Chapter 10

A Mistake You'll Carry With You

Lucas watched the blue dots track around the rim of the device, chasing each other end-to-end like a tiny train of light before vanishing. The device went dark, and the low hum dropped to an almost inaudible level. It was working then. The field technician carefully replaced the little disc in its hollow, covering it with a few fern fronds. He stood and stretched, trying to pull out some of the kinks in his muscles. Finally. He was finished. It had been a record day for outages - eight devices had failed in mere hours. Faulty manufacturing, Lucas snorted to himself. Things just weren't made to last these days.

It was an inside joke - albeit a self-deprecating one. He had helped create the devices himself. He supposed it was only fair that he should be the one to repair them when they gave up on living. Still, it might have been nice if they'd managed to continue on a little longer, rather than holding hands and deciding to plunge head-first off the cliff-face all at once. He ducked his head and slung his bag over his shoulder, clipping it shut securely before setting off at a jog through the forest. He glanced up at the sun through the overhanging tree branches. It had just started to drop. Despite all of the interruptions, he had made surprisingly good time. Perhaps today, just once, he could make it back to the colony before dark.

A low groan stopped him mid-stride. His senses immediately on high alert, Lucas spun and froze, his crossbow up and leveled at the source of the noise. It came again, seeming to emanate from a collection of mangled trees a few metres away. Lucas lowered his weapon a fraction, listening. It sounded human. He watched as a rusty red body emerged from behind a fallen log, his heart skipping a beat in the moment before he finally recognized the Ovosaur. The big feathery head stared at him solemnly, unmoving. Lucas' brow furrowed as he took a slow step in its direction. The oversized beast was familiar. He'd seen it running with Terra Novan soldiers before. Somewhere in the far recesses of his mind, just beyond his reach, he knew he'd seen its handler, maybe even met its handler. But why was it standing out here? Had something happened to it?

"Hey there."

What was its name? Lucas took another tentative step forward, watching the Ovosaur. The animal continued to stare soberly at him.

"Where's your partner? Is he back there?"

The groans had stopped. Either the hidden human had fallen unconscious or he was waiting, listening. Lucas tilted his head, trying to see past the feathered body of the guard.

"I'm from Terra Nova. I know you're back there. Are you hurt?"

There was no answer from behind the tree, but the Ovosaur turned his head to the left, staring at something out of Lucas' line of sight. He appeared to be in the middle of a wordless exchange with someone. After a few seconds, he disappeared back the way he had come, and Lucas followed warily. He dropped his crossbow a moment later as he rounded the log, the human part of the equation finally coming into view. The man, one of the senior members of the security team, was propped up against a tree trunk, breathing heavily. He seemed to be drifting in and out of consciousness, but revived a little as he looked up to meet Lucas' eyes.

"Got into a spot of trouble."

"What happened?" The former physicist dropped to his knees as they spoke and began assessing the damage. The soldier was in a bad way.

"They got the drop on us." The injured man winced as Lucas' hands reached his right leg. "We were .. We tried to fight, but we were outnumbered."

"How did you survive?"

"Don't know really. Something seemed to spook them. They took off .. but not before .." The man's gaze moved to the right, scanning the nearby forest floor. Then his breath seemed to catch in his throat, his eyes suddenly sliding shut to block out the image. Lucas turned to look over his shoulder, his own chest flinching at the sight. The mottled brown and green uniform of Terra Nova's security team helped to conceal the body amongst the dirt and grass, but the smears of red stood out starkly. Near the one body was another, though this time not human. An Ovosaur lay crumpled within reach of the fallen man's hand. Lucas turned back to his work, his heart in his mouth.

After completing the hurried patch-up in silence, he put out a hand to his patient.

"I'm Lucas, by the way. I usually assume people already know that."

The other man took the offered hand, chuckling a little, though the chuckle was quickly followed by a another sharp intake of breath. Lucas eyed him with concern as the two men shook hands.

"What say we get you home .. ?"

".. Brady." The soldier responded, a smidge breathlessly. "And that sounds like a fine idea, Lucas. But then, I hear you're full of ideas .. some better than others."

The soldier's eyes twinkled as Lucas shook his head.

"Don't believe everything you hear."

Brady's resulting chuckle was snuffed out rapidly as Lucas hoisted him up, putting an arm around his battered body. Drained and weak, the injured soldier almost pulled him down again. Lucas gritted his teeth and braced himself against the other man's weight.

"Hold onto me. Use me to support yourself. But I can't carry you back all the way, so you'll have to find some strength from somewhere."

"Understood." Face beading with perspiration from the effort, Brady steadied his own legs and took a step, his clamped jaw twitching as pain shot through his body. Lucas watched him for a moment, and then nodded his own determination.

"Here we go."

Together, the two men made their way back through the jungle toward the colony. The progress was achingly slow and - in the case of the injured soldier - unimaginably painful, but neither party complained. The big red Ovosaur trailed along beside them. An hour or so into the journey, they heard a breathless voice from behind.

"There you are! Thank goodness."

The single act of walking had taken so much of their concentration that, from Lucas and Brady's perspective, the pair of young medics seemed to have materialized out of nowhere. Red-faced and panting, they were carrying a makeshift stretcher between them. Changing course to intersect with the other two, they paused for breath nearby and lowered the contraption, resting it gently on the ground. The soldier in the lead leaned on his knees for a moment before making his way over to Lucas.

