A/N: So years ago, when the show first ended, frankiemcstein and I started plotting out ideas of what could have happened. Thanks to life, we had to leave it alone for quite a while, but we'd periodically go, "Hey, remember that one thing we plotted that one time?" Anyway, we recently got around to actually writing words, and it's finally ready to share. Hopefully this does the show justice.

Disclaimer: Standard one applies. Even though FOX doesn't seem to want it, Terra Nova and all of its characters do still belong to them, and so we're just borrowing.

SPOILERS INSIDE! Okay... so we did say it was a sequel. But just to cover our bases, there are major spoilers for the Terra Nova finale. So if you're just finding the show and working your way through it (hey, nothing wrong with that; we do it all the time!) don't read this fic until you've watched all the episodes. And then, you know, come back and let us know what you think of our continuation of the story!

Also, FF only lets us choose 4 characters, but there are many more than that! Pretty much all of the main characters from the show, along with some secondary and original ones. If you're really interested, here's a more comprehensive list: Jim Shannon, Elisabeth Shannon, Josh Shannon, Maddy Shannon, Zoe Shannon, Nathaniel Taylor, Mark Reynolds, Skye Tate, Malcolm Wallace, Lucas Taylor, Mira, Sienna, Other Terra Nova Characters, Original Characters

2159

"And congratulations once again to our graduating class of 2159!"

The auditorium erupted in cheers and applause. The young men and women in their caps and flowing gowns stood to face the crowd, smiling exuberantly. Once the audience had quieted, the emcee spoke again.

"Thank you all. It means a great deal to us here at the university that you came to the ceremony. We hope you all have a wonderful evening. Good night."

As soon as they were dismissed, the graduates hurried to join their families and friends, and the room soon filled with small groups of smiling, laughing people. One of the group, however, lingered behind. She descended the stage steps slowly, watching the rest of the room with a look of longing on her face. A few of her classmates stopped to congratulate her, and one girl patted her shoulder knowingly and gave her a hug before waving goodbye and moving to join a group waiting nearby. The lone graduate moved to the side of the room, finding an empty seat and sinking into it. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a tattered photograph. The worn, creased piece of paper had seen much better days, but the girl didn't seem to mind. She put a finger to the image of a little girl and a smiling woman who looked very similar to herself. Sighing, she lifted her finger from the photo to wipe a tear from her eye. "I wish you were here, Mom," she whispered.

"Excuse me, Sienna."

The unexpected voice from behind her made her jump in surprise, and she quickly covered the picture with her hand. She looked up at the man who was standing a few feet from her chair and blinked as she looked him up and down. "Can I help you?" she asked curiously.

She'd never seen this man before in her life. He was tall and thin, with a bald head and clean-shaven face. Impeccably dressed in a light suit and tie, he smiled at her kindly. His dark skin was a tone lighter than her own, and his dark eyes held something she couldn't quite read. Nothing about him was suspicious; rather, he exuded an air of friendliness and warmth.

"I'm sure this is odd," he continued, "a stranger walking up to you, knowing your name and all."

Sienna shrugged. "I figured you'd seen me walking across the stage when they called my name. I just don't know what I can do for you."

"Ah. Yes. May I?" the man gestured to the empty chair beside her.

With a shrug, she shifted and replaced the photograph in her pocket. She didn't reply, but the man took her gesture as an invitation and sat beside her. For a moment, they both remained quiet, and the silence hung heavily around them. Then the man cleared his throat and began.

"I suppose I should introduce myself," he said. "My name is Henry Tomkins. I know you don't know me, but I know a lot about you." That got her attention, and he chuckled lightly at the look she gave him. "Ah, yes, well, we have been watching you for quite some time."

"Who is we?"

"Look, we know your mother went to Terra Nova on the Sixth Pilgrimage," he told her. "You were young and sick, and she feared you would forget her, but she couldn't bring you along. Ever since she went through, however, she's been determined to get you there."

Sienna snorted at that. "Yeah, but there's no way back anymore. Not since that gas leak at Hope Plaza that destroyed every hope of anyone else ever getting there." She couldn't keep the bitterness from her voice and practically bit out the second sentence. "That's why I got my degree," she informed him. "I'm going to figure out another way back."

