Tomb Raider: Three Gods
Lara Croft fiction by Sarah (SCrisman@juno.com)


The legalese:
	This story is written solely for the entertainment of you LaraHolics out there 
like me.  Tomb Raider, Lara Croft, and her likeness are all copyright (c) EIDOS 
Entertainment, 1996.  Mike and BJ, however, are not copyrighted in any way, shape 
or form.  This is a good thing, since they are both real people.  Or real strange, if you 
want to look at it that way.  But, other then them and Lara, any references to 
incidents or persons, either living or dead, is purely coincidental.  Unless you believe 
in the Infinite Improbability Drive...
	Oh yeah, if you are like, under 18 (or 21 in some places...you know who you 
are), or are offended by graphic depictions of sex, violence, and nudity, then this 
fanfic is not for you to read.
	Oh, yes, don't ask me for a G, PG or PG-13 rated story.  Those are boring.  
Just skip over all the graphic stuff.  If you have no desire whatsoever to read this 
story, then what on earth are you doing with it on your hard drive??	
	Last item before the story:  I write because I like to write, but I also want to 
know what kind of writer I am.  My friends would all say I was good, whether or not 
they meant it, but I probably don't know most of you people.  So write me.  My e-mail 
is at the top of the document.  Tell me if I did good, bad, great, horrible, etc.  In short, 
if you thought it was good, mail me.  Find typos or grammatical errors?  Mail me.  
Want to kill me?  Stay away from me...  But now, on with the story.  And a quick note: 
this story takes place before the incident with Natla in Tomb Raider.  Of course, the 
fact that I made Lara 22 should make this obvious, but still…

	Lara Croft looked over to her newest partner as she made her way silently 
down the corridor.  "You doing OK, Mike?"
	Mike looked back at her and nodded.  The terrain under his tennis shoes was 
rock solid, which made him feel a little better.  All he knew was that there was no 
way he would be doing this alone.  Lara certainly was brave.  To think that this 
woman had done this kind of thing before but without any backup at all made him 
squirm.  Shit, he thought, Indiana Jones would have really kicked ass if he had Lara 
as his partner.
	Of course, Mike thought, even with the two of them, this job was dangerous.  
Old ruins of cities long abandoned in caves were beautiful and mysterious, but 
deadly as well.  Who knew what sort of animals inhabited these places?  And God 
only knew what traps, both natural and man-made were in here.  A single mis-step, 
and you might find yourself falling into a pit, the crumbling floor doing little to comfort 
you on the way down.  Mike looked at Lara again, who had stopped to do up the lace 
on one of her boots.
	I know she's got pistols, but what if we meet a bear?  And those rustling 
noises overhead were obviously bats stirring.  How long before they were attacked?  
A gunshot in here would be heard all over the place.  That would bring other animals 
running.  Not a good thing.
	Lara stood up and gazed around again.  She was a very good looking woman, 
Mike thought.  She was 22 years young, with a small, athletic frame.  But if he were 
to fight her, Mike had no doubts as to who would come out on top.  Lara was 5' 7" of 
pure strength, skill, stamina, and muscle.  And even though he was 6 feet exactly, 
Mike still would have not had any advantage.  Her well-shaped face extended down 
to a small neck, then broadened into strong shoulders and arms, high, firm breasts 
(where she had also been gifted, Mike noticed with a slight blush), a tight stomach, 
and medium-sized, yet muscular legs.  Her feet were average size as well, but the 
boots made them seem larger than they were.  The way she carried herself when 
she was doing anything was almost aristocratic in nature, which made sense when 
you realized that Lara had been born to wealth and attended a women's finishing 
school in Britain.  But there was no part of that stuffy, over-dignified air that most rich 
people had about them.  Lara Croft, regardless of her upbringing, was adventure, 
pure and simple, from head to foot.
	She looked at Mike again after a few moments.  "Now, are you sure you are 
up to this?  It might be pretty dangerous."
	"Hey, if I had second thoughts, you would have been the first to know," Mike 
quipped.  "After all, I hardly think danger is my middle name."
	Lara grinned and laughed slightly.  Mike could tell by the way her breasts 
bounced under her shirt that there was no bra underneath for support.  A VERY 
brave woman, he thought to himself, and smiled.
	"What's so funny?" she asked.
	"Nothing.  I was just thinking about something silly," Mike replied, not wanting 
to tell her that he had been observing her curves.  Although the kind of girl Lara was, 
she probably knew that already, he told himself.
	"Ready to go?" she asked him.  "This place is pretty big.  If we want to be out 
of here before sundown, we had better start moving."
	Mike nodded in agreement.  "And, um, what if we get stuck in here?"
	"I have enough food and water for each of us for five days," she informed him 
casually.
	"And after that's gone?" he asked.
	"If we get stuck down here for more than five days, food and water are going 
to be the least of our worries," Lara said grimly.
	Mike got the picture.  Lara stood waiting for Mike's answer.  "You know, I 
never thought I would meet THE Mike Crisman."
	Mike was suddenly taken aback.  "What?"  She was the celebrity here.  "I'm 
not famous."
	Lara smiled.  "Oh, I don't know about that.  I've read about your exploits."
	"Um, if you mean the tomato incident, I can explain everything," Mike 
stammered.
	"Oh, stop being so silly.  You think I don't know about all that?"
	"You know?" Mike asked, fear welling up in him.  Dread that someone might 
know all about the tomato incident.
	"Of course!  I mean, who else but the legendary Mike and BJ could restore 
order to the world of anime?"  She smiled again.  "I knew you were the right pick as 
soon as I found out who you are.  You have to show me that BoB Card some time."
	Mike smirked.  "You know that those were all stories, right?"
	"Yeah, but you've got a good imagination, and that is one of the most useful 
attributes an explorer can have.  I wanted you on this expedition for that reason."  
She handed him one of her pistols.  "Now, I have plenty of ammo for this, but try not 
to waste it, OK?"
	"I hope I don't have to use this," Mike said.
	"So do I," Lara agreed.  "But occasionally, you find things that can make you 
glad you were packing them."  She pulled a compass out of her backpack.  "Well, 
shall we go in?  This slide ramp here is the point of no return.  You chicken out 
before it, and you can walk out the way you came in.  You chicken out afterwards, 
and you're shit outta luck until we find the exit."
	Mike steeled himself.  "I'm ready, Lara."
	"Good.  Let's get ready."  She walked over to the edge of the natural slide 
ramp.  This would be good enough to get them down there, but there was no way 
that even she, in her heavy-treaded boots, could make it back up again.  Mike joined 
her at the side, looking down.  "Sure is dark down there," he commented.
	Lara sat down on the edge of the slide with her legs hanging over.  There was 
a soft coating of sand, making the rock slope slippery enough and the natural 
dampness did the rest.  He knew his jeans would be covered with sand and grit after 
this, but he could always wash them before anyone found out.  Mike sat down next to 
her, but Lara motioned him to get behind her.
	"Grab on to me and follow me down," she told him.  "That way, we have less 
of a chance of getting split up if something happens."
	Mike sat down behind her, extended his legs until she was sitting in the space 
between them, and took hold of her waist.  She turned suddenly, sharply, and Mike 
thought perhaps his hands had wandered, but all she did was kiss him on the mouth.  
She stayed there for a long second, then pulled back.
	"What was that for?" he asked, running his tongue over his lips, her taste still 
registering with his mouth.
	"In case something happens and I regret not being able to do that later," she 
replied with a twinkle in her eye.  "And plus, I always believed that a kiss before 
attempting anything dangerous brings good luck."
	"Does that mean that two kisses would bring twice as much luck?" Mike 
asked.
	She smirked.  "Nice try.  There might be time for that later," she said.  "Now, 
hold on!"  She pushed herself away from the edge, and suddenly Mike felt the wind 
rushing past his ears and the ground rushing past his backside.  While he slid, Mike 
recalled the chance encounter with Lara Croft which had led him to this moment.

* * * * * * * *

	The ringing of the phone jarred Mike out of a dream that involved several 
anime characters in various states of undress.  "This had better be worth it," Mike 
muttered as he grabbed the Garfield phone to silence it.  "Hello?"
	"Mike!  Aren't you up yet!"  It was BJ on the other end.
	Mike sat up and glanced at the clock.  "BJ, what on earth are you doing?  It 
isn't even 6 am yet.  The convention doesn't start for another four hours."
	"You mean you don't want to get up early for this?" BJ squealed.  "This is only 
the biggest Otaku-con this side of the world!  Everybody is going to be there!  Even 
Aya Hisakawa!  I hope she's dressed up like Yohko like she was when she appeared 
at the con in Kyoto..."
	"You are obsessed," Mike told him.  "Now leave me alone!  I was having a 
good dream."
	"Did it involve Sailor Moon?" BJ asked.
	"I don't think so," Mike replied uncertainly.
	"Then it wasn't worth it.  Come on, get up and talk to me."
	"BJ, what are we going to discuss?  The sun is smarter than this, for crying 
out loud!  It isn't even out of bed yet!"
	"That proves the moon is cooler," BJ said.  "She stays up all night.  Like you."
	"Just because I work second shift-"
	"Yeah, yeah.  Now, what are you wearing?"
	"I'm currently in my pajamas, numskull."
"No, I mean to the convention," BJ snarled.
"Oh.  Probably my new Bubblegum Crisis shirt.  You?"  Mike was finally awake 
enough to be coherent.
	"My Linna Swimsuit one, of course!  How much money do you think we should 
take?"
	"I dunno.  $100 oughta cover it..."
	"Only $100???  Come on, Mike, what if I find a copy of the Sailor Moon game 
for the Saturn?  Or the PlayStation?"
	"BJ, I suppose it is pointless to remind you that you don't have a Saturn or a 
PlayStation?"
	"Of course!  This is Sailor Moon we are talking about here!  The minor points 
don't matter."
	"How foolish of me," Mike said.  "If we find it, wanna go 50/50 on the 
Bubblegum Crisis Screen Saver?"
	"Of course!  I wonder how big it is?  Oh yes, bring your laptop."
	"To the convention?" Mike asked.  "BJ, are you drunk?"
	"Unfortunately, no.  There isn't any place around here that makes Pan 
Galactic Gargle Blasters.  Well, not decent ones anyway.  Why do you ask?"
	"Well, my laptop is, like, rather expensive."
	"Exactly.  We can pawn it off on someone if we see something we need.  Like 
one of those life-size Sailor Mars statues.  Just imagine: Rei Hino in MY room!  Cool, 
huh?"
	"Not with my money, it isn't."
	"Well, that is true.  But you could always sell some of those anime games to 
somebody."
	"True.  I might be able to get $20 for some of them."
	"$20?  Sexy Fighter alone is worth $50."
	Mike grumbled.  "You know, not everyone is as anime-hungry as you are."
	"Know what?  I think you're right.  Most of them are worse."
	"Very funny, BJ."
	"Hey, if I didn't know where to get them, I would pay $50 for some of them."
	"OK, OK, enough.  Now, will you let me go so I can get my shower?"
	"Right!  Oh yes, we must remember the Anime Propagation Society's 
password!"
	"Um...which is?" Mike asked.  This must have been some new development in 
the club to which he was previously not aware.
	"Daijobu!!!!!!" BJ bounced.
	"Hai," Mike replied.  "Daijobu!"  With that, they hung up.  Mike wandered into 
the shower and cleaned up, then ate a hasty breakfast.  By the time he reached BJ's 
house, BJ was prepared to explode at the seams.  "Hurry!  Hurry up!  We'll be late!"
	"BJ, we still have 3 hours," Mike told him.
	"Yes, but you don't know what traffic will be like!"
	"At 6 am on a Saturday, I doubt that there will be anyone worth mentioning on 
the road."
	BJ hopped into the car and slammed the door.  "Well, let's get going!  We 
don't have all morning!"

