Disclaimer: I don't own Terra Nova, if I did, there would Maddy and Mark scenes in every episode. I only own Daniel Reynolds, as he is my OC!
This ideas been milling in my head for about two weeks, so I finally decided, in the middle of math class might I add, to write it. Good thing that I'm relatively good in math, or else I would be dead.
Everybody seems to put Alicia and Mark having a strong brother-sister relationship in their stories, but there isn't really a story explaining how it started. Like, a story completely dedicated to that. This was originally supposed to be a one-shot, but as I wrote, it grew and grew in size, so I decide to make it a little longer; it'll probably be a three or four shot.
Read, Review, and Enjoy!
Alicia waited in the jungle expectantly. The portal was expected to open soon for the Fifth Pilgrimage, and everyone was chattering quietly while they waited. Medics stood near a large tree that was used as a landmark to mark exactly where the portal opened. Soldiers patrolled the surrounding area, making sure that none of the creatures of the era could come near them.
Alicia knew that the new Lieutenant was coming on this pilgrimage. Ever since the other lieutenant, Justin Myers, had died from a severe stroke months ago, Nathanial had been struggling to pick the perfect person for the job. After going through different files for days at an end, he finally decided the perfect person for the job, someone who they had both worked with, however briefly, in Somalia.
Major Daniel Reynolds had been a Chief Warrant Officer back in Somalia, and a damn good one. The Commander was absolutely positive that he would accept the offer to come to Terra Nova, not only because it was a great offer, but because he had a son. Nathanial knew that the conditions back in the twenty second century were getting worse, day by day, and any parent would want the chance for their children to be able to lead a life where they could go anywhere, and breathe clean, fresh air.
Suddenly, though not unexpectedly, the portal opened, effectively interrupting Alicia's train of thoughts. A few of the medics, who were closest to the portal, brought their arms to their face, surprised by the sudden shot of light. Soon, the pilgrims would start coming through the portal, starting with those who were needed the most, and their families.
A few moments passed before the first pilgrim of the Fifth Pilgrimage came through. Alicia recognized the man as Dr. Jordyn Vanderbilt. He was a doctor that specialized in old-fashioned surgical techniques. The colony was finding that some injuries obtained could only be repaired by cutting through the skin, and none of the doctors were very good in the particular technique. Alicia saw him stagger, and grab onto a tree; a medic rushed over and placed an oxygen mask over his face.
Alicia stared as people continued to step through the portal, and saw as their faces changed to looks of awe at the environment that now surrounded them. The tenth selected pilgrim to step through was the one that Nathanial and herself had personally picked; Daniel Reynolds. He staggered, just like almost every other of the others had, and was immediately given an oxygen mask.
Almost immediately after him, a young man stepped through. He looked shocked, and dazed at the sight of purity in front of him. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, and immediately started coughing. He grabbed the mask that he was offered, and pressed to his face tightly. She saw the new lieutenant come behind his son after a few moments, and guide him to the spot where the other pilgrims waited patiently for everyone to come through, distracting themselves by looking at their new surroundings.
Alicia slowly made her way over to the pair, who was staring at the trees. The boy ran his thumb over the bark of the tree, as if he didn't believe that what he was seeing was real.
"Hello," Alicia stuck her hand out, "I'm Lieutenant Alicia Washington, you must be Major Daniel Reynolds," he shook her outstretched hand, "and this must be your son." The boy shook her hand firmly.
"I remember. Somalia; 2137; Merca Civilian Clashes; the Loyalists against the Rebels in the main square; I believe it was just before the clashes turned into a major war." Daniel said.
"Good memory, Major, or should I now say Lieutenant." Alicia said, staring into the man's eyes.
"I guess I am now." He gave a laugh.
"I'm Mark. Mark Reynolds." The boy, Mark, said, shifting slightly from the weight of his pack.
"Nice to meet you Mark." Alicia smiled at him, "The Commander, Nathanial Taylor, wants to see you once you've settled in, to inform you of what you'll be expected to do here, as Head of Security." She informed the newest member of the security detail.
"Thank you for informing me, Lieutenant Washington, I'll be sure to check in with him later today." Daniel said, his eyes sparkling.
Alicia noticed that the father and son looked almost exactly alike; the main feature that connected them was their eyes, which were a highly unusual grey-blue-green. The blue was the prominent colour at the moment, clearly expressing their emotions.
"Lieutenant," one of the soldiers, Roberts, said from behind her.
"Yes?"
"The last pilgrim has arrived, and the portal is closing. We're ready, and waiting to make the trek back."
Alicia looked around, and noticed that the portal was closed. She had only been speaking to the Reynolds's for two, three minutes tops. She guessed that if someone came through every few seconds, it was possible she missed the entire thing.
