So I realized after publishing the first chapter that I didn't put up any commentary, and I was too lazy to go back and fix it...so I apologize. So how the hell is everyone? It's been a few long weeks, hasn't it?! Hope everyone is doing well, getting ready for fall and winter and what not.

So how did you guys like Emily's side of the story? And meeting the Black Angel/Lost Knight? Well, get ready for some more, except this is Lara and Kurtis's side, which will reconvene with the rest of the story. So read on!!


Lara gripped the overhead rail in the chopper with a strong fist, clenching it both in anger directed towards Karel, and in fear for her daughter's life. We'll get her back, she repeated to herself over and over. We'll get her back, and she'll be fine. No matter how much she said it, though, she didn't believe herself.

They'd convinced themselves time and time again – Karel was a madman who would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. If Karel wanted Emily, he would get her, and use her for whatever sick, twisted purpose he had in mind. He was a sadist, to say the least, and he'd kidnapped Lara's child, the light of her life. I'm going to kill him, she thought angrily. I'll kill him, bring him back, and then kill him again. Her fist tightened on the railing with each passing thought.

"Do you see anything?" Kurtis called to the pilot over the whirring propellers.

"Sand, sand, and more sand," the pilot responded. "We're getting close to a village, though."

"No, we don't care about a village," Kurtis argued. "We're looking for a temple. A huge temple. Do you know what a temple is?"

"Take it easy," the pilot retorted. "I've got my scanner on for activity. If I see something, I'll let you know."

Kurtis sighed in frustration, leaning back in his seat across from Lara. When I find Karel, I'm going to shove my fist through his face, he thought. As if it would do anything – that was irrelevant. He needed to make Karel suffer some immediate physical pain, even if it was minimal. At least it would make Kurtis feel good.

He glanced up at Lara as she stared out the window, her gaze transfixed as though she hadn't moved in hours. The veins in her arm were protruding, indicating she was squeezing the railing hard enough to bend it in half. It wasn't until that moment that Kurtis noticed that he himself was actually drumming his fingers on the arm of the chair. He balled his hand into a fist to resist the urge to delve into the nervous habit, and instead, ran his fingers through his hair, leaning forward with a sigh. How much longer is this going to take? he thought.

All his worry and fear for Emily certainly brought one complex thought to mind – a small girl, whom he'd never met before, entered his life, was revealed to be his twelve-year-old daughter, and was then kidnapped by his nemesis. He found himself struggling to hold every fiber of his being together as his only child sat somewhere in the clutches of a sadistic murderer. What surprised him most about the situation was how much he cared. He hardly knew this kid. He didn't know much about her at all, in fact. Realistically speaking, she was just another life that needed saving. She just happened to carry his blood and lineage. For whatever reason, though, he was stressing over her situation as much as Lara was – and Lara had been with Emily her entire life.

Kurtis was amazed at how, in a quick instant, a young girl whom he was rescuing from bullies (out of pure necessity) turned out to be the young girl he'd put his life on the line for (out of both necessity and urge). He'd known her for a few days, and yet he carried the burden of her current predicament on his shoulders as though he'd been with her his whole life, as though he'd been there to rock her to sleep as a baby. As thought he'd been there to help her take her first steps. As though he'd been there to take her to karate practice, or to piano practice, or to teach her how to shoot a gun, or how to fight off a pack of menacing bullies.

Of course, he hadn't been there. Where had he been? In Lemuria, trapped beyond the unopened portal. It had taken him six years in Lemuria, and twelve years in reality, to finally find that damned portal, and to reach one of his brothers who could help him. The place had turned him into a brute, without question, but Lara and Emily had helped to bring him back to his senses, the only two people in the world that mattered more to him than anything else.

Lara sighed, leaning forward. "Can't you find her?" she asked Kurtis. "Can't you communicate with her somehow?"

"It doesn't work that way," Kurtis said regretfully. "I have to be within certain proximity to reach her. It's kind of like Farsee."

"But you don't know where she is," Lara countered. "She could be right below us…"

Kurtis sighed, leaning forward and closing his eyes. God, help me, he begged. Then he focused as hard as he could on the image of his daughter. His mind reacted in the way it would as if he were going into Farsee, although in a much more subtle manner. He searched the area for telepathic waves, hoping to find some sort of disturbance that would alert his senses. Emily, can you hear me? he asked into the hollow space.

Nothing. No response. Em, it's me. It's your father, he repeated. Emily…I'm so sorry. I should've taken better care of you. I should've been there for you. I should've been there to raise you. I should've come home sooner…

"Are you alright?" Lara asked, interrupting his silent reverie. He looked up at her, his thoughts fading away. "Fine," he said. "Why?"

"You're…you're trembling," she told him.

