Marnela
From Final Fantasy Wiki
- "She says, "Hello to you, too, sphere hunters. I am Marnela of the Cactuar Nation. It does not surprise me that you are startled." (By the way, she’s smiling.)"
- —Benzo, Marnela's interpreter.
Marnela is a cacti that acted as the leader of the Cactuar Nation in Final Fantasy X-2. She communicates with the Gullwings through an Al Bhed named Benzo to help them protect the Nation from a fearsome fiend. Her name in the Cactuar language means "Grandma".
[edit] Story
Marnela was first encountered during the mission at Bikanel Desert. Nhadala, leader of the Al Bhed excavation camp there, asks the Gullwings to represent their camp with the help of their Cactuar interpreter Benzo. Marnela had wished to meet with the camp, but Nhadala and her team were too busy and asked the Gullwings to meet her in their stead.
When Yuna and the team arrived, they were surprised to learn that Marnela is a giant cacti. Marnela explains through Benzo that when a Cactuar matures, they root themselves deep into the ground and become cacti. The Cactuar Nation she leads have watched over the desert "since the dawn of time". She then tells of a fiend once sealed by her ancestors that have recently awakened, and asked the Gullwings to find the Ten Gatekeepers that can summon the Great Haboob, a magical barrier, against the impending attack.
However, fiends began to appear around the desert, and have encroached into Cactuar Nation. When they began their invasion on the Nation, the Gullwings helped Marnela to protect the area. Marnela shocked them by firing laser beams towards the fiends as their last resort until her strength disappeared, and she seemingly died.
At the end of the quest, however, Benzo reveals that a cacti sprout had appeared in her stead, ready to grow as a new Marnela.
