AN: To all those people who threatened to kill me at the notion of taking a break; I say thee: RELAX! I'm already working on the next three chapters. The problem is just that I was running out of ideas. Please remember that I intended this to be a oneshot. The next part is being worked on, I'm just not happy with it yet. I'm not going to let this one fade. This particular little tale is what brings you and your wonderful feedback in more than any of my other fics. I'm not going to give that up. But I want it to be good. And when I say 'take a break', I don't mean a very long one; nor will I leave it on a cliffhanger. So everybody take a breath, and let me know what you actually think of the new chapter huh? I promise, this will not last for too much longer. I just want to get a handle on where it's going. You may consider this and everything that came before in this Tale to be Volume One; in the great story of the War Against Skynet.
Z Plus Two Years Two Hundred Nineteen Days
The wounded had come pouring in day and night. Whatever her feeling for her adoptive uncle at the moment, Kate had to admit that he always trained his staff well. And she was more than a little ill to realize that she knew some of these faces. Some of the older medical staff had been the Medic's on Whickham's bases, before J-Day. Whickham had taken his staff with him, wherever he had gone to survive the blasts. The Nursing staff keeping the wounded alive long enough to reach the operating tables, were the same nurses that had given her vaccination shots when she was a little girl.
John's fever had broken and he was recovering, but for far more than the infection. Her husband had been pushing himself too hard for too long, ignoring fatigue and hunger because the world demanded it of him; but now, without reserves, without strength; he remained in isolation for days longer.
Kate had no choice but to put faith in his Machine bodyguard, and had left instructions with the Nursing staff that he was to remain undisturbed. Nobody understood why; but they obeyed.
Carla understood why, and Kate had kept the Latina woman at her table during the marathon operating session. There wasn't really an opportunity to talk privately; but Kate needed her close by. One wounded body after another was put in front of the surgeons, and Kate fought to keep them alive. At the same time, she couldn't help but notice the spellbound focus Carla had on the mangled bodies, her eyes focusing on the scalpels and sutures with something dark in her eyes.
Kate had to admit having flashes of the Terminator laboratory herself in the Medbay, but Carla seemed to be almost having waking nightmares.
Bowman and Rios were there as long as she was, and as the day turned into night, and then toward day again, the surgeons physically had to take a break or start making mistakes. Kate spent her twenty minutes with John, telling the watching machine to wake her up. One thing she could not doubt about the Terminator was punctuality.
Eventually however, some of the wounded waited too long, and The Medical Staff's workload was cut short with startling speed.
Kate longed to go back to John and pass out, but hunger demanded more of her.
The Medical staff had received a standing ovation as they came into the Mess hall. The doctors had worked longer than any of the soldiers on the front.
Kate had barely heard it. She had a tray handed to her by somebody she barely saw, and fought not to pass out face down in her powdered eggs. Short catnaps in a cage did little for her energy. Adrenaline had kept her upright in OR; and all that after the last wave of wounded from the failed ambush.
Carla came out of herself long enough to run interference for Kate's slow drag to the nearest table. But when she heard the topic of conversation, her heart sped up again.
Gould, as head techie in the Underground, had been receiving quite a bit of attention. Too many people were unaware of exactly how Connor did it, rumors were flying that maybe Skynet had rebels in it's ranks, others suggesting that Connor was a spy after all that had gone native and decided to help humanity at the last minute. Others suggested that the War was over, and Connor had left to reprogram Skynet itself.
Gould had spent the better part of the day on rumor control as Connor recovered. His latest audience was in the Mess Hall as he tried to eat.
"I don't know who's plan it was." Gould told an assembled crowd. "All I know is, Connor told me to get a Terminator CPU scrubbed with something we could use, and Whickham told me that Connor had left before the attack on a secret mission."
"Hah!" Carla growled sarcastically.
About twenty pairs of eyes turned to look at Carla, who was staring distantly into her coffee. Carla spared her audience a glance, and then looked back at her cup. "Secret mission. Right."
"What do you mean?" Gould pressed.
Carla glared fiercely at Kate. "Would you stop kicking me under the table, PLEASE!"
"Okay, come on." Kate stood up, pulled Carla to her feet and pushed her toward Dex. "Take her somewhere quiet and keep her company. I'm taking you both off the active duty roster for today."
Dex looked at Carla, worried, and nodded at Kate. "Yes Ma'am."
Carla didn't respond, gone quiet.
As Carla let herself get pulled away, Kate put herself between the retreating lovers and the curious group of soldiers. "Been a bad week; everyone go about your day."
Most of them were willing to take that at face value. More than a few people had lost their minds in the post-atomic horror. There wasn't a single human who hadn't lost control of themselves at least for a little while. Activity was the defence against madness, and there was always much to do. By unspoken agreement, all the survivors knew not to call attention to it when one of their own finally snapped. Most of the time, they were back on the line a week or two later anyway.
But some were suspicious. Including Lisa.
"I'm all right dammit!" Carla roared.
"No." Dex said calmly. "You're not. You're six inches away from mania Carla, I've seen it. I've been there."
Carla whirled on him the second they were alone in the dorms. "I've had people dying all around me for years Dex! You think I'm gonna lose it over a science experiment?" She had tears rolling down her face.
Dex let her scream at him. He took it without flinching until she exhausted herself. "What happened out there?"
"I'm not. Allowed. To tell you." Carla growled.
"Okay." Dex said quietly. "But it must have been bad."
Silence.
"Yeah." Carla admitted. "It was."
Dex gave her a hug, and she wasted no time hugging him back. "I... I miss bread baking too. I miss cooking. I miss my old bed, and I miss my flannel nightgown, and I miss hot chocolate on cold nights, and I miss ice tea on hot days, and I miss my niece, and I miss my brother, and I miss my kids, and I miss my mom, and I hate this place; and I hate losing more people, and I hate making more friends, and I hate-" She finally ran out of steam and broke down. "I hate that I care about you Dex. I don't want to care about things any more. I don't want to lose anymore-"
"You won't lose me!" Dex swore.
"You can't know that."
"You won't lose me."
"Promise?" Carla said weakly.
"Promise."
"Hi."
Sherrin looked up and saw Lisa standing over his Post op cot, with two trays in her hands. "Hi."
"I heard you were back on solid food, so I figured since we didn't have any of that on hand, you might settle for Army Chow."
Sherrin chuckled and waved Lisa down next to him. "How's it going up there?"
"Still clearing the debris away. The Terminators are all outside now at least. Scuttlebutt says there's a few standing guard in Connor's room."
"Why?"
"I'm not sure, but it may have something to do with Carla."
"The head nurse? What about her?"
"She had a bit of a nutty today."
"Can't imagine why." Sherrin deadpanned. "Do you know what it was all about?"
"No. You?"
"No idea. Tell me about it."
There was little to talk about over lunch in the Underground. Nobody wanted to talk about the war any more than they had to, but there wasn't a whole much else. For that reason, there was gossip. Carla was long considered the dependable, unbreakable one, and to have her snap in the middle of Gould's explanation was easily explained, but not easily dismissed. Knowing so little about each other, Sherrin and Lisa turned the mystery over in their heads as they ate.
Lisa spoke first. "Danes and Schwartz. They've been listed as killed in action."
Sherrin was honestly sympathetic. Tough guy act aside, there wasn't a Marine made, even before the War; who didn't know the pain of having someone you knew killed in the Line of Duty. "Did you know them well?"
"Not as well as Connor did. They were his daughters' guards in the nursery. And they had KP duty the day Connor disappeared. They didn't show."
Sherrin took that in. "Connor's wife was supposedly in San José for the attack. Took her daughter there because it was safer. If they were the kid's guards... They probably went along."
"If it was safer there, then how were they killed in action? And how did Sarah get back in the nursery so fast?" Lisa returned. "Something doesn't add up."
Sherrin thought that over. "Well... I know someone we can ask."
Lisa followed his gaze and smiled. "Hey Kyle!" She called. "Kyle Reese! Come and chat with us!"
The kid came over. "Hi."
"So, what brings you to Medbay?"
Kyle gestured over his shoulder, his face was unreadable. "Checking on a few of my friends who were caught in the fight." He gestured down. "Their shoes fit me."
