She threw her arm over the ledge, propping herself upward until she'd finally reached the peak of the shrine. Ancient statues lay in ruin near her position, statues of ancient Tsars long gone, having faded into history along with the other leaders and the architects of the great palaces and monuments of old.
Lara Croft could see it just ahead, the casket on the dais, containing the lost Siberian Sickle. And there were no traps in sight, the other traps in the old Mo'a'dania Temple had been just as tricky as the others she'd seen in previous ancient temples.
Catching a quick breather, she dusted off her tank top and shorts, then she unzipped her bag and was about to approach the dais until a grunting sound and gasps for breath perked her attention. Lara turned around and saw the hand of her associate, Oskar Bessington, trying to grab something.
"Oi..." The Scottish boy said, "Little aid, Lara?"
Lara reached out and took Oskar's hand, helping him make it up to the top of the temple. Oskar coughed and caught his breath as he stepped away from the edge.
"I need more exercise." Oskar remarked.
"You were doing just fine." Lara said, "We made it past the traps and you kept up while we were running."
"Aye, but, I should do more climbing and more athletics." Oskar coughed, "Climbing those cliffs and these walls, don't think I've done them before. And I thought I learned everything from me uncle and you, during all that time trainin'."
"Hey, don't get too hard on yourself, my good Scottish associate." Lara pat him on the shoulder, "We all need the exercise, plus, you are right that we could get more exercise with that wall-climbing. Now, why don't we worry about that later and take care of the treasure, eh?"
"That sickle's gonna be worth a lot for the museum..." Oskar straightened himself, "...especially since the legends around it make it a target for those who wanna use it for their own gains. Nothin' compared to the Loch Ness Charm that keeps the beastie from eating on shore."
"You got that right, lad, you got that right." Lara nodded.
The two adventurers stepped away from the edge and walked towards the dais, Lara prepped her gun just in case anyone came out to attack her and Oskar. Plus, there were likely still traps to worry about.
Click!
Lara and Oskar stepped back, taking their foot off the loose floor switch, just before a hole in one of the old statues opened up and a projectile fell out, an old rusty spear.
"Blimey, thank goodness that damn thing doesn't work anymore." Lara said.
"These Tsarist Siberian treasurer fellas didn't do a good job keepin' their traps in good condition for the modern era if they were setting up something like that..." Oskar rambled, "Who just leaves a trap-riddled shrine without anybody else around to keep things in good condition?"
Lara turned back towards the dais. "That was probably the only one left, we're not that far from the platform." The shapely British archeologist murmured.
Oskar stood and grunted. "Well, let's get it then before we start dealin' with potentially more Indiana Jones-type madness and we somehow get speared or hit by a boulder." He said, "Or mercenaries show up..."
"Don't push it, lad."
"Aye."
They walked around the fallen spear and made their final walk towards the platform, stepping closer to the dais with the casket in reach. Lara slowly peeled open the rusty old lid, blowing off the dust and peeling away the cobwebs. There it was, glinting in the afternoon sunlight, the Siberian Sickle, it seemed to let off a magic glow.
Lara opened her adventure pouch on her belt and picked up the artifact, finally claiming it as Oskar's face brightened with a smile. The British adventurer placed it in her bag and pat her companion on the shoulder with a grin.
"We did it." Lara said, "More treasure for us and the museum."
"Now we get out before somethin' happens 'ere."
Just then, the duo heard helicopter sounds and looked up to see a chopper flying in. Lara could hear Russian chatter, even from a distance. Oskar pulled out his pistol from his pocket, something told the both of them that trouble wasn't too far away.
The helicopter came closer towards the shrine and a tall man in black shades and a dark-green uniform climbed out, setting foot upon the shrine. He looked at Lara and she could recognize his face, the face of a dangerous man she had not seen in quite some time, not since that day at the Russian museum...
Solvetsky Romanov removed the sunglasses that he was wearing on his face, smirking dangerously at the archeologist as a pair of men made their appearance, guns clicking in their hands.
"Been some time, Croft." The terrorist said.
Lara gripped her PK Walter intensely. "I didn't think I'd be seeing you again, especially here." She remarked, "And if I bumped into anyone, I'd expect Montana Jane. How the hell did you manage to get out of jail after our scuffle at the museum?"
"Glupaya britanskaya zhenshchina-arkheolog. (Foolish British archeologist woman.)" Solvetsky sneered, "I have many allies in the Russian police and the Kremlin, we even managed to get the Russian Communist Party on our side, my associates can be very persuasive. And every day, my movement's numbers grow by sonti.
