Chapter One: Fresh Start
Disclaimer: I don't own Lara Croft, but any other unfamiliar characters are mine.
Lara sat quietly in the dark windowsill of her room. She found herself doing that more and more often at night lately. As she sat there, alone, listening to the rain, she thought about her mother and father. Their would be 22nd Anniversary was coming up and she always got a little depressed thinking about it. After all, they were both dead. She sighed and slouched over to her bed; she desperately needed sleep.
Tomorrow she was going to India on an expedition. The purpose of the trip was to find a Talisman. Some ancient scrolls had been found that told about it. It had come up in almost every one of the scrolls. Supposedly, it let the possessor travel through time for all eternity. The Talisman itself was a sword that an ancient tribe worshipped. A carving was found on the wall of one of this certain tribe's temples that warned that if an evil person wanted to obtain the sword for cruel intentions, all the demons of Hell would be set free. The carving also mentioned, Kisho, who used the sword to free his people from imprisonment and end the Dark Age of Kearegone. That's how the Talisman got its name.
Recently, more information had been discovered on another set ancient scrolls frozen in ice. The scrolls told where the Talisman was, and had the whole legend, but they didn't say exactly how to get to it. The area they were going to was in the middle of a jungle surrounded by guerilla fighters and other scattered military personnel. It would be dangerous and hot, and Lara was very skeptical about the whole thing. She couldn't believe that the committee was driving itself mad over something that probably didn't exist. Although, it was only a year ago that she traveled all around the world looking for two halves of a triangle that was also supposed to enable you to travel through time. It would certainly be and adventure, at any rate. Since it was suddenly of profound interest, Lara was chosen to be a part of an elite team researching the site. She was supposed to leave pretty much as soon as she got up tomorrow. For now, however, she would need to get some sleep.
* * *
Lara awoke to the obnoxious sound of her alarm clock. She took a long shower and made no hurry in packing. She didn't really know how long she'd be staying, but she packed only about twelve sets of clothes. She would carry about a day's worth of clothes in her backpack all the time, and then every other day, she would go back to a checkpoint where all of her other clothes were. The checkpoint was important; it had a small hospital and a main tent with a kitchen and sanitary drinking water. There was also a landing area and a helipad. The team, however, for the most part would be staying in tents at the campsite.
Finally, at about noon, Lara climbed into her jet and took off. It was slow at the start because it was cloudy, but she made good time. Most of the team was already at the checkpoint awaiting her arrival. A few hours later, when the rest of the team came, they introduced themselves. The one who caught Lara's eye the most was a guy named Kevin. He had deep brown eyes and long, black hair that he kept loosely in a low ponytail. She didn't really get a chance to talk much with him before the others ran up to shake her hand. There were two women named Riona and Rhea and a short bald man named Scott. There were also of course their native guides, Nebeelah and Mustafa.
The team trekked through the jungle to the campsite for about an hour before setting up in a flat, open area. A few trucks arrived shortly after and dropped off tents and other necessities. The tents were set up in a circle, Lara's tent right beside Kevin's. The two didn't talk much then either, because everyone was busy running back and forth between the truck and the tents. One by one, they all finished and the trucks rolled away. While everyone was sleeping, Lara laid in her tent, swatting mosquitoes before finally settling into an uneasy sleep.
Disclaimer: I don't own Lara Croft, but any other unfamiliar characters are mine.
Lara sat quietly in the dark windowsill of her room. She found herself doing that more and more often at night lately. As she sat there, alone, listening to the rain, she thought about her mother and father. Their would be 22nd Anniversary was coming up and she always got a little depressed thinking about it. After all, they were both dead. She sighed and slouched over to her bed; she desperately needed sleep.
Tomorrow she was going to India on an expedition. The purpose of the trip was to find a Talisman. Some ancient scrolls had been found that told about it. It had come up in almost every one of the scrolls. Supposedly, it let the possessor travel through time for all eternity. The Talisman itself was a sword that an ancient tribe worshipped. A carving was found on the wall of one of this certain tribe's temples that warned that if an evil person wanted to obtain the sword for cruel intentions, all the demons of Hell would be set free. The carving also mentioned, Kisho, who used the sword to free his people from imprisonment and end the Dark Age of Kearegone. That's how the Talisman got its name.
Recently, more information had been discovered on another set ancient scrolls frozen in ice. The scrolls told where the Talisman was, and had the whole legend, but they didn't say exactly how to get to it. The area they were going to was in the middle of a jungle surrounded by guerilla fighters and other scattered military personnel. It would be dangerous and hot, and Lara was very skeptical about the whole thing. She couldn't believe that the committee was driving itself mad over something that probably didn't exist. Although, it was only a year ago that she traveled all around the world looking for two halves of a triangle that was also supposed to enable you to travel through time. It would certainly be and adventure, at any rate. Since it was suddenly of profound interest, Lara was chosen to be a part of an elite team researching the site. She was supposed to leave pretty much as soon as she got up tomorrow. For now, however, she would need to get some sleep.
* * *
Lara awoke to the obnoxious sound of her alarm clock. She took a long shower and made no hurry in packing. She didn't really know how long she'd be staying, but she packed only about twelve sets of clothes. She would carry about a day's worth of clothes in her backpack all the time, and then every other day, she would go back to a checkpoint where all of her other clothes were. The checkpoint was important; it had a small hospital and a main tent with a kitchen and sanitary drinking water. There was also a landing area and a helipad. The team, however, for the most part would be staying in tents at the campsite.
Finally, at about noon, Lara climbed into her jet and took off. It was slow at the start because it was cloudy, but she made good time. Most of the team was already at the checkpoint awaiting her arrival. A few hours later, when the rest of the team came, they introduced themselves. The one who caught Lara's eye the most was a guy named Kevin. He had deep brown eyes and long, black hair that he kept loosely in a low ponytail. She didn't really get a chance to talk much with him before the others ran up to shake her hand. There were two women named Riona and Rhea and a short bald man named Scott. There were also of course their native guides, Nebeelah and Mustafa.
The team trekked through the jungle to the campsite for about an hour before setting up in a flat, open area. A few trucks arrived shortly after and dropped off tents and other necessities. The tents were set up in a circle, Lara's tent right beside Kevin's. The two didn't talk much then either, because everyone was busy running back and forth between the truck and the tents. One by one, they all finished and the trucks rolled away. While everyone was sleeping, Lara laid in her tent, swatting mosquitoes before finally settling into an uneasy sleep.