Kate let herself into John's room. He hadn't moved.
His eyes opened a little, looking more alert. "Hey."
"Hey." Kate slurred.
"Have you slept?" John croaked.
Kate shook her head, and that action alone nearly gave her vertigo.
John tried to sit up, and she waved him back down.
"You need to rest. You'll start seeing things soon."
"Mm." Kate murmured. "Yeah, but you don't have to get up."
"I can move. I've been asleep a full day."
"But if I sleep on top of you, I know you won't go anywhere." Kate collapsed across the cot and across her husband and did not move again.
John chuckled into her hair and strained to make her more comfortable. "How is it out there?"
"It'll get worse before it gets better." Kate slurred. "Love you husband."
"Love you wife."
Z Plus Two Years Two Hundred Twenty Three Days
The absence of John Connor was starting to make people nervous. People were asking questions.
Whickham had quickly collected Carla and Kate, and gave them strict orders to remain silent until the general had a chance to talk to Connor. Kate had told Carla that John gave a similar order and they obeyed. Kate had agreed to keep the secret on the condition that Whickham go away until John was back on duty. The general wanted to argue, but Kate was the one ordering terminators around, and he had left for San José. Noah had remained in LA.
The effort to keep the secret worked for less than two days.
Kyle, the only member of the party who did not wear a uniform; and thus was not ordered into silence, had told all about their harrowing ordeal, and when word got out that Connor's absence from LA was not a mission, but an escape, tensions erupted.
There was no privacy underground. Everyone had accepted that as a fact of their lives. It had been surprisingly easy to live with thus far; even in the washrooms. Sometimes people waited till late to make use of the showers; to avoid people coming of shift, or getting up for an early start. Noah was one of them, grateful for the silence for as long as it lasted.
Private Seaborn let himself into the washroom, came up behind Noah, who was rinsing out her hair in the sink, and tapped her shoulder. "Colonel?"
"Yes private?"
"I wanted to apologize. About what happened in the CIC. You remember?"
"I remember you were pointing a gun at me."
"I wanted to apologize for that. Connor... He's saved my life more than once. One of those times... was at the Ambush retreat. And the General wanted to end him for doing that. I couldn't do nothing."
"I understand." Noah said. She didn't agree, and she sided with Whickham, but she wasn't stupid. She knew how tense things were in the Underground.
The door opened again, and in strolled Martinez. He and Seaborn traded a look, and Seaborn calmly leaned against the wall, next to the door.
Martinez looked around. "Am I intruding?"
"Nope." Seaborn said evenly.
"Great." Martinez went over to the sink and leaned next to Noah, who was drying her hands too. "So Colonel Noah... I was wondering if you could help me out with something?"
"If I can." Noah was suddenly very aware that the room was otherwise empty.
"There's a rumor going around that you were here to arrest Connor. Is that true?"
Noah felt her instincts start to scream again, as the door opened, and in walked a few men, two civilians, one soldier, all of them armed, all of the Connor's. They stayed near the door, leaning against the wall, a little too casual. There were now three soldiers, two civilians... and Noah staring them all down.
Noah glanced around. Stall for time. She told herself. "Where did you hear that?"
"Oh, you know how things are." Seaborn said casually. "Rumors spread like crazy."
Noah put her towel away. "Well, nothing you need to worry about."
"I agree. Because if Whickham was that stupid-"
"General Whickham, Private." Erica corrected, settling into a combat crouch unconsciously.
"-if you did come and take him away, then we'd all be dead right now. You know that right?"
Noah balled her fists, ready to fight her way out. The door opened again. In walked four of Whickham's soldiers, all of them armed, all of them quickly moving in between Noah and her surrounding antagonists. "Colonel." One of them said to Noah, not taking his eyes off Seaborn. "There's a call for you in the comm center from the general."
Noah forced her hands to open
Seaborn put a hand up. "We were just having a conversation. I'm sure the General can wait a few seconds longer for her to give us an answer."
Seaborn balled his fists. "I don't think so."
Noah moved for the door, Martinez got in her way; Noah's man grabbed him from behind and pulled him out of the way...
And the man whipped around and threw the first punch.
All it took was one, and the fight began in earnest. It was brutal, it was ugly... One of the civilians lunged at Noah and tried to throw the Colnel head first into the edge of the nearest sink. Noah was able to break the hold instantly and set an elbow into his sternum, knocking him back.
As the civilian hit the wall, Seaborn caught Erica by the hair, yanked her head back, throat bared-
"TEN-HUT!"
Every soldier froze and snapped to; by instinct. The civilians a little slower, but the fight broke, with baleful looks and bloody noses traded between Whickham's soldiers and Connor's.
Noah turned to the door and Connor himself was framed there, pure thunder on his face, matched perfectly by the long wicked scar that was stitched shut; from forehead to cheek. Eric Walters was right there with him, as was a team of MP's, all of them armed. But the guns weren't necessary. It was just Connor. It was just his face, just his voice.
Connor marched into the room, pushed people away from each other, and went straight to Seaborn. Connor took the knife out of his hand, and waved it before his eyes. "Is this what we do? Is this what we're about? All of us against the wall and we're still killing each other? And for WHAT?"
Seaborn swallowed. "Sir... we aren't going to let them take you sir. Not like this. Not for him. We would all of us be dead now if they had-"
"They didn't." Connor glared, getting in his face. "You think there's anyone going to stop me from taking care of my people? You think there's any way I would let that happen? I need to trust you. I need to trust that if I leave you guys at my back for ten minutes, you'll be better than this!" He waved the knife again. "What if I had gotten killed? I need people who can finish what I started. I need to be able to trust you. And I need you to trust me."
"I do trust you sir."
Connor kept staring at him. Without turning, he raised his voice to near-violent levels. "Major Walters. Move 'em out!"
"Yessir."
"Noah, you too."
"Yessir." Noah said quietly, very aware of how close she'd come.
"Is this an isolated incident?" Connor asked Walters.
"No sir." Walters admitted. "Word's getting out, and people do not like it." He suddenly owned up. "Sir, I agreed to keep it a secret. I was the one that convinced our people to shut up about it-"
"And if I'd been here, I would have told you to do exactly that." Connor assured him. "It's okay Eric, I don't hold a grudge. You don't start an argument when there's an invasion coming. It just wasn't time to split the last army." Connor nodded and lifted his radio. "Kate? You there?"
Silence.
Connor suddenly realized. "Battery. Haven't changed it since I left The Underground." He glanced down the hall. "The supply points still up after the fight?"
"Naw, we moved all that stuff out of the way when we started cleaning out the Tunnels, and had to carry through the wounded."
Connor went to the nearest storage room and opened the door.
Lisa and Sherrin half fell out the door in a tangle of limbs, caught neatly. Lisa looked up, holding her shirt closed with one hand as both of them fought to stand. "Um... Hello sir. Welcome back."
"Lisa." Connor returned, nonplussed.
Lisa gestured at Sherrin, who jumped quickly to attention at the sight of two superior officers. "This is Sergeant Tony Sherrin." Lissa stammered stupidly. "He just got out of Medbay… Uh, he's one of the guys from San José." She was bright red, stammering. "Major Kate told us to play nice with Whickham's men while they were here." She realized what she said and flushed darker red. "Um-that is..."
Connor rescued her. "Pass me a radio battery please."
Sherrin reached back into the storage room and did so.
Connor took it and moved on down the tunnel without another word.
Walters stayed behind and gave the two of them a stern look. "Sherrin, I thought Bowman put you on light duty after you left medbay? And you're out of uniform too?"
"Not yet we're not." Sherrin responded.
Lisa was mortified, gesturing after Connor. "It's worse than being caught by your dad!"
Walters chuckled and hurried after Connor.
Sherrin looked at Lisa. "I was expecting worse."
Lisa shook her head. "Connor suspended the regs against fraternizing."
Sherrin blinked, intrigued. "Really? Huh, he really is a genius."
"Well, Lisa seems to be over her little crush." Walters commented.
"You know about that too?" Connor said in surprise.
"Yeah. Still, fights are sparking up between your guys and Whickhams' here and there too, so it all evens out I guess."
"Eric."
