Sign Of The Cross by Chris Kuzneski

were adorned with pictures of war. All of them, that is, except one – the one with the laughing man.
    ‘This man had to be an emperor. Or at the very least, a man of great power and wealth. He is the only person who is featured on his own cube.’
    ‘Plus he was on the arch. They obviously held him in high esteem.’
    ‘But why?’ Boyd pondered the question as he wrapped his fingers around the box. After a brief pause, he carefully slid his hands over the edge of the crate’s lid, making sure that it was sturdy enough to be moved without damage. ‘I know this goes against many of the things that I told you earlier, but -‘
    Maria nodded in understanding. ‘You want to see what’s inside.’
    ‘I have to. I can’t help it. It’s the young whipper-snapper in me.’
    ‘That’s all right. If you didn’t remove the lid, I was going to get a crowbar and do it myself.’
    It took nearly five minutes to ease the stone cover from its tight-fitting seam, but once they did, they were able to lift it with little difficulty. It was much lighter than they had expected.
    ‘Careful!’ Boyd begged. ‘This stone could provide us with important clues about the identity of this man. I’d hate for anything to happen to it.’
    The duo lowered the chiseled lid onto the floor, making sure they didn’t scratch it. Then, once they were satisfied with its positioning, they rushed to the box to see what they had found.
    ‘Bring the light closer. Quickly!’
    Maria grabbed the flashlight and pointed it into the box. The bright stream of light overwhelmed the darkness, revealing the sole object inside: a slender bronze cylinder.
    ‘What is it?’ she asked.
    Boyd smiled while removing the eight-inch bronze cylinder with his gloved hand. ‘It’s a twin, my dear. An identical twin.’
    ‘A twin?’
    ‘The documents that I found in England – the documents that led us to the Catacombs – were stored in an
identical
bronze cylinder… Do you know what that means?’
    ‘No! What?’
    Boyd laughed. ‘I have no idea, but I bet it’s bloody important!’
    Maria smiled, but in her heart she knew something was going on that Boyd wasn’t talking about. She could sense it from the way he cradled the cylinder, treating it with a parental tenderness that was usually reserved for newborns. ‘
Professore?
May I look at it?’
    He grimaced, reluctant to part with the artifact. ‘Be very careful, my dear. Until we open it, there’s no telling what may be inside. The contents could be quite delicate.’
    She nodded, although she sensed that Boyd was being melodramatic. Nevertheless, she obeyed his wishes and treated the discovery with the utmost respect. ‘Wow! It seems so incredibly light. Are you sure this is the same type of cylinder that you found in Bath?’
    ‘Positive!’ Boyd brought his flashlight closer to the object and pointed out a series of small engravings that could barely be seen. ‘I’m not sure if this symbol can be translated, but I found an identical marking on the other one as well.’
    Maria ran her finger over the triangular carvings, trying to probe the subtle indentations in the metal. The engraving on the cylinder was so shallow she could barely feel anything. ‘Why is this so faint? I can barely see it.’
    ‘I don’t know,’ Boyd admitted. ‘It could’ve been worn down over time, or perhaps it was the style of the particular engraver. I’m hoping the contents of the canister will give us a clue.’
    ‘That’s if there’s something inside.’
    The look on Boyd’s face proved that he wasn’t amused. In response, he snatched the artifact from Maria’s grasp. ‘We don’t have the correct tools to open this. I need to go upstairs to get them.’ She winced, not realizing what had caused his sudden mood swing. ‘While I’m gone, make yourself useful and finish filming this room.’
    ‘Of course. Whatever you want, sir.’
    ‘Well, that’s what I want.’ Boyd took two steps through the