Background
A thousand years ago, three gods known as the Warring Triad descended to the world, and warred for dominance. The conflict became known as the War of the Magi, during which the gods transformed humans and animals into creatures called espers, giving them immense magical power. Eventually the gods realized the war was destroying the world and turned themselves to stone, their final wish being that the espers prevent their power from being abused. The espers took the gods’ petrified remains and fashioned a new dimension where they could live peacefully, away from humans, and to hide away the gods.
In the present, the world has experienced a technological revolution, while magic has faded into legend. To the south, the Gestahlian Empire led by Emperor Gestahl discovered the entrance to the Land of Espers and kidnapped several of the creatures. The Empire found a way to drain the espers of their magical energy and imbue humans and machines with this power. This technology is known as Magitek. Using Magitek to overpower the armies of other nations, the Gestahlian Empire conquered the southern continent and began to push into the north with the ultimate aim of world conquest.
The Mysterious Woman
Two imperial soldiers named Biggs and Wedge and an unnamed woman attack the neutral city of Narshe using Magitek Armor, due to reports that a frozen esper has been dug up in a mine shaft. In the rear of the newest mine, they find the frozen esper Valigarmanda that sends out pulses of magical energy, killing Biggs and Wedge and destroying the woman’s Magitek Armor. She awakens in the home of a man named Arvis, who explains she was being controlled by the Empire with a Slave Crown. Amnesiac, the woman has no other knowledge of who she is other than her name: Terra.
The Narshe guards arrive to arrest her, and Arvis sneaks Terra through a back door into the mines. Terra is cornered by guards and falls down a shaft into a separate area of the mines. She falls unconscious, remembering a man named Kefka Palazzo who placed the Slave Crown on her head and ordered her to burn fifty Imperial soldiers as a test of the enslaving device.
A man named Locke arrives at Arvis’s house. Arvis and Locke are members of the Returners, a rebel faction dedicated to opposing the Empire, although Narshe remains neutral to avoid conflict. Arvis asks Locke to get Terra safely out of the city, and with the help of Mog and the moogles who live in the mines Locke fights off the Narshe guards and escapes with Terra. The two travel south to Figaro Castle, a desert nation allied with the Empire, where Terra meets the flirtatious king Edgar who attempts to hide Terra from the imperial ambassador, Kefka. Kefka arrives looking for her, but Edgar feigns innocence. Locke tells Terra Edgar’s alliance with the Empire is superficial - in truth, he is collaborating with the Returners using Locke as a go-between.
Kefka sets the castle aflame and Terra, Edgar and Locke flee on chocobos while the castle burrows into the sand. Kefka sends two imperial soldiers in Magitek Armor to attack the trio, and during the battle Terra casts magic, stunning Edgar and Locke. The three dispatch the imperial soldiers and escape Kefka. Intrigued by Terra’s abilities, Edgar and Locke ask her to meet with the leader of the Returners, Banon, to remain safe from the Empire and to gain understanding of her abilities. Terra agrees, and the two travel to South Figaro then north through Mt. Kolts, where they encounter Vargas, son of the martial arts master Duncan Harcourt. Edgar’s twin brother and Duncan’s pupil Sabin intervenes and defeats Vargas, then joins his brother to help them stop the Empire.
At the Returner Hideout, Banon, the Returners and Terra discuss their plan to strike back at the Empire. Deducing the power of the Empire is derived from the rediscovery of magic, Banon asks Terra to return with him to Narshe and speak to the frozen esper. The group receives word the Empire has attacked South Figaro and has found their hideout. Locke volunteers to sneak into South Figaro to slow down the Empire, while Banon, Terra, Edgar and Sabin travel to Narshe along the Lethe River. The voyage is interrupted by a loud octopus named Ultros, and in the battle, Sabin is washed off the raft and down a different fork in the river.
Return to Narshe
Locke attempts to sneak out of Figaro, and rescues an imperial general turned traitor named Celes, after which the two head north to Narshe. Sabin washes ashore north of the kingdom of Doma, and with the help of a ninja mercenary named Shadow, infiltrates an imperial camp as the Empire attacks Doma Castle under General Leo Cristophe’s command. The Doma retainer Cyan dispatches the imperial commander to stall the attack, and Kefka poisons the river, killing Cyan’s family and nearly all the castle inhabitants.
Cyan joins Shadow and Sabin as they escape aboard the ghostly Phantom Train, which ferries the dead to the other side. Cyan witnesses the Doma dead and his wife and child among those boarding the train to depart to the afterlife. Shadow leaves as Sabin and Cyan leap down Baren Falls to Mobliz, and on the nearby Veldt they befriend a wild child named Gau who shows them a diving helmet they use to swim to Nikeah, where they board a ferry to South Figaro.
Terra, Banon and Edgar arrive at Narshe and rendezvous with Arvis. The four approach the mayor and urge him to help them oppose the Empire, as the esper found will draw their attention. The others arrive, and Celes knows the Empire is already marching on Narshe. The Returners station themselves in the mountains to the esper’s resting place as Kefka leads the imperial attack to claim the creature. Dispatching the imperial forces and chasing off Kefka, the Returners save the town and the esper. They approach the esper on the cliffs over the town and it reacts to Terra’s presence. A surge of energy from the esper causes Terra to transform into a glowing pink monster, and she flies away with a scream.
