A/N: A little action for your consideration. Warning! MCD towards the end of this chapter. This is only shows one half of what is going on… The rest will be revealed in the next chapter, let me assure you. Once again, I'd like to give a HUGE shout out to WildIrish. Without her help, none of this Nano stuff would have been sorted out to lend itself to the story. She was amazing in helping me sort it all out and get it straight. You rock girl!

Miles stood in the middle of their final campsite and looked around at everyone as they worked together to break down their camp. The sun wasn't quite up and they had a long day ahead of them. Charlie and Gene were standing in the first boxcar, handing their supplies down to Rachel and Connor. Aaron and Priscilla were preparing a simple meal for the group to share before they continued their journey.

He turned his attention to Bass. He was working alone with the horses (indeed, Miles was supposed to be helping him). With a sigh, he walked over to where Bass was harnessing two of the horses so he could hitch them up to the wagon they'd brought. As he got closer he saw the pensive expression on Bass' face. He was clearly lost in his own head this morning; nothing good ever came of that, in Miles' experience.

"So what do you think?" he asked as he grabbed one of the horses by the bit and led it over to the wagon.

Bass grabbed the other horse and followed. "That we're insane for thinking that this could work."

Miles looked at him. "Like this is the first insane plan we put together. We're the kings of insane plans, and we're still here," he reminded him.

Bass merely turned his attention back to hitching the horse in his care up to the wagon. His fingers worked deftly to secure the animal and then he went to double check Miles' work. He never was good with them- not like Bass was. Satisfied, he straightened out the reins and secured them to the driver's bench before heading back to the car they'd been using to stable the animals on the journey north.

Miles climbed up to join him in bringing two more down so they could be saddled. They'd brought six for actual riding. Jeremy would have to sit in the back of the wagon with the supplies while everyone took turns driving the wagon. "Are you okay?" he finally asked.

Bass gave him a shocked look. "No, Miles I'm not okay. By the end of the day tomorrow, I'll probably be dead. I'm leaving behind a grown son that barely has his head on straight, a kid I accidently adopted that will lose yet another parent and a baby on the way that I won't get to watch grow up – again. Show me where in all of that I'm supposed to be okay?"

"We can find another way," he replied, putting his hand on his friend's shoulder to stop him for a second. "We can take another day or two – Come on, we've got three geniuses here, they can figure out something."

Bass shrugged him off and continued to lead the horse to where the saddles were piled up by the wagon. "We've already come up with a plan, let's just get this over with."

The evening before…

They stop the train a full days' ride south of Arco. There's a station further west, very close to Bradbury but they won't risk it. They know that town is the epicenter and is bursting at the seams with the people that the Nano has taken over. There's at least a chance that Arco has been cleared by now.

The power plant is ten miles north of both towns, situated almost perfectly in between them. Bass still insists that he go there alone to get this over with and no amount of arguing is going to get him to see to reason. Charlie is angry at him for refusing to listen, but she's decided to not spend what may very well be their last days together fighting.

Over the past few days, he's been talking to Connor a lot and spending time with Jeremy. The boy had found a few kids books at Joe's that had belonged to his son and daughter long ago and a few old notebooks. He's brought them along for something to do (since he'd had to leave his cat with Mary and Lucy) and Bass has been using these to help him with his reading.

He's been doing it to keep him occupied, but also to make it seem like it's just another day – to lift some of the heaviness of what they have to do from the boy's shoulders. A few times she's caught herself tearing up as she'd watched Bass with the boy. He'd have been a good father to their child, if how he is with Jeremy is any indication.

They don't risk a fire because of how close they are. It probably won't make much of a difference, but they sit with only the light from a few lanterns, just enough so they can see their simple meal of jerky and some apples Connor had found nearby. "So what's the game plan?" Connor asks. His voice is a stark contrast to the silence around them. It feels like even the insects and wildlife are missing.

