Difference between revisions of "Sirens of Sorrow's Sea"

Revision as of 05:50, 22 August 2014

Current Cast

Nori Ankou, La Sirene du Nord
A gloomy girl attending Ohtori Academy who looks - and is, depressed. Her family just can't understand why she won't cheer up like her brother.

Mizuki Aleksandrova, La Sirene de l'Est
A quiet student of the Infinity Institute who silently blames herself for her parents' terrible breakup. Distracts herself from the sadness with pursuits like archery, swimming, and musical composition. She can't decide to what extent she wants to embrace her Siren alter-ego, and hasn't got much experience to draw on yet.

Theme Summary

Joy and happiness have their realms - so too does sorrow, a far-away Sea of Tears where great rocky shores weather eternally the endless storms that surround them, where strange creatures and stranger peoples live and love, in their way. This land is ruled by a queen - a descendant of the Mother of Sorrows, the patroness of this realm since time immemorial! And soon a new one will be chosen from among the Sirens - young women from this ancient bloodline called back to their haunting, ancestral home and given gifts by the Mother; sent out to "gather the sorrows of the world"... in whatever form they choose, and under their benefactor's mysterious eye.

The Sea of Tears is an alternate magical world. It is said, and may be literally true, that every shed tear finds its way to the Sea, which would explain why it is full of saltwater. The Sea is an inhospitable place to most life from Earth, but home to the Mother of Sorrow's many descendants. (She has taken lovers but never wed, and, of course, her descendants have themselves begun families.)

Those descendants are found throughout the world, a recurring thread in the tapestry of humanity. Touched as they are by sorrow, many have trouble living in the mortal world, but the Mother of Sorrows has granted them a boon: any of her descendants who should sail or swim into the water, with tears in their eyes and no thought for their paths, may find a way to the Sea of Tears, where houses have been prepared for them. These houses are not luxurious (save for those held by the queens); simple but comfortable furnishings, decorated by flotsam and jetsam. There is enough to eat, and peace, and others when you want them. It is a mercy and a blessing to many who come here.

Society, such as it is, is ruled by common agreement: luxury and ostentation rests upon the Queen, who is a lifetime appointment. (Little do at least one of the Sirens suspect that this role is more of a town mayor than a position of dominance and authority, but then, that is perhaps what they must learn.)

The Mother of Sorrows is herself an enigmatic figure, but not a wicked one. She appears typically as a mature but not elderly woman, and at times walks abroad in other worlds. Sorrow is inevitable, even in the most happy of places, and its full expression - from its creation, to its experience, to its resolution - is her business.

Theme Essentials

Theme Organizational Connections: Sirens walk their own paths, with no pre-destined affiliation. The Mother of Sorrows has no stated opinion on the matter, and does not interfere in their contests, save to collect the vanquished to herself: if she doesn't let them mess up, how will they ever learn?

Some wish to gather the sorrows as a bystander, interfering not with the natural order of things. The more opportunistic could create a great deal of sorrow and reap the rewards, placing them leagues ahead of their more altruistic counterparts.

Example Theme Paths to Power:
Artifact (the Black Mirrors)
The proof of one's role as a Siren. The Black Mirrors are formed from the obsidian fields in the drowned tomb-city of Luxor in the Sea of Tears, and are usually highly decorated (if in a rather somber way.) Through the Black Mirror, the energies of the Sea of Tears can let the Mother of Sorrow's descendants shed the limitations of mortality and become truly fantastic. The Mirrors often have other tricks, such as serving as a physical portal to the Sea of Tears or reflecting images in one's heart.

Legacy (descent, however distant, from the Mother of Sorrows)
The Mother of Sorrows' human children all come (at a great remove) from the wedding of the Mother's one daughter, Melancholy, to a mortal man. This ineffable ancestry earns one the right to dwell in the Sea of Tears (if you can find the way). Some young women, of course, follow in the footsteps of Thalatte, the first of the Sirens.

Contract (agreement, however informal, to gather sorrow)
The Mother's instructions and orders to her distant daughters are few, though this does not mean she is distant towards them emotionally, or unpleasant to talk to. If a brief explanation of their potential true place in the world is understood and accepted with their whole heart, one of these descendants is granted a Black Mirror and a vague instruction to gather sorrow, with the potential to one day be Queen. The method, the ramifications, and almost everything else are left up to the Siren to determine.

Quick and Dirty Rules:

• Sirens could be antagonistic as easily as they could be heroic, with only other Sirens and magical girls to serve as a moral compass.
• A Siren's purpose is vague, and the Mother of Sorrows does this deliberately. Should they feel compelled to step in and protect innocent people, or should they just hoover up tears and stay in the shadows? Or bring sorrow to the world themselves?
• More?