"Okay, serious time now. Why'd you come back? You could have kept going. You had to know that coming back here would be dangerous, and you had your wife and daughter with you. Even if you won, you had to know there'd be fallout. He may still decide to go ahead with the court martial. Why'd you come back?"
Connor smiled. "You gave me the uniform. You put me in charge. I accepted the post. I couldn't just let you die. You're my guys. And I'm your commander. Can't just let that go."
Walters grinned. "No sir. Really can't."
Z Plus Two Years Two Hundred Twenty Nine Days
Violence broke out in the Underground again and again over the next few days, sparking up like brushfires which were quickly put out by Connor and his little family. At first he had tried merely keeping Noah's people isolated, but that failed quickly; as the more violent of Connor's followers sought them out; till finally Walters ordered Noah and her people off the base.
With their targets gone, the anger for Connor's faithful cooled quickly, with nowhere to go.
The population Underground across two cites and hundreds of miles had gone silent. Crowds of people, barely speaking, caught in stunned silence at what had transpired.
Connor's followers had taken to sitting around their leader's base, looking outward as though expecting an attack.
General Whickham had not been active for almost a week. His men had locked down LA and let nobody in. And Connor's people threw their own blockade around the Underground, keeping Whickham's forces out; quietly watched for action, and none came.
Kate had not spoken to her adoptive uncle since her return to LA, divided by loyalties and unable to think of anything to say.
Every human left within two hundred miles of the West Coast, waited to see what Colonel John Connor and General Chet Whickham would do next.
Noah fell into step behind Whickham and made her report. "Walters threw us out of LA."
Whickham sighed. "He give a reason?"
"Not one that I believe. Frankly, I'm almost glad he did. Word got out about why Connor left the Underground. Everyone who was told to hush it up before wants to shout it from the rooftops now. If we stayed any longer, it would have gotten ugly."
"What's the word?"
"Skynet's invasion Force was destroyed. It cost Connor most of his reprogrammed Machines. But as predicted, it cost Skynet a lot more. Connor sent his machines go start hitting Terminator factories. All the ones in the area gave up a large chunk of their defenders to add to the Incursion. Connor kept the factories running. Connor's Machine Army is rolling off an assembly line and going H/K hunting."
"And at the Underground?"
"Major Connor had the Terminators help out with some of the most badly wounded. They cleaned up the wreckage a little while they were putting their people back together. But frankly, nobody wants the Terminators around, so Connor's keeping them out of long range patrol, on offensives..."
"Connor commands Terminators now." Whickham felt a shudder go through him.
Noah seemed worried too. "Sir... some of my men wanted to stay in LA anyway, even with the risk of the civilians..."
Whickham nodded like he expected that. "With the Machines still out there, a lot of people are bound to think that Connor can protect them better."
"Maybe he can." Noah said quietly. "Sir... will he come after us? Between his people and his Machines... What he lacks in artillery he more than makes up for with loyal people."
Whickham looked twenty years older. "I know." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Get our people together; I want a target list for our fighter jets. Stay away from Connor's captured sites. Things are tense enough, but we have to take advantage of the losses Skynet took as much as we can. If we can't capture, we can at least destroy. Start up some drills and set them to simulate what would happen if we have Terminators fighting Skynet with us now. Try and give everyone something to do. Idle hands and all that."
"Yessir."
"I'll be in my office."
Whickham came into his office and shut the door firmly behind him.
"General."
Whickham spun. Connor was sitting at his desk. "How the hell did you get in here?"
"Same way I plan to get out." Connor said evenly. "I'm not armed. I don't want any more violence, and I don't want humans fighting humans, and for the love of god, I don't want it done in my name."
"Neither do I." Whickham shot back.
"Then let's figure this out shall we?"
Beat.
Whickham around the desk and sat down in his chair, the small chess set in front of him, and he waved Connor over. "I tried that double rook move you used the day we met. Didn't work. I couldn't see why, until I realized that you had your bishops clear out the third file; less than ten minutes into the game. You had your ending figured out before you made your fifth move."
"Yeah." Connor admitted quietly. "Yeah, I did."
Whickham moved one of the pieces, noted it down. "Connor, do you think I'm insane? Tyrannical? Out of control?"
"None of the above." Connor said quietly.
"I have been a soldier for more than forty years. I've been given the responsibility of a post-nuclear war zone, and a genocidal enemy that does not sleep, does not eat, does not show mercy. I have to protect the existence of humanity; and if doing so makes me inhumane… well… Humans are still here, and the dinosaurs and the dodo aren't. If there's one thing that the history of warfare has taught us, it's the law of the jungle."
Connor leaned forward. "You're a soldier. Ever sworn in a new soldier? The oath: 'Support and defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies, Foreign or Domestic'; Except that it doesn't exist any more. The hierarchy, the government, the states themselves have all been wiped out. We aren't Americans any more Chet, we're human beings. That's all we are. It's been that way since Judgment Day."
"That's my point Connor… when did we start calling it Judgment Day?" Whickham said finally. "I never heard of it. We just called it 'the attack'. Then one day, somebody heard you talking on the radio, and you said that was what we're calling it, and so we started calling it that. These soldiers have been following me for years, and then you show up, wearing a uniform you got handed to you for nothing, and within the space of a few weeks… God Almighty Connor: Where the hell did you come from?"
"Does it matter? In the Underground we have people who were waitresses, tax men, lawyers... where did any of them come from? Does that matter? We're alive. That's all."
"And we're being hunted. Connor, be honest. Can you find any flaw at all in my methods?"
"None whatsoever. Your logic is flawless, and your methods are ruthless because it's necessary. It's a response to the times."
"So what would you have done differently?"
"Lots of things, but not for practical logical reasons. Like your maternity ward for instance. Back in the day, you would have gone to jail for keeping them locked up like that. Nowadays you can do it because it's something you have to do. But I still wouldn't do it. Pregnant women in my base are already underground. They're already protected by rings of soldiers and tons of dirt and concrete. Like you said, that choice was made five moves ago. If I was in San José, and not LA, who knows?"
"You think you can run a clean war Connor?"
"Of course not. But Skynet makes it easy to try. We kill a thousand of our enemy, and we haven't even taken a life. This is the most honest war ever fought. War isn't clean. It's a killing field. Always has been. I can't fight a clean war. But I can at least fight a Human War." Connor gestured at the board. "Just like your Chess game. You told me once, your tactics in a chess game match those on your battlefield, because it's just your nature. You want to know how you play? You risk losing your pieces, but only for a greater prize. You sacrifice a pawn to get a shot at a rook. The higher the prize, the more you sacrifice. With all life as the prize… you risk sacrificing the whole game. You sacrifice fifty to save a thousand. You sacrifice freedom for protection. You sacrifice a Colonel you can't trust to protect an Army you're responsible for… Good and evil don't come into that. It's all just… just us making judgment calls."
Whickham stared at Connor. In less than a minute, Connor had praised his logic, refuted his choices, offered the alternatives, forgiven him for being wrong, and taken the choice to another level, which was out of his hands.
It felt like an execution, and Whickham had absolutely no doubt as to where Connor had learned to do it.
Kate was right about you. Whickham thought.
"So no, general, I don't think you're crazy. I don't think you're unreasonable. I just think you have people under your command; and you're looking at the whole board and not seeing any other pieces out there. So you have to protect them, no matter the cost."
Whickham nodded. "And I don't think you're mad either, but I spent my life in the Army, and the whole idea of the military is that when your CO gives the order, you obey, even if it means you might die in the process. That's the burden of command. And that's why you can't make compromises. Especially…"
"Especially with men you don't trust and don't think should be wearing the uniform?" Connor put in, not at all offended. "I understand, but even if I'm not the man to lead, they still want to follow. And do you really want to give those people out there an order, and wonder if they'd rather follow a guy in your brig?"
Whickham shook his head. "No."
"So let's figure this out." Connor said.
"Figure what out? You disobeyed an order. Your men are ready to commit mutiny against me; and if I let you get away with it, the whole chain of command, tremulous though it is in this world, will fall apart. Suddenly obeying an order in a time of war is optional. I can't compromise with you Connor. Even if I wanted to. Even if it's the right thing to do, I can't. When I order someone into a risky mission, I can't have them stop and argue about it, and I can't have them pause and make sure it's okay with you first."
