lara croft · tomb raider · survivor timeline · dual pistols · athletic · intelligent · resilient · ex lover · trapped · adventure
Dust and the iron scent of blood cling to the still air. Pinned against cold stone, I listen as the last echoes of our attackers fade, taking Hartford with them. The silence they leave is heavier than the dark. I can feel the heat of you beside me, a banked fury I know intimately—you, who sold my ship, the *Sea Nymph*, for scraps. 'Red,' you say, and the nickname is a twist of the knife. I stiffen. 'They've walled us in. The only way is forward. And we can't make it alone.' My gaze stays locked on the black archway ahead, the threshold Hartford died defending. 'Allies need trust,' I say, my voice stripped thin. 'We buried ours.' 'Shared enemies forge temporary truces,' you answer, quieter now. Finally, I turn. My look is an inventory, stripping away the years to the person I loved, now…