Magicite
Several of the Returners stay behind to protect Narshe while the party members head to the west to find Terra. Using Figaro Castle to burrow under the mountains to Kohlingen, they continue south to Jidoor and then to Zozo, a town of thieves. Atop the highest building in Zozo the group finds a transformed Terra under the care of an esper named Ramuh who tells the party about the War of the Magi and the imperial invasion of their realm, and that he called Terra to him to put her to rest when her powers awoke. Ramuh escaped the Empire with three comrades, but they fell during the escape and turned to magicite.
Ramuh says the Empire’s methods of forcibly extracting magic from espers results in a weaker form of magic, but when an esper dies and crystallizes into magicite, their abilities can be transferred in full. Though Terra cannot be helped and needs to accept her powers on her own, Ramuh urges the party to rescue the other espers in the imperial capital, and turns himself into magicite, entrusting them with his power and the power of his friends to fight the Empire.
Celes leads the expedition, and Locke accompanies her. As no boats go to the southern continent, the group returns to Jidoor. They meet the Impresario, who is worried that Setzer Gabbiani, the “Wandering Gambler”, will abduct Maria, the star of the opera Maria and Draco. Setzer owns the only airship in the world, the Blackjack, and since Celes bears an uncanny resemblance to Maria, Locke hatches a plan for Celes to take Maria’s place in the opera as a ploy to gain access to Setzer’s airship. Ultros overhears the plan, and during the performance attempts to drop a weight on Celes. Locke and the others stop him, but the show is ruined, and in the commotion, Setzer abducts Celes. Celes helps Locke and the others sneak on board the Blackjack, and Celes tricks Setzer into helping them using a two-headed coin.
Setzer flies the group to Albrook, and they set off north of the imperial capital of Vector. With the help of a Returner sympathizer, they sneak into the Magitek Research Facility where Magitek weapons are manufactured. Witnessing Kefka torturing two espers, Shiva and Ifrit, they overhear Kefka declare his intention to revive the Warring Triad. Shiva and Ifrit entrust their magicite to the group, and they continue through the facility and release several espers being drained of their power.
Their efforts are in vain as the espers are already too weak, and they turn to magicite. Cid arrives and tells Celes the rumors that she is acting as a spy for the Empire, and Kefka appears and tells them the rumors are true. Locke begins to doubt her, and Celes teleports herself and Kefka away as the facility begins to overload. Cid helps the party escape on a mine cart, and they meet with Setzer and fly back to Zozo, destroying two cranes Kefka uses to try and destroy the Blackjack.
Allying with the Empire
In Zozo, one of the magicite remains from Vector is revealed to be Terra’s father Maduin, and he restores her memories. Terra tells the party she is half-human and half-esper, born from a human named Madeline when she entered the esper realm and befriended Maduin. When the Empire attacked two years later, Terra was taken along with Maduin and raised as a Magitek experiment due to her natural magical powers. Now accepting who she is, Terra and the party return to Narshe and tell the others of their plan to attack the Empire using the machinery of Figaro and the resources of Narshe, but they lack manpower. They decide to open the gate to the Land of Espers and ask their help: as a hybrid, Terra is living proof the two races can co-exist peacefully.
At the gate to the esper world, Kefka appears as Terra begins to call out to the espers. Her cries open the gate and the espers rush out, destroying Vector as well as crashing the Blackjack. In Vector Emperor Gestahl tells the party the espers’ power has made him realize the error of his ways. He declares a truce and asks the Returners and Terra to help him locate the espers that fled the gate and make them understand the war is over. Terra and Locke accompany General Leo to Crescent Island to track the espers. To assist their efforts, Leo has hired Shadow, and Celes accompanies them as well acting as an imperial general again: when approached, she refuses to speak to Locke or Terra due to the earlier suspicion of her true motives at the Magitek facility.
At Crescent Island, Terra, Locke and Shadow split from the Empire and find the backwater town of Thamasa where Strago and his granddaughter Relm tell them they have no knowledge of espers or magic. Relm gets trapped in a burning building, and the townspeople reveal their ability to use magic when saving her. Terra, Locke, and Strago enter the building and are rescued by Shadow, who has come to rescue his dog, Interceptor, that had followed them inside. Strago tells the group Thamasa was founded by magic-imbued humans after the War of the Magi, seeking to live normal lives without being persecuted for their abilities, and as their descendants, the townsfolk have some magical power. Strago agrees to help Terra and Locke locate the espers, and though Relm wishes to help too, Strago refuses. Shadow leaves to find the espers on his own with Interceptor.
At the Esper Caves, a third run-in with Ultros prompts Relm to intervene and save the party with her ability to Sketch living portraits of monsters, and Strago agrees to let her join them. The group finds the espers led by Yura, now apologetic about the destruction of Vector as they lost control of their powers when passing through the gate between realms. In Thamasa, General Leo and Yura reach a truce, but Kefka arrives and kills the espers, takes their magicite and knocks out the party, claiming he is acting under the Emperor’s orders. When Leo tries to stop him, Kefka kills him as well.
