1 Lara rapped her knuckles against the steel door of the trailer. The sky
was dark, stars being the only light available and even they were fading as
the sun was beginning to rise. It would be a long time before morning
though. 'Tap, tap, tap' went her knuckles again. "Bryce!" she called into
the trailer from a bullet hole that he hadn't repaired. 'Tap, tap, tap' she
impatiently knocked again. She waited. No response. "Bryce!" She shouted
again kicking the door of the trailer. It buckled slightly and caved
inwards. She peered through the bullet hole and saw Bryce sitting at his
computer with headphones on, face on the keyboard. She pulled her leg up
once again and pushed it forward harshly, causing the hinges to pull off
the trailer. "Bryce!" Anger was evident in her voice as she pulled him back
off the keyboard and took off his headphones. She bent down next to his ear
"Bryce!" she called into it.
"Blimey Lara! What are you doing? My nerves have probably snapped already. What the hell have you done to my door?!" Bryce rushed before opening his mouth, yawning.
"It's 4, I need you – I'll pay for a new door if you insist on living in the hideous monstrosity." Lara walked out of the trailer and into the dew- soaked grass. She loved the world at this time, it was quiet and cool. Bryce ran out of the trailer behind her and followed her into the house.
"What is it this time? Found a pocket watch?" He sarcastically said as they entered the tech room.
"No, this" She dropped a box onto the table. He looked at it then yawned again. "It fell down my chimney"
"Really?" He yawned again
"Bryce, open it" She commanded him
"Why can't you?" He asked her.
"It's pure metal, pretty hard to smash up with no tools." She replied turning her back on him "tell me when you're done will you?" She walked off. Bryce tutted and began working.
A large stone building contained the man's target. He stared at it – lit in the moonlight. His breath was heavy and he seemed to shake slightly in the cool wind as thunder was heard briefly in the distance. He blew into his hands and rubbed them together before starting up the steps leading to the oak door.
The building was a sandy shade – but not sandstone. Stone gargoyles looked upon the visitors with warning eyes – but happy faces – smiling. On the oak door was a large bronze door knock, which he failed to use. Instead he raised his fist and banged three times on the wooden entrance. There were dozens of windows, by the man's guessing skills he figured it was built around Tudor times, but then again, he wasn't very good with placing things in an exact moment in time.
The door opened and a frail man appeared.
"Ah, Mr. Smith, a pleasure" The stranger outstretched his hand to Mr. Smith who took it apprehensively. The man shook it confidently. "You seem to grow younger every time we meet" Mr. Smith grunted, with good reason. He didn't look young at all; his face was pulled back, his remaining hair thinning, his once festively plump torso now skeleton-like and his eyes sunken. He didn't move well either.
"Come in sir" Mr. Smith replied turning his back and shuffling along the hallway "Mr. Gregory has been expecting you"
Mr. Charles Gregory, not a very nice man, but not to be feared, he was too frail in appearance and he also wasn't built to take on anything. The visitor walked in and nodded in thanks to Mr. Smith. He peeled his black coat from his body and handed it to the valet, who took it, grunting again.
The mysterious man smiled. His face was creased slightly, laughter lines. His hair was brown and gelled back and his clothes all black – judging by the make Mr. Smith expected Armani. His eyes were blue and piercing and his smile was wide.
"I know he's been expecting me, I did call before I left the house, didn't I?" The man asked
"Yes sir" The valet responded, "Yes Mr. Winter, sir" The strangers name – Mr. Thomas Winter, but nobody called him by his first name. His father was Italian and his mother, Ukrainian. He changed his name, not proud of its origins. His mother and father would be spinning in their graves; they died when he was thirteen in a train crash. His real name, nobody knew.
"It was nice speaking to you again Mr. Smith" winter smiled again "I know where to find Charles" Nobody used Gregory's first name either, nobody but Winter.
"And you, Mr. Winter" Mr. Smith responded half-heartedly "and you"
Winter walked through the grand double doors into a rather over-decorated room. Paintings hung in every gap of the red walls, statues that didn't match in every space on the floor, and a rather large Spanish green couch.
"Ah, Charles!" Winter beamed as he saw the old man sitting watching his fish, cane in hand
"Mr. Winter" Gregory replied still staring at the multi-coloured water dwellers. "What you want is on the desk"
"Thank you" Winter walked over to the desk and picked up a briefcase "thank you very much" He slid a knife out of his belt and walked silently to the motionless Gregory. "You know, too many important people in this world are a threat"
"I know exactly how you feel, Mr. Winter"
"Good, good. You're rather important yourself…I believe" Winter tested the knife to see how sharp it was
"I like to think so. But I think opposition should be snuffed out" He retorted
"My thoughts exactly – so we're in agreement then?" Winter asked him intently "we should snuff out all opposition to make it in this world?"
