Mark leaves the poor excuse for his family's apartment and pulls his rebreather snugly on his face. He received a message to report to the Terra Nova recruitment offices at eight a.m. sharp. That was the first odd thing that Mark notices about this assignment; he has had a job like this once before and knows it's unheard of for Terra Nova to be involved with individuals' security like this. Standing in front of a tall man in a dark suit, Mark becomes suspicious that it's the family who hired them in the first place. They don't even live in a hyperoxic-dome; how could they have afforded this?
"You will be protecting the Shannons," the seemingly-official man tells Mark and two others. "This involves making sure the four of them get to the portal terminal on time, in one piece, and alive. If that happens, you get paid. Any questions?" No one speaks up. The three guards aren't stupid enough to ask for more details or clarification in any way. "Great," the man says dryly. "Formal introductions can be made there. Let's just be on our way."
The three guards get Terra Nova uniforms before leaving – the army green clothing and black armor. It isn't the first time that Mark's gotten to wear this, but it still feels like it did the first time; hope. He is aware how stupid that sounds – his uniform feeling like hope – but it's moments like this that, while he would never admit it, he gives thought to Emily's optimism. He momentarily sees a future where he and his family are in Terra Nova, a place where they can step outside without a rebreather and not die, a place where Stephen and Macey can be reunited with their parents.
But then they bundle up in dark long sleeves and pants before leaving the office, lest their skin have too much exposure to the atmosphere. And that is when Mark snaps out of his daydream.
The group of four rides the monorail to the other side of town. The only communication between them consists of quick introductions between the three guards. "I'm Foster," a brunette, who looks to be around the same age of Mark, says.
"Reynolds," Mark sticks out his hand.
"Reilly," offers the only girl and seemingly the oldest in the trio.
And then silence.
Mark realizes that this family does not live very far from his house, just on the opposing side of the hospital. Their apartment does seem nicer though. Before they enter, the recruitment officer pauses. "Terra Nova has a lot of stake in this family. Do you best by them." As if Mark wasn't suspicious already.
The interior of the apartment is nice enough. It's clean, organized, and everything is a grayish color. Unlike Mark's house, there is not only a loft, but another bedroom in the back closed off with a curtain, and a definite living room and kitchen. They even have a couch and coffee table.
The family inside stands around the kitchen counter. They are the typical family of four – a mom, dad, teenaged son, and teenaged daughter. The parents step forward and shake hands with the recruitment officer, exchanging meaningless words.
The officer then turns towards the guards. "This is Kent Foster, Laura Reilly, and Mark Reynolds," he gestures behind him. The officer messes with something on his Plex, though he probably already knows everything necessary for this short meeting. "Foster you are assigned to Joshua Shannon, Reilly with the parents, Dr. Elisabeth Shannon and Officer Jim Shannon, and Reynolds with Madelyn Shannon. No questions or concerns?" But the man doesn't wait for a response. "Great," he says with no emotion in his voice. "Good day, see you all in twenty-three more."
After the recruitment officer leaves there is a quiet awkward moment as the three guards shift uncertainly from foot to foot. The family judges them in a way that makes Mark quite sure they don't want protection. He just doesn't know why.
"Well, welcome to our home," the mother says somewhat doubtfully. She is young and pretty with olive skin and a British accent. "I've been told you three are stuck following us around for the next few weeks? Uh, I work at the local hospital, my husband is with the police department, and Maddy and Josh are both in school."
"Nice to meet you all," Reilly says pleasantly. "And congratulations on your recruitment."
Elisabeth smiles, but the father, Jim, continues to survey the three guards distastefully. The teenaged son, Josh, rolls his eyes. "Whatever," he says. "And I think that an I'm so sorry is in order more than congratulations."
"Josh," Elisabeth warns tiredly, but the boy just climbed the latter up to the loft. "I'm sorry," Elisabeth says. "There are some hard feelings in the house over leaving friends behind."
"She's my girlfriend," Josh snaps from upstairs. "So don't expect me to be thrilled that I get to leave her here to die." Jim clenches his jaw, but Elisabeth rubs her husband's shoulder comfortingly.
