HARP OF SAILOR MERCURY

Level by Razyel

Walkthrough by Phil Lambeth


Begin in a well-lit corner facing a bumpy and winding path along a descending passage. As you step forward and spiral your way down you'll trigger some spooky music about the same time you start seeing skull tiles in the ceiling. Those tiles are there for a purpose, as they warn you that a block will fall from the ceiling if you pass beneath them. You have a second or two, however, while they rumble and shake themselves loose, so it's an easy matter to avoid them. See if you can trigger them all (the last one on the left appears to be out of order) before you step out into an opening that overlooks a dig of some kind. It's guarded by four SAS, two to your left and two (one of whom is at a higher level than you) to your right. Kill them one by one with your pistols, taking refuge when necessary to shield yourself from their return fire (although if you stay a step or two back from the edge, they apparently refrain from firing while allowing you to pour lead into them at your leisure), before dropping down into the dig area.

As you explore the area you'll find closed double doors in the south wall and a ladder on the north face of the nearby pillar. Climb it and shift to your right once you've cleared the scaffolding. Continue climbing up until you clear the ledge to your left, then shift left and release onto the ledge right in front of the wall switch. Pull the switch down for a cut scene showing the double doors down below opening from the other side. You can also see out of the corner of your eye a gem atop the west pillar that's presently beyond your reach. Climb back down and enter the south doorway. Turn right and head down the stairs. The first thing you see is another closed door with a gem receptacle right next to it.

Climb the ladder in the south wall and pull up into the opening. Turn to your left and climb the blocks to a higher passage. Turn left and run up the stairs into a still higher passage and turn left to face a dazzling burst of sunlight. Walk down the stairs toward the blinding light and shoot the two vases on either side for a couple of stashes of shotgun ammo. Use the floor crawl space in the north wall to access a ramp leading to that gem you saw in the distance earlier. Vault up onto the pillar and pick it up (it shows as "load" in your inventory), then hop down and go over to the dead SAS for a small medi-pack he dropped while checking out.

Go back through the west passage and crawl back to the previous room. Run up the stairs and retrace your steps back to the gem receptacle. Insert the gem to open the adjacent double doors and either crawl under the flame gauntlet or wait for the flames to subside so you can run past the statues toward the obvious boulder trap ahead. It's a piece of cake, however. Simply run forward to trigger the boulders, then scoot to your right or left, enduring an annoying dart or two, until the boulders roll slowly past you. Run up the west ramp into another sun-splashed room.

As you step down, chains on either side of you will start swinging back and forth. They pose absolutely no threat to you, however, as you can easily squeeze between them, first to pull down the switch in the south wall and then to exit through the open north doorway. Before leaving, however, note the closed door in the west alcove. Also, the sunlit pedestal has a couple of scrolls on it that you can't pick up. As you head through the north passage you'll hear heroic music as a couple of skeletons are awakened in the next room. Since you don't have the weaponry to deal with them, simply run forward and jump up to grab the ladder in the north wall before they have a chance to collect their wits.

As you pull up into the passage you'll trigger a blade trap around the corner, but all you need do is crawl under it toward the next room. The second you're past the blades, however, you'll awaken two more skeletons in the next room, so hop up onto the block and hug the hall so you'll be safe from their slashing blows. One of the jugs hides a large medi-pack, but it might be more trouble than it's worth trying to get it. After deciding and acting one way or the other, jump up to grab the opening and pull up into an upper passage. There's another corner blade trap ahead, so crawl forward carefully and drop down to the lower passage where you'll encounter two more blade traps, one of which is too low for you to avoid simply by trying to duck underneath it. You'll probably suffer some damage as you scurry to safety toward the next room west.

Watch out for the hole in the floor in the middle of the room, and pull down the wall switch between the two angel statues that are bathed in bright light. A cut scene shows the door opening in the room below, so simply hop back twice, grab the edge, release to safety drop to the skeleton-guarded area, and run forward through the open doorway before they have a chance to react. Turn right and head up the stairway, and the skeletons won't follow.

