Rider of Red

Rider of "Red" ("赤"のライダー) is the Rider-class Servant of Shirou Kotomine of the Red Faction in the Great Holy Grail War of Fate/Apocrypha. Originally summoned by one of the Pentel brothers of the Red Faction, he later becomes one of the Servants of Shirou.

Identity
Rider's True Name is Akireusu, one of the famous heroes in the. Born from the sea goddess and the hero, Achilles was blessed by the gods from birth. His mother Thetis, having greatly loved her son, had warmed him within holy flames in order to try and make him immortal. But her husband Peleus had opposed it, saying “Then that would destroy Achilles as a human”, and in the end Achilles grew up while only a certain part of him remained human. Eventually, when war broke out between and, Achilles was asked the following by his mother Thetis: "Do you wish to live a long and peaceful life without having your name recognized by the masses? Or do you wish to live the short life of a hero with brilliant achievements in battle?" Achilles choice went without saying. At the same time as his mother felt pride in his decision, she also felt heartbreakingly sad, because his fate had been predetermined since he was born. If he lived as a hero, he would have a short life, as if sprinting through it at full speed.

When Achilles was a young child, his mother Thetis returned to her home at the bottom of the sea, due to discord with his father Peleus. Chiron, who had raised many heroes, was an old friend of Peleus. Peleus requested Chiron to train his son and Chiron happily accepted the role of mentoring Achilles for nine years.

After having grown up, he participated in the Trojan War as part of the Achaean army and continued achieving many great feats. He was a human who was exceedingly close to the level of the gods. A fast-sprinting hero with an invincible body, his body blessed by all the gods could never received any wounds, but his heel alone was this hero's vital weak point. The spear his father had given to him pierced through all other heroes. With his chariot led by three steeds, consisting of two divine horses given to him as a gift from the sea god and a famous horse he stole while assaulting a certain city, no one could chase after him from behind.

Hector was one of the greatest heroes in the Trojan War, being equal in strength and skill with Achilles, even when his weak point was exposed. Hector was the killer of Achilles' close friend. Achilles, enraged with his friends death, challenged Hector in a one-on-one fight. Even after killing Hector, the way Achilles insulted him by dragging his corpse around with his chariot was a foolish and intolerable act. As a result, he incurred the displeasure of the sun god, but despite being repeatedly warned to restrain himself, Achilles continued slaughtering the Trojan army. So the enraged Apollo aided the Trojan army's bow expert, and guided him to shoot Achilles' only weak point—that is, his heel. Having his heart pierced by arrows one after another afterwards, Achilles sensed his own death, but continued fiercely fighting and using all his strength to kill the soldiers of the Trojan army around him. Just as predicted, he had a short life, but his legend as a hero was carved into the world.

Appearance
Rider appears to be a great hero just from his appearance, one who would be admired by any man or woman, young or old. While his face is pleasing to the eyes, it is not like the knights of old whose courteousness softened the hearts of noble ladies. He has the eyes of a raptor, a strong and firm build, and the lack of any appearance of crudeness.

Personality
Rider is described as being broad-minded and audacious, often displaying a carefree smile on his face. He is not a hero like Berserker of Red who rebelled against all authority, but he is far removed from knights who valiantly served kings. Even if ordered by his Master, he is a Servant who will not accept tasks he does not wish to complete, showing his nature as a "hero." He thinks little of those called kings, so he has "fatal lack of compatibility" with those like Assassin of Red; the only exception would be the Amazon Queen Penthesilea, as he had an awful amount of regret when he killed her with his spear thus making it hesitant for him to fight against female opponents. During the course of a regular war, the first clash would likely have been between the two of them. In such a way, he once openly ignored orders from a king he disliked, only taking up arms for the sake of a slain comrade. While he is able to stand stern against those he has marked as enemies, he becomes soft when faced with those whom he has already marked as "good people" when they temporarily remove themselves from being his ally.

He has striven to live his life in such a way that he is constantly the target of killing intent and hateful animosity, and he has become accustomed to it. He was one who stood out alongside other heroes, displaying confidence in any battle and a great will to fight. His thirst for blood is such that normal humans will have their spirits utterly crumble before him. He freely boasts before his opponents and mocks them severely, even while outnumbered and not fighting at full power. He was one whose one true friend and the women who loved him meant all the world, so such things are nothing to him. For the opponents of the war whose scornful glares are directed at him, the only difference compared to those who directed animosity towards him in his life are the time in which they existed and the weapons they wielded. He views them as all the same, and plans to cut them down like they are nothing.

He has a very close relationship with Archer of Red and calls her as "Sister" (姐さん). Due to he and Archer being from the same lands, Assassin believes that he will no doubt make advances on her. While his charm and demeanor are enough to fluster even a "virtuous wife" with his words, though they are not effective due to her time in the wild. When they work together for the first time, Caster of Red suggested to write a love poem for them, Rider's eyes sparkled with joy at Caster's suggestion and happily accepted it.

