Chapter 1: A Partner missing
The snow was pelting down faster than ever. It was midnight, and there was still no sign of Elizabeth's partner.
Elizabeth was climbing off the motorcycle and stepping into the snow. Her brown hair was in a ponytail, and she was wearing full streetwear, from the black t-shirt to the study brown boots that could withstand this type of weather.
Where could he have gone? She thought.
She glanced around the Strahov building, confirming that the coast was clear, before she slipped into one of the open doors, entering the empty warehouse.
I wouldn't say I like this at all, she thought.
She moved through the Bio-dome to a corridor that led to offices and found Eckhardt's lab. She went through the open gate, slipping down the long slop tunnel. She found the facility more or less destroyed.
"What the hell happened here?" She uttered to herself.
Here she discovered Eckhardt's lifeless figure with the shards still impaled in him. She bent down, gently removing the Shards from his body, all three still in one piece. She placed them away in her backpack and gazed up.
She found the sleeper half destroyed. She hummed as she glanced around and saw a tunnel leading to an arena. There was a deformed creature lying dead on the ground, one of the Cabal's experiments unleashed on her partner perhaps. There the walls and floor were splattered with a disgusting green liquid. A few meters away was another corpse, decapitated, looking like a strange hybrid dragonfly creature with spikes on its hands. Upon closer inspection, however, one of the spikes had blood on it, and when Elizabeth's eyes trailed the blood leading to the source, she collapsed to her knees at the realization of whose blood it was.
"No, it can't be." She sobbed as she reached for the pool of blood with trembling fingers, flinching when a sudden jolt passed through her body. The past itself was calling to her, offering answers. Her whole body slumped as she seemed caught in a trance, her lips barely moving to whisper the words "Indica mihi."
He arose after collapsing down on the ground. He was in extreme pain, but he knew he couldn't stay there; they would find him and finish him off.
"I hope Lara got out alive," He mumbled as he felt another explosion, "Damn, Croft is always making trouble." He glanced at his Chirugai. "Perhaps she'll search for me." He spoke before tossing the weapon near the pool he had left behind.
"That should provide her a lead to locate me." He struggled to the enormous door, stumbling once or twice, grasping his stomach in pain, then continued to the looming darkness.
Her spirit went to another place unknown to her; she found doctors and nurses surrounding someone. She peered closer and gasped, seeing her partner unconscious on the operating table. She listened as the one doctor spoke.
"We're losing him," The doctor said.
"Stop the bleeding," The other doctor yelled at a nurse.
"He can't die; his the chosen one," another nurse yelled.
"How sure are we? He is the one?" The first doctor asked.
His father said so," The same nurse answered.
Elizabeth glanced around to find out where he was detained until she saw a symbol on the doctor's arm.
Her spirit came back to her body; she looked up and smiled.
"I'm coming, Kurtis; hold on." Elizabeth proclaimed as she got up and moved into the darkness; she took out her flashlight and shined it on a bloody door handle. She sighed before opening the door to find herself in the Sanitarium. Strolling through those empty hallways, Elizabeth reached a room, pausing when Elizabeth noticed a poor skinny guy sitting on the bed. She walked in and pointed her guns at him.
"Don't you dare move," She commanded, "What's going on down here?"
"The Black Angel is coming for us all; I didn't sign up for this, not Angels and Demons. I'm only a truck driver."
"A truck driver! What are you doing here, then? What were you carrying?"
"I was carrying a coffin. Then the Cabal members grabbed me and threw me down here to be fed to their pets, but I'm safe in here."
She sighed, holstering her guns, "Yeah, sure. Just keep the door locked." She ordered before marching off, trying to think what could be in that coffin. She turned a corner and quickly ducked back when she saw two men at the door leading to the garage area, where she saw the trucks and their drivers getting in. She listened in on the two's conversation.
"Karel has given the orders; we must take that sarcophagus far from here."
"But why Turkey? And why was Karel holding that wound by his stomach?" the other asked, throwing his cigarette down and stepping on it.