In the next room you'll find a huge flaming jar and an opening in the west wall. There's not much of a mystery as to what awaits you there, as you can see the boulder before you even step onto the ramp. However, you don't trigger it until you're halfway down the ramp, so it's an easy matter to duck into the opening on your right before the boulder reaches you. There's another boulder awaiting you just ahead, and this time the ramp ends at a passage where a third boulder lurks to your right. Turn left at the intersection and run down the ramp to trigger the final boulder. Scoot through the opening to your right and continue along the passage into a new room beneath that huge flaming jar you saw earlier.

Stand against the south face of the tall pillar and back flip to the sloped pillar behind you. Keep the jump key depressed and bounce off to grab the top of the tall pillar. Pull up and throw the wall switch to open the door in the flaming jar room above. Turn around, jump down to the sloped pillar and slide to the floor. Run back up the boulder ramps until you return to the flaming jar room. Go through the open north doorway and pause to take the large medi-pack from the pedestal in the next room as a haunting strain of Celtic music erupts into triumphant singing. There's a reason for this--a formidable foe awaits you in the next room.

You'll probably have to hop down into the room to entice the Shiva out into the open, but if you hurry back to the stairs you'll be safe from attack while pumping bullets into it while it dances. When it dies with a belch, go back down and note the closed west door requiring a gem, the closed north door requiring another kind of artifact, and an east passage leading to the next room. Go into that next room and stand underneath the waving tattered banners as you get your bearings. There's a sun-bathed east opening and a south passage leading to a small room with another closed door requiring a fancy artifact.

Go to the east opening and hop down into the next room. Two skeletons are awakened at the far end, so run quickly to your right and take refuge by hopping up into the south opening. Step down into the next room, turn to your right and shoot the jug in the NW corner for a very welcome SHOTGUN. Cross the room and go between the lion statutes and through the portal into another room where a lone skeleton is awakened. Run around it to the left and vault up onto the ledge where you'll be safe.

Don't worry about the next small room. It's dark, but it's also free of enemies. Use your pistols to shoot the jugs on either side of the tall block for two stashes of ammo for that newfound shotgun of yours. Pull up onto the block, run forward to the wall and pull up through the ceiling hole into a dark passage. Vault over the short block and follow the passage into a rubble-strewn room with a huge circular door on your right. Shoot the jugs for a small medi-pack, more shotgun ammo and one of those fancy artifacts you were looking for (and which still shows up as "load" in your inventory). Strangely enough, there's an invisible force field in front of the circular door, so you'll have to climb over the rubble to claim all your goodies.

Go back through the passage, drop down through the hole and run past the surprised skeleton in the next room. It will follow you into the room where you found the shotgun, so be careful. Hop up into the north opening and join the two skeletons in the next room. Don't pause to try the artifact in the receptacle in the north wall, as it won't work. Jump to safety through the west opening into the room with the tattered banners, and take the south passage into the small room with the other fancy artifact receptacle. What you're carrying fits this one, so use it to open the door in the west wall. (The jugs here aren't the kind that will shatter when shot.)

Follow the short passage to a small room that's tinted blue on one side. Climb the tall block in the center of the room and pull up through the ceiling hole into a passage. Climb the block and enter an ornate room where you'll find the other fancy artifact on a pedestal. Pick it up ("load," of course) and return through the skeleton gauntlet to the room with the fancy artifact receptacle. Use your shotgun to stun them long enough for you to open the door, then hop into the opening quickly before you suffer too much damage.

Climb the blocks until you reach another small dark room with a tall central pillar. There's a ladder on the far (west) side, so use it to climb to the top. Pull up south through the ceiling hole into an alcove leading to a passage. Turn left into the passage and note the suspended boulders and swinging chains ahead. Head a short distance up the ramp and trigger the middle boulder. You can avoid it with no trouble at all. Continue up the right or left side to trigger the other two boulders (the right side is slightly easier), and avoid them as well as you dodge past the first chain. The side alcoves are dart trapped, so be wary of those as you scoot past the second chain into the east passage.

Don't just drop down into the next room, as there's a hidden floor hole in the corner directly below you. The other corners have holes as well, but that's rather obvious from your vantage point. Jump to a stable part of the floor and pull down the switch in the east wall. A cut scene shows that giant circular door rolling away. The quickest way down is a safety drop through the NW hole onto one of the pieces of rubble. Slide down to the floor and vault up into the east opening for a gem ("load," natch). Go back along a familiar route past three skeletons to the tattered banner room and beyond it through the west passage. In the next room, insert the gem in the receptacle in the west wall to open the adjacent door.

