Z Plus Ten Years Sixty Two Days

"Robbie, we've only got so much clover to go around, and it's not a priority for your-"

"Dad, we need that clover." Robbie insisted. "Have you seen the soil in the 340 Block? We're already using all the mulch we can spare and need the clover to add more nitrogen to the soil."

"We only have so much of it." Connor responded. "The clover we have is needed for the bees. We were lucky to find a living hive, and we need to keep them alive."

"Nitrogen makes muscle." Robbie pointed out. "You don't get enough nitrogen into the soil we're growing our food in-"

"But we're not growing food there. Hydroponics gets us the foodstuff. That and the supply lines from down south, where they have plenty of good soil. The Eden Project saw to that. Robbie, honey is the only food that never expires. Seriously. Never. That's worth more at the moment, and we have only so much to go around. To say nothing of the fact that without our hive to pollinate the plants, none of it will ever grow anyway."

Robbie nodded, saddened at the rejection. "Yeah. But it would help."

"Robbie, I appreciate that, but this should really be coming from the Eden Project."

"It is. They asked me to run it."

Connor spun. "Wait. What?"

"Well, most everyone who knows as much as I do is off harvesting saplings down south or working dirt into soil out west." Robbie shrugged like it was no big deal. "They asked me to do it."

Connor just stared at his son for a moment. The kid was barely seven years old, and was already a department head. "Robbie, if you're going to be a Department Head, you need to learn that plenty of things would help; and we have very few of them to go around in the first place."

"I guess."

"General Connor to the War Room right away!" Kate's voice came over the PA.

Connor stood to go.

So did Robbie. "You were the one that told them I knew my stuff. They asked me to talk to you because… well, if I ask for more, I'm less likely to be put on latrine detail than any of them."

His father laughed. "Walk with me."

Robbie followed his father on the way to the War Room. "Robbie, we're not growing foodstuff in the Eden Project. Except for the orchards, and that won't be putting out any serious food for years. But you're not wrong. Here's something you can do. There are two ways to add nitrogen to soil without fertilizer or extra plant mulch."

"There are?"

"Yep. You can use coffee grinds, most of which goes into the compost already... or you can just pee on the plants."

Robbie giggled. "What?"

"Seriously. It works. Just uh... don't tell your mother who gave you the idea."

Robbie giggled. They were almost to the War Room at that point. He turned to his son. "When I was your age, I was taking apart engines. You're running part of the Eden Project." He winked. "It's a good thing you're smarter than I was."

Robbie giggled a bit as John went in, not noticing him shift straight into 'The General' mode.

"Report." The General barked as soon as the War Room door closed.

Kate spoke before Walters could. "Kyle's on the line. It sounds bad."

Connor took the radio. "Corporal."

"Chief, we're in trouble." Kyle's voice came over the speakers. "We got here, and it looks like Skynet got rid of whatever it was. They were based in the Arecibo Observatory. They had it cleaned out before we got here. We found dead Machines all the way here sir; so when we got close... We didn't think it was a big deal when there were lots of them just sitting around."

Connor winced. So did Walters.

"Sir, we're pinned down pretty tight. We made it to the hills, and Noah says Skynet doesn't have anything that can force itself over the hills and take us on, but it's only a matter of time." Kyle paused. "We'll take as many of them as we can. We'll make you proud."

Kate glanced at John. His face had turned to stone. With very controlled movements, he reached out and took the radio off Sherrin, and lifted it purposefully to his lips. "No. Kyle, you tell Noah to dig in. Take any and all measures to buy time; until I can mount a rescue."

"She said you'd say that Chief." Kyle said promptly. "She said that if you did, I was to remind you how useful your brain could be when you have it switched on."

Connor didn't even crack a smirk. "Tell Noah to leave the brilliant ideas to me; and to dig in." He grinned savagely. "Hang in there Kyle. I'm coming."

There was dead silence in the War Room until Connor set the radio down and turned around. "As of now, Connor's Own is activated. Mission Clock is running."

The room snapped into activity. Announcements were made, the Motor Pool was alerted, the airfield was told to prepare for massive troop movement...

Walters sidled up to Connor. "I can go. I think we both know that this is the biggest trap Skynet ever laid..."

Connor nodded. "I have this thing about traps Eric. Can't help but charge through them. Besides, you've got a mission. Skynet fried half its ground forces. Get out there and scrub as many Machines as you can get. This could be a very good day for us."

"Sure, as long as you come back." Walters commented. But he knew Connor was right. Noah was out in play, Connor's Own was the best cohesive Unit they could send at a moment's notice, and the number of times Connor hadn't led them himself could be counted on one hand.

The War Room was gearing for another showdown, and Connor himself went to prepare.

Kate went after him.

"John, this is crazy. We don't know where any of that artillery is, we don't know how much more of Skynet's machines survived; we don't know how far they got… Connor, you're charging into a kill zone and you're doing it blind."

Her husband was ignoring her, gathering his gear.

Kate put a hand out and slammed the foot locker shut, almost on his fingers.

Connor finally looked at her. "What do you want from me Kate?"

"I know why you're doing this…"

"You really don't." Connor told her.

"Kyle is with the 132nd. And I was the one that recommended it."

"It was the right call."

"John; look at me. You're taking a huge risk. And you're doing it for Kyle. Not for the Units."

"Kate, how many men are in the danger zone already? Too many to lose. Not without putting up a fight for them. Besides, we fight through to our guys, and we can fight our way out a good bit easier with them as reinforcements. Noah and Perry are two of the highest ranking officers we have! When they aren't on Missions, they command a good third of the Allied forces; they have information on half the international theater. I sent them because it was supposed to be a pretty straightforward mission. If I'd known Skynet still had forces enough to ambush a Task Force that size I..."

"You still would have sent it!" Kate insisted. "Because that's no mysterious new experiment out there. You know exactly what that is! You and I alone know what it is. You and I alone know why you don't dare let Skynet win this battle! You're doing it for your son."

Connor zipped up his jacket and spun to look at her. "Say that I am. Say that's the only reason. What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all. But Walters can handle a rescue mission. Taking Connor's Own is like sending up a great big flare telling every Machine on the planet where to charge to. That's why we plan out their ops so damn carefully. You're taking a huge risk and you don't have to be the one to go."

John sighed. "I know. But… Humanity Does Not Compute." He said. "Some things are only real if they don't make sense. And what is the point of being John Connor if I can't defy all the logic?"

Kate stared at him silently. "Fine. Just... be smart about it, okay? You don't think when you're emotional, when the kids are in trouble, or when you're in 'Crusade' mode."

"I'll be careful."

"Bring him home John. He's my son too. Bring him home."

He kissed her. "I will."

"He's coming himself?" Noah repeated in shock. "He's coming here?"

Perry grinned. "Skynet will never know what hit it."

"Don't you get it Perry? We're the bait!" Noah yelled. "Reese, did you leave the relay up?"

"Yes Ma'am."

Noah pulled her radio. Static. "Did you set it right?"

"Did a frequency check first thing." Kyle insisted.

"Jammers then." Noah sighed. "They let us make one call, and then Jammed every frequency."

"Brain Box is pretty good about encryption." Perry pointed out. "Do you think Skynet knew what we said?"

"Doesn't matter. It knew we called out, and that there was an answer. That's all it needed to know." She grit her teeth. "Connor's the target. He's always been the target. That's why they struck when we were in the hills! They couldn't risk us escaping, but they couldn't actually kill us! We're the bait!"

Kyle grinned savagely. They wouldn't know what hit them when Connor came.

Perry wasn't smiling. "Well… what do we do then?"

Noah sighed. "We carry out our orders. Griffin, Reese… go make sure those probing attacks Skynet is sending end badly. Let them now we've still got some teeth of our own, encourage them to stay where they are. Perry, spread our people out. The longer we make them hunt and hurt; the longer Connor's got to locate his brain and save all our lives."

Sherrin was finishing up the briefing on the way to the motor Pool. "The fact is sir, we don't have a lot of intelligence for you. The Jammers are running thick and non-stop. I don't think it's a good idea for you to go out there!"

Connor turned and gave him a moment of full attention. "Oldham's still out gathering fried machines. Noah's already in the trap, Walters is fielding calls from everyone on the planet wanting to know what the pulse was, and none of the other Commanders that we can get there in time have a force big enough to punch a hole through any Skynet defense, and the ability to adapt as quickly as we'll need to since we have no Intel. Who else would you send?"

