Work Text:
"It's wax," she said exactly the moment he opened the lid.
Cardinal Copia looked up from the metal box in front of him and met Sister Imperator with wide mismatched eyes. Inside the tiny casket was the - wax - severed head of Papa Emeritus the Third. The reassurance gave little relief to the Cardinal and his lip twitched nervously. The head lay sterile in the metal case, lined with a deep fabric indent to keep it from rattling around. He was like an instrument tucked neatly in its case. It was a perfect recreation.
"Ah! Oh well yes. Of course, Sister." The Third's eyes lay half open, blankly starring straight ahead, blood painted on in perfectly placed spots. Copia couldn't meet his glassy stare, instead looking at the perfectly manicured corpse paint coating his skin. It was the spitting image of the former Papa. There was even hair on his thick eyebrows, covered in the white and black paint. At The Third's neck stump was some sort of plastic cap, it seemed, to cover up the short base of the neck. Of course he knew the premise of today's photo shoot, but he didnt know the head would be so... lifelike. Make use of a little bit of photoshop maybe.
Sister slithered from Papa Emeritus Nihil's side to the Cardinal's. They shared the space in front of the box on the foldable table, of which the prop shared with a ripped open case of plastic water bottles. "Well its more of a silicon cast. A death mask, Cardinal. The technicians are very skilled at their jobs. Only the best for the press."
"Of course," Copia could only manage again as Sister placed her hand between his shoulders in a reassuring gesture. Copia nodded and glanced around the set, to do anything except to meet The Third's similarly colored mismatched eyes. Both siblings of sin and hired set crew weaved back and forth in front of the standing box lights and white backdrop roll as the photographers adjusted their cameras in preparation. A single ghoul was assisting Sister today but she stood far away from the hubbub of the set, folded away like a knife.
Papa Nihil harrumphed and caught the two's attention, arms crossed. Still flanking him were his twin handlers who assisted him with his oxygen tank and various fetching tasks. "Cardinal," he sang, "you are shaking like a lap dog. It is just a mask. We are to venerate my sons on tour, I would not have one decapitated for some stupid photo shoot." Is this an act of kindness to ease Copia's nerves or is Papa trying to jab at Copia's weakness? In the time Copia worked closely with the old bag, one of these options were much more common than the other. He was surely making fun of him in front of Sister Imperator.
"Of course, Your Eminence." Copia watched Nihil's frown deepen at his thrice repeated phrase, inhaling from his oxygen mask. His condition hadn't gotten any worse, but there was a good reason why Nihil wouldn't be once again headlining Ghost and only starring during a brief section of the set.
Copia bowed his head slightly and accidentally made eye contact with The Third again. He found himself lost in the endless sea of the white eye he shared with the four Emeritus'. For what reason did he receive the gift of the bloodline's eye? Was this all part of Satan's plan, for him to take up the mantle, not if, but when the other Papas failed? Would he be able to live up to The Third's legacy? To surpass it as Sister desires? To seize and carve his own mark on history?
A loud cacophony of squeaking noises came from his side and broke him out of his trance with the fake former Papa. Sister Imperator pulled out a water bottle from the case and began to offer it to Copia. "Cardi, you look like you need something to -" She pulled the water bottle back as she changed her mind. "No wait, you just had your makeup done, correct?"
Copia's hand was frozen in the reaching out position as he dumbly nodded. Both him and Nihil were fresh out of the makeup and hair stylists' hands.
She placed the bottle back onto the table and left it there. "Don't want to ruin anything then. They didn't provide any straws here. You'll get plenty to drink afterwards. It wont take long."
He was a grown man and she wouldn't even trust him to drink water in case his lipstick smeared. Its not like this was his uniform he wore everyday!
The Cardinal hesitantly glanced at Papa who somehow looked even more sour before letting out an, "Of course." Stupid. Say something else. "I'm fine, Sister, its alright. I'm - I'm really not thirsty."
He let his hands fall upon the walls of the box and drummed against it as he brimmed with nervous energy, humming slightly as he did. He carried a useless tune for a moment more before starting again. "Ahh you know...Almost thought we'd just photoshop him into my hands, haha." Copia lifted his empty hands like he was presenting a baby Simba. "Tadaa! Like I was a tourist posed in front of the Leaning Tower, eh? Long live the king."
Sister sweetly smiled and Copia almost missed the rolling of her eyes. Almost. "It's better we skip the computer graphics and focus on practical effects. We want this to look as real as possible. I've spoken with the marketing staff and they all agree with me." She looked into the box, a layer of something brimming in her voice, but Copia couldn't place the tone. Never been very good at that. "Much cheaper too."
