Dissidia 012 Lightning

Lightning is one of the characters introduced in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, the heroine and sole character representing Final Fantasy XIII. With the aid of her comrades, others forced into a nefarious plot by the fal'Cie of Cocoon, Lightning defied her fate to save the world yet was removed from her reality, as if she never existed in the first place. Lightning fights using her three primary Paradigm roles to change fighting styles in combat, combining gunblade attacks, elemental and curative magic, whereas she uses the Zantetsuken for her HP attacks. She acts as the main protagonist of the "Main Scenario 012" storyline, leading the other five new characters into battle against the Manikins.
In keeping with her role as the leader of the new heroes, her opposing villain in the game's storyline is Garland, the leader of Chaos' armies. This rivalry is even featured in the game's opening FMV.Lightning's appearance is identical to her appearance in Final Fantasy XIII. She has light pink hair and pale aqua eyes, and wears a primarily white Guardian Corps military uniform, adorned with several belts and buckles with a red cape. Her weapon of choice is the Blazefire Saber gunblade, which can shift between gun and sword forms.
Lightning's first alternate outfit, named "Midnight Cloak", is based off of a concept artwork of her by Yoshitaka Amano. Lightning's cape is dark brown, her hair is white, and her uniform has an overall darker color scheme. Her gunblade also changes to look darker, with the hilt of the blade changing from a predominantly dark pink color to a dark gray color.
Lightning's second alternate outfit, named "Guardian Corps Uniform", is the uniform of a female Guardian Corps soldier in Final Fantasy XIII. She wears a khaki coat held closed by a black belt and several buckles with blue pauldrons, gray short-sleeved turtleneck, brown tights, different boots, and a black officer's cap with an intricate design.
Lightning's bonus downloadable outfit is based on Aya Brea, the protagonist of The 3rd Birthday, another Square Enix title. The outfit consists of torn blue jeans, different boots, and a sleeveless black shirt that exposes her midriff. She also wears a plain pendant on a black string. The outfit is only available by purchasing the "Twisted Edition" of said game.
Lightning's manikin version, Fleeting Flash, is pink. 

Dissidia 012 Vann

Vaan is one of the new characters introduced in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. Vaan is a young man who lived on the streets of Rabanastre and dreamed of being a sky pirate. He uses a variety of weapons and his EX Burst is based on his Quickenings from Final Fantasy XII.
 Vaan's appearance is identical to his original Akihiko Yoshida design from Final Fantasy XII, although he is slightly less tanned. He has blond hair and blue-gray eyes. He wears a loose cropped open vest held together by a pendant over his chest, which once belonged to his deceased elder brother, Reks. He wears dark pants, tucked into his knee-high steel boots, held up by a red sash. Vaan's first alternate outfit is named "Gunmetal Vest", and is based on Amano's artwork. His outfit is black and gray and features a different shoulder design, which adds snake-like shoulder pads. In this outfit he gains a tattoo on his left shoulder. He gains a new gauntlet design as well, and his accessories are colored green. His brother's pendant is attached to a necklace, rather than acting as a clasp for his vest.
Vaan's second alternate outfit, "Conflicted Hero," is his design from Final Fantasy Tactics A2, which features a shirt under his vest, gauntlets that are no longer fingerless and cover the entirety of his wrists, slightly different knee armor, and an ornament on his waist.
As a bonus fourth outfit available for download, "Pirate's Garb", Vaan takes on the garb of a more traditional sea pirate, designed by Akihiko Yoshida, the character designer for Final Fantasy XII. Vaan wears a blue and white coat that flares at the waist, knee-high blue boots, and a black hat with a Jolly Roger on it.
The color of Vaan's manikin, the Idle Sky Pirate, is Gold. Vaan encounters the Onion Knight, and because Onion Knight is just a kid, he tries to treat him like a younger brother, much to Onion Knight's annoyance.
After receiving his dormant crystal from Cosmos, Vaan travels with Lightning, Laguna, and Tifa, but they get separated when they are attacked by Kuja and Kefka, and the manikins. While on his own, Vaan encounters and fights a brainwashed Terra before she runs off.
On the Sky Fortress Bahamut Vaan finds Terra being confronted by Kefka over her unwillingness to fight. Though he attempts to walk away, feeling that interfering prematurely would worsen the situation, he takes offense to Kefka torturing Terra and intervenes. After fighting Kefka, Vaan grabs Terra and flees with her. Terra asks him to kill her, but Vaan refuses and explains that though they are on opposing sides he saved her out of choice and gives her the strength to reach her resolve of not fighting. Convincing her to go into hiding, Vaan promises Terra to find her before fighting Chaos so she can meet Cosmos and become one of her warriors.

