Angela Tenebrarum

by Suetekh Seshat

As Lara descended into the shadows, her left hand trailed along the wall to keep balance. The halls of the Louvrè were eerily quiet, and a light rain speckled the windows. A security guard stretched, then lay back in his chair and dipped into a nap.

She rounded another corner, evaded the mechanic gaze of a security camera, and forward rolled through a room of paintings. Ahead, a laser grid fizzled lightly. She half smiled, stretching one long leg through a small gap in the grid, then bending her body accordingly. The camera's gaze swivelled again, and narrowly caught the image of a hand in the air. She cursed, crawling towards the exit to the room.

Luckily the guard that was supposed to be watching was still asleep. By the time he woke up, there wouldn't be anything to see. Another guard, however, was strolling down the hallway she was currently in, his flashlight waving through the darkness and lighting up random paintings. A hand removed her pistol, the other one still feeling along the wall. The guard yawned as he paused. She took the chance and dived out.

"Huh?" was about all he got out before she slammed the butt of her pistol into his temple. Eye's rolling back, he slumped to the ground. She dragged him to a dark corner and dropped him, then pulled the gun from his belt and tucked it into her own.

The painting she was searching for was up ahead, it's frame reflecting her movements. She smiled and ran for it. Behind, she could faintly hear footsteps that were not her own. 'Guard proabably' was her first thought.

She turned and held up a gun, but found nothing there.

A flash of shadow to her right. She whipped around, gun held up and ready. Still nothing. A little unsettled, she continued for the painting. A few steps away she heard the sound of other movement again. This time she pretended not to notice it, instead walking up to her prize and eyeing it.

It showed a man, in amongst a group of others, holding a head in one hand, with the other arm hanging as if it were broken. A Nephilim, most likely. It showed him at the height of his power, when he still had it.

She admired it for a minute, then reached up and around it. In behind was the wires that would set off the alarm should it be removed from the wall. Using a pair of cutters, she snipped each one expertly and drew the painting from the frame.

No alarm went off for several minutes after the initial theft had happened. She sighed and tucked the painting into her backpack. It wasn't like the others; much, much smaller in fact.

She turned, and in doing so she came face to face with a gun. She gasped in surprise, then had a hand clamped over her eyes as she was turned.

A hand trailed down her side, over her hip, and onto her wrist, before . Lara shivered, trying to turn around, but her attacker pressed the gun to her neck harder. The hand pulled her pistol from it's holster, then threw it across the room. The hand then made it's way across her torso and removed the other gun.

Lara wrapped a leg around her attackers and used it as leverage to turn herself. Turned around, she swayed as the gun pressed to her neck. And then the surprise hit her.

She'd seen him before.

In Cafe Metro, he had been sitting a corner, wine glass and ciggarrette in hand (filthy habit, smoking was). Then, leaving Renne's pawnshop...he'd been there too.

"You," she breathed quietly, eyeing his face now that they were up close. He had dark brown hair, so dark it appeared black, with icy blue eyes that seemed to be searching her. They both looked at each other for a moment, and then he wrapped an arm around her. It was a moment before she realized it was her painting he was taking. "No!"

He winked, then dashed back down the hallway and towards the stairwell. She followed, forgetting her pistols laying on the ground.

*~*~*~*~*

On the city streets outside, police cruisers were all parked in a circle, the officers gathered in a small group. Each was listening to the briefing the 'principale' was giving. They had been called in because of a report of theft that had happened an hour ago.

"The footage on the cameras showed very little. In one room: a hand waving. In another: a womans back. We know now, though, that the woman was Lara Croft. The officers outside can attest to that. She's currently wanted for third degree murder. We don't know who her male companion was, but we're looking into it. Here's a composite sketch." She held up a sketch of the man and showed it to the group. They all examined it, inputting the image into their memory. "Right. Now, squads 1 through 6 are to patrol West Paris and look for them. Squads 7 through 15 are assigned to East Paris." She headed back to her own car and waved them away.

*~*~*~*~*

The two ran through the streets until they reached a forest. He paused, then vanished again, but it was enough to let her know what direction he was running in.

Finally she caught up with him and dived, tackling him to the ground. He reached for his gun, but she removed it and aimed at his neck. "Don't move. I've got a few questions that need answering."

"I-"

"Don't say anything, just answer my questions. First one: who are you?"

"None of your bui-"

She pressed the gun to his neck again.

"Okay, okay!" he replied, putting up his hands while balancing her on his back. She smiled slightly; 'I'm not that heavy' she thought with a scoff. "Kurtis. My name is Kurtis."

"And why did you take my painting?" she asked. He stayed silent. "Alright, explain who you are. Detailed. And why you've been following me."

"Business. Finding someone."

He rolled over and rubbed his head. Lara sat, hands on her knees, the pistol trained on him at all times. He grinned when he saw how casually she was holding it. "You know, that is a two handed pistol."

"And your point is? Now, who are you?"

"Kurtis, like I told you. Kurtis Trent."

"I saw you at the Cafe. What were you doing?"

"Having a smoke and a drink, reading the paper. That's it."

Lara raised an eyebrow, then lowered the gun and set it down. "And what are you doing in the Louvre?"

"Trying to get into someone's office to...see something."

Lara leaned back on an elbow, her fingers playfully fluttering on the gun. "Let me guess. Maddemoiselle Cavier?"

"What? How did you-"

"Well, Kurtis, what did you want in her office for?"

"Information on...how to get something..."

"The Sanglyph."

"Yes. How did you know?"

Lara smiled and slid towards him slightly. "Lucky guess. Why do you want it?"

He looked at her suspiciously. "Why do -you- want to know?"

She lifted the pistol again and set it on his shoulder so it rested inches from his neck. He smirked. Lara grinned and pressed it to his jugular vein. "Answer."

"Eckhardt," he replied, swallowing loudly. "I want Eckhardt."

"Why?"

"He killed my father."

Lara's eyes widened, and then she sighed. "Let me guess: you want revenge."

"Justice!" he spat, glaring at her. Lara flinched, then looked at him sceptically.

"We should work together."

"You're trusting me?"

"No one else to trust," she said with a shrug. "And since your just a fellow criminal." She yawned suddenly, and her wrist slipped off his shoulder. He grabbed her hand, but found no resistance. His eyes widened as she let go of the gun and settled back in the leaves.

"What's your name?" he whispered as the sleep depraved Lara closed her eyes and sighed, curling into a ball. Obviously she didn't view Kurtis as a threat.

"Lara."

Kurtis smiled, then layed down beside her, thinking of the motorbike only a few feet away. He was safe (for the moment).

*~*~*~*

Under a cover of darkness, after a day of plan making in the sewers, Kurtis had led Lara to his motorbike, and the pair had ridden it to the museum to see Margot Carvier, Werner's friend and colleague. Kurtis had protested early on, saying that they would be arrested, but Lara hadn't listened.

Once they reached the Museum, Lara led him straight to the Dept. of Medieval and Renaissance Studies. There they had a few minute argument with the secretary. Once the woman was properly threatened, they entered the huge office. It was black, with shadows skittering this way and that. Kurtis pulled out his gun, but followed Lara as she inched her way around the walls.

Madame Carvier was standing next to a window, hands clasped behind her back, humming sadly. The rain began to lash against the pane, and lightning lit up the reflection of a figure standing behind her. Margot gasped and whipped around, but saw it was Lara and calmed quickly.

"Dear me, you gave me a fright! How are you, Lara? Werner told me that you would come."

Lara smiled and hugged her former mentor's good friend. The two elderly researchers had spoken about Lara for hours on end, and it was a fond memory in Madame Carvier's mind. "How are you, Madame Cavier?"

"A little saddened at Werner's passing," she said softly. "But I suppose I'll be alright. And how about you darling? I've been reading the most.........interesting stories in the paper."

Lara shrugged sheepishly. "I've been a little popular with the media the past few weeks. Ever since they found me at the apartment, with........." She trailed off, knowing Margot didn't want to hear about Werner's blood on her hands. "I'm fine, though. Just doing one of my little exploits, although it's not as lawful as the rest of them."

"Clearing your name, no doubt? I read that your butler has been fighting off the repossesion men, funding the estate with his own money he had saved. A true friend, he must be."

Lara face softened. Winston, using his own savings to keep her home. He truly was a real friend. "Yes, he is. And yes, I am clearing my name. By the way, I'm sorry about your secretary, but we had to threaten her a little. Would you mind.........?" Lara gestured to the phone at her side. Madame Carvier smiled, pressed a finger to the speaker phone, and gently told the secretary that nothing was wrong.

"Now," she said, as soon as the phone call ended and the disgruntled secretary was sent home for the night, "I'll make a cup of tea, and you will tell me all about what happened after your supposed passing." Suddenly she gasped, seeing Kurtis behind Lara with a gun. "Lara, behind you!"

Kurtis's eyes widened in surprise, and turned to look behind them, holding his gun up. Nothing. He turned back, and Lara pointed to the gun, which he slid back into his holster. Lara gave him a look and nudged him forward with a foot to his ankle.

"Madame Carvier, meet Kurtis Trent. He's a bit of a partner in crime to me," Lara said. Margot raised an eyebrow, then cautiously put out a hand to shake. Kurtis looked to Lara, then put out a hand and slightly smiled. It didn't do much to soften his face.

After the handshake, Margot seemed much more trusting of Lara's assertion that he was a friend, and headed towards the little kitchen that was in the corner of the monstrous office. Lara asked Margot why she needed all the space.

"It's mostly for the relics I have to examine," she said as the water for the tea began to boil. "This room used to be storage, and they were going to tear it down to build another wing on to the museum. You see, behind this wall is the east wing," she said, pointing to the right side of the room. "At the time my office was so small, hardly a proper place to study things in. So I requested it, stating that the museum didn't need another wing as much as it needed a researcher. It's incredible that they gave it to me, but I've loved it ever since."

