Chapter 1: Connections

One month earlier…

Journal Entry - 11 April: Interesting news appears to have reached my ears, of which I am most grateful. Upon my arrival back in England from my research trip to Spain, I was approached by a courier who handed me a small parcel and a letter, the former containing a rather poorly looked after leather-bound book protected by an unusual locking mechanism. The letter however, contained a request for a meeting and I am in no doubt that the sending of the book is designed to catch my interest. Having done its job well, I now find myself heading through the countryside to a church on the outskirts of Oxford, to meet a rather respected professor.

X

The sun beat down heavily on the Jaguar as it sped down the empty road, the dark tarmac strip cutting a zigzag through the fields that covered the land. There was barely a cloud in the sky as the black cat raced on, surrounded by cows and sheep, pounding the road hard as it pressed on towards the university town, its destination fast approaching.

"Beautiful weather for it m'lady," said the driver of the car, glancing in his rear view mirror.

Lara Croft sat in the back of the car, crossed legged, staring out of the black tinted window. Casually dressed, she wore an ashen halter neck top with dark green trousers, a brown leather book sitting on her lap. "Hopefully Riley, the rest of the day will be as good as the weather," she replied coolly.

"Aye m'lady, you could use a good one," he responded.

Shining rays bounced off the black surface as Riley shifted down a gear, the car slowing as it passed the sign that indicated the car and its passenger had entered Oxford.

"On the other side of town please," commanded Lara, staring out of the windscreen.

Padding softly through the streets, the black capped driver guided the growling animal gently through the building up traffic of the central high street, passing by shops and houses alike.

"Does it feel strange being back amongst all this ma'am?" asked Riley suddenly.

"All what Riley?" replied Lara sternly. Riley hadn't long been in her employ, but the middle aged driver asked a lot of questions for someone who's primary job was to drive a car.

"Normality ma'am. Civilisation must still feel strange, especially after your ordeal in the Congo," the driver replied.

Lara sighed heavily. "No, it does not. My past in the Congo is just that, in the past. Now I would appreciate it if you just drove the car so I can find out what's in this book."

"Yes m'lady, sorry. Have you still no clue what might be it?" said Riley apologetically.

"Not yet, the lock can't be picked it seems, so hopefully Professor Abbot can shed some light on just what I'm supposed to do with it."

"Have you met this professor before?" inquired Riley.

"No, but I've heard good things, I remember Alister mentioning him once. Apparently, for an old man, he has a brilliant mind. It will be interesting to test it," spoke Lara coldly. Her mentioning Alister unsettled her stomach.

The car's engine roared again as it broke through the urban jungle and back into the wilderness, Lara resuming her vigil at the window as the car found its way into a narrow set of lanes.

"Turn right up here Riley," asked Lara firmly, catching sight of a wooden archway.

"But the map stays straight on," replied the driver, glancing in the rear view mirror again.

"Just do it please."

Sighing, Riley dropped the car a gear and turned into a narrower lane, trying to avoid the many potholes. Trundling down the lane, the car pulled up alongside the archway. The wooden construct was covered in vines and other various bit of dying shrubbery. In fact, the whole front garden area had a tinge of brown decay to it, as the long grass encroached on a cottage that lay hidden behind it.

Riley took a good look over the area before being disturbed by the click of the back door shutting. Lara approached his window and he wound it down quickly, swallowing hard.

"Don't worry sweetie, I'll get the door," said Lara, folding her arms, hips swung to one side.

"Sorry miss," replied Riley, looking at her sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it, I won't be a second. Go turn the car around and wait here."

"Forgive me, this doesn't look a lot like a church," said Riley quickly.

"That's because it isn't, we'll go there next. Now go," Lara replied firmly.

Riley watched Lara turn her back on him and head under the archway, her chocolate ponytail swinging gently behind her. Stopping suddenly, she swung around and shot Riley a fierce look, causing him to start quickly and shove the car into gear before pulling off. Rolling her eyes, Lara made her way through the long grass and tapped on the front door of the aging cottage.

X

Riley sat in the car outside the arch, staring hard at the door, thinking hard. He had no idea whose house Lara had entered, not even sure there was anyone actually in the building. By the state of it, there probably shouldn't be, but in all of his six months service, he hadn't heard her mention anything of dropping in on a friend. Then again, he knew that she didn't really trust him, and she never spoke a lot back at the manor. There was always something troubling her he felt, and he would like to know what it was.

Tapping the steer wheel with his thumbs, he was beginning to get impatient. Lara had been in the house for a good fifteen minutes now, and boredom was beginning to set in. Time progressed further, and still Lara did not appear. Riley was beginning to get reckless when a thought struck him: He didn't know who or what was in the house.

