Breaking the Curse

Kate rushed down the hall holding tightly to the canister in her hands. She couldn’t get out the door fast enough. She was certain that the scientists in the Lab were closely following her. She tried to be as inconspicuous as possible to not draw the attention of the receptionist who appeared to be deeply involved in the magazine she had opened in front of her. Kate flashed a brief smile at the receptionist who looked up as Kate hurried past. She was almost to the big double doors that dwarfed the entrance to the Lab. She took a quick glance behind her and let out a huge sigh of relief to see that there was no one following her. Just the bored receptionist who had already gone back to reading her magazine. She clutched the canister to her chest with one hand and pushed open the door with the other. She had made it. She felt a giddiness in her stomach as the cool night air enveloped her just as the darkness outside surrounded her. She quickly got into her car, locked the doors and took off just as fast as she could. 

Once inside the safety of her apartment, she felt brave enough to chip away at the wax that sealed the top of the canister. Whatever was inside, Kate knew that someone out there thought it was worth killing for. Her hope was that inside the canister was her salvation. 

She slowly twisted off the cap and looked inside. There was a small vial surrounded by what looked like tapioca pudding protecting it from any damage. She grabbed some tongs from the kitchen drawer and carefully pulled the vial out of the canister. It had an iridescent glow radiating from the bright green liquid that was bubbling inside the vial. Could this be the answer to all her problems? Was this the magic potion that would render the curse impotent to cause any more damage to her life? 

The prophecy that had been passed down through the generations told of a magic potion that would bring an end to the curse that Kate's family had suffered for so long. The curse only affected the woman of the family. Any woman of the bloodline would at the age of 30 be forced to endure a painful transformation that would turn her into a human monster. A weapon that could be used against enemies near and far. A monster whose venom resulted in instant death. The curse was known and had been protected by a small group of scientists who wanted to change the course of the curse. They wanted to find a way to use the venom for good, or as a cure. It was from these scientists that Kate was able to infiltrate their lab and steal what she believed was a cure for the curse. She knew she was running out of time, as her 30th birthday was rapidly approaching. She knew that if this magic potion did not work, she would be subjected to a life as a lab rat to these scientists as they search for a way to use the venom to benefit society. She had to believe this was the potion the prophecy spoke of. 

Kate jumped and almost dropped the precious vial at the sudden pounding on her door. They had found her! Her only escape would be to take the unknown substance in the vial and hope that it was successful. With shaking hands, she popped the top and heard an immediate fizzing as air hit the contents of the vial. Bottoms up, she thought as she quickly drank the potion. It burned intensely as it was going down her throat. Her first thoughts were that this was a big mistake. That it was a trick of the scientists to capture her. Her last thought as she felt herself dropping to the ground was that she will never fulfill the prophecy and release the woman of her family from the curse. 

Kate awakened to find herself lying on her kitchen floor. Her front door had been broken down and the canister along with the empty vial were gone. Shocked that she was still in her own apartment and not strapped to a hospital gurney in the Lab, she slowly pulled herself to her feet. 

She felt different somehow, but couldn't quite put her finger on how. She felt lighter, almost buoyant. She looked down at her hands and could see a glow coming off of them. It appeared to be the same glow that the potion had while in the vial. She quickly ran to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. What she saw made her gasp with surprise. Her deep chocolate brown eyes had turned a beautiful emerald green! She could barely tear herself away from the mirror to once again look down at her hands. They still seemed to be emitting a green glow, like an aura surrounding her fingertips. She looked back up to the mirror at a face she almost didn’t recognize with the sparkling green eyes and waved her hand around. She could see trails of the green aura as she moved her hands. In response to her hand waving it appeared that the water droplets that were in the sink began to hover above the porcelain and began to swirl around. The faster she moved her hands the faster the drops of water danced around. 

What did all this mean? Did the cure in the vial not only break the family curse but instead turn the curse to a blessing?

Kate knew she needed to get out of her apartment before the thugs who broke down her door came back and did some real damage, not only to her home but to her. She did not want anyone to find out about her new powers of levitation before she could find out what was really happening to her. She knew the answers could only be found at the Lab. With one last glance in the mirror, she put on her coat and headed out the door. 

