"Hic Svnt Leones" (此処に獅子あり ～万魔殿パンデモニウム：辺獄編～, Koko ni Shishi ari ~Banmaden Pandemoniumu: Hengokuhen~?, lit. Here be Lions ~All Demons Palace Pandæmonium: Limbo~) is the boss theme of 
Asphodelos: The Fourth Circle, the final raid encounter in the first raid tier in Pandæmonium, introduced in Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker.
It was composed and arranged by Masayoshi Soken, with lyrics written by Michael-Christopher Koji Fox and translated into Japanese by Daichi Hiroi. The vocals were performed by both Fox and Soken.
Lyrics
The official lyrics were released in the Endwalker: Final Fantasy XIV Original Soundtrack liner notes.
- English
- Wild shrieks knife through the deep
- Natureless creatures perverted and evil
- From foul nests rise
- A vermin tide
- Teeth bared, clawing the air
- Sin wrapped in sinew the rats do not fear you
- In slaughter's keep
- The piper weeps
- Jaws slack, mark on your back
- Here in the valley your Death casts no shadow
- Seal this fate
- Come storm the gate
- Laid bare
- Picked clean
- Bred deep
- In the bones that feed the menagerie
- Burns hot
- Burns brief
- All hope
- Till there's nothing left but ash
- Dark horizons, boiling seas
- (Pandemonium)
- From the borders chaos bleeds
- Savage nobles, cultured thieves
- (Pandemonium)
- Here be lions, follow me
- Dig in, pull back the skin
- See what's inside you, the sickness that drives you
- Beating black
- Demoniac
- Pride, greed, in mud thrive these seeds
- Rotten and reeking the fruits of your making
- Testify
- Come take a bite
- Bite down, blood in the cut
- Choking on life as your light's slowly swallowed
- Fade away
- Or join the fray
- Laid bare
- Picked clean
- Bred deep
- In the bones that feed your insanity
- Unwind
- Unfold
- Your mind
- Till it shatters just like glass
- Dark horizons, boiling seas
- (Pandemonium)
- From the borders chaos bleeds
- Savage nobles, cultured thieves
- (Pandemonium)
- Here be lions, follow me
Game appearances
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
"Hic Svnt Leones" plays during the final encounter against Hesperos in Asphodelos, the first raid tier in Pandæmonium. It is track 62 of the Endwalker: Final Fantasy XIV Original Soundtrack.
Two arrangements also by Soken with the same theme appear in Pandæmonium. "Where Dæmons Abide" (魔のすべて, Ma no Subete?, lit. Everything About Dæmons) plays as the field theme at the Gates of Pandæmonium, the entrance to the facility. "Ancient Shackles" (縛めの鎖 ～万魔殿パンデモニウム：辺獄編～, Imashime no Kusari ~Banmaden Pandemoniumu: Hengokuhen~?, lit. Chains of Bondage ~All Demons Palace Pandæmonium: Limbo~) plays as the boss theme for the first three raid fights of Asphodelos: Asphodelos: The First Circle, Asphodelos: The Second Circle, and Asphodelos: The Third Circle. They are tracks 60 and 61 respectively on the soundtrack.
"Scream" and "Silent Scream" in Abyssos have a variation on the theme. "Athena, the Tireless One" and "One Amongst the Weary" in Anabaseios incorporate the theme.
Arrangement album appearances
The Primals: Beyond the Shadow
An arrangement of "Hic Svnt Leones" by GUNN appears in The Primals' fourth album.
Forge Ahead: FINAL FANTASY XIV ~Arrangement Album~
A band arrangement of "Hic Svnt Leones" and performed by The Primals appears on the album.
Compilation album appearances
Final Fantasy XIV Vinyl LP Box Vol. 2
"Hic Svnt Leones" is track 2 on side B of the Endwalker Vinyl LP Vol. 2 album.
Etymology
HIC SVNT LEONES, meaning "here be lions", was a Latin phrase used in medieval cartography to denote uncharted territories. HIC SVNT DRACONES ("here be dragons") is an anachronistic variation made popular in the 20th century.