Rider Cyrus

Name: Cyrus II “The Great” of Persia/Dhul Qarnayn, King of the Four Corners

Class: Rider

Gender: Male

Appearance: https://i.imgur.com/lNLx0B7.png

Alignment: Lawful Good

Personality: A kind autocrat, a peaceful conqueror and a humble despot, all in one.

Generally speaking, his countenance is that of a calm and collected, mature adult, and he dutifully follows his Master once he has sworn loyalty to them. Because he does not speak unless he feels he has something worthwhile to share, he can come across as “intimidating” when his silence combines with his size and expression.

That, in particular, appears to be a sore point of his.

Moving on — his disposition is actually quite amiable provided he is summoned by a Master he will “get along with”, which is fundamentally easy — the only thing he can be said to hate is Angra Mainyu, with the entirety of his magnificent self, so he cannot forgive “evil”.

That said, he is at the same time a difficult Servant to handle if one seeks a “traditional” relation between him and the contractor. While Rider acknowledges their wish and their prayer, he is also one that will “deal with things as he sees fit”, so he will carry out tasks in his own way. Trying to force him to act in a way he does not like is exceedingly difficult.

To sum up, he approves of justice and scorns evil — possessing the mentality of “evil will be vanquished at the end of the day”, regardless of the circumstances or what comes his way. He wishes to believe the best of people, and he also considers every life worth being treasured.

Basically, without a sliver of doubt, a hopeless optimist.

Surprisingly, despite his accomplishments, he is more liable to scratch the back of his head and awkwardly laugh if someone mentions it. To begin with, defeating that man and acting like he did while he sat the throne are not something he believes to have been a “big deal” — he merely performed according to what he believed the “bare minimum” to be. As he says, it was “common decency”.

Regarding his desire, he primarily answered the summon to “answer a prayer” rather than to act on his own desires. Fundamentally, he approaches this second chance with the idea of “no attachments” (or tries to, anyway).

But, at the same time, he also does admit that he does have a single desire that will likely not be answered. More than anything, he wants to meet “that man”.

The one that beat his descendants. The one that trampled the remains of his kingdom.

A fire is set alight in his heart when he thinks about it.

History: An individual from the sixth century BC.

His name, figure and exploits are well-recorded as the legendarily mighty ruler of Persia that founded the Achaemenid empire, spanning from the Mediterranean Sea and Hellespont to the Indus River — the largest empire the world had yet seen after rebelling and deposing his grandfather.

The success of his military career, the prosperity he brought his people, the length of his reign and, to add to that, the magnanimity toward his subjects and bravery and virtues he displayed earned him the title of “the Great” and the absolute admiration of his people and foreigners alike, becoming akin to a “gold standard” for other rulers to be measured against. His name was known far and wide as the definition of a “sovereign”.

It was such gallant figure that spurred on the ambitions of that man that would challenge the Persia of his heirs well into the future, and it would continue onward even to the times of the children of that great tree. Indeed, even among Heroic Spirits, it can be said that the trail he left behind is dazzling.

However, the “historical fact” of his life is but half of the tale.

Indeed, a great king that founded the empire also had many legends told about him.

It was said that his grandfather was one of the greatest Servants of Angra Mainyu.

It was said that he dreamt of his daughter giving birth to vines that would spread and consume the entirety of Asia and beyond, and, after consulting his magi, concluded that his grandson would grow to overthrow him, so he took precaution after precaution to ensure that did not happen, all for naught.

It was said that after having been born, he was abandoned and raised in ignorance of his true origin, yet found his way to royalty once again.

And then, he splendidly rebelled against the demon, splendidly conquered and splendidly ruled.

Whether those tales are true or false. . .well, that is not really important, is it?

Weapon: Ancient Sword.

Parameters:

STR: C

CON: C

AGI: B

MGI: A

LCK: EX

Class Skills:
Riding: A+​
All vehicles and all creatures up to the level of Phantasmal Beast and Divine Beast can be used as mounts. However, that does not apply to members of the Dragon Kind.

Magic Resistance: B
Ability to cancel the effects of magecraft targeting oneself. At B-Rank, Even when targeted by High Thaumaturgy or Greater Rituals, it remains difficult for him to be affected. The Rider class generally does not allow for exhibition of the skill at such rank, but the combination of his legend’s age, the mystery his figure became steeped in and the various blessings he received allows him to display Magic Resistance that matches that of the Knight Classes.

Personal Skills:
Revelations: B
Fundamentally a skill belonging to the “soul” that allows one to hear the voice of the heavens and take optimal action. While superficially similar to Instinct, however, it encompasses any matter that must be dealt with in order to “accomplish a goal”, unlike such counterpart that is specifically geared toward “battle”. Cyrus’ legend is that of “Dhul Qarnayn” to the muslims and a “Messiah” to the Hebrews. He is one who received the divine mandate of “creating the wall that would stand between the world and Gog and Magog”. That said, he believes the voice to be that of his lord, Ahura Mazda.

Kvarenah: A+
A mixture of extraneous divine intervention and self-admonition. The blessing of Ahura Mazda, the state that marks one with the right to rule — the “farr” of Iranian myth that blesses one with the strength and wisdom to govern without flaws, the state of being that had been reached by the Shahs of ancient times, the means to resist, overcome and crush “Angra Mainyu”, encompassing a sacrosanct spirit, unassailable mind and impregnable body, having the side effect of Charisma of equivalent Rank. At the same time, the “farr” is also a characteristic of the yazata and Ahura Mazda himself. Traveling the righteous path is not restricted to men alone, and they are also not bound by the limitation of their status, either — to begin with, “becoming like them” is something anyone should aspire to, regardless of their situation. In that regard, there is a certain similarity to a skill dealing in “gauges”. A skill fundamentally encapsulating the idea that “so long as they try, anyone can become something truly beautiful”.

