Mythos

The name by which Ultima addresses Clive. It appears to be his title for the "vessel for limitless power" that he means to make the young lord marquess—but to what end he requires such a thing, only Ultima knows.

"Mythos" in Mysteries of the Realm

Clive Rosfield, the one destined to be Mythos.

Mythos (ミュトス, Myutosu?), also known as a vessel (器, utsuwa?), is the term Ultima uses for the person suitable to becoming his new body in Final Fantasy XVI. The Circle of Malius faith reveres this entity as an incarnation of their lord prophesied to appear one day to remake the world, heralded by several heavenly servants (Eikons).

Story

Ultima recognizes Clive Rosfield as his legendary Mythos when he awakens as the the Dominant of Ifrit. His role is to absorb the aether of other Dominants' Eikons to be the "perfect vessel" for Ultima, the one person in Valisthea to be able to use all types of magicks at once. Barnabas Tharmr and Ultima work together to this end, steering Clive into coming into contact with other Dominants whose powers he could thus acquire and grow ever stronger with every new acquisition. Clive learns of the term "Mythos" when meeting Ultima in the Inner Sanctum of Drake's Head, where Ultima immediately tries to merge their consciousnesses; however, Clive's will persists due to Cidolfus Telamon's interference and he resists the merger.

Barnabas views Clive's free will, and the will of all mankind, as scourges that should be purged so that all living beings could exist as thralls of Ultima in perfect harmony. Under Ultima's direction, and as a descendant of the Children of Dzemekys who believe in the savior myth, Barnabas orchestrates various trials for Clive to overcome to mold his body for its fated purpose. After luring Clive to his abode in Reverie, Barnabas deems Clive a perfect vessel for his master and forcibly relinquishes the power of darkness onto him before passing.

Joshua Rosfield believes he uncovers Ultima's true motive in gaining the conjoined body of both Ifrit and the Phoenix. Having learned from Barnabas that Ultima created the Mothercrystals that sap the land of aether and hasten the Blight, the two hypothesize that the purpose of "Mythos" is to be a physical body for Ultima strong enough to channel massive quantities of aether for a spell so strong no ordinary person could cast it.

Ultima considers Leviathan the Lost unnecessary for his vessel, after Waljas, Leviathan's Dominant, was frozen in time by the ancient Motes of Water tribe, an act that Ultima was displeased with and as a result considered Leviathan as his most "profane fragment". As such, Ultima does not actively push Clive to absorb Leviathan's essence unlike the other Eikons. When Clive absorbs part of the essence of Leviathan to help ease the burden of Waljas, Ultima does consider his vessel to be more complete, going so far as to give his vessel a "gift". Ultima relinquishes some of his own divine power, describing it as "a taste for things to come".

Ultima eventually raises his abode, Origin, into the skies of Valisthea, and Joshua and Clive infiltrate it with Dion Lesage's help to put an end to Ultima's machinations. When Joshua realizes he can go no further, and that he was wrong about Ultima needing both Phoenix and Ifrit, he passes the Phoenix onto Clive, who has now absorbed all Eikons. Ultima considers him the finished vessel and sets out to remove Clive's will to gain control of his body, revealing that he had created humanity for this very purpose: to one day birth Mythos. To their horror, the Ultima collective find they cannot remove Clive's will, and deem him a false god Logos (ロゴス, Rogosu?) with will as free as Ultima and his brethren possess. Clive bests the Ultima collective in combat, and instead of Ultima taking Clive's body for a vessel, Clive absorbs the Ultima collective's aether, as the power of Mythos allows him to. He is unable to use Ultima's power to revive Joshua, but uses it instead to destroy the origin of magicks and Eikons in Origin's nexus, and the world enters a new era.

Mythos absorbs Titan.

Mythos absorbs Shiva.

Mythos absorbs Odin.

Behind the scenes

The victory fanfare, "Fanfare", contains the Ancient Greek lyrics "μῦθος διά πᾰ́θους γένετο" (mûthos diá páthous géneto), meaning "Pathos begets Mythos." It plays in the conclusion of battles where Clive is expected to grow as "Mythos" for Ultima's purposes, so even in the battle he loses and the player gains the message "Clive bested". This is also why it does not play after the final battle.

According to Final Fantasy XVI Ultimania, Dominants' awakening is irregular and Clive was perfect for Ultima's plans because so many Dominants were active concurrently. Ultima had considered others before Clive, but they had failed to thrive and eventually became monsters like Typhon.

Mythos can be seen as analogous to the Warrior of Light from the Final Fantasy series, the crystals' champion set on a mission to save the world. The crystals in the world of Valisthea are parts of the Ultima collective, who want Clive as their champion to cast a spell to remake the world: in their view to save it (from the Blight). However, Clive makes his own fate by deciding to save the world they already have, Valisthea, rather than pining for a paradise where only Ultima would exist.

Etymology and interpretation

The English word mythos derives from Latin mȳthos and from Ancient Greek μῦθος (mûthos, "report, tale, story"). It means something transmitted by word of mouth, such as a fable, or a story relevant to a particular culture, religion, society, or other group: a mythology. Clive lives up to this name by ultimately eradicating magic from the world, making it but a fable to be passed down to future generations in myths and fairy tales.

In Christianity, Logos is a name or title of Jesus Christ. However, in other contexts, Logos is a term used in western philosophy, psychology, and rhetoric and connotes an appeal to rational discourse and deductive reasoning. Both meanings likely allude to Clive, as he is a messianic figure as the savior of the world, and his free will is what makes him stronger than the Ultima collective. Ultima refused to see mankind, and thus Clive, as his equal as he had created them, and so expected nothing but subservience even after he stopped answering mankind's prayers, but Clive argued that man and Ultima are essentially the same and on the same level.