Saving Connor Temple
Sadly I do not own Primeval or its characters. However I do own Bertie Becker, Caroline Lester, and Luke Temple.
Timeline follows is this: The story starts after Helen has just killed Professor Nick Cutter. Helen has not met Danny, and wants to find out about the artefact.
Big thanks to LovingThis for her help on this chapter.
Afghanistan
Late 2011...
Bertie had been called back to active duty in Afghanistan. She smiled as she sat in her make-shift office. She had just cleared her brother's name... He was no longer accused of rape. The real culprits had been found, lost their ranks and any position in the military and sent to prison.
The Major had been ordered to take twenty soldiers to a checkpoint on the Pakistan and Afghan border. She and her men had been thoroughly checking everyone entering and leaving the country. As the first month progressed and stayed quiet and easy, Bertie started to feel uneasy. As a soldier she was used to action; and peace and calm was normally an omen of trouble ahead.
Her unease heightened when Captain Burnett approached her about flickering lights in the distance. Unsure of their meaning in such a temperamental area had the pair scrambling upon a jeep to check it out.
The Captain took them to the edge of the mountains where the sight before her almost caused Bertie to gasp in surprise. Keeping hold of herself for the sake of her reputation she started to compile all the information she knew about the glowing orb. It was identical; she was sure, to the only one she had been through before.
The stocky man next to her broke through her thoughts as he asked what it was. Had it been any other sight before them, Bertie would have thought the man to be - for lack of better words - loose, to be so easily spooked.
She debated, for half a moment, if she could tell him what she knew. But the Official Secrets Act was not something to be lightly ignored, as Lester had repeatedly reminded her as she had signed it.
The woman couldn't help but feel slightly remorseful that she hadn't used her signing of it to wheedle out more information about the 'anomalies' as they had been called.
She wondered if they always led to the past, and she cursed her lack of knowledge further as her Captain walked past her and through the glowing light before she could do anything to stop him. Cursing further she realised that all she could do was follow.
On the other side of the orb the pair found themselves in a desolate landscape. Ruins of buildings stood around them and heavy smog chocked the air. The city looked to be - in Bertie's opinion at least - modern. Tall buildings that could only be described as office buildings. Cars that she recognised as being produced only that year littered the streets, dented, burnt out and rusting. It looked like a war-zone - or at least that was all it could be described as.
Not having a clue where they were or what to expect, Bertie drew her gun, and motioned for Burnett to do the same and together they started to scout the area.
Only a few long minutes had passed before the action started. As they cautiously made their way down an alley a man appeared from a side door, grabbed the Captain and pulled him into the building, a hand over his face to muffle any noise. Bertie read from the posture and expression of the man that he meant no harm and followed. As she crouched next to him, he placed a finger on his lips, not removing his eyes from two figures before them.
Being ever the soldier, Bertie had already made note of all their surroundings. They were in some sort of strange office building. Computers lay around them, offices were empty, the desks inside, upturned and decaying. The two figures they were watching were stood at a computer. The woman in the boiler suit seemed to be the dominant of the pair, the unkempt man hanging off her every word. Their new companion was also unkempt, a few days of stubble covered his face, his long ginger hair was pulled into a pony tail and his clothes; a checked shirt and torn jeans looked like they'd seen better days. At their close proximity the woman could also note that below the dirt and unkempt attire was a very handsome face and a very muscular body.
Heck, she may be a soldier but that didn't mean she wasn't a woman too!
"Who are you?" She whispered.
"Danny. Danny Quinn. I take it you're military." It was a statement, not a question as his eyes flicked to her uniform and then back to the people before them.
"This is Captain Gary Burnett." Bertie motioned to the pale faced man beside her. "I'm Major Bertie Becker."
The newly identified man took all his attention from the couple to look at her in shock. He froze, studying her face and wondering about the likelihood before asking. "Any relation to Captain H J Becker?" He saw her eyes widen and knew it was true so he pushed his luck. "Head of Security at the ARC?"
"Ye..." Bertie left the-'s' from the word, the sound being louder than others. "My brother." She quickly joined the dots in her mind- he knew the name of the ARC- but she had to ask regardless. "How do you know him?"
