Chapter 6: No more room to breath
I'm starting to feel weak. For the first time in my life, I feel helpless. I feel like there's nothing left to do anymore. Nothing to make things better. I feel my lungs going to explode at any time. Maybe it's because the water has reach the top, leaving no place for air. Maybe it's because there's no way out. Maybe it's because the door doesn't even want to open when I tried to use my powers. But it's mainly incapacitated that I feel. The absence of hope has made me weaker. What I wanted before I die is to see those pursing blue eyes. So blue but so much life inside them. I wish I could see Chris once more and then leave this world in peace. Now it's too late, it's over for me. Elizabeth Clark
The water started getting warmer, like it was boiling on fire. The ceiling had been reached by the water; my only place I've got air has gone. I felt my body weaken by the lake of oxygen. I've tried everything to get the hell out of here but nothing worked. I knew that any minute my lungs where going to full with water and drown me. Then I heard a voice inside my head Elizabeth, hold on, I'm gonna get you out of there.
I knew who was talking to me in my head Kurtis, Please hurry. The water has reached the top and there's no air left.
I found a staircase, leading up somewhere, just stay with me, he said again.
I sighted I'll try.
He went up the staircase only to find a small room. On one of the walls was three levers and only one of them opened the door. "I found three levers." He told me in my head. "Kurtis, I can't hold on much longer." I told him. "Hold on, Chris will never forgive me if I let you die." He said and pulled the right lever but nothing happened. Shit, two left, He thought. He pulled the middle lever and hears a noise from the back of him. "Kurtis, I'm sorry." I said back. Kurtis turned around to be face to face with a monster. Elizabeth hold on, Kurtis said. Shit, no…Elizabeth, he thought when she didn't responds back.
Kurtis got his BoranX ready when he sees Lara and Chris behind the monster. Chris was hold his Phirugai in his right hand and his gun aimed at the monster in his left hand. He got his Phirugai that was just like the Chirugai ready to cut off the monster's head. Lara was holding both her pistols in her hands. They started to shot the monster and they dodge, rolled and shot the monster over and over until it kneeled in front of them. Chris took the Phirugai and sliced the monster's head of while Kurtis ran to the last lever and pulled it.
The whole place started to shack. "What did you do?" Lara asks. The water in the closed room was draining out after two platforms opened up. "I'm trying to open the door in the other room." Then they heard a door down stairs open. "Well the door opened, so where is Elizabeth?" Chris asked.
Kurtis ran past him and Lara followed. Chris then followed after, and finds Kurtis and Lara kneeled to the ground in the room that was now opened. Kurtis was feeling Elizabeth's pulse. Chris ran to them also kneeling. "No….No….What happened?" Chris said, tears coming down his checks.
"I can't feel a pulse." Kurtis said and started giving CPR to Elizabeth. "Come on, Elizabeth, breath." Lara said will Kurtis was doing the CPR. Chris was helping Kurtis, by giving mouth to mouth to Elizabeth on the time Kurtis told him after he pressed onto her chest three times. "Elizabeth wake up, please don't leave me now." Chris said making another tear fall "I love you."
After a few seconds she started to cough out water, looking up at Chris who now was holding her tightly against his chest. "I thought I lost you back there." Chris said kissing her on the head. Elizabeth smiled and said "you're not gonna get rid of me that easy." Chris smiled at her and wanted to hold her forever, protect her forever but he knew he can't always be there for her. Elizabeth looked up and saw Lara and Kurtis and she broke the embrace with Chris and tried to get up but she fell back. Chris caught her in his arms. "Take it easy, your body is still in shock." Kurtis said with a smile. Chris helped her up onto her feet and holds onto her, that she won't fall back to the ground again.
Elizabeth looked around and wondered what happened that she got trapped in a Lux water trap. She looked at the eight statues, and tried to walk to them. Chris helped her to the statues and Kurtis and Lara followed. "What I don't understand is why this room was built, if the puzzle was just going to trap you." Elizabeth said and took more heavily breaths. It was like her lungs never had oxygen in years. "Maybe the puzzle isn't even right." Lara said and started to move the statues off the circles. After all of them were of, Lara checked all the names and found that 2 of the 8 were painted black and the others were painted wit. She looked closer and then her Tomb Raiding senses kicked in. "The two statues where on the wrong place. They painted over the names, switching them, letting no one find whatever this room holds" Lara paused. Looking back at the circles. "That no one will find it and that they get trap in a kind of water trap." Elizabeth finished her sentence.
