Chapter 1: Allison

Los Angeles- 2020

A young brown eyed girl, all of maybe thirteen, stands alone on the second floor of a burned out building. It used to be an apartment, or an office of some sort, but it was hard to tell since most of the building had crumbled away.

Allison shivered a bit as the cold winds cut through her thin clothing. Slinging her rifle over her shoulder, she was able to free up her hands so she could rub her arms to get a little warmer. It always got colder, when the sun began to set.

She was glad her watch was almost over, she was cold, hungry, tired and bored. Allison preferred having a partner during watch, but people willing to help stand guard against any threats from machines or bandits, were in short supply. Skynet , its various machines and the bandits had taken care of that, but at least the underground hide out was safe, for now.

Feeling a little warmer, Allison swung her M4 carbine off of her shoulder and double checked it to make sure it was loaded and ready for firing. She brushed brown locks of hair from her face and peered off into the distance, staying alert for movement from the streets below. With most of the buildings leveled, it wasn't hard for her to spot anything suspicious, or anything worth killing for dinner, there was always something lurking about, animal, human or machine. Still, within the rubble and twisted metal, there was always a chance something might try to sneak up and catch her by surprise, it had happened to her before.

Allison was glad her auburn hair was finally growing back, it had been a few months since she had shaved her head and only now was it long enough to reach her shoulders. Getting lice had really sucked, and with nothing to get rid of them, the final solution was to cut off all her hair. She had been really pissed at Derek, she refused to talk to him for a week after he shaved her head. Others had teased her, calling her "boy", or "freak", bringing her to tears many times, and getting her into fights more often than not. Some of Allison's friends had shaved their heads to show support for her, and help curb the lice infestation. Their group became known throughout the tunnels as the Skinhead Warriors, a name that stuck even after they all started to grow hair back.

Even Derek had shaved his head, she knew he felt bad when he saw her crying, and so she appreciated him doing it to help her feel better. He had looked pretty funny, all bald with his ears sticking out.

Derek was the biggest reason she was still around, if not for him and his brother Kyle taking care of her after Judgment Day, she probably would have starved to death, been terminated by a machine, eaten by cannibals or become some sex slave. It was only her and Derek now, Kyle had been missing for over two years. Allison feared the worst had happened to him, but Derek stubbornly believed Kyle was still alive, somewhere.

It would be only a matter of time before Derek found him alive, or so he had told her.

Allison figured he did this to keep up his hopes, and to quell his fears.

Allison was snapped from her thoughts when she heard three distinct taps on a pipe, followed by two more taps from below her, on the first floor. That was the signal someone was coming up to relieve her position. If someone, or something, came up without the secret tap, her orders were to shoot first and ask questions later. Derek had drilled this into her, time and time again, until it became second nature to her. Allison's life depended on her being always alert and ready for anything.

Allison tapped on a nearby pipe, two taps and then two more. This was her signal back to the person below that she had heard and was ready for them to take over from her. She quickly looked back towards the entrance to her lookout room, the door was still hanging on its frame and it would squeak out a warning whenever someone opened it. A few moments later, she heard the floor boards creak and then the door hinges moaned their disapproval when it was swung open. Just to be safe, Allison had her weapon ready to fire at a seconds notice, she could never be too careful.

Creeping through the door, almost as quiet as a mouse, a familiar figure slowly edged its way into the room. Allison let out a sigh of relief and relaxed her grip on the rifle.

It was Amanda. A slender girl, blond hair, blue eyes, a little older than Allison, but not by much. She crept over to Allison, making sure not to make any loud noises that might attract unwanted people, or machines.

"Hi Allie" Amanda whispered as she got beside Allison.

"Hi Mandy, I hope you dressed up warm, its really getting cold tonight" Allison whispered back as she put her weapon down to rub her arms some more.

"Yeah, I brought an extra blanket to wrap around me …..and some extra food to keep warm. You want some?" Amanda unwrapped a cloth bundle to reveal some meat scraps and flatbread. She held it out to Allison, but Allison shook her head.

"Nahh….you'll need it to keep warm. I'll get something when I go back to the tunnel…take care Mandy, I'll see you tomorrow after your shift"

Allison and Amanda quickly hugged, then Allison turned to go back out of the room, before she went out the door, she turned and gave Amanda a little wave. Amanda waved and smiled back.

Once Allison had closed the door she made a quick check of her surroundings, making sure it was safe to go down to the first floor. It was getting dark fast, the last rays of sunlight were slipping behind the piles of rubble and the old building left standing. Darkness was creeping in, filling corners and crevices with blackness. The only sounds came from the breeze blowing bits and pieces of garbage, or the occasional furry critter scurrying about its business.

After taking a deep breath, Allison slowly made her way down to ground level. It was about a two minute walk to get to the tunnel entrance, she would need to travel over twisted concrete, rubble and some skeletal remains of cars. Seeing it was all clear, she made her way east towards the tunnel picking her way through the mess in front of her, but always careful to be as quiet as possible.

Suddenly there was a crunch and some rocks fell from a pile of rubble just ahead of where Allison was.

