Mark Willard



"Fascinating, isn't it?"

- Dr. Willard to Lara Croft

Dr. Mark Willard was a scientist at RX Tech and the main antagonist in Tomb Raider III.

Millions of years ago a meteorite fell into prehistoric Antartica completely destroying it becoming a snowy wasteland. Pieces of the meteorite were scattered and found by a tribe called the Polynesians who fashioned them into four mystical artifacts: the Infada Stone, the Ora Dagger, Element 115 and the Eye Of Isis.

Hiring Lara Croft
In the present day, Dr. Willard the scottish lead scientist and his fellow employees of RX Tech (a research and mining company) are hunting for many of these meteorites in the same place without any success.

They soon discover the body of a 19th century sailor from Charles Darwin's expedition on the H.M.S Beagle. It seems a few of his sailors had explored the interior of the crater and found the four artifacts.

After finding a diary of one of the deceased sailors Stephen Barr,thumb|250px|right|Lara meets Dr. Willard RX Tech started to take a particular interest in not only the crater area, but other parts of the globe where the sailors travelled to and how they died.

Willard sends three of his men Tony, Randy and Rory to find an artifact in India that an archelologist named Lara Croft has also taken an interest in.

Randy and Rory are killed in the Indian temple and Tony goes insane taking the Infada Stone for himself. Lara tracks him down, kills him and reclaims the artifact.

While leaving the jungle she meets Willard on a river boat who had come to see Tony's progress. He tells her that she has one of the four legendary artifacts that hold tremendous power and gives the story of Darwin's sailors, how the artifacts were found and where they were now.

He asks her to find the others for him, Lara agrees.

Mutant Willard
After exploring the South Pacific Islands, Nevada and London, Lara retrieves the final three and sets off to meet Willard in Antartica.

The scientist is in his cabin eating tomato soup and welcomes Lara in. She tells him that she had met one of his mutated employees on her journey and Willard explains that the power of those meteorite pieces can accelerate evolution, changing people into powerful mutants; when all four are joined together in the Meteorite Crater it will cause a great power surge, turning everyone and everything into far more powerful mutants.

Lara is horrified by all this and precedes to shoot Willard who knocks her out and escapes with the artifacts.

The deranged scientist tells all his men and sub human mutants to keep Lara out of the way while he heads for the Meteorite Cavern.

After taking care of many of Willard's men and hideous creations, Lara finds him, just after he puts the final artefact in place.

There is a great rumble and the whole of the meteorite rises from the centre of the cavern.

A powerful light appears in the centre and Lara watches as Willard jumps into it. The effects of the meteorite turn him into a hideous terrifying immortal spider creature. thumb|right|250px|Lara battles a Meteorite Powered Willard

Lara however shoots him down and while Willard is unconscious, quickly removes each artefact from the four areas causing the meteorite to sink in the centre. Willlard is shot once more and he collapses again, this time exploding in an eerie green light.

With all the meteorites in her possession and Willard destroyed, Lara escapes and heads for home.

Despite exploding, Willard reverts back to his human form and crawls out of the Meteorite Cavern. Lara is watching. Willard soon slumps to the ground and dies. Lara searches him and finds information about a fifth meteorite artefact. (This information comes from the manual of the Lost Artefact)

Appearances

 * Tomb Raider III: Adventures of Lara Croft (First appearance)
 * Tomb Raider III: The Lost Artefact (main menu screen and Highland Fling loading screen only)

Tomb Raider III: Adventures of Lara Croft

 * Antarctica (cutscene)
 * Meteorite Cavern

Tomb Raider III Adventures of Lara Croft
Intro Trying to talk to Tony through radio Meeting Lara in India Meeting Lara in Antarctica
 * "I've been yellin' myself hoarse into this radio everyday. It's just the weather dumps on us frequently here. An' maybe my transmission doesn't get through. I don't know."
 * "It's all going swell, sir!"
 * "Turn it off! Off! Hey! Switch it off!"
 * "Dah!"
 * "Blow through it!"
 * "Found more meteorite?"
 * "No! Billy, I don't want you to set that explosive. Do ye hear me? I do not want ye to set that explosive!"
 * "Wretched pyros!"
 * "This place's had a busy history."
 * "Tech four to five. Do you read me, Tech five? Tech... Tony ye loon, I know you're there."
 * "Hey!"
 * "I don't want to be misrepresented by that retarded researcher you just been with, er..."
 * "I'm Doctor Willard. I'd come to converse with Tony myself, but I saw you doing a rather more creditable job, I think. Indeed, I'm inspired. I'd like to offer ye other work."
 * "Fortunately, they were the only lab rats we let loose into the field. Naw, my request is for three other artefacts like this."
 * "I'll show ye. It's not from India. Rather, an island near Antarctica. It is in fact meteorite rock that has been fashioned and used by Polynesians who were once settled there many many years ago. See that? That's unique. An unknown material."
 * "Formed from the planets, sculpted by Polynesians, distributed by goons. Our excavations and investigations have led us to this. A sailor's diary from his voyage on Charles Darwin's expedition on the HMS Beagle."
 * "Stephen was to be the only survivor of the four. When he arrived back in London, he superstitiously sold off his artefact havin' seen his pals murdered or killed with theirs."
 * "One here in India, one in the South Pacific, an' one in Nevada. The places where I'd like ye to go."
 * "Hi! Come in. Make yourself at home. I won't be a minute."
 * "Fascinating, isn't it?"
 * "He was a molecular biologist. He would have been intrigued with himself. Thanks to this material, his Hox genes were multiplied. Do that, and the complexities of our bodies increase beyond our comprehension. But this is of the fringe of its possibilities we're seeing here. My partner's exposure came from material impregnated into the meteorite crater. The real capacities lie in its core. With these artefacts you're so attached to, will let me access."
 * "This is not just avidly spawning mutants. It's an entirely natural acceleration of evolution. A real live laboratory of spurred on life."
 * "Well now. That's unfortunate. It's been hit and miss here for too long. Now the timing's spot on, I can't leave it. The Polynesians fled in their ignorance. Darwin's half-wit sailors the same. Ironically making Darwin himself miss this angle in evolution. Hmm. But now I'm here. I have the access, the knowledge, the artefacts."
 * "I don't know about that!"

Trivia

 * Dr. Willard was given the first name of 'Mark', a birth date and other information in Editions Atlas' Tomb Raider The Official Fact Files: Issue 13.

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