A Warrior is Molded: Book One

by In Pursuit of Magic

Dying is scary. Forgetting you died is Bliss. Until Kathrine took a whack to her head at age three. She remembered her old life from her childhood to her death. She took it in stride until she found out who she now was. Kathrine Warren and she was in Raccoon City. In trying to prepare for her future, many changes occur. One big change involving a notable Island Known as Yamatai.

14. Chapter 12: Capcom Helicopter

Chapter 12: Capcom Helicopter

I don't own anything. Resident Evil belongs to Capcom and Tomb Raider belongs to Core Design, Crystal Dynamics, and I think Square Enix. The only thing I own is the changes made to the stories of the Tomb Raider games/comics and Resident Evil games/comics/CG movies, the persion that has taken over Kathrine Warren's life, and Rose Warren. This story also will be bloody, violent, and have curseing. It's rated T for Teen.

Country: Philippine Sea, State: South of Japan, City: Dragon's Triangle, Place: Yamatai, Area: Geothermal Caverns, Month: August, Day: Tuesday 18th, Year: 1998, Time: 11:34 PM…

Kat glared at the two men, as she and Lara were lead to a stone bridge. She and Lara shared a look and nodded. Once they were in the middle, Lara stumbled and fell to her knees with a painful crack. The men turned to her.

"Get up, Outsider." One said as Kat pulled her knife.

It was quick. Kat slashed the guy's arm that had her. He yelled as Lara jabbed her elbow into the other guy's ribs. The pair grabbed their weapons from them but stopped. As easy as it would be to take them both on, two against two, they had to get to Sam and the others. Gritting their teeth, they both jumped off the stone bridge. They reached for them but missed and then Kat and Lara vanished completely from their sight with a pair of thick splashes.

Where Lara and Kat had landed was not water. It was worse than moldy water. Red. They had jumped and sank into a river of red. They stayed under for a bit, keeping their eyes closed and holding their breath, but slowly surfaced.

"I can't see any bodies…" They heard one say, as they got closer.

"I don't think they survived the fall." Said the other, grunting in pain from Kat's slice.

Bubbles leaked from the pair as their heads poked out of the bloody liquid. Only when their eyes and noses were out of the liquid did they open them. They blinked a few times then looked around then at each other. They looked horrifying. Lara looked like she was made of blood, her dark eyes and hair seemed darker and almost vampire-like with all the blood on her face. Kat looked like a ghost. Her blonde hair now looked red, and her blue eyes seemed to glow. Lara had to blink a few times not sure if the look on Kat's face was just from the gore covering it, but her eyes really did seem to have a sort of glee in them.

They swam to the side, finding ground under their boots. They stood and began to wade through the blood and who knew whatever else, water. Kat held back coughs or was that a laugh? She thought that maybe she was on the edge of hysteria as she was fighting the urge to giggle. The air was heavy with the smell of blood, decay, excrement, and piss. Nevertheless, the blood smell was the heaviest. She must be getting used to it, as she was not bothered as much from the smell.

"Let's get down there. Come on." They heard from up above as they waded through, pushing floating bones aside. They moved slowly so they didn't make any splashing sounds. Until they were sure they were out of earshot or the men would mistake the sounds for just the liquid flowing down stream and over rocks.

They quickened their walking pace and entered a sort of tunnel before they were out of the blood river. Lara was taking small breaths through her mouth to minimize the smell. The ceiling above dripped with water, but not enough to get rid of the blood that soaked them. It was not enough to get rid of the smells. It was not enough to hide the reddish stream of bloody water that ran down the incline of the tunnel they walked through. Kat stopped a moment to let some of the water drip on her face. To run some of the blood off her eyes. Within a few drips, the smell came rushing back and the horror of what they just walked through. She wanted to throw up now and she took some deep breathes to hold it back.

As they climbed, they walked to the right and found a dead man with a quiver of bolts and arrows. A hole in front of them was blocked by wood and metal. Behind it was a glowing yellow-green gas. If the smell of the blood and rot before was not bad before then the smell of sulfur was worse. They started coughing and backed up as they took the bolts and arrows.

"Some kind of natural gas…Probably flammable." Lara coughed covering her nose and smearing the blood.

"Fire…that should work." Kat coughed.

Lara nodded. "Just…what I was…thinking." She nocked an arrow, flicked the lighter, lighting the arrow, and took aim.

The moment she loosed; the flame came within inches of the gas. That was close enough to trigger a domino effect of explosions. Wood burned; metal and wood flew all over and hit walls. Heck the whole cavern shook for a bit after. The pair ran quickly through the leftover flames and just got through before the gas started to flow again as the fires faded out. They found themselves in a cellblock at the end in a corner. There was a small campsite. The pair took their seats and took out their weapons, cleaning them the best they could and then adding to their diaries. Both were amazed that their journals were not waterlogged or covered in blood.

It's strange. How creepily alike Mathias' mentality is like Irons'. Calling Lara and I 'creatures'. Irons would've called us pigs. But he doesn't matter. Lara and I will get Sam out of here.

I've noticed a lot of the men have tattoos. They look recently made. I mean that they look maybe a month old. They have to have something for tattooing in the Palace. Again, it will take some convincing, but Sam needs an Ofuda tattooed on her. Himiko is a Japanese vengeful spirit, it should keep Sam safe from her.

Kat closed up her journal and put it in her pouch and looked to Lara as she finished off her own entry.

Madness. That's what this place is. Mathias thinks Himiko's spirit is keeping us here. The rational side of my mind is telling me that's not possible... it's not possible. He's so beyond crazy that maybe he's come right back round to some kind of sane. I know he's right about Himiko, but he's wrong about how he's going about it.

The helicopter is not our way off. You know that, Lara - in your gut. I have to warn the others. If we board it, we're dead. I just hope they'll believe me and Kat.

"Ready?" Kat asked her.

Lara nodded. "Yeah…hey…did you see this?" Lara asked as she picked up a page.

Kat walked over and read it over Lara's shoulder.

Every new brother is assigned a job – a purpose in the Solarii. As long as Mathias continues to prove his spiritual connection to the Sun Queen, they will fall in line and believe. Initiation to the brotherhood is brutal. We need to destroy their humanity, so that they in turn can be inhumane. New recruits are thrown into the depths of the caverns and left to starve and fend for themselves for days... sometimes weeks. Those who make it out alive are welcomed with open arms.

I still can't explain what kind of power Mathias has tapped into, but I don't care anymore. We're never getting off his goddamned island – some days I'm convinced we're all in hell already. God knows with the things we've done... we might as well be.

"Their faith is what makes them dangerous." Lara voiced. "They'll stop at nothing to give Sam over to Himiko for her new host body."

Kat nodded. "Let's make sure they don't."

They climbed up some steps and slipped carefully through a crack in the wall. The smell drastically changed. The smell of blood was so low that it was now an undertone compared to the sulfur and something very bitter and dry smelling. They reached the end of this small cellblock and heard a panicked voice. They walked to the broken bars and peered into an open area.

"Wait, wait…what do you want me to do? Please!" Yelled a male voice that neither Kat nor Lara recognized.

"Don't struggled too much." They heard a joyful man chuckle.

A man was tossed into the room and the door was closed and locked. The man looked like he was military and, as she stood they saw the back of his vest. U.B.C.S. He was one of Umbrella's men. They heard growling and looked around the room below.

"Oh, god, no…" Lara breathed looking for what growled.

"Please…who are you?" The U.B.C.S. guy called out almost at a whimper. "What…what are you doing…" He asked as dozens of pale creatures came running out.

Kat suddenly getting flash backs to Until Dawn in the vaguest of senses. They looked like Wendigos. But they moved and sounded like people who'd gone completely mad. They jumped and danced to the U.B.C.S. guy and tackled him to the stone ground.

"No! No! Oh god…please!" He then started screaming as they tore into him all while laughing at him.

