Catherine walked throughout the halls of the museum, lazily strolling through the dimmed lights and illuminated displays. Her friend, Tyler had left her, running off to help out her uncle at his storefront. She likely wouldn't be gone long, and Catherine was more than content enough to simply wait it out, and stare at the ancient art and sculptures.
Not too long after she had entered one of the far-flung wings of the museum, immersing herself in the beauty of past civilizations, a well-dressed man, roughly in his 30's walked into the room, passing her, and the few other people in the room. He made a beeline directly for the security guard, whispering into his ear, and pointing off towards where he had come. The guard looked concerned, thanked the man, and jogged off. Catherine's eyes followed the man, watching him pace past and vanish around the corner.
When her eyes traveled back towards the man, he was gone, and the 'staff-only' door clicked shut. The words "thief" echoed throughout her mind. She could chase after the guard, but this man was clearly a professional, and wouldn't take long. She walked past the other couple in the room, telling them to inform the security guard when he returned. With those final parting words, she followed him through the unlocked staff door.
The door led into a hallway, dim, and cool. To her left was another row of doors, likely offices, and to her right, a staircase, with a sign labeled "storage". She began to take a step forwards, then hesitated. She was chasing after a man who could very well be dangerous. Immediately, her friend Tyler popped into her mind. While Catherine wasn't a fighter, Tyler certainly was, and would've continued without a break in pace. Mustering her confidence, she continued down the stairs, trying her absolute best to be quiet. Unfortunately, her black converse weren't exactly the stealthiest of shoe atop the polished tile stairs.
When she reached the end of the stairwell, another hallway greeted her. Knowing it could be any of them, she kept walking slowly, looking at each door for signs of recent entry. It wasn't until she had already passed several doors, that she heard the muffled sounds of crumpling metal, and an electrical buzz. Picking up her pace, Catherine walked past the next turn in the hall. She looked towards the source of the noise, but saw nothing.
The door was still closed, and nobody was nearby. However, the metal covering of the keypad lay on the ground, bent in the center. The internal workings of the security box were visible, and the small LED atop the box was lit green. The door was unlocked. Adopting Tyler's persona again, Catherine walked forwards, stepping through the unlocked door ready to confront the the thief.
Only whispers greeted her. She was in another darkened room, only bright white lights pointed in from the ceiling, illuminating some strange artifact that sat on the table before her. A large, golden box, engraved with figures of beasts and sigils, all decoratively pouring out from golden eye in the center of one of the sides. It was truly magnificent. The box was roughly the size of a large dog, and seemed to glow, not of the light directed at it, but in it's own, darkened way. Whispers seemed to dance throughout the room, sending ice through Catherine's veins, and clouding her mind with desires.
The thief forgotten, she stepped towards the Box, bumping into a small metal table. The table rattled a large disk shape, engraved into a hand, with eerie, almost key-like teeth jutting from the palm sat on the table. Next to it sat a small slip of paper. "Janus' Key". The whispers, resonating from the box grew louder, urging her to pick up the key. Catherine, without thinking grabbed the key with her left-hand. Growing louder still, the whispers permeated Catherine's head, and her very being. It felt so natural to listen, so right to obey their commands. Taking another step forwards, she outstretched her arm, bringing the Key closer to the Box. The box reacted, deep purple sparks of energy clashing with red, as it seemed to breathe with a life of it's own.
Catherine took the final step, plunging the Key into the Box.
And the whispers stopped. The voices left her mind, and the energy ceased to drip from the Box. But, the hand print atop the key glowed with a sinister light, dancing between purples, blues, and reds. She didn't hesitate, placing her hand against the front of the Box. It felt wonderful, like touching a warm, smooth stone, that seemed to shiver with energy.
Then the Box began to move. The front of the Box produced two golden plates, each with a semi-circle cut out of the edges near her hand. Before Catherine could pull away, the two sides closed around her wrist, leaving only a small portion of the backside of her hand visible. For a second, she was left to wildly pull at her arm, trying to free herself from her suddenly unwelcoming prison.
Just as Catherine stopped struggling, she felt something sharp push towards her palm, then slowly pierce her skin. Pain burned outwards from her hand, as the blade burrowed deeper, forcing itself completely through her palm. Blood and light seemed to fall from the blade, as something like electricity coursed through her veins. She cried out in pain, thrashing as the odd purple energy heated her hand until it glowed, and her sweatshirt on her arm began to burn away.
The pain became unbearable, as visions and whispers of fire and lightning dancing beneath her skin tormented her. The blade stopped glowing, and slowly began to retreat from her hand. Leaving Catherine free to fall to the ground, the blood from her wound seemed to seep into the golden skin of the Box, as it began to glow, sparks of energy dancing between it's tip and corners. Catherine cradled her hand on the floor, feeling the blood lift from her arm, and flow through the air towards the violently glowing Box. Her hand glowed with the unique energy of the Box, an intricate design seemed to be burned into her hand. She looked up towards the box, now an imposing figure on it's pedestal, glowing, pulsating with energy.
