You're about to see more of what Chief can do!
I don't own Tomb Raider. All OCs belong to me and Fang.
Chapter 7: Lara's Conflicted Resolve
"Hit the lights! Now!"
Spotlights turned on, nearly blinding them, followed by gunfire.
They both dove for cover and responded with their own gunfire.
"Die, bitch!" shouted one of the soldiers, but Lara pointed her assault rifle at him and shot him right through the head.
"Incoming on your right!" shouted Chief as he shot another soldier that was about to jump Lara from the right.
"Thank you!" Lara said, only to shoot another man behind Chief.
"Likewise," he replied.
They shot any other soldiers they saw, Lara even used her rope arrows to collapse the roofs of some of the shacks where some soldiers were positioned.
Before too long, they were all gone.
Then, three more soldiers kicked down some doors from inside a shack.
One of them had heavy military armor.
"Hostiles spotted," the armored guy said. "Croft and Rambo. Move out, make it quick."
Lara made a few shrapnel grenades and threw them, killing a couple soldiers, but more came out.
Chief put away his MP5SD3 and pulled out a beige colored FN SCAR-L CQC mounted with an FN MK 13 grenade launcher.
He and Lara opened fire on the rest of the soldiers, with Chief taking out the armored guy by launching a grenade.
Another guy with armor came out, and a few more soldiers.
"Shit!" Lara cursed, as her rifle had just run out of ammo.
"This isn't looking too good," said Chief while Tsume growled viciously.
"What do we do?!" asked Lara.
Chief launched a grenade that killed two of the soldiers and fired endlessly until the guy's armor was blown off and killed him too.
"That."
Lara chuckled a bit, then looted the dead soldiers for ammo.
In another shack was another tape recorder, from Konstantin,
"As we push deeper into the valley, I feel re-assured that this is the work I was chosen to perform.
My stigmata itch with sensation. It is a constant reminder of my higher purpose, of my singular position in this higher purpose. I was a child, innocent to the evils of the world. Then, one night, I woke in such pain, a scream on my lips.
Blood dripped from my palms. When I saw it I was terrified.
It marked me. It meant something.
I cannot shirk this mission anymore that I can shirk my own hands."
'Oh God...' Lara thought. 'Someone did this to him... Someone pushed him onto this path when he was a child...'
"Hey!" called Chief. "Over here, down these stairs."
Lara nodded before she and Tsume followed after him. It was then that Lara decided that now was a good time to check in on Jacob, so she picked up her walkie-talkie.
"Jacob?" she asked. "I think I'm close to the train yard...are you there?"
No answer came.
They came to the train yard, climbed through a couple parked trains, then found Jacob, fighting a Trinity soldier.
The soldier swung at him with a knife, but Jacob dodged with surprising fluidity and skill, swiped his knife and stabbed him.
He then saw Lara, Tsume and Chief approach,
"What took you so long?"
"I thought I lost you back there," Lara said.
"Not a chance," Jacob said, taking the knife and cleaning it. "Thanks for getting me out of that place."
A helicopter started flying towards them.
"RUN!" Chief yelled.
"We can get out through there!" Jacob said, running towards another parked train.
The four of them ran as fast as they could, trying to avoid the gunfire from the helicopter, but when they made out of the train car, the helicopter fired a missile at the tracks in front of them!
"Dammit!" Chief cursed as they turned to see more Trinity soldiers, aiming their guns at them.
"We're trapped!" Jacob said.
"We've got them!" A voice yelled from the helicopter. "They're on the tracks!"
"Don't let them escape!" Konstantin's voice said.
Lara looked down, to the ice. Parts of it were broken, giving access to the freezing water. She looked at Jacob, who nodded, then all four of them jumped!
Once she was in the water, Lara swam as fast as she could, through a sunken structure to the other side, then towards some light she saw.
She was starting to run out of air as she swam for the surface. She almost blacked out, but made it.
Once out of the water, she gasped for breath, climbed onto the ice and coughed up some water. Then she hugged herself and shivered.
Tsume barked as he began to tug on her arm.
"Hey! Wake up!" Chief shouted. "Now's not a good time for you to fall asleep!"
Lara looked up and gasped upon seeing the helicopter, shining its searchlight down on them.
"RUN!" Chief yelled before they all dashed across the broken ice, avoiding gunfire the whole way!
As they ran, they had to climb walls and ride down a zipline as the chopper practically destroyed everything around them!