"I was sent out to look for you this morning, but we ran into trouble." He swept his hand in the direction of the stretcher, where the other medic had knelt to reassess the unconscious patient's condition. "I was sent to tell you that another device has gone down - apparently it's critical. Malcolm said it was one of the "Western support beams" .. whatever that means. He seemed to think you'd know though."

Lucas cast an uneasy glance at his passenger. Brady was shaking visibly. It seemed to be taking all of his concentration just to stay on his feet. Lucas considered releasing him and letting him rest in the grass .. but there was an increasingly high chance that if he allowed him to drop, he might never get back up again. He turned to the medic.

"Hey, could you take-"

"He's not looking so good." The man beside the stretcher stood and took up his post behind it, calling to his partner. "We better hurry."

"A medic's work is never done." The soldier met Lucas' eyes gravely. "Think I'll go back to being a messenger after today."

Lucas nodded down at Brady.

"I don't suppose you could take him with you?"

The younger man cast a dubious look at Lucas' charge.

"Can he walk on his own?"

At Lucas' faint shake of his head, the man shrugged apologetically.

"Sorry, no. Takes two of us to carry the stretcher, and this guy's priority. You're welcome to tag along though."

Lucas' brow furrowed.

"What about the device?"

The man shrugged helplessly again.

"I don't know anything about those. Guess it's up to you, they just said to tell you and let you decide. Coming!" as his anxious companion called more urgently "Sounds like he's getting worse. We're gonna have to make a run for it. Best of luck to the both of you."

With that, he raced over to the stretcher, smoothly lifted his end of it, and the two jogged off. The cheerful voice of the leader drifted back on the breeze as they disappeared from view.

"What?! Course we're gonna make it back before dark, silly. You've got a date! Can't leave your lady friend hanging .."

The two that had been left behind stood in the deserted clearing, the Ovosaur resting lightly against his master's sore leg. Ordinarily, the pain caused by the pressure would have been excruciating, but Brady didn't notice.

"Support beams?" He looked up at Lucas, his arm still slung over the other man's shoulder. Judging by the mounting pressure Lucas' back was having to accommodate, he seemed to be growing weaker by the minute. "What's he talking about?"

Glancing down at the soldier's pale face, Lucas answered grimly.

"It means it's a central connector. It forms one of the cornerstones of the interference net. If it goes down, it leaves a gap, and if the enemy happens to find that gap before we get a chance to repair it, they could reach the colony before we even realise they're here. Worse, they could be fully-armed. See?"

"Sounds bad."

"It is. And it could be even worse. That Kensinge's smart. They might have figured out which devices to take down to increase the impact. They've been going down like mad today, and most have been important pieces. You could reason that those particular ones are failing because they're under the most pressure. You could be right. It would be a logical argument."

"But you don't think so?"

Lucas shrugged a little, making Brady wince.

"I don't know. Impossible to tell unless I actually go and have a look. But I can't leave you here and I can't take you with me. We'll have to risk leaving it."

Still, he remained unmoving, evidently not having convinced himself yet. Brady eyed him.

"But it could be dangerous if it isn't fixed."

"It'll be fine. Probably just worrying about nothing."

Still, he didn't move to head back. Brady's weight was sapping more and more of his resources. The ache that had begun in the right side of his body had spread to almost every single inch of it. A vague pinching pain flickered in his left forearm, a reminder from a few days earlier. An enemy had come at his face with a knife. He'd blocked with his arm. His eyes had been rescued, but the slash had required several stitches to remedy. He had purposefully supported the injured soldier with his right arm, but even his left was beginning to show signs of the strain. Perhaps a rest would do them both good .. the device in question wasn't far away .. he could kill two birds with one stone ..

"Leave me here. I'll be fine."

Lucas glanced down sharply at the soldier's earnest face.

"No, don't be ridiculous. I can't just leave you here alone."

"I'm not alone. I have him." Brady nodded to the Ovosaur beside him. The creature stared back up, watching them both unblinkingly, as though he too was waiting for the verdict. Lucas was silent for a moment, biting his lip in indecision.

"If I don't get this sorted out now .."

"I know. The consequences could be bad." The security team leader managed to conjure up a brave smile, though his heart was rapidly sinking. "Don't worry. I don't mind waiting. You go."

With that, he pulled his numb arm from Lucas' shoulders and settled himself down by another tree, calling his Ovosaur over softly. Lucas watched in silence as the big red creature flopped down beside him, placing his head on the soldier's lap.

Half an hour there. Half an hour back. He cast a dubious eye over the injured man. Brady leaned his head back against the tree and closed his eyes, smiling a little as he rested, stroking the Ovosaur's head with one hand. He was still unsettlingly pale, but he seemed in decent spirits. Lucas stepped forward and balanced his canteen in the crook of Brady's elbow, causing the soldier to open his heavy eyes once again.

"Canteen's half-full of water. You've still got your knife, right? You'll be fine."

"Course I'll be fine." Brady grinned, giving the red feathered head another light pat. "Old Roland'll look after me."

"Old Roland" couldn't have been more than three years old, but he seemed the reliable type. Lucas pushed down the clamp of apprehension in his chest and stood, dusting his knees off briskly.

"I'll be back for you, alright. Just sit tight for a minute."

The soldier chuckled dryly.

"I'm not going anywhere."

Lucas took a few steps away and then hesitated, looking back uneasily at the dark form beneath the tree. Brady, almost seeming amused by something, waved a little.

"And don't go talking to strangers while I'm gone."

"Heh."

Lucas jogged away, further into the forest. He didn't look back a second time.

