Chapter Text
The clanging of pots and chatter of the people fill the dry desert air as I patiently lean against the adobe brick wall behind me. As yet another vendor approaches I lower my hand towards the AK-47 propped against the wall next to me. I pray this time, they spread the word. I am not here as a tourist. Speaking of, across from me at a stall two women are purchasing jewelry. One of them looks up and spots the gun next to me. Shit . Her eyes widen and she nudges her friend. Time to move . The vendor seems nervous to report me, so the two quickly head towards a policeman. As he looks up I am already striding away. I weave in between stalls and customers alike as an old man bumps into me sending me a snide grin. A woman almost drops a pot and a fight breaks out between two young boys off to the side. From what I can tell the policeman isn’t following me too closely, probably trying to placate the women, but not get involved. I am not the only one here who is armed, and as far as he knows I may work for one of the many vigilante groups in the city. He doesn’t want to risk it, and I agree. I’m already a sitting duck here, I have to find him, soon, or I may be done before I have even started. Side eyeing a sketchy looking group of men, who seem to have taken an interest in the foreign woman with the gun, I pull the red scarf tighter over my lower face, eyes sending a warning glare their way. As I do, I hope the intelligence I had been given was correct, and that red was not a color associated with any gangs. That’s the last thing I need .
Ahead of me, the road splits in two. To the left are more bustling stalls filled with fruits, meats, and other foods. To the right, the crowd quickly thins out into what appears to be a dead end. Taking the right path I squeeze through the small alleyway off the right of the dead-end and circle back around to the building I had just been leaning against. This time I slip inside. If he wasn’t going to come out, I would go in. The problem would be finding his room. Earlier had been easy, just follow the gunshots. Originally I had planned to approach him outside the city, where it was far less likely we’d be killed by the local militias, get caught in a gang war, or worse, stumble across the hideout of a gang leader. That’s never a fun situation .
The first door I come to has an arguing couple, they sound British. How’d you two end up here? Before I can move, the woman dramatically sweeps out the door. I sidestep and get a glimpse of the man groaning into his hands. Awkward. Across the hall, the sounds of banging and ridiculously fake moans fill the air. I approached the stairs, I doubted Nathan Drake would have a whore in his room. Just to the right, a door sits open, enough for me to see what is probably supposed to be a drug deal. The glare of the man who slams the door shut and the following muffled shouts pretty much confirms my suspicions. As I pass a window I let out a low curse, three men are approaching the building, the cop from before being hauled by his arm with a gun to his head. The vendors have started to clear out, and the few remaining tourists are taking cover and probably calling the authorities. Unfortunately for them, they’re looking at the ones in charge of those authorities. They better keep their heads down. I make eye contact with the cop before hitting the floor and barely avoiding being spotted by the man holding him. Fuck. I gotta find him, fast. I creep along the floor and stop outside the next room. Inside I hear someone muttering to themselves before the door swings open.
Khaki covered legs lead to a green shirt and up to the face of Nathan Drake himself. “This is your fault, isn’t it.” His face is a mix of exasperation and disappointment. “To be fair to me, they probably just think I’m a spy for one of their rivals.” He groans before joining me, the two of us crouching underneath a window. Below we hear the men burst into the door of one of the rooms below and the shriek of a woman, followed by scrambling noises. “We gotta go.” Nathan whispers, before heading for the last staircase. As we turn the corner, I catch a glimpse of them reaching the floor we just left. This is not going according to plan . “Come on. I’ve got a car parked outside the city. We just have to get there.” I bite my lip and look at the ground. “What?” His voice is sharp. “Well, we kinda have to pick someone up?” His eyes close and I allow myself to feel a little bad. This was supposed to be a walk in and walk out situation. What were you gonna do? Knock on his door? Yeah, right. I follow Nathan across rooftops in silence and we drop to the ground as I see the boots of the first man reach the rooftop. There is a single gunshot and I close my eyes, giving a moment of silence to the poor policeman. He was just doing as you said, assholes.
As we move to enter the streets again, Nathan takes the scarf and throws it into an alley. “Hey!” “It’s too obvious.” “It was a gift , Nathan.” He rolls his eyes as he drags me through the crowd. “I’ll get you another one, okay?” As he speaks I slam into a large man attempting to squeeze back behind his stand. He glances down at me and I tense for some form of fight, but Nathan is already dragging me away. As we go, I bang into stands as I try to catch my footing again. “Slow down!” I shout as I crash into an apple stand. Nathan and I hit the ground at about the same time, apples raining down from the heavens. “It’s raining apples,” I say as he helps me up, and we duck into another alleyway. “Let’s just get out of here.”
A few minutes of alley jumping later, and we enter out onto a sidewalk. Before I can protest, Nathan is dumping my AK-47 and his shotgun into the alley. Then he grabs my hand and pulls me next to him, wrapping his arm around me as we wait among some locals to cross the street. When the light turns green he hurries us across. Behind me, I hear men clamor out of the alley and the sound of the guns clacking together. Great, unarmed, and in the open . I look at Nathan closely then, his eyes hold panic but his face is calm. “Get into situations like this a lot?” I whisper in his ear, causing a few onlookers to smile at us. “Just keep walking, please. I’d like to get out of here alive.” I roll my eyes and pull away only to stop at a small store. Inside I quickly give the lady behind the register a few coins for a hat and another scarf, this one a deep brown. Nathan accepts the hat with grace, and once my scarf is secure, we head into the busy sector of town.