In the end they decide to journey to Arco together. The main office for the power plant is located there and they need to find a map of the facility so he can find what he's looking for. It will take them an entire day to get to the town. Gene and Rachel will stay in Arco; she is the backup plan if Bass fails, and needs to be out of the line of fire. Miles will take the others to Bradbury. If they ride hard and don't take the wagon, they can get there in one day.

Timing is everything. They need time to make sure that Jeremy is close enough before Bass activates the capsule. He will leave in enough time to get there by nightfall. If he can manage to get out of there in one piece, he will rendezvous with them in Bradbury. Gene will be ready in Arco incase his skills are needed.

After seeing Jeremy to sleep, he and Charlie lie down in the last boxcar together. Connor will keep an eye on his kid brother so they can have some privacy on what might be one of their last nights. They don't talk, they don't make love. He just holds her tight, his hand never leaving her belly. This is likely the closest he'll ever come to holding the baby that grows within her, so he'll take what he can get.

With a heavy heart Miles helped him with the rest of the horses while the others loaded the back of the wagon up. After a eating their scant breakfast, they hit the road and head north. They were all tense; the entire journey was spent in silence. They just plodded on, each of them focused on the fact that if this worked, they'd be quite literally saving the world. If they failed, the world would never be the same – and they'd all be to blame.

They arrived in Arco just after dark. Miles and Bass rode ahead to scope it out. Sure enough, the town was almost completely abandoned. There were a few people that had survived both the attack and the takeover. At some point, the bodies from that horrible night had been removed, and it seemed that the handful of people left over were living as hostages without a jailor in their own town.

Having deemed it safe, they doubled back and got the others. "Who are you and what do you want?" A man said as he approached. He was walking with a pronounced limp and had horribly disfiguring scars running down the side of his face. "Wait a minute," he added as he looked from both Pittmans to Bass and back again. "I've seen you before. You were here before the attack." He raised the rifle he held and pointed it directly at Bass.

"Whoa," Bass said. Connor's hands were already on his gun. He flicked is eyes towards him and shook his head just enough for his son to catch the drift. "We're not here to cause trouble," he said evenly.

"If you survived the attack but you weren't here afterwards, that means you're one of them," the man accused.

Miles stepped forward. "Look at us. Do we look crazy?" He thought about that for a second. "Scratch that, do we look zombie-crazy?"

"Look, we know that there's some insane shit going on around here. We've got a way to stop it—to take the people that did this out," Bass says, doing his best to sound like the calm voice of reason. "If we were with them, you'd be dead already," he added.

The man continued to stare them down, but in the end let them pass. He knew that there was no way the handful of people left in town could defend themselves against these well-armed strangers. Rachel walked up to him. "I promise that we won't let anyone left get hurt. We need to find some info about the power plant. Is there anywhere in town that might have something?"

The man scratched his head for a second, thinking. "There used to be a satellite office for the power company in town. It's been empty since the blackout." He walked off with Rachel to show her the way.

XXXXXXX

Bass rode towards the power plant alone. Although he would not make his move until nightfall, he'd left with time to spare. Just sitting around Arco with Gene and Rachel had been driving him mad. The others had already left for Bradbury early that morning.

The closer he got to his destination, the more resolute he became. This ended tonight one way or another. He'd yet to see any signs of life; however he was under no illusion that the Nano would not have left the plant guarded. He was about five miles out when he came across an old utility building. Hoping it would serve his purposes, he headed over to it.

Sure enough there was a pump out back, most likely having been added in case of an emergency. He tied his horse up under the structure's overhang and poked about for a bit. Finding an old galvanized tub, he filled it up for his horse before continuing on foot. He now had a backup plan if the opportunity arose for him to get out of there in one piece.

Four hours prior…"

Bass is getting ready to leave when Gene and Rachel come up to him. The ride to the power plant will take him about five hours, but he wants to leave plenty of time to scope out the plant before he makes his move. Timing is everything – He has to give Miles and the others enough time to get Jeremy in place before activating the capsule. If he's too late, it'll give the Nano a chance to find them; if he's too late, they won't be in position and the Glitch might fail.