"But you didn't hear him, he said-"

"Frankly, I don't care what he said." The voice rang out sharply through the open window of the hut, flying directly over the head of the intruder on the other side. Leaning against the outside wall in silence, Carter paused to listen.

"You men seem to be of the opinion that you can do or say whatever you like because there's no one to keep you in line. Well, let me tell you something. We might not have courts of law out here, and we might not have prisons, but I can have your scrawny, whining, pathetic excuse for an army thrown back to whatever hole in the future they dug you out of whenever I like. Don't tempt me."

Carter reminded himself of the need for silence just in time to stifle the admiring whistle that was on his lips. Whatever else the enemy leader was, she was gutsy.

The man in the room, however, seemed unaffected by the tongue lashing.

"Be that as it may, I really think you need to take a good look at your second-hand man. Between you and me, doc, I don't think he's got his head on straight."

Kensinge eyed him coldly.

"You will respect your commanding officer, Richardson, or I'll find a reason to use you as target practice. Goodness knows the men could use it." She muttered darkly, half to herself.

"Woah, easy." Richardson held up his hands. "I'm just saying, when push comes to shove, whatever happens, I'm on your side."

"And I'm on his side." She continued immediately, placing her tablet firmly on the table. "And I'm warning you, Corporal, one more word of dissension and I'm marching you to the gates of Terra Nova and handing you over myself. They can decide what to do with you."

"Alright, alright." Richardson put his hands in his pockets as Esteban himself entered the room. The soldier decided now was as good a time as any to change the subject.

"If only the mech suits worked, we could use them and the whole thing'd be over in a flash." He mused thoughtfully, a trace of spite weaving its way into his words. "But the ingrates prefer to use barbaric forms of warfare instead, so the mech suits are just sitting there, gathering dust in the barracks."

He spat on the floor near Kensinge, who threw a look at Esteban, who in turn cuffed the younger soldier on the back of the neck. Richardson rubbed the offended spot, looking a trifle injured, but continuing his previous complaint bitterly.

"And then they expect us to fall down to their level."

"You could use the mech suits for protection anyway." Esteban pointed out.

"Too heavy." Richardson remarked. "They'd save us from a few bites, but they're pointless without the weapons operational. We'd be nothing but big ugly statues for them to shoot at." A fact you'd know already if you weren't such a big dumb oaf.

The commanding officer didn't seem to think the argument posed too much of an objection in the least, but he turned his attention away as Kensinge jumped up to perch on the edge of the table, swinging her legs beneath her thoughtfully.

"It is a shame we couldn't make Lucas Taylor see reason, that'd turn the tide in our favour. He's not like the rest of them, and he knows it."

"He does a pretty good job of pretending." The corporal remarked grimly. "Saw him in the field just the other day, took out one of our soldiers with a crossbow."

"What was he doing in the field?!" Kensinge stared at him in surprise. "He's a scientist, not a soldier!"

The man shrugged.

"Guess he's not as much like you as you thought. Or the ant farm has turned him savage." He muttered to himself.

"No, that isn't it .." Kensinge responded cautiously. If Lucas was in the field, risking his life for the colony, it was because .. well, it didn't bear thinking about.

"Why didn't you capture him and bring him to me?"

"Pfft!" The corporal began to snort in derision, but pulled himself up abruptly at a look from Esteban. He continued in a more respectful tone of voice. "Harder than it sounds. They never go out alone - last time, he had three men and the same amount of wretched beasts with him. Trying to grab him is a death sentence of its own."

"Well, keep your eyes open all the same. If you get a chance, bring him back. I want to talk to him."

"Word has it, you already talked to him." Richardson grinned. "And more than talked, if you catch my drift."

"Dismissed." Esteban's voice was so calm, he almost sounded disinterested, but filtering through was something else .. a trace of underlying steel that the younger soldier knew well. No room left for argument then. Richardson bowed obligingly and slipped out the door, casting a last look at his humiliated leader as he went. Satisfied that the vermin had departed, Kensinge's commander turned back to her. The knuckles that gripped the table were white. She stared down at the floorboards, refusing to meet his gaze until the red prickle of heat had reached its peak and started fading.

"I swear, where do they find these people?"

Her right-hand man didn't answer. A few moments passed before she looked up at him, frowning a little.

"Do you hear that?"

"No." He frowned as well, following her gaze toward the open door as the low hum grew in volume. "Oh. Yes."

She was halfway to the entrance when the first scream rang out. It was followed by another, and another, as the humming grew louder and more frantic. The two at the doorway exchanged a glance, peering out nervously. Both pairs of eyes widened as they fell upon the source of the chaos.

"What is that?"

Lucas cast another glance at the sun in the distance. It was dropping faster now. Soon it would start to set. The repair had taken longer than he had expected - the device had been so damaged that he'd had to replace it with a completely different one. Lucky he'd had a few spares in his satchel. Of course, he'd used them up earlier that day, so he'd had to repair an old one to use as a substitute. That had taken more time. The process was frustrating and the mounting unease made it difficult to concentrate. How long had he left Brady? Was the soldier alright? How long would it take him to reach the clearing again?

