A/N: I'm sorry I took so long to update this next chapter. I feel like action sequences always take me a little longer to write out, given that I am a person who likes detail. But, here it is. Regina and Emma finally meet, and vows to protect her. :) Ya'll can thank my girlfriend for pushing me to turn these two Terminator movies into a two series SQ story lol because otherwise, I wouldn't have done it. Stay tuned for more updates, including the first few chapters on my Twilight adaptation. Happy reading!
Please, drop a review every once in a while. Otherwise, my updates will slow down more than they have, thinking no one cares for the story.
Regina rode around, oblivious to Emma following close behind in her stolen car. She didn't have a particular destination in mind to stop at. Regina just needed to get away.
Pregnant. She shook her head, turning right after halting before a stop sign. How could she have been so careless? That's the last time she will ever drink herself senseless again, that's for damn sure.
She could do with a drink right now, but what fault did this baby have of her bad choices?
As Regina parked her scooter, shutting off its engine near a bar, Emma pulled in with her Cadillac seconds after. She sat in her car, watching Regina enter inside the establishment and sit near the bar. Emma was relieved when she saw Regina order a simple sparkling water, instead of what could have been a beer. Or a hard liquor of her choice.
Under no circumstances would she allow anything to harm Regina or that baby growing inside of her.
Emma made a promise. And she would honor it.
'If you are doing this. You have to promise me to keep her safe. Guard her with your life.'
'You have my word.'
Regina took her third sip of her sparkling water, feeling the cold liquid sizzle along her tongue and in the back of her throat, setting the glass down along the napkin that was provided for her. She'd rather have something strong to help her clear her head, but given the circumstances… Her hand splayed along her flat stomach, which wouldn't be flat for long. Pregnant. She scoffed, shaking her head and reaching for her glass once more. She brought the sparkling water close to her lips, halting herself as out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of headlights belonging to a car parked just outside the window of the bar.
There was a figure sitting inside of the car, but she couldn't make it out.
Regina's brow furrowed but she chose to turn away, taking a sip from her sparkling water. You're just being paranoid, Regina. There is no one following you. Although, since she left her home, she has been feeling watched. And there was nothing she could do to shake that feeling away.
This just in, another victim, mother of two, Regina Lynn Mills was shot and killed today at approximately 3pm in front of her home…
Regina looked up to the sight of the television above the bar, her eyes wide.
"Hey, can you turn that shit off?" A man sitting by her said, having heard enough bad news for one day.
"Don't turn it off!" Regina jumped from her seat, startling not only the man beside her, but a couple of others who turned their heads, along with the bartender behind the bar.
Police say there is a link of murders for women with the same name, however, no personal connection has been made between the three victims.
Regina turned away from the television set, pondering on what to do next. Someone was definitely after her. What if she was next? She couldn't let that happen. She needed to get to the police. That was her only safe zone. Shoving her hand inside of her jeans pocket, she took out a wrinkled bill and paid for her sparkling water.
"Keep the change." Said Regina, running out of the bar like a storm had just blown straight through.
Emma's eyes followed Regina's figure as it raced out the glass door of the bar. As soon as Regina mounted her scooter and drove out, Emma wasn't far behind, driving out of the parking lot and onto the open road.
Regina's next stop was a nightclub. However instead of parking directly outside of it, Regina decided to park a few blocks away and walk. Her nerves sizzled in the pit of her stomach, much like that sparkling water she had drunk just a few minutes ago, except heavier.
Emma watches her, walking through the crowd and staying close behind. Always on alert.
Regina whips her head over her shoulder as she walks, quickening her steps more and more but never trying to run. Her heart was racing at the pace her feet didn't dare to take.
She wanted to run for her life. But she also feared that running for her life would only confirm her worst fears that in fact there was someone following her, ready to kill her.
Why me? She thought to herself as she walked along the crowd of people. Was it possible that someone killed those women thinking they were all me? She shook her head, attempting but obviously failing to eliminate every bad thought that crossed it right now. But, she could be right. Just as Regina picked up her pace a little more, she whirled her head around, and spotted the same figure that had been parked just outside the bar, walking a few feet behind her.
A woman? Of course, why would a woman be looking to cause her harm? Although, she did look quite serious and unfriendly. Maybe it wasn't her whom she was following; then again, maybe it was. Regina wasn't sure anymore.
Just stay calm. Regina attempted to calm herself, picking up her pace a little more. Especially after taking another quick glance along her shoulder to see that the quicker she walked, the quicker that woman walked to keep up with her steps.
