INTO THE LION'S DEN
Disclaimer ; I don't own the character of Kyle Reese, or the storylines to the Terminator movies, and all things related to it.
Author's note ; This story takes place during the war against the Machines and the humans, and centres mainly around Kyle Reese. Feedback is much appreciated!
CHAPTER 1
Blam! Blam! Blam! Bl... Ka-WHOOM!
The sudden explosion launched Kyle off his feet and several meters forward through the air. He landed with a sickening crunch, and cried out in pain. He rolled onto his back and clutched at his rib cage, then noticed the large rock he'd landed on. He decided that it was better that he landed on his ribs than on his head.
The sound of rapid gunfire screamed around him, and he knew that if he didn't find cover soon, he was a dead man. Looking to his side, he saw a dark opening in a nearby bush. He looked around him quickly, then started to roll towards it. Every time he rolled onto his chest, he winced in pain, but the small jets of wet mud that were spraying into the air around him compelled him to keep going. He reached the opening, and realized what it was; A doorway.
Kyle hit the first concrete step with his back, but was unable to stop himself from falling down the stairway. After what seemed like forever, he landed on the ground on his chest, and yelled out from the pain the impact caused. The gunfire and explosions sounded distant now, but he dared not pass out in case he'd been spotted.
He rolled onto his back again, and felt inside his jacket pocket. He pulled out a syringe of Para-hemotoxin; An experimental drug, which was a strong painkiller which also stopped any internal bleeding. Kyle didn't care that it hadn't been tested properly, anything was better than staying where he was just so he could die slowly and painfully.
Kyle rose to his feet, the pain diminishing surprisingly quickly. He'd have to get to a medical unit soon, the drug alone would only slow his death without real medical help. He looked down the dark corridor, and chose to find another way out instead of the way he came. The corridor was too dark to see anything. Kyle dropped the syringe, and returned his hand to his pocket. He pulled out his lighter, and flicked the flint down. The small flame only illuminated his immediate surroundings, but it was better than nothing. Kyle started to slowly walk into the unknown, wondering whether he was safer underground, or on the planet's surface, in the middle of the war.
After an eternity of silence, Kyle suddenly heard faint footsteps somewhere. He stood in silence, and determined that they were ahead of him. He reached to his holster for his pistol, but it wasn't there. It must have fallen out in the explosion. He silently cursed at his misfortunes, and crept along the wall until the edge. Kyle snapped the lighter shut, not wanting to give his position away. He didn't know who was down here with him, so he wasn't going to take any chances. The footsteps continued, and it was obvious that they were coming from the room around the corner.
Kyle peered around the corner and saw a darkened figure in the center of the room. It was holding a flashlight, which gave the room some light. The beam shone on every surface in the room, and Kyle had to quickly duck back around the corner to avoid being spotted. Kyle held his lighter tightly, waiting for the right moment. The beam moved away from the opening, and Kyle threw the lighter into the room. It clattered against the cold, hard floor, and the figure shone the light in the direction of the noise. Kyle quickly crept up behind it, and grabbed the pistol from it's holster, holding it to the person's face.
At close distance, Kyle could see that the figure was a man. His skin was dark, and he had no hair. He looked fairly well built. The man looked at Kyle, and he realized that the man had an assault rifle pointed into his stomach. "Who are you?" the man asked, his voice low and husky.
"Kyle Reese." Kyle replied. "I'm guessing that you're human as well." he added. The man nodded.
"Yeah. Take it you are, as well. Otherwise I'd be dead." Kyle smiled slightly, then lowered the gun. The man did the same. "The name's Kurt Pressman." he stated. Kyle walked over to his lighter and picked it up, placing it in his pocket.
"What are you doing down here?" Kyle asked him, not looking at him, but at their surroundings.
"My team was sent to the main base for the Machines." Kurt started. "We were all killed, except for me. I found a ventilation system in the building, and it led me into this place." He pointed down a corridor in front of Kyle. "That way leads to their base." he told him. Kyle looked down the corridor, then at Kurt.
"We've gotta get word back to the higher-ups about this." he stated. "This information could be crucial to us winning this damned war." Kurt nodded.
"I know, I've been looking for a way out of here for about three hours now. What about the way you got here?" he asked.
"It's risky, but we should be able to make it back that way." Kyle replied. "The fight could have moved on. And I don't know any other way out of here." Kurt pulled out two clips for the pistol and threw them to Kyle, who caught them effortlessly.
"You may as well keep the gun. I've got another one anyway." With that, Kurt pulled out another pistol from his jacket, then put it back. Kyle nodded in appreciation, then started to head back to the entrance.