Finally, the replacement was completed. He had shoved his tools into his satchel and set out running almost immediately afterwards. As a result of his anxiety, he had made great time. He threw another tense glance at the sun. The sun stared back unblinkingly, still in the exact same position as a minute earlier. He wasn't quite sure what else he had expected really. Lucas continued on, pulling his eyes back to the track ahead, his bag bumping unpleasantly against his side with every step. Two more minutes. He was close now. Just two more minutes and he would be back. Something about being on his way at last seemed to soothe his frazzled nerves. His mind wandered lazily as he jogged. How was the soldier feeling? Had he finished the water? In all likelihood, he would have to wake Brady up. Maybe some sleep would have done him good. They might make better time if ..

The rest of the thought fell from his mind as he rounded the corner. Beneath the tree where the soldier should have been was a mass of furry bodies. They seemed to be preoccupied with something on the ground between them. Heads down, the heaving backs were shivering excitedly. Lucas came to a stop, his stomach lurching as he heard one distinct sickening crunch. They were feeding. Brady ..

"HEY!" With a scream that surprised himself, Lucas charged at them, levelling his crossbow with shaky hands and firing. The creatures lifted their heads to stare at him indignantly. Lucas reloaded the weapon and fired off another shot, his heart sinking in the process. Nykoraptors. They were young and, judging by the blank stares, didn't seem overly aggressive, but all the same, he was severely outnumbered. If they chose to attack, he'd be the next course on their menu. He paused, reloading his crossbow slowly as his aching muscles protested. He didn't take his eyes off the pack. He couldn't. To look away, even just for a second, would be to give them an opportunity to strike. The animals stared back at him in the strange hazy light, seeming almost confused by the lone figure, but gradually, slowly, one-by-one, they turned their gazes to rest on one particular member of the group. The leader. Lucas, turning to him as well, aimed .. and fired.

The three raptors watched in surprise as the largest of their number screamed in agony and fury, stumbled briefly, then went down. The others threw an unnerved glance at each other, eyed Lucas for a moment, then, as though they were peeling themselves away from the scene in slow motion, they turned and fled, one after the other, holding their long tails out behind them like streamers as they disappeared over the hill and back into the forest. Lucas forced his feet to move towards the area they had vacated, sliding his boots over the grass as though they suddenly had soles made of granite. The breath caught in his throat as he surveyed the carnage. Brady lay silent, in the same place he had abandoned him earlier. Lucas dropped down beside the man, barely noticing the dampness seep through to his knees. The soldier was a bloody mess, but he was still miraculously in one piece. The raptors must not have been hungry. They had simply been toying with the body for the fun of it. Lucas laid a hand on the soldier's chest. He was still warm. This hadn't happened long ago then. If only he'd been just a little faster .. if only .. This was his fault. Why had he left him?!

He looked across to the other side of Brady, where the dead leader of the young pack or raptors lay, a crossbow bolt through his neck. Brady had had an Ovosaur. Roland.

Lucas cast a hurried look around, searching the grass for any sign of the creature.

"Roland! ROLAND!"

The big red Ovosaur didn't reappear, but the shout seemed to reach someone else. Far in the unconscious depths of Brady's mind, he heard the call and decided to fight. The chest under Lucas' hand shuddered suddenly and began to breathe again. Lucas stared at the limp body in shock.

"Brady .. Brady .. !" He shook the soldier gently, but received no response. The only indication of life was the slight rising and falling of the rib cage.

"It's alright. It's alright. Hold on." Lucas got to his feet with a sniff, rubbing his arm over his cold nose. The temperature was dropping quickly now. He had to hurry. Trying to subdue the surge of panic inside of him, he reached for the soldier.

"Hold on, alright? We're going home."

Over the course of the next long hour, he half-carried, half-dragged the unconscious man back through the wilderness toward the gates. He paused once to catch his breath. Brady still hadn't said a word or shown any other sign of life. Was it his imagination, or did the man feel distinctly lighter than he had before? He threw a glance up at the sun. It was barely visible now. Instead, the large white moon was beginning to peek over the opposite horizon. He had to hurry. Lucas shook his head, forcing himself onward as Brady's blood soaked into his own shirt. He was imagining things. He had to be.

It took all his strength to drag the heavy body back. Forgetting any previous attempts at self-preservation, he frantically hauled the limp form with both arms. His own blood mixed with the soldier's as the stitches on his left arm tore open. He didn't notice.

Finally, as the red light faded to blue and the sun disappeared completely, he stumbled through the gates. The colony was abuzz with light and movement. His own shouts for assistance melted in with the general clamor and were drowned out. The field hospital that had been established under the white market tents was almost full. Lucas paused, staring around in bewilderment. Evidently Brady hadn't been the only casualty that day. The Infirmary appeared to be overflowing into the streets.

"Help! Somebody .." He called out to a passing nurse, who gave him a sad smile, but hurried on. He tried again as another white-coated person ran by. "Hey! This man needs-Hey, wait!"

Lucas watched them all scatter to the winds in despair. They didn't care! Despite all appearances, these people weren't trying to save lives. They couldn't care less if he lived or died! To Lucas' relief, however, one person had heard his hoarse yell. The girl turned, eyes searching through the chaos until they fell upon him. Subject acquired, Skye darted forward, emerging from the crowd to stop in front of him. Her eyes widened as she took in the sight, the former expression frozen on her face, as if she was now too horrified to even look upset.

"What happened?!"

"Skye!" Lucas could have collapsed then and there with relief. He watched as she began to assess his patient's condition. "Get Elisabeth. He's hurt, he needs .. he needs .."

The words died on his lips as Skye's face slowly drained of colour. She stepped away, looking up at him expressionlessly.

"He's dead."

Lucas met her eyes in confusion.

