A/N: I'm almost finished the next chapter (its a nice long one), which is why I'm chancing this scandalously short, cliffhanger one... I am so flipping dead...

Kurtis groaned as he sat up, feeling the tender place on the back of his head where he had been knocked out. The sky was nothing more than a postage-stamp space of light above him. If he hadn't cushioned his fall with telekinesis before he blacked out, he probably wouldn't have survived. The entire back of his shirt had been shredded from the slide against the wall, and there was an enormous slash down his thigh. Gasping as a sharp pain made him wince, he put a hand through one of the tears and touched a hand to his side.

Broken rib… great.

Shrugging off the pain and trying to block it out, he walked on down the passage.

He could barely see, he was relying on his other senses to guide him, feeling his way down the path until he caught sight of a pale blue light dancing on the ground ahead, like the reflection of light off water.

He stepped through the arch into an enormous hall, sucking in an "oh" of surprise which echoed cavernously, whispering back at him from darkened corners which had not seen life for many millennia.

A pathway of stone led to a fountain in the distance. Either side of the path, a vast expanse of glimmering liquid stretched into the darkness. There was absolutely no light in this place, yet the water was reflecting an opalescent radiance onto the distant ceiling and painting the stone trail silver.

As he walked guardedly along the stone, the surface began to ripple away from the path where he stood, as if his feet were touching the quiet, still water. The only resonating sound was the soft pad of his heavy boots, and the steady flow of the fountain.

Upon reaching it, he saw it was a very simple design, a single jet of water shooting up into the darkness, falling into a shallow basin of water and spilling over the edges, off the path and into the lakes either side. He thrust a hand into the wall of falling water, parting it like a curtain. It was cool, but not cold, soft and cleansing. He turned his palm in its gentle caress.

It began to trail up his arm, flowing against gravity.

Rapidly yanking his hand away, the liquid followed, still flowing upstream in nothing but air. It encased his arm, streaming up his chest and down over his stomach-

And then whatever force it had, left it, and it splashed quietly to the floor like normal water, dripping silently from his soaked form.

Kurtis reached around to his broken rib, pressing against it. There was no pain. The long gashes down his back from his earlier skid were gone. Pulling off his drenched and torn shirt, the slowly healing circle of skin where Boaz skewered him was nothing more than a faint crescent-shaped scar, a lighter colour to the tanned skin around it.

Sliding into farsee, the fountain was not the normal red hue; it was bright, shining white, tumbling playfully over the side and into the lakes, which slowly bled into the ruby colour.

This water was the river. He had never seen anything like it before. At least not in the mortal world…

He became aware of the sound of more falling water from further ahead, and by stepping around the fountain and continuing along the path, it was obvious that this was a far larger body of liquid from the thundering noise, which vibrated up the path into his legs as he walked. A carpet of mist rolled towards him from further ahead, thick and grey.

The waterfall came into view, blooming from high above and flowing sleekly into the waiting mist. The path ended below the spray, and Kurtis very nearly fell off the edge, hidden beneath the dense vapour. Looking into the panel of descending liquid, it was as clear and reflective as a mirror; he could actually see a twin pair of ice blue eyes looking right back at him.

He felt a compelling tug from somewhere about his navel, and pressed a palm flat against his stomach. His eyes slid out of focus irresistibly, as he began seeing the waterfall from the other side… from within the river.

Ah, Mr Trent. How nice of you to join us. Karel walked calmly towards Kurtis, but it was still as though they were both separated by the sheet of falling water- like a pane of glass.

Jolting at the word "us," he looked over Joachim's broad, black shoulder.

Lara… oh God Lara… His entire body went numb, his insides replaced by lead.

She was standing in the middle of the chamber, frozen in place by some invisible power, and had obviously put up one hell of a fight; her beautiful form was peppered with scratches and newly forming bruises.

