Adel Sorceress Adel is a minor antagonist in " Final Fantasy VIII " . She is a sorceress who once ruled Esthar . Profile . Appearance . Adel appears masculine , possessing a torso more akin to a well - built male . Her red hair is tied into a long plait and she wears a headpiece , a black skirt with frock , arm bands , and body armor ( although this piece is often confused as being part of the multiple black tattoos that adorn her torso , creating the impression of her being topless ) . Her skin is white and her eyes are crimson . A set of tattoos delineate a mirror - image of wings on her back . In the fighting sequence the tattoo is replaced by an actual set of pinnae , or wings . Adel is at least four times the size of the average person . Personality . Adel is said to be cruel , brutal , avaricious , power - hungry , and utterly ruthless . She has no morals and no sympathies and is the epitome of pure evil . None of her actions in the game show anything more than this . Story . Sorceress Adel rose to power in Esthar during the time period between the destruction of the Centra Empire and the advent of the Sorceress War . How she became the ruler of Esthar is unknown , although Selphie Tilmitt mentions similarities between the rise of Edea Kramer and Adel in her diary . This would indicate Adel cooperated with the former head of Esthar before taking over the position forcefully , possibly through assassination . Estharians rarely speak of her in more than hushed voices , indicating it was a rule of tyranny . Adel began what was to be known as the Sorceress War by pitting the forces of Esthar against Galbadia in a step towards world domination . Galbadia retaliated and instead of being conquered , expanded its own power and became a dominant nation in its own right . Esthar discovered the Crystal Pillar that controls the periodic Lunar Cry . Realizing the destructive power she could harness by using the Lunar Cry as a weapon , Adel ordered a special compound that became known as the Lunatic Pandora built around the pillar . Lunatic Pandora served two purposes : it made the Crystal Pillar mobile , allowing Adel to choose the precise location of each Lunar Cry , and it amplified the pillar ' s frequency emanations , causing the " cries " prompted by the pillar from inside the Pandora to be even more destructive . Since a sorceress must pass on her power to another upon death before she can rest , Adel intended find a successor and ordered the mass kidnapping of young girls , planning to choose one with the most potential and raise her to become the next tyrant of Esthar . One target of particular interest was Ellone , the adopted daughter of Laguna Loire and Raine who had a unique ability to send another person ' s consciousness back in time . After Ellone had been kidnapped , Laguna , a former Galbadian soldier , stopped at nothing to rescue her . While rescuing Ellone , Laguna joined the Estharian resistance against Adel ' s rule . Knowing that killing Adel would have her pass on her sorceress powers to someone else , the resistance came up with an alternative : containing her . Laguna enlisted the help of his friends , Kiros Seagill and Ward Zabac , as well as the scientific knowledge of Esthar ' s top scientist , Dr . Odine . Although initially loyal to Adel , Odine ' s ultimate desire was research , and so he built a cryo - containment device to bind the sorceress ' s powers and place her in suspended animation for the resistance . The resistance placed the device inside a building that would later become known as the Sorceress Memorial . Resistance fighters took control of the Lunatic Pandora and sunk it deep into the ocean , both to draw out Adel and to lessen the impact of future Lunar Cries . When Adel came to investigate , resistance members told her they believed those responsible to be holding Ellone hostage inside the Memorial . When Adel entered the building she found a facsimile of Ellone resting within a container , Laguna following her close behind . Before Adel could retaliate , Laguna pushed her and Kiros and Ward remotely closed the container , binding her in thin golden cords and freezing her instantaneously . Releasing a gelatinous cooling and buffering agent , the device protected the frozen Adel from outside contact preventing any stimulus from awakening her . The container , appropriately dubbed Adel ' s Tomb , was launched into space and brought to rest in orbit around the moon , causing the worldwide radio interference rendering most wireless technology useless for the next 17 years , until Sorceress Ultimecia possesses Rinoa Heartilly and reaches the Lunar Base , thus gaining access to Adel ' s Tomb . Rinoa deactivates the trap , freeing Adel , as Ultimecia ' s Sorceress Knight Seifer Almasy starts a Lunar Cry from the salvaged Lunatic Pandora . As monsters fall from the moon , Adel ' s Tomb is caught up in the morass and brought down with them , falling into the Lunatic Pandora . Ultimecia leaves Rinoa ' s body to possesses Adel ' s . Squall Leonhart and his allies infiltrate Lunatic Pandora to save Ellone , whom Seifer has taken captive onboard . As Seifer ' s allies , Fujin and Raijin , betray him and release Ellone , Seifer kidnaps Rinoa and presents her to the possessed Adel , who junctions Rinoa to increase her powers . Adel loses to the SeeD and transfers her powers to Rinoa before dying . Gameplay . Adel is fought at the start of disc 4 in the Lunatic Pandora . Rinoa has been junctioned onto her , forcing the player to not only be mindful about their choice of attack , but also ensure Rinoa stays alive as Adel drains her life force to restore her own . Other appearances . " Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade " . Adel appears in " Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade " as an enemy during an event called " Showdown " . In battle , Adel uses Ultima . " Final Fantasy Record Keeper " . Adel appears in " Final Fantasy Record Keeper " . " Final Fantasy Trading Card Game " . Adel from " Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade " has a lightning - elemental card . Etymology . In the Italian version she is called Adele .