Emma's eyes never left Regina, no matter how fast she moved through the crowd. She was scared, that was easily visible, even from a distance. But little did Regina know that Emma was sent here to protect her, guard her with every ounce of life she had in her. And that's what she would do. Even if Regina didn't trust her, much less know her. Emma would be caught dead before she allowed that thing to come near Regina.
Why, if Emma failed this mission and something did happen to Regina, she would take it upon herself to place this shotgun hanging along her shoulder, underneath her chin and pull the trigger.
The music was loud as Regina entered the club, but one good thing about clubs was that there were a sea of people everywhere. She would be hard to spot here. She had to be. She needed to contact the police department, though. She needed to put Kathryn on alert of what was going on, especially when Regina knew how worried she had been over her earlier as she left the house.
"Excuse me!" Regina shouted through the loud music, standing in front of a gated booth, looking up at a woman with spiky blonde hair and blue eyes. "You got a phone I could use?" She asked.
"In the back," the woman nodded her head. "Hey!" She shouted, seeing Regina halt in her quick tracks and turning back to her. "That'll be four-fifty!"
Regina dug through her jean pockets, pulling out five dollar bills, all in ones. "Thanks!" She slid the bills underneath the booth and quickly made her way further inside.
The music grew louder and the smell of cigarettes was stronger, leaving Regina to momentarily regret coming here. But what other choice did she have, really? She looked around as she came to a phone booth, not seeing the woman following her or anyone else. Drawing change from her pocket, she slipped it into the slot and dialed the police department first, getting nothing but a machine.
"Shit," She hung up the phone, momentarily looking around before picking up the device again, slipping change into the slot and calling her home phone number. "Come on, Kathryn, pick up the phone." She muttered, her eyes constantly looking around the sea of people.
Hello? Ha, ha, fooled you. You're talking to a machine. But, machines need love, too, you know, so leave a quick message for Kathryn, or Regina and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.
"Shit," Regina breathed. "Kathryn, it's Regina. I need you to answer the phone, okay? Listen, this is going to sound really crazy, but I think someone might be after me. I'm going to need you to come and pick me up. I'm at this night club on the corner of Pico Boulevard called TechNoir. I've tried calling the police, but they keep putting me on hold. I'm going to try them again. Please, just come and get me and I'll explain everything." She hangs up.
Kathryn's body hangs in mid-air, being held up by a long and strong arm that soon allows it to drop along the floor. Blood had run down her legs due to her injuries done by the bullets that had been fired into her back and her chest. The T-800's eyes didn't move from the answering machine with the blinking red light as it walked up to it. It pulled open the drawer of the night table where the answering machine was stationed and pulled out an identification card with Regina's name, birth date, height, home address and picture on it.
Its boots crunched along a few shreds of broken glass, stepping over a busted door that now laid face down along the floor to the entrance of the house before exiting the premises.
"Detective Gold!" A police officer comes running toward Gold. "You are not going to believe who's on the phone for you."
With Jones close behind, Gold rushes over to the officer's desk, reaching for his phone, and pressing down on the waiting line button. "This is Detective Robert Gold. Who's this?"
"Detective!" Regina shouted into the phone, through the loud music. She could feel her soul re-enter her body as soon as she heard the man's voice. "My name is Regina Mills. I'm sorry if I'm insisting too much, but I think there might be someone after me."
Gold's eyes look into his partner's, who is perched along the edge of the officer's desk. "Yes, Ms. Mills. We have been trying to reach you. Where are you now?"
"I'm at this place called TechNoir-"
"I know where that is," Gold nods. "Corner of Pico Boulevard. Listen to me, stay right where you are. The more crowded the place, the better. I will have the police there to go and collect you. You're going to be alright, Regina."
"Thank you, Detective." Regina was on the verge of tears, but she held her own.
"Just stay there." Said Gold, hanging up soon after. "Have a few troops sent over to TechNoir on Pico Boulevard to collect Ms. Mills. Let's go! Now!" He said to the officer who immediately took off running. "Jones, you're with me." His eyes landed on his partner as he straightened out his suit.
"Looks like it's going to be a long night." Said Jones.
Regina remained seated by a nearby table, close to the payphone. She bit down on a hangnail that had been bugging her, and right now seemed like the only thing she could do to calm this chill that ran along her spine. She felt a little better now that the police had been alerted to her whereabouts, although she wished that the first person to get to her would be Kathryn.