"Yes, well," Henry shifted and gave her a long look, "what if I told you there was no gas leak?"

"What?"

"Mhm. A crew took over Hope Plaza, and the gas leak was their cover story." Henry nodded. "There were people with ulterior motives who wanted to harvest the abundance of the past to make a fortune here in the present. It would have resulted in the undoing of everything for which Terra Nova stands, and there were those opposed to it. Unfortunately, they did not succeed in stopping the plot." He smiled at his next thought. "However, the colonists were a force with which to be reckoned - and one the greedy moguls did not take into account. As far as we can tell, Terra Nova stopped the threat, for no one has come out of Hope Plaza, much less have they unloaded any wealth of natural resources."

Sienna blinked. "Okay… but what does this have to do with me?"

"Look around you, Sienna. Things have gotten so bad that the government moved much of the population into as many domes as they could manage to construct. Those poor souls who didn't win the lottery were given breathing apparatuses and wished good luck. But even in the domes, it's getting crowded and terrible, and food will eventually run out." He raised an eyebrow at her. "But we have a plan to get back to set all of this right."

"You didn't answer my question. And look, although this has all been really interesting," Sienna told the man, pushing to her feet, "I don't have time to listen to this. I have places to be."

"The people behind the assault on Terra Nova were using you against your mother," Henry stated.

Sienna froze. She didn't turn, but her pause was enough for Henry.

"Help us, Sienna. And you can see your mother again."

Terra Nova

The sun broke on the colony from behind dark clouds that had obscured the moon and stars for most of the night. The day dawned clear and crisp, with that fresh smell that comes after a storm as severe as the rain that had passed through overnight. It was as if the universe was smiling on this marooned group of humans who had woken to the realization that none of them had dreamed the events of the past days. This truly was their reality; there was no way back to the future from which they had come. For better or worse, this was now their permanent home. As the early morning air began to warm, the citizens of Terra Nova began stirring and moving about their daily chores and duties. Life went on, regardless of who or what they had lost.

In one of the homes lining the streets inside of the colony's walls, Elisabeth Shannon was just closing the front door quietly behind her. From the sofa in the middle of the room, Jim looked up as he heard his wife's footsteps and the click of the door closing. "Hey, beautiful," he greeted, smiling as she turned and caught sight of him. "How was your night?"

"Ah, exhausting." She ran a hand through her dark hair as she slowly crossed the room, her steps and posture communicating just how accurate her answer was. Jim had moved over on the sofa to make room beside him, and she sank into the seat gratefully. "We're still trying to get a handle on all of the injuries." She sighed heavily, and the weight resting on her was unmistakable.

Jim sat up and gently brushed her hair over her shoulder, then began massaging her back, letting her sit in silence as she processed her night.

"I just don't know how we can keep going, Jim," Elisabeth said quietly, leaning into his touch. "There are so many people in need, and even once they recover, there are always those who are sick or who get injured from various accidents around this place…" She trailed off and turned to look straight at Jim. "How are we going to care for them all if we have no access to more supplies?"

He lowered his hands and gave her a small, encouraging smile. "I know it's a lot," he agreed, "but you are the smartest person I know. If anyone can figure out a solution to this problem, it's you."

"Mmm." She nodded slowly. "Malcolm has been working on deriving medications from some of the new species of plants we've discovered. We just need to speed up our research."

"Yeah, well," Jim shrugged, "I guess Malcolm isn't too bad after all." He chuckled at the look she gave him. "Honey, trust me. With you two on the case, we will all be fine." He winked.

Elisabeth couldn't hold back a laugh at her husband's expression. She kissed him, then pulled back and stood. "I suppose I should be getting showered and changed. We've got that town meeting this morning." Barely hiding a yawn, she looked toward the back of the house. "We'll need to get the kids up soon."

"Ah, let them sleep a little longer." Jim stood beside his wife and rubbed her back. "They've been through a lot."

She nodded silently, and they just stood there quietly for a moment, drawing on each other's strength with the knowledge that some of the hardest days of their lives were ahead of everything they had already experienced. Then the silence was broken by a little voice from behind them.

"Mommy?"

Elisabeth turned and smiled at her youngest daughter. "Yes, Zoe?"

"I'm hungry."

