TV-Series
Description
Assassin Vermelha, whose true name is Semiramis, is a Servant summoned in the Great Holy Grail War of Fate/Apocrypha, serving as a member of the Red Faction under the Master Shirou Kotomine. Her historical and legendary origin is that of the legendary queen of Assyria, a figure often called the oldest poisoner in human history due to her being the first recorded individual to have used poison for murder. Semiramis was born from the union of a human man and Derketo, a mermaid goddess of Syria. Abandoned as an infant by her divine mother, she was raised in the wild by doves, who kept her warm and fed her milk. She was later found and educated by a shepherd named Simmas before marrying the aging general Onnes. Her life changed when King Ninus of Assyria, captivated by her beauty, forcibly took her as his own, which drove Onnes to suicide. Using her sharp intellect, Semiramis provided the king with brilliant tactical advice that led to military victories, earning his favor and becoming his queen. However, just days after their wedding, she assassinated Ninus with poison and seized the throne for herself, ruling as regent for several decades.
In terms of personality, Semiramis is a proud and haughty empress who carries herself with the absolute authority befitting her royal status. She loves decadent luxury and extravagant displays of wealth, though this does not mean she hates simplicity. She is straightforward in her manner of speaking, referring to herself with the regal pronoun "ware" and expressing her thoughts directly. Despite her cruel and calculating reputation, she is not without nuance. Having been abandoned and taken away by powerful men, she developed a deep-seated rejection of others, viewing most humans as mere servants or livestock. However, she is also deeply passionate, a trait that in life led her to both wage war for a man and poison a king for power. Her attitude towards her own mother is one of contempt, as she despises the weakness of women who fall for men's charms and abandon their duties, yet she also acknowledges her divine lineage with a sense of pride.
Semiramis's motivations and role in the story are deeply intertwined with her Master, Shirou Kotomine. Initially, she found his lack of interest in her beauty and his focus solely on her abilities to be irritating and confusing, as she was accustomed to being judged by her appearance. He was the first person to treat her purely as a tool for his grand ambition to save humanity, which she found both absurd and fascinating. She decided to cooperate with him not out of loyalty, but because she wanted to witness the spectacle of a saint falling into despair. Her greatest entertainment was to see how far he could go, and she aimed to become the queen who would rule over mankind if he succeeded. As the story progresses, her role expands from a supporting Servant to a key player. She constructs her greatest Noble Phantasm, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, which becomes the Red Faction's mobile fortress and primary base of operations, effectively serving as the linchpin of their strategy. Her relationship with Shirou evolves significantly; what began as detached curiosity transforms into genuine affection. She finds herself experiencing a heartache she had never felt before in her long existence, and despite her pride, she develops a deep, almost tender bond with him, famously offering him a lap pillow and feeling a sorrowful pain as she follows behind his unyielding path. Her development culminates in a realization that her wish for world domination might have been a facade, and that what she truly desired was something purer, like clean water, symbolizing her internal shift from a life of poison and ambition to one of genuine connection.
Notable relationships define much of her interaction with the other characters. She despises typical heroes such as the Red Saber, Red Archer, and Red Rider, finding their boasts of strength and obsession with honor to be foolish and disgusting. Red Saber, Mordred, feels a particular hostility towards her, claiming that Semiramis smells like her mother Morgan, implying a shared nature of manipulation and treachery. In contrast, she gets along relatively well with Red Lancer, Karna, whom she sees as different from the other heroes. Her relationship with her fellow Red Caster, Shakespeare, is one of annoyance, as his chaotic and dramatic nature often disrupts her plans. However, her most significant relationship is with her Master, Shirou, which transcends the typical Master-Servant dynamic into something resembling a partnership of equals, or perhaps a deeply devoted companionship.
Semiramis possesses a rare and formidable set of abilities that make her an anomaly among Servants. Due to her Double Summon skill, she is summoned as an Assassin but also possesses the traits and power of a Caster-class Servant, allowing her to use high-level magecraft. While her physical parameters and Presence Concealment are low for an Assassin, her true power lies in her magical prowess. Her primary Noble Phantasm is the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, a massive floating fortress that is ranked EX. Ironically, Semiramis did not build the historical Hanging Gardens, but due to the widespread misconception that she did, it has manifested as a "vanity" that becomes reality. Its activation conditions are extremely strict, requiring three days of continuous chanting and the collection of specific materials from the ruins of Babylon, costing a fortune. Once manifested, the Gardens elevate all of her parameters to their maximum, grant her the ability to use magic on the level of the Age of Gods, and serve as an aerial doom fortress armed with powerful defensive and offensive spells, including the "Tiamtum Umu" interceptor plates that fire destructive projectiles. Her second Noble Phantasm is Sikera Usum, the Wine of the Arrogant King, which allows her to poison the surrounding environment, including the air and mana itself. Within the Hanging Gardens, this ability can even summon mythical poisonous beasts, such as the divine fish Basmu. She is also a master of creating poisons and uses doves as her familiars to deliver messages or observe her enemies.
