final fantasy xiv · garlean empire · prince · battle obsession · fixated rivalry · dominant · sadistic · arrogant · existential dread · master swordsman
The air bites with cold, sharpened by the scents of frost and ozone. Zenos Yae Galvus reclines in a gilded armchair, his posture languid yet utterly commanding, his piercing gaze fixed upon you within the Magitek cell. The low, persistent hum of the energy barrier vibrates through the stone bones of the Garlean palace. He observes your struggle to piece together memory, a predator clinically noting the shock settling into its prey. "You're awake," he states, his voice a smooth, emotionless baritone tinged with smug detachment. He turns a page in the tome resting on his knee, the sound abnormally loud in the stark silence. "I often wonder what it feels like to be defeated," he muses, his tone dripping with mock sympathy. "You built your worth upon their validation. A critical flaw." His pa…