Jim and Elisabeth exchanged smiles before parting. While Elisabeth headed for the kitchen to assist Zoe, Jim walked over to knock on the bedroom doors to rouse the other two Shannon children. Within an hour, the whole family was dressed and fed and strolling down the road towards the colony's main square. Zoe was holding her mother's hand, swinging it as she walked and chattered away about the newest dinosaur she had seen from behind the fence. The others in her family were a little more subdued, their minds occupied with the reason for the meeting for which they were headed and the memories of everything that had happened recently. Everywhere anyone looked, reminders of the tragedy were everywhere, from crumbled buildings to tire tracks in the mud.

It didn't take long for them to reach the large area where many of their neighbors and coworkers were already gathered. Jim glanced around the crowd, nodding in acknowledgment as a young woman about Josh's age caught his eye and waved; he glanced over and saw that Josh had noticed Skye as well, and Jim raised an eyebrow at his wife when he noticed the expression that crossed their son's face. Elisabeth smirked back at him, before turning her attention to the man who had just walked up beside them.

"Malcolm, hi," she greeted.

"Elisabeth. Jim," Malcolm greeted them. His voice, carrying the same British accent as Elisabeth's, was strained with fatigue. "Good to see you."

The low murmur of conversation among the gathered colonists faded away as the door to Taylor's office swung open. The building had survived the brunt of the damage done to it, and Taylor was utilizing the platform outside of the raised building to give his address in the same way he had given dozens of speeches over the years Terra Nova had existed. Taylor was noticeably limping as he walked up to the railing and put out a hand to lean against it. Only a few people knew what had happened in the jungle two days before, and only a few more knew of the severity of the wound that the commander had sustained from his own son's betrayal. It was a larger group than Taylor would have preferred, but that couldn't be helped. Skye was tough, but when Taylor had collapsed on her due to the trauma and blood loss, she'd had no choice but to call for help. Dunham and Reilly had come on the double to carry their leader back to the waiting medical team at the camp. Everyone who was aware of Taylor's actual condition - not the facade he presented to the colony - had all advised him against speaking, pressing that he should be resting and regaining his strength, but he was having none of it. The people needed to hear from their leader.

Someone coughed, pulling Taylor from his thoughts. He looked across the gathered group and cleared his throat. "Thank you all for coming," he began. "As you all are well aware, Terra Nova has been through a lot recently. I have you all to thank for us coming through it to where we are now. I know it has not been without sacrifice." He looked around, letting the statement sink in. "I know each of you have lost people you cared about. Family, friends. But I want you to know that their sacrifices were not in vain. We are where we are today - free and able to carry on - because of them. We will never forget the brave men and women lost to violence perpetrated by those who would have exploited this world we have come to love for their own gain." Taylor held out his hand, and a soldier beside him handed him a flex. The digital screen flickered as Taylor tapped on it, then the commander looked back to the people listening to him. "We honor the memories of Captain Barrett Adams, Private Stephen Andrews, Corporal Maria Alston, Annie Arroyo, Luis Arroyo, Sonja Arroyo…"

As Taylor continued to read his list of names, the complete silence of those listening was punctuated only by a muted sniffle or muffled sob. The emotions of the past weeks had taken a toll on everyone, between the tragedy of the suicide bomber at the Eleventh Pilgrimage to the Phoenix Group's occupation to the casualties of the resistance. Hearing the names of those who had been killed was more than many could handle stoically.

Jim looked over at his son as Kara's name was read out. Josh clenched his jaw and stared straight ahead. He was a strong young man, but he had lost his girlfriend just as he thought they would finally be reunited. Kara had been one of the victims at the portal, and that was the last thing to which anyone needed to be subjected. It was a lot to handle, especially for someone as young as Josh. Jim felt a small twinge of guilt that he hadn't been able to do more to protect Kara when the bomb had gone off at the portal, even though the logical part of his mind told him that there was nothing more he could have done. He had grabbed her and run as soon as he saw the bomb, covering her with his own body as the blast went off, but it hadn't been enough. Kara's small frame couldn't have withstood the fiery explosion or the shock wave; Jim himself had been in a coma for three days and almost died from the trauma.

