I start with a quote I've seen somewhere and found right away that this fits so well to Lara. Unfortunatetly I don't know who said it.

"For every reason you have to give up and quit I have a reason to win, For every reason you have to stay on the ground after being pushed I have reason to stand and kick the one who pushed me."

Enjoy reading!

The rumbling grew louder and stronger, and Lara did not like it. How many times had she felt this in forgotten tombs, forsaken catacombs, hidden vaults and crypts and it never meant anything good.

She wished more than anything to stay close to him, to feel his presence and finally forget about all the terrible things happening around her. But all she did was grabbing his hand and pulling him after her when she had seen what was coming.

"What the hell….? – Kurtis' eyes widened when he saw the huge boulder rolling towards them with deafening noise. As if the whole place was shaking. "Where did that come from?" – he froze for a moment, but then felt Lara pulling him in the opposite direction. He did not think twice.

"Does that matter?" – she shouted, running as fast as she could. There was no place to hide, no place to avoid it. The corridor was one long, dark straight line and she had no idea how they would survive. Lara grabbed the flashlight, the only weapon Wellington was granting her, and nervously moved it around while dashing deeper and deeper without knowing where they were heading. All she could see was the flat stones of the wall, the dusty surface they were running on and darkness surrounding them everywhere while the rumble was coming closer. Now she understood very well why Wellington sent her in here. The place was so full of traps she had never experienced before. And whoever invented them, made sure no one would get out alive. Why was she trying so hard at all? But she knew the answer. Survival instinct was stronger in her than ever before and she knew exactly why.

If only he had the time to concentrate… he could maybe attempt to stop that thing, Kurtis thought while running. He had to save her, no matter what. Seeing her again was like a shock, but he craved it. In Paris he had missed the chance, now he would not make the same mistake again. No matter what, he would find out what had hurt her and put the smile back on her lips. If they did not die a painful death right here…

There was no way out… no way out…no way out… Lara was starting to panic as the boulder was coming close and closer, but she did not dare to look back. The flashlight shook in her hand, the small light spot racing along the wall in an uncontrolled way as if searching for a solution itself.

"There!" – Kurtis cried out when he spotted the place on the floor that was even darker than the rest. Pitch black actually. Collecting all his strength, he took the lead and in the very last moment grabbed Lara. "Jump"! – he shouted desperately, almost in the air.

This was their only chance. A very small chance, but there was no choice left. Kurtis had no idea where they would land, if at all. The light flashed in front of him sometimes as Lara's hands flailed in the air. Those three seconds seemed like eternity. They groaned out loud when they landed hard on the ground, stirring up the dust. A huge blast shook the place. Panting for air, coughing, aching, they were lying there on their backs. But they were alive.

"Where are we?" – Lara asked after a few minutes when she was able to talk again. As she got no answer, she lifted up a bit from the floor, looking around with the light. The corridor looked the same, the walls just as empty as before. When she sat up, Lara realized that the blackness they had seen was just another abyss. The boulder had crashed down with a deafening noise and they had landed safely on the other side. Safely. When had her life ever been safe? She let out a sigh.

"Are you okay?" – she heard his voice behind her.

"I've told you not to come with me." – she whispered softly, rising to her feet. Watching out for every step, she walked to the wall. "Do you have a lighter?" – she pointed the flashlight at him. "I've found a torch."

"When do you finally accept it that I'm staying?" – he walked over to her, getting out a lighter from his pocket. The small fire flickered in the air when he held it to the torch, not taking his eyes off Lara in the meantime.

"This is dangerous." – she took the torch off the wall, holding it high to look around. The yellowish light of the fire gave them a much better look than the concentrated spot of the flashlight.

"Why do you think you are the only one to handle danger?" – Kurtis followed her down the corridor, watching Lara carefully check every corner. If they had not been in a forgotten, ancient Egyptian tomb, it actually could have been a nice evening walk.

"You don't understand this." – her voice was resolute, she managed to keep it from shaking. It was not the time to allow herself to show emotions. All those years had made her tough, but not cold. All those feelings she did not want to feel were burning her from inside. Despair, loneliness, fear, helplessness, agony of loss. I do not find my place… she remembered the first sentence she had written just a few hours ago. Maybe this was her place. Dark tombs, far away from everyone else, who could get hurt by her actions. By all those happenings she could not control. That haunted her, stealing away those she had loved. Death was pursuing her and its cruel hands grabbed away those who stayed behind. The beloved ones.

"Then explain it to me." – his voice dragged her out of her misery. "Lara!" – Kurtis stopped behind her, fixing his gaze on her. She could feel in even without looking back. "I'm trying to help you if you let me."

"No one can help me." – she whispered and continued her way without saying anything else.

What had happened to her, Kurtis was asking himself. Why was she so hurt? He could literally feel her pain. Lara was the same as before when they had first met, but so different at the same time. She looked exactly the same, tempting, breathtaking, but there was this incredible sadness in her eyes and he wanted to know the reason for it. He wanted to soothe her pain and chase it far away. To see that smile on her lips again.

At least it was a step forward that she did not try to send him away anymore. Looked like she silently accepted the situation. Kurtis still had the impression that there was more behind this, there was a reason why he got involved. There was no such thing as coincidence.

He followed the distant light of the torch, and looked around amazed when he found Lara standing in the door of a square room. She lit another torch on the wall, then another one and another one as she walked around.

"Great. A puzzle." – she stopped beside him again, looking at the single, thin column rising out of the floor in the middle of the room.