The sparks grew bigger, all converging on the top of the Box. Then, a spear of purple and red energy lanced out from the top, slamming into the ceiling. The ceiling cracked, the fissures in the ceiling glowing hot with the energy. The beam of energy and light flared, and a jolt of energy lashed out at Catherine.
The last thing she saw was fire.
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Alias Kane slowly retreated from the shadows, looking down the hallway. Whomever it was that had come this way, must've left him behind, somehow not noticing the damaged keypad near the door. Looking back at the door, it was now slightly open, strange lights radiating from the room beyond. Before he had time to reach the door, the entire building shook, and a fierce light exploded from the room. Throwing open the door, Alias saw a girl, lying on the floor, her hand burning in a dark purple color. His gaze trailed upwards, and he saw an ornate, golden box, pouring whispers and beams of light from it's top. A second bolt of energy was loosed from the first, landing at the girl's feet, staining the floor back. Not waiting a second longer, Alias jumped into the room, scooping up the girl on the floor. The box glowed again, firing another bolt of purple-red energy at them. Unable to move fast enough, Alias held up his hand to protect the girl in his arms.
The light made contact, burning his flesh and leaving him in excruciating pain. Alias didn't stand much longer, he ran from the room, heading back down the hall. A frantic voice in his ear broke him from his frenzy.
"Kane! What is happening in there! There was a huge earthquake centered on the museum, and now the whole building is on fire!"
Vix, where's Vivian?"
"She's gone! She made a run for it as soon as the earthquake hit! What happened?"
"The Artifact was Pandora's Box, someone followed me inside, and now-"
[b]"Kane! I can't hear you anymore, you've cut out. You've got to get out of there. Find your way outside, I'm across the street!"
As Alias reached the top of the stairs, another tremor shook the building, a bright orange light passing over the walls, cracking them as it went. He pressed on, kicking through the staff door, another glowing quake splintering the floor beneath him, fire beginning to lick through the cracks. He kept running, finding most of the main paths blocked by rubble or fire. Other people were running as well, caught in the panic.
Alias stopped, pausing before the main chamber of the museum, running into security guards directing people towards the exits, trying to stay calm themselves. Just as he began to step into the room, the room shook violently, a large crack beginning to form in the center of the room. It leaked fire and energy, opening up to allow a large red and blue pillar of light to flow through, slamming against the ceiling, and smashing through it. Beneath them, Alias knew Pandora's Box lie just beneath the crater, and he quickly backed up. Those already in the main chamber were swept up into the air, and pulled towards the beam, spiraling around it before being burned alive when brought too close. Screams of panic and horror filled the air as the column of energy flared again, sending jolts out that pierced walls and impaled civilians.
Running down an adjacent hallway, Alias found the wall towards his left beginning to crumble, just beyond it lie gravity well caused by the Box. Sprinting down towards the end of the hall, he just barely made it to the door when the wall caved inwards, giving way to the power of Pandora's Box.
"My God, Alias! What is that beam? Get out of there, NOW!"
Not waiting to be told a second time, Alias turned down several more halls, narrowly avoiding the destruction being caused by the Box. Fires and lightning kept lancing outwards from the beam, closing passages and destroying hallways. The tremors continued, knocking parts of the building down, and igniting others. Finding a way towards a side exit, Alias ran through, leaping over a hall of fire and lightning that licked his clothes as he passed. The girl in his arms was lightly burned, but otherwise okay.
He finally let up as he passed through an arch, allowing him sight of the sky. The beam of energy from the Box curled upwards into the sky, twisting through a layer of black clouds. As he watched, the energy sparked, and a shockwave of red light exploded outwards, tearing down on the city. It passed through every street, lashing out bolts of energy at cars, causing small explosions, and people, burning them. The wave turned into a storm, as more shockwaves rippled out from the sky.
"Kane, get away from the Museum! Hurry!"
Alias stopped standing still, running down the flight of stairs, as the second shockwave tore what was left of the building apart. Just as he reached the streets, the red light passed over him. Nothing happened. He was fine. He looked up at the street, crowded with cars, fires sparsely dotting the streets. Small patches of energy seemed to hang in the air, left behind from the initial wave. Then time seemed to slow as the patches of energy shaped, forming bone, muscle, flesh, fur, and feathers. Suddenly, a Griffon stood atop the car, it wasting no time spearing it's beak into the window, dragging out the driver.
Alias didn't have much time to stay shocked, as another bolt of energy leaped out, caving the ground beneath his feet. The street fell in, and he was left sitting, cradling the girl. Quickly clambering back up towards the street, he ran as parts of other buildings and cars fell around him, destroyed by the energy storm ripping across the city.
"Kane, I'm cut off from the Museum, I'm taking the car over to the next block. Meet me there!"
Not bothering to respond, Alias ran towards the nearest building, a decimated coffee shop. As he neared the front entrance, a griffon flew overhead, dropping a taxi cab it had been carrying, landing just several feet behind Alias, and skidding into the rubble. Inside the shop, the situation wasn't better, fire covered the walls, and smoke choked his lungs. But it was safe from the monsters that had sprung up from the Box, so the temporary solace would have to do.
