Yes, it's finally here. 5,000+ words. I told you guys it would be longer!

Enjoy, and be sure to R&R!

The rain had finally let up, going from torrential to a light drizzle, then to a nearly imperceptible mist, until none of it was coming down anymore. Alex couldn't believe he'd stayed awake through all of it. He felt as though he hadn't even blinked, hadn't missed a thing. He hadn't even yawned. He also couldn't believe he spent most of his time awake watching Lara sleep - and now that he gave it thought, it sounded really creepy. God, is he Edward Cullen or something?

The only real indicators of time he could find were Lara's waterlogged watch and the moon, even though simply reading the time from Lara's watch was so much more conventional and easier than trying to guess from the moon like some sort of caveman. 11:58, it read. But Alex wasn't quite sure if it was in the correct time zone. Well, who cares, anyway? He wouldn't be able to tell time with it, but he could tell how much had elapsed.

When Lara had begun to snore, it was 10:21, disproving his initial thought that perfect people (like Lara) didn't snore. As he smiled down at her, he realized that instead of being perfect, she was perfectly imperfect, and that her perfect imperfection made her the most perfect person he's ever met in his entire life. It was complex and confusing, but in the beautiful way, just like she was.

His heart fluttered like that of a little girl's when he heard her grunt, slowly beginning to sit up in the sleeping bag. As much as he loved how peaceful and at ease she looked while she was sleeping, he loved much, much more to see her awake - to be able to get lost in her hazelnut eyes. Sometimes, they would change into a light shade of grey, akin to a cloudy April morning in England. Alex couldn't choose which color he liked better, because he figured that if they belonged to Lara, they were both beautiful.

"Hey," Lara greeted with a lazy smile, turning her head to face Alex. Her eyes were glassy, like a mirror, capturing the orange, flickering tongues of the campfire before them. Alex didn't even have to force himself to smile back at her. He just did. It was instinct, impulse, whatever you wanted to call it.

"Welcome back," He greeted back, his smile widening into an impish grin. He resisted the urge to call her sleeping beauty. "Feeling any better?"

"Much, thank you. Do you think you can help -" She began.

Alex stopped her short, standing and holding out a hand for her to take, as if already anticipating what she was going to say. He gave her a smug look as she took it, slowly standing herself up and beginning to rest her entire weight onto her bad leg. Thankfully, it didn't begin to throb or hurt, so she figured she was good enough to begin to walk again.

She slowly took her first step away from the sleeping bag as Alex ushered her through, relieved at how she wasn't limping. She turned to Alex, giving him a polite, thankful smile before releasing herself from his grip and beginning to walk down the stairs on her own without a hitch. Alex smiled proudly, equally as relieved. However, his side at which Lara had initially been brushing against, was beginning to feel overrun with cold, as though it was yearning for her company once more. It was pathetic.

Lara clutched her bowstring in her fingers as she waded through the soft underbrush, wary of her surroundings. Alex was not far behind her, constantly making rustling and shuffling noises with every step he took. She found it increasingly difficult to differentiate the noises he made from the noises that she sensed were not his, and it made her skin crawl.

She followed the cobblestone path, leading her to a small, wooden bridge over a stream. Even though it seemed pretty old, it made little to no sound as she walked across it, which eased her mind a smidge. That is, until she heard more blatant rustling, accompanied with a snarl, and she knew that didn't come from Alex.

She slowly removed her bow from her upper body, Alex following suit with Reyes' pistol. And, surely enough, a single wolf, black as night, crept out of the shadows. Alex went still behind Lara. There wasn't much ammunition for firearms available, so he wasn't sure if he should shoot at it or not. But he didn't have much time to think about that, because another wolf emerged right alongside the first one.

Shit.

Before Alex could even blink, Lara shot an arrow into the first wolf, just missing its gut. It let out a growl as it raised its haunches, preparing to land a counter attack on Lara, but she wasn't about to give it the chance. Another arrow, in the head this time. A sharp snarl announced its downfall, lolling to the ground lifelessly. Alex was so busy drooling over Lara's total badassery that he didn't notice the other wolf dashing towards him.

"Alex!" Lara shouted, but not soon enough for him to turn around and fully register what was going on.

Before he could turn around, she shot at the wolf, which fell dead to the ground just inches away from Alex's initially oblivious form.

Alex just stood there, dumbfounded, unable to come to terms with what had just happened.