Rachel hands him a small circuit board she'd prepared before the attack on Willoughby. "You have to put the capsule inside here," she says, indicating small slot she'd soldered onto the board. "There should be terminal outside of the main reactor's chamber. If you plug the USB into the terminal the capsule will do the rest to power the computer. You can't open the door to the room without it."

He nods in understanding. He doesn't know how she knows all of this, but assumes it's because she's a fucking genius. "Okay. How do I get it into the reactor?"

"There's a panel inside the room. There should be another terminal inside. You'll need to plug it into that to unlock the panel. If there's time, try to find a hazmat suit – there should be some stored in the building for maintenance." She says.

"I won't be able to fight in one," he reminds her. They both know that it's highly likely he'll have to fight his way in. The Nano would have to be stupid not to have the plant guarded. There'll be little time for him to look for anything to shield him from the radiation when the capsule activates.

He stashes the circuit board in his bag and then mounts his horse. Gene stops him and hands a small vial. "What's this?" he asks as he takes it.

"It's potassium iodide. Drink it when you get there. If you manage to get out of there it might protect your thyroid. Just because you survive doesn't mean that it can't affect you later in life. It won't help with anything else, but it's all I have." He explained.

The doctor had been spending every moment they'd been in the town pouring over the manual outlining the CDC recommendation for radiation exposure that he'd found in the town's old clinic. At least with the power plant being so close they'd had a contingency plan and someone had been smart enough to keep hard copies on file rather than rely on digital ones.

Bass pockets the vial. Both he and Gene know it's useless but he supposes it was a nice gesture. He is about to get his horse moving when Charlie's grandfather offers him one more piece of advice. "You get out, you find a water pump and you strip and scrub down, you hear me? Any particles on your body or clothing can transfer to other people, but from what I read they should wash off fairly easily. Everything on you has to go. I packed some extra close in your bed roll. Don't touch it 'til you're clean."

It took him two more hours to get into place. He decided the lone outbuilding was as good of a place as any to hide. He crouched behind it and waited. Twilight was still several hours away. Pulling the binoculars out of his pocket he took a look. He recognized a few of the buildings from the schematics they'd found in town at least, which was something. He also saw what he'd been hoping not to see—several people milled about.

He was under no illusions that the Nano didn't at least have a slight idea of what they planned. They had to have figured out what had happened to him, why they'd been ejected. The fact that they'd even made it this far without another attack was in and of itself a miracle and either was an indication of the Nano's pure arrogance or that the Glitch had weakened its abilities further.

Over the next several hours he watched and waited and tried to keep his mind off of everything he'd be missing when he was gone.

That morning…

It's time for them to leave. It will be a hard ride to get there in one day and they want to leave nothing to chance. Rachel and Gene have already said their goodbyes and are inside the old clinic, digging through whatever supplies they can find. Gene has had his nose stuck in a large binder since they've arrived and Rachel has been pouring over the power plant's schematics just as long.

Bass stands before Connor and Jeremy. He kneels in front of the boy. "Don't be scared. It's going to be okay."

Jeremy nods and wraps his arms around the man that has become his father over the past year. He wants to be brave, so he won't let himself cry, but he really wants to. It's not fair. He finally felt safe and happy and now it's all been taken away from him. All he wants is to get back on that train and go home.

Bass stands and addresses them both. "You're brothers. Look out for each other."

Connor goes to shake his hand, but his father pulls him into a hug instead. He whispers low so no one overhears them. "Charlie's pregnant. Keep her safe for me. If I don't make it, help her take care of your brother or sister." He pulls back and again speaks to both of them. "Stay together. We're still a family, even if I can't be there."

"You'll make it. You're coming back," Connor says with all the Monroe bravado he can muster.

"I'm not going down without a fight," he assures them both.

Connor puts an arm around Jeremy's shoulder and leads him to the horses. He hoists him up and then mounts the animal behind his brother, as the boy could not ride. Suddenly Bass Is filled with a myriad of regrets where the boy is concerned. He should have taught him how to ride a horse, how to throw a curve ball, how to talk to girls and so on… He shouldn't have spent so much time trying to pretend it was all just temporary. Now he's run out of time.

