Hyades

Hyades (ヒアデス) is a major antagonist in Tales of Eternia.

Past
Nothing is known about Hyades's parents. He has a sister, Shizel, who does not know if she is older and younger. The two seem to maintain a close bond even in adulthood. His brother-in-law is Transon Balir, and his niece is Meredy. Hyades has children, but they know nothing about him. He lived in Luishka until he received an offer of greater power from Birial after the head of Celestia was murdered, Birial wanting to attach the assassination to Balir. Hyades accepted the offer. On the evening when Balir was to be apprehended to be executed for the crime, Shizel and Meredy fled, while Balir himself remained as bait in their estate. Shizel took Meredy to Hyades, who delivered the two so they could serve as bait for Balir.

When Balir was shot, Shizel gave her heart to Nereid, who blessed her and her blood relatives with his Fibrill. Nereid's power leveled the city of Luishka to ruin, but Hyades, Shizel, and Meredy managed to survive the destruction. In order to perfect the Dark Aurora artes, Shizel used both Hyades and Meredy for cruel experiments, and while Meredy was able to escape at the age of ten, Hyades remained and became delusional over time.

Role in the Plot
Hyades acts as the first boss of the game, under Shizel's orders to retrieve Meredy, who left for the world of Inferia to seek help and stop the Grand Fall. Hyades attacks the village of Rasheans but is driven away by Reid Hershel and Farah Oersted. He later reappears in Imen, now advanced in his mutation state due to Nereid, which ultimately grants him more power in exchange for his sanity. Hyades attacks the city in search of Meredy, having learned of her living there, and destroys her home in the process. The group encounters him in the city's library and manages to overcome him in combat despite the increasing power of his Dark Aurora artes.

Hyades makes his final appearance at the Craymel Cannon, built in the courtyard of Balir Castle. Now entirely mutated and more monster than human, he fights the protagonists once more only to be bested. Despite his mental state, his final words to the heroes sound normal, addressing them to his niece, Meredy, and warning them of the agony she may feel like he did. Nereid's Fibrill then leaves his body, ending his life, and Meredy mourns silently for her uncle.

Appearance and Personality
Prior to his mutation, Hyades appears as a normal, middle-aged Celestian man. He has dark skin and dons the typical high-class garb of society. As his body mutates, he assumes a new, almost mechanical form fueled by Nereid's power. In the midst of this transition, Hyades gradually loses his more human-like characteristics in favor of the mechanized properties of his final form. This physical change is accompanied by a mental transition as well. Hyades became completely maddened by the torture his sister forced him to endure, speaking to the group with a rapid, unstable tone. Before dying, he regains some of his sanity, however, and tells Meredy goodbye. According to her, Hyades loved her a lot and always looked after her well. She states that the Hyades the group knows is not the Hyades he once was.

Fighting Style
In his first form, Hyades fights mostly with magic, using simple spells like Spark Wave with a delayed casting time, providing plenty of time for interruption. In his second form, however, he assumes new power and prefers to attack from a distance, no longer resorting to simple magic that often. Thanks to his Dark Aurora artes, he now yields more powerful abilities, capable of manifesting the dark energy into physical and magical attacks. In his final form, Hyades's mechanized body is capable of firing rays from his mouth, and he now mastered and powerful magic such as Earth Shaker and Thunder Blade with little casting time.

Hyades