Person of Interest
Finch/Reese
- as time goes by -
In the end it comes down to a simple realisation: that they have been here before, saying goodbye before the hello, sharing the final touch before the first look, where they have ended, before they began. But that is okay, because they will be here again, as time goes by.
In which Finch and Reese meet over and over again in Ancient Rome, in Regency England, on the battlefield during WWI, in present day New York (canon), in the field hospital of a Post Apocalyptic world, and on a lonely planet called Aurora, somewhere far, far away.
This is a Cloud Atlas fusion of POI, where each AU and canon is a standalone but come together to form an interwoven story of love, fate, and redemption; as time goes by.
(No knowledge of Cloud Atlas is needed, this is not a crossover.)
You are welcome to pick your favourite part and read it as a single AU story, but they do connect in some way. The first part of all five AUs and the canon are already uploaded, so you'll know what to expect in each era.
Prologue
Aurora, 2811 AD. Year 17 of The Machine-Conscious Calendar
THREAT DETECTED...
COUNCIL ATTACK ON FIREWALL...
ESTIMATED TIME REMAINING...67 HRS
ESTIMATE TIME FOR REPAIR...89 HRS
ACTION REQUIRED BY ADMIN
standby
STANDING BY... SYSTEM WILL SHUT DOWN IN 66 HRS 59 MINS 47 SEC
ADMIN CONFIRM
Y _
SELECT LANGUAGE
Plain English
SELECTED. USER LOGIN
Finch, Harold
PASSWORD *************
ADMIN RECOGNIZED…
ESTABLISHING PRIVATE LINK TO ASSET: REESE, JOHN...
Miss me already, Finch?
Mr. Reese, Research has found us. Regroup at Control, please.
I can see them. ETA two and half days, maybe?
67 hours.
Then I have time.
What are you treslinking that you are finding so amusing? I would very much prefer if we were not separated once the system goes offline.
A story. A very long one, but it's a good story.
I'm not sure now is the best time. I need you back at Control.
I'm almost done. You know how a cliffhanger makes me feel.
TRESLINK STARTED... DOWNLOADING 18%...
Hey! I will tell you the story once I finish it, patience, Finch.
REVERSE TRESLINK STARTED... UPLOADING 59%...
Fine, fine. It doesn't appear to have an ending anyway. I'm coming back to Control.
CARBON FORMING INITIATED... PREPARING TO UNLINK FROM MAINS...
Wait
UNLINKING HALTED
Yes?
Were you trying to decipher the Prophecies again, Mr. Reese?
unidentified parameters
Don't be obtuse now. I saw a glimpse of the parchment. The meaning of those Prophecies are long since lost, Mr. Reese.
The Machine seems to think it's still important. As with all the other lost and useless artefacts in the archive.
The Machine has been online for 798 years, Mr. Reese. We are but a fraction of that existence. There are bound to be things that It sees, and we do not.
Which is why I keep looking. Research may have the inter-galactic army, but we have THIS.
The Machine is on no one's side, Mr. Reese.
Your predecessor never said that.
And you are looking for a way to change the inevitable.
Non mihi solum. Not for myself alone.
Come back to Control, John. _