Prologue – Betrayal
The world was breaking.
Deep within the ancient Tomb lone survivor Lara Croft felt the world give out beneath her feet. In her hand she held one of the most prized treasures in all of myth and archaeology, an item of such worth and power that it seemed God himself would destroy her to keep it safe. The walls shifted, desert sand, burning hot and all-consuming, streamed into the ancient burial chamber, the once rich and majestic tomb now suddenly a rapidly drowning death trap. A boom resounded, the sarcophagus of the ancient king began to move, sliding deeper and deeper within the depths of the chamber as the ancient stone walls began to rend and break.
A shattered pillar began to fall, the ceiling crumbled and the scream of rending stone shook Lara to the core. Stuffing the ancient artefact into her pack Lara Croft tucked tail and fled. The moment was lost to adrenaline. Lara un-holstered her shotgun, firing off an incendiary shell into a descending chunk of history.
The ancient rock shattered, debris and stone pelting off her Kevlar armour as the Tomb Raider broke into a breakneck run. Rocks plummeted towards Lara, herself either blasting them to pieces or leaping out of the path of descending rocks, which missed her by a hair's breadth and shattered on the tomb she was leaving behind. Lara leapt into the air, running along an unbroken side of the Tomb with the skill of a free runner, before leaping towards a stretch of stone which had not been broken in the deluge of history. Lara gripped the edge of the walkway, she could almost hear the furious words of the King screaming for her death as she rapidly pulled herself up and once more set off at pace.
Lara could feel the artefact resonating its distress from deep within her pack, the Gods answering its plea as they sort to kill the intruding mortal. But the beauteous Raider would not be denied. Lara ducked, dodged, shimmied and scaled the ancient death trap, looking back only briefly to see how fast the tomb was filling. She was tiring, adrenaline burning through her body, her heart forcing the power of flight into her thighs.
"Shit!" Lara cursed, watching as a length of stone began to break away from the wall ahead of her, great cracks rending history, but more distressfully, the length of stone falling right in front of her exit, if she didn't make it she would be sealed in this place forever.
Lara picked up the pace.
The massive pillar fell, huge chunks of earth bone shattering the floor and opening a fissure inside the tomb. Lara fell, slipped, slide down the makeshift slide the impact had forged for her. Lara ducked. With the earth as her friend, Lara slid underneath the mass of the falling pillar, the ancient foundation stone crashing down mere inches behind her as the makeshift slide ended. Lara scrambled across the ground like a snake. Pushing off with her hands Lara raised her shotgun again. Another mass of rock exploded with her shell, Lara reeling, shielding her face and eyes from the debris and the gathering of dust erupting into the air like a fog.
Lara gasped, coughed and covered her mouth, as she entered the final stretch. She could see sunlight, sweet, blessed sunlight. She was going to make it.
The Raider's boots pounded the sandy floor with renewed vigour, heart beating ever faster as the light became blinding. But the ancient Gods can be cruel, and even with such hopes, the earth before the exit rent apart, breaking into a fissure and negating her escape.
However, Lara was a Croft, and Croft's do not lose hope.
Holstering her shotgun, forcing all of her power, muscle, hope, passion and desire to live into this one desperate action, Lara leapt into the air, pulling her climbing axe from her waist and brandished her most faithful of friends. Fear flooded her, her jump mistimed, she began the fall, the darkness consuming her. She was going to die. She would be buried here, like the ancient item she had so long converted. Gravity was her enemy in this suicidal leap of faith. A scream broke from her throat, she swung the axe, determined not to die here like some rookie fortune hunter.
The axe bit into jagged rock, Lara's fall suddenly ceased. Scrambling for a handhold Lara hung from the handle of her inanimate companion, solid rock suddenly filling her palm as Lara unleashed a thankful gasp of relief.
"Oh God…!" Lara breathed, her armour clad body brushed forcefully against the side of the fissure. Stabilising, pulling herself together, Lara began to scale the rock face, reaching for freedom, safety, home. Hardened fingers found nooks and hand holds, fingertips gripping, axe biting into jagged stone, boot clad feet pushing her onward as behind her the tomb roared its frustration.
She breathed, remembering all of the rock climbs Roth had taken her on during her youth, remembering how she used to love this once pleasurable past time. Lara forced herself onward, looking up, looking towards the nimbus of light that was her exit.
Only… a few… more feet…
The surface of the rock face gave way beneath her.
Lara screamed, her foundations failing, holding onto her axe with just the fingertips of her hand. She screamed for help, anyone, anything, looking up towards the taunting halo of light and called forth again.
A figure appeared at the heart of the nimbus.
"Lara?" the figure called out, his voice rich, articulate and familiar.
"Werner…? Help…!" Lara called to him, the halo of light slowly dwindling to unveil Werner Von Croy. He reached down, gesturing for Lara's hand. Or so she thought.
"Give me the artefact!" Von Croy demanded, gesturing for Lara to hand over the treasure she had fought so hard to obtain. Lara blanched her grip weakening.
"Help me!" Lara screamed, reaching desperately for the hand of her friend. Though every time her fingertips brushed against his, Von Croy merely demanded the surrender of her treasure.
"Throw me the item, Lara! Hurry!" The young Raider fought for safety, reaching back, pulling the body of her pack around for access, using her teeth to keep the flap open. She took the ancient treasure from her pack. She strained, muscles burning as Von Croy reached down and snatched the ancient artefact from the hand of his protégée.
"Yes…!" Von Croy hissed, holding the beauteous item aloft, face rich with ecstasy and relish. "At long last!"
Lara looked up, pleading for his help, though it seemed the old man had forgotten all about her.
"Please…! Help…!" Von Croy finally turned his gaze away from Lara, looking down at the attractive British lady with a look of complete disinterest.
"I'm sorry, lady Croft," Von Croy said without sounding even slightly apologetic. "But you've served your purpose."
Then, to Lara's sheer shock, the man who she had respected, who she had once called friend, drew his gun from his side holster. Von Croy pointed the gun down at Lara, a wicked smile crossing his face. The world resounded with an explosion, Lara surrendered to her fate, and pulled her axe free from the rock face.