"Wish I'd brought my camera," remarked Charlie, admiring the pristine water as they walked around the perimeter of the pool to get closer to the submerged gate.

"You a photographer?" Chloe asked brightly.

"Yeah, he still uses a Polaroid," Sully chimed in.

"Oh, you're hilarious mate," Cutter muttered.

Led by Nate, the group stopped at a position on the lake about a stone's throw from the gate columns. "This oughta do," he announced, turning toward the water.

"Bizarre, isn't it?" Molly commented as she looked out at the ruined tops of structures that protruded from the lava flow behind them. "Atlantis was destroyed not only by a flood, but a volcanic eruption? And it left this in its wake." She gestured to the crumbling buildings.

Hands on her hips, Chloe joined Molly in her observation of the city. "It was a great day to own a penthouse suite," she said casually.

Nate stared into the sapphire-blue depths of the pool before him, his eyes intent as they scanned the gate and its surroundings. He guessed that the bowl-shaped cauldron formed by the volcano was every bit of a hundred and fifty feet across and probably fifty feet deep, but the water was so clean the bottom was easily visible. He could see where the bottoms of the gate columns sunk into the ground, and the geometric shapes of square cut blocks forming a terrace in front of them, with steps descending down from the terrace to disappear into the volcanic rock that had covered them. Here and there a flash of color from a fish swimming by caught Nate's attention as they darted back and forth in their shimmering paradise.

"Alright," he said. "I'm going in. Anyone coming with me?" He looked around and was met with blank stares. "I'll, uh, take that as a no," he mumbled.

"You're the one with the key, cowboy," Chloe reminded him. "Besides, it looks safe enough. Just go take a peek at the gate and we'll look for anything up here while you do." Chloe said, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

Nate shot a mopey look at his four companions. "Alright, just wait here," he muttered, turning back square to the edge of the pool. "I'll go check it out and let you know what I find."

The water closed around him as he dove in headfirst and propelled himself toward the bottom with strong, regular strokes. Fresh, cold, and cleansing, it was everything Nate had expected from a mountain lake, and he could feel the blood surging through his veins. He pumped his arms and legs in rhythm as he glided over to the gate and followed the submerged structure down. The harsh African sunlight shining through brilliant azure water cast a mosaic of light and color and shadow: blues, golds, and silvers in pebbled splotches, dancing across the ancient square stones, and growing ever darker in their hue as he swam deeper. Nate arched his back and angled his descent to cut over in front of the actual doors instead of just the gateposts, and the bronze astrolabe swung lazily against his thigh. Here, the delicate light show afforded him glimpses of writing and designs carved into the gate's surface, eroded by time and the elements, and further obscured by various bits of seaweed and other marine flora growing on it, as well as patches of mud that clung to the pitted rock. A school of minnows flitted away as he neared the bottom, causing a small cloud of silt to rise up. Close enough now to almost touch the paved terrace, he spotted an anomaly in the craftsmanship on the gate.

At first it appeared to only be another clump of mud caked on, but then he noticed it seemed to have too regular a shape to be accidental. He swam closer and dug at it with his fingers, clawing away at the edges as he tried to reveal what could be there. Within ten or fifteen seconds, he had uncovered enough to know that the grime he saw was stuck in a distinctly round impression in the gate's surface that looked to be about the right size for what he was looking for, but the muck was caked in hard and his lungs were burning. He needed air. Allowing himself to sink down to the stone pavers below him, he planted his feet and then pushed himself off again to begin swimming for the surface.

He broke topside gasping for breath, treading water while he wiped at his eyes. Sully and the others were looking expectantly at him, and Cutter called, "'ow is it, mate? Any deadly denizens of the deep?"

"Ah, just that giant squid down there," Nate replied, still panting heavily. The water tasted brackish on his lips as it drained down his face. "I'm pretty sure it's asleep, though."

"What?"

"Kidding," Nate said, paddling a few strokes toward shore. "I think I found what we're looking for, but I'm gonna have to clear the mud out of it to know for sure. Throw me that stick, will you?" He gestured to a piece of driftwood on the shore. Molly tossed it to him, and he grabbed it.

"Just watch your back down there, Captain Nemo," Sully warned.