Lara and Kat looked away. It was too late to give the man mercy. They turned in a crouch and moved down a side hallway. After a moment, the screaming stopped completely, and both stopped and looked out the broken bared window. Lara covered her mouth in horror as Kat felt like she wanted to throw up. They were eating him. The girls could not see the detail, but the creatures or crazed people had their hands to their mouths and their jaws showed the motion of chewing something.

Kat closed her eyes a moment. Experience. She would see this in Raccoon later. She knew that. As much as she did not want it, so would her daughter and Sherry. She opened her eyes taking slow breaths through her mouth.

"We should…"

"Yeah…" Lara nodded. "We have to get closer."

Kat was confused as Lara nocked an arrow and they moved down to some cover.

"Get away! That's mine!" Yelled one of the creatures, as they seemed to get into a territorial spat.

"No…nnnoooo…let go." Whimpered another as Lara lit her arrow on fire.

"…maybe there will be…some…for me…" Another hissed as Lara took aim.

"Who's that…who…who are you?" One asked seeming to sense the pair.

Lara loosed her fire arrow. The fire hit one of the gas pockets. An explosion killed all but two of the creatures. The two crazies ran off into the shadows, whimpering about how cruel the masters were and how the female meal was a trick. Lara and Kat walked over to the door.

"I'll cover you, if you can get that valve open." Lara told Kat.

Kat nodded slipping her crossbow to her back and pulling out her axe. She slammed it home and started pulling and maneuvering it up and down. A whining pop and the yellow-green gas came shooting out. Kat couched violently for a moment as she backed up. She felt as if her lungs were burning and would shrink painfully.

"Back up, Kat." Lara told her.

Kat nodded backing up with Lara. Lara took aim, lit her arrow, and then loosed. The explosion sent the metal of the door flying. Once again, both explosions shook the whole cavern system. Dust and rocks fell from the ceiling. They dashed through, ignoring the voices of the crazy creatures. They sneaked up the steps, but this time heard a voice that wasn't a crazy creature, but a Solarii member.

"Goddamn these caves…surprised this whole place hasn't gone up yet." They heard a man say sounding exasperated.

"Shhhash." Lara hissed to Kat though she didn't need to as they ducked behind cover and out of the light from the hanging bulb.

"I might have to cap that vent in the pit again." Said another voice sounding just as annoyed.

"If it's loose, let's just leave it for the next shift?" Asked the other as Lara and Kat slowly moved around their cover as the three men walked passed.

"Hey, don't take too long down there. I want to finish this game." The third voiced staying at the top stairs.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." The other two voiced.

"What if the unholy ones figure out how to ignite that shit?" Asked one as Kat pulled out her crossbow.

"Shit, alright, alright." The second said as they paused, and Kat loaded a bolt. "I hate that place."

An annoyed sigh. "Look, I'll go check it out…you can stay here." Said the other as if trying to be comforting.

The other sighed with relief. "Thanks, brother."

Kat took aim at the back of the man's head. She pulled the trigger, and the bolt flew then sank into the back of his head. The other guy turned around at the sound of his brother's corpse hit the ground with a thump. Lara took him out with an arrow to his skull. Once both were down, they moved to them, collected their bolt and arrow then headed up the stairs.

"Hey, watch it. You're fucking up the board." They heard, making them move slower and quieter.

It was strange now that both thought about it. In the time they'd been there, they'd learned to move so quietly. Paying careful attention to where their feet landed, keeping to the balls of their feet, and not letting the heels of their boots hit the floor. Kat and Lara both knew it was a good thing, but it sort of scared Lara a bit. They were learning to be killers that are more efficient.

Lara drew back on her bow and loosed a shot at one of the men as Kat did the same to the other man. However, only Lara's was a head shot. Kat's bolt hit the shoulder and he dropped letting out a yell of pain.

"What the hell's going on down there!?" Came a voice from behind and up above.

"Intruders in the catacombs!" The injured one yelled just as Kat rushed him with her pry axe.

A good swing and it sank into his left temple, cutting off the scream he had in his throat. She then kicked his corpse off her axe as a stick of dynamite was thrown at her and Lara. So much for stealthy. Neither dared to switch to automatic weapons. With how unstable the caverns were and the flammable gas, it would be stupid. Hell, it was stupid as they took to different cover to avoid the sticks of dynamite thrown.

Lara waited for just the right moment. The three men that came down the stairs turned a corner and were right in the line of gas. A loosed well-aimed fire arrow and they were hit with an explosion. One hadn't been fully hit, but quickly was lit on fire and burned to death. The pair walked over to where the two men had been and found not only the board they were playing with, but also a letter. The board was the game checkers. The letter however looked like a last letter written by Reyes.

Alisha, honey, I didn't want to write this, but if I don't do it now, I might not have another chance. Your mama got herself into some trouble... and... I might have to be gone for a very long time. I don't know when or if you'll ever read this, but I want you to know I fought for you. Everything I did in my life was for you – all the time away, all the money I saved, all the sacrifices. I'm sorry for everything you're gonna have to go through without me.

If I don't make it back, find Conrad Roth. You've never met him, but he's the best man I've ever known. He's your father. You have his eyes.

You're the light of my life and I love you more than anything.

Lara sighed as they tucked it away. "It's my fault we're in this mess. I have to make it right. I've got to find a way to get us out of here."

"Hey, Lara, you're not alone in this. You know that. We have our plans." Kat assured her.

"I know, but it doesn't ease the guilt, Kat." Lara told her.

"I know…" Kat told her. "Come on."

After searching around the area, they broke another valve for gas and then set off another explosion that shook the whole place. This explosion sent a metal crate to the floor by the door that they could get through. They both jumped off the wooden platform then landed on the crate. From there they jumped up onto the wall ledge where they could shimmy around to the open platform top. As they pulled themselves up, they heard a couch then a disgusted sound.

"Oh fuck, I forgot about the smell." Said one and it was muffled partway through.

"It's quiet. I don't think they're down here. Maybe we should just leave?" Said the other.

Keeping quiet, Kat nodded slightly at Lara to let her know she understood that these were the men they had escaped before.

"Come on, we have to be sure. Let's search the pit." The grossed out one said sounding a mix of scared but determined.

"Hey, what's going on down there?" Called one of them.

"Oh, hey, Andrew sent us down here." One said as Lara and Kat slowly walked on the wooden boards. "We're here on orders. Some of the enforcers told us…we uh…didn't acutely talk to him." Lara and Kat looked at each other pausing to listen. "He wants one of the prisoners. The new one they just brought in."

"Alright. Show me." Said the other. "Then we'll bring him up to Andrew…together."

"Yeah…sure, sure."

Right then the pair loosed and pulled triggers. The information really wasn't useful. Another trigger pull and they were safe for the moment as the three men dropped as corpses. They killed two more men that came running. After they the hopped down to check them then climbed two stone walls. As they pulled themselves up a ledge, they heard voices again.

"Oh Great Sun Queen, these new servants submit themselves before you." Said a commanding calm voice as Lara snuck up behind a guy and sank her climbing axe into the back of his head killing him. "With voices we praise you." Lara wrenched her axe back. "With hearts we honor you." Lara looked to Kat as they peered through another bared window to see a bunch of men gathered in front of a burned tied up corpse with candles all around. "With fire we are bound to you! You are the sun, you are the light, and you are the storm that rages at night." Lara and Kat moved down some stairs and took cover near some of the men who appeared to be standing guard. "We are your children, wait for the day, bring us the dawn, and show us the way."

Lara drew her bow back and took aim. There was a gas vent, and it was at the right angle. Lara lit her arrow then loosed. The first vent ignited and set off a small chain reaction with a second vent, both igniting. The explosion was massive, lighting men on fire and sending them flying in every direction, shaking the cavern again and making rocks and dust fall.

They searched the bodies then looked over the shrine. The body was the body of a burned woman. Possibly a failed test for their ritual. They also found another diary page of Mathias.

5 June 1996

The years pass and I now hear her whispers in my sleep. It is the Sun Queen... she is urging me on. I see her magnificent face with every sunrise. Soon now...

