Chapter 13
It was dark, too dark. Lara lit a flare as she swam farther. The passage was becoming extremely small, forcing her to turn sideways and tuck her shoulders several times to get through. The cramped space continued forward, seeming to go on forever but leading nowhere. She felt the nervousness increase in her stomach, as the possibility of drowning became more evident. She wasn't frightened, however. She lived for that feeling, and it drove her further.
The passage slowly widened ahead, and she was now able to use her arms to navigate, increasing her speed dramatically. She turned upward as a faint yellow glow attracted her attention, a light of some kind within an open chamber, a chamber not suffocated with water. The tunnel's exit was waiting above her, and she quickly directed herself toward it.
The tight passage opened into a huge chamber, half filled with water. She entered it and quickly swam to the surface. A gasp filled her lungs as she broke away from the deadly liquid, air meeting her throat once again, knowing that a minute more of underwater torture would've ended her life.
She studied her new prison, surprisingly move impressive than the previous ones, though it was smaller, other than its height of coarse. The ceiling arched high above her, so high that she could barely make out the paintings that caressed it. All four walls were lined with statues of knights, each below a lit torch which cast eerie shadows throughout the room. Between the statues that lined the wall in front of her, sat an enormous stone throne, the top crumbling with age. All the rooms within this Lux Veritatis tomb seemed strangely familiar, all with the eerie touch of fire and stone, combined together to pay homage to the past, and to destroy the future.
She stared at the giant throne before her, wondering if Sir Augustine had sat there himself. Unlikely. She couldn't imagine the great leader of the Lux Veritatis crowding through a two foot crevice to get to his thrown.
The thought came to her that Kurtis was the leader now, which made her rethink the situation. She wouldn't put it past him, he was so full of himself. A smile parted her lips as she turned to search for the tunnel she had entered through, but more to find her escape route.
She saw her near grave under the huge pool of water, carved into the side wall, easy to reach. She peered into the watery depths below her, blackness. It was impossible to determine the water filled pit's distance without the use of a light of some kind. She decided to save her remaining flare incase something more important demanded its use, like getting back through the claustrophobic tunnel that had led her to this ancient place.
She swam to the left side of the enormous pool, and spotted an extremely small shelf running along three sides of the room, neglecting the one with the underwater passage. She gripped the three foot ledge and lifted herself out of the water.
(-)
Kurtis couldn't believe that Lara had fled into the depths. He hated the way she never listened. He'd never seen someone so independent and hardheaded, which annoyed and lured him at the same time. Why had she done this, put herself at risk for something that was his priority? It wasn't to protect him, he was sure.
Did she crave for the danger, the adventure? Maybe it was the nagging feeling he always experienced when it came to doing the right thing, even though he had strayed from that path many times in the past.
She had been right about the passage however, there was no way he'd ever have fit through it. Why would his ancestors have built it so small? It seemed as though they wanted to keep everyone away from his objective, even him.
A thought wavered in his mind, he could see it. The Lady Lara Croft swimming through her tight quarters, only to find a dead end. He tried to banish the thought away. What could he do?
Nothing. He'd just have to wait, and pray for the best.
He heard a clanking noise behind him and turned to see what at caused it. He frowned at what he saw. Throughout the corridor stood three knights more powerful than the previous ones he had encountered. In their grasp, each held a flaming sword that burned from no known source. They moved slowly toward him, ready to end his life, the one thing they were not supposed to do
He was thankful under his surprise. Maybe now his mind would be somewhere else, other than Lara Croft's demise. He equipped himself with the Boran X that hung by his side, and smiled as he rushed forward to meet the creatures' attacks.
(-)
Lara explored the room's interior, gasping at the wonders it held. The room itself was at least thirty feet wide, and doubled itself in length. The arches that towered above her were lined with golden carvings and decaying paintings, each glowing brightly as the fire below reflected upon their surfaces.
She was cautious around the knight statues as she neared them, knowing how they liked to revive themselves on special occasions, like chopping her head off. She walked around the narrow ledge, the slight water upon it sloshing onto her boots.
She studied each of the ancient figures, their features torn off by the elements of time. They were all built identical and held the same basic properties; each grasped a iron sword in it's left hand and a crucifix in it's right. The figures faces were covered with carved helmets, much like the previous ones not made of stone, but made to kill. She carefully walked onto the next ledge as the water upon it flowed higher, reaching above her ankles.
