SIRYN: Page 4 of 4

BIOGRAPHY - Page 4

Despite all the progress she had made to deal with the loss of her baby, Siryn still couldn’t bear to be around Jamie, so she quit the team. She decided to travel back to Ireland to live in her father’s castle in the hopes some distance would do her good. Worried about her friend, Monet also joined her, but Siryn’s depression only seemed to worsen. After a while, Monet realized she wasn’t able to help her friend and so she left to fetch Jamie, in the belief that he could help Siryn. Theresa became so depressed that she even slept with Deadpool, though she made it clear it was purely a one-night stand.

One day when she was visiting her father’s grave, she was shocked to see Jamie there and instinctively punched him. It became obvious very quickly though that it wasn’t the real Jamie but rather Reverend John Maddox, one of Madrox’s dupes which had formed a fully independent life. Siryn wasn’t in the mood to talk to him but Reverend Maddox continued to push the subject of the recent traumas in her life. Eventually, Siryn opened up that she was in a crisis of faith and she finally starting the process of dealing with everything. She even decided to change her codename to Banshee as a way to honor her father and draw a line under her time as Siryn. [X-Factor (1st series) #200]

Whilst Theresa had secluded herself from the rest of mutant affairs, things were going on in America that would put her life in grave danger. The Sentinel Bastion had resurrected a number of influential mutant-hating humans and was using them to target and kill the world’s remaining mutants. Banshee had been located by some of Bastion’s agents and, when she tried to fly back to America, she was stopped at Dublin Airport. Things turned violent very quickly and she would have certainly died, had it not been for the timely arrival of Shatterstar and the now-adult Layla Miller. The three teleported back to the States and arrived just in time to help the rest of X-Factor defeat Bolivar Trask and his soldiers. [X-Factor (1st series) #205-206]

Theresa re-joined the team again and even forgave Jamie for what happened, though she made it clear she didn’t want to lead again. She started to get into the job once more, taking on a mission from a mysterious woman who wanted her stolen pendant back. Tracking down the jewelry wasn’t difficult but, when Banshee snatched the pendent off the thief, she was shocked when the man transformed into Pip the Troll. To make matters worse, they soon learned that the woman who gave them the job was Hela, the Asgardian Goddess of Death. Realizing that they had placed Pip in grave danger, Banshee and some of the team travelled to Hela’s lair in Las Vegas where they ultimately sorted the situation out. [X-Factor (1st series) #207-209, 211-212]

The team was soon inundated with jobs and personal crises, such as saving the mayor of New York from assassination and protecting the pregnant Wolfsbane from supernatural forces. Theresa had made great strides to deal with the loss of her baby, and so when Wolfsbane’s baby went missing she was on hand to help her friend through it. [X-Factor (1st series) #225]

Tragedy was soon to strike again when Jamie was killed whilst the team were tracking down a serial killer. As the team gathered around his body, they discovered that Layla’s mutant power enabled her to resurrect the dead, only without a soul. Layla opened the decision up to the team, to which Banshee surprisingly told her to do it. She immediately butted heads with Monet, who was dead-set against the idea. Ultimately the decision was taken out of their hands as the serial killer attacked the group again, distracting them beyond the window in which Layla would be able to bring Jamie back. [X-Factor (1st series) #227-228]

In the aftermath, the team discovered that Strong Guy, who had previously been shot and had miraculously recovered, had actually been resurrected by Layla. An argument broke out over his role on the team, given that he didn’t have a soul, but Banshee saw it as a benefit, as he could do the things that the others couldn’t and he wouldn’t feel bad about it. Once again, she came up against Monet, who felt very strongly about the topic, and the two ended up in a heated argument. Banshee got the feeling the team was tearing itself apart, but they were saved by the arrival of Havok and Polaris. [X-Factor (1st series) #230]

The two former X-Men took over leadership of the team, sparing Banshee the stress of the role. Their first mission together involved them breaking up an anti-mutant gang that possessed an array of dangerous weapons. Banshee was deployed first, using her hypnotic voice to calm the crowds. It would have worked out well, had it not been for the one-deaf man whose infirmity rendered him immune to her powers. After successfully dispersing the threat, Banshee and the team returned home to find Jamie had somehow returned to life again. [X-Factor (1st series) #232-234]