When I caught up with you, I noticed a few things were wrong… the most primary being your carelessness. You could have disappeared from sight so easily, slid into the background, I was expecting to have such a difficult time in locating you, but it was ridiculously easy. Too easy in fact. You were trying to distract me. So I decided to take a little detour, and you will never guess who I bumped into-

You sick bastard-

It is rude to interrupt, Karel interjected contemptuously, we could keep this civilised… or would you prefer to go down the same road as Lara? He pointed to her struggling figure. Mortals… always taking the difficult route. His face fell, malicious intent carved into his features. You know what I want.

You do what he wants and I swear I'll never forgive you. Lara's surprisingly calm voice entered the conversation.

He looked through the glassy water, seeing her still resisting and his expression softened, his heart constricting painfully to see her in the trap that he had meant for himself. Karel pinched the bridge of his nose with irritation, sighing.

Very well. The difficult route it is then.

Turning sharply, he threw a hand out towards Lara and her struggling increased tenfold, her brown eyes wide as she gasped for air that was not reaching her lungs.

He was strangling her.

Kurtis cried out, a scream of rage so filled with anger and hatred at Karel, at life, at himself for being so stupid, so helpless, unable to do anything… falling to his knees he reached out telekinetically, but the water was like an impassable brick wall.

Her motions slowed.

Looking through at her, her image flickered, and he saw her beautiful face bruised and slashed, saw her eyes flicker shut for the last time. Using her last breath, she whispered his name once, sadness, pain and love all embracing the two syllables of himself, and he felt her spirit leave her.

Violently punching and attacking the ground beneath his knees, he yelled in fury and sorrow, the sound tearing through his throat. She was gone. The only reason he had left to live was gone.

The life even seemed to have been sucked from her braid as it hung forlornly at her shoulder, her head limp, never to be raised again.

Karel turned back to him, his face inscrutable. Your wrath only serves my purpose more. You know what must be done.

No. Kurtis stood steadily, his face contorted in hatred. The Chirugai sprang to life from the floor, circling him with bright orange flame. I gave her the choice, and you know I did.

Karel laughed derisively. And you really think that she will choose the right path? You are weak, all of you.

Catching the Chirugai one-handed, he replied, eyes narrowed in loathing, I would put my life in her hands.

Karel, realising what he was about to do, was knocked momentarily off balance, and moved towards the screen of water, trying to stop the inevitable.

He looked directly into Karel's pale eyes.

That's your true fault Karel, you underestimate us 'mortals'.

And he threw the Chirugai at the partition, cleaving an enormous gap in the falls, blurring his enemy. Kurtis ran straight after it, jumping the fissure and plunging headfirst into the waiting barrier of cascading water.

Where am I…?

…who am I?

Water tugged at her feet. It pulled her comfortingly, whispering to her of peace and calm, of thrills and excitement; it promised her eternal adventure beyond anything she had ever experienced. It flowed around her ankles lovingly, adoringly, slowly moving upwards over her, against gravity. Looking around her, the waterway had no banks, it was nothing but a river between two waterfalls that ran as far as the eye could see.

She dropped to her knees, watching the sparkling liquid caress her pale limbs, noticing there was no colour here. Her colourless braid fell from her shoulder to kiss the waiting stream, her entire body devoid of any hue, everything with the same appearance of the opalescent water.

Catching sight of her reflection, the person looking back at her was familiar, and yet so strange. Her head suddenly felt so heavy, so tired, and she let it drop beneath the water, breathing it in and out easily. She wanted to lie in it and let it carry her away…

Lara… the name of the reflection came to her, and she stopped, her entire body suddenly heavy as lead.

Wait, that's my name. I'm Lara.

Trying to stand proved far more difficult than it should have been… the current pulled her, called to her, dripped from her slowly and reluctantly as she got to her feet, everything suddenly feeling so much heavier and harder to carry. She couldn't… she had something to do… if only she could remember…

The water ahead of her began to swirl like a whirlpool, flowing upwards, a pillar of twisting water. It began to form an hourglass shape, a figure, its features becoming more defined… it was a woman, and she was walking towards Lara.

She knew at once who it was.

Ava.

The woman smiled.

A/N: Next chapter coming soon! runs from flaming torches