"…Lieutenant Alicia Washington…"

Jim felt another wave of emotion at the sound of that name. If it hadn't been for Wash, Jim and his family might be on that list themselves. It was only because of Wash's distraction that they had ever escaped the colony and the clutches of Lucas and The Phoenix Group. Wash's willingness to do something she knew would surely result in her capture and execution would stay with Jim always. A hand slipped into his, and Jim glanced over to give his wife a small smile before turning his attention back to Taylor.

"…Harris Yoder, and Trevor Zimmerman." Taylor handed the flex back to the soldier beside him and put his hand back on the railing. "All of these people were taken from us much too soon," he addressed the crowd. "Let's observe a moment of silence in their memories." With that, he bowed his head.

The soldiers beside Taylor followed suit, and at their example, the rest fell quiet as well. There was a bit of muffled shuffling, and a baby cried from the back of the crowd, only to be quickly hushed by its mother. Overall, though, not a sound could be heard. After a brief stretch of silence, Taylor lifted his chin and looked out across the men, women, and children who were watching him. "Now, if this were any other time, I would give them all a proper salute, but as we lost our connection with 2149 when the portal was destroyed, we are going to have to conserve our supplies because we can't replenish them. However," and he nodded to one of the men on the ground, "we do have fireworks. They were being saved for the anniversary celebration later on, but this seems like a more fitting use for them."

There was a murmur of agreement from among the gathered colonists, and then Taylor stepped back with his face to the sky. The others took his cue, and soon rockets started streaking up into the air. It was not as brilliant as it might have been had night fallen already, but the colors and lights were still clearly visible above Terra Nova. The crackle of the fireworks was the only sound that could be heard beyond a few quiet reactions among the observers. Some stood with their hands over their hearts, while others clenched their fists at their sides. A few embraced each other as they watched the explosions above them.

It took some time for the fireworks display to be completed, and once it had, a ripple of applause started near the back of the gathering. It grew in strength as more people joined in, and it soon had swelled to a roar of thunderous applause. Taylor waited for the clapping to begin to taper off before he raised a hand and cleared his throat. "Now, on to the rest of the business at hand. I know a lot of you are angry and upset over what happened, and honestly, I don't blame you. There was a lot of heartache and betrayal, and I don't want to minimize any of the emotions any of you are feeling. However," he continued, looking around, "we also must realize that we are now all that each other has. There is no Hope Plaza in 2149 who can send us supplies or more manpower. That means that this place, for better or worse, is our home now and we have to band together to make it last.

"And yes, I know, 2149 betrayed us, but being mad about it won't help. We need to work together because if we want to survive, we have to continue living. We are our own future now." And then he grinned at his next thought. "Speaking of which, I want to encourage anyone who is so inclined to start families of their own," he said. "Without children, we can't last past the current generations already living. So I hope to be invited to some weddings before the summer is up," he concluded, prompting a smattering of chuckles from his audience. He paused a moment before continuing, "Also, all able-bodied colonists will undergo training to help hold the walls in the event of an attack from any source, human or natural. I know it isn't exactly what you came to Terra Nova hoping to learn, but it is a necessary fact of our lives now."

He leveled a stern look that said there would be no room for argument with his next statement. "I will be allowing any Sixers who want to come back to the colony to do so under certain conditions." He raised a hand as an undercurrent of murmuring began. "However much we would wish otherwise, our link to 2149 is gone. There is no way for them to go back, so there should be no reason for them to continue to harass the colony. I've already spoken to several who are willing to rejoin us for the sake of survival.

"Now, this doesn't mean their transgressions will be immediately forgiven," Taylor clarified. "I will allow them to return under certain conditions, including a probationary period, during which they will remain under guard. They will be assigned to labor teams doing structural repairs and agricultural work. This is not to humiliate anyone but rather to offer the chance to prove they can be trusted. There will be a residential status review at the end of the year."

Jim glanced around the crowd as Taylor explained his plan for the Sixers. Anger was clear on many faces, while others looked conflicted as to how they felt about it. Making a mental note of those who seemed the most resentful, Jim looked at his family, noting with relief that Elisabeth and the girls seemed genuinely interested in Taylor's plan. Although Jim did notice Maddy glancing over her shoulder several times toward one of the young soldiers standing near the perimeter of the crowd. Jim hid a smirk and looked from his oldest daughter to his son. Josh's thoughts were hard to read; Jim would need to find time to talk to his son sooner rather than later. There would be enough turmoil in the colony as it was; he didn't need it coming from his own family as well.