The T-800 walked along the club casually after crushing a bouncer's hand to bits as he attempted to stop him from not paying his entrance fee. A wave of people danced oblivious around it while its eyes calmly searched for Regina.
Emma sat by the bar, slowly looking over her shoulder at Regina when she spotted it. The terminator's gaze was trained on Regina as it began to approach her. Emma's hand slowly slipped inside of her coat, reaching for her shotgun, at the ready.
Regina sat up right after bending down to pick up a napkin that had fallen along the floor. Her eyes looked up to a tall, broad shoulder figure standing just three feet from her. The laser from his .45, along with the barrel end of the weapon was aimed right at her. The trigger was pulled without the same hesitation the T-800 was prepared to end Regina's life.
Emma's body whirled around along the bar, quickly standing to her feet, her coat flapped as she pulled out her shotgun, pumping it as quickly as she could. "Regina! Get down!" She shouted, seeing Regina's eyes along with the T-800's turn her way. Just as Regina threw herself along with her chair to the floor, Emma took that as her opening to fire four loud rounds into the machine's chest.
People frighteningly scattered out of there as fast as they could. A few jumped over Regina's fetal positioned body along the floor. Regina's eyes turned to the T-800 that laid on the floor. Its eyes opened and looked up to the ceiling when it inexplicably rose up as if nothing had happened.
This time, Emma's body flew across the bar for cover as a few rounds from the machine's .45 were fired directly at her. Glass shattered, coming down like rain all around her. Emma's back rested along the inside wall of the bar. She pumped her shotgun once more before standing from behind her cover and firing a single shot, hearing a rain of bullets fire her way again.
Regina took this as her opportunity to make a run for it. If she stayed here, she would die. And she wasn't ready to die just yet. Not like this.
Emma raced out from behind the bar, rolling along the floor to hide behind a wall. The glass around it shattered over her as bullets flew in her direction.
As soon as Regina's feet ran across the bar, she could hear a few rounds being fired her way, followed by a groan belonging to a woman whose corpse landed right on Regina after being caught in the crossfire. Regina attempted to drag away, seeing the T-800 approach her closer and closer, but the body of the woman was limp and too heavy for her to move it all by herself. Regina's eyes looked up to see the clip of the machine's weapon clatter along the floor, exchanged for a new one before the barrel was aimed at her once more.
Emma stood, shotgun in her hands, aimed dead-on at the machine and shot three loud rounds along its back, watching it fly out of a window that shattered along the sidewalk. She raced over to Regina, gripping onto the brunette's arm so tightly it made Regina flinch a little. "Get up. We gotta move."
"What?" Regina's eyes stare wildly at Emma.
"There's no time to explain! If you want to live, you'll come with me now!" Said Emma. Regina followed Emma's line of sight just as the T-800 was rising into a sitting position like something out of a horror movie.
Who the hell stands up after being shot through a window like that?
"Come on! Now!" Emma shouted, startling Regina as she yanked her up by her arm and shoved her forward, urging her to run.
Regina ran through a back door of the establishment that Emma shoved open for her. Switching her shotgun to her other hand, Emma reached for Regina's own hand with her right one, gripping it tightly as she helped her run a little faster, ducking for covers along a row of cars that were parked. Regina was lost. She didn't know what to make of what was happening right now. Or who this woman was saving her life out of nowhere. Of course, whether this woman truly wanted to save her life had yet to be proven, because after what Regina just witnessed, this woman seemed to be just as crazy as whatever that man was back there.
She could be a lunatic trying to hurt her, too, but right now she was all Regina had to possibly make it out of this alive.
Regina's heart accelerated inside of her chest as she whirled her head over her shoulder to see the T-800 running directly behind them. He was catching up.
"Duck down!" Emma shoved Regina alongside a 1973 Chevrolet that was parked nearby the alley. She pulled on the door handle, feeling it lift and pulled open the door for cover. Loading in the last shell into her shotgun, Emma pumped it and took aim, shooting two loud rounds into the gas tank of another car that was parked just three feet from them.
Regina covered her ears due to the explosion, and was quickly yanked up again and shoved into the Chevy. "Ow, my arm!" She shouted.
"Strap yourself in! We have to move!" Emma settled herself in the driver's seat, lucky to have found the keys to this vehicle hidden along the sun visor. She caught them with her hand and quickly turned the main key into the ignition, shifting into Reverse and flooring their way out of there. Tires screeching and all.