My Solarii toil in her name, building a city from all that she has brought to the island, torturing and sacrificing in her name. Soon now... we will find the one. I long for escape, but not simply from this island. From all of this... the wrecks, bodies, and squalor. If I can bring my Queen back, it will all vanish in an instant.

And like the sun rising anew, she will bathe all the land and seas with her light, burning away everything. I will emerge from this scorched earth... reborn and pure.

"He truly is a lost madman. Mathias has committed his sanity to this cause and will stop at nothing to fulfill some twisted destiny of his own making." Lara stated then looked to Kat as they tucked it away. "I'm truly sorry I said you sounded like him."

Kat shook her head. "It's okay, you didn't know what else to think. I had taken a lot of blows to the head."

"True…I haven't said anything, but are you doing okay?" Lara asked as they walked over to the next valve and noticed a puzzle.

"Yeah. A doctor would probably say I should rest, but we don't have the time. How about you? You've been bashed in the head the same amount as me and just had the shit beaten outta you." Kat asked as she took some of Lara's rope and made her own boltrope.

"I'll be fine." Lara nodded as Kat took aim. "You got it?"

Kat nodded. "Yeah."

She pulled the trigger, and the bolt sank into place. The large brazier moved into place in between the door and open gas valve. Lara took aim and loosed a fire arrow at the gas. The gas ignited and exploded, sending the baser into the door and smashing it to pieces. The cavern shook again, but it seemed much more violently this time.

"That's not good." Kat gasped as she and Lara braced themselves against the rumbling and shaking, shielding their heads from rocks and eyes from dust.

Fire exploded from the floor around them.

"Run!" Lara yelled and they took off through the crashed door and ups stairs as fire and rubble fell or flew around them.

Just as it seemed they were out of the main tunnels, the floor beneath them cracked and crumbled out from under them. Startled they screamed and fell onto a sliding down cline of stone and mud. When they came to a stop at the bottom, they started coughing violently. They had fallen into an area that was filled with gas. They stood and struggled forward; eyes burned as much as lungs did.

As they came to the end, they pulled themselves out of the hole and panted out some coughs as they breathed greedily at fresh air. Just as their legs were clear and their breathing was back under control, they froze. Behind them the hole collapsed trapping them in the room they were now in. in front of them, on the other side of the convenient cover, was several men and above them in a makeshift metal cage was Reyes, Alex, and Jonah. The plinking they had heard was the Solarii men throwing rocks and loosing arrows at them for entertainment.

Reyes glared down at the men from behind the bars. "Keep it up, you son of bitch!" She threatened. "When I get outta here, I'm gonna shove one of those arrows right up your ass!"

Lara and Kat loaded and nocked an arrow and bolt taking aim at a man each.

One laughed at Reyes and looked to his pals. "This one's got a temper!"

Kat pulled the trigger. The mane who said that dropped dead from a bolt hit. Oddly enough, none of the others noticed his death. Kat loaded another bolt.

"This cage is kinda overkill." Said another.

Lara loosed an arrow at him. It hit and the other startled in shock as his pal dropped dead.

"Intruder! I need hel—" He was cut off by Kat's bolt.

However, his yell made it to the ears of the other man in the area. Lara spotted him and loosed an arrow at him as he struggled to hit them with his automatic rifle. With them all dead, Lara and Kat came out. Luckily, neither looked as horrifying as they did when they were covered in blood. The fall in the mud and the many water puddles they fell or walked through had cleaned most of it away. Reyes, Alex, and Jonah cheered loudly at the victory of the pair and smiled at seeing them, as disheveled as they were with cuts, bruises, and rips and tears in their cloths.

"That was bad-ass, guys!" Alex called out beaming.

"Yeah!" Reyes laughed.

"How the hell did you two get in here?" Alex asked.

"We had some help…" Lara told them shrugging a little feeling sorrow again as she remembered Grim.

Seeing the expression brought Kat down to and she put a light hand on Lara's shoulder.

Not seeing the sorrowful looks on the two, Reyes was still beaming. "Grim?"

"Yeah…" Kat nodded but then shook her head. "But he didn't make it…"

Sorrow washed the joy off their faces at this news. Reyes slammed a palm on the metal cage.

"Shit!" She cursed.

Jonah looked at each of them, feeling a mix of shock and sadness. "I didn't think anything could take that guy down."

"He went out swinging…gave us a chance to get to you." Lara reported smiling a sad smile. "Look, there's a rescue helicopter on its way. No matter what, we cannot board it. The weather here is too unstable for it. There is a reason for that that Kat, Roth, and I have found. We'll explain everything once we get Sam and get the hell out of this palace." She said, knowing they would have to in order to get them all on board. "We know they're keeping Sam separately. Have you seen Whitman?"

Kat scuffed a bit at the man. He was the reason her and Lara had to kill people for the first time. Reyes scuffed too with a bit of an eye roll.

"Guess he didn't make it to the guest rooms." Reyes said gesturing around them.

"Mr. Showbiz probably weaseled an upgrade." Alex sassed annoyed with the man.

"We'll find him, and Sam too, but we're not going to do anything from up here." Jonah called down.

"We'll find a way to get you all out, but when you do, Whitman is not the priority. Sam is. The men here want her. Whitman can rot here for all I care." Kat stated as Lara nodded.

"Right." Reyes nodded. "And you two and Roth will tell us why we can't take the helicopter?"

"We will." Lara nodded as she and Kat looked around.

Reyes nodded as she looked to Alex and Jonah. "Alright, let's try to loosen this thing up." she said as Kat looked at them worriedly. "Come on, guys, again."

"Okay, ready…jump!" Jonah called out.

They all jumped as Lara got to a valve and hooked her axe into it.

"It's no use, Reyes…" Alex sighed as Lara broke the valve and backed up quickly before she breathed in the gas that came shooting out.

"Ready…Jum—"

"Hang on to something!" Lara called out interrupting Jonah.

They looked through the bars and quickly did as they were told. Lara loosed a fire arrow and set off another explosion. It jostled the cage but set loose some a platform for the puzzle of a cage.

"That did it!" Reyes beamed at them.

"Wahoo! Yeah! Yes! Wooo!" Alex cheered.

"Alright! Great job, Lara!" Jonah cheered.

Fire started to erupt at different spots on the floor around them though and the shaking was a big reminder of what Lara and Kat had inhaled earlier.

"This place is becoming unstable…the floor is starting to buckle…" Lara voiced.

"Don't worry about that, Lara." Alex called. "Just get us out of here."

"We will, just run as fast as you can when it gets worse." Kat called back.

"You're both doing great." Jonah assured them as Kat looked around for what to do.

Kat and Lara both then ran up some steps and came to an upper platform that was even with the newly made platform and the cage. The others saw this and nodded.

"Jump over; we'll keep the cage steady." Jonah called as they moved around to do so.

Lara jumped over first. "Nice to see you all again." she smiled as she climbed up and waved Kat over.

Just as Kat jumped over, a wall cracked open, and gas came flying in. "See that?"

Lara nodded as she walked to the other end of the cage and drew her bow back, lighting it. Where the gas was, was another brazier.

"Okay, now what?" Alex asked confused.

Lara loosed her arrow and the gas exploded sending the brazier flying, but it didn't do anything. Then Kat saw it.

"Okay. Ignite the first one then the second right after." Kat told her pointing.

Lara looked and nodded. Lara loosed the first explosion then the second. It worked the brazier flew around, hit the right derby, and knocked loose the next platform. Again, the instability of the area showed its weariness. The cavern shook, fire erupted, and rocks fell. Lara and Kat fumbled their footing as the cage shook. Kat grabbed the side of the cage, barely. Lara missed and started to fall before Kat could catch her.

"No!" Kat screamed as Lara fell.

Jonah just managed to catch Lara's arm, stopping her fall. "Whoa! Hey, I gotcha, girl." He assured as the floor caved in below and revealed the fires underneath; making it look like Hell had opened.

"Thanks, Jonah!" Lara gasped as she looked down then back at the others, feeling the rush of heat that now filled the room. "That was close!"

