"If you would please sign here, Lady Croft." The delivery driver said, handing her a clipboard. Lara Croft signed for the package, a white cardboard box roughly the size of a DVD player. He handed it to her as she returned the clipboard, and then with a polite smile and a nod, he returned to his truck and drove away.
Lara walked back into the manor house and went immediately to her study. She set the box on her desk and examined the shipping label. Strangely, there was no return address. Could it be a bomb? That seemed unlikely. If the package contained explosives, the new security sensors she had installed at the manor would've detected them and raised an alarm. Still, might there be some reason to be concerned about what might be inside?
Undeterred, she grabbed a letter opener and cut the packing tape on the top flaps. After digging through layers of packing foam, she pulled out a gray stone tablet with multiple columns of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs carved into its surface.
"Well, what have we here?" She asked herself out loud. As odd as the circumstances of its arrival were, Lady Croft couldn't resist a good puzzle to solve. She locked the door to her study and set up her laptop next to the mysterious tablet...
After days of researching and translating, she found directions to a secret tomb; one meant for a princess, assuming her translation was accurate. If it really was the tomb of an Egyptian princess, that meant it was probably loaded with treasure, possibly priceless artifacts. If she found it before anyone else, it would all be hers; to add to her own private collection or sell at auction as she saw fit. The Egyptians somehow got it into their heads that you could bring it all with you into the afterlife when you died; your worldly goods, your servants and slaves, and even your pets. Lara smirked at the notion. She had seen plenty of museum exhibits in her time that told a different story.
Lara drove her Jeep deep into the Egyptian desert, stopping only for water breaks and rereading the stone tablet sitting in the passenger seat. She saw nothing but sand and blue sky for miles, blurring passed her as her vehicle raced forward.
As it was getting close to sundown, she arrived at her destination. She got out of the Jeep and investigated the cliff face before her, looking for the tomb's entrance. Walking cautiously around a corner she found the start of some stone stairs leading deep down into the Earth. With the sun almost below the horizon, Lara had an uncharacteristic moment of hesitation. She stopped and debated with herself whether to continue on down or go back to her modest hotel room in Cairo and come back in the morning light. Was whatever treasures might be down there worth the risks that come with working in the dark? Sure, the desert was cooler during the night than the day, but the setting of the sun brought perils with it; nocturnal desert wildlife, low visibility, and possibly being ambushed by bandits or other human threats. And all that before the thought of entering a tomb that might contain traps. Egyptian tomb-builders loved to build traps; nasty, inscrutable traps. She knew that all too well from experience and had more than her fair share of close calls in the past.
She shook her head and chortled. Curiosity, quite naturally, won out over caution. She pulled her Mag-Lite flashlight from her backpack and started her way down; her footsteps echoing as she descended into the gloom of the underground. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, Lara shined her Mag-Lite all around the single stone chamber she found herself in.
In the center of the room was a golden sarcophagus with its lid leaning against it. It was clearly made for a woman judging from its size, shape and how it was decorated; though the face on the lid was conspicuously blank. More strangely, the walls of the chamber were plain white; no hieroglyphs or paintings as one would expect. Along one wall of the chamber was a long wood table with an interesting assortment of items: a golden death mask with as blank a face as the sarcophagus lid, four gold and gemstone charms, a golden hair brush and comb, a golden make-up compact, five golden ribbons, rolls of clean, white bandages in surprisingly good condition for how long she assumed they had been down here, and a large sheet of equally pristine white cloth, neatly folded like one would a bed sheet.
She took out her Zippo lighter and lit two torches by the entrance and turned off her flashlight to save battery power. She ambled around the tiny chamber, looking all around her and running her hand over the sarcophagus, its lid, and the table. There was nothing that seemed dangerous to her, just puzzling. This single chamber seemed to be the whole of this particular tomb, there were no doors to any other rooms. She felt the walls, there were no breaks in their surface to suggest any hidden doors. A curiously small tomb; hardly what one would assume was meant for a member of the Egyptian royalty.
Were they planning to do the mummification down here? She thought. If so, what happened? Why hadn't they completed the burial rite?
Lara was lost in thought, pondering those questions for what seemed an eternity. She only snapped back into reality as she heard the ominous sound of stone grinding against stone. The chamber door was closing! Had she stepped on some kind of trigger mechanism at some point? If she had, why didn't she hear it go off? She turned and ran back to the exit, but it was already too late. A heavy stone door slid closed, sealing the chamber. She pounded desperately on the door, but to no avail. Frustrated, she momentarily entertained the idea of drawing her guns and shooting at the door, but thought better of it. Not only would a ricochet in such close quarters be extremely dangerous, but it was unlikely the bullets would've done her any good against a solid, meter-thick slab of stone. What were her options for getting out of this? For the first time in her life, she questioned if she even had any options.