"Follow me." he told Kurt, and he obeyed, shining the flashlight ahead of them to illuminate their path.
Kyle reached the bottom of the stairway, and stopped. Both he and Kurt looked up into the darkness. It was still dark outside, which gave any lurking Machines the advantage, as they could see in the dark. Kurt noticed something on the floor beside them, and shone the light down onto it. It was a syringe. Kurt knew what it was for, and looked at Kyle. "You're injured." he stated, without emotion.
"I'll be fine once we get to a medical station." Kyle replied. "I just had a bad fall, that's all." Kurt raised an eyebrow, then shrugged.
"Guess we'd better get a move on, then." he said, and made his way up the stairs. Kyle grabbed him by the arm, and Kurt stopped suddenly.
"I'll lead the way." Kyle stated, and moved ahead of him. Kurt didn't reply, and Kyle reached the top of the stairway. He leaned against the wall, and peered round the corner. He couldn't see anything. It looked as though the battle had moved elsewhere, or finished altogether. Bodies where laying along the ground everywhere, blood mixing with the mud and water beneath the corpses. Kyle didn't look at the bodies of his fallen comrades. Kyle took a couple of steps into the open, and held his breath.
The shots never came, so he signaled for Kurt to follow him. He did so, and looked around him as he avoiding standing on any of the bodies. "Damn, this your team?" he asked Kyle. He nodded somberly.
"Yeah. It was." he muttered quietly. Suddenly, they heard a coughing sound, followed by a faint groan. Kyle scanned the area frantically, realizing that at least one of his team was still alive, but needed help fast. He spotted movement in a nearby trench, and sprinted towards it. He dropped to his knees as he reached the survivor, skidding to a halt just beside him. "Frankie, can you hear me?" he asked, looking at the wounded soldier. He was in a bad way, but if he got the right treatment in time, he would survive.
Frankie looked up at Kyle weakly. "Reese?" he muttered, followed by a painful sounding cough. "Did we win?" he asked, smiling through the pain. Kyle laughed sadly, realizing his first impressions of his friend's state of health wasn't accurate. Frankie's smile faded, and he coughed again, this time blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. "I'm not gonna make it." he stated, finding it harder and harder to speak.
"That's bullshit!" Kyle snapped. "You're gonna make it! Just hang in there!" They both knew it was a lie. But Kyle couldn't bring himself to believe that his long-time friend was going to die in front of him like this. Frankie closed his eyes, then opened them again, looking into Kyle's.
"Take my gun." he stated. Kyle opened his mouth to say something. "Shut up, let me finish." Frankie suddenly told him. Kyle didn't speak, and listened to his friend. "I want you to take my gun, and kill me now." he asked. "I'm not going to make it to the medical station. I just want it to end quickly." Kyle looked down, unable to reply. "Kyle, just do it." Frankie muttered. "Just fucking do it!" With that, Kyle grabbed Frankie's pistol from beside his body, and aimed it between his eyes. Frankie nodded slightly, and closed his eyes.
"Sorry, buddy..." Kyle murmured, and pulled the trigger. He closed his eyes at the same time, not wanting to see the effect of the shot. He stood up and looked at Kurt. "Let's get out of here." he stated, his voice filled with sadness. Kurt nodded silently, not sure what to say to him. Kyle turned around and started walking past more bodies, with Kurt following just behind him.
They'd been at the medical station for almost an hour, when a doctor walked over to Kyle eventually. Kyle was laying on a metal table, in a room with at least a dozen more wounded soldiers. The doctor stood beside Kyle, and looked down at him. "You're good to go." he told him. Kyle nodded, then sat up. He looked down at his chest, and saw a large scar running down his front. He traced his fingertips over it, then looked up at the doctor, who was then leaving.
"Do you know where the other soldier I came here with is?" Kyle asked. The doctor nodded, then pointed to one of the metal tables on the other end of the room. "Thanks." Kyle said, and the doctor walked across to another soldier. Kyle jumped off the table and picked up his shirt from a nearby chair. He slipped it over his head, then walked over to Kurt. He noticed that he had a bandage around his arm, and blood stained the dirty-white cloth. "What happened?" Kyle asked. Kurt looked at him, then his wound.
"Ah, nothing. Just a scratch." he replied. Kyle smiled slightly. "I managed to get word to the superior types about the location we found, by the way." Kurt suddenly stated. "They're cooking up a plan. Word is that we're part of that plan."
"Lucky us." Kyle muttered. "How long you gotta stay here for?" Kurt sat up, and stood up off the table. He grabbed his shirt and put it on.
