| Zephyr | |
|---|---|
| |
| Information | |
| Appearance | Tales of Link |
| Age | 20 (in human years) |
| Height | 180 cm |
| Japanese Voice Actor | Yuu'ichi Nakamura |
Zephyr (ゼファー Zefaa?) is one of the protagonists of Tales of Link and the viewpoint character of the third chapter. A divine envoy from the heavens sent alongside Allen and Lippy to purify the seeds of ruin, he gets caught up with Kana and her quest to obtain the powers of the Three Goddesses of the Beyond. When a terrible fate befalls Kana, he returns to using his heaven name of Lillium (リリウム Ririumu?), sometimes spelled as Lilium, and allies with the ruinator Nidhogg to save her, forming the Nidhogg organization to fulfill his goals.
History
Envoy from the Heavens
Zephyr is a divine envoy from the heavens who is sent alongside two others: another envoy, who takes the name Allen while in the human world, and the sprite Lippy. While traveling and defeating ruinators, they save two girls, Kana and Sara, from trouble and escort them back to Liuse. In Liuse, they learn from Feil that Kana has been entrusted by divine revelation to take the power of the Three Goddesses of the Beyond and become the Great Savior who will purify all of the seeds of ruin. Deciding that it is in line with their mission, Zephyr, Allen, and Lippy join Kana, along with Yuri Lowell, a mercenary hired by Feil to protect Kana, in traveling to the various temples during which they are joined by Reala, the guardian of the first temple, and her friend, Kyle Dunamis, and inherit the power of the goddesses, with Sara joining them.
Kana successfully receives the powers of the goddesses and returns to Liuse in preparation for a ceremony that will release the powers of the goddess onto the world and purify the seeds of ruin. As the ritual draws near however, Zephyr grows increasingly tense. During the journey, however, Colonel Jade Curtiss from the Greyado Empire, who had briefly joined them while in the second temple, brings up suspicions that Feil is actually a man who went by the name of Dinan, who stole valuable research on a project whose records had to be expunged due to its inhumanity, while leaving death in his wake. Upon seeing Jade in Liuse, Zephyr believes that he is here investigating a possible connection between Feil and Dinan. To assuage his worries, Kana takes Zephyr to the site of the ritual and Feil's lab, but Zephyr discovers a hidden magical laboratory beneath the lab. Within it, Kana falls prey to mind control artes and stabs Zephyr, while Feil enters.
Feil admits that he once went by Dinan, though it is not his real name. Feil was once a real person who had taken in Kana. Dinan found the situation to be perfect and killed Feil, assuming his face and identity while using mind control artes to smooth over any inconsistencies. He came from a long line of inventors who turned their skills to creating weapons of mass destruction, including the seeds of ruin. In the end, he found trouble attempting to live up to what he believes is the legacy of his lineage. Feil eventually discovered the power of the Three Goddesses of the Beyond and marveled at the destructive potential, so he found a receptive vessel in Kana. He intends to sacrifice her and the power of the goddesses to a seed of ruin that could possibly destroy the world. He spirits Kana away for the ritual and leaves Zephyr for dead.
Zephyr ends being rescued by Allen, Lippy, and Sara, who have been joined by Yuri, Jade, Kyle, and Reala. After explaining to the others what is really going on, Zephy and his group decide to stop Feil from completing the ritual. After fighting through countless waves of monsters summoned by Feil, with Yuri, Jade, Reala, and Kyle staying behind to hold off the monster, Zephy, Allen, Lippy, and Sara confront Feil mid-ritual. After defeating Feil, they discover that Kana's power is being drained into the seed of ruin, but Zephyr is able to dispel the mind control artes trapping her, stopping the ritual. However, Feil refuses to see his life's work end, and adds his own magical energy to the power already in the seed of ruin, creating the ruinator Nidhogg, which devours Feil.
While trying to flee from Nidhogg, Sara is gravely injured. Allen and Lippy cast an intricate healing arte on Sara that uses parts of their own souls to heal another, while Zephyr distracts Nidhogg and Kana enacts a binding arte using the power of the goddesses. The healing arte is successful, binding the Allen, Sara, and Lippy on the level of their souls, but Nidhogg devours Kana as the binding arte completes, along with Zephyr's right arm while he was trying to save Kana. Zephyr is then drawn into the seal while Allen shouts out Zephyr's true name: Lillium.
Darkness
Shortly after, Zephyr wakes up in another dimension completely surrounded in darkness. After wandering around in order find Kana, he is approached by Nidhogg, who reveals that Kana is inside of him and offers to make a deal. Nidhogg reveals that the binding arte that was used to trap him in this dimension is preventing him from using most of his powers, and that he is only able to tear a tiny hole in his prison. He requires the power of the goddesses to free him. He tells Lillium that he can send him through this tear back into the world and that Lillium can then find a way to give Nidhogg the power of the goddesses. He then states that, with this power, he can control space-time and can send Kana to another dimension to start a new life.
When Zephyr refuses to take him up on his offer, Nidhogg says that he will wait for him to change his mind before disappearing. After Zephyr spends a thousand years in a vain attempt to find Kana, Nidhogg appears before him again and offers him the same deal as before. Wishing to save Kana at any cost, Zephyr agrees to Nidhogg's offer. Before returning Zephyr to Liafyse, Nidhogg grants him some of his power, and Zephyr retakes his heavens name of Lillium.
Lillium also learns from Nidhogg that all of existence is a cycle. After millennia upon millennia, events tend to reoccur, and eventually, even lives will take the same shape. He also realizes that the power he is looking for is located within the souls of the Savior, Sara, and Lippy, having been infused in them during their healing arte. Lillium waits for the day when all three are reborn and follow the trail of the seeds of ruin to him. Then, he kills them and attempts to steal the power of the goddesses but fails. These events repeat for an unknown amount of time as Lillium attempts to rescue Kana by killing his former partner and companions. The cycle continues until the present.
Appearance and Personality
Zephyr takes the appearance of a blond-haired man with a scar underneath his left eye. He wears a form-fitting black shirt with a small, white, collared vest and finger-less gloves. After allying himself with Nidhogg, he is shown wearing an all black outfit. His missing right arm has also been replaced with a demonic arm.
As Zephyr, he is stern and pragmatic, contrasting the kinder and softer Allen, but he has an absolute devotion to his friends as well as the protection of the world. However, after allying with Nidhogg, he no longer cares about his friends or protecting the world. Instead, he becomes very determined to free Kana, even if it means killing his former friends.
Fighting Style
In Tales of Link, Zephyr fights using his fists and utilizes various artes that are exclusive to him. Tales of the Rays marks Zephyr's first playable appearance in Tales series in three-dimensional form, still retaining his combat style, albeit also incorporating his legs as well. Unlike his Tales of Link appearance, all of Zephyr's artes in Tales of the Rays are English words written in katakana as opposed to his original appearance where most of his artes where written in kanji, except three of them. In Tales of the Rays, he also has access to Shadow Edge and Crosswind magic artes.