Tomb Raider: The Golden Seal

Chapter 15: Putai

It was getting dark when they left the stronghold. The return trip had been easy, with the skeletons leading the way, though Lara felt awkward about following a bunch of bones who treated Kurtis with great respect, and was mostly miffed when she noticed the traps didn't react to his presence. She commented about taking Kurtis everywhere from then on to avoid booby-traps and also something about her work no longer having any intrigue or passion.

The sunlight blinded their eyes when they came out. Jean, who was there leading the excavators, ran towards them: "How did it go? Sacré bleu!" He said, looking at Kurtis. "What happened, Monsieur Trent?" Kurtis had half of his face black with clotted blood.

"Occupational hazards," said Lara. "Is the infirmary already set up?"

"Yes, by there."

Upon entering the stronghold, they had left behind a wasteland devastated by the sirocco, but now there was a real camp.

Kurtis refused help and began to tend to himself. He wiped off the crusted blood and examined the wound. It was pretty ugly, swollen and bruised above his left temple. "Another string of stitches," he muttered, annoyed, looking at it in the mirror.

"Let me help you," Lara said, approaching him.

He turned and waved her off with his hand. "Hold it right there, Miss Croft. You're pretty competent as a partner, but as a nurse you're terrible. I had enough of your 'help' at Brasov." He turned back towards the mirror, wet a cotton swab in alcohol and applied it to the wound. Before Jean's horrified eyes, he began to sew the gash himself without even flinching.

"Wow, that is one tough guy," Jean said quietly to Lara.

She frowned and responded disdainfully: "Yes, really tough." Then she turned and left the tent.

(...)

Lara caressed the Periapt while copying its symbols on a piece of paper. They were neither letters nor hieroglyphics, just a messy map of signs with no relation between them: mystical, religious, natural... An Egyptian Ankh. An Isis' Knot. Horus' Eye. The Christian cross. The Muslim crescent. The Chinese Ying and Yang. The Lux Veritatis' anchor. The symbols of the pagan gods: Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury...the Jewish star. The Hindi Eye. The Illuminati's triangle. The swastika of the Celts. Lucifer's pentacle.

The symbols were endless and different, such a fascinating mixture that Lara felt puzzled. For the first time in her life she had in her hands an artefact depicting the symbols of all religions, cults, and myths ever existed on Earth.

She closed her eyes, overwhelmed. Kurtis was right: there was no fortune in the world large enough to buy such a magnificent object. A perfect, universal orb. An indestructible artefact. A crystal able to kill angels...

"Where did you come from?" She whispered, stroking its rough surface. It was the dream of every archaeologist and tomb raider. It was her dream. The most beautiful device which had ever existed.

A sound took her out of her meditations. Kurtis had just lifted the canvas' tent. "May I enter?"

Lara nodded and left the pencil on the scribbled papers. Apparently, Kurtis had been able to heal his wound correctly. He wore a cotton patch on his forehead. "I know you're angry."

"Great," she said, glaring at him. "By the way, I'd also like to know why on earth you had to risk yourself like that. You almost killed Karel with your flying blade."

Kurtis smiled calmly. "I won't have that monster, under any circumstances, take something so beautiful and precious from me."

"I wouldn't have let him steal the Periapt!" Lara jumped.