	Mike and BJ arrived at the hotel in 23 minutes.  They got out, holding their 
free passes (courtesy of a winning lemon BJ had written concerning Sailor Moon 
combined with a series of five stories Mike had written concerning lots of anime 
characters and a bit of deranged humor) and ventured up to the doorway, but no 
amount of knocking, pounding, or shouting got them inside.
	Mike gave BJ a withering stare.  "Look, it is over 2 hours before this starts," 
Mike told him.  "Now we have to sit out here until they open the doors."
	BJ peered around, then sat as though lost in thought.
	"What are you doing?"
	"Wondering what Priss would do in a situation like this," BJ replied.
	"With or without the hardsuit?" Mike inquired.
	"Without," BJ said.  "If I had a hardsuit, we would be inside by now."
	Mike leaned against the door, and it swung inwards.  He fell to the floor with a 
grunt, stirring up a sentient cloud of dust which wandered elsewhere to take up 
residence.
	"Hey, the door was unlocked this whole time?" BJ asked.  "Good idea, Mike!  
But I would have tried simply pushing on it before trying to break it down."
	"Har har har," Mike said, picking himself up.  "I am exploding with laughter."
	"Oh, never mind that," BJ told him.  "The anime awaits!"  He dashed off down 
the hall towards the convention center with Mike hanging from his arm.  A passing 
person, who had just woken up and was heading for the cafe for some coffee saw 
the two racing at him before BJ collided with him, flattening him into the ground and 
muttering 'Excuse me,' to the man before disappearing down the hall.
	"Wonder what A-ko and C-ko are doing here?" he wondered as he picked 
himself up off the floor.  "I better lay off the java."  He walked back to his room.

	For the two teens, the con was a roaring success.  They were each lugging 
around armloads of stuff when they finally took a seat out in the main lobby to 
examine their prizes.
	"I can't believe I talked that guy down to $20 for the Sailor Moon game for the 
Saturn!" BJ gleamed.  "What a retard!"
	"Yeah, but what about that guy who was giving away the Silver Cover copies 
of Warrior Nun Areala?" Mike asked.  "Numbers 100, 101, and 102 all in the same 
freebie bin."
	"And you were complaining about getting up early!" BJ harrumphed.  "I 
happen to know that this would not have been here if we had not been early."  He 
pulled the life-size Sailor Mars doll construction kit out of a large bag.  "Ah, Miss 
Hino.  Or may I call you Rei?"
	"Metal & Lace!" Mike declared proudly, pulling the game from a sack.  
"Original price: $35.  After haggle: $5.  Am I good or what?"
	The two laughed and continued examining each other's merchandise for 
several minutes before BJ spoke up.
	"Hey Mike," BJ whispered.
	"What?" Mike whispered back.
	"I think that woman over there is looking at you."
	"Oh, shut up!" Mike hissed.  "You're just jealous because I got Azusa's 
autograph!"
	"No, I'm serious.  Watch the girl with the laptop over there.  I swear, she 
keeps looking at you!"
	Unable to resist, Mike pulled his laptop out and flipped it on.  "Yeah, she 
might be, but I doubt she has THIS on her computer!"  Mike executed Lakers 2, and 
in moments he was engrossed in the sim.
	"She's still looking at you," BJ said.  "And she keeps laughing about 
something."
	"Are you serious?" Mike asked, having Usagi deal the killing blow to a lowly 
underling.  He peered over the screen and met eyes with the woman.
	She was dressed in shorts, hiking shoes, and had a waterproof satchel sitting 
by her side on the floor.  The computer which was purring away on her lap was 
about 10 times as expensive as Mike's was, but it was white rather than gray.  She 
looked at him for a moment, then turned back to the screen and laughed some more.
	Mike started to stand up, but BJ grabbed him down again.  "Mike, what the 
hell are you doing?" he hissed.
	"I want to know why she is laughing at me!" Mike exclaimed.  "My laptop is 
superior!  Here, hold this."  He thrust the Toshiba 105CS into BJ's hands and walked 
over and stood next to the woman until she looked up at him.
	"Can I help you?" she asked, looking into his eyes.
	Damn, she looks familiar, Mike thought.  "Actually, you can," he said, trying to 
sound fierce.  "Why were you laughing at me over there?"
	She giggled again.  "Well, it is kind of embarrassing, actually.  But it's silly 
too.  See, I downloaded the stories from the two people who won the free passes to 
this convention so I could see how they wrote.  And, from the descriptions given at 
the beginnings, the two people look just like you and that other guy over there."
	"WHAT?" Mike asked.  He turned the screen of her computer and stared at it.  
The words of his story, part 2, stared back at him.  "Hey, this is my Mini-Nuku story!"
	Her eyes widened.  "It is??  You mean you are-"
	"Michael Crisman and BJ Harman, at your service," he said with a sweeping 
bow.
	"My God, I thought you looked like your descriptions!" she exclaimed.  "What 
a pleasure to meet you!"  She grabbed his hand and shook it.  "So, you love anime 
too, huh?"
	"Why else would anybody be here?" Mike asked, pulling his hand away.  
"Now, can I ask why you were trying to find me?"
	She closed the laptop and stood up.  "Well, is there some place we can talk?"
	"About what?" Mike asked, leery of this total stranger.  But he still could not 
shake the thought that she looked so damn familiar!
	"I noticed an empty conference room down the hall," she told him.  "We can 
talk there, I think."  She took him by the wrist and started to walk with him down the 
hall.
	BJ waved absently, lost in the Lakers 2 game as Mike walked by and said, 
"BJ, will you watch my stuff for a minute?"
	The woman took Mike down the hall, opened a door with a brass plate on it 
marked, "Conference Room C," and snuck inside the empty room.  Nobody saw 
them.  She looked at Mike again before closing the door.  "Yeah, you are definitely 
the one."
	"Look, if this is about that parking ticket from a year ago, I can explain 
everything," Mike began, figuring she must be a cop.
	"I don't care about parking tickets," the woman told him.  "I have been looking 
for you a long time actually.  A couple months at least."
	"Great, my own stalker," Mike commented.  "What do you want with me?"
	"I need a partner."
	"Now, wait a sec," Mike stammered, blushing beet red.  "I mean...we hardly 
know each other!"
	"No, not that kind of partner," she told him.  "I need someone to help me with 
a job I have."
	"And I don't do criminal things either," Mike said.
	"What about stealing that poor woman's slide projector?" the woman asked.  "I 
am sure that even in Mega Tokyo, stealing is a crime."
	"Alright, alright.  But it was Bif Ward.  That was different."
	"Exactly.  That's why I want you."
	"So, what's this job you want me to help you with?" Mike asked.  "I mean, 
what's your occupation?  If someone gave you a whip, you could pass for Indiana 
Jane."
	"I'm a Tomb Raider," she replied nonchalantly.  "I recover lost artifacts."
	Tomb Raider! Mike's brain screamed at him.  Why the hell didn't he recognize 
her before?  The clothes, the hair, the satchel.  It could only be...  "Lara Croft??" he 
asked, the barest hint of surprise creeping into his voice.
	"Cool," Lara said.  "I'm famous.  Yeah, that's me.  So, you in or what?"
	"Of course!" Mike said.  "Hey, anything for you!  What's the job?"
	"Well, you know that set of caves over by McCormick's Creek?" Lara asked.
	Mike nodded.  "Yeah.  The ones that the earthquake uncovered a couple 
months ago?"
	"None other," Lara said.  "Seems like legend talks about there being a 
civilization of people who lived underground in that area about 400 or so years ago.  
Apparently, they liked gold.  A lot.  Get the picture?"
	Mike nodded again.  "But, I'm sure there are hundreds of people out there 
with more spelunking experience then me."
	"Doesn't matter," Lara said.  "I have my reasons for wanting you.  You ready 
to go?"
	"Now?" Mike asked.  "But BJ is all alone there!  And the con isn't even over 
yet!"
	"I don't have much time," Lara said.  "And if I can't get your help, I'll have to go 
to someone else.  Someone maybe I don't trust completely.  Or go alone."
	"Why is this so urgent?" Mike asked.
	"Let's just say that someone may have already beat me to it.  But I hope that 
isn't true.  Are you in, or do I go out there all by my lonesome?"
	Mike thought about this.  This was the adventure of a lifetime (not that he 
hadn't had enough adventures to fill three lifetimes, but this one was so much 
cooler)!  "I'll go," he decided.
	"Now, let me just inform you so you know where we stand.  These places are 
often trapped.  I am intending to go in front, since I can usually spot that.  But it's not 
the stuff you can see that you worry about.  It's the stuff that you can't see that's the 
problem.  Floors might be weak, and I imagine that we will not be the only ones 
down there.  Some people don't like having their archaeological explorations 
interrupted.  And heavens only knows what kind of animals might live down there.  
That's why I pack these."  She patted two holsters on her waist that held pistols.  
"This will be dangerous, let me tell you.  I can't make you go.  But if you really want 
to come, I won't try to dissuade you."
	Mike got a serious look on his face.  "I won't let you down," he said.  "You can 
count on that."  Besides, he thought, who wouldn't cut off an arm for a chance to 
work with a knockout babe like you?  And look at me!  I've still got both of mine!  For 
the time being, at any rate...
	"Great!  I've got my van out in the parking lot.  With any luck, we can be out of 
down there by this evening.  Hopefully with some of the gold."  She started towards 
the door.  "You can climb and jump, right?"
	"Of course," Mike said.  "You don't think those anime stories were _all_ bull 
shit, do you?"
	She winked at him.  "I didn't think so.  Meet you at the van."
	Mike walked out the door and spoke with BJ.  "Gotta go for a bit.  Can you 
keep yourself entertained until I get back?"
	BJ nodded absently.  "I love this Screen Saver."  Priss was shooting up a 
Boomer on the laptop.
	Mike walked away, knowing that BJ would probably sit there until kingdom 
come watching the Knight Sabers save his screen.  Good thing too.  Explaining to BJ 
that Lara Croft had recruited him for a Tomb Raiding mission would have been 
needlessly difficult.
	He made his way to the parking lot, noticing it getting rather overcast, and 
spotted Lara waving at him from her van.  He hurried over, opened the door, and 
climbed inside.  "Let's rock and roll!" he said, slamming a bootlegged audio cassette 
of the Bubblegum Crisis soundtrack into her stereo.  The van roared down the street 
towards McCormick's Creek.