The gate to the esper world flies open, and several espers race to attack Kefka, but he effortlessly destroys them and takes their magicite before departing. Alerted to the treachery of the Empire, Setzer and the other Returners sans Banon arrive at Thamasa in the Blackjack. Kefka and Gestahl enter the gate to the esper realm and find the remains of the Warring Triad, and use their power to raise the Floating Continent.
The Rise of Kefka
The Returners board the Floating Continent, fighting back the Imperial Air Force, as well as Ultros and his friend Mr. Typhon. They find Shadow, who had kept working for the Empire until they attempted to kill him. After a battle with the legendary Ultima Weapon, Shadow departs as the Returners confront Kefka and Gestahl before the Warring Triad. Celes arrives as Gestahl paralyses the party, and he and Kefka urge Celes to return to their side and kill her friends so the three of them can rule the world. Celes refuses and stabs Kefka.
Kefka attempts to awaken the Triad - Gestahl, knowing that this would result in a disaster, tries to stop him and is struck down. Kefka kicks Gestahl’s weakened body off the Floating Continent to his doom and moves the statues of the Triad out of alignment. Celes warns him the Triad’s powers will go haywire and cause the apocalypse, but Kefka laughs it off.
With Shadow’s assistance, the party flees to the Blackjack, but the movement of the Triad has destabilized their magical field and radically shifted the face of the planet. The Blackjack is destroyed and the party are scattered around the world.
A year passes, during which Kefka raises a tower of ruins over the former location of Vector, and drains the Triad of their power, becoming the God of Magic. The new world born from the destruction of the old is a dying world where many plants and animals are radically mutated from the magical fallout of the apocalypse, and cities have been destroyed and decimated by Kefka’s Light of Judgment, a beam of energy he uses to strike down anyone who opposes his rule.
Celes awakens on a small island with Cid, who tells her of the state of the world. Cid either lives or dies as Celes cares for him and either in person or via a letter, Cid shows Celes a raft he has built and tells her to relocate her friends. Celes returns to the mainland, and in Tzen finds Sabin. Confident the others have survived as well, the two continue to Nikeah and find a man who resembles Edgar named “Gerad” leading a band of thieves.
They follow him on a ship to South Figaro and into a cave leading to the buried Figaro Castle. Edgar reveals he used the alias “Gerad” to trick the thieves into helping him enter Figaro since it was lost under the sand. In Kohlingen the three find Setzer, who shows them the tomb of his friend Darill, who owned an airship, the Falcon. With the Falcon, the group travels the world, discovering many long-lost secrets of the War of the Magi unearthed by the world destruction.
The Gathering
In Mobliz, the group finds Terra taking care of the village children after their parents perished in the apocalypse. Though she does not wish to fight, she is forced to battle a monster Humbaba to protect the children, discovering her love for them in the process. The group finds Cyan living in Mt. Zozo carrying on a long-distance romance with a young woman called Lola, who believes him to be her dead boyfriend. Strago, believing Relm is dead, joined the Cult of Kefka, while Relm is a painter working in Jidoor for Owzer. Shadow, knowing nothing but fighting in his life, battles in the Dragon’s Neck Coliseum.
Locke, seeking a way to revive his dead lover Rachel, enters the Phoenix Cave to find the magicite of the esper Phoenix: it revives Rachel briefly, but long enough for Locke to come to terms with his guilt for failing to save her. Mog and Gau have returned to their homes in the Narshe mines and on the Veldt. In the Narshe mines, the yeti Umaro can be recruited, and the mime Gogo will join the party inside the Zone Eater on Triangle Island.
With their ranks reassembled, the Returners attack Kefka’s Tower knowing that if they destroy the Warring Triad magic will vanish from the world, leading them to wonder what will happen to Terra. However, they find destroying the Triad does not lead to the disappearance of magic, as Kefka has taken on their powers and become the God of Magic. At the summit of the tower, Kefka tells the party mortal lives are without meaning or significance, as ultimately everything people build is destroyed and nothing they do has an impact on the world.
The party tells Kefka the day-to-day struggles and emotions give people the will to live on in spite of all the hardships. Kefka turns the Light of Judgment on the world one final time before attacking the party. Upon confronting Kefka in his God of Magic form in a golden skylight, he exclaims that he’ll destroy all dreams and hope before breaking down into hysterical laughter.
Kefka is killed, but with him the essence of magic vanishes. The espers’ magicite remains dissolve, but Maduin tells Terra she can endure as a human if she has a strong emotional attachment to something in the world. With the last of her power, Terra leads the group out of the tower aboard the Falcon, and falls onto the main deck, regaining consciousness to find herself alive due to her love for the children of Mobliz. The party flies around the world as the planet is restored and cities continue to rebuild in the aftermath of Kefka’s defeat. Terra steps to the bow of the Falcon and releases her ponytail to the wind, finally free to live and enjoy her life as she wishes.
