The Thulium Amulet

            The barbell clanged down hard onto the bench. Had there been anyone else in the gym surely Joe would have drawn their attention. As it was, he had the place all to himself. The average gym goer tended to not be there at three in the morning. Joseph Millhand was no average gym goer.

            He sat up on the bench and took a deep breath. The place smelled of antiseptic and bleach. He wrung his hands together to remove the sting from the bar. He was wearing a dark blue t-shirt and black shorts. His boots were well worn and designed for keeping his toes intact on a job site, not for hitting a personal best bench press.

            Joe was a hulk of a man. He had been small in school and was occasionally bullied. He decided long ago he was tired of fighting, and he figured he could win most battles by simply looking intimidating. So that is what he did, he looked intimidating. And through it all he ended up having the strength to back up the look. After thirty-one years on this planet Joe felt accomplished.

            A young girl wearing a “Gold’s Gym” long sleeved shirt walked up to Joe. She was probably ten years younger than Joe and was clearly low on the seniority list as she got stuck working the graveyard shift. Her blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail, her bright orange shoes were almost blinding even in the well-lit gym.

            “Don’t you sweat?” she asked, tapping her watch as Joe stood up and removed the plates from the bar.

            “Shit. Is it past four already?”

            “You’re going to be late again. I’ll put the plates back, just go.” She looked at the bench and let out a slight sigh and said more to herself than Joe, “well, someone will put them away.”

            Joe grabbed his sweatshirt and ran for the door.

            “Sorry, Angela! I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”

            “Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard that one before.” Angela looked at the bench and let out a heavy sigh. “I’m not touching those, that’s over four hundred pounds. Scott can do it when he gets here.”

            Joe pulled his rusted Ford pickup into the job site wearing a heavy coat, jeans, and the same dirty boots from the gym. His brown hair stuck out from underneath his baseball cap.  Multiple cranes were already dancing together in a well-rehearsed ballet. He jumped out of his truck and was engulfed by the dust cloud his vehicle had unearthed. He walked quickly toward his work vehicle.

            “You’re late. Again.”

            “I know, Tom. I hit a personal best.”

            “I don’t care about your meathead recreational activity. Get your ass in that seat and move some dirt! We have a schedule to keep.” Tom turned away from Joe and winced just a bit, he knew Joe was the best, but he couldn’t let the tardiness slide, if he let one dog be late, the whole pack would follow suit.

            Joe climbed onto his giant metal dinosaur and opened the door. He shivered as he stepped into the cabin and sat down. He moved a few levers and pushed a few buttons and the large crane bellowed to life, spitting dark exhaust and fumes into the atmosphere.

            Joe maneuvered the machine with deft precision, pulling dirt from a small hole and depositing it into a waiting dump truck. Back and forth, earth to truck, earth to truck. Soon Joe was in a state of flow. He was barely thinking about what he was doing, and his mind wandered to his feats of strength. He smiled, recalling his top lift from the morning. He was so entranced he didn’t notice the earth behind his excavator starting to loosen. It started as a small hole about fifty feet behind him. Slowly the edge of the whole inched further, in almost a perfect circle, like a ripple on a flat pond. Suddenly the plain opened its mouth as dirt and grass fell into the growing sinkhole. The debris disappeared below.

            Joe snapped back to the present. He quickly moved some levers and the treads on his vehicle spurred into action. They spit dirt behind him into the growing Sarlacc Pit. Time felt slow to Joe, almost like he was under water. His co-workers looked on in horror as the giant excavator tipped slightly backwards. The treads stopped spinning as Joe was suspended right on the edge of the sinkhole. Then Joe was gone, a cartoonish dust cloud the only reminder of his hulking machine.

            Joe coughed. He was surrounded by a twisted mess of metal and dirt. A small wound dripped fresh blood from his head, but miraculously he was relatively unharmed. However, he was trapped. A hunk of metal pinned him to his faux leather seat. He pushed against it as if he was attempting a bench press, hours of training finally having a real-world application. His muscles strained as he pressed against the metal; it groaned in protest but slowly shifted against his might.

            In one final motion, Joe tossed his would-be sarcophagus lid off to the side. He coughed again and slowly rose to his feet.  He looked around. He was in some sort of ancient tomb. Elaborate statues of giant humanoid creatures surrounded him, and an even larger door made of a dark stone was off to his right. Joe dusted off his jeans and approached the door. He looked up and could see the sky, figuring he must have fallen at least a hundred feet. The ground beneath his was also solid, dark, stone. Joe could see symbols carved into the stone, but he had no idea what they meant.

            Joe pushed on the door and it creaked open. Inside was a giant throne with a giant skeleton sitting upon it. The skeleton was at least ten feet above Joe suggesting the creature was almost twenty feet tall when standing fully erect. The skeleton wore a bright yellow suit of armor, a large sword resting tip down in its right hand. The armor and sword showed no wear and looked shiny and brand new, perfectly preserved amongst the decay. A small metallic object rested at the giant skeleton’s feet.

            Joe shuffled toward the object, feeling a slight pain his right ankle. It was a pale silver chain with a small brooch on one side. The brooch was a circle with five lines crossing through the top of the circle converging in the center. The amulet pulsed with green light. Joe shuffled toward the treasure, obtaining it becoming his sole purpose. He reached down slowly and touched the brooch.