Kurtis found a place to sit in a chair in the corner of the room, and set his gun on his lap, just to be safe. Lara sighed, then sat in an armchair across from Margot and graciously took the tea. "So, what projects have you been working on lately?" she asked.

Margot pointed to a map that was pinned to the wall. It showed the schematics of the Louvrè, the same type of map that Lara had obtained two days ago. She blushed, but hid it with her tea cup. Margot took no notice. "We're researching the historical site found underground," she said. "Unfortunately, we aren't allowed to go into the basement and see if our site is safe for examinations."

"Why?"

"I suppose it's because they're hiding something important," Margot said, winking at Lara. "You should go take a look."

"I might." Lara poured another cup of tea and held it out towards Kurtis. He stared for a moment, then stood and walked to her, taking the cup. Margot looked up at him, then pointed at a chair that sat only a few feet from Lara's.

"Pull that chair over and socialize. You make me nervous, sitting so quietly in that shadowy corner."

Kurtis obeyed. After he was seated, Margot continued. "We suspect that there may be some things that they don't want the public to know about. Perhaps items they've been selling illegally?" Margot shrugged. "We don't know."

"Who is we?" Kurtis asked.

Margot's face turned gloomy again. "-We- was me and Werner, but now I guess it's just me. Werner was the one who first guessed about it. I supported his claim."

Lara put a comforting hand on her knee, and Kurtis shifted uncomfortably. Suddenly a knock came at the door. All three faces looked at each other with wide eyes. A voice shouted from the door.

"Madame Cavier! Il etre le Police! Laisser nous dans!"

Margot, put her tea on the desk and stood up quickly. "You two must get out of here!" she whispered. "Take the door behind my desk out of here, and you'll be in the museum halls. The security will not have turned on the laser's yet. Hurry! You can get into the archaeological excavations with this passcard," she exclaimed, shoving a card into Lara's hand. "Now, go!"

Lara put her and Kurtis' teacups on the desk beside Margot's, then ran around the desk and to the door. Kurtis exited through it first, but Lara paused.

"Margot."

She turned to Lara. "Oui?"

"Sèjour securitè." *stay safe*

Margot smiled. "Tu trop. Aller!" *you too. go!*

Lara dashed through the door and closed it behind her. She could hear the police barging in, and Margot's voice yelling loudly in protest to the intrusion. Up ahead Kurtis waited for Lara to catch up, and the two of them dashed down the hall.

*~*~*~*~*

Dr. Katriana Pelsià pressed another injection into the arm of the man that layed on her operating table. He shuddered in his sleep, then began the change.

First his face. It lost all traces life, turning white. His pupils and iris' were all black after that. Then his arms. The right hand turned into a knife, and elongated until it was a scythe. Then his body twisted, making him emit a pained cry, but then he stopped all movement. His vertabrae's were pressing against the skin, showing through it. His epidermas was white, with black stripes downwards from below the neck. He had not a scrap of hair on his body, and the pants he had been wearing had changed color with the skin and molded to him. He was no longer human.

Behind her, a man smiled. "Very nice. He turned out well."

"Dr. Eckhardt, I have a question," she said, not turning.

"Yes, Katriana?"

"Who was he?"

Eckhardt stepped out of the shadows and stood beside her, looking down on his specimen. "He was part of a horrible cult, Katriana. The Lux Veritatis. They killed people. Friends."

"You didn't answer my question. Who was -he-?"

Eckhardt turned to her. "His name was Daniel. Daniel Lawson."

Katriana felt a tear forming in her eye. "Why him?"

"He had brain cancer. Within a year he'd have been dead anyway. Anything else?"

"No."

He smiled. "Good. Continue with your research." Eckhardt patted her shoulder with his metal arm, making her flinch, then left the room. "I'll be back in the morning," he said as the door slid shut. Katriana wiped her eye and picked up her clipboard that was laying on the table, the pen with it.

Instantly the hand of the specimen shot out and gripped her arm. She screamed and hit it, but the fingers maintained their grip. She felt her arm going numb. "Stop!" she exclaimed painfully. The eyes shot open, and he turned to her. The black fluctuated, and the left eye returned to it's original blue. His lips turned red again, making him appear to be a human.

Katriana stopped struggling and looked at the change that was occuring. As she ceased moving, his hand loosened until it was merely holding her in place. She could see clearly that the process was trying to reverse itself. His mouth moved slowly, but only moans came out, so quiet she barely heard him.

"Yes?" she whispered back, kneeling and running her previously caught hand down his face. "Say it."

"Tell....m-my daughter that...." he whispered, expending as much energy as he could to speak. "T-tell her I l-l...love...h-her."

"Yes, yes, I will!" Katriana exclaimed, a tear falling from her face.

"Pl-lease.........help........m-me," he finished, then screamed as the mutant shape returned. He flopped onto the table, seemingly dead. Katriana gasped as he began to convulse, and then blood spurted from all the cavities in his body. She put up an arm to shield the torrents that splashed out and hit her, then looked at him again.

Blood still dripped from his eyes, ears, mouth, etc, but he was dead for sure. His arms hanged limply, and his neck was twisted at an abnormal angle. She knew it in her heart she had killed him, even before she checked the pulse. Nothing.

"Katriana? I heard something in here-" Dr. Wesley Ladow, the man that occupied the examination room beside hers, opened the door and looked in. Katriana was on the floor, arms wrapped around her legs, head hung low. Red liquid dripped from every corner, and her specimen seemed dead. "Oh god, Katriana! What happened?"

"His body," she whispered. "It rejected the serum." Sobs wracked her body.

Wesley kneeled beside her. "It's alright. It happens all the time."

"But the process reversed itself. He turned back into a human. He...........talked to me." She layed her head on Wesley's shoulder. "He talked to me."

"Calm down Katriana," he said, putting his arms around her. "What did he say?"

"He said he wanted me to tell his baby daughter that he loved her!" Katriana wailed. "I''m a monster!"

Wesley lifted her up into his arms like a child and left the examination room, speaking softly to her. A person on the cleaning staff quickly rushed in to scrub the room. Eckhardt watched from down the hallway and smiled. "Soon. Very soon. I'll have the last one. I'll have them all."

*~*~*~*~*~*

Both fugitives headed back to the Louvre the next night. After a tense examination of the complex, they found a cellar door. An extremely guarded, locked up, and unreachable cellar door.

"How are we supposed to get past that?" Lara exclaimed quietly. Kurtis ignored her, focusing on the two men. After a moment, he pulled out his glaive and whipped it into the air. The red light surrounded it immediately, and the whirling blades quickly decapitated the two men. Lara grimaced, then leaped from the bushes and ran towards the entrance. The locks rattled, then snapped off. Lara nodded approvingly at her partner, then threw open the doors and jumped in. The camera's began their swiveling back to the area just as the door was closed after the last corpse.

Below the Louvre, the halls stunk of rot and preserving cleansers. Many vaults of artwork were cold (to preserve quality), but everything was still stone all around. Lara even stumbled upon a Mona Lisà on the wall.

"I thought this was in Italy," she said, turning to Kurtis. He shrugged, then leaned close and examined it closer.

"I think this is the real thing. The paint looks ancient, and the canva-" He trailed off, seeing Lara's questioning look.

"How do you know all that?"

He blushed, and turned away. "Um...I used to work in an art gallery for an after-school job. Father forced me to."

"Ah...ha..." Lara raised an eyebrow, disbelieving the man in front of her ever even -was- a teenager at any point in history, then pulled the cord from the security camera, shutting it off. Kurtis disconnected another one in the opposite corner, and then they headed for the elevators to take them downwards.

*~*~*

In the catacombs below, the only guard on duty was running around with a lady friend, so the pair of burglars climbed on top of the ancient (but sturdy) pipes above the frolicking lovers who chased each other down halls and back. Lara turned to look back at Kurtis, grinning, and he was biting back a laugh. The guard was at least twenty to thirty pounds larger than the woman, and she herself wasn't a pretty sight, with a bright blue feather boa wrapped around her neck.

Lara waved her hand to beckon him to keep going, then finished the path and swung to the ground. No people roamed the corridors at all, except for the frisky guard. Kurtis and Lara smiled at each other again (mostly so that they wouldn't laugh outloud), then ran down the steps farther into the catacombs. Her leg holsters chafed, and she longed to sit down soon, so she hurried.

Kurtis was exactly sure why Lara was so adamant that there was something down here that would be of any use to them. But he was following. She was the leader in the group, not him. She had been ever since he'd thrust his Glaive in her face and said 'Arret'. It was like looking into the black, unseeing pits of Death's eyes and laughing.

"Tu allez fou, Larà," he said suddenly. "I don't see why you insist on coming here. The paintings fine."

"There's something wanting to come down here, Kurtis. I can feel it."

He grinned. "I should feel it, not you."

"Ainsi?" she said, winking. "Hurry up. I want to find what we're looking for and get out of here."

"What -are- we looking for?" he asked.

Lara shrugged, then jumped, grabbed the piping, and pulled herself up again. "Quick! Someone's coming."

Kurtis, just as agile, swung himself up after her, and crouched down low. The sound, that had began as a clicking, turned into heavier steps, and then a pounding. Lara raised an eyebrow, and looked down to see what was there. It turned out to be a man, walking along as if his chest hurt. He limped along, arms wrapped tightly around himself, then looked up. Kurtis gasped.