* * * * * * *
	
They pulled to a stop, and Lara climbed in the back for some gear.
	"Why are we stopping here?" Mike asked.  "McCormick's Creek is still like five 
miles away."
	"Exactly," Lara responded, rummaging under some towels and grabbing a 
compass.  "We don't want any potential interference from any competitors.  If they 
don't know we're there, they can't be prepared for us, right?"  She hopped out the 
back doors, and slammed them shut.  "Now, to hide the van..."  She looked around, 
taking several steps both forward and back as she searched.  "There!  That spot 
should be good.  Go throw it into neutral and then come back here and help me push 
it into that grove of trees."
	Mike complied, and they shoved the van off the road into a small patch of 
forestation.  They covered it with several large branches and a camo-tarp that Lara 
pulled from the back, then they started down a small trail by the side of the road.  
"So, what kinds of stuff did you bring?" Mike asked.
	"Oh, a compass, some extra ammo, some rope, extra food and water, and a 
few other odds and ends."
	"Bug spray?" Mike asked hopefully.
	Lara nodded.  "You need some?"
	"These damn mosquitoes are feasting on my arms."
	She handed him the can of spray, and Mike hosed himself down.  "Great.  
Now I stink like Bugg-Off.  You didn't bring any Lysol, did you?"
	"Afraid not," Lara grinned.  "Just stay downwind from me and we'll do fine."
	They both laughed.  The two hiked on in silence for a long time, then Lara 
raised her hand for silence.	"What is it?" Mike asked, crouching to the ground.
	"We're not the only ones here," Lara whispered back.
	"Are we being followed?" Mike hissed.
	"No, but there is someone up ahead of us."  She pointed to the treetops up 
ahead.  "Remember how all the birds were singing before?  Now they're silent.  
Dead giveaway that there are humans in the area."
	"Yeah, us," Mike said.
	"No, the birds that stopped singing are upwind from us.  They can't smell us 
yet.  There has to be someone or something else up there."  She pulled a pistol from 
her holster.  "I don't know who it might be, but if they aren't friendly, I don't want to be 
caught with my pants down.
	For some reason, that caused Mike to blush excessively, but he was behind 
her now, so she didn't see him.  They inched down the trail until they came to a small 
clearing.  A tent and camping gear was very prominent.
	Lara snuck over to the tent and pulled back the flap.  It was empty.  "Looks 
like there's no one home," she told Mike.
	"Good," Mike breathed.
	"Don't know about that," a voice said from the shadows.
	Mike and Lara whirled to see a tall man walk from the trees.  He was carrying 
a massive shotgun at his side, and was dressed in a checkered flannel shirt and 
ripped jeans.  "Now, what are you two doing in my tent?"
	"We thought we heard something inside," Lara lied.  "We didn't want to get 
eaten by a bear.
	The man roared a hearty laugh.  "A bear?  Hah!  That's a good one.  I might 
let you live for that.  But that doesn't explain what you are doing here in the first 
place."
	"Backpacking," Lara said.  "My brother and I like to go hiking around here.  
Great exercise.  You know, exercise?  Ever heard of it?"
	Brother? Mike thought.  Oh well, play along....  "Come on, Lara, don't ya think 
we've bothered this man long enough?"
	"Now wait just a cotton-picking minute!" the man roared.  "Ain't nobody I know 
goes backpacking with a pair of pistols!  And you!  You look so much unalike that I 
don't think you could even be distant cousins.  Now drop all the bullshit and tell me 
what the hell you're doing in my camp!"
	A rustle in the bushes attracted Lara's attention.  "What the...?"
	Before anyone could react, a massive dog leaped into the clearing, teeth 
bared.
	"A god-damn coyote!" the man hollered.
	The coyote snarled, its lip curling to reveal a sharp tooth.  Mike suddenly 
understood how those teeth had earned the name of 'canine'.
	The man took off running, and Lara and Mike followed him.  The coyote, 
incised and ready for the chase, growled viciously and ran after the three.
	Lara fired a warning shot with her pistol, but the animal kept coming.  Lara 
couldn't keep her sight while moving, so she forgot about the gun altogether and 
concentrated on running like hell.  Mike did the same.
	"What the hell were you doing here anyway?" the man roared at them.
	"None of your damn business!" Lara snapped back.
	The coyote was gaining on all of them now, and they were beginning to tire.
	Mike suddenly remembered a quote on one of his Magic cards.  "If you and a 
friend are being chased by a Mtenda Lion, you have one chance for survival.  Trip 
your friend."  Mike grabbed a large branch off the ground as the coyote continued to 
gain on them.  Without warning, he threw it in the man's path.  Unable to stop in 
time, the man's legs became tangled in the stick, and he fell to the ground.  He 
staggered to his feet again, but the coyote jumped on his back, sinking its teeth into 
his shoulder.  Blood fountained up from between the animal's jaws.  With the man 
screaming something which sounded suspiciously like 'mother fuckers,' in the 
distance, Lara and Mike ran down the trail and disappeared up a tree.
	"Where in the hell did you learn to think like that?" Lara panted.  "That was a 
good idea."
	"Um...a game I like to play," Mike admitted.  "I knew that spending all that 
money on Magic would one day save my life.  Damn, I think that was the hardest I 
have ever run in my entire life!"
	"Hey, that's just the beginning," Lara said.  "There might be more of them in 
the caves."
	"Wonderful," Mike breathed.  He gulped air into his lungs.  Lara pulled a water 
bottle out of her satchel and took a swig, then offered it to him.  "Want some?"
	Mike took the water bottle and drank for several seconds before wiping his 
mouth and handing it back to her.  "Thanks.  That hit the spot."
	"Hey, we're here!" Lara exclaimed suddenly.  "Look!"
	Mike looked down.  Sure enough, below them was the cave entrance.  They 
climbed down the tree and peered into the darkness.  Then they went in.

