"Don't eat that…"

"Or that…"

"Definitely don't eat that one …"

"Are you stupid? That's poisonous…"

"You can eat that one… if you want to die…"

"Lara, don't eat that…"

"Fuck!" Lara shouted completely fed up with Zeel telling her what she could and could not eat "Are you saying nothing on this Island is edible when you keep eating every leaf we pass by?"

Zeel slowly nodded his head "Yeah, I can eat it but you can't, it would kill you instantly. This is an Island that feels like death. Of course, everything you eat would kill you,"

Lara wanted to refute Zeel's metaphysical logic but found herself hard-pressed to deny it. Even she could feel the cold sensation associated with death lingering around her body.

Still, the journey must continue, and there were no duos better to journey with than Lara and Zeel.

Zeel had the combat expertise to survive and Lara had the archaeological background to find the location of the tomb.

The duo continued unhindered through the jungle environment.

Zeel thought they would take more time to reach their location, but Lara was more physically capable than Zeel gave her credit for.

At this rate, they would arrive at the location of the tomb by tomorrow at the latest, so Zeel decided to rest for the night.

Half an hour later, Zeel and Lara walked out of the jungle and onto the coast. They mainly walked alongside the cliff, hoping to make it back onto the beach.

It was the safest place, considering inland was teeming with guards that patrolled the island.

Zeel wanted to sleep on the beach, beneath the stars, like he would always do with Alice and Elizabeth, but Lara's body was not suited for such acts.

They continued along the coast, searching for anything that could provide some sort of shelter.

Pulling Lara over a rocky surface, Zeel and Lara stared at the rocky cliff in front of them. It was the perfect location to set up camp if the top was somewhat flat.

Zeel even considered going around for a while, but ultimately decided against wasting time.

"Hop onto my back,"

"What are you going to do? Run on the wall?" Lara mocked but only received a small smile from Zeel in return.

Lara hopped onto Zeel's back enthusiastically, hoping to show him that she had gained a bit of weight since he last carried her. Maybe that way he would give up this macho demonstration of climbing with her on his back.

However, Zeel simply tossed a silver rope to the top of the cliff, and the next moment both he and Lara were pulled towards the top at amazing speeds.

Lara squealed and hugged Zeel with enough strength to strangle a well-defined human male.

Feeling that Lara was slightly slipping, Zeel placed a hand on her hips and pulled her up, but it seemed he used too much strength.

The moment they landed, Lara hopped off Zeel's back and began nursing her butt while complaining about bruising from Zeel's carelessness.

However, he just ignored her plight and examined the area.

Near the top of the cliff was just a simple cave dug into the side.

"This will be a good sight," Zeel said examining the nearby cave "But someone lives here,"

Zeel could see strange tools amongst the darkness of the cave, it was not difficult for his eyes to see the traces of someone living inside.

He would have probably seen exactly who it was had his divinities not been sealed.

Lara smelled the lingering scent of pee and instantly knew an animal had already claimed the territory.

"We won't be ambushed in our sleep?" Lara asked concerned.

Being chased by a Jaguar was not a pleasant experience. She preferred not to be chased by any animal any time soon.

Zeel frowned "The scent of pee is fresh, and this is human pee. That person saw us coming and bailed, or…"

"Or?" Lara asked.

"Or… they are waiting for the perfect opportunity to ambush," Zeel said pulling Lara aside and striking the person hiding in the shadows of the cave wall.

*Crack*

*Crack*

Zeel could feel bones break beneath his fist but it was still not a killer shot.

The moment he was prepared to deliver the killing blow, Lara jumped in front of him, taking the blow in the mysterious man's stead.

*Crack*

Lara's feet dig into the earth below, both her hands were fractured by Zeel's blow, but it was still an impressive feat nonetheless.

Of course, Zeel had halved his strength at the last moment, or Lara's bones would have completed shattered.

"That was reckless," Zeel commented staring at Lara's bruised arms limply hanging to her side.

"Arrrghhh! Fuck!" Lara cursed, attempting to ignore the pain coming from her arms.

She didn't know exactly why her body moved to block Zeel's attack, it was just an instinctual reaction born from briefly staring at the Mystery man.

The Mystery man was hugging his chest, hunched over on the floor while coughing up mouthfuls of blood. He was obviously severely injured but still far from death.

Zeel grabbed Lara's arms as the Gravitational-Ball seeped under her skin. What followed were painful screams of protest as Lara felt her skin and bones wiggling within her body.

Zeel could have made the experience painless but chose not to. There had to be consequences for Lara's continuous small rebellions.

It only took Lara about five minutes of pain to fully recover, she didn't ask any questions and instead walked over to the unconscious mystery man.

He had probably passed out from the pain becoming too intense.

Lara reeled in shock when she flipped the man over, then she stared at Zeel.

"I think this is my father," Lara spoke hesitantly.

With all the blood and grime on the man's face, even Zeel would be hard-pressed to note any similarities between their facial structures.

"Are you sure? That was a heavy punch you took," Zeel said, wondering his earlier punch might have caused lasting brain damage.

"I believe it is him," Lara said firmly, tucking the hair of her father behind his ears.

Zeel shrugged "It doesn't matter now, he will die in a couple of hours at most,"

Lara furrowed her brows "Just do with him what you did with my arms,"

Zeel did not immediately answer causing Lara to become anxious.

But when Zeel did answer, it was with a command that would scar Lara for the rest of her life.

"Kneel!" Zeel said in an authoritative-type voice.

His voice was slightly deeper, like an emperor that ruled a massive empire. There was also a certain nuance attached to his voice that made you want to do exactly as he said.

It was not to satisfy him, but to satisfy your inner urge to serve him. Still, Lara was able to barely resist the need to kneel before Zeel.

Lara noticed that sometimes she could not refuse Zeel, this was the case the first time they made love, and it was the case right now.

The internal battle between her instinct and her own will caused Lara to temporarily blank out with confusion appearing on her face.

However, fortunately, or unfortunately, the confusion didn't last long and her will won.

"What do you mean? Help my father, he is hurt!" Lara demanded noticing the bruising on her father's ribs had gotten a bit darker.

That was an obvious sign of internal bleeding. Judging from Zeel's earlier punch, it would take a miracle to save her father, so Lara was hoping for Zeel to perform one.

Lara knew that if her father was awake, he would no doubt be squealing like a pig at the slaughter due to the pain.

"You're rebellious and I demand obedience, so kneel!" Zeel commanded once more while walking towards Lara.

Lara didn't know when Zeel's clothing had disappeared but a bad premonition surfaced within her mind.

Several thoughts ran through her mind simultaneously but none could accurately predict the next series of events.