"I don't know, but I'll be the most convenient punching bag of appropriately expendable rank should this go badly; and Kate and Walters are going to be chewing the walls waiting for word from you."

"Well if you don't hear anything... blame me."

"I will, but if you get killed out there, blaming you won't help me very much!"

"Then I better not get killed. Besides, Connor's Own have been itching to get back out there." He looked around briefly and sent Sherrin a more personal look. "You made Robbie a department head?"

Sherrin blinked a second and shifted topics. "He thinks it's because he's your son, but the fact is most of the Eden Project's veterans haven't been back here in months. They're all over the map trying to make things grow. Robbie's the only one left who knows as much about it as you do."

"It doesn't bother anyone that he's seven years old?"

"Sir, the seven year old kids in the world know more about survival than any adult I know. They just don't waste brain cells on what it was like Back Before. And it doesn't hurt that he's your son."

Connor climbed into the lead Jeep and seemed to think for a moment. "He really knows his stuff, huh?"

"Sir, before J-Day I had a nephew who thought that carrots grew out of the ground in plastic packets, pre-sliced. You show him a real raw carrot, he wouldn't know what it was to save his life. I know how to plant stuff, but I didn't have a clue about soil levels, nitrogen, compost, what you can use, what you can't. He knows it better than I do."

The pride on his face was obvious. "Good." He looked over Sherrin's shoulder, and saw Kate watching. He gave her a nod. She returned it. Message sent, message received. Love you too.

Kate let out a little breath as Connor's Own rolled out. She felt terribly lonely suddenly. Sarah and Robbie were on assignment, Connor was gone with his whole Unit… The Presidential Suite would seem so big with just her in it.

"Colonel?"

Kate turned and found Lupe peeking out from the elevator. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Lupe. I just worry when he's gone."

She nodded. "I know the feeling." She licked her lips. "Have you got a minute?"

"Sure."

Lupe led her back down to the barracks, where the 132nd lived. With them out, Lupe was the only one living there…

When Kate stepped in, she was treated to an almost unprecedented sight. The Tunnel Rats were waiting for her. All of them. Seeing them all together was unheard of.

"…hey kids." She said quietly. "What can I do for you?"

Heavy silence. The lot of them looked absolutely shy. Meg stepped up first. "This is for you."

Kate felt her jaw drop slightly as the little girl handed her a shoelace. It had been strung with dozens of little odds and ends, like a paperclip, and a wing nut, a single bead and what looked like the chain off a fob watch; and many other things. Meg took Kate's hand and wrapped the shoelace around her wrist like a bracelet, tying it off. "I… I made this; but I want you to have it."

Kate felt like she was missing something. "Thank you Meg."

The gift given, Meg stepped back.

Heavy silence. Meg knuckled Cory, the boy next to her, and he shuffled forward awkwardly. "I um… This was my mom's." He held it out to Kate, not looking at her. She took it. It was a single hoop earring, scuffed up and missing the pearl that had clearly been mounted on it once. "Thank you Cory. It's beautiful."

Cory stepped back with his friends. Molly came forward next. "I found this on the beach before my parents died. They said the oceans were sick, but if you hold it up to your ear, you can hear where the Oceans went to hide from Skynet."

Kate took the shell carefully and obediently held it up to her ear. She hadn't listened to a shell since she was a little kid. "Aww, thanks Molly. I haven't heard the ocean in years."

Emboldened now, another one came forward. It was Berk, looking older now, but still what Kate thought of as a boy. "I um… I don't have much, so I tried to make you something." He held out the scrap of paper. It was rough and neutrally colored; as all the hand-recycled paper they made was. Kate unrolled it. It showed a scene in the Mess Hall, of him and the others eating a big meal. They were all smiling, and what were obviously Kate and John sat at the head of the table, smiling too. A heart-warming little domestic scene, that existed only in this teenage boy's imagination.

"Berk, are you the one that does the pictures on the walls at night?" Kate asked.

Looking down, Berk nodded.

"They're great. John likes them too."

"He does?"

"He does."

The kid had never looked anyone taller than him in the eye once in his life, but he suddenly looked and acted ten feet tall.

Rico, an orphan adopted by the Tunnel Rats out of Enrique's Bandits came forward next, holding out something Kate didn't immediately recognize. "It's a Dreamcather." He lisped. "It keepth scary dreems 'way. Lupe told me how to make them." He smiled at Kate a little. He was missing several teeth. "I thought you might need it with Connor gone."

Kate glanced back at Lupe. The Latina girl had one hand resting over her stomach, and her eyes shining emotionally. Kate felt herself reacting the same way.

Tish was next. She was one of the younger Tunnel Rats, and was known by most everyone who saw her, because her hair was never cut, only braided into long elaborate braids that hung down to her waist. The little girl came up and held out a prize to Kate. It was a bendy drinking straw, somehow still intact. "It's for your hair."

"For my hair?" Kate asked in confusion.

Tish came forward and carefully collected a small handful of Kate's hair, threading it through the drinking straw. Kate kept her hair short, as most of Tech-Com did, and it didn't reach. Tish nodded, pulling the straw back. "Can I use your knife?"

Kate brought her hands up and clasped Trish's fingers in her own. "No Tish, don't cut it… tell you what? I'm going to grow some of my hair longer. Not all of it, just this little bit. I'm going to grow one long braid, just for this, okay?"

Tish looked like she'd won the lottery. "T-thank you?"

Kate felt sick for a moment. These kids had nothing at all, and now they were taking what tiny possessions they had left, all of them personal enough to hold on to, and giving them to her. She wanted to say no. But she knew she couldn't. "Why are you all doing this?" Kate asked impulsively; though she suspected she knew the answer.

"Well… you give us all food and clothes and Tunnels… you were the one that made us all meet each other. The Tunnels wouldn't be here or back in LA without you and Connor." Meg said, uncomfortable. "So… It's nice to be reminded right?"

Kate reached the breaking point. With all a survivor's speed she reached forward and pulled Meg into a hug and didn't let go; waving for the others to come forward. As Meg gave in and hugged back, they all inched forward. They were all so small and thin that she could almost hug them all at once.

And I was worried about feeling lonely. Kate thought tearfully to herself, wrapping her arms around all her orphan children as tight as she could.

Z Plus Ten Years Sixty Six Days

Noah looked out over her men, feeling the cold right down into her bones. She ignored it. The cold had been omnipresent for days. She scanned the horizon, feeling the storm gather. More H/K's moving closer, depositing their cargo of Terminators.

Perry was watching with her. "This is it, isn't it?"

Noah nodded slowly. "I guess so." She drew in a breath. "Three more H/K's full of ground troops, three more flying H/K's with them... Not good."

"Can we take them?"

"Nope."

"Are the Jammers still going?"

"Yup."

Noah sighed. "Well. If this is to be our Last Stand, let's make a damn good one."

"Yes Ma'am." Perry nodded. "I'll head to the other end of the ridge. See you on the flip side."

Noah gave him a look. They both knew they were done.

And then the flying H/K's broke from their patrol and took off toward the horizon, burning turbines for all they were worth... Away from the Siege.

"Where are they going?" Kyle asked nobody in particular.

"Something's happened." Noah said.

Perry pointed to the opposite side of the hills. "More 500's coming in. Hundreds of them!"

Noah looked. "Now where did they come from? The H/K's have been..." She grinned suddenly. "Ooh."

"What?"

"Sit down Kyle, we're getting a show."

"Attack!" Connor's voice came from the radio.

Noah reacted. "The Jammers are offline."

"Skynet must want to give orders personally." Perry surmised.

The distant sound of jet turbines, human jets, came over the wind, followed by the unmistakable sound of air-to-air combat.

Skynet had noticed the marching line of scrubbed Machines, and started redeploying quickly to meet it.

Noah lifted her radio. "Gentlemen, I do believe that's our cue!"

The Task Force jumped up and started shooting, taking shots from their hiding places. The Machines ignored them, focused on their more important targets as the Scrubbed Machines moved in for the kill.

There were fewer sights that Tech-Com soldiers liked more than two huge groups of Terminators gunning each other down.

Noah knew what to do. Her people aimed for the rear-most edge of Skynet's Machines, thinning down their ranks without being put in danger. The Snipers with the high caliber bullets had the longest range, and they aimed for the biggest, most distant targets.

Connor's Own started moving their own forces in as the first wave was smashed down. Tanks and Mortar Fire; the soldiers hard to reach. The Tanks kept firing on the H/K's, able to wear them down as the plasma fire slapped against the armored vehicles, fires catching and going out, digging craters into the metal.