As she approached the imposing entranceway to the Lab fear began to take hold of her. She might just be making the biggest mistake of her life. She knew that she couldn't really trust the scientists in the building to put her well being first. They had an agenda and they could not be stopped. But what other choice did she have? She swallowed hard, pushed down the fear and opened the door. 

The receptionist was still flipping through a magazine and barely gave Kate a glance as she walked past the desk towards the elevators. The ride up to the 4th floor where the research department was seemed to last an eternity. She could feel little drops of sweat rolling down between her shoulder blades. 

She steeled herself against the onslaught of anger that she knew she would encounter when she entered the research room. Instead, she was greeted by the sight of one of the interns curled up on the floor in the fetal position. He did not appear to be breathing. Hearing voices in the adjoining room, she quietly stepped over the body of the intern and stood in the doorway. 

The two men who were in the room looked up with complete shock to see Kate standing there. The man closest to Kate quickly stood up and began coming towards her. He reached out to grab her. Kate widely swung her hands to ward him off and to her surprise he went flying across the room as if he was grabbed up by a big gust of wind. He landed in a crumpled heap at the far wall with a groan, dropped his head to the ground and passed out. 

The other man took one look at Kate's face and bolted out the side door of the room. What Kate did not know is that the iridescent aura had grown from just illuminating her hands to surrounding her whole being. Her eyes shone brightly like green beacons of light from a lighthouse on a cold stormy night. She was infused with a power that had made her stronger than a bull, impervious to harm, and able to manipulate her surroundings with only the slightest thought and the tiniest of movements. 

As Kate calmed down the aura around her began to shrink until was seated back in her hands. She was trembling with fear and excitement. She knew that this was where she would find the answers she was seaking. 

She rifled through a few file cabinets to no avail. This was just a lot of administrative paperwork, invoices and the like. And then something caught her eye. Just to the right of the file cabinet was a bookshelf. There was a book that was not sitting flush with all the others as if it had been pulled out recently but not pushed all the way back in place. Kate gently pulled the book out of its slot and saw what looked like a button on the back of the shelf. She pressed the button and a small cabinet door opened. 

A secret hiding place. What she discovered in that cupboard would change the rest of her life.

Kate slowly pulled the manila envelope out of the secret cupboard along with another canister just like the one she had stolen earlier. With trepidation she opened the envelope. She found an old fragile parchment that detailed the effects of the curse on the woman of her family. It told of how when the curse is activated the women are transformed into a beast. As the beast, their bite secretes a venom that is fatal. They have the power to control when they turn but once turned the only thing to change them back is the pure love of their own child. Kate drew in a sharp breath at the realization that her love for her mother is what had saved her from staying in that ghastly form. It also explained to her why her Mother was so adamant that Kate find a cure for the curse. As a young woman, Kate was rendered infertile in a car accident that caused massive internal damage. Kate would never be released from the curse without finding a cure. 

She reached into the envelope and pulled out another sheet. This one appeared to have a recipe for the cure on it! It also explained that what was in the vial was not just a cure for the curse but a potion of extreme power. It gives the recipient complete control over their physiology. It will allow the user to instantly heal themselves. It will also create great physical strength. Kate’s excitement ballooned as she continued to read. The most amazing part of this potion is that it opens up the user's mind to be able to manipulate the energy fields around them. Kate’s mind was slowly putting together all the pieces of her crazy night along with the knowledge she just gained from the sheets in the envelope. 

Not only would this amazing potion allow her to circumvent becoming the Beast of the family curse, but will give her the ability to protect herself and those around her from harm. She knew that the scientists would never stop searching for her. Especially now that she had taken the potion and became, not a beast but a woman powerful beyond measure. 

Kate gathered up the papers, stuffed it all back in the envelope, grabbed the canister and quickly exited the building without a backward glance.

It has been 5 years since Kate discovered that magic potion that cured her from the curse. She changed her name and moved far away from that Lab that could have taken everything from her. She has led an amazing life filled with good deeds and lots of Love. She has never once looked back on the horrors of what could have been. But in the privacy of home, when no one was looking, she would practice using her powers. She knew the day would come when someone would come looking for her, the papers she stole, and the canister that held the magic potion. And she will be ready.