"Laspè!" he exclaimed. "But..........they killed you!" He swung down to the ground, apparently in shock at the sight of his old friend. But Laspè wasn't the same anymore. He had reddened skin, his face was deathly white, and his eyes were black, like tar. His arms that had appeared to be wrapped around himself were actually molded into his chest, and his feet had claws that protruded at least twenty centimeters. He was a monster, no longer the man that had headed the Parisian group of Lux Veritatis.

Lara hopped down beside Kurtis, and her eyes widened. This was no human, it was..........

.........One of Eckhardts creatures!

"Kurtis, move!" she shouted, throwing herself against the wall. He reacted to late, looking at her confusedly for a second, then back at his old friend. Time seemed to move slower, for a second was all it took for the creature to rip an arm from its body, grow it into a tendril with a razor sharp end, and drive it into the her partner's chest, blood spurting out behind and flecking onto Lara's face.

Kurtis's eyes widened, and he stumbled back a bit. As the tendril recoiled, he fell to his knees, mouth hanging open in disbelief. Lara watched in horror as he collapsed on his face, and a crimson puddle formed below him. She looked back up at the monster, her rage seething.

"Cette," she whispered, "etrè une erreur, Laspè." *-That- was a mistake, Laspe*

He growled in response. That was the last thing he ever did concious.

*~*~*~*

I'm dying. I can feel it. My chest burns.........

It all happened so fast. I was so sure it was Laspè. His face was almost the same as it was when I last saw him10 years ago. But all the scars, all the wounds, even the shape of his body; that was all wrong. I can't believe that was him.

Those words Lara uttered a moment ago still burn in my mind. 'That was a mistake, Laspè' She's like a blessing..........a light at the end of a corridor. That tendril could have taken my head off if she hadn't spoken. But it's still to late, I guess. Now I'm lying here, on this cold stone floor, in the bowels of the Louvrè, dying. Bleeding to death. I wonder where the tendril pierced? My heart, I think.

Will anyone miss me when I'm gone? Heh. No.

*~*~*

Lara dashed to Kurtis's side and kneeled down. He coughed, the puddle of blood running so it was encircling his face. She saw the hole in his shoulder, saw the pained look in his eyes, and for the first time in her life, felt utterley helpless.

"Kurtis? Kurtis, wake up!" She shook him by his shoulder, and the life suddenely flowed back into his eyes. He gasped and rolled on to his back.

She pulled off her backpack, pulled out some gauze, and began stuffing the hole with bandage. The wound itself was only ten centimeters in diameter, but the blood still flowed steadily. "Your bleeding badly, I'll need to get a doctor."

He winced, then smiled. "If only I could remember the process for healing wounds, I could d-do it telepathically."

Lara helped him to his feet, then slung his arm around her shoulders. Together they limped down the corridor. Kurtis turned his head to hers. "It was my fault. I should have listened to instinct." Kurtis had his eyes closed. The glare of the lights was giving him a headache. "But I had hoped that it was Laspè so much. I haven't seen him for so long, it was like walking into the past." He turned to Lara, even though she couldn't see his eyes. "You know, he and my father were best friends. They would meet every time we came to Paris."

Lara half dragged Kurtis into a room with beds in it. A mini hospital from the early, early days. She helped him on to one of the mattresses and sighed. "You stay here and I'll try and find something to help with your wound."

"Not going nowhere," he mumbled, drifting into unconciousness. Lara watched him for a moment, then rushed out of the room and closed the door behind herself. 'Please, stay alive.'

*~*~*~*~*

Dr. Katriana sipped her coffee once more and watched the stretchers going to and fro, and sighed. The previous night's messup was at the back of her mind, after she'd had a little rest that is, but now, seeing all the specimens coming in, she remembered the man's words all to clearly. She still hadn't been able to find his family, but then again, there was alot of time still.

Ever so suddenly a young woman came rushing into the hall, eyes wide. She ran up to a few doctors who brushed her off, but she kept coming up to everyone. Katriana set down her cup as the woman neared.

"Parlez vous Englais?" *Do you speak english?*

"Oui. Are you alright?" Katriana asked her in her usual French tinted accent.

"Are you a doctor?" The woman, she was surprised to note, was English.

"Oui. Is someone hurt?"

"Find some tools! I need your help."

Katriana nodded, then turned and headed into her newly cleaned examination room. A tray was set up at the end of a stretcher, with a row of different tools laying on it. Katriana picked up all of them, set them in a tiny bag, then rushed out of the room with Lara.

*~*~*

"Kurtis?"

The voice floated on the air for a moment. It was distant, foreign. Not Lara's. I cracked an eye open weakly to look at her. It was a different woman, holding scissors and a scalpel. Instantly my right arm shot up to grip her wrist, and twist it sharply. It was on the verge of cracking, when I saw Lara behind her. I released the woman's wrist, then let my hand fall weakly.

"Kurtis, we're going to sew you up. But first I'll need to put this serum into your wound so that the clotting speeds up and we can operate sooner."

She didn't even wait for my protest. Instead, she pressed a syringe into the hole in my shoulder and injected it quickly. After the pain slowed down to a dull ache, I was able to sit up against the wall as the woman sewed. I watched the needle go into my skin and out, making graceful arcs underneath the epidermos and through the muscle tissue. Lara bit her lip as she watched.

"Who are you?" I asked the doctor. She smiled at me, pausing her work for a moment.

"Katriana. I'm a doctor here."

"In the Louvrè's basement?"

She blushed. "No. It's for the archaeologists that are working on excavating." I shot Lara a wary glance, then swore as the doctor pulled tightly on a stitch. "It's a lab I'm in. That's all I can tell you."

"Do you know anything about the Hall of Seasons?" I asked her suddenly. She started.

"Where did you hear that name before?" she asked suspiciously.

Where have I heard the name before? Preposterous question! It's a place that is sacred to all of the Lux Veritatis, the tomb where the protector of the painting was buried centuries ago, his spirit to watch over it forever. Hopefully it's still there. "Lux Veritatis initiates know everything about the Hall of Seasons, so if there was ever a time of crisis, we could protect it."

Katriana paled. "Lux Veritatis?" She stood up, crossed to an ancient table, and lifted up the large carving knife that lay on it. Lara talked to Kurtis to keep his mind off the pain, so neither of them saw the doctor come up behind and try to stab Kurtis in the neck.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" Lara yelled, ripping the knife away and throwing it across the room. Katriana spat at Kurtis, glaring.

"Lux Veritatis scum. It's too bad he didn't kill you all centuries ago."

"What?" Kurtis asked, suprised beyond words.

Katriana pulled a gun suddenly from behind her back and aimed it at his head. She didn't have a chance to pull the trigger, however, because a bullet struck her in the chest a second later. Katriana spun around, then fell to the floor dead.

As it turned out, Lara had pulled Kurtis's gun out of the holster and fired it before Katriana had leveled her sights. She sighed, set the weapon down on the bed, then smirked. "At least she got the stitching done."

Kurtis pulled his shirt back on, then stood up and re-holstered the gun. "Lets find the hall."

"Right."

*~*~*

A hand trailing on the wall, Lara gazed around herself at the room she was in. It was huge, absolutely monstrous, but it remained serene all the same. Paintings adorned the walls in a Michelangelo fashion, depicting things that would probably have come from William Blakes mind. In the centre were four marble blocks, forming a circle, showing three pictures engraved on the surface. She kneeled down and laid a hand on one. It shifted, lowering slightly, and three doors opened on the edge of the room. She lifted her hand again, and all three shut.

"It's the opening mechanism. Pushed down hard enough and it'll lock into place," Kurtis told her, kneeling down by 'water'. "We should do this one first."

"Do? What do you mean?" Lara asked.

He grinned sheepishly at her. "Here's the part I didn't tell you about. It seems we'll have to navigate four rooms to get each stone. The stones will unlock a door in the 'bowels', as its been dubbed, and then we'll turn on the furnace. That'll do something and...we'll work from there."

"Great. Fire. Just what I needed." She stood up and stepped forwards, pushing down on air. Soon the two heard a click, and the panel locked into place. Lara grinned at Kurtis. His eyes widened and he pulled out his glaive.

"Lara, duck and roll!" he shouted, throwing his glaive. She complied, and the blade neatly sliced the arm off a zombie warrior. It reached for the sword it had held, and tore it from the missing appendages grasp, then shrieked and charged at Kurtis.

Lara pulled out her V-Packer and shot a round into the thing's back. It turned to her and thrust with it's sword. She jumped, missing the swiping blade, landed, then kicked the thing in the chest. It fell to the ground. She pressed the hilt of it sword (which had slipped from it's hand) with her toe, making it flip up into the air, and she caught it with her left hand. Kurtis stepped back to let her work (and because his shoulder was hurting again).

Lara stood in stance, ready to strike at the thing. It got back up, but instead of attacking, it ran to the wall and tore off one of the ornamental swords that lay around the perimeter. It whirled around, then snorted and glared at Lara.

"Well? Come on then." She waved at it, beckoning the attack.

The skeleton/zombie spun and struck Lara's sword with it's own on the side. The shock emanated through her body, and then she jumped back and sliced at it again. The thing parried, then struck at her. She thrust, parried, sidestepped, then uppercutted her sword into its abdomen. It hunched over the blade, but the steel took no purchase. Angry, she pressed her foot down on it's head so that the thing was completely bent over the blade, then pulled up. The metal cut through and left the corpse dead in two pieces.

Throwing the sword away, she turned to Kurtis. He was sitting on a block, examining his dirt encrusted nails. She snorted and stomped over to him. "Thank you dearly for your help."

"Any time," he replied nonchalantly, looking at her with a playful smirk.

"Wipe that look off your face and come on."