"Team Two. Fall back behind that ridge, we'll cover you!" Connor's voice came over the radio.

Skynet To Units 419-590

Voiceprint confirmed. Connor Identified.

Triangulate position.

Connor Located. Proximity Alert.

Finally!

Co-Ordinate Search and Destroy.

TERMINATE JOHN CONNOR

The Machines on the battlefield turned as one to spin around and charge the Tank behind the first row, defended by Scrubbed Terminators. It had a great view of the lines, and was armored enough, defended enough...

Skynet's Terminators charged in and pounced on the Tank, staggering through the defenders with everything they had. It was a costly tactic, but it gave the tank no time to pull away. They were in too close to shoot with the turret, the fire too heavy above to get to the mounted machine gun. There was nowhere to go. The Tank broke ranks and rolled forward, both treads at full speed, charging for the rest of the incoming forces.

"They got me! Break! Break! Don't get caught!" Connor's voice yelled over the radio.

Skynet To Units 419-590

TERMINATE JOHN CONNOR

TERMINATE JOHN CONNOR

TERMINATE JOHN CONNOR

TERMINATE JOHN CONNOR

The Terminators were digging their pneumatic fists into the armored plating on the Tank, peeling it open.

The Tank rolled into the Terminator ranks like a bowling ball, getting deeper and deeper into the mess of Machines. Its Turret was firing on the furthest ends of the Terminator ranks, charging in the direction of the trapped soldiers, barely visible over the topmost ridge of the hills. But everyone on both sides knew, he wasn't going to make it.

The Tank fired again at the furthermost targets, the ones closest to Noah's men. More Terminators were charging in. Their target was inside. Their Machine minds were incapable of emotion or desperation; but also incapable of distraction. Their incredible computer brains filled with only one united thought.

Finally the Tank was peeled open...

And sitting at the controls was another scrubbed Terminator.

"Fooled you." It said with a flawless imitation of Connor's voice.

A loud beeping came from the Machine within the wrecked Tank...

Kra-BOOOM!

Noah whooped as the ranks of Skynet were shattered by the eruption of an exploding Tank which had powered it's way through, deep enough into the heart of Skynet's blockade to take a huge chunk of it out.

And far in the distance she could see their reinforcements, suddenly having the upper hand.

Kyle whooped too. Connor's Own were charging in, cutting a path through the Machines, and clearing the way.

Noah was still shooting. "Resse!" She roared. "We're still fighting a war here!"

Kyle grinned and kept firing…

…and then a low rumble came over the wind.

Instincts screaming, Noah turned to look at the opposite side of the mountain, barely visible, even from her vantage point…

Skynet's awaited reinforcements had arrived at last.

She grabbed her radio. "Chief! We got incoming in your three o'clock! Massive artillery! Take cover!"

"Cover! Cover!" Connor's voice yelled over the radios.

Noah looked. Skynet's Mobile Heavy Artillery was essentially huge cannon on treads. It drove and fired itself, the ammo fed into it from a solid ammo-clip. Ten times the size of any howitzer, it rolled across anything. And now a line of them was rolling across, from the opposite end of the battlefield.

Connor's Own broke from the engagement, and headed for any cover they could find.

THOOM! Thwwwwwww! BOOOOOOOM!

The Artillery were firing, the huge shells coming clear over the hills and taking out huge chunks of the ground on the opposite side, shattering human and Machine ranks alike, not caring about friendly fire, as long as Connor was dead.

They were deafened by the explosions, but Noah could see it. Connor was on the battlefield, trying to get his people to the cover of the hills.

The surviving Machines could see him too, all of them trying desperately to cut him off.

"SNIPERS!" Noah screamed, not daring to risk a shot with her own rifle.

Her people were scattered across the hills, trying to spread out, and long range fire came from all directions.

Kate set the scissors down and looked herself over in the mirror. Her hair was trimmed, but a thin braid was left longer, threaded through the drinking straw. The chain of her dog-tags was now threaded through the tarnished good hoop earring, which sat rested on the tags themselves. Her upper arm had the shoe-lace charm necklace wrapped around it, mid-way between her shoulder and her elbow. The whole thing gave her a slightly post-apocalyptic bohemian look.

Carla came running in, and saw Kate's new style. She was surprised by it, but didn't bother to comment. "Kate. You have to get to the War Room! Now!"

Kate spun away from the mirror. "What's happened?"

"Connor's rescue. It's not… going according to plan."

Connor ran. He forced his feet to move even when the ground shifted under his feet. He forced himself to move faster when he saw his people getting caught in the crossfire with the Machines. He forced himself to move faster still when the ground shook apart under the barrage of artillery. The Terminators were chasing him as his Scrubbed Machines gave his people cover, and the snipers added to their protection.

The enemy Machines left were ignoring his men, chasing him up the Mountain, like a moth to a flame as Connor was suddenly fighting gravity and terrain.

Noah had the battlefield under control, barely. For a race of emotionless killing Machines, Skynet's children always seemed to get slightly rabid when Connor was in reach.

"Griffin, cut off the three 500's on the west face; Curry, take a squad and stop the attack moving after Connor's Own, then secure that side of the hill. Trace, blow the pass behind you with your mortars, and then back up Griffin. Sapper teams, long range fire before Skynet can get those Canners into the hills, Snipers on the flying H/K's before they get back in too close." Noah was reporting, snapping orders back and forth as she picked her shots for the approaching ground forces. "Does anyone have a Zero on the Chief?"

"Negative Ma'am. It looks like Skynet lost him too."

"Well where the hell is he?" Noah demanded into her radio...

...just as The General himself dove feet-first into her foxhole and came up shooting. "Right here. Good to see you Colonel."

Noah didn't bother to salute, a rifle in each hand. "General. Kinda wish we weren't here to see each other again."

"Ditto!"

Connor spared a glance at Kyle. The young Corporal was firing away as best he could.

"They moved in the heavy hitters when you arrived." Perry reported. "Sorry we couldn't warn you, but we didn't know they were here till you moved in."

"They didn't know I was coming!" Connor insisted.

"And we didn't know the artillery batteries were there." Noah agreed. "They can't get up these mountains. Not guns that size. Looks like they stepped up the party when they heard you were crashing."

Connor seethed. "Can we get far enough down the mountain to get under their fire?"

"No chance."

"What about the radio?" Noah asked. "The Jammers went down when Skynet needed to give orders. Are they back up again?"

Kyle worked his radio. Nothing. "Looks like it."

"They'll bring in more 500's." Connor fired again, knocking down the last ones he could see. He could hear the firing continue further up the ridge. "Enough to push their way in now that we've got reinforcements of our own." The firing started to fade, the stalemate restored. "Hell of a rescue huh?"

"They're pulling back now. They'd be in already if it weren't for you." Noah said. "Didn't you have a contingency plan?"

Connor glanced at Kyle. "I didn't have time. We rolled as soon as we heard you were pinned." He sat down against the side of the foxhole. "Well. Looks like we have some time." He looked around. "Where'd you find a foxhole?"

"C4. The thinking woman's shovel." Noah slumped down next to him. "How'd you get all those scrubbed Machines over here from Florida?"

"Rafts."

"You're kidding."

"Rafts and long chains. We get them across land by letting them run as fast as their tireless pneumatic legs could carry them. They didn't have a problem rowing, being towed by choppers, or hanging on tight to tow lines."

Noah smirked. "Well. Now Crystal Peak has gotta send someone to rescue the guys they sent to rescue us. Tell me you at least remembered to bring a deck of cards."

Connor smirked, despite himself.

Erin Curry looked up as Dex dove into her hiding place. "Oh. Hello." She said, as though he had stopped by her table in the Mess Hall. "On behalf of General Custer, I'd like to welcome you to the last stand."

Dex grinned. "I'm making a quick survey of soldiers in your area. How's the battle been for you so far?"

"Got a lousy melody, but I can dance to it." Erin quipped back. "How's Mackie?"

"He was fine when I left Crystal Peak. Carla's with him."

"Good."

"We got word in from Connor's Own that the artillery had them pinned down suddenly, and that was it. The frequency got jammed up big time. All frequencies. Skynet couldn't get a message through it either, which means it must have given some pretty specific instructions before it jammed all the frequencies. We haven't been able to get as much as a smoke signal from Connor since. It looks like most of his Unit survived, but the artillery trapped them with the rest of the Task Force."

