Seymour Guado

Seymour Guado is a major antagonist and temporary playable character in Final Fantasy X. He is half human and half Guado, and the son of former Maester Jyscal Guado. Seymour was trained in Black and White Magic, physical attacks and developed the skills necessary to summon Aeons, and eventually became a Maester of Yevon. However, Seymour used his powers for evil, and developed a twisted plot to save Spira by destroying it.

Story
Seymour was born from the leader of the Guado, Jyscal Guado, and a human woman in an attempt to foster friendship between the Guado and human races. However, unlike Yuna, who was deeply loved and respected despite being half-Al Bhed, Seymour was viewed as an abomination by the humans, and Jyscal's decision to wed a human led to disunity in the Guado tribe. In order to avoid further strife amongst the Guado nation, Jyscal had his wife and son exiled to the island of Baaj. Afterwards, Seymour's mother — suffering from a terminal illness — gave her life to Yunalesca to become the fayth of the aeon Anima, believing that only in sacrificing herself for Spira's temporary peace (known as "the Calm") against the malevolent creature Sin would her son be accepted by the people. Horrified, Seymour refused the Aeon and returned to Baaj Temple, where he dwelt alone for years, becoming increasingly morose and cynical. In time, he became twisted, believing that death was the only freedom from the suffering of life, and that it would be in everyone's best interests to die and thus developed a Messiah complex. But to achieve his aims, he had to have a power greater than Anima, whose power he eventually accepted, over even all of the aeons combined.

At eighteen years of age, during High Summoner Braska's Calm, Seymour's exile was revoked and he was summoned back to Guadosalam, the capital of the Guado nation, where he was then ordained as a priest of Macalania Temple. Seven years later, he returned to Zanarkand to accept Anima's power, and then had its fayth statue transported to Baaj Temple, which he revisited several times while deciding if he should carry out a plan he had devised, ascending the hierarchy of Yevon with his ultimate goal being to become the next Sin, so that he may kill everyone in Spira. It was only a few days prior to Tidus' arrival that Seymour murdered his father in secret and succeeded him.

Final Fantasy X
Seymour first appears in the game in Luca, when Grand Maester Mika arrives to announce Seymour's new position as a Maester. Tidus senses right from the beginning that Seymour means trouble. When fiends attack the Blitzball Stadium, he summons Anima, to destroy the fiends he himself set loose on the bustling city, thus gaining the Spiran people's trust.

When the Crusaders and Al Bhed try to defeat Sin in Operation Mi'ihen, he serves as a morale booster, together with Wen Kinoc, even though their use of forbidden Machina is against the teachings of Yevon. During the second fight with a Sinspawn, he becomes a temporary playable character.

Later on, in Guadosalam, Yuna and her guardians are summoned to Seymour's manor, where he shows them a sphere recording of the ancient city Zanarkand. He then asks Yuna to marry him, not as much for the sake of love as something for the terrified citizens of Spira to look forward and to keep their thoughts away from Sin, if only for a little while. However, when they visit the Farplane, Jyscal, seemingly unsent, leaves a sphere for Yuna. It is later revealed that the sphere showed Jyscal, who knew he was going to be killed by his own son, urging whomever later watched the sphere to stop his son from fulfilling his evil ambitions.

Yuna is struggling with the idea of marriage to Seymour, but after viewing the sphere, she decides to go to Macalania to stop him herself. Yuna rides ahead to the temple with Tromell, Seymour's personal servant. While waiting for her in the Macalania Temple, a servant finds Jyscal's sphere in Yuna's belongings. Yuna's guardians sense danger, and enter the Cloister of Trials to help Yuna. They meet up with Yuna, and fight Seymour. Halfway through the fight, he summons Anima, but it is defeated. After his loss, he dies, and when Auron tells Yuna to send him, Tromell refuses to let her send Seymour, and breaks Jyscal's sphere, ignoring the truth about his murder. He orders Guado guardians after them, and they escape from the Guado pursuit, branded traitors of Yevon.

Later, aboard the Airship Fahrenheit, Cid uses a "sphere oscillo-finder" to locate Yuna. She is seen together with Seymour in marriage attire. Though Seymour was killed, his soul remains in Spira since he was never sent. Yuna had reluctantly agreed to marry Seymour to repent for killing him and to make peace with Yevon, though she really just wanted to get close enough to Seymour to send him. Tidus and the rest of Yuna's guardians charge to Bevelle to stop the wedding. They break through Yevon's defenses, and reach the place where the wedding is to be held, but they are captured by the Warrior Monks of Bevelle. Yuna threatens to jump if they are not released, and Seymour hesitates to kill her friends. She jumps, but summons Valefor and flies to safety while Rikku uses a flashbomb. The guardians escape to Bevelle Temple, to meet up with Yuna, but are captured and imprisoned.