"I know." Connor said firmly. "And I agree."
"You do?"
"Yes."
"Well… good."
"So I'm going to make it easy for you."
"How?"
"I'll resign."
Beat.
"Resign?" Whickham repeated. "Just like that?"
"A house divided cannot stand." Connor said calmly. "If ever we needed a military to keep it together it's right now. So I'll resign, and I will do it publicly. And I will tell people that the reason is because my presence would be divisive in the ranks; and that I will not allow my presence to be a weak link in the chain that holds us all back from extinction." Connor paused. "Excuse me, I'm just going to write that down."
Whickham gave nothing away. Connor removing himself peacefully was a pretty good deal for him. "And in return?"
"Two things." Connor said. "One, there will be no reprisals against anyone who wants to come with me. If they're wiling to walk out on you, then your probably don't want them here anyway."
"True enough." Whickham allowed. "And two?"
Connor smirked. "Let me call Kate to LA, and tell her you changed your mind."
"About what?"
Z Plus Two Years Two Hundred Thirty Days
In Whickham's Maternity Ward, the women had blissfully missed every step of the three way war that had broken out above them.
But then this morning, Susan opened her eyes in surprise as the door to the maternity ward opened, and in came a trio of soldiers she recognized, moving their guns and fortifications aside. And in came… a parade. More new faces than she or any of the others had seen in months. And they were smiling. Susan was stunned, and more than a little overwhelmed. She had been in isolation so long; the sudden influx of new people was startling.
Susan looked around carefully. The new arrivals were drawing some attention. A roomful of heavily pregnant women quickly lost all pretence at dignity with each other, and all of them fighting to sit upright a little was funny to see if not experience.
The long line of people were pushing empty wheelchairs, and taking them, one to a bed.
Kate, with a big smile on her face, was first in line. "Susan! Remember me?"
"Kate!" Susan yelped. "Hi. What's going on?"
"Moving day." Kate explained cheerfully. "We're moving you all outta here."
"You are?" Susan seemed more scared than pleased. "To where?"
"My husband commands a base in LA." Kate explained. "We're moving you there. It's underground. Miles of tunnels, lots of fortifications, lots of concrete. Maybe you still can't see the sky, but it's full of people and you get to wander around the entire base as you like."
Susan felt her throat catch. "Really?"
"Yep. And on the way, we get to cut through the nursery. So…" Kate beamed warmly. "You want to see your son?"
Susan felt her eyes well up. She looked around quickly and saw more than a few people reacting the same way. "My son? Really?"
"You can take him with you to LA if you want!" Kate was almost hopping up and down.
Susan gripped her bed rail a bit too tightly. "Is it… is it safe?"
"It is where you're going." A new voice said.
Kate suddenly looked scared and spun around. Connor had come into the room. "John!" She croaked. "I... I didn't know you knew about this."
Connor nodded, and spread his hands a little. "I do. This was part of the deal with Whickham."
"Who're you?" Susan asked, unknowing and unimpressed.
Kate smiled softly at Susan. "He's John Connor." She said. "My husband."
The first stop was at the Nursery. Due to the narrow corridors leading out, the women were wheeled out in wheelchairs, single file. They drew some attention, but once they saw the babies, they stopped caring about their looks and went hunting for their own.
Susan leaned over the railing, looking into the crib. "Wow, you got bigger." She said softly to the baby. "It's been… what? Maybe a year huh?" She swallowed. "No. If it was that long, you're be talking by now. Hope it hasn't been that long. Wouldn't want to miss your first word."
The little one cooed a little, rolled toward her voice.
Susan stood upright, weaved a little, unsteady on her legs and tried not to shout too loud. "He remembers me!" She called, overjoyed. "He remembers my voice!"
Kate was almost smiling. She should have been smiling. She was happy. But she just couldn't stop glancing at her husband, as if waiting for him to shoot her. He and Carla and Dex were helping the women in wheelchairs find their way, either to the trucks, or to their infants.
Finally, Connor gestured and Kate went over to the side of the room, to talk to him privately. "So." She said finally. "You knew?"
"About the Maternity ward?" Connor said evenly, not at all angry. "Yeah. I knew."
"How?"
"I'm John Connor." Connor intoned dramatically.
"Oh no you don't." Kate joshed. "You can get away with that, but not with me."
Connor chuckled. "And that's why I love you." He sobered. "I asked you to look into the mysterious lack of women, you kept me up to date on what you found, mentioning that some of them were listed as pregnant before vanishing. And then you stopped talking about it all together, and you sent our daughter as far away from San Jose as you could get her. You did that after talking to Curry; who also wanted her baby out of there, and Curry didn't have a lot of emotion invested into her possible pregnancy in the first place. So whatever it was had to be pretty bad, and it didn't take a genius to figure out who knew about it…"
Kate sighed and looked down. "I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"For lying to you."
"You were trying to protect your Uncle."
Kate shook her head. "Maybe that was it. I don't know."
"Comes with Command, giving out information that's needed, and playing the rest of your cards close to your chest. I didn't worry about you keeping this from me, because I knew you'd tell me when I needed to know."
"Did you need to know?" Kate pressed, looking down.
"No. Not then. Kate… I wouldn't have done it, but I couldn't find any really good arguments against it. At least with those women down there… I knew they'd be protected. Whickham wouldn't have mistreated them, just kept them contained. Protective custody, it's called. When you lock someone up to keep them safe. Wasn't right to keep it this long, but if they weren't in any immediate danger, I had time to figure out another way." He shrugged. "Sorry Kate, but when I found out, I only had time for things that were shooting at us or getting shot at. Same with LA. I didn't have a solution till I found myself having to save you from a Terminator factory. I would have done everything Whickham did, and it wouldn't have been enough if I'd been here either. It was just luck that I captured that Terminator whole. I agree with everything Whickham did; even if I wouldn't have done it myself. Kate, I was playing his people just as much as he was playing mine."
She still wouldn't look at him.
"Kate, who's side are you on?"
Kate looked up at him sharply. "Yours of course."
"Even if I'm against Chet?"
"Even then." Kate said without hesitation.
"That's all I ever need to be sure of Kate. Yes, you lied to me, but I knew about it. I let you get away with it because… Jeez Kate, do you have any idea how many times I lied to cover for my mom? You made a mistake. One made out of love for your family. As lies go… I can relate. I can easily forgive too."
Kate smirked mirthlessly. "Especially since I wasn't hiding anything you didn't already know."
Connor smirked coldly. "That too."
Kate wasn't looking at him. "I'm sorry."
Connor laid a hand gently on her shoulder, and she let herself get pulled into a hug. "Kate... I have never ever had anyone before you. My own mother only told me she loved me three times. I can forgive an awful lot to keep you in my life. Some things have to be handled alone because they are personal, because they matter. Some things you have to do privately. Family is one of them." He hugged her tighter. "You'll tell me things when I need to know."
"I will." Kate promised.
He took a breath. "Kate… I'm hiding things from you too."
Kate nodded into his shoulder. "I figure there are any number of things you'll have to carry alone. But… if it ever gets to be too much, I'm here."
Connor pulled her chin up to look at him. "If you asked me what I was keeping secret… I'd tell you. You know that, right?"
Kate put a finger over his lips. "You'll tell me when I need to know."
And that was that.
"Kate!" Susan called joyfully, with a wonderful happy smile on her face. "Come meet my son!"
Z Plus Two Years Two Hundred Thirty Three Days
The war had paused.
The Machines had suddenly gone quiet. Their factories had gone still, the H/K's pulling back from their offensives, staying safely outside the humans reach. The Humans knew it was because they had lost a lot of their offensive power on the failed Invasion, but the silence was horrifying and oppressive. The air was thick and deadly, waiting. No attacks, no probes, no orders coming down... Two armies fighting a three way war against itself, and all of them on hold...
Waiting.
The uncertainty had stretched longer than any solder or refugee was comfortable with, and as time stretched, even the anger cooled, left with a cold silence, as all concerned became unsure about the future. When Skynet stopped its own offensives, the waiting had taken on a whole new level.