Sherrin, who had been settled into the War Room after losing his arm, finished the briefing, and sent Kate a quick look. She was frozen; staring as the markers danced back and forth across the map, being as up to date as possible as the reports came pouring in from those lucky enough to escape the sudden move.

"Who have we got?" Kate asked hoarsely.

"To send after them?" Sherrin asked darkly. "No unit that can handle it. Our biggest Unit is currently surrounded."

"What about aircraft?"

"Our aircraft can get there, but…"

"But what? Come on Tony, talk to me!" Kate snapped.

"But a fighter squadron wouldn't do much. Skynet has that area patrolled now. Two full squadrons of Aerial H/K's.. Send in a wing of Fighters, and even if they manage to fight their way through, and they won't do anything. Skynet's guns are dug in deep. We can't get to them from the air. We need something heavier than that. Heavier than missiles. We don't have it."

Kate was staring hard at the maps. We do. We have to. It's just a matter of seeing it. John looks at things and sees more than what's there. There has to be a solution. What do we have? Things that can fly would get there but aren't heavy enough. Things that go by ground are powerful enough but won't get there.

Z Plus Ten Years Sixty Seven Days

It took her a full day to see it. Kate had been listening in the wings of every briefing that Connor ever gave, or ever heard. Though she only commanded the Base; it was the staging area for a lot of their operations, it was the Command and Control of the entire military, and it was the administrative and supply center of every civilian project humanity had left. Kate had no shortage of ingenuity and skill; plus she had the personal attention of The General himself.

But this was the first time she was leading an Op that she herself had gamed out.

She let none of the panic show on her face. Connor's Rule Number One: Never let them see you sweat. When you don't know what you're doing; fake it till you make it.

She had her plane selected almost immediately. She didn't have that many to choose from. She had the Motor Pool tearing out the inside of the plane, every seat, every compartment. It would be a small cargo plane within a few hours.

The next step was the Amory. She was taking more heavy military grade explosive than was used by a whole Unit. It took the Armory thirty seconds to let Walters know. She was able to explain the plan to him in a few minutes.

"Let me see if I got this straight." Walters said carefully. "Your plan, is to pack a civilian aircraft with heavy explosive, try and take off with so much of it on board that you may yet max out the weight limits and crash on takeoff, fly it to the middle of a heavily entrenched siege, fly it straight into the middle of Skynet's artillery, and bail out before you hit, in the hopes that you'll do so much damage you'll be able to land your chute and walk back to Connor's Own before Skynet's surviving ground forces chew you apart."

"That's the general idea." Kate said coolly.

"Due respect ma'am, but is the last six thousand years of recorded human thinking just something that happened to other people for you?"

"You've been hanging around with Noah too long." Kate said with a tight smile. "But if you've got a better idea, now's the time."

"We have pilots. Send one of them."

"All our pilots are fighter pilots." Kate told him. "They fly fighter jets, not civilian light aircraft. And all the pilots we've got are on missions. The ones still here… They're going to take casualties Eric. Probably a lot of them. If we had another ten fighter pilots, I'd put them all on escort too. I can handle the civilian plane. I'm the only one that can fly a plane, and not a fighter jet. It's okay."

"Send one of our Machines to fly it."

"The only Machine's we've got on base right now are the code-breakers downstairs, which we sawed in half for security; and the Infiltrators, still in crates. None of them were programmed to fly planes anyway. Skynet doesn't need pilots for its H/K's, and we never taught them anything we might regret. It has to be a human pilot, and I'm the best choice."

"It'll never work! And even if it did, you'd never make it out!"

"If I don't go, we lose John." Kate yelled.

"If I let you go, Connor loses you!" Walters yelled.

Kate froze. "First of all Eric, you're not letting me do anything. Secondly… There's no other way." She paused. "Is there... Can you offer me an alternative?"

Eric thought for a moment. "Get a second opinion."

"From who?"

Kate made their way into the lower corridors of Crystal Peak. Walters escorted her, and he stood guard outside as she keyed in the passcode, and went in alone.

Brain Box had not moved once since it was activated and its red eyes focused on her instantly. "Hello Brain Box, do you know who I am?" Kate asked.

"Yes."

"Have you been made aware of the situation in Puerto Rico?"

"I have a connection to the Incoming radio signals, hardwired so that I cannot communicate out." Brain Box said blandly.

Kate explained her plan again to Brain Box, detailing the type and number of aircraft available, and the type of explosives that she would be carrying.

"The plan is sound." Brain Box said. "Mission Objectives will be achieved."

Kate couldn't believe it was that simple. "But… what?"

"But it requires two prerequisites. One, you need sufficient volume of explosive. Two, you need to make it past a full squadron of aerial H/K."

Kate paused. "The first is taken care of. Assuming I can get through the aerial defenses... Would... would I survive the attempt?"

"Negative." Brain Box said instantly.

Kate took a breath. "How can I correct for that?"

"You will need to take at least two armed squads with you, and have them escape the plane as you do. They will run defensive cover so that you can reach the rest of the Human forces."

"I don't have two squads." Kate said darkly, thinking it through. "And even if I did, they would all die protecting me, wouldn't they?"

"Affirmative."

"Not worth it."

"Then there is no way for you to safely reach Tech-Com Forces after your attack run." Brain Box said clinically.

Kate turned on her heel and walked out at a quick march. The frustration was like a rope around her neck.

Walters fell into step behind her. "What's the verdict?"

"No good. I can do it, but I won't survive."

"Are you sure?" Walters asked in concern.

"Brain Box is." Kate said. She sighed. "Hell. John makes it look so easy, doesn't he?"

Walters smirked. "Any ideas?"

Kate took in a long slow breath. "Just one. But I know what you'll say."

"I'm listening."

"What's the next best thing to two full squads assigned to cover your back? Five Reprogrammed Infiltrators."

"Oh, HELL NO!"

Gould was no happier than Walters. "Ma'am... How can I say this...? NO!"

"I have no choice. And since I'm ordering you, neither do you." Kate said harshly.

Gould gritted his teeth and keyed the doorcode. The door opened, and Gould led the way into the storage rooms. It was full of motionless, offline Infiltrators. The lights were off, nobody had come in here before. Each motionless form had a layer of dust caked over the skin. Impossible not to think of them as corpses standing upright. Impossible to shake that image.

Kate tried not to show favoritism, she really did. But she couldn't help it. She picked 'Their' Terminator first.

Gould got to work activating them, one by one, and stitching up the skin over the power supply. They would need no time to heal. Kate selected four more Infiltrators; various faces. They were all the same basic height and build, though Skynet had sent through different prototypes. One unique prototype was designed to look like a six year old girl. The soldier that gunned it down at the door very nearly lost it until they verified the child was indeed a Machine.

"What are you going to call them?" Gould whispered.

Even the solders, who hated the Infiltrators, couldn't just refer to them as Machines like they did the other Terminator endo-skeletons. Skynet had done the job well.

"Tom-Doe." Kate said finally. "Dick-Doe, Harry-Doe, Smith-Doe..." She turned to look at 'her' Terminator, remembering her husband's stories. "And 'Bob-Doe'."

"Bob?" Gould repeated.

"Bob." Kate said firmly. "You included the tactical situation into their memory files?"

"I did." Gould confirmed.

Kate waited until they were all activated. Gould had left Connor's 'Uncle Bob' for last. "Report." She commanded. "What is your mission?"

That familiar east European voice answered her, and Kate felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "To follow to Directives of John and Katherine Connor."

Kate looked over her shoulder. The others were just sort of standing there, waiting for a Direction. Machines without purpose.

"Report to the Hangar." Kate directed them. "Stay with your escort." She turned to Walters. "Arm them, equip them and get them ready to move out." She turned back to Bob-Doe. "And you come with me."

Walters looked sick to his stomach as he handed a Plasma-Rifle to Smith-Doe. "You better be worth it." He snarled at the Infiltrator.

"Well Dex; it was nice to have the company, but I have to get moving. Now that the Sun's going down; I'm rated as a perimeter guard. I have to make sure Skynet doesn't creep in after dark."

Dex nodded. "I was hoping Connor would pull a rabbit out of his hat by now. I'll give you a hand if you like."

"Sorry. Has to be a solo move. Terminators move in pairs for skirmishing attacks. Snipers see two heads, they'll probably shoot one of us." She grinned. "Stick around. I'll be back soon enough."

Dex nodded. "I'll have the instant coffee waiting for you."

"Thank you. We have others in these hills; even if we can't reach them on the radio; so it'll be a few hours between my patrols." Curry smiled a little. "I have fond memories of the last time we had a few hours to fill in without anyone around."