"Will do," Nate replied before taking a long, deep breath and plunging below the water again. Now, more familiar with the territory and knowing what he's looking for, the descent felt easier and went quicker, even with carrying the stray branch in his hand. Soon enough he was at the bottom of the gates again, in front of the mysterious round recess, and he began scraping away at the built-up sludge clogging the hole. By the time his body began giving him the telltale signs of oxygen depletion again, he had cleared enough away to identify the north and west points of the axes that were recessed deeper then the rest of the concave shape, confirming his suspicion that he was indeed uncovering an exact hemisphere of the astrolabe carved into the rock. Reluctantly leaving his work to go refresh his starving lungs, he again pushed off for the top.

This time the questions seemed to start before he had even fully made it above the surface. A jumbled chorus of "How is it?"'s, and "What'd you find?"'s came pouring at him as he blinked away the saline water.

"It's- ahh- definitely it!" he gasped, smoothing back his dripping bangs. "I think I can-uhh- get it in one more go!"

"Alright, kid," Sully rumbled. "We haven't turned up anything up here yet, so we're gonna go check out those ruins while you do that. Just make sure you don't push yourself too far- we don't need anyone drowning, got it?"

"Got it!" Nate wheezed, his voice cracking from exertion. "All good. See you all in a minute!"

Chloe watched as he ducked below the surface again and began to dive deep into the natural cauldron. Her mouth twitched up on the corner with Platonic affection, but also with concern. It didn't take a genius to see that Nate's mood had been off for a while now, and she was worried that something bad had happened between him and Elena. Was this somehow her fault? Should she not have suggested him going back to the States to see her? Maybe Elena would have been better just having some time and distance to cool off...

"Hey, Bright Eyes, ya' comin'?" Charlie called, breaking her out of her reverie.

"Yeah, yeah... Be right there," she replied distantly, turning to jog after them while her gaze remained over her shoulder on Nate's diminishing form. Finally tearing her eyes away before she tripped and fell on her face, she picked her way over a boulder and onto the lava flow and found herself in step with Sully. She was about to keep going by when he stopped her by putting a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Chloe, hey- you got a minute?"

Despite her sober contemplation of a few seconds prior, Chloe was quick on the draw- a habit she developed in a line of work that required her to never lose her cool. "Depends on what for," she quipped slyly.

Sully frowned and held back, so she stopped as well. "Keep your pants on, I just wanna ask you something," he growled, looking to the side in a way that suggested he was uncomfortable saying what he was about to say. Sighing, he scrubbed a tired hand over his face. "It's just- it's about Nate. The kid's been-" Sully lifted his palms and then dropped them with a huff, clearly struggling to know how to put words to his thoughts.

"A bit down?" Chloe suggested.

Sully scoffed and looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "That'd be putting it mildly." He sighed again and put his hands on his hips. "Look, don't tell him I told you this, but Elena left him."

Chloe's face immediately sagged into a look of shock and grief.

"I know. It sucks," Sully continued. "Though I don't think any of us could really blame her. Nate's not exactly been perfect husband material. But that's the point- he knows he screwed up and he's angry with himself." He looked Chloe in the eye, his expression deathly serious. "I was hoping you could help me keep an eye on him. I'm afraid his grief will make him reckless. I think he figures he's got nothing left to lose."

For a moment, Chloe was speechless. "Oh, god," she said softly. "Yes, yes of course. I've got your back- his back." She shook her head in disbelief. "That's terrible."

Nodding, Sully said, "Yeah, I haven't seen him so down since-" Sully stopped himself, realizing that the last time he had seen Nate this upset was after his brother died in Panama. Fortunately, Cutter and Molly picked that moment to rejoin them, saving Sully any further explanation.

"Nothing there," Charlie announced flatly. "Those buildings are all just full of debris and-" He paused, noticing the looks on Chloe and Sully's faces. "Am I... interrupting something?"

Again, Chloe quickly rebounded. "Ha-ha, no," was her sarcastic reply. Waving back toward the lake, she added, "No trouble, then. Let's just go check on Nate."

Chloe and Cutter took the lead, while Molly lagged behind and playfully elbowed Sully in the ribs. "Might be a bit young for you, but she's got a decent ass."