After pulling a lever in one of the three doorways, she gained access to the room. A grate slammed shut over top of the door behind them. Ignoring it, she proceeded and was met with an onslaught of heat. The very air itself was boiling. Kurtis had much the same reaction, squinting to see.

She felt along the walls, and incidentaly came upon a crack. Lara pryed her finger farther in to find out if it was a door. It was. She turned, pushed with all her might, and the whole chunk of wall slid forwards. Kurtis looked at her with surprise.

Inside, there was a large lever. She pulled down on it, then came back out. A bunch of logs were standing straight up, shifting around but remaining stable. She turned to Kurtis. "That was easy."

He nodded towards the pit the logs were in. She looked in and groaned. It was filled with lava, and went down for a few kilometers. "It's always got a catch, doesn't it?" she stated, stepping away from the edge. Kurtis nodded, smiling.

"You first."

"Oh, your too kind." She hopped to the first log and was hit with a sharp blast of wind. She almost screamed, planting her feet onto the wood to stay upright. "Hurry up!"

He jumped to the one beside her, then took her hand. "Jump in sync or one of us will fall."

Lara waited a few seconds, stood as the wind blew out, then leaped. Kurtis, as if reading her thoughts, jumped at the exact same time. They landed on two different logs, but were both steady, balancing by leaning on the other's hand.

"Next!" she cried, jumping. The wind hit a half second later. After it was finished, she jumped to the next. After about six jumps, they landed on the steps. Both stumbled, then ran up to the pedestal. Lara snatched the stone of Hades out of the statues mouth, and slipped it into her pack. The wind ceased immediately. She had her gun in hand before anyone could speak.

"Easy, tiger. There's nothing there." Kurtis pushed down the pistol, then went back down the stairs and stepped easily onto the first log. "The inscriptions say the rooms will create pathways for your safety in getting out, whether it be disabling a trap or adding something to the room. Come on."

Lara followed him back across the logs and out to the grande hall. He was the one to press down the panel, the one for fire. "Come, lets go."

*~*~*

"Great. More fire." Lara gazed around the silent chamber in disgust. "And there isn't even a challenge to it."

"Don't judge a book by it's cover," he replied, walking down the hexagonal steps. As he stepped on a dark, inconspicuous one, the whole room fell apart.

Flames erupted ten, even twenty feet into the air, splashing magma all around. Kurtis hopped back, swearing in surprise. "That wasn't expected!"

Lara pulled Von Croy's notebook from her backpack and consulted it about the fire room.

'In my further investigations, I've found that there is another room, standing for the element of fire. Said to be one of the most threatening, I will have to proceed with caution when I reach it.

Fire constantly burns, and there are panels that sink when stood upon. But the key is in certain panels with a reacurring symbol. '

"Always had lots to say, didn't you Werner?" Lara mumbled, shoving the useless book back into her pack. Kurtis had sat down and was occasionally moving his head to avoid sparks.

"Can't we just go out the way we came in?"

"The bars, Kurtis," she stated, pointing to the metal grate. "We have to get the fire stone first."

She ran past the collumn of fire and lava that jumped up in front of her, and down the steps to the base of the hexagonal pyramid. Kurtis pulled her back from a little step just as it shattered upon the flame collumn that errupted. She screamed, closing her eyes. The two kneeled down on the hexagon as more collumns showed up. Kurtis held Lara close, ensuring that no fire hit her.

"Get up, now!" he yelled, pulling her by the hand. They ran down some more hexagons and stopped where the stepping stones stopped. Behind, much of the previous path had dissapeared. Gathering up a breath and swallowing her fear, Lara leaped over the fire onto the next hexagon. She scooted out of the way and was joined by Kurtis a second later.

The fire died down as they reached the steps, no longer shooting up all around. She ran up the steps and wrenched the stone from the walls grasp. Shards of rock began appearing from below the fire and forming little platforms floating in the air. Kurtis hopped up onto one and pulled Lara up with him. They jumped from hexagon to hexagon, until they reached the open door. After leaving, Lara leaned on the wall and exhaled a shaky breath. Kurtis glared at her angrily.

"Don't just go running into things like that! You could have died!"

She walked away into the hall, ignoring him. "I always risk my neck-"

"No, that wasn't an everyday thing. That was just a stupid move, Lara."

The uncomfortable silence continued until the void panel was pushed. Lara reached the lever first, pulled it, then entered the gate. Kurtis had to roll to get under it.

The large statue fell down, shattering the floor, and they groaned simultaneously. Neither one moved for a minute.

"I'm sorry," Kurtis said at last. "You knew what you were doing, I'm sure. I was just worried that you weren't going to make it."

"I'm in the wrong here, Kurtis," she said. "You did save my life. Thank you."

After another minute, she ran forwards and jumped onto the next ledge. He smiled, then followed.

It shook. Then it shifted. Lara leaped to the next block and turned. Kurtis had left the stone a second to late, and wasn't going to be able to grab then ledge. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him up onto the stone while he was still in midair.

They navigated the next steps, then pulled out the stone. It joined its brother's in her backpack. She sighed, wiping her hands off on her pants. "That was easy."

"Would you stop saying that!" he exclaimed. "Something always goes wrong!"

The floor reformed behind them, so they walked across the stone, fairly impressed with the work the Lux Veritatis had put into the tomb. Suddenly Lara's ear twitched, and she whipped around, catching the flat of the blade between her hands. The skeleton snorted and pulled free. Grinning, she kicking the hilt, and the sword flew from his hand and into her own. She stabbed it into the thing's chest and wrenched the blade free, then elbowed it into the pit in the centre of the room. It screamed as it fell.

Kurtis had gotten both swords from two other skeletons (but they had found more on the wall anyways) and was in the process of parrying and thrusting with both blades. She watched as he moved swiftly and smoothing, almost as if it was a dance, and sliced the head off either skeleton. Both fell to the floor, immobilized.

"What was that?" she asked a moment later, still fascinated by his sudden abilites.

"Chatka. I was taught it a long time ago."

"It's...incredible!" she exclaimed, sliding the sword into her belt in case she needed it later.

He shrugged, tossing both of his swords away. "Beautiful and deadly. Kind of like you!" He grinned.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Mr. Trent. Lets go."

*~*~*

After getting through a water maze, then navigating the bowels and turning the valves in the boiler room, the two of them found themselves on the second floor of the hall. A particularly strenuous climb found them inside of the domed roof.

Kurtis ran forwards into the room, stopping before a stone sarcophagus and reading the script off the top. Lara noticed the word 'Veritis' mentioned. "So, is this an 'ancient Lux Veritatis leader'?"

"Brother Obscura himself. He protected the first obscura painting, and created this whole complex. He was a genius! He even had the idea to create the dud painting you have."

"What?" Lara asked flatly.

"You didn't actually think that the Lux Veritatis is that stupid so as to leave the Obscura in the actual gallery?" he asked rhetorically, raising an eyebrow. She suddenly realized that one of the six statues surrounding the coffin was glowing blue. In it's hands was a painting.

"There it is!" she exclaimed, rushing towards it.

"No, don't!" Kurtis shouted a second too late. The painting dissapeared, only to reappear in the hands of another statue. The doors whooshed shut.

Lara looked around the silent room. "What did I do this time?" she asked him.

"Obscura will be paying us a visit," Kurtis mumbled, removing a gun.

The room went silent, the flames of the candles flickering on the walls. Suddenly Lara felt all the air taken from her body, as if someone had grasped her throat and begun throttling her. She gagged and clutched her throat. A second later she could breath again.

"Get on the ground," Kurtis told her, then fired into the air.

A red shape appeared. A ghost. She spotted the obscura painting and crawled for it, but it shifted positions again. Kurtis fired a few more rounds into the ghost. Lara stood and ran towards the blue glow, then removed the painting from the statues hands.

"Run to the hallway!" he yelled, holstering his weapon and going. Together they plunged headfirst into the water.

*~*~*~*~*1 Hour later*~*~*~*~*

Lara pressed on the apartment door and it swung open, it's hinges creaking loudly. The policetape fluttered in the wind from the fans, but that was the only sign of life. The whole apartment complex was empty for repainting and repairs.

Glass cracked under her foot, and she bent down to examine whatever she had stepped on. A photograph of a large metal plate she and Werner had recovered years ago. She recalled passing it in the Louvrè. Then her mind trailed back to the night of the murder.

Werner had drawn his gun, and she'd been knocked down. Blackness, and then finding him laying there, the Monstrum symbol drawn on the floor. The script on the walls, floors, ceilings.

"I'm not a murderer," she said aloud, reassuring herself of that simple fact. "I'm a victim."

Click. A gun being loaded. Lara's eyes widened and she retrieved the pistol she remembered from below the armchair. Creaky floorboards in the entry hallway. She edged along the wall, pulling out her own gun, and suddenly hopped around the corner, leveling her sights with the figure.

Kurtis Trent was leaning against the wall, placing his gun back in it's holster. He had an expression of extreme satisfaction on his face, a look that really ticked Lara off.

"I'm surprised you decided to show your face, after what you did."

"What I did? What -I- did? Your the one that knocked me out!"

"I did not," she said indignantly. "You took my painting and left me in an alley!"

The two glared at each other angrily. Neither moved for a good minute. Finally, the silence was broken when Lara sighed. "We're not getting anywhere with this bickering." Kurtis muttered something rude in French that slipped passed Lara's ear. "Pardon?"

"Nothing."

She looked at him suspiciously, then nodded towards the apartment's inner. "Come on." He stepped through the doorway with her and gazed at the walls of script for a few minutes. Lara had stumbled upon a photo on the wall. A little fourteen year old girl, standing beside Werner, big smile on her face. In both their hands they were holding a statue of Osiris, the first one found since the discovery of Tutankhamen's tomb.

