Chapter 4
Kurtis felt his heart suddenly stall as he stared at the figure before him. The man's vocals instantly released a muffled growl in response, and Kurtis quickly backed away from the strange figure. He breathed spastically with fear as he hurriedly made his way back to Lara, gathering his calmness as he pummeled through the crowd. He grabbed her shoulder, gaining her attention as he neared her, but stalled as she turned to face him. He suddenly felt even more uneasy. He timidly scanned the room, something else was there, something familiar, someone familiar. He felt the suspense in his chest rise as he spotted four more of the dark figured humans, each dressed in black clothing, coats adorning their figures. Two were slowly closing in behind them, the remaining three ahead, waiting for him at the museum's entrance.
His breathing stopped as his eyes focused on one of them, a familiar face with short blonde hair, her chin defined, giving an elvish tint to her features. Her dark eyes were set on his, filling him with memories, with fear. He watched her suddenly lift her arm and direct it forward; she was signaling to the rest.
He exhaled loudly as he closed his eyes, gripping the churigai now at his waist. He couldn't let these creatures see him with Lara, especially the one before him, the one who was known to him. He couldn't allow Lara to get involved with this.
Lara sensed an uneasiness within Kurtis. His eyes scanned timidly throughout the museum lobby as if he was scared. She gently placed her hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?" she asked. He was sweating, nervous.
Kurtis didn't answer, but quickly glanced at her eyes and then focused his attention back to the room. He jerked away from her as he realized the crazed humans were still watching him.
"I think," he began his excuse, staring at the floor, barely moving his lips, "I'm gonna go check my bandages right quick."
"Why?"Lara worriedly asked "Are you in pain?" She didn't understand his sudden change of attitude.
"No," he answered, never looking at her, "I just-uh-don't want to get blood in your car."
Kurtis had gone before she could ask further questions. She shrugged her shoulders as he entered the bathroom. Maybe his mind was still tired and confused.
Kurtis could sense a presence trailing him as he entered the small lounge behind the bathroom door. He could feel the moisture on his hands building as the thought of battle neared his mind. He hated leaving Lara unknowing outside, but he had to get out of public or he would've risked bringing her into it. He hurriedly searched the small area around him for the men's room, and quickly forced open its door.
He scanned the small restroom before him, planning his defense. He saw several stalls lining the opposite side of the room, and a double sink and mirror lay around a small corner, nothing of interest. He was running out of time. He then stared to the ceiling, hollow and decorated with wooden supports. Kurtis smiled as a thought emerged. He breathed deeply as he heard the first door to the lobby open. They were coming.
Kurtis quickly jumped up and grabbed one of the many beams that held the ceiling. He forced his legs onto the structure and pulled himself upward, supporting himself upon it.
There he crouched, waiting quietly for the enemy to emerge. He faced the door and tightly gripped the support at his feet. He steadied his breathe, readying himself for what was to come.
The door slowly began to open, and Kurtis could feel his senses change. His heart pounded loudly with fear and anticipation as the gap to the outer room widened.
He carefully watched as the man who had shouldered him in the lobby silently entered. His demonic form searched the room with timid eyes, hunting for his target. He was followed by an arabic man and a woman with red hair. That was three. He waited for the fourth. He saw a skinny brunette woman enter and knew that she was the last; being that the leader, the blonde, would still be outside, waiting to finish him off.
Kurtis fixed his eyes upon the final attacker and watched as she cautiously began to enter. Her eyes glowed brightly in the dimmed light and her pale skin created an essence that screamed of evil.
Before she could leave the doorway, he quickly gripped the support beam and swung himself down, holding on with his arms. He powerfully brought both his feet forward and connected them with the woman's chest.
He watched as the force lifted her from the ground and sent her body back into the bath lounge.
Kurtis dropped himself to the floor and prepared himself for the other three. The human's eyes glowed red as they angrily flashed crimson-stained teeth through peeled and parched lips. Kurtis clutched the ancient weapon at his waist and slid his fingers through its iron grips. He lifted the churigai, ready to kill, and tried his best to smile.
Kurtis held his ground as the foreign man rushed toward him. He watched the creature's movements with steady eyes, ready for anything. Kurtis was slightly surprised however, as the man stopped his motions and quickly reached inside the inner pocket of his straight jacket. Kurtis felt a cringe up his spine at what he saw, a metal frame and silenced barrel.