* * * * * * * *

	And now we're here, Mike thought.  Well, better here than being back there 
with a coyote at their heels.  The sandy shaft ended abruptly, and they crashed onto 
the hard ground.
	"Damn, that hurt!" Mike winced, rubbing his backside as he stood up.  
"Remind me to bring a pillow the next time we do that."
	Lara got to her feet and clicked on a flashlight, then checked her compass.  
"Hm...that tunnel leads east.  Remember that.  We go west to get back to the slide."
	"I thought you said we couldn't use the slide as a way to get out?" Mike asked.
	"We can't," Lara said.  "But keeping your bearings in a place like this is very 
important.  One screw up and you can be wandering around down here for weeks.  
Not a prospect I relish."
	"Good point," Mike gulped.  He held his pistol in his hand.  Then they started 
down the passageway.
	They came to a great set of stone double doors, which had already been 
opened by someone or something.
	"Someone's been here before," Mike muttered.
	"Not likely.  The earthquake probably did that.  Those doors must weigh 
several tons each."
	"All the same, someone could have been here before."
	"Well, let's hope not, OK?"  Lara stepped into the room and played her 
flashlight around.  Moss and lichens covered every surface, and there was a 
pervading smell of dampness and neglect.  It seemed that the only colors left in the 
world were gray, black, brown, and a sickly greenish hue.
	Then there was the growl.  Mike spun to see the wolf bearing down on him 
from his left.  "Shit!"  He raised the pistol and fired as the wolf charged at him.  The 
bullet skimmed the massive wolf's shoulder, and it moved back, running all the while, 
preparing for another strike.
	"Lara, look out!" Mike finally shouted.  The canine sprang for her, but Lara's 
foot met the beast's head and there was a sickening snap as the spine cracked.  The 
wolf fell to the floor on its back, dead before it hit the ground.  A small river of blood 
oozed from between its jaws where the teeth had completely severed its tongue and 
ran across the floor.  Lara scanned the area again, but it appeared to be deserted 
now.
	"Damn.  I wasn't expecting that until we got further in," Lara said.  "But now I'm 
thankful for that martial arts training my parents made me take."
	"Lara is there anything you don't know how to do?" Mike asked incredulously.
	"Well, I never learned to play the kazoo," she admitted.  Then she giggled 
again.  "Yeah, there's a lot I don't know, and a lot I used to know but have forgotten 
because I haven't used it in so long.  Like some of the more obscure African 
dialects."
	Mike was impressed.  Not only was she good looking, but she had a brain to 
beat all.  He wondered if she was married, but decided she more than likely was not.  
Adventuresome people like Lara seldom had time for that sort of thing.  It explained 
why so many archaeologists remained single.
	She walked into the room a little further and panned the light around.  Up 
ahead was a rather large monument carved from a single large block of stone.  Next 
to it, there were some white, shiny things laying on the ground.  Behind it, and a little 
to the left, was another stone door, closed tight.
	"There's our target," Lara said, pointing to the door.
	They walked through the room without hindrance until they reached the 
monument.  Mike looked away.  The white things were human bones.  And fairly 
recent, from the looks of things.
	"Well, looks like we're not the first ones down here after all," Lara said, 
examining the pile.  "These are still pretty fresh.  I would say they are less than a few 
days old.  See, you can tell by the little bits of skin and muscle that are still 
attached."
	Mike wanted to vomit, but he choked it back.  "Um...that's nice.  Really."
	Lara blushed.  "Oh, sorry.  I forgot you don't get into that kind of stuff."
	"I didn't take zoology for a reason," he admitted.  "Couldn't get into the 
dissecting part."  He looked over at the door.  "Shall we?"
	Lara nodded and walked over to the door.  "Remember," she cautioned.  
"Don't touch anything in here.  If you see any sun falling across the corridor, stay out 
of it.  Don't stand on anything that looks discolored."
	"Hey, I've seen Indiana Jones too," Mike told her.  "You don't have to remind 
me to keep my eyes open."
	"One problem with that argument," Lara offered.  "That was a movie.  This is 
for real."  She examined the door, then shoved against it with all her strength.  It 
didn't budge, not even when Mike added his weight to it.
	"I guess somebody doesn't want us in here," Mike muttered.
	"Probably," Lara said, "but there has to be a switch around here 
somewhere..."  She poked around the edges of the door while Mike searched the 
nearby walls for a sign of anything which looked even remotely capable of opening 
the door.  But even after several minutes of searching, they hadn't found anything.  
Until Lara looked at the monument.
	"Mike, if you were going to hide a switch for a door, where would you put it?" 
Lara asked.
	"Probably in the most obscenely difficult place for anyone to find, much less 
look for," Mike said, not looking up from the wall he was searching.
	"But would you place it out in the open?" Lara asked again, walking over to 
the monument and staring at it.  From about seven feet above her, the eyes of the 
massive idol stared back at her.
	"Only if I thought it was so obvious that it would be overlooked," Mike replied.  
He looked at her.  "Hey, I can't search the whole wall by myself!  You gonna help or 
look at that dumb statue all day?"
	Lara didn't reply.  Instead, she grabbed a handhold and hoisted herself up the 
side of the statue hand over hand until she was face to face with the large head.  
She stared at the eyes again and then poked her finger into one of the holes.  
Nothing happened.  She put her finger in the other socket.  But again nothing 
happened.  "Damn," she cursed.  "I thought that was too easy."
	"Try both holes at once," Mike suggested from the ground.
	"So obvious, it would be overlooked," Lara said to herself and poked a finger 
in each eye socket.  With a slow scraping noise, the massive stone door opened, 
revealing a large chamber beyond.
	"Holy shit!" Mike exclaimed.  "It worked!"
	Lara dropped to the ground and stood up, holding the pistol in her hand.  "You 
are a genius, Mike."
	"Hey, I wouldn't have even thought about the statue if you hadn't decided to 
climb it," Mike said.  "Give some credit where it's due."
	"See now why I wanted you along?" Lara asked, snapping the flashlight off 
her belt again and playing it into the room.  "You writers have the perfect 
imaginations for stuff like that.  Anyway, let's go."  She walked towards the door with 
Mike tagging right behind her.  She stopped right in the doorway, causing Mike to 
bump into her.
	"What's wrong now?" Mike asked her.
	Lara pointed to a section of the floor that was missing in the middle of the 
room.  "This whole room is a trap.  Look at the missing tiles over there."
	Mike nodded.  "Where the hell can we walk?"
	Lara peered at the floor again.  "I don't know.  There aren't any markings on 
the tiles or anything that might give something away.  I just know I don't want to end 
up down there."  She pointed to the hole where the tile used to be.  Several spikes 
gleamed below, and when Mike played his light over them, he saw a few skeletons in 
the pit.  The ends of the spikes seemed to be coated with some kind of liquid.
	"Poisonous spikes.  Great.  How do we deal with this?"
	"We get to that platform up there," Lara said.  "From there, we jump across to 
the one attached to that wall, and then drop down to the doorway on the other side."
	"No problem," Mike said sarcastically.  "Let me put the springs on my shoes 
real fast."
	"Just follow me and run like hell," Lara said.  "And remember, this isn't a 
game.  We fuck up, and there isn't any extra life to try again on, no saved game to 
restore."
	"Is there some reason you keep reminding me of that fact?" Mike asked.  
"Let's just go before I change my mind and decide to just sit on my ass and sing 
'America the Beautiful,' or something."
	Lara nodded.  She grabbed Mike's hand, and started counting.  When she hit 
three, they both took off running for the platform.  Lara felt the ground wobble under 
her feet, but didn't look back to see the fragments of loose stone dislodge and fall 
into the gaping pit below.  She didn't glance over her shoulder to see the stones land 
between the spikes.  She just ran, and finally leaped for the ledge, releasing Mike's 
hand before she did so, and yelling, "JUMP!!" as loud as she could.
	The minute he heard the order, Mike jumped with all his might, flying towards 
the ledge which Lara had already caught and had pulled herself up on.  He had 
mistimed the jump, however, and slammed his upper arms into the side, rather than 
grabbing it with his hands like he planned.  Somehow, he managed to grab hold of 
the ledge anyway, and haul himself up.  Now his arms hurt like hell.  He stared at the 
next ledge over.  How the hell was he gonna make that jump?
	Lara looked at him.  "Are you OK?  You took that ledge pretty hard."
	"Ah, I just mistimed," Mike grunted.  "I don't have a clue how we're gonna get 
to that other ledge though."  He sat down on the end of the ledge.  "Regardless, let's 
rest here for a minute, huh?"
	She nodded in agreement.  "This next one is going to be a little tricky.  But I 
think I can make it."  She sat down beside him.  "Why not tell me a little about 
yourself?"
	"Well, as you know, I like to write," he started.  "I am hoping to get off to 
college with my sister next year.  Other than that, there really isn't much else to tell."  
He stood up.  "OK, I am feeling crazy enough to try now."
	Lara rose, then backed up a step.  "I'll go first.  Wait until I'm over and have 
my balance before trying to make it yourself.  Once I get over there, I'm just gonna 
drop down to the doorway.  You can follow suit."
	"OK.  Good luck."
	Lara backed up, ran for the edge, and launched herself at the far platform.  
Her booted feet slapped stone, and she forced herself to fall to the ground to keep 
from overbalancing and stumbling into the pit.  She then stood up, dropped to the 
doorway, and waited there, motioning for Mike to follow her.
	"Damn," Mike muttered.  "I didn't get a good luck kiss this time."  He backed 
up until his back was against the wall, then charged for the edge with all his might, 
closed his eyes, and hurled himself off the side into the air.  After what seemed like 
an eternity, he slammed into the ground of the second ledge and rolled against the 
other wall.  He got to his feet and dusted himself off.  "Hey, that wasn't so hard!"  He 
looked to the doorway and his eyes bugged out.  Lara was leveling her pistol at his 
head.

