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ลำดับตอนที่ #8 : Part 1: Chapter 6: Ghosts from the Past
TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES
REUNION
Part 1: The Shadow of Death
Chapter 6
Ghosts from the Past
"I do not know if there is a way to get rid of the ghosts from your past. I believe it is more of a conscious thing. We have to decide for [ourselves] that we are over the past; that we are ready to move on and be happy again in a new relationship. It is ultimately up to us - not anyone else. Once we decide that for ourselves, we can truly be happy." Relationships Happen: Battling the ghosts of the past, By Chelsea Underwood, March 17, 2010
"When a relationship dies, do we ever really give up the ghost or are we forever haunted by the spirits of relationships past." Sarah Jessica Parker, quote from Sex and the City
"The past is a ghost, the future a dream, and all we ever have is now." Bill Cosby
# # #
Extract from the Journal of John Connor
I've been asked if I was scared when I tell this story. I reply with a reassuring, "hell yeah!" Nothing is as scary as knowing there is a machine pursuing you. You personally. But I wasn't thinking of myself. I had Kyle and Allison with me. Allison I knew could take care of herself, but Kyle... Dammit, he's already been shot and has lost some blood. It was only Allison's quick actions and training that has prevented him from losing more blood than he has. The bouncing and swaying of the van hadn't done him any good either. I feared that if the paved roads were this bad after almost twenty years of neglect, how bad was the dirt road going to be in the desert? Our only hope lay in the weapon's cache. If Kyle survived the journey, he could rest there. If the weapons are gone, then we would be dead, all of us. And that would be my fault.
2027, Day 14, late afternoon
The late afternoon sun beat down on an old and dusty gray commercial van as it goes tearing down the ancient two lane high way. It quickly passes old cars abandoned when they ran out of gas or broke down, or when the people driving them realized there was no place to go after the bombs fell. It was now late afternoon.
Allison came forward and sat down in the passenger seat. The wind was rushing through where the windshield once was, blowing her hair about her face in long brown streamers. She doesn't bother to push it out her face as the wind blows it right back again.
"How's Kyle doing?" John asks her, his voice tinged with worry.
"The bleeding has stopped. I've done what I could with my meager med-kit, but he needs a doctor. He's got a bullet in his arm that should come out."
"What about his other injuries?"
"Clean shots, both of them. I cleaned both wounds and bandaged them the best I could. We'll have to clean and check them again later."
"Can you stitch him up?" John asks, glancing at her anxiously.
"I can't while we're moving, and even so, and doctor needs to examine the wounds before they close up. Just because the bullets passed through without nicking an artery, doesn't mean there isn't dirt inside the wounds."
John and Allison remain silent for quite a while. John slows the van down too almost a crawl. He knows by the landmarks he is getting close, but still there is a good chance of missing it, or turning off at the wrong place and getting axle deep in the sand. John is certain there is no triple-A in this future. A few triple-8's maybe, but he doubted that they would pull the van out of the sand for him. More likely just shoot him and the others and leave the van on the side of the road.
He finds the dirt track, just where he knew it would be. Before pulling onto it he tells Allison. "You'd better go back and hold Kyle steady. This road was rough in the best of times."
Allison quickly goes into the back of the van. John waits for to get into position, then pulls onto the track. As he drives straight into the desert, John looks up into the grayish blue sky. He remembers the first time he came here into the desert with his mom. He was just a kid.
A battered old Ford pickup travels through the desert sounding more like some giant child's rusty rattle than anything resembling transport. It comes to a stop and the cloud of dust that had been chasing it catches up to it and settles around the occupants.
"Where are we Mom?" John asks.
"Where we are supposed to be, John." His mom answers cryptically, ruffling the hair on his head.
He takes the canteen from his mom's outstretched hand. Remembering his training, John only takes a small amount. Swishing it around inside his mouth and holding it there, letting it moisten every surface before letting the refreshing water slowly travel to the back of his throat, where he swallows it.
John looks at his mom as he hands her the canteen. Again she is lost in thought. She does that often now. His mom once told him he was the spitting image of his father. His father. All the other kids he's known had fathers. All he has is the story his mom told him.
Sarah gives him a quick reassuring smile and exits the truck. John watches as his mother walks along the track, away from the truck along the same path, her feet somewhat dragging. She suddenly comes to a stop. She turns back at him and says. "Grab the bag. It's here."
John dutifully runs to the back of the truck and climbs up and grabs the heavy black bag. It's too heavy for him, but he won't show weakness in front of his mom. If she wants him to fetch the bag, then he is going to do it.
He hears a loud metallic sound from in front of the truck. He can only assume his mom is opening the hatch she was told about.
John drags the bag around to the front of the old Ford in time to see his mom drop the chain. A cloud of dust rises and drifts away.
She walks past him and reaches inside the truck, returning with the flashlight from the glove box.
He watches her flip the light on, and slowly descend the cement block steps, shining the light on the steps and the area beyond.
Juan Pedro told his mom about this place, before the men came and killed him. His mom didn't even shed a tear, though he knew she had been sleeping with him.
She tried to hide the more disagreeable side of her life from him when they were in Central America. But you can't exactly hide much in a two room shack. He didn't know at the time what Juan Pedro would do to his mom, but he had a good idea from what the other men would say in the camp. Then he got older and learned exactly what it was.
Juan Pedro was just one of the many men his mom would hook up with until she learned what she needed to know to train John. Juan was nice to him. Liked him because of their similar names. Juan was a gun runner. The first person to teach him about weapons. He used to boast to John about traveling across the border into the United States and back and no one found his weapons. Why? Because he had a secret.
