Tomb Raider
Trinity
Disclaimer: I do not own Tomb Raider or any of the characters under that title. This story is only for recreational use and should not be reproduced, licensed or used in any way.
Chapter One
It's been almost a week since we reached the main land. A week since our escape from Yamatai. The ship that picked us up put into port in Japan. We were all taken to a hospital to be treated. Some of us were in worse shape than others… Everyone said I had the worst of it but I was still alive. Alex, Grim, Roth… they didn't even make it… But, then again maybe they were the lucky ones. The doctor's were not very happy about the injury to my abdomen. How I had reopened and cauterized it myself. They took x-rays and CT scans to assess if I had any permanent damage. They told me there was some evidence of internal hemorrhaging but nothing several rounds of heavy antibiotics couldn't fix. That is other than the nasty scar that would never fully heal.
The injury to Sam's ankle was a bad sprain. Which by itself isn't good, but it was made worse by how much she had been on it. The doctors wanted her on bed rest for few days to make sure she stayed off her feet. Even so she would have been released with Jonah and Reyes if she weren't so stubborn. I don't know how, but she had arranged for a bed to be pulled into the same room with me.
"I'm not letting you out of my sight Lara." Sam told me. She was trying to look tough, though she had the slightest hint of a pout that was kind of adorable. Her parents had been by to see her a couple of times already. Though I was happy to see Sam reunited with her parents I found myself envying her. She still had family that cared for her. Roth and I may not have been related by blood, but we were family in every other sense of the word and he was gone.
Sometimes I catch myself wondering what would have happened if they had killed me instead. Would Roth have found the truth behind the storms? Would he have been able to save Sam and destroy Himiko's body? I know there aren't answers to these questions and it doesn't really help to dwell on what ifs, but I can't help it. Maybe one day I will, but not now.
"Lara?" Sam's voice brought me back to our hospital room. She's sitting on her bed, her bandaged foot elevated with pillows. She had a laptop computer her parents brought her balanced in her lap. She turned the screen so I could see it. Sam had already downloaded the footage from her camcorder and was working at editing it. I looked her way and tried to seem interested.
"I want your opinion on how Whitman is coming off… I'm afraid he's coming off as evil." Sam said. I held back the sarcastic quip that leapt to mind first and instead tried to reassure her.
"Sam, Whitman was ready to sacrifice all of us for his own selfish ambition." Sam's eyes dipped to the screen, to the image of Whitman in the Endurance's Mess Hall.
"I know, but he was one of us…" She paused. "…Mathias manipulated him and got him killed." She wasn't wrong but I found Sam's sympathy for the man who betrayed us strange. As if she could read my thoughts Sam clarified.
"I don't want to excuse what he did, but I don't want to destroy good that used to be there."
As usual Sam proved she had an ability that I lacked. The ability to see past what most people saw to get at something deeper. I wondered if that's why she loved being behind a camera so much. To Sam film wasn't about pointing a camera at something and pressing a record button. She used to tell me that through a camera lens, she could see into the soul. Despite her crass party girl exterior Sam could have amazingly poetic moments.
I nodded that I understood what she meant about Whitman. I dug into my rucksack that lay on the bed beside me and pulled out the collection of Whitman's journals that I found.
"Just tell the truth and let the people decide." I handed her the journals. Sam took them, letting her hand touch mine as she almost always did.
"Thanks Lara." She smiled.
I turned back to what I had been working on before I digressed into the recent past. I was holding my journal from Yamatai. Everything I learned and recorded. There was one lose end that I still couldn't make sense of. The message I had found in the GPS capsules, the references to the Trinity Organization. Whatever Trinity was they had placed an agent on Yamatai at some point. He had tried to infiltrate the Solarii but was found out and killed. It all had to do with something they referred to as the Star Phenomenon. The Trinity agent was scared Mathias was close to "obtaining" the Star Phenomenon. But, Mathias was trying to raise Himiko… what did one have to do with the other? I was quite certain that if Mathias had been successful he would not have been able to control the vengeful Sun Queen and therefore would not have obtained anything. None of it made sense, I was missing something. I just didn't know what.
The nurse came into our room. At first I thought it was time for my next round of antibiotics but she wasn't carrying anything with her.
"Miss Croft?" She said in broken English. "There are men here to see you… government men." My eyebrows went up at that. I turned to Sam who was reaching for her camera. I rolled my eyes and looked back at the nurse.