"Seven years ago?" Dex teased back. "Must have been pretty damn memorable."

Curry laughed. "Just teasin'. Wouldn't want you to get in trouble with the Missus."

"Carla and I aren't married."

"Do you live together?"

"Us and a few divisions."

"Do you eat together?"

"When food's available."

"Are you raising a child?"

"You remember a quickie with me but not going through labor?"

Erin smirked. "Trust me handsome, you're married."

Dex didn't answer right away. "You tend to bring it up a lot. After you two left LA… I wasn't sure what would happen."

"Between me and Carla?" Erin asked in surprise.

"Wasn't sure if you'd be friends or at each others throats."

"All this time and you two never talked about it?"

"I didn't dare." Dex grinned.

Curry laughed, and jumped up. "Be back soon."

Kate took a deep breath and keyed her mike. "Reach to Tower, come in Palace."

"You sure I can't talk you outta this?" Walters' voice came back.

"I'm sure," Kate was proud of the way her nerves didn't show in her voice.

"Then you are cleared for takeoff. Escort will join you in the air."

Kate gunned the engines of her Cessna, getting the revs high before she dropped the brakes and felt the plane move. The engines were roaring before they got any speed up, and Kate felt like she'd been kicked in the back.

The plane heaved for a second as she tried to get it off the ground. The plane was heavy with her cargo; it wouldn't climb. Kate put the front wheel down again and gunned the engines higher than she dared. The ride got rougher, Kate was bouncing up and down in her seat as the Plane sped up.

"How's it going back there?" She shouted.

"Stable." Reported a toneless voice.

Kate was watching the end of the runway like a hawk, timing it to the last possible second.

"Now." Bob-Doe told her firmly, and Kate took his word for it, yanking back on the stick as hard as she could. The Terminator reached out and grasped the co-pilot's stick, mimicking her.

The Plane groaned from the struggle, but they got airborne, barely. Momentum got them a few feet off the ground and little by little, they got a bit higher. Kate felt the wheels scrape on something, and very nearly pitched it into the ground, but it kept climbing.

"Damn, this plane is heavy." Kate gritted.

"No kidding." Walters said in her ear. "By the way, you trashed your landing gear."

Kate shrugged, though she knew he couldn't see it. "Won't need it anyway."

Kate had been gone less than six hours when Oldham came to Walters, with a fresh problem. "Seems Skynet's aware that we're scrubbing as many Machines as we can get. They've managed to scrounge together a strike force."

"Where are they headed?"

"Checkpoint Delta."

Walters sighed. "If they take Delta, they'll be able to cut off all our Scrub teams. Who have we got to defend the position?"

"Just the teams that are out there already collecting Metal Marines."

"Well, tell them to reprogram what they can for reinforcements and hold the Checkpoint."

"Sir, Corporal Connor is out there with them."

Walters felt a chill go up his spine. If Kate's mission failed, it was likely that both Connor parents would be dead within a few days. If Kate succeeded, one or both might be coming back. Coming back to the news that their daughter was off holding back a Skynet attack force...

Aloud, he didn't even hesitate. "She's a soldier first, and that's what soldiers do. Send word to all our teams in the area."

Oldham turned to the console and did so. The War Room staff began shifting markers on the maps to make it accurate. He barely heard them. He couldn't go himself; he wouldn't make it in time. Besides, with Connor, and Kate, and Noah, all out in the warzone, he wasn't able to leave the Base. To himself, he started trying to figure out what he was going to say to any of them if the worst happened.

"They'll be glad to know she's out there with them." Oldham offered.

Walters snapped out of it. "What?"

"Sarah Connor." Oldham explained. "The men will be glad to know she's with them. They..." Oldham shrugged. "The kid's got some kind of magic. Remember?"

Walters felt better, being reminded of that. Sarah Connor was the first baby to survive, despite the fact that her mother was nearly at death's door for most of her pregnancy. And in her first day among the living, she had personally saved all their lives from Skynet's latest attempt to exterminate humanity. Walters smiled thinly. "Saint Sarah?"

"Saint Sarah." Oldham glanced around like he was expecting to be smacked across the face for thinking it. "Better keep that down, you know how her mother reacts to people talking that way about her daughter."

Or her husband. Walters thought absently, staring at the maps.

Skynet sent probes into the besieged hills in small groups. Not enough to do any real damage. Most of the time it wasn't even enough to cost them a soldier. But it kept the fear alive. Hours turned into days, and the fear gave way to the cold, and then to back to the fear, then back to the cold. The nights were the worst. The dark could play tricks on paranoid minds.

Reese and Perry hadn't let go of their weapons in almost as long as they'd been under Siege. Their knuckles were white, almost unable to open their fingers after so long in a Death Grip.

Connor slipped in and out of the rocks like a Wraith, always moving. Noah went with him a few times, sometimes it was Perry. They didn't dare leave his side for long. Connor had somehow managed to find half the human soldiers in their hiding places. Some of them had wounds that were gathering infections. Some of them were getting sick or frostbit from the cold. Most were just hungry, exhausted and shivering.

Noah had been Tech-Com for two years now. Her fears about The General had faded within a week, any lingering doubts within a few months.

But that was nothing compared to this.

She always knew how important Morale was in a war, especially in this one. It was the one way to increase efficiency and skill and speed that Skynet would never have.

But this battle was something else. The Terrain made it hard to impossible for the soldiers to see each other, the cold and the wind sliced into them so hard it made it impossible to get comfortable enough for rest… To say nothing of the fact that they were surrounded.

The Siege of Arecibo was like a condensed version of the whole war. Skynet couldn't get in, Humanity couldn't get out; and it was just a matter of time before one side got the advantage over the other.

And yet for all that, Connor made it seem like an inevitable victory was coming. He kept them all going. All the ones he could find. With jokes, with advice, with anecdotes, with private chats, with anything he could throw at them.

Noah could tell though. He was out of ideas.

Kate checked the controls for the ninth time. She looked out the cockpit windows again. Her fighter escort were in formation. The pilots had all been briefed on the plan, and they knew the odds. They were willing to take the risk, as long as the plan worked.

To get Connor back, Tech-Com would fight to the last man.

Kate had four Infiltrators behind her, her 'bodyguard' in the co-pilot seat next to her, ten fighter jets surrounding her in three dimensions. She hadn't been this nervous since meeting the T-X.

"This is tactically uncertain." Bob-Doe told Kate clinically. "My model is still in use by Skynet. I may be recognized as an enemy by Connors Own."

"Agreed. But I have a solution for that." Kate said quickly, and reached down next to her seat. From within her duffel, she pulled out a large leather jacket, and a pair of cracked black sunglasses.

Bob-Doe didn't understand why, but he pulled them on obediently. Kate shivered. It was suddenly ten years ago all over again.

Kate shook off the deja-vu and nodded slowly. "Now we're ready." She sent a glance over her shoulder. "How are things back there?"

Tom-Doe was the closest, so he reported. "Package is still secure."

The plane was packed with so much military grade explosive that Kate couldn't see more than four feet back into the cavern. The flight would take the better part of the day, staying low to the ground to avoid radar, and winding back and forth to avoid Skynet patrols that could call ahead. Her 'flight crew' of four Infiltrators were standing rigidly at attention between her and the pallet of explosives; a pose that no human could hold this long, plus John's 'Uncle Bob' next to her.

It was going to be a long flight.

Z Plus Ten Years Sixty Eight Days

"What do you think?" Noah said quietly.

"The Artillery is the only thing we can't beat. Skynet will have satellites watching by now, and it doesn't matter because they have long enough range that we can't sneak up on them. We don't have anything big enough to take them on directly... And we can't get out while they're there."

"Why aren't they just tearing the Mountains down?" Perry asked.

"Artillery uses solid ammo." Noah said. "They aren't like plasma rifles. They run out of ammo and we win."

"Stalemate." Connor summed up. "If it goes too long, we'll have to risk it. The Artillery is the only thing we can't take on ourselves. But if Skynet gets some reinforcements in here like we did, they'll have the edge." he sent a look to Perry. "Anything on the radio yet?"

"Sorry Chief. They're still Jamming."

"Which means Skynet can't call out either." Noah volunteered. "They know we're stuck. They'll wait us out till they can get reinforcements in here." She scanned the horizon again. "What will Colonels Connor and Walters do?"

Connor thought for a moment. "They'll try something. But I can't for the life of me think what."