Lara stared at the statue nearest the thrown. Her instincts were drawing her toward it, telling her that it was part of something important. It came closer as she continued toward it, the water upon her legs becoming deeper.
She placed her hand upon the figure, studying it. It was different. In it's left hand, identical to the rest, was a sword. In it's right hand however, was a book, rather of a crucifix. She smiled, recalling the Latin written book from the previous room, it had been a symbol of what she was to do next.
She tugged on certain parts of the statue knowing that it held some answer to the riddle she must solve.
She smiled as the book slid slightly down as she pressed her hands against it. She pushed on it harder, but stopped as she heard a sudden noise above her.
Lara unholstered her 9mms and readied herself for whatever may occur. She stared at the ceiling; at the source of the disturbance. She was ready, ready for the Lux Veritatis's defenses.
Lara calmed her senses as a small hole uncovered itself high on the opposite side of the wall, directly below the arched ceiling. The heavy stone that had previously hidden it had moved away.
She was working out a strategy to reach its height as another hole appeared on the wall above her, slightly lower than the first. From its depths, a large stone slate made itself known as it slowly advanced away from the wall behind her, and began toward the opposite, creating a solid bridge to stand on 60 feet in the air.
She could faintly make out a wooden lever inside of the opened passage on the opposite wall. "That's where I need to be."
Lara stared at the structure towering above her, wondering, thinking of a way to reach it. She looked to the statues, her first idea to scale the wall. She bit her lip with frustration as she peered upon the flat surface before her. The wall was smooth for a good 50 feet once past the statues, impossible to climb without special equipment.
Her mind raced once again with hopeless attempts. She was confused at why this contraption's creator would've made it impossible to-
Her thoughts ceased as the huge pool of water in front of her began to violently ripple. She aimed her guns, expecting a creature of massive size to break through the wet surface. She stared, her breath stalling with anticipation, her eyes wide.
The object broke out of the water.
Lara watched with surprise as three metal poles emerged from the pool and slowly raised toward the ceiling, releasing the horrid noise of turning gears, and finally attaching themselves to the stone walkway.
She stared at the structures before her, each no wider than the upper part of her leg. The metal rods where streaked with rust and mold; centuries underwater had corrupted their surfaces.
"This is too easy." she thought to herself as she leaped into the water and closed in one the nearest pole. She stared at the metal shaft, wondering the purpose of the other two. There was something more to this than climbing to the top and winning the prize.
She grabbed the pole and readied herself.
A gasp left her lips, and she grasped her arm as knives burst out of the metal's sides and sliced open her flesh. She quickly forced herself back, and checked her new wound. The blade had scraped a half foot long gash across her right forearm; her blood quickly rushed into the water around her. She held the wound tightly with her opposite hand, thankful that the blade hadn't cut deep enough to sever her artery, and cautiously studied the pole before her. There were no creases of any kind on its surface, no spaces whatsoever for hidden blades to surprise an anxious intruder. Nevertheless, they were hidden within the metal perch, and she had fallen for their trickery. "An illusion of some kind."
Lara slowly swam to the water's ledge, holding the gash at her arm as she pulled herself out. She searched the room for something, something that would put distance between her and the rigged cylinders. She looked to the knight statues that surrounded her and smiled, despite the burning pain within her arm. She walked to the nearest and retrieved the iron sword from it's stone hand. She held the blade tightly with her unscathed arm as she returned to the begrime water and neared the second pole.
She raised the sword above the water, and cautiously neared its tip toward the next perch, hoping for different results than the first had granted her. She stretched her arm as far as she could, adding to the distance between her and the contraption before her. She braced her senses for pain as the sword continued forward. The iron scathed against the cylinder.
Nothing happened.
Lara felt her muscles relax at the uneventful result of her test. She was confused. Why had the first pole been made with defenses if the others weren't. It couldn't be that simple. "Luck?" She confusingly thought. "Climb the right pole and win?" Something was wrong, it couldn't all be a matter of chance.
She stared at the second pole, the one screaming into her face with hidden dangers, hidden death. Something was definitely wrong, but what choice did she have?
She slowly gripped her finger around the steel surface, and cautiously began to ascend the metal perch.