Well, pal, you stood there drooling over Lara killing that wolf like a dipshit, much like you are now, and while you stood there like a dipshit, the other wolf almost attacked your dipshit ass. And Lara just killed it, so that wouldn't happen.

Damn. He didn't think he could be more of a liability than he already was. He didn't quite know what to say to Lara - he thought he would sound dumb if he thanked her, but he would look like an ungrateful douche if he said nothing. He'd also look extra dipshitty if he kept standing there dumbfounded like a halfwit. He sighed and scratched the back of his neck as she crouched down to the wolf carcasses, slicing them open with the head of her arrow, presumably collecting salvage. Alex looked away, until she stood up and soldiered on, continuing to follow the path.

"Hey," Alex called, stopping. She turned around, her lips parted and her eyebrows raised. "Thanks for saving my ass. Would've been a goner if it wasn't for you."

He felt his face heat up as he said that, a little humiliated at how he was pitying himself in front of her. She smiled slightly and nodded in response, turning back around.

She walked up a small, dilapidated stone staircase, hanging a right, and walking up another. Muted, orange light poured out of a nearby lantern, and Lara walked closer, more light coming into view. In the distance were two blue barrels, a heap of firewood set ablaze inside them, creating their own orangey glow. They revealed a large, wooden gate with what looked like two metal wheel cranks at either side of it. There were also white figures, sketched in what appeared to be a chalk-like substance, on the gate. Lara squinted at them as she slowly walked closer, wondering if they were somewhat related to the other markings she's seen around the island so far.

Before her mind could trail off in that direction, she noticed someone standing in front of the gate, mumbling to themselves about how fascinating this or that was. As she got closer, she saw it was Whitman, gazing up at the gate with his finger wrapped around his chin.

Alex was surprised to see him still here, but at the same time, he wasn't. Of course he'd want to stay behind for the sake of exploring the insanity that this island had to offer, and of course the rest of the group would let him, if it meant that they wouldn't have to hear him yammer away about its history and how much of a marvel it is.

Whitman turned around, his arms crossed. "Oh! Lara, Alex. Surprise to see you here." He smiled fleetingly, the smile not getting the chance to reach his eyes. He gestured towards the figures. "These figures are fascinating." He crowed.

"I've seen these before," Lara mused, taking a close glance at the figures. "They must be ritualistic."

Alex looked like a confused dog at the bottom of the steps, his head cocked to one side. But he decided against butting in their conversation - he's never really understood much about archaeology, mythology, or any kind of history besides U.S. history, for that matter. Which is why he'd be as good as a match for Lara as fire and water - he'd always find a way to mess up certain things and put her fire out.

"This female image is particularly interesting." Whitman said, gesturing towards the largest figure in the middle, beaming.

Lara reached towards it to graze the figure with her fingertips, and pulled them back. Sure enough, the figure left a powdery residue. She knew there would have to be more people like the crazy scavenger she had dealt with just a few hours ago, worshipping this figure. But who was this, exactly? Who were they worshipping? Lara had so many questions about this island, but at least she knew more than poor Alex, who was reduced to standing there like a half-wit again.

"By those islanders, no doubt," Whitman began, his hands clasped together as he glanced at the two metal wheels at the sides of the gate. "Judging by the wrecks out there, they were once like us, survivors." He chuckled. "Remarkable!"

Lara was put off by his 'humor.' Once like us. "Yes, well, let's hope we don't become murderers, too."

Alex had to agree with her on that one.

Whitman seemed to ignore her. "See if you can work the other one." He told her, his hand gripping the handle on the right crank, and his other hand pointing to the left crank.

Lara took her makeshift axe in her hands upon noticing the handle was missing. She decided to use the axe as a handle to turn the wheel, placing the knob of it into the circular well where the handle was supposed to be. She then braced her hands tightly on the shaft, hunching her back to give herself more leverage.

Alex still stood there, just about as useful as male nipples. But it's not like he wasn't already used to it.

"Together." Whitman grunted. They simultaneously began to push on the handles, but Lara's axe was beginning to snap.

"Shit," She hissed. "It won't take the force. I'll have to find something sturdier to turn it with."

Whitman grinned impishly again, clasping his hands together. "Must be something around here we can use." He returned his attention to the figures, gazing up at them like a small boy who's just met his favorite superhero, as if Lara was never there. "Remarkable."

Ever the helper.

