Tomb Raider: Lilith's Scepter

Chapter 21: The Great Goddess' Power

Just a few hours later, Kurtis decided they had rested enough.

"What should we do with the corpse?" Karen asked ruefully.

"Leave it here. We can't do any more for him."

They went across the city in silence as Kurtis ordered them. Luckily, they hadn't needed to go back across the pit of decay. In fact, Kurtis didn't mind dealing with that awful thing again; what he didn't want to do again was pass between the Lux Veritatis' crosses. He wouldn't admit it, but every time he saw them, standing there high and grotesque, blood boiled in his veins. He couldn't stand it.

So, the Lux Veritatis chose an alternate route, the one both Lara and him had used to return with the Scepter. The tunnel was rising from the right side of the city to join another tunnel a couple miles later, that led to the same well to the necropolis.

There were several hours of path ahead. A journey done in the most deadly silence. Selma walked with Kurtis, who held the Scepter in his hand. Although he didn't quite trust it, no creature attacked them.

They walked for hours to reach the circular walls of the large pit. Fortunately, there were ropes hanging, which had previously been used both by mafiosi and operators to ascend and descend.

"Can we take a break now?" Zip complained.

"Take a rope and climb." Kurtis ordered, ignoring the hacker.

Selma frowned, looking at the ropes. "And you?"

"I'll go last." Kurtis said. "Go on!"

They obeyed and started to climb. The man reached and put down the light that had served to guide them in the dark: a plastic bottle filled with murky water. It had been an excellent resource when the batteries in the flashlights died out.

Kurtis watched in silence while they were climbing. Soon they disappeared from his sight, but he heard Zip's groans and the others' grunts for a while. They were going one by one, all twenty, until he lost view of the last one. Then he went over and took hold of a rope.

Suddenly he heard a click behind him. The Lux Veritatis turned abruptly and a second later he'd grabbed the Chirugai in his hand. No more was needed to recognize what was attacking him.

The manticore moved quietly towards him, grinding its three rows of teeth. Then Kurtis thought why not? and raising his hand, take the Scepter and showed it to the creature.

The effect was immediate - the beast's eyes widened and it stopped. Then it began to emit a small noise like a groan, and its front paws bowed. Another one, which had appeared after the first, also stopped short.

"What the hell do you see in this thing?" Kurtis murmured in surprise.

"They see the Great Goddess' power." Answered a sweet, musical voice from the deep darkness that lay behind the manticores.

Kurtis eyes narrowed. "Who are you? Show yourself!"

He heard a series of soft steps on the sand, and then, stained with the blue light from the bottle, a young woman appeared before him.

She wore a long white robe tied at the waist with a narrow strip of silk skirt, which covered her to the feet. She also wore a dark cloak over it, with the hood thrown back, and her hair fell across her body like a black veil. She smiled sweetly, then stretched one arm towards the manticores: "Come here, my little ones. He'll harm you if you get closer."

And those terrible beasts suddenly become tamed puppies and approached her. One laid at her feet and another rubbed affectionately against her leg, while she stroked its head with her white hand. She was so beautiful, like a pagan goddess, like a Triformis Hecate.