Lara Croft Tomb Raider

Lara Croft and the Trail of Kratos

The final events that befell the Greek Gods has remained a mystery, but Lara Croft is about to discover the unrecorded truth. The Heart of Kratos, his destructive power sealed within his petrified heart, is about to be unleashed on the world. With Athena's help, Lara races the clock through the many lost temples to maintain the balance of life against the Apocalypse of Ares.

XXX

A/N: Well, look at that, a crossover, what a concept. Came up with this one some time ago, toyed with it but never put it down on paper, and we can't believe no one has thought of it sooner. True, main characters aren't going to meet that much, but the idea is workable.

Have done a lot of research into the game series, Greek Mythology and how things ended up by the end of God of War Three, so this should all work out correctly.

No money is made from this fan fiction; it is a product of crazed imagination. The rights go to the makers of the game series Tomb Raider, God of War, and anybody else we manage to insert but haven't credited yet.

It should be noted that we have combined both Tomb Raider movies and game world; just so a few things make sense. It should also be noted we have played the Tomb Raider games up to Anniversary and all of the God of War games to date, so consider the time to be somewhere between TR Legend and Underworld. PLOT SPOILERS ABOUND. Be warned.

Part One: The Temple of Pandora

Chapter One

It's Adventure Time

Hundreds of years ago, a sequence of events transpired that saw the greatest Gods of all time fall, the Titans destroyed and the world changed. The man at the middle of this: Kratos, the fallen God of War and the creator of the ultimate destruction of all that was powerful. In his blind revenge, Greece fell, and the Romans took the land from the people who had not learned to harness the power of Hope that was given to them. The Gods that survived the ordeals of Olympus found worshipping from the Romans, and they resided within their lands. The rest, as they say, is history.

But history doesn't always fill in the gaps. After his suicide to escape the pains in his heart, Kratos threw himself into the Aegean Sea, but he did not rest there. Athena, her powerful spirit, took the Sword of Olympus and Kratos' heart and locked them away. The power of the sword had somehow sealed the wrath that was Kratos within his beating heart, and if any mortal should harness its power again, the same tragedies that befell Greece would befall the world. None know where the sword has been hidden or whom or what guard it, but it has become well known that the heart of Kratos is hidden within the Temple of Pandora, which lies deep within the pits of Tartarus. Athena has been watching from her place on the other side of the realms. She has seen that one man is after the heart and could succeed. And from her position of sight, she knows that only one person can stop the world from being destroyed.

Lara sat in her study, reading the most recent notes she had been sent from an archaeological dig near Athens. Apparently there were more stories about the wars that ended the Greeks and the warrior Kratos. Lara had never been interested enough to pursue these places, and had only read about them.

It was late at night and Lara was contemplating going to bed, as the storm outside was noisy and the only thing stopping the continuous noise driving her insane was her iPod, which was blaring away in her ears. There was a knock at the door and it opened to admit Winston, Lara's loyal butler. He waved to get her attention and she removed her earphones.

"Will there be anything else before I say goodnight?" he asked.

"Not at this point. Sleep well, Winston," Lara answered.

"Goodnight, Lady Croft." And with that, Winston walked out. Lara turned back to her notes which were on her laptop and continued reading. The scholars had found the same old notes of the ancient heart of Kratos being hidden in the unsurpassable Temple of Pandora, and it had a faded and useless map to the Temple of the Fates. No one really knew where that was and all evidence was ruined through aging and decay. The best anyone could guess was that it was somewhere in the far northern edges of the world before the ice lands.

"Idiots! They know they won't find it," Lara muttered to herself. She shut down her computer and walked out to the upper level of the mansion. She took a turn and went towards her room. She was about to open the door when something caught her attention, forcing her to look back down into the main foyer. The statue of Athena, which stood to one side of the centre, looked somewhat different. It hadn't moved, but the colour seemed… fresher.

As taking the stairs was the long way, Lara jumped to the other side of the railing, climbed down that, and jumped to the main floor. Looking again, she noticed indeed that the statue was different. It did look fresher and was almost glowing.

"Lara," the statue said with a female voice suiting of the figure.

"Oh God, I'm dreaming aren't I?" Lara asked. "I fell asleep on my computer again and I'm dreaming."

"No Lara, this is indeed real," the statue answered. "I am Athena, and I have come to ask of you a most important task."

"No, you're a talking statue that is going to find its way to the curb side if you don't leave me alone," Lara replied, turning to go.

"Please Lara, you are the only person who can do this for me," Athena called.