When Lara turned around, Alex was still standing there at the bottom of the stairs, an apologetic look on his face. Lara sighed, walking towards him.

"I guess he's leaving us to it." She told him quietly, looking out towards the far right side of the forest, the large, faded torii towering over the path. There had to be more wolves on the prowl around there.

"Yeah," Alex scoffed. "Always the one leaving us to do the dirty work, while he just drools over everything." Oh, Alex, you hypocrite. Like you weren't doing the same with Lara.

"Let's just get it over with," She sighed, shuffling her feet. "Do you want to split up?" She turned towards him. Fear flashed briefly in her eyes, as if pleading him to not say yes. But Alex wasn't looking at her. He didn't quite know what to say.

He wanted to stay with her for obvious reasons, but considering what had happened with the wolves before, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to protect her as he had intended. Yet, at the same time, if he went alone, he certainly wouldn't be able to protect himself, and that he was sure of. However, he didn't want Lara to view him as the overly-dependent, waste of space, good-for-nothing liability. So, he considered tagging along with her so that her company would help him summon the confidence to actually defend himself, and her, whose well-being he cared more about than his own.

"I'd rather go with you, if you don't mind." Alex said casually, burrowing his hands in his pockets.

No, Lara didn't mind. In fact, she almost wanted to kiss Alex for being the first person that wouldn't leave her alone to do anything, no matter what. She was so grateful for the sense of comfort he gave her just by being in her company, and even if he wasn't the best at defending himself. Lara was never the best at defending herself, either, especially before she arrived on this island, but she did learn, and she knew Alex would, too. Even if it was from her.

Lara just nodded, and began to walk towards the torii, hoping she would get lucky and find a few salvage crates. She followed the path, walking under a large cherry blossom tree whose branches stretched out over her head. Alex followed closely behind, wondering if Lara was feeling like she was going to piss herself just like he was. He looked from left to right consistently like a paranoid pedestrian, his chin tucked into his collar, expecting a wolf to just creep up on them at any minute.

And as he heard a snarl from behind them, he was 110% convinced that he had the absolute worst luck in the entire universe.

Again, the damned bullies came in a pair, one of them sprinting towards Lara before she could even ready her bow.

Now's my chance.

It was like a scene from some crappy, low-budget action movie - everything seemed to enter this cinematic slow motion. Alex raised his pistol as he watched the thing's paws lift from the ground at a snail's pace, outstretched towards Lara, but he would die before he'd let it hurt her. He squeezed the trigger, a bang ripping through his eardrums, and the recoil jolting him back slightly, watching the wolf collapse to the ground, dead as a doorknob.

I just fired a gun. An actual gun.

Before he, or maybe even Lara, had time to admire his handiwork, and fully digest what neither of them thought would actually happen, he spun around on his heel and fired another shot at the other wolf, killing it as well.

Lara's bow was still at her back.

Her face was overcome with astonishment, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. Lara was never judgmental of other people based on her first look at them, but she hadn't really expected someone like Alex to grasp the concept of kill or be killed that easily. Or grasp the concept of how to fire a gun when the only guns he's ever actually fired were the ones on first person shooters. Alex almost smiled smugly at her reaction, and was about to dish out some quip about how she should expect the unexpected, but decided to take a more modest and humble approach.

"I - I did it." He gasped in expertly executed disbelief, being cautious to express as much astonishment as she had.

Lara nodded imperceptibly, her astounded expression never leaving her face. "You did," She breathed. Suddenly, her expression broke out into a wide, genuine smile. "I'm proud of you."

Alex blushed as a bashful smile of his own spread across his face, looking away and resisting the urge to scratch the back of his neck. Lara never took her eyes off him, and his blushing intensified when he looked back and noticed that for himself. They spent the next minute or so just smiling at each other like giddy middle schoolers, before Lara broke the mutual gaze, looking further down the hill.

"We should get going." She told him, turning around and gutting the wolves for salvage, and beginning to lead the way down the slope, as though nothing had happened.

"Right." Alex responded, trying hard to keep the disappointment out of his tone.

They walked past a fallen tree before seeing some more dilapidated steps up ahead, leading up to what looked like a shrine. Noticing a salvage crate at the right side of the steps, Lara dashed towards it.

"Another shrine." Lara whispered to herself, prying the crate open with her axe.