"The other stronghold is there and that woman, Croft, was responsible for his injury, and she even killed Master Eckhardt."
I'll have to contact her, Elizabeth thought.
"What do you think is inside that thing?"
"I heard it's another sleeper, but the Black Angel can only awaken this one."
They started wandering off into the distance; it was enough for her to escape that place after learning the truth of what happened here and what she had just acquired about the Black Angel.
Not good, and I needed to find Kurtis fast. She thought.
Her thoughts came to her as she thought about the event that happened a month ago. She put the shards back in her backpack as Elizabeth heard more lightning bolts.
I can't just sit here, she thought with boredom. She couldn't stay another night here in London as tired as she was. It was no use; she had already discovered that Miss Croft had arrived at her home, and she didn't want to be contacted by anyone, not even by Elizabeth.
'I'll reach her one way or another.'
Kurtis had just disappeared from the face of the earth. After leaving the Strahov, she arrived that evening at the healer's domain, although they stated Kurtis had to relocate, and they didn't know where.
'Just what I needed.' She thought.
Her quest to discover where the Cabal was hiding came up empty. She had driven to Turkey in search of them but had yet to be successful.
She had to go back home to find help. She grabbed her backpack and seized her keys and guns. She turned outside the door and opened it, locking it as fast as possible. The more time she spent in one place meant the more time for leads to disappear.
She stomped down the stairs, past the landlord's office, and out onto the streets, immediately becoming soaking wet in the fallen rain. Elizabeth started the motorbike's engine, kicking it into first gear before releasing the clutch and throttling her way down the west towards Surrey.
Surrey, Britain
To this day, Elizabeth still remembers the events at the lab. It haunted her dreams and brought back more questions than answers as Elizabeth waited in front of the iron gate of her Manor. Elizabeth found the past returning to her memory. She shook her head, and for a moment, she looked through the bars ad admired the walls of the building. Elizabeth held a deep breath and pushed the gate bell, waiting for an answer. The warrior couldn't hold back the smirk when she heard a familiar voice.
"Good evening; how may I help you?" Her loyal butler asked kindly through the intercom.
"You can begin by opening the gates for me, Henry." She requested, immediately accompanied by the sound of the buzzer.
Elizabeth went through the entrance and halted before the Manor's doors. She turned off the motorbike's engine and walked in.
"Welcome home, Miss Clark." Henry greeted her but could sense that she was in distress. "How about I make you some coffee or perhaps something stronger?"
"Maybe later, thank you." The warrior breathed in the air of her home and glanced around.
"Did anything happen while I was gone?" she asked, glancing back at Henry. He had been with her since the beginning of her career. Still young, healthy, and vital to fight anyone or anything. Henry had left the army to work for her, for he had learned who Elizabeth was. The danger she had attracted; someone needed to keep checking on her. Her boyfriend always said he was pleased to know Henry was here when he left for his mission.
"Edward is back from New York, two policemen were looking for you, and a journalist came asking for you again." He answered.
"What did the police want?" She asked.
"They want to ask you about Miss Croft." He answered. "But I assured them you were still on your dig site in Egypt."
"Thanks, Henry. Can you tell Edward to call my cousin, Lloyd?" She breathed and said, "I want to see him tomorrow ASAP."
"Will do, Miss," Henry said, marching off to the tech room.
Elizabeth walked up the stairs and entered the study, finding Alex sitting behind the desk, reading a book.
"Alex." she greeted, making him look up.
"Hey Liz, any luck in finding Warrior Boy?" He asked.
"No, he just disappeared." She slumped down on one of the chairs. "I can't even track down Karel or his Cabal members; last I heard, they left for Turkey."
"Did you follow the trail?"
"Yes, but I lost it when I entered Turkey. It's like Karel knew I was on his trail."
"Maybe this will help," Alex said, turning the computer screen.
Elizabeth observed an email and started to read it as Alex looked up to see who had just walked in and smiled, but she ignored the person and went on.