The strange man began forward once again, and raised the gun. Kurtis acted fast. He hurriedly charged forward and grabbed the man's forearm. He forced the creatures limb upward, and quickly spun himself around. He could see the gun before him as he rested the mans arm upon his shoulder. Kurtis lifted it again and stopped. He let out a brutal noise as he jerked his hands down, forcefully bringing the creatures elbow down upon his shoulder.
Kurtis could hear the cracking of bone as the man's arm bent unnaturally upward. He was surprised when his attacker let out no scream, but continued forward as if to strangle him.
He quickly turned back toward the creature and forced its arms away. He lowered himself toward the floor and flexed his muscles upward. He thrust his arm at the monsters face and ended its liveliness with an upward palm to the nose. He watched coldly as the creature fell to the dark concrete floor, dead.
As he raised his head he saw the red hair coming rapidly toward him.
Before Kurtis could recover his stance, the next thing attacked. He rushed himself backward as she rapidly struck her hands at his face. Long finger-nails stabbed at him, greedily waiting to taste his blood. Kurtis watched her arms with precise vision, and deflected them away. He saw her thrust her foot back and hurriedly lowered his churigai. He watched intently as the woman's knee was met by his blade. He ripped the weapon away, taking half of her thigh with it. He was stunned as the creature continued to rush itself forward, un-delayed by the wound in her leg. Before he could prepare to meet her, he felt pain in his shoulder where the freaks teeth sunk into his flesh.
He felt the light touch of blood running down his back as he forced his arm forward and thrust his blade into the creature's waist. His hands turned deep red as the weapon sliced open her stomach. Kurtis gritted his teeth as he forced the blade deeper, tearing the creature's insides and meeting its spinal cord.
He smiled as the woman's form slumped downward. Its body went limp and its features became pale. Kurtis quickly dislodged his weapon, ready to bury it inside of the final demon, now standing before him.
Kurtis felt his breath dim with slight fatigue as the remaining form approached him. He gathered his strength and kicked his foot forward. He helplessly watched as the man grabbed his limb and pushed. Kurtis felt his feet collapse from under him and pain sear through his back as it connected with the floor.
He looked up at the demon as it stared down at him with rage. The monster picked up the now vacant churigai and threw it across the room. Kurtis tried to break free as the creature grabbed his shirt and lifted him upward, but his motions were slowed as the pain overtook his body. The demon looked deep at Kurtis with its satanic eyes. It reared back it's arm, ready to strike.
Kurtis watched, defenseless, and the creature thrust its palm forward.
He felt the air leave his lungs as the creature's fist met his ribcage. His body was then powerfully thrown through the air, and halted by the mirror on the far wall. Kurtis gritted his teeth as the glass shattered around him. His body hit the floor as the shards tore into his skin.
He fell forward as the exhaustion took him. He felt his face against the cold surface of the floor and heard the feet of the final creature slowly coming toward him..
A thousands needles seemed to purge within his skull as the satanic form gripped his hair and viciously jerked him upward. It stared at him with cold features, pale and lined with rage. Kurtis was forced to remain still as the creature's arm lunged forward once again.
The pain caused by the creatures fist in the wound at his waist, put Kurtis on the verge of vomiting.
The demon seemed to smile at his discomfort and pushed harder against the wound. Kurtis could sense his mind leaving him as the pain pulsated deeper into his body. His vision grew blurry and the creature before him disappeared into a black canvas.
His senses returned however, as he felt his body being launched across the room once again, the bone in his back bruising as it met the side-walls of the stalls behind him. The walls crashed down as Kurtis's body forced them to the floor. He felt water spray upon him from broken pipes and dismantled plumbing. The liquid burned at his wounds as though fire scorched his skin. He tried to force himself to move, but his efforts were hopeless as the paralyzing pain continued.
He stared with fading hope as the monster again approached him.
The man assisted Kurtis to a stand by wrapping its hands around his throat. It held him at the position and forced his back against the remaining wall. The creature stared deeply into its victim's eyes as it tightened the grip around his neck
Kurtis felt his throat purge for air as his windpipe bent to the back of his throat. He instinctively grabbed his attackers arms in an attempt to pull free. His efforts failed.
He quickly searched the room for a defense, desperately looking for a way to escape the creature's deadly hold. The pressure in his lungs increased, and Kurtis could sense his heart slow with the loss of oxygen.