After finding Laguna they find Yuna and an unconscious Tidus, after the Emperor has kidnapped Jecht. They cheer her up, and return to Cosmos and talk to Lightning and the Warrior of Light. After learning of Warrior and Kain's plans, Vaan, Laguna and Yuna decide to stay awake and join Lightning in her suicide mission to stop the manikins.
Vaan travels with Lightning, Laguna and Yuna to the portal, reuniting with Kain and Tifa along the way. When the six of them reach Orphan's Cradle, Vaan talks with Yuna and Tifa, telling them he looks forward to see what the manikins' world looks like. At the Empyreal Paradox, the three of them, along with Laguna and Lightning, fight against Garland, the Emperor, the Cloud of Darkness, Kefka and Ultimecia, with Vaan fighting Kefka. Afterwards, along with Kain, they fight the manikins and close the portal, eventually succumbing to the manikins. As Shinryu takes Cosmos and the other warriors to the next cycle of war, Vaan sheds his light with the others and fades away in front of the Warrior of Light.

In "Vaan's Quest 012: A Voice to Call Back", Vaan encounters Tidus. When they realize the other's allegiance Tidus reluctantly challenges Vaan, but asks him about his memories. After the battle Tidus asks if Vaan knows someone called "Jecht", and while Vaan confirms such a man is fighting for Cosmos, Tidus departs before Vaan can explain further. Vaan, not getting Tidus's name, describes him to Yuna as a boy his age asking about Jecht. Yuna asks if the boy was cheerful, but Vaan replies he seemed sad, confusing Yuna about who it could be.
Vaan plays a brief but important role in "Cecil's Quest 012: A Re-encounter With a Close Friend" - when the two attempt to liberate a gateway, Vaan comments it would be easier to travel if they had an airship, the mention of the crafts sparking Cecil's memories of his home and his friendship with Kain.
During an unspecified cycle, in "Vaan's Quest ???: The Strayed Sky Pirate", Vaan finds an odd gateway and enters it. Unable to find the exit, he is confronted by Gabranth who tells him he is in a hell dimension cut off from the war, and it is where discarded warriors are banished until the gods call them back to fight again. Gabranth offers to show Vaan the exit if he can defeat him in battle, and Vaan accepts. They fight three times, and Gabranth keeps his word and shows Vaan the way out. Vaan asks if Gabranth will be returning with him, but the judge declines, saying others often stumble into the dimension and he chooses to remain behind to guide them out as he did with Vaan.

Dissidia 012 Shantotto

Shantotto is an extra character in Dissidia Final Fantasy andDissidia 012 Final Fantasy. A hero who fought in the Crystal War, Shantotto is a famous Tarutaru professor of magic fromWindurst. She is well-known for her high-pitched, haughty laughter and overall arrogant nature. Shantotto is respected for her great power, but she refuses to admit it when she finds someone who could be better than she.

Although appearing to be seemingly frail and helpless, her aggressive, cunning, destructive and unpredictable nature coupled with her unsurpassed magical prowess caused her to gain a reputation among all warriors, both from Chaos andCosmos alike, as the most fearsome of them all during her time as an active warrior.

In battle, she fights using powerful spells that level up and become stronger as she gains Bravery. As an extra character in the game, Shantotto has no impact on the main storyline and has no villain opposing her, although she's had a long-standing rivalry with Gabranth in both games.

