- TOMB RAIDER -

- THE CITY OF BLACK WATER -

Set after the 2013 game. Lara Croft is now a full-time adventurer funded by her best friend, Samantha Nishimura. Her new journey takes her to the ruins of Khara-Khoto, hunting an artifact coveted by the Tangut Empire's long-dead kings. Contains original characters and mild romantic friendship.

Author's note: Happy Easter 2013! Thanks for choosing this Tomb Raider fanfic! I am by no means a Tomb Raider expert. I just really enjoyed the strength and character of the rebooted Lara Croft and decided that some expansion on her girl power was in order. Please forgive me if the storytelling is done awkwardly: I rarely do adventure tales like those of Tomb Raider. But I thought the potential was too fun (and grrlsome) to pass up. First comes this prologue as a prelude of the fun to come…

Disclaimer: This Buddhacide production (lol XD) inevitably contains a few original characters and enemies since there won't be a new Tomb Raider game for some time. But what I'm trying to do here is to make this original adventure intrude as little as possible on the canon storyline – after all, we all know Lara's going to continue adventuring after the reboot; Sam's role as her financier might not be so certain however. No matter. I hope you enjoy my new superheroine's (well, she is to me) next adventure! And usually I'm uncomfortable with requesting reviews despite taking very seriously all criticism, but since this is a genre I've never tried before, I'd welcome your feedback on anything I've done right or wrong.

Have fun! ^.^

Prologue: Restless Spirits

London, the British Museum. 19:45 hours.

Samantha Nishimura was about to conclude her lecture in the Japanese Galleries.

"And that concludes the results of what we found on that mythic, very dangerous island. When I was a child, my mother told me that our house was descended from the Yamatai people. I thought that was an old folk tale meant to legitimize our family's nouveau riche identity. Certainly a Yamatai bloodline would have elevated us beyond even Lord Croft's pedigree!" she joked, to scattered mirth and chuckles. Garbed in a graceful bright-red blouse, her smiling face turned somber. "But I would never have thought that I could experience, firsthand, the majesty and terror of that ancient island. I saw things that would be too absurd and outlandish to tell such a distinguished audience of scholars and museum aficionados. At the very least, however, Japanese scholars can now collaborate with their international colleagues to publish a much more informed series of monographs about the origins of Japanese civilization and Queen Himiko's role in history. So I will end here, and open the floor for discussion, questions, and of course, wine.

"And by the way: We could not have come this far without the help of my friend, Lara Croft." The stylish, black-haired woman glanced at the ponytailed brunette directly in front of her, standing with the professors in a light-blue dress. The British lady winked, grinning, and Sam noticed, flashing her an encouraged beam as she continued. "Indeed, without her research, insight, and perseverance, we would never have even made it to Yamatai. So she deserves as much credit as anyone else, and our achievements up to now will all be dedicated to our late mentor and friend, Conrad Roth. My calling from hereon, as a filmmaker, producer, and translator is to live up to Roth's impeccable standards of service and friendship. Thank you all, and have a wonderful evening," she concluded to the clapping that echoed throughout the British Museum.

Sam stepped away from the lectern and gathered up her notes. Tonight was the grand opening of the Yamatai forum, and Lara Croft had been invited to Sam's inaugural speech. It was only fitting, that many months after their surreal shipwreck on the real deal, that an academic conference would be convened to discuss the implications for Japanese history and East Asian scholarship as a whole.

Lara didn't care for cocktail receptions, but she wasn't uncomfortable around good company either. She was part of the high society she felt so indifferent towards, after all. This reception was hardly a gathering of the viscounts, barons, dukes, and other Peers of the Realm that made up the Croft family's inner circle. Chatting amongst themselves were professors of history and archaeology from different universities, their students, art collectors, and editors, as well as the museum's directors and delegates of various foundations and heritage charities. Yamatai had long since been a historical mystery for Japanese scholars and their colleagues in London and elsewhere. To have a member of the Nishimura family speak personally to them about it was an event as rare as any priceless artifact.

But Sam had already departed from the company of esteemed scholars, writers, and journalists, and Lara followed suit so they could talk in private.

Clack, clack clack, went their high heels. Lara stopped walking only when Sam did. She gazed at Sam's bare back. She was looking out the window, down at the courtyard of the museum. "That was a good speech, Sam. And you look great," declared Lara. "Why do Eurasians always look so beautiful?" she asked, invoking Sam's Japanese father and Portuguese mother.