Even the icy ground they ran on was breaking apart, forcing them to jump between gaps.
When they rode down their second zipline, the helicopter shot the tower the rope was attached to, causing Lara, Chief and Tsume to fall into the water below.
Lara lost consciousness from the fall, but Chief and Tsume swam for her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A gunshot rang out from Richard Croft's office!
Nine year old Lara ran to his office, bursting through the double-doors, to find her father lying over his desk.
"Dad, is everything alright?" she asked. But he didn't answer, or even move. "Dad?"
Taking a closer look, she saw he had a gun in his left hand, still smoking from just being fired. Blood dripping from his head onto the floor, next to the newspaper that said "DISGRACED! RENOWNED HISTORIAN'S WILD CLAIMS DEBUNKED".
"DAD, NO!" Lara screamed. "WINSTON?! WINSTON, PLEASE HELP!"
The Croft Family butler rushed to the office from her screams,
"Miss Lara, what is... Good God...!"
"...Dad... please, no...!" Lara cried as Winston knelt down and pulled her into a hug, letting her weep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~End Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lara gasped as she smelled some sort of smoke being waved around her face, causing her to cough before she sat up and saw Tsume wrapped around her, trying to keep her warm.
"Take it easy," Jacob told her, helping her sit up. He then handed her a cup of tea, "Drink this, it'll help."
She took it, "You could've left me in that river."
"Would you have left me?" Jacob asked.
Lara chuckled a bit, "I'd have thought about it."
That made Jacob chuckle as well, "What makes you think I didn't? Besides, you're wolf friend and the Chief were the ones who went for you first."
Learning this, Lara pet Tsume and looked at Chief, who was leaning against a bookshelf, arms crossed.
"Thanks, again," she told him. He just nodded in response.
Taking a look around, she realized they were in a small cave set up like a makeshift home. There were a few bookshelves stacked with books, blankets and carpets on the floor, some furniture and an old-styled oven.
"So, what makes you risk so much to come here?" Jacob asked.
Lara took a sip of tea, and took a deep breath before answering, "The Divine Source."
Jacob took a minute before responding, "I know what you're looking for. But I want to know why."
"When I was young, it was just me and my father," Lara explained. "He was an archeologist too. In his last years, he was obsessed with myths about immortality. Of course, no one believed him... including me. Our last conversation was a fight, he... He took his own life. I thought I'd come to terms with it, but..."
Jacob sat beside her, "Something else happened."
"And I saw something that I thought was impossible," Lara continued. "It changed everything. I realized my father was right. He died alone and broken, but he died for something."
"So, you believe the Divine Source is real?" Jacob asked.
"I honestly don't know," she said. "But if there is any truth to it, I have to find out. It... it needs to be researched and studied. It could make a difference to the world. It's not something to be hidden away."
"After that, then what?" Chief asked. "Destroy what means to be human?"
"Hmph," Lara scoffed. "You sound like someone I once knew...he said the exact same thing...but he just doesn't understand."
"Or, could it be that you're as obsessed about this as your father was that you're blind to everything else?" Chief countered. "All logic and feelings about all the negative consequences of immortality are completely lost on you. If that's the case, then you're not as smart as I thought, Lara Croft."
Lara only glared at him.
"And you think you actually know what you're talking about?" she asked.
"Actually, he does," Jacob said. "A difference is not always for the best."
"Jacob..." Lara whispered in disbelief.
"...Let me ask you something," said Jacob. "Would you wish Trinity to have the secret to immortality?"
"Of course not," Lara replied.
"Then I ask you not to abandon your quest," Jacob said, "But to alter its path. Join me and my people. Help us repel Konstantin and Trinity."
"That's why I'm here," Chief said.
"And after that's done?" Lara asked.
"Then you leave our valley untouched, but knowing that you've done the right thing," Jacob said.
Lara shook her head, "No, I'm sorry. I can't do that."
"Can't or won't?" Jacob questioned.
"I'll fight Trinity with you, but my goal remains the same," she said. "If I give up now..."
"You'd feel like you'd be letting him down?" Jacob asked.
"Not just him," Lara continued. "I need answers, Jacob. I need to understand."
"Understanding something is one thing," Chief said. "Doing it for the sake of your deceased father is another. Even if you're an archeologist, you can't dwell on the past."
Tsume stared at Chief before he turned to Lara, whining in concern.