In Dissidia Final Fantasy, Shantotto is unlockable by completing the Distant Glory - The Lady of Legend storyline and purchasing her as a playable character in the PP Catalog for 1,000 PP. In Dissidia 012, she is available as a purchasable character at the PP Catalog from the start and costs 100 PP.

Early Cycles

Despite her great pride, Shantotto was not bothered by the fact she is merely Cosmos's pawn, and is surprisingly loyal to Cosmos. She often used battles as an excuse to research and perfect the "ultimate spell". She guarded Order's Sanctuary singlehandedly while Prishe went out to explore the world under the pretense of "patrols". Shantotto battled Gabranth on one occasion when he came to Order's Sanctuary intending to kill Cosmos and end the cycles of war.

When Prishe finds the Warrior of Light and brings him to Cosmos's throne, Shantotto helps Prishe convince Cosmos to endow the Warrior with her power and turn him into a Warrior of Cosmos.

Thirteenth cycle

Cosmos's flashback of Shantotto keeping Gabranth at bay.

When all the warriors have obtained their crystals, a flashback shows the confrontation between Shantotto and Gabranth. In a Report in Dissidia 012the flashback is expanded to show the battle between the two, players taking the role of Shantotto to fight Gabranth.

In Dissidia's Distant Glory The Lady of Legend, and in Confessions of the Creator in Dissidia 012 at the "Curses and Hopes of Yore" gateway, the player can find Shantotto. Shantotto resides in another realm cut off from the cycles, and the manikins she has been using as test subjects in her magical experiments have begun to run wild. Shantotto tasks the player with dispatching them, and in return grants them a "private lesson" and battles them. Once defeated, Shantotto departs to duel with Gabranth (though she cannot remember his name).

Official Quests

Several official quests elaborate on Shantotto's role in the early cycles and her fate once she escaped them. In "Gilgamesh's Quest 000: From the Interdimensional Rift", Prishe reports to Shantotto about her encounter withGilgamesh, and how Prishe saw him being engulfed by a portal to the Rift. "Gabranth's Quest 000: One Who Faces Hell" reveals that Gabranth left his duel with Shantotto when he attacked Order's Sanctuary, telling Shantotto to ask Cosmos about the cycles and purification of fallen warriors.

In "Shantotto's Quest 000: The Seeker's Destination", Shantotto is now aware of the true nature of the cycles and decides to leave Cosmos as her amnesia is a detriment to her magical studies. Wishing Cosmos luck with the cycles, Shantotto departs Order's Sanctuary and destroys a gateway rather than just freeing it. Garlandfinds her and questions this act, and Shantotto explains she wishes to escape the cycle of war. As the gateways are unstable space that act as portals to other worlds, destroying one may cause a portal to open to the Rift.

An enraged Garland tells Shantotto escape is impossible and attacks her. In the aftermath of the battle a portal appears as Shantotto suspected, and Garland warns there is no escape from the Rift if she enters it, but Shantotto laughs he said the same about the cycle, and leaps into the portal. The ending narration alludes to the gateway in Confessions of the Creator, stating Shantotto was never seen in the cycle again, but fluctuations in space occasionally allow a portal to open in World B, allowing others to cross over to the dimension she came to reside in after her escape.

Dissidia 012 Jecht

Jecht was one of Cosmos's champions during Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, but during the war, he is recruited into one ofChaos's minions. In Dissidia Final Fantasy, Jecht is forced to fight his rival and son, Tidus. Jecht was once a famous Blitzballplayer from Zanarkand. Burly and rough-spoken, Jecht's style of brawling is straight from the Blitzball arena. Similar to Golbez, he does not care about the other villains' plans, but is hinted to fight for his own, more benevolent desires. Jecht also appears to his son Tidus, who wishes to settle their grudge and finally best his father in battle.

Twelfth cycle

Jecht in the Dissidia 012FMV.

During the twelfth cycle of war, Jecht serves as a warrior of Cosmos. At some point during the conflict, he converses with Kain about trying to open up a bit towards his allies, as they are becoming somewhat nervous about his loner attitude. He also briefly suggests to Lightning that she fight alongside the Warrior of Light to determine for herself if he is trustworthy. He accompaniesYuna after she is separated from her group, only to lose sight of her. He eventually is confronted by Tidus, who had joined Chaos in an attempt to defeat his father.

