This chapter is kind of short, sorry. I've been busy with school. Thank you all again for your kind reviews I appreciate you all!
August 28, 1997
6:30 PM
Adrenaline courses through Sarah's system as she replays Brewster's words. Judgement Day can end in this timeline. Skynet can still be stopped, and John will not have to live a life time of death and destruction. John will not have to worry about being corrupted by Skynet and becoming a part of its system. John will be able to create his own destiny, and he will no longer walk a bleak existence fighting a horrific war.
There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.
She believes this now more than she ever has. They have a little longer than 24 hours to acquire a helicopter and make it to Crystal Peak. If they can just gather their resources, they might be able to make it there in time.
Sarah feels that sharp pain run through her again. It confuses her, because she's yet to sustain any injuries. She sees those white dots in her vision again and there is a pounding sensation in her head. Perhaps it's stress induced. She's been living on the edge for years, and maybe it's all finally catching up to her health.
She leans back into her seat and watches the open road as she thinks of where she might be able to obtain a helicopter. The searing pain of her headache distracts her, but before she can come up with an answer, she hears the sound of a police siren.
"Go!" she says to Uncle Bob as the car speeds up.
She turns over her shoulder to see several black vans instead of police cruisers.
"It's the FBI," Brewster says. "They must have seen you with me."
"Damn it," Sarah hisses.
An idea forms in her mind. "Pull over."
"We will be detained," Uncle Bob says. "We will not be able to find a fallout shelter to avoid initial blast."
"You can break us out of there," Sarah comments. "They'll have a helicopter."
Uncle Bob slows the car to the side of the road, and Sarah breathes. She ignores the sharp pounding pain in her head as she tries to focus. She leans back in her seat and draws in a sharp breath of air as several FBI agents surround the car.
Please let this work...
12:00 AM
John was surprised when the FBI didn't detain him like his mom and Uncle Bob. The agents drew a false conclusion that he had been kidnapped by Uncle Bob and his parents in 1995 and forced on the run. They asked for the current location of his father and the constant questions about his father made him uneasy. He would tell him that he didn't know what happened - that his father just disappeared one night. The agents didn't believe him.
John sits in a room next to Kate. He wonders if she's angry with him. He takes a small sip from his Pepsi, and then, he offers her the can. She takes the can from him gently and takes a sip before handing it back to him.
"I don't know what I saw," she says. "Maybe I'm imagining all of it. Maybe I'm just crazy."
"No, you're not crazy," his voice is reassuring as he speaks. "They've sent them back before. Twice to kill my mom before I was born, and once to kill me two years ago."
"Is that why you disappeared?" she asks. "The last time I saw you was at the arcade in the mall that day."
"Yeah," he says. "It came looking for me there. That cop - it was one of those things. It killed my dad and almost killed my mom and I."
"What do they want from you?" she asks. "What could you have possibly done?"
"It's something I'm supposed to do later..."
The power shuts off, and he takes her hand in his. The TX has found them. John hears the door open and a flashlight shines from the doorway.
"Are you both alright in here?" he hears a man call to them.
The flashlight falls to the ground and John hears the man choking. He pushes Kate behind him protectively, and he backs away from the door.
He's trapped in here with no weapon. He tries to come up with an escape plan, but he draws a blank. He can see the outline of the TX as she is stepping into the light. He feels Kate's grasp tighten around his shoulders. He feels so utterly hopeless as the TX advances on them.
Two gunshots fire. John grasps Kate's wrist and pulls her to the front door. He snatches the flashlight to the ground and faces the light towards the doorway. Kate's father stands at the door.
"Daddy!" Kate screams.
"Kate!" he screams back to her. "Come on! We have to find Bob and Sarah!"
John follows Kate's father down a winding hall. There is another beam of light at the end of the hallway.
"John!" he hears his mother shout to him.
"Mom!"
John rushes over to his mom and she throws her arms around him. She looks him in the eye and hands him a pistol. Uncle Bob passes him and begins to open fire on the TX.
"Only use this if that thing is coming at you," his mother instructs.
John nods as he takes the pistol from his mother's hands. He's practiced handling a handgun several times over the past few years, but he's never actually taken shots at a moving target before. He tucks the gun in his belt and follows his mother and Uncle Bob.
As he moves through the hall, John spots several dead bodies scattered down the hall. Some of the bodies appeared to have reek of burnt flesh. It makes John wonder what exactly the TX is capable of.
His mom kicks open a door to an emergency fire escape. John can hear gunfire as he follows his mother up the stairs. His heart hammers against his chest as he remembers his father's death. What if that thing takes his mother from him?
He forces that thought from his head. He can't let that thing scare him. That lingering fear could get him killed. He needs to focus on staying alive. His grip tightens around the pistol as he remembers the T-1000. He'll do whatever it takes to survive even if it means using force.
They reach the top of the fire escape and his mom shoots at the lock on the door. His mom pulls the door open and they all file out onto the roof. John glances around to see two helicopters sitting side by side.
"We have to wait for Uncle Bob," Sarah says. "I can't fly."
"I can fly," Kate's father says.
"Well, that's convenient," his mom says.
"I piloted Apache Helicopters for several years. It was my first job after I graduated from West Point," he replies.
They move to the helicopter. John climbs into the back with Kate while Kate's father and his mother take the front sees. The blades start to turn and John can feel the wind tangle his hair.
"Wait!" Sarah says. "Uncle Bob is coming."
Uncle Bob grips onto the helicopter as it rises from the ground. John's hand finds it way into Kate's hand, and he starts to feel hope. Maybe his mom is correct in her belief that she can stop Judgement Day. If Kate's father can shut Skynet down, they all might be able to live their lives in peace.
"We've got company!"
The sound of her mother's voice breaks his thoughts. Uncle Bob is firing gunshots as the helicopter swerves to dodge oncoming fire. John feels Kate lean into him and he puts his arm around her protectively. He wonders if shutting Skynet down will change their fate. Will they still be meant to be? If they can stop Judgement Day, how much will be altered?
John peers out of the window. They're already outside of the city limits. He breathes nervously as Uncle Bob continues to take shots at the helicopter behind him. He wishes he could do more to help, but he resigns to holding Kate. She's a twelve year old girl thrust in this horrific situation. He imagines that she's terrified and confused.
He hears an explosion and the helicopter rocks. Kate's father manages to steady the helicopter. John glances through the window as they approach what appears to be Crystal Peak. They've made it in time, and the TX is far behind them.
They can end this today once and for all.