Orpheus is the only son of Dream and Calliope. He is introduced in Fables and Reflections as a disembodied head.
History[]
Orpheus, the bard of Greek myth, is the son of Oneiros and the muse, Calliope.
On the day of his wedding to Eurydice, his bride tragically dies from a snake bite. Overcome with grief, Orpheus petitions Oneiros for help to revive Eurydice, but his father is unwilling to help, so Orpheus disavows him.
His uncle, Olethros, and aunt, Teleute, reluctantly give him some help, and send Orpheus to plead his case before Hades, the ruler of the Greek underworld. He succeeds in convincing Hades to return Eurydice, but under the condition that he not look back during their trek from his realm. Out of the doubt that Hades kept his word, however, Orpheus looks over his shoulder steps from the outside world, and Eurydice is taken back into the Underworld forever.
Orpheus falls into misery and shuns the company of others. When he encounters the Maenads in a Bacchic orgy, and refuses to participate in their rituals, they tear him apart, and only his head remains intact. Because of his deal with Death, and time in Hades, he is condemned to eternal life as only a severed head.[1]
In 1789, Lady Johanna Constantine makes a deal with Dream, and in June 1794, she is tasked with retrieving his son's head. Dream tells her that she has been contracted to do this because he can't take part in the action directly. Johanna finds it to be a difficult task, but she finally accomplishes it. Orpheus is then taken to a remote island called Naxos, and Dream creates an order of priests who are charged to take care of his son.[2]
The order of priests protects Orpheus until the events of Brief Lives, in which Dream meets his son for the first time in centuries. He is reluctant, but his son is the only oracle that can tell him where to find Destruction. Orpheus tells Dream Destruction's location, but in return, he asks a boon of his father; that Dream kill him.
At the end of Brief Lives, Dream finally grants Orpheus the boon, and ends his son's life. Dream emerges from Orpheus' temple, Despair and Delirium met him upon his exit, suggesting Dream's mental state. The blood droplets on Dream's hands struck the ground, creating a new flower where they fell.[3]
Because Dream killed his own son, despite that it was Orpheus' own request, Dream would soon be targeted by The Three, in their incarnation as the Furies, goddesses of vengeance, for having committed filicide.
Appearance[]
Orpheus exists only as the disembodied head of a young man. He has brown hair and pale eyes, and a ragged stump of a neck.
Personality[]
Orpheus is passionate, a trait that made him one of the finest musicians of his age. He is also stubborn, which led to his current state because of the deals he made to retrieve his wife from the underworld; deals that would have worked had he been able to trust.
Relationships[]
He was estranged from his father for centuries by his own choice.
Powers and Abilities[]
He was endowed with near divine musical skills, Orpheusās singing and playing were so beautiful that it was said animals, trees, and rocks could be moved to dance. Orpheus took part in the expedition of the Argonauts, saving them from the music of the Sirens by playing his own.