As if to answer him, the visible H/K's up in the air all took off in one direction, moving for all they were worth.

"Looks like you won't have to think about it for long." Noah observed.

Connor reached out and smacked the sleeping boy on the shoulder. "Wake up Kyle."

"Kate?" Kyle mumbled, and opened his eyes.

Noah and Perry stared at him. "'Kate'?" Noah repeated in disbelief. "Kid, what were you just dreaming about?"

"Best we don't go there." Connor said lightly as Kyle flushed bright red.

"Tango One to Arrowhead; we have company."

"Tango, you are clear to engage. Keep 'em off me." Kate said, feeling the adrenaline flow.

The air screamed as her fighter wing of escorts took off in all directions, following the enemies hunting her as she sped toward the Siege.

"We have engaged." Tango One reported coolly. Kate couldn't believe how cool he sounded. Because of her cargo, she had limited maneuverability. Because it was a civilian craft, she had no defenses. Because she was flying straight to her target, she had very little visibility.

The radio was bad enough.

"They're trying to flank us!"

"Tango Niner, check your six!"

"Storm, you picked one up, WATCH IT!"

"Where is he? Where is he?"

"We lost Storm! Felix, cut left, I'll cover you!"

"Good hits! Splash one!"

"Scales; he's in your kill slot!"

"Watch out! The Leader has a bead on the package!"

"Colonel, dive! NOW! NOW!"

Kate shoved her controls, praying she'd be able to pull out again. She felt the controls lurch in her hands as something came loose back behind her and shifted.

The scream of a jet turbine seemed loud enough to fill the cabin she was in, and Kate caught a glimpse of something huge and gun-metal gray flashing past her windshield, close enough to touch. Then an explosion!

"She's clear! She's clear!"

"Two more coming in from three o'clock high!"

"Tango's two and four, come about and engage! Commit the Package! Do it now!"

Kate pushed the throttle harder. Her escorts weren't going to be able to protect her long.

"There." The familiar voice said. Her co-pilot had managed to keep a grip on direction and distance, and Kate followed his pointed finger across the battlefield to the other side of the Hills, and the gleaming artillery.

"Arm the cargo and bail out!" Kate roared, pointing the nose of the Plane down.

She felt the plane jerk as the pressure changed with the door opening. The whine of the engines grew louder and higher.

And then the controls jerked again, much harder.

"She's hit! She's hit! Somebody get her back!"

Kate tried to get her seatbelt off. The cabin was filling up with smoke, she could smell and hear flames growing. Kate struggled not to panic.

And then her co-pilot moved. He reached up with one hand and dug his pneumatic fingers through the ceiling of the plane. He stood up, not bothering with the harness, which snapped instantly under his strength. He reached out his other hand and ripped the harness free from around Kate.

Her head was snapping back and forth from the power-dive so fast that she could barely see. But The Terminator could. He smashed out the windshield of the plane, and Kate squeezed her eyes shut instantly as the glass cut into her face, and the wind howled the smoke away! Without the harness, she felt her body get thrown about, the controls flying out of her hands!

Kate felt a grip around her waist. She had just enough time to register the feeling of a leather jacket slapping into her face, and suddenly she was spiraling.

With her eyes squeezed shut, she couldn't see what was happening, but she felt hands on her parachute, feeling for the rip-cord, and then she was free of all of it.

Forcing her eyes open against the sudden stillness, she got a real good look of the battlefield.

Connor grinned savagely. Noah and Perry and Reese all had identical looks of disbelief, their jaws hanging open.

The civilian plane had pushed its luck too far. From the second it had been visible on the horizon it was the center of a crazed dogfight. The Cessna seemed to have little to no ability or intention to dodge itself, and the ten or more fighter jets that escorted it were going nuts trying to keep Skynet from shooting it down.

Connor keyed his radio, trying to get a word out. Still nothing. "Damn. Come on, somebody read my mind. Anyone with a sniper rifle."

"Forget it." Noah told him. "The way they're spinning around up there?"

The dogfight couldn't last, but it lasted long enough that the Cessna made it to the hills.

Connor and his people all ducked as the dogfight made it's way overhead. The Cessna was tagged by enemy fire again, and it spiraled down toward the far side of the Hills as smoke came bleeding from the fuselage.

"What the hell?" Noah asked quietly.

There in the sky, drawn against the black smoke coming from the plane, were a series of parachutes. The speed of the plane meant that they were drawn in a line over hundreds of meters, one chute opening after another.

Some of the Aerial H/K's noticed the slow moving targets. What one Machine saw, they all saw, and the Terminators on the ground started aiming upward.

The last two opened a few seconds apart… The last of them was spiraling out, more or less following the momentum of the plane.

The closer of the last two chutes was a lot lower to the ground, dropping like a stone, and was in clear sight of the three highest ranking officers.

Connor felt his jaw drop open at the hinges. The nearer chute was opening, much closer to the ground… And for a moment it looked like...

The wearer barely had enough time to get the chute open; not nearly enough time to check his momentum…

And the figure slammed down into the ground, several meters away from them, further down the hill.

Noah moaned. "No joy. Ain't nobody could live through a landing like t-"

KRAKABOOOOOOM!

The blast threw every soldier off their feet, knocking them all flat. A wall of concussive force rolled across the battlefield, sweeping up dust and dirt and frost and people alike.

Unseen by the humans, the mystery man was moving under the half-open parachute, rolling to his feet.

Connor lifted his head. Noah was already up, yelling something, but his ears were ringing from the blast so much that he couldn't hear her for several seconds.

"...gone!" Noah's voice came to him finally. "The artillery is gone! The artillery is gone! They did it!"

Connor was up, and grabbed Kyle, yanking him to his feet. "Let's move! Reese, would you see who's in the area?"

Kyle grinned and pulled a flare gun out of his pack. What was once used to confuse Machines was now just a signal again. With the radios jammed, it was the only signal left to send. He fired straight up, and a single red point of light flew up into the sky, clear and strong.

And then from somewhere to the left, too far to hear, but easily visible, another one went shooting up into the sky. And then another from the right. And another.

All up and down the mountains, from places and positions that neither side could see, came dozens, then hundreds, maybe thousands of signal flares.

Noah felt her heart give a solid thump at the sight. Hidden in their foxhole for days on end, it was getting easy to forget that they were not alone out here. With every point of light, she saw how surrounded by friends they were.

They were all there. They were all ready.

With the artillery gone, their shattered remains framed by the still rising explosion of fire and smoke, Skynet suddenly seemed outnumbered.

Connor led the charge down the side of the mountain, toward the nearest group of flares; which incidentally took them past the last parachute. Noah skidded to a frozen halt as the man rolled to his feet, unhurt by the bone crushing drop.

He was facing away from them, wearing a leather jacket. He searched the ground a moment and picked up a cracked pair of dark sunglasses.

Connor's heart was in his throat. He knew. Even before the infiltrator turned to face him, he knew.

Noah saw the now infamous face and swore, softly and fiercely. "Hell!"

"DON'T SHOOT!" Connor roared. He and the Terminator glared electrically at each other for a few seconds.

"John Connor." The Machine said. Nothing more, just his name.

Perry had his gun leveled at the Machine, just in case, but Connor didn't even break stride. "Where is she?" The General demanded.

The Terminator pointed down the hill, the way the plane had gone, and to the last escapee of the plane, lying still, under her properly opened chute.

Noah would later reflect that this was the magic that Connor had. The ability to take something blatantly impossible and jump straight to the next step while everyone else was stuck in brainlock. She didn't know how Connor could just accept one of them as an ally so easily, much less figure out who must have sent 'him', no matter how obvious it was in hindsight. Connor just jumped past the impossibilities and already knew what to do.

Unaware of all this going through her mind; Connor, on the other hand, was quietly thrilled. It was just like old times.

Kate drifted into consciousness and felt heat and pain. The smell of smoke was thick, and she gagged on it, coming awake swiftly as her lungs demanded cleaner air.

She fought to get up...

And saw about forty steel skeletons moving toward her from all sides.

Kate reached out slowly, the only speed she had at the moment, and gripped her rifle. She couldn't even tell if it was still working.

The parachute was wrapped around her legs, and she kicked weakly, trying to get free.

No mistake. The oncoming skeletons were coming for her. They weren't on her side.

She still couldn't get a breath through the smoke. She managed to focus on what looked like tank treads bigger than her Cessna was. She had hit the artillery.

John! She thought weakly. It worked! Run!

The exoskeleton's moved within range, emerging from the flames that licked harmlessly over their metal skin.