Rumors flew that Skynet didn't attack anymore because they didn't have to; that maybe Whickham and Connor were about to declare war on each other. As the leaders stayed in closed meetings, there were rumors that perhaps one or both of them had been killed; and those rumors grew into whodunits, some saying Skynet had found a way in, some saying that they killed each other…
And nobody knew what to do, or who would be telling them to do it…
Waiting.
"Colonel Walters?"
Walters turned. "Yes Doctor?"
Bowman came in. "The latest orders from Connor. From him, to Kate, to me. He wants the K-9 units."
"K-9's." Walters scoffed. "They're feral dogs we dragged in. They aren't K-9 units."
"Well, Connor calls them that, so we obey. Mostly some light medical stuff, a few maps, some designs on the plasma guns… There's something strange though. He wanted blood samples."
"Why?"
"He didn't say, but he wants as many of them as we can spare, and he wants them kept in something portable that will allow them to keep for a very long time." Bowman sighed. "Seems our guess was right. The Colonel's going to make a break for it. Again."
"If he was going to do that, he would have done it by now." Walters argued. "Or at the very least, he wouldn't have us grab supplies for him."
"What do you think then?"
"I think he's starting up a new base. With the Terminators we can start hitting more forward areas."
"Speaking of that, where the hell did the Machines go?"
"Skynet's Machines, or ours?"
"Both. Ours left late last night, and Connor moved our own scouts back to the perimeter."
"I have no idea. Connor sent them to do something. Skynet's Army, who knows?"
Bowman smirked. "Connor does."
Walters took the list and started reading it. "Those transportable blood samples he wants. Who's blood is it?"
"It's not from us. He wanted blood and tissue samples from all the food animals. The calves, the chickens…"
Walters looked up sharply. "Why would he want blood samples from them?"
Bowman shrugged. "I really don't know. Nobody does. I don't think even Kate knows. But it's Connor, so we'll be giving it all to him."
Walters leaned back and looked back at the chess board. "What are you planning Connor?"
Their radio's both crackled, and Kate's voice came over them at the same time, which meant that probably the whole place was hearing it. "Attention All Personnel. Colonel John Connor will address the Underground, all soldiers under his command, and all civilians on the premises tonight at 1900 hours, in the Central Tunnel; regarding the current situation. Those who can make it are invited to do so; and it is requested that all those who can not make it are provided with radios or other means to hear. That is all."
Silence.
For the first time in almost a week, there was overt talking audible in the Tunnels. Everyone was speaking at once, to people they sat with, people they didn't know, trying to predict what would be said.
Bowman gave Walters a look. "So this is it then?"
Walters handed the list back. "Make sure this is all set up before 1900 hours. I don't know what's going to happen, but I'd lay odds he'll be needing all this soon after."
Radio's made their way quietly from hand to hand, the overall crowded nature of the Tunnels helping word to get out.
Humans out beyond the base had their own gear. The people at Whickham's base had their equipment on hand as well. Connor's voice came over every frequency.
Some people did not have the radios. Kate told them to gather in the main hall. Connor would speak from there.
The silence was already oppressive. When Connor actually appeared in the Underground... It turned explosive. Kate felt the silence thundering in her ears. The sound of hundreds of people not making a sound was incredible.
The first thing everyone noticed was the Connor was not in uniform. His clothing was neat sepia grey, with strong boots, a nametag sewn into the chest and a rank insignia like any other uniform.
Connor came in, and made his way through the crowd. The people parted to let him through. There was no podium, no stage. Connor simply waded into the corwd until he was surrounded.
And he began to speak.
"This attack taught you all the most important thing that I've been trying to drill into your heads. Machines are not even alive. There's no loyalty in machines. There's no honor there. Flip the right switch and they'll hunt their own every bit as hard as they hunt us. That's what makes them less than us." He paused to let that sink in. "I am deeply concerned, that the greatest personal advantage that every human being has, nearly cost us our lives."
He paused to take measure of the crowd. They were listening.
"My time in the Underground, gave me a home, a purpose, and sense of family. Something I loathe to give up. But things cannot continue like this. I will not be the reason that our house stands divided."
Deathly silence, people realizing...
"And so, effective immediately, I am resigning from the US Army." Connor said clearly.
There was a roar of disbelief and anger which bounced off the walls until Kate, standing quietly at then Tunnel's mouth, could feel her ears start to hurt from the noise. It continued for several minutes, until Connor managed to get them quiet. "I know you may find this-"
"Castle can only have one King!" Someone yelled. "We'll follow you sir!"
"We all will!" Some else yelled. "Call Whickham out! Say the word! Say it!"
"Call him out!"
Someone else repeated it, and the chant gathered volume until the radios picked it up clearly, and it was heard through the entire West Coast theatre by every soldier, every submarine, every scout, every civilian. "CALL HIM OUT! CALL HIM OUT!"
In San Jose, Noah and Whickham traded a glance, hearing the whole thing over their own radios.
"CALL HIM OUT! CALL HIM OUT!"
"HEY!" Connor roared over them, "YOU WANT TO HEAR THIS OR YOU WANT TO SCREAM SOME MORE?
They all fell silent.
He took a breath. "I will never ask a soldier to disobey orders. I will never ask a soldier to take up arms against his own unit. If it meant nothing before the world ended, then by now there's nobody on either side of this war that doesn't understand: Your family is your unit. Your strength is in them. And when you face death day after day after day, you stand together. Back before the world ended, that was a code of behaviour, now it's the only chance for survival. The Machines have no loyalty. They have no sense of duty, they have no honor. And until now they stood together without question."
Sudden hushed silence. This was not going at all the way people were hoping it would.
"You all know me here." Connor said. "You know Major Eric Walters too. I was a civilian until then. I was made a soldier by you, I was set to lead, because you wanted to follow. But I was still a civilian then. My wife told me something that I vowed never to forget. That it didn't matter what my role in this war was. We were both going to fight. And I will. I will fight them back with every breath in my body, for my wife and my daughter. But my presence here would put my men in an impossible situation. So while I am no longer US Army, I am a soldier. I'm forming my own militia. A Guerrilla army trained to fight the Machines. A new war with a new enemy; needs a new army to knock it down. A Technical Combat Unit, for a technological enemy."
Hushed silence, people realizing that their hero was not out of the game.
Connor looked them over fiercely. "Any who wish to join may do so. Male female, older, younger, civilian and military. There is no age requirement. The Machines don't care how old you are. There is no gender division. The machines don't care about that either. Everyone finds a way to contribute, everyone pulls their weight." He turned to face Whickham's soldiers, assembled at the entrance to the LA base. "Any soldiers who wish to join me are free to do so. But remember! The point of this is that a house divided will not stand! So if you want to join; you stand with us."
Connor left the podium. A loud buzz of whispers filled the hall. Soldiers and civilians alike started watching each other, weighing their options. They were expecting surrender or a declaration of war. Not a choice.
Halloway and Lori were the only two people in the Mess, listening to the radio. Most everyone else was two tunnels away, seeing it happen in person.
"Well." Halloway commented. "Didn't expect that."
"Somebody announces he's no longer going to serve his Commander and instead form his own Army to follow? That ever happened before?" Lori asked.
"In America? Not since the Civil War. And didn't that work out so well for the Challenger as I recall."
Lori growled, low in her throat. "So. Who do you stand with?"
"It's the question everyone's gonna be asking isn't it?" Halloway shivered. "History, regulations, tradition, and the law all says I should go with Whickham."
"But?"
"But history was all blown to hell. So were regulations, and traditions, and every law ever written." Halloway said. "It's just us making judgment calls now."
Lori nodded. "Well... The problem is, Connor can't stay here. Whickham will never let him keep LA if he's gonna do this. He'll have to go somewhere Whickham can't reach or doesn't care about. There's not a whole lot we can do for him then."
Halloway nodded slowly at that. "We work for Whickham, who knows what he'll have us do?"
Lori sighed and leaned into him. "How about this? We tell them that we don't wanna go with either of them and form our own clubhouse, with its own army? What do you say, Admiral?"
"Fine with me, Madam President." Halloway quipped.
Dex knocked. "You busy?"
Carla looked up. "Bowman is waiting for me; but I got a minute or two."
"Waiting for you? Why?"
"Well, he's staying here. Noah's going to need him, but he's trying to figure out how much of our stuff he can slip to Crystal Peak without getting anyone pissed at him."
