Children of the Clergy

Season 1 | Episode 6 | The Ether

Primo woke to the sound of screeching and shot up out of his bed. His ghouls stood around the room, forming a circle around him. But something was wrong. They were all screaming in pain and clawing at their own faces. Pure terror was visible in their expressions.

Primo ran out of his room and out of the quarters, sprinting down the corridors of the ministry. A few Siblings of Sin stared at him questioningly before noticing the loud screeches of the ghouls that now echoed through the halls.

He made it to Papa Nihil's office, banging twice on the door and not waiting for a reply before pushing it open. Papa Nihil jumped at the sudden intrusion, "Primo?" He questioned, concern clear in his voice. He wasn't used to seeing Primo like this.

"There's something wrong with my ghouls." Primo tried to explain. Just then, the lights in the office and all the way down the corridors flickered violently.

Papa Nihil froze for a moment before recomposing himself, "Something seems to be wrong with the entire building. But I don't think electrical problems effect ghouls. It isn't one of their elements."

They began walking down the corridors, back to the quarters to check on the ghouls. Papa Nihil walked much faster than Primo did so he had to practically run to keep up with him.

A sudden thought flashed into Papa Nihil's mind, "Where are your fratelli?"

Primo looked up at him, confused, "Terzo's playing with Seren in the abbey. Secondo...Well, Seestor Imperator came and took him to her room earlier. She said she wanted to help him with something."

Papa Nihil's eyes grew wide and he turned down a corridor away from the quarters and towards Seestor's office. Primo followed behind him hastily. The pained cryes of the ghouls still echoed through the corridors and Primo desperately faught the urge to turn back and go to them. To turn back and comfort them. Their screams echoed through his mind and their pain stabbed at his heart like daggers. A tear escaped his eye as he continued to run to his brother, leaving them to their own suffering. He knew that there was nothing he could do to help them if he went back, all he could do was try to find out what was causing their pain and attempt to stop it. But it still hurt to abandon them.

Primo and his father finally made it to Seestor's room and, as they came up apon the door, they noticed a deep red light coming from within the room. A wave of panik washed over Primo as he pushed open the door. Papa Nihil pushed passed him, charging into the room. They both froze as the door closed behind them and the truth of the situation began to sink in.

The lights had all been turned off and the blinds were shut. The only lights in the room were the two small wax candles that were placed either side of the fire place, the fire itself which burned much brighter than any fire should, and the thing that floated in the air in the centre of the room. Seestor sat in a large arm chair in the corner of the room, watching the thing closely.

Primo almost screamed when he saw Secondo. He was stood in the centre of the room with one of his arms outstretched and his eyes closed. He was breathing heavily and shaking in pain. The thing brushed past the fingers of his outstretched hand and he shuddered, the pain mixing with a strange form of pleasure.

The thing, was the Ether.

An extremely powerful, interdementional creature with a strange and unique connection to reality, fate, and time. It never showed itself truely but, on very rare occasions, it would appear to those strong enough to tempt it out of its pocket demention within the fabric of reality as a twisting, red, liquid-like substance that floated in the air, curling around itself and emitting a quiet humming noise and dark red light. Viewers described it to look like streams of blood morphing in and out of each other. It was a nightmarish sight.