"Soldier boy?" Danny grinned at the young female clad in her military uniform. Bertie blinked in surprise that someone other than herself would refer to her brother in such a way. "I used to work at the ARC; I was there about six months ago. Until I ended up stranded in the past."
"I thought it was Connor and Abby who were stranded there?" Danny looked at her sharply and Bertie realised what he was wondering, how was she privy to that information. "I just told you Becker's my brother."
Danny turned his attention from her again. "They were in the Cretaceous. I went through one more anomaly than them. I ended up in the Pliocene." He sighed then collected himself. "Why have you been told about this, about the ARC?"
The Captain next to Bertie looked utterly bewildered.
"Don't worry, you'll find out- eventually." She breathed her words, understanding the need to be as quiet as possible. "I was there- briefly- helping the Captain with a ... a case."
Looking back at the office area, wondering why the people held Danny's attention, Bertie asked the question that had been nagging at her since the moment they stepped through the anomaly. "Where are we?"
"London."
She and her Captain blinked in surprise.
"Twenty- Thirty one."
They double blinked. Bertie had not guessed that it was the future from her initial view of the area. But how soon it was worried her. It wasn't possible for 'London' one of the world's major capitals to been reduced to such a state in so few years, was it?
"How...?"
The questioning was stopped at the conversation before them got interesting. The women had given a small noise of triumph before declaring-
"We have to stop him being born!"
Bertie frowned at the idea. What on earth could the woman mean by that? And before she went around trying to stop someone being born, shouldn't she do something about her wardrobe?
"And the others at the ARC?" The man at her side questioned.
"Simple." The woman grinned. "We kill them." He nodded his acceptance, grinning. "All of them. Lester, Becker, Maitland, Lewis... and anyone else who gets in our way."
Bertie's gaze hardened. She didn't know a lot of things, the identity of the women, who Lewis was or why Connor's name had been left out, but she knew that the women had just threatened the life of her brother. She would not get away with that!
She felt Danny shift at her side as the woman who was now her sworn enemy pulled a device from her pocket and pointed it to her side. Another anomaly appeared and the two conspirators walked through.
Immediately, Danny left her side and ran for it, unfortunately moments too late to go through. Changing course he proceeded to the computer, looking for the information that had held their interest.
"Connor's personal information." He frowned as he spoke, sharing his news with the others in a way he hadn't been able to for months. The tab had been left open so the last part they had been reading was in the middle of the screen. "General background? What use is this?"
To Bertie, it sounded as if he really wanted an answer but she was even more confused than he. She could only imagine how Burnett must be feeling.
"Really - it's just D.O.B, address, next of kin... what use is-" He cut himself off at the same moment the penny dropped in the Major's head.
"They're going to stop him being born?" Her eyes were wide as she thought of the man who was one of her brother's best friends.
That was it, that bitch was not only planning on killing her brother but also taking away one of his best friends beforehand!
Bertie's murderous fantasies were prematurely put to an end as Danny turned to her and her Captain. "The anomaly, where?" They looked at him blankly. "The one you came through! I need to get back! Where is it?"
The urgency struck a chord in the woman, up until that moment Danny could have been playing them. But the need was more than even the best actor could muster.
"This way. Come on!"
Adjusting her grip on her gun, Bertie lead the way. Just before they left the building Danny urged them to be quite. While she and Burnett were feeling more comfortable now that they knew where and when they were, Danny was cautious. He remembered how deadly the creatures in the future could be.
A sound rang around them, possibly a twig breaking, seemingly louder than it should have been; Bertie noticed the eerie silence properly. It really was too quiet.
Danny had spun at the noise and was turning back as Bertie picked up the second sound. A clicking. She remembered it faintly, a video maybe, possibly by accident at the ARC? But she wasn't sure.
"Don't. Move." Danny whispered as quietly as he could.
Bertie struggled to keep her calm. Despite her training, nothing could have ever prepared her for the unknown, especially when all the information available about it was from reading the face of a terrified fully grown man.