"Connor's going to Crystal Peak then?"
"Yep. He and Kate spent a year there waiting for the radiation to fade. They know the place. Connor knows a bunch of people in Mexico who want to fight, so he's getting them organized." She grinned and came over. "It's gonna be big."
"Carla... Remember when we talked about Before?"
"Yeah." Carla said, still on something else. "Kate says that Crystal Peak has showers. And rooms. Dex, I swear, I have been dreaming about rooms with doors..." She shivered. "It would be... more private." She put her arms up around his shoulders and gave him a long deep kiss.
Dex pulled her close enough that she wouldn't see his face. He looked like he'd drunk spoiled milk. "And remember when I told you that I was career military? Like my dad. And his dad."
"Yeah." Carla responded, still smiling big. "Kate and John were setting the whole place up. They spent a year setting things ready for this war. Hydroponics already there. Defenses already there... And they have Washing Machines! Dex, can you imagine that? A laundry!"
"Carla, you understand that's important to me right? The uniform came with more than a gun and a pay check. It means something to me. To a lot of people."
"And if they have washing machines and showers, there must be plumbing right? Indoor toilets!"
Dex reached out, caught her shoulders and made her hold still a moment. "Carla, I need you to listen to me for a while. I need you to be here okay?"
Carla was still bouncing around on her toes, excited. "Oh, and you know what else-"
"I'm not going with you." Dex blurted.
Carla froze. "Wha... What do you mean?"
"I'm Army. Always have been. This isn't how I wanted... I didn't want to tell you this way. My first job came with an Army Uniform. I've been moved around from one battlefield to another my whole life. There's a reason I haven't resigned before this. And if those reasons meant something before J-Day, you can't imagine how much you want to hold onto them after..."
Carla stared at him. "Y... You sided with General Whickham?"
Dex licked his lips. He was on dangerous ground and he knew it. "Carla... Carla, I'm career military. I follow my superior officers. The General is my commanding officer. That's how it..."
Carla pulled back, just enough that she wasn't touching him any more. "Dex... I sided with Connor. He... He was there when I lost my brother and niece. He was there when... Dex, I sided with Connor."
"I know this. Connor is... Connor." Dex said easily. "You're a civilian; you're free to follow any banner you like. I don't have a problem with it."
"And you! You're a soldier! There's going to be fighting. A lot of it. Dex, I sided with Connor in no small part because I know I'll live longer with him than with anyone else."
"You don't know that! I'm a soldier Carla, I've served in forward areas for years. I've lived with the notion that I could die tomorrow for a long time."
Carla looked sick. "I miss bread baking too Dex. I... when I was in that factory... The only thing I wanted to come back here for was you."
He reached out and caught her shoulders. "Carla, even if we don't work for the same Army any more, Connor and Whickham are both too smart to ignore each other just because they now command different armies. We'll still see each other. We'll still be... be us. I'll say it again: I have no problem at all."
Carla licked her lips. "Well... I do."
Silence.
"You promised." She accused. She felt childish even saying it, and found she didn't care. "You promised I wasn't going to lose you too."
"I promised the Army too." Dex pointed out. "I told you, this wouldn't change anything about how we feel about each other."
"Speak for yourself."
"If… if it really meant that much… You could..." he let out a breath and stopped edging his way into it. "Stay here. Stay with me."
"You're asking me to choose between the many people I'm sworn to, the people I'm responsible for and look after and help and protect and care for and believe in… and the one person I love."
"That's what you're asking me to do." Dex pointed out.
Horrible silence.
Carla started to back away from Dex. "Bowman's waiting. I have to go."
"Carla..."
"I have to go." She almost fled the room.
Connor was checking his maps; Kate was outside, trying to calm down some civilians who were begging them not to go.
Walters came in quietly. "Sir?"
Connor didn't turn. "You don't 'sir' me Eric, I'm not US Army any more."
"You mean to do this then."
"I do." Connor glanced over. "You have a head count?"
"Most of the civilians from both bases are going with you. I'm pretty sure your whole unit is signing on, some of the Medical staff wants to go with Kate; all of the women currently listed as Pregnant..."
Connor nodded. "I have a place to take them. It's well outside Whickham's circle of influence, it's defensible..."
"Crystal Peak?"
Connor glanced over. "Maybe it would be best if we didn't talk about that."
"It's a fairly open secret where you were when J-Day hit sir." Walters pointed out. "That where you sent the machines?"
"My Metal Marines?" Connor quipped. "I sent them to get the place organized and cleaned up; set up defenses and guards, and make it ready for everybody who comes along to move in. When Kate and I were there, we were the only ones; and that was over a year ago now."
"Noah checked in a few minutes ago. More than a few people in San Jose are heading this way."
"Civilian or military?"
"Both. Also, the Techs are going with you. Whickham has his own Technical guys, and Gould wants to stick around. Says he has projects on the go, and figured Whickham might cancel them."
Connor chuckled. "Those projects might just win the War, Eric. You saw what a reprogrammed Terminator can do. All those salvaged Plasma guns, all the bigger plasma cannons from the H/K's taken whole... A Terminator power source can run the lights and hot water for a whole base; and it's the size of a radio. We got hundreds of them to collect up!"
"Useful, I agree." Eric hesitated. "Um... Noah also said that I've been given command of the LA Underground. She says that I'll be a Colonel pretty soon."
Connor smiled genuinely. "Eric, that's great. Congratulations."
Walters licked his lips. "Whickham said that under no circumstances will he send any weaponry with you."
Connor nodded. "I can handle that." He said. "My mom knew this guy down near Mexico who was heavily into gun running. I know where some of his stores are. Plus Crystal Peak has it's own supply, to say nothing of the guns and technology the Metal marines have salvaged or begun constructing." Connor went back to looking at his maps. "The real question is how to get us all there."
Walters looked at his feet. "We can spare some troop carriers."
"No you can't."
"Hey, I'm Base CO now. Motor Pool goes where I tell them. With General Whickham's resources, we can spare some troop carriers. Enough of them to take everyone."
"He won't like that."
Walters cleared his throat. "Which is why we won't tell him until after we leave."
Connor looked over sharply. "Eric!"
Walters shivered under his gaze. "Sir... My family have been regular Army since the First World War, I went to West Point, and I've had the words duty and honor and loyalty drilled into my head since the cradle. But... a soldier follows the orders of the Commander in chief, defends the constitution of the United States... all that has been blown to hell. I've got no reason to trust you, except that I do." Eric reached up and removed his rank insignia. "I was wondering... If you have any more of those Tech Com uniforms?"
Lori was collecting her people from the Underground, when Kate came to see her. "Kate."
"Lori. Heading back to your Orphanage?"
"I don't know if Whickham's going to be too kind to us Outside Contractors. And frankly, I don't know if we'll be much good to Connor with him going far away from here."
Kate nodded. "We can always use people. The place we're going is damn cosy compared to this."
"And I'll make that clear to my guys." Lori promised. "But the Orphanage is my home. I built it. I don't want to leave it behind, and as I don't wear a uniform, I don't have to."
Kate looked her in the eye. "Unless you want to."
Lori shivered. "I want to. Except that I don't want to. I take my orphanage to Crystal peak, and then they don't work for me any more. They aren't scouts in their own backyard, they're soldiers. Tech Com soldiers. I know them all by name Kate. I don't want them to go to war."
Kate nodded. "I understand. Sarah's only six months old and her future..." She shivered. "She's a baby, and we're measuring her for a uniform already. I don't want her to go to war." She hugged Sarah close. "But that choice isn't up to us."
Lori nodded.
"I won't tell you what to do Lori, but if I could ask one favor?"
"Sure."
"When you get back to the Orphanage, get on your radio, and place a call for John." She handed Lori a scrap of paper. "Frequency and address, it's all there. Someone closer to Mexico that John knows. Enrique. He may be dead by now, but he apparently had a lot of friends and a lot of supplies back in the day. If you can reach him, tell him that Connor says to get ready to move out."
"What makes you think 'Enrique' will leave his supplies and bunkers just because Connor tells him to?"
"He's John Connor." Kate smirked. "Call it a hunch."
