Zephia

Servant of the Fell Dragon Sombron and leader of the Four Hounds. She is a Mage Dragon who has lived thousands of years. Appears in Fire Emblem Engage. Name: Zephia Gender: Female Race: Manakete (Mage Dragon) Age: 2500 Occupation: Leader of the Four Hounds Weapon: Tomes </Personal Information> Zephia appears as a tall curvy woman with tanned skin, long white hair that reaches her feet, purple eyes and purple curved horns on her head. Her attire consists of a purple bikini armor which shows her cleavage and navel, a red-pink sarong wrapped around her legs, black shawl draped on her arms and purple heels. Zephia is devoted to aiding Sombron, putting his needs above all else, and willing to exert extreme measures when she feels it necessary. However, this loyalty is born from her hope that Sombron, the father of many children by an unknown number of mothers, might also give her children of her own and relieve her loneliness.

Her statements claiming the idea that the Four Hounds are a family are a twisted image of such a relationship, as she is alternately affectionate and cruel toward the other Hounds, rewarding them with what they desire when they do well, but is cold and merciless when they fail her. Similarly, Zephia has no love for the true Veyle, seeing her as a defect, but holds deep reverence for Veyle's darker personality, as she is very much like her father in this state. Only as she is dying does she realize that her unwillingness to seek connections with anyone other than Sombron (who had no intention of ever reciprocating her desires) blinded her to the truth that the other members of the Four Hounds already cared for her. Not much is known of Zephia's past before joining Sombron. According to Zelestia's supports with Mauvier, her magical power is said to be great even by the standards of Mage Dragons, and rumor has it that she destroyed her own home village through an uncontrolled surge of magical energy.

Zephia worked in service to Sombron in the war a thousand years prior to the beginning of Engage. In the intervening years after Sombron was defeated and sealed away, she came upon a group of Fell Dragon sympathizers caring for a sleeping Veyle, Sombron's youngest child. She eventually took in Griss, Marni, and Mauvier, who collectively became known as the Four Hounds, and whom Zephia darkly refers to as a family.

After Veyle awoke, Zephia considered the gentle girl a defect and began using her magic to amplify Veyle's draconic power, forcing a darker, more wicked personality to emerge. Though this alternate Veyle could only be awake for limited spans of time, she is wholly loyal to Sombron, and thus Zephia follows the Fell Princess' orders.

Zephia is first encountered by Alear in Firene Castle, when she and Elusian forces invade in an attempt to claim Firene's Emblem Ring. She departs quickly, leaving matters to the Elusian officer Nelucce. When Nelucce, a coward, fails in his task and flees the castle, Zephia executes him.

After Veyle steals the Emblem Rings and the Draconic Time Crystal that were in Alear's possession, Zephia begins wearing the Ring of the Holy Knight and wields the power of Dark Emblem Sigurd in battle. However, she is unable to prevent Ivy and her retainers from stealing back the Time Crystal and two other Emblem Rings.

Later, Zephia uses her power to control Hortensia, making Ivy's sister a pawn in an effort to acquire the Emblem Ring in the possession of the Solmic royal family. However, this scheme fails, and Hortensia is freed from Zephia's control.

Zephia and the rest of the Hounds, along with Veyle and a Corrupted Hyacinth, later sail from Solm to Firene and confront Alear's forces while laying siege to Florra Port. After the Hounds are routed and begin their retreat by ship, Zephia is tricked by Veyle, who while pretending to be her darker self, convinces Zephia to hand her the Ring of the Holy Knight. Zephia is only able to watch in anger as Veyle throws the ring to Alear.

In a consultation with Sombron, Zephia is given a special helmet meant for Veyle that will amplify Zephia's magic further, effectively kill Veyle's true, gentle self, and let the darker Veyle awaken permanently. Though Mauvier requests that Zephia not resort to its use until after he and Marni return from their next mission, Zephia goes through with the plan while he and Marni are away.

When Mauvier and Marni return, escorting Alear and their forces to confront Sombron, Zephia reveals what she has done, driving a wedge between herself and her fellow Hounds. After Marni attempts and fails to free Veyle from the helmet's control, Zephia approaches Marni and runs her through with a dagger, killing her. However, Zephia is shocked to watch as the true Veyle is able to awaken, as Marni's attack did just enough damage to the helmet to crack it.

After Sombron arrives, and Alear takes a mortal blow protecting Veyle, Zephia departs under the belief that Alear is dead. She and Griss take up a position to protect one of the Fell Dragon Shards that power a barrier erected by Sombron, and is surprised when Alear arrives, not only alive, but having become an Emblem. Determined to protect the shard, she and Griss confront Alear and Veyle in battle, and are cut down.

With her defeat, Zephia uses the last of her lifeforce to create a magic crystal which she gives to Alear as the key to reaching the second of the Fell Dragon Shards. She is able to do this because she is among the most powerful of Mage Dragons, and has such great power that before she was mature enough to control it, it resulted in the unintended deaths of her family and many others. She states that with the end near, she wanted to do something good, and to part ways with Alear and Veyle with a clean slate.

After Alear's forces depart, the dying Zephia and Griss spend their remaining moments baring their hearts to each other. Zephia reveals that the only reason that she sided with Sombron was in the ultimately vain hope that he would father her own children, as her deepest desire was a family's love. Griss points out that the Hounds really were more of a family than she realized, and that he loved her as a mother, or an older sister with the way that she had taken him in and cared for him. With this realization, and reassurance, Zephia passes away, with Griss following her moments after, turning his dying body so that he can hold her hand. Zephia uses tomes as her weapons.