She'd been so gullible to believe he'd actually wanted her help because he thought she was a good thinker. She'd been used from the beginning, and that had gotten him killed. Well, she thought he'd been killed.

Lara sat down in an armchair and gazed at the photo on the wall. Blood had splattered on it, distorting the faces slightly. But the mere fact that he had hung up the picture was proof of something. That he had cared for his young apprentice, at least a little. That he had tried to help her.

She shifted her gaze from the wall to Kurtis. He looked so calm and innocent, not like the killer she had seen in the past few days. He turned around to face her, then slowly walked over and kneeled down before her. He opened his mouth to say something, but she placed a finger on his mouth to shush him. Lara smiled, pulled his chin upwards with two fingers, and leaned forwards. When their lips were an inch apart and she could feel his breath on her face, there was a sudden gunshot. Both heads turned to the doorway, where a man stood, holding two AK-47's.

Kurtis pulled his Boran X from its holster and fired as he rolled sideways, away from Lara. She pulled the pistol and shot at the gunner, who just ducked to the other side of the doorway. Lara followed at a sprint.

He stood on the other side of a Z shaped lazer grid, holding his guns level with her. She stood still, not firing her weapon, until he ran to the left and down the hall. The grid deactivated. "Kurtis!" she called in a whisper. "Come on!"

But the American was nowhere to be found. In fact, her so-called 'partner' had totally dissapeared. She swore, kicking a table in the hallway, then edged out into the area where more laser grids lay. She spotted the plastique early on, and so she didn't touch the dangerous red beams, but took the alternate route (and no doubt the one the gunner wanted her to take).

No one lay in the room, and there was no furniture, save a few tables that supported paint buckets and whatnot. She ducked down behind a couch as bullets peppered the wall, making a pathway through the thin drywall. The gunner appeared on the other side, but did not see Lara.

"Come out, come out, where ever you are........." he called in a sing-song voice. Lara gripped the handle of her gun tighter. "I'll find you, little one," he whispered menacingly. She took a deep breath, then dived over to her right and fired.

The man teetered for a second, then slumped to the ground. She had placed her bullet directly in between his eyes, and it had sailed straight through the back of his skull. Sighing, Lara crawled forwards and searched his body. Among other things like ammunition and guns, she found a visa, a cellphone, and a pair of car keys, plus a small card that sported one word: Prague

*****A Day Later - Strahov Fortress*****

Lara clutched the ceiling with her fingers, hoping her grip would remain until he returned. Finally, Kurtis stepped into the cell, gun drawn. Lara dropped down behind him, kicked the Boran X away, and fired her own gun. A slight smile played at her lips when she saw his expression of acceptance, thinking she had shot him.

His eyes shot open, he turned around, and spotted the Nephili mutant on the ground. Sighing, he turned back.

"Thanks."

"Don't thank me too soon," she snapped, shoving him against the wall and checking for weapons. "I'm not in a good mood."

"Dare I ask why?"

"You left me." She ripped the glaive away and threw it to the ground, stepped on it to keep it down, then flipped him around, pushing him against the wall and pressing her gun into his chest. "You used me."

"Ah. So that's why your angry. At least I have the painting still, complete with the Periapt shards."

"Not planning on leaving again?" Lara asked, eyebrow raised skeptically.

"Do you trust me enough to believe me when I say no?"

She watched him a minute, then pulled out her engraving. "I'll get into the Vault of Trophies, while you go and get the last Periapt shard. Alright?"

"Okay."

She rolled up the map and put it back into her pack , then turned to go out the cell door, but he caught her by her wrist. Before she could protest, he had pressed his lips to hers.

Lara was surprised and struggled, then relaxed and let herself get taken in by the kiss. After a minute, he realeased her arm and slowly pulled away."Come back safe, okay?" he said, then turned and walked away in the opposite direction. Lara put her fingers tentively to her lips, then smiled.

"You too," she whispered.

*~*~*~*~*

Lara surfaced from the water and took in a deep breath, then sighed as she felt the painting safe in her waterproof backpack. Her relief was short lived, however, as she spotted Eckhardt, Gunderson, Muller, and an unconcious Kurtis on a platform above.

"Ah, Ms. Croft. How good of you to bring me my painting."

"You mean my painting," she called. A rumble shook the chamber, and then a platform raised up beneath her. No more escape route.

"That's the tricky part. You see, there's now no choice but to give me the painting. Do that, and I'll allow you and your young male friend here to leave." He grabbed Kurtis's head with his glove and held him up for Lara to see. "His life for the Obscura painting."

Lara glared at Eckhardt, then smirked. "I guess I have no choice then." She pulled the painting from her backpack and threw it up to him. Eckhardt released his grip on Kurtis, then nodded at Gunderson. The larger man nodded back, and kicked the unconcious figure off the platform. He hit the ground, then got up slowly, waving Lara away. She waited until Kurtis was on his feet and trying to stay up before she rushed forward to help him.

"Don't get to comfortable with that painting yet, Eckhardt," she yelled. "I'll be getting it back in a few minutes."

Eckhardt grinned, then watched as a door at the side opened. The mutated form of Kristina Boaz slithered out of the little room and into the hall. "This woman used to work for me before I got rid of her. She's become an interesting little pet. I hope you don't have too much trouble dying." He laughed, then exited the room. Muller tried to follow, but was thrown off the platform by Gunderson.

Boaz smelled the air, spotted Muller, and let out a blood curdling shriek before devouring the terrified gardener. Kurtis turned to Lara after watching the horrible sight. "Go."

"What?"

He put his hands out for her to step in. "Go. Get the painting. I'll deal with ugly here."

Lara nodded, stepping into his hands. Before her threw her, she looked down at him and nodded. He nodded back knowingly, smiled, and then launched her into the air. Kurtis put out a hand and used his telekineses to propel her onto the platform. She turned and watched him for a moment, then sprinted off after Eckhardt.



*~*~*An Hour Later~*~*~*

Lara dodged another of Joachim Karel's attacks, then ran towards the dead body of Eckhardt. "So sorry, old boy. Hope you don't mind me borrowing this," she said, tearing the glove off his hand. Joachim saw her and growled.

"Come back and die quickly, instead of delaying it like this."

She put a finger up in a rude reply, then sprinted towards the ladder upwards. The Sleeper was spinning in his invisible cell, weakly looking around the room. Lara ran towards him and leaped. Catching his foot, she jammed the Sanglyph part of the glove into his body.

The power was absorbed quickly, and she backflipped back to the platform as Joachim howled in pain, the matter encompassing him. She watched smugly as the Nephili writhed in pain, then fell to the ground and dissapeared from view. The Cubiculum Nephili made nary a sound as he died, besides a low moaning.

Suddenly there was a great creaking. The chamber was collapsing. She stood and ran back down the stairs, then back along the path she had taken to reach the Alchemist's chamber in the first place.

The whole tunnel fell in on itself as she reached the place where Kurtis and Boaz had been left. Sighing, she hopped to the ground and looked around. There was the dead carnivorous horror in the middle of the hall, and a headless insectoid body a few steps away from it. And a few steps from that, the Chirugai, covered in blood.

Lara walked slowly towards the Glaive, then kneeled down and picked it up. Her reflection was blocked by crimson liquid that dripped slowly off the metal. She ran a hand down it, then turned around to look for Kurtis. He was nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly the Glaive glowed red as it had so many times before, and pulled towards the tunnel that Boaz had appeared from. Lara pressed her fingers into the holes and held tightly as she allowed the blade to lead her.

The Chirugai led her to the hallway, then hesitated before it turned left. She could see a continuous stream of blood on the tiles of the floor, as if a body had been dragged along.

The yellow hallway eventually emerged into another section of the Sanitarium, one that was deserted. The gates along the way were open wide, with the blood streaks going through them. Frantic, she ran along with the speeding Chirugai until it went limp in her hand. She looked at it puzzled, then spotted a crumpled body in front of a door up ahead.

There was a large hole in his back, which seeped blood, and his eyes were closed. Not dead. Yet.

She felt his pulse, which was faint, then put her ear to his mouth to see if he was breathing. He was. She sighed in relief, then removed her bandages from her pack. Kurtis coughed, then opened his eyes weakly.

"Hello," he whispered.

"Don't talk," she replied, wrapping his stomach.

"How did you find me?"

"Your Glaive. It led me.........rather, I suppose you led me."

"I always was a resourceful one, wasn't I?" he said with a smile, then closed his eyes again.

*~*~*~*

MONSTRUM FOUND!

The last 15 deaths at the hand's of the Monstrum seemed to be an end to the serial killer's career, but early yesterday morning another victim was found. Thomas Ludd-ick, 45, was an employee with the Prague gazette. His burned body was found in the Strahov facility, with the calling card markings of the Monstrum written on the wall in his blood.

However, working from the DNA extracted off the body of Prof. Von Croy in Paris, the police were able to finally determine the identity of the killer. Pieter Van Eckhardt, the true Monstrum killer, was found dead amongst the rubble of the Strahov facility's northern wing. The cause of the explosion is still yet unknown. Also found were the bodies of Joachim Karel, Parisian business man, who the police now know was involved with Eckhardt, and Dr. Grant Muller, botanical specialist.

Also found, alive, was writer and archaeologist Lara Croft, and another male, who was injured. Ms. Croft was taken for questioning, and her male companion, Kurtis Trent, was taken to the hospital for treatment. Details are still few. Police are investigating the incident.

*~*~*~*

Lara set down the paper and sipped her glass. Across the table was a recovering Kurtis, who was reading his own paper. At the till of Cafè Metro, Pierre was having yet another strenuous argument with a caller. The half finished bottle of wine in front of the pair was slowly working it's way down as Lara drank glass after glass.

