Where did the dark crystal go?

[DamianFatale]

If I'm not mistaken, they teased a purple version of the mother crystal in MSQ, but in Endwalker there is no sight of it. What happened to it? Did it even exist? Or were the Ascians simply messing with us. Did Zodiark have one of his own? Is it hiding in the core of the moon?

I want answers.

[aveyond-dreams]

It is located beneath the arena and is briefly visible during each time he spins it.

[DamianFatale]

It is located beneath the arena and is briefly visible during each time he spins it.

OH, I never noticed that! Does anyone have any screenshots? I also wonder if his crystal still exists, because the mother crystal did at least until we fed its aether to the spaceship. I could see the dark crystal coming up in a plotline later down the road. The moon can't just run out of uses can it? There has to be more in store for it.

[BetaKeja]

OH, I never noticed that! Does anyone have any screenshots? I also wonder if his crystal still exists, because the mother crystal did at least until we fed its aether to the spaceship. I could see the dark crystal coming up in a plotline later down the road. The moon can't just run out of uses can it? There has to be more in store for it.

Maybe it's dissolving creating that spiralling stream of energy rising out of the moon.

[Cleretic]

Maybe it's dissolving creating that spiralling stream of energy rising out of the moon.

I kinda thought that was instead Zodiark's aether, since... well, he had an awful lot of it.

If the 'Fathercrystal' is anything like the Mothercrystal (which is also speculative, we don't know if the exact same process was at play), then it's probably remaining as just a big chunk of crystallized aether. Which, hey, maybe we'll find a use for sometime.

[JepMZ]

Since the moon had been retconned to be created this whole time, AND the mother crystal is just a natural phenomenon, I'd guess the father crystal is nothing special.

[nighttimebunny]

I thought it might have held all the souls that were sacrificed to summon Zodiark in the first place. And since we defeated Zodiark, we freed all those souls, so the crystal is gone now.

That or it's simply crystallized aether like Hydaelyn's crystal was said to be. Zenos went in that pit so he may have ate some of it (he loves eating these crystals, apparently xD)

[KageTokage]

Since the moon had been retconned to be created this whole time, AND the mother crystal is just a natural phenomenon, I'd guess the father crystal is nothing special.

In the recent live letter Q&A, they explicitly stated there was "another purpose" for the moon and its reflections in the shards that's apparently going to come up the future, so I have a feeling the truth is not quite so simple.

Moreso if you choose to believe that the moon being visible in Elpis is not simply a glitch and rather foreshadowing something. I'm personally of the belief that it was not entirely created and rather it was simply Zodiark's prison and the ark that were installed upon it once the need arose.

[Absimiliard]

I almost wonder if Zodiark's fragments are somehow responsible for (read as: being used for) keeping the shards separated or something. Unlike everything else, he was sundered into literal pieces instead of split into multiple reflections. This means there's at least one small piece of him on (or rather in) the moon of every shard. That can't be accidental. Plus we've got Endwalker confirming the fate of the Source being shared with its shards, meaning all of them are still inextricably connected.

[RyuDragnier]

I almost wonder if Zodiark's fragments are somehow responsible for (read as: being used for) keeping the shards separated or something. Unlike everything else, he was sundered into literal pieces instead of split into multiple reflections. This means there's at least one small piece of him on (or rather in) the moon of every shard. That can't be accidental. Plus we've got Endwalker confirming the fate of the Source being shared with its shards, meaning all of them are still inextricably connected.

Or perhaps keeping the aether on each shard regulated into its own circle. Because what is going to happen to all the aether now that there's nothing keeping it flowing like it had been for millenia? We're about to see some serious fallback from this, forcing us into shard hopping I wager.