Tidus tries to provoke Jecht into fighting him, with the man calling him an idiot for being brainwashed. Before the two can battle one another Yuna intervenes to protect Jecht and reason with Tidus when the Emperorappears and attacks. Tidus takes a fatal blow for Yuna, and Jecht, refusing to let his son die, saves him by giving him Cosmos's light, rendering Jecht an empty vessel. The Emperor spirits Jecht away to Chaos's throne, where Chaos fills Jecht with the power of discord and converts him into his newest agent.

Thirteenth cycleEdit

Jecht is recruited by the Emperor to battle Tidus on the promise that when the Emperor's plan reaches fruition, he and Tidus will be able to return to their world. Golbez suspects the Emperor will betray Jecht and meets with him several times to warn him so.

Jecht and Firion fight in the opening sequence.

When Tidus and Firion split up, Jecht confronts Tidus at the Emperor's palacePandaemonium, ready to fight. The Emperor intervenes and tells Jecht that Tidus wishes to fight him due to hatred, which is against their intended plan. Though disgruntled, Jecht departs and leaves the Emperor to battle Tidus. Jecht comes across Firion at the Lunar Subterrane, and the latter questions if Jecht ran from his fight with Tidus. Annoyed by the implication, and by the Emperor dismissing him, Jecht attacks Firion to take out his frustrations. After the fight, Jecht seems unphased as Firion stands exhausted. Jecht wishes to keep going and Firion refuses, saying he will not be a substitute for Tidus. Jecht agrees and leaves, deciding the Emperor needs to stop meddling.

Heeding Firion and Golbez's advice, Jecht turns on the Emperor and the two do battle as Firion and Tidus find them. The Emperor teleports away as Jecht kneels injured, telling him to fight Tidus as much as he likes. Jecht prompts Tidus to battle him, but Tidus refuses to fight Jecht when he is hurt. Jecht leaves, and Tidus splits from Firion to follow. Following Jecht to Dream's End, Tidus uses a potion from Firion to heal his wounds. Now content to fight with his father at his full strength, Tidus and Jecht battle. In the end, Tidus is victorious and claims his Crystal. Jecht begins to fade, and Tidus tearfully admits he only ever wanted his approval. Jecht chuckles as he vanishes, his last words to compliment Tidus on his strength.

Jecht lectures Tidus before he disappears.

With Cosmos gone, the Emperor reveals to Jecht the cycle will no longer begin again, and that both they and the heroes will eventually vanish. The Emperor further reveals Jecht's origins as a warrior of Cosmos and how his fight against Tidus was planned so the Emperor could create his own Crystals, attuned to warriors of darkness rather than light, in order to survive the destruction of the world and Chaos to rule existence.

Disgusted, Jecht leaves to find a good fight and finds Tidus, telling him a true ace never stops until the end. The two battle, and Jecht is again defeated. Jecht goads Tidus, telling him to accept his weakness and that the world they are in makes no sense. When Jecht asks if Tidus will cry, Tidus tells him to shut up. Pleased with his son's resolution, Jecht rises and begins to walk away as pyreflies float up from his body. Jecht warns Tidus "don't make 'him' come out here again," and vanishes, telling Tidus it was fun being his father.

If a Warrior of Cosmos other than Tidus encounters Jecht, Jecht notes that Tidus isn't around, and decides to fight the Warrior of Cosmos anyway, since that's what they came for. After being defeated, he remarks they aren't bad, and he won't have anything to worry about.

Official Quests

Jecht appears in "Bartz's Quest 012: Mimicry And a Promise". Bartz, Laguna and Jecht are looking for treasure and decide to take a break when their searches prove fruitless. At this time Bartz challenges Laguna to battle, wishing to learn how to mimic his attacks. Laguna accepts and Bartz successfully learns to copy his Ragnarok Blade. Bartz challenges Jecht to learn his attacks as well, but Jecht refuses, saying his attacks are harder to mimic and he'll teach them to Bartz later.

