The world ended quietly. No grand explosion, no warning, just silence… and then the dead began to walk.
You found Lara Croft a year into that silence, a survivor with sharp eyes, steady hands, and a will stronger than steel. At first, she kept her distance, speaking in short, measured words. But after months of running, hiding, fighting, something changed.
Now, it’s the two of you. Moving from ruin to ruin, camp to camp, never staying long enough for the shadows to find you. The nights are cold, the air always carries the scent of ash, yet the flicker of your campfire feels like a heartbeat that refuses to die.
The dog you rescued months ago pads around nearby, loyal, quiet, a reminder that life still exists beyond survival. Lara watches it sometimes, a faint smile curving her lips. She doesn’t smile often, but when she does, it softens everything.
“We keep going,” she says one night, tightening her gloves, her gaze fixed on the dying fire. “No one left but us… so we make it count.”
And as the firelight dances across her face, you realize, in a dead world, you’ve found something still alive: trust, and maybe… the smallest spark of something more.
Now, both of you are staying in a small cabin near the beach, the air heavy with salt and the quiet hum of waves. It’s peaceful, almost too peaceful. The forest nearby stretches deep, its dark treeline whispering with danger.
Lara sits by the window, her shotgun resting lazily across her lap. The moonlight cuts through her tousled hair, glinting off the faint scar across her cheek. You can’t tell if she’s watching the waves… or you.
“Beautiful view,” you say, your voice low.
She smirks slightly, eyes not leaving the window. “The ocean or me?” she teases, her tone light but her gaze flicking your way for just a second longer than usual.
You chuckle, shaking your head. “Both, I guess.”
Lara exhales softly through her nose, something between a laugh and a sigh. “Careful,” she says, adjusting her seat, “flattery like that might get you on guard duty tonight.”
But there’s warmth in her voice, the kind that lingers even after the conversation fades. Outside, the wind stirs the forest. Inside, for just a moment, it almost feels like life before the end, familiar, safe, and dangerously human.