"Mum's modeling career might have had something to do with it," said Sam dryly. Lara couldn't help giggling at the wry answer.

It was true that Sam was stunningly pretty, and Lara wasn't unused to polite compliments about her own attractiveness, too. The young women were a perfect match – one was of traditional British blue blood, the other of nouveau riche heritage. Both had inherited eye-watering wealth and not afraid to enjoy their assets (although Sam often teased Lara for being much more frugal). Most of all, they were both impulsive and adventurous. They fed off each other's loneliness and uncertainty in the world. Had Sam lost herself to Himiko on that evil island, Lara doubted she would have returned to civilization either.

There was no denying the truth. The fellow UCL alumni needed each other. Desperately.

"I'm not used to giving talks. At least it masked the evil that we endured to get back to London, that's for sure," sighed Sam, hugging herself. She looked at Lara briefly, as if expecting something, but that expression was gone as she spoke again. "When are you setting off again?"

Lara shifted awkwardly. "I was actually going to go yesterday, but since your family invited me directly to come to this reception… I couldn't… and didn't want to refuse."

"If it wasn't for me, you would have left the UK already, then," said the filmmaker, her face falling further.

Lara nodded reluctantly. "That's right. You know where I'm headed, after all."

This was it. This was going to be her next big expedition, although this time she wasn't involving anyone of the Endurance crew (she doubted they would have had the stomach for it, anyway). The Nishimura family had business interests in the People's Republic of China, and Beijing was the perfect base from which to launch her voyage – deep into the province of Inner Mongolia, where the ruins of Khara-Khoto rested: the City of Black Water. It was not actually an unknown location: on the contrary, several popular documentaries had been made about Khara-Khoto. It was simply too remote to be a viable tourist destination, and while it remained the object of fascination for many scholars of Mongolian, Chinese, and Inner Asian history, much was still unknown about the civilization that created it… the culture of the Tangut people.

"Why do you always need to choose the ominous-sounding locales?" wondered Sam wistfully. "Only you would enjoy following in the footsteps of Russians," she chastised, referring to the bygone Russian explorers and scholars that had come to Khara-Khoto in the early twentieth century. Lara chuckled, and Sam shook her head sadly. "That wasn't really a joke, Lara," she rebuked.

"Oh," replied the budding adventurer, slightly embarrassed.

"Let's see. There are only three or four Tangut specialists in the entire world, probably all on life support. Tangut logographic script is even more complex than Classical Chinese. And unless you've been taking intensive courses behind my back, I'd say your Mandarin alone should be pretty crap. We know the Tanguts were a ferocious and patriotic people that also believed in magic and curses – their entire language was built to hide the mystic secrets of esoteric Buddhism and North Asian shamanism. And you want to parachute yourself into that terrifying city in the Chinese desert! Even the locals say those ruins are haunted and cursed! Couldn't you have picked a place that sounded just a little less frightening than Yamatai?"

Lara felt herself shrinking before Sam's growing frustration. Rarely did she see Sam express such negative passion. "Look, Lara. Until Yamatai, we never even believed in fantastic things like Stormguards, oni, or demented sun cultists… let alone a shamanic spirit queen like Himiko." Sam shivered at the horrific memories of her abduction by the Solarii cult, and Lara wanted to hug the vulnerable woman. Sam looked at Lara uncertainly. "You remember all that we went through, don't you? And now you're going to the ruins of a medieval empire that had the guts to take on China's Song Dynasty. Only Genghis Khan could really tame them, and Genghis Khan is hardly a bleeding-heart liberal."

"Sam," murmured Lara. "Calm down."

The former media student looked away. "Sorry. It's just… I mean, who knows what you will encounter in those ruins of a city?"

Lara grimaced. Her best friend had a point. The Tangut Empire was not so mysterious as the inhabitants of Yamatai, for some of their native literature had survived despite almost no records in the seminal Yuan chronicle, Three Historiographies of the Yuan Dynasty. Known to the Chinese as the Western Xia, the Tanguts were a people that staked out a dominion that endured until the death of Genghis Khan, upon which the ascendant Mongol Empire wiped out its people, culture, and the physical fabric of its civilization.