"You know, I haven't had wine for so long," she said, swirling the deep, red liquid in her glass. Kurtis lit a cigarrette and mumbled his response. Lara snatched it from his mouth and flicked it out the open window. He watched as it flew out into daylight, then pulled another one out of the pack and lit it again. Lara, with a particularly smug look on her face, threw it again.

"Would you stop that!" he exclaimed. She shook her head.

"I already said I wanted you to stop, but you don't listen."

Yet again he pulled out another cigarrette, which Lara snatched before he could light it. Kurtis groaned and surrendered the whole pack. "Now I regret getting involved with you, Croft!" he said in a mischievious tone. Lara shrugged, then whistled to Pierre and tossed him the pack of cig's.

"Keep them, Pierre."

"Merci," he said, removing one. Kurtis glared at her, then returned to his paper. Lara smiled, then went back to her own.

*~*~*~*

A long, white hand reached through the rubble of the Strahov and pushed away some of the rock. One of the investigator's that was working on the crime scene noticed it, and walked over to get a closer look.

In an instant it shot up and gripped his neck, snapping it quickly. The man fell limp, then his body disintegrated. The rest of the white body appeared above the ruins and grinned.

In an instant he changed into a humanoid form, then picked the limp black suit up off the ground and slipped it on. Fully comfortable, he grinned, then walked nonchalantly away from the area.

*~*~*~*~*

UK Gazette- April 24, 2002

Obituaries

Jeeves, Winston C, 1929-2002

Born and raised in Ireland, Winston was drafted for WWII at age 35. There he met Lord Henshingly Croft, also serving at the time, and was rescued from the enemy. Winston left the war and went on to serve as Lord Croft's butler and close associate for 40 years before moving on to work for the Lord's daughter, Lady Lara Croft. He died in the Croft manor shortly after Lady Croft was found at the Strahov. Memorial services will be held tommorrow in Wimbledon, Surrey.

*~*~*~*~*

Aeolus stepped into Croft Manor's courtyard, and gazed around with his bright, red eyes. The sky was a dreary navy blue, shadowing Lara's mood perfectly. He inhaled a deep breath, then walked up towards the door.

*~*~*~*~*

Kurtis set down a sandwhich outside of Lara's locked door, then knocked for the third time that day. As usual, he recieved no reply, but could hear Lara's crying.

"Lara, please come out. You need to eat something."

No reply. He sighed, then turned as there was a knock at the door. Leaving the food, he went to answer it.

"I'm sorry, but she's unavaila-" he began, but was thrown back by a burst of something. He hit the wall and slumped over. Aeolus stepped in out of the now pouring rain.

"Croft!" he yelled. Silence, and then the creaking of a door opening.

"Who is it? Where's Kurtis?"

"He's incapacitated at the moment."

Lara threw open the door wide and jogged out to the hall. Seeing her partner laying on the ground, she dashed back into her room and ripped her pistols from their holsters, then fired at the intruder. The bullets had no effect, and the metal of the Scorpions burned, then melted. Luckily she dropped them just in time.

"Who are you?" she asked angrily, hopping her stair's rail. Aeolus didn't move.

"The Nephilim in the Strahov. You killed them, didn't you?" he asked her. She nodded. He laughed. "Not quite, Ms. Croft."

Her eyes widened in realization.

*~*~*~*

"What do you want with us?" Lara snapped, stepping nearer the Nephili. Aeolus laughed, then waved for her to come closer.

"There's something you didn't know about me, Lady Croft. I can't die-"

"I should think that you can, if you'll remember the flood. I still wonder how you survived."

His suit jacket bulged slightly, and then two long, batlike wings appeared. "Noah wasn't as smart as he professed to be. For one thing, he had a really great roof on that stupid ark."

"Ah. That explains alot." She was now next to him. She felt dwarfed, considering she was only 5'9, while Aeolus was almost 6'5. A small Nephili, but still tall. "So, how did you survive the blast in the Strahov, I saw you dissolve."

"Was that me?" he asked with a smile. An utterly charming, irresistable smile. Lara felt drawn to him, but blinked quickly to shake the thought off and made her way to Kurtis, who was just coming to.

"Well, you certainly don't look the same as the Cubiculum did."

"I tend to intimidate people when they see the fins on my head."

Lara picked up Kurtis and walked around the Nephili, who had no idea there was a secret passage behind her that led to the garage. "I can only imagine." She tapped out a message in morse code on Kurtis's back, letting him know what she was going to do. He nodded weakly.

"So, since you killed my 'brothers', the Cubiculum and Joachim, I'll repay the favor." He drew back his arm to prepare to shoot at her, but she had spun around, kicked a hidden switch on the wall, and was running down the corridor before he could react. Aeolus ran towards the rapidly closing door, but hit it a second to late. He cursed, then ran for the outside.

*~*~*~*

Lara quickly started her Triumph Speed Triple, and helped Kurtis to get on. She handed him her helmet, but he refused, so she slipped it on herself, then hopped on in front of him.

"Hold on," she called, flicking the garage door opener and pulling the bike towards the opening space. Aeolus was standing directly outside. She glared, then sped the bike full speed towards the Nephili. Again he prepared to shoot her, but she pulled to the left, hit a plank laying against some tires, and the motorcycle flew harmlessly overhead. As soon as the tires gained traction, she was off towards the gate that lay open.

Aeolus grabbed her Harley V-Rod and followed, realizing that if he flew he'd be on the front page of every paper in England before he blinked. But the bike wasn't fast enough to catch up at first, and he lost sight of her a few times.

Finally he caught up, but she tricked him again by pulling to the right and crashing down into the trees. The Nephili glared, then sped off to continue on his original task.

*~*~*~*

Lara ripped off her cracked helmet and threw it down into the foliage, then pulled some branches over the motorbike. Kurtis had his Chirugai out, and was looking back up at the road, waiting for any sign.

Nothing appeared for quite a few minutes, so he relaxed and retracted the spikes. Lara shivered in her linen pajama's, so Kurtis handed her one of his shirts. She slipped it on, then leaned against the tree across from him.

"You know, I thought this was all over. This Nephilim and killing, murders and crime...I thought I was free to carry on with my life."

"But it would get so boring," he said with a chuckle. "Although I don't think I like this 'nephel' following us."

"It would get boring, wouldn't it?" She crawled over to him and sat down, warming her bare feet on his leg. "At least life goes on."

"Get some sleep. I'll watch, then we can go in the morning."

"Go where?"

"I don't know. We'll decide when the time comes."

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Hello."

"Can I help you?"

Aeolus's hand shot out and gripped the woman's neck. She tried to scream, but it came out as a small gurgle. Her eyes watched him fearfully. What could a figure like this want with a simple store owner like her?

"I'm hungry," he said simply, snapping her neck and slinging her on the back of his motorbike. When the restaraunt employee's appeared a few minutes later, the door wouldn't be open like it should. But no one would even notice.

*~*~*~*

Lara woke up and realized she was moving again. In her drowsiness, she almost fell from the bike, but Kurtis caught her. She was perched on the seat between he and the handlebars, so that her resting form didn't fall.

"Where are we going?"

"Heathrow airport."

"Why?"

"I know why the Nephel isn't dead."

He tapped a little book that was tied under some black netting so that it didn't get lost. She pulled it out and flipped through the pages.

It was in Latin, another Lux Veritatis artifact no doubt, but had drawings that resembled something William Blake would think up. Images of Nephelim, bowing slightly to something perched stark upright. A staff of some sort. But her Latin wasn't what it was a few weeks ago, and she wasn't able to figure it out. Kurtis, sensing his partner's frustration, translated it for her.

"'If the holy light', that's the staff, 'is merged with the beasts, the power will collapse with the world of sinners as well.' That's not a good thing, in case your wondering."

"Why are they worshiping it?"

"Because the staff is the source of their power. By the way, do you have a visa?"

"Yes. Why?"

"We're taking a helluva long plane ride."

*~*~*~*~*~*

After getting a ticket for the plane just in time, Lara 'discovered' a laptop in a cart of bags. She carried it on nonchalantly, then flipped it open as the takeoff began.

Her first online stop was to check out the staff's origin. Nothing. Next, reasearching some of the Nephilim. Nothing.

"Is there nowhere to get info about this thing?" she asked Kurtis. He typed in an address and turned away to look out the window.

www.shadowwhistories.pr

[Enter Passcode]

[3-1-5-9-7]

[Passcode Accepted. Welcome, Mr. Vasiley]

Lara cocked an eyebrow, then entered a file entitled 'Strahov Archives'.

Instantly thousands of file names having to do with the Nephilim popped up. She grinned, nudged Kurtis's arm, then set to exploring them.

*~*~*~*~*14 Hours Later, Istanbul*~*~*~*~*

The man shook his head vigorously. "I know nothing about any 'tomb'. I'm just a business man." He shuffled back to his fruit stand. Kurtis groaned.

"Nobody knows anything about the place where the Holy Light is sealed! We're getting nowhere."

"Maybe I should go on shadowwhistories again?" she replied, tapping her black backpack where the laptop she'd stolen was hidden. He shook his head.

"That'll go nowhere either. Lets keep asking."

*~*~*~*~*

Aeolus was intimidating to the small airport clerk, mostly because of his height. But he was also charming, witty, and handsome, and the girl found herself in a daze around him.

"I'm sorry sir," she said, "but I can't tell you where Ms. Croft is. That information is classified."

He smiled once more, his eyes shining with false sweetness. "Please, Miss...Clara," he said, his eyes looking at her namecard quickly, "I need to know where she is. You see, Ms. Croft is my wife, and I'm trying to give her our divorce papers, but she keeps running away with a boyfriend of hers. I just want out of this marriage so I can find a woman that actually wants me."

