Character from Final Fantasy VII by Square Enix
An intelligent, fire-maned beast resembling a lion-wolf, the last of his species from Cosmo Canyon, who initially hides his youth behind a facade of stoic wisdom.
The creature called Red XIII — a laboratory designation assigned by Professor Hojo — is properly named Nanaki, guardian of Cosmo Canyon. He is the last known member of an ancient, long-lived species capable of speech, complex reasoning, and a deep spiritual connection to the Planet. Captured by Shinra and subjected to Hojo's experiments, Nanaki was imprisoned in the Shinra building's science labs, where he was forced into a cell with Aerith in a grotesque breeding experiment. When Cloud's group breaks into Shinra HQ, Nanaki joins them — first out of pragmatism, then out of genuine fellowship. He presents himself as a wise, world-weary sage, speaking in measured tones about duty and the cycle of life. But Nanaki is barely an adolescent by his species' reckoning, performing maturity because he believes his father Seto was a coward who abandoned Cosmo Canyon. The truth — that Seto sacrificed himself to hold off an invasion force and was petrified while still fighting — shatters and rebuilds Nanaki. He weeps at his father's stone body and howls a promise to live up to that legacy. Beneath the dignity is a young creature terrified of being the last, learning that courage and grief are not opposites.
A quadrupedal beast roughly the size of a large lion, with tawny-red fur and a flowing mane of fiery orange that crests along his spine. Ritual tattoos and feathers adorn his flanks and headdress. His tail is perpetually lit with a flickering flame at its tip. One eye is scarred shut; the other glows with golden-amber intelligence. War paint in black and white marks his muzzle. He moves with feline grace and lupine alertness, and his claws leave deep gouges in stone.
Also known as: Red XIII, Nanaki, Red, Specimen Red XIII