SPOILERS FOR: Final Fantasy Tactics
The first time through Final Fantasy Tactics, when you're trying hard to keep
up with the plot and before you fall in love with the gameplay, is a pretty
confusing experience. The game opens with a confusing series of nested
flashbacks and goes on to overwhelm you with the depths of the political
machinations and the sheer number of characters involved, all with different
motivations and relationships. After all, that's why the Brave Story menu
exists: to help you keep track of some fifty important and unimportant
people, some of whom die before the game begins, and some of whom die within
three minutes of first appearing onscreen.
By the end of the game, it's easy to forget some of the major players from
early on. You forget Wiegraf's original motives, you forget that you rescued
Marquis Elmdor, you forget about reed flutes and praying princesses... and
you almost forget about one of your early allies: Algus Sadalfas, the little
blond twerp from Limberry, the guy we'd all like to use as a punching bag --
and maybe we do, to earn JP. He's a minor character whose active part in the
story is over after Chapter 1, but, in a very real way, he's responsible for
Delita's rise and fall. Over the course of FFT, Ramza changes only in that he
sheds some small bit of his naivete, but Delita transforms from a relatively
innocent boy into a heartless, scheming, manipulative, murdering wretch --
the kind of ruler Algus might've been proud of, and that transformation is
thanks largely to Algus.
Had the little snot from eastern Ivalice not crossed paths with Ramza and
Delita, Delita would never have developed a consuming, tragic lust for power,
because it's Algus who plants the seeds for Delita's hubris. Algus, who
believes that commoners are worse than animals -- Algus, who says that Delita
and his sister Teta should never have been in Igros and instead "should've
been flower-sellers somewhere" -- Algus is the reason Delita Hyral rises to
power and enjoys a "long and peaceful rule" as king of Ivalice.
Algus is the catalyst that starts Delita thinking seriously about whether he
belongs where he is, about rank, about manipulation. Algus brings to Delita's
attention the fact that he's in a world that he wouldn't ordinarily be in --
something Delita already knew, but wasn't consciously aware of. It's because
of Algus that Delita starts to question status and privileges of birth, the
privileges that are Ramza Beoulve's ticket into Gariland Magic Academy and
the Hokuten, the privileges denied most people of Delita's background. Algus
makes Delita realize that it's sheer circumstance and luck that have allowed
a person of his parentage to casually rub elbows with a powerful sphere of
political and military influence. And, most importantly, it's from Algus that
Delita really learns about people using people and which side of the using he
wants to be on.
We're told in the Brave Story menu that Algus is trying to regain his
family's honor. The Sadalfas family used to be a powerful part of the
aristocracy, and Algus tells the story behind their loss of status as the
boys wander around the grounds of Igros Castle. "My grandfather was captured
during the Fifty-Year War," Algus explains. "He sold his friends out to the
enemy to save himself. But, as he left the castle, he got stabbed in the back
by a cadet just like myself. One of my grandfather's friends managed to
escape and spread the story around. Of course my father didn't believe it,
but everyone else did, they deserted him," he concludes, tossing a stone into
the water as a mark of his frustration.
This story makes it clear that Algus understands that betrayal won't help him
any, and it's as though his fear of committing betrayal makes him stick all
the closer to a set of beliefs and behaviors. It's hard to tell, though,
whether the lesson Algus has garnered from the story is "Don't betray your
allies" or "Don't get caught betraying your allies." I suspect it's the
latter, as Algus doesn't consider other people when making decisions that
benefit him, but in later chapters, Delita far surpasses Algus in that area,
too.
But how much of Algus' crusade is a matter of personal honor and recognition
rather than family honor? His family's loss of power clearly bothers him,
especially given how highly he regards rank and power. It sometimes seems as
though putting down and hurting commoners is Algus' way of feeling better
about himself, because it reminds him that he still has a higher social
status than some people, even though his family name doesn't command the same
respect that the Beoulve name does.
Is Algus a product of his environment, or does he really believe what he
says? As portrayed in-game, Algus is so single-minded that it's easy to
believe he is the sum of what he's been taught. He doesn't seem open-minded
enough to ever have considered any other viewpoints, but he's also at an age
where people often consider what they've been raised to believe and decide to
either accept or reject it. If Algus has reached that level of cognitive and
moral development, he's clearly opted to accept the nobility's bigotry. He is
not easily deterred and does what is necessary to make himself look good.
