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Folken Lukur (Lacour) de Fanel
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Being the first-born son of King Goau and Queen Varie of Fanelia, Folken was first in line to the throne. On his 15th birthday he set out to complete the task of "dragon-slaying", which is part of the test to prove himself worthy of being a king. Sadly, he failed and lost his right arm in the process. Dying and perhaps deeply ashamed of his "incompetence", Folken was "rescued" by Dornkirk, given a mechanical arm and eventually assigned to become one of the Emperor's advisors. With the side job of being his right-hand man. At the start of the series he comes off as really cold blooded person, as he ordered Dilandau to attack Fanelia (I imagine that was very hard for him, but at the same time, Folken is the type of person who does what he thinks must be done, regardless of how he felt about it). Although as usual, Dilandau went overboard and the kingdom ended up in utter ruin. Burned to the ground. As the story progressed, Folken went to great lengths to capture the wayward King of Fanelia, that was none other than his younger brother Van, hoping to indoctrinate the latter into the ways and philosophies of the Zaibach. Which, like so many other "heroes", Van refused. And instead opted for death. "Never throw your life away" was Folken's advice. ("I am your father." Ring any bells?) Of course, many things happen along the way, like the death of his 'beloved' Nariya and Eriya (two cat-girls he rescued some years ago, from what, I've forgotten already). Apparently this was enough, for him to see the error of his ways (and of Zaibach's) and decide to defect. Fighting alongside his very confused and still suspicious brother. Finally, in the tradition of other 'tragic' figures, Folken dies. But his death was not a meaningless one. He gave his life, ultimately to save the ones he cared about. And realize the future he wanted them to have. Which was the reason he joined Dornkirk in the first place. Observations A very caring brother he was. And still is. Even though the methods changed, as Folken became what he had become. I suppose he was struggling to keep all the pain, the humiliation, the guilt from escaping his already fractured consciousness. I imagine he was afraid, that if, he as much as let one drop of feeling out of the emotional dam he built, it would all come cascading down. And finally drown not only him, but those around him. So he settled for the image of the 'iceheart'. The indirect message was "I'm not only saving me from me. But saving you from me as well". Another thing was the constant struggle with frustration. I remember him saying something like this (one of the few last episodes), "Why won't my dreams come true?". I suppose every one of us must have asked that question at some point. He dreamed of a peaceful world, free from the stiffling restraints of tradition, a place where everyone can just be happy. He sought to realize that with the help of Zaibach, Folken wanted to 'secure' the future, but found out later that they had been mistaken. That there was indeed "no fate, but what you make". What I stated was an over-simplification but, it all comes down to that. |