Dissidia 012 Zidane Tribal

Zidane Tribal is one of the heroes fighting for the side ofCosmos in Dissidia Final Fantasy. Lithe and graceful, Zidane excels at midair battling, and can run rings around foes in arenas with few footholds. During his quest to find the Crystals, he befriends Bartz and Squall. However, his nemesis Kuja lays traps for them with the intent to make Zidane feel powerless and break his spirit.

Twelfth cycle

Zidane is first seen with the rest of the Cosmos warriors, receiving powers from Cosmos herself. When everyone sets out, Zidane is surprised to run into Kuja. Having been through several cycles of war and recovered all his memories, he is on good terms with Kuja, who seeks to betray Chaos and lead Zidane and his friends to Chaos's throne, so they can defeat him together.

However, Kefka derails Kuja's scheme and summons manikins to attack Zidane, Bartz, and Squall. To save face with the Warriors of Chaos, so as not to be persecuted for his betrayal, Kuja feigns that he had been deceiving the Warriors of Cosmos and reluctantly defeats the three; however, he does allow them to escape. During the purification process at the end of Cycle 12, Kefka implants false memories into Kuja's psyche, causing him to attack Zidane in Cycle 13.

In Chapter 4, while searching for Tidus and Jecht, Yuna runs into Zidane. Sensing her sadness, he accompanies Yuna for a little while before scouting ahead for more manikins to defeat.

Later on, Kain attacks Zidane and leaves him unconscious. After a battle in Chapter 7, Ultimecia points out Zidane to Tifa, warning her of Kain's acts of betrayal. Before Tifa can help Zidane, Kain returns, disappearing with Zidane in his arms. Later, Kain explains to Tifa that he attacked Zidane so that he may "sleep" for Cycle 13, thus restoring Zidane's strength to defeat the endless horde of manikins.

In Report 15, Zidane comforts the Onion Knight, who is worried that they are merely advanced manikins with false memories, and assures him, "How we're born into this world doesn't matter. It's what we do with ourselves afterwards that counts". In Report 11, when Laguna is talking to Squall, he mentions Zidane. Thinking that Zidane's tail was fake, he yanked on it, which Zidane "sure wasn't happy" about. In Chapter 4, Zidane tells Yuna that "some idiot" decided to pull on his tail.

Thirteenth cycle

Bartz and Zidane are attacked by a group of manikins while looking for the crystals, and Squall comes to assist them. After the battle, the two invite Squall to join them, but Squall declines their offer, stating that he prefers working alone, which leads to Bartz giving him a chocobo feather as a good luck charm.

Bartz and Zidane starting their competition.

Bartz and Zidane propose a contest to see who obtains a crystal first, but their "treasure hunt" is cut short when Bartz disappears in front of Zidane's eyes, having fallen for a trap meant for him. Zidane is ambushed by Kefka, who helped Kuja set up the trap, and the two fight to a standstill. Zidane finds out Bartz has been captured by the forces of Chaos and has been taken to their base.

Zidane later finds Squall cornered by both Garland and Ultimecia. Zidane rushes to his aid, tackling down Garland and fighting him, while Squall fights Ultimecia and receives his Crystal. After the fight, Garland laughs at Zidane and vanishes, leaving him to join up with Squall as they go on to look for Bartz. They eventually find him, and Bartz reveals that he escaped on his own, obtaining what appears to be a Crystal. It turns out to be another trap set by Kuja, warping Zidane to his nemesis, who taunts him by telling of the fall of his friends.

Zidane preparing to face off against Kuja.

Cosmos pays Zidane a visit, and Zidane laments that there is nothing he can do to help them. Cosmos reassures him that his friends believe in him, and he should believe in them in return. Taking it to heart, Zidane encounters Kuja once again. Zidane wants to go back to his friends, and Kuja believes it is pointless to believe in "strangers". But after infuriating Kuja by asking about his relation to the other Warriors of Chaos, Zidane fights and defeats Kuja. Zidane then receives his Crystal, which teleports him back to Bartz and Squall.