A creature appeared before them and she held herself still and silent until Danny prepared to clobber it with what looked like a large bone.
"Move. We're armed." She aimed with her handgun, hearing Burnett do the same.
"No!" He hissed sharply and pushed her from the ally into a doorway.
Behind them the Captain fired and Bertie heard his screams as he was killed.
Danny clamped his hand over Bertie's mouth as she watched the brave soldier be mauled to death. She watched in horror as the brave young Captain died. Involuntarily she thought of his wife, his daughter and his unborn child. What would she say to his family if they ever made it back? Would they evermake it back?
Both of their mouths dropped as they watched the creature fall as silent shots were fired. They wondered where the shooting had come from. Danny dared not move. He grabbed his stick and prepared again to hit whoever came around the corner. He thought everyone in this time was dead!
Slowly a nozzle to a weapon appeared around the corner. Danny and Bertie recognised the strange weapon. An EMD!
Bertie gasped as she saw the person holding the gun!
"Abby!" she whispered. Bertie holstered her weapon and went over to hug the petite woman. Abby looked a lot older than the last time she had seen her.
Abby rushed over and hugged both of them. It had been a very long time since she had seen anyone alive. Most people had either been killed or had been turned into creatures. Quietly she began to weep.
Danny told her about the anomaly that Bertie had come through. How he had to go through to save Connor! Abby shook her head. That anomaly had closed only moments ago.
Abby turned as she heard a low voice behind her.
"We've got to get out of here." Danny gasped.
"Connor!" he went over for a hug, but instead was greeted with a cold hard stare!
"Who is this mum? He clearly thinks I'm dad!" the young man spoke softly.
"Come with us, we'll go somewhere we can talk." Abby beckoned for them to follow.
They followed Abby and the young man as they stole through the alleyways, eventually they came to a manhole cover. She lifted it and nimbly climbed down. She covered her mouth and nose with her neckerchief, and indicated to the others that they should do the same. Behind them the young man followed.
Abby introduced Luke to Danny and Bertie. They had both been astonished to see Luke and to see how much he looked like his father. Eagerly they looked forward to seeing the rest of the team.
Soon they reached a large cavern at the end of the tunnel they were walking in. Abby pointed to a ladder attached to the edge of the wall. Luke began to climb first and Danny and Bertie followed. As soon as Luke reached the top he began to scour the area looking for predators. Quickly he ran into a large building. Danny followed the young man as he ran up the steps and into what looked like a control room.
Bertie watched the tall man with interest. He seemed to be a very good leader. He knew exactly what needed to be done and was prepared to do it. Abby began to talk.
"It's ok here, the creatures can't hear us. When the creatures started to appear and started to take over the world we started to hide. A lot of us went underground; I've been here for the best part of twenty years." Abby paused and cleared her throat. Danny could see that she was having trouble with her memories. He looked down at her attire. She wore dark leather trousers, together with a black leather jacket. Her long blonde hair looked as if it hadn't seen shampoo in days and had been tied messily into a pony tail.
"Look who we brought back!" Luke shouted to a woman who sat in a large chair at a computer console.
"Yes I know... I saw you coming." Smiling Jess swivelled around in her chair. She stood up and ran to Bertie. "Bertie... We thought you were dead! I'm so glad you're not. You know your brother really missed you." She hugged Bertie tightly. It was if she had not seen anyone alive for the same time period either. Her auburn hair was longer than Bertie remembered. Just as dirty and bedraggled as Abby's. She was wearing a very old pair of jeans with a dirty grey t-shirt.
"So Connor...?" Danny looked over to Abby; the look on her face told him more than words ever could. He went over to give her a hug. Abby let the tears fall. She had lived for too long without Connor, and the pain was so immense that the tears just kept falling as Danny hugged her.
"Are you all on your own?" Danny questioned and he began to wonder what happened to the rest of the team. Surely there was a good explanation as to what had happened to everyone.
Tearfully Abby nodded.
"You've got me mum..." Luke put an arm around his mother's shoulder and gave her a brief hug.
Dolefully Abby smiled. Yes she had Luke... He and Jess were the only ones left.
