Player: Candace
LJ username:
knightessInstant Messenger: candescently
Email: candace__x@hotmail.com
Current characters: n/a
Character: Cecil Harvey
Series: Final Fantasy IV / Dissidia: Final Fantasy
Faction: Cosmos
History:
Bid farewell to your bloodstained past. /
A knight is made by that which he protects. Personality: A quintessential knight, Cecil has strong moral beliefs that he follows without fail, including justice, loyalty, selflessness, and duty. He has changed a great deal since his time as a dark knight, where his sense of duty to his kingdom overrode his morals. He unquestioningly followed the orders of the King of Baron, killing any defenceless innocents who stood in his path in his hunt for the crystals. It took the inadvertent orphaning of a child at his own hands to make him finally abandon his king. Full of shame and self-loathing, he was eventually able to cast aside the darkness to become a holy warrior. He is by no means a self-righteous, holier-than-thou paladin, though: he is still all too aware of his shortcomings. He can be his own harshest critic, with the high moral standards he holds himself up to. Even being raised in a castle, and liked and respected by many as Lord Captain of the Red Wings, his past mistakes have given him humility.
One of Cecil's most noted qualities in Dissidia is his kindness, by enemy and ally alike. Opinions vary as to whether it's a weakness, or his greatest strength. Though his manner of speech is polite and formal, he is warm towards his allies and has a genuine concern for their wellbeing. He believes in the importance of teamwork, and prefers to fight with his friends rather than alone. If he had to, he would gladly throw himself in harm's way, or even die, to protect them. His trust is easily earned, as he prefers to see the good in people rather than bad. This, coupled with his own inherent honesty, makes him an easy target for betrayal. He can never remain angry at others for long, however, and he does not hold grudges. Rather, he is sympathetic and compassionate towards both friends and enemies, and exceptionally forgiving.
Family is something Cecil prizes as much as friendship. As he has lived his entire life in the belief he has no family, he has become attached to his brother, Golbez. While the other warriors of Cosmos only see him as an enemy, Cecil is convinced he is not evil, even going as far as to protect him from Exdeath. He does not want to fight against him, but rather, by his side. Because family has become so precious to him, he couldn't understand Tidus' eagerness to fight his father. His kindness and gentle nature makes him good with children, becoming almost like a father figure to Rydia when he takes her in after the death of her mother, and Palom and Porom come to consider him like an older brother. Similarly, to his fellow warriors of Cosmos he becomes a pillar of support, listening to their problems and providing encouragement and guidance.
Rosa, his wife, means the world to him. He loves her deeply, which can also be turned against him. He would do anything -- even hand over a crystal to his enemy -- if it meant she was safe, or would give his life in exchange for hers. He believes in the rather old-fashioned knightly values of chivalry, that women and children should be protected at any cost. Still, he has no qualms about fighting women if he has to -- he's fully aware they're just as capable on the battlefield as men.
Though he prizes his bonds with others, Cecil is an introvert: quiet, thoughtful, and reserved, sometimes to the point of shyness. When it comes to personal matters, he broods on problems alone rather than discussing them, and if asked what's wrong, he'll brush them off and claim it's nothing. Even when he receives deep emotional shocks like the loss of a comrade, he bears his grief silently and stoically. Likely, this is part of his selfless nature: he doesn't want to burden others with his thoughts and feelings, or show weakness when others are depending on him. At times, though, self-doubt can overwhelm him, and he needs the guidance of others to help him out of a rut.
Despite his occasional uncertainty, and difficulty expressing his thoughts and feelings, Cecil is a natural leader. Others are drawn to his courage and compassion, and he fights unswervingly for what he believes is right. Once he forms his convictions, he will see them through to the end, no matter what.
Abilities: Cecil's battle style, 'Split Soul', is so named because it splits him in half during battle between darkness and light. On the ground, he uses slow, darkness-based attacks which utilise dark flames or orbs, and in the air quick slashing attacks and light-based projectiles. He can seamlessly flip between the two when attacking, which can confuse and catch the opponent off guard. Cecil fights best at close and mid-range, though this leaves him vulnerable to spellcasters that can fight at a distance.
Ordinarily, Cecil uses lances in battle, but in EX Mode changes weapons to dark/holy swords and becomes surrounded by a dark/light aura, depending on which form he is in. His strength is also increased. His EX Burst, Soul Shift, strikes the enemy with dark energy and sword slashes.