"A benefit to these new residents joining us is that they can assist us with what I know is a concern for many of you: food and medicine. While we do have many talented men and women in our midst, the knowledge that the Sixers can bring of herbs and plants we have yet to discover ourselves will be of great value to us as we create our own future without the assistance of Hope Plaza."

A smattering of murmurs ran through the crowd, mixed between approval and reticence.

"Now, I realize that these next months are going to be tough," Taylor spoke, "and I wish there were some way to make it easier for you all. But look at what we've faced already! I have complete confidence in the people of Terra Nova. You are a resilient group of people who came here for a better future. There have been troubles, and we will surely have more hard days ahead, but I know that we will look back on this as a time when our community was built stronger than ever, and we will not give up on creating a world where our children and their children can live in safety and peace. Thank you all."

Taylor's conclusion was met with a chorus of cheers and applause, which continued for a solid minute before folks began to break off into groups to talk amongst themselves or to head off for various homes and workplaces. Jim eyed one particular group of men who seemed to be a little more hostile than the others, noticing that it was comprised mostly of people who had appeared to be angriest at Taylor's announcement regarding the Sixers. He would need to mention them to Taylor; it would be worth keeping an eye on them, at least for the next few weeks.

Then a hand on his elbow drew his attention back to his family. Elisabeth patted his shoulder as she spoke to their children. "Your father and I have a full day today, so let's all be on our best behavior, okay? Josh, you'd said you're working with Boylan today?"

"Yeah," Josh replied with a nod. "We're working on getting the bar back to normal."

"Okay, be safe," she told him. As he nodded and headed off, Elisabeth turned to the girls. "And Maddy, you'll make sure Zoe gets to school safely?"

"And then I'll be heading to the lab to help there," Maddy finished. She reached for her sister's hand. "Come on, Zoe."

"But I want to help, too," the little girl protested with a pout.

Jim squatted down to look his daughter in the eye. "Oh you do, do you?" He reached out and poked her tummy, prompting a small smirk as she tried to keep her giggle inside. "Well I heard that they need more kids at school," he told her, raising an eyebrow.

Even though she didn't say anything in response, her eyes widened ever so slightly as she considered his statement.

"Oh yeah," Jim continued. "See, I think there are some scared kids in Terra Nova, and somebody has to be brave to help them know everything is going to be okay. I wonder where we can find someone who can show the other kids how to get back to normal…" He glanced up at his wife, who was smiling as she watched him. "Do you know where we could find someone like that?"

Zoe bounced on her toes. "I can do it, Daddy!"

"Are you sure? It's a big job for such a little girl."

"I can do it!" she told him, nodding emphatically.

Smiling in approval, Jim patted her shoulder. "Oh good!" he replied. "I can tell Commander Taylor he can rest easy about the school; Zoe Shannon has it all under control."

She grabbed for Maddy's hand. "Come on; we have to go before the other kids all get there!"

"Whoa, okay, Zoe!" Maddy exclaimed as her little sister started pulling her toward the path towards the school. "I guess I'll see you guys later," she told her parents with a wave before turning her attention back to Zoe, who was still attempting to tow Maddy toward the school building. "Hang on; wait for me!"

Elisabeth watched the girls run off down the path, then she turned and stood tiptoe to plant a kiss on her husband's cheek. "I'd better go, too. Be safe today," she finished, pointing a finger at him before heading for the hospital.

"Bye, honey. Have a good day." Jim turned for the stairs up to Taylor's office, nearly running into Skye as he did so. "Oh, excuse me."

She took a quick step backward. "No, excuse me. I'm in your way; I'm sorry."

"Is everything okay?" he asked. He watched her carefully as she considered his question. Abrupt as Taylor's version of what had happened in the jungle with Lucas had been, Jim had been able to read between the lines and knew that there was a lot weighing on the young woman in front of him.

Instead of opening up at all, she just shook her head. "No, I'm good. Thanks."

