thinking he can't do it, he isn't capable enough to carry these responsiblities out, not deserving enough to. In fact, idk if we've ever seen him being proud of himself or even happy? Doesn't he always want to jump to the next task? He is too humble for someone in his position, sometimes it's like he doesn't believe he is actually as good as he is said to be.

I think this is shown by his decision to give up his position as lord commander as soon as they finish dealing with Nidhogg. Like, he will do his duty and stop. Because he doesn't think he can do it anymore. He thinks he is not important enough so he goes to confront his father by himself in the lion's den itself, so to speak. Practically kills his father, almost kills his best friend to do his duty, brings about peace and much needed change and gets stabbed for it. How shit must that make him feel about himself?

Aymeric is so good at being a well spoken, smooth politician, we forget to see how broken he must really be inside and he is all alone. Even Lucia isn't with him anymore, having to stay at Garlemald.

The way his eyes light up every time he sees the warrior of light, calling them 'my friend,' every second sentence, as if pleading to be called the same. Writing to Estinien whenever he can, having a deep wanderlust and adventurous spirit but being unable to fulfil it. He is so much like G'raha in this sense but unlike him, Aymeric hasn't gotten his happy ending yet.

The man is so alone but so dutiful. So insecure but so good at hiding it. He craves connection but his duty forces him to be unable to make it. I cannot imagine how hard he has it.

I regret to inform y'all that the result of the Warlock's first magic lesson with the Cleric was the Warlock getting flustered and accidentally casting Thunderstep for the first time. It was so loud it woke the whole crew, but that's probably a good thing since the spell yeeted both himself and the Cleric off the back of the ship and into the ocean.

Oh and fun fact: the Warlock can't swim.

And no one in the party knows that the Warlock can't swim.

Luckily the Cleric is head over heels in love with the Warlock, so the Cleric grabbed him anyway and cast Water Walk (which is not a touch spell hahaaa) and they made it back onboard with the whole crew gawking at them over the side lmao.