Lara nodded and took a deep breath "This name and the one on the other side are switched. We must switch the statues."
"Okay, you're the tomb raider." Kurtis said and help Lara move the two statues on the right places and then move the others back on their places. Then the room shock again but this time the wall on the other side opened up, reliving a secret room. Elizabeth looked at Lara and then back at the wall that just opened up.
They walked to the secret room to find a stone table in the middle. There was nothing on the table, only writing that read "Only the four values can be used by four people who have these values in their hearts. The Values are another way to destroy evil. RJC" Elizabeth read it out loud again, and Lara then thought to herself, 'RJC' Father was here? Elizabeth looked at Lara and saw that she was thinking of something. "What's it, Lara" Elizabeth asked.
"RJC, its stands for my father's name." Lara said with a sight. "He did that once before in Thailand, He never does that but only if it leads to my grandfather's crib."
"So whatever was here is now at your home, back in England?" Kurtis asks
"Yeah, my father did have a lot of secretes." Lara answered.
"Oh that's true; remember what we found back in Përmet. I still can't believe he knew that." Elizabeth said.
"Oh yeah, the artefact of life. How he knew of the artefact is a mystery." Lara said. "How can I forget."
(Flashback to 1998)
Elizabeth was on her way to Përmet after hearing of an artifact located somewhere there. The Army gave her the permission to travel, because of her fast training. Elizabeth also wanted to get away from someone there who she was in love with. I can't let him fall for me, I can't let him will be in this mess called the Shadow wars. No I'm not going to get him involved in that, she thought to herself.
Half an hour later, Elizabeth landed in Përmet and started to search for the underground citadel. When finding it, she heads in and finds herself in a room that has a lot of paintings on the walls. The one wall had a wit Angel on it and the Angel was holding a book in the one hand and a golden shard in the other hand. On the next wall there was a Black Angel, holding what looks like a box that had the symbol 'Infinity' on it. The black Angel had something at its feet. It looks like the Ark Veritatis, she thought, trying to get a closer look. Before Elizabeth could check the other painting, she hears someone come down. She got her guns ready, to shot any intruders.
Elizabeth aimed but lowered her gun when she sees Lara coming in. "What the hell, Lara. I almost blew your head off." She said with anger and holstered her gun back.
"So what are you doing her, Elizabeth?" Lara asks.
"Finding an artifact and you?" She answered.
"I'm also here for an artifact. My father wrote in one of his journals of a mysteries artifact that can give 'life' to its owner." Lara replied to the question.
"That's just like your father. Last time it was the Triangle of life and now this. What else did your old man hide from you?" Elizabeth said with irritation.
"Well, I found this journal hidden in his secret room. So it really doesn't surprise me anymore." Lara answered and looked at the walls. "Well those two on the walls are good and bad angels but what about this Painting." Lara was on the opposite side of the room looking at a painting that had 8 people on it with the same symbol on their shirts.
Elizabeth is now also standing at this wall but she recognized the symbol on the shirts. Lux Veritatis, she said in her head. Lara turned to face Elizabeth "Do you know that symbol because I never saw it in my life." Lara said. Elizabeth looked at the other walls, on one there was a painting of the Nephilim and on the other one there was a painting of the moon and the sun with the earth. "Well Lara, it stands for the Light of truth." Elizabeth answered but not the real name of the symbol. I can't let her know that this is a secret orders citadel, Elizabeth thought.
Lara and Elizabeth solved the puzzle and found the next room with the artifact of life. Elizabeth takes it but Lara doesn't want her to. Lara aims her gun at her "Where do you think you going with that."
"Lara, you don't want this, trust me you don't. There are things you don't know of and I hope you'll never do." Elizabeth said putting the artifact in her backpack and then taking her pistols out to.
"What are you talking about?" Lara asks.
"I'm saying this artifact doesn't belong with you. It's hidden her by my ancestors." Elizabeth said, trying not to mention the orders name.
"Your ancestors?" Lara said "You're saying that the artifact is yours."