In the headquarters of Yevon, Yuna is on trial for treason. As her defense, she brings up Seymour's patricide, and explains his treachery. Though Maester Kelk Ronso is deeply disturbed by this news, the sentence is passed, and Yuna and guardians are thrown into the Via Purifico. Kelk Ronso deserts Yevon out of fear of Seymour's evil. Grand Maester Mika is doubtful of whether they can safely be stowed away in the dungeons, and Seymour volunteers to guard the exit, should any condemned escape. Maester Wen Kinoc does not trust him, however, and goes with him. After surviving the ordeals of the dungeon, Yuna and her guardians meet Seymour at the exit, where he reveals that he has killed Maester Kinoc. Here, Kimahri fends him off, and orders the others to escape, but they go back to him to fight Seymour. Seymour reveals his nihilistic plan here: Since becoming an unsent, he has discovered that all worries of death, and fear of Sin, have disappeared, and now he plans to destroy all living beings on Spira, thus freeing them of their worries. He justifies killing Maester Kinoc, by telling himself that he "saved" him. After this, he absorbs the life force of Kinoc and his Guado guardians, becoming a monstrous form of himself called Seymour Natus. After his defeat, he disappears.

Seymour appears again on Mt. Gagazet, having killed all the Ronso that barred his path. He has discovered the truth about Jecht, Tidus' father, being Sin. When the party stands against him again, he reveals how he shall execute his plan. He plans to become Sin, and thus, destroy all of Spira. After a long, hard-fought battle with his third form, called Seymour Flux, he disappears into the skies.

Later, when the party attack Sin, wounding it to break into it with the airship, they sense the presence of Seymour, and his eye appears as they enter Sin. He appears in the Garden of Pain. Having been absorbed by Sin, he now intends to control it from inside while protecting Sin from all those that dare harm it. He is fought one last time, this time known as Seymour Omnis, a great shimmering being, with elemental circles of magic around him. However, he is still defeated. As Yuna prepares to send him, he is surprised to see that Yuna is able to, since he didn't realize the extent of his injuries. But before he dies he assures her that Spira's suffering will still continue even after he and Sin are gone. He is then finally sent to the Farplane, and dissolves into pyreflies. Seymour's words would become reality during the events of Final Fantasy X-2, due to the threat of Shuyin and Vegnagun.

Final Fantasy X-2
Seymour makes a cameo appearance in a flashback when the player obtains the Key Item Baralai's Sphere. The scene shows Baralai asking Seymour for protection from Bevelle shortly after the final mission of the Crimson Squad in the Den of Woe. This gives the player a good point of reference between Final Fantasy X and the behind-the-scenes events they learn about in Final Fantasy X-2, as this meeting occurs right before Yuna and her Guardians arrive in Guadosalam to meet with Seymour.

Seymour's overdrive Requiem also appears as the Mega Tonberry and Gun Mage attack Cry In The Night.

Final Fantasy X
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During the second battle with Sinspawn Gui, Seymour is available as a playable characters. He is skilled in both White and Black Magic and is able to cast Fira, Blizzara Thundara, Watera and Cura, among other spells. Seymour is equipped with a staff at this time, which has the Piercing auto-ability. His Overdrive is called Requiem, and deals non-elemental damage to all enemies. Seymour is only usable by the player during this single battle. Though he is established to be able to summon, he does not have that ability during the battle.

Seymour is faced as a boss in Macalania, accompanied by two Guado Guardians. He summons Anima during the battle. Later in the game, Seymour is faced in different forms as Seymour Natus, Seymour Flux, and Seymour Omnis. During these three battles Seymour is accompanied by the Mortibody, the Mortiorchis and the Mortiphasms. In all his boss battles Seymour relies on casting elemental magic on the player and using combo attacks with whichever form of the Mortibody he has with him.

Final Fantasy X-2
Seymour appears in Final Fantasy X-2: International + Last Mission as a boss battle and a character obtainable through the Creature Capture system. He will join the player party if the Farplane Cup is completed in the arena.

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"A maester of Yevon and leader of the Guado. He seems disinclined to summon aeons, but his powers are great. He can draw upon magic of all four elements as well as upon healing spells. His Overdrive Requiem deals a devastating blow to all enemies."

Musical Themes
"Seymour's Theme" (シーモアのテーマ Shīmoa no Tēma) is a haunting piece with a slow tempo played with many different instruments, with string instruments playing the main melody for most of the piece. Additionally, the piece "Fight with Seymour" (シーモアバトル Shīmoa Batoru) has also been considered to be a theme that represents Seymour. "Fight with Seymour" is a fast paced techno tune that plays during the battle with Seymour Omnis. "Fight with Seymour" proved popular enough to be redone in The Black Mages' first eponymous album, The Black Mages.

Trivia

 * Seymour Guado was considered among the villains to represent Final Fantasy X in Dissidia Final Fantasy. However, considering his role in Final Fantasy X would require Yuna to appear as the character opposing him instead of Tidus, Jecht was chosen.
 * Though not directly stated in the game, Seymour may have had another objective in his proposal to Yuna. He mentions to her that "Yunalesca had her Zaon", significant as Zaon was Yunalesca's Final Aeon. Thus, Seymour's reason for wanting to marry Yuna may have been that, as Zaon did, he believed he could become Yuna's Final Aeon and then could become Sin, which is revealed later to be his ultimate goal. This is supported by his words to Yuna in Bevelle, where he asks her to go to Zanarkand with him, and he will draw on her energy and become Sin, more or less stating outright his desire to be Yuna's Final Aeon.

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