"He .. He can't be." He argued numbly, looking down at the man's body as though he expected it to suddenly come back to life. "I thought I had enough time."

"It's alright." Skye put a hand on his arm. "It wasn't your fault, you know. You did what you could."

Lucas didn't respond. She shook him a little, drawing his panicked eyes back to her.

"Hey, you're not hurt, are you?"

"But I wasn't gone that long!"

Perhaps it was the trace of guilt edging its way into his voice. Perhaps it was the words themselves that set off the alarm bells in Skye's mind. Regardless, at that moment, a hint of confusion and suspicion began to creep into her expression. She slowly dropped her outstretched hand, watching him uneasily.

".. what do you mean?"

"I left him for a few minutes .. to go fix one of the interference devices."

Skye blinked in disbelief.

"A device?"

"An important link in the-"

"You left him out there?" The colour was rapidly returning to Skye's face .. accompanied by something else. She stared up at him. Her eyes were flashing with anger, but mixed beneath was a note of pleading, as though she was hoping beyond hope that this was all a misunderstanding. Please, don't tell me what I think you're trying to tell me. "You left him like this?"

"No, he wasn't .. he was alive!" Lucas snapped defensively, his own temper rising. "He seemed fine, he was talking to me, he was .. laughing. He-"

"What were you thinking?!"

"It was only for an hour or so."

"An hour now?! First it was a few minutes, now it's an hour?"

"The device was important, Skye .." Lucas' voice dropped, wavering a little. ".. but when I came back, there .. he .. the raptors were all over him .."

"Oh m-" Skye brought a hand to her mouth and turned away, wandering a few steps in no particular direction. She looked as if she was about to be sick. Lucas watched her in silence, supporting the dead man helplessly.

"What .. do I do with .."

Her eyes flew back to him. Without a word, she turned and heralded a passing medic, in a much more effective attempt than his own had been a few minutes earlier. A stretcher was promptly brought and Lucas was made to relinquish his hold. It was harder than he had expected. He watched as they placed Brady carefully on the stretcher, forcing himself to say goodbye to the cold body of a man he had spent half a lifetime protecting.

As she reached out to grasp the handle on her side of the frame, Skye hesitated.

"I'm going to get this sorted out and then I'm going home." She looked up to meet his numb gaze with a hint of pity. He didn't seem to know what to do now. "Go get yourself cleaned up. You have blood all over you."

He stood and watched as they carried the stretcher away. Anyone who came later than that would have found a man crouching on the gravel in silence, his head resting heavily in his hands.

Just before the third repetition of the familiar knock, Skye answered the door. She stared briefly at the raised fist, then turned her gaze on the visitor. They assessed each other for a moment before she turned and went back into the house, trying to block out the image of the red-rimmed eyes that seemed to have been freshly stamped into her vision. She had left the open door to fend for itself, so Lucas let himself in, pausing to shut it quietly behind him before following her inside.

"Skye, wait a minute. Hey, Deborah .." as he passed Skye's mother in the hallway. Deborah smiled and nodded in reply, but said nothing as he disappeared into the kitchen. Content to follow at a slower pace, she regained sight of them a few moments later as she settled down into a nearby chair - a vantage point from which she could monitor the proceedings without getting in the way herself. It wasn't the first time the chair had been utilized in this manner.

Skye was in the middle of pulling oddly-shaped vegetables out of a deep drawer and tossing them onto the counter. Watching from the other side, Lucas reached out at the last minute and caught a runaway, saving it from a messy death as it careened madly off the edge. As Skye arose from behind the counter, he leaned on the opposite side, venturing a casual comment.

"You're having dinner late."

"I was working."

"I know."

Apparently that was the end of the conversation. The kitchen fell silent as the wooden breadboard was sought after. When it was finally recovered and put in its rightful place, Lucas tried again.

"Look, obviously you're upset-"

"He didn't have to die." Skye produced a large knife and began to chop haphazardly at the alarmed vegetables. Evidently she was more inclined to talk than he'd thought. "You chose those machines over peoples' lives. Just like you did last time. Just like you always do."

"Those machines are the only reason we haven't been annihilated already." Lucas watched quietly for a moment more and then slid around beside her, attempting to negotiate the knife out of her grip. The operation wasn't without its own portion of risk, but he managed to succeed and took over the vegetables himself. Skye took up his previous position opposite the bench, watching him chop in silence. For a few minutes, no one spoke. Then Lucas continued quietly.

"Like I said, that device was important, and it was already late afternoon. If Kensinge's army had realised that particular sector was down, they could have had a direct line straight through and been knocking on our door with machine guns by midnight. Bye-bye, Terra Nova."

"But it had just gone down today!" Skye countered. "What are the odds they could've found it before tomorrow? You could've gone out again then."

"I was out there today. Why take the risk? It made the most sense to go after it."

"And by doing so, you left a wounded man to die in the wilderness." Her eyes shot cold blue fire in his direction. "You want to talk about risk?! You thought the tiny chance of the enemy somehow discovering an invisible gap in our security was worth a man dying for."

"Brady understood the risks of his job!" Lucas eyed her. "Do you?"

"You're going to start questioning my loyalty to the job now?!" Skye stared back, bristling. "This coming from a guy so dedicated to his own work that he's happy for other people to die for it. Not the greatest example either."

"His injuries didn't seem life-threatening!" Lucas ran a hand through his hair in agitation. "I thought I could save him!"

"Well, clearly, you were wrong, Lucas."

