The Sirens

Siblings: Scylla, The Gorgons, and the Graeae

**The Sirens** were dangerous creatures, who lured nearby sailors with their enchanting music and voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island.

## Description

Sirens were believed to combine women and birds in various ways. In early Greek art, Sirens were represented as birds with large women's heads, bird feathers and scaly feet. Later, they were represented as female figures with the legs of birds, with or without wings, playing a variety of musical instruments, especially harps. After being cursed by Hera or Demeter, they were given more aquatic features but were still able to be differentiated from mermaids for they still retained their wings but were now scaly.

From their chests up Sirens had the form of sparrows, below they were women, or, alternatively, that they were little birds with women's faces. Birds were chosen because of their beautiful voices. Later Sirens were sometimes depicted as beautiful women, whose bodies, not only their voices, are seductive and would have marine-like qualities due to a curse placed on them by the Nymphs.

The Etymological Encyclopedia of *Etymologiae* by Isidore of Seville describes the Sirens in this way: *They [the Greeks] imagine that "there were three sirens, part virgins, part birds," with wings and claws. "One of them sang, another played the flute, the third the lyre. They drew sailors, decoyed by song, to shipwreck. According to the truth, however, they were prostitutes who led travelers down to poverty and were said to impose shipwreck on them." They had wings and claws because Love flies and wounds. They are said to have stayed in the waves because a wave created Venus.*

## Overview

Sirens were said to be the companions of young Persephone. They were given wings by Demeter to search for Persephone when she was abducted. However, after much searching Demeter cursed the Sirens for failing to intervene in the abduction of Persephone. The Sirens were called the Muses of the lower world, and their songs are described as being "irresistibly sweet, but were no less sad than sweet, and lapped both body and soul in a fatal lethargy, the forerunner of death and corruption."

According to another legend, Sirens were said to have competed with the Muses in music recitals upon Olympus. They once entered a contest with the Muses through Hera's persuasion, however, they lost to the Muses' superior singing and in their anguish, they turned white and plucked their feathers off their bodies. Upon losing their avian features, they fell from the sky and drowned in the ocean. Poseidon was enchanted with their incredible charm and pitied their current state. He decided to save them by granting them fish tails to traverse the ocean depths, but they did retain their wings albeit becoming leathery with scales to accompany their current aquatic forms.

"They are mantic creatures like the Sphinx with whom they have much in common, knowing both the past and the future", according to one sailor. But there is also a misconception over them being related to mermaids and have even been categorized as a subspecies of mermaids. While they (currently) might resemble them in many ways mermaids tend to be somewhat neutral creatures, watching humans from afar curiously and will only attack when threatened, whereas the sirens are bloodthirsty as seafarers state that *"Their song takes effect at midday, in a windless calm. The end of that song is death."* Some sirens have been observed to not even devouring those they ensnare as shown with the sailors' flesh rotting away, this suggests it has not been eaten. It has also been suggested that, with their feathers stolen, their divine nature kept them alive, but unable to provide food for their visitors, who starved to death by refusing to leave.

Sirens are typically located on some small islands called Sirenum scopuli and as such sailors could spot them sitting upon rocks and cliffs near the seashore many times when they pass them. It is believed that sirens were fated to live only until the mortals who heard their songs were able to pass by them.

## Trivia

* In the ages to come, Sirens have been described more like mermaids. Sirens are even often regarded as a subspecies of Mermaid.

## Common Powers and Abilities

**Enchanted Allure:** The Sirens possess an enchanting attraction on themselves that grants powers of persuasion as well as seduction. Depending on the Siren, they may have a "trigger" that makes people around them obey their commands. Once under their spell, targets are at their command and willing to do whatever it is they want, even suicide.

**Enhanced Agility:** The Sirens with this ability can go from one motion to another effortlessly, effectively dodge attacks, swing from things easily, sprint, do back-flips, leap across rooftops, and numerous other gymnastic, athletic and martial implements with little to no effort.

**Enhanced Balance:** The Sirens have both extremely well developed sense of balance, the positioning of limbs and the center of balance as well as the physical condition to use these facts. This combination makes them almost impossible to being knocked down/imbalanced, falling down and able to recover from momentary imbalances near instantly.

**Enhanced Senses:** The Sirens have extremely accurate senses, allowing them to see, hear, smell, taste and feel better than the best member of his species. On this level, the Sirens may be capable of developing other senses (ex; an Esp, sensing blood, etc).

**Enhanced Reflexes:** The Sirens have drastically enhanced reaction speed, allowing them to dodge multiple bullets, catch flies in mid-air, dodge and maneuver around complex attacks, catch falling objects, block detriments and react instantaneously to what others take more time to react to like high speed projectiles e.g. sniper bullets as well as react to a being with superhuman speed.

**Human Disguise:** The Sirens can take on an ordinary human appearance to blend in with modern society. This power is designed for non-human individuals to hide their non-human traits and appearances to avoid detection.

**Siren Song:** The Sirens are capable of emitting astonishingly beautiful and enchanting singing voice that is capable of summoning/luring anyone who hears it to come towards the singer or to try to reach the source of the song, no matter what dangerous obstacles are in the way of the path (it may even just mesmerize a subject or make them fall in love) No matter what anyone who hears it becomes entrance willing to do whatever the Sirens want and command.

**Super-Beauty:** The Sirens possess a supernatural beauty that surpasses the boundaries of nature, not just by physical attraction alone, but by other aspects and principles of beauty. Having such beauty can have mystical, empathic or psychic effect that reflects their physical appeal and qualities with graceful and flawless charms. Any who observe these beings will be supernaturally affected to see a perfectly envision and idealized form of beauty unique to the Sirens due to their increase appeal, apparel, action and even choice of words, all of which can cause awe-inducing effect to others even by sheer presence alone that can have a number of mental and emotional responses from others without negative effects making it impossible for them to look terrible regardless of the situation.