| “ | The Cathar are the enemy of God. We live in cooperation and hide our stories inside ourselves so He cannot strike them down in jealousy. | „ |
| ~ Sypha Belnades |
Sypha Belnades is the granddaughter of the Elder of the Cathar, a group of nomad Gnostic scholars, and a sorceress with control over the elements. She also later became an ally and friend to the Legendary Dark Knight, Sparda, and a lover of Trevor Belmont.
Appearance[]
Sypha is generally seen as a slender yet curvaceous woman with crystal blue eyes, short wavy sandy-blonde hair and fair skin. Like her fellow Cathari, Sypha wears long navy blue robes with hoods that are clipped with an arrow-like insignia and open-toed sandals, even in winter.
At some point after defeating Dracula and Absalom with Trevor and Sparda, Sypha's appearance gradually changed. She still retained her navy blue robes only this time lacking any of the sleeves, showing more of her arms and her black arm cuffs. She also discarded her open-toed sandals and instead wears black boots with beige straps.
History[]
Persecution by the Church[]
During the late 15th century in the city of Gresit, Sypha and her fellow Speakers were falsely accused by the Church for the attacks conducted by Dracula's army. This led to them being persecuted constantly, but they stayed inside the city to help those in need. At the time, Sypha and the Cathar received visions of a being that would be able to defeat Dracula, who was terrorizing humanity, with the being in question only being referred to as the "Demon Swordsman" or the "Black Swordsman".
Meeting the Last Belmont[]
As she was traversing through the deeper layers of the city, she was rescued by Trevor Belmont from a Cyclops, an exiled vampire hunter who was sent by her grandfather to retrieve her body. After he killed the Cyclops, she was freed from her stone encasement, albeit nauseous. Initially disliking Trevor for his dry personality, Sypha insisted that she continued her search for the Demon Swordsman, although Trevor disagreed, as they already had to deal with monsters and demons plaguing humanity on the surface and that they do not require an additional problem by actively searching for a demonic swordsman.
The Dark Swordsman[]
At the end of the battle between Sypha, Trevor, the villagers and Dracula's monstrous army, Sypha and Trevor fell through the unstable and crumbling ground and into the catacombs below, falling deeper inside than they were before. Venturing deep, the two of them found what looked to be a miniature fort or a camping ground as if someone was living here. It would not be long before their questions were answered in the form of a large man with pristine white hair, intricately black armor, and a sword strapped to his back, approaching the two. While Sypha believed him to be the Dark Swordsman, Trevor labeled him a "demon" as he could detect the sulfur from him, and engaged him in battle despite Sypha's protests.
The battle ended with the swordsman easily besting Trevor only sparing him at the behest of Sypha. The swordsman revealed himself to be none other than Sparda himself much to the intense shock of both Sypha and Trevor with the latter initially dismissing such a revelation as Sparda is nothing more than a myth. Sypha instead asked him why he was residing deep beneath the city with Sparda replying that after his massive battle with Satan, the aftereffects of the battles and the toll it took on his body to seal the Seven Kings of Hell and the Demon World away forced Sparda to hide beneath the land and go into hibernation to restore his diminished powers. He also explained that he was waiting in the catacombs for a hunter and a scholar upon hearing this prophecy from an Oracle. Sypha revealed that her grandfather did everything in his power to keep Trevor from leaving the city for the sake of the prophecy. Agreeing to take down Dracula together, the three of them embarked on their journey.
Personality[]
Sypha is upbeat, playful, spirited, and kind. She loves adventure, learning, gaining new experiences, and battling evil for a righteous cause. Sypha is often the heart of the team. Supporting Trevor and Sparda while always guiding their actions toward the aid of the innocent. Considering how sad and hurt both men are, Sypha's empathy greatly aided them during the war against Dracula and Absalom.
Although she is generally on the softer side, Sypha is also a very strong-willed woman who often speaks her mind, showing little concern for the consequences. She will not shy away from intimidating potential attackers by boasting her magical prowess, sometimes even making threats. Sypha's strong sense of justice and duty with those in need is shown by her sheer amount of mental fortitude, something which has garnered the respect of Sparda himself.
She would often butt heads with Trevor Belmont at first, who opposed her idealism with apathy and survivalism. Sypha also did not take kindly to his rudeness and callous attitude. She even suggested serving Trevor her urine as a fake brew of beer to punish him for his rudeness. Unlike her grandfather Sypha initially had no respect for Trevor. In spite of Trevor saving her life, Sypha considered him a lost cause due to his aforementioned attitude. While the Elder made great efforts to reason with him as he stated his conviction to stay in Gresit, Sypha says: "It is time for those of us who fight this war to stand up and be responsible, Trevor Belmont. You should leave now."
However, Trevor earns Sypha's respect and loyalty when he fights on the Cathar's behalf and decides to, once again, make protecting the citizens of Wallachia his purpose. Sypha's loyalty was proven to be very strong when she chose to protect him from Sparda, her legendary Dark Knight of prophecy when Trevor and Sparda came to blows. At this moment, Sypha acknowledged that Trevor was her savior, and they shared the same conviction. She also held quite the amount of admiration towards Sparda for his legendary feats and accomplishments in saving all of humanity from the forces of Hell. Every so often a bit of her "fangirling" side as Trevor puts it would come out when she speaks to Sparda who finds her antics amusing.
Her relationship with Trevor and Sparda deepens quickly afterward. She appreciates their occasional kind acts and enjoys teasing them. In time, she realized that meeting Sparda and Trevor opened a new world of experience, adventure, and purpose for her. After the war against Dracula, she realized she didn't want to stop her adventure with the two men. Sypha invited them to be her partners though Sparda initially refused as he was more of a loner but promised to reconsider should the circumstances be in their favor where they would meet again. Trevor accepted, admitting his closeness to her and how much his life had improved since they met. Their relationship became intimate soon afterward. Sypha deeply enjoys her new life as an adventuring hero with Trevor and Sparda.