“Help us.”

“Someone has to be there, please help us.”

The whispers appeared to come from the walls of the blacking room. Bangs sounded out from beneath the wooden floor, and worst of all inside of the colourful display cases that were supposed to contain the mummies.

“Please, please help.”

“Why does no one ever help us.”

Taking the large flashlight in his right hand, Casey ran the beam of light around the darkening room. The room was a vast space containing some of the larger and main pieces of the museum. The room was understandably the most popular. With this night been the first one of a trial shift he was great-full to the man teaching him. A loud bang sounded from the right far corner of the room that made Casey stop in his tracks. Ian the man that was, for tonight at least his teacher had waited at the main desk near the entrance. He thought that he would be able to handle this sweep of the premises alone. He walked further into the room and stoped dead again when he head, what could only be described as nails scratching on walls made him spin around to his left. He listened for a moment. Nothing but the silence of the space greeted him now. Then it started, whispering from all corners of the the room. Many voices all whispered at him. He dropped the light to the floor and fled from the room before the bang it made stoped echoing.

Casey ran from the main exhibit room. “What the hell was all that?” He shouted breathless towards the main entrance of the building. His breathing was coming out hard and fast and he could tell he was already sweating, but not from the running. As soon as the sun started to set it was like the museum had come alive. “Just a quick sweep of the place.” That’s what the older man that was training him had said. It had seemed such a straight forward task at the time that the man had mentioned it, but now that he was running towards the main desk of the building he wasn’t so sure. Casey had no clue what he had just heard, but whatever it had been had drained the colour from his face and left his limbs shaking. “What was that in the room?” He asked as soon as he reached the front desk. Ian turned in the small desk chair and looked at Casey who had ran towards him in a state of panic. “What’s what?” Ian asked appearing not to be alarmed by the state of the new employee. “The bangs in the room, the whispering. The room, it was silent and then….” Casey couldn’t get the words out of what he had just experienced.

“I understand that whatever you think you heard has alarmed you, but look it’s nothing.” Ian said keen on dismissing the younger man and his worry’s about that room in particular.

Ian had to get the man to take the job. It was Casey’s trial shift but it was more to see if the man would want to work in that place and not the other way around. Ian had had enough, he couldn’t stay there anymore and he had felt that way for along time. The problem was he couldn’t find anyone that would take his place and let him leave the job that he had been in for way too long. Casey was the only one left that could set him free.

When he took the job many years ago, he had come running from that main room just like this man had now done. Ian could remember it as if it was yesterday. Running out of there, his legs feeling as if they were going to fail him with every fast paced step that he made just to get away from the sounds that had just flooded his head. The man that had showed him around that very first night had said the words that he had just muttered himself, the very words that he swore to himself that he would never say, he swore that he would never force anyone to take this job, he would never trap anyone in the way that he was trapped. But now here he was, and not for the first time trying to make someone take his place so that he would finally be free.

Ian had picked Casey for the trial because he knew that he was desperate for the job. The others had been more qualified for the position of night time security but that wouldn’t of worked, those people could get jobs anywhere and the likelihood of them wanting to work in the museum after the first night would have been zero. No he knew that he needed someone who was desperate for money and he had gotten lucky with Casey. A family man down on his luck and soon to be on the streets if he didn’t find a paying job fast. Ian did feel bad for tricking what seemed like a perfectly nice and decent human being, but that’s one of the things that a night shift in this place could turn the nicest of people into wanting to survive.

There was a darkness in the museum, something that ever object that was on display seemed to have. The darkness dominated every corner of the place and each artefact contained its own sprit. A spirit that was trapped inside of it that screamed and begged for help from whoever was nearby. These voices seemed to disappear during the day, perhaps because of the many visitors that the place attracted drowned them out with the noise that many people being crowded into a room brings. But at night when the doors closed and the darkness came, these sprits came awake, whispering and begging for someone to help them escape whatever torment they were going through at being trapped inside the items. These spirts weren’t just the prisoners though, they were the keepers too, they kept the person who’s job it was to watch over the objects. As soon as someone new take on the job, their souls become trapped in the place, joining those that have been dead for hundreds of years. Ian had tried to leave many times but they kept him there, the only way out was to find a replacement, someone else’s sole they have instead of his. Casey was the only option.

“Follow me back to the room, I promise you there is nothing there.” Standing from the chair he moved slowly around the desk, all the while saying a silent prey that the soles in that room would be peaceful just for a little bit, just long enough to convince Casey that it had been a thing of his own imagination. Walking through the double oak doors Ian flicked on the light. Bright white lights lit up above them and small bulbs illuminated each of the glass cabinets. “You see it’s just an old room, sometimes they creek because of age or just because, but there is nothing to be afraid of in here.” Ian spoke as if his life depended on it, and in some way it did.

“It wasn’t just bangs that I heard, it was voices.” Casey’s voice shook still from what he had been through. Ian felt for him but he knew that this was the only way.

“Sometimes anything can seem like a voice. These floorboards will have you thinking up all sorts, trust me. I have been doing this a long time.” Ian relaxed a little inside, a calm of sorts had set over the young mans face.

“You sure it was just creeks, no voices?” Ian forced a laugh. “I promise you mate, these old buildings do have a habit of playing tricks on the mind.” He had done it, he knew that he had said enough to convince Casey that he had made it up. “Look you need this job and it’s yours if you want it. I am leaving, this is my last shift. So what do you say. Will you take it?”

Casey thought that all his prays had been answered in that moment. Everything that he thought he had experienced a few moments ago became a distant memory in his mind. He needed this job after all, he needed it for his family. “Yes ok I’ll take it. Thank you.”

The words hit Ian’s ears as though the finest of music was drifting through the air. “I’ll be back soon.” That was the last thing he needed to say to the man that had just let his long dead body rest in peace.

The museum, and the soles that lay within take any man who says that they will over see the safe keeping of their objects. They take out the sole of that person, killing the body of that what lives on earth and trapping them with them. Ian walked back towards the front desk, somewhere that for years he had been unable to walk beyond, but this time instead of stopping he carried on knowing that as soon as he pushed the main doors open he would be no more. He would cease to exists, but also so would Casey. Placing his cold hand out to touch the metal, he paused. Could he really do this to another human being? Could he be responsible for that mans death? This was his only chance to rest without the whisperings of the artefacts. Pushing the door open a centimetre he froze and stepped backwards. He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t be that person to take another man from his family. No he would have to stay and rest amongst them. Casey would be the one to remain free.