It’s easy-going from there, a few stops while men search the streets which involve the purchase of an overpriced necklace made of a gold chain and teardrop ‘sapphire’ and a watch for Nathan. Finally, we exit the city limits into a small area for shipments entering the town. Quickly Nathan leads us to the jeep. “Okay, now who are we picking up?” “His name is Austin and he’s a-” I hesitate for a second trying to find a word that can encapsulate all Austin has been able to do for me so far. “Let’s call him my research assistant.” Nate grunts and starts the car. “He’s back at a cafe. It’s close to the edge of town. We also left a car hidden. It’s got some equipment we should pick up. Let’s get it first.” I point Nathan towards some bushes about a mile away as he sighs. "Anything else we need to get?" he asks sarcastically. "No," my answer is defensive.
Once we arrive he pretends to inspect the engine while I grab the duffles from the truck, as well as the pistol in the back seat, and the snack bag. “Cookie?” I offer as Nathan drops the hood and turns to head back to the city. “Here’s the deal. I’m going to ask for a quick engine inspection. Grab Austina and get the hell back here okay?” I nod and touch his shoulder. “Thanks.” Nathan shrugs. “No one left behind right?” I smile before jumping out and heading towards the small cafe. Before I leave earshot distance I hear Nathan conversing pretending he cannot exactly understand the mechanic, just enough to hopefully slow the process down.
Austin sees me approach and immediately begins packing up. However, I gesture for him to slow down as I see another of the men approaching the shop and looking around. I wave at him and he begins to leisurely pack up, trying to look like we have all the time in the world. “The car is getting looked at, but he’s waiting for us with it.” I hear the man pass directly behind me as I speak, and before I can stop him Austin looks up and says hello. Damnit . The man hesitates and looks Austin over before grimacing and looking towards me. I give him a tentative smile before looking at Austin who seems to have realized his mistake. I can see his panic start to emerge and begin to help him pack while keeping my eye on the man who had drifted to a corner but was still watching us carefully. When Austin is packed up we turn to leave and brush past another man. We are five steps out the door when I hear the men start to approach. “RUN!” I shout, grabbing Austin’s arm and abandoning any semblance of innocence or regularity we may have had.
All I can hear is my heartbeat as we sprint towards Nathan. In the distance I see him throw his hands up in the air as the mechanic closes the hood. “NATHAN! WE GOTTA GO!” I screech as we approach. His eyes widen as I hop into the passenger seat, and Austin scrambles into the back. “OW!” I shout as Nathan’s boot kicks my jaw in his haste to climb over me and start the car. He tosses the startled mechanic a few coins before slamming on the gas pedal. “ YOU HAVE TO START THE CAR FIRST!” I shout when nothing happens and he looks around in confusion. "Right, yeah, I knew that!" Austin is splayed on the floor in the back where he had landed, and his head slams against the seat as Nathan finally gets going. As we go I turn to grab the pistol and lay some covering fire, trying my best not to actually hit someone. The last thing we needed was a militia group coming after us.
As we get farther away I lean back in my seat and chuckle. “That did not go according to plan” I huff out. Austin just groans and holds his head. “I think I’ll have that cookie now,” Nathan says with a small smile. I throw my head back against the seat and let out a laugh before handing him the bag. “Knock yourself out.”
______
The breeze on my face is light, as we drive through the night. Around us, the desert sky is almost black, with the smallest hint of navy. As I look up the stars cover the sky like glitter. “I think that’s my favorite part of adventures,” I say, to break the silence. “What is?” Nathan answers quietly, as Austin sleeps in the back seat. “The sky. It’s always as vast and wide as the possibilities of what we can find.” Nathan hums as he tilts his head back to glance up. “It is pretty great," he answers quietly. In the distance, I hear a howl, and I glance around at the barren desert landscape around us. In the distance, I can see the lights of the city we are approaching. Beside us, the outline of cacti scattered around can be seen in the leftover light of the headlights. “Where are we going when we get there?” he asks, interrupting the quiet. I give him the hotel name and he nods. “I’d tell you to get some rest, but we’re almost there.” I simply shake my head. “You and I needed to stay awake, just in case. I’ll sleep when we get there.” When no response comes, I turn and shake Austin awake. He blinks and glances around in confusion. “I let you get some rest.” He frowns. “You stayed awake in case a shootout happened?” At my nod, he sighs. “So you were going to let me sleep through it? I can protect myself and you. I’m capable.” “I know Austin I ju-” His eyes lock on mine as he sits up. “Do you? Know? Because you treat me like I can’t.” I sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose. “We will talk about this later. We’re entering the city. We’ll be at the hotel soon.” I turn back around and ignore the glances Nathan sends my way. The atmosphere is tense as we enter city limits.
