Disclaimer: I do not own anything or anyone from the Uncharted series, they belong to Naughty Dog. I do however own my character.
Hey, this is my first go at an Uncharted story which I hope you will enjoy. I shall be interested to see what you think so if you feel like leaving a review then that would make me very happy. The story is complete and I shall be putting up a chapter a week if everyone is happy with that. The story is set during Uncharted 4 and follows my character and how she gets swept up in the story. So without further ado, please read on.
Chapter 1
It had been quite a while since I had had to dress up in the manner of fashion that would enable me to get into such an event. Yet at auctions such as the one I was pulling up to, I knew from experience, it was better to look like you owned half of Europe. These people had deep pockets and were not the sort of people to outbid, especially if you valued your life. So if you were going to do so, you better have the money to back up your bid and you better look like you had it too.
The limo came to a stop and the young man came round to open the door for me. He proffered his hand to me as I stepped out, dark silver heels followed by a deep blue dress. My light brown hair was done up, my makeup applied more generously then I would usually like, but with the look I was going for I had decided it was better.
"Just park up and wait for me, ok?" I said to my driver, who nodded, though the expression on his face suggested he did not like being told the obvious.
Taking a calming breath I walked up the steps, casually eyeing the armed guards posted about the place. They made me uneasy but I pushed on, removing my invite from my clutch bag and handing it to the man near the door. He nodded and indicated for me to enter into the large white marble entrance hall. I noticed steps led off either side as I walked between the signs that said welcome in various languages, though it appeared only the ones to the left were accessible to guests. To my right, just before you entered into the main room where the auction was to take place and where already many people were milling about, there was a cloakroom. The man stood waiting to take coats, I assumed, but he seemed more interested in attempting to chat up ladies then actually taking anyone's coat.
I made my way to the main room, the techno beat reaching my ears the closer I got. The place was crowded and the amount of bodies made it rather warm. Upon reaching the bottom of the few steps that led down into the hall, a waitress in a ruby red waistcoat, white shirt and black skirt offered me a tray of champagne. I felt like declining, but I knew better then to do so.
With my glass in hand I began to casually peruse the room, observing the people with an air of vague interest. Men and women making polite conversation or eyeing each other up when their seeming other halves were not looking. A room of the corrupt and the crooked and then I paused, my facial recognition system kicking in. I had to be mistaken I thought, but then the person turned and I knew I knew them. Just slightly older, slightly greyer and for once in a suit. I smiled and made a beeline for them.
"Well, well," I said, causing the person to turn. "I never expected to find you in a place like this, Mr Sullivan."
"And why not?" he asked with a smile, his American accent clearly evident.
"Well, personally I always thought you were too nice for this type of crowd," I replied, a smile playing on my lips.
"Oh did you now," he said, taking a puff from his cigar that he held in his right hand. "You sure it has nothing to do with the prices?"
I smiled and he gave me a wink.
"So how about yourself, Miss Cook?" he asked casually. "Last time we met you didn't have the sort of scratch they bid here either."
"Let's just say tonight I'm good," I replied to which he raised an eyebrow, but did not press any further. He took a swig of his drink and opened his mouth as if to engage in further conversation when he paused as something caught his eye. I swung round and spotted the auctioneer was overseeing the first items for sale being displayed on the stand before the crowd. I swung back to see Sullivan's brow furrowing.
"Mr Sullivan?" I questioned.
He replied without taking his eyes from the stand.
"I'm sure I've told you before Freya, call me Sully."
"Sully?" I tried again and his focus came back to me. "Is something wrong?"
"They've changed the order of the lots," he said, pointing to the items on display. "It would take a very large amount to make them do that."
"So…what, the auction is rigged?" I said slowly, watching his face as it became a mask before he just shrugged and smiled.
"Not surprising considering the crowd," he said, gesturing around before finishing his drink. "Anyway, might as well get a refill. I think it's going to be a long night. May see you later."
I nodded and he left, moving away towards the bar. I sighed; he was probably right, especially if they had changed the lot order. It was strange to see him there, though I cannot say I was not happy to see him either. A friendly face in a sea of sharks was always a welcoming sight.
I moved away from the stage and found myself a pillar near the back of the room, sipping my champagne slowly. Now all I had to do was wait.
Time ticked by slowly as I waited. Several men had made an attempt to be rather more friendly then I liked, but they seemed to get the hint after I casually threw what remained of my champagne in one of the more persistent one's face. Having been given a new glass and finally being free of unwanted advances, I happened to spot Sully reappearing from the entrance hall, down the steps. I got the feeling however that he was not alone as my eyes picked out a new face that I recognised. This face was even more surprising for as far as I knew he had retired from the business, but there was no mistaking the handsome visage of Nathan Drake. He and Sully casually wound their way through the crowd and into the back of the room beyond the pillars. I tried to be subtle as I lent further to the side of the pillar I had chosen and glanced back with curiosity. Sully and Nate were next to the door that I assumed led to the cellars along with another man who I noticed, however casual he was trying to be, was definitely with them. He was taller then Nate, same colour hair though the man's was a little longer and he appeared to be slightly older; his face more weathered but still reasonably handsome.