(-)
Kurtis had pushed the knights back into the main circular chamber where their two accomplices had recently been destroyed.. Here he had the advantage, and more room to dodge the balls of fire each knight periodically launched at him. He fought using a combination of bullets and fists, but quickly began to give up on himself as every knight he sent to the ground revived itself as though he had never touched it. Kurtis quickly fled to his right as one of the lifeless creatures lunged out toward him. He quickly swooped his foot across the floor and knocked the creature's feet out from under it. He sighed with disbelief as another started toward him. He was running out of ideas, and ammunition. He wished Lara would hurry up, if she was still alive.
"No." he thought to himself, erasing the dreaded thought of Lara.
If she wasn't alive, he might as well let the warriors slit his throat now. Everything was up to her. She was the only person strong enough, and small enough to save everyone in time.
A knight suddenly thrust at him. Kurtis responded by kicking the burning sword back, which in turn, devoured the creature in its own flames, along with the bottom of Kurtis's pants.
Angered, he rapidly forced his hands upon the fire at his right foot, smothering the flames, as another ancient knight rushed him from behind. Kurtis lowered his body as the knight's sword sliced over his head. He quickly straightened himself and lifted his gun, emptying a clip into the soldier's back. The creature was down, but Kurtis new it was only temporary.
He needed to get out of here. What if Lara needed his help? He was useless to her in his current situation. Kurtis's frustration grew as another revived warrior rushed toward him.
(-)
Lara was closing in on her objective. She was almost halfway up the pole, and so far no threat had made itself known to her. She continued forward, coming closer to her destination with every pull of her arms.
Lara didn't feel the pain slice across her stomach until she had hit the pool below. She felt blood pore from her waist as water consumed her. She gasped with pain from the liquid's burning touch as her form surfaced once again.
She grabbed her torso, teeth clinched, and felt a gash sliced the entire width across her waist. She painfully forced her fingers into the wound as to feel it's depth. Nothing fatal, that was if she got help before bleeding to death. She cursed the trap that seemed to laugh in her face. She couldn't take much more of this.
Lara retrieved another sword and painfully neared the third and final pole. She tapped the bottom, nothing. Lara wasn't surprised as she gradually swam away. She wasn't going to make assumptions this time, and land another foot long gash across her body.
She backed up further, guessing her distance. She looked at the center of the final pole, and gripped the iron sword in her left hand, her right disabled and occupied, keeping blood inside of her stomach. She lifted the weapon above the water and arched it backward.
She forcefully swung her arm forward, releasing a yell from her lungs as the sword was thrown through the air. The blade connected with the pole near its center, where the blades of the previous one had sliced her apart. Nothing happened.
Lara looked to the upper-most part of the tall cylinder. "There in the top." she answered the riddle, she couldn't muster a smile, and didn't want to.
She took her 9mm and aimed upward, knowing that a sword wouldn't reach, and fired. As the bullet hit the cylinder's surface, blades shot from its center and sliced around the peak of the perch, hoping for the blood of a foolish victim. Lara stared at the contraption, its purpose coming into focus within her mind. She had an idea.
Lara returned to the first and tapped it with another vacant sword. As the blades appeared she looked upward. The deadly knives were only released at the bottom of the pole, not the middle or the top. She gently swam to the second, again testing her theory on the center of the pole.
It was the same, except the blades protruded from only the middle. She forced a smile, as she realized what to do.
Lara returned to the third, ready to climb. She reached her hand toward it, but stopped.
She ran her eyes up it's smooth sides, contemplating the possible ends she could meet by scaling its surface. Something told her not to do it, not to risk her neck for whatever it was that she would find atop the stone platform above her, not to risk herself for Kurtis. This was his burden, and he should be the one contemplating a possible death, not her.
She wanted to turn around, turn around and leave the eerie coldness of this place that surrounded her.
She couldn't. Not because of Kurtis, but because of herself. Her mind wouldn't let her leave, not now, not when she was so close to getting it."Getting what?" she thought. Her mind reminding her that she had nothing to do with whatever was hidden within this fortress. "No. I have to." her mind argued. "Why? Why do it?" Lara stared forward, contemplating her own attempts to back away and say 'fuck the world, and Kurtis.' Her eyes shifted upward, waiting for her decision. "Why do it?" she asked herself again.
"Because I can." she spoke aloud, her eyes scaling the pole once again. "I can, and he can't. Even though he wants to." her voice lowered. "Even though he has to. I have to."
She felt her hand gripping the surface of the cylinder's base, and pulling her pained body upward.
She stared at the trap as she slowly climbed, waiting for her body to reach the upper third of it's surface, waiting to reach the identical blades that had tortured her body on the previous two. One more hit, and it was over.