I usually aim for weekly updates, sorry about this being 2 days overdue :3

Thank you all my reviewers for your wonderful support -

nemesis: God I'm a hopeless romantic too when it comes to LCxKT :D But I really, really want to develop their characters, let them speak to me, and perhaps then, we could see them falling in love soon - maybe? :D Thanks for your review! :)

gyikhu: Thank you for your review! :) and thanks for that - I was aiming at making the reader feel the atmosphere lol :D

Angy1996: She's going to be very useful to the plot, I assure you =D thanks for the review! :)

and LithiumSiege: Poor Kurtis.. Being stabbed by Boaz was the worst way any character could make an exit =( But its great that us writers on are keeping him alive via . Thanks a tonne for your review! =)

*hands out cookies for all*

And I'm also sorry if this chapter and the last one were a tad boring - I figured giving our heroes a chapter or two worth rest is important before they try and hit the action again :D

Here's the next chapter! :)

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider

RETURN OF DARKNESS

Chapter 2: Reawakening

The duo had reached the hospital in less than half an hour – and while unconscious Kurtis was immediately taken for surgery, Lara was left with a pile of paperwork and formalities to fulfill. She had had the sense to pack their weapons in her backpack before hand, and whilst preparing Kurtis for surgery, his belongings – keys, wallet and knapsack – were handed to her.

Raiding through his belongings, Lara came across a lot of interesting things. Her blue-eyed companion's last name read Trent, as per his French passport and Foreign Legion ID. A tattered American passport referred to a teenage Kurtis as Heisstrum DeCombel. Lara nodded, remembering she saw a statue of DeCombel, a Lux Veritatis knight when solving the underwater puzzle in the Vault of Trophies.

His 3 credit cards were based on 3 different aliases and he just had 40 euros worth of cash on him. Alongside a list of handwritten names with the letters with the letters "Cr.'' scrawled and underlined. These were Kurtis' creditors - Clearly Mr. Trent was having a hard time making ends meet.

As the surgery went into its third hour, the police eventually tracked down Lara at the hospital. Pausing from the paperwork, Lara looked up to see 2 inspectors in worn out suits move toward her. They sat down opposite beside her in the plastic chairs and explained the situation to her. With the Strahov being almost blown apart, the authorities had more digging to do and at the moment, they would keep Lara's "case" on hold. Paperwork still in lap whilst cradling her long-cold coffee, Lara answered their questions – putting the major portion of the blame on Eckhardt and trying to evade the supernormal side of affairs. The inspectors assured her that with recent evidence they had and were collecting from the Strahov, the odds were in her favour and it was highly unlikely that Lara would be charged with any degree of murder. But before she is cleared, she would be required to answer more questions from the authorities and aid them in catching (rather identifying) the real culprits.

Thanking them for their time, with the sweetest smile the raider could muster, Lara returned to fulfilling the paperwork. That, and praying to every single god and deity she ever read about to protect Kurtis and let him live. After submitting the papers, she stretched her legs in the uncomfortable chair, crossing them at the ankles while allowing her head to rest in her palm. A sad fact then dawned upon her – after Werner and Winston, he was the closest thing she had to a friend. And as caught up in the events as she was, Lara never even properly grieved for Werner. She grinded her jaw when tears sprang upto her eyes, after all, the one person who truly taught her how to live was dead; albeit avenged.

'You still have Kurtis!' a small voice exclaimed in the corner of her mind. Shocked at the thought, she allowed her mind to justify the notion. 'Kurtis,' she thought, and felt a slight sigh escape her lips. Her partner – seeming to share almost the same traits as her. 'Bold, shamelessly bold, and human…' she thought, a ghost of a smile framing her features. She was nodding and agreeing with herself, reminiscing about the Louvre... 'But you better tread carefully, girl,' she warned herself. It was not long before the raider's lids drooped as sleep overcame her, as she welcomed the darkness and solace it brought along with it.

Coughing from the smoke and gasping for air, she made her way through the burning Strahov – aware of the fact at their arrival, the police would soon take over the place. Yet she smiled to herself – she still had a good few hours, for even with this ticking time bomb, it would take the fire brigade a considerable while to put out the fire. She was practically home free.