Nate looked as if he tried to open the door, but it was locked and the three of them looked disgruntled for a mere moment before they all suddenly took on a casual air as the door opened and a waiter appeared carrying a bottle of something. The waiter then came towards my pillar and I glanced away quickly into the crowd. He paused to chat to a lady before he moved off further into the room and as he did, I saw that both Nate and the other man were following. After several moments of them following him around, the second man chose to distract the waiter and Nate accomplished whatever they had been trying to do. They headed back to the door and as the second man passed me, his eyes met mine for moment before ignoring me again. I paused before glancing around carefully to see they had achieved their goal of entering through the doors into the cellars and Sully was now coming back into the main room. I sighed and hoped whatever they were up to, that it would not disrupt the evening, but knowing what Nate was like, it was not likely to end well. I moved out into the crowd and made a notion of taking interest in the ice sculptures that decorated a few of the tables. As I did so I noticed a woman approach Sully and make her hand into a gun before engaging him in conversation. They chatted quite amicably however, her South African accent showing, and it was obvious he knew her. She nudged him and offered to get him a drink, which he accepted and she headed away towards the bar. It was as she did that Sully, still watching her walk away, then appeared to talk to himself. Something was definitely going on.
Paddles were handed out and the auctioneer began the auction by starting with the golden ball thing that was next to a cross. People began bidding, the evening had officially started. I glanced around the room again noting Sully's woman had come back with a couple of drinks and they continued to chat. Clearly they were not interested in the ball thing either. After it was sold they took a short break before moving on to the next item, assumedly to check the winning bidder's details were taken. Then came the next item, the Arabic looking knife, I say that because my Father had one a bit like it from there, but I doubt it was worth anything near the price this one seemed to be going for. I was only grateful it was not the lot I was interested in. I took to looking at my notes again on that lot and when it was meant to be. I looked again at the current items on display and began trying to find where they had originally been to try and give me some idea of how much had changed. It was then I discovered it only appeared to be one item that had changed. The cross on display with the gold man, St Dismas the information said, had been moved up the list, almost to the beginning. It seemed an odd item to be so desired that someone was prepared to pay to get it moved to pretty much the front of the queue. It did not interest me however in the slightest.
"In a few moments we shall begin bidding on our next item…" started the auctioneer making me look up. "an inlaid wooden crucifix from the Trott Estate."
Suddenly a glass smashed to the floor and I turned rapidly to find Sully engaged in a heated discussion with another American man in a tux. He seem violently angry and I felt my hand move for the clasp on my bag as almost everyone present felt the threat of his words, but I stopped as the woman seemed to take control of the situation. Sully backed off and the room seemed to edge back into general chatter. I looked to Sully but he seemed to be fine yet I found I kept an eye on where the angry man was from then on. I knew without any doubt I certainly wished to avoid him.
Finally the auctioneer's voice sounded though the speakers once again silencing the room. It was the cross's turn. I glanced about the room as the bidding began and had to do a recheck as I suddenly noticed something that was not quite right. There was a waiter stood near to the podium and normally I would not have given it much notice had my facial recognition system not gone off. On the second look I realised why for it was the second man I had seen with Sully and Nate dressed now as a waiter. This could not be good. I saw his eyes meet mine and then glance away again as he tried to look casual, though it seemed to be working for no one else seemed to have noticed. I now focused my attention on the bidders and realised that one of them was 'angry man'. He seemed to have succeeded with a bid of ninety thousand euros and the auctioneer was about to wrap up when a new bid came in. I turned and looked towards the new bidder to find to my concern it was none other then Sully. This had gone past being 'not good', all the way to 'oh my god, what the f*** are you doing!'
Up the price went and I started to wonder if I was going to have to give up on my own planned endeavour to save my friend from a grievous mistake. It had just reached two hundred and ten thousand euros when 'angry man' bid a whopping five hundred thousand. The auctioneer and 'angry man' looked to Sully to see if he would bid again, but to my relief Sully did a gracious little signal of 'it's all yours' and admitted defeat.
"Had me worried there for a minute, Victor," said 'angry man' almost casually. "Thought I might have to kill you!"
The room laughed but I knew, as I was sure Sully knew, it was no joke. Yet the fact he had just decided to give up failed to explain why their friend was pretending to be a waiter. Something just did not sit right with me.
As the auctioneer made to sell it to 'angry man' however, I got my answer as the entire room plunged into darkness to the gasps and cries of those present.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please remain calm," announced the auctioneer, yet I knew this was no ordinary power outage. "The backup power will come on shortly."
The lights did indeed start to come back on but as they did someone called out.
"It's gone!"
Which of course it had, along with the fake waiter and as I turned, I spotted Sully leaving through the rapidly closing cellar door too. I was not the only one as 'angry man' ran towards the door.