There was a call on set and all of them looked towards the cameras as a photographer gave them the thumbs up.
"This will be all over with soon. Get excited boys, we are welcoming in our new blood with a bloody uprising! Metaphorically, of course," she said pointedly towards Papa then looked back to the Cardinal. "Embrace it, C." Sister Imperator held his hand firmly before releasing it with a pat, smile spread wide across her face. "You two get a move on. Cardinal, go on and pick it up and bring it over there with you. I'll be right here watching."
Papa Nihil took a last deep breath of his oxygen tank before leaving it with his twin handlers and began his shuffling to the photographers. Copia looked down into the case. It was just a wax death mask, nothing to fear. "Yup. Just need to grab him. Ah...Um. Err..." His hands reached towards the head as he tried different approaches to attempting to pick him up. The Third was fairly deep in the box and the sides confined him inside it snugly. Copia reluctantly grabbed his jet black bangs to pull and slide him out of the firm embrace of the box.
The instant his other hand pressed into the false skin to cup the head, Copia's stomach started an Olympic gymnastics routine. Even through his gloves, the loose give of the face felt uncanny at best and now as the head was closer to his own face, a slight sterile smell clogged his lungs. He'd never been to a wax museum before but he guessed it must smell just like this. He pressed the prop close against his chest, afraid he'd drop the head on the way over, and tried to ignore his hands sinking into the false flesh. No one wanted to see a full grown man chase after a decapitated papal head, accidentally kicking it along as everyone stared at him unflinching.
Papa Nihil's photos were taken first, and he easily slipped into following the photographer's direction. The Cardinal watched off to the side as he held The Third's head, trying to ignore how his stomach kept flipping. The silicon mask in his hands sunk deep into his cassock as he pressed him tightly against his chest.
It was a good bit of marketing, celebrating the Cardinal's takeover of the Ghost project with a nod to the beheading of unfitting royalty. The tides turning for the masses in an unprecedented move. Copia especially liked the idea when Sister brought it up. He'd been a big fan of the French Revolution's famous guillotine, so the sentiment wasn't lost on him. And he heartily agreed with Sister that if anyone deserved to rise to papacy it'd be him. He worked the hardest out of everyone, even if he lost the title for most employee of the month awards. It really was a popularity contest nowadays. He was relieved to hear even Nihil was fine with the idea for the shoot since he could tell the older man hated his guts, even before his rise to power. But if Copia was honest, it seemed like nothing could bring a smile to the senile old man's face except Sister Imperator, so he was probably easy to sway.
It was his turn for photos now. Copia looked out to Sister Imperator as she flashed him a thumbs up before Papa returned snugly to her side and stole her attention back. He brushed the Third's hair neatly back into place as he stepped up onto the backdrop and assumed his more serious persona, ready to take direction.
And Sister was right that the photo shoot wouldn't take long. It was over before he knew it and Copia soon walked back to the side of her that hadn't already been taken by Nihil.
With no hesitation she plucked The Third's head from Copia's hands as he joined her and placed him back in the box, closing it away from view. Copia was shocked she could manhandle the wax head so easily when even his gloved hand couldn't shield him from the unpleasant feeling rooted deep in his gut. Sister was always so strong. She snapped and her ghoul appeared from behind to pick the box up from it's handle and escort it away. A lot of protection for a wax head, but Copia did have to agree if it was left lying around it would fall into the wrong hands. The rest of today will be easy, the worst was already over. Sister planned for them to have dinner together.
--
That night Copia attempted to sleep in his bed, covers tucked up to his armpits. Sleep seemed to evade him tonight despite his wishes. It wouldn't be long till he'd have to leave with his ghouls and Nihil to tour. Not to mention the former Papas who would be joining them as well. It was simply something he had to get used to. Of course Copia was no stranger to corpses, the older Papas had been embalmed as the newer Papas had, however they lay to rest in their mausoleums in the graveyard, rarely disturbed. But Copia had seen the new Papas' bodies preserved and dressed up merely the day after Papa Nihil accepted him as the successor and he'll be seeing them for the foreseeable future.
Copia starred at the silhouette of the ceiling light fixture, light from his lava lamp casting slowly moving shadows. Despite doing the robbing, Copia felt robbed. Ignoring The First's health, the other two Papas were still in their prime, not much older than he. For all three of them to suddenly die so they could be preserved perfectly in history...it put Copia off on the whole ordeal. Had this been planned from the beginning, logically shouldn't The First been put to rest years ago? Then The Second once he stepped down?