Soon the foundations combusted, and as a flaming beam fell, she rolled forward into an awaiting elevator for safety. Ignoring the warning to evacuate, she looked at the options on the elevator. Recalling from whatever notes she had gathered, Eckhardt and the Cabal had unexplained, profound love for underground caverns. Shrugging, she pressed a button marked Aquatic research II – the second most lowest floor of the Strahov (the last being "containment"). The Vault of Trophies – an ancient making of the warrior-monks Lux Veritatis, was based on a flooded passage and deep abyss under the Strahov. 'This level,' she concluded mentally, 'would surely give some clue as to what became of the last Obscura painting… and Eckhardt.'

Once the elevator doors opened, she found herself in an area relatively unaffected by the fire or the explosion. She could imagine with a building the size of the Strahov, some underground parts can remain unaffected. She could only guess the source of the explosion was somewhere far – for this area seemed to be the epitome of peace and tranquility.

An arena, of sorts – she mused. Getting her bearings, she realized she was standing on a raised platform, with a control panel besides an opening. Below this platform sprawled a huge plain – the middle portion of the floor sealed with circular metal. Water from beneath the floor reflected light gently onto her razor sharp features - even through the small holes, she seemed like an ethereal beauty. Hanging from the edge, she dropped down from the platform, onto the arena. Far toward the left, she saw a mutant carcass – seemingly of a giant spider-cum-scorpion. Right beside the metal floor, a decapitated nymph lay – ruptured brains and foul acid seeping from its ugly head and neck. Yet it was the crop of black hair that intrigued her. Bending down, she grasped the head from the black hair, and gently picked up the head, to look at the grotesque features of the bullet-ridden face. There was no mistaking the general ugliness of the creature.

"Boaz," she muttered aloud, before gulping.

Letting the head fall back into a splatter of its own brains, she eyed Muller's desecrated body in a corner – already rotting. A deep sense of hatred blossomed within her chest – which was soon crushed by intrigue as she approached a pool of blood in the middle of the metal floor, crimson dripping down into the water below. Still fresh. She wondered if it belonged to Croft, or the man with her.

All the while, she felt strangeness in the air – as if it were charged by the very same source that powered her. Clutching the diamond amulet-pendant at her neck, she felt her weapon vibrate with power beside her leg. Glancing a small opening, at the far end of the room, she went inside and saw a staircase. "Here goes nothing," she muttered to herself and made her way down the staircase – towards the lost domain.

Karel morphed into Kurtis – lifeless, stony blue eyes staring at her. 'You can trust me, Lara Croft,' he promised. Lies. All lies.

The Sanglyph was not enough. Two negatives do not make a positive in this case. The Sleeper watched her through open, crimson slits – for it had survived. And it would extract its revenge.

'You humans break so easily.' Those words, echoing as if put on an endless loop. Werner, Carvier, Bouchard, Vasiley, Luddick… Kurtis?

She was back again at the arena - bent over Kurtis' cold body, sobbing over his bloodless face, holding his sinewy neck to her face and weeping bitterly. 'Not you… please Kurtis, not you – not again…' she said amidst muffled cries and sobs. 'Please…'

"Miss? Wake up – Miss Croft?"

Eyes fluttering open, Lara opened her eyes to see the elderly male doctor – who had immediately taken her partner for surgery, gently waking her up.

"I-uhh… Sorry I dozed off…" Lara muttered an apology.

The considerate doctor smiled warmly. "It is quite alright, child. We have just come out from surgery. Could you see me in my office?"

Lara merely nodded and followed the medicine practitioner into his work-place. Throwing away the smock, mask and disposable bandana, Dr. Maurice retired behind his desk as Lara sat across him. Fear and tension were practically choking her – all that for someone whom she had met just 2 days ago, and exchanged just a few lines – baring business. She would have mocked herself if she were not so afraid.

"Is he-?" she couldn't complete the question. The visions of her nightmare danced before her eyes.

"Ms Croft, I must tell you that your friend here was seriously hurt," began the doctor, sounding serious. "I have never, in all my years of practice, have come across such a grave case. And..." he paused dramatically. Raising his eyebrows in unfeigned wonder, he added "And astounding recovery."

