Who: Lara Croft What: What she found in Greece When: Mid-August Where: Greece Rating: Pg-13 Status: complete
Two and a half millenia ago, these ruins had been the site of some kind of ritual. Whatever that ritual was, no one knew for sure, but Lara had a lead, and a short time to follow it. In her research she'd discovered that at certain times of day, at certain times of year, she'd be able to gain access to a ruin that wasn't supposed to exist. The island nearby wasn't large. No more than a few hundred square meters. But there was supposed to be a temple hidden within it.
That was why she'd flown out so quickly, and why she was sitting in a rented boat watching the moon reflecting on the waves and doing breathing exercises. She checked her phone, then went over her gear one more time, before rolling off the boat and into the water.
It was warmer than she expected, and she kicked her feet to propel herself slowly into the depths. When the sun was up, the water would probably be clear, but she needed to get to where she was going before noon. Lara flicked on her under water torch, and looked for a trail of stones.
It took her twenty minutes, but once she found it it was obvious. So she followed it south, pausing occasionally to snap pictures of ancient ruins for later. If her source was true, she'd find a cavern entrance after too long. And her source turned out to be true.
It wasn't an easy squeeze. With her SCUBA gear it was impossible. Lara could hold her breath for a long time, and she'd come prepared for this. Out of her gear, she could fit through, and she pulled her gear in after her. It took about two minutes, and she was grateful for the return of her air. The cavern was dark, though not without life. There also didn't seem to be any escape from it, but she caught a flash of something and swam over to it. It was a barnacle encrusted statue, and behind it was a passage. After giving it a quick look over, she swam down it.
It grew wider near the end, and she surfaced inside a temple. "... this is definitely not on the brochure..."
Pulling her fins off and setting her gear aside, she pulled out a camera. Flicking it's light on, she spoke into it. "I'm Lara Croft. I just discovered a temple underwater, approximately 10 kilometers off the southern coast of Crete. I've already detailed what led me to this location, so I'm going to focus on what I've found."
She turned the camera off, then pulled a pair of pants and hard soled shoes out of her waterproof pack. She pulled the pants on over her bikini bottoms and laced up the shoes. They weren't boots, but she wasn't able to fit boots in her pack. Plus, she didn't care if these shoes got soaked on the way back to the boat. She also had a rig that she strapped to her head. It was lightweight and would let her keep the camera going while she moved.
Stairs led the way out of the chamber, and Lara threw her pack over her shoulder and climbed up them. At the entry way to the temple proper, she stopped to film and take pictures of the frescos, as well as take some rubbings. The latter she stored in waterproof baggies in her pack for extra protection.
"I don't know what kind of rituals they performed here. Honestly, whenever we don't know what something is for, we just say 'religious ritual' until we figure out what it is. So that's never really been a good descriptor."
The ceiling was so high up that her light couldn't reach it, but water dripped from it. "It's a miracle this is intact. They must have carved it out of the cavern itself, there's no other way that this wouldn't be underwater."
There were more statues, and a fresco, all in much better condition than what was outside. They depicted a line of people, each holding an urn or jar, all walking towards an obelisk. Lara dutifully recorded it, making commentary as she went and mostly theorizing outloud. "In ... some cultures, there's symbolism to the jars, and pouring them into another vessel. I can't say for certain if this is somehow related. And in case anyone is wondering, no, there aren't any traps. That only happens in movies."
And also her last three trips.
Checking her watch, she realized she had about an hour to find what she was looking for. "There's supposed to be an obelisk, and when the light shines right it will reveal a way to open it. I don't know what's inside, but I do know it has something to do with Atlantis. And if it has something to do with Atlantis, I may be able to find the secret to an eternal life."
Lara stopped walking, and glanced around. "There's something about these statues...They're all facing different directions..hold on!"
She jogged to a wall and climbed several feet before looking back with her torch. "They're pointing the way! Just like in the fresco!"
The trail of statues led her deeper into the temple, until she found an antechamber. "What's puzzling is that none of what's depicted is classically Greek. It seems older. Much, much older. Ah! There it is!"
The obelisk was made from white marble, and stood ten feet tall. It was completely smooth, save for carved patterns, and Lara could probably spend hours trying to find the key to opening it, but it was nearly time. "I doubt we'll get anything like a laser beam. But ... there!"
Light from a crack in the island above shone through, dust hanging in the beam. But it illuminated something in the surface of the obelisk. A thin line near the top that ran in a pattern. Lara snapped a picture and ran up to the obelisk. Up close, the pattern wasn't obvious, lost in the other carvings. But she had a picture, and her memory. She traced the pattern with her finger and the obelisk moved. It swiveled open like an iron maiden, but there were no spikes, or punctured skeleton inside. Sitting on a pedestal was a large, ornate dagger. The hilt was leather, inlaid with gold, and the blade itself was some kind of steel. She wouldn't be able to tell without tests, but it seemed stronger and more pure than any steel from this period should be. The design was like nothing she'd ever seen, and runes glittered in the blade.
A dead language whispered in her ear and the dagger was in her hand before she realized what she was doing, energy thrumming through her arm. For a moment she was standing on top of a building, looking out at wide streets and a city of pyramids and ziggurats. She blinked her eyes and the vision was gone. The whispering faded away once she wrapped the weapon in cloth.
"I think..." She coughed, her voice suddenly rough. "This has the same source as the other objects I've found. Some unusual power, a relic from another age."
She uncovered the weapon. "Since we are technically in international waters and this island is unclaimed, I'm not violating any laws by taking you home." She looked around the temple. "Though I wonder how much this island would cost..."
Something moved nearby, and she turned towards the sound. A hulking figure sat there. It's skin was pale like the dead, and there were patches of darkness in places. If one looked long enough they could see stars there, and it its eyes. Lara had only ever looked long enough once, and never again. She didn't like it when the abyss stared back. And she'd never told anyone about them. And if there was one, there were usually more, though this one was much larger, and she'd not encountered any of the black water that usually marked their presence.
She reached around for the gun in her pack when it started to move. Instead, she brandished the dagger, and it stopped. She moved towards it and it backed away. The whispering in her head grew louder, and she lunged towards the creature, stabbing it with the dagger. It sizzled away into ash. Lara looked down at the weapon. "You're way more effective than a bullet with those things."
And for some reason, she thought the dagger seemed pleased.
"Right." She started back the way she came, checking her time. "I definitely need to buy this island. I just know there are more secrets to uncover."