"Way too close! Looks like Hell down there!" Kat called from up above.

Lara grasped the side of the cage and started to shimmy to the next handhold. Then Reyes saw something as Kat moved into position to pull Lara back up on top.

"Oh, shit, we have a problem!" Reyes called out. "Grab ahold of something!"

Lara climbed up slowly to Kat when the cage shook violently.

"Ahhh, we lost the cage floor!" Jonah called out as Lara grabbed a bar and it broke causing her to fall, but felt her hand caught by Kat. "We gotta get out of this thing!"

"Oh, crap, this is bad!" Alex called as Kat struggled to pull Lara up, imagining a button mash in her head. "We lost all the floors!"

"Girls, you both be careful out there!" Jonah called out as Lara got a leg up.

"Watch where you stand, this thing's falling apart!" Reyes warned.

Another explosion went off shaking the cavern.

"Holy shit!" Alex yelled. "Sounds like the whole mountain is going up."

Lara and Kat then jumped onto a platform to the right of the cage. Together they broke the two valves their open and backed up.

"Oh crap, we're starting to fall…Hurry!" Alex yelped as the cage jerked slightly.

Lara lit a loaded bolt for Kat then nocked an arrow and lit it.

"Whatever you're going to do, do it fast!" Jonah yelled as the cage jolted and whined.

"Girls, get your asses in gear…get us outta here!" Reyes called as both women took aim at the two gas shoots.

"Okay, take cover guys!" Lara called.

Lara loosed and Kat pulled the trigger. A fire arrow and bolt flew into the gas. The double explosion sent the cage flying sideways and flipped it, so the open bottom pointed to the platform on the other side. Reyes and Jonah jumped off grabbing and pulling Alex with them. Just as they were clear, the cage fell into the fiery pit.

"Thanks!" Jonah called over to the two girls.

"Holy shit, that was close!" Alex gasped out as she braced himself on his knees.

Reyes was only looking at the bright steps behind her, Alex, and Jonah. "Lara, Kat, it looks like there's a way out on this side!"

Lara nodded. "Okay, then go!" She called out.

"We're going to get Sam and get out her out of here!" Kat called.

"What about Whitman?!" Alex asked.

"Fuck him! He nearly got us killed!" Kat yelled.

"Okay! Good luck! Be safe, girls!" Jonah called back as he and the other ran out.

"Come on, let's move!" Reye's fading voice called.

Lara and Kat timed their jump just right as they ran to the edge of the platform. They jumped and grasped tightly to the hanging crate as they swung with it. They climbed up on top of it then they jumped for the next one. They screamed for a moment, as this crate seemed to drop before stopping abruptly. They shook their heads, hearts beating like a rabbit's. Climbing up they jumped one last time to solid ground. The crate they had jumped from fell into the fires below sending up a wave of heat that made both shivers.

They spun around to see that fire had been thrown up and that's what the heat had been. They took off running. They had to get out and fast if they wanted to get to Sam and not be barbecued. Their radios buzzed as they ran.

"Lara, Kat, we're out, but this place is falling apart!" Jonah alerted them.

"I've set up a rendezvous point back across the bridge." Roth voiced as the cavern shook violently making Kat and Lara stumbled in their running. "The chopper's going to be here soon!" He reported as Kat pulled out her radio and put it to her lips as she and Lara booked it up several stairs and twists.

"Lara and Kat are still looking for Sam. They are not too interested in Whitman. I don't completely blame them." Jonah said as Kat pushed the talk button.

"Roth, do you remember what I told you? About that copter?" She asked as a startling realization hit her. Tomb Raider and Resident Evil had merged. That helicopter wasn't just fated to crash…it was now a Capcom Helicopter. Unless it is the end of the game, all aircrafts run into some kind of misfortune.

"I remember, Kat. Don't worry about me or the chopper. Just focus on Sam." Roth told her.

Kat put her radio back to her belt as fire blasted around her and Lara as they bolted up the last bit of stairs. Then they were inside a burning Japanese palace. They held up hands to shield themselves from the flames heat and looked around with squinting eyes. The way behind them collapsed blocking the thermal tunnels. Hot ash flew around in the air with the smoke and made their eyes burn and get pulled into their lungs making it hard to not cough.

"Goddamn it! What happened down there?" They heard as they moved.

"They've angered the Sun Queen…!"

Turning in the hallways and pausing as an explosion of fire rushed passed them, they came to a door. Lara slammed her axe into the handle and worked it until the door splintered open. Once through, they pulled out their quiet weapons again and moved quickly, but alertly. Up some stairs they found that, though collapsed with burning wood, they could duck down and squeeze through at the bottom left corner.

"That's insane! Let's get out of here!"

Out the other side, Lara and Kat stood and kept moving.

"Fall back to the Palace!"

The pair shared a look. They thought they were in the palace. Just as they turned down a hallway, an explosion propelled a man into a wall where he died. They paused for just a moment to gage were to go in this burning room.

"Come on! The ceiling's coming down!" They heard and he was right.

As they looked up, they saw the ceiling was starting to buckle with cracking sounds of braking and burning wood. Turning the corner, they saw more men and took aim.

"What are you do?! Go! Go!" One shouted as Lara took aim.

"I can't…" Said the other as Kat pulled the trigger sending a bolt into one of their heads.

"Ahh God! Move your ass man! You're gonna die if you stay here!" His friends yelled as Lara loosed her arrow.

With two men dead, the ceiling collapsed on the rest, killing, and burning them. Lara and Kat dashed down that same hallway and turned left at a large hole in the wall that lead outside. The sight was haunting beautiful. The sky was dark, from either night or smoke, it was hard to tell. An ethereal orange glow came from all over; glowing ash fragments flew through the air like fireflies. It looked like a dark hell as Lara and Kat stepped onto the rooftop through the hole.

"Help! Anyone! I don't want to die!" Screamed a terrified voice as Lara and Kat moved away from the hole and along the roof.

Just in time too. An explosion blocked the way back just as much as the flames did. They saw the owner of the screams and he was hanging for dear life off a roof. He screamed out for aid again as Lara and Kat looked away.

"Keep moving…" Lara muttered feeling sick that they weren't helping him. "…Just keep moving."

They rounded a bend in the roof, pushing the screams and shouts of scared dying men out of their heads. They jumped to the next part of the roof and then rushed to a wall with their axes ready. Fire erupted from the windows to their right, making them duck and stumble as they ran on the roof. They climbed up the wall with their axes then one at a time jumped to the bars window ledges, feeling sweat gather on their skin and the heat start to hurt.

As they came to the edge of the shimmy climb, they had to stop as a man who was on fire fell passed them over the edge, screaming in agony. They jumped up to the next handhold and moved to pull themselves up onto the upper balcony. They started running and soon with fire and more explosions, found themselves running with the Solarii men as they ran to escape the flames and smoke. Unlike the men who didn't care about the 'Chosen One', Lara and Kat were searching for the way to get to the palace and get Sam.

Another ill-timed explosion went off and killed the men running in front of Kat and Lara forcing them to pause a moment before they continued. They ran into a building, turned into a room, and paused. On the wall, was what looked like a detective or conspiracy board? Words on it looked a bit crazy but one sentience was prominent. 'No one leaves' was written in red. They rushed up to the table in front of the wall and looked at its contents. A photo in black and white was of a younger Mathias.

"That's Mathias." Lara pointed as Kat nodded.

"No one leaves…" Kat read aloud. "Just like before the plane crashed. Though Himiko said it in her native tongue."

"Here's the ritual from her tomb…" Lara pointed out getting a look at the now murder board. "We really need to get Sam and get that Ofuda tattooed on her."

Kat then found a small box and—"Holy crap." She closed it and put it in her pouch. "We won't have to worry about tattooing tools. Just got some. Or at least something that can be used for it."

Lara nodded as she took a map from the wall and tucked it away. "Then let's go before we're Sunday's roast."