"Even if it's something happy?" Lara asked, pulling out her engagement ring from her pocket.
"So, you were married?" Jacob asked.
"Engaged, but I kept delaying the wedding because of the Divine Source," Lara said. "We had our first real fight, and he asked me what was more important to me; my father's research or us... I didn't have an answer... So he left..."
"I'm sorry," Chief said. "But how would you feel if your roles were reversed?"
Lara looked up, thoughtfully.
"...I suppose...I would feel a little neglected," she said. "Not to mention lonely..." She hugged her knees to her chest. "...Just as I felt when I was a child."
Jacob nodded and stood up.
"Are you leaving?" Chief asked.
Jacob nodded again, "Right now, my concern is for my village. It's over the mountain pass, a day's journey on foot. But there may be a faster way through the old copper mine. You rest, I'll be back soon." He smiled, then turned to leave. "By the way, these should help keep you warm."
He gestured to a coat and scarf on a table, then he left.
The coat was olive drab colored and the scarf was light grey and made of wool.
Lara went over to put it on, already feeling better from the warmth it brought, then she turned to face Tsume and Chief.
"Well, shall we?" asked Chief.
"...Yes," Lara nodded before they began to head out.
'...I don't know why,' she thought, 'but...I can't help feeling like I met this man before.'
She got out her radio, "Jacob, are you there?" No response, only static. "Dammit, where is he?"
"At least we know where to go," Chief reminded her.
"True," she agreed. "But, there's something about Jacob that I can't quite put my finger on."
"What do you mean?" Chief asked.
"It's strange, but almost comforting," Lara explained. "Like I could tell him anything and it wouldn't faze him. I sense no judgment from him. Yet, at the same time, he's hard to read. My instincts tell me he's a good man. He saved my life, same as you - I think I can trust you both, at least for now."
"Gee, thanks," Chief said sarcastically.
"But I can't shake this nagging feeling that Jacob knows more than he's letting on," Lara added.
"I've got that same feeling," Chief said.
"...Maybe we'll talk to him about it, later," said Lara as they continued on.
They rode down a zipline back to the area where Lara had helped that remnant.
"By the way, I have a couple gifts that should work better for you," Chief said, kneeling down to get something out of his backpack. First, a Remington 1911 R1 pistol. Second, some parts of an assault rifle that he resembled back into a Heckler & Koch G36KV.
"Bought the assault rifle from that weapons supplier, John."
"Thought so, it looked the same," Lara said, taking the weapons as he handed them to her. "Thanks."
"No problem," he replied.
The pistol was just like the one she inherited from Roth; the same one she used on Yamatai.
Before she could ask where he got it, he was already standing,
"We should get a move on."
"Right," she agreed, holstering her pistol and rifle.
They ran through the Soviet Installation to what looked like an old Soviet camp next to a copper mill.
Tsume growled at the hanging corpses on the gate.
"Soviet soldiers," said Lara. "Something awful happened here."
"Yeah, and I don't wanna stick around to find out what," said Chief as he and Lara sat in front of a campfire. "We should rest here, for a bit, just to prepare for what's ahead."
"Yes," Lara nodded as she and Tsume sat down, too.
"...You're thinking about your old man, aren't you?" asked Chief. "Not that I'm prying or anything."
Lara sighed, "I think about him every day. For years, I was so angry with him. For losing himself in his work, for chasing what I thought were fairytales. I had no idea. I keep telling myself that I was young, that I couldn't understand. But I still lost him. And now... for some reason, I feel more connected to him than I ever did when he was alive. He never got this far, but I know he's with me. The Divine Source is here and I'm going to find it. He knew that it could change the way we understand the human soul, that it could change the world. But he's gone now, and I'm the only one left who knows he was right."
"Change isn't always a good thing," Chief said. "Especially the kind of change you're talking about."
Deep inside, Lara got angry...but at the same time, she couldn't help wondering why it was that anyone would say that immortality would be so wrong...and why did this person seem so familiar to her?
"Anyway, I think we've wasted enough time," said Chief. "Let's get going."
"...Yeah," Lara replied.
Chief sounds like a man who's seen some shit.
I added Winston because it didn't make sense that he didn't show up when that happened. Plus, Lara needed comfort.
Also, I'm changing Winston's age. He was usually depicted as ancient and decrepit, but this time; he's around the same age as Batman's faithful and witty butler, Alfred. :)
Read and review, please!