"Yes" Gregory agreed
"Good, very well…" With one swift motion blood was covering the floor. Winter wiped his blade with Gregory's shirt collar and re-sheathed it, no blood on him. He jumped out of the window, briefcase in hand, and into the night air.
Lara sat bolt upright in bed. She glanced at her clock reading '11:00am'.
"Bugger!" She said to herself jumping up. She'd left Bryce up all night…or morning, working on that box when she was having a good sleep! She scrambled around, picking up anything she could find to wear then platted her hair in a rush. As she was putting on her boots she walked down the stairs, almost falling down them, and stumbled into the tech room. Bryce was lying back in the chair; sound asleep with the box open in front of him. She sighed relief and walked up to the table, looking into the box. She found a folded piece of parchment and opened it.
⃟
⃟
She translated it into 'open your eyes, look North, South, West, East. Basically, it was a map. It must have been stored in her chimney for years – she wondered why her father continuously hid things around the house! The colours were faded and the directions not at all clear. She blew the dust off the piece and glanced it over once, and again, and again, and again. She even ate lunch looking at it.
She sat at the table taking bites from her Caesar salad, not once looking up from the map. Bryce sat next to her and looked at the map.
"Still no luck?" He asked sliding it away from her
"No" she sighed, "I know where I should be going but I have no idea what for!"
"What's that?" Bryce pointed to a picture of a small eye, much like the eye on the triangle
"That? That's just the eye of Horus, it indicates where…" Lara started, "indicates where...the…pyramid…my God"
"What? Lara?" Bryce clicked his fingers in front of her eyes
"Nothing, just, you've figured it out – I'm looking for the eye, the eye of Horus"
"Oh, wait, you're not looking for that" Bryce told her. She looked puzzled. "That particular eye was found three years ago"
"Damn" She sighed taking a drink from her cappuccino mug "look, I need to make some house calls. Can you take a look at this for me? Find our where it's from, try to find anything in the box…you know, do a Bryce" She stood and picked up her leather jacket. "I'm taking the Norton"
"Lara, you might have a problem there, S.I.M.O.N. tore the engine" Bryce looked ashamed
"What! My Norton is broken?" Lara growled
"Yes, but I'm fixing it!" Bryce covered. Lara sighed again.
"Alright, I'm taking the Aston Martin – I suppose I could make an impression" Lara walked out of the room saying bye to Bryce.
Alex West sat at his dining room table eating toast, his lunch. It was almost Christmas and he wasn't looking forward to spending the holidays alone, especially since his family disowned him. All he did was miss his cousins wedding so he could make some money out of the Illuminati. But now he was thinking about it, it was bad.
"Blimey Lara! What are you doing? My nerves have probably snapped already. What the hell have you done to my door?!" Bryce rushed before opening his mouth, yawning.
"It's 4, I need you – I'll pay for a new door if you insist on living in the hideous monstrosity." Lara walked out of the trailer and into the dew- soaked grass. She loved the world at this time, it was quiet and cool. Bryce ran out of the trailer behind her and followed her into the house.
"What is it this time? Found a pocket watch?" He sarcastically said as they entered the tech room.
"No, this" She dropped a box onto the table. He looked at it then yawned again. "It fell down my chimney"
"Really?" He yawned again
"Bryce, open it" She commanded him
"Why can't you?" He asked her.
"It's pure metal, pretty hard to smash up with no tools." She replied turning her back on him "tell me when you're done will you?" She walked off. Bryce tutted and began working.
A large stone building contained the man's target. He stared at it – lit in the moonlight. His breath was heavy and he seemed to shake slightly in the cool wind as thunder was heard briefly in the distance. He blew into his hands and rubbed them together before starting up the steps leading to the oak door.
The building was a sandy shade – but not sandstone. Stone gargoyles looked upon the visitors with warning eyes – but happy faces – smiling. On the oak door was a large bronze door knock, which he failed to use. Instead he raised his fist and banged three times on the wooden entrance. There were dozens of windows, by the man's guessing skills he figured it was built around Tudor times, but then again, he wasn't very good with placing things in an exact moment in time.
The door opened and a frail man appeared.
"Ah, Mr. Smith, a pleasure" The stranger outstretched his hand to Mr. Smith who took it apprehensively. The man shook it confidently. "You seem to grow younger every time we meet" Mr. Smith grunted, with good reason. He didn't look young at all; his face was pulled back, his remaining hair thinning, his once festively plump torso now skeleton-like and his eyes sunken. He didn't move well either.