Z Plus Two Years Two Hundred Thirty Five Days
Kate was squaring away the baby supplies, when Sarah made a sweet giggling noise. Kate glanced over and saw that Sarah had rolled onto all fours on the gurney.
Surprised, Kate went over quickly, to the other end. "Sarah? Come here sweetie. Come to mommy!"
Kate held her breath as a pair of bright young eyes looked around and found her, and then…
"Come on baby girl, you can do it…" Kate urged her.
Sarah started to crawl. She crawled all the way to the end of the table to Kate's waiting arms.
Kate laughed joyfully. "Ohh, sweetie! I knew you could do it!" She baby talked slightly. "That's my girl. That's my good girl. You're so smart, yes you are, love you so much, yes I do!"
Sarah giggled. Kate couldn't help but beam. He daughter could laugh, and she liked to crawl around!
Kate bounced Sarah up and down a bit, and then the baby pointed at the door. Kate looked, saw nothing, and turned around. The baby shifted and pointed at the door again. Kate smiled in realization and raised her voice. "Why not come in where I can see you Kyle?"
The kid poked his head around the door. "Was worried I'd be bothering you." He gestured at Sarah. "She can crawl huh?"
"Most babies learn that at six to eight months. Sarah's just barely six months now."
"She must be pretty smart huh?"
"Looks that way so far." Kate said modestly. "Anyway. We're leaving soon. Got your stuff packed?"
"I don't really have... stuff." Kyle said.
Kate nodded sympathetically. "Are those new shoes?"
Kyle looked down as the scuffed mis-matched sneakers. "One of the Tunnel rats… one of my friends was running ammo out to the surface during the big fight. She doesn't need them any more, so..."
Kate looked at him sympathetically. "Are you okay?"
"Sure."
"It's okay to not be fine when a friend dies you know."
Kyle shrugged. It was clear he wasn't going to say any more on the subject.
"Mm. Come to see Sarah?"
Kyle glanced at the little one and shook his head. "Actually, I came to see you."
"To see me?"
"I um... They say that you were pregnant once, before Sarah."
Kate jerked, surprised. "Yeah. That's right."
"I had a big brother once too."
"You miss him?"
"Not really. I don't... remember real well. I was pretty young Before."
Kate nodded, understanding.
"I heard Schwartz and Danes talking before we left, saying that I was Sarah's big brother... I figured that if you were pregnant before, then Sarah would have had one."
Kate stared at the kid, no knowing where he was going with this. "Yeeeeeah." She said slowly. She fought off the sudden spike of frostiness that she felt toward the boy. She didn't like thinking about this, and she had to remind herself that Kyle was young. Once, that would of meant he didn't know what he was doing by brining this up; but there wasn't a child left in the world who didn't know that you didn't talk about it.
So, Kate concluded; if he was rubbing salt on this particular wound, he must have had a reason.
And after an awkward beat, he finally got to it.
"So I figured that I could do you a favor and fill in for him for a little while." Kyle said easily. He was being very calm about it, like he was playing it cool. "Just for a bit. No strings. Just to see how you like it; you and Sarah."
Kate felt her throat close over, feeling like she was negotiating a tough deal. "I think... I think that's a pretty good idea Kyle. I think we should probably think about that."
Kyle looked nervous suddenly. "There's no reason to tell The Colonel though. This would be just between us."
Kate blinked. "Why don't you want him to know?"
"'Cause if I was filling in as Sarah's big brother for a while, then maybe he wouldn't let me fight."
Kate took that in and nodded. "Okay. Our secret then."
Kyle nodded and started to go. He paused and looked back. "Should I call you 'mom'?"
Kate fought not to cry. "Um... I don't know sweetie, I've never done this before."
"Me neither." Kyle nodded seriously. "Okay. I'll think about that for a little while." He stood at attention and saluted. "Ma'am."
Kate returned the salute, and Kyle headed out.
Kate looked at Sarah, curled up under her chin. "Well, that was unexpected huh sweetie?" She kissed Sarah's forehead. "You're lucky. You have two parents, and you'll know who they both are. There are lots of kids out there in the Underground, some of them being born now, and none of them will be sure who their parents are. We don't have family units any more. Can't keep them going. Too many people getting killed, too many people having kids they never see."
She gathered up some blankets, set them out as a nest for Sarah, who's crib was already packed.
"John told me that kids are a lot stronger than we give them credit for. I guess that's true. You and Kyle won't remember any other way to be. Back before you were born, I wondered if that made me cruel; wanting a baby in this nightmare. Then you were born; and I knew the moment I saw you that we made the right decision. You are far too wonderful to have never existed." She stroked Sarah's face gently as she laid the baby down. "Your father will be so happy to know you're crawling now huh?"
Sarah cooed a little and went to sleep.
Carla was carrying the last of the Medical supplies out to the troop carriers, trying to balance a stack of boxes.
"Let me help you with that."
Carla turned, and saw Curry coming, with rucksack slung over her shoulder. She was wearing Tech-Com grey. Curry took the top boxes in her free hand and fell into step with Carla.
"Dex isn't coming." Carla said quietly.
"I heard. The Code of Honor and Duty is a tough nut to crack. You okay?"
"I will be." She gestured at Curry's new outfit. "The Honor and Duty thing not enough for you?"
"I told you, I don't want to have a baby in San Jose."
Carla glanced over. "You're..."
"It's... Too soon to be sure." Curry said evenly.
John came in and kissed Sarah's forehead gently, and the baby slept. "She doesn't cry anymore." Kate murmured. "Babies generally cry at the drop of a hat for a lot longer than this."
"Not raised here they don't." John nodded. "Mm. All survivors know how to go quiet. And run fast. Or in her case, crawl early." He pulled on his jacket. "Our kid's a born survivor."
Kate turned from the crib and went over to the bed, her husband sitting on the edge of the cot. She looked down at her husband. "She's gonna have to be."
John caught her hand as she started brushing off his shirt. "What's wrong?"
"I was thinking about Sarah today, and how I gave her a hug when she started crawling, told her how proud I was, even when she didn't understand what I was saying. Dex isn't coming with us. If Erin's pregnant, that kid's going to be without a dad."
"Erin Curry didn't want Dex to be a parent. She didn't want to raise the child herself either."
"This is my point. There are no families left intact. Maybe we weren't too smart, insisting on a future generation that would have a hard time even finding out who their parents were."
"We have all that stuff recorded."
"No we don't. If Curry came to Dex, smart money says other women might have too. Curry's hardly the only one thinking along those lines. We're racing extinction, so we're fine with it; and we still have enough resources for genetic testing, and it's becoming standard because of all the radiation; you know, checking for mutations and all that, so the family lines wont get tangled; but at some point it's going to be hard to figure out who belongs to who in this place. I mean, what are they going to say? 'I'd love to teach you how to lace up your shoes, but your mother and I had a deal?' "
Connor took that seriously. "I didn't know who my father was until mom told me about the War. I found lots of people to learn from, to rely on. Every child born today is so much stronger than I was at their age. They will find their way; as I did." He gestured at Sarah. "We were the first parents to the Underground. And we're one of the few who have kids as a married couple. Anyone looking to raise children is going to be looking to us to set the standard, but they will find their way."
Kate stroked Sarah's hair. "You think you were better as a soldier because you had a rough family?"
"I don't know. But if you're worrying about all these kids growing up lonely and unloved because families units are getting blurred, you're wrong."
"Yeah?"
"I told you about Sherrin and Lisa, didn't I?" John pointed out. "Sherrin's left Whickham's command, he's signed on. Lisa's thrilled."
"Really? I just spoke to Lisa yesterday; those two don't even seem to like each other much."
"They don't, but they spend every minute together. The only thing keeping them together is that they have one thing in common. The only thing they have in common is that they're both still alive. It's enough for them. I think that's how it goes. You need someone to love, so when you lose them all you go looking for someone new. And if you can't find it, you make it. And if you can't make it, you fake it." John shrugged. "It's crazy, it's bizarre, it makes no sense, it's... human."
"The family of man's the only one left huh?"
"Yep."
There was a short silence as they considered the future ahead for all the children of the dust.
Kate broke the spell and kissed him. "Well, Lori's coming with us. Halloway won't leave his subs, but he won't leave Lori either, so he's with us, but he won't be with us if you know what I mean."