* * * * * * * *

	"Lara, what the hell?" Mike asked.
	"Don't move," she told him.  "Stay very still."  The hammer on her gun cocked 
back.
	"Lara, this is not funny."  He took a step towards her, and suddenly a large 
creature was grabbing at his hair.  "What the fuck?" he shouted.
	"I told you not to move!" Lara screamed at him.  "There's no way I can hit that 
bat from here now."
	"A bat??" Mike shouted.  "What the hell is it doing up there?"  He waved his 
arms at it, but that only seemed to anger it as it nipped at his fingertips.
	"Hold still, I think I've got a clear shot at it," Lara said.  She had placed a 
targeting scope on the end of her pistol, and was now aiming through it.
	"Screw that!" Mike shouted.  "I don't want my head going up like a melon 
today!"
	"Then what the hell are you gonna do?" Lara shouted back.
	Mike noticed the wall.  "Fuck you, you little dipshit," he snarled, and slammed 
the top of his head, where the bat was, into the wall.  It emitted a sort of squeak, then 
fell to the ground with a plop, blood oozing from its shattered skull.  Mike eeked, then 
nudged it over the edge and down into the pit.  "Au revior, you bastard.  My hair is 
hard to manage as it is without you getting all tangled up in it!  And now look at what 
you did!  You got your fucking blood in my hair!  I'm half tempted to jump down there 
and-"
	"Are you finished?" Lara asked, tapping her foot.
	Mike composed himself.  "Oh, yeah.  I guess so."  He bounced from the 
platform to the door where she was.  "You realize that this happened because you 
didn't give me a good luck kiss, right?" he smiled.
	Lara frowned at him.  Her frown though, turned to a smile when she saw what 
was in the room.  "Alright!"  She put her gun away and walked a few steps inside.  
There were jars of pottery all over the place.  And a skeleton near the far wall.
	"Man, what the hell is up with all these skeletons?" Mike asked.  He scanned 
the room looking for a wolf or some other animal, but didn't find one.
	Lara looked around the room and observed the ledge on the wall, above the 
skeleton.  There was a small bag near the skeleton's feet.  Then she spotted the 
area on the floor.  A pressure plate of some kind.  "Well, looks like we aren't the first 
ones to reach this room," she said.  She walked in, showed Mike the pressure plate, 
and then bent down to examine the skeleton's pack.
	At least the clothes were still on this body, thankfully, Mike thought.  He 
watched as Lara searched the skeleton's pockets, and then opened the bag.  It was 
carrying a small emergency medical kit, with a few bandages, aspirin, and a shot of 
anti-venom.  Lara dumped the kit into her satchel, then a small object on the ground 
between the legs of the skeleton caught her attention.  It was a poison dart.  She 
picked it up and examined the small barbed device.  She dabbed a small bit of the 
poison on her tongue, then spit it onto the ground.  "Curare," she commented.  "If he 
could have gotten to his medical kit, that anti-venom shot would have done the trick.  
But straight into the bloodstream like that, curare causes paralyzation.  That stuff is 
nasty." She shrugged.  "I'm gonna check out this ledge.  Want up?"
	Mike nodded.  He watched as Lara ascended the side, wishing like everything 
that she was in a skirt rather than those skin-tight shorts.  He slapped himself.  Stop 
being a pervert, his mind told him.  She's way too far above you.
	Lara reached the top of the ledge and then bent down and offered her hand to 
him.  He took it, and used it to help pull himself up.  The sight that met his eyes 
made him exhale sharply.  "Woah..."  A table was set up on the top, and on it rested 
several shattered items of pottery.  Under the table were also several pieces of 
smashed clay.
	"I understand now," Lara said.  "This was their village.  They stored stuff 
above their houses, like an open-air attic.  And see all the straw that is up here?  
They must have used it to help hold the roofs together.  And up here is where we 
want to be."  She looked in one of the clay pots and upended it.  A small amount of 
coins fell out onto the roof of the house.
	"Jackpot," Mike breathed.  He picked up one of the coins, curious as to who 
made it.  There was no stamp or seal on it, like the old Roman coins he had seen at 
one time.  But there was no doubt that it was real gold.  He scrapped them into is 
pocket.
	Lara continued to tip over pots.  Many were empty, or contained only one or 
two coins.  One particularly nasty pot contained a poisonous spider, which Lara 
squashed under her boot.  After all the pots were checked, they had a total of 11 
coins.
	"We're rich!" Mike said.  "Don't you see, Lara?  These coins must be worth a 
fortune!"
	"Those coins aren't anything," Lara said.  "I want to get at the good stuff."  
She stood up and dropped off the ledge with her usual grace, and Mike followed her, 
thumping loudly on the stone.
	Further down the passage, a cave-in had blocked the way, but there was a 
secondary corridor running off to the east near the blocked passage.  They went that 
way, the coins clinking in Mike's pockets, until Lara got sick of the noise and made 
him put them in her satchel.  They walked further through the twisting passage until 
they reached another doorway.
	Lara peeked into the room, then stepped inside.  "Coast is clear," she said.  
Mike gasped when he looked in.  The floor was completely covered with the bones of 
countless humans.
	"Must have been a burial ground," Lara whispered.  "Watch your step.  We 
don't want any curses."
	"You don't believe in all that crap, do you?" Mike asked as he followed Lara 
through the room.
	"Well, I figure it never hurts to be safe," Lara replied.  She reached the door 
on the other side, another large stone mass blocking the way.  Together, though, 
she and Mike were able to push it open enough to allow passage.  A large growl 
quickly made them both stop.  Lara shone her light further into the room and it lit 
immediately on the form of a massive bear.
	"We are in trouble," Lara hissed, and backed out the door with Mike behind 
her.  As soon as her feet were out of the doorway, she turned.  "Run like hell," she 
ordered.
	Mike heard the growl of an angry bear and didn't have to be told twice.  They 
both took off down the hallway with a large, snorting, growling bear ambling behind 
them.
	Lara led him back to the place with the stone houses, and leaped for the roof.  
Mike followed, and he grabbed the edge, but the bear swiped at his legs, almost 
hitting him and knocking him down.  Lara grabbed his wrists and pulled him up as he 
gave a mighty kick, smashing the bear in the snout, and scrambled up on top of the 
building.
	"What in the HELL is a bear doing down here?!?" Mike asked, watching the 
large animal patrol the grounds below them, and occasionally standing up on its hind 
legs, indicating that it was very displeased at having intruders in its territory.
	"There must be another entrance," Lara said.  "One big enough for the bear to 
get into but not get out again."
	It snarled at them, then sat down to watch them.
	"Wonderful," Lara said.  "It's not going to leave."  She pulled her gun.  "I had 
hoped I wouldn't have to do this..."
	Mike grabbed his gun as well and aimed it at the bear.  "Just say when."
	Lara nodded imperceptibly, and whispered, "Now."
	Their guns spoke at the same time, and the bullets buried themselves into the 
bear's brain, the high-caliber slugs blowing out the back of the bear's head and 
slamming into the creature's spine, killing it instantly.  It grunted, stood on all fours 
for a second, then fell on its side, let out a gigantic breath, and was still.  Two large 
trickles of blood rapidly formed a small river which pooled in the cracks in the floor 
and ran down the tunnel.
	The two explorers dropped from the ledge and picked their way around the 
bear's carcass, and proceeded down the corridor again.
	They got to the place where the bear had been, and Lara did a cursory 
evaluation of the room.  It was covered with moss, and had a very wet and musty 
odor to it, indicating that there must be water nearby.  Lara walked into the room, 
and Mike walked behind her.  Something had her senses on full alert, but she 
couldn't pinpoint what it was.  The passage split off in two directions, and Lara 
headed left arbitrarily.  This led into a room with a small pool of water in it.  She 
stopped Mike after he entered the room.
	"What is it?" Mike asked.
	"I got a bad feeling about something," Lara said.  She looked at the empty 
room, and the pool in the center.
	"Look at the walls," Mike said.  There were large, dark red stains covering 
them.  And the floor around the pool of water was stained with red also.  It didn't take 
a brain surgeon to know that the stains were blood.  And some of it was not very old 
at all.
	"I know," Lara said.  "That's what worries me."  She took another step forward 
to look at the pool, with Mike next to her.
	Before she could react, her foot depressed a tile in the floor, and a large 
stone suddenly slid into place across the door from outside the room.
	"Oh, that's just great," Mike muttered.
	"Damn," Lara swore.  "Why the hell wasn't I more careful?"
	"What's that squeaking sound?" Mike asked, looking around.  No mice or rats 
anywhere...  What was going on?
	"Oh, shit!" Lara swore again.  "The walls are moving!"
	Mike stared.  Sure enough, they were pressing inwards.  Mike looked from the 
walls to Lara, and then to the water hole.  "That water seems to be a tunnel of some 
kind."
	Lara looked at it, then winced.  "Great.  Part of this place is underwater.  I 
really wasn't counting on getting completely soaked in here."
	"What choice do we have?" Mike argued as the walls closed in.  "We have to 
go!"
	"Yeah," Lara agreed.  "I just hope that drowning is less painful than being 
crushed.  Give me your gun and flashlight."
	Mike handed her the items and she threw them in her satchel.  She closed it, 
tossed it over her back, took a deep breath, and dropped into the pool.
	Mike inhaled until his lungs could take no more, then dove in and followed 
her.  As he opened his eyes and allowed them to adjust to the water, he found it 
surprisingly clean.  Pure source, he decided.  He swam for Lara, who was waving for 
him to follow her.
	He watched her swim ahead of him, her arms and legs kicking in powerful, 
dolphin-like strokes, stirring up waves in his face.  Then he was next to her, and she 
had his hand, guiding him through the water.  It was getting darker now, and behind 
him, he heard the crunch as the two walls impacted together.
	She swam on, and gradually, there was a light up ahead.  She fired herself 
toward it, more dragging Mike behind her.
	Mike's lungs, as well as Lara's, were screaming for oxygen as they shot 
through the water, getting ever closer to the light.  Then, just as Mike was about to 
fall unconscious from lack of air, Lara gave one last, final push with her legs, and 
they broke the surface.
	