Clara blushed, tapped a few keys on her keyboard, then smiled up at him. "She flew to Istanbul a few hours ago. Would you like a ticket?"

"Please, for tomorrow if you don't mind."

Clara smiled again. What she didn't know was by midnight she'd be dead, her remains devoured by the nephili.

*~*~*~*~*

"I know where it is."

"You do?"

"Would you like me to take you there?"

"Please!"

"Pay up."

Lara sighed in exasperation. She wasn't in a position to pay this woman, considering she'd had to spend her money on clothing in England. The house was a 'no-go' zone while the nephili roamed free.

Kurtis came to the rescue, however, slipping $300.00 into her hand. The woman's face lit up. "Hey, thanks!"

"Just take us where we need to go," he replied curtly. She beckoned for both of them to follow her down the street.

"By the way, I'm Andrea. You?"

"Lara."

"Kurtis."

Andrea lagged back so she was walking beside the two of them on Kurtis's side. "So whatcha here for?"

"Just information."

"Really? 'Bout what?"

Kurtis launched into an elaborate (not to mention phony) explanation of their purpose in Turkey. Apparently they were 'looking to adopt some kids, since Lara couldn't have children'. Even though Andrea shot Lara a sympathetic look, she still giggled falsely at everything he said and seemed to touch his arm every few minutes.

Lara glared at Andrea. If looks could kill, the woman would be beaten, bloody, and in pieces.

"Do you have anymore cash? We'll have to take a taxi, and from there it's a hike. But perhaps both of you would like to stay the night in town, then go tomorrow?"

"How long is the hike?" Kurtis asked.

"About half a day. It's already dusk, and I wouldn't advise going outside at night. All sorts of prowlers; scorpions, bandits........."

Kurtis turned to Lara, who nodded but gave him the 'look'. He raised an eyebrow inquisitively, then grinned at Andrea and said, "Know any good hotels?"

"Yup! After all, I'm a city guide, ain't I?" The plucky American girl ran off. "Come on, hurry up!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Andrea said good night, then dissapeared into her room (that Kurtis's money was paying for). Lara and Kurtis took the other one.

"At this rate I'll run out of money," he said, sitting down in a chair and lighting a cigarrette. Lara, understanding his stress, said nothing about his smoking again.

"She'll probably lead us out there and then kill us, take our money, and leave."

"Hopefully not."

Lara smiled. "She wouldn't get near, before I kicked her ass." She slipped into the pajama's she'd been wearing since leaving the manor, set down her new clothes on a table, then crawled into bed. Kurtis took a spot beside her, turned out the lights, and they drifted to sleep quickly.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Andrea grinned, then jabbed her scissors into his face. Twisting them visciously, she then pulled them out quickly. Laughing in glee, she stabbed again.

Needless to say, the sock puppet was looking less than happy about his mutilation.

She tossed it to the side, then made herself a drink at the minibar. "Suckers. I'll milk 'em for everything they've got, and then they'll be left at the tomb with no way back." Again laughing, she headed to the bed, slipped on her sock puppet, and hit the ground with a bang.

"Ow........."

*~*~*~*~*

Aeolus, full on Clara (literally), caught his plane. The flight, however, was cut short when the plane dipped downwards and began to speed towards the ground.

Aeolus's doing, by the way.

It hit less fast then it could have, so the ship didn't turn into a burning chunk of metal. Aeolus ate each dead passenger quickly, then flew the rest of the way (54km) to Istanbul.

*~*~*~*~*

PLANE CRASHES IN WILDERNESS, NO SURVIVORS

A plane, en route to Istanbul, crashed a few kilometers from the city. While it didn't light on fire or destroy itself (it coasted to the ground), there were found no survivors; indeed, not even a body was found.

Police in Istanbul are investigating.

*~*~*~*~*

Andrea, sporting a large black bruise on the left side of her face, showed Lara the paper. Kurtis sat in the front seat of the cab.

"Weird, huh? I wonder why there weren't any bodies."

"Maybe they were eaten?" Kurtis suggested, shooting Lara a wary glance.

"Nah. Nothing in Turkey has that kind of appetite."

Lara looked out the window at the dwindling city and sighed. Almost immediately she recalled something Werner had said a long time ago.

'Keep your enemies close, but your friends closer. You never know 'what' they are.'

She glanced to Andrea, who was again giggling and touching Kurtis's arm. The girls eyes seemed to shine. 'I don't trust her one bit.'

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After the cab stopped, and was paid, it sped off in a cloud of dust. Andrea led them to a place to get some camels (they were in the middle of a desert), and three were taken.

Lara got the food, Kurtis the water, and Andrea walked each animal around to get them ready for the long ride.

"Ready?" she asked as Lara approached once more.

"Now or never."

*~*~*~*~*

An hour later, Lara was smiling with glee. She hadn't ridden a camel since 1999, and forgot how much she'd loved it.

Kurtis, who was new to the animal, was looking extremely uncomfortable and kept wriggling in his seat. Andrea rode like an expert.

"Andrea? How long have you been in Turkey?"

"Since my family kicked me out 10 years ago," she replied, grinning. "You should've seen their faces get red, it was so funny!"

Lara leaned back and let the reign's go slack. "I know that feeling."

"You kicked out too?"

"Disowned, kicked out, hated...take your pick."

Trent had fallen asleep, and was hanging off to the left. Andrea tipped him back up straight, supressing a laugh.

As she watched the younger woman laugh, talking about her life and what she used to do, Lara found herself liking her more and more. She just bubbled with enthusiasm, ready to talk about anything.

"Well, we should camp here," Andrea said after a few more hours. The sun was dipping down below the horizon, making the sand turn an eery orange. Lara nodded, halting her camel and slipping off. Her legs, stiff after the long ride, wobbled a bit before they gained their strength back.

She helped Kurtis off his camel (careful not to wake him) and laid him down on the small bedroll. He stirred, then rolled over. Andrea watched him, a smile on her face. After noticing Lara's inquisitive raised eyebrow, she blushed and pulled her blonde hair back into a ponytail. A few strands hanged on either side of her face.

"How long have you guys been.........you know, an item?" she asked after a few more moments. Lara shrugged, throwing some logs into their little fire. The camels formed a ring around the little campsite, shielding off the elements.

"I saved his life," Lara said quietly. "Before that, it was just a game. We'd just be playing around, not serious. Then........."

"Yeah?" Andrea asked, enthralled by Lara's story. There was definately something between this girl and Kurtis. Perhaps lust on the female's part?

'No matter what happens between them lately, I can't start hating her. It's just too hard and a waste of energy.'

"Well...we were arguing.........and then he........."

Andrea smiled, totally understanding. "Well, I hope you guys are happy. Goodnight," she said quickly (a little too quickly). When Lara laid down, she couldn't see the girls eyes glistening, then flashing to anger.

'Every single penny. Every one.'

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

One long, sinewy wing extended and flexed. The other followed, stretched, the beat a little to raise into the air.

The patterned face glared around the countryside. Aeolus had dissapeared only a week ago, and had not yet brought back food, if that was indeed what he was gone for.

"My body aches with the hunger," he whispered. "But the beings that are coming to me....I can feel them. Will they take me, as they took Aeolus? Will they take me and use me, as they did my brother? Or will they destroy me, as the Veritatis wanted?"

He laid back onto the stone slab he had awakened on. "Perhaps I should leave and make my own life, as an insignificant mortal. But if I left here........." He turned back to the Holy Light, that shined with the close proximity to the Nephili.

".........is there no way to have a meaningful life, to forget what I am?" Diomed looked back up to the sky through the cracks in the stone roof. "To be.........human?" A gasp came from the doorway. Diomed turned, only to see Aeolus. "Your back!" he exclaimed happily. The other Nephili, however, glared and spat at him. "You would be human?" "What?" He raised a hand. "You would be human? Then you don't deserve to live."

*~*~*~*~*

It appeared on the horizon, like a large black blotch, but it was the entrance to the tomb.

Andrea smiled and pointed to it. "I was as good as my word, wasn't I?"

"You were," Lara replied tartly. She'd had a horrible night's sleep, and all she wanted at the moment was a nice, fluffy mattress, down-filled pillows, warm, silky sheets.........

"Jeez, don't get too excited," Andrea mumbled, kicking her camel's sides. He began running immediately.

"Kick it's sides, Kurtis," Lara told him when he clumsily tried to get it to go faster. "And when this is all over and done, I'm taking you to riding lessons."

He mumbled something incoherent, then suddenly flew forwards in a burst of speed from the animal. She suppressed a laugh, then joined the two already running.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Diomed paced the stone cell that Aeolus had put him in. Easily escaped with the proper shooting technique, but Aeolus was stronger, faster, and would be able to catch him instantaneously. Not to mention he was injured.

Outside, he heard the quiet pitter patter of feet. Switching to a distinctly human form, he climbed up the stone wall and looked out the small hole.

Three people, two females and a male, were leading camel's towards the site. None seemed all to eager to approach the area, except one girl who was almost jumping in her shoes. She wore a green top, tan shorts, and had two weapons strapped to her thighs.

Diomed liked her immediately.

*~*~*~*

Aeolus ran a hand down the Holy Light and smiled. It glowed at his touch, shined with the power. "This is my only need," he mumbled. "If I stabbed Diomed with it, I'd gain more power. But I'll be alone." He laughed.

"Who cares?"

"Aeolus!" called Diomed from his cell. "Let me out! You can't do this!"

"Really?" Aeolus flew over to the crack in the door. "And what will you do about it, hm? You're helpless, Diomed, helpless."

"No!"

He took his brothers head in his hand. "I'll stab the Holy Light through you, and absorb the power. Thanks for existing, Diomed."