"Come in sir" Mr. Smith replied turning his back and shuffling along the hallway "Mr. Gregory has been expecting you"
Mr. Charles Gregory, not a very nice man, but not to be feared, he was too frail in appearance and he also wasn't built to take on anything. The visitor walked in and nodded in thanks to Mr. Smith. He peeled his black coat from his body and handed it to the valet, who took it, grunting again.
The mysterious man smiled. His face was creased slightly, laughter lines. His hair was brown and gelled back and his clothes all black – judging by the make Mr. Smith expected Armani. His eyes were blue and piercing and his smile was wide.
"I know he's been expecting me, I did call before I left the house, didn't I?" The man asked
"Yes sir" The valet responded, "Yes Mr. Winter, sir" The strangers name – Mr. Thomas Winter, but nobody called him by his first name. His father was Italian and his mother, Ukrainian. He changed his name, not proud of its origins. His mother and father would be spinning in their graves; they died when he was thirteen in a train crash. His real name, nobody knew.
"It was nice speaking to you again Mr. Smith" winter smiled again "I know where to find Charles" Nobody used Gregory's first name either, nobody but Winter.
"And you, Mr. Winter" Mr. Smith responded half-heartedly "and you"
Winter walked through the grand double doors into a rather over-decorated room. Paintings hung in every gap of the red walls, statues that didn't match in every space on the floor, and a rather large Spanish green couch.
"Ah, Charles!" Winter beamed as he saw the old man sitting watching his fish, cane in hand
"Mr. Winter" Gregory replied still staring at the multi-coloured water dwellers. "What you want is on the desk"
"Thank you" Winter walked over to the desk and picked up a briefcase "thank you very much" He slid a knife out of his belt and walked silently to the motionless Gregory. "You know, too many important people in this world are a threat"
"I know exactly how you feel, Mr. Winter"
"Good, good. You're rather important yourself…I believe" Winter tested the knife to see how sharp it was
"I like to think so. But I think opposition should be snuffed out" He retorted
"My thoughts exactly – so we're in agreement then?" Winter asked him intently "we should snuff out all opposition to make it in this world?"
"Yes" Gregory agreed
"Good, very well…" With one swift motion blood was covering the floor. Winter wiped his blade with Gregory's shirt collar and re-sheathed it, no blood on him. He jumped out of the window, briefcase in hand, and into the night air.
Lara sat bolt upright in bed. She glanced at her clock reading '11:00am'.
"Bugger!" She said to herself jumping up. She'd left Bryce up all night…or morning, working on that box when she was having a good sleep! She scrambled around, picking up anything she could find to wear then platted her hair in a rush. As she was putting on her boots she walked down the stairs, almost falling down them, and stumbled into the tech room. Bryce was lying back in the chair; sound asleep with the box open in front of him. She sighed relief and walked up to the table, looking into the box. She found a folded piece of parchment and opened it.
⃟
⃟
She translated it into 'open your eyes, look North, South, West, East. Basically, it was a map. It must have been stored in her chimney for years – she wondered why her father continuously hid things around the house! The colours were faded and the directions not at all clear. She blew the dust off the piece and glanced it over once, and again, and again, and again. She even ate lunch looking at it.
She sat at the table taking bites from her Caesar salad, not once looking up from the map. Bryce sat next to her and looked at the map.
"Still no luck?" He asked sliding it away from her
"No" she sighed, "I know where I should be going but I have no idea what for!"
"What's that?" Bryce pointed to a picture of a small eye, much like the eye on the triangle
"That? That's just the eye of Horus, it indicates where…" Lara started, "indicates where...the…pyramid…my God"
"What? Lara?" Bryce clicked his fingers in front of her eyes
"Nothing, just, you've figured it out – I'm looking for the eye, the eye of Horus"
"Oh, wait, you're not looking for that" Bryce told her. She looked puzzled. "That particular eye was found three years ago"
"Damn" She sighed taking a drink from her cappuccino mug "look, I need to make some house calls. Can you take a look at this for me? Find our where it's from, try to find anything in the box…you know, do a Bryce" She stood and picked up her leather jacket. "I'm taking the Norton"
"Lara, you might have a problem there, S.I.M.O.N. tore the engine" Bryce looked ashamed
"What! My Norton is broken?" Lara growled
"Yes, but I'm fixing it!" Bryce covered. Lara sighed again.
"Alright, I'm taking the Aston Martin – I suppose I could make an impression" Lara walked out of the room saying bye to Bryce.
Alex West sat at his dining room table eating toast, his lunch. It was almost Christmas and he wasn't looking forward to spending the holidays alone, especially since his family disowned him. All he did was miss his cousins wedding so he could make some money out of the Illuminati. But now he was thinking about it, it was bad.