Bertie began to feel for Abby too. Her gut began to twist as she began to wonder what had happened to her brother. She looked over to Jess.
"Jess. What happened to ...?" she couldn't bring herself to say his name. She wished he would appear from behind a door somewhere and surprise her. But Jess shook her head.
"He saved my life!" was all Jess could say before she started to weep. She chewed her lip before she continued.
"It seemed as if he appeared from nowhere, Ethan! He had this deranged look on his face. He was going to... rape me!" She looked into Bertie's eyes. "Your brother saved my life. I'll be forever grateful for that. But I miss him SO much." Jess wept uncontrollably as Bertie hugged her.
"And Ethan? What happened to him?" Danny whispered. Jess looked into Danny's eyes then straight to Abby who shook her head. They couldn't tell Danny, they just couldn't. He would have to figure it out for himself.
Bertie looked between the two women and understood. Someone close to both of them had killed Ethan, and Ethan had killed her brother.
"Forgive me for asking, but who's Ethan?" she was sure she had heard the name somewhere but couldn't be sure.
"The bloke I was watching... Ethan. And the woman... Helen Cutter!" Danny filled in the blanks for her.
"I thought you said Helen was dead!" Abby questioned.
"I can't understand it myself. I saw her die! I buried her in the Pliocene! There is no way she could be alive!" Danny paused and blinked. "Unless..." he looked at Abby. "The first time I saw Helen, she was disguised as Eve, and she was with Captain Wilder... You know the guy on Christine Johnson's team." he looked at Jess. "That's when she grabbed the Artefact and left us in the future. We managed to follow her and she disappeared into the Pliocene. So..." Abby could almost see the cog wheels turning in his head. "When I saw her recently, it must be before she becomes Eve!"
It was all beginning to make sense. Helen had killed Nick Cutter and now she was going to kill Connor! Or stop him from being born!
Danny decided there and then he would have to stop her!
Bertie made up her own mind that she was going to help Danny in his little conquest and help save her brother!
Danny, Bertie, Jess Abby and Luke sat around the computer screen talking for ages. Talking about things that had happened and how they could change it.
Jess sat at the computer and pulled up information. It was up-to-date as possible given that not many people had lived through the catastrophe of 2012. Quickly Jess put a computer disc together. She put all the information Danny would need on it, and gave Danny the disc. Luke decided he was going to help save his father. He put his foot down when Abby didn't want him to go, saying that it was important to him, and that he wanted to do what he could for his father.
Luke held the Anomaly Opening Device Connor had built for them and pointed it into the distance. Once he was sure that it led to the correct time period Danny went through.
2012
Back at the arc...
Connor and Becker took Luke to the infirmary where Caroline Lester was working.
Lester took her to one side and explained as best as he could what was happening. She went over to check on Luke. He seemed as if he were in immense pain. His eyes fluttered open for a moment. The once icy blue eyes were now a mottled colour and slowly they began to change into a hazel colour.
"Becker, what's happening?" Abby shouted.
"I don't know," Becker casually draped an arm over her shoulder. Almost as if he had been doing it for years.
"Danny... I don't feel so good" Connor's eyes began to flutter. He grabbed onto the edge of a table before his knees gave way. Danny went over to him immediately and caught him before he stumbled to the floor.
Connor cried out in pain. His feet felt odd, and he felt empty. As if he was slowly disappearing from everybody's lives. He fell to his knees before collapsing. Danny rushed over. He had almost been expecting something like this.
"Dr Lester," Danny called to Lester's wife. Caroline hesitantly went over.
"Where does it hurt?"
"My legs and feet, it's as if they're not there!". Connor screamed in agony.
Abby ignored the shouts from behind her. She was too focused on the young man who lay in front of her. The young man who was her son. She rubbed a caring hand over the slight bump on her stomach. She looked up into Becker's eyes and smiled.
Caroline performed a DNA test on Connor to find out who his father was.
Is it Danny?
Is it Matt?
Is it Lester?
Or is it someone else?
What's happening to Abby? Is she feeling alright?
You know what to do...