Lara Croft explores the Savage Land (Marvel/DC/other)

The clearing was a godsend to Lara. After spending an entire day hacking through thick brush, she had finally been given a break -- or so she thought.

Lara had been trekking for three, maybe four days, through the Savage Land since her helicopter had crashed. Upon hearing rumors of the uncharted jungle where dinosaurs apparently still existed, she just knew she had to find out for herself. She pretty much postponed everything in her plans for the next year or so -- after all, if this savage land was what it was rumored to be, who knows how long she'd be there? -- and set off to its rumored location.

Getting there, however, was far more difficult than she had hoped. Almost as soon as she had spotted the savage land, the helicopter malfunctioned and crashed into the thick jungle below. The pilot was killed, but Lara somehow made it without a scratch -- she wasn't sure how she got so lucky, but she wasn't about to question her luck.

The massive rainforest was also a huge challenge, full of both flora and fauna seemingly custom designed to poison and kill. Possibly to keep people out, Lara wondered? It seemed impossible to survive there. Oddly enough, however, most of the animals seemed to leave Lara alone, as if the massive jungle was somehow allowing Lara to pass. That didn't mean getting through it was a cakewalk, though. Lara did have to use her considerable survival knowledge to get through. Once she did, though, she felt a massive sense of relief... until she heard a snarl unlike anything she'd heard before.

She turned to face a pair of Deinonychus, a carnivorous dinosaur with nasty claws adorning its feet. One charged towards her A kick from that could have torn Lara in two. She jumped out of the way and grabbed her guns from her holsters. Unfortunately for her, the second leapt at her at that moment, and although she was able to dodge any serious damage, it hit her hard enough to knock her guns out of her hands, leaving her defenseless.

Shit, what now? Lara wondered. There was no way she could outrun these dinosaurs, and she couldn't keep dodging them. The trek through the jungle had been draining enough.

But once again, luck would turn in Lara's favor.