"About five seconds." he answered. Kyle nodded.
"Let's go see what they have planned for us." he stated, and they both walked out of the medical ward at the same time.
Kyle and Kurt stood in line with six more soldiers. They faced Sergeant Chambers, who paced back and forth whilst filling them in on the mission plan. "You were chosen for this task because you've all proved yourselves to be highly skilled warriors." he stated. "Determined. Focused. Some say invincible. But this mission you're about to take is nothing like you've seen before. You will infiltrate the headquarters of the Machines here in Los Angeles, and destroy it from the inside." The soldiers all looked at each other.
"How the hell do we do that?" one of them asked. He was the shortest of the group, with pale skin and jet black hair. Kyle remembered him from a mission a few months before. His name was Luke something. He was good at what he did, and that was basically to destroy anything he had to.
"These two," Chambers pointed to Kyle and Kurt, "know the way into the base through an underground facility that leads under the base. Also, Kurt here was part of the last mission inside the base, and the only survivor. His knowledge of the facility may be limited, but it is definitely a great help."
"How do we destroy the base, sir?" Kyle asked. Chambers stopped pacing, and picked up a small mechanical device.
"This is a small atom bomb, with the function of either a timer or manual detonation." he explained.
"Won't that destroy more than the base?" asked another soldier. Kyle didn't know who he was. They would all be introduced later on, no doubt. Right now, the mission was the most important thing. Chambers shook his head.
"The device only gives off a limited explosion, so it will destroy the base and it's immediate surroundings, but that's it." he stated. "Just make sure you're not near the place when it goes up. That should be half a mile away, give or take a few hundred meters. You'll have 24 hours to get your asses in, plant the bombs, and get out. But that should be plenty of time for you lot. You've got 20 minutes to get geared up and on the transport. You're about to undergo the most important military mission we've seen in this whole war. So don't fuck up. Dismissed." All eight soldiers saluted the sergeant, and turned around to make their way to the changing rooms where their gear was kept.
Kurt walked alongside Kyle. "You think this is gonna work?" he asked. Kyle looked at him and smiled.
"Nope. You?" he replied.
"Not a chance in hell." Kurt stated.
"Well, that's where we're going, anyway." Kyle said, opening his locker. Kurt laughed slightly as he opened his, and pulled out his gear.
Disclaimer ; I don't own the character of Kyle Reese, or the storylines to the Terminator movies, and all things related to it.
Author's note ; This story takes place during the war against the Machines and the humans, and centres mainly around Kyle Reese. Feedback is much appreciated!
CHAPTER 1
Blam! Blam! Blam! Bl... Ka-WHOOM!
The sudden explosion launched Kyle off his feet and several meters forward through the air. He landed with a sickening crunch, and cried out in pain. He rolled onto his back and clutched at his rib cage, then noticed the large rock he'd landed on. He decided that it was better that he landed on his ribs than on his head.
The sound of rapid gunfire screamed around him, and he knew that if he didn't find cover soon, he was a dead man. Looking to his side, he saw a dark opening in a nearby bush. He looked around him quickly, then started to roll towards it. Every time he rolled onto his chest, he winced in pain, but the small jets of wet mud that were spraying into the air around him compelled him to keep going. He reached the opening, and realized what it was; A doorway.
Kyle hit the first concrete step with his back, but was unable to stop himself from falling down the stairway. After what seemed like forever, he landed on the ground on his chest, and yelled out from the pain the impact caused. The gunfire and explosions sounded distant now, but he dared not pass out in case he'd been spotted.
He rolled onto his back again, and felt inside his jacket pocket. He pulled out a syringe of Para-hemotoxin; An experimental drug, which was a strong painkiller which also stopped any internal bleeding. Kyle didn't care that it hadn't been tested properly, anything was better than staying where he was just so he could die slowly and painfully.
Kyle rose to his feet, the pain diminishing surprisingly quickly. He'd have to get to a medical unit soon, the drug alone would only slow his death without real medical help. He looked down the dark corridor, and chose to find another way out instead of the way he came. The corridor was too dark to see anything. Kyle dropped the syringe, and returned his hand to his pocket. He pulled out his lighter, and flicked the flint down. The small flame only illuminated his immediate surroundings, but it was better than nothing. Kyle started to slowly walk into the unknown, wondering whether he was safer underground, or on the planet's surface, in the middle of the war.