"That was fast. Roberts, make sure that no one has wandered off, we're leaving now." Alicia said, and walked over to the front of the group.
"Listen up!" Everyone immediately silenced at her voice, "I'm Lieutenant Washington, the second in command in Terra Nova. The walk to the colony is approximately half an hour long, do not, under any circumstances, wander away from the group, if you drop anything, and notice its gone once it's a good bit behind us, tell one of the soldiers, and they'll retrieve it for you. Is that understood?" Loud yes's were heard throughout the crowd.
"Once we reach the settlement, there will be a welcome speech from the colony's head, Commander Taylor. You will then be escorted to the part of the settlement where you will live, and be lead to your new houses individually. The soldiers that accompany you will explain the things that I have missed. If you have any questions, direct them to the soldiers at the time." Alicia took a deep breath, "Now, let's go."
XXX
"This will be your new home. It's in the newer part of the settlement." Alicia said, entering what was now the Reynolds Household. "It's a two bedroom. The bathroom's over there and this is the main living space, which houses the kitchen and living room."
Mark stared at the space around, the space that was now his home. It was larger than the apartment that he and his father had shared on the Military Base by Lake Michigan. It was dreary seeing the dirty, polluted lake almost every day for two years.
"Here are your access cards." Alicia handed Daniel the cards, and walked over to the fridge. "Also, you cannot eat anything here for an entire week, since your bodies aren't used to the richness of the foods. These protein shakes are all you can have; they'll help your body adjust to the food type here."
"As for you, Mr. Reynolds-" Alicia started, but was cut off.
"It's Mark."
"As for you, Mark, Mandatory survival courses start tomorrow at 09:00 hours. They'll last for two weeks. You only have to attend schooling here until you're sixteen, and then you can get a job, or an apprenticeship."
"I am sixteen."
"Then no school for you. Reynolds, do you wish for me to stay to escort you to the Commanders office, or do you think that you can find it on your own?" Alicia asked, clasping her hands behind her back.
"I think that'll I'll be fine on my own. Thank you."
"I'll see you soon. Goodbye." With that, she walked out of the house, and back onto the bustling streets.
Mark sighed when the Lieutenant left his house. She was one scary lady; she looked at you like she knew every little thing there was to know about you, just like his father did when he was suspicious of someone, which was often. Any friend he had was subjected to a background check, and a round of questions, it was because of that he kept the number of friends he had to a minimum.
His father went to check his own room out, while Mark went to his. The room that was now his own was located near the front of the house, to the right of the bathroom. There was a double bed pushed against a wall, near the window, and a desk directly across from it. A chest of drawers was pressed against the wall across from the window, and sliding doors that led to a closet were beside it.
Mark set his pack down on the bed, and stared out of the window. He spotted people walking around outside, staring at the new world around them. He imagined that was what he looked like. There were bright shades of green everywhere, a colour not seen often if you were outside in 2145. There were mostly dull shades of colours, a majority of them being brown, rust, and grey.
A knocking on the door snapped him out of his thoughts. His father poked his head into the room.
"Mark?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm heading down to the Commander's office now; I'm not sure how long I'll be. When you go out, I know you will, try to be back here by dark."
His father had really covered the bases, "Okay."
His father nodded at him, and left the room. Mark heard the front door shutting, and knew that his dad had left. Looking around his room one last time, Mark walked out, and grabbed his access card of the table. He locked the door behind him securely, before shoving the card into his pants pocket.
He saw plants all around him; on the ground, outside the fence, on his porch; everywhere. He had never seen healthy, live plants before. The only healthy plants in the future were kept in laboratories, for scientists to study. He had seen old pictures of plants, from twenty first century, though the picture quality wasn't the best.
Mark walked down the gravel pathway, and towards where most people were heading, the marketplace. He immediately noticed dozens of stalls, many of them had fruits and vegetables. He was amazed to see so many fruits in one place, in 2145; it was rare to even see a fruit. He had eaten an orange once during one of his father's military dinners, and had an apple for his birthday once. They had tasted fresh and real, unlike anything he had eaten before, he wondered if they would be the same in Terra Nova. He looked intently at everything he saw, taking in the colours and aromas. He couldn't wait until the week was over, and he could actually eat solid foods again.
Mark spotted the Command Building. He knew that his father was probably in there, discussing his new job as lieutenant with the commander. He knew that his father was excited for the opportunity.
When they had received the notification that his father was needed in Terra Nova, he had immediately agreed. Daniel wanted the best for his son, and the best was Terra Nova. So, with that, they packed up their things into two large knapsacks, and said goodbye to everyone they knew. It was especially hard for them to say goodbye to Xavier Reynolds, Daniel's father, and Marisol Cortez-Reynolds, Mark's mother, even though they had already passed on due to lung cancer.