"You can let them in." I said. To be honest I was half expecting this. The media had been aglow with the news that the lost island of Yamatai had been found. While at the same time meteorologists were reporting a strange calm in the usually stormy region of the Dragon's Triangle. While your average world citizen might not connect the dots I knew others would. The nurse left and a few moments later two men entered. Sam had her camera up and recording as they entered.
"No cameras." One of them said stretching out his hand. Sam hesitated for a moment and I could tell she was about to argue but I caught her eye and shook my head. The suits, the swagger and the attitude… these guys meant business. Roth had run-ins with guys like this in the past. They could be cagey and I didn't want to set them on their heals. I had questions for them just as they no doubt had some for me.
Sam reluctantly complied and put the camera aside. The man who had spoken first produced a badge from his sports coat.
"Special Agent Johnson, CIA." He said. I couldn't help but smile as I looked to the other man who actually stood about a step and a half in front of Johnson.
"Agent Smith of her Majesties MI6." He said in a deep tone. "We would like to ask you a few questions." Now my smile sunk back into the grimace Sam often accused me of wearing. I had expected government men but agents from both the American and British intelligence agencies? Where they working some sort of joint task force? I only allowed myself a moment to consider this before pushing the questions from my mind. I glanced over at Sam was pretending to be interested in her computer, but I could tell the presence of the agents had her uneasy. I turned back and tried to focus my full attention on the men again.
"What kind of questions?" I asked and was suddenly aware that my mouth had gone dry. There was half a cup of water sitting on the serving cart next to my bed. Agent Smith picked it up and handed it to me.
"We would like to debrief you on the events that took place on the island of Yamatai." Smith said once I took the cup from him.
"What do you mean? What do you want to know?" I rasped before taking a sip of water. The two men looked at each other for a moment.
"You left port almost a month ago with a crew of nearly two dozen people." Smith paused. "Only four made it back… we'd like to know what happened to the others including the two rescue craft that responded to your distress call." Smith's tone was friendly but it was obvious they were dealing with this very seriously. I took another sip of water to buy myself a few precious moments to think. What was I supposed to tell them? The truth was so absurd I was still trying to wrap my mind around it. But, perhaps they didn't need to know the whole truth.
I told them about the scavengers and Mathias' homicidal cult. I explained how they hunted and captured us and how we fought back in self-defense. Though I left out the part about the spirit of an ancient Sun Queen being the cause for the storms. I also didn't mention the ritual where Sam was almost possessed and the undead Samurai warriors.
"You're saying electrical storms brought down two aircraft within hours of each other?" Agent Johnson asked me with more then a little incredulity.
"There were hundreds of wrecks on that island going back centuries." I said sounding more defensive then I meant.
"You know what's funny. We've been monitoring weather satellites over the Dragon's Triangle and there hasn't been a single blip since you were picked up out there." Johnson wore a sarcastic grin. He obviously didn't think this was a joke so he didn't mean funny haha… but I decided to play along anyway.
"Agent Johnson… are you implying that we can control the weather?" I tried to sound playful but I was shaking with fear inside.
"Yes Miss Croft… that's exactly what I'm saying." Johnson said with a straight face and just like that the conversation swung in the wrong direction. I had left out the details about Himiko because I didn't think anyone would believe me and I hoped they wouldn't care. Now it seemed they did care… in fact I was afraid it was the real nature of their visit. Asking about the rest of the Endurance crew and the rescue craft had just been necessary pretext. This was what they were really after.
Agent Smith broke in. "We knew about Mathias' Solarii cult and their attempts to resurrect the Sun Queen." It felt like the ground had moved beneath me and looked over at Sam for some kind of support. Sam came over to my bed and took my hand in hers.
"How did you know all that?" It was Sam who asked and I was thankful she was there with me.
"We had a man there working undercover." Johnson said as he pulled a picture from the pocket of his sports coat. He held it out and Sam took it from him. The man in the picture looked vaguely familiar.
"He stopped reporting in shortly after you sent out your distress beacon." Johnson said. I racked my brain trying to remember when I had seen this man. I was sure he wasn't one of the people I had killed. I could see each of their faces clearly.
"He was in the palace." I heard Sam say. "He was one of the guards but… he was nice to me." Sam's voice broke and she fell silent. It was enough to jog my memory. As I tried to escape the palace Mathias had ordered the bridges destroyed to stop me. One of his men objected and Mathias shot him.
"Mathias killed him for questioning an order." I told them. Sam handed the photograph back.
"So what exactly do you think we could tell you that you don't already know?" Sam asked. She's used to being the one asking the questions and she had slipped into her documentary filmmaker voice. I couldn't help but smile. The men didn't answer Sam's question. In fact they pretty much ignored her still directing their attention at me. Because, of course, they knew I had the information they wanted.