Lara's spirits lifted a bit at this news, as she let out a breath she never realised she was holding. The doctor stood up and pointed to a skeleton hanging in the office. "The spear – as you said was what impaled him – went clean through his back and out from his torso. In doing so, it ruptured around 3 of Mr Trent's spinal ligaments – which caused him immense difficulty in even standing up. Yet what I have experienced is nothing short of a miracle!" the doctor exclaimed as his accent thickened, fixing his gaze at the raider. "Due to the rupturing, the patient's vertebra was knocked out of alignment – although he sustained no spinal injury as such. However, the torn ligaments, which usually take around 6 months to heal completely, have already re-aligned the spine in place and started to strengthen it."

Lara did her best to look shocked, but she merely bit back a smile. Evidently, being a telekinetic and possibly telepathic alongside harbouring a whole other range of super-natural powers had its perks. No wonder every other day, some delusional fool went out hunting for artifacts to experience that kind of a high.

"So, you believe he's going to be fine?" she asked, keeping her voice steady.

"With the unusually speedy rate of recovery, the fact that most major organs missed the spear by mere millimeters, he should be just fine," he returned with a knowing smile.

For the first time in recent times, Lara felt genuinely joyous. Kurtis Trent or DeCombel or whatever his real name was – seemed to have cheated death right off its face, very much like herself. After asking his permission to see Kurtis, Lara strolled down the hallway, with the slightest bounce in her step and almost cheerily entered Kurtis' room.

Almost.

He was lying on the bed, fresh bandages covering his torso and midriff and going behind his right shoulder. Cuts and bruises marked his entire body. An oxygen mask was placed onto his face, hiding a portion of his profile, his hair was messily strewn across his forehead; his darkest of sea-blue eyes were closed and amongst the beeping equipment, Kurtis deep and strong breathing made up for the sounds in the hospital room. He was sleeping peacefully.

Walking over to him, Lara took in his profile – a slightly long face, high cheekbones, straight nose, unshaven stubble and even a scar under his left eye. Accompanied by a good six-feet plus strong, lean frame, tanned skin, black-brown hair and eyes that one can drown into – her partner was undoubtedly a helluva good-looking man. Feelings obviously shrouding her judgement, Lara unthinkingly bent down and kissed his forehead, while a solitary tear rolled out from her eyes and fell onto his cheek.

"Thanks for sticking around," she murmured to Kurtis, wiping her tears – shocked at herself. But more so at Kurtis, who began to stir and sigh, awakened by the raider.

Partially opening his bloodshot eyes, he moaned and as he tried to take in the surroundings. His first thought was that of pain – immense and sore, hurting his torso and a dull ache spreading behind his eyes. As his vision swam into focus, he saw Lara sitting beside him, holding his hand and softly calling his name. "L-lara?" he croaked. His throat felt like parchment.

"Yes, its me," she answered somberly. "You're at the hospital – and you're healing well."

Nodding, he looked about and took off the mask. 'God, I needed a cigarette,' he thought to himself. However as his senses sharpened, he felt tension in the air – something was not right.

Lara's mood darkened, as she recalled his aliases. He may have done her a favour by not dying, yes, but she still knew nothing about him. And whatever little she did know, was clouded with doubt. "Who are you?" she inquired, strongly now.

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me." Oddly enough, she felt her previous soft feelings melt away to an underlying fury. She knew next to nothing about this guy – and it was time she became more cautious - for strangers have usually done her more harm than good.

He was still in pain, but he gave her an incredulous look. "C-Come on," returned Kurtis, getting mildly agitated.

"Going through your belongings, I came across a number of aliases. So I have no idea if you are Troy Elliot, or Sheldon Turner, or Archer Smith, or Heisstrum DeCo -"

"Trent!" he shot, almost angrily.

Lara was taken aback at his harsh tone. "My name – used to be DeCombel. Its-Trent now." Lara relaxed a bit – although she had a whole bunch of questions to ask, she kept quiet. Being impaled was not exactly a pleasant experience, and he did save her life in a way, protected her from the monstrosity that was Boaz. Cold as she had become after Egypt, she realized she was in the wrong, and it was hardly the time to push Kurtis too hard.

"M-my bad," she admitted, bowing her head. "I just needed to be sure about your identity. I am through with unpleasant surprises – and this is definitely a conversation for another day."

"Amen…" Kurtis had enough strength to manage a small, humourless snigger. "My past- t'is long story. I-can imagine you hating my-guts when you hear-'bout it…" He spoke slowly, amidst pained sighs. "Or what's-left-of-my-guts-anyway," he added in a matter-of-fact tone.