Regina screamed as whatever this thing was surprisingly jumped out of the wall of flames and onto the hood of their car. The machine's fist balled up and rammed into the windshield, breaking right through it. Another scream was heard from Regina as its tight grip, tighter than Emma's yanked on her jacket. She could hear a tear.
Emma grabbed onto the machine's arm, attempting with all her might to loosen its grip from Regina. With no success in doing so, Emma presses her boot harder along the gas pedal, all while keeping her hold on Regina and keeping the car from swerving so much. Once there's a clearing and they are out of the alley, Emma turns her wheel to a hard right, hearing the tires screech along the road, followed by an impact as the back of her car impacts with a police cruiser that is parked nearby. All while the T-800's body rolls off the hood and onto the street, giving Emma a chance to flee.
"This is 1L-19. I have a hit and run felony. Suspect vehicle, late model gray, Cadillac, heading on Westbound and 7th. I'm going to need an ambulance here, right now-" the rookie cop's eyes grew wide at the sight of what he thought was a man standing up. "Hey!"
The T-800 grabbed the officer by the collar of his uniform, slamming his head along the door frame, tossing his body along the road before setting itself into the cruiser and driving off.
Emma drove on with no intention of stopping. Not until she knew Regina was safe. Although, the only way she would be safe was to kill that damn thing for good. But that would come in time.
"What the hell is going on here? Who are you? What-?" Regina turned to Emma.
"Are you injured?" Emma asked, getting no response from Regina. "Are you shot?" She repeats.
"Look, I don't know who you are, but you need to let me out of this car, right now!" Regina shouts, attempting to open the door while pulling on the lock. She would jump out of this car if she had to just to get away from whoever this person was.
Emma on the other hand, reached for Regina's arm, yanking too hard again to keep her from attempting to exit the moving vehicle. She knew this wasn't going to be an easy task. Regina had no idea who she was, nor what she was meant to do yet. It was normal to be confused and frightened.
"Let me go!" Regina yanked her arm, releasing it from Emma's grip only for Emma to place her entire arm along Regina's chest, pinning her onto the passenger seat.
"Listen! I'm trying to help you!" Emma shouted, keeping her eyes on the road as she drove along. "But in order for me to do that, you have to do exactly as I say when I say it. You don't move unless I say. You don't draw a breath unless I say, do you understand? Do you understand me?!" She shouts, startling Regina.
"Yes!" Regina cries out. "Just, please don't hurt me."
Emma's arm unlocks its hold on Regina's chest, finding its place along the steering wheel again. "I know you don't believe me right now, Regina, but I'm here to help you."
Regina stares wide-eyed at Emma, wondering just how in the hell did she know her name, but didn't dare to ask. That was a question she stored in her memory for later.
"I'm Emma. Emma Swan, Sergeant TechCom, DN38416, assigned to protect you. You've been targeted for termination." Said Emma, momentarily slamming on the brake pedal followed by the gas pedal as she took a sharp left turn onto the next road.
"Termination?" Regina breathes, her eyes glued to Emma's stone-like profile. "But, why? Why me? I didn't do anything!"
"No, but you will. Trust me on that. It's very important that you live."
Regina shook her head, unable to comprehend all of this crazy information. "No. No, no! This is insane! You're crazy. You've got the wrong girl, okay? What is going on? How could that man get up after you-"
"That's not a man, Regina. It's a machine. A terminator. A Cyberdyne Systems Model 101." Said Emma.
"A machine?" Regina scoffs out a sob. "Like a robot?"
"Not a robot. A cyborg. A cybernetic organism." Said Emma, taking a sharp left turn that made Regina's body slam right into Emma's side. Hard.
"Jesus! You're going to get us both killed! Can you slow down?" Regina shouted, shoving herself away from Emma.
Emma's eyes looked through her rear view mirror, seeing sirens approaching close behind. "Get down. Keep your head down." She cupped the back of Regina's head, forcing her to duck down. Emma took a sharp right turn, followed immediately by a left into another dark alley. Emma slammed on her brakes hard before putting her car in reverse, slamming its rear into the police cruiser, causing it to come to a halt.
Emma raced out of the alley, flooring it into a parking lot, driving around until she reached the third floor. "Alright, you have to listen to me carefully, Regina. The terminator's an infiltration unit. Part man, part machine. Underneath it's a hyperalloy combat chassis, microprocessor controlled, fully armored, very tough. But on the outside, it's living human tissue. Flesh, skin, hair, blood, grown for cyborgs."
