The Ranthen, also known as "the scarred ones," are an alliance of Rephaim who oppose the rule of the Nashira Sargas and the Sargas family.
Description[]
Those who were loyal to the Mothallath and against the Sargas during the Waning of the Veils called themselves Ranthen, after the amaranth, the only flower that grows in the Netherworld. The amaranth in bloom is the Ranthen's call to arms as they believe it is the true sign of their "opportunity to revive what has faded."[1] The Ranthen don't even make up a quarter of the size of the Rephaim who are loyal to the Sargas. There are two hundred Ranthen, but only a few are on this side of the veil. Meanwhile, thousands support the Sargas.
The Ranthen's first and foremost desire is to restore the Netherworld. Unlike the Sargas and their followers, the Ranthen do not wish to colonize the corporeal world. But they do not wish the Netherworld to be isolated from the human world like it once was. If the ethereal threshold can be lowered to a stable level, the Ranthen wish to have an advisory presence in the human world to prevent the total collapse of the veils. Many Rephaim, not just the Ranthen, believe that should there be a total collapse of the veils, it will end in a cataclysm. The Sargas aim to bring this about while the Ranthen aim to stop it.
Warden tells Paige Mahoney she is right to suspect the motive that the Ranthen want to look after "poor defenseless humans." Like the majority of the Rephaim, most Ranthen cannot abide living on Earth because they have been reduced to half-things. However, they bitterly resent the Sargas for forcing them to stay on Earth. To sarx-creatures, Earth can seem horrible because everything is dying. Even fuels are made of decomposed matter. Humans use death as a means of sustaining life. To most Rephaim, this is an unpleasant thought. They see this as the reason why humans are so bloodthirsty and violet. Most Ranthen would leave Earth if they had the choice. But the Netherworld is broken too. It’s decaying because of the Emim, so they must stay. Unlike the Sargas, the Ranthen believe that humans stole the Rephaim’s lifeline from them inadvertently, but they do not see humans as their equals. Many of them blame human violence and vanity for their own suffering. The Ranthen's tolerance for humans waxes and wanes. While the Ranthen are willing work with the human clairvoyants to bring down Nashira, they are still prejudiced against humans, and disgusted by the thought of an intimate human-Rephaite relationship.
The Mothallath belief was that Rephaim should never act against the natural events of the corporeal world. They must not stop deaths if they were ordained by the æther. Many Ranthen continue to uphold this belief and practice. The Ranthen usually wear all black clothes.
Warden tells Paige that the Ranthen do not know how to overthrow the Sargas because they "seem to draw their power from a deeper well than theirs."[1] Their original plan was to extinguish both blood-sovereigns and scatter their supporters, but they are not yet strong enough to do this. Instead of toppling their leaders, the Ranthen are trying to infiltrate their major source of power, which is Scion. However, the Ranthen can’t do this alone. Rephaim are not emotional and passionate and can’t inspire insurrection in humans. But another human could. Specifically, a human with an intimate knowledge of the syndicate and the Rephaim and with a powerful gift and a taste for revolution. The Ranthen first attempt to find this type of human when they stage the failed rebellion of Bone Season XVIII. As punishment, Nashira tortures the Ranthen involved with her bound poltergeist, Jack the Ripper. As part of her clairvoyance, Nashira can use the powers of the spirits bound to her. So she has the ability of a poltergeist to make the scars Jack the Ripper left on the Ranthen hurt whenever she wants. To manage the pain, the Ranthen drink wine. A bit ironically, amaranth also eases the pain of their scars. However, Nashira is careful to keep tight control on the supply of amaranth to dole out at her pleasure, and usually only to Warden as her blood-consort.
Paige has forbidden all the Ranthen from feeding on the voyants in the Mime Order. This forces them to lie in wait for those who live outside the syndicate. With Sheol I no longer drawing the Emim, the Ranthen have been working to kill any Emim that appear in London.
Known Members[]
- Arcturus Mesarthim
- Terebell Sheratan
- Pleione Sualocin
- Errai Sarin
- Lucida Sargas
- Alsafi Sualocin
- Taygeta Chertan
- Mira Sarin