Later on, he talks with Firion about his reason for fighting. When the weapon-master gives "The Wild Rose" as an answer, Zidane asks him if that is what he calls his "princess", in reference to Princess Garnet of Final Fantasy IX. Before Firion can reply, they suddenly hear something behind them and run off to investigate.

Squall and Zidane hold their crystals.

After all the Crystals have been collected, Chaos appears out of nowhere, who not only subdues the heroes with his power, but also incinerates Cosmos in front of them. After the Warriors have overcome their own erasure, they set out to defeat the Warriors of Chaos once more. Along the way, Zidane cheers up the disillusioned Onion Knight when he questions their existence.

Zidane looks at his Crystal before he returns home.

Zidane runs into Kuja, who is bent on his envisioned finale. However, Zidane wins the fight, and as result, Kuja is lamenting over how he lost everything as he asks Zidane to finish him off. However, Zidane instead extends his hand to Kuja, with the latter refusing it as he asks Zidane if there is something else he would rather seize. When fading away, Kuja comments that "he will return there someday", with Zidane agreeing in belief that they will both one day, return to their home. Zidane, along with the other heroes then battle Chaos. When the Warriors of Cosmos emerge victorious, Zidane ends up in World A before fading back to his homeworld as he tells his friends that they are going back to their promised places. 

Dissidia 012 Laguna Loire

Laguna Loire is the third representative of Final Fantasy VIIIin Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. Laguna was once a soldier of the Galbadian Army alongside Kiros and Ward, whose backstories were explained through flashbacks and playable dream sequences. The brotherly soldier quit the army, became a journalist, starred in a movie, and eventually became the new president of Esthar, where he crossed paths with the recipients of his experiences while assisting him in his battle against the sorceress Ultimecia.

In the game's story mode, his opposing villain is the Cloud of Darkness.Laguna is a Warrior of Cosmos, acting like a big brother to the other Warriors and mediating them thanks to his cheerful and carefree nature. Prior to the conflict's beginning, Laguna accompanied Squall and Firion on patrol, giving the latter the 'wild' rose they found. After Firion runs off to find the others, Laguna proceeds to talk to Squall about their new friends; like Zidane, whose tail he pulled during their meeting. He also tries to talk him out of being a loner. When Squall questions the point of making friends, Laguna explains that even if they were both from the same world, they would be separated eventually.

Later, as the conflict begins, Laguna gets his group of Cosmos's warriors lost when trying to find the sanctuary. He talks to Kain and Lightning, playfully teasing her about her somewhat harsh personality.

Laguna talking to Cloud of Darkness.

After arriving at the sanctuary and receiving his dormant crystal from Cosmos, Laguna travels with Lightning, Vaan, and Tifa, but they end up getting separated when they are attacked by Kuja and Kefka and the manikins. While on his own, Laguna encounters and fights the Cloud of Darkness.

When their fight is over, Laguna starts having leg cramps after staring at the Cloud of Darkness in an awkward scene. After telling her he is helping Cosmos rather than serving her, Laguna's words pique the Cloud of Darkness's interest and she reveals where the manikins are coming from. Cloud of Darkness reveals this information as a potential suicide mission, and is curious about the manner of death Laguna would choose for himself.

Later on, Laguna and Vaan find Yuna with an unconscious Tidus after the Emperor has kidnapped Jecht. They manage to cheer her up, and the three return to Cosmos and talk to Lightning and the Warrior of Light. Here, Laguna informs everyone that he knows where the manikins are coming from and volunteers to help Lightning in destroying the manikins.

Laguna then travels with Lightning, Vaan and Yuna to the portal, reuniting with Kain and Tifa along the way. Eventually reaching the Empyreal Paradox, Laguna fights alongside Lightning, Vaan, Yuna, and Tifa againstGarland, the Emperor, the Cloud of Darkness, Kefka, and Ultimecia with Laguna fighting the Cloud of Darkness a second time. Afterwards, they, along with Kain, fight a multitude of manikins. They managed to close the portal the manikins are emerging from, but fall in battle. As Shinryu takes Cosmos and her other warriors to the next cycle, Laguna and the others disappear in front of the Warrior of Light.