His eyes moved rapidly across the room. There was nothing there. He searched again in desperation as he took his final breaths. He quickly tried to kick his feet forward, but his weakened body wouldn't allow it. He felt his mind dying and his vision fading. He looked past the demon at his throat, and saw his previous destruction, the two bodies that lay lifelessly on the floor. He stared at the wound upon the dead woman's torso, and remembered his blade. He forced himself to stay awake and quickly looked for the weapon. It wasn't there. He searched again with desperation and his eyes neared the far wall.
There he saw it, pinned to the floor by the demon's legs. Kurtis raised his hand with his last bit of strength, and focused his remaining powers onto the blade, mere feet away. He felt the man before him's thumbs dig deeper into his throat, and Kurtis held his breath with fear and desperation. He looked back to the demon and saw his world go black as the iron grips of the weapon met his fingers.
The final creature slightly released the grip upon Kurtis's neck as the sharp metal teeth of his blade met the flesh of its waist. Kurtis felt his senses return to his mind as the lost air was restored to his lungs. He saw the monster before him, and quickly dropped out of it's loosened hold around his neck. He felt his body hit the floor and acted quickly before the creature would have time to respond. Kurtis hurriedly retracted the muscles of his legs, and tightly tucked them to his chest.
He angrily shouted as he powerfully shoved his feet forward, directing them toward the creature's legs.
The monster growled as the caps of its knees popped out of place. It suddenly fell to the floor as its legs were rendered useless.
Kurtis pushed his weight against the wall behind him, and forced himself to a stand. He tightened his grip upon the churigai and cautiously walked toward his disabled attacker. The creature growled with rage as its prey neared it.
Kurtis steadied his mind from going unconscious, and stared at the creature for several seconds. He then looked to the churigai in his palm. He brought his eyes back to the beast and coldly lifted the blade. He thrust his fist forward and intently watched as the weapon around his hand drove deep into the creature's skull. He stared into the man's eyes as their red glow faded, and quickly ripped the weapon from its head. The creature's body fell stiffly to the floor as death finally took it.
Kurtis slowly walked forward with an unsteady mind. He quickly caught himself on the wall beside him as his body gave way. He needed to get to the lobby; he needed to get to Lara. "Lara!" he said faintly to himself. He had just remembered that the leader of his demonic attackers remained outside, the worst of them all. He restructured his knees and forced himself to stand on his own. He slowly staggered to the bathroom door and forced it open.
Kurtis stared with unbelieving eyes as he was greeted by the woman he had kicked out of the restroom at the start of this painful nightmare. The beast growled loudly and quickly rushed at him. Kurtis angrily threw his churigai toward her and raised his hand. He used his mind to guide the blade forward and directed it at the beast.
Kurtis watched as the demon fell to the floor. He slowly walked to her body and retrieved the blade from her throat. Kurtis stared at the door to the lobby and tiredly started toward it. He gradually opened the door, and walked through. He wasn't surprised as everyone stared. He searched the room for Lara, terrified that the remaining beast had taken her. He was relieved as he saw her blurry form running toward him.
Lara couldn't believe her eyes. Kurtis looked like he had been murdered. Blood ran from his forehead, arms, legs, and heavily from his waist. His face and throat were bruised, and the parts of his clothes that hadn't been ripped or torn, were drenched in water. She hurriedly approached him.
"What happened!" she demanded. "Your soaking wet, and bleeding like crazy!"
Kurtis glanced behind her, searching for the leader of his attackers, of the familiar subject from his past. He instead saw three security guards heading rapidly toward the bathrooms.
"We have to go." he urgently commanded and grabbed her arm.
Lara jerked away. "I'm not leaving until you tell me what happened. Now what's going on!"
"Listen to me." he desperately pleaded, knowing that the remaining enemy would emerge at any moment. "We have to get out of here. I'll explain everything later, but we're in danger here."
Lara stared longingly at him. She wanted to trust him, but couldn't.
"Please!" he begged one last time. He swallowed hard, and Lara knew he was in extreme pain.
Lara blew at her decision, and nodded her head in agreement. She quickly drew him outside and to her car, helped him in, and then entered herself.
As soon as Kurtis felt the car jutting forward, he felt a gun barrel at his temple.
"What the hell is going on!" Lara asked forcefully. She demanded to know what had happened in the museum.
"Listen," Kurtis desperately explained. "I haven't been completely honest with you."