"They should've put Nihil down long ago," Copia grumbled to no one as he sat up in bed, looking at his alarm clock. 3 A.M.
Just the day before his ascension, he had spoken to The Third. Mundane business things, but still they had a conversation, however brief. They had even planned to meet later that week. Copia's feet brought him to his tricycle sitting by the foot of his bed as he brushed his hand along the handlebars. A midnight ride might help clear his mind and tire his body.
He rode out silently into the long empty halls of the ministry. The only noise were the sharp squeaks of his old tricycle as he mindlessly peddled. Despite the growing popularity of the church, the halls never seemed to grow in populace as they remained for the most part empty, especially at night. This didn't help the haunting maze-like layout for being any less confusing.
The Cardinal however grew up in these marble halls. They were his home just as much as Sister Imperator's spare guest room was. These halls were his paradise from prying eyes, as long as you ignore all the times he's managed to bump into Papa Nihil out of the entire clergy. And the times he'd run into the Emeritus boys when they were younger and he failed to flee into his secret pathways. Oh, and the time Sister was able to track him down to give him the scolding of his life despite being hidden very well!
That said as his wheels squeaked rhythmically Copia soon found himself pedaling closer and closer to the medical ward. He was only dragged out of his head and back into real life to notice where he was when he failed to make a turn tight enough and rammed into the wall.
Grumbling and muttering to himself Copia sat back onto the seat and stared directly at the subtle signage telling him he was one left away from the morgue and to turn back you've gone too far if you needed medical attention.
Copia was brought back to thoughts of The Third and the other Papas he'd soon see on tour, wondering if they were being stored here in the meantime. Dismounting the tricycle, Copia smoothed his hand over the engraved metal signage and glanced deeper into the hallway. The ever present dim lighting seeming to draw him in closer towards the morgue. His feet took him closer as he started to walk hesitantly, hands curling up towards his chest.
Rounding the corner, the Cardinal was met with two free swinging doors, the air chilling as he crept closer. Surely no one would be here at 3 A.M. and he could just pop in for a quick look. And who would say anything to the new head of the Ghost Project and the Cardinal Copia? Further hyping himself up, Copia pushed the right door open and it swung open.
Inside the morgue the wall of freezers immediately drew the Cardinal's attention, but a voice called out to him from the side.
"What are you doing in here? Who-" The Cardinal turned, eyes wide to meet the shorter man. He scampered out from behind the table he was working at to Copia's side. His bespectacled eyes met the Cardinal's mismatched eyes before his voice caught in his throat. "Cardinal! Oh um, did you not see the sign, those in need of medical attention should take the right, not left..."
Copia made a little mumbling grunt before clearing his throat. "No, I was just in the neighborhood, getting some...fresh air." His eyes wandered to behind the mortician, the body laying on the table he worked at. The sheet covering the body stopped his prying eyes from prying further, and he turned his gaze back to the mortician.
"Fresh air in the morgue?" The mortician lets out a little laugh, body blocking the Cardinal from further entering the room. "Regardless, I've just finished my work for tonight, I'd love to get this beauty back in its rightful place." He gave a wry smile. "And I'd love to get to lay down after this all-nighter, you understand."
And Copia did understand. So he nodded bumbling an apology as he backed out of the room. "I do. Good, uh, good work today, the corpses would be ah," he fumbled for his words, spilling out of him as they do, "proud." His ass hit the double free-swinging doors, startling him, before he turned to face them, turned back around to give a nod to the mortician, and then turned once more to face the doors.
Pushing the door back open, he left the chilly embrace of the morgue and stood as the doors swung softly back and forth until they settled back into their resting position. He probably could have weaseled his way into the mortician's business, he certainly had the power to do so, but kicked himself for being caught off guard. But why did he feel a sense of unease over the encounter?
Getting back on his tricycle, Copia hesitantly peddled back into the main halls of the ministry. He didn't exactly mind dead bodies either, that was his and everyone else's fate in the end. Today had just been so different than usual. Perhaps this ride down the halls left Copia even more haunted than when he started. A clear mind he had not.
Turning down another corridor, Copia soon found little pleasure in the wind his tricycle gave him, his mind clouded by thoughts that wouldn't blow away. His mind raced and connected dots, and yet it was as if it was in another language, refusing to be translated in ways the Cardinal could understand. A refusal to understand. The pieces all lay there, he could even ask for help, for more information. Instead he returned to his bedroom, parking his tricycle, and laying back down in his bed for another sleepless night.