Disclaimer: I don't own the Sarah Connor Chronicles or any of its characters.
Danger To Society
John Connor was a dangerous asset to mankind.
Not the same kind of dangerous like the machines were to humans. Everyone feared and hated them. Contrary to John Conner's case where everyone respected and loved him.
Which made him dangerous.
He was the kind of person who after one look, one cannot help but instinctively trust. When he gave an order, they followed, like dutiful dogs, obedient and without question. Not matter how absurd or insane those commands may be, they always trailed behind him wherever he would lead them. Down the ruins and dirt. Through the fire and smoke. Over the skulls and broken bodies. Even to their deaths. If they are lying in the mud and blood, dying, they would never curse John Connor's name as they died. Because they did something for him and they could only hope that they succeeded in accomplishing John Connor's plan.
If and when he got hurt, his blood burning, his body dying, all of the world wept. In his fever-sleep, he cried out for names, names of those lost and gone and he feverishly fought to save them, to do what he couldn't, even though he reached and clawed at the invisible. And they could do nothing but watch in silence, as he screamed and writhed in pain. Each cry and each injury littered on his body, they took as their own. As a memento for being unable to help him, unable to comfort him. They failed John Connor. And the guilt ravaged viciously within them, more grievous than any other battle wound that the machines gave them.
There were some that claimed that John Connor wasn't human. And some believed it. After all, this was one of the few men who shot at a machine point blank, right in the head while it was distracted, long enough for it to go offline for 120 seconds, only for John to jump on top of it and quickly remove its chip. His hacking skills were unparalleled and unchallenged. Who knew how many times he hacked into Skynet, broken into the system and crashed them down? And his knowledge and experience with the machines was downright mind boggling and unsettling. He knew more about machines than any other human alive and he knew them inside out, forwards and backwards.
But then again, those people has never seen John Connor visiting the civilians on his free time. Kids too young to enroll in the war flocked instantly towards him, laughing and screaming, delighted to meet the legendary John Connor. They tackled him, jumped on him, hugged him, sat on his lap, just to make sure he's real and not just a myth. Mothers huddled around him, pleading for him to protect their sons, presenting gifts like an offering to him, as if he was a god. The elderly gripped his callous hands tight, whispering a gratified thanks for allowing them to live as long as they did.
They never saw John Connor sit back with his inner circle, have a drink, if they managed to salvage any, and chat about things other than the war, which occupied their minds for more than ninety-nine percent of the time. Sometimes, he mentioned the life he had before the war began. Then, there were times he talked about his mother, the legendary Sarah Connor, who was ridiculed and deemed insane by the world years and years ago, when she tried to stop Skynet. She was his mentor and strongest comrade during the start of the war. There was no missing the shining admiration and damn well respect he had for her. Which made even the hardened John Connor seemed human for even a moment.
Interestingly enough, John Connor still managed to surprise them with every little thing he did. Another point for his dangerousness. There was one time he abruptly joked about Derek Reese cradling his gun too closely to him while sleeping. Something that stunned everyone. Since when did the normally stoical, indifferent General crack a joke and chuckle at his own joke? Then one day, John Connor took the one picture of his mother, which he treasured the most of all his few possessions and he chose to give it to the young, determined Kyle Reese, without any explanation or reason, telling him to keep it safe for him. Kyle was as surprised as the rest of them.
Another thing was that John Connor appeared to be omniscient, with the way he knew things and people, like he could see right through them. Like how he knew to trust both the Reese brothers almost immediately when they joined and had no objection when they rose to the top, becoming two of his finest and most trusted soldiers. When he first met Jesse Flores, it was barely noticeable, but John Connor was colder towards her for no apparent reason than he would have acted to a new recruit. He shook her hand for only the briefest of seconds before letting go, like her touch had burned him. Then, when he got a hold of one of the terminator machines and reprogrammed her into "Cameron", everyone was surprised to see that whenever he looked at the robot, there was something in his gaze akin to trust and respect. Perhaps running even deeper than that.
And so, John Connor is dangerous. Dangerous to his own kind and dangerous to the machines.
They can wonder what he was thinking, what he was planning, why he did the things he did, and they might never get an answer. That was who John Connor was. He was a mystery. A puzzle. An uncertainty.
They don't know why they trust him, put their lives in his hands and expect to come out alive of it for the most part. They don't know why they can't help but like the guy and know that he's the best thing to have ever happened to them, even he is an emotionless bastard at times. And they certainly don't know why they would let him become such a dangerous bargain in this war and not even think twice about the fact.
Because no one does.