"Not interested," Lara called, walking towards the stairs. She looked up the steps and there stood the figure of Athena, green and opaque but still her. "Now I know I'm dreaming," Lara muttered as the image of Athena floated down to her and put a hand out in offering.

"Lara, this is one thing that I would ask another if I could. Let me show you what is happening." Athena kept her hand extended and, after a few moments and a shrug, Lara took it. There was a blinding flash of light and the next thing Lara saw was a large temple that sat on top of a mountain. It had decayed and rotted away; unused for centuries.

"This place was beautiful once, as it was once Olympus. The men and women turned Gods lived here for hundreds of years, and then the God of War, Ares, took it upon himself to attack my city of Athens and kill my people. I set off a chain of events that I regret, but had to be done. The events led to devastation." There was another flash of light and there was a more horrid vision than before. It was a giant temple and rock base on top of a skeleton in the middle of nowhere. "This is another sign of the ruin that came from those events. The one man turned God turned outcast did all this and more. Now men are threatening to do it again. Inside the Temple of Pandora which you see before you is the Heart of Kratos, the man of destruction."

"I am not going after that box again," Lara cut in. "Once was enough."

"I know Lara, and I wouldn't dream of sending you back after it. The box is safe where it is."

Another blinding flash and Lara was looking at a large number of men, all well-armed with weapons and equipment, camping in the middle of a desert. "These men seek the temple and are close to it. While it is still a few days beyond them, it will not take them long to scale the temple and find the Heart."

"And in this heart is the power to destroy the world?" Lara asked.

"Indeed. I want you to go in and retrieve it, and I will send you to where it can be hidden." Athena looked at Lara, awaiting her response.

"Well, if it is an adventure, I guess I could handle that," Lara replied after a while. A final flash of light and they were back on the stairs.

"Take this pendant Lara It will help me speak to you when you need me." Athena waved her hand and upon the statue appeared a silver chain with a dark silver pendant with the symbol of 'Omega' in gold. Lara put the necklace on and looked at Athena. "Head to Athens and I will call upon you shortly afterwards. The Gods that live will also help, if they think you are worthy enough." And with that Athena disappeared again.

"Of course 'if I'm worthy enough'," Lara muttered. She climbed the stairs and banged on Winston's door.

"Lara, what is it?" he asked, annoyed.

"Change of plans, pack for Athens. Call Zip and Alister and get them organised too. We need everything." Lara said before going to her room. Once there, Lara took down her backpack and loaded it with medical gear, ammunition for her pistols, her magnetic grapple and PDA. Following that, she took down a slightly larger bag and then went to her wardrobe. Considering she faced both Athens in spring and a desert, not to mention the changeable conditions of a lost temple, she had to take a few things.

XXX

Athens, the following day

Lara sat in her hotel room waiting. She had sent Zip, Alister and Winston to look up as much as they could on Pandora's Temple and the Heart of Kratos, while she awaited contact from Athena. She hadn't told the others about Athena yet, and wanted to see if this was a wild goose chase brought on by too many late nights and reading of Greek texts.

"Lara, I am here," Athena said at last. Lara stood and turned and there was the figure of Athena.

"About time," Lara said.

"I know, but I had to steer your friends in the right direction. What I need now is to get you to the temple in Tartarus."

"How do we do that?" Lara asked.

"There is an artefact in the Athens Museum, and you'll have to retrieve it to gain access to Tartarus. I will be able to guide you to it, but you will have to do the hard work." Athena didn't seem fazed at what she was asking Lara.

"When?" Lara asked.

"Tonight at seven the museum closes. It will be easy for you to enter after eight. Be prepared. You aren't taking the artefact out of the museum; it is taking you straight to Tartarus."

"Oh good, a direct ticket to hell." Lara took a moment to think about things. "Is there fresh water at the temple?" she asked, thinking of her survival.

"The waters of the temple are blessed by Poseidon, so they will remain forever clean and drinkable. You will not need to worry about surviving the elements, only the men and beasts." Athena turned to go.

"Wait, what about remaining in communication with the others?"

"The necklace will ensure the connection is not lost. I promise that you will be safe Lara, you only need to survive."

"Comforting thought."

XXX

Somewhere in the desert of Tartarus

It was there in the distance, like a mountain that took its time to get closer. It was simply the thing that would not arrive. The convoy of jeeps moved quickly towards it, the men talking to each other and readying their climbing tools. In the lead three trucks were what any movie or video game would deem to be the three lead bosses. One was a tall man dressed in black, which made his flaming red hair shine all the more. His face was lined and tough, showing the many years of fighting and war he had seen. The next man was probably the brains of the operation, using a computer and peering at people over his glasses. He had a receding hairline of greying hair that still slowed much of its black. On his back, however, was a large katana, demonstrating his ability to defend himself. The last man, in the lead convoy, looked like he was carrying on a conversation with himself. He was bald, tan and full of muscle. His hazel eyes stared off into the distance, as anyone would think, but what he saw was the flaming hair and pale skin of Ares.

