Centum Malediction

Chapter 1-2

Friday, September 17th. 2010

Another dreamless sleep was broken by Michael's blaring alarm clock. His alarm was loud enough to wake everyone in the house. Fortunately, he was always the last one awake. Just like every morning, Michael had to rush to get ready for school. He set his alarm to go off only fifteen minutes before the school bus's arrival. This gave him five minutes to shower, five minutes to eat, and five minutes to get to the bus stop.

His room was incredibly small. It was actually a single room split in two that he shared with his sister. The room was separated only by a thick curtain that their father had hung up so they could have some privacy. The door in and out of the room was on her side, which is why they had made a pact that she would wake up and get ready first so he wouldn't barge in on her. Once Michael's alarm went off, it meant that he was escaping their room.

Michael made his way to the only bathroom, his clothes in hand. He hated how big he had grown in the past couple of years. It made him feel cramped everywhere in his house. The shower was a small square stand up shower with no tub. It was always a hassle to get to his shampoo and avoid all the products his sister used.

As he showered his mind wandered back to the museum. He had hoped a good night's sleep would let him get his mind off of it, but it still lingered. He kept feeling guilty when he thought about knocking over the armor, which was strange since vandalizing ancient artifacts didn't even make the top ten list of most horrible things he'd done.

His shower lasted a little longer than five minutes, meaning it cut into his breakfast time. He made his way to the kitchen, jogging through the hallway where the bedrooms and bathroom were. He grabbed his usual bowl of cereal before joining his dad on the couch in front of the TV. He took a look at the clock, seven minutes until the bus was due, and it could come early, so he had to eat fast.

"Good morning Michael." Dad said with his usual exhausted tone. Michael gave him a silent nod, stuffing his face with a quick spoonful of cereal. Like every morning his dad had the local news on. A very attractive blonde stood in front of a camera, reporting an incident at the museum Michael had been at yesterday. Michael's eyes widened, had he finally done something newsworthy?

"Security guard Elijah French was found dead this morning. Investigators are still trying to determine cause of death. His body seems to have suffered third degree burns, yet there is no evidence of a fire." The reporter said strongly, reading the words from the teleprompter above the camera. Michael felt both a huge sense of relief and disappointment that it wasn't him who had made the news. He obviously had nothing to do with the death of a random security guard.

"Weren't you there yesterday?" Dad asked.

"Yeah, didn't see any security guards though." Michael responded with a loud crunch from his cereal.

"I'm just glad nothing happened when you were there, this death seems suspicious." He responded. Michael just shrugged. "I'm working overtime tonight, so I'm counting on you to take care of dinner for your sister."

Michael's crunching stopped. "Dad, I'm supposed to hang out with Damien tonight." He pleaded, frustrated.

"Tough, your family comes first. I taught you that a long time ago." Dad responded. Michael just let out a grunt of annoyance then stood up, finishing off his cereal and returning the bowl to the kitchen. He would do what his father asked, but he wouldn't be happy about it.

Michael's sister was not an average child. She had a physical condition that made her very weak, something to do with her bones. It made doing anything around the house impossible for her. Michael knew she could do more then she let on, but didn't press the issue. She suffered enough, unlike other kids her age. She never got to play at recess.