Collecting the salvage and heading up the steps, she saw that the stone figure in the center of the shrine was crumbling and in ruins, some of its remnants discarded across its lap. Now, in its current state, it was difficult to decipher the figure's identity.

"Who are they worshipping?" She wondered aloud, spotting another salvage crate right next to the statue. She pried the crate open, pocketed the salvage, and stood up, mumbling, "Right, that should do it. Let's hope we don't run into any more wolves on our way back."

Alex chuckled with a hint of uneasiness as Lara descended the staircase, allowing her to lead the way again. "Let's hope you don't jinx it, now."

Lara smiled and shook her head jokingly, thumbing at her bowstring just in case. They walked back up to the camp in silence, Alex's arm unintentionally taut against his pistol holster.

Lara seemed to have a lot more luck than he did, so she may not jinx anything, but most likely not as much luck as he would think, now that he was with her. He wished he wasn't such a screw-up, that he was close enough to her that he didn't have to think of what he was going to say before he said it. Because, if he was, they'd be making so much light of this situation, constantly cracking jokes and laughing at pointless shit with no inhibitions whatsoever. His jokes were funny, if you allowed yourself to hear them, and he was thinking Lara wouldn't appreciate them, since just talking to her was like stepping into a minefield. One misstep, and you are out of there. Bye. Adios. Sayonara. Do svidaniya. If he were closer to her, that minefield would be so much easier to navigate.

You want to get closer to Lara, don't you, Alex? Why don't you go out on a limb and talk to her, to alleviate the awkward, maybe?

Finally, his conscience was actually becoming somewhat helpful instead of berating for once. Still, he hesitated.

"So," Alex began as they walked back up the gentle slope of the hill, gulping as he took his first step into the minefield. "When do you think we'll be seeing some action here?" He had thought it was an innocent question, but unbeknownst to him, he had just unearthed some pretty bad memories that Lara was trying so hard to bury into nonexistence.

Lara clenched her jaw, pressing her lips into a hard line, and kept quiet. She had seen enough 'action', and she wanted to see no more. All she wanted was to go home and forget everything that had happened on this island. When she kept silent for a good few seconds after Alex asked, he could almost feel the cost of his misstep in the minefield setting off a chain reaction of explosions around him. Game over. He sighed, deciding it was best if he just remained quiet.

Soon enough, they returned to the camp, Lara heading over to the campfire and sitting in front of it with her legs crossed. She removed all the salvage from her pockets, setting it down on the space of ground before her legs. She fumbled with the parts for a bit, trying to figure out which part would go where, like a jigsaw puzzle. It all looked pretty complicated to Alex. But before he knew it, Lara was breezing through this, as if they were merely a bunch of lego pieces. Little time passed before she was done. She clutched the finished product in her hand - a reinforced pry axe that actually looked legitimate, like it could be sold in a retail hardware store. Alex couldn't be more impressed. He knew he'd never last a day on this island without someone like Lara.

She rose from her spot at the campfire, heading to the gate with the axe in hand. Whitman, who was still marvelling at the gate, looked over his shoulder.

"Alright, Lara? Shall we give it a go, then?" He asked her, walking towards the right crank.

Lara nodded. "Let's do this, doctor."

"Whenever you're ready."

She went up to the left crank, thrusting the knob of the axe into the well as she had done before, and moving it in a circular motion as the gate began to rise. She continued circling the knob around the well until the gate was more than high enough for all three of them to pass through, the newly revealed path leading them deeper into the forest.

She removed her axe from the well as Whitman gestured at the two of them to follow him, the gate slowly beginning to close. Alex ran up the stairs and stood behind Lara, who followed Whitman through the gate. Whitman held the gate for Alex, and let it go once Alex was through.

The gate hit the ground with a light thud. Whitman walked ahead, stopping at a lantern to light his torch.

"That female figure on the gate," Whitman began.

Lara stopped to light her own torch, and Whitman stopped as well, waiting for her at the steps. Once it was lit, they continued walking. Alex decided to keep to his word, and stay quiet for the duration of their conversation. Not just because he didn't want to make things worse for the relationship he'd hoped to have with Lara, but because he was ignorant on this sort of thing, and didn't want to ask any stupid questions that he knew would receive stupid answers. They were educated enough to know what they were talking about, so he felt it wise to just keep them to it without him interrupting.

"Given the age of the symbols, it could be the Sun Queen."