She crouched down behind a rusted car, her instincts kicking in, she quickly snapped her rifle to her shoulder. Allison held the weapon close to her as her eyes darted around, looking for any signs of movement.

The gun followed wherever her eyes moved, it was something that came naturally to her now. Her life depended on being alert and ready for anything to happen. Then she saw the lone figure, rounding a corner about twenty meters ahead of her, his features hidden by the shadows. Allison pointed her weapon at the figures chest.

"Stop right there, don't move" she said, just loud enough for the person to hear.

"Allison?" a familiar voice called back.

She knew who it was as soon as he spoke, lowering her weapon, Allison let out a breath of relief.

"Damnit Derek, I could have shot you" She was angry, but also relieved it was him.

Derek came closer, his features becoming recognizable in the dimming light. Allison detected a faint hint of a smirk on his face as he got to within a meter of her.

After swinging her rifle onto her shoulder, she crossed her arms in front of her and glared up at him.

"Are you spying on me again?"

Allison asked with a hint of anger and frustration in her voice.

A mock look of surprise formed on Derek's face. "Who?Me?"

Derek let out a small chuckle, and then he got serious.

"Allison" Dereks voice getting stern "You should have been back in the tunnel an hour ago, what took you so long?"

"I had to wait for Mandy to relieve me I can't just abandon my post, besides, I was on my way back when I almost shot your sorry ass" Allison smiled, she knew her ass comment would piss off Derek.

"Hold on there Miss Smartass…..I only made noise because I was in a hurry to make sure you were okay" Derek was wagging his finger at Allison, his blue eyes were hardened ice chips of anger at first, but softened quickly as he stared deeply into her sparkling brown eyes.

"Well I am…..so no worry. Now let's go get something to eat, I am starving" Allison swung her rifle around and made ready to get going back to the tunnel.

Derek put his hand on her shoulder, stopping her for a second.

"We lost Kyle, I don't want to lose you too. I worry about you Allie"

"Derek you know I can take care of myself, you helped train Kyle and me how to fight, shoot, survive and stay alive." Allison knew mentioning Kyle might upset Derek, but she needed to stand her ground, she wasn't just a kid any more.

"Ya but, There is still danger all around here, not only from metal, but from raiders and cannibals too. I need to know you are okay Allie." Dereks gaze was soft, his hand still resting on her shoulder. Allison was his adopted baby sister, both Kyle and he had gone out of their way to make sure she was always safe, With Kyle missing, Derek had an even stronger will to make sure Allison was taken care of.

"I know you are just looking out for me, but I am older now and I can take care of myself. I don't need you to baby sit me twenty four seven. I need some space Derek"

Allison had calmed a little, but she was still mad at him for coming after her.

"Look Allie, I just heard from a couple of patrols that we might have some uninvited metal guests drop close by. Skynet has some Endos and an Ogre lurking about a kilometer east of us, and they might head this way. I was coming to warn you and to make sure you would make it back safely to the tunnel" Derek was speaking softly to Allison, his eyes never leaving hers. He was worried about her, he always worried.

Allison pondered over what Derek had just said.

She was glad he had shown up to escort her back to the tunnel, anything Skynet related made her sick to her stomach with fear. She hid her fears well from others, but could never hide anything from Derek, he knew her too well and he knew what she had gone through before they had met.

"Okay then, let's get going back home" Allison gave Derek a little smile and turned to head towards the tunnel entrance.

Derek dropped his hand from her shoulder, took a look around, and made sure nothing dangerous was lurking near by.

Both Allison and Derek had gone along this path to the tunnel many times, they knew every piece of rock, rebar and twisted wreck of a vehicle that was needed to go by, in order to get home.

No one bothered to clear the path, as that would lead to either Skynet, or some rogue clan of barely civilized humans to this latest hideout they were in. Life was hard enough without worrying about getting discovered and possibly being wiped out.

Rounding a corner, Allison and Derek came upon a pile of rubble, made up of what was once a building. To the untrained eye, it was nothing more than a junk pile, to anyone living in the area, this was the main entrance to the tunnel.

Derek turned to go around the left side of the pile, Allison followed closely and slowly, carefully they came up to the remnant of a wall with its rusty railing still clinging on, but it was long past being able to help anyone in providing support.

With daylight almost non existent, it was hard to see the steps going down to the doorway into the tunnel. The doorway was also covered with pieces of junk and the stairs were littered with garbage, this helped in keeping the entrance way a secret.

Once they had picked their way through the obstacles and made it to the main door, Derek lightly rapped on the rusted metal surface. Four taps, then two, then four again, this was the code they used to gain entry, unless they wanted to be greeted with a hail of bullets from inside.

Derek and Allison paused for the signal indicating it was okay to come inside,

Three metallic sounding taps answered back from behind the doorway, followed by high pitched squeaks and groans, as the door way was slowly slid sideways to make room for them to enter.

Allison easily slipped her slender body past the tight opening and into the tunnel.

Derek, being much larger, had a harder time wriggling through the opening.