Rider seemed to be obsessed with facing Archer of Black as he was a similar existence as him and was capable of harming him. When he learns Archer is Chiron, it was only natural that Achilles had wavered for an instant. Chiron had been an absolute figure and symbol to his younger self. His gentleness, seriousness and words had been engraved like magic into the young Achilles. Chiron was a father, teacher, older brother and close friend whom he spent his childhood with, when he was at his most sensitive. For Achilles, who was the son of a hero, had received the blessings of the Olympian gods and had been given looks of awe, respect and admiration from many young warriors, there were few people he could truly call his friends or teachers. Chiron was, beyond a doubt, one of those few people. He was someone Achilles could trust just as much as his close friend Patroclus. Rider still respectfully calls him master (先生). There was definitely a bond between them. Teacher and student, friend and friend who trusted each other from the bottom of their hearts. Even if they trampled on those feelings, vast 'joy' over facing each other that surpassed their other feelings definitely existed in their hearts.

He wishes to fulfill the vow he made with his mother, "live like a hero and die like a hero" and to fight against Chiron. Despite this, however, the three people that Achilles never wants to have a rematch with, regardless whether it is before or after his death, are Hector, Penthesilea and Chiron.

Fate/Apocrypha
Rider, on his own judgement, follows Archer of Red as she chases the marching Berserker of Red to the Black Faction's base in Trifas, later officially asked by Shirou to provide backup after he decides that Rider would not willingly accept the task of killing Ruler. Rider attempts to make an advance on Archer when she asks his reason for being there, but her lack of any reaction leaves him only able to cough and get back to his mission. He relays that they are to support Berserker in his actions as much as possible to obtain information, but he will not fight with his chariot to avoid giving the enemy any information about himself. Curious about only having interacted with Shirou Kotomine instead of his Master, he asks Archer if it has been the same for her, which she affirms. As they speculate on the reasoning for them not showing themselves, they think it to be a possible magi eccentricity or plan for future battle, but find Shirou and Assassin of Red to be suspicious.

Berserker soon encounters his first enemy resistance from the Black Faction, but the two observe the battle because they are not enemy Servants. Unnerved by Berserker's constant smiling throughout the battle, they speak of his battle potential before Archer senses the coming of enemies, and they prepare a battle strategy. Unwilling to show his true power to the enemy, Rider only takes up his spear rather than his rightful weapon, his mount, and Archer takes to the woods to provide support from the rear. Preparing for battle, he engages Berserker of Black and Saber of Black, taunting the other side in underestimating him with just two Servants and that their entire force would be needed against him.

After introducing himself and taunting them once again that they are not worth bringing out his mount, his opponents are both angered, but he takes their killing intent with a smirk. Believing his weapon to be greater than any other in its thrust and with the support of Archer, he feels no disadvantage against them as they come to blows. Rider shows his superiority over Saber and Berserker by matching them both in skill and ability, as well as demonstrating the nigh invincibility granted to him by his Noble Phantasm, Andreias Amarantos. Due to Saber possessing no Divinity to match Rider's, he is unable to injury Rider, which prompts his Master, Gordes Musik Yggdmillennia, to use one of his Command Spells to force Saber into using his Noble Phantasm, Balmung. However, before Saber can utilize Balmung, which would reveal his True Name, Darnic Prestone Yggdmillennia intervenes and forces Gordes to use another Command Seal to stop the attack. Rider is disappointed and slightly confused over Saber not using his Noble Phantasm, but to his shock he suddenly struck by an arrow that manages to injure him. This arrow was shot by the Archer of Black, who, possessing Divinity of Rank C, is capable of wounding Rider. As more arrows are shot, Rider attempts to avoid them, only to notice that the attacker is capable of predicting his movements. Knowing that he is at a disadvantage, Rider retreats, though not before claiming that he will face Archer of Black again. Archer of Red also retreats alongside him.

Rider, along with the rest of the Red Faction Servants, aside from Saber of Red and Berserker of Red, later attack Fortress of Millennia onboard Assassin of Red's Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Demonstrating the power of his mount, Troias Tragōidia, easily tramples the Black Faction's homunculi. But his mount is stopped by Caster of Black's golems, which does little to stop him as Rider continues to kill and destroy both golem and homunculi alike until he blocks an arrow fired by Archer of Black. Rider then goes off to engage Archer of Black in the woods, deflecting all arrows fired at him as closes the distances between them. However, he hesitates to strike Archer when he sees that Archer is his former friend and mentor, Chiron. Archer uses this opportunity to attack Rider, stating to him that although they were friends in life, it has no relevance in the Grail War. Although somewhat hesitant, Rider continues battling Archer, until both retreat when Berserker of Red unleashes his Noble Phantasm, Crying Warmonger.

