Lara looked across the hall, holding back tears to keep a level head. Now was not the time. She needed to hurry back to the others. Looking down at the tools just one last time, she stored them away in her pocket.
Some distance away from her, a rope led from one half of the Endurance to the other. The Solarii were clearly efficient and quick in their work, which revealed that they had been there for quite some time. "It is amazing," Lara thought, "That building new machinery and ways to maneuver from one end to the other has become second nature."
She jumped forward and clutched the rope. Using her ascender, she began to soar to the other side. Wind whipped at her hair and made it slightly difficult to breathe, but the thrill of almost flying diminished that feeling almost entirely. The thrill felt very familiar. And whilst searching that familiarity, an image of Alex appeared in her mind. So that was when she felt it.
Discarding her intrusive thoughts, she released her grip on the rope and landed into the Endurance. After landing, she allowed one last thought of Alex to climb into her mind. She turned and watched a few explosions rattle the ship behind her and it disappeared under the depths of the sea. Then, after feeling every ounce of animosity swell within her core, she uttered, "I can't let anyone else die."
She ran to the deck of the ship and glared at the now deceased barbaric man who attempted to rip her apart. The wind wafted the smell of blood and sweat into her nostrils, and her stomach lurched. Even though she had encountered this smell many times, it will never desensitize her for as long as she will live.
Climbing to the top, she ran to another rope and climbed (or flew, rather) across it to a building at the top of a rocky cliff. The only way in was underneath the building. After firing a rope arrow at a large metal object on top of the building, she pulled it down onto the fragile ground below her. It broke apart like you would break an eggshell from the force.
Lara jumped into the pit and found herself standing in some sort of old base. A dusty, leather bound book caught her eye and she picked it up and flipped through its yellowed pages.
"Old logbooks," she whispered as she skimmed its content. It appeared that it was written by a member of the wartime intelligence.
Months of excavation has at last yielded new information concerning the weather patterns gripping this island. The tomb of an important general dating from the Kamakura period was discovered in our coastal dig site.
This discovery is the missing piece of the puzzle. It will allow us to finally gain control of the storms.
"Ancient ruins in the old base? Control over the storms?" she rambled. "I need answers," Lara complained. This island has left her with endless questions and few answers. What did they mean by controlling the storms? Is such a thing even possible?
She ran to a rusted door and used all of her might to pry open the door with her pick. It flung open, and she headed into the next room and jumped to the ground.
This area was completely covered in dust and dirt. Shards of glass littered the floor and they crunched when Lara stepped on them. Ivy climbed the walls and flowers bloomed randomly all over the room.
There was not much here besides some salvage and debris. The floor above her must have collapsed, because the ground was littered with rubble.
Lara had a sort of fondness for urban decay. Though not entirely ancient, these buildings had their own histories. She imagined some soldiers taking notes on the supernatural events of Yamatai while others smoked cigarettes and played cards. But where had they all gone? Were they killed by the storms while trying to escape? After what has happened, the thought seemed plausible.
She crawled into an opening between the rooms. Lara was never one for such strenuous exercise. A simple jog would be nothing to her, but this constant running and vaulting made her legs begin to tremble and seem like they were going to buckle at any moment.
Slowly, she crawled her way into a room with an old inoperable turret gun. It was rusted and wouldn't move despite how much Lara pushed on it.
"Why would the soldiers feel the need for turrets?" Lara thought. "Perhaps there were hostile Solarii back then, too?"
If she were to receive an answer, it would not assist her. Finding a way off of this island would be much more useful.
Lara felt close to her destination and headed out of the base. She was now at the foot of a cliff. She fired a rope arrow at the course rock across an enormous gap and climbed over waterfalls to the other side.
Thankfully, she was welcomed by a warm campfire when she landed. She rubbed her arms and legs, hoping that the friction would help eliminate her goosebumps. Lara lay on her back and felt watched the sky above her.
The clouds that passed by were downcast and dark. A gray blanket stretched from horizon to horizon and seemed to never leave. Lara preferred this than the enraged and electric storm that surged over Yamatai.
What Lara would prefer over anything else, was a grease covered cheeseburger. Or perhaps a juicy filet mignon. Not some deer meat or freshly killed island bird. No, she needed something that would stick to her ribs and make her stomach cease its constant complaining, as it was doing now. To fend off feelings of hunger, Lara closed her eyes. If only for a minute or two.
She unexpectedly fell asleep despite the noisy waterfall just behind her. And she dreamt of Alex. She wasn't sure what the dream was, exactly. But all she could remember was his image; not bloody or battered.
