The Exact Opposite of Good

Not having had the chance to go through the Jewels exhibit yet, I didn't immediately recognize our location. It was a larger room with a number of display cases visible in the dim lighting. At the center of this space was Ms. Chapman with her hands also bound behind her back, the gun man, and a case with a solitary green jewel. The scene was illuminated by one major light as well as a light in the display case with the green jewel. This I found odd as it was the only such display case to be so lit. Why would that one case still have power?

On the fringe of the hazy light I could make out a couple of other gun men. Either they didn't notice me rolling over or they had no instructions to shoot me if I did. Good. Finally something going our way.

Boss gun man was working the case open to get at the jewel inside. You would think that the prize of the collection, as this clearly was, would be hard to fence. Perhaps he already had a private collector lined up to buy it. Or maybe he planned to hold it for ransom. Its not like he shared his plan with us. Really, why should he? He's here to steal it and we want to prevent that if at all possible. The rest is currently only details.

The gun man's fidgeting paid off as the case finally came loose. He smiled as he removed it and set it aside. “Finally!”

As he reached for the gem, my blood ran cold. Suddenly I realized that the gem wasn't glowing due to some light hidden in the case, it was glowing on its own! Instinctively I knew this was a Bad Thing. I struggled to sit up, which can be surprisingly difficult when your hands are bound behind your back. “No! Don't touch it!”

I was ignored. Boss gun man picked up the jewel. The glow grew brighter. It was in his closed hand and I could still see it glowing through the flesh of his hand! An eerie glow that screamed of things not right.

We all seemed to realize that this was a Bad Thing. Ms. Chapman had a front row seat for the show and her eyes were open wide in alarm. Even the gun men, barely visible to me, were shifting around nervously. Boss gun man just stood there, frozen, green light pouring from his hand.

The room grew cold. At least it felt colder. Maybe it was just fear that sent shivers up and down my spine. I fought at my bonds, knowing I needed my mobility. This just felt bad.

One of the gun men stepped forward from the gloom into the light. “Paul? You okay man?” Concerned, he rested his hand on Boss gun man's shoulder.

The man's eyes rolled back into his head. Limply, he fell to the floor. Ms. Chapman's mouth opened, I think to scream, but no sound emerged. My heart was racing. I wanted to climb to my feet and run but my body was frozen. I just sat there and stared. Somehow I knew that man was dead.

Slowly, Boss gun man moved his head to observe the crumpled body at his feet. “There is no Paul. There is only Set.”