Official QuestsEdit

In "Bartz's Quest 012: Mimicry And a Promise", Bartz, Laguna and Jecht are searching for treasure together. Bartz challenges Laguna to a battle, wishing to learn how to mimic Laguna's attacks. Laguna accepts, only using his Ragnarok Blade attack during the battle, and Bartz learns to copy him successfully. In "Squall's Quest 012: The Shadow I Know I Saw", Squall goes to look for Laguna when he gets left behind, and after a battle with Cloud sees Laguna and calls to him. Laguna appears behind Squall however, and Squall thinks the Laguna he thought he saw was just a shadow, unaware it was the first sighting of a manikin.

Dissidia 012 Squall Leonhart

Squall Leonhart is one of the heroes fighting on the side ofCosmos in Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. A cold taciturn youth who wields a gunblade, a weapon part sword and part gun. He is a master of combos, able to chain together a myriad of attacks. Squall is a loner who is focused on finding the crystals and defeating his nemesis,Ultimecia. During his travels he is torn between fulfilling his duty and protecting his friends, Zidane and Bartz, who are being targeted by Ultimecia's allies.

Twelfth cycle

Prior to the conflict beginning, Squall accompanied Firion and Laguna on patrol and they found a wild rose. After Firion takes the flower and runs off, Laguna talks to Squall about their new friends and tries to talk him out of being a loner. When Squall questions why he needs to make friends on the battlefield, Laguna mimics Squall's voice to mock him. Laguna says that even though Squall and he were both born in the same world, they will be separated. He appears later at the World of Darkness, attempting to strike up a conversation withLightning, who is speaking with Firion.

Squall appears in the Phantom Train with Laguna, Vaan, and the Onion Knight and is exasperated over being stuck with Laguna and Vaan. At an unknown point in the story Squall, Zidane, and Vaan meet Gilgamesh, but none remember him.

Squall accompanies Bartz as Zidane introduces them to Kuja, where Squall doubts Kuja's allegiance, suspecting him of being Chaos's minion. When Kefka confirms his suspicions, Squall and the others attack Kuja. They are defeated, but are allowed to escape. Later, Squall is defeated by Kain and put to sleep for the following cycle.

Thirteenth cycle

Squall advising Bartz.

As Cosmos explains the need for the crystals, she transmits illusions of herself to her warriors separated into small groups due to the battle. Squall, the only warrior save for the Warrior of Light to be on his own, embarks on his quest without concern for its difficulty. He meets Zidane and Bartz but rejects their offer to join forces after saving them from manikins. As they depart, Bartz forces a chocobo feather on him, offering it as a good luck charm. Squall travels alone to the Planet's Core where Ultimecia, under the guise of Cosmos, questions his rejection and hints at how to get his crystal.

As Ultimecia convinces Garland to assist her, Squall starts to doubt his decision from Ultimecia's previous questioning. Kefka convinces Kuja to capture Squall at the Rift to further Kuja's plans to capture Zidane. Things do not go according to plan and Kuja is defeated and gives up on capturing Squall, telling him to wait for the second act. Squall rejects the thought of trying to warn Zidane and Bartz due to his current situation to find the crystals and continues on.

Warrior of Light confronts Squall.

Squall meets the Warrior of Light as his travel leads him to the Crystal World, where Warrior of Light challenges him to prove his conviction of traveling alone. Squall defeats him and says that grouping up is not the only way of cooperation. Warrior of Light accepts this and leaves, reminding Squall he is not alone in the war.

Ultimecia appears in the Old Chaos Shrine and commends on Squall's cold resolve to find his crystal as he had neglected to help Zidane, and thought feelings were inconsequential to the task at hand. Bewildered, he backs down as Ultimecia allows him to go free, saying the time for their confrontation is close at hand. As he continues down his path, Squall confirms to himself what is important to him — his duty.