Hop down into the short passage and from there down to the room below. There's a closed door in the opposite west wall and a hole in the middle of the floor. Stand at the edge of the hole, turn around and drop back to grab the edge. Lara's soothing theme music plays as you release to drop down into a small pool in the room below. There's nothing to do or pick up in the pool, so pull out to find that you’re in a large underground chamber. Shoot the jar at the NE corner of the pool for an extra shotgun.

As you explore the area, you see a closed door at the end of the east anteroom, and through the transparent floor there's a wall switch you'll need to find a way to get to. At the south end past the rubble is an opening that's too high for you to reach. At the opposite north end is a closed door to your left requiring a fancy artifact to open it. Climb up onto the nearby NE block and walk forward to the wall. Jump up to grab it, and when Lara's feet are set start shifting to your left until you're able to drop down onto a flat surface at the NW corner. Turn around and vault up onto the block, then step forward and pull up into the higher passage. Follow it around to the opening at the other end, then take a standing jump forward and grab the west wall. Climb down until you reach the opening to your left, then shift left and around the corner. Climb up until you reach the gap in the pillar, then shift left as far as you can and drop down into the corner. Turn around and walk to the edge, and from there take a running jump to the ledge jutting out of the west wall.

Walk to the other end of the ledge and take a running jump to the small triangular ledge ahead. Back up to the corner and turn slightly to your left. Take a standing jump around the pillar to the adjacent ledge. Turn to face west, then hop back and grab the edge of the ledge. Release and immediately grab the next ledge just below. Shimmy to your left, and when Lara's feet become set continue shifting left and underneath the broken pillar fragment until you can go no further. Release and drop down onto a sloping but stable surface. Turn around and walk to the east edge. Turn slightly to your right and take a standing jump into the south passage that you were unable to access from below.

Run forward and drop down into the next room. Your immediate objective is the closed set of double doors in the south wall. Locate the pushable globes in the NE and NW alcoves. The puzzle to solve, if you can dignify it with that name, consists simply of pulling and pushing each globe along its track around the flaming pedestal as far it will go until it comes to rest on a specially marked tile. When both globes are so placed, the south double doors will open.

Enter and go down the stairs to a lava room. There are four poles surrounding a central slab, with closed double doors in the west wall and wall switches on the north and south ledges. Ignore the nearest pole and take a running jump to the central slab. From there take running jumps to the north and south ledges (again ignoring the poles) and throw the two wall switches. The west double doors open, so take a running jump back to the central slab. You now need to make use of the west pole, so take a standing jump to it and grab it. Turn around and climb up three rungs. Back flip to the west ledge, turn around and walk over to the pedestal to take the fancy artifact. Walk to the east edge of the ledge and take a running jump to the central slab. Jump to the east pole and repeat the procedure described for the west pole to reach the east ledge.

Turn around, run up the stairs and through the globe room, and vault up into the north passage. Run through and drop down into the underground chamber. Cross over to the north end and insert the fancy artifact in the receptacle to open the door to your right. Go down the passage into a dark crypt and turn left. Continue down the ramp into the next room and shoot the jug between the two lion statues. Pull down the switch in the west wall to open the door in the east anteroom directly above you. Reverse roll and retrace your steps back to the underground chamber. Go to the east anteroom and watch the blue sparks fly in the next room as another Shiva comes to life.

Kill the Shiva with a few well-placed shots to the belly, and when it dies with the same vulgar sound that the other one emitted, go to the central pedestal and take the final fancy artifact you'll find in this level. Go through the opening in the north wall and climb a series of four ladders until you're able to pull up into a dark passage. Follow the passage into a room with a sunlit pedestal to your left. The scroll sitting on top of it can't be picked up, so go through the south opening and run up the stairs as you hear the sound of a door opening ahead. Step out into a familiar room and cross it to the other side. Continue into the next room and insert the fancy artifact in the receptacle next to the north door.

Enter and hop down into the next room. Locate the ladder in the west face of the tall pillar and climb it to the top. Turn to your right and pull up into the south passage as another strain of Lara's familiar theme music plays. You're facing that elusive Harp of Sailor Mercury, so run forward to trigger a nice concluding flyby.