Four Sacred Beasts

Maria Renard is able to call upon the power of the Four Holy Beasts (also known as the Four Symbols), which were awakened after Maria was captured by Shaft in Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. These beasts represent the four points of the compass and are Xuan Wu (Genbu) the Black Tortoise, Bai Hu (Byakko) the White Tiger, Qing Long (Seiyruu) the Azure Dragon, and Zhu Que (Suzaku) the Vermillion Bird. These creatures can be used as sub-weapons (which sometimes can Item Crash), summoning spells, or special attacks, depending on the game.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
In the Playstation and XBLA version of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Maria is shown calling upon the four spirits in order to aid Richter Belmont in order to grant him strength in his battle against Dracula in case his health meter runs out. In the Sega Saturn version of the game, she is able to use this spell to grant herself invincibility for a time. She can also has a summoning spell for each Holy Beast. Summoning Byakko produces a massive flame attack. Summoning Suzaku grants her use of an Owl Familiar. Summoning Seiryuu calls forth a massive dragon which can be controlled. Summoning Genbu heals some of her health.

Maria plays completely differently in the Dracula X Chronicles version of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night than she did in the Saturn version. In this version, she the Holy Beasts as sub-weapons like in Castlevania: Rondo of Blood (Cat, Cardinals, Dragon, and Turtle). She equip two of these beasts and switch between them at any time. The beasts can also be item crashed for a more powerful attack.