"My Lord Ares, we are moving as fast as we can. Even with the boosts upon our cars, we can only get to the temple at this speed."

"I have waited hundreds of years to teach my sister her lesson in humility, and now that I have found a temporary out from my domain in hell, we only have a limited time to bring me back." Ares snarled.

"I understand my Lord. I thank you for the sword that took your life, as it is enhanced with your power, but how do you know Athena won't try to stop you?"

"Don't question me," Ares snapped. "I know that all the other Gods still live and are finding a way to stop us. It will be only one, but a formidable one."

"Any idea on whom?" the man asked, trying to sound submissive in his questioning.

"A woman of advanced knowledge and physical skill. She is like Athena on earth in many respects. But she is not even in Tartarus yet. You have an advantage, use it Lord Edwy Wilde. Failure means I sleep for another two thousand years, listening to the prayers of the half-devoted and awaiting someone who has the power to bring me back again." The vision of Ares disappeared.

Edwy Wilde, archaeologist and world class fighter, looked toward the temple. It was getting closer now.

"Prentiss, get your nose off your computer and get your men ready. Ernest, you too! I hope these military boys you supplied are up to the task."

"Aye sir," Came a deep German voice. "Ve vill be ready unt time."

"Good." Edwy returned to his thoughts. If what Ares said was true, then he was going to be the head of a world order, second only to Ares, reborn on earth.

XXX

That evening, outside the Athens Museum

"You sure about this Lara?" Zip asked for what had to be the umpteenth time.

"Yes Zip, I am. I managed to scope out the museums' floor plan and security this afternoon while I had you three do some homework for me." Lara was hanging precariously off the top of a building next to the museum, shimmying across to the side to get to an easy access point.

"And are you sure Athena isn't going to lead you into a trap?" Alister asked. He was still uncertain of everything, even though Athena had presented herself to them that evening before Lara left.

"No I'm not, but even if she does, I'll get myself out of it." Lara looked over her shoulder. She was nearly in the right place. She slipped a little more across and then pulled up onto the roof. She could have run the roof, but was worried that the noise on the older rooves would draw too much attention and that the tiles were either loose or slippery from recent rain. So she had slipped by quietly and, hopefully, unnoticed.

"So we go into the museum, use the artefact there to send us to Tartarus, and beat these men to gain us the next big 'destroy the world' artefact on our to-do list." Alister seemed to use the plural terminology too often, considering she was the one doing the hard work.

"Pretty much! Now, I need to concentrate. This is tricky but it is still the easier way in." Lara looked over the edge again. There was the balcony below her, the wall of the museum across the street and one conveniently open window one floor above her. Lara took a deep breath and then took a short running jump off the edge of the building. In a moment her feet touched the railing of a balcony slightly below her, she then kicked off, jumping the distance of the street before throwing her grapple to catch onto the bars on another window. The grapple connected and Lara landed against the wall. She started to wall run quickly and within a moment was at the open window. She looked out, hoped she hadn't been spotted, and then entered the museum through its poorly guarded window.

"I'm in." Lara whispered.

"Nice work. Accordingly, you want to be on the second floor, which is one down. But according to my readout of the place, there is only one way down. All other access is cut off at night. You'll need to go to the far side of the level you're on, use the service stairs and then find your artefact. Oh, and don't forget the chalk to draw the circle." Zip had been typing frantically on his computer for the past ten minutes to hack the details and then find the easiest path. "Apparently there should be some in the office on the floor you are on. I'm sending a map to your PDA."

"I must admit I like these updates," Lara said. She turned on her PDA and the map appeared. She saw her path to the office, and then turned on its mini radar. She would have warning of anyone within forty feet who had an active communications device. So basically, anyone with a mobile phone or walkie-talkie that was switched on. The radar showed no life forms, but Lara proceeded forward with caution. The floor was only lit from streetlights outside, so Lara took out a penlight, turned it on and pointed it.

This floor was a maze of rooms that had different displays. Clocks, crystals, some things from mythology and ancient times, but not the artefact she needed.