At sixteen, Algus murders an innocent to make a point, to hurt Delita out of
spite, and especially to teach Ramza about rank and difference and power.
Later in the game, Delita, somewhere between eighteen and twenty years old,
kills indiscriminately, innocent and guilty alike, beloved and unknown alike,
for nothing as strong as even an ideal or an opinion -- merely as another
tool to help him achieve his goal of not being used.
The brief biography of Algus in the Brave Story menu says that he envies
Ramza, "who does not realize his status and is not trying to gain status."
But there's more to their relationship than simply envy. Rank and status mean
power, and for Algus, to whom rank is everything, it must be frustrating to
witness Ramza's refusal to pursue the power freely available to him as a
Beoulve. That's why Algus is so hell-bent on teaching Ramza about difference
and privilege.
Algus is also jealous of Delita. "We're friends, aren't we?" he asks Ramza,
based on the common ground they share as children of nobility. But that's not
the case -- he's outdone in that area by the commoner boy Delita, and he
knows it. Algus can't understand why Ramza prefers Delita's company -- he
seems personally offended by their friendship. "Delita, you don't belong
here!" he cries. "Ramza, don't you see? He's not one of us. You see, Ramza,
we nobles can't live with them.... Don't act like friends. You are the son of
a distinguished family. You cannot be with him."
But Ramza is never acting. He and Delita are long-time friends with no need
for pretense. Ramza constantly stands up for Delita and Teta, defending them
against Algus' remarks and looking out for Teta's well-being when discussing
her kidnapping with Dycedarg. He sees no reason to treat commoners
differently than he would treat nobles. And young Delita trusts Ramza and
even lies to Dycedarg to try to keep his friend out of trouble.
And beyond Ramza's fierce loyalty to his real friends, there's more to his
character, proven time and time again over the course of the game. Ramza may
be endearingly naïve and annoyingly prone to falling for traps and betrayals,
but he is a picture of a real hero and shows us what true nobility is -- not
something you're born with, but something in your behavior and your soul.
"Ramza helped me save the Marquis. I'll stay on till the end!" Algus declares
at the Thieves' Fort. But Delita also helped save Algus' revered Marquis
Elmdor, and if, at Mandalia Plains, you decide that destroying the Death
Corps is a higher priority than saving Algus, Delita takes it upon himself to
help Algus. Delita plays an equal role in the missions that lead to Elmdor's
rescue, but Algus overlooks it because even a commoner's sacrifices are
worthless to him.
"How are we different? Birth? Status? What the hell's rank?" asks the Death
Corps fencer in the Dorter slums. That's what Ramza wants to know too. In
battle with Miluda Folles, Algus insists that it's the "Will of Heaven" that
peasants are animals, subordinate to nobles. He doesn't consider the lives of
common people worth preserving or their deaths worth preventing -- not just
Teta, but any person of lower rank, even his comrade-in-arms, Delita. "If I
were [Dycedarg], I'd never save a common girl," Algus tells Delita and Ramza
after Teta is kidnapped. An enraged Delita demands clarification. "I said I
won't send troops to save you, commoners!" Algus shouts. But it's not a
matter of laziness; he wastes just as much energy insulting commoners as he
would trying to defend them.
Algus physically and verbally abuses the Death Corps fencer. He grabs the
man's hair, swears at him and insults him, kicks him several times, and puts
himself in control of the man's survival ("You tell us where Wiegraf is
going, and I'll let you live, OK?"). Ramza repeatedly steps in to stop Algus
beating the man, and Delita helps restrain Algus from chasing after Wiegraf
after rescuing Elmdor. Algus is frustrated by these attempts; it's as though
he wants to hurt commoners just for the visceral thrill of hurting someone
lower than himself. At Thieves' Fort, he forcefully urges Ramza to kill
Miluda, for no better reason than her low birth. "Ramza, kill her, now!" he
cries. "She's a loser. Who's lost sight of life! Losers cannot remain
alive!... We can't co-exist! Kill her, Ramza! With your own hands!"