He glanced down at his hands. They were glistening with sweat from both anxiety and guilt. He sighed, clasping his palms together, and looked up at Lara. "I can't reach her," he said.

Lara sighed, fighting to hold herself together. "It's fine," she said quickly. "We'll reach her soon enough."

"Hey, folks," the pilot called. "I see something up ahead."

Lara and Kurtis quickly rose and entered the cockpit, although they knew they weren't supposed to. The pilot gestured towards the large stone building down below, and a fit of four train cabins stopped on the tracks beside it. "Surprisingly conspicuous for Karel," Lara said.

"Drop us off there," Kurtis directed quickly.

"I can't get that close," the pilot protested. "The incoming sand storm will down the chopper. I can stop here, but that's as far as I go."

"That's fine," Lara said quickly.

The pilot flicked several switches along the circuit board, and after a moment, the helicopter descended to the ground. As soon as they stepped outside, they were greeted by a wave of sand from the incoming storm. They quickly shielded their eyes as the pilot departed. Then, they trekked forward as the bits of sand dug into their skin like glass.

Kurtis stopped walking after a moment. "I'm going to try to reach her again," he said quickly. Lara stopped alongside of him, waiting for him to get to work. Kurtis reached his hands to his head again, closing his eyes. He drew in a deep breath, then focused again on the image of his daughter. Em? Are you there? he asked. He gained no response, but then figured after a moment that Emily was probably confused as to the intrusive voice in her head. Em, it's me. It's Kurtis…

Where are you? she responded.

Kurtis felt relief sink into his body. Your mother and I just arrived in Turkey. Do you know where you are?

In some weird temple, she replied. Karel dragged me down here.

Stay with me, Em, he directed her. That's the only way we can find you. Just hold on a little longer…

The sound of fear in Emily's voice made Kurtis numb with anxiety, and anxious over the thought of his daughter settled in fear somewhere deep inside the temple standing before them. "I've got her," Kurtis said quickly.

Lara looked up. "She responded?"

"She's inside the temple," he said. "Let's go."

They continued to move forward, picking up the pace to a steady jog. The white, stone temple enlarged in their view, and within seconds, they were standing just outside. "This has to be it," Lara said over the wind. "It's the only place around for miles, and it wasn't on the satellite feeds."

Kurtis loaded a fresh magazine into his gun, then holstered the weapon. He glanced back at the train. The edges of the cabins read 'Dublin'. "They're definitely here," he said quickly. "This train came all the way from Ireland."

Lara loaded new clips into her own guns, a look of duty and determination falling into her eyes. "Well, this is a tomb," she said. "Let's make them feel welcome."

You still there? Kurtis heard a voice ask.

Every time he heard her voice, he grew more fearful for her. He very well couldn't show that, though. He had to be strong, for her more than anything. I'm not going anywhere, Kurtis responded calmly. We're getting close. There's a large stone temple ahead…

That's it! Emily said quickly. That's where we went! Be careful. There are mercenaries inside, and beyond that, through the portal, Karel is waiting with his Cabal buddies.

Kurtis turned to Lara. "Let's go in," he said. They trudged forward, keeping their weapons low, ready to fire at the sight of any enemy nearby. They immediately stopped when they heard voices ahead. Must be the merks Emily warned about, Kurtis speculated. Lara peered around the corner, then nodded to him to confirm his suspicion. Kurtis drew in a deep breath. When I give you the word, he said to Emily, you need to run.

Run where? she asked fearfully. I'm trapped in a big room. There's nowhere to go.

Find somewhere, Kurtis said, even if you have to run in circles. Just get away from them. Of course, running in circles wouldn't necessarily get her anywhere, but it sure as hell would get her out of Karel's grip. Kurtis turned to Lara. "We're just going to have to storm our way through," he said quietly.

"My thoughts exactly," she finished. Kurtis reached his hand down slowly, removing the Chirugai from his belt. He stared down at it as though he didn't know what it was. When he looked up at Lara though, and saw the encouraging flicker of life in her eyes, he knew it was time. He nodded slowly to her, then used his powers to activate the glow. He threw the Chirugai forward and into the next room, killing five guards right off the bat. Then, he and Lara shoved out of their hiding places and moved forward, opening fire on anyone that stood in the way.

Lara moved along the left side of the room with quick speed, firing shots at anyone in her way. When her pistols were empty, she ducked behind a nearby pillar, then removed her assault rifle strapped to her back. She turned away, anger in her eyes, and started firing at the mercenaries blocking the portal. I'm going to have to take them out to get inside, she thought. Before she could open fire, though, the portal exploded, sending the guards flying forward into the wall ahead. Lara ducked behind the pillar, then moved back out, training her gun on the explosion. The portal had disappeared, but she could see what she'd assumed had lain beyond it just moments before.