* * * * * * * *

	Mike and Lara emerged from the water pool both gasping for breath.  That 
had been just a little TOO close for comfort as far as Mike was concerned.  His 
clothing was soaked, and he was shivering slightly from the chilly air deep inside the 
cave.
	He sat and watched as Lara removed a lantern from the waterproof satchel 
she carried over her back.   She set the lantern on a rock nearby and struck a match, 
and soon it filled the room with an orange, cheery glow.
	"Lucky you had that thing," Mike said, thankful for the small amount of heat it 
gave off.  "I'm freezing.  Aren't you cold in all that wet stuff?  Or is all your clothing 
waterproof too?"
	"Actually, I am a bit chilly," she confided.  "But I'm also in shorts, and my legs 
are gonna dry off faster since they won't have wet fabric against them for the next 
several hours."
	Mike nodded.  "Yeah, but I couldn't imagine wearing shorts in here.  The 
thought of snakes just scares me too much."
	"Snakes bite through denim," she said, as if reciting a sentence from a book.
	"Thanks for the reminder," Mike grumbled.  This was not his day.  A little too 
much danger for me, he thought.  I wonder what BJ would do in this situation?  He 
sneered.  BJ would probably have brought a spare set of clothing.
	Lara set the satchel on the ground, then took off her watch, and set her 
compass down.  She then removed the gun holster on her waist and laid it on the 
ground as well.  She sat on the rock nearest to the lantern and unlaced her boots, 
then kicked them off along with her wet socks.  She dangled her feet in the water 
playfully.
	"What are you doing?" Mike asked her.
	"Drying my stuff out," Lara replied.  She stood up for a moment, then undid 
the belt on her shorts and set it down as well.  "You gonna come warm up and dry off 
or are you just going to sit there and shiver?"
	Mike blushed.  This was something totally unexpected, and he was not sure 
how to react.  "Um...aren't you a little...uh...embarrassed about that?" Mike asked.
	She motioned for him to come over, and he sat closer to the lantern.  Then 
she pulled off her shirt, and Mike's questions were finally answered as he gazed at 
her perfectly formed breasts.  "But...but, I mean, don't you care that I can see you?"  
Mike's erection was straining against his jeans.
	"Why should I?  I mean, I doubt it's something you've never seen it before."  
She slipped out of her shorts and laid her clothes next to the lantern, then walked 
over to him completely naked.  "Oh, and I remember you asking about a second kiss 
for good luck?"
	Mike shook his head in an attempt to clear it.  Was this really happening?  
"Um...well, that was before we even got in here."
	She sat down next to him and brought her lips to his.  "Well, I think I am ready 
to grant that second kiss, and maybe even more."  He pulled her to him, his hand 
stroking her body, squeezing the water out of her hair and rubbing it across her skin.  
Her breast met his palm, and his fingers danced across the nipple, as he felt it stiffen 
at his touch.
	Lara held him to her with one hand, and undid his jeans with the other.  They 
both stood up, about a pace apart, and he let the wet denim fall to the cavern floor.  
She pulled the shirt over his head as they continued to kiss, and then he felt his 
underwear fall to the ground as well.  He laid her down on the ground softly, making 
sure that there were no sharp rocks under her back, and continued caressing her 
breasts with his hand while their tongues got intimately aquainted with each other.
	Her hand gently worked on him as he pulled his mouth away from hers and 
brought it down to her right breast, the nipple of which was so sensitive that she 
shuddered slightly as he took it in his mouth and started to suck slowly.  He moved 
his hand down between her legs, opening her like the flower she felt and smelled 
like, and his finger slid inside her and out of her easily from both the water and her 
natural wetness.
	"I figured you were good at this," she breathed as he brought his mouth up to 
hers and they resumed kissing.  He worked his fingers inside her, waiting as she 
opened even further for him, then began to tease her clit.  She shivered and kissed 
him harder as he stroked it gently with the tip of his middle finger, then, just as she 
was about to come, he moved on top of her and slid into her.  They moved 
rhythmically together, and held each other close as they made love on the cave 
floor.
	He heard her breathing quicken, and he thrust into her slightly faster now, 
determined to make the moment come to her as soon as possible.  He propped her 
head up with his right hand because she was moving it so violently that he was 
afraid that she was going to hit it on something and injure herself.  That would be 
real great.  Get stuck in here because you were having sex and one of you got a 
concussion.  But the thought didn't stay with him long.  He felt the orgasm building 
up inside of him, and pressed home, determined to hold out until she came.
	It didn't take much longer.  In a few moments, he felt her warm juices spilling 
out of her, and he released as well as she shuddered under him, her pelvis grinding 
into his steadily.  Finally, it was all over, and he propped her head up with his arm 
again.  Her eyes were closed, but he kissed her firmly and passionately, and she 
returned it with just as much strength.
	The full measure of the moment hit Mike suddenly, and he got up off of her 
slowly.  "Lara, do you realize what we just did?"
	She opened her eyes and looked at him.  "We just had sex in a cave.  I found 
it particularly exciting.  Never something I had thought about until just a few minutes 
ago."
	"No, I mean, do you realize that you and I...I mean, we...um... you know..."
	She smiled at him, a warm, loving smile.  "Yes, I know.  But wasn't it kind of 
fun, risky-like?"  She stood up.  "Now, since we are both sweaty, I recommend a 
quick dip before we put our clothing back on.  I imagine that some of it will be dry by 
now."  She moved her small frame over to the hole where they had just moments ago 
extricated themselves from the water, and plunged in.
	Mike joined her, excited at the prospect of seeing her nipples perk up again 
due to the cold water.  And when she surfaced, he got a terrific view.
	But they both got out and put their clothing back on.  "That was simply 
amazing," Mike said.  "We might have to do that again sometime."
	She looked over at him, and smiled.  In the light from the lamp, it was very 
clear that she had not warmed up yet.
	"I look forward to doing that then," she told him, then blew him a kiss.  "But 
now that we've had our fun, we had better get back on track and try to figure out a 
way to get out of here."
	He nodded, suddenly becoming all business.  "Right.  You got the flashlights 
and the guns?  I think we might need them, seeing as how going back is no longer 
an option..."
	She pulled her satchel on, and gave him a pistol and flashlight.  "Remember, 
stay close to me.  We could run out of room real fast down here, and I don't want to 
accidentally leave you behind."  She kissed him again, and then shut off the lantern, 
clicked on her light, put the lantern in the satchel, and continued down the tunnel 
with Mike following her, still slightly in shock from the experience they had just had.
	I hope her parents aren't mad at us, he thought, then smiled.  What the hell.  
She was 22.  She was an adult.  She could do what she wanted.  And, Mike thought, 
working up an argument to anything that might be held against him if anyone found 
out, she did start it.  Yes, that was it.  I was helpless to resist her feminine charms.
	Lara turned to him.  "Let's keep that last incident just between the two of us, 
OK?" she asked.  "No sense in letting all the world know about you and me in a 
cave."  She grinned.  "Although, I am sure there are some Internet Newsgroups that 
would LOVE a shot at that story."
	Some sound caused Mike to stop laughing and stare around the cave.  He 
threw up his hand for silence.  "What was that?"
	Lara and Mike strained to listen, but Mike didn't hear anything.  "Sounded like 
a gunshot," Mike said.
	"That's impossible.  Nobody could have gotten that far in here without our 
knowing," Lara said.
	"Unless we missed something, some entrance somewhere up ahead," Mike 
said.  "You said so yourself, that might be possible."
	Lara pulled a sawed-off shotgun from her satchel and holstered her pistol.  
"Just stay behind me," she told Mike.  "We don't need anyone else down here to 
mess with our findings."
	Mike resumed his position behind her.  Lara stepped quietly down the 
passage, then stopped short.  "Mike, you were right.  Someone else IS here.  Or was 
very recently."
	"How the hell do you know that?" he hissed back.
	She shone her flashlight on the corpse of a bat.  The thick, dark blood which 
stained the ground around it had not even begun to coagulate yet.  She needed no 
further explanation.
	Then, from up ahead, they both heard an inhuman roar, followed by a very 
human scream.  The scream was cut off in a very ragged, bloody fashion that made 
Mike's blood chill.
	Lara twisted her light from high power to low power and proceeded down the 
corridor.  They emerged into a larger room, the ceiling of which was too high up to 
be seen.  Lara scanned the room and heard a clicking sound coming from her right, 
and something, though she could not tell what, charged at her.  The roar of the 
shotgun was completely lost in the large room, but judging by the scream, whatever 
she had fired at had been hit.  A wet plop several feet away confirmed this as the 
body of whatever it was landed on the ground and slid a few feet before coming to a 
stop.
	Lara looked at the blood which covered her shirt.  It was a thick, black color, 
not the red she expected.  "Gross," she muttered, running her fingers through the 
viscous liquid.
	Mike played his light into the room and instantly regretted doing so.  The 
corpse of what was at one time a man was laying on the floor.  In several places.  
None very close to each other.  "What the fuck could have done that to somebody?" 
he asked, covering this mouth.  "Don't tell me that was any wolf."
	"That did it," Lara said, shining her light on the corpse of the creature which 
had run at her.  "Looks like a velociraptor."
	"Raptors are extinct," Mike said in disbelief.  "And even if they're not, what the 
hell are they doing in Indiana anyway?"
	"The middle plains were known for their raptor digs," Lara said.  "They found 
several complete or almost complete skeletons in a bog not far from here at all.
	"I thought raptors hunted in packs," Mike said, looking at the body.  "Why was 
this one alone?"
	Several more clicking sounds snapped across the stone floor from the other 
side of the room.  Mike didn't need the flashlight to see the green crystal eyes 
squinting and peering at him from the dark.
	Lara leveled the shotgun and fired, but this time the creatures were ready.  
The shells blew the tail off one, and it fell to the floor, pumping blood from the stump, 
but the others scattered in all directions.
	Mike opened fire with his pistol, and by some miracle of fate and luck, caught 
one in the brain, sending it into the wall, dead.
	Another raptor jumped from a ledge above them, and Lara rolled across the 
floor, dropping the shotgun.  She cursed her luck, when her fingers touched metal, 
and she grabbed the gun dropped by the corpse.  It was a 9mm uzi with almost a full 
cartridge.  A good 2000 shots left, if not more, she guessed by the weight.
	"Mike, get down!" she shouted, and sprayed the room with fire , tossing stone 
and moss everywhere.
	The first raptor got caught in the hail of bullets and danced like a perverted 
marionette that was gradually getting its strings severed.  Lara cut the final thread, 
and the creature dropped to the floor, bleeding from the dozens of holes in its torso, 
head, legs, and arms.  Her second barrage was focused on a raptor that was leaping 
at her.  The power of the flying rounds tossed the creature back through the air 
where it slammed against a sharp rock which drove splinters of stone into its back 
and smashed its spine.
	The third stream turned the raptor that was bearing down on Mike into Swiss 
cheese, splattering him with the thick, hot vitae, but saving his life in the process.
	She stood up, breathing heavily, and looked around.  The raptor that had lost 
the end of its tail to Lara's first salvo lay twitching on the ground.  She retrieved  her 
shotgun, took aim, and blew it in half.  The twitching stopped.
	Mike's heart was pounding so fast that he could not stand.  This was 
something completely unexpected.  He looked at his side and realized that he must 
be in shock.  A large claw had ripped through the fabric of his T-shirt and parted the 
skin of his side.  And deeply, from the looks of things.  It was hard to tell where the 
raptor blood stopped, and his blood began.  He dropped to his knees, the knowledge 
of what had happened to him sapping his last remaining bit of energy.
	Lara dashed over to him.  "Mike!  Holy shit!  Hold still!"  She took his hand 
and put it over the wound to staunch the bleeding, then pulled her medical kit out of 
the satchel, selecting a massive bandage, a ton of gauze, and surgical tape from the 
contents inside.  She worked rapidly, frantically.  This was not supposed to happen.  
There weren't supposed to be fucking dinosaurs down here.  "Hold on, Mike," she 
muttered, injecting him with a shot of some clear liquid to fight infection.  She moved 
his hand and put the gauze over the wound, then wrapped the area with the 
bandages.
	Slowly, tentatively, she stepped back.  And watched as Mike stood up on 
wobbly legs, reminding her of a newborn calf.  He leaned against the wall and 
coughed, blinked a couple of times, but remained standing.  "Damn, what was in that 
stuff you gave me?" he asked.  "Whatever it was, it was a kick in the ass!  Whew!"
	"Quitetrolithium," she told him.  "A new, experimental drug.  It forces away the 
shock so the messages that need to can get to the brain.  Basically, it jump-starts 
you safely while blocking the pain.  You should be fine in a few minutes."
	Mike put his hand to his side.  Even putting pressure on the wound did not 
cause the needles of pain to shoot through him like he expected.  "Well, let's go 
then!" he said, lurching away from the wall.
	"Carefully," she said, catching him before he fell.  "Get used to walking again 
first."
	Mike staggered around until he finally regained control.  "Alright, now we can 
go."
	"Just a sec," Lara said.  "I want to check something first."  She walked over to 
the human remains that were scattered about and dug gingerly through the shredded 
jeans until she found what she was looking for.  A wallet.  "Gotcha," Lara said, 
opening the billfold.  Her eyes fell on the driver's license and she sneered.  "Carlos 
Virgelli."
	"Who the hell was he?" Mike asked.
	"A rival explorer," Lara explained.  "We've had our run-ins before.  He stole 
something of mine one time while I was out exploring."
	"What did you do?" Mike asked, fascinated that anyone would have the guts 
to mess with Lara.
	She smiled.  "I found out where the asshole lived, snuck into the maximum 
