A/N: Sorry this is short, guys… writer's block. The scene after this one is incomplete and I only have a few more after that.
Revised 01/10/05
What time is it? How long have I been here? Fighting the growing numbness in her limbs, Lara stumbled down the same street for the fourth time, knowing that Karel was somewhere close, and that she had to keep away for a little longer. Another cough shook her body in spasms, and when she withdrew her hand from her lips, her fingertips were bright with blood. Despite all of her efforts to seriously wound the Nephilim, she knew she had not succeeded in incapacitating him, and that she had maybe a few minutes before she would drop into unconsciousness.
In addition to the cracked ribs and internal bleeding, she also sported a small burn from her own attempts to cremate Karel, a freely-bleeding slash down her right thigh when he had managed to hurl her own knife at her from a distance, and several, larger, burns incurred when Karel managed to hit her with his green fire. Every joint and muscle ached, and her desperation was limitless, but still she refused to cry.
If I'm going down, at least I made the bastard bleed. She had no ammunition left – although she knew it was futile she had expended it all on the Nephilim, who just kept coming. The only good thing was, he was no longer smirking. She sensed he had been hurt at some point, though of course it wasn't enough to stop him.
Now she was on the run for her life, all her strategies having met with failure. She stayed within sight of the green wall of fire at all times, in the pathetic hope that it would disappear for some reason. She knew her number was up – every time she attempted to hide for a while, her coughing gave her away. Why prolong it any more? I at least want to see his face when he figures out I don't have the boxes…
Decision made, she stopped running, dropping to the ground and stretching out, staring into the night sky as she waited for Karel to find her.
It took only a minute. As she drifted on the edge of unconsciousness, he appeared in her field of vision, mocking smile back in place. "Well, well. The infamous tomb raider seems to be giving up the ghost."
Lara smiled, a tide of warmth threatening to sweep her away. "But not in vain." With an effort, she raised herself up onto her elbows and looked him full in the face. "Search me, if you like. You won't find a trace of Rosha or Rahil. What you have to ask now is, have I hidden them somewhere in your little playground, or did I give them both to Kurtis and play decoy while he got away?"
Far from wiping the smile from his face, this elicited a chuckle from Karel. "You underestimate me, Ms. Croft. Do you honestly think I didn't prepare for the eventuality that one of you would get away? Your boyfriend is being followed by my most trusted advisor as we speak, and if you've hidden them somewhere here, I have a whole cult to comb the area. Sooner or later, we will find the boxes."
His face twisted into an ugly grimace. "Whereas you'll just be dead." A foot lashed out viciously, and Lara grunted with the pain to her cracked ribs as she took the blow full-force. Once more, a coughing fit wracked her body as she lay, exhausted and in despair. Please be careful, Kurtis, she thought drowsily as she began to pass out again.
The next thing she knew, someone was calling her name. "Fuck off, Karel," she mumbled. "Just let me die."
"Drink this," a nondescript voice ordered. "Drink it, or you will die."
Lara turned her head from the proffered drink, waiting for oblivion to claim her once more. She no longer cared what happened to her; she just wanted the pain to stop.
Suddenly, forcibly, a hand grabbed her hair and pulled her head up from the ground. Cool liquid spilled down her throat before she could protest again, and within seconds her weakness and pain had receded. "What…?" Lara asked, looking up and staring into the grey eyes of someone she knew. "André?"
"How do you feel?" he answered, looking her over.
"Fine," she answered, struggling to her feet. "Karel?"
With the ghost of a smile, André motioned to a figure hanging suspended in the air a few feet away. Lara stepped closer in wonder. Karel's eyes were closed, and he seemed more pale than usual, if that were possible. Something nagged at Lara's memory. "He looks… he's in exactly the same position as the Sleeper," she marvelled, "only without the chains. Did you do this?"
"Please, don't ask how," André replied. "I'm not exactly sure myself. But he'll hold for only another hour or so, so we need to get moving."
Lara nodded, and they set off out of the temple district. The tomb raider's brain turned to the next most important matter. "He said he'd sent his most trusted advisor after Kurtis. We have to find him."
"Calm down. The restorative may have healed you, but it'll still take a while to regenerate you properly. Who do you think it Karel's most trusted advisor? I followed him until I saw where he stopped, then I came straight back here. I'll take you to them." He motioned Lara into the passenger seat of a Jeep parked just outside the temple district, and got into the driver's seat.
Suddenly, everything became too much for Lara. Leaning back into the seat as André pulled away, she began to laugh. Her companion shot her a worried look, which only made her laugh all the harder. Soon her gut ached with the strain, but she still could not stop.
"You're hysterical," André warned her. "If you don't stop soon, I'm going to have to slap you."
"Oh, don't, please," Lara gasped between giggles. "If I don't laugh, I think I'm going to cry, and I really don't want to smudge my mascara." She glimpsed her own face, coated with dust and blood, in the wing mirror, and cracked up again.
By the time she had herself under control, they were leaving Cappadocia behind. Lara closed her eyes and shook her head. "How did I get out of there alive?" The question was more rhetorical than serious – she knew how, but she still couldn't quite believe it. She knew only one thing – she owed André a huge debt. "André? Thank you." The words seemed tiny and insignificant, but he smiled.
"No problem. It's as much for my own ends as yours, after all. I truly believe that without you, Kurtis would have no chance of success, just as you couldn't do it without him."
Lara shrugged. "Still, if there's ever anything you need…"
André chuckled. "Does that mean I can ask for your firstborn child?"
"Ask away, since I don't plan on having any children – not now, not ever. I can barely take care of myself, let alone anyone else."
André raised an eyebrow. "I doubt Kurtis would share that viewpoint. I was standing in the shadows at the time. I couldn't have bound our dear Joachim at that point – it takes preparation – but I was there, and I saw what you did."
Lara turned her head to gave out of the window at the darkened countryside. Her new friend's words forced her mind out of its horrified rut – replaying over and over the ineffectual battle – and back to her last conversation with Kurtis. I love you, Lara Croft. It had been a sincere admission, one he wouldn't have admitted to had she not faced what looked like certain death. Lara herself liked to think she was hardened enough not to be moved by it, but the truth was, she loved him just as much.
The fact infuriated her – she recalled their many arguments and realised that all along, she had been fighting for control over her emotions. I suppose I'm going to have to get in touch with my inner sap, she thought ironically. The thought of herself accepting flowers and chocolates from Kurtis with a smile and a kiss made her cringe. Good god, no. Never. If he gets conventional on me, he's out the door.
Her inner monologue continued as André steered the Jeep down road after road, each appearing the same as the last. After a while, he looked over at her. "We're about five minutes away."
Lara nodded, not sure whether to feel anticipation or apprehension. She settled for nonchalance as a familiar blue van came into view. "André, where's the nearest shower?" she asked, shaking her head at the lack of civilisation.
"About ten miles down the road."
"Men," Lara sighed. "I've half a mind to just keep going."
"Plenty of time for that," André replied. "There're still three days until the eclipse."
His words elicited a scowl from Lara. "Thanks for the reminder."
See, not so cliff-y this time.