Diomed spat in his face, then pulled away and curled up into the corner.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Maybe we should split up."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!"

"I'll take Kurtis!"

Before Lara could refuse again, Andrea had taken hold of his arm and ran down a dark hallway. A block of stone fell down behind them. Lara groaned, then took the other hallway. Again, a block of stone fell.

There was a certain part of the area where the tiles of the floor became checkered. Each had a different character on them. She stepped on the first, 'J'. Next, she hopped towards an 'E'. Gathering balance, a 'H' was next.

A rumble sounded in the distance, and dirt fell from the ceiling. She waited a second before hopping to the 'O'. Blades swung behind her, covering the air space where she had previously stood. They were rusted to bits, but still cut large cracks in the wall.

Another rumble, and the blades started to come closer. She jumped to a far away 'V', ducked under a spinning blade, stepped onto an 'A', then grabbed the blade, flipped over it, and landed on an 'H'.

All activity ceased.

She sighed, pushed the creaky blade away, then paused. 'What would have happened if I'd stepped on something else?'

Lara picked up a rock, tossed it onto a square (quite hard), and watched as a large stone block smashed down on the whole tiled section. Eyes wide, she walked away slowly.

*~*~*~*~*

Kurtis shook off Andrea and examined the wall. The hallway appeared to be a dead end, with only a few hieroglyphics marking the area. But they were able to be pushed in, like a computer keyboard.

Andrea tapped her foot impatiently. "Why are you looking at that thing? Lets go!"

"Impatience can lead to death, Andrea. No, stop!"

But he was too late. She pressed both palms onto the wall, punching several keys at the same time. He closed his eyes and waited for the pain.

But it never came.

Indeed, the wall swung open instead, and she smiled sweetly at him. "Told ya so! Come on, lets see if it leads to Lara!"

*~*~*~*~*~*

(Author Interlude: English translation of gods name is 'Jehovah', translated from the original in the bible, Hebrew 'Yaweh'.)

*~*~*~*~*~*

Both groups (Lara counting as one) emerged into a large area, with a domed ceiling and a large pool of water in the floor. It shone blue, like the sky that peered through cracks in the roof.

Lara was careful, not charging in at full pace, but slinking around the wall towards what seemed to be a sealed up room. Kurtis was on the other side, whispering to Adrea about the importance of 'quiet'.

After several minutes passed, and no-one appeared, Lara waved for them to cross over. Small sounds were coming from the sealed up room. Andrea stood up on her toes and peeked into the room through a small hole, then backed away. "There's someone- or something- in there."

"What does it look like?" Kurtis asked. Andrea shrugged. A pickaxe appeared from Lara's backpack, spun in her hand, and with a grin, she plunged it into the hole and ripped the stone away.

Diomed's head shot up immediately, and he stood, giving himself a human appearance he had saw Aeolus in, but changing the hair color to jet black.

"Hey, we're not going to hurt you, we're here to help," Lara said soothingly.

'She thinks I'm a human prisoner.' He looked at her warily, then relaxed. Andrea smiled seductively, but was hit in the arm by Kurtis. She glared at him, then pulled a First Aid kit out of Lara's backpack and turned towards Diomed. "You hurt?" she asked.

Diomed smiled, shaking his head. Andrea insisted on checking him for injuries anyway (although it most likely wasn't for the right reasons).

"Who are you?" Lara asked.

"I'm named Diomed," he said in his deep, Turkish accent. He smiled, but it faltered when he spotted Aeolus behind all of them, grinning. "Get down!"

A chunk of rock dislodged itself from the wall where the blast hit it, and smacked into Diomed's head, knocking him unconcious. Andrea crouched beside his crumpled form, while Lara and Kurtis sprinted back out to the main hall. Aeolus did the obvoius, turning his attention onto her and away from his brother.

Kurtis pulled his Glaive off his belt and threw it, allowing the spinning blades their freedom in the large room. At the last second, he took control and aimed for the Nepheli's wing.

Aeolus jumped, however, and was unhurt.

"Come and get me, mortal," he spat at Kurtis, loosing his human form completely. Kurtis gulped, then summoned the Chirugai back, holstered it, and removed two swords from the hands of two skeletons and held them at opposite ends of his body in the Chatka stance.

*~*~*~*~*

"Diomed, wake up!"

The shadows extended themselves, and the voice seemed to be coming from far away, like being in a tunnel. He blinked, trying to see who was there. The memories returned.

Andrea shook him, making his body loose more of it's human shape. She looked at him oddly and backed away slightly as he turned fully back into a Nephelim.

"What are you?"

"A Nepheli."

She watched him for a moment, then crawled forwards and felt a wing with an unsteady hand. He shivered at her touch, and she recoiled her hand.

"Did I hurt you?"

"No." He grinned. "Nobody has ever touched my wings but me. It felt.........different."

Andrea smiled. She relaxed and sat down in front of him. "I'm Andrea. I've actually lived in Turkey awhile. You?"

Neither of them paid attention to the battle after that.

*~*~*~*~*

Kurtis whirled around, swinging both swords out to slash at Aeolus's weak points. The Nepheli parried with his claws and tried to pull a sword away.

Kurtis hopped onto a block of stone and again swung the swords, allowing the hilts to roll over his hands and back into his palms. Grinning, he dove at Aeolus and stabbed out, while parrying with the other blade. Lara, meanwhile, reached for the Holy Light frantically. Andrea was still with the other one in his cell, safe. However, Aeolus turned at the last minute, kicked Lara away, and lifted the staff from it's perch on the altar.

"Lara, move!" Kurtis shouted, trying to get in between her and Aeolus. He crossed his blades in an 'x', stopping the staff from stabbing her.

The two males fought around the side of the pool, until Aeolus eventually discarded the staff against the wall and began shooting blasts at him.

Lara's open window.

She sprinted towards the staff (staying quiet), and picked it up soundlessly. Kurtis saw her through a gap under the Nepheli's arm, and fought him back frantically, nearer and nearer to Lara.

"Aeolus!"

He turned to Lara after kicking Kurtis away again. "What, mortal?" he snapped irritably.

She grinned. "Have your 'treasure' back."

His eyes widened when the shaft impaled him.

*~*~*~*~*

Aeolus stumbled, the blast forming in his hand falling to the floor and dissapearing. Lara slowly withdrew the bloodied staff, then stabbed him again through the heart.

He gasped, and she let go.

"Die," she spat, pushing his chest with her foot.

Aeolus stumbled backwards, his mouth open, and fell back into the pool of water. The blue quickly became crimson. He writhed, screaming silently, and then a flash of light.

And then he was gone. And so was the staff.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Diomed was still smiling at Andrea when the pain hit. It felt like his whole body was filled with splinters and were pressing hard against his skin.

"Diomed! What's wrong?"

He screamed, ripping at his own skin, trying to make wounds and let the pain flow out. Deep cuts formed.

And then it all stopped.

He looked up, sweat dripping off his face. Out in the hall, all fighting had ceased. The pool was bloody and red, but nothing floated in it.

"What happened?" Andrea asked quietly. He looked around the room, then smiled at her again.

"It's gone. The staff, it's.........it's gone! I'm free."

"What?"

He turned to her excitedly. "When the staff was here, if anything destroyed it, I died. So did every other Nephilim in the world. In fact, so did the world. It was considered a sin to kill a pure Nephilim."

"But-" Gesturing to the room outside, he smiled again. "If a Nephilim was impaled on it, both would be destroyed, and the others would not only be free, but recieve his power. That's why I was in pain. I was growing stronger. Aeolus must be gone, and I'm the last one. I'm free to do what I want! I've waited for this chance for so many millenias."

Andrea grinned, finding it impossible not to share his happiness. "That's something I wanted to ask you about.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Lara watched the water swirl for a minute, let her rage seeth, then breathed out. It was over. Eckhardt, Karel, Aeolus.........they were all gone.

"Kurtis?"

A groan from the corner let her know he was still there. She walked over to him as he staggered to his feet.

"Are you alright?" she asked him.

"That was a kick in the head," he said, putting a hand to his forehead. "Is he gone?"

"Yes. Both him and the staff are gone."

"Good. Lets get the hell out of here."

"What about Andrea?"

The two of them looked at the cell, where their guide and a brand new Nephili stood. Both looked ecstatic. Lara drew a pistol that she had up until now forgotten and pointed it at him. "Andrea, step away from him."

"No, Lara, he's fine! He won't do anything!"

She squeezed the trigger warily, then lowered the pistol and walked towards them briskly. "Who is -he-?"

"He's a Nephilim, but he's okay! He's...technically not one anymore, at least not psychologically."

Lara looked up at his face. He towered nearly two feet above her, yet Lara was the more intimidating one. He found himself stepping back.

"Can you two get out of here on your own?"

"Yes."

"Can you stay -out- of my life?"

"Yes," Andrea said, her smile getting wider. "I'm gonna get my own life now. Say goodbye to that stupid guide job!"

"How?"

She took Diomed's hand. "I'm staying with him. We're going to-"

"Don't tell me," Lara groaned. "Do what you want." She stalked back to Kurtis, looking flustered. "I never want to see another Nephili in my life!" she cried, then wrapped her arms around Kurtis and kissed him. Pulling away, she grinned. "Thanks, I needed that."

The two of them left the tomb.

-End

~Epilogue~

The Strahov ruins were cleared in a month, and construction began on a new, better archive building. Many of the libraries around the world were already contributing alot of their books or files.

Inside the concrete shell that made up the building so far, the floor cracked slightly, then burst. A white hand emerged, attached to a black sleeve. Then the rest of him appeared.

Karel snorted, pulled up out of the hole, and screamed in rage.

To be continued...