security compound, stole the necklace, blew out his power, and left something in the 
fuse box."
	"What did you leave there?  A grenade?"
	Lara cackled.  "Nah, I didn't have access to that kind of stuff.  I put a picture of 
about a ton of TNT inside the fusebox with a note that read, 'BOOM.  This could 
have been a real bomb.  Next time, think about who you screw with.'  I signed it with 
a kiss.  Boy, I would have paid money to see the look on his face when he opened 
the fusebox and that fell out."
	She stood up.  "Carlos always thought that high-powered weapons would 
save his life."
	"Well, they sure saved someone's life," Mike said.  "Although I doubt that was 
what was on his mind when he packed the thing."
	She tossed the wallet aside, and looked around.  "The thing I want to know is 
how the hell he got in here..."  She looked up at the ledge above the entrance to the 
room.  About twenty feet above it was a single sliver of light.  "Well, well...question 
answered."
	"But what about the bat in the corridor?" Mike asked.
	"He must have shot it from in here," Lara said.  "Remember the trail of blood?  
It looked like it started downhill from the body.  He shot the bat and it hit the ground 
and rolled."
	"Do we climb out?" Mike asked.
	"We don't have what we came for," Lara said.  "You think I'm gonna leave 
without it?"
	"Aren't the coins enough?" Mike asked.
	Lara shook her head.  "Nope.  I don't do that small stuff anymore.  Let the new 
grad students get overjoyed about those.  That's a small bonus.  I want something 
that will really turn heads."
	Mike resisted the urge to tell her that she had two somethings that not only 
turned heads, but caused them to enlarge several inches.  "What's down here, 
anyway?  You never told me."
	"To be honest, I'm not sure," Lara said.  "But the amount of attention this 
place has gotten makes me wonder what is going on here anyway?  Carlos wasn't 
any small-time amateur jerk-off like some other people I know.  He was like me; he 
wanted only the big stuff.  For him to be down here means that something must be 
around."
	Mike tried not to look at the mangled remains of Carlos as they walked by the 
massive idol in the room.  It was difficult, though.  The raptors had certainly done a 
number on him.  He shivered.  That could have been me, he thought, clutching the 
wound at his side.  Almost was.
	Lara entered the next room and stopped.  "Oh my god..."  A large chest sat in 
the corner of the room.  Away from it ranged about 20 other chests.  But the strange 
part was, the further from the huge chest they got, the less elaborate they got.  While 
the ones near the huge one were held together with gilded gold, the ones on the far 
end were rotting and falling apart.
	"This is what we're looking for," Mike said in awe.  "There must be an 
unbelievable amount of stuff in that large one."  He started towards it, when Lara 
grabbed him.
	"Wait a minute," Lara said.  "Something's not right here.  It doesn't make any 
sense that anybody would build a room like this.  What's the point of the chests?  I 
mean, besides keeping items in them?"
	"Who cares, as long as they're full?" Mike asked.  "Let's go now, before 
something else ruins the party."
	"No."  Lara's voice was commanding, and firm.  "We can't touch those."
	"Why the hell not?" Mike asked.  "This is what you came in here for, right?  I 
mean, a lot of treasure, right?  And here it is, right in front of us, free for the taking, 
and you're holding back?"
	"Mike, look at the chests," Lara said.  "They are very elaborate and expensive 
on the west side, but as you look east, they get worse looking.  That has to have 
some meaning."
	"It means they ran outta gold to coat their hinges with," Mike said.
	"No," Lara said.  "This is a test."
	"A test?" Mike asked.  "Test of what?"
	Lara pointed to the large chest.  "Which chest in here looks the most 
promising?"
	"The big one," Mike replied.  "But I don't see what this-"
	"And which chest would you save for last?" she interrupted him.
	"That small one on the end.  I mean, look at it.  There can't be anything in 
there!  Nobody keeps stuff in a chest that is falling apart."
	"So you want to open the large chest?" Lara asked.
	"That's what I've been saying for the past five minutes," Mike said.  Then he 
paused.  What Lara was saying was suddenly starting to sink in.  "Wait a 
minute...that's just the point, isn't it?  Which one do I want to open?  Not necessarily 
which one should I open?"
	Lara nodded.  "And what is more enticing then a large, glamorous chest?"
	Mike bit his tongue to keep the comment that he wanted to say in his mouth.  
"Not much," he managed.
	Lara looked around until she found a tree root growing through the wall.  She 
sawed at it with her hunting knife, and it broke free.  They stepped into the room, and 
Lara positioned herself a good distance away from the large chest.  She swung the 
root at the hasp, and flipped it up.  She then pried the lid up slowly with the stick.  A 
jet of acid squirted from the insides, coating the stick and falling, sizzling and 
hissing, to the ground.
	Lara pulled the root back.  The end had been completely eaten away, and it 
was still blackening and smoking from the corrosive substance.  "See what I mean?"
	Mike nodded.  "I don't want to know what that would do to a person."
	Again, Lara moved further towards the east.  She selected one of the chests 
in the middle of the group and, once again, flipped open the lid with the remaining 
length of root.  There was a sharp "twang," and a small dart shot from a well-hidden 
spot in the wall.  It slammed into the root and pulled it from Lara's hand.  Once 
again, the point was made.  "That dart would have gone right through you, and I 
would bet it was coated with some kind of poison."
	"I get the idea," Mike said.  "So, if all the chests are trapped, what do we do?"
	Lara walked over to the smallest of the chests, the one that had no hinges left, 
having lost them to rust years ago, and large knotholes in the sides where the 
handles had once been.  Now there were only sad looking pieces of leather straps 
barely hanging on the side.  But it looked as though, soon, those too would be rotted 
away.  She placed herself directly in front of the chest and lifted the lid off the top.
	Mike waited for a trap to spring, some snake pop out, gas spill out, some net 
descend from the ceiling while a large beast was released.  But nothing happened.  
Lara set the lid on the ground and looked inside the chest.  It was empty.
	Mike was about to make a comment when she suddenly tore away the bottom 
of the chest to reveal a second bottom.  And inside this false bottom was a small 
necklace, twin diamond rings, and a ceremonial knife.  "Jackpot," Lara whispered, 
lifting the items from the bottom.  "The Jewelry of the Gods."
	"What's that?" Mike asked.
	"According to legends," Lara said, "the people who lived in this area centuries 
ago believed in three gods.  And their Gods fought continuously, but not with 
weapons.  Rather, they fought using their beauty and vanity.  In order to aid their 
respective gods, their followers each made magnificent jewelry as a tribute.  The 
followers of Lethn'e created a gorgeous necklace to adorn his chest.  The ones who 
believed that Chen'e was rightful ruler fashioned a pair of diamond rings in hopes 
that she would out-dazzle the other two.  And the followers of Warn'e crafted a knife 
from their most precious stones and jewels so that he would stand the most 
resplendent at council meetings."
	"Well, what happened?  Was there a fight?" Mike probed.
	"The record of the civilization say nothing of the fight between the Gods.  
Rather, since no conflict ensued, the inhabitants all became united, and placed their 
treasures away in a secret place in case the gods ever decided to return.  Nobody 
knows anything after that.  What became of the people, if any are still alive, nothing.  
But museums have been looking for the Jewelry of the Gods for years.  Looks like 
we came at just the right time."
	"As did I," they heard a voice say.
	The two twirled to see the large man from outside the cave standing before 
them.  His clothing was torn up, and several cuts on both his face and arms bled 
freely.  "Oh, I suppose you thought you got away from me?  I wasn't about to let a 
punk-ass teenager and a woman get the best of me.  And I've overcome things that 
are a lot stronger than coyotes, let me tell you."
	"You've lost," Lara said.  "We've got the treasure already."
	"True," the man said, pulling a handgun from his back pocket.  "But I've got a 
gun.  Now, hand them over, one at a time.  And don't try any funny stuff."
	Lara sneered at the man.  "Don't think I won't find out who you are, Mister," 
she told him.  "And when word gets out that you stole another archaeologist's find, 
you won't have a job in this country ever again."
	"You know something, girl?" the man asked.  "You've got a very good point."
	Mike's eyes widened as everything went into a type of slow motion.  The man 
pulled the trigger on the gun, and Mike shouted to Lara.  But before the sound left 
his throat, Lara doubled over in pain.  The Jewelry of the Gods fell out of her hand 
and scattered across the floor.  Lara's body hit the ground softly as the man cackled 
evilly.
	"You motherfucker!" Mike screamed, running to Lara's side and turning her 
over.  The deep splotch of red that blossomed out from her chest told the whole 
story.  "You shot her, you son of a bitch!  Why the hell did you shoot her?  You 
motherfucker!!!!"
	"Maybe I am a mother fucker, and maybe I ain't, kid," the man sneered.  "But if 
I have fucked anyone's mother, it was probably yours."  He stooped and picked up 
the necklace, then walked after the rings.
	"My mom isn't into bestiality," Mike snarled.  In his pocket, he felt the pistol 
grip.  He reached back and took it out partways.
	"Oh, that hurt," the man grinned, scooping one of the two rings off the floor.  
He turned his back on Mike.
	"Hang on, Lara," Mike whispered to her.  He pulled the gun from his pocket 
and aimed it at the man.  "Hey, asshole.  Ever hear of the golden rule?"
	"What's that?" the man asked, looking around for the second ring.
	"Something about doing unto others.  Well, share and share alike, you 
bastard!"  The man turned, and Mike fired, once, twice, three times.  The bullets 
slammed into the large figure, throwing him back to the floor.  The gun fell from his 
fingers, and Mike stepped over to him with tears in his eyes.  He placed the gun in 
the man's face and fired again and again, turning the man's head into a bloody pulp.  
The man's body jumped and lurched with each impact, twisted, then lay still on the 
ground.
	Mike waited until the sound of the gunshots stopped echoing off the walls, 
then turned back with tears in his eyes to Lara's crumpled body on the floor.  The 
pistol slid from his grasp and clattered on the floor as he felt his legs buckling, and 
knelt next to her and cradled her head in his lap.
	Her eyes tried to open, made it to about slits, then shut again.  "Mike..."
	"Lara...oh God, what can I do?"
	"I expected...that this would ha...happen some day," she managed.  She 
coughed, and spit up a mouthful of blood.  "Boy, I'm...a mess, huh?"  She smiled 
weakly, then coughed again, spitting up more blood.
	Mike picked the knife up off the floor where it had fallen, and examined it.  
Sharp.  Deadly.  If she died, it would make an easy out for him.  Quick.  Relatively 
painless.  He kissed her lips and felt how dry they were, and his mind raced back to 
their time after the almost fatal swim.  How full and  moist those lips had been then.  
So vibrant and full of life.  How they had returned his kisses so passionately while 
they lay on the ground.  He didn't want to do it, but he had to know.  He had to see it 
for himself.
	He loosened her belt and untucked the front of her shirt, then slid the knife 
through the fabric, parting it neatly up to her neck.  He moved the pieces of cloth out 
of the way and examined the wound.  From the moment he saw it, there were no 
doubts left in his mind.  It was fatal.  And her chest was rising and falling much more 
slowly now.
	A soft sound made him turn his head, knife at the ready.  But there was 
nothing there.  Or was there?  From the corner of his eye, he saw it.  He whirled his 
head, but again there was nothing there.  This is not the time for hallucinations, 
Mike, he told himself.  And then he saw it again.  A ghostly pale figure walking 
towards him.  
	She was barefoot, clothed in only a very sheer tunic.  And she looked at the 
boy who held the girl in his arms.  Strange.  There was a tremendous feeling passing 
between them.  He loved this girl.  She frowned, wondering how that was possible in 
the short time they had known each other.  Straining to speak, since it was not 
something she had done very often in the 600 years she had been here, she looked 
at him.  "W-woo ahhrr eeewwwee?" she asked.
	"What?" Mike asked in disbelief.
	She winced, and tried again, willing the sounds to form in a way that he would 
understand.  "Who are you?"
	"I'm Mike Crisman.  But I won't be for long unless you can help me," he told 
the figure.
	"What is wrong…with the girl?" the figure asked.  Her head tilted to the side, 
giving her the look of a puppy dog examining a fire hydrant for the first time.
	"She's been shot, can't you tell?" Mike said, grief spilling from his voice, tears 
now freely flowing down his face.  "Do something!  Help me!  Please??"
	"I…cannot," the figure said in a disconnected voice, and turned to walk away.
	"Wait!" Mike said, anger welling up inside him as he stood up.  "God damn 
you, DON'T YOU LEAVE HER HERE TO DIE, YOU BITCH!!" Mike yelled at the 
figure.  "What the hell do you want?  I'll give you anything, just PLEASE SAVE HER 
LIFE!!!"
	The figure kept walking.
	A flash of recognition hit Mike.  "Chen'e!" Mike shouted.
	The figure paused, then kept walking.
	"Chen'e!  That's your name, isn't it?  ISN'T IT?!?" Mike screamed.  "You're a 
goddess!  Why can't you do anything?"
	"I cannot…" Chen'e replied.  But she had stopped walking.
	Mike collapsed to his knees in frustration.  Lara had stopped breathing.  He 
raised the knife and prepared to plunge it into his chest.   "Don't think I won't do 
this," he threatened through clenched teeth.
	"…Without the help of my friends," Chen'e finished.  And then, there were two 
other figures standing next to her.
	The three walked back over and surrounded Mike and Lara.
	"Do you love her?" one asked.
	"Dearly," Mike replied.  He shut his eyes, causing the tears once again to spill 
down his face.  "With all my heart."
	"Hold her close," the third instructed.
	Mike did as he was told.  He held her close, held her tightly, refusing to let her 
go.  He concentrated all his energy on keeping her spirit in her body as long as he 
could.  He squeezed, and thought again of her beautiful laugh, her vibrant energy; 
her lips touching his, her tongue dancing inside his mouth.  He thought once more of 
their brief, but so fully passionate encounter in the pool room as he held her close 
that time too, and brought all the life that was in her to the surface.  He put his hand 
upon her chest.  It was cold.  So cold...He closed his eyes...