As she cursed her carelessness for not checking for traps, she glanced down and noticed her bootlaces were undoing themselves! She dropped her flashlight and bent down to re-tie them, but was suddenly gripped by an unseen force too strong for her to resist and forced to stand upright. She couldn't move, she was helpless to watch as her boots and her socks were removed and flung across the room. Next, her gun belt unbuckled and quickly joined her boots and socks. Her shorts unzipped. They along with her panties slid down her legs, and then threw themselves at the pile. Her arms were lifted straight up and her backpack, tank top, and her bra soon followed; leaving her naked form to goose-pimple in the chill of the underground tomb.
That's when she noticed a shocking change in the chamber: where the walls had been blank, hieroglyphs and pictures spontaneously appeared, as if being painted right before her widening eyes. The hieroglyphs and paintings told the story of her life right up until she entered the tomb! She glanced at the sarcophagus lid and the death mask, they both had changed as well; they now bore her face where they had been blank before! Her mind was racing, she could not believe what was happening around her and to her.
The hair brush and comb both rose from the table and floated towards her. Unseen hands undid her braids and then the brush and comb did their work, combing out all tangles in her hair and then brushing it smooth. It was the kind of pampering that would be pleasurable under less terrifying circumstances. The brush and the comb, having served their purpose, disappeared.
The make-up compact came next. It opened up, and Lara watched in the compact's mirror as make-up was applied to her face; eye liner and eye shadow in a distinctly Egyptian style, blush on her cheeks, and then her lips were painted a rich, vibrant red. The compact vanished as well after doing its work.
Lara had a distressing thought: whatever spirit or entity was possessing this place was softening her, gussying her up like a Barbie doll.
Lara had no issue with femininity; after all, she had an entire walk-in closet full of flattering evening wear that turned heads and several dresser drawers full of Victoria's Secret lingerie that would light a fire in the loins of any prospective bed partners she saw fit to invite back to the manor; and admittedly, even she was not above using her looks and feminine wiles if it suited her ends. But this? This was being done to her without her consent; done against her will. She desperately wanted to fight back, she wanted very much to put a stop to this; but as is often with such entities, this... whatever it was, did not seem inclined to play by rules or respect boundaries.
What she saw next made her want to struggle and scream all the more, but the unseen force that held her kept her still and quiet. The rolls of bandages began to levitate off the table and float towards her! Two rolls drifted down to her ankles and started to wrap her legs, while two more started on her arms. Another roll wrapped around her waist and began weaving itself through her crotch in overlapping figure eights, perfectly wrapping her vagina and bum. Another worked its way up her stomach, chest, and shoulders. Strangely, the bandages were made of a shimmering white silk; soft, smooth and cool on her skin. Very expensive wrappings, indeed fit for a princess.
So, I'm the princess this tomb was made for? Lara thought, astonished by the implications.
It took only seconds for her to be wrapped in a full layer from the neck down, and then more rolls floated towards her to begin the second layer. And then eight more layers. Her legs were brought together as the bandages wrapped around her ankles and feet, and then wind their way back up. As more rolls joined in, her legs were so tightly bound it would be impossible to move them even if she wasn't in the grip of whatever magic was keeping her helpless. Another layer formed a neat, tight herringbone pattern from the tips of her toes to just under her armpits.
The charms floated over with the next wave of bandages. The first charm, the symbol of the goddess, Isis, tucked itself into the bandages near her pubic mound. The second, an ankh, positioned itself over her stomach and was wrapped in place. The third, a scarab, was bound between her breasts. The fourth and final charm was an Eye of Ra, and it landed on her forehead as her hair was put up in a bun and the bandages wrapped nearly her entire head, leaving only her eyes uncovered for the time being.
Lara surrendered to her fate as her arms were crossed over her chest and bound securely in place. The remaining rolls of bandages wrapped her in more layers, making her bindings thick, tight, and impossible to escape. Just before her eyes were finally covered over, she watched the sheet and the golden ribbons rise off the table and float toward her. The sheet unfolded as it drew near and then wrapped around her. The five ribbons bound this outer shroud in place, tying around her ankles, her knees, her waist, her bound arms and chest, and lastly her neck.
Lara could not see the golden death mask fly off the table and hover directly above her, but she could feel it was a tight fit over her thoroughly wrapped head and shoulders. The eyes of the mask briefly glowed a regal blue.
As with the hairbrush, comb, and make-up compact, the table also disappeared.
