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"Keep Out." The sign on the door of a room in the silent Ingland Witch Museum read: creepy but beautiful artefact read.
"Ah, it can't be that bad." Joe, a newly employed pot bellied art curator on night duty at the museum, said as he stood staring at the sign on the door with a flickering lantern in one hand and a candy in the other.
Ignoring the sign, Joe carefully fidgeted through the bunch of keys in his hands, looking for the perfect key to open the door. Finally, he found it, and after two turns on the keyhole, the door flew open to reveal a room without windows.
"Weird,” Joe muttered. Immediately, a cold shiver ran down his spine, but he brushed it off, thinking it was just his mind playing tricks. “So what do we have here? A lot of forgotten relics, I see,” he said to no one but himself as he stepped into the room.
Gently putting the candy in his mouth, with the help of the flickering lantern in hand, he proceeded to rummage through the forgotten relics in the keep out room. When suddenly, his gaze fell upon this ancient, ornate artefact hidden beneath a pile of old robes.
"Oh, my wow!” Joe exclaimed at the sight of the ornate beauty. “Now tell me how such a beautiful artefact like this can be locked up inside this room." He picked it up and smiled. Carefully, he placed the artefact on a nearby soft pillow. “It's about time the world saw your beauty, mi love,” he said, as he couldn't stop admiring its beauty.
He shuffled through other old relics, but none piqued his interest like the ornate artefact. He locked up the room and took the old artefact to an empty display stand, where he carefully placed it.
“But why would you be locked out for so long?” Joe asked the artefact if it could talk back to him with answers. “I've got to check the museum library to find out why," he said as he walked over to the library at the far end of the display hall.
He picked up a book boldly inscribed ‘For employees only’ and flipped through its pages for answers. Suddenly, he heard strange noises echoing through the halls. He looked but couldn't find anyone, then brushed it off again as his mind was playing tricks.
“Boom, the ‘keep out room”, page 105” He read loudly as he finally found a page with the answer he was looking for.
“Whatever you do, do not let the evil souls trapped in the artefact within the four walls of the keep out room see the daylight. Deter and live with the consequences your whole life," it read.
“Oh no!!” Joe exclaimed, dropping the candy in his mouth and looking up to stare at the old artefact sitting pretty on the display stand. Horror washed over him as he realised the danger he might have unleashed.
Just then, a shrill voice from the display hall screamed.
“Set me free!” The deafening voice said
Human shadows began to dance in the dim light, sending chills down his spine. The artefacts' energy gradually saturated the room. Joe's heart raced as he realised he might have made a mistake.
“Daylight!. I need daylight!” The shrill voice came again.
"Daylight,” Joe repeated. “Whatever you do, do not let the evil souls trapped in the artefact within the four walls of the keep out room see the daylight!.” Eyes wide open, he recited the exact line from the book. “No wonder the keep-off room had windows,” he added.
He looked at his watch. It was just a few minutes before midnight. “The artefact mustn't see daylight.”.
Heart pounding, Joe dashed back to the display stand where the artefact rested. "I've got to get you back!" he muttered frantically.
As he reached out to grab it, the artefact seemed to pulse with an otherworldly energy. "You can't escape us!" the shrill voice echoed again.
“Shut up!” He yelled, his hands trembling as he carefully lifted the artefact. "I'm so sorry; I shouldn't have shouted at you guys. But I've got to return you," he pleaded, his voice trembling.
With each step, the shadows in the room seemed to grow darker, more menacing, and racing after him. "Almost there," Joe muttered to himself, sweat beading on his forehead.
Finally, he reached the keep-out room, his breath ragged. With trembling hands, he placed the artefact back where he found it and locked the door tightly.
As he leaned against the door, he felt a wave of relief wash over him. "I won't make that mistake again," he vowed to himself, his heart still racing from the ordeal. He walked back to his duty post.
I have to say, I'm impressed by Old Joe's bravery - or perhaps his foolishness? - in ignoring that ominous warning and diving right in. But I suppose that's what made him such an entertaining character. He just could not resist a good mystery.
I have to admit, I was on the edge of my seat there for a moment, wondering if he was going to unleash some ancient evil upon the world. But I should have known he'd come to his senses in the end. He may have been a bit of a bumbling curator, but he had a good heart, and he was not one to let the forces of darkness take over on his watch.
At least he didn't loose his common sense.
I don't even what to imagine what would have happened if the evil souls say daylight 😊.
Thank you for reading
It was an interesting read. Thank you for sharing 😍
A very mysterious and evil artifact, a very well-kept secret that must not be revealed or it will have dire consequences. A very entertaining story to read.
Thanks for sharing your story.
Happy day
Thank you for reading
Have a nice weekend 😊
This is a rather exciting 'horror' story. It is rich in potential horror, but fortunately for our protagonist, not so rich in actual horror. We are relieved as we read that the protagonist has an 'out'--all he has to do is get the artifact back into the dark before the sun rises.
Although this is exciting, it would have benefited from more careful editing. Also, as a note, the preferred spelling for 'artefact' is 'artifact'. The former spelling is technically correct but not much used.
Thank you for sharing this story with us, @marriot5464.
Hello. Interesting story you got here. I enjoyed reading it, it's like I'm watching a horror suspense filled movie. The way you arranged and structured the story till the very end is both amazing and wonderful. Keep up the good work.
Hahahhahaha! This was both scary and funny. The adventurous Joe almost got himself into trouble. I love how you narrated the story. I could feel Joe's every emotion. This was a great read and I enjoyed it.
No, he should trespass again. You see a sign written boldly "Keep out" and yet you still have the mind to trespass. It means you are in for it ....
Joe nearly got himself into trouble with his overzealous inquisitiveness. He was lucky that the day was already dark before he brought the artifact out. He had a window period to do the proper thing.