[hider=The Disaster of Passion] [center] [h1] Theodora [/h1] [h3] Saint Theodora, Augusta, Assassin of Temptation, Rome’s Number One Actress, Hot-Blooded Empress of the Heart (by Justinian), That Bitch (by Belisarius) [/h3] [img]https://i.imgur.com/JWwc9uf.jpg[/img] [b]Class: [/b] Assassin [b]Alignment: [/b] Neutral Evil [b]Gender: [/b] Female [b]Region:[/b] Eastern Rome [b]Source: [/b]Historical Fact [b]Attribute:[/b] Man [b]Likes:[/b] Justinian, Wholesomeness, Luxuries, Tags: Corruption [b]Dislikes:[/b] Belisarius, People Who Would Harm Justinian, Women Prettier Than Her, Flutes [b]Talents:[/b] Subterfuge, Manipulation, Administration, Riding [b]Natural Enemy:[/b] Belisarius [b]Weapons:[/b] Daggers, Claws, Words, Sacraments. [hider=Biographical] The daughter of an animal tamer. The Augusta of Rome. The Great Calamity of Rome. A loving wife. A whore. Theodora is an existence which can be defined in many different ways. Almost none of which are fully incorrect. She was a paradoxical existence which could only be understood as someone who “did whatever they pleased.” With no real line of logic, Theodora simply lived her life doing whatever she felt was proper. Theodora was born the daughter to an animal tamer along with two older siblings. From birth, her and her sisters needed to work in order to survive. This would lead to them taking jobs at a local theater, a place where Theodora would begin to define herself. Acting came natural to the girl, and she absolutely loved manipulating the crowd. This should have been the first red flag, but it appeared nobody paid much attention to Theodora. Over the years at the theater, Theodora would become the star attraction. Her skills and beauty would attract visitors from across the Empire. In the background of all of this, Theodora was using her wiles to break patron after patron, taking everything of value and ruining their reputation. Of course, the rumors of such a beauty would eventually reach the ears of a certain young prince. It was this young prince that would forever change Theodora’s life. They met at Antioch. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly, yet the heat was nowhere around. There was a fresh breeze from the sea as she first locked eyes with the prince. The wind had messed up their hair, yet neither seemed to mind. Being smitten by someone was nothing rare for the actress, yet there was something different about this feeling. This is a day forever carved into her memory. No matter how hard she tried to manipulate the man, he wouldn’t budge. The entire day was spent with her trying all of her tricks, yet the man was oblivious to all of her attempts. Even when she was as forward as she possibly could be, the prince simply laughed. Such dirty thoughts never seemed to even enter his brain. At the end of the day, instead of the wild disaster of passion she was expecting, the prince simply kissed her hand. It was this curveball which forever made Theodora chase after Justinian. Of course, the feeling was mutual. Even if she can never understand how such a beacon of purity could love a woman like her, she accepted his love with open arms. Love was never a place of logic, she knew that much. Now, of course, their love was forbidden. A prince should have never had anything to do with a lowborn actress such as herself. The law itself had forbidden such a thing. Despite this, the two continued to see one another in secret. Now, the dynamic of their relationship was incredibly bizarre, but who was to judge another’s love? Even if found satisfaction elsewhere, her heart would never wave from the Prince. Eventually, after enough lobbying by Justinian and Theodora, the Emperor legalized marriages between classes. And, after another year of the two simply admiring one another, they were married. This is another day carved into Theodora’s very existence. In fact, there was probably never a day she was ever quite this happy. While her happiness never went away as long as she was with Justinian, things would become more difficult when he became Emperor. Now, Theodora was always supportive of her husband. In fact, she did most of the actual administration. Justinian was the dreamer who pursued his ideals, while Theodora would manage the simple day-to-day runnings of the Empire. She was oddly gifted in it. The problem with him becoming Emperor meant that there were now others vying for Justinian’s attention. Most notable, Belisarius. Belisarius and Theodora hated each other upon their first meeting, and the hatred between the two only