After an eternity of silence, Kyle suddenly heard faint footsteps somewhere. He stood in silence, and determined that they were ahead of him. He reached to his holster for his pistol, but it wasn't there. It must have fallen out in the explosion. He silently cursed at his misfortunes, and crept along the wall until the edge. Kyle snapped the lighter shut, not wanting to give his position away. He didn't know who was down here with him, so he wasn't going to take any chances. The footsteps continued, and it was obvious that they were coming from the room around the corner.
Kyle peered around the corner and saw a darkened figure in the center of the room. It was holding a flashlight, which gave the room some light. The beam shone on every surface in the room, and Kyle had to quickly duck back around the corner to avoid being spotted. Kyle held his lighter tightly, waiting for the right moment. The beam moved away from the opening, and Kyle threw the lighter into the room. It clattered against the cold, hard floor, and the figure shone the light in the direction of the noise. Kyle quickly crept up behind it, and grabbed the pistol from it's holster, holding it to the person's face.
At close distance, Kyle could see that the figure was a man. His skin was dark, and he had no hair. He looked fairly well built. The man looked at Kyle, and he realized that the man had an assault rifle pointed into his stomach. "Who are you?" the man asked, his voice low and husky.
"Kyle Reese." Kyle replied. "I'm guessing that you're human as well." he added. The man nodded.
"Yeah. Take it you are, as well. Otherwise I'd be dead." Kyle smiled slightly, then lowered the gun. The man did the same. "The name's Kurt Pressman." he stated. Kyle walked over to his lighter and picked it up, placing it in his pocket.
"What are you doing down here?" Kyle asked him, not looking at him, but at their surroundings.
"My team was sent to the main base for the Machines." Kurt started. "We were all killed, except for me. I found a ventilation system in the building, and it led me into this place." He pointed down a corridor in front of Kyle. "That way leads to their base." he told him. Kyle looked down the corridor, then at Kurt.
"We've gotta get word back to the higher-ups about this." he stated. "This information could be crucial to us winning this damned war." Kurt nodded.
"I know, I've been looking for a way out of here for about three hours now. What about the way you got here?" he asked.
"It's risky, but we should be able to make it back that way." Kyle replied. "The fight could have moved on. And I don't know any other way out of here." Kurt pulled out two clips for the pistol and threw them to Kyle, who caught them effortlessly.
"You may as well keep the gun. I've got another one anyway." With that, Kurt pulled out another pistol from his jacket, then put it back. Kyle nodded in appreciation, then started to head back to the entrance.
"Follow me." he told Kurt, and he obeyed, shining the flashlight ahead of them to illuminate their path.
Kyle reached the bottom of the stairway, and stopped. Both he and Kurt looked up into the darkness. It was still dark outside, which gave any lurking Machines the advantage, as they could see in the dark. Kurt noticed something on the floor beside them, and shone the light down onto it. It was a syringe. Kurt knew what it was for, and looked at Kyle. "You're injured." he stated, without emotion.
"I'll be fine once we get to a medical station." Kyle replied. "I just had a bad fall, that's all." Kurt raised an eyebrow, then shrugged.
"Guess we'd better get a move on, then." he said, and made his way up the stairs. Kyle grabbed him by the arm, and Kurt stopped suddenly.
"I'll lead the way." Kyle stated, and moved ahead of him. Kurt didn't reply, and Kyle reached the top of the stairway. He leaned against the wall, and peered round the corner. He couldn't see anything. It looked as though the battle had moved elsewhere, or finished altogether. Bodies where laying along the ground everywhere, blood mixing with the mud and water beneath the corpses. Kyle didn't look at the bodies of his fallen comrades. Kyle took a couple of steps into the open, and held his breath.
The shots never came, so he signaled for Kurt to follow him. He did so, and looked around him as he avoiding standing on any of the bodies. "Damn, this your team?" he asked Kyle. He nodded somberly.
"Yeah. It was." he muttered quietly. Suddenly, they heard a coughing sound, followed by a faint groan. Kyle scanned the area frantically, realizing that at least one of his team was still alive, but needed help fast. He spotted movement in a nearby trench, and sprinted towards it. He dropped to his knees as he reached the survivor, skidding to a halt just beside him. "Frankie, can you hear me?" he asked, looking at the wounded soldier. He was in a bad way, but if he got the right treatment in time, he would survive.
Frankie looked up at Kyle weakly. "Reese?" he muttered, followed by a painful sounding cough. "Did we win?" he asked, smiling through the pain. Kyle laughed sadly, realizing his first impressions of his friend's state of health wasn't accurate. Frankie's smile faded, and he coughed again, this time blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. "I'm not gonna make it." he stated, finding it harder and harder to speak.