In terms of personality, Semiramis is a proud and haughty empress who carries herself with the absolute authority befitting her royal status. She loves decadent luxury and extravagant displays of wealth, though this does not mean she hates simplicity. She is straightforward in her manner of speaking, referring to herself with the regal pronoun "ware" and expressing her thoughts directly. Despite her cruel and calculating reputation, she is not without nuance. Having been abandoned and taken away by powerful men, she developed a deep-seated rejection of others, viewing most humans as mere servants or livestock. However, she is also deeply passionate, a trait that in life led her to both wage war for a man and poison a king for power. Her attitude towards her own mother is one of contempt, as she despises the weakness of women who fall for men's charms and abandon their duties, yet she also acknowledges her divine lineage with a sense of pride.
Semiramis's motivations and role in the story are deeply intertwined with her Master, Shirou Kotomine. Initially, she found his lack of interest in her beauty and his focus solely on her abilities to be irritating and confusing, as she was accustomed to being judged by her appearance. He was the first person to treat her purely as a tool for his grand ambition to save humanity, which she found both absurd and fascinating. She decided to cooperate with him not out of loyalty, but because she wanted to witness the spectacle of a saint falling into despair. Her greatest entertainment was to see how far he could go, and she aimed to become the queen who would rule over mankind if he succeeded. As the story progresses, her role expands from a supporting Servant to a key player. She constructs her greatest Noble Phantasm, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, which becomes the Red Faction's mobile fortress and primary base of operations, effectively serving as the linchpin of their strategy. Her relationship with Shirou evolves significantly; what began as detached curiosity transforms into genuine affection. She finds herself experiencing a heartache she had never felt before in her long existence, and despite her pride, she develops a deep, almost tender bond with him, famously offering him a lap pillow and feeling a sorrowful pain as she follows behind his unyielding path. Her development culminates in a realization that her wish for world domination might have been a facade, and that what she truly desired was something purer, like clean water, symbolizing her internal shift from a life of poison and ambition to one of genuine connection.
Notable relationships define much of her interaction with the other characters. She despises typical heroes such as the Red Saber, Red Archer, and Red Rider, finding their boasts of strength and obsession with honor to be foolish and disgusting. Red Saber, Mordred, feels a particular hostility towards her, claiming that Semiramis smells like her mother Morgan, implying a shared nature of manipulation and treachery. In contrast, she gets along relatively well with Red Lancer, Karna, whom she sees as different from the other heroes. Her relationship with her fellow Red Caster, Shakespeare, is one of annoyance, as his chaotic and dramatic nature often disrupts her plans. However, her most significant relationship is with her Master, Shirou, which transcends the typical Master-Servant dynamic into something resembling a partnership of equals, or perhaps a deeply devoted companionship.
Semiramis possesses a rare and formidable set of abilities that make her an anomaly among Servants. Due to her Double Summon skill, she is summoned as an Assassin but also possesses the traits and power of a Caster-class Servant, allowing her to use high-level magecraft. While her physical parameters and Presence Concealment are low for an Assassin, her true power lies in her magical prowess. Her primary Noble Phantasm is the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, a massive floating fortress that is ranked EX. Ironically, Semiramis did not build the historical Hanging Gardens, but due to the widespread misconception that she did, it has manifested as a "vanity" that becomes reality. Its activation conditions are extremely strict, requiring three days of continuous chanting and the collection of specific materials from the ruins of Babylon, costing a fortune. Once manifested, the Gardens elevate all of her parameters to their maximum, grant her the ability to use magic on the level of the Age of Gods, and serve as an aerial doom fortress armed with powerful defensive and offensive spells, including the "Tiamtum Umu" interceptor plates that fire destructive projectiles. Her second Noble Phantasm is Sikera Usum, the Wine of the Arrogant King, which allows her to poison the surrounding environment, including the air and mana itself. Within the Hanging Gardens, this ability can even summon mythical poisonous beasts, such as the divine fish Basmu. She is also a master of creating poisons and uses doves as her familiars to deliver messages or observe her enemies.