Kate raised her gun and fired. Nothing. The gun had dropped too far.

The endo's raised their weapons.

Kate shut her eyes as she heard the Plasma crack the air.

And then she coughed from the smoke again.

Kate's eyes flew open. They missed? They don't miss.

Between her and her attackers were four of the five Infiltrators that she had brought along to play bodyguard. They had physically put themselves in the way, taking the Plasmafire for her. The Infiltrators were heavily armored, to the point where Tech-Com had to redesign their Plasmaguns to have more firepower. Since Tech-Com never used any reprogrammed Infiltrators in battle, Skynet never upgraded their guns.

The Infiltrators were blasting their way through the Endo's with lethal efficiency, their machine precision, their tech-Com programming and their Human guns making a savage hat-trick that dealt flawless destruction on any steel Skeleton unlucky enough to come near Kate.

The woman fought to stand up, and started moving away from the flames, limping for the human lines.

Without so much as trading a glance, without word or communication, the Infiltrators moved to cover her. Tom-Doe and Harry-Doe moved closer together to cover her from behind, Dick-Doe ran in front of her. Smith-Doe handed her 'his' rifle, and simply picked her up, one hand holding her waist, the other under her shoulders, running like a linebacker with a football. Kate didn't feel very dignified, but didn't let it stop her from shooting.

Kate struggled not to retch as her battered body tried to handle to rough ride. They were moving faster than any human could run, through the disorganized remains of Skynet's army. The two Infiltrators behind her were running unnaturally close together, forming a barricade at their rear; the one in the lead was clearing out the path, and all of them were firing with quick flawless strikes.

Kate tried not to think too deeply on what this meant. The Infiltrators were the more advanced models, and they were going through Skynet's children like a hot-knife through butter.

Sheer force of numbers was against them. Their point-guard was taking the worst of it. Dick-Doe was slowing down, taking more fire than the rest of them put together, his Machine body being pecked apart by what fire got to him; his hair and clothes on fire from the Plasma, and he didn't even flinch.

Eventually, a lucky shot nailed his hydraulics in the leg, and he stumbled, his momentum suddenly working against him as his leg was blown off at the knee joint.

Kate barely had time to react before the Machine carrying her jumped over the stumbled Infiltrator, clearing him like a hurdle. She sent a look over her shoulder and saw that one of her rear-guards had been gunned down, surrounded by dozens of Endo's.

The Plasmafire chased her and her escorts to the edge of the mountains, the Plasmafire in front of her all but faded out as they left Skynet behind.

Kate jerked as the ground suddenly changed pitch, and they were running uphill. She smacked Smith-Doe hard. "We're clear! Put me down!"

Smith-Doe dropped her obediently, and she smacked face-first into the dirt. She shook it off and fought to stand.

Skynet's warriors were charging toward them, and Kate looked up at the fading flares falling to the Earth. Her allies were out there somewhere.

"Incoming!" Smith-Doe reported, shoving Kate down roughly, and the fire fight started again. Her escorts were firing as they backed Kate safely toward more uneven terrain.

"Kate! Three O'clock!"

Kate turned and ran without bothering to check who it was.

And as she ran, she saw people, hiding in the dirt as only humans did. They were waving her in. She heard the Plasmafire intensify behind her, and she dove into a foxhole.

Below ground level, she felt immeasurably better. The foxhole was full of soldiers, firing madly the way she had come from.

Her eyes focused finally. Dex was one of the soldiers; grinning madly at her.

Kate smiled for what felt like the first time in forever.

Dex fired three shots in less than a second, left to right, and ducked down to check on her. "Follow my finger." He moved a finger back and forth, checking her for concussion. All soldiers knew how to check for the basics. "Okay. Looks like the cuts are the worse of it." He grinned. "Gotta say Boss, you know how to make an entrance. But you could have chosen better travel companions."

Slightly safer, Kate felt some of the adrenaline fading, and the aches in her limbs were suddenly noticeable.

There was a moment of surprise as Dex moved, faster than Kate's eye could follow, and the sharp crack of the weapon in his hand firing. The famous Quick-Draw had saved her before she even knew there was danger; and she turned to face the battle.

The war went on around their little foxhole. Kate forced herself upright, weapon ready, and saw that Tech-Com was on the offensive, blasting away at the thinning Machine ranks. The thunder crack of Sniper rifles echoed over the battlefield. Soldiers were coming out of the hills, emerging from the terrain. Places that Kate never would have noticed. Neither had Skynet. John had taught them well.

The battle was soon all but over, humanity mopping up.

"Kate!"

She spun. Connor was running toward her, Noah, Perry and Kyle following behind a little slower. She had no trouble running forward to meet him, the two of them meeting halfway and wrapping each other up in a tight hug.

Connor's radio crackled. "Chief, come in?"

Connor jumped a little in surprise, and pulled out of the clinch enough to key his radio. "Go."

"Sir, we've got them licked! The remaining Terminators made berserker runs and detonated, there aren't any left! The plane managed to take out the entire Artillery and most of the ground H/K's. Oh, and the Jammers are offline too. Did the pilot make it?"

Connor grinned. "She did indeed. The pilot was Colonel… General Katherine Connor."

A cheer went up from the radio. More flares were fired into the sky, lighting up the victory cheer.

"CON-NOR! CON-NOR! CON-NOR! CON-NOR! CON-NOR!"

Kate knew, smiling at John and Kyle together. They weren't cheering for her husband.

The General sent her a look. Take a bow.

Kate hefted her rifle high and gave a victory cry. It was a roar taken up by every voice in Connor's Army, as shattered Machine bodies lay broken under their feet.

Tony Sherrin came into the Medbay. The medical staff was surrounding Carla in a half circle. Carla was tense, but focused on her job. She was organizing the Medbay for incoming.

"You know the drill." She told her assembled. "Communications blackout hasn't lifted, so we don't know how heavy the casualties will be. Connor always says that you should be prepared for the worst, and then be ready for worse than that. Knowing Kate, and Connor, and Noah, and Connor's Own as I do, I doubt it'll be that serious, but until we know, we have to be ready. Clear out the Post and Pre-Op wards. The auxiliary Post-Op wards are already on alert to prepare for incoming. Both shifts will be on duty. If they're still alive, they'll follow standard operation procedure and send the heavily wounded back by Chopper. They're a fair distance from here, so the Choppers might have to make more than one trip. Crack open the stores now. I don't want to be caught short of anything mid-operation. Otherwise, get some sleep if you can. We'll be busy for a long time once they start rolling in. Any questions?"

There were none. Medical had the worst job of the war when the shooting stopped. They knew their stuff, but it was good to have someone say it out loud.

Carla looked them all earnestly in the eye and nodded. "All right. Connor told me that every soldier feels better about coming here when injured than anywhere else. I'm sorry we get so many chances to show them why, but that's how it goes. Dismissed."

Sherrin sidled up next to Carla as they were left alone. "Major?"

Carla turned. "Tell me you've heard something."

"It worked. Kate took out the artillery, and apparently the Jammers too. We got word. Skynet never knew what hit it. They've got wounded; already on the way."

Carla didn't answer.

Sherrin smiled finally. "He's okay. Dex is okay."

Carla seemed to rock on her feet for a second, before smiling like she was never worried. "Well, of course he is. He's indestructible."

Sherrin looked around. "Where's Mackie?"

"In the orchard. He and Connor Jr are practically running the Eden Project lately."

Sherrin nodded, rubbing his severed arm. "You should see them down there. They know their stuff."

The battle had been a decisive victory. Skynet had taken much heavier losses than Tech-Com. Kate's attack had taken out the majority of Skynet's heavy weapons, and Connor's Own had handled far worse than what was left over the years.

But after the battle came the cleanup.

Kate had filled in the story, and quickly went to work on the wounded. The worst cases got priority, and space on the helicopters was filling up quickly. Once she had a quick reunion and made sure that both her husband and Kyle were safe and well, she did her duty again, going back with the wounded. Some of her patients couldn't wait to see a surgeon, and Kate was cutting before the Chopper took off.

Connor had a quick conference with his Colonels.

"With the Choppers ferrying the wounded, we're going to have to get everyone back by ground." Noah volunteered. She was speaking to Connor, but her eyes never left Bob-Doe. "That'll take a while."

Perry never stopped watching the Terminator at Connor's side either. "I don't think it'll be a problem." He said. "Skynet was ending everything it had straight at us, and Col-General Connor blew them all away. I don't know what else Skynet could have left."