"I got him," the daughter tells her parents quietly before following her brother. She seems shy, barely glancing at the guards since they got here and instead focusing on the floor. Mark hasn't seen her face, hasn't seen her look up at him or the others once.
The parents sigh. "So," Jim starts, "we understand you guys are supposed to keep us safe, but we would still appreciate our privacy and time alone as a family. There is an empty apartment next door we thought you could stay in."
"Of course," Reilly says respectfully. "If you'd give us a moment?" Elisabeth and Jim nod and walk back over to the kitchen.
Reynolds, Reilly, and Foster all agree to give the family their space, but then debate how to keep up the protection twenty-four-seven as per their contracts without smothering them. The first time Mark had a job like this, he was stationed in a dome. It was a different situation. "We should have a rotation," Mark suggests.
Foster nods at the idea, "Internal station, external station, and external patrol? Or just one internal, one external, one on break?"
"One internal, two external, one on break only if it's night," Reilly agrees. "If not, patrol." After discussing, Reilly, who'd become their self-appointed spokesperson, addresses Elisabeth and Jim. She explains their plan and while Jim and Elisabeth agree, Mark sees a worry in their eyes as they look at each other. "We'll go put our stuff away and decide who starts the rotation," Reilly concludes.
The apartment next door is identical to the one the Shannons lived in. The boys give Reilly the back bedroom, though they all probably won't be in the apartment at the same time, and they claim the beds up in the loft. It takes all of three minutes to throw duffle bags on beds and decide who will start which shift before the three take off.
Reilly ends up in full gear outside the individual apartment, Foster in civilian clothes outside the complex, and Reynolds just in the standard green uniform on the first shift inside.
Mark walks back into the Shannons' apartment in the middle of a heated family discussion. "Sure," Josh snaps harshly, "go run off because you weren't able to fix this, Maddy. Guess what? Emotions, things normal humans experience, can't be solved like a math problem."
"I was just trying to help, you ungrateful-"
"Hey!" Jim cuts his kids off. "That is enough."
"If it weren't even for her," Josh continues, "we wouldn't be in this mess."
"Joshua Shannon," Jim snaps. "First of all, your mother was recruited; you know that. Second, you will be grateful for this opportunity."
"You can't tell me how to feel!" Josh yells back. "And if it weren't for Maddy, we wouldn't be stuck with the three Armadillos-"
Maddy cuts her brother off with an indignant, "Armadillos?"
"What?" Josh retorts defensively. "Am I the only one who thinks the black gear looks like an Armadillo shell?"
"Neanderthal!" Maddy explodes. "Not only are armadillos not black, but have you not read any literature on Terra Nova? The amour was specifically designed for numerous purposes, including, but not limited to, not only shielding, but softening and somewhat deflecting the impact of their sonic technology, hence the extra-"
"Why are you so thick in the head?" Josh cuts in. "I meant it looks like an armadillo shell, not that the color-"
"Actually, the denser an object is the more mass or substance it contains, and therefore that would allude to my head, or brain, not literally being bigger, but operating at a higher capacity than typical in the modern human. So thank you big brother," Maddy concludes sincerely, "for noticing how smart I am."
"You think I didn't already know that? You shove it in our faces everything single sec-!"
"Enough!" Jim yells.
He and Elisabeth pull their attention away from their bickering teenagers and toward the young guard standing awkwardly at the door. "I'm sorry," a flustered Elisabeth tells Mark. "Come in."
"Reynolds, right?" Jim clarifies, and Mark nods respectfully and shakes his and Elisabeth's hands.
"Please," Elisabeth says politely, "have a seat. I was just making dinner." The family seems incredibly nice. Mark has never been offered a meal by someone he was assigned to protect. But there is still something off about them. There is a tenseness in the way everyone goes about their business – Elisabeth in the kitchen making dinner, Jim speaking to her in hushed tones, Maddy flopping on the couch and staring at something on the Plex. It's as if there is some string being pulled over each person's head that doesn't allow them to relax. Maddy hasn't even looked him in the eye once.
And aside from the tangible tension in the room, there is what Mark overheard – a conversation that definitely sounded like the Shannons didn't even want him or the two others to be here. But why wouldn't they want protection? A question that leads Mark to a follow up: What are they hiding?