Imperial Reversal: EX
​A forceful mutation of Imperial Privilege. In the first place, it is an obvious thing for him to possess — to begin with, Rider is naturally the "gathering point for all under Persia". However, his own nature is not that of someone that can be expected to display that narcissistic skill to obtain others without basis since it would offend his sensibilities, so it has been shifted in terms of purview and effect due to that and the anecdotes present in his legend. Fundamentally speaking, Rider’s grandfather was not a normal existence — as recorded by Armenians, “Astyages of Mede” was but one of the guises for the foremost servant of Angra Mainyu that left behind its accursed blood so as to doom his line to “become enemies of heaven”. In other words, he left behind "the aptitude to become a Demon King". Of course, that is far from what occured. Rather, Rider was one that splendidly overcame that curse and strove to become a righteous man closer to the yazatas, living his life according to virtue. In essence, that “curse” in his blood was transformed into a “blessing” that allowed him to better present his devotion. One that was meant to be an enemy of the gods became a man that desired to walk side by side with the gods, one carrying the cursed spirit of the evil god became one that carried the blessed spirit of the good god. Overcoming that fate, reversing his own nature, the “demon king” became, instead, a “holy king” by the power of his own will and employed those gifts to bring about the golden age of his country. A curse is the flipside to a blessing — they are two sides of the same coin. A skill approaching a realm forbidden to humans born out of "pure human will", the ability that challenged the "doom" left behind by that great serpent — if the specification of "it is an effect targeting Rider himself" is met, it essentially acts as the absolute authority to "without fail, without distinction, turn negatives into positives".

. . .Of course, it stands to reason that the reverse process should also be possible.

Noble Phantasm(s):

Name: A-tars Kudavaand

Title: All-Reaching Lord of Light

Rank: A

NP Type: Anti-Unit

Range: 2-60

Maximum Number of Targets: 500

Description: Rider’s chariot, able to traverse land and sky, that qualifies him for the class — drawn by four horses and wreathed in flame, it draws from both the account of him being “the inventor of scythed chariots” and the instauration of the tradition of preserving a single one in times of war that would remain empty as “invitation for Ahura Mazda to come aid in battle”. Therefore, it can be said that it is both “Ahura Mazda’s chariot” and “a place where gods go to war” — in essence, a medium for his miracles to shine through.

In terms of dimensions, both it and the divine horses drawing the contraption are large and fitting someone of Rider’s size, and rather than burning, the golden flames apparently act so as to keep those within comfortable regardless of the circumstances outside.

True Name release takes the form of a charge as the horses are suffused in magical energy and armored by the “light” of Ahura Mazda in order to proceed and defeat the enemy leaving no room for doubts.

Pertaining the charge itself, it could be said that the fact that it will “reach its destination” is a guarantee — after all, Ahura Mazda is He Who Reaches Everyone equally, so it resembles a golden beam cutting through the battlefield at top speed, able to engulf large groups of enemies without issue.

However, the light itself is not “one that seeks to destroy”, but “one that seeks to embrace”.

It is all too common for men to fail and have regrets. It is all too common for men to wish to have done differently, to have done better. The light of Ahura Mazda is, thus, one that gently holds those and takes those regrets away, offering those that are touched by it the gift of “salvation in finality”, if they only take his hand.

The ultimate fate, and perhaps the deepest desire, of any lifeform. Bluntly put, the nature of "causing one to lay down and give up" has the effect of inducing any who are captured by that light to "self-collapse".

The reason for its specification? Well, of course, that is because Ahura Mazda judges and embraces each soul individually.

Name: Inaha Eeyaanah

Title: Protector of the Golden Kingdom​

Rank: A++

NP Type: Barrier

Range: 0

Maximum Number of Targets: 1

Description: The shield Rider bears, made of wood yet shining gold.

It is said that his grandfather had a prophetic dream where his mother would give birth to vines that overran and extended throughout the entirety of Asia and beyond, becoming one of the pillars of the civilized world of its time.

Those encroaching vines are, thusly, “civilization itself” — that is to say, the empire he founded as one of the foremost nation-builders. Rider’s own nature is that of a lynchpin that received the past of his people, grasped the present and secured the future — a single man upon whom the entirety of Persia converged and became shaped by.

Rider, who is Dhul Qarnayn, the first Two-Horned King, founded his kingdom in the face of Gog and Magog — a single wall between humanity and those that sought to deny it, a single testament to the greatness of man, on the command of his lord.

Thus, releasing the True Name gives birth to those same encroaching vines from the golden shield, crafting a “tapestry” before Rider that bears the weight of the past, present and future of his land.

That is to say, it is not wrong to compare its nature to that of the spear in possession of another foremost nation-builder in terms of nature, though the principle is different — if the branches of that great tree are the “advance of civilization” then these vines, these roots, are the “persistence of civilization”.

In simpler terms, that shield can be called “Persia itself”.

It should come off as no surprise, then, that this is Rider’s most valued Noble Phantasm — a priceless artifact among priceless artifacts.