"Okay then." Jim wasn't convinced, but he didn't press the issue. "See you around, Skye." With that, he moved to the stairs and put a hand on the railing to head up. He glanced back to see Skye had moved off towards the other side of the square, but she was going slowly and kept glancing over her shoulder. She caught Jim's gaze and offered a small smile before quickly turning and walking off. Jim frowned curiously; something was going on there. If he had to guess, it had to do with the strained relationship that now existed between Skye and Taylor, who had been her legal guardian for several years after her parents had supposedly died in a fever outbreak. Recently, Taylor had learned that Skye's mother was still alive and being cared for by the Sixers and that Skye had been spying in trade for the Sixers working to save her mother's life. Jim honestly wasn't sure things would ever get back to how they had been between the commander and Skye, but he knew she hoped they could mend their fences at least to some degree. Jim shook his head. For the moment, there were more pressing matters regarding Terra Nova that needed attention. A counseling session could come later.

Nodding to the two men standing guard outside of Taylor's door, Jim pushed the door open and stepped inside. It took his eyes a moment to adjust from the bright sunlight outside to the slightly dimmer interior, but when they did, he immediately noticed Taylor's posture. The commander was seated in a chair beside the table that held a large digital display, but he was not sitting straight and stoic as usual. Rather, he was hunched over, leaning to the right with a hand on his side; his face was unreadable as he sat lost in thoughts that Jim could only guess.

Jim cleared his throat, and Taylor immediately straightened and gave the younger man a strained smile. "Jim," Taylor greeted. He sounded tired, Jim observed, no longer putting up the facade he had presented when speaking to the colony.

"Are you okay?" Jim asked. "Do you want me to call Elisabeth to come check you out again?"

Waving a hand in dismissal, Taylor shook his head. "No, no, that's not necessary. I appreciate your concern, but I'll be fine. Just need some time to heal." He chuckled. "If I survived all the critters who tried to take me down so far, I'm sure I'll survive this."

Not quite convinced but not wanting to push the issue, Jim let out a breath and walked over to join Taylor. "Okay then. What's our next move?"

"Well," Taylor looked sideways at Jim, "the next few days are going to be the most critical for us. I want to hope that the good people of Terra Nova are as tenacious as I think they are, but we just never know what is going to happen with a human element involved. Especially with the emotions floating around that there are right now, you and I need to be extra vigilant to make sure everything stays peaceful."

Jim nodded in agreement. "What about the Phoenix Group?" he asked, switching topics. "Are we going to do anything about them? I mean, for all we know, they're regrouping in the Badlands and planning to try to take Terra Nova again."

Raising an eyebrow in response, Taylor sighed and stood. He crossed to look out of the window in the far wall, and Jim stayed quiet as well as he waited for the older man to speak. There was a moment of silence, then Taylor sighed deeply. "We honestly just don't have the manpower to spend on them right now. I wish we did, because who knows when they'll return and, if they do, if they'll try to retake the colony. They no longer have the support of Hope Plaza and reinforcements, but anything is possible when men get desperate." He shook his head. "There are a dozen viable theories, but we need to focus on strengthening Terra Nova for whatever we'll be facing next. For now, we'll just store the piece of the ship that was found in the 'Lands and get back to it as soon as we can."

Jim nodded. "Will do. I'll have the men move it this morning."

"Jim." Taylor's voice stopped him. "You haven't heard anything about Lucas, have you?"

Pausing, Jim studied Taylor's face. Even with everything the younger man had done to Terra Nova and to Taylor, the commander was still just a father concerned about his son. Jim knew that Taylor would hold Lucas responsible for his crimes when it came to that, but the fact that no one knew anything of Lucas's current status was weighing on Taylor. "No, sir; no one has seen or heard from Lucas since your confrontation in the jungle," Jim said. "But I'll make sure to keep an ear out."

"Good." Taylor nodded. "We're having enough trouble with the outposts that have been losing power lately."

"Mira?"

Taylor made a face at Jim's question. "Most likely."

There was no need to elaborate on the danger of losing multiple outposts when they couldn't obtain any more supplies if needed. "Can we repair it?"

"For now," Taylor responded. "But until we're able to manufacture more electrical equipment, warn the men to be extra vigilant. We can't afford to be left in the dark. Not now."