His self-deprecating humour brought a faint smile to her lips. "Trent, we've all made our mistakes," she began only to be cut off by him.

"My mistakes- cost me every-single-person I loved," he added darkly, closing his eyes and trying to fight the pain in his guilt-ridden soul. "Please. We'll talk 'bout this... Another day…" he shook his head.

"Agreed," Lara muttered before helping him sit up a bit, and giving him water to drink. An uncomfortable silence took over.

"How-long would I be in this... hell-hole?" he asked, sounding tired all of a sudden.

"Being super-natural is aiding your healing process, Kurtis – you needn't fret that much. A couple of weeks, I should imagine," Lara speculated. "After all, your managed to sow your spinal ligaments by yourself in barely a few hours, when it should have taken you months."

Kurtis laughed at that, the bracketed skin beside his mouth deepening into side dimples. It was the first time she had seen him give a genuine smile. Lara unconsciously added "amazing smile" to her ever-increasing list of Kurtis' handsome physical attributes. That, before she gave herself a harsh, mental slap. "I'll be-out in less than half-the-time," he said lowly.

"But even that would mean at least a month," she notified him. After seeing his acknowledgement, she yawned and stretched herself – exhaustion descending upon her once more. "Where you staying?" asked Kurtis.

"No idea – but I should be going now, visiting hours must be ending-" she paused, considering how ridiculous the words she had just uttered actually were to her.

"Not that you've ever-cared about such limits," remarked the demon hunter, his azure eyes flaming with the same teasing playfulness as they had in the Louvre.

Lara mustered a small smile. "Not that I've ever cared, true –" admitted the adventurer. "But I believe its high time I treated myself to a nice, hot shower and a good night's sleep, if you don't mind" she returned as she got up and collected her stuff. "I'll be back to see you tomorrow, Kurtis. Get well, please."

"Will do. You stay warm," he returned, sinking back on the pillows.

Smiling, the raider exited the room. Thinking about how a man like Kurtis would calm and enrage her within seconds – as if her hormones and emotions were riding the wildest roller-coaster. That and deluding herself that everything was going to be alright.

Eckhardt's lab had been reduced to nothing more than broken wooden beams and slabs of stone. Moving carefully over the rubble, she wondered what exactly had caused the explosion, considering the alchemist had cast all kinds of charms upon his workplace to protect it from various accidents, combustion being one of them. She knelt down, crawled under a beam, and rolled down the slide towards the main door of the underground arena – the heart of Eckhardt's activity. Huge boulders and beams had sealed the main doors shut – but she had found a vent opening, high up above the doors. Spotting a ledge, she jumped up to grab it, and proceeded to jump further up to grab the tiles above the doorway, and the third jump, she clutched the edge of the vent. Hauling herself up, she shot the exhaust fan, kicking the blades out from her way and rolled into the arena.

Like the lab, this place was reduced to mere rubble as well. But before she could contemplate the destruction, her sixth sense tingled and she obliged, jumping behind a boulder to witness a scene she never thought she would.

Amidst from the rubble rose a figure with deliberate grace, with a pale golden light around it. As the seconds slipped by, the gold light began to morph into ominous emerald green flames. Dark coloured clothes worn by the figure were partially burnt away to reveal gray, marked skin. It levitated over the rocks and debris for a bit, before stopping in front of a large rock. It raised its hands, enabling the green fire to attack the debris, the flames licking away the rock to reveal another buried being. Scooping up a smaller, skinnier version in its arms, it turned to face door. It then uttered words in the deepest, most sinister voice anyone could imagine – the words themselves would haunt her forever.

"We shall taste their blood," he almost crooned to the seemingly unconscious figure. Even that sounded like boulders rolling down slopes – she shivered as the room suddenly became several degrees colder. "The Great Work will be completed – We are stronger now," he finished. After this, he merely blasted the doors once blocked by rubble off its hinges in a beam of blinding green energy, as she collapsed onto her knees, holding her head in her hands - trembling with fear as the shadows from the room rose – and followed the figure outside.

"What h-have-you done?" she whispered, deathly.

Heheheh :D A tiny cliffie - but I think we all know who this is :P

Please review and let me know how this was - I'll give you a cookie! :D