As she felt herself being lifted and tilted onto her back, she knew all too well what was happening. She was levitated over to the sarcophagus and laid to rest inside. As the lid slid into place, Lara's mind and spirit sank into the haze of never-ending slumber. Magic infused into the four charms and the mask maintained her in this state; her physical body would not age or decay and would have no need to breathe, eat, drink, or excrete. Frozen in time, perfectly preserved for eternity.
The Isis Charm also served three additional purposes:
First, restorative energies within it refreshed her womanhood. Even her hymen was somehow renewed.
Second, An invisible shield of protective magic sealed her most intimate of intimates. It was like the mystic equivalent of a chastity belt; by the decree of Isis herself, nothing unclean or unworthy would be allowed to touch so sacred a part of her physical being.
Lastly, in conjunction with the Eye of Ra on her forehand, the Isis Charm locked her mind in a perpetual dream state. No nightmares, only soft, serene, pleasurable dreams.
The first of those dreams involved being escorted through a white marble palace by a procession of maidservants in white gowns that beautifully showed off their nubile figures. She herself was clad in a shimmering, white silken robe. They brought her to the palace's opulent bathing hall, where wisps of steam rose gently from the surface of the crystal clear water of the grand bathing pool. Mosaics composed of multi-colored tiles were set in the bottom of the pool, images of the goddess Isis and the great Nile river. The maidservants disrobed her, removed their own gowns, and led her into the warm bath. Two scrubbed her vigorously with sponges and bars of soap that smelled strongly of hyssop and frankincense. A third with a pitcher of water and an alabaster bottle of floral-scented shampoo wet Lara's hair, shampooed and rinsed it thrice, causing her scalp to tingle pleasantly and making her drowsy. A fourth maidservant served her wine in an ornate cup. She drank it in deeply, savoring the heady aroma and flavor of the vintage.
When they finished her cleansing, they dried her off and led her to a padded bench nearby. She laid down on her front side as they massaged every inch of her, rubbing her skin with fragrant oils and working the muscles deeply. The dream lulled her mind into a state of such complete comfort and relaxation she quickly forgot her life before and abandoned any desire for freedom; any desire for autonomy. This was her reality now; what lies outside her private fantasy world no longer mattered to her.
The maidservants led Lara from the bathing hall to a bed chamber fit for a princess, lit by numerous candles. They dressed her in white silken sleepwear and tucked her into the white silken bed sheets and blankets, each of them kissing their new mistress on the lips as they bid her a pleasant rest. As they extinguished the candles, filed out of the chamber, and closed and locked the double doors tight, she closed her eyes and let out a soft, euphoric moan.
Over time, the dreams grew increasingly erotic as more and more of her agency slipped away. She next dreamed of a room full of silky, pastel-colored cushions, and a naked orgy with the same maidservants from before. A heady incense filled the air, and Lara could have sworn she heard Enigma's The Principles of Lust echoing throughout the chamber they were in. The maidservants' eagerness to please their mistress knew no limits, and their talents for... "pleasuring techniques" was limited only by Lara's imagination. She had them using those talents both on her and on each other. The dream slowly faded into white mist as she reclined; watching them bring each other to overpowering climaxes, all the while she herself moaned and... "polished the pearl."
Soon enough, she dreamed of lying naked and helpless on a massive bed, her skin and hair glistening with sweat and her vagina dripping its sultry juices onto the white silk bed linens. Various shadowy figures climbed astride her and played with her body, kneading her breasts like dough, kissing and licking her neck and face, and tracing their fingers over her flesh. Some of these figures were male, and some were female. Some of them made gentle love to her, while others fucked her hard and without mercy. Either way she panted and moaned in ecstasy. If she could speak, she would be constantly begging for more.
One of the male shadows briefly revealed himself to have the face of the delivery driver who brought her the mysterious stone tablet, giving her the same smile and nod. Was it just the dreaming drawing images from her memories, or had he been a dark spirit in disguise? She would never know for sure, as her rational mind dissolved away along with any desire to ever be free again; all that remained was the base, animal need for more and more pleasure.
The sarcophagus sealed itself tight and permanently; with the magic infused into the gold and wood, no force in the universe could break through it or make it open. A tile in the floor at the foot of the sarcophagus retracted downward and slid aside, revealing a hidden space. Lara's clothing and possessions levitated over to it and were neatly placed inside. The tile then closed back up and it too received an unbreakable magical seal. Even the door received a seal of its own. The torches both puffed out, plunging the small chamber into darkness. Above ground, a massive sandstorm struck the area, burying the entrance to the tomb and Lara's Jeep. What became of Lara Croft would remain a mystery, speculated on by allies and enemies alike for years.