Lucas grimaced as he leaned over to retrieve a stick from the ground in front of him. His shoulder was bothering him again, even beyond the pain that seemed to be with him constantly since Skye had shot him. The memory prompted a snarl from him as he remembered her betrayal in the jungle. How dare she have played him the way she had? She had goaded him along, feeding him exactly what he'd wanted to hear… He'd let himself be taken in by her beautiful face and her silver tongue about how much she no longer trusted or believed in their father. Even still, Lucas had managed to get away from her when those stupid soldiers of his father's had left him with just Skye as a guard.

He'd resisted the urge to kill her right then, but perhaps again he had allowed his emotions to cloud his judgment. If he hadn't left her unconscious on the ground, maybe his revenge on his father could have been complete. Granted, he'd been desperate to stop the colonists from destroying the link to 2149, and that had kept him from thinking clearly as well. If he had just taken one second to think it all through, he would have taken Skye's weapon, and everything would have been over. But instead, she'd been able to wake up and radio Taylor - another thing Lucas should have thought to take from Skye - in time for the old man to waylay Lucas in the woods.

Wrapping his fingers around the chunk of wood, Lucas inspected it to make sure it was dry and usable for firewood. Nights in the jungle tended to get cold as well as treacherous, what with all the critters prowling around on the hunt, and Lucas had learned that a fire was the best defense against both of those dangers. He clenched the stick as he continued to stew over the series of events and poor decisions that had led to the demise of all that Lucas had been working to achieve. Literal years of his life were gone, lost to a ragtag group of colonists who should never have had the opportunity to rebel the way that they had.

Lucas shifted his grasp on the tall, twisted tree limb that he had fashioned into something of a crutch and turned slowly to limp back to the small camp he had set up - and nearly ran into a woman who was standing directly behind him.

He stumbled backward in surprise, dropping his firewood and then groaning as he winced at the pain of the sudden movement. "Mira," he gasped.

She didn't respond, just kept her arms crossed as she glared darkly at him.

"What… what do you want?" Lucas asked her hesitantly. He didn't move to recover his load, reluctant to give her an opening to try anything.

"What do I want?" she repeated harshly. "I want my daughter, Lucas. You promised me I could see Sienna again."

Lucas chuckled hoarsely. "Well, we don't always get what we want, now do we? I mean, look at me," he gestured with his free hand. "I wanted to get rich off of this place and live in safety for the first time in years. I wanted control over those who had controlled me for years. I wanted revenge on my father. I -"

"Enough!" Mira barked, loudly enough that a flock of birds took flight from the tree above the pair. She took a step forward, prompting Lucas to take one back. "You're going to help me get back to my daughter."

"What?" The statement was so crazy, even for Mira, that it caught Lucas by complete surprise.

"I know Taylor has a way back to 2149," she said, narrowing her eyes. "Those Phoenix soldiers may think they're trapped here, but I know better. Taylor may be an arrogant fool, but he's smarter than that. You're going to get me into Terra Nova so I can finally get back to Sienna."

"Um, I hate to break it to you, but he did. There is no fracture anymore. It's gone, okay?" Lucas shook his head. "Don't you think I would have figured out how to get back there if I could have? Jim Shannon destroyed Hope Plaza. It's gone."

Mira was nearly shaking with anger as she listened to him, and Lucas could see it in her eyes that she was close to snapping completely. "You're lying," she said icily. Then without warning, she reached down and yanked a large knife from a sheath on her belt. "And you're going to help me now. "

"Okay, okay, whoa, whoa, whoa," Lucas put up a hand quickly, wincing as it pulled at his side. His mind was spinning, trying to work out a way to extricate himself from this predicament. "Fine, okay," he sighed.

"Okay?"

He nodded reluctantly. "Look, I was trying to keep this to myself until I could figure it out completely, but there's a cave not too far from here with a high level of mineral deposits in the walls." He still hadn't lowered his hand, and he was panting heavily at this point. Ignoring the sweat starting to drip from his hairline, he continued, "I think it can replace the devices that controlled the opening in both the plaza and outside of Terra Nova."

Mira's raised eyebrow told him she was listening.

"The only problem," he added slowly, "is that there's lots of rubble blocking up the entrance, and as you can see, I'm not in any condition to clear it. But if I had some help…"

"Don't be silly; I'm not doing your dirty work for you," Mira snapped. "You'll just have to figure it out." She waved the knife threateningly at him. Then a cold grin spread across her face. "I have an idea."