After the Red Faction uses the Hanging Gardens to steal the Greater Grail, Rider again faces off against Archer of Black, who came to retrieve the Grail along with Caster of Black and Lancer of Black. However, their fight is interrupted when Darnic suddenly appears and uses a Command Spell to force Lancer of Black to activate his Noble Phantasm, Legend of Dracula, turning Lancer in a vampire. Darnic then uses another Command Spell to force Lancer to live until he gets the Grail, then uses his last one to fuse with Lancer to create a monster that only seeks the Grail. Rider then proceeds to attack the Vampire, but it easily overwhelms and tries to bite him. However, Archer knocks Rider away from the Vampire, explaining that being turned into a vampire would bypass Rider's divine protection. Rider, along with the rest of the Servants present, are soon overwhelmed by the Vampire's power until Ruler arrives, who tries to uses a Command Spell on it to no avail. Understanding that the Vampire poses a grave threat, Ruler calls for a truce between the Servants then uses a Command Spell to empower Rider, along with the other Servants present, against the Vampire. Rider, with the other Servants, is able gain the upper hand over the Vampire until he, along with Lancer of Red and Archer of Red, suddenly falls down due to their contracts being switched to Shirou Kotomine. Shirou then invites all of the Servants to join him, claiming that there is no point for the Black Faction to continue. Rider of Red, Archer of Red and Archer of Black refuse his offer, while Lancer of Red and Caster of Black join him, alongside Shirou's own Servant, Assassin of Red. The Servants opposing Shirou engage with him and his Servants, but soon escape with the help of Saber of Red.

Fate/Grand Order
Achilles appears in Alexander interlude.

Abilities
He is a "hero of the world" whose fame rivaled the legendary Greek hero Heracles and is comparable to Vlad the Impaler, even within Romania. Rider is seen as one of two Servants of the Red Faction to have unparalleled strength, the other being Lancer of Red. Both Shirou and Ruler believes him to be the only one capable of matching Lancer. There were probably less than ten heroes, including him, whose names were known on a global scale. However, the number of people decreased when it came to those who knew the story of the rushed and short life of this great sprinter. His physical prowess was abnormal, but it wasn't an impossible feat for a Servant. But, even taking into account the fact that he was a Servant, his speed still greatly stood out and was as top rank as a Heroic Spirit as conceivably possible. Generally speaking, there was no one among these Servants present who could beat him in terms of speed. It was the same even if he wasn't mounted on his chariot. There was no one, either before or after his death, who had beaten the great hero Achilles of the Trojan War in speed.

Affections of the Goddess increases his parameters by one rank in all statistics other than Mana and Luck, and he displays a C rank in Divinity due to being born of Sea Goddess Thetis and the human hero Peleus. He possesses a high rank in Riding as a Class Skill of the Rider Class, allowing him to mount any creature other than Dragons, and he displays Magic Resistance able to nullify spells with chants below two verses while leaving him susceptible to stronger magecraft. Skilled in hand-to-hand combat, Bravery increases his power in battle and nullifies mental interference. He also has the qualifications to be summoned under the Lancer, Berserker, and Shielder classes.

Although a serious fight would have him use his mount, Troias Tragōidia, a flying chariot with divine speed that lets Achilles chase his targets into the sky as well as trample most foes with its sheer speed, with its power increasing the longer and faster the chariot is allowed to run, being equated to a "giant galloping lawnmower". Achilles also has a sword which he can use in conjunction with his spear to devastating effect as shown when he demolished an entire cohort of homunculi with ease. He is also very skilled in hand-to-hand combat, having been trained personally by Chiron in Pankration. He is perfectly capable of fighting multiple Servants at once on-foot with only his spear, Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē, due to Andreias Amarantos, his invulnerability that nullifies all attacks of those who do not possess Divinity of a certain rank. With the exception of his Akiresu-ken (アキレス腱), a critical weak-point, he cannot be harmed in any way by the Black Faction Servants aside from Archer of Black, making it impossible for them to win in combat without him. Due to a high rank in Battle Continuation, he is able to fight even when given grievous injuries. Compared to Saber of Black's weakpoint that can allow even the weakest of Servants to kill him, Rider, who "doesn't know when to give up", can continue fighting for a time even after either of his weak-points, his heel and heart, are struck. When stepping out of his chariot, he activates Dromeus Komētēs to invoke his legendary speed as the fastest hero of all eras, but it forces him to expose his critical weak-point his heel. He also possesses Akhilleus Kosmos. A Divine Construct forged by Hephaestus himself, and is said to represent the world. It is a defensive type Noble Phantasm said to be able to stand against nearly any attack by deploying a miniature world. In addition, due to bearing the concept of the world, he is able to advance forward and crush his opponents with it as it bears the same weight as its concept when used as an attack. However, it is vulnerable to Anti-World Noble Phantasms due to the very nature of its existence.

Creation and Conception
He was not part of the designs for the original canceled online game project. Since Saint George was discarded and left an empty Rider slot, Yuuichirou Higashide thought it should be someone really famous who wouldn’t be too intertwined with the main plot of the story and the candidate that came to his mind was Achilles.

Ototsugu Konoe was responsible for the character design.