"What a surprise." Lara replied with sarcasm and mockery.
"I didn't come back because I was hurt, I could have handled that on my own." he paused "I came back because I need your help."
"My help?" Lara asked, surprised. "With what?"
The car suddenly swerved out of the road as a sudden noise and weight erupted on the metal above them.
"What the fuck is that!" Lara exclaimed as the roof above her slightly bent in. She was startled as she saw the blade of a sword suddenly slash through the top of the car and barely miss her head. She quickly grabbed her pistol and aimed upward. She pulled the trigger, firing several heated rounds through the car's roof.
A silence fell despite the extreme noise surrounding them. Whatever it was, had apparently gone.
Lara looked to Kurtis in confusion of what had happened. She felt her heart beating with suspense and anger. She didn't know wh-
Lara turned the wheel violently in surprise as she saw a figure land heavily on the hood of her vehicle. The shape's form made Lara instantly realize that it was a woman. The attacker then spun with perfect balance, despite the vehicle's speed, and stared through the window at Lara Her hair shined golden in the sun, and her eyes glowed red as she evilly grinned, showing demonic teeth that seemed pointed and blood drenched.
The satanic woman than lifted her arm and lunged it forward, shattering the windshield, and raining glass upon Lara and Kurtis.
Lara gritted her teeth as the shards stung at her exposed skin, and in an instant of hate, quickly leveled her pistol and fired.
She watched as the woman's face suddenly left it's base, and pieces of flesh flew through the air.
She was relieved and surprised when the thing let out a shrilling scream, then fell from the car.
Lara's breathing became heavy as her mind comprehended the events that had just occurred. She shook her head, gathering her thoughts, then shouted to Kurtis, demanding to know what had happened. She received no answer.
Lara quickly looked toward him only to see him slouched and unconscious in his seat. "Shit!" she exclaimed, as she stomped the gas and quickly headed for Croft Manor.
(-)
Kurtis slowly felt the world appear around him once again; he was tired of that feeling. Along with the walls of Croft Manor, he saw something else that, after his vision returned to normal, he discovered was a gun barrel. "Not again." He muttered, and rolled his eyes in aggravation of not being trusted.
"Shutup." Lara quickly put in. "I want to know who you are, and why you came here."
Kurtis looked at her with disbelief, and sarcastically began. "Fine! My name is Kurtis Trent. I'm part of an ancient occult of knights known as the Lux Veritatis.-"
Lara rolled her eyes and blew at his ignorance. She lowered her gun as he continued.
"-A man named Eckhardt has succeeded in destroying everyone in this occult, except for me." He paused and sincerely looked at her. "That's why I'm here, I need your help."
"Go on." Lara simply answered, still unconvinced, and though she wouldn't admit it, confused.
"What do you know about the Lux Veritatis?" He questioned.
"Not enough." she angrily spoke.
"This fellowship," he explained, "was started centuries ago, dating back to the knights of the round table. Ever since I was a child I've been taught about the order, their history, their beliefs, their rituals." he stopped as if angry "It's all bullshit. Every one of us was born with a burden on our head."
"Burden?"
"That we would be the last."
"And what's wrong with that?" Lara asked. He wasn't making sense.
"The Lux Veritatis' strength is within it's numbers." he quickly explained. "All together the Lux Veritatis had an abundance of power. Thousands of dark and foreboding alliances where captured and stopped during the middle ages, because together we were strong. That's one of the reasons Eckhardt escaped."
"Loss of power?" she impatiently asked.
"Because there were so few of us left." he answered.
"And?" Lara tried to hurry him along.
"And now there's only one. One man is keeping thousands of instruments of evil from being unleashed into the world. Once I die the Lux Veritatis chain will be completely broken, and everything we fought to destroy over the years will be freed."
Lara, realizing what Kurtis had just said, opened her mouth with fear and awe, then lowered her head, thinking, comprehending it all.
"I got attacked four days ago, and just now at the museum," Kurtis explained, "so they know who I am."
"Who are they?" Lara asked, confused.
"Some of the old organization, like the cabal," he answered, "created assassins, wraiths, to kill us if they ever got captured. The creature's purpose is to awaken when the last Lux Veritatis arises, and hunt them down. There's no telling who they're working for, who their calling Master now."
"So is that what the blonde bitch that totaled my car was?" Lara asked.