In a sudden impulsive action, Riley clicked open the door and got out, stretching his legs for a second before slamming the door shut and setting the lock. Straightening his black suit jacket and removing his black cap and placing it on the bonnet of the car, he ran his hand through his longish black hair and ruffled it.

Looking around briefly, he made his way under the arch into the long grass, resting his hand lightly on the wooden frame. Glancing about again, he noted just how overgrown the garden was before heading through. Typically, his first footstep was met with a squelch as his black leather shoe punctured a mud pool. Looking down in disdain, Riley stepped back before deciding he would continue. Something in his head didn't feel right.

Making his way as quietly as he could towards the cottage, looking around him all the time, Riley found himself at the wooden front door. Looking over it quickly, he could tell it was rotten and barely hanging on its hinges. Had this place been in a more densely populated area, it would have been broken into a long time ago, but it seemed the woods and fields protected it from prying eyes. Well, all but Lara's anyway thought Riley.

Sighing deeply, Riley raised his fist to the door and drew it back, before hearing the click of the door's lock. Fixated in fear, the door was thrown open, hitting Riley hard and pushing it back. Striding out confidently, Lara shut the door behind herself and stared down at the ground, an expression of amusement and bewilderment painted on her face.

"Riley… what are you doing down there?" she said calmly.

Pulling himself to his feet, and pawing at the mud on his dark trousers, Riley looked at Lara in a strange amazement. "I thought something may have happened to you, you were gone so long."

"Aw, you were not worried were you?" teased Lara.

"Well actually miss, yes I was!" exclaimed Riley, still futilely swiping at the mud.

Lara smiled for a second before placing her hand on his shoulder and guiding him towards the archway, the long grass brushing against her exposed legs gently. "Come on, there might be a towel in the boot."

X

"You know Riley, you will be cleaning this car tomorrow," said Lara playfully.

"Yes miss," said Riley, embarrassed as the car continued down the lanes again.

Lara let herself smile in amusement before returning her gaze to the window. She could now see the church spire peering over the tops of the trees which calmed her for a second as she recalled the words that had been spoken to her in the cottage.

"So," said Riley, breaking the silence, "are you going to tell me who you met in the cottage or what you were doing?"

"I met a friend Riley, I have not seen her in a while and she gave me some advice. Just someone I hadn't seen in a while that was all."

"All very mysterious if you don't mind me saying miss," replied Riley.

"Life is mysterious Riley. For instance, how do you keep coming up with questions to ask me?" Lara retorted.

"I'm sorry miss, I didn't realise it bothered you."

"It does not bother me, it is curious, that is all," lied Lara.

"We're approaching the church miss," spoke Riley softly, changing the subject.

"We certainly are," said Lara in reply, gazing at the worn walls of the silver-grey stone, "stop anywhere here please."

Pulling up to the main gate, Riley stopped the car gently, grabbed his cap off the seat and exited the car. Heading to the rear of the car, he opened the backdoor quickly, and stood up straight. Lara chuckled as she caught a glimpse of his mud stained trousers and pulled herself out of the car.

"Thank you Riley," she said, nodding.

"Ma'am," he replied curtly.

"I am not sure how long this will take," smiled Lara, "so just try and stay put this time please…"

X

Lara made her way down the churchyard path quickly and confidently, her head held high and her hips swinging slightly with all the grace of a world famous gymnast. Clutching the battered book in one hand, Lara reached the grand wooden door and pushed hard, the hinges unfolding. Taking a quick glance inside the dark expanse, Lara stepped over the threshold, closing the door behind her.

Lara had entered into the long corridor unafraid, but the lack of light unnerved her slightly. The walls were draped with deep red banners depicting religious icons, rather than the traditional stained glass windows normally found in churches of this kind. A large stone font stood to her right, and her vision glided over the nave to spot a figure hunched in one of the pews. Sure that the figure was the man who had contacted her, Lara strode down the centre of the church hall, the echo of her footsteps bouncing off the walls, noticeable garnering the figures attention.

"Professor Abbot," said Lara as she watched the man rise from the pew. He wasn't at all what she was expecting.

The man who rose from the wooden bench was young, fresh faced and tall. He was smartly dressed, wearing black trouser and a sleeveless jumper over a white shirt, a pair of thin black glasses faming his eyes.

"Lady Croft," he said nervously, extending his hand.

"Lara, please," she replied, shaking the man's hand reservedly.

"Ok then, Lara. My name is Glen. Glen Abbot," the man stuttering as he spoke.

"I see," stated Lara, relinquishing the man's hand, "and just what do you do?"

"Why, I'm a professor at Oxford," replied Glen, sensing a hesitation from the woman stood in front of him. "Is there something wrong Lara?"

"Well, you are not quite what I expected," said Lara uncomfortably.