Lara moved into the next room and her PDA vibrated at her hip. She took it out and saw a blip moving towards her from the next room ahead. Lara ducked behind a display that gave her clear view of the room but hid her pretty well. Into the room came a security guard. He shone a light around and then started to move along the cases, checking them as he went, muttering their contents in an otherwise well-rehearsed checklist. Lara had put her light out the instant she saw him coming, and watched carefully as he moved. When he was close enough and had his back turned, Lara snuck up behind him and hit him in the collar-bone. He sank to the floor unconscious. She quickly moved to the next room and through the displays. The office was adjoined to the next area. She reached the door and… damn! She needed a passcode.

"Zip, help," Lara said.

"I'm working on it. It has a lot of fail-safes on it. But the code is…" Zip paused as the numbers on his screen swirled like a slot machine. "4691 hash."

"Got it," Lara said, pressing the buttons and admitting herself. What she walked into was a laboratory. Beakers and test tubes everywhere, the office was at the far end and it was dark.

"I don't think people here work long hours." Zip muttered.

"They should watch more Sci-Fi's. Late nights are where interesting things happen," Lara muttered. She made her way across the room and came to the door. It was unlocked and Lara entered. She turned the lights on and was startled when she saw a man asleep at his desk.

"So much for that," Zip whispered. Lara didn't answer. The chalk she wanted was right there on a shelf. She reached across and took a large piece. It was extremely brittle, so Lara took a moment to find something a little stronger. The chalk was designed to wash away quickly. Lara found the best piece that was there, and went to turn out the light.

"Oh, wha-?" muttered the sleeping man. Lara froze, and then looked over at the man. She saw he was slowly stirring. She snapped off the light and dashed out before he had time to realise she was there.

"I'd like to buy a vowel. Wha-?" she heard as she disappeared towards the door she came in.

"Lara, turn left and take the other door. You just need to press the button to get out," Zip told her. Lara kept low so her movement did not attract the attention of the now awake man in the office, she went to the door and pressed the button. It made a soft buzz noise as it opened, and Lara moved quickly through and shut it before she was spotted.

"Lara, I've found the symbol Athena was describing. I've sent a copy to your PDA with markings on where you and the artefact need to be." Alister explained.

"Good, so all I need to do is get to the next level and to the artefact," Lara muttered.

"Bit more than that. You will need a large area. You may have to go to the main exhibit room for it," Alister explained.

"Always a catch to go with the problem," Lara mused.

"Don't worry. A cool cat burglar like you can handle it," Zip said with his upbeat tone.

"Thanks, I think," Lara answered, before heading towards the stairs.

At the bottom Lara was in a room she remembered from the day trip. It was a large empty room used for people to take a break in. It had two doors as well as the staircase. The only other things there were chairs, a drinking fountain and the doors to toilets. What was new to the room was that one of the doors was lit up with energy, blocking the path. The other door was closed and, presumably, locked.

"What is that?" Alister asked.

"Considering it has the Omega symbol, I'd say it is a God come to help me," Lara answered. She approached the golden yellow glow. As she neared it, a woman stepped out of the glowing doorway. She glowed like a body made of the light itself, but it faded away to reveal a strikingly gorgeous woman. She was slender with long dark hair, dark brown eyes with a lot of emotion, pale skin and a lot of make-up to compensate for her lack of clothing. She wore a tight bikini top in dark blue as well as a belt with a length of material hanging from the front and back. Although the material reached the floor, every step she took revealed a massive amount of thigh. Lara had to restrain from rolling her eyes at the rather raunchy comments coming through her earpiece.

"Greetings Lara. I am Aphrodite, Goddess of beauty and love." The figure bowed slightly and Lara did the same.

"Greetings Aphrodite. Am I to consider that you have found me worthy?" Lara asked.

"In many ways yes, for you have the skill to do the task set before you, but your weapons alone are not enough. You are limited by the number of shots to your guns. I offer you a power beyond that of any weapon."

"You mean magic?" Lara asked.

"If you like - the power to paralyse people close to you. Be warned that it is temporary and every time you recast it on someone, it requires more energy." Aphrodite looked at Lara sternly

"I accept this gift," Lara responded. She had long enough to study Aphrodite, and was trying to work out the movie actress she looked like, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"Such a gift must be earned. Defeat her, and I will grant you this power." Aphrodite pointed to what Lara had assumed was a locked door. Standing in front of it was a woman who was hissing insanely. Her hair was done completely in dreadlocks that fell around her head, and her skin was a deep olive colour, almost green. She wore a brown leather halter top and leather pants. In her hand was a spiked whip that she snapped loudly. The woman then ran at Lara, her whip jumping out to try and hit her. Lara jumped to the side and took out her pistols, turned to aim, but something was preventing her from pulling the trigger.