"What?" Regina shook her head, her brow furrowed frustratingly. "What the hell are you talking about? Look, Emma, I don't know what you want from me, but-"
"I want you to pay attention!" Emma breathed, her temple throbbing as she drove around. "And give me a minute. I have to ditch this car." She turned the car into a parking spot, shutting off the engine. Appreciating the quiet a little. Emma took that opportunity to settle herself in her seat, twisting her body so that she could face Regina's frightened and confused gaze. "Listen to me," she carried on in a more calmer tone of voice. "The 600 series had rubber skin. We could spot them easily. But these are new. They look human. Sweat, bad breath, very hard to spot." She shook her head. "I had to wait until it moved in on you before I could slow it down."
Under different circumstances, Regina could appreciate what beautiful green eyes Emma had. She had visible bags under her eyes from clearly lack of sleep, and she had a fairly visible scar along her bottom lip, halfway across her chin that you really had to stare at to catch its brand along her skin. But even that was beautiful. Then again, this wasn't the time for that. It would never be the time for that. Not anymore. Not with a baby growing inside of her.
"Look… Emma…" Regina breathed, her eyes locking onto hardened, tough lived green ones. "Stop treating me like I'm an idiot, because I assure you I'm not, okay? Now you listen to me," she paused to draw in a quick breath. "What you're saying is completely crazy. There is no way- they don't make things such as cyborgs yet."
"Not yet," Emma shook her head, her eyes piercing right through Regina's intensely. "Not for another forty years."
Regina remained silent for a good minute, attempting to comprehend what she was hearing. "Wha- are you saying it's from the future?" She asks.
Emma nods, "One possible future. From your point of view, I don't know tech stuff."
"And you're telling me that you're from the future, too. Is that right?" Regina asks.
Emma nods. "Right."
The scariest thing from Regina wasn't how insane this all sounded to her, and how it absolutely could not be possible. But at how serious and dark Emma's eyes looked as they stared into hers.
"Right," Regina murmured, quickly turning toward the door to attempt to pull on the handle that would get her away from whoever Emma thought she was.
Emma's arm stretched out, surprising Regina just how insanely strong Emma was by pressing her entire arm along her chest, her fingers and fist gripping tightly onto the label of her denim jacket, keeping her from running out of the car.
"Let me go!" Regina grabbed onto Emma's fist, failing as she attempted to pry the blonde's fingers open. So she did the next best thing she could think of. She bit down along the back of Emma's hand, which to her surprise, Emma didn't even scream from the pain.
The corner of Emma's lip twitched, not being a stranger to pain at all. She waited until Regina tired herself out of biting, and then pinned her back along the passenger seat again, catching her by her left wrist as her left hand swung in her direction, ready and willing to deliver a slap across her face. "Cyborgs don't feel pain. I do. Don't do that again." Emma hissed, glaring menacingly into Regina's eyes, even if she would never intentionally hurt her.
Emma could never harm Regina. She'd die first.
"You are crazy! You have to let me go!" Regina attempted to struggle again, being immediately halted by Emma.
"Listen!" Emma hissed through her clenched teeth, her eyes piercing right through her. "That terminator is out there! It can't be reasoned with, it can't be bargained with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear, and it absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until you are dead."
Regina breathed out, holding back a sob. Her eyes instead focused on Emma's before focusing on her tight grip along her wrist. Emma's eyes followed her grip, loosening it up.
"I'm sorry." Emma muttered, facing straight forward, willing herself to calm down.
Regina massaged her aching wrist, sitting back into her seat for a moment before turning back to Emma again. "Emma…" She spoke softer this time. "Can you stop it?" She asks.
Emma's head turns to Regina's direction after running her hand along her fallen strands of hair. She released a heavy sigh of exhaustion but gave herself no time to give into it. "I don't know." She answered truthfully, shaking her head. "With these weapons… I don't know." Her eyes find Regina's again, staring into them intensely and with something else Regina couldn't quite decipher. "But, I give you my word, Regina- just like I gave it before that I will protect you. I won't ever let it harm you, but you will have to listen to me. Stay with me, at all times, and I promise that it will have to get through me before it can get a hold of you."
Regina wasn't sure what it was about Emma. Her vow to protect her. How different her voice sounded from just a few minutes ago when she was trying to get away from her. Or how soft her eyes had turned in the blink of an eye. Something she didn't know someone like Emma was capable of. But there was something about Emma that called to her in that moment and made her believe her; even if all this terminator business still sounded crazy.