"Enough!" Deborah's voice came sharply from the corner of the room. She raised the walking cane in her hand and gestured toward each of them in turn. "I know you're upset, but this is still my house. Let's keep it civil."

Justly reprimanded, the two turned back to one another, their voices slightly lowered.

"It wasn't like I had hours to calculate my next move. I made the best decision I could at the time. I'm sorry it didn't work out-"

"Are you?! Are you really?!" Skye's temper flared. "Cause from where I'm standing, you seem fine to me. Actually, you don't really seem like you could care less one way or the other."

This wasn't entirely true, but regardless, Lucas took it to heart.

"Of course I didn't want him to die!"

"Well, you didn't try too hard to help him survive."

"That's it. You know what, I don't know why I do this to myself." Lucas flicked the knife down into the breadboard, causing a large slice of the heavy wood to fly out at an angle and clatter onto the kitchen floor. "I don't have to listen to this. Or you."

He circumvented her neatly and stormed outside, leaving the knife stuck upright in the board behind him. Skye avoided meeting Deborah's eye for a few moments. When she finally did, she received exactly the look she had been anticipating. She pointed to the back door meekly, her fury withering in the disapproving gaze of her only parent.

"I'll .. go .. yeah."

Given the recent damage to the rest of the colony, it was bordering on miraculous that the Tate's veranda had survived even this long. Nevertheless, it still stood, the same way it had always stood, observing the passage of time and events and bearing silent witness to more than a few of its own. Skye stepped out into the cold night air to find Lucas leaning on the railing, his back to her. She approached him slowly, resting her arms on the railing beside him and trying to decide what to say. Lucas took the burden from her, speaking before she had the chance.

"I can't be perfect all the time. I just .. can't. Not even for you." He shook his head as he stared out into the dark yard. "I'm beginning to think she was right .."

"Who?"

"No one."

".. I'm sorry." Skye offered, suddenly sounding as though speaking itself was an effort. "I didn't mean to take it out on you. It's just that .. I knew him .."

Lucas glanced at her unsympathetically.

"We all knew him."

"I know." Skye met his eyes for a moment before dropping her gaze, returning it guiltily to the yard. "Like I said, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have spoken to you like that."

Silence fell. The lights and sounds of the field hospital in front of the Command Centre were still carrying on steadily in the distance. It sounded as though they had just got another new influx of patients. The implications didn't bear thinking about.

"Hey." Skye turned to look up at him hesitantly. "No one expects you to be perfect, you know."

Lucas' stare took on a hardness she didn't like. The side of his mouth twisted bitterly.

"Sometimes I wonder."

"Well, stop wondering. You'll make mistakes. Everyone does." She studied his face with a touch of concern. "Doesn't mean we'll stop caring about you."

"It is exhausting." He admitted unexpectedly. "Walking the line, constantly wondering if today'll be the day I mess up so badly, I'm cast out. For good."

He clasped his hands together and bowed his head as though he was praying, but his next words sounded more like he was speaking to himself than anyone else.

"I made a decision in the heat of the moment and a man died. But I did the best I could. I can't continue to blame myself for the consequences." He looked sideways at Skye, calculating her reaction as he spoke. "I know you wish I felt worse about it. I wouldn't even blame you for starting to wonder if I've got a heart at all. But the truth is, I can't go on reliving the same mistake over and over. I can't live like that. Believe me, I've tried."

A look of such acute sadness came over his face for a moment that Skye almost found herself fighting tears, but it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. Lucas shrugged a little, turning back to her.

"Doesn't mean I won't always carry it with me. But I can't change it now. No one can. What's done is done."

Skye raised her eyebrows a little and looked away.

"You know, sometimes I wish I had even an ounce of your .."

"Cold-bloodedness? Callous nature?"

"Strength." Skye responded quietly. "I was going to say strength."

Lucas was silent for a minute, the trace of a smile flickering on the edge of his otherwise serious expression.

"You're plenty strong yourself."

"Not like you."

They fell silent again, listening. The faint howl of the wind mixed with the eerie night noises as the temperature dropped suddenly inside the colony. Skye shivered, turning back to Lucas. He never seemed to feel the cold. Probably because half the time he lived in a different world than the rest of the general population. Maybe it didn't get cold there.

"Hey." She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention, but paused for a moment as something about the sleeve itself distracted her. As Lucas turned to face her, however, she pulled her focus back and looked up at him.

"You're one of us now, alright. Like it or not, you're stuck with us." She stared into his face gravely, willing him to understand. "And there's nothing you could do that could make us give up on you, for better or for worse."

She attempted a wry smile.

"Unfortunately, we're too far gone at this stage."

Lucas laughed, but Skye was watching him seriously again.

"That means there's no escape though. You mess up and run away into the jungle, expect a full search party out there looking for you. We won't give up until you're back home with us again. That's what families do."

Lucas stared back out across the familiar yard, only this time, his vision expanded to include the houses beyond, and further, to the wall of the colony itself. Once a sight that had filled him with unspeakable malice. Not so anymore. He smiled a little.

"I can live with that."

He was quiet for a few moments before he realised he was being silently analyzed. He met Skye's eyes again with a half-defensive look.

"What?"

"Are you okay?" She ventured carefully. "I know it was a hard day for you. It's not easy, losing someone."

"I'm alright. Just tired."

She nodded slowly, seemingly content to leave it at that. After another few seconds of silence, she turned back to him, surveying his clothes critically.

"You know, you could've at least cleaned yourself up before coming over."

"I changed my shirt."