Connor nodded. "Agreed. Get the trucks together. Wounded take the first ride and we'll direct the Choppers to meet us on their return trip to collect them. Save travel time. We may have time, but let's not push our luck any further than we already have. Send word to Allied personnel on the way. Anyone who can spare a vehicle. Let's move."

"Sir." Noah interrupted. "What do we do with… that?" She was pointing at the Terminator.

Connor didn't smile. Not even a little bit. "We take him back with us."

Perry and Noah paled. "Sir!" Noah struggled. "Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted."

"Have you lost your mind, replaced it with Swiss cheese and then clubbed yourself over the head with something sharp?"

"Jeez Erica, not that freely." Connor was nonplussed. "They got my wife through. Think about this. Kate said that Two Squads were the minimum that could have covered her retreat back to us. She used five Machines instead. We saved two squads worth of people that we couldn't spare. This was a good tactic."

"But a bad strategy." Perry put in. "Where do we draw the line on this now?"

"For now, we draw it here." Connor said firmly. "We can argue about this when we get back."

"What if this was the plan?" Noah waved at the Terminator. "Skynet is willing to take losses. What if this Infiltrator got captured deliberately? What if it was meant to earn our trust just so that it could get alone in a jeep with you? Infiltrators have different programming code than the Endo's. Our reprograms might not take."

"They did." The Terminator interrupted, and John felt a chill go down his spine from the nostalgia alone. "If I was programmed to kill Connor, he would already be dead."

"There? You see? How can you argue with logic like that?" Connor didn't crack a smile. He knew that the reprogramming would hold. At some point. Not necessarily now of course… But he pushed that thought away. "He comes with us. End of discussion."

Silence.

"I'm not getting in a jeep with it." Perry said finally.

Connor nodded. That was almost expected at this point. "He rides with me. We'll take the lead jeep. He tries anything, blow it away."

His commanders both glared explosively at the Machine. There were no threats to be made. None that would work.

Connor led the way to the waiting vehicles. He tossed the keys to The Terminator. "You drive. It's tradition."

"Tradition?"

Connor smile secretly, and waved at his people. "Hasta la vista gang! See you soon." Noah had never seen him so... cheerful. He had an Infiltrator as his driver, and he was treating it like a road trip.

Noah and Perry took it in. "Is He Nuts? Is he just plain nuts and it took us this long to see it?"

Noah shrugged. "Now I'm not so sure."

Z Plus Ten Years Seventy Days

Kate was the first of the officers to make it back to Crystal Peak. Carla was waiting with a big grin and a pair of stars.

The wounded came in first, most of the helicopters heading straight back out again the collect the next load from the convoys.

The rest of the Task Force, and Connor's Own had to take a longer way. The soldier's had to be split up, with a number of their troop carriers wiped out during the intermittent battles.

Connor's Own had vehicles enough, but with all the extra people to carry, they couldn't use them all personally.

The soldiers split up into half a dozen smaller groups, and began making their way back to Crystal Peak, collecting extra vehicles and transport when they could along the way.

The last two groups were made up mostly of Connor's Own. Kyle, Dex and Noah were on their way back, almost in sight of Crystal Peak, when they got word of what was happening.

Skynet To All Units.

Mission Accomplished. Prototype en route to Crystal Peak.

Recoup all possible losses. Allow Tech-Com Convoy to return to its base.

End Transmission

The entrance to Crystal Peak was set up to let people in slowly, in case there was an Infiltrator among them. The K-9 units were posted in a hallway, just inside the Main Door, but before the elevators. In that corridor was a room to the side, like a Toll Booth, where a soldier was stationed to let them in the second door to the elevators. Connor signed in first and handed the sheet to the next soldier along as the K-9's checked them all over.

The dogs went nuts at Bob-Doe but not at anyone else, and the K-9's handlers kept them up the other end of the corridor.

It was purely routine for Connor. "Hey Lupe."

"Welcome back chief." Lupe was working at the entrance, in the little Booth beside the door to the elevators. She didn't take her eyes off Bob-Doe, with one hand resting lightly on the lockdown button.

"Here to see Kyle?" Connor asked lightly, keeping her distracted from his bodyguard.

Lupe blushed a little behind the glass. "I didn't know which group he was coming back with."

"Sorry to disappoint, but he's with the next one." Connor told her gently as took back the Sign In Sheet and gave it back to her through the slot.

Lupe shrugged. "I can wait."

"Won't be long. We saw them coming in the rear-view. They're only a few minutes behind us."

Lupe smiled broadly, one hand resting on her stomach. Connor saw the gesture and felt his heart speed up.

"Hey."

Connor turned. "Sarah? What are you doing here?"

The young Sarah Connor stretched her neck and signed in herself. "With you, your Unit, and the Task Force off in another Country, somebody had to be minding the store. Skynet sent a few offensives toward Checkpoint Delta."

"And?"

Sarah grinned savagely. "We kicked Metal butt." The grin dropped as she looked up at Bob-Doe. "What are you looking at?"

Every soldier who heard it coming from the girl grinned despite themselves. She was barely as tall as Bob-Doe's hip, but she didn't flinch. Lupe looked over the sheet, looked over the soldiers, and hit the button to unlock the door. Connor, his bodyguard, and his daughter headed toward the elevators with a dozen or so soldiers as the next group came in to be checked.

"That would have been your first straight up fight." Connor put in. "How'd you like it?"

"Nine hours travel, followed by two days of boredom, followed by six hours of pure terror, followed by another seven hours of travel. What can I say? I feel like a soldier." Sarah mocked.

"Welcome to life in the armed forces sweetie." Connor told her…

…when the dogs suddenly went berserk. Connor froze, as the dogs went mad behind the locked door to the entrance. He went to the viewing window to get a look back the way he'd come.

Every soldier spun to look. The dogs were straining at their leashes and…

…They were barking furiously at Curry.

Lupe's hand went automatically to the lock-down switch, put at the sign in desk, ready to seal the outer doors and lock down the elevators to the lower levels. But she hesitated. A new face setting off the K-9's was an Infiltrator, but Erin Curry was known to her.

Connor's eyes widened. Erin Curry had raised a hand, in no particular hurry, with one finger extended…

Connor took a breath in, about to scream a warning, as Lupe looked up from her sign-in sheet and frowned. "Erin? What's going-"

Thunk!

The extended finger had suddenly elongated into a metal spike about four feet long, and stabbed right through the slot in Lupe's Toll Booth, right through Lupe's head, nailing her to the wall. The time between the first bark, and the first fatality was two seconds.

"CODE RED!" Connor roared, shoving his daughter over against the wall, immediately taking her weapon, and himself in the opposite direction, splitting them up, knowing who the real target was…

'Curry' withdrew an elongated finger enough to push the release button before Lupe's dead body, opening the door to the elevators, and turned toward Connor, with no expression on her face; and started marching toward him.

The soldiers reacted the way they had been trained. They opened up with everything they had.

Curry's form was suddenly marked with spots, bright silver chrome spots, which shifted and melted into smooth mercurial steel, Curry's face untouched as 'she' calmly marched down the hall toward Connor, its arms elongating into flat blades, slashing its way through the soldiers that had taken up firing position. The Machine wasn't even breaking stride as it morphed into pure, chrome-colored, humanoid shape, running toward the elevators, completely ignoring the unarmed Sarah as it ran past.

The liquid metal monster ignored the majority of the people who were diving out of its way, deigning to take a running slash without looking at the ones who bothered to shoot, and it charged for Connor.

Connor got a glimpse of it coming in too fast as the elevator closed. He grabbed his radio. "Breach at the upper level! We have a new Terminator model."

There was a thud at the roof, and Connor ducked as a six foot metal blade speared down from the roof into the elevator.

Bob-Doe shoved him down with one hand and started shooting upward with the other, searching for a target.

The elevator opened with his entire team waiting, guns drawn. They drew a bead on the visible Machine with the rifle, when the Blade arms slashed downward again from above, flaying open Bob-Doe's face.

Stunned, they all aimed upward, as Bob-Doe picked Connor up off the ground with one hand and ran for the hallways, as half a dozen soldiers opened fire behind them, standing shoulder to shoulder, physically blocking the path to Connor.

The mercurial Terminator was left unchallenged eventually, and started a quick-march after its prey. It came to a T-Intersection, and paused. There was no trace of which way Connor had gone.

Taking a moment to review, the Machine resumed walking.

AN: Just can't catch their breath can they? Oh, brace yourself. There's more on the way. Read and Review!