"Himiko?" Lara wondered, furrowing her brows. Could it be the Sun Queen? Could she have been the figure left in shambles at the shrine she saw earlier? The deity that the people on this island were worshipping?

"Are you sure you're not channeling Sam, Dr. Whitman?" She asked sternly, a hint of teasing in her tone.

"Well, there's no doubt, Himiko had power. Some say shamanistic. Elemental!" He exclaimed.

As they walked, the light of their torches revealed various intricate carvings etched on a stone wall. As much as she wanted to stay and theorize their origins for a while, and try to decode their cryptic characteristics, Roth was her priority for now. Along with high-tailing it out of this crazy place.

"A woman wields that much power, and sooner or later it gets called witchcraft." Lara deadpans.

They passed more carvings, and, judging by the ever-growing number of torii they walked through, Lara knew there must be another shrine nearby.

"We shouldn't discount anything, even what may seem to us, irrational. We still have much to learn about the world." He assured her.

Lara sighed, her stomach churning at the familiarity of Whitman's words. "You sound like my father."

"It could be one hell of a story, Lara."

Alex rolled his eyes. There he goes, with the showbiz and the 'stories'. Alex thought that that was pretty much all he was in it for. The stories, and the influx of money that goes with them. Alex didn't quite trust him. He'd probably be the type of person to leave the entire group to perish on this island if it meant he got to go back home with a ton of cash, interviewers, and public attention waiting for him. But even if they had survived, he'd still find a way back to civilization and manage to make up a story about how 'deeply saddened' he was that his colleagues have 'died', to earn a few more bucks for sympathy.

"Not if we don't live to tell it." Lara mutters.

The stone barrier that burrowed them into the path began to open up, the soft, distant glow of lit candles just ahead of them. Lara parted her lips in slight perplexity, plodding towards the candles, and noticing another stone figure sitting behind them, most of them unlit or toppled over. This must've been the completed, miniature version of the statue she saw at the shrine earlier.

"Incredible!" Whitman marveled. "It is Himiko!"

Lara was still confused. "But look, the bowl, the candles," She placed a hand over them, her skin absorbing their warmth, "Why is she still being worshipped?"

"This island, it must've once been a part of Yamatai! You were right, Lara!" Whitman concluded, and although Alex wasn't facing him, he could sense the dollar signs flashing in his eyes. Lara, who was looking straight at him, didn't seem to see them.

"The lost kingdom!" She breathed in disbelief.

"It's like finding Atlantis."

"But this is real, Dr. Whitman. We're not standing on a myth." Lara retorted dryly.

"No, we're standing on a gold mine!" Now, Alex wasn't the only one who saw the dollar signs.

Before Lara could say anything else, a rustle sounded in the trees nearby, and Alex stiffened, his hand slowly sliding up to his pistol holster. Whitman and Lara turned around, Lara's heart racing. An eccentrically-dressed older male emerged from the bushes.

"Come, quickly. Your friends are hurt." The man said in a thick, foreign accent, raising both his hands in defense when Whitman instinctively aimed his pistol at him, but not a trace of fear was expressed on his face.

"Yes, probably by them!" Lara whispered, scrutinizing the man's blank expression.

"Get back!" Whitman warned, his finger resting against the trigger. Alex had his own gun trained on the strange man, and, unlike Whitman, wasn't afraid to actually shoot if he had to. Still, Alex wasn't a 'shoot now, ask questions later' kind of guy.

"They can't be trusted!" Lara hissed. Whitman veered his aim towards another man with his bow aimed towards Lara, standing on a ledge above them. Alex, following Whitman's aim, was just about to pull the trigger, before hearing the pistol click in noncompliance. Jesus tap-dancing Christ. No more bullets.

Really, Reyes? Giving Alex a virtually useless pistol with only two goddamn bullets? Alex gritted his teeth, knowing that Reyes was only giving him such a useless weapon because she knew he'd be too much of a pussy to actually put it to use. This is what he gets for trying to prove himself - another chance to prove himself, that was now spoiled. The irony of it all fucking sucked.

"You still have a gun." Lara implored, fear and desperation causing the gasps and faults in her speech. Whitman, with his gun still pointed at the man, looked over his shoulder, eyes closed, as if in thought, and his jaw set.

"I don't want any trouble," He began.

Lara gaped. "No."

Alex was appalled. "What are you doing?" Was he really considering surrendering to these people? They were unforgivable, and would betray you with the given chance. Lara knew that. She hated the fact that her best friend had to pay the price for her to find that out, but she knew that.