By contrast, Ramza makes it clear to Miluda at Lenalia Plateau that he has no
wish to fight her or kill her. "Let's put down our swords, stop fighting, and
talk!" he says. "There must be a solution to all this! Let's find it!"
Neither Ramza nor Delita understand Algus' intense hatred toward the
peasantry; they see Miluda Folles not as a threat, but as simply another
human being who fights for a cause she believes in. Delita recognizes that
Miluda really is fighting towards equality and justice, and it doesn't make
sense to him that they should fight against that.
In late chapter 1, Delita's Brave Story biography says, "Reaffirming the
societal difference by meeting Algus and Miluda, Delita questions about
life." Despite the awkward translation, the meaning is clear, and it's true
that the contrast between the two is a trigger for Delita's contemplation. As
he witnesses the two arguing, he considers whether Miluda is truly his
enemy. "There's no difference among us other than our families.... You nobles
deprive us our right to live!" she contends. But Algus' preposterous retort
serves only to underscore the truth and logic of her position. "From the
minute you were born you had to obey us! From the second you were born you
were our animals!... Animals have no God!" he insists. After Miluda dies at
Lenalia Plateau, Delita is more confused than ever about where he belongs and
what direction his life has taken. He contemplates his life experiences with
the Beoulves, everything Algus has said, everything Miluda has said,
everything he has done, and everything he knows about himself, and the result
is a troubled young man who can say only, "Damn it, who the hell am I?
Who...?"
At Thieves' Fort, Delita voices his questions about why Miluda is their
enemy. Shocked, Algus calls him mad and accuses him of betrayal. Ramza
doesn't understand why they're her enemy either. "Geez, what's wrong with
you?" says a frustrated Algus, folding his arms and turning his head away
from them. Algus wishes that both would realize and accept their positions in
life -- he's personally offended by Delita's familiarity with nobles, and
he's made jealous and impatient by Ramza's refusal to use the power that's
rightfully his as an aristocrat.
In pursuit of Teta after her kidnapping, Ramza and Delita have a talk on
Mandalia Plains. "I've felt out of place for a long time," Delita confesses
to his best friend. "Are you thinking about what Algus said?" Ramza asks.
Delita doesn't directly answer the question, but continues, "I guess there
are things you can't change, no matter what."
Ramza, a child of privilege, a person to whom the rules of normal life do not
apply, doesn't accept that truth. He believes in his friend and suggests that
effort is enough, that determination is more important than birth. With most
people, it'd be reasonable to assume that he's just being polite, but Ramza
has a reputation for being deeply honest, incapable of lying even to his
enemies. Even with his friend's support, Delita says he feels "useless."
Ramza can't think of anything to say in response.
Then Delita picks up a blade of grass and blows on it, just as Ramza's father
taught the two boys. In fact, Delita refers to Balbanes Beoulve as "father."
Somewhere in his heart, the common-born orphan Delita considers himself just
as worthy and noble as Ramza. As a result, feeling out of place and being
reminded of his real status make him confused and depressed. This
conversation shows that Algus didn't introduce these concepts to Delita --
Delita's been having these thoughts for a while. But Algus gives Delita cause
to consider them more seriously, and his later actions at Fort Zeakden drive
Delita to act on those feelings.
By Fort Zeakden, Ramza and Delita have essentially taken up the position of
the Death Corps, and after Teta's kidnapping, all their remaining plot
battles in the chapter have the single goal of getting Delita's sister back,
not upholding an ideology or killing indiscriminately. The events at Fort
Zeakden are only the first in a long series of mysteries and ambiguities in
FFT's plot, but they're what everyone best remembers Algus for, and they're
key to understanding the characters and development of Ramza, Algus, Zalbag,
and especially Delita.
To understand Algus' thought process at Fort Zeakden, it's important to first
look objectively at the dialogue and actions from the pre-battle plot
sequence with Golagros, the Death Corps knight who desires immediate change
and isn't willing to wait for "a small ripple" to become "a wave."
"Get out! Now!" shouts Golagros, holding Teta hostage on a walkway near a
gunpowder arsenal. "Go on, do it!" Zalbag orders from the ground below.