Mark ran his fingers through his neatly cropped hair, and continued looking through the stalls. He thought briefly, very briefly, on what job he could possibly do. So far he knew that the jobs available were in the military, marketplace, and hospital. There were probably scientists too, not that he'd want to be one. Science was one subject that he never done well in. He had barely passed his science class in his sophomore year, achieving just fifty nine percent as a final mark. His father had grounded him for a week for that. Getting ninety seven percent in History didn't matter after seeing that grade.
He figured joining the military was his best option. His father had never hid how much he would like it if he joined the army, he didn't think just because they went eighty five million years into the past that his father would change his mind on the what he thought was the best career option for his son. He didn't really have any other job in mind, he'd always liked the army, not that he'd ever give his father the satisfaction of knowing that he 'picked' the perfect job for his son.
Shaking his head, Mark cleared his thoughts and continued walking down the rows of stalls, looking at everything that was offered. His thoughts about his future could wait, for now.
XXX
"Is everything understood, Lieutenant?" Commander Taylor asked his new Head of Security.
"Yes, Sir." Daniel replied, his hand placed behind his back.
"Report for duty at 09:00 hours tomorrow."
"Yes, Sir."
"I expect that you'll do well here, Reynolds. Dismissed."
Daniel nodded his head at the commanding officer, and promptly left the building. He walked down the steps quickly, for no reason. He looked into the vast expanse of wilderness that surrounded the settlement. He knew that there were very dangerous, prehistoric creatures in there, ones that he had never heard of before, ones that could potentially kill him and Mark.
He made his way home in silence. The sun was going down, and Daniel glanced at his watch; it was already six o' clock in the evening. He slipped his access card into the slot on his front door, and entered once it registered. He saw a figure lying down on the couch, and recognized it as his son. Mark's datapad was perched on his lap, and miniscule headphones were in his ears, blocking out any noise.
Deciding not to interrupt Mark, he went to the kitchen and opened the fridge. There were rows of protein shakes in there, enough to last the two of them the week. He grabbed one from the top shelf and gulped it down, ignoring the horrible taste. It wasn't the worst thing he's ever had, the worse was during one of his deployments, and he hadn't even known what he was eating, and still didn't know 'till this day. Daniel heard footsteps behind him and turned around.
"How did the meeting go?" Mark asked, grabbing a shake.
"Good. The Commander's a good man; I can only hope I live up to his expectations."
Mark nodded, and took a large gulp from his cup. His face turned a very interesting shade of green, and he spit what was in his mouth into the sink.
"What the hell is this?"
"Your dinner,"
"It tastes like shit,"
"Language, Marcus."
"Just telling the truth,"
"You can express your emotions without using profane language,"
"You don't see me lecturing you when you start swearing at the television for Sunday night football at the domes."
"Point taken, son,"
"Are you positive that I can't eat food? Real food, I mean."
"Positive. If you eat something here so soon, you'll end up puking your guts out for a week or so. Trust me when I say you don't want to go through that, I didn't listen to some of the guys when I was in New Zealand when I was twenty, and ate some type of raw fish; worst mistake I ever made."
"Uh huh." Mark said, and choked down the rest of his shake, and washed his mouth with water afterwards. "What time do you have to be at work?"
"Same time that your survival training starts,"
"When is that?"
"You weren't listening?"
"I was trying to think of ways to escape from Lieutenant Washington's gaze. She's a scary woman. I kept tuning in and out every couple of seconds."
Daniel sighed, "It's at 9:00AM, front gates. You'll have that for two weeks, after that, you're getting a job."
"Do have to?"
"You've got to learn responsibility somehow. Have you given any thought to what you should do? The military program is great, from what the Commander says."
Mark mentally groaned at his father's not-so-subtle hints on his opinions on what he should do with his life. "I have some time Dad, let me think about it. It is my future after all."
"Got it."
"I'm going to look at The Hurt Locker remake from last year, Jay and the rest of the guys got a hundred and fifty gigs worth of movies for me before we left, as a goodbye gift, or something like that. Want to join?"
"Sure."
The tension between the father and son immediately disappeared, and the two made their way to the living room, preparing for what would probably turn into the male equivalent of chick flick marathon. It would be a war-movies-that-involve-blood-and-guts marathon; exactly what the two needed after their long, emotionally draining day.
Sooo... Like it? Hate it? (I'd prefer that you don't hate it :D) Leave it in a review! I'll try to update within the next couple days, but no promises!
Review!
~Shaki~