Kurtis simply nodded his head, and looked at the floor as though not telling her everything, trying to avoid any talk of the woman in which she spoke.
"So humanity's doomed." Lara stated with almost a sense of humor. "What am I supposed to do about it?"
"I said there was a burden on my head. I have to stop this from happening."
"Then why did you come here?" Lara questioned. "You said it yourself, you have to stop this, not me."
Kurtis continued without hesitation, ignoring her question. "It's rumored, that long ago, the original order created something called the Vial of Kindred Shadows-"
"Which is?" Lara surgingly cut him off.
Kurtis looked at her with anger, and she simply looked away. "Think about it." he continued. "What has to happen in order to keep the world safe?"
Lara, aggravated, didn't answer, but sarcastically shrugged her shoulders.
"I have to pass the Lux Veritatis gene on to more people." He answered his own question.
"That's impossible." Lara protested. "There's only one of you."
"That's why I need the Vial." he explained. "There's a place called the Realm of Valor. It's the oldest known Lux Veritatis stronghold, where the earliest of us kept shop. There should be a map there that can lead me to what I need."
"And this vial artifact can help you how?"
"This artifact can give me the power to create an elder."
"An elder?"
"That's what the first of us were referred to as." He explained. "An elder could pass their mentality on to anyone they wanted to, making that person one of us."
"So in other words," Lara stated with a grin, "this thing can save everyone and return all these evil entities back to wherever the hell they came from."
Kurtis nodded, returning her smile.
"So where is this stronghold?" she asked, needing to know more, actually wanting to.
"Hippo, North Africa." he answered. "Or in more modern terms, Annaba, Algeria."
Lara was confused by his statement. A history lesson would prove it wrong. "But I thought the Lux Veritatis and the Nephilim were centered around the ancient Byzantine Empire in Turkey."
"They were." he agreed, "But the first of us lived and taught the holy word in Hippo, so it should be there."
"Should?" Lara said with worry.
"Well you like finding things." He said with slight grin. "So it sounds like a good time."
"And why should I help you?" Lara asked, for the mere satisfaction of hearing his answer.
"You shouldn't." Kurtis stated to Lara's surprise. "I'm not asking you to come along as a bodyguard, but I'll admit that you're a lot smarter and a lot better looking than me," he held a serious expression, "and I thought you might come in handy."
"For what I wonder?" Lara shot back without a smile.
"Not that." Kurtis said, returning her stubborn face. "There's gonna be dangers, traps, puzzles, everything a Tomb Raider dreams of." A grin appeared across Lara's face, and Kurtis could tell she thrived for such things. "Interested?"
"Maybe." She answered. "But I don't trust you."
"Then kill me and see what happens." Kurtis impatiently stated.
"Maybe I will." Lara spoke with a irritated tone, her grip on the pistol tightening.
They starred at one another, Lara wondering if she could trust him, and Kurtis wondering if Lara would actually shoot him.
Lara suddenly broke away, and walked to a closet at the opposite wall. She pulled out a medium sized bag, and brought it to him, then disappeared for several seconds before returning with familiar items, his shoulder-strap and Boran X, the prototype pistol created specially for people in his field of expertise, demons. She tossed it at him before instructing Winston to cut him free of the ropes.
Kurtis sighed with delight as his grip was reunited with the weapon's frame, more than happy to see the gun again.
"We leave in two hours." Lara spoke. "There are some clothes that should fit you downstairs." she instructed. "Winston will show you." Lara started to leave the room.
"We need to go to Guildford Station." Kurtis shouted to her, surprised that she had agreed so quickly.
Lara reentered the room. "You want to take a train?" she asked, surprised.
"Yeah" he replied. "It's a lot more discrete, and I have some business to take care of."
"I'm not doing any side missions for you." Lara sternly stated.
"I'm not asking you to." he returned, annoyed. "After that, we can go strait to the airport in Villeurbanne. No more stops."
"Fine." Lara answered. "But if I even suspect that you are plotting against me." she paused and slightly smiled. "I will kill you, Veritatis savior or no."
Kurtis starred at her as she left the room with an emotionless face.
"Two hours." Lara shouted back at Kurtis, as she went to her room to prepare for what would soon change her life.
A/N: The story's plot becomes more involved now, and hopefully the finally edit is up. I added a little dialogue to the end, and let me know if anything is unclear. I'll try to explain things better in another edit if need be. :)