            A bright light flashed, and the air around Joe began to shimmer. The old decrepit room began to renew itself. The stone had a shimmer to it, as if it was brand new.  There were large tapestries cascading down the walls. Each depicting the giant figures in battle with a different creature. Joe thought he spotted a dragon but was uncertain. The throne was also new, but it was empty.

            Six giant figures emerged from behind each of the tapestries. There were over twenty feet tall, but their features were shrouded in a shimmer, as if the detail was being actively erased. Two had giant two-handed swords, two had giant halberds, the last two wielded giant spears. They closed in on Joe in unison. Joe spun around looking for an escape route, but he was surrounded. The figures continued step-dragging toward Joe until their weapons all pierced his skin at the same time.

            Joe awoke in the hospital, the slow but steady beat of his heartbeat the only sound filling the room. He was hooked up to various tubes and hoses. In a panic, Joe checked himself for wounds and was relieved when he found none. During the body check, his hand brushed against a metallic object around his neck. He jumped out of bed and rushed to the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror. The amulet hung around his neck, sized more for his frame than when he found it. He touched it in awe as it glowed a dull light.

            “Glorious, isn’t it?” The voice came from behind Joe.

            Joe spun around to see a short man standing behind him. The man was dressed in a dark grey suit with salt and pepper hair. He was clean shaven with sharp facial features. Joe figured he was probably in his fifties.

            “Who the hell are you, and what are you doing in my room?” Joe asked.

            “That belongs to me” the man pointed at the amulet.

            Joe touched the amulet once again. He felt a rush of energy cover his body. Suddenly his skin seemed to harden, like a leather belt. He felt the room get slightly smaller. He looked at his hands in awe as they seemed to grow right before his eyes. He looked back at the man. For just a second the man’s facial features were hidden in a shimmer and Joe swore he thought the man was suddenly huge and was hunched over, his head bumping up on the ceiling.

            “You’re one of them, aren’t you? What are you? An alien?” Joe asked.

            “You might consider me an alien, yes. I am not from this world. Now, please, give me the amulet.”

            Just then a nurse entered the room. She looked at Joe as he spun around to face her.

            “You shouldn’t be out of bed, you took a nasty fall. What’s wrong with your skin?” She approached Joe and lightly touched his arm. Joe looked behind him, but the giant was gone. He pulled away from the nurse, jerking his arm back.

            “Calm down sir, let me help you.” She said.

            “No! I’m fine, where are my clothes? I have to get out of here.” Joe started tossing the contents of the room searching for his belongings.

            “Sir! Sir! Please stop, you need to get back into bed.” She approached him again. “If you don’t calm down I’m going to call security.”

            She walked toward the door as Joe spun around once more to face her.

            “No, don’t. I’m fine.” Joe reached out his hand toward the nurse. As he did so, a bolt of bright purple energy burst from his finger tips and slammed into the nurse. All that remained was a cloud of embers and ash, she was gone.

            Joe looked at his hand in disgust. “Oh my god! What did I do? What happened?”

            “She’s gone. You killed her. Give me the amulet before you kill anyone else.” The man was back. This time Joe was certain, he towered over Joe, filling the room. His hand outstretched toward Joe.

            Joe put his arms up in a defensive posture and said, “Get away from me, please, I don’t understand what’s happening.”

            “You murdered that poor nurse. I can help you. Give me the amulet.”

            “Did it do that? Was that purple light from the amulet? Here take it.” Joe unhooked the amulet and tried to hand it over to the figure, but just as fast as he unhooked it, the amulet flew back onto Joe’s neck and clasped itself onto Joe’s neck. Joe looked around the room in shock and fear.

            The figure approached Joe once more. “I grow tired of this game. GIVE ME THE AMULET CHILD!” he bellowed.

            Joe retreated away from the figure, backing into the corner. The creature continued forward. It grabbed Joe on top of his head with a giant, long fingered hand. It lifted him off ground and placed its other hand onto Joe’s torso.

            The door opened once more, and another nurse walked into the room. “Michelle? Are you in here? What the…”

            Joe reached out toward the nurse and purple light engulfed his hand. The giant snapped Joe’s arm as the purple pulse erupted. It flew over the nurse’s head and burned a giant hole into the wall, sparks, embers, and ash falling to the ground. The nurse placed her hand over her gaping mouth and backed into the corner. She slunk down to the floor. Joe’s arm hung useless, bone sticking out.

            The creature turned his attention back to Joe. He grabbed his torso again and in one swift motion tore Joe’s head from his body. The creature dropped Joe’s body and severed head catching the amulet before it could hit the ground. It put the amulet around its own neck and shrunk back down to normal size, its features shimmering back into a normal human. It pointed an outstretched hand toward Joe’s lifeless corpse, Joe’s face locked in a grimace of shock. Bright purple light erupted from the monster’s hand and Joe’s body and head were gone, once again all that remained was ash and embers.

            The creature turned and walked toward the door. As it approached the door it gave a slight nod toward the nurse cowering on the floor. It walked toward the door, but instead of opening the door and walking out it walked through the door and was gone.