Quote:
-Part 6: Where Did Vivi's Sons Come From?
One of the most enduring questions of Final Fantasy IX is "Where did Vivi's
sons come from?" Speculation has run anywhere from "Vivi died and they formed
from his spiritual energy as it dispersed" to "Vivi used the machines in Dali
to create more Black Mages like himself [before his death]" to "They're Vivi
and Quina's children" to even "They're Vivi and Eiko's children." In all
honesty, it's not simple to make an easy determination simply because there's
so little explicit evidence offered by the game with which to make a
determination, however, that is exactly what I will do here, bringing forth
the most simple and likely explanation for their origin.
While some have cited Vivi and Quina's marriage in Conde Petie as evidence
toward the small Black Mages being their offspring, it is impossible to
corroborate such a claim for various reasons:
1) The marriage occurs in an optional scene that the player does not
necessarily have to activate.
2) The marriage will only take place for the purpose of granting Vivi and
Quina passage to the Conde Petie Mountain Path, not for any emotional bond
between Vivi and Quina.
3) Quina's gender is unknown (if he/she even has a set-gender).
4) It's unknown whether it is even possible for Black Mages to sexually
reproduce in the first place.
5) It's not known whether or not Qu reproduce through sexual interaction.
6) Supposing that it were possible for Black Mages to sexually reproduce and
that Vivi had reached sexual maturity, it is not known whether or not it would
even be possible for a Black Mage and a Qu to reproduce together.
For that matter, Vivi's sons do not arrive with Quina, nor do they sit with
Quina in the audience during the Play in Alexandria.
Quina having anything to do with the matter is entirely unfounded and not a
possibility that should be inquired into any further due to the extreme lack
of evidence, as well as the extreme lack of logic behind such a concept.
Likewise in regard to Eiko, as well as the likelihood that Eiko had not even
yet reached sexual maturity (she was six years old during the game after all;
based on everyone looking pretty much the same during the ending, it's safe to
assume that seven years had not passed).
For that matter, it's not known that the small Black Mages would have
necessarily been produced through sexual reproduction were they sired by Vivi.
Reproduction can also occur through fision (splitting) and budding (basically,
a new organism growing off of another's body). While that's not to say that
either of these were the processes by which Vivi's sons came to be, it IS
intended to say that sexual reproduction is not the only possible means
by which they may have been sired.
Where, then, did they come from?
Due to the same being the case in regard to Vivi and all other Black Mages,
it's likely safe to assume that Vivi's sons were composed of Spirit Energy
that had gone stagnant and become Mist, but as to how that Mist coalesced into
the Black Mages we see during the game's ending is left rather open-ended.
That said, however, I have a theory as to their origin, and feel that it is
the most likely based on in-game information coupled with logical reasoning
and assumption:
It is known, of course, that when someone dies, their Spirit Energy returns to
the Planet to be used as the energy of life in other creatures that are born.
It is known also that the experiences of an individual in some way contributes
toward the growth of a Planet's swell of Spirit Energy that lies at its
centre, whether that swell be called "the Lifestream," "the Gaia," or simply
"the light" (as it is in Final Fantasy IX). We know this based on the Gaia
Theory of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within:
(Stated by Aki, quoting Dr. Sid's journal.)
"All life is born of Gaia and each life has a spirit. Each new spirit is
housed in a physical body. ...Through their experiences on Earth each spirit
matures and grows. When the physical body dies the mature spirit enriched by
its life on Earth returns to Gaia bringing with it the experiences, enabling
Gaia to live and grow."
However, the Mist covering the world was comprised of stagnant souls, unable
to return to the Planet. They were not going anywhere or doing anything. They
weren't being recycled and they weren't contributing to the growth of Gaia's
spirit, something it would desperately need at this point, seeing as how it
had been deprived of the Cycle of Souls for 1000 years. With that in mind,
Vivi may have decided to use the machines in Dali to expedite the Mist's
return to the Planet by giving it living vessels to inhabit once again, so
that once those living vessels died, the Spirit Energy would return to the
Planet as it naturally should.
Think of the matter as purifying water. If one has a contaminated lake, the
water can't be used. If, however, the water is taken into a machine, purified,
and then returned to the lake, the lake will be entirely cleansed and all the
water will be usable once again.
This, of course, brings up the questions of why it is that these sons of Vivi
have the same appearance as him, as well as how he would know to make them,
seeing as how he was a prototype of the Black Mages, obviously more complex
than those that were dying within one year's time. This, however, is easily
explained: As a prototype, Vivi was likely formed from compressing more Mist
than were the later Black Mages. In testing such a concept, it makes sense to
overdo it in order to determine -- over time -- how much Mist is needed to
produce the desired army of short-lived, reasonably powerful Black Mages. More
Mist would produce Black Mages like Vivi, and less Mist would produce Black
Mages like Black Mage No. 288. In trying to "purify" as much Mist as possible,
Vivi would, of course, use as much Mist as was possible in the creation of
each Black Mage. This would explain why the Mist has seemingly vanished from
the world during the ending, as well as why these Black Mages bear Vivi's
appearance.
One final thing to consider is the symbolism of Vivi's name, "Vivi" being
Latin for "Alive." That new life would emerge due to his actions would be very
fitting, I feel.
While it might be argued that Vivi abhorred the use of those Mist machines and
wouldn't have used them, it should be kept in mind that it was what the Black
Mages that were produced were being used FOR that Vivi abhorred. Them being
used as simply weapons of war and not treated as living beings with emotions
was what so enraged him.
With all this in mind, it is my personal belief that Vivi's sons were brought
into existance in the manner which I have suggested to be the case here, and
that it is the most likely possibility of their origin. It is the most likely
and most logical explanation that I know of, as well as the one which requires
the fewest assumptions.
(Note: Full credit for this concept goes to Tony Hilton (a.k.a. "Vir"); thanks
for opening my eyes. It was so simple and logical that it's brilliance at its
finest.)
The last thing you asked about was Garland's plan and the role of Zidane. Basically, Garland wanted to absorb the souls of the inhabitants of Gaia and restore Terra (a dying planet) to its former glory. He did so by using the Iifa Tree as a gateway between the two planets. Zidane's role was to bring chaos and destruction to Gaia, thus releasing the souls of the people living there. Instead he was 'turned good' and failed to complete his task (This reminds me of Smurfette's story).