Midas' Golden Legacy
Lara took a few more moments to admire the view before her. She was lost for words and could not think of the proper way to describe the large Midas statue. That was when she noticed that Midas' left hand was missing, but it did not take her long to find it. The missing hand was facing palm-up on the floor of the giant cavern. Large enough for her stand on, the hand revealed the true scale of the carved statue and gave her a good reason to regret not bringing her camera along. Lara was simply amazed at the fact that the giant fingers were still intact after all the years it has existed. After another moment, Lara decided to get a closer look at the ancient structures and carefully dropped down into the cave. As a joke, she decided to walk over to the hand to see if she herself would turn to gold after touching the hand. That was when she heard the movements of a large gorilla coming from just behind the hand of Midas. When the creature poked its head up, Lara immediately drew her weapons and the gorilla started advancing towards her. However, when the gorilla climbed on top of the hand, Lara was surprised to see it stop in its tracks and scream as if it were in pain. That was when things started to become strange and Lara's 'joke' became a serious matter. She looked down at the creature's feet and gasped at the sight of yellowish metal. The gorilla's feet were turning to gold, as were its legs, body, arms, hands, neck, and finally its head. All that remained was a petrified statue of the gorilla that was made entirely of pure gold. Even then, despite the potential worth of the statue, words could not describe the supernatural alchemical process that happened before Lara's eyes. At least she did not fall for that trap! Had it not been for the gorilla, she probably would have. She walked up to the petrified gorilla and went to touch it to make sure that what she was seeing was real. Sure enough, her hand touched solid gold. Lara could only stand in silence for a couple of minutes before making any comment. Even then, it was still difficult for her to take in.
"Oh my god!" Lara said as she stared at the golden gorilla. "This has to be the greatest thing I've seen so far! I wonder if the Philosopher's Stone was made from the same material…The Greeks weren't kidding around with their legends and myths after all!"
She paused.
"I know I say this a lot, but this is just too incredible…I'm sure people would die to have this in their possession. They would never have to work a day in their life ever again!"
Then, Lara thought about the implications that it could have on humanity. There would no doubt be huge wars between countries if everyone else knew about the Hand of Midas. After all, as far as all human history is concerned, people have always been obsessed with power and riches, which is the reason many ancient civilizations have fallen and nations have went to war. This was also evidently true for the lost continent of Atlantis. As a result, Lara decided to keep the Hand of Midas a secret upon her return to civilization where she would report all of her discoveries.
Lara pulled out the piece of the Scion she obtained in Qualopec's Tomb from her backpack and stared at it. Her mind began to wander. It was no surprise that things went out of control for the once-great city. To the Atlanteans, Lara figured that the Scion was comparable to keeping stockpiles of nuclear weapons in modern times. In all of the versions of the legend of Atlantis that she came across, Lara never came across any extensive details relating to the ultimate demise of the city. However, they all mentioned that when Qualopec and Tihocan were in control, the third ruler became power-hungry and wanted the powers of the Scion to himself so that he could rule the world with his own army of super soldiers. However, he did not get very far in his efforts, since Qualopec and Tihocan discovered his evil intentions and ultimately condemned him by locking him into a deep freeze. The name of this insane ruler was never mentioned once in any of the translations Lara came across. Even after looking through the monk's journal she stole from Natla's office, there was no hint of the third ruler's name. It was not until now that this very basic piece of information started to harp Lara's curiosity. She had to find out. Lara thought that once she finds Tihocan's Tomb there will be some clue about the ruler's name. Still, she had to get there before she could find out for sure, especially before Pierre gets his hands on the second part of the Scion. She put the first part of the Scion back into her backpack and started for the cave exit.
Before she left the Midas cavern, she took in the entire view one last time and took one last look at the gorilla before she decided to go back the way she came.
"Thanks for the warning…" she said to the petrified creature. "I'll probably be back later."
Lara retraced her steps back through the garden area and back up the staircase leading to the room with the pool and balcony. From there, she started her way towards the only hallway she has yet to go down and it happened to be just straight ahead. This one did not have a staircase, but instead made a sharp ninety-degree turn to the right down another long hallway opening to another room that had a much higher ceiling. On the far wall was a staircase going up with Ionic columns for decoration and support on the side closer to Lara. One of the columns near the middle of stairs was broken in half, with the top half missing and lying on the ground below where Lara stood. Looking down the space beside the grand staircase, she could see another opening at the far end that lead down a small passage. She carefully walked towards the passage and then followed a dirt trail leading into an enormous cavern. What Lara saw next was entirely unexpected. Towering in front of her was an enormous Roman-style aqueduct (or was it Greek?).