Skye snorted.

"What, did you put on an even dirtier one?"

"Didn't realise you'd implemented a dress code."

"It's common courtesy not to roll around in the mud before showing up on someone's doorstep and demanding dinner."

"I was afraid you'd feel underdressed."

He chuckled as Skye gave an exaggerated gasp.

"Of all the ungrateful guests. And by the way .. I know you have a heart." She waited until he looked at her before continuing. "If you didn't have a heart, you wouldn't be bleeding all over the place."

His forehead creased a little and she nodded to his arm.

"You must've reopened it. Looks like you've made a bit of a mess of it too."

It didn't take long to locate the growing patch of darkness on his left sleeve. He hadn't noticed it before, but as is the usual way of things, the moment it was drawn to his attention, it started stinging, causing painful throbs of heat to radiate down his arm. Lucas stared at it blankly.

"Oh."

Skye patted him with the back of her hand.

"Come inside, I'll see if I can sew it back together for you."

Lucas scoffed.

"Is that safe?"

"I'll be careful."

"Promise?"

Skye folded her arms, looking thoughtful.

"I promise when I'm done .. you'll be bleeding less."

Lucas paused, mid-nod.

".. "less"?"

"If you'd like other options, stopping your heart would also solve the problem."

"I want a second opinion. Get me a real doctor."

"If you're not inside in five seconds, I'm shutting the door and leaving you out here. 5."

"Maybe I should stay out here."

"4."

"Maybe I'd have better odds."

"3."

"Alright, fine. Move. Let me in."

"Just don't drip on the floor."

"Never satisfied, are you?"

"And a blimmin' swarm of these massive insects pours out of the mining tunnels, and the men are screaming and diving for cover, and the machinery stops-"

Kensinge interrupted herself to cackle with enjoyment at the memory. Zoe sat cross-legged on the cot, listening to the retelling in amusement. The physicist opposite her unconsciously mirrored her posture, grinning delightedly as she continued.

"And these things aren't ordinary bugs, mind, these are like 6-limbed cats with wings and horribly grotesque legs and eyes and they don't bite, but they're enough to make an iron general's heart fail just to look at them .. and some of them are clinging fast to the men like orphaned children-" She gasped for breath, tears beginning to appear in the corners of her eyes. "And they won't get off - the bristly legs are stuck to the clothes, they're stuck to the hair, they're just latched on like monstrous parasites and the men are SCREAMING-"

She half-shrieked herself then, pausing to hug her knees and rock back and forth gleefully. Zoe shouted with laughter as well at the horrid prospect.

"Where did they come from?!"

"Don't know." Kensinge wiped her eye with the back of her hand, choking back another laugh. "Maybe they were in the mine already and the men just broke through the wrong wall. Maybe they were migrating. Maybe one of the electronic signatures of the machines had called them there, I don't know. Either way, they showed no signs of leaving by the time we left to come here. Probably brought a few through with us!"

Zoe snorted.

"Great. Just what this place was missing."

"I know, right?"

"So what happened then?!"

From his position just outside the crate entrance, Esteban smiled to himself. After listening for another few minutes, he opened the door and poked his head in. Kensinge was wiping her eyes again. She looked as though she was recovering from hysterics.

"Ah .. I'll say one thing, your Terra Nova can still surprise a person .." She looked up into the solemn eyes of her second-in-command and immediately allowed the stony, calculating expression to fall back over her face. She stood in silence, dusting herself off briefly, then smiled at Zoe in an attempt that never actually made it to her eyes.

"Well, looks like it's time to go. I'll be seeing you, kid."

"Bye."

Zoe gave her a small wave, but the scientist never looked back as she exited. Esteban remained for a moment, watching the girl. Zoe seemed to have something on her mind. She stared back, her dark eyes fixed seriously on him.

"Is she actually insane?"

The commanding officer showed no sign of surprise at the question.

"What makes you say that?"

"I dunno .." Zoe frowned to herself. ".. she seems to change like that."

She clicked with her fingers, actually managing to pull off the action - she'd been practicing since her imprisonment.

"One minute she's all happy and talky and the next, she's like a robot."

Esteban nodded slowly, leaning on the wall of the container and eyeing the girl thoughtfully.

"She's not crazy. She just has so many things going on in her mind at once that sometimes she gets her wires crossed."

"Like a robot." Zoe finished, with a brief grin. The commander of the enemy camp threw a look at her.

"If she makes you uncomfortable, I can stop her coming. But I will say .." as Zoe opened her mouth to reply ".. she does enjoy your company."

"Don't stop her coming." Zoe responded, half-ordering and half-pleading. "It gets so boring here alone. She's weird, but she's better than nothing."

Esteban watched her quietly for a few seconds, as if trying to decide whether or not to reply. Finally, he seemed to come to a decision and spoke, his voice dropping a touch in volume.

"Just between you and me, there are only three people I've ever seen her really get along with." He folded his arms, and Zoe wondered if she imagined the trace of annoyance that briefly darkened his face. "I'm one of them. You're the other."

"Who's the third?"

The soldier was silent for a moment, studying her.

"Our men have the same opinion you just expressed, they take her orders but they won't go near her if they can help it. They don't trust her."

"Because you can never tell what she's thinking."

"That's right." The soldier continued to watch her gravely. "You might find her strange at times, but I think in the end, you and I understand her better than most people."

Zoe contemplated this, staring across at the abandoned crate Kensinge had been using as a makeshift chair.

"Must be lonely."

"Must be."

