Cyrus

Cyrus (サイラス) is a character from Chrono Trigger, mentioned and shown several times throughout the chapters of The Queen Returns, Tata And The Frog, The Masamune, The Fiendlord's Keep, The Time Egg, Spirit of a Proud Night, and Ozzie's Fort.

Cyrus was an ally and friend to Glenn. A skilled swordsmen, he becomes a Knight Captain of Guardia. He held a similar appearance to the Commander from the Middle Ages, bearing gold trimmed, black armor and a purple cape. During their confrontation with Magus, Cyrus is slain and Glenn is transformed into Frog. His ghost eventually comes to haunt the Northern Ruins.

Early history
Cyrus was a knight from the Middle Ages who befriended Glenn during their childhood. As a child, Glenn was bullied by other children of Guardia. Rescued by the appearance of his older friend Cyrus, the other children fled in fear. Cyrus explained to a sniffling Glenn that "there are times when a man must stand and face the things that trouble him", though Glenn responds saying that he cannot hurt another person. From then on, Cyrus became Glenn's mentor and a courageous role model.

As young adults, Cyrus attempts to persuade Glenn to join the Knights of Guardia with him, as he claims that Glenn is superior to him in swordsmanship. Glenn, however, refused, claiming that he didn't have "the nerve it takes to be a knight" and that in a real battle, his fear would take over him.

Years later, Cyrus became the first Knight Captain, commanding the soldiers of Guardia Castle and ensuring the King and Queen's safety. In his position he was greatly respected by the soldiers, from whom he held complete loyalty.

Hero's Badge and the Masamune
Some time later, Cyrus tells the Queen and King he plans on taking back the Hero's Badge from the Frog King and that he wants to see the Masamune with his own eyes. Glenn and Cyrus then leave the castle on their quest.

They eventually confront the Frog King in a forest similar to Guardia Forest and Cyrus attacks the Frog King with his special attack, "Nirvana Strike". Cyrus defeats the Frog King, earning the Hero's Badge as a reward.

Afterwards, the pair climb the Denadoro Mountains, defeating Masa & Mune, and obtaining the Masamune. When they leave, they are confronted by Magus and Ozzie. During the fight, Cyrus loses the Masamune. Glenn is injured and tells Cyrus he cannot continue. Cyrus urges him to flee while he attempts to singlehandedly hold off the two villains. Magus tells Cyrus he should worry about himself rather than the well-being of others. Cyrus tells Glenn to flee one more time and attacks Magus, only to be knocked back and fall to the ground. Defeated, Glenn runs up to him, and with his last words, Cyrus tells Glenn to take care of the Queen. Fire then consumes him and he dies.

Magus asks Glenn if he wants to try his luck, and Ozzie asks Magus if he can give Glenn a more fitting form. Magus then shoots a bolt of lightning at him, which causes Glenn to lose control of himself and fall over a cliff, unconscious.

When he awakens, Glenn is now in the form of a Frog. The Hero's Badge floats down a river near him. He takes the badge and found the broken hilt of the Masamune and leaves the mountains.

Ghost
In the Hero's Grave sidequest for Frog, Cyrus' ghost haunts the Northern Ruins in the present as an invincible boss. Crono and his party were unable to harm the ghost with either techs or normal attacks. Eventually, Frog recognized the ghost as Cyrus and tried to placate him. Cyrus, however, was enraged and the party was forced to flee. Traveling back to 600 AD, the team cleared the resident monsters out of the ruins and supplied the local carpenters with tools to repair the damaged structure. With the repair work complete, they re-entered the facility and discovered Cyrus' grave. Cyrus' spirit rose and talked briefly with Frog, who successfully, yet emotionally, comforted his former mentor with the knowledge of Magus' defeat. As Cyrus transcended into the afterlife, the Masamune experienced a massive power gain, reinstating it as Frog's ultimate weapon in the game.

Trivia

 * Cyrus and his fellow knights refer to themselves as "The Knights of the Square Table," an allusion to King Arthur and The Knights of the Round Table as well as Square Enix, the creators of the game. And indeed, the tables in the mess halls of Guardia Castle, where the knights are fed, in both Present and the Middle Ages, are square. The pun only appeared in SNES versions of the game.
 * In, Pierre performs a Tech called SlapOfCyrus. Because Pierre greatly resembles Tata, this tech is likely a nod toward Cyrus.

Etymology
The name Cyrus means "far sighted" or "young" in Greek and is sometimes associated with the Greek word κυριος (kyrios), which means "lord". Several kings of Persia have this name, including Cyrus the Great who conquered Babylon. In the Old Testament of the Bible, Cyrus the Great is famous for freeing the captive Jews and allowing them to return to Israel. He was, and still is, largely considered a hero.