It is known that the Romans constructed numerous aqueducts to bring water from distant sources into their cities and towns, supplying public baths, latrines, fountains and private households. Waste water was removed by complex sewage systems and released into nearby bodies of water, keeping the towns clean and free from effluent. Aqueducts also provided water for mining operations, milling, farms and gardens. They moved water through gravity alone, being constructed along a slight downward gradient within conduits of stone, brick or concrete. Most were buried beneath the ground, and followed its contours; obstructing peaks were circumvented or, less often, tunnelled through. Where valleys or lowlands intervened, the conduit was carried on bridgework, or its contents fed into high-pressure lead, ceramic or stone pipes and siphoned across. Most aqueduct systems included sedimentation tanks, sluices and distribution tanks to regulate the supply at need. Most Roman aqueducts proved reliable, and durable; some were maintained into the early modern era, and a few, such as the Pont du Gard in Roman Gaul (modern-day southern France) are still partly in use. Methods of aqueduct surveying and construction are noted by Vitruvius in his work De Architectura (1st century BC). The general Frontinus gives more detail in his official report on the problems, uses and abuses of Imperial Rome's public water supply. Notable examples of aqueduct architecture include the supporting piers of the Aqueduct of Segovia, and the aqueduct-fed cisterns of Constantinople (now Istanbul).
Until a few moments ago, Lara thought that aqueducts were a creation achieved by the Romans. But now, with the advent of this discovery, it seemed as though there was in fact a kind of cooperation between the Greek and Roman cultures at some point in history, most likely during the Hellenistic period of ancient Greek civilization. Why else would Lara discover Greek palaces next to Roman plumbing? Was it possible for the Romans to simply build over existing Greek foundations? Probably. But in the end, Lara could not come up with a solid explanation. The only thing that she was certain about was the fact that there was so much more to this part of Greece than was initially thought. As far as Lara could tell, the giant aqueduct was about the same height as her mansion, and the cave ceiling was another thirty feet up. Looking to her left, it was evident that the structure was T-shaped by the way it branched out at the end. There was even a hallway underneath that part of the aqueduct that seemed to lead down a dark hall. There was not much to see to the right, since the aqueduct made its way into the wall of the cave. Lara admired the great stone arches and supports as she slowly proceeded to the left towards the shadowy underlying area underneath the aqueduct. Then, she suddenly heard a growl coming from behind one of the stone structures. Realizing it was a lion, Lara readied her pistols and cautiously approached the area where the sound came from. The lion heard her and ran out of its hiding place to pursue her, but she managed to somersault over the beast and take it out with a few bullets.
"Well, at least their numbers aren't that large here." Lara said as the silence started to creep back. When she reached the underlying area, there was not much for her to see. It was dark, but Lara could still tell that the passage only went down fifty feet before abruptly ending at a stone wall with no other doorways or passages to follow. Despite the lack of anything very interesting to look at, there was one thing that managed to catch Lara's attention. From overhead and above the aqueduct, she could hear the faint sound of running water coming from the very top of the aqueduct. It was clear that water was still flowing through the old plumbing after thousands of years. Looking up above the left side of the aqueduct, Lara spotted what looked like another opening in the left cavern wall relative to the direction she was facing.
"Looking at modern architectural marvels, the Greeks and Romans just never realized how remarkable their works of architecture were at the time." Lara said. "The view from above must be spectacular. If only I could see what the aqueduct looks like from that vantage point up there. None of the stone bricks in the structure look like they'll do me any good in climbing. There has to be another way to reach the top. Perhaps I'll figure it out later?"
Lara decided to not worry about it right now, for there was plenty more for her to see in the newly discovered palace. She went back through the passage she came in from and backtracked her way to the tall room where she made her way to the large staircase she passed earlier.
Meanwhile, high above the mountainous Greek terrain, a helicopter was fast-approaching St. Francis' Folly and was getting ready to touch down in a nearby field. Inside the helicopter, Colonel Arthur Hamilton Graves and Willard Stirling readied themselves for the pursuit of Miss Croft by gathering as much weaponry as they thought they needed for their adventure. Natla had pointed them to a location that, in theory, contained a system of caves that would lead them directly to the Tomb of Tihocan as well as the second part of the Scion. This was all part of her great plan to bring down the British aristocrat and bring back both pieces of the Scion. Natla saw Pierre as merely a distraction, as well as an additional asset in finding the second piece for Lara, which she believed would make it easier to get what she wanted from her. Both Graves and Stirling knew that Pierre was somewhere underground as well and that he needed some backup support. After all, from what they heard, Lara Croft was a very strong and fast lady.
It was late afternoon by the time the helicopter landed on the ground and Graves and Stirling wasted no time in searching for the caves Natla had mentioned to them over a long-distance call. Already, the western horizon was beginning to change colours as the evening approached.
