Sam and Lara were huddled together on the bench at the helm of the ship when they approached the island of Thera.
"I can't believe this is what we call Santorini now, it has changed so much!" Sam declared. "You would never think it would become one of the most famous picture-postcard views centuries later."
Lara hummed in agreement. "The volcanic activity shaped the island throughout time. The official name is still Thera, in honor of the Spartan King Thiras, that settled on the island but most people call it Santorini. It's a name the Franks chose because there was a local church called Santa Irene. Supposedly, the legend of Atlantis is also based on what happened here and the consequences later in Crete for the Minoan civilization." She noticed the intense look on her wife's face. "What?"
"Don't try to seduce me with your history knowledge, Croft, you know I can't resist." Sam wiggled her eyebrows.
Lara laughed. "I would say sorry but…"
The producer bumped her wife's shoulder playfully. "Who's teasing now?"
"Dock the ship!" They heard Kassandra bark.
"I guess that's our cue to get ready," Lara stated before standing up and offering her hand for Sam to take. "Stay alert, something is telling me we won't be welcomed with open arms."
Sam accepted the hand and stood up. "Yeah, I don't hold much hope either."
As Lara stepped on the dock, she looked at the ancient city in awe. "It's amazing, the ruins in our century pale in comparison." She took a few steps forward before turning around to ask Kassandra. "Do you mind if I take a look?"
"Please, do," Kassandra answered with a smile. "I will wait for you at the entrance of the cave."
"Thank you." Lara made her way to the first house and started studying paintings on the wall. "I wish we had time to explore, we could learn so much."
"I know, sweetie," Sam said as she joined her. "And I wish I could record it all but, it's not like you could publish anything about it. We recovered from the Yamatai scandal but I'm not sure it would work this time if we try to explain the Templars sent us back in time."
"You are right..." The archaeologist sighed, her hand hovering over the wall. "It's just frustrating to live the dream of every archaeologist and not being able to make the best out of it. It could help some of my peers…"
"If it can make you feel better, we are in some sort of simulation." Sam understood her wife's frustration, she had seen so many things that would have looked good on film but had no way to record them. "We are seeing the world the way Kassandra experienced it, who can really say how accurate it is? We are all biased when it comes to our own history."
"I suppose, yes."
"Sorry friends, but I need help with the door. I can't open it without direct light on the prism above it." Kassandra reached out for her spear and handed it to Sam. "Stay at the door, Lara and I will take care of it. We just need to move the mirrors." She pointed at the mirror on the side of the room, then at all the others scattered around the site.
Sam stared at the spear with hesitation. "Shouldn't you be the one holding it?"
"I trust you." The mercenary said encouragingly, gently taking Sam's hand and putting her spear in it. "We need to know if you are allowed inside and besides, it will go faster if Lara and I activate the mechanism."
"No offense taken." Sam joked.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you." The misthios apologized, scratching her neck in embarrassment. "You are a strong woman and…"
The filmmaker laughed, taking pity on her friend. "Oh, I'm going to miss you, you gorgeous goddess." She hugged Kassandra tightly. "And you're right, I don't feel like jumping from a wall to another like a monkey so, knock yourself out."
"You are not gone yet." Kassandra patted her friend's back before pulling away. "Wait for my command." She rushed toward the biggest building and jumped on the wall, swiftly climbing it to the top.
Lara smiled at her wife. "Be careful."
Sam smiled back. "You too." She made her way to the door, avoiding the big puddle of water in front of the stairs before climbing them. She watched as a beam of light slowly shone in her direction every time Kassandra or Lara moved a mirror. Once the light reflected on the prism, Sam waited for the go-ahead from her friend then lifted the spear in front of the door. When it opened, she smiled proudly. She took a few steps down the stairs and shouted. "It worked!" The excitement was short-lived because out of nowhere, a high pitched noise rang in her head. She fell to her knees with a cry, one hand holding her forehead and the other glued to the spear on the ground.
"Sam!" Lara screamed from her spot. She rushed to help her wife but Kassandra was closer and reached her first.
The mercenary lifted Sam from the ground and helped her sit against the rock wall. "Sam, are you alright? What's happened?"
Lara joined them and looked at her wife worryingly. She kneeled down next to Sam and gently pushed away the hair from her face. "Is it your head again?"
Sam, incapable of forming words, simply nodded. When her wife tried to take away the spear, her hand tightened around it. "No… Wait…" She could feel something, like a voice trying to reach out to her.
"What's going on?" Kassandra asked, a worried frown on her face as she hovered behind them.