They dashed to a hole in the ceiling and climbed out onto the roof. They ran along the rooftop, sliding a bit as they moved. Men were in front of them, but they did not care about 'Outsiders' when the place looked like hell was visiting them. They got to a rope line and jumped onto it with their axes, sliding down it quickly. When they landed however it seemed that the men suddenly forgot about the danger of the fires when they saw Kat and Lara.

"It's the Outsiders…take them out!" One yelled.

"Keep them away from the Shrine!" Yelled another only for them to be blown off the building by an explosion of fire that reminded Kat of a dragon.

Lara and Kat kept running then jumped to the next roof, avoiding gunfire from other Solarii brethren. They climbed up a rock wall as men tried to aim from above. To get a better shot or were scared, neither knew. At least until they heard them shout.

"Fall back to the Palace!"

Kat and Lara pulled themselves up and took aim with crossbow and bow quickly. Kat's bolt took one down and Lara's fire arrow set off the explosives on the other. Then the pair ran into the building the men had been going for and down a hallway. At the end, they heard foot falls. Rounding the corner, they saw a confused, nervous, and annoyed Whitman.

Upon seeing them, he looked shocked yet maybe relived. "Lara, Kat, you're alive."

"No thanks to you…" Kat muttered rolling her eyes.

"So are you…" Lara said shocked that he was alive, then caught herself. "I mean, are you okay? What happened?"

"Once they stopped seeing me as a threat, they let me move about almost freely!" he said the concern and worried replaced by fascination and greed.

Lara frowned at that. "Did you know the others were captured?" She asked as Kat's hand gripped her knife.

"Yes, yes…Sam's in there, but I couldn't free her without a weapon." Whitman said as Kat walked passed him with Lara to get to the room he'd indicated, but he quickly stopped them. "These Solarii are an anthropological marvel, Ladies!" He gushed as if he had won the lottery.

Kat glared at him. "They're insane murderers and kidnapers, Dr. Whitman!" She said.

"We need to get our people out of here." Lara said, not even bothering to tell him of their plans.

"Of course, of course." He nodded but didn't really seemed to like that they didn't see the same as he. "I'll keep a look out here…you…" He looked around the hallway nervously. "You call me when it's safe." He told them.

Lara and Kat just looked at him before turning down the hallway and leaving Whitman to his bullshit.

"He's not going to be there once we get Sam." Kat muttered to Lara.

"I know." Lara nodded as they came to the door.

They peered into the room seeing it was like a large temple or throne room. In the center was a Solarii man, Mathias, and Sam. Lara and Kat paused a moment as they readied their bow and crossbow. Then slipped into the room and they each ducked behind a thick tall pillar, pressing their backs to them.

"I don't think you understand." Mathias said slowly as if talking to a child. "You have been chosen, Samantha." He said as Lara and Kat peered carefully around their pillars to look at them by the candles and shrine. "This is a great honor for you; for us all." He said as Lara and Kat moved to closer pillars for cover. "Some were beginning to doubt we'd ever find you…" He said as Lara and Kat peered around at them. "But here you are."

Sam was close to being pressed against a pillar. "Please." She begged scared and sounding close to tears or she had just recently stopped crying. "I know you think I'm something special." She said looking to the cult leader next to her. "But I'm not." She shook her head firmly. "I don't want to be chosen."

"This is not about what you want." Mathias said sounding close to exacerbated. "It's about what you are." He said as he started to pace, making Lara and Kat duck back behind cover. "Himiko's blood runs in your veins." He said turning back to Sam as she looked down also annoyed and scared. "I think you know this, Samantha."

Sam turned to him, fire in her eyes. "You're insane, Mathias. Why are you doing this?" She asked.

"You're searching for logic and reason where there is none." Mathias said as he got into Sam's face. "I made the same mistake once." He said as she looked down and Lara and Kat peered back out. "Back when I thought ships could reach us and planes wouldn't fall from the sky." He stated.

"I just want to go home." Sam said in almost a whimper.

Mathias grabbed her by the throat and pushed her against the pillar behind her, partly choking her to intimidate her. "So, do I, girl!" He snarled. "I've waited years for this moment…" He informed her as she struggled against his hand. "I've given my life!" He then threw her down to the floor as she coughed from his hold. "Don't you think I've tried to get away from here?" He asked as Lara tightened her grip on her bow in anger. "From this place!" He hissed and turned his back to her. "We're all trapped here. But you, Samantha, you have the power to release us!" he smiled as Sam slowly caught her breath. "Many have given their souls willingly for this gift!" He informed, not knowing or caring that all the hosts had no idea what was actually happening.

A man rushed in panting. "The fires are getting worse." He reported. "And the other two girls have vanished!" He continued making Kat smile a little.

Mathias growled out a sigh. "This must be ended." He looked to the man who had been in the room with them. "Andrew, guard her with your life." He ordered and pointed at Sam.

Lara and Kat peered around the corner and watched as Mathias and the other man walked out. This Andrew guy turned his back to the pillars, clearly not thinking about the other way the room could be entered from. Lara stepped out, took aim with her bow, and loosed. Her arrow sank into his throat sending him to the floor.

Sam lifted her head with wide watery eyes. They landed on Kat and Lara from the downed corpse. "Lara! Kat!" She gasped out relieved and overjoyed to see them. "Oh my god, you're both here!" She gaped out as Lara and Kat rushed to her pulled her in for a hug, which she returned tenfold. "I was beginning to think I was going crazy." She whimpered.

"It's okay. It's okay." Lara and Kat assured her.

"It's going to be okay." Lara said as they pulled apart.

"Our weapons." Kat said as she started taking the shotgun, assault rifle, rifle, and handguns.

"How are we going to get out of here?" Sam asked shaking still.

"First we need to be not here when he gets back." Kat said as she looked to the assault rifle. "Here."

Sam held up her hands with wide eyes. "I don't know…"

"Sam, they may not kill you, but they will hurt you to get you back. You need a way to defend yourself." Lara told her. "Remember, they want your body for Himiko's spirit."

Sam swallowed as she took the weapon and followed Kat and Lara back to the hallway the pair had entered through.

"And Whitman's gone." Kat stated as they peered around the corner. "Traitorous coward."

"Whitman!" Lara hissed twice just to be safe. He was gone. "Where the hell is he?" she growled.

"Somewhere away from the chaos. Glad we didn't tell him anything of our plans." Kat muttered as they moved down the hall and Kat remembered at the very last minute. "Shit! Run!" Kat yelled.

"What?! Why!?" Lara and Sam asked.

"Whitmen's a coward, but he got—"

"Girls, run!" Whitmen yelled from the corner where his hands were tied behind his back.

Right next to him was a smiling Mathias. Kat, Lara, and Sam backed up with wide eyes.

"Get them!" Mathias ordered.

"Run!" Whitmen yelled sounding convincing, but something was off.

"Back to the throne room! Now!" Kat yelled backing up and drawing her revolver.

Lara pursed her lips and fired a shot at the beams above with her shotgun. They fell blocking the Solarii from getting to them right away. Lara and Kat dashed into the throne room as explosions started happening again. The fires had reached them.

"Lara! Kat!" Sam yelled from the other side of the room.

Kat put on a burst of speed and got next to Sam, pushing them both down on the stairs and out of the way of the collapsing ceiling. They stood and spun around to see that Lara was now alone in the throne room.

"Keep going, you two!" Lara called. "I'll find another way out!"

"I know!" Kat called back. "Come on, Sam." She told her giving her a gentle shove.

Kat's POV

"There!" Kat and Sam heard behind them as they ran.

They got to the top of the stairs, Kat pushed herself, and Sam into cover as a group of men ran passed their cover.

"The chosen one has escaped! We've got to find her and get her back!" They heard them shout.

"Kat…why dose Himiko want me?" Sam whispered as they watched the men disappear down a hallway.

"You're her only pure descendant. She has been trapped in a corpse for the thousand years and is pissed about it. No girl the Solarii have offered to her in that fire ritual was what she wanted. Or wouldn't be suited to her soul." Kat explained. "Maybe you've got the same abilities she doses, but their dormant. Either way, she wants you because of your blood relation."