It became obvious that the problems the team were having weren’t over and Banshee became very concerned about the mental state of Wolfsbane. Deciding to get away for a few days, she and Polaris suggested a road trip and the two women dragged Wolfsbane along for the ride. Realizing that her friend needed someone to talk to, Theresa remembered what Reverend John Maddox did for her and decided to visit him at his parish. The plan worked, as Wolfsbane was able to talk through everything that had happened to her and gain some perspective. [X-Factor (1st series) #237]

Banshee’s choice of codename was about to get her into trouble when the team got word that someone had been murdered by using a very loud scream. Naturally, this put Banshee in the frame for it and so she and Havok went to investigate to clear her name. Arriving at the house of the man who had been murdered, they discovered that he was the latest in a series of deaths that had struck the family. Upon seeing the daughter of one of the victims, Banshee guessed that the girl might be using witchcraft. Her theory was right, as the girl summoned the goddess Morrigan, who promptly attacked the group and kidnapped Banshee. Taking her back to a lighthouse, Morrigan revealed that she was furious that Theresa had been using the name “Banshee,” as she saw it as an insult. Hanging Theresa by the neck over the edge of the lighthouse, Morrigan demanded that she submit to her and worship her as goddess. Naturally, Theresa resisted, causing Morrigan to throw her to her death. Her life was saved by a mysterious winged woman called Jezebelle, who revealed that she needed to destroy Morrigan’s pet raven to defeat her. Despite her damaged vocal cords, Theresa managed to blast the raven, weakening Morrigan enough so that she couldn’t retaliate. Havok soon caught up with Theresa and blasted the lighthouse with his powers, completely destroying it. [X-Factor (1st series) #239]

Morrigan’s attack had triggered something within Theresa and she started to sink into a depression, enough to start to tempt her to drink again. The rest of the team was too distracted to deal with Theresa’s problems; instead they were trying to help Polaris, who had gone into a catatonic state. To make matters worse, Theresa began to have visions of her dead father and the two even held full-on conversations. The vision of her father explained that Morrigan had been holding back, as she was simply testing Theresa and looking into her soul. More confused than ever, help came from the unlikely source of Layla Miller, who offered to help Theresa out. Assisting with a ritual, the two women summoned Morrigan, and once again Theresa was whisked away. Morrigan was less threatening this time, instead she prompted Theresa to ask for help in curing Polaris of her catatonic state. Morrigan refused to help Polaris, but instead she offered to give Theresa the power to do it herself. Theresa didn’t hesitate, claiming that she was afraid of Polaris going out of control and destroying the Earth. However, Morrigan put it to her that Theresa really wanted the power for herself, as it would bring her one step closer to being with her father. Regardless, Theresa accepted the deal and killed Morrigan, taking on the goddess’ power for herself and turning into a real banshee. Becoming something ethereal, she appeared back at X-Factor’s headquarters and cured Polaris of her fractured mind.

Then, finding Jamie, she made peace with her former lover before telling him if he ever needed her he need only pray. With that, she vanished to parts unknown, leaving a very confused team behind. [X-Factor (1st series) #243-244]

The coming weeks were not kind to X-Factor, with many of the team leaving and the rest being drawn into a deadly fight with some Hell-Lords. During the ordeal, Jamie had been transformed into a mindless demon and so Layla had taken him back to his old farm whilst she tried to help him. Despite his bestial state, Madrox was able to understand Layla when she told him she was pregnant and, for the first time in forever, Jamie prayed. His call was answered by Banshee, who used her godly powers to turn Jamie into a human again. Afterwards, she sat down with the two and revealed what happened to their scattered team. [X-Factor (1st series) #262]

What Banshee is up to is anyone’s guess, as is how much of Theresa still exists within the goddess. However, it can only be a matter of time before someone calls upon her and on that day they had better pray (literally) that she is in a good mood.