The producer took a deep breath, ready to answer but then, she heard it. 'Hello? Can anybody hear me?' Sam frowned and stared at Lara. "Do you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Lara looked at her, confused.
"Someone is talking," Sam replied as if it was obvious. Surely she couldn't be the only one hearing it.
"It was us," Kassandra stated.
The filmmaker shook her head. "No, someone else."
"What are you talking about?" Lara glanced at Kassandra, silently asking what was going on but her friend shrugged at her.
"Wait." Sam lifted the spear and touched the blade with her free hand. "Hello?"
'Yes?' The voice answered. 'Can you hear me? Thank god, I've been trying to contact you for a while now.'
Sam frowned. "Who are you?"
"Who are you talking to?" The archaeologist questioned again, getting more worried by the minute.
"Shh." Sam shushed, trying to focus.
'Layla Hassan…. Who are you?'
"Sam, Samantha Croft." She replied. She might not know why she was hearing a voice but at least now she knew who it belonged to.
'Croft as in Lara Croft?'
"She's my wife. Wha… How are you even talking to me right now? Where are you?" Sam ignored the look Lara and Kassandra were giving her. At least they were staying quiet. "Are you with the Templars? Because if that's the case you can go fuck yourself, I don't know where the Caduceus is."
'I'm not with them, quite the opposite but I don't have time to go into details right now.' Layla declared. 'We ran into some interference in our simulation and then we realized someone else was looking into Kassandra's memories.'
"They forced us into a room and then they hooked us up to a machine. Kassandra's descendant was with us. She was their main target but then they sent us with her, as ourselves, to help her find an artifact." Sam explained.
'What the hell are they doing?' Layla groaned. 'Where are you at the moment? I mean, where are your bodies presently?'
"London, the Asphargo facility. We can't escape, we need…"
'Sam… can't hear… I…'
"Hello?"
'Sam…'
"Help us…Layla, are you still there?" Sam tried again but after a while, it was clear that the connection was broken. "Nothing, shit!" She sighed.
Lara took the spear out of her wife's hand and gave it to her friend. "Okay, what just happened?"
"Witchcraft? The ISU?" Kassandra asked, taking her spear back.
"No…" Sam chuckled despite herself. "I'm either developing some schizophrenic tendencies, or someone realized we were here and hacked Dr. Zuller's device to warn us."
The Englishwoman stared at her wife. "How? Why?"
"How the hell would I know?" Sam replied in annoyance. It wasn't directed at her wife but at the situation they were in. She tried to stand.
Lara reached out and helped her. "Do you think it's a trap?"
Sam dusted her knees and clothes. "I don't know but I'm tired of people invading my head without my consent. I mean, is there a sign somewhere that says 'come in, it's open, make yourself at home'?"
"At least this one seems friendly…" Lara tried to joke.
"Seriously, Lara?" Sam glared at her.
"Sorry…" The archaeologist smiled sheepishly. "Too soon?"
Sam huffed a laugh. "No, you're right, it's just…"
Kassandra could tell her friends needed a moment alone. "I'm going to warn Pythagoras of your arrival, join me when you are ready." She smiled at them before entering the cave.
Lara took her wife's hands in hers. "What's wrong? Tell me."
"Do you… Do you think Himiko left a door open somewhere in my subconscious and that's why I'm the one who heard the voice?" The filmmaker bit her lower lip worryingly. "Or am I just slowly going insane?"
"You are not insane," Lara stated firmly. "You were holding an alien device in front of an alien cave in a simulation of someone else's memory. I think that explains a lot."
"But…"
"Perhaps Himiko activated some parts of your brain that are dormant to most of us," The Englishwoman interrupted gently. "We could run some tests once we are back but, maybe you should see it as a gift."
The producer snorted. "I don't see how…"
"You were able to ask for help."
"I don't know, Lara, it's freaking me out."
"I'm sorry," Lara pulled her wife into a hug. "I promise you, there is nothing wrong with you. Right now, we're about to meet a dead philosopher about an ISU device so if you're crazy, I am not far behind and frankly, I'm fine with that. Send me to the loony bin with you."
Sam laughed. "I love you." She broke the embrace. "You know, it's the same pain I felt yesterday so it's probably not the first time Layla tries to contact us."
Lara cupped her wife's cheek. "Everything will be over soon, just hang on a little longer." She kissed her lovingly.
Sam rested her forehead against Lara's. "We don't even know how to escape Dr. Zuller…"
"We'll find a way, we always do," Lara reassured. "Ready to meet your worst math nightmare?"
"I'm more of a literary person, sue me!" Sam laughed. "Come on, let's go meet the man!"