"Looks like the caves are this way." Graves said, his eyes narrow and serious-looking. Despite having a deep British background, Arthur Hamilton Graves spent almost his entire life in the United States. He served in the U.S. Army for quite some time before he came across a job offer from Natla Technologies. At first, he ignored the offer. But after being criticized for lack of proper military service, Graves quit his job in the army and took up Natla's offer and has been working at Natla Technologies since 1990. In physical features, Graves had almost every distinctive characteristic that one might associate with being a colonel. He was slightly plump, but muscular. He had both a greying moustache and a full head of greying hair and his feet were large and stalky. He wore black boots, a full military-style uniform and was smoking a cigar. In his large leather backpack was a book which he and Stirling used to keep records and other valuable information. He was nowhere close to being considered a true archaeologist, but he did have somewhat of an interest with old antique collectables.
Willard Stirling, on the other hand, was very much British, but still spent a sizable chunk of his life in the United States. Though much younger than Graves (probably late twenties), he still had a prominent military background. Like Larson, he was dishonourably discharged from the U.S. military, though not because of a fiery argument with a commanding officer. Instead, Stirling was discharged after allegedly firing a round of bullets on other members of his own squad after supposedly being harassed and bullied. After leaving the army in 1993, he moved to Los Angeles where he was offered a position at Natla Technologies by Natla herself and met Graves upon his first day on the job. Ever since then, Graves and Stirling have been steady friends. In physical appearance, Stirling is lanky compared to Graves, though one could tell he had spent a lot of time working out his muscles. He had short light brown hair, as well as a moustache and goatee that was always kept neatly trimmed. He also sported a full military-style uniform like Graves. However, unlike Graves, he had not even the slightest interest in archaeology.
"How long will this take, Arthur?" Stirling asked.
"As long as it needs to take." Graves replied. "We still have to find Pierre too. But hopefully this won't take too long. I hope Miss Croft gets what she deserves when we or Pierre get a chance to kill her."
"I don't mean to sound too critical, but don't you think Natla is taking this way too far? Don't you think killing Lara Croft is a bit overkill?" Stirling asked. "After all, she is the most famous person in the world right now…not to mention really hot."
"Oh, don't do this now!" Graves said. "Now you're starting to sound like Larson before the Peru episode! Besides, she stole something that belongs to Natla and she almost killed Larson. She deserves to pay for her actions. Don't you agree?"
"Yeah, I guess." Stirling replied. "Can I at least do things toher before she dies?"
Graves looked over at Stirling with angry eyes and then hit him hard across the face. Stirling automatically took it as a 'no'.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, boy." Graves said. "You have better things to worry about besides sticking your manhood into Miss Croft! We're here to get the second part of the Scion before she does. Don't you remember?"
"I don't…" Stirling replied. "It must've slipped my mind…"
Graves gave him another glare.
"No more magazines for you, mister."
It was not long before the two of them found the rumoured cave openings and started venturing down into the dark abyss. They each lit a flare and started exploring the mysterious passageways for any sign of Tihocan's Tomb.
Hey, it's me. First off, I just wanted to say that when I was uploading this chapter from my phone, it would not let me add any comments at the end of it. As a result, the layout may have seemed a little off from the other chapters. However, now that I'm back home and have reliable Internet, I have since fixed these layout issues as they were driving me crazy.
The second thing that I wanted to mention was that this is now my longest story on Fanfiction. I can't believe how far this thing has come since I first uploaded this almost two years ago! I know there is still plenty to be done with this story, but I just wanted to take the time and thank everyone that has read this and gave me useful feedback. I may not have been updating as often as I could be, but I haven't forgotten about it. I will try to update as often as I can, since I am DYING to write about the Egypt levels, as they were my favorite level set from the original game, along with the Atlantean levels ;)
Anyway, as I was writing this chapter I did a little research and found some fascinating information on Roman aqueducts and I decided to include some of this into the chapter. In the original Tomb Raider, there was a part in the Palace Midas level where you got to explore a large underground aqueduct in pursuit of one of the lead bars that are required for the puzzle to exit the level. This level, like every other level I've documented so far, is based off the map used in the first Tomb Raider game. Tomb Raider Anniversary did not include this section of the level, probably to avoid confusion between the Greek and Roman cultures (although I suspect it might have downsized this a lot and tried to cram it in the main room where the large Midas statue stands). For a while when Tomb Raider Anniversary came out, I remember that I was confused as to where exactly Lara found the second part of the Scion, simply because of the conflicting cultural aspects from the Greeks and Romans. Before then, I always thought Lara was in ancient Rome (after all, that's what it said on the back cover!). But after I played Anniversary, I realized it made more sense for this part to be in Greece, since there were plenty more Greek elements in both games.
Since there was limited information on both Arthur Hamilton Graves and Richard Stirling, I decided to make up my own portrayal of these primitive Tomb Raider villain proposals when I decided to write dialogue between them. Both of their personalities were partly inspired by a couple of my good friends and their biographies were completely made up. They have both just arrived near St. Francis' Folly and are joining the hunt for the second part of the Scion by taking a shortcut through some nearby caves that Natla mentioned to them (all part of her evil plan to get back at Lara). Now it's three against one and Lara has no idea about it. Will she ever get to the Scion in time?
See you in the next update :)
saturn95