The Cardinal's Prime Mover

Chapter 1: The Tricycle Incident

Such a beautiful day.

She thought inhaling deeply. The sun was shining through the abbey's massive stained glass windows. The gold, crimson, and turquoise colors from the light they shed dancing on the floor, as the clouds drifted across the sky. She loved days like this. She wanted to head to her favorite spot in the cloister but she would have to miss out on such a simple pleasure as there were things to attend to.

Sister Rosalia, or Lia as she liked to be called, was always the first to volunteer to help out and today was no exception. Sister Imperator had asked, well more like demanded, for some of the brothers and sisters of sin to assist the members of the clergy in organizing some things for the next few days...They would be in desperate need of it after all.

His Eminence Papa Emeritus III or as they all liked to call him, Terzo, would be returning home after a much needed sabbatical from Ghost projects. He had become restless with everything. All the writing, recording, and touring was starting to weigh on him more than he'd admit and everyone could tell.

The whispers, circulating within the abbey inhabitants, were that he might not be heading the band for much longer. Some even said that Sister and Papa Nihil were scrambling to find a replacement, since Nihil had no more progeny to fulfill the duties. Lia assumed that as glamorous as it must be, surely spending so much time on the road spreading the word of the dark lord and performing for the masses must not be easy. So with his return on the horizon, some last minute preparations were leaving the clergy a bit flustered.

While most of the others went into Sister's assigned tasks begrudgingly, Sister Lia was more than happy to oblige. Acts of service were one of the many ways she chose to express her love and devotion to the church. She tried not to stand out however, amongst the others. Compared to the other sisters of sin she was beautiful but she didn't think any more or less than any other sister. She was average in height and weight, a woman in her mid-twenties, with long soft waves of brunette hair. She wasn't the type to flaunt herself, but she had a soft attraction about her. She had rather large doe-like eyes, a deep chocolate hue in color; a pale complexion; and a smile, that some had told her, lit up the room.

Dutiful as always, she made her way to Sister Imperator's office to find out which of the clergy she would be helping. The lyrics of Ghost's Body & Blood, one her favorites, playing over and over in her head. She hummed them quietly as she walked. She turned the corner passing in front of the Great Hall which sat opposite a large stairway. The one that led up to the Sister's office. It was absolutely massive or at least she thought so.

The steps were lined with stunning cream marble tiles, covered high above by the ornate vaulted ceilings. The ceiling themselves impressive, with lavish paintings depicting Lucifer's descent from heaven. The first landing of the stairway had its own grandiose glass visage of Lucifer atop the steps. The stairs were just as physically exhausting as they were impressive.

She furrowed her brows, preparing to ascend them, while pushing some rogue strands of hair back into her habit. She hated wearing that damn thing so much. It wasn't an all time requirement of the abbey but for when official business, ceremonies, or rituals were taking place...it was rather highly suggested. Sister Imperator would be cross with her or at least visibly irritated had she shown up without it.

Suddenly she heard a strange noise coming from behind her. One that could only be described as strained clinking. The sound was quickly getting louder and she whispered to herself,

...what is that?

Then just as Lia motioned to turn and discover the origin of the sound...

-BAM -