Welcome to the end! Sadly this is the last Chapter... But I really hope you've enjoyed it, and I hope that you read my other stories and the ones that are to come! :)
"It wasn't a question, Mark! This man isn't in his own time, and he may not live for much longer! We find out where he came from, and we send him straight back; no arguments!"
Danny woke up to the sound of a man yelling to someone. When he opened his eyes, everything was blurry and the room spun for a second. His head felt heavy and fuzzy-he was weary… nothing registered in his mind. All he could tell from what he saw was that he was in an unfamiliar room and there was one person here, who noticed that Danny had woken up.
The semi-familiar man looked at Danny, shaking his head. He walked over to the table where they'd set him. "Hi," he said, staring down at the table for a minute. "My name's Nickolas," he tried again, hoping that Danny would respond.
Danny felt his mouth open a little, but nothing came out. He wanted to speak, but it was impossible; he couldn't feel anything. This Nickolas guy was the one who'd stopped the other man in black from killing Danny earlier. And there was just something so strange about him… Danny could swear, for some reason, he thought he knew him.
He stared at the man, trying to figure out where he'd seen him before. He was young, probably about 26 or perhaps a bit older. His black hair was short… something about the way his hair was, reminded him of someone as well… someone else-someone he could place. But he didn't understand why this kid would remind Danny of her…
Nickolas sighed, grabbing Danny's attention again. "Look, I'm going to give you a shot okay? It's just something that might help you snap out of this trance thing you're in. It won't hurt, I promise," he said to Danny slowly. Nickolas picked up a needle and filled it with a liquid, pushing it into Danny's arm. "That should help," he muttered to himself.
Danny hadn't felt the needle at all… but after a few seconds, he started getting the feeling back in his head. Everything looked clearer and he could talk again. He didn't say anything though-just looked around the room and then stared at Nickolas.
Nickolas lifted an eyebrow. "Better?" he asked.
Danny nodded, rasping, "Yeah… thanks."
Nickolas sighed with relief. "Good… man I thought you were a vegetable for sure." He laughed-even something about his laugh was familiar… and that look he had pasted on his face-that awkward, uncomfortable, unsure, dorky look…
Danny attempted to clear his throat, but his voice still came out in rasps. "Who are you?"
Nickolas smiled, replying, "Nickolas Cutter Temple II. Or… just Nick if you like…" he said a little awkwardly.
Danny's eyes widened as he slowly registered that. "Temple?" he said weakly, the room beginning to spin again-it didn't matter what shot Nick had given him; he was still very sick.
"Yes sir… my father was Nickolas Cutter Temple," he said proudly, expecting that to mean something to Danny.
"Who was your grandfather?" Danny rasped.
"Oh…" Nick didn't seem pleased by that question. "Uh… Connor Temple. Why?"
Danny blinked, letting that sink in. No wonder this kid was familiar to him. He was the grandson of Connor. Connor, Danny thought, remembering back to the last time he'd seen Connor… and Abby. This kid reminded him of Abby too-the way his hair stood, short and wavy. It was the main thing about him that looked like Abby Maitland. Everything else just screamed Connor Temple. Right down to his awkward disposition.
"A-Are you okay?" Nick said, his eyes familiarly furrowing with scared worry. "Look, we're working on finding out where you came from… if you can just tell me what time you've come from; we can send you back home."
Danny looked up, his eyes hopeful. Home… That's something he never thought he'd hear again. If he could just make it home to say goodbye… just to see everyone one last time… if they were even there. He had to believe that Connor and Abby were home and safe. So Danny managed to tell Nick Cutter Temple the second, what time he'd come from…
"Good. Alright, we'll arrange to send you back there as soon as possible. Oh and sorry about Mark… the guy who attacked you. He's a soldier, and he's getting used to the whole 'don't attack helpless individuals', thing…" he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Um… Unfortunately… there's nothing we can do to help you with your sickness," Nick said reluctantly. "We're not allowed to help or save things from other timelines. It can interfere with the natural course of history… but we've been looking for you for a while now-you and those other two; ever since our monitors detected your presences in the past."
Danny started to fade, his head growing heavy again. "Other two? What happened to them?" he muttered.
"Uh… I'm not sure. They disappeared before we could get them." Nick saying that was the last thing Danny remembered before he passed out again…he still had no idea if Abby and Connor were safe or not.
Laughter filled the ARC break room. The sound would be pleasant to anyone's ears. After seeing so much in life, the ARC wasn't exactly the happiest place on earth… nor the most pleasant. It's seen everything from, Dinosaur fights and car bombs, to Psychopaths and human clones. It's seen death, and it's seen tragedy. But the main thing that the Anomaly Research Centre has done… is save people. Not only from giant prehistoric and futuristic predators… but from the people who work there themselves.
To think, 4 years ago Connor Temple was just a Paleontology student-a nobody with nothing but his Star Trek boxers and two best friends. Now he was nothing short of a hero. Abby Maitland was just the lizard girl working at the zoo that was about to get rid of the lizards… and now she was one of the greatest assets to the ARC operation-helping save people's lives. Nick Cutter… if the ARC hadn't been created, he'd still be alive today… but nothing could ever have compared to giving him the gift of seeing all that he'd seen through this place. It was a dream come true for Professor Nick Cutter. He wouldn't have given that up for anything. And Stephen Hart gave his life for something greater than himself. Exactly the way he would want it to be.
Through thick and thin, the ARC team has stayed together… more or less. Despite it all, two originals sat there in the new ARC with two new members and were laughing as if their lives were as normal as anyone else's. Something the ARC had taught them over the years… was that you can't dwell on the past… no matter how many times it comes back to the present.