He left her then, securing the lock and consigning the crate to darkness. Zoe was left to digest the conversation in silence, with only the distant echo of water to keep her company.

"I wish there was some way around this .." Elisabeth bit her lip, frowning down at the plate in front of her. ".. but I've put it off as long as I can. I'm afraid I'm going to have to send you out into the field tomorrow."

The plate declined to answer, giving her nothing but an empty stare in return.

"It's alright." Josh shrugged from her left, picking up where the culinary section had failed. "Everyone has to take their turn. It's only fair."

"I know, I just hate to do it." His mother sighed in resignation, watching her oldest son fretfully. "I worry when you're out there in the middle of it all."

"I know you do." Josh replied in a more gentle tone of voice. "But field medics and fast treatment save lives. I don't mind, really. It's kind of fun."

"Don't say that-"

"Sorry, sorry."

"Just .. promise me you'll be careful." She reached out and squeezed his hand. "I need you to come home safely."

"I know. I promise."

Elisabeth retracted her hand and went solemnly back to her own plate. Josh exchanged a glance with the other two children at the table, watching her for a moment.

"Mom, please, don't look like that."

Elisabeth looked up again in surprise.

"Like what?"

"So sad all the time. You keep that up and you'll have Vaughnie in tears soon." Josh plopped a scoop of mashed vegetables onto his small brother's plate, and then did the same for Sienna, continuing to explain the situation in a motherly tone of voice. "And you know when he cries, I cry, and before long, we'll have Sienna chiming in as well, and you know that no one can stop her howling once she gets started .."

He grinned at Sienna. The girl smiled thinly and shot him a look back, but said nothing. Josh ignored his mother's automatic chiding and pushed down the flare of grief that struck his chest. Sienna was alright, of course. She was a good sport and accepted his digs with grace, but that was all she did. She was a sad replacement for his youngest sister. Where Zoe would have shouted in outrage and hurled herself at him across the table, Sienna merely directed an icy glare in his direction. Where Zoe would have thought up some savage retort to verbally backhand him with, Sienna just rolled her eyes, or worse .. ignored him completely. He knew it wasn't fair to the girl to constantly compare her with Zoe, but lately in secret Josh had even found himself wishing for Leah's presence at the table, or at the very least, Maddy. These people were too polite for anyone's good.

He attempted to carry the train of the conversation along on his own as he turned to help Vaughn with his spoon, still chatting amiably, as though he didn't have a care in the world.

".. and pretty soon, the whole neighbourhood will be bawling their eyes out and the wailing will reach to high heaven and the colony will flood again-"

"Josh!" Elisabeth suddenly interjected, attempting to hide her laugh with a look of disapproval. Josh grinned at her and continued, redoubling his efforts.

"And the market crowd'll have to start making lifeboats instead of weapons and we'll all ride the wave of tears right out the colony gates and who knows WHERE it'll take us, and we'll be so scared, we'll all start crying all over again, and make the whole situation twice as bad-"

"Josh! Stop it!" Elisabeth was almost crying for real now. She dropped her head onto her arm, her shoulders shaking with laughter. Sienna was staring at Josh and shaking her head incredulously. Josh eyed them severely, his eyes twinkling.

"You didn't let me finish. But right at the end, when all hope seems lost, we'll all finally recover our wits, just in time for .. Boylan .. to come bursting into our house without even bothering to knock."

Elisabeth raised her head as the door crashed shut behind the barkeeper. The entire table had gone silent and was staring at his distressed face. The light-hearted mood of the room reversed in an instant.

"Doc. Night raid. They came at us out of nowhere. We need both of you at the barracks right away. Looks bad."

The barkeeper strode over and scooped Vaughn out of his chair, juggling the boy in one arm while he picked up the discarded spoon with the other. He gestured toward the door with the sticky utensil.

"I'll look after these two. Go."

Elisabeth nodded quickly and stood.

"Alright. Thank you. Sienna, I'm leaving you in charge. Make sure you two get to bed pretty soon. Don't stay up all night waiting for us. I don't know how long we'll be."

Sienna nodded.

"Sure."

Josh stood, meeting his mother's eyes without a word. They arrived at the barracks only a few minutes later, and were immediately immersed in the activity of laying out the wounded on the floor of the cleared living room. One urgent job led directly into another, with the frantic hum of activity in the building showing no sign of slowing. The night wore on, and everyone was too busy to pay attention to the rapid passage of time. No one noticed as the moon outside began to drop, no one saw the stars fade or the sun start to come up, just as no one realized how significant the everyday event now was, for the dawning of this new day would symbolize yet another turning point in the battle.

As far as the colony was concerned, they were already submerged right in the thick of the war, but they were sadly mistaken. Beware those who believe they've escaped the fire unharmed. Things can get worse. Things can always get worse.

For in some ways, this battle was only just beginning.

Author's Note

Well .. was that as much of a ride for you guys as it was for me? X'D
Interestingly, I never intended to split this book up into "parts", but after finishing this chapter, it REALLY felt like the end of a first part. Idk how many chapters Before the Future will end up being by the end of it, but this feels like a turning point. From here on out, things feel more middle-booky (you can tell I'm a writer, huh?). So I guess that makes this spot "END PART I".

Thanks so much for sticking with me so far, especially Tinderbox, who always seems to look forward to new chapters with such infectious excitement. You make a huge difference to my writing motivation, Tinder. Thank you!

Until next time, all of you. We shall meet again in PART II.
;)

- George DeWhite