Sully rolled his eyes. "Oh-ho, look who got an attitude while she was away."

"I blame it all on you," Molly said coyly over her shoulder as she walked on ahead.

The point of the stick struck hollow against the stone gate as Nate, clutching the driftwood in an underhand grip, drove it over and over into the astrolabe-shaped indentation, freeing up the last chunks of mud from it. Each swing sent a flurry of tiny bubbles up in its wake; the effort of working under the water was using up Nate's oxygen quickly, but he was making good headway now. As the last of the grime fell away in a large flake, he tossed the branch aside and hurriedly unclipped the bronze sphere from his holsters. Casting the carabiner away as well, he lined up the thick axis rims with their respective places in the gates and tried to slide it in, only for it to stop an inch or so in. Confused, it took Nate a moment or two to realize that the fine meridian lines tracing between the axes also had their channels in the gates that they had to line up with. As his diaphragm began to convulse and his lungs burned with their need for air, he tried a couple more times in different orientations before finding the right one to admit the astrolabe to half its diameter, the bronze artifact locking into the gate with a click. Nate swam back a few feet in anticipation of the effect, but nothing happened. His brow furrowed.

What the hell?, he thought. Is there something I missed? Maybe it needs to turn, or... He squeezed his eyes shut against the building pressure he felt in his chest and head.

Time for air, Nate!

His ascent was rapid, nearly frantic at the end when his chest was feeling like it was about to explode. Breaking out into fresh air with a spray of water, his first breath was a ragged gasp, followed by several coughs as he choked on water. He shook his head to clear his eyes and paddled toward the shore to rest on the rocks at the edge.

"Jesus Christ, Nate, you musta been down there for five minutes!" Sully exclaimed as his protege slumped over a boulder near his feet. "I was gettin' worried about you!"

"Are you all right?" Chloe asked with concern.

"Yeah- yeah, I'm fine," he panted, propping himself up on one elbow as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I got it cleared out and the astrolabe is in place."

"And?" Molly asked expectantly.

"Aaand... nothing," he said sheepishly.

Cutter put his fists on his hips indignantly. "Oh, for crying out loud, mate! You're saying you nearly drowned yourself for something that doesn't even work?"

"Just-just give me a minute, okay?" Nate, still heaving deep and heavy breaths, rolled onto his back and scrubbed both hands over his wet face. After a few moments catching his breath, he sat up, his feet still dangling in the crystal pool. "I think it must turn, or push, or something. I was gonna try some things out, but I was running out of air. I'll get it this time."

As Nate moved to shove off from the side and swim back out, Cutter suddenly declared, "I'll go with you!"

Nate stopped and looked back at him with doubt. "Are you sure you want to do that? I mean, it's no big deal, and I know your claustrophobia-"

"I'm sure," he said with finality. "I'm not just going to sit on the sidelines here while you do all the work, and you need someone down there to help you in case anything goes wrong." He stalked determinedly up to the edge of the water, then in a sudden shift of tone he delicately dipped the toe of his leather boot in while holding his arms out straight to the side and wobbling slightly in an exaggerated show of balance. Returning to a neutral stance, he scrunched his nose and winced at Nate. "Is it cold?" he asked in a small voice.

With a scoff and a shake of his head at the Englishman's antics, Nate deadpanned, "Just get in or stay on shore, ya' big sissy."

Cutter chuckled and then dove in, and a moment later came up spluttering. "Shit! Th-that's bloody cold!" He hugged himself as he stood in the shallows.

Nate shrugged. "Hey, you're the one who wanted to come."

"I know, I know," Dropping his arms and balling up his fists, Cutter squared his shoulders and braced himself. "Let's just do this and get it done, right?"

They both dove, and Nate swam a few feet down and lingered, making eye contact with Charlie to see how he felt. The big Brit gave him a thumbs up and they pressed on. Nate stayed just slightly ahead to lead the way, but kept one eye on Charlie in case his claustrophobia got the better of him. It was about twenty feet down when Nate saw him make a quick and sudden 180, in an impressively tight turn that would make even Olympic swimmers take note with raised eyebrows, and begin frantically swimming for the top. Nate followed as fast as he could, but by the time he made it to the surface, Charlie was already almost to shore. The Englishman pulled himself out and sat on a rock with his hands planted firmly at his sides as the other three treasure hunters on shore came running over to him. With a few strong strokes, Nate reached the edge of the pool and hauled himself out just as Chloe knelt down behind Charlie and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Charlie!" Chloe said, giving him a gentle shake as the Brit sat hunched over and gently rocking back and forth on the rock. "Charlie, what's wrong."