He lets out a slow breath, pushing those feelings away for the time being. There's no going back and he can't fix it. He turns to Miles. "See you on the other side," he says with a smirk. They shake hands and Miles gives him a hug. This is just like that night before his execution in Willoughby, except this time Miles doesn't have to pretend he doesn't know him. There are no Patriots here listening in.

"I'd better. Be careful, dickhead," Miles replies. With a pat on the back, he too mounts up. He turns in his saddle and looks at him. "Don't do anything abnormally stupid, sergeant," he says with a salute. Bass laughs at the reference to their days in the Marines.

"Who me?"

Miles rolls his eyes and guides his horse over to where Jeremy and Connor wait. After a quick goodbye to the Pittmans, Bass is left with Charlie. She stands there waiting for him. He yanks her to him and kisses her gently. "I love you," he whispers. She repeats those words, her voice so quiet that he can barely hear her.

He holds onto her a moment longer and then bends to place a kiss over her belly. "If there's a way…" she reminds him.

"… I'll find it," he finishes. A moment later and she's on the horse and they're out of sight. He turns to go back to the clinic where they'd set up their so-called command center and go over the plans to the plant one more time with Rachel. He's pretty much got them committed to memory but he needs to be sure he can find what he's looking for when he gets there.

He comes face to face with Rachel the second he turns around. The look on her face tells him that she's seen his exchange with her daughter and she's figured it out. He goes to walk past her, but she stops him. "Really Bass? You managed to sleep with half of Pennsylvania for over a decade without any accidents. How'd you manage to knock up my daughter in just a few months?"

The look he sends her has the woman doing a double take. They may hate each other, but she knows him too well. She reads the meaning behind that expression as if he'd said it aloud. "What were you thinking?" She cannot believe they were so stupid.

"We weren't," he says sadly as he brushes past her.

Shaking his head to get it back in the game, Monroe took one last look in the binoculars, going back over in his mind how he intended on getting into the complex. Noting where the Nano had everyone concentrated he picked a spot that was as far from them and as close to the main reactor building as he could get, which sadly to say wasn't all that close. Still crouched behind the outbuilding, he went to double check his gun when he heard something behind him. He turned with his gun drawn, ready to spring into action only to find himself looking right at Rachel.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he hissed.

Rachel offered him a satisfied grin. She was quite pleased with herself for getting this close with him none the wiser. He must be losing his touch. "I think I can get you out of there in one piece," she said.

"How do you figure?"

"I might be able to use the terminal to set a delay in the capsule's program. It should give you enough time to get in place and get out," she explained.

Bass stared at her for a second, trying to figure out what her game was. He'd known her long enough to not quite trust her intentions. When it came to Rachel's bright ideas, he somehow always ended up worse off for them (not that he could be worse off than about to die). "Okay, so tell me what to do and then get the fuck out of here."

She shook her head adamantly. "No way. It's too complicated and I might have to adjust things as I go. If you fuck it up, you might erase the program and then this trip will have been for nothing." She pulled a gun out of the waistband of her jeans. "Besides, by the looks of things, we're going to have to fight our way in. Two guns are better than one."

Bass let out an exasperated sigh. Unfortunately, he couldn't argue with that logic. "Well, come on then," he said with a roll of his eyes. He checked his gun one last time. He only had two extra clips so was going to have to make them count. There was no telling exactly how many people were inside.

He led the way over to the fence that surrounded that plant. They kept low, using the overgrowth around the plant for cover. When they reached the spot he'd picked he reached into his backpack and grabbed a pair of bolt cutters. He winced as he made the first cut. The sound was barely audible, but it was there all the same.

Soon enough, he'd made a big enough hole in the fence for them to crawl through. Tossing the tool aside, he went first and then stood with his gun drawn while she followed. Silently indicating the direction they needed, he peeked around the next building before gesturing for her to follow.

They worked their way slowly in this manner, keeping to the shadows as much as possible. The waxing moon provided them enough light to see by, however that also meant that they could be seen if they weren't careful. For some reason, the Nano hadn't noticed their presence yet and they were determined to keep it that way.