"That's bullshit!" Kyle snapped. "You're gonna make it! Just hang in there!" They both knew it was a lie. But Kyle couldn't bring himself to believe that his long-time friend was going to die in front of him like this. Frankie closed his eyes, then opened them again, looking into Kyle's.
"Take my gun." he stated. Kyle opened his mouth to say something. "Shut up, let me finish." Frankie suddenly told him. Kyle didn't speak, and listened to his friend. "I want you to take my gun, and kill me now." he asked. "I'm not going to make it to the medical station. I just want it to end quickly." Kyle looked down, unable to reply. "Kyle, just do it." Frankie muttered. "Just fucking do it!" With that, Kyle grabbed Frankie's pistol from beside his body, and aimed it between his eyes. Frankie nodded slightly, and closed his eyes.
"Sorry, buddy..." Kyle murmured, and pulled the trigger. He closed his eyes at the same time, not wanting to see the effect of the shot. He stood up and looked at Kurt. "Let's get out of here." he stated, his voice filled with sadness. Kurt nodded silently, not sure what to say to him. Kyle turned around and started walking past more bodies, with Kurt following just behind him.
They'd been at the medical station for almost an hour, when a doctor walked over to Kyle eventually. Kyle was laying on a metal table, in a room with at least a dozen more wounded soldiers. The doctor stood beside Kyle, and looked down at him. "You're good to go." he told him. Kyle nodded, then sat up. He looked down at his chest, and saw a large scar running down his front. He traced his fingertips over it, then looked up at the doctor, who was then leaving.
"Do you know where the other soldier I came here with is?" Kyle asked. The doctor nodded, then pointed to one of the metal tables on the other end of the room. "Thanks." Kyle said, and the doctor walked across to another soldier. Kyle jumped off the table and picked up his shirt from a nearby chair. He slipped it over his head, then walked over to Kurt. He noticed that he had a bandage around his arm, and blood stained the dirty-white cloth. "What happened?" Kyle asked. Kurt looked at him, then his wound.
"Ah, nothing. Just a scratch." he replied. Kyle smiled slightly. "I managed to get word to the superior types about the location we found, by the way." Kurt suddenly stated. "They're cooking up a plan. Word is that we're part of that plan."
"Lucky us." Kyle muttered. "How long you gotta stay here for?" Kurt sat up, and stood up off the table. He grabbed his shirt and put it on.
"About five seconds." he answered. Kyle nodded.
"Let's go see what they have planned for us." he stated, and they both walked out of the medical ward at the same time.
Kyle and Kurt stood in line with six more soldiers. They faced Sergeant Chambers, who paced back and forth whilst filling them in on the mission plan. "You were chosen for this task because you've all proved yourselves to be highly skilled warriors." he stated. "Determined. Focused. Some say invincible. But this mission you're about to take is nothing like you've seen before. You will infiltrate the headquarters of the Machines here in Los Angeles, and destroy it from the inside." The soldiers all looked at each other.
"How the hell do we do that?" one of them asked. He was the shortest of the group, with pale skin and jet black hair. Kyle remembered him from a mission a few months before. His name was Luke something. He was good at what he did, and that was basically to destroy anything he had to.
"These two," Chambers pointed to Kyle and Kurt, "know the way into the base through an underground facility that leads under the base. Also, Kurt here was part of the last mission inside the base, and the only survivor. His knowledge of the facility may be limited, but it is definitely a great help."
"How do we destroy the base, sir?" Kyle asked. Chambers stopped pacing, and picked up a small mechanical device.
"This is a small atom bomb, with the function of either a timer or manual detonation." he explained.
"Won't that destroy more than the base?" asked another soldier. Kyle didn't know who he was. They would all be introduced later on, no doubt. Right now, the mission was the most important thing. Chambers shook his head.
"The device only gives off a limited explosion, so it will destroy the base and it's immediate surroundings, but that's it." he stated. "Just make sure you're not near the place when it goes up. That should be half a mile away, give or take a few hundred meters. You'll have 24 hours to get your asses in, plant the bombs, and get out. But that should be plenty of time for you lot. You've got 20 minutes to get geared up and on the transport. You're about to undergo the most important military mission we've seen in this whole war. So don't fuck up. Dismissed." All eight soldiers saluted the sergeant, and turned around to make their way to the changing rooms where their gear was kept.
Kurt walked alongside Kyle. "You think this is gonna work?" he asked. Kyle looked at him and smiled.
"Nope. You?" he replied.
"Not a chance in hell." Kurt stated.
"Well, that's where we're going, anyway." Kyle said, opening his locker. Kurt laughed slightly as he opened his, and pulled out his gear.