Amalaeipso

"Life is wasted on the living."

— The Siren

Amalaeipso, or the siren, is a beautiful and beguiling performer in the cult of Ashlesh. A talented musician and virtuoso, the Siren performs at Their Majesty’s behest, filling theaters and leaving audiences with a lingering sense of longing that few can put into words.
The siren is also an acrobatic dancer, using her petite and nimble physique to dance and enthrall the spectator.
The Siren is a star performer, and she knows it. She basks in the adoration of her fans, and loves hearing about herself. However, after her long years, she finds herself quickly bored, and is constantly searching for the next beauty, the next drink, the next party, the next experience that will make her feel alive.
Inner Circle. The Siren has worked for the cult for centuries, and thus knows far more than most of the Cult’smembers. If anyone knows its secrets, it’s the Siren.
The Siren is adept at dodging difficult questions, and has perfect the art of getting what she wants. She only tells the characters enough to hook them, and even then, she may only tell them the version of the truth that best fits her narrative.

Descriptive Text

For the GM to read aloud, if they want.

Combat

• “Your curtain will fall, and you shall have no encore.”
• “This will end quicker than my last affair.”
• “I’ll play the tune. Let’s see if you know the steps.”

Diplomacy

• “You’re singing my song. Just be cautious not to slip off-key.”
• “Don’t take the stage unless you’re ready to perform.”
• “Some blossoms wither in the spotlight, whilst others flourish. Which are you, I wonder?”
• “My darling, flattery will get you everywhere.”

Transition into encounter

• The Siren laughs, and the sound slides across your skin like the touch of a lover. “You burn so bright. So full of life. I look forward to reaping your souls for the Ashlesh.”

Characteristics

Physical features

The Siren typically appears in her guise as a beautiful young gnome, with a mass of curly dark hair and yellow eyes that sparkle like amber. However, when in combat, her undead nature becomes apparent as she shifts into her Banshee form: Her once-beautiful visage melts away, revealing drab hair, shrunken cheeks, and pale, clouded eyes.

Mental traits

Motive

To remain eternally young, to find the next intoxicating experience.

Flaws

Self-absorbed and self-serving, easily bored; her life is tied to a sculpture in the possession of Ashlesh.
Rags to Riches. The Siren once lived in the Hillfar, the daughter of shopkeepers. She never knew poverty, but refuses to settle for a life of labor, preferring her fame, riches, and leisure. She looks down on those who have not pulled themselves from similar circumstances, seeing it as a personal moral failing on their part.
Bored Socialite. The Siren is a skilled socialite, and has mastered the art of talking a lot without saying much of substance. She enjoys flirting and toying with those who show interest, and even more so with those who don’t.

Abilities

Charming and charismatic; a powerful enchantress; nigh-immortal as long as her statue remains intact.
Soulbound. The Siren’s soul is bound to a lifesize statue of herself in thepossession of The higer member of the cult. Like a dark mirror, the statue reflects the truth of her existence as the Siren: blood drips from its hands, its skin is burnt and peeling, and the eyes are haunted with the loss of a potential life well-lived.

History

The Siren was born and raised in the Hillfar, the single daughter of shop-keeper parents. Her vocal skills were discovered at a young age, and her parents, seeing in their daughter an opportunity they never had, paid everything to have her trained by the best vocal teachers and musicians in the city. The Siren quickly outpaced her teachers, however, and at sixteen, she grew impatient with her lack of progress and joined a traveling troupe as their newest star.
She spent the next nine years on the road, touring cities near and far. Far too wrapped up in her own fame and fortune, she ignored the letters from her parents, and thus was not home when the two died of a wasting sickness. It was only when her troupe returned to the city that she returned home, and was shocked to find her house empty and the rooms bare.
That night, she performed in an auditorium to a packed house. She poured her grief, confusion, fury, and sudden, bone-deep loneliness into her songs, giving one of the most moving performances of her career. During her curtain call, however, drowned out by the thundering applause, a fire spread through the playhouse. Those within only realized the danger when the smoke began seeping into the auditorium, and by then it was far too late. The fire consumed the building and everyone within it—except the Siren.

As she lay in the ashes of the playhouse, her skin blackened and blistered, her lungs burbling with herown blood, she saw the remnants of the futures that could have been, and she cried out with a keening wail at the darkness and terror before her.

That’s when the cult of Ashlesh cam to her and offered her mercy—for a price. She accepted greedily, and became the Siren.
With her beauty and vitality returned to her, the Siren now works for the cult of Ashlesh, spending the rest of her existence repaying her debt to them. Most of her performances, while entrancing in their own right, are simply performances. However, when needed, the Siren gives special “invite-only” shows at the Casket.
The guest list of each such show is composed exclusively of individuals who owe a debt to the cult, a debt the Siren collects with her captivating—and deadly—performance.
The Siren is, for the most part, content with her lot. However, after 300 years, she finds herself bored, and her old impatience and longing for something more has resurfaced. More than once, she’s found herself regarding Ashlesh with a flicker of resentment, the way a prisoner would their jailor.

Amalaeipso

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Titles
The Siren
Race
Gnome
Sex
Female
Alignment
Chaotic Evil