A tall black man in fatigues came up to her. The nametape on his right breast pocket read "Sommers". He wore a dark green beret. American Special Forces, Lara guessed.

"Miss Croft, Sergeant Sommers. Let me get that." He took her bag and tossed it into the open trunk. "We better get a move on, Ma'am."

The pair got into the car and Sommers drove off toward Fort Bragg, which was situated next to the air base.

Jeff was right. This place was huge. Sgt. Sommers explained that the post was home to America's quick response forces. XVIII Airborne Corps, the 82nd Airborne Division, the Special Operations Command, and a host of other units. Including the one they were about to visit.

"Which one was that", Lara asked. Sommers smiled.

"SFOD-Delta", he said. "But the TV and the papers call us Delta Force".

The headquarters building of the 1st Special Forces Operational Detatchment-Delta was hidden behind a high concrete wall. A blue and gold sign at the gate read simply "Security Operations Training Facility." There was an electronic keypass console by the gate. Sommers pressed his thumb against a sensor, a green light lit up and the gate opened. The car slowly drove in. In the sunset, Lara saw a five-story concrete structure directly to their front connected to a low building that stretched off to the left. Sounds of muffled gunfire emanated from that building. On the right was a smaller building and a parking lot. Sommers led her into the smaller building. They crossed through a small lobby to an elevator. On the walls were pictures of commandos on training exercises and missions. One showed a group of dusty, bearded men wearing desert toned uniforms and Arab headdresses. One looked like Sommers.

They stepped into the elevator. It began to descend. "We're going down to the Intel area," Sommers explained. "The command staff is waiting for you. They're going to give you a sitrep and will expect a briefing on this Emerald Eye."

Lara's eyes opened wide. "Briefing? I'm not prepared for that! And what's a 'sitrep'?"

"Situation report, Ma'am. And don't worry about your briefing. They're an informal bunch. I'm sure you know more about that thing than they do."

The elevator opened into a room that looked to Lara like the city room of a major newspaper. There were rows of desks, computer terminals, background chatter everywhere. Except that everyone here was in uniform. There were some doors along the back wall. Sommers led her to one of them. They entered.

Inside was a conference room. A large table dominated the center. Several officers sat around it. There were TV screens on one wall and a large map of the Embassy on the other. It's purpose was clear to Lara. Everyone turned to look at her. The nearest officer rose and extended his hand.

"Major Ashton. Miss Lara Croft, I presume." Lara shook his hand and smiled politely. He continued. "I'm the Operations Officer here. Let me introduce the others. Here is our commander, Colonel Joseph Williams, the executive officer, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters, our intelligence officer Major Nick Karansky, and the leader of one of our squadrons, Captain Jack Kraemer. I see you've met Sergeant Sommers, our chief NCO."

"Yes. How do you do, gentlemen." Lara said. As she sat, she took stock of the men in the room. Col. Williams was a bulldog of a man, with craggy features and snow white hair. He wore a dress green jacket with rows of ribbons nearly up to his shoulder. Peters was thin and scholarly looking, but with an intensely focused gaze. Karansky had dark Mediterranean features and jet black hair. Kraemer, however, made more of an impression. Not quite slender, but muscled, he had a young face and deep brown eyes. A scar ran from just above his right cheek around his eye to the end of his eyebrow. Unlike the others, he wore a black jumpsuit and assault vest. A silenced MP-5 lay on the table in front of him. He looked dangerous. Lara liked dangerous. She was attracted to him instantly. And she saw him looking at her the same way. Hmmm...

"Let's get her up to date", Williams ordered, snapping Lara back to the present. Major Karansky hit a key and the TV screens lit up with images of the embassy.

"Miss Croft", he began, "We have a group of Kenyan terrorists that we believe are backed by the IRA and several Islamic fundamentalist outfits. They came in posing as a catering crew, just like the takedown in Peru last year. There are 47 hostages: Kenyan, British and American. We can't find out much about the bad guys, but we have this videotape." The TV screens showed two African men standing behind the embassy's main gate. They were armed with automatic weapons and waving spears at the crowds in the street.

"They're Maasai. I can tell by the spears. From the Kisumu area, I should think. Near Lake Victoria." Lara blurted out without thinking. All heads turned to her. She suddenly felt the weight of five pairs of eyes focusing on her intently.

"Keep going, Miss," Karansky asked. She had just unlocked a 12 hour-old mystery. Apparently they had no Swahili speakers here.

"Is there sound? Can I hear what they're saying?" Lara asked. Karansky turned up the sound. The angry jabbering of a terrorist filled the room.

"Oh, yes, they're Kisumu Maasai. I recognize the accent. He says that the Kenyan government is killing off their cattle, starving their babies...the Americans are at fault...we have to rise up and take revenge...oh, my that was obscene." Lara observed. "Oh..he says that they will begin killing the hostages in twelve hours if they don't receive the Emerald Eye."

"Which brings us to our next point," Lt. Col. Peters observed. "Just what is this 'Emerald Eye' and why are they so willing to kill for it?"

"Well," Lara began, "I must tell you that the Emerald Eye is more myth than fact. No one knows if it actually exists." Bad news. Groans and whispered obscenities filled the room.

Lara continued. "The story is an old one. The legend says that in the days when the Maasai ruled the earth, there was a chief called Bantuswana. He was a great warrior. So great that the people revered him as a god. God heard this from his home on Kilimanjaro and became furious. He came down to Bantuswana and they fought. The fight was so great that the forests were destroyed and the sun grew dark. Finally God overpowered Bantuswana and put his spirit into a stone. An emerald in the shape of an eye, to be precise. Then God separated the Maasai from the Bantu and for all time took the emerald with him back to Kilimajaro. If the Emerald Eye can be found and a Maasai warrior holds it in his right hand, he will be able to release the spirit of Bantuswana and rule the Earth. Well, that's what the legend says at least."

"Do you know the location of this thing in the mountain?" Kraemer spoke for the first time. His strong, quiet voice sent a small shiver up Lara's back. What was his first name? Jack?

"I have some copies of ancient maps and drawings," Lara replied. "We can find a place to start. But I can't guarantee anything."

Major Ashton spoke with finality in his voice. "Well please get started, Miss Croft. We got a squadron in Mombassa ready to board choppers and go take down the embassy. That'll be bloody. We don't wanna do that. We wanna tell 'em that we're going to look for this damn stone and to hold off killin' anybody. They killed two people already. We don't want any more dead."

Williams turned to Kraemer and spoke. "Jack, pick two of your best men and accompany Miss Croft on the search team. Take a satcom unit so we can keep in touch. You may have to parachute in. Miss Croft, have you ever jumped in a parachute?"

"Why yes. I am a certified skydiver."

"Good, 'cause you're jumping with the Army now. It's almost sunrise in Kenya. We go in after dusk. You have 12 hours to get ready, people. Let's do it."

CHAPTER FOUR