"Yes, how did you think I knew the name of the symbol, or how I knew how to open the door? Think about it Lara." Elizabeth said.
Lara looked at her and lowered her gun. She knew Elizabeth for three years and not once did she betray Lara. "Okay, I trust you but where are you going to take it?"
"To a temple back in America." Elizabeth answered and walked out and Lara followed with.
(Flashback ends.)
After Elizabeth and Lara thought about the past, Lara snapped. "So that's how you knew the name? Light of truth also known as Lux Veritatis."
"Yeah but I couldn't tell you. I knew you wouldn't tell the whole world but it's this wars, I didn't want you to get involved in." Elizabeth said.
"Well I knew that you won't stab me in the back and I was right." Lara said "Let's get out of here and find whatever my father found here.
They headed out and back to their jeeps. They drove back to the airport and set off for Britain. While on the plan Elizabeth called one of the brothers. "Grant Limoux, are you guys still fine? Karel didn't dropping by?"
"At least not Karel but his mercenaries did pitch up again but we took care of them" Grant answered through the other line.
"Hm, maybe it would be safer that you guys go hid in the secret underground stronghold in Africa." Elizabeth said.
"Then we can start rebuilding the order like Kurtis said." Grant answered.
"Okay then. Tell Edward to arrange a flight for you guys then we'll meet up with you guys later.
"Will do, bye." Grant said and hanged up.
4 hours later, they reached Lara's Manor that was also in Surrey but Clark manor and Croft Manor was 30 miles away from each other. Lara went into her manor with her guest just behind her. Winston greeted them and Zip was sitting in his tech room. Lara then heard Kurtis "this place looks almost like Clark manor."
"Well Clark manor was Croft manor before I moved in." Elizabeth said.
"Yeah, Clark manor belonged to my aunt; she gave it to me after she passed away. I also got my father's manor and Elizabeth wanted to buy my aunt's manor from me." Lara said.
"And it was now named Clark manor." Elizabeth finished.
"Oh okay." Kurtis said.
"I'm just glad that I gave the manor to some I can trust." Lara said.
"And everyone who knows Lara knows that she lakes in trust." Elizabeth said. "So let's go to that secret place, Lara."
Lara opened up the crib and went down with the rest following with. Lara pulled a switched on one of the covens. Reliving a secret hall, they then head in and found a room with two tables. Lara then went to the one table. "My father has a lot of rooms down here that I didn't even know of." Lara said seeing another tap record like in the thrall room. She press the button to play, her father's voice came out speaking.
"Hello Lara" Lara gasped again like she did in the Thrall room so many years ago.
"Here in this room is everything we found in Suez, Egypt. Be especially careful with the undead knights." Everyone started to look around for these knights; he was speaking of, but found nothing.
"They managed to kill twelve of us before we boxed them up." Lara saw the box's on the other side of the room. They were opened.
"They were protecting one of the Lux Veritatis Golden Shards, a book telling where the rest of the treasures were hidden, all of which are necessary to open the way to the Lux Temple."
Elizabeth walked to the other table and found the golden shard there.
Lara's father went on in the tap "The Lux Veritatis believed this site contains a powerful secret that can help save or destroy the fallen once and to safeguard against this possibility, I hid the book on a place only you will know where to look. 'The Wild Flower.' I hope you and Kurtis will find it and if you guys fail because it was a terrible mistake. I hope you and Kurtis will forgive me." The tap stopped.
Lara looked up at Kurtis and Elizabeth looked at them with the golden shard in her hand. Kurtis looked at Lara and then spook. "How did your father know that we will work together?"
"Because he knew your father. I found his journal and he wrote the times your father came to our house and how they worked together." Lara sighted. "I found this book the day I got the letter from Elizabeth. I didn't even know Konstantin was your father."
"It's fine; at least I know why he always came to Britain." Kurtis respond "So what is this wild flower he talked of?"
"When I was young he talked about the time when the eclipse will happen and he showed me this flower that only grows in Cambodia." Lara answered.
"So we're heading to Cambodia." Elizabeth said. "Let's fly."
They left the room and headed upstairs and started planning their trip to Cambodia. They were going to head first thing tomorrow morning. Later Winston gave them their rooms and everyone said goodnight and headed up to their rooms, falling asleep immediately.