Confronting Ultimecia at her castle, he explains what he did was not out of abandonment or selfish desire, but because of a call of duty. Garland appears and challenges Squall to fight them both, but Zidane appears and tackles Garland aside, leaving Squall and Ultimecia to fight alone. After Ultimecia is defeated and Squall obtains his crystal, Zidane explains he had come across him while looking for Bartz, who has fallen into a trap. Squall decides to help Zidane look for Bartz and pulls out the chocobo feather, saying he has to return it, as his crystal points the way towards Bartz's location.

As the two arrive at Planet's Core they run into Bartz, who explains what happened to him. Showing them the crystal he had stolen, Squall notices something suspicious about it. Zidane touches it as Squall attempts to warn him and is teleported away into another trap. As they are searching for Zidane at the Rift, Bartz resents being so easily fooled but Squall returns the lucky feather and assists Bartz as Exdeath appears.

Though Squall offers to take the villain down himself, Bartz declines, saying he must gain the strength to defeat Exdeath and not someone else. Upon Exdeath's defeat, the lucky feather turns into the crystal Bartz was searching for. His journey complete, Squall remains with Bartz and Zidane, who escaped his trap by defeating Kuja.

Cloud, Tidus, and Squall talking.

While the three come to rest at Dream's End, having collected their crystals, they share the stories on how each of them acquired them, with Squall saying he had obtained his crystal through the hope born from Cosmos's words. Regrouping with the others, Squall is forced to listen to Tidus's story alongsideCloud as they look for the Warrior of Light.

Squall and Zidane rejoin the other eight warriors as they approach Warrior of Light in Order's Sanctuary, where Cosmos awaits, only to inform them they are too late. A fully-powered Chaos incinerates Cosmos and with her death, the side of harmony begins to fall, light being consumed into the Void, including the warriors themselves, as a gloating Chaos looks on. Protected by the crystals' power the warriors do not disappear permanently, and reappear in Order's Sanctuary. As the world begins to crumble they make their way to the Edge of Madness, defeating the Chaos warriors along the way.

They learn more of the war's endless cycle, and that their worlds are to vanish. Cloud theorizes that if they save this world, their worlds would be saved as well and Squall is thinking along the same lines, recalling a promise he had made to someone waiting for him back home. Later on he, along with Cloud and the Warrior of Light, notes the world is nearing its end, and they have to defeat Chaos to end the cycle.

Squall confronts Ultimecia in her castle where she tells him Cosmos's final wish was fulfilled when she died, and that Chaos will soon follow. Squall learns Ultimecia wants to create a world of compressed time where everything would exist eternally. Squall, wishing to fulfill the promise he made with the person waiting back home, engages her in combat to stop her and emerges victorious. As she begins to fade Ultimecia still attempts to compress time, forcing Squall to kill her off.

Squall grabs a feather before returning to his world.

After killing Ultimecia, Squall travels to the realm of Chaos in the Edge of Madness with the other warriors of light and confronts Chaos. Upon the god's defeat, the previously destroyed worlds are reformed and balance is restored between Chaos and Cosmos. Squall, along with the other heroes, finds himself in Cornelia of World A before fading back to his own world while catching a white feather, stating that maybe one day they can all go on another journey together.

Official Quests

"Squall's Quest 012: The Shadow I Know I Saw" concerns Squall during the 12th cycle. Traveling with the Onion Knight, the two discuss Laguna and Vaan and their mutual problem of talking too much. Squall claims he and Laguna don't know each other, but Laguna likes to talk regardless of the listener. The two look for Laguna and Vaan, and Squall comes across Cloud who hints that they have met in a previous cycle, but Squall's memories of the encounter have been purified.

After they battle Cloud leaves, and Squall sees Laguna whose voice responds to Squall from behind him, and Squall brushes off the sighting of the other Laguna as a shadow. However, it was a manikin, and Squall's sighting of it was the first time a Warrior of Cosmos saw one. "Kain's Quest 012: A Dragoon's Betrayal", following Kain, concerns his encounter with Squall where he defeats Squall in battle to put him to sleep like the other Warriors of Cosmos.