20th July, 2023
4:15 pm
The Eclipse Cultural Museum is at the moment full to the brim with visitors. It has been only 15 minutes since the Special Week of the Museum started, and it's already full of polar bears.
Lucian, with his friends, entered the line with the same costumes, all pretty much looking the same.
But, some people in the crowd had extra accessories like bags, including Lucian and his friends.
"You guys did come here before, right?", Dale asked, pointing towards Gary and Lucian, while being the first of the four friends in the line.
"Yeah we did. But it wasn't this full with people that day!", Gary said.
"A lot of things have changed for sure, look at the colors!", Lucian expressed, while looking around.
"I heard that Emily Adams was a part of this theme, by the way, what did you guys do?", Miles asked, looking at Gary.
"Us? Ahh..We did the costumes, partly.", Gary said.
"Oh that's why these sucks, so this was your plan.", Dale looked at Gary and Lucian.
"Yeah, like what are these masks for? I can barely see things.", Miles said.
"Shut up, see forward. The line is going on.", Gary told Miles, pointing at Dale, as the line went a little forward.
Lucian was still gazing around, as he was watching certain parts of the museum, he was remembering the last time he got here.
In around 20 minutes, Lucian reached the 10th piece, while everyone was gazing at the paintings, tasting its artistic beauty with their eyes.
16th July, 2023
As Lucian and Gary were walking with the line, Lucian was stopping and taking a good look around the museum.
The line starts going forward almost every 2 minutes. But the special days will have a lot more visitors than now, so I'll consider that as just 2 minutes. So if one art piece takes 2 minutes, 16 will take 32. I'll have to be present in front of the 16th piece at exactly 4:47 pm. Which means, we will have to enter the line around 4:15 pm. It will make it much easier for me, as I'll have to move less.
"Let's go forward, Lucian!", Gary said.
"Huh?"
20th July,2023
"Oh yeah", Lucian told Gary as he went forward. Gary was the 3rd one of the friends, Lucian being the last.
"Look at this one, it's a unique one! A human-like beast who is climbing its way to heaven!", Dale said.
"Right! I have no idea what that means though, I'm less into conceptual ones you know.", Miles replied quickly.
"Well, then what do you think about the next ones then?", Gary said to Miles pointing at the 16th piece, which they were about to go infront of, while Dale already did.
Lucian became the ghost infront of everyone, but no one noticed as both of them looked the same.
As the city-wide electric blackout was on its way, Lucian was positioned infront of the 16th piece, apparently by fate.
Lucian was looking at the art, along with Gary, when memories of 16th July struck Lucian's mind again.
16th July, 2023
So this is the one I'll have to steal. It's even better to look at it in person.
All original paintings placed in museums have their trademarks, which are usually hidden, in order to protect them from duplicity.
Gary was looking at the same painting.
The trademark is nowhere in the front of the painting, and I assume it's not in the back either, because it'll be too easy to find otherwise. So it has to be somewhere else. Is it inside the painting frame? It is possible.
Just as Lucian was thinking, he noticed a small button-like point under the painting frame.
Is that the button that has the trademark inside it? A pretty baseless assumption but there is...a way to confirm this.
"Hey Gary! Wait for me, I'm getting a call!", Lucian raised his voice.
"It's fine! I'm right here!", Gary shouted from a distance as he went forward already.
"Hey, Elias, where are the trademarks in the paintings in your museum?", Lucian whispered through his phone quickly.
"Huh?", Elias replied.
"Quickly, it's essential for the theft!", Lucian said.
"Our trademarks are usually on the back of the paintings.", Elias said, increasing his talking speed.
"Oh. Do you know of any museum which places their trademarks inside the painting frames itself?", Lucian said, lowering his voice even more.
"I do. Actually most of them place it inside.", Elias said.
"That's all I need to know, thanks.", Lucian cut the phone instantly.
That button most probably does contain the trademark then, I'll have to wear the night goggles on that day, so I'll be able to remove the trademark better, and the smoothening oil, which will cover up the traces of the removed trademark sticker.
"Gary, wait for me!", Lucian went towards Gary.
"How is the 16th piece?", Gary asked Lucian.
20th July, 2023
"Oh, it's exceptiona- just as Lucian was about to complete his sentence, the world around him became pitch black.
At the very moment it became dark, the chaos rose. The people unaware of this blackout started shouting each other's names. The guards standing at the 1st,10th and 20th piece were telling the crowd to calm down and wait a few seconds till the electricity came back.
The ticking of clocks became much more intense as the crowd went to the path of silence.
Some people even turned on their phone flashlights.
"You guys don't have to turn on flashlights, the feeling I get from dark places is something else!", Miles said excitedly.
"Yeah yeah we are doing nothing at all!", Gary said.
"Where's Lucian, can you hear him?", Dale asked.
"Yeah, here he is, Lucian?", Gary asked, trying to observe him.
Just after around 1 second, a voice came as a reply, "I'm right here, I'm just tying my shoelace!", Lucian said, from a little isolated place as the line went forward a little bit, leaving Lucian alone infront of the 16th piece, outside the line.
Just after 28 seconds, the lights came back, and Lucian was just where his friends saw him before the blackout, behind Gary.
After reaching the 20th piece, the last one, they were preparing for the exit, but the line became completely static as an announcing voice from the speakers in the museum spoke up.
"Attention, all the visitors and the staff! The 16th piece has been stolen from this museum during the blackout! Don't let any of the visitors exit yet! The thief is one of them!".
Shit. If they found the missing painting even after just a few seconds, we would have been out.
The expressions in the crowd changed, some becoming shocked, some becoming careful.
The guards quickly shaped a square shaped line made of visitors, ready to investigate them.
Through the large number of people, Lucian and his friends were placed around the front row.
As they were going through people's clothes and bags, people were chatting, most probably about 'The Ghost', and how he might be in this heist.
The guards finally came towards Lucian's part of the line. As Miles was infront the line, the guards checked him first.
After the guard checked his clothes, he went for his bag. As everyone was looking towards the guards, excitement flowed within them as they were hoping for 'The Ghost' to be caught.
The guard invents the 16th piece from Mile Gray's bag, saying "So..You are the one....