Four Fiends

The Four Fiends, also named the Four Kings, is a term that refers to four certain powerful creatures in the Final Fantasy franchise. This group first appeared in Final Fantasy. Four Fiends usually have control over a certain element.

Final Fantasy
In Final Fantasy, the Four Fiends are Tiamat of Wind, Kraken of Water, Lich of Earth, and Marilyn of Fire, all of whom were under the control of Garland. He sought control over the Crystals because each one's element would grant him the ability to rule the entire world during both the past and present. When the Warriors of Light defeated Garland, the Four Fiends sent him 2,000 years into the past. The Four Fiends would travel into the present and drain each crystal's power to send to Garland in the past. This way, an indefinite time loop would be created that would allow Garland to live forever.

Each of the Four Fiends were also meant to rule an era of their own, bringing about destruction along with them:


 * Tiamat first appeared 400 years prior to the game's events. At the time, she destroyed the Lufenian civilization and drained the Wind Crystal's power, causing the winds to die out around the world.
 * Kraken first appeared 200 years prior to the game's events. He sunk the ancient shrine in Onrac, earning it the name of Sunken Shrine. Kraken imprisoned the Mermaids and robbed the power of the Water Crystal, causing the seas to become stagnant.
 * Lich appeared shortly before the Warriors of Light began their journey, and was starting to drain the Earth Crystal, bringing rot and decay to the land.
 * Marilith was supposed to awaken 200 years into the future, although the death of Lich caused her to awaken early. She proceeded to drain the Fire Crystal's power, which caused raging fires around the world.

The Warriors of Light managed to defeat the Four Fiends in the present, but not before they sent their power to Garland in the past. By harnessing the crystals' power, Garland became a powerful, evil being named Chaos. The Warriors of Light traveled into Chaos Shrine during the past, in which they would fight the Four Fiends once more. Once all four were defeated, the warriors proceeded to fight Chaos. After defeating him as well, the time loop broke, and peace was restored to the world.

Final Fantasy IV
In Final Fantasy IV, the group is known as the Archfiends, who also each represent an element. The members are Scarmiglione of Earth, Cagnazzo of Water, Barbariccia of Wind, and Rubicante of Fire, all of whom serve as Golbez's minions. The Archfiends are all fought a second time in the Giant of Babil.

Final Fantasy IX
In Final Fantasy IX, the Four Fiends return from the first Final Fantasy game. They are now known as the Guardians of Terra.