"This is so fucked up. If she wants a new body so badly, why not just settle for of the other girls that have been offered?" Sam asked as they slipped out of cover and climbed another set of stairs.

"Maybe they've all been too old, too young, or they weren't Japanese." Kat shrugged. "She's a very picky spirit."

"But…I'm not fully Japanese. I'm half Portuguese." Sam muttered.

"Doesn't matter to Himiko. She wants you and only you. She won't get you." Kat assured her. "Lara and I won't let her. We have a plan, but you might not like all of it." She told her thinking about the ink jar and needles in her pack.

"Why won't I like it?" Sam asked as they got to a balcony and hid for a moment.

"Do you remember what an Ofuda is?" Kat asked her after the men vanished.

Sam nodded slowly. "Yeah, a protective charm."

"Exactly. Lara and know that Himiko is technically a vengeful spirit right now. If you are captured and taken for that soul transference ritual, she will try to possess you. If we tattoo an Ofuda on you, her soul will be blocked from entering your body." Kat explained. "Theoretically anyway."

Sam swallowed. "A…a tattoo?"

"I know you've never gotten one. Hell, neither have Laura or I, but it's the best way. If we just make the charm, Mathias would just take it off your person." Kat told her as she saw a rope line that lead behind a fence. "Okay. Put your arms around my neck."

Sam nodded and did so, struggling with the assault rifle. The pair slid down the line with Kat's axe and dropped to the ground. They quickly had to duck behind cover, hearing chaos around them. Kat peered out of cover seeing some men talking in a panic.

"So, do we know where the chosen one would go? How strong are the outsiders helping her?"

Kat loaded a bolt into her cross bow.

"I don't know, I don't care! The fortress is burning, and all outsiders have escaped!"

Kat then took aim and pulled the first trigger quickly loading the next bolt and aiming again. She pulled the trigger again. Both men went down quickly as explosions were set off somewhere. No doubt, it had to be Lara. Kat waved for Sam to follow her. Kat checked over the bodies and found a handgun. It was smaller than the one Lara had and defiantly lighter and would have less recoil then an assault rifle.

"Sam, I know you're not comfortable with the assault rifle. So here." Kat handed her the handgun. "I'll take the rifle back and you can use this if we get separated."

Sam nodded taking it and handing Kat the rifle. Once Sam had the spare clips they continued on their path to get the hell out, they moved on. They eventually turned on a side street only for a gunshot to hit Kat on her thigh, cutting deeply across the top on her left thigh. Kat and Sam dropped behind cover as Kat grabbed at her thigh as it started bleeding, soaking her pant leg as it started to rain.

Sam stepped out of cover and shot one of the men in the head. She had been aiming for his chest, but the recoil shocked her, and the gun jumped upward. This wasn't like an air pistol that Kat, Lara and her had used at a fair that had come to Raccoon when Kat invited them to the city one summer.

"Whoa! Hey, you don't need to shoot!" Said one of the men as Kat pulled out her revolver.

Lara's POV

"There!" A few men shouted pointing at Lara.

They opened fire on Lara making her run to cover behind a ceremonial cauldron.

"There she is…pin her down!" Yells a man.

Lara pulled her machine gun and started to unload on them. They wouldn't get to her. They wouldn't get Sam. They wouldn't kill anyone else. One down by the candles at the shrine. Two down by the other cauldron. Three down, by the candles again after Lara tucked and rolled into the next cover, avoiding a stick of dynamite. Four down as she rushed to a new cover behind a pillar. The number of men Lara took down while the throne room slowly burned kept climbing.

After the 9th man was down a wall crashed open. For a moment, Lara thought it was an explosion. But it wasn't. It was two men in heavy metal armor and wore gas masks. One held a staff and the other held a rifle.

"The Chosen One has escaped! Get out there and find her!" Yelled one as they entered the room, looking like the terminator.

Lara gritted her teeth and took aim at them as sweat gathered on her body. She aimed for the head of the one that was striding toward her with the makeshift spear. He was down quickly with splatters of hot blood. She had to duck gunfire from the second one though. The moment he stopped Lara came back out, with a spray of bullets to his chest knocking him off balance. She aimed for his head and neck, a spray of blood and gurgles were her reward for her timing.

"Come on, pick it up!" Yelled a man. "We can't let her escape!"

The voices were faint. Lara turned and ran around the growing fire and toward an open door with a white spotlight shining in. Drawing her handgun, she jogged through the door and fired a shot at the light, breaking it and letting her eyes august. As she jogged through the hallway, she heard the voices clearly.

"Hey, get outside; the chosen one has escaped into the city with some blonde!"

Lara turned a corner away from a flaming hall and down some steps.

"Come on, move it! We have to find her!" Another yelled out as the pair ran into the open part of the stairs the Lara was descending.

Lara quickly switched her handgun for her shotgun and pulled the trigger twice. That killed two of the men as an explosion drew out more. Lara backed up the steps and ducked behind cover as she pulled out her machine gun. She then peered around and picked off the last of them. Once they were down, Lara dashed down the steps. She needed to find Kat and Sam soon. Kat could handle herself, but Sam…Sam might not use the assault rifle.

"Sound the alarm! Warn the gate watch!" She heard as she looted ammo off the corpses.

Lara turned and moved down more stairs, killing two more men as she did with her shotgun. Turning another corner, she heard more people shouting.

"Go! Find the chosen one!"

Lara spun and took quick aimed shots. She killed three men and found a man with a shield coming toward her. She ducked his blade swing and filled his exposed stomach with bullets. She walked down the hall and through a thick cloud of smoke. Covering her nose and mouth with the cruck of her elbow, she stepped outside and down some steps.

She followed a rope line with her eyes, and they widened at what was in an open hole. In the upper level of the build across the way was a mounted mini-gun and a man walked up to it and gripped a hold of it. He looked to the left.

"Go! All of you. Find the chosen one!" He ordered as he looked to Lara below and turned the weapon's barrel, so it pointed at her chest. "This one is mine."

Just as his fingers closed on the triggers, Lara dove into cover and panted shakily as bullet's rocketed into the stone ground where she had stood a moment ago. She pulled out her machine gun as he yelled at her.

"I've been waiting for you, girl." He called as the bullets started to rip her cover apart. "You killed my brothers."

As her cover was obliterated, Lara gasped pulling away from the wall.

"Now you pay." He called as he took aim at her.

Lara bolted to the next cover as he started to rip it apart as well.

"Come out and play!" He taunted loudly as grenades were thrown.

Lara got behind new cover and found she was getting steadily closer. This was giving her a bit of confidence. If she could get close enough, she could kill him and end this. Plan in mind, the fear was fading as she dashed to the next bit of cover.

"Show your face…I'll shoot it off!" He yelled. "Keep wasting your bullets!"

Lara rolled her eyes as she reached a stone wall she could climb. She hadn't taken a single shot at him. She started climbing the wall as he continued to fire at where he last saw her. Once at the top she saw she was by the rope line that lead right to him.

"Come outta there!" He yelled angered that she was hidden.

She gritted her teeth, pulled her axe and jumped onto the line. Letting out a yell as she slid down it. She pulled her legs up, so she could kick him in the head.

He saw her and tried fire at her, but she was moving too quickly. "No, no! Don't come any closer!"

Her feet hit him roughly, knocking him onto his back. She dropped from the rope and grabbed the gun, struggling to turn it toward him and pulling the triggers. He got to his feet, ducked the bullets, and rammed the gun and Lara onto the roof behind her. She fell off the roof as the gun missed hitting her by inches and bouncing away. She gasped and coughed a bit as she looked up.

The man came to the edge and glared down at her. "No hiding now." He stated pointing a handgun at her, pulling the trigger and missing on purpose. "I'm going to fucking kill you, child."

Two more shots made Lara roll to the right and she hit something. She looked and saw a grenade launcher. She grabbed it up and took aim at the man with a hard-angered expression in her face.