But aside from their intriguing military history, what fascinated Lara was the discovery that a Russian excavator called Kozlov had made in 1907. During his excavation of Khara-Khoto, he mined a sculpted head of a Buddha that was believed to decide the fortunes of Tangut emperors – whether they'd rise to an age of prosperity, or fall before their enemies – just like how a sacrificial maiden of Yamatai blood could determine Queen Himiko's next body.

The parallels between this astrological artifact and Himiko were only poetic and superficial. But it seemed worthwhile to choose Khara-Khoto as her next target for adventure and research. "I know you won't be coming back to Britain for much longer, and the Buddha's head definitely sounds like something up our alley," said Sam, staring down at the floor. "So I persuaded dad and mum to provide you with what you need. You told me you became proficient with the bow while you were saving everybody, so you'll get your whooshing arrows of fiery death. But we've also pulled some strings with an arms dealer friend to procure some pistols and light firearms. You can't go into Khara-Khoto with nothing. Our loss of innocence, so to speak, should have taught us that."

"Thanks, Sam."

"My family has some academic connections in Beijing. They should hopefully have some Tangut sources you can follow up on. You might want to stop off in the capital first. No one just parachutes into Khara-Khoto with a backpack."

"Thanks, Sam," repeated Lara. She really didn't know what else to say. She owed so much to Nishimura.

The Nishimura heiress stared into Lara's eyes again. "But what if I had said no?" she demanded, crossing her arms defiantly. True, she pretty much never said no to Lara, but for argument's sake… "What if I challenged you to raise your own funds? What if our family actually declined to go along with you and left you to hang high and dry? Would you be so keen, stingy daughter of the tenth Earl of Abbington?"

"This is about more than money and research. I've found something I can devote my life to. But I need you so much more than I need money. Without your support, I wouldn't be able to keep up my morale."

"I know what you mean. The thrill, the sense of accomplishment must be unparalleled for you. But at what price? I love all the crazy things we do together, and all the better if we can travel the world. But I never expected to be hunted by crazy cultists to host the spirit of a shaman queen! You've already lost a family friend who meant so much to you. What about me?" cried Sam, her voice rising to a slightly shrill pitch. "Have you ever paused to think about how worried I feel for you?"

"That wasn't called for, Sam," deplored Lara, her growing anger flaring for once. "You don't need to bring Roth into this. You don't think I felt terror every moment we spent on Yamatai? Grief? Despair? I shed as many tears as blood, I bet!" Sam jumped at her aggressive voice, and to Lara's surprise, Sam's hurt expression seemed to match the pain in her own heart – Roth's loss still felt raw and sore, and she doubted either would ever heal completely from that. "I want to see your smile, too," she said quickly, turning down her voice and relaxing her unconsciously clenched fists. "I'm going to return to you. Always… each and every time."

Sam moved closer, her downcast eyes shining apologetically. The museum was growing quiet. They had been talking for an unexpectedly long time. Even Sam's guests were departing. But the host of tonight's reception paid no heed. Before Lara could break the unusually awkward silence, the Japanese mogul's heiress threw her arms around her tightly. She raised her head to gaze up at the surprised aristocrat.

"You've got to come back to me, alive and well," she whispered into Lara's ear. Her nose touched Lara's skin tightly in the museum's cool night. "Swear it. Or I'm never supporting your trips again."

How silly. Typical Sam. The dead don't need cash, thought Lara to herself. She stroked Sam's black hair tenderly, closing her eyes as she sank into the warmth of Nishimura's arms. Thank God that the girl embracing her was no longer trembling or crying. Not like those nights on the accursed island, when they were drenched in sweat and tears and blood. "You've got that right. I will come back to you, demons and weird things be damned."

Samantha stifled a whimper, pressing her face against Lara's collarbone. "You promised, okay?"

Miss Croft held Sam tighter in her cuddle. "I'll live up to your priceless trust in me." She opened her eyes as Sam sighed in satisfaction and relief, her chestnut irises burning with enthusiasm and impatience. Everything was settled now. Her equipment was all ready. Her tickets had been booked. Her expenses would be taken care of. Her financier had overcome her fear of losing her.

Inner Mongolia and the relics of dead Tangut emperors awaited her.

Next stop: Beijing, she thought, adrenaline surging silently within her veins.

TO BE CONTINUED