Nate stepped closer but stayed a few feet away. He watched his friend's face and noticed that he almost seemed to be avoiding looking at him, and it made Nate's brow furrow in worry.

"No, no, I'm fine!" Cutter said harshly. "Just, just give me a minute and I'll be fine to go again!" He shook his head, seeming almost angry with himself. "Just got a bit overwhelmed there for a minute. I swear though- I swear I'll go! Just give me a minute to catch my breath-"

"Charlie," Nate chuckled uncertainly. "Hey, buddy, you don't have to go-"

"Don't even think about going down there alone!" Charlie suddenly spat, jabbing a finger in Nate's direction. "You're gonna get yourself killed."

"Calm down," Chloe urged, grabbing his hand and bringing it back to his side. "Charlie, I see what you're trying to do and it's admirable, but just stay here and I'll go with Nate! Really..."

Finally ceasing his rocking, Cutter drug a hand down his face and nodded, but remained looking down. "Fine. Go," he said simply.

Chloe cast a relieved glance at Nate and stood up, while Nate gave Charlie a good-natured slap on the back. "There ya go, champ- no shame in that," he said cheerfully. "We've all got our fears. For Sully it's the Pope."

"Yeah, well, for you it's clowns!" Sully pointed out.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Nate muttered as he walked back into the water with Chloe.

"The Pope?" Molly asked incredulously.

"Ahhh, more his hat then the man himself, but that might be splitting hairs..." Sully answered.

Nate and Chloe were about to go under when an sudden exclamation caused them to stop. "Oi!" Cutter called. They both turned and looked at him as he shook a finger in their direction. "Don't even think about not coming back for us when those gates open. Diving or no diving, I'm coming with you."

Chloe smiled at him. "We won't leave you, Charlie."

Chloe kept pace with Nate quite well on their way down, following him down the face of the gate to where the small bronze astrolabe was still lodged in the door. Reaching negative buoyancy just a few feet from the bottom, Nate and Chloe settled down onto the stone terrace and approached the gates.

In the dim light on the floor of the lake, Nate spared a glance at Chloe, who was studying the intricate lock arrangement with wonder. She met Nate's eyes and held both hands up to make a twisting motion. Nodding, Nate stepped forward and took hold of the protruding axis of the device and tried to rotate it first clockwise, then counter-clockwise, both to no avail. Damn it, Nate thought. He took a step backward and scanned the area surrounding the lock to see if he was missing something, but could see nothing of apparent use. His last idea was to try spinning the wheel of the astrolabe the other way. Grabbing onto the thick bronze band again, he gave it a heave, trying to move it on its own axis toward the ground. At first nothing happened, then it began to rotate ever so slowly, becoming more and more vertical in its orientation, until finally it became flush with the face of the door and flat with the other axis. There was a low, bassy thud that could be felt both through the water and through the stones under their feet, and Nate and Chloe shared a worried look as they backed away as quick as drag allowed them. The two gates began to open and the water in the pool started rushing through, sucking both Nate and Chloe forward.

Oh crap! Nate thought as he felt the pull increasing as the gap for the water to escape through got bigger. Hope whatever's on the other side of this isn't gonna kill us!

The current swept him off his feet and tumbled him head over heels toward the now-open gate, smashing him into the edge of the stone door as it did. He grabbed onto it and held on as the roar of rushing water drowned out everything else, the flow holding him straight out horizontally like a flag in a gale. Nate sheltered his face from debris and the relentless surge of water by tucking his head down in his armpit and he clenched his fingers tighter on the stone, but his grip was failing. His stomach leaped into his throat as his fingers slipped off the algae-covered stone and Nate was swept through the gates, then immediately hit the ground as the last of the water drained out of the lake. Rolling several times from his momentum, he landed on his back in a puddle left behind in a small crater in the rock, staring up at a marble colonnade that soared twenty feet above him. He groaned and pushed himself up on one elbow to look for Chloe, and was relieved to see that she had managed to hold herself on the other gate and was also laying on the ground where the water had left her when it dissipated.

