Zephon

Zephon was a major character in the Legacy of Kain series, featured in Soul Reaver and Soul Reaver 2. Initially born as a human in the Sarafan era, Zephon rose to become one of the elite Sarafan Inquisitors of the Sarafan Brotherhood. Zephon was killed by the time travelling wraith Raziel and entombed in the Tomb of the Sarafan for centuries before Kain raised him as the fifth of his vampire sons. Zephon in turn raised his own vampire clan, the Zephonim, who participated in the conquest of humanity. In Kain's Empire, Zephon was one of the leading 'Council', but he did nothing to prevent his vampire 'brother' Raziel 's execution. After Raziel returned as a wraith, Zephon was the second of his former brothers that he faced (and third boss overall).

Sarafan era (Soul Reaver 2)
Zephon was born as a human at some point in the Sarafan era. He would go on to join the Sarafan Brotherhood, eventually reaching the highly respected rank of Sarafan Warrior Inquisitor, one of the order's elite. Zephon infiltrated Janos Audron's aerie along with his comrades (Human Sarafan Inquisitors Raziel, Turel, Dumah and Melchiah) and assisted in Janos' murder (the group having been led to Janos by a time travelling Wraith Raziel from the Soul Reaver era). Tearing out the Heart of Darkness from Janos' chest and taking the Reaver blade, the Sarafan retreated to their stronghold.

Janos' murder had sire consequences for Zephon, as the Wraith Raziel followed the Inquisitors back to the Sarafan Stronghold to avenge Janos' death and reclaim The Heart of Darkness, attacking the Stronghold at the same time as Vorador's legendary attack on the circle (at the same location and with the same motivation). In the chaos, Wraith Raziel was able to recover the Reaver  and shortly afterward Zephon confronted the Wraith Raziel, along with his brother Melchiah, in the courtyard of the stronghold, teaunting Raziel "come to take your revenge demon". As the Reaver had made him virtually invincible, Raziel was able to easily kill Zephon (along with Melchiah), see also Melchiah and Zephon. Zephon was entombed with the other 'martyr' Sarafan Inquisitors for a millennium in the Tomb of the Sarafan.

Post-Blood Omen 2 era


When Kain discovered a method of creating vampires for himself, he raised the six Sarafan martyrs to serve as his vampire sons; breathing part of his soul into them to 'snare their souls' and reanimate their corpses (but keeping them ignorant of their previous human lives);Zephon was the fifth of the six to be raised. Presumably following Kain's method, each of his new lieutenants raised their own vampires, giving birth to the vampire clans (with Zephon raising the Zephonim) providing Kain with an army with which to conquer Nosgoth. In Kain's New Empire, Zephon was one of the members of the council which ruled Nosgoth, with Kain their only master.

Zephon served Kain and the council for roughly a thousand years and over the centuries Zephon gained many new gifts along with his 'evolution', but his underlying decay continued. Zephon was present at the council meeting where Raziel revealed his wings and he also witnessed Raziel's execution at the Abyss. At some stage around the time of Raziel's execution, under threat from the human's planned use of the sounding pipes of the Silenced Cathedral to eliminate the Vampires, Zephon and his clan invaded the the human Cathedral and set up their own territory within the Cathedral walls; blocking off the main sounding pipes in the Pinnacle of the Silenced Cathedral from access from the Cathedral below and making sure the sounding pipes would remain silent - ending the last hope the humans had of defeating Kain's Empire.

Soul Reaver era
Over time, with Nosgoth slowly becoming a wastleland, Kain's Empire declined and the clans scattered, with Zephon (and the Zephonim) retreating to their territory in the Silenced Cathedral. Zephon and his clan would eventually devolve into 'insectoid' forms, with Zephon himself turning into a monsterous 'mantis-like' form (with a large 'egg-sac' beneath him) in the upper chambers of the Cathedral and growing so large that the chambers themselves essentially became part of his body. Eventually Zephon and his offspring would ascend to a deity-like status in the and many human vampire worshippers (Adepts and Novitiates) took to worshipping the Zephonim  in the Cathedral, capturing humans and otherwise assisting the Zephonim.

When Raziel returned five centuries later, he visited the Silenced Cathedral after he had battled Kain at the Sanctuary of the Clans; using his newly gained Wraith Blade to break the Sealed Doors at the entrance to the Cathedral. Assailed by the 'spider-like' Zephonim, Raziel was eventually able to locate Zephon's chambers, in the upper reaches of the Cathedral. Raziel confronted his 'younger brother' with the two taunting each other's appearances and Zephon focusing on his "insect" attributes, telling Raziel how he saw little distinction between free-will and reflex action; and threatening him with his considerable appetite.



Raziel fought Zephon, eventually disposing of his many limbs and allowing him to attack Zephon's 'egg-sac', dispensing an 'egg'; using the flamethrower of a dead Human Vampire Hunter to set several of Zephon's 'eggs' alight and throwing them at him, Raziel was able to burn Zephon to death (see also Zephon (boss)).With Zephon's death, Raziel was able to consume his soul gaining the Scaling Walls ability required to pass through the Sanctuary of the Clans and enter the Tomb of the Sarafan.