They were halfway across the plant when they were finally caught. Without a word they stood back to back and got ready to fight. Bass drew one of his swords and started hacking his way through them. There was only a half dozen, but they could hear more coming.

Rachel's gun went off several times as she shot the two that were closest to her. Bass took out the woman that was trying to claw at him with his sword before taking aim at a seventh attacker in the distance, shooting him in the head without hesitation before he could get too close. "Go!" he urged her forward and they made a run for it.

They fought their way to the reactor building, taking down everyone they could. By the time they reached it, he was down to his final clip. The door was locked so he shot the lock out and yanked it open. The doorway opened up into a hallway, which emptied into another long corridor. "Where to?" he asked, looking down both ends of the corridor. There hadn't been specific blueprints for the reactor inside the power company's office in Arco.

Rachel closed her eyes and thought. "This way," she said as she headed off down the hallway to the right. He followed her, keeping a close watch behind them. It was only a matter of time before the Nano sent more people after them. They twisted and turned down the hallways, Rachel pausing here and there to think about where she was going.

In the distance, they could someone moving – they were running out of time. Before long they came to the door leading into the main reactor chamber. All around them were signs warning them of the danger that existed beyond that door. Sure enough, there was a computer terminal to the left of the steel door. Bass dug into his bag and grabbed the circuit board. He handed ti to Rachel and dropped the bag. He had a feeling he wouldn't need it any longer.

The next wave of attackers was close. He checked his clip. Nine rounds... He drew his sword and waited.

"I'm ready for the capsule," Rachel said after she got the circuit board plugged in. Bass reached into his shirt and yanked on the chain he wore around his neck. It broke, freeing it. He tossed it to her just as the first of their pursuers turned the corner into the hallway.

"Get the damn door open!" he shouted as he emptied his clip into the group in front of him. They were close enough that he didn't get a lot of time make those bullets count. He tossed his useless gun aside and drew his other sword.

He killed the first group, but more were coming. Rachel tapped at the keyboard urgently as he tried to fight them off. The close quarters made it difficult, but he somehow managed to hold them off for the time being. The bodies were beginning to pile up in the hallway. He heard the door click from behind him as he yanked his sword out of another body.

"I've got it!" Rachel called to him as she opened the door. He backed into the room with her, kicking the door closed behind him.

Bass breathed a sigh of relief when he heard a quite audible click as the door locked back into place. "Can you rig the capsule from here?" he asked.

"No," she said, shaking her head. "We need to get back to the outside terminal." The Nano's slaves were beginning to bang on the door, trying to kick it in.

"How strong do you think that door is?" he asked.

"Strong enough to hold them off for now," Rachel replied as she went over to one of the computers inside the room. "There's no way to get it open without the terminal."

Bass went over to the door and looked out the small Plexiglas window in the door. At least they couldn't bust that in. "There's over twenty of them out there. We are seriously fucked." There was no way they were getting out of the room long enough to reprogram anything.

He looked at Rachel, his eyes widening as the banging stopped. "That can't be good," he mumbled as he looked out the window again. He saw one of the more powerful ones, the ones like Neville and Dove. "We've got a problem," he said as the woman walked over to the terminal. At her touch, the screen came to life.

He looked back at her. "Do what we came here for. She's opening the door."

Rachel plugged in the circuit board into one of the computers and turned it on. Her mind racing, she searched for the program that would allow her to use the capsule to override the security protocol and open the access panel to the reactor.

"Rachel, you need to hurry," he said as he backed up closer to her, both swords drawn. Before he had a chance to say anything else the door clicked and was kicked in. They flooded the room, immediately surrounding Bass and Rachel. She had no choice but to abandon the computer and help him fight.

After several minutes of fighting, eight lay dead, but they kept coming and there were too many of them. Bass screamed in agony as one of them grabbed his right hand and with the strength of the Nano to aid her, she snapped his wrist, forcing him to drop his sword. Rachel shot the woman in the head at point blank range, sending brains splattering around them. Doing his best to ignore the pain, Bass continued to slash with his remaining sword.