"Oh Shit!" He yelped at seeing the weapon.

Lara pulled the trigger. The bronze-colored Grande flew through the air and hit the man's legs before hitting the ground. It exploded and sent him flying with mangled bloody legs and sent wood shrapnel flying around Lara. She shielded her head with her arm for a moment before she looked up at the destroyed roof. She looked down as it started raining and grabbed up an assault rifle from the ground and attached the Grande launcher to the side of it.

She stood up then took aim at the wall in front of her. She pulled the trigger. The grenade fired and blew up the wall of simple wood boards and some thin stone. Men ran from her as she marched forward pissed off and done with being scared.

"Ahh shit, she's got a grenade launcher! Run!" One yelled as they ran.

"That's right!" Lara yelled as she loaded her new weapon, then came out of the building on the other side and started shooting. "Run, you bastards!" She yelled out reloading as two went down. "I'm coming for you all!" She threatened sending a grenade shot and exploding a bit of cover, forcing them to scatter.

"She killed Andrew!" One yelled out terrified.

"Where did she get that thing?" Yelled another as she pulled the two different triggers.

She killed him and his two buddies with bullets and a grenade. She walked along the path, moved down some stairs, and came upon another group. She made short work of them not caring at this point. She just wanted to get to Kat and Sam, find the others and get the hell out of there. As she shot, she heard them freak out at the fact that she had a grenade launcher and was decimating them with it and her new assault rifle.

Once all in her current area were dead, she found a small camp. She rested, clean and reloaded everything then got back on her path. Lara dashed to the wall and sank her axe into the exposed stonework. She climbed to the top and pulled herself up into a burning building. She ran into the burning hallway, coughing on smoke and breaking out into a hot sweat again. The ceiling collapsed a small section at one point and forced Lara to crouch under the burning wood.

She found her way out, but it was blocked with both wood and metal. She pulled her shotgun and fired a shot at it. Metallic plinking, but it did not break like the wood blockages she had come across before. She switched to her new grenade launcher and backed up taking aim. She pulled the trigger and the grenade hit the blockage. The shockwave of the hit and explosion sent Lara spinning back into the wall behind her. She hissed out a wince as she got back to her feet, picking up her gun and going through the new hole in the wall. From the roof, she could see Sam and Kat a little ways away below.

Normal POV

Sam pointed her handgun at the five Solarii men that had fired at them. "Stay away from me! From us!" She yelled shifting targets.

Kat glared at them. "Lara and I have killed a lot of you." She threatened. "Just try it." She dared as she pushed herself to stand on her injured leg.

"Come with us…we won't hurt you…" One of the men said trying to wave Sam over. "We won't hurt your friend either."

"Stay back!" Sam yelled at them and pulled the trigger again, killing another man by shooting him in the head.

"Goddamn it, don't hurt her!" Yelled one as Kat pulled the trigger killing another guy as Sam and her ducked back behind cover. "We need her alive!"

Lara up above took aim at the men with her new assault rifle/grenade launcher.

"No…Stop!" Yelled one of the men only to be shot by Kat as Sam was shaking from killing two men.

"Fuck off!" Kat yelled at them as Lara struggled to get a bead from where she was on the roof.

"Sam! Kat! Run!" Lara called to them.

Sam and Kat did as Lara moved along the rooftops to meet back up with them both in person.

"Go get them…Move!" a man yelled as Kat limp ran and Sam struggled to give Kat some support.

Kat and Sam ducked into cover, put their hands over their mouths, and waited as the men searched. By then Lara had zip lined down to the streets.

"Where the hell'd they go?" She heard a man ask confused.

"One had a lot of weapons and the chosen one had a goddamn gun. We couldn't take them." She smiled at hearing that as she got into position to blow up a metal wall.

"Ah fuck…move out…keep looking!" Said the first voice.

Lara blew up the wall and slipped through as the man continued.

"We have to find her." He said.

Kat and Sam meanwhile stayed huddled in their cover. Sam ripped the bottom of her shirt carefully and used it as a tourniquet for Kat's thigh. Kat nodded to Sam and swapped positions with her, to be her shield if they found them. Giving a rub to her locket, she pulled out her rifle and loaded it.

Lara got into the open just as a man yelled, "Get word to the main gate."

In the pouring rain and the burning city, Lara and Kat in two different but close by locations killed men that entered their path or got too close to their hiding spot. Gunfire, explosions, and screams of pain and death were the only thing the three could hear. Kat and Sam had to change hiding spots five times. Lara came to an old fountain looking shrine and winced as a spotlight shined at her.

"She's down there. See if you can get a shot." Shouted the guy operating the spotlight.

"Get me some light!" Shouted the one on a gun similar to the one that the guy she first killed with her new grenade launcher.

The spotlight was fully on her and Lara ran for cover.

"There she is! Take her out!" Spotlight yelled.

Lara had barely jumped into cover as bullets flew over the ground. With spotlight guy yelling everywhere Lara moved and pointing the light at her, it was a struggle to get close enough to them. She climbed a wooden wall, and jumped onto a rope line, feeling as bullets wised by her head, arms, and legs. She landed and killed the three men waiting for her with two shots from her shotgun as they had been grouped together. Now inside of cover she took a few breaths and reloaded her weapons as she heard one of the men shouting.

"She's got a grenade launcher! Take her out before she gets too close!"

Kat and Sam could hear all of this and the men that had been close to them ran to become reinforcements for were Lara was. The pair left their cover after a minute and searched form a way out of the city. A well-aimed shot of her grenade later and Lara did not have to worry about being shredded with bullets.

"You're not stopping me!" Lara yelled out angered at the amount of times she was almost killed.

She ziplined down to the gate and found that Sam and Kat had made it to that gate too. Sam looked worried and Kat looked pained.

"Lara! Lara! Climb over, come on!" Sam called to her desperately wanting to not be separated from her.

Lara came up to the gate. "Head for Roth. I'll follow. And don't get on that helicopter." She explained.

"What?" Sam asked confused.

"Trust us, on this." Kat said grasping Sam's shoulder. "We have to go." She looked to Lara. "Stay alive, Lara."

Lara nodded. "Go!" she called as she backed up.

Sam nodded sadly and like that, they were separated again.

Lara climbed and jumped up some wooden slats then slid on a rope line to the other side of the gate. She climbed up a rock wall and then slipped through a window and dropped onto the floor. A man saw her land and threw a Molotov at her, missing and just hitting the floor before running away. The fire from it spread and Lara bolted to climbing and got to where he was fairly quickly. She then got to the rope line but stopped. She could see the spotlight of the helicopter.

"Oh no…I've got to stop them from getting on that helicopter. I hope Kat and Sam can keep them from getting on." She muttered.

She rode on the rope line and dropped onto her side at the bridge. She was close to the end. She just had to cross and get to her crewmates and friends. She frowned and looked at the gates feeling like she was being watched. Standing on the top framed by the hellish image of flames and the darkness of the smoke covered sky, stood Mathias flanked by two men. With them were cannons.

"Destroy the bridges!" Mathias ordered with an arm slash.

"But we'll kill our own people!" Yelled one of the men with him as Lara stood up.

Mathias did not hesitate. He snatched a handgun from the other man with him, pointed it at the man who had spoken, and killed him with one pull of the trigger. The guy, whose gun Mathias took and used, rushed to his dead brother's side in horror at what their leader had done.

"Any other non-believers!?" He called out opening his arms and smiling the then insane man he was.

Lara was already running across the bridge, holding her side as it was bruised in her fall. As she ran, the men chasing her were now also running with her as flaming cannon balls flew through the air to destroy the bridges. As the bridge started to collapse behind Lara, a particularly large explosion behind her sent her flying as a fireball threatened to catch her. She hit what was left of the bridge's other side and caught herself, only to feel heat and something gripping her. She looked and saw a man on fire trying to hold onto her left leg.