"We'll come," Whitman held the pistol in his right hand, stretching both his arms out in surrender. His finger no longer rested on the trigger.

"Nooo!" Lara whined, her face stricken with horror. She looked to Alex with pleading eyes, who was still trying to make it seem as though his gun was loaded, but he just shook his head hopelessly.

"But I insist that afterwards, you take us to whoever's in charge!" Whitman should've known better. They would rather just kill them all and be done with it. The strange man's lips were almost curling into a sinister smile, albeit imperceptible in Whitman's eyes. It was like a mouse trying to negotiate with a horde of starving cats.

"What are you doing?" Lara whimpered.

"Be quiet." Whitman had tried to sound firm, but his voice had faltered slightly. Talk about all bark and no bite. This high-and-mighty facade wasn't working for him at all. No one feared him, and no one was willing to vouch for him, or do what he said.

"No! No!" Lara shouted, her breath catching in her throat as she noticed the man on the ledge, his arrow still poised at her.

"I'm handling this!" Whitman yelled, taking small steps away from the pistol that he had gingerly placed on the ground. He's already made his point - everyone knew he was never going to use the pistol, anyway. Even Alex could've put it to better use. What a waste. It took all of Alex's self-control and dignity to not simply step over and knock him the hell out for talking a bunch of bullshit and acting like he had this under control, just so these crazy men wouldn't do it first.

Lara reached for her bow and haphazardly attempted to aim it at the man on the ledge, but she was a second too late. A man came up from behind her and pinned her to the ground, taking her by surprise and making the bow tumble out of her hands. He clenched her arms tightly with his bandaged hands as she yelped and squirmed, thrashing about like a fish out of water.

"No, please!" Whitman pleaded. His plea was futile, since he had done nothing to try to stop Lara's captor.

Alex gritted his teeth with such intensity his jaw began to throb. He was absolutely fed up with Whitman, trying to pass himself off as the strong, fearless leader when he had done nothing fully deserving of that title. It was time someone took charge, and Alex decided he would be that someone.

"Get off!" Lara shrieked, continuing to wriggle out of the man's grip. However, it was no use - he was much too strong, and his vise-like grip on her arms was beginning to make them throb with the lack of blood circulating through them. But Alex wasn't going to allow himself to just sit back and watch Lara suffer.

He was going to allow himself to make the person responsible for her suffering, suffer themselves.

He quickly sidestepped towards the man, pulling his left arm back behind his face. His left hand was curled up in a fist, his thumb on the outside of his fingers. Taking a solid step with his left foot, he lunged forward, his fist colliding with the man's left eye. The deafening crack of bones beneath Alex's fist, snapping effortlessly like balsa wood, was punctuated with the man's anguished howl.

He reflexively released Lara from his grip and raised his hands to cup his now swollen eye, and Lara took the opportunity to skitter away. But she couldn't move far enough. The man, momentarily dazed and blinded with rage, pain, and interminable streams of blood, swiped his leg across the ground to trip Alex, and regained his grip on Lara.

As Alex landed on the grass with a muffled thud, his head spinning for a brief second, he cursed himself for being so caught up in his disbelief that he had actually punched someone, for not focusing. If he had focused, he'd be able to dodge the guy's foot and whale on him until he was out cold. Give him what he deserved for hurting Lara.

But before he could get up, the guy from earlier with the accent came over, said something in his native language, and kicked Alex's chin up with the sole of his boot. Pain erupted in his chin as his head was yanked up, the impact all but beneficial to his already gritted teeth. His now crooked glasses pushed up to his forehead, and his chin throbbed.

"No! Please, don't hurt him!" Lara sobbed, her struggling incessant, even as her captor began to tie her hands behind her back.

The man crouched down, muttering what would seem to be insults in his language, and began to throw punch after punch on Alex's face, until Lara's protests and pleas for the man to stop hurting Alex were beginning to sound far away, and Whitman's faux-reassuring statements were echoing into nothingness. The gentle sliding of Alex's glasses from his forehead contrasted greatly against the profound bursts of pain and blood sprouting around his face, and he felt himself drifting away, falling, without an end to be seen. He was slowly losing himself, losing consciousness. Losing feeling.

Losing Lara.

Until there was nothing more to feel, and nothing more to lose.

Nothing but black.