continued to rise. While Belisarius was the biggest problem, there were plenty of others. All of the magistrates, politicians, the populace, depraved whores, and so forth just kept throwing themselves at Justinian. With so many people fighting for his love, it was like he had no time for her. Such a result was...well, unacceptable. And so, Theodora used her wiles to bring an end to such problems. While her time as Empress would bring about an administrative Golden Age, it would also break apart the empire’s moral fabric. By the time she was done, the entirety of Rome would be flipped on its head. Every part of Rome had become depraved, much like her. Of course, they were all mindless beasts in comparison to her. The pursuit of hedonism can only truly be achieved by the greats. Most notably, of course, was how she crushed Belisarius. In arranging them with her good friend, Theodora broke apart the general bit by bit. At the end of it all, he was bowing and kissing the women’s feet. In fact, this was a process all the high ranking members of society were forced to do. The Empire of Rome was wrapped around her finger, with nobody really stopping her. Now, despite this massive shortcoming, Theodora was truly an efficient Empress. She helped create codes of law, rebuild Constantinople, new help for the poor, new rights for women, and even helped her own Christian community. It was this helping of the Miaphysite community that led to her becoming hailed as a Saint by later generations. She also saw herself as a woman of Christ. Despite her unbelievably sinful behavior, she was the type to constantly attend church and did what she could to help the poor. Really, if it wasn’t for her horrifically depraved ways, she was the spitting image of a Saint. It is this paradox that makes up Theodora. A woman who could do endless amounts of good, but was ultimately someone who existed to destroy civilization. Fortunately enough for Rome, Theodora died young. Her last moments were with Justinian, as he refused to leave her side. This memory is another etched into her. In this Grail War, she has but one wish. To be reunited with that idiot for all time. [/hider] [hr] [b]Parameters:[/b] [i]Strength:[/i] D [i]Endurance:[/i] D [i]Agiliy:[/i] A [i]Magic:[/i] B [i]Luck:[/i] A [b]Class Skills:[/b] [i]Presence Concealment:[/i] C+ The capacity to hide one's presence as a Servant. Suitable for spying. The rank of Presence Concealment drops considerably when preparing to attack. For Theodora however, this rank isn’t dropped for the purposes of torture. [b]Personal Skills:[/b] [i]Carnal Allure of the Sensual Demoness:[/i] A++ Theodora’s greatest strength in life was her allure. It was said that most who were even in her presence were instantly corrupted and fell towards hedonist temptations. A few whispers of meaningless nothings were enough to break down even Rome’s most rigid generals. Those who were the hardest to crack, like Belisarius, were simply mentally tortured on end until they cracked. In truth, this is the real function of the skill. It is a form of torture which continues to exert pressure on something until it cracks. It acts as a specialized form of incitement geared towards individuals instead of groups. Through words alone, Assassin can shave down the mental of others until they revert to the beasts they are. As it is ultimately aimed towards one person instead of a group, the mental attack portion of this skill is increased. It is more effective against beings closer to Heroes and those with an adult mentality. Needless to say, such charms are wasted on those who think like kids... [i]Innocent Monster:[/i] A An attribute possessed by Servants whose true history and existence have been distorted by the monstrous reputations and gossips they accrued across the course of their life and thereafter, without concern for the actual person's will or appearance. As a consequence, the Servant's abilities and appearance have been rendered to conform to the specifications of their legend. Incidentally, this Personal Skill cannot be removed. In the case of Theodora, the tellings of Prokopios have turned her into a Succubus. This has granted her increased strength, an ability akin to Mana Burst, fast regeneration, the ability to manipulate dreams, Mystic Eyes of Enchantment, Pheromones, and other things commonly attributed to Succubi. Oddly enough, Theodora has no protest over the acquisition of this skill. If anything, she finds it fitting. This has made her more aligned with this skill than the usual recipient. [i]Malevolent