A Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey Citation At Last

[Anonymoose]

I've always been a big proponent of, "Until we have a citation that excludes other possibilities, it's speculation/theory." Even if speculation makes sense, that doesn't necessarily confirm it as canon, just yet. (More than one thing can make sense at the same time, after all.) One of the most consequential places I've been hesitant to make any leaps is the nature of FFXIV and spacetime. The Alexander loop, the 8th Umbral Era branch, the even larger Elpis/Endsinger loop, so on and so on.

Welp: It's here.

The way we imagine space-time in FFXIV is what's known as the branch theory, i.e. there isn't just one timeline, but each time an event occurs, it splits into different branches. The branch where the 8th plague took place, i.e. the poisoning of the Scions and the Warrior of Light, their deaths, the awakening of G'raha Tia in the Crystal Tower, who will return to the past, etc. This branch of space-time still exists and continues even after G'raha's departure. If we had to sum this up in a single word, it's the Multiverse theory.

"...each time an event happens..."
"...in a word <...> the multiverse..."

The bootstrap paradoxes, the Y-shaped timeline, and a (potentially) much more open/expansive multiverse are all in play at once.

Deryk have mercy.



Bonus: Turns out those, "...Wait, isn't it a little early for that hopeful tone on the other side of the Y-shaped timeline?" concerns also have merit, lol.

In the stories published the summer after Shadowbringers was released, there's a story set in [the other Source, where the 8th Umbral Era happened] after G'raha's departure, to show you that life goes on in this reflection. <...> In this version of reality, Emet-Selch is surely their greatest enemy, and they face threats previously unknown to them. Since the Warrior of Light died in the 8th Umbral Calamity, no one can stop or kill him, so, somewhere, he's still out there.