"We made it!" Nate observed breathlessly.

Chuckling to herself, Chloe pulled herself up and swept her drenched bangs from her face, leaving a trail of grit instead. "I do believe we did, cowboy." She swaggered toward him and extended a hand to him to help him up. "Come on," she said. "Let's go let the others know what we found."

As they walked through the open gates, Nate was struck by the enormity of the crater they found themselves in. Without the water in it the bowl felt vast, dwarfing both them and the gates. Nate gave a low whistle and was about to comment on it to Chloe, when he noticed the gate to their left beginning to lean. In horror, he realized that the huge stone slab had broken off its hinges and was about to crush them both.

"Chloe, look out!" he shouted, pushing her forward suddenly. They both staggered and fell as the ground shook, and when they opened their eyes they were in a small triangle of space left under the bottom half of the stone door, which had broken in half when it fell against the side of the volcanic crater and then gotten wedged at an angle across the opening of the gates.

"Never a dull moment, huh?" Nate said as they both scrambled out from under the broken slab.

"I'll say."

"Hey! Everyone OK down there?" Sully's voice was distant as it echoed down to them from the top of the depression.

"Yeah!" Nate called back, cupping his hands around his mouth and craning his neck to see the three of them. "We're fine. Got the gate open, but it looks like you'll have to climb down now."

Sully grunted. "Fortunately for you, we've all done a bit of that before," his voice drifted back.

The sounds of scuffling could be heard as Sully, Charlie, and Molly started their descent, while Nate and Chloe entered a little ways into the colonnade again, climbing over the cracked pieces of the gate as they did. "Sooo, the Pope?" Chloe asked curiously as she played her flashlight beam along the columns. "I never knew that about Sully."

Nate scoffed. "You kidding? I made that up on the spot! As far as I know, Sully might not be afraid of anything."

Behind them Cutter dropped down, and then Sully. When Molly jumped a moment later, she slipped on a spot of algae and landed on her stomach in a puddle. "Oh, Christ," she complained as she stood up and pulled her now-soaked button down away from where it was plastered on her skin. "Why did I wear a white shirt to go looking for Atlantis?"

"Hey!" Nate called. "Look at this!" He pointed to a fallen column that had some words scrawled across it in what was either some kind of rust-colored paint or blood. Nate chose to believe it was the former. "It's in ancient Greek... says, 'What woes await him who seeks immortality from the Gods in this garden of evil and vice'."

Chloe's flashlight lingered on the shattered marble and its foreboding message as the words hung ominously in the air. Finally, Sully spoke up. "Sounds welcoming."

"Lost cities never have been much on the warm hospitality," Cutter noted.

Chloe gave a look around at her comrades. "No turning back now, right?" she said, trying to stay upbeat.

"Especially with Tweedledum and Tweedledumber on our tails," Sully growled. "Right before we came down, Nate, we spotted some boats coming in on the horizon. Can't think of anyone else it would be besides Floki and Garnier."

Nate frowned. "I guess we'd better keep moving, then."

As they walked past the end of the colonnade, they met a strange landscape of ruined buildings swallowed in flows of cooled lava that pitched and rolled, sometimes leaving very little space between the ground and the roof of the volcanic cavern. Their path was lit by Chloe and Cutter's flashlights, as well as Sully's trusty Zippo, as they carefully explored the bizarre wasteland. Ducking under a low-hanging ledge of igneous rock, Sully turned and looked at Molly. "Watch your head, darling." His eyes flicked up and down her body in the flickering firelight.

Molly, still conscious of her wet shirt, gave an ironic smile. "Mmm, thanks for the warning. And I thought chivalry was a thing of the past."

"Now you know for sure it is," Cutter quipped dryly, giving Sully an elbow to the ribs.

"Ow!" Sully cried, turning back around. "Geez, just tryin' to help..."

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the endgame of Uncharted: On the Shoulders of Giants! Please keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times, hang on to your hats, and strap in- it's gonna be a bumpy ride!