Empress of Rome:[/i] EX Despite being the beloved wife of the Invincible Holy Emperor, Theodora would sink the entire empire around her. She would completely corrupt the moral fabric of the empire, causing near anarchy among the populace. Theodora would completely destroy the cultural norms of Rome, degenerating the empire into a near perpetual pleasure palace. The poor would be taxed harder, the wealthy would be stripped of their wealth, women would control their men, and all sorts of atrocities would become the norm under her influence. A variation of a skill possessed by a certain Sun Princess. It continues to gradually lower one’s parameters, their ability to resist her influence, and moral framework. Merely interacting with this siren is too dangerous. Unless you’re that idiot... [i]Torture Techniques:[/i] A A Skill that represents one's possession of outstanding torture techniques. Plus modifiers are added when using torture tools to deal damage. Because it strengthens bloodshed and agony, further damage is continuously added after the ordinary damage In the case of this Servant, modifiers are added when mental attacks are used. [hr] [b]Intoxicating Delight[/b] [b]Not so Bad once you Try it, Right?[/b] [i]Rank:[/i] B [i]Type:[/i] Anti-Unit [i]Range:[/i] 1-15 [i]Maximum Number of Targets:[/i] 1 The crystallization of the demoness’ destruction. Theodora’s destruction of Rome was never physical. Instead, she destroyed the dignity of the once sacred empire. What should have been a kingdom of purity was turned into a depraved gynocracy. A hedonistic hell had been forged onto this kingdom, all through Theodora’s actions. Everyone from the peasants, to elites like Belisarius, were forced to grovel and submit to their August. This Noble Phantasm is the representation of how Theodora made a once heavenly kingdom into a degenerate abyss. This destruction of the empire manifests as a simple kiss. A kiss of passion, a kiss of intimacy, but most importantly, a kiss of degradation. Once the target has been kissed, or had been blown one, a spiritual toxin begins to take root within their core. Their spiritual foundation begins to fall as their base impulses begin to rise in a euphoric fashion. What were once great Heroic Spirits, are reduced to mere shadows of themselves. In fact, this Noble Phantasm is even more effective against those that shine brightly. While this isn’t a move which can kill another, it is absolutely a sure kill technique towards one’s dignity. With this technique and her skills? There is little surprise that Theodora was able to completely smash the moral framework of an empire. Considering it is a slow, mentally agonizing break down of an individual, it is considered a form of torture. Unless, of course, someone would be twisted enough to consent to such a Noble Phantasm? [hr] [hr] [b]Theodora [/b] [b]Reflection of Civilization’s End [/b] [i]Rank:[/i] C [i]Type:[/i] Anti-Unit [i]Range:[/i] 0 [i]Maximum Number of Targets:[/i] 1 Despite being born as a simple girl, Theodora’s existence was one which served to bring the fall of civilization. She was neither a kind of punishment of God, nor the spawn of Satan. In truth, she was simply born this kind of twisted. It could be said that it was the origin point of the existence known as Theodora. She was simply born something which existed to bring calamity. Of course, Theodora was not born with some sort of super calamity beam or anything. Instead, such a thing manifested in her ability to exist in society, and prey on the dark shadow it casts. A problematic existence like her should have never been within society, yet she remained within it and drained it. She could feel the negative emotions of others, identify them, and use her skills to have them consume the individual. After all, only a very select few could say they harbor no darkness within them. This ability to strip the heart’s of others bare led to wild accusations, including her having some sort of expansive surveillance system within the houses of every Roman. This Noble Phantasm is the crystallization of this aspect of Theodora. It acts as an ability for Theodora to latch onto civilization, and to detect and identify the negative emotions within others across even great distances. Whether they harbor anger, a broken heart, or an insatiable lust, nothing can be hidden from this instinct of Theodora’s. Of course, this allows her to break down others to an even greater degree. Calling her a parasitic existence would not be wrong in the slightest. [/center] [/hider]