A detailed list of his Dissidia skillset is
here.
Weaknesses: As mentioned before, Cecil cares a great deal about others, and his selfless desire to protect them can often impinge on his better judgement. Those dearest to him, particularly Rosa, can be easily exploited to lead him into traps; without fail he will rush to the aid of others without even considering his own safety. Though Cecil has the best of intentions, it often takes prompting from others to make him stop and think beyond his drive to protect.
Cecil can be naive when it comes to others, and very easy to stab in the back. He's very trusting by nature and prefers to see the good in people rather than the bad. Despite being repeatedly betrayed by Kain (and Golbez's fake 'betrayal' in 013), this has not changed his trusting attitude in the slightest, and he will always find forgiveness for those close to him.
Like his brother, because of his Lunarian blood Cecil is more susceptible to mind control than the average human. Although timeline-wise it hasn't happened to him yet, he has canonically been mind-controlled in The After Years, after being defeated by Bahamut while defending Baron. He loses his free will for much of the game, and when the mind control is severed, it shatters his mind, leaving him in a near-comatose state. Theoretically, anyone else with powerful enough mind control abilities could do the same.
Memory list.
i: Kain's betrayals
ii: Baron - his homeland, becoming King of Baron
iii: Any previous CR with FFIV cast, except Rosa, Kain, Golbez, Fusoya
iv: Golbez's actions while being controlled - gathering the crystals, Four Fiends etc.
v: The thirteenth cycle, previous CR with 013 warriors
vi: Defeating Zeromus
vii: Travelling to the moon / Cecil's Lunarian heritage, Kluya and Fusoya
viii: Childhood memories / growing up with Rosa and Kain
ix: Learning Golbez was his brother, and subsequently forgiving him
x: Being in love with, and marrying Rosa
First-Person Sample:
CECIL LIKES ROSESHIPPING.
Third-Person Sample:
"...And then what do you plan to do, Tidus?"
"When I get to my old man, I'll beat his face in. Guy won't know what hit him..."
Snippets of Firion and Tidus' conversation drifted back to Cecil, who was bringing up the rear of the party as they travelled. The dark knight stopped and sighed to himself as the other two travelled ahead, Tidus gesturing animatedly, Firion listening and occasionally interrupting. His heart was heavy, and he had a feeling that each step he took was a step closer to a battle he did not wish to fight. He wanted to find his crystal, he defeated manikins that stood in his path, but he knew that eventually, he would have to face--
"Everything okay?" a quiet voice said from his side.
"--Hm?" Cecil answered distractedly, prising his eyes from Tidus' retreating back to look at his companion. Cloud had caught up, and was watching him, unnaturally bright blue eyes concerned. "Yes, I'm fine. What about you, Cloud?"
"Took care of the last of the manikins tailing us. Shouldn't be a problem any more." The blond cocked his head, replacing his huge Buster Sword on his back. "But it was you I asked about, not me."
Cecil knew he was a poor liar, and terrible at hiding when something was on his mind; there was no use in pretending otherwise. He looked back to Tidus and Firion, then to the ground. "I'm just... I suppose I envy Tidus... Having family on the other side only spurs him on. I've no wish to fight mine, yet I know that I cannot shy from battle if I want to find my crystal."
Cloud's eyes flicked from the pair ahead and back to Cecil. "Tidus is doing what he's gotta do. Just like you've gotta do what you have to."
"I only wish I knew what that was..."
"That makes two of us," Cloud said quietly, "but you'll find your own path, eventually. Not Tidus', or even Firion's. Yours."
Cecil looked up. It was small encouragement, but it was enough. "My own path... Yes, you are right. Just as you will discover your own in time."
"Who knows?" Cloud muttered, but added, "Thanks."
Cecil shook his head. "No, it is I who should give thanks to you." He still had so many doubts, but at least he wasn't the only one. Friends made this journey much easier. Without them, he would be completely lost. "So... Thank you, Cloud."
Cloud gave a nonchalant shrug and walked away, pleased or embarrassed, perhaps, but too proud to show it either way. It reminded Cecil of someone he was sure he once knew, though he couldn't think who or where they'd met. Feeling a small smile tug at his lips from behind his helmet, he followed after his companion.