Lara must have only slept for a minute or two, because when she awoke, the sky was no darker than before and had barely changed. She stood up and stretched her quivering muscles, which were now beginning to start feeling sore.
She ran through a path between rocky foothills and stopped suddenly when her feet were greeted by sand. Immediately she recognized where she was: The shipwreck beach. The others had to be here. Overcome with hope and adrenaline, she ran to a rope that led to a higher cliff.
When she was halfway up, she heard rugged voices. Solarii.
"Shit," she thought, and hid behind a tree.
"No arguments. Get your shit together, we head out in ten," one of them said.
"That place is a fucking deathtrap," said another.
"Yeah, maybe the perfect place for some escaped prisoners to hide out?" the first said.
"If they went there, they're probably already dead," said the other.
Lara grabbed her handgun and shot a silent Solarii who was a distance away from the ones who were conversing. Staying low to the ground, she leaped to where they were. Fortunately, they were turned around and watching the beach. Slowly, steadily, she reached for her pick and cleaved his skull as violently as she could and kicked him free from the pick. Just as the other turned around, she greeted him with a blow from her pick. Blood spewed from their heads and splattered against Lara's clothes.
She exhaled. Murdering another human would never be something she did for enjoyment. But here, it was either kill or be killed. Lara preferred the former. With that being said, she ran away from the bodies and jumped to another rope, leading to the sandy beach.
She glided freely, and loved the wind that rushed past her. She smiled slightly, forgetting the situation for just a moment. The moment she hit the ground, she ran toward a campfire she could see in the distance.
Lara could see the crew and slowed down to a half jog when she approached the fire. When Reyes approached her, Lara's smile dropped. With guilt jabbing at her heart, she handed Reyes the tools and went to sit.
"Lara!" Sam exclaimed as she limped toward her.
"When we heard the explosion, we thought..." Dr. Whitman began.
"Alex?" Sam asked, despite the answer being very clear to everyone.
"He was still on the ship," Lara said painfully. Reyes prowled around and perched on an old log, glaring.
"Seems anyone caught with you has a pretty low survival rate," she hissed.
"Reyes!" Jonah said, shocked.
Lara was angered by Reyes' remark but understood the source of her hostility. After all, Lara was with Roth when he died. Pain just didn't seem to go away. But still, Lara would not be talked down to.
"Better keep your distance then," she countered.
"Let's just eat okay?" Jonah pleaded. "Those bastards went quiet, but that doesn't mean they're going to stay that way. If I'm going to die in this place, I'm not going to do it hungry," he stated, waving his cooked fish at them.
They ate together in silence, the tension unwavering. Lara's thoughts were too preoccupied to notice it. She nibbled at her fish without looking up from the ground. When they were done, they rested with satisfaction in their bellies.
"Save a man's stomach, save his soul," Jonah said while patting his big stomach.
"Finally, a little positivity!" Dr. Whitman observed. "Once Reyes finishes the boat, we'll be back to civilization in no time. And what a tale we'll have to tell." Lara wanted to spit in his face.
"A tale?" Sam scoffed. "I hope I never hear Himiko's name again."
"We can take the boat out a high tide," Reyes suggested.
"No, we can't," Lara said solemnly.
"Don't start that bullshit again Lara!" Reyes objected.
"Lara isn't the only one who thinks we're trapped, Reyes," Sam said. "Matthias may be insane, but he was certain about it. I saw it in his eyes." Lara smiled and was relieved at the defense she received.
"He thinks resurrecting Himiko is the key to getting off this island," Dr. Whitman added.
"God," Sam sighed. "It sounds crazy. But this whole place is crazy."
"These storms aren't natural," Lara stated. "We have to face that."
Jonah nodded in agreement. "She's right. When that storm hit the Endurance, I felt it..." His eyes became sullen. "Something dark... Something alive... This place is cursed."
At that moment, Lara knew what she had to do. Answers were somewhere Matthias was and she needed them more desperately than ever. She stood up and began to walk away. Sam stood up as well.
"Where are you going?" Sam asked, concerned.
"There are ruins in that old base in the cliffs," Lara explained. "Something in there led them to believe they could control the storms. I've got to find out what they discovered."
"Once we're ready to leave, we're leaving," Reyes said bitterly. "Whether you're back or not."
"I won't leave without you," Sam promised. Lara nodded and walked away from the campfire.
It was clear what her mission was. Lara no longer felt fear, just determination. It was her fault they were here on this island, and her fault that Roth and Alex were dead. "And dammit," Lara thought. "I will fix this. All of it." Holding back tears after realizing the consequences of her actions, she ran from the campfire and headed back toward the cliffs.