As we pull into the hotel’s small excuse for a parking lot, I feel my shoulders loosen. “Let’s go.” I quip as I grab a duffel and my pistol. Nathan follows wordlessly with his bag, and the second duffle and Austin brings up the rear wearing his backpack. I enter the room first after listening at the door and slowly opening and entering the doorway with my gun drawn and pointed forward. “Expecting someone?” Nathan asks as I double-check the hotel entrance before closing and locking the door. Austin glances out of the draw curtains and then unloads his bag from his shoulders, placing it next to mine. As he sets down the duffle and his bag, Nathan turns to me. “Why am I here. I haven’t seen you in two years.” I shake my head. “Get some sleep. I’ll explain tomorr-” “No. You’ll tell me now! I have things to do, I need to call my brother!” He starts to pace. “Do you remember what you said to me that day, two years ago?” Nathan thinks for a moment before groaning. “I said I owed you. Dammit!” He slumps into one of the two chairs provided in the small one bedroom one bath hotel room. “Call your brother, or whoever you need to. Explain your great mistake and tell them you’ll keep in touch as much as you can without compromising our position. Then get some rest . We have a long drive tomorrow. The airport is two towns over. Not to mention the stretches of desert in between. We also don’t know if we’re being followed. We’ll take turns keeping watch. Austin you’re up first. Wake me in three hours.” Nathan nods and steps outside to make his call.
I head to the bathroom and change into the sweats and t-shirt I had packed for sleepwear. Then I headed to the couch pressed against the wall under the window. I can hear a moment of Nathan raising his voice before it lowers. A few minutes later he steps into the room rubbing his face. He glances at Austin, who has set up near the door with his phone and then to me laying on the couch. After nodding to himself he heads to the bathroom before coming back and sitting on the edge of the bed. After taking off his boots and belt he relaxes back into the pillow. “Goodnight Nathan,” I say quietly. He hums in reply before I let my eyes close.
At exactly three hours, Austin shakes me awake. My movement causes Nathan to open his eyes, before rolling back over to continue trying to find sleep. In truth, I had really only been asleep the last hour or so. With a sigh of defeat, Nathan sits up. “Gave up?” I say as I move towards the bathroom to change. “Yeah, we should probably leave soon anyways. Before dawn.” I nod and as he gathers himself awake. In the bathroom, I throw on my last clean pair of clothes. The cargo pants fit nicely and the pale green shirt fits snugly and is comfortable enough underneath my gun holster. I splash my face with water then, looking at my reflection. The girl who stares back looks weathered. Her hair is falling out of its bun, her eyes have dark bags under them, and her mouth is in a small frown. Somewhere along the line, I had changed. The past 2 years had made their marks on my life. I traced the scar that ran down my neck and under my shirt across my collarbone before I pulled on my hiking boots, and headed back out, giving Nathan the bathroom. As he gets ready, I lay out the papers of information I had gathered along with a map.
Once he has joined me I explain the next steps as Austin looks on from off to the side. “As you know, you owe me.” Nathan snorts but stops and nods for me to continue when I shoot him a look. “And this-” I point at the map “is how you are going to repay me.” I wait as he absorbs the information in front of him. “Atlantis? Really?” I smirk. “Henry Avery? Really?” “Touche. So, where do we start? I need to finish this as soon as possible.” He says as he claps his hands together once. I nod and look down at the papers again. “Well, we start with Athens of course. That’s where the Atlanteans were last seen before their exile to the bottom of the ocean.” Nathan nods. “Okay. Do you know how we’re getting there?” I nod. “I’ve arranged for a plane, as well as supplies on that plane, to pick us up this evening from the airport I mentioned earlier.” Nathan nods again. “Am I allowed to tell my brother where I’m going? As I’m sure you have assumed, he’s not very happy right now.” I nod. “You can tell him we’re headed for Athens. But don’t tell him what we're doing. Not yet.” Nathan frowns but concedes heading outside once again. While I had been explaining Austin was packing up. Now he stood ready, by the bags. “We’re really taking him?” I lift an eyebrow in question at him. “Is that a problem?” Austin frowns and thinks over his next words. “I thought we didn’t need help? That the two of us were enough.” I shake my head as I look at the ground. Then I look out the window and see Nathan talking on the phone through the crack in the curtains. He runs his hand through his hair, face serious as he speaks. “He’s what we were missing. We need him. We need Nathan Drake.” Austin just nods his head, but I know the conversation isn’t over.
I grab my backpack, Nathan’s backpack, and a duffle, while Austin grabs the rest of the bags. After a last cursory sweep by both of us, we exit the room. As I load the bags into the car, and Nathan finishes his call while checking to make sure we didn’t forget any of his stuff, Austin returns the key and checks us out. As he heads back to the car, Nathan turns to me as I settle into the passenger seat and place my pistol on my lap. “Why are you looking for Atlantis?” I glance at him before looking at the sky, which has started to lighten to pinks and purples as the sun rises. “Because I can.” And as Austin settles in the back, and we pull out of the parking lot, Nathan nods his head. “Then let’s get to it.”