"They want to know the same thing Mathias wanted…" I said to Sam. "The key to controlling the storms."
I let that hang in the air. Johnson was unreadable, Smith cracked a grin and Sam scoffed in disgust.
"I can tell you, but you won't believe it." I said.
"Try us." Smith replied still grinning. I took a deep breath unsure how wise this was.
"The Sun Queen Himiko used and ancient ritual to transfer her soul into the bodies of chosen priestesses. On one occasion the priestess committed suicide leaving Himiko's spirit trapped in a dead body. Her rage was behind the storms." I paused to gauge the reaction of the agents. The only clue I had was that Smith wasn't smiling anymore.
"I destroyed the mummified remains of that priestess and the storms immediately stopped." Johnson stood and paced to the window in the wall opposite my bed.
"You understand how that sounds?" Smith asked.
"Believe me… I do." I nodded. I felt Sam rest a hand on my shoulder and I placed my hand over hers. Smith retreated to where Johnson was standing and they whispered back and forth with their backs to us. Sam leaned down and whispered in my ear.
"Do you think they'll buy it?"
I shrugged. "Doesn't matter, it'll never leave this room regardless."
"You didn't tell them about Himiko's attempt to possess me." Sam said.
"No, and neither should you… I don't like where this is going Sam so be careful what you say." I caught her eye and she gave a weak nod.
Smith and Johnson turned around and came back toward the bed.
"One last question Miss Croft." Smith said. "Are you familiar with the name Trinity?"
For a second time I felt thrown off balance. Something about my reaction must have registered as an affirmative because Smith continued.
"In one of his last transmissions our undercover agent reported something about Trinity. Unfortunately a storm blew in and we didn't get most of the message." He was lying. I couldn't prove it but I felt it and I had learned to trust my instincts. They knew more then they were telling but, then again, so did I. Perhaps I should have hid this too but I wanted to know where this was going.
"I found evidence that a group called the Trinity Organization had an agent on the island. However, he was killed before completing his mission." I took the scribbled letter from my notebook and handed it to Smith.
He and Johnson read it seemingly unsurprised by what they saw. For a moment they just looked at each other then Smith handed the note back to me.
"Miss Croft we have an offer for you."
"What kind of offer?" My eyes narrowed.
"A job offer." Johnson said almost too casually. I looked at Sam and she seemed just as shocked and confused as I was.
"Uh… could you repeat that?" Sam broke in.
Smith's grin was back. "We want to hire you as a freelance investigator to look into the Trinity Organization and whatever you can learn about this Star Phenomenon." He said staring at me.
"Why me?" I asked.
"Because you've got good instincts and you've proven you can find things no one else could." Smith answered. This assessment of my skills by a strange government agent was a little unsettling. It was the type of thing Roth would have said. This was making me more and more uncomfortable. Despite Smith's accolade it still didn't make sense for them to come to me with this. I wasn't a trained agent I didn't know anything about espionage. I had a dozen questions but didn't think I would get any answers… or at least any that would be truthful. While I was mulling this over Sam spoke again in my stead… She had done that a lot through the course of this and I was thankful for it.
"Why would you think she would be interested?"
Smith ignored Sam and took two things from his coat. The first was a folded letter and the second was his business card.
"We hope to hear from you soon." Smith said. Then he and Johnson left the room without another word.
"What is it?" Sam asked me. I unfolded the paper and read with Sam looking over my shoulder.
"It's about a government backed grant… a big one." I told her reading down. "Apparently if I help them the grant is mine to fully fund my next archeological venture." I sat back placing the letter in my lap.
"This is crazy… two government guys show up and offer you a shit load of money if you do their job for them?"
"There's likely more too it then that…" I closed my eyes for minute to think. Sam went back to her bed and sat on the edge. She pulled her computer into her lap and began typing on it.
"Lara, you're not seriously considering doing it are you?" Sam sounded worried. I knew her well enough to know that she wouldn't have asked if she didn't have some idea already. Part of me debated telling her but I couldn't very well lie to her.
"Yes… I am." I said playing with the business card Smith gave me, turning it over and over in my hands. I wanted to know more about Trinity and what Himiko had to do with the Star Phenomenon. I was already planning to research it on my own… now there was the potential I could be paid for it. I could understand Sam's reluctance though. There was something not quite right about this. The job offer was a little too generous and too short on specifics. Sam sighed and nodded as if it was the answer she was expecting.