* * * * * * * *

	...And opened them again as he felt a heartbeat.  He looked down, unable to 
fathom what was going on.  And then her chest rose...and fell.  And rose again.  
There was color in her face.  She was warm, oh so very warm again, and he cradled 
her in his arms as she stirred and seemed to wake, as if from a deep sleep.
	She opened her eyes slowly and looked at Mike.  "Mike...what happened?"
	But Mike couldn't reply.  He pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her, 
kissing her lips which were once again full of heat, soft and dark.  He felt her arms 
wrap around his back, holding him in the position which was slightly uncomfortable, 
but he didn't care.  He loved her, and held her, and cried.
	Finally, after several minutes like this, they disengaged and Lara looked him 
over.  "Mike...but what happened?  I was floating, then someone drew me back and 
you were...?"
	"It wasn't me," Mike said, eager to explain it all to her.  "It was Chen'e.  The 
goddess, Chen'e!  See?  She's right over-"  His voice fell into uncertainty as his 
sweeping gesture turned up only the rock of the cave.  "-There," he managed to 
finish.
	"Mike, those are just legends," Lara told him.  "There never was a Chen'e.  
She was just a fairy tale."
	Mike looked at her chest.  "The bullet is gone!"  Then he blushed as he 
realized that her bare breasts were staring back at him.  "Um..."
	"Why is my shirt cut in half?" Lara asked.  "No wonder I'm so damn cold!"  
She pulled the fabric around her, and tied it in a knot in the front.  "I don't know 
anything about a bullet wound, but where is the treasure?"
	She stood up, searching the room.  "It was in the chest..."
	Mike looked.  The hand which had held the knife was now empty.  "It's gone," 
Mike said.  "The gods took it back."
	Lara looked at Mike and smiled.  "You're kidding, right?"  When Mike didn't 
smile in return, however, she began to wonder.  "Mike, you're serious, aren't you?"
	Mike nodded.  "They saved you, Lara.  I don't know how, but they did.  They 
told me to hold you, and I held you, and--oh, God, I don't even know what happened 
next, but there were all these colors, and I think I might have blacked out for just a 
second, but-  Oh, who cares?  The point is that you're alive!  And I...I love you."
	A small voice echoed in Mike's head.  "No, Michael.  Your love for her saved 
her; brought her back.  No other force was strong enough.  Love saved her, Michael.  
Always remember that."
	Lara wasn't sure how to react to this, but something in the tone of Mike's voice 
told her that he had either had a very strong hallucination or...but it COULDN'T have 
been true...could it?
	She noticed an opening into daylight, where the evening sun was setting.  
Funny, she hadn't noticed that before...  "Well, we have the coins at least," she 
managed.  "We had better get out of here."
	"I have something more important than the coins," Mike said.  "At least, I hope 
I do."
	Lara smiled and laughed her cute, slightly British-accented laugh.  Then she 
nodded.  "You do, Michael.  You do."  They embraced in front of the opening through 
which could be seen the setting sun.  "But for now, let's get back."
	Mike nodded.  "Will I...ever see you again?"
	Lara grinned.  "Oh, I'm sure we can work something out.  In fact, I was just 
thinking about trying for something REALLY big next time.  Have you ever heard of 
the Spear of Destiny...?"

***<<<---...To be continued...--->>>***