"Alright so, she told me she'd just wanted to go out for a drink. But when we go to this bar, she gets up onstage and turns out… apparently she's been a stripper there for 5 years," Matt was saying. This was one of the very few stories he'd ever shared about himself. "And needless to say I think I got a free lap dance that night. But honestly I don't remember… after the twelfth drink, everything got a little hazy."
The others laughed again, Jess' laugh could be heard above them all. It really was an unusual sight to see in the ARC. But, of course, nothing like that every lasted for long… who said they wanted it to?
Sure enough, the alarm sounded, indicating an anomaly detection, and the four ARC members turned serious, running to the ADD and getting to work. A perfect picture… something was different, though. There was another member of the team-someone who'd come back with Connor and Abby from the Cretaceous-Jensen, Sion's son. He was only about 17, but he had the fighting skills and knowledge of creatures to prove to Philip and Lester that he could be helpful. Of course… Abby and Connor didn't mention that Jensen had lived in the Cretaceous his whole life; they'd just said they found him-lost like they were.
Jensen was a great fighter-he'd even taken on Becker a few times… and won. But still… he was young. And a little bit foolish. Becker didn't technically like the kid; but he'd taken an interest in training him. Connor continuously said the Jensen was exactly like a younger version of Becker. He said it because it was true… and it pissed Becker off every time.
Honestly… not a day went by that Connor wasn't bothered by the fact they never got to figure out where Sion came from. They still had no idea who he was or where he'd come from.
Nickolas was waving his arms, motioning and yelling to a bunch of other people, when Danny came to again. He was feeling worse than before… he could tell his sickness was progressing. It wasn't long now…
"Come on guys! Clear the Anomaly dock! Move it!" Nick was yelling. He was wearing a black suit again… and so were the other people in the building. Danny looked around at everything-blurry as it was, he could make out one familiar thing… on the floor below him there was a large circle that said "A.R.C. Anomaly Research Centre". Suddenly it all made sense… this was the ARC in the future. Danny was seeing the future of everything they'd worked for. It was… not really beautiful, per say… more… different.
Danny smiled, laughing a little. Nick came over to him with a few other ARC member. They all put on their helmets, watching as an anomaly opened on what must have been the "anomaly dock". Then they picked Danny up, pulling him into the anomaly quickly.
Danny couldn't move-he could barely think by this point. He just let the people pull him into the anomaly, finding himself being laid down on grass. He watched motionless as the people talked quickly-incoherently in Danny's mind. Then he heard voices yelling from a distance. The future ARC people exchanged glances, and then quickly jumped back through the anomaly. Except for one of them…
"Hold it right there!" someone yelled. Danny let his head roll to the side so he could see a little better. He saw four figures standing side-by-side with guns pointed at the one guy who hadn't gone back through the anomaly.
"Who are you?" the voice called.
The future ARC member pulled off his helmet, his eyes wide and a smile on his face. It was Nickolas who'd stayed. He was smiling like he was seeing someone he loved that had died, alive again.
"Danny?" a different voice yelled. Danny saw two of the blurry figures run to him, standing over him and yelling something.
They might have been two blurry faces… but there was no doubt in Danny's mind about who they were. "Abby… Connor," Danny rasped.
"Hey! Danny! Stay with me, mate!" Connor was saying as Danny faded. "Matt! We need a doctor, now!" he yelled back to the others. Abby stayed with Danny, but Connor got up and turned to Nickolas. "Who are you? What've you done to Danny?" he yelled.
Nick just stared at Connor, a tear coming to his eye. He grabbed Connor, hugging him quickly. "I'm so sorry," he muttered quietly. "It was true, what Sion had said…" Nick whispered to himself.
Connor pushed the stranger off him, a bewildered look on his face. "What? What did you just say?"
Nick wiped a tear away, shaking his head. "Nothing… I shouldn't say anything."
"No, no… that name, what was that? What did you just say?" Connor said quickly.
Nick thought for a moment. "Sion…"
"Who? Who is Sion?" he pressed.
Nick shook his head, but saw a desperation in Connor's eyes. How could he not tell his grandfather? He knew he probably shouldn't say anything, at the risk of messing with the timeline… but he couldn't help it. "He was my father's best friend. He disappeared a long time ago. I haven't seen him since I was a kid."
Connor looked confused. "And who are you? What time did you come from?"
Nickolas didn't want to say too much… He just looked over at Abby and said. "You two are going to have great kids…" He swiftly lifted his hand, doing the Vulcan sign, and said. "I'm from the future. Live long and prosper, Connor Temple." Then he turned and ran through the anomaly… it closed before Connor could even blink.
"Wait!" he yelled to the emptiness. Connor stared at the empty spot, everything running through his mind. He got all the answers he was ever going to get. There was nothing more to tell.
"Connor!" Abby yelled, snapping him out of it.
"Yeah, coming…" he said slowly, turning to see her putting Danny into the truck. Connor gave one last look at the empty spot before turning around and running to help with Danny.
There was someone else there with them that they hadn't noticed… he watched as Connor, Abby, Becker, and Matt drove away with Danny. There was so much he could tell them, but so much he shouldn't… and so it would stay a secret. To them, anyway.
Sion smiled from his spot in the shade of a tree, seeing the ARC truck disappear into the distance. "I wonder if they'll ever figure out that Jensen isn't my son…" he muttered to himself. "I told Becker I'd take care of him when he'd gone… and that I did. But now he's back with his father… and we've put things right." Sion smiled contently, sitting down and closing his eyes. He slowly drifted off to sleep… one he wouldn't wake up from. He'd done what he'd promised to do, and now he was finally finished. He could go in peace.
As for Danny… he lived. He recovered from the illness and became his regular pain in the ass self again. And life went on… as it always did. When push comes to shove… if you're stuck in the Cretaceous Era 65 million years ago… Two is definitely better than one…
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