"Move it! Get out of the way!" he snarled, shoving people out his way. "Stop him! Hey…stop that guy!"
The guard by the door said something, I assumed in Italian or something like that, but 'angry man' ignored him.
"What're you doing?" he snapped. "You're letting him get away! Do you speak-!"
His speech cut short as the guard raised his gun and pointed it in his face.
"Sparisci!" snapped the guard.
Or it sounded like that, I didn't catch it properly.
"Fine," said 'angry man' backing away. He turned and chucked his paddle to the ground as he returned towards the crowd. I looked away and sighed. They were already locking down the ballroom and this meant I was unlikely to get what I'd come for.
It turned out I was exactly right, people started panicking as soon as the guards called a lockdown and those who had been milling about in the entrance hall and some who were upstairs during the bidding now ran for the parking lot. Yet what could I expect from such people, they had not survived this long in the game not to know when to run. I knew that I could not stay there, I had to get out too. However the guards were not going to let us just go though, I would have to be careful if I planned to leave still in one piece.
We were stuck, peoples' desperation was starting to show and some even appeared to think about charging the guards, but the guns made them reconsider. It was then something large and made of glass shattered somewhere which alerted guards. We knew because we heard it come through on the radios of those guards present. Next gun shots resounded close by and the room turned hysterical. Suddenly people were moving and all hell broke loose as people ran for the door. As I legged it with the throng of people across the entrance hall and out into the car park, I realised the guards were letting us leave. It seemed they had acquired their target and we were no longer their concern. It was a relief, but it was short lived. I soon discovered my driver had freaked out upon seeing a mass of people charging out the doors and hearing gun shots going off about the place and so had fled…without me. I swore. I was stranded and no way was I asking one of these people to give me a lift, but that left the other option of possibly incorporating bullets into my current look. Nope that was not an option. I had to think, what on earth was I going to do.
I was panicking, looking around for anything, something that could let me get out of there and then I stopped. Sully. I spotted him sitting in a limo and everything else went from my mind. I ran for the car and practically threw myself on the bonnet. Sully jumped and then stared and then opened the window and stuck his head out.
"Freya?" he queried, he seemed surprised to see me.
I grabbed a breath and went for it.
"Driver left me…got no way out…I need you to give me a lift!"
I sounded deranged, I didn't care. He looked as if he was going to refuse me, clearly I was getting in the way of whatever he was doing, but I was desperate.
"Please, Sully!"
He swallowed.
"Get in," he replied and I threw myself round to the passenger door.
I felt relief the moment I was in that car, though I'm not sure why as even within the assumed safety of its structure I could now hear the gunfire increase. The guards had clearly found their target. Sully looked at me and then started talking, but I immediately knew he wasn't addressing me.
"All right boys, change of plan! Too many people trying to leave, the driveway's all jammed up."
I looked, he was right. When he had started talking I had wondered if I was the cause of the change, but I had soon realised I wasn't even registering in his calculation. He had paused, clearly waiting for a response from the boys and then continued.
"There's that fountain just outside the ballroom. I'll meet you there!"
He nodded to himself and then looked at me. I grabbed my seatbelt and secured it as he started the engine. I could see from his face that what he had planned was going to be a little crazy. I nodded to him, I'd done crazy before.
There was more shooting, it sounded closer. Sully floored the car forward, swinging it round the car park to get into the position he needed. I saw him pause, his finger moving instinctively to his ear as I guessed someone spoke. He responded.
"Hold on, kid... nearly there!" he said as he swerved to avoid a Ferrari. I knew he was talking to Nate.
He swung round another car and drove into the trees. Dodging shrubs and greenery, he swerved his way to where he planned to be.
"Almost there." he told them again.
He halted at the top of a incline and then looked at me. I nodded as he floored it. The car flew forward, bumping and jumping down the hill and then exploding through a hedge and into the gardens.
"Someone call for a limo?"
I smiled, Sully had always been cool with the lines. I could now see the two men in white shirts shooting at a lot of guards. The armed men were everywhere and the two were heavily outnumbered. They were running for the car now, Sully had flung open the back door from the inside. It was going to be close. Shots bounced off the car and whistled past them as they finally reached us and flung themselves in.
"Go! Go! Go!" yelled the second man as he slammed the door behind them.
"Hang on!" replied Sully as he floored it with gun fire pelting the car. Back up the way we had come, swerving to miss a tree, then a whole new route involving smashing through a wrought iron gate and back into the car park. Handbrake turn around the entrance pillar and pedal to the metal up the driveway to freedom.
As the shots receded into the distance I relaxed, I was safe, well safer. I was out of there, I may have failed to accomplish acquiring what I had come for, but at least I could return to my hotel and take a nice hot bath. Once I had had time to calm my nerves I could think about what to do. It was as I relaxed into that car seat however, that all such thoughts vanished from my mind as I felt something hard press into my back through the back of the seat. I heard the click of the hammer and it was then I knew the night was far from over.
There we go, what do we think? Exciting? Interesting? Let me know what you think by clicking that review button.