"We have... a few lawyers. I only spent a week in jail before my most trustworthy members of my cause secured my release. And now, I have come for the Siberian Sickle for it holds unimaginable power beyond imagination."
Oskar stepped forward. "What do you even want with it, eh?" He asked, "We ain't givin' it to ya for free."
Solvetsky's men aimed their guns at Lara and Oskar.
"Quiet the muzhestvo from a shotlandskiy mal'chik." Solvetsky remarked as he approached the two, "They say the Siberian Sickle can grant wishes to those who holds it. With the Sickle's power, I can restore the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which I will rule as its leader."
"Communism will never enslave Eastern Europe again." Lara told Solvetsky.
The renegade Russian laughed and pinched Lara's chin. "Oh, Croft." He said, "The Soviet Union won't just encompass Eastern Europe, IT WILL ENCOMPASS ALL OF EUROPE AND ENGLAND! From the Baltic to the Atlantic, the hammer-and-sickle will fly high with us as the dominant superpower. Now, the Sickle..."
Lara acted quick and kicked Solvetsky in the shin, she punched him in the face and knocked him against one of the statues. She and Oskar shot at his men and ran towards the helicopter, taking out more of Solvetsky's terrorists along the way.
Both adventurers made it on board and shot the pilot. The helicopter swerved and spun, but Lara quickly took the controls and began flying away from the shrine while Solvetsky cursed in Russian. Oskar took control of a machine gun that was in the chopper, offering to man it for Lara.
Right then and there, more helicopters appeared, making it obvious that Solvetsky's squad was much larger than Lara or Oskar had anticipated.
Gunfire erupted as bullets whizzed around the hijacked helicopter. Lara swerved to avoid the shots and Oskar fired back, taking out the engines on one of the choppers before nailing the side of another.
However, it seemed that Solvetsky was far from done as another chopper swooped in, getting closer towards Lara and Oskar's helicopter. To Oskar's surprise, the helicopter catching up carried none other than Solvetsky himself.
"NONE OF YOU ARE GETTING AWAY WITH THAT FUCKING SICKLE!" Solvetsky declared as he leaped onto the chopper, he tackled Oskar and pulled out a pistol, putting it up to his head with a cold snarl.
"Hand it over..." The Russian demanded, "...or you're joining those who foolishly opposed the genius of Stalin's Russia. I WILL RESTORE THE REIGN OF THE BOLSHEVIKS AND PRESERVE LENIN'S VISION OF A COMMUNIST WORLD! CAPITALISM IS SICK AND THE SOVIET UNION IS THE FUTURE!"
"Capitalism is sick, you say?"
Lara had stepped away from the controls of the helicopter, which swerved into Solvetsky's chopper and sparks flew as the two choppers collided. Lara kicked the rogue terrorist off Oskar and Solvetsky got back up, snarling with fury that he was once more being opposed by a British archeologist.
He made a grab for Lara's belt, but the brave Englishwoman punched him in the nose and twisted his wrist, causing the nose-bleeding Solvetsky to grunt in pain. Solvetsky aimed his pistol at Lara, who drew hers and shot a bullet at his hand, causing him to drop the gun.
"Grebanaya suka!" Solvetsky yelled, clutching his bleeding knuckles, "I'll teach you to oppose the spirit of Soviet glory, you grudastaya britanskaya shlyukha! We're far from finished, you damn archeologist! I will restore the honor of the Soviet Union and you will be nothing, Croft!"
BLAM! Oskar shot Solvetsky in the leg and Lara kicked the Russian lunatic out, watching has he stumbled into the other helicopter, grabbing onto a railgun to save himself. Lara grabbed the controls of the helicopter she and Oskar were using and pulled away while the other chopper spiraled towards the ground below.
"We have the Sickle?" Oskar asked.
Lara opened her pouch and showed it to her friend. "All secure..." She said with a nod.
Oskar sat down in a seat, breathing a sigh of relief even as the helicopter jolted and sparks flew from the collision. Lara gripped the controls gently and flew over the jungle, leaving the Mo'a'dania Temple far behind with another adventure behind them.
They would land the helicopter in a short while and then head back to England by plane, all was going smoothly. Meanwhile, Solvetsky stepped away from the crashed helicopter, shaking his fist angrily, having lost to Lara Croft once more.
But one day, he would get her, one day...
The End