Once inside the cave, Sam and Lara looked around in awe. There was a long path surrounded by rock pillars with a soft yellow glow coming out of them, just like in the old forge they had visited with Kassandra. There were also two griffon statues standing proudly on each side of the path. The most surprising elements were the pyramid hovering in the air and the large bay window with a view of the sea.
Their study of the place was interrupted by some shouting coming from the back of the cave. Sam and Lara turned their attention toward the commotion and realized Kassandra was fighting with Pythagoras.
"Should we join them?" Sam asked. She was trying to keep an open mind regarding the man, after all he was a big shot in their time, but she couldn't forget how he abandoned Kassandra without blinking an eye. She knew a thing or two about bad parents and she just wanted to protect her friend.
Lara nodded. "They are probably fighting about us so…"
"I know…" Sam sighed. "Let's get this over with."
"Kassandra, is everything alright?" The archaeologist questioned once they were standing next to the mercenary. She looked at Pythagoras. "Hello, sir, my name is…" She stopped and stared at the staff in the man's hand. Here it was, finally, the staff of Hermes Trismegistus. They had searched all around Greece for it and it was in Pythagoras's possession all along.
"I told you we couldn't allow people to find this place and you are bringing these strangers with you!" Pythagoras shouted at Kassandra before looking at Sam and Lara. "You shouldn't be here!" He declared, not letting his daughter a chance to answer.
"Well, hello to you too, sir," Sam said with sarcasm.
Lara tore her eyes away from the staff and cleared her throat. "I'm sorry. I understand that we are not welcomed here, but it's important." She tried to be as earnest as possible but she could already tell that it was going to be hard to convince him to help.
"They are not a threat, they are my friends." Kassandra declared, trying to calm the situation.
"It does not matter. I knew you weren't ready." Pythagoras shook his head disapprovingly. "You are willingly putting this sacred place of knowledge in danger for…"
"I only told them about the staff." Kassandra defended herself.
"Yeah, what is this place for anyway?" The filmmaker asked. She could see her wife was trying really hard not to bombard the man with questions about the staff in his hand but right now, she was more intrigued by the cave.
"It does not concern you." Pythagoras glared at her.
"They came here to warn us about a danger. In the future, a man will try to steal the staff to bring chaos into the world." The misthios explained.
Pythagoras gave her a dubious look. "The oracles didn't mention them, you must be wrong."
"She is not wrong, we are here to help." Lara jumped in. "We need more information on your staff so we can stop the people who want to use it in the future. I know…"
"You don't know anything, child," Pythagoras cut her off.
The archaeologist frowned in displeasure. "We are not your enemies, why are you treating us as if we were?"
"Because it is not your place." The man barked.
"Oh my God, we are not going anywhere." Sam groaned in frustration. "Sorry, I know you're a big thing in our world but honestly dude, you're full of shit!"
"Sam!" Lara chastised.
"What?!" Sam said annoyed. "We never asked for this but we're still here, trying to help and what is he doing? Nothing, just preaching nonsense."
"The staff will be safe as long as Kassandra embraces the legacy that she was brought into this world for." Pythagoras declared.
"I am not ready yet," Kassandra stated. "You don't know what the future will bring but my friends do, they can help."
"When will you understand, child, that your destiny is more important than your emotional connections." Pythagoras lamented.
Kassandra glared at him. "I am not you." Her voice was cold.
"You are too soft." The man sighed wearily. "You are right, you are not ready and probably never will be. Perhaps I should keep the staff forever."
"Staying here has obscured your judgment, Pythagoras, please see reason and tell them what you know." The mercenary insisted. They entered into a staring match but when it was clear Pythagoras wouldn't cave, she spoke again. "This is the gate to Atlantis. I am supposed to find artifacts to seal it."
Pythagoras looked at his daughter in betrayal. "Kassandra!"
"Wait, Atlantis, but…" Lara was shocked at the discovery. "It's not possible…"
Sam frowned. "What does the staff have to do with it?"
Kassandra raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at her father, offering him a chance to speak. "They are on our side…"
Pythagoras sighed. "The staff is not only a powerful weapon but the key to Atlantis. It cannot fall into the wrong hands."
"Then help us," Lara encouraged. "Tell us more about it."
"The staff was given to me by Hermes himself after the ISU civilization started to crumble…" Pythagoras started.
Suddenly, the cave started to shake, the walls and the floor turned black and pixelated.
"What's going on?" Lara asked.
"Sam, Lara!" Kassandra called, reaching out for them.
"Kassandra…" Sam and Lara called back just before the simulation disappeared.