Dear Mr. Kelden,
I have read about your recent accomplishments on Ancient Artifacts in the International Archaeological Journal. I require your help on a case. The Black Angel, I am sure you've heard of it before, is quite a mystery. I was assigned to locate it, but I need help finding information on my own, and I would appreciate your help.
Don't hesitate to get in touch with me at the attached address,
Mr. Joachem Karel
Turkish Historical Department
"I've missed you," He said, kissing her on the cheek before he glanced at the email. "What does Karel want with the Black Angel?"
She laid her head against him. His colon that she smelt that she missed so much. She closed her eyes.
"I've missed you too, Chris," She said, opening her eyes. "He wants to awaken the Sleeper, the one buried in a sarcophagus with a spell on it, so only the Black Angel can break."
"Where is this sarcophagus buried?" He asked, unwrapping his arms from her; she got up and stood in front of him, looking at him in his sky-blue eyes.
"I'm afraid Karel already found the sarcophagus, Chris; it's up to us to find our brothers to unite them to find the Black Angel before Karel."
"Kurtis?" He asked, stepping closer to her, he hadn't seen her in over a month, and he noticed the bags under her eyes, the bruises and cuts she had cleaned.
Oh, babe, I should've gone with you, he thought.
"Missing." She answered, "First, he left me in Germany to fight those Cabal scams on my own, and then when I went looking for him in Prague, I found…." She couldn't go one, and he embraced her as her tears started to form. He hated seeing her like this.
"Baby, we will find him." He answered and kissed her head.
Kurtis was like a brother to her; in the field, he was her partner who she could trust. She hated herself for not having his back in Prague or had listened to him when he had left her in Germany.
"I know; I asked that Edward could contact Lloyd. If one person can track him down, it's Lloyd." She answered and turned in his arms to look at Alex. Wiping some of the tears away and taking a breath
"Don't reply to his email and see if you have any luck finding Karel's true location, please."
"I'll do my best," Alex replied as he started typing on the computer.
Elizabeth and Chris left Alex to work in peace as they went to eat and later went to chat in the bedroom. Midnight had passed an hour ago as they talked and fell asleep.
The sunlight shone through the windows, waking her up; she glanced to her left to see Chris sleeping. She had explained to him everything that had happened from Germany to Prague in the last month. Then Elizabeth lay on his chest, falling asleep. The best sleep she had in the entire month, and though it was good to be home in his arms again, it was back to business. Karel was planning to revive his race, and Kurtis knew where.
She got up so as not to disturb her boyfriend, entering the bathroom silently. Looking at herself in the mirror, she sighs.
"I hope Alex found anything leading to where Karel disappeared." She said, turning the shower's hot water on and undressed, getting in and making the hot water run down her scared and tattooed body. She washed with soap, easing her into relaxation in the shower. When she finished, she turned the water off and pulled the curtain away, grabbing a towel to dry herself. As she dried off, she glanced at the door to see Chris standing there.
"Morning," he said, closing in on her and making her drop the towel. He wrapped his arms around her naked body and kissed her lips. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as the kiss deepened. He pressed her against the cold wall, making her wince but never break apart. His bare chest against her felt warm, and she could feel his heartbeat.
Taking some air, "If I could only have you like this all day today." He said, staring her in the eyes before kissing her deeply again. The longing was worth the wait, but he knew it wouldn't last long.
"That sounds like an idea; I would say yes." She said, kissing him back more passionately. Her lips went to his ear. "I've missed you too much."
She pulled back and stared into his eyes as he cupped her face. He smiled, biting his lip. "I've missed you much more, and as much as I love being so close to you, just having you here with me alone, I need to inform you Lloyd is waiting for you downstairs."
She sighed and kissed him again before breaking away. Chris caught the hint, picked Elizabeth up, carried her to the bed, lay on top of her, and kissed her.
They would find Kurtis later in the day; for now, all they wanted was each other.
Author notes:
Indica mihi is Latin for Tell me