From this distance, Ken could see the guard. He was hiding out behind a nearby building next to the museum. The guard patrolled around near the museum's entrance. How would he get in?
His phone buzzed in his pocket. It was a call from Will.
"Hey", Ken whispered.
"Hi. How does it look?", asked Will.
"Not great", said Ken. "I didn't realize this exhibition thing was so serious. They even have guards outside"
"They probably have expensive things in there. Just.... focus on getting your bag back, and try not to touch anything. You'll be fiine."
Ken ducked behind his cover as the guard turned towards his direction in his patrol. A cold wind picked up and ruffled his hair. The sound of the wind might be good enough to cover him. But the front entrance didn't seem like a good option.
"Why can't I just ask the guard?", asked Ken. "He seems nice enough"
"And risk him finding what's in your bag", said Will. "Why don't you just call the cops on me while you're at it!"
"Okay fine, but this is too risky. I'll just come back and get it in the morning" said Ken.
"What is risky is someone else finding it! The more we wait, the higher the chance of that happening. And let's not forget who was dumb enough to forget their bag in there"
"Argh, fine!"
Will could be so goddamn annoying sometime. But he was right. That thing in his bag was definitely a safety hazard.
"I'm not seeing a way in. I'll circle around and see if there's another way. I'll call you back once I'm in" said Ken, and cut the call.
Covered by shadows and muffled by the wind, Ken waited for the guard to turn the other way and made his way down the left side of the University Museum.
Stoneheart University was famous and old. It had plenty of knickknacks collected over a century. The University was holding an Exhibition showing off said knickknacks they usually kept in storage. Unfortunately for Ken that meant getting his Backpack back was gonna be more annoying than he thought it would be.
As Ken made his way around the side he saw an open window. The high narrow kind that is usually connected to a bathroom. A Janitor probably opened it while cleaning or something. He didn't want to mess up his jacket but he didn't have much of a choice.
After a couple of failed jumps attempting to grab the ledge, he finally got it. He grunted as he slowly pulled himself up, using his elbows, scraping his knees against the wall trying to kick off it. He heaved himself over and inside, landing and hurting the soles of his feet. He massaged his feet leaning against the bathroom wall. He wasn't exactly an athlete.
"Owwww"
He looked around the bathroom, he could barely see it from the light of the street lamps coming in through the window. He made his way to the door, opened it, and stepped into the museum hall.
It was a little creepy seeing the museum at night. It was completely dark and quiet. There was such a profound lack of... life. He was so used to seeing students shuffling around, that their absence bothered him.
Okay, now what? His bag should be somewhere near the entrance he remembered leaving it there before he went inside earlier that day. He made his way through the exhibitions. Strange collected from over the years. Old stone statues and tools. Items belonging to famous historical men and women. He almost felt like some of the statues were watching him.
He even saw a set of broken glasses belonging to Karl Borman. Apparently, he broke a lot of his glasses in battle (he read on the plaque). He also worked as a spy in the war against the Twisted.
He arrived at the front entrance and looked around in the shadows. He sighed, frustrated, and pulled out his phone's flashlight to see better. It wasn't there anymore.
He tried and failed to suppress the panic spiking within him. This wasn't good. What if someone took it? Well, he would be okay so long as the bag couldn't be traced back to him. Oh, who was he kidding, It would definitely be traced back to him.
Wait, he just needed to think for a second. It was more likely that someone working found it and took it to the lost and found, maybe at the front desk. Yeah, that makes sense.
He was in a giant rectangular hall with two hallways leading further into the building. Next to the wall facing away from the entrance, there was a semicircular booth. His bag was probably there if someone collected it. He prayed silently as he jogged over. He put his hands on the counter and leaned over.
Yes! It was on the ground next to what seemed like a collection of umbrellas, books, and phone chargers. He leaped over the counter and unzipped his bag. It was still there. Oh, thank god. Now all he had to do was-
He tilted his head. He thought he heard a sound. No, he must have imagined it. He heard what seemed to be the sound of footsteps down the hallway.
Someone else was in here with him.