"Ah, not doubt you were expecting the Professor Abbot. I am his son, and I also work at the university. You could say I'm following in my father's footsteps," chuckled Glen, "A bit like yourself then really."

"Me? What do you know about me?" inquired Lara, stepping back slightly, hands of hips.

"Oh no, sorry, what I meant was you are an explorer like your father. I could only tell you what any other academic knows about you; that you have made some of the most important discoveries this side of the 20th century. I did not mean to offend Miss Croft," said Glen quickly, trying to retract any sense of insensitivity.

"You did not," dismissed Lara, spinning on the spot and taking a more detailed look at the tapestries on the wall.

"Ghastly, aren't they? They're a recent addition, brought in by the new reverend. Where he got them from, I'll never know," commented Glen, watching Lara with interest. "Their copies from the…"

"17th century. They are depictions of Adam and Eve, from the Book of Genesis, pictured with the Tree of Life, and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil," interrupted Lara, looking over her shoulder, her ponytail flicking back.

Glen swallowed for a second. "You know your history Lady Croft."

"It's kind of my job to know these things Glen," Lara replied, returning to face the tapestries. "Not usually the thing to be hung in a church though."

"No, but as you can see, there is a distinct lack of religious imagery in here," said Glen.

"Indeed there is," replied Lara, spinning on the spot, her eyes scanning the environment again. "Professor Abbot?"

"Um, yes Lara?" spoke Glen, playing nervously with his fingers.

"Are you going to explain about this book?"

"Oh yes, I completely forgot," the professor replied, coming out of a trancelike state. "The book was handed to me by my father when he couldn't open it."

"So have you managed to open it?" said Lara, taking a seat in one of the pews. Placing one leg on top of the other, she sat the book carefully on her thigh.

Taking a seat next to her, Glen put his hands together. "Not entirely. The lock we found, predates the actual book which is of Greek origin amazingly. For some reason, it has not degraded, but we believe the locking mechanism comes from a different culture altogether, though which, we are not sure." Glen took hold of the book and ran his hand across the cover, "As you're probably aware, the front and back cover features twelve ornately designed circles. We've located these designs before."

"And?" said Lara,

"And, they relate to the twelve Titans of Greek mythology. This one here is Hyperion's personal insignia for example," said Glen pointing to an imprint in the leather on the back cover.

"Ok, so the book has something to do with the twelve titans. Why do we believe it is locked?" continued Lara.

"Well, we are not sure why a book on this topic is locked to be honest," said Glen, pushing his glasses further up his face. "If we look at the lock, all you can see is the plate on the front where the key goes, correct?"

Lara took a look at the plate again, studying the shiny metallic surface carefully. The book was only the size of a pocket manual, but two straps, attached at the spine of the book, wrapped around the exterior, meeting on the front under the metallic plate.

"The whole books design is unusual, and its contents a mystery," said Glen.

"So what I am needed for exactly? There could be anything in here you know. A locked book is only intriguing if it contained something worthwhile knowing," said Lara firmly, watching Glen rise from his seat. Producing a cloth from his pocket, he took off his glasses and began to wipe them.

"Well, obviously we would like this opened, so we can find out its contents. But, I believe you have missed an important question Lady Croft. I'm surprised," said Glen, pressing the glasses to his nose.

Letting herself smile, Lara looked around bemused. "Ah Glen, where was this book found?"

"Good question Lara," grinned the professor, "it was found during an expedition by our students to a Persian site."

"So, Iran then?" questioned Lara.

"Yes, Iran. This book was found beneath a chambered cairn in some hills north of Tehran. So that's a book imprinted with Greek myths, with a foreign lock, found in a grave in Iran. A grave with a foreigner in it," said Glen quickly, his voice filling with excitement.

"A foreigner? Not a Persian then?"

"No. When the students and the expedition leader opened the cairn, they found an ancient table located in the centre made of obsidian, or volcanic glass. On top was a corpse, which we think had been bound to the table. There was a plaque made out of the same material as that lock hammered into the glass at the base of the table. It reads "Iblis,"" answered Glen.

"Satan?" whispered Lara, staring at the floor. "But Iblis was a jinn in Islamic faith. It is interesting how all of these cultures have suddenly become mashed together. How does this relate to the book?"

"The corpse was found clutching it in one hand. Various other artefacts have been brought back to Britain by Kray's team, but this was the only thing that the body had on its person," informed Glen.

"And we're back to me again. What do you want me for?" said Lara, her excitement rising.

"To fly to Iran with us and visit the cairn. The table and corpse still remain and we hope to find a way to open the book and discover who is lying on the table. Remember that Iblis defied God's will, and we believe Lara," said Glen, taking a deep breath, "that this site is possibly Satan's final resting place; perhaps the single most world changing discovery in all history…"