Rachel shot the last bullet in her gun at one of them, sending him crashing backwards. He hit the desk that the computer was sitting on, sending it flying. They watched in horror as it went crashing to the floor. The system was now useless.

Rachel retrieved his other sword and began to swing it wildly. They slowly backed up as the Nano's army advanced. They took down several more as they retreated, but one of them managed to disarm Bass. He struck out with his fist, punching another in the head, dazing her long enough for Rachel to slit her throat. She was about to hand the sword back to Bass when they stopped attacking.

The woman that had unlocked the door slowly approached through the opening. Cornered and knowing that they'd failed and were about to die, Bass and Rachel locked hands. This is it, he thought as she stood before them, the cruel grin of the Nano spreading across her face. She was petite, not much above five feet. Even with her arm extended she could barely reach his shoulder with her slender hand—but it was enough. The searing pain began to set in

It was over almost as soon as it began. All of the sudden, she stopped, just for a second. For an instant in time, they all stopped. Somehow the Nano had momentarily lost the connection. Bass reached over and grabbed the sword from Rachel and with took a swing at her neck. She was small enough that even with his left hand he was able to go halfway through with one strike. He immediately ripped his sword free and finished the job with a second swing.

Rachel dove for the sword that had been sent scattering to the floor just a few minutes earlier. Without their leader, the others stood motionless, just waiting to be killed. Knowing that another would come to control them sooner rather than later, they took them out. Even if the capsule worked immediately, it was too great a risk to leave them standing.

Panting, they looked at each other. Sheathing his sword, Bass stumbled over to the damaged computer and grabbed the circuit board. He tossed it to her. "Go reprogram the damn thing. I don't feel like dying today," he said as he went over to the door and pushed the bodies out of the way.

"How's the wrist?" she asked as she made her way over to him.

Bass grimaced in pain as he cradled it in his good hand. "Well, I'll never play the piano again, but I've had worse," he quipped with a pained laugh.

She looked at him oddly. "Bass, you've never played the piano."

He rolled his eyes at her. Clearly Rachel was not as much fun to do this with as Miles was. "Not the point, Rachel. Let's go!" he said as he waited for her.

Rachel paused at the door. "Before we do this, there's something I've got to tell you."

"I hate it when you do this," he grumbled. "What?"

Rachel looked him dead in the eyes. "I lied. There' s no way to set a delay," she confessed as she shoved him backwards with everything she had, sending him falling backwards over a body into the hallway before slamming the door shut."

He scrambled over to the door again, stepping on the bodies as he went, not that he even noticed. "Rachel! Open the fucking door!" He started to pound on it, ignoring the shooting pain in his wrist as he instinctively used both hands. "What the fuck are you doing?"

He watched her through the window, all the while pounding and screaming for her to stop. "Don't do this! Rachel!" She ignored him and went over to the other computer, hooking up the circuit board without looking up. Within a few minutes of turning it on she yanked the capsule free and walked over to the large panel on the other side of the room.

He began to run at the door and rammed it with his shoulder before trying to kick it in, knowing all the while it was useless. He watched in horror as she looked up at him one last time, her expression blank. "What are you doing? Stop!" he shouted again, his eyes tearing up when he realized that this was the plan the entire time—she'd come to take his place.

"No!" he screamed as she opened the panel and tossed the capsule inside, immediately trying to get it shut afterwards. It was almost closed when a burst of light came from within. Bass had to shield his eyes from the brightness of it. He could hear her brief scream of agony as the radiation cooked her. When the light faded, he saw her take two steps before collapsing to the floor. Within minutes it was all over. He punched the door one last time before backing away, tripping over a body and falling backwards on top of the carnage beneath him.

Landing on his injured wrist he saw stars for a few minutes as he tried to cut through the pain enough to get moving. He eventually scrambled to his feet and stumbled out. The only thing he could feel was the pain from the broken bone; the rest of him was numb.