"Look at me, woman," the leather-clad fighter whispered in a hissing voice. She seemed to be pulsating with a magical aura. Lara did her best to close her eyes, and when she had managed it, she was free of the paralysis. But it was too late, as the whip came around and bashed her sideways into a wall.

"She's a Gorgon," Lara exclaimed, recovering and mentally checking herself. She didn't feel like she had been stabbed, but there had to be some ripped clothing at least.

"A very modern version, but no less deadly," Aphrodite answered. She was standing in the doorway she had originally come out from and seemed to be more opaque, probably to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

Lara turned back to her target, guns aimed. The Gorgon danced to one side as two shots rang out, her whip flailing in Lara's direction. Lara dodged again, trying to take aim without looking directly at the Gorgon. She also knew she had less time to work, as her missed shots would have alerted security to her presence. Lara ran to one side as the whip launched at her again. Lara then charged forward while the Gorgon recalled the whip to her. Before the Gorgon could respond, Lara drove a knee up into the Gorgon's stomach, winding her before using the butt of one of her guns to hit her across the head. The Gorgon fell and Lara quickly put her pistols away and grabbed the Gorgon by the chin and ear. With a twist and a crack, the Gorgon's neck broke and she slumped dead to the floor.

"It is done," Lara said.

"Whoo-ee," came Zip's voice loudly over the headset. "That's one nasty mother. Good work Lara."

"Well done Lara. I present to you the gift of the Gorgon." Aphrodite stepped forward and ran her hand across the necklace Athena had given Lara. It glowed with Aphrodite's touch and a snake curled its way around the emblem. "At your will, you can paralyse people around you, and you are also immune to Gorgon magic."

"I can perform magic?" Lara asked.

"Why don't you test it on the man coming down the stairs?" Aphrodite asked, pointing. Lara turned in time to see the man she had awoken back in the office, clearly coming to investigate the gunshots.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" he asked. Lara focused her thoughts and extended her hand. The man who was coming across the room froze where he stood and then fell over, as stiff as a board.

"That will only last for ten minutes at the most, so you had better hurry." Aphrodite stepped back into her doorway and the golden glow began to fade.

"Thank you Aphrodite," Lara called after her.

"Take care Lara, as the world depends on you," Aphrodite answered before the golden glow disappeared completely.

"You hear that, Lara? The world depends on you," Zip said through the earpiece.

"What else is new?" Lara asked as she ran on into the next room.

XXX

Gates to Pandora's Temple

The Gatekeeper ran a relieved hand over his forehead. It wasn't enough that he had been doomed to an eternity of looking after the temple, but since it had been magically renovated, he had to work double time to clean it up before the place was finished. The spirit that was Hephaestus had worked long and hard, and it was now finished. He and his harpies had worked tirelessly to pick up all the dead bodies and dump them in the fire. But now the last body was burned away and you would never have believed that anyone had been here at all.

The keeper sat down, leaning on his iron staff. What would he do now? He could go and polish some of the statues at the entryway, or mop the floors, or anything else that was on hand to do, but even that seemed frivolous. Nothing had been worth the effort since Kratos had come by all those years ago.

Yes, he remembered that day. He had been sarcastic to the Ghost of Sparta, and it seemed justified as well, for no man who went into the temple came out again, and that was strangely true. Kratos had been speared like a suckling pig with what had been a pillar of wood. He did not leave the temple alive, even though he had done what no other man had done in retrieving Pandora's Box.

But did anybody thank him for picking up ALL of the dead bodies Kratos had left in his wake and burning them? Did anyone say thank you for all the hard effort he had spent cleaning up the mess that was Kratos' impaled body off the front door? Did anybody offer him time off for fixing every last crack Ares had caused in the marble? Of course not! He was a vile wretch and not worthy of such praise. Such was the case for all…

Who the hell was that coming up the main temple path? Three men leading an army of others. Their clothes were bizarre and their manner odd. The gate-keeper sighed. It was inevitable that someone was going to come for the new treasure within the temple, even if the temple and treasure were in the most inaccessible place on earth. He picked himself up and went to meet his next round of logs for the eternal fire.

To Be Continued...

A/N: Well, we hope that was fun. We know there are a few things that need explaining and believe us, we will cover them. Reviews let us know which direction we could take things in.

One thing we enjoy doing is dedications to reviewers. If you can guess which artefact/God item from GoW3 will be used to open the portal to Tartarus, the next chapter is yours. Good luck,

Shinobikarasu