Chapter Five

Lara knew that she had seen some pretty rare and wonderful sights in her life. She'd discovered ice palaces in the Himalayas and Dinosaurs in China. But those paled in comparison to the view she had laid out in front of her. It literally took her breath away. For a few minutes, all she could do was sit and stare at the glory in front of her.

The giant Ash tree, Yggdrasil, was almost directly in her eye line. Below it stood the nine Norse worlds, all linked by the tree she was facing. The very life of everything she could see was linked to the tree. If it died, so did they. It was a magical sight, both awe-inspiring and surreal. She could pick out a few of the worlds. The one that really stood out was Asgard, the protected home of the gods. She traced the Rainbow Bridge that linked it with Midgard, the home of man.

She felt tiny and insignificant compared to the splendour she found herself facing. She carefully stood up, stretching lightly, still not sure of her balance in this extraordinary place. As she watched, details blurred and faded, only to resume their former appearance as she looked away. The explorer in her wondered what sights she would see here. The realist noted that no-one would ever believe where she'd been.

As she looked around, she realised that she had no way to get down to the worlds. She be killed for sure if she jumped. The length of rope she carried in her backpack wouldn't reach even a quarter of the way down. She sighed impatiently and paced.

A cultured female voice made her jump. "Greetings, my dear."

Lara spun around, instinctively reaching for her guns. "Now don't be silly, girl. We're not here to harm you." The voice belonged to the dead woman in the house's attic. She was dressed exactly the same, but her clothes hadn't decayed. Her face, while still pretty, was lined. Her eyes seemed tired, as if she hadn't been able to rest for far too long.

"You're Petra. I'm..." Lara hadn't forgotten her manners.

"Lady Lara Croft, Tomb Raider." Petra grimaced at the title.

Lara was bemused. "How did you know that?"

"I know many things, my dear." the ghost's tone hinted that she would say no more. "We're here to help you, as much as a spectre may."

"We?" Lara questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Justin and I, of course. We caused this, and we want to put right our wrongs so that we can rest." Justin appeared next to the woman he loved. He was dressed much like her, but his skin was wrinkled and saggy. They joined hands and reached out towards her. "Take our hands, Lara, and we get you to where you want to go." Slowly, unwillingly, she took their hands into hers. They felt dry and strangely warm. Somehow, Lara expected them to be cold.

"Close your eyes." Justin said. His voice was that of an old man, even though he was only about fifty. She did as he said.

When she opened them a mere fraction of a second later, she was standing at the foot of Yggdrasil. The ghosts where nowhere to be seen.