Of course I am. We mages of the Red are those who have cast off the irons of our fate. We look the world in the eye and tell it that we will forge our own path.

[ Not for the first time, he thinks of his pupil, Arya, still and silently sleeping in her pod on the Natha’s station. A girl whose very existence was brought about by the centuries-long machinations of a demon queen. Her only purpose was to serve as a host for that demon. And yet, by the strength of her resolve, she broke the creature’s hold.

He sees that in Prompto, now. He is scared, but he longs to badly not to let this define him.

X’rhun shifts his hand around Prompto’s wrist to get a look at the barcode imprinted there. Gently, he runs a gloved thumb over the numbers emblazoned on his skin. ]

My boy, to be brave does not mean to be unafraid. To be brave means to feel the fear, and face it down, regardless. You have survived this far knowing where you have come from and the things you were meant for, and yet they do not define you. Every step forward takes courage, and by that measure, you are one of the bravest people I know.