10 Minute Tales, Part 2

Aug 18 - Artifact

He stumbled into the chamber, nearly falling over. That last trap was brutal! He could see the floor rising, now sliding past the doorframe and out of sight. He caught his breath as the trap stopped with a rumbling thud. Once his breath was back, he looked around. The room he found himself in was massive! Giant, worn murals adorned every wall, scrawled and highlighted with the same hieroglyphs that had adorned the entire temple. There were chambers filled with something that glimmered to the sides, a sight that filled him with hope. He descended the stairs, examining each carefully. There were no more raised tiles - or, indeed, tiles of any kind, the stairs were formed of a smooth, marbled stone he didn't recognise. He reached the floor of this grand hall, looking around. The piles he saw earlier were glimmering in the light of his torch. Treasure. Piles of treasure! He couldn't help his greed, rushing over to the nearest and looking it over.

"Incredible..." he brought a handful of coins up, picking one up and examining it. "Thousands of years, just... here." He looked around again, admiring the murals. They seemed to depict various stories, but he didn't have the patience to translate it. If he couldn't get out the way he came in, he needed to find another exit. He looked around some more, slipping his bag off of his shoulder and dropping it onto the ground. There was so much to document, to learn, to salvage... he barely knew where to begin.

-----

An hour had passed. He had taken enough photos to finish the roll of film, and he had bagged as much as he could carry. All that was left was a large pedestal, suspended in the centre of the room. There was nothing but a single pendant on the pedestal, reflecting the light above in a way that brought serenity to him.

"This is it, huh?" he looked around. "Something about this pendant has to be special. Centre of the room..." he looked around again. "Yeah, this was vital. Preaching platform?" he looked at the pendant, lifting it up. It was a small piece, made with solid gold. There was a single hieroglyph engraved on the front; set in the back was a marvellous, pure ruby that almost seemed to glow slightly in the faint light. "I can see why, this thing's beautiful..." he lifted it, using one hand to open the chain up. He heard whispering voices in his mind, seemingly echoing from nowhere, bouncing around in his skull. He lowered the pendant and looked around. As soon as the pendant was moved, the voices stopped. "Hello?" he called out, nervous. "Is anyone in here?" He was met with deafening silence. He looked around some more, still confused, but returned his attention to the pendant. He cautiously lifted it up again and the voices returned. "Nope, nu-uh, cursed pendant!" He slammed it back on the pedestal, backing up quickly. His foot missed the stairs and he tumbled. The light from above was the last sight he saw.