"I've got a confession to make." Sam said turning the laptop so I could see the screen.
"Don't get mad okay…" She pressed the spacebar.
"We would like to ask you a few questions." Agent Smith's recorded voice came over the speakers.
"Sam… you recorded the whole thing?"
"Just audio… I'm sorry I just didn't trust them." Sam had shrunk back a little like she expected me to scold her.
"I'm not mad Sam… just surprised." I smiled. "It was quick thinking and might come in handy later." Sam instantly brightened. That recording could provide some much needed leverage later on. My experience with the government agents Roth had dealings with made me distrusting of the bread in general.
Sam set her laptop to the side and picked up her camera again. She pointed it in my direction.
"Archeologist, adventurer and now secret agent… Lara Croft." She spoke in a wholly unprofessional tone of voice and broke down into a fit of laughter. I smiled. "It does sound rather absurd doesn't it?"
Sam got her laughing fit under control but kept the daft grin.
"No more absurd then the now world famous Tomb Raider being a badass woman." Sam shrugged. I had not really thought about my gender having anything to do with my discovery. Archaeology had traditionally been a male dominated field… the fact that a woman… a young woman barely out of university had discovered Yamatai could throw the academics into turmoil. However, none of this drew my attention as much as Sam's use of the title Tomb Raider.
"I am not a tomb raider." I protested.
"You went through several tombs on Yamatai."
"They had already been looted and desecrated by the Salari." I pointed out in my defense. Sam got the most wicked, beguiling smile.
"I'd let you raid my tomb…" My face must have instantly turned red because she burst out in more laughter. Since we became friends Sam had not stopped teasing me about my lack of a social life. She dragged me out to clubs and would point out guys around campus. None of it worked. I was too wrapped up in my studies and while I appreciate her attempts to bring me up for air I just wasn't interested. More recently Sam had gotten into this habit of throwing charged innuendos at me to see what kind of reaction she could get. The worst was the time we were riding the metro together. Sam was getting off a couple stops before me to do some shopping. She stepped off onto the platform and just as the doors closed she turned and shouted something about picking up something sexy for us to play with later. I felt as if every eye on the tram was on me… I wanted to throttle her.
"You should see your face." Sam laughed again. I wasn't really in the mood for her ribbing, good natured or otherwise. I was too intent on Smith and Johnson's offer and the possibility of getting to the bottom of what was happening on Yamatai. However, I decided I would eventually have to do something about Sam's teasing… At some point I'd give her a does of her own medicine and see if she could take as well as she gave.
"Alright, you've had your fun…" I said turning away from her. She let out the softest mewling grumble of disappointment and went back to her computer.
"So, when are we going?" Sam asked. It was the first time she had expressed any personal interest in what was going on. Though it shouldn't have surprised me… given Sam's declaration not to let me out of her sight. However, I had no intention of allowing her to follow me this time. I spent so much… sacrificed so much to save her. I would not put her in another potentially dangerous situation.
"We aren't going anywhere." I said firmly. I glanced over at her. She looked stunned.
"You're not leaving me behind…" She started to object but I cut her off.
"Yes I am… you need time to rest and heal." It was technically true but made for a shoddy excuse.
"Look who's talking… you've got way worse injuries then I do." Sam shot back. I winced… this wasn't going to end well if she fought me on it. I tried a different tactic sliding off my bed and knelt in front of her.
"Sam, please… I don't want to see you get hurt again." I was begging but I couldn't help it. Sam was just too important to me. Her response wasn't what I was expecting. She placed a hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eyes.
"What happened on Yamatai wasn't your fault Lara." She meant it well but it stung. It stung to the most inner parts of my being. I stood and backed away from her. She looked at me with pleading eyes but I ignored them. I turned away from her before the tears formed in my eyes.
"Lara?" Sam called. I went to the bathroom, closed and locked the door. The room spun around me and I slid to the floor. All the thoughts and feelings I had been trying to bury came rushing to the surface… because it was my fault… all of it. I was the one who pushed for the expedition. I got Roth and the others to sign on to it. I sent us into the Dragon's Triangle and got us shipwrecked on that damn island. Grim, Roth and Alex all died trying to protect me… It was entirely my fault.
Tears came and wracked my body. I couldn't leave things they way they were. I had to do something for them, so their deaths wouldn't be in vain. I had to make their sacrifices mean something. Most importantly I had to make sure I didn't let anyone else die. I knew it would hurt Sam, but she was alive and I was determined to keep her that way… even if she hated me for it.