She struggled with him as she tried to climb up her. She didn't know if he was just panicked from the fire covering him, if he planned to pull her off with him, or if he was just turning to pull himself up. It didn't matter. Lara elbowed him in the face, making him drop down onto her legs again from her shoulders. She pulled her climbing axe and swung it at his head, sinking the hook into his eye before pulling it away. He screamed as he fell and Lara pulled herself up and started running across the rest of the bridge, as it seemed Himiko sensed the helicopter and was making it storm.

Lara jumped from one part of the breaking bridge to the next and found herself tumbling through the lower part of the bridge, crashing through two walls of sheet metal before stopping on solid ground. She pushed herself up onto her feet and spotted the helicopter. It was very close by.

"We're taking fire. Everybody get to higher ground!" Roth's voice came over the radio.

Lara pulled the radio and pushed the talk button as the wall collapsed blocking her view of the chopper. "Wait…the storms!" She called to Roth. "It's too dangerous!" fire was spreading as Lara saw the chopper fly passed over head.

"Roth, please remember what I told you." Kat's voice came through as well. "Please…get the pilot to land."

"Roth?! Damn it!" Lara yelled as she started climbing.

She jumped at one point as the fire fallowed her and grabbed the broken steps above her. They broke and swung backward, sending her tumbling through a sheet metal wall. She started running up the steps outside in the rain that did not seem to hurt the fires. She flipped off a pole and ran to a stone wall and started to climb it, just as the floor dropped from under her as the wood burned and cracked. She reached the top and paused as fire exploded out the window. As it died, Lara tried climbing up but the wall broke and she fell forward into the burning building.

Hitting the wooden platform, Lara pulled herself up panting and coughing as the fire around her made it hard to breath. She jumped to what was left of some stairs and pulled herself up onto the railing. Balancing on it, she walked speedily to the other end and jumped onto a hanging crate. The stairs fully collapsed sending up burning ash into the air and a rush of hot smoke blew passed her. She gritted her teeth climbing up the shaking and slowly burning crate.

Once on top she jumped off for the open landing and pulled herself up it as the crate fell into the burning floor. She pulled herself to the wall outside and a fiery backdraft flew out the open hole onto the roof. Lara then jumped up onto a wooden beam then climbed a crumbling stone wall. She jumped from it to a wood beam. From there she jumped to another stone wall and struggled to climb up as it too crumbled. She jumped from it to the last of the climbing holds. Four wooden boards.

She pulled herself on top of the burning building. She looked around at the growing storm and pulled her radio. The storm had lightning. Himiko's favorite natural weapon it seemed.

"Roth?" Lara called into the radio as she walked to the center of the tower building. She put her radio to her belt and climbed up the roof to the top and center. "Roth, where are you!?" She screamed terrified of the storm, the flames that followed her, and the knowledge that Roth could very well die.

The helicopter rose into view right next to her. Roth was at the open side doors.

"I'm here, girl!" He called out to her as he held out a hand. "Come on, jump!" He called as Lara struggled to stand up. "You can do it!" he encouraged.

Lara moved to jump, but the roof collapsed under her and she fell on floor below and landed on her back. She struggled back to her feet and saw the open wall and helicopter still there. Lara ran up the wooden makeshift ramp. She jumped off the end, throwing an arm out to Roth as the helicopter tipped to make sure she was caught as the tower's top exploded behind her. Roth's hand closed around her forearm as she gripped his.

"Lara, grab my hand!" He called to her grabbing her arm with both hands.

She turned looking to him and did so. He pulled her on board as the chopper started flying forward.

"There you go!" Roth smiled a bit, relived he had her out of the fire.

Once standing Lara looked to Roth with fear in her eyes. "Roth, we have to land!"

"I know!" Roth told her as she looked outside.

"We have to land, or the storms are going to crash us!" Lara yelled as she spotted Jonah, Alex, Reyes, Sam, and Kat below as the copter flew passed. "We can't leave them!" She yelled.

Sam was waving at the helicopter trying to get it to come back and get them. Around her, the others were shielding her and taking out men that came at them.

"We can't leave them behind!" Roth yelled at the pilot. "We can't stay in the air!"

Lara was up next to the pilot instantly. "We have to land!" She yelled at him.

"No way! Not in this weather!" The pilot yelled back shaking his head trying to fly the copter in the worst storm he had ever seen.

"We can't leave them behind!" Lara yelled at him, trying to appeal to his humanity.

"I barely made it here in one piece!" The pilot informed her.

Lara looked to Roth he was shaking his head. She took his silver Tactical Pistol from his holster and then pointed it at the side of the pilot's head with a grim expression. "Do it!" She ordered as alarms beeped.

"She'll pull apart!" The pilot told her seeming only a little worried about the gun to his head.

Lara pulled the hammer of the gun back for the extra threat. "NOW!" She screamed at him pissed off.

"Fuck!" The pilot yelled. "You're crazy!" He turned the helicopter around and struggled to find somewhere to land.

The storm abruptly got worse, and the lighting started cracking closer as if Thor was pissed of not Himiko.

"Here it comes!" Lara yelled out.

The helicopter was struck. They started spinning. Lara fell to the ground as Roth struggled to help her up.

"Hang on, Lara!" Roth called out to her.

Sparks flew from the controls as the copter spun and the engine blew up with fire. Just as quickly as it spun, shook and lit on fire in places, it crashed and rolled, knocking everyone out.

With Kat and Sam…

Kat and Sam rounded a corner only to be grabbed by two of the Solarii.

"AHHH! No! Let go!" Sam screamed as her gun was knocked away.

"Himiko is using you! She won't let you live!" Kat yelled as she spotted an opportunity.

She was close to a wall and kicked her legs to it. She ran up it, surprised that she had traction with the rain that was coming down. The man that had a hold of her yelped and fell back as Kat felled back with him. She slammed her elbow into his diaphragm, knocking the wind out of him. Kat then rolled off him, sank her knife into his neck, and pulled it out before jumping to her feet and turning to the one that had Sam.

"Let her go." Kat growled at him as the gurgling behind her stopped.

"Hell no! You just killed my brother! And we need her to get off this cursed island!" He yelled trying to back up.

His head then rocketed to the side as he was shot from behind. Sam screamed as he dropped on top of her, and Kat rushed over. Pushing the dead man off Sam, they looked back, half expecting to see Lara, but saw Reyes.

"Reyes!" The two called out.

Alex came over with Jonah and got them to their feet.

"Holy crap, Kat, you're bleeding." Jonah said looking at her thigh.

"I'm fine." Kat assured. "We have to get out of here. But not on the helicopter that's coming."

"What? Why?" Alex asked.

"Because of Himiko's very pissed off spirit." Kat explained as everyone by Sam frowned. "And what I know… but that part doesn't matter. Himiko wants Sam's body. If we don't get to Himiko's last body and destroy it then she'll try to possess Sam."

"That's crazy, Kat." Reyes stated.

"It's true…" Sam said looking scared. "The men here, they did this fire ritual…Himiko put out the fire with her shaman powers." She shivered. "She wants me…I…I can feel it." she admitted, letting them know she could feel a chill at her back, like as if Himiko was watching her.

"They lit you on fire?" Alex asked.

"Yes. We have to get out of here." Kat stated.

"Okay, but we had better talk about this more later. I don't fully believe it." Reyes stated.

They soon grouped around Sam. Killing anyone that got close. They had made it over the bridge before they were destroyed. The storm was getting worse, just as a spotlight came into view.

"Hey! It's the helicopter!" Sam called out smiling for a moment before she looked to the storm. "No! Himiko! No!" She waved her arms trying to the copter to land. "Hey! Land!"

"They're leaving!" Alex gasped.

"Shit! Roth and Lara better not be on it." Kat gasped feeling dread settle into her stomach.

"What!? Why?" Reyes asked with wide eyes.

Just then, lightning hit the helicopter and it started spinning in the air. It then fell out of sight.

"Because Lara almost dies, and Roth is killed by an axe." Kat said shakily. "I told them both and they know…but…"

"How do you know?" Jonah asked.

"Because I was reincarnated with memories of the future." Kat told them. "We have to get to that crash site!"