Up ahead, there were several paths and hallways, intricate patterns along the walls, and a flickering glow at the end of her vision. She looked up to Kurtis, who was across the room. "Go, Lara!" he shouted. Without a second thought, she dived forward and rushed through the broken portal.

Emily ran through the halls of the temple as fast as she possibly could, not stopping for a breath, not stopping to look back, and not stopping to think. She just ran. She had no idea where she was going, but that seemed irrelevant. She just needed to get away from Karel and his freakish friends.

As she continued to rush through the halls, she noticed hallways and corridors that hadn't been there before. What happened when that explosion went off? she thought. Then, she remembered the Black Angel. Where the heck is that guy? She didn't really care – so long as he stayed away from her.

Emily skidded to a halt as she stood above what seemed to be an endless pitfall. She peered down into its depths, thankful she'd seen it ahead of time. That must be the way out, she thought, gazing up at the light at the end of the hallway opposite the path. Then, she turned away, glancing towards the right. There was another hallway that seemed to snake along in the same direction. It was the only option she had.

Emily bolted down the hallway, running along the dizzying corridor. Finally, she stopped. She knew she shouldn't, but she did. She leaned against the wall, her heart pounding, her lungs empty. I think I'm going to be sick, she thought as she leaned over, ready to heave her insides. She closed her eyes, counting to three. Then, she looked up, turning down the hallway only to come face-to-face with a dead end. Fan-bloody-tastic, she thought regretfully. She turned away, ready to return to her original path, but stopped dead in her tracks when she found herself staring into the face of the Black Angel.

Emily's knees began to shake, and her legs became stiff. Run! she commanded herself. Run away! She couldn't. Her body wouldn't respond. The skeletal knight stood before her, seemingly staring into the core of her soul. She backed away until she felt herself against the wall. There was nowhere to run. She was his now.

The knight began to speak to her in the muffled, deep voice he'd spoken in before, talking in the language she didn't understand. Was he speaking to her, or at her? Emily began to take small, inching steps towards the right, hoping to make it back to the hallway. "Please help me," she said quietly, trying to remain as calm as possible. "God, please help me…"

The knight continued to speak. Then, he reached his hand forward. Emily startled and pulled away, but found that he was only reaching out to her. He held his hand in her direction. What does he want? she thought. She didn't know why, but he wasn't trying to hurt her. Strangely enough, he seemed less dangerous than Karel.

Emily heard scuffles coming from the corridor beyond, and she looked up in time to see Kurtis approaching with his gun held at eye-level. His eyes grew wide at the sight of the skeletal knight standing before Emily, and he took a cautious step back, lowering his gun so he wouldn't appear as a threat. "Emily…" he said slowly, "come this way very carefully…"

The knight took a small step towards her, his hand still extended in her direction. He was growing impatient. "Stay back…" she said nervously as she backed towards the wall. He continued to speak in the foreign language, impatience edging into his tone. Emily glanced up at Kurtis, but he was lowering his weapon, as if confused by what was going on. "Dad, help me…" she begged.

Dad? Kurtis thought, stunned. It was the first time Emily had actually called him that. It shocked him, to say the least, but the task at hand was far more important. He holstered his gun and took slow, steady steps in Emily's direction, reaching his hand towards her. She inched closer in his direction, raising her hand ever so subtly to take his own hand. Suddenly, the knight turned, recognizing Kurtis's presence for the first time. He groaned in anger, and reached a hand backwards, shoving Kurtis back into the wall down the hallway.

Emily saw it as the window of opportunity. She quickly bolted past the skeleton warrior and towards her father, who was already regaining his footing. He opened fire on the knight long enough to stun him, then turned down the hallway, dragging Emily along by the arm. He knew she wouldn't be able to keep up with him, but if he had to, he would carry her. They needed to get out now.

Kurtis shoved Emily forward, and she fell through a very thin wall of energy – likely where the portal had been. Kurtis quickly reached her side, but nearly plowed into Lara as she emerged from a nearby corridor. "Mom!" Emily shouted in relief.

"We need to move!" Lara said quickly. She ushered Emily forward, and Kurtis followed after. Lara removed a grenade from her belt and pulled the pin out. Just as she looked up, she saw an undead warrior coming her way. Don't these guys ever quit? she thought. She threw the grenade into the space before her, and the explosion separated her from the knight in the distance. Then, she turned away, following after Kurtis and Emily. Time to get the hell out of here, she thought.

trfanfrombeg: I hadn't even thought of that until after you wrote that. It DOES remind me of that scene from the Mummy Returns!! =D

OveractiveImaginer: God DAMMIT, did I do it AGAIN?!?!?! Oy. I gotta pay more attention -_-

Alright everyone, I'll catch you on Friday, October 9. Stay tuned!! =D