Allison thought she heard him muttering something about the door being made for hobbits. She wasn't sure what a hobbit was, but made a mental note to ask about it later.

Once they were both inside, Derek and Allison were greeted by two armed guards and a rather large dog. The dog seemed quite pleased to see both Allison and Derek, wagging his tail and whimpering for attention. The guards could care less who had just come in and proceeded to close the entranceway door.

Allisons face lit up as she knelt down to give the canine a scratch behind the ears and was given big sloppy licks on her chin in return for her attention she gave to the dog.

"Hey there Buddy, hows my best boy doin tonight?"

Allisons question was answered with more licks and whimpers from Buddy.

Derek nodded a greeting to the two guards, turned and proceeded to slip past Allison so he could start the long trek down to the lower levels of the tunnel.

"Allie are you coming? It's time to get something to eat and some rest" Derek called back to her, fully knowing she would eventually come. He was sure she had not eaten since morning time and it had been a long cold day.

"Bye Buddy, I'll bring you a treat in the morning"

Allison gave Buddy a kiss on his head, stood up and proceeded to follow Derek down into the lower level of the tunnel. Buddy sat and watched them slip into the dim darkness of the tunnel, only the occasional bare bulb or lamp, gave off any light to help guide anyone further into the depths.

Derek and Allison rounded a corner and came upon a staircase leading further down into the tunnel. Allison had asked Derek what this tunnel may have been, before Judgment Day, he had grunted something about it being part of the cities underground system of subway trains and stations, most of which had been destroyed by the war.

This tunnel was more of a mix of the old subway and some hard work done by the survivors, to make this place more of a safe place from Skynet and others. Many areas had collapsed from neglect and damage, but some people resorted to digging out some of the tunnel to make homes for themselves.

The further they went down, the more people they ran into. Some were just mulling about, trying to catch up on any news from the outside, others were standing watch, waiting to fight at a moments notice should the opportunity arise.

Derek nodded to the ones he knew as he passed by them, some he liked, and others he knew not to trust.

Allison followed close behind Derek, she felt safer when she was near him. Some of the people in this tunnel were shady, they would rob you blind if you didn't watch out.

As they reached the lowest part of the tunnel, they came to the main platform used to load an unload people, when the subway was operating, now, however, it had been turned into a small underground town for about five hundred people. Men, women, children, and animals all lived here. It made for some interesting and foul odors to be inhaled by the nose.

With no proper ventilation, garbage collection or running water, it was not a surprise the smells were so bad. Allison never got used to the putrid stench of the tunnels, it always made her stomach churn.

"It smells pretty ripe in here tonight." Dereks eyes were beginning to water and despite waving his hand in front of his nose, it didn't make it any less easy to bear.

"Yeah you're right "Allison curled up her nose in disgust and held back the urge to gag,

She was beginning to lose her appetite.

Finally they ended up at their home, a small corner on the platform, divided from others by pieces of old barricades, wood scraps and various tarps used to give it some privacy.

Derek pulled the tarp aside and waited for Allison to go in first.

Once she had slipped in, Derek took a look around before ducking into their makeshift dwelling.

Despite being cramped, Allison still managed to make their place seem comfy and inviting. In the back of the shack, she had her room and Derek had his, with large pieces of tarp dividing up their spaces. The front portion of their shack contained the main area where they ate, entertained any guest that might come by, and stored small items of importance.

Allison liked to imagine she was living in an Arabian tent in the desert. She was the princess and Derek was one of her servants, ready to bring her anything at a moments notice. He surely was not a Prince, or knight in shining armor, she hadn't met anyone like that yet.

Allison slipped into her room and placed her weapon and some small items onto her bed. The bed wasn't much, but it kept her warm and dry.

Derek tossed his jacket into his room, but kept his weapons near by. He was never without a weapon, experience had taught him to be always ready at a moments notice.

In the main room, Derek turned to a locked crate, opened it, and pulled out a can of fruit along with some dried meat for dinner.

"Allie, come get something to eat" Derek called out to her

"Yeah, I'll be right there" Allison quickly put aside her stuff and joined Derek in the main room.

"Mmmmm…Fruit and mystery meat, my favorite "

Allison reached for a portion of meat and grabbed a spoon for the fruit.

"Ahhh, just a minute Allie, we need to say grace" Derek wagged his finger at her, a hint of a smile on his face.

Allison put her spoon and meat down on her lap.

They both bowed their heads and Derek said a little prayer of thanks.

"Bless us Lord for this meal we have before us. We are thankful to be able to eat, for some people have nothing to eat. Thank you God for another day without the threat of Allie and I being separated, injured, or killed. Amen "

Allison quickly said her Amen and tore into her food, despite the stench in the tunnel, she was starving.

Both Derek and Allison wolfed down their dinner in a matter of a minute, after which he brought out a container of water to help wash down the food.

It was shortly after Derek took a sip, when he heard a loud explosion coming from where the tunnel entrance would be.

They both looked at each other for a split second.

Allison's face failing to hide her shock, fear and dread, while Derek showed only a hint of his own hidden worries.

"Looks like trouble has found us again Allie"