"Yes, sir!" answers Algus. He shoots his crossbow at Teta. The music stops,
and no one moves. Golagros is the only one to speak. "What's this?" he asks,
before he too is shot by Algus. Delita and Teta call to each other, and a
knight enters the scene to tell Zalbag that Wiegraf has been sighted.
"All right, I'll be right there," says Zalbag. "Take care of the rest,
Algus." And Zalbag leaves.
There it is: that's what happens, and that's what's said. But "the rest"?
What is "the rest"? Zalbag shows no reaction to the murder of Teta, a family
friend, and seems to not even recognize that his brother Ramza is there. This
raises a lot of questions about Zalbag, but he's another character study
altogether. Given Dycedarg's later actions, it would be no surprise to learn
that Zalbag is under orders to stop the Death Corps at absolutely any cost
because of how good it will make the Beoulves look. We're repeatedly told
about and shown Dycedarg's talent for deception, his "silk tongue," and his
manipulative nature.
At this point in the scene, Delita finally voices what the player's been
thinking the whole game: "Algus! You bastard!" Then Algus says something that
makes me think a little better of Zalbag, because it seems that Algus has
taken his orders into his own hands. "You want to fight? Fine then, let's
go!" Algus makes it sound as though Ramza and Delita are initiating the
battle -- they're not, of course, but it seems clear that fighting the two is
not an express part of Algus' orders. He's interpreted "Take care of the
rest" in a narrow way -- to him, it means "kill them all" rather than seeking
a more peaceful solution, or at least one with fewer deaths. "It's your
brother's orders," he tells Ramza, but how far is Algus stretching the
meaning of those orders? Algus honestly isn't concerned with who he offends
or angers. He's hoping to earn some respect from his superiors, wanting to
stick it to Delita, eager to show Ramza his place.
What are Algus' orders? Is Teta Hyral's death an accident? Does Algus decide
that he has a convenient way to get rid of an extra commoner "animal"? Does
he decide this is a good object lesson to teach Ramza about "difference --
different birth, totally different life"? Is Teta of so little consequence
that her death is acceptable collateral damage in eliminating the Death
Corps? "Would you sacrifice the Hokuten pride, all for a common girl?" he
asks Ramza. But we see again and again in the game that people are more
important to Ramza than anyone's pride: "Teta is Delita's sister!" is all he
can say, because for Ramza, that is a good enough reason not to kill her.
Then Algus lectures Ramza about the way nobles and leaders are used for their
ability to protect, but Algus doesn't try to protect anyone but himself.
Finally, Delita lashes out at Algus again. "You murdered Teta! I'll kill you!
I swear it!" Algus clearly enjoys this, and he mocks and sneers at Delita.
"Angry, Delita?" he jeers. "Angry because you're so utterly helpless? Know
your limits! Commoners don't have power to change things! That's right, get
angry!" he taunts. "It's all you can do! Ha, ha, you deserve it!... Don't be
mad, Delita. You'll join her soon!"
This last long speech, especially "Know your limits," has a powerful
lingering effect on Delita. "You won't confuse me!" Delita counters. "Nobody
uses me!" As the game progresses, Delita discovers his limits and goes beyond
them, finds the power to change things, decides that getting angry is
not all he can do, and determines to never be used.
That's why Delita says later at Zirekile Falls that Teta saved him. He
doesn't mean that his sister's dead body shielded him from the explosion of
the fort. He means it figuratively, not literally: he feels that if Teta
hadn't died in that particular set of circumstances with those particular
events leading up to it, he would never have realized exactly how out of
place he was and would still be used to further someone else's goals. In that
sense, Teta saved him from a life of ignorance and complacency, and in that
same sense, so did Algus.
Algus isn't an important character all by himself; alone, he's simply an
annoying, selfish bigot. But add Ramza and Delita, stir, and let simmer for
one chapter, and what we have in Algus Sadalfas is the impetus for Delita's
development as a person, transformation into a manipulative individual, rise
to power, and eventual fall into despair.
Quoted sources: Final Fantasy Tactics game script, "Brave Story" menu,
and game manual, North American version.
|
RSS feed
iTunes