"I do." Connor said. "You okay with leaving LA?"
"Lived here most of my adult life, but you're talking to an Army Brat. I know how to live on the move." She smiled beautifully. "Besides, we're going to Crystal Peak. If anywhere is home, it's there."
John looked around the room. "Well. This is it then."
"We still got dibs on the Presidential Suite when we get back there right?"
"Yeah." Connor smirked. "Would I have you anywhere less?"
Kate glanced around the bare dirt walls and shower-curtain doors of their little room and smirked sardonically at John. "Lori says she got an answer from your pals down in Mexico. Apparently they've been looking for you since J-Day. Your pal Enrique pulled his network of criminals and drug runners together. He says he's willing to have a conversation. You sure you want to bring guys like that on board?"
John smirked as he took apart the crib. "They're tough hombres Kate. We need them."
"And they know about you?"
"Enrique does."
Kate smirked. "We're ready to roll out. They're waiting for you."
Connor collected his gear. "Let's go."
"One more thing." She called after him, straightening up formally. "With the inclusion of Lori and Enrique; and all the people that they bring with them; you now have enough people for five regiments. And to have effective command of five regiments, you need to hold the rank of General Officer."
John nodded slowly.
Kate opened her hand, showing him a pair of small silver stars. John stared at them numbly. She finally stepped forward and fixed one Star to each of his soldiers, came to attention, and saluted. "Congratulations, General Connor."
Connor came to attention. "Thank you Major."
Long silence as they stared at each other. Kate felt sick inside for a moment. He never wanted this, and she had forced him into it by taking him to save her father, and then Crystal peak, and then against Whickham; and then; and then; and then...
And now she had put the damn Stars on his shoulders personally.
John was looking at her, as if reading her mind, and touched the insignia gently. "Kate... with you here, they don't feel so heavy."
Kate shivered. The other half of her part in making the Great John Connor was that she was his strongest support. And she was glad for it. Her feelings for him aside, she wanted this war to be won more than ever; and knew from more than cyborg prophecies that her husband was the way to win it.
Kate pulled him into a tight hug and kissed him slow and soft. He returned it immediately, holding her so tight it almost hurt. After a while, they broke and stared at each other.
"Well." She said finally. "No fate but what we make for ourselves, right?"
"Right." John said softly. And after a moment, he straightened his shoulders, raised his chin. The look in his eyes hardened and became cool and deadly. In the time it took him to sling his plasma rifle over one shoulder and his duffel over the other; her John was General Connor. "Time to go."
There was silence in the Underground when Connor's Own rolled out. Some people looked on in tears. Most thought they had no tears left after three years in hell. Everyone had made their choices, now they had to live with it; and most of them stood by the choice. But still, their little community was splitting up.
Most of the civilians elected to go with Connor. More than a third of the soldiers did too. The most notable examples were Walters and Oldham, who did not hesitate to strip off their rank insignia and start scrounging up parts for vehicles.
Connor's technicians had been taking apart the 'friendly' Terminators, and found parts, and power sources, and weapons. Connor's men had taken the machine vehicles apart and begun adapting them to carry passengers.
Lori's support had gone completely toward Connor, and almost all her Orphanage followed. Some insisted on staying out of the war, or staying in one place, and they had tearful farewells of their own; but the sight of Lori in a Tech Com uniform was hard for them to argue with. She had put her people to work and scrounged huge amounts of food; which were loaded and ready.
Kate and baby Sarah had become the patron saints of hopeful civilians, and almost all the civilian populace of the Underground signed on to become Tech-Com soldiers, more to follow Connor than out of any desire to fight.
Those that stayed, and the soldiers who remained with Whickham, Dex included, had tears in their eyes.
Dex had tried twice to see Carla, who had been avoiding him as much as possible. Even as she left the Tunnels and made her way to the new Troop Carriers.
Dex wilted as she gave him the cold shoulder. Kate had followed, bringing up the rear with her husband. "She'll get over it." Kate encouraged him.
"No." Dex whispered. "She won't."
Dex looked past Kate, to Connor himself, still in Tech-Com grey. "Sir... Connor, I wanted... I just..."
Connor let him off the hook. "It's okay Dex."
Dex nodded and looked at his boots as the departing mass of humanity boarded the vehicles.
And then there was silence. The entire Underground, and most of Whickham's men who were moving in to fill their places, were staring as Connor jumped into the open troop carrier, the last and leader of the exodus.
Sarah felt the cold wind on her face and started to cry loudly.
There was a numb silence as the baby said it all for them with her wails.
Connor pulled his daughter close, as every eye focused on him. After almost three years of building him up as their hero, they were watching him leave. And some were not going with them, by their own choice. Kate looked out the several dozen shamed and sad faces watching them get ready to leave, and at the hundreds more who had chosen to put their faith in her husband. Like everyone else, she was waiting for John to say something that would forgive and forget; something that would make it all better. But Connor wasn't even looking at them. He was just bouncing his daughter on his knee, shushing her as she cried.
What happened next, Kate simply couldn't believe.
Connor started to sing.
He was not a fantastic singer, but in the silence his voice carried. Though he sang to his daughter gently, they all heard it. It was soft and sincere and Kate felt herself choking up as she recognised the song. It suddenly dawned on her that she had never sung lullabies to her daughter, because silence was golden in the world now... The first music her daughter ever heard; was an old war song.
"They were summoned from the hillside
They were called in from the glen,
And the country found them ready
At the stirring call for men.
Let no tears add to their hardships
As the soldiers pass along,
And although your heart is breaking
Make it sing this cheery song."
Kate couldn't help herself. When the chorus started, she curled in tighter to her little family and started singing along. And to her amazement, so did a lot of other people within earshot; till the mouth of the tunnels swelled with emotional voices. It was beautiful; in a place where beauty was long dead.
"Keep the Home Fires Burning,
While your hearts are yearning,
Though your lads are far away
They dream of home.
There's a silver lining
Through the dark clouds shining,
Turn the dark cloud inside out
'Til the boys come home."
Kate realized suddenly why she was getting so emotional. She hadn't heard music in years. Nobody was playing it, nobody was singing anything any more. If it was happening to anyone else, it would have been cheesy and silly, but here and now; in the cold and hopeless wasteland, there were hundreds of voices raised together, though they were now on different teams. There were tears streaming down every face; even a few smiles. Especially Kate's.
"Overseas there came a pleading,
'Help a people in distress.'
And we gave our glorious laddies
Honor bade us do no less,
For no gallant son of freedom
To a tyrant's yoke should bend,
And a noble heart must answer
To the sacred call of 'Friend'."
Without stopping, Connor signaled the driver, who started up the engines. The rest of the huge convoy did the same, and the soft and hopeful song was almost drowned out. All concerned, simply sang it louder; and the voices carried over to both groups as the convoy pulled away from LA.
"Keep the Home Fires Burning,
While your hearts are yearning,
Though your lads are far away
They dream of home.
There's a silver lining
Through the dark clouds shining,
Turn the dark cloud inside out
'Til the boys come home."
And the Tech Com Army rolled out; at the orders of General John Connor.
Skynet to all units.
Enemy has divided.
Guerrilla tactics have been employed by both current resistance groups. It is likely that the Resistance has splintered to follow this philosophy.
Reroute units 1934-2348 to counter second front. Dispatch units 8834-9267 to attack second group. Redeploy defences and cancel construction in sectors 48-53.
Cybernetic experiments failed. Insufficient information and data to extrapolate reason. Main laboratory destroyed. Cybernetic Organism Infiltrator program suspended until further data can be obtained.
Heat-Tracking optics are now sub-standard. T-500 version completed successfully. Versions T-150 to T-400 will report to nearest construction factories for disassembly upon replacement with newer models.
Terminator Factories in Sectors 44-50 are now Enemy Installations. T-400 divisions 8890-9140 are now Enemy Units. Friend or Foe systems adjusted accordingly. Destroy compromised units on sight.
How did you do that Connor?
Enemy Command Structure has settled with the division in hierarchy. Priority Target List Amended.
Terminate Chet Whickham
Terminate John Connor
End transmission.
AN: End of Volume One. Read and Review!