Now here they were. Juan's secret. He didn't smuggle weapons across the border. He had them shipped via legitimate means, in crates marked for other items. This was his warehouse in the desert. Where the guns were hidden after removing them from the crates. Then the crates were repacked with legitimate items purchased here in the states and shipped to their final destinations.
His mom suddenly speaks. "Good ole Juan Pedro. You were the best my friend."
John follows his mom down the steps, lugging the heavy bag of weapons. The bag is heavy, he almost falls over from the weight. Reaching the bottom step, he suddenly finds the weight is too much and he drops them, making a loud crash.
Sarah turns to look and smiles, giving him a look of approval. John just smiles back. Pleasing his mother is something he likes to do, because he knows it makes her happy.
John remembers that day vividly. Using all the skills they learned, they memorized the ways to get there by using landmarks and the stars in the night sky. After that day, they made many trips to that location, in many different vehicles. Sometimes they brought more weapons, sometimes shelving units for storage, and even one time a generator.
Kyle groans and Allison works to hold him steady in the rocking van. John had taken the longer route by paved road as it would mean the shortest distance over the desert, but the route over the unpaved desert track wasn't any better than the paved roads.
They had traveled almost five miles on the desert tack, before he had turns off, following a dry wash. It was hard-baked clay, but even here you had to be observant as you never knew when water might be just below the surface. As John observed the trail ahead, he could tell this area must not have seen any rain in months and felt secure that the surface would be good.
The dry wash was smoother than even the paved roads, but that didn't last long. John sees the standing rock situated on the side of the wash. It had probably sat there for a thousand years, never budging no matter how much water flowed past it. Passing the rock, John turns south and stops after approximately one hundred fifty yards.
The engine is ticking from the heat. John checks the gauges, and everything looks fine. If the van fails them, it would be an awfully long hike back to the rest stop with an injured man.
"We're here." John says, hopping out of the van. He wastes no time, with no idea how long they have before the terminator catches up with them. There is no time to think just act.
Allison stands up in the van and looks out where the windshield used to be.
"There's nothing here!" Allison shouts, sounding a bit flustered.
"Just you wait and see." John replies with a grin, looking kind of odd on his dust and grit covered face.
Remembering what his mom did during all those trips out here to the desert, John walks five paces in front of the van until his feet hit the chain. He grabs the chain and pulls. With a grating sound so loud he thinks it can be heard for miles, the doors reluctantly slides open.
John turns around. Allison is standing beside the van her mouth gaping open. The look of shock and disbelief on her face is priceless. He smiles at the look on her face, but inwardly breathing a sigh of relief at being able to find the hidden doors.
"Come on. Let's get Kyle in the hideaway where it's cooler, then we can lay a trap for that machine out there."
# # #
Derek is pacing back and forth. His eyes are blood shot and there is an empty tin of home made booze on his desk.
He's damn worried about Kyle and Allison. Out there on a fool's errand and Sky Net is suddenly gotten active in the same area. For the life of him, he can't believe it's a coincidence.
Dammit! Why did I put my faith in that kid? He dazzled me with the promise of weapons and it was probably nothing more than a trap. But Sky Net doesn't go for the elaborate trap? Connor didn't appear in any way or form to be a gray? No it's got to be something, but what?
"Shit!" Derek yells and kicks his chair, sending it spinning across the room.
There is a knock on his door.
"What?"Derek yells, turning on the door yelling with ferocity, equal to the grizzly bear depicted on the flag hanging on the wall behind him.
"We've got news sir." A young officer says entering Derek's office.
"On Kyle?" Derek asks hopefully.
"Not exactly."
Derek picks his chair up and places it behind his desk, taking a seat. "Tell me." he says rather curtly.
"Your message has reached all bases, including Outpost Delta."
"Delta?" Derek glances at the map. That bunker was just commissioned and outfitted a week ago. A radio operator is on his way down from Sacramento, should be there today or tomorrow, depending on Sky Net. It doesn't even have a commanding officer yet.
"Yes sir. All patrols are ordered to be on a lookout for Kyle and his squad. So far none have reported seeing anything."
"Understood. Is there anything else?"
"Activity to the south has increased. Heavy metal incursions into previously held territory."
"What is it you aren't telling me lieutenant?"
With a sigh he continues, "We've lost the eagle's nest sir. Our only set of ears on Sky Net is gone."
Derek glares at him. "How?"
"We don't know. They were just beginning a transmission when they were cut off. Observers spotted smoke from their location."
"Thank you Lieutenant." Derek says. "You may go."
The lieutenant slowly backs out of the room.
Derek turns his attention to the map. Sky Net more active in the south. Kyle and Allison in the southern desert. Outpost Delta is also to the south. So is the Eagles Nest. That is destroyed, but Delta only a few miles away unmolested. Why?
He tries hard to put the worries about his brother and Allison out of his head and to look at the events as Sky Net would.
Humans are on the ground in previously unexplored area. Nothing in the desert for the resistance, so why go there? Now they are there with eyes on the ground. Sky Net would be curious. Send out a patrol, to observe would be logical, but what does it do, it masses its armies.
The Eagle's Nest was the resistance ears, listening in on Sky Net's transmission. That is in the south. Best location as there was no interference. It's been destroyed. But just a few miles away, outpost Delta, and that place is up and running. It was built and supplied from underground. The exterior hatch was put in under the cover of darkness. It is so new, not many in the resistance know about it yet.
As Derek scans the map and compares it to all the recent intelligence. He can come up with only one thing. There is something in that area Sky Net doesn't want the humans to find. Kyle's patrol must have spooked it. Made it think the humans were looking for something. Which means Sky Net has something in that area it doesn't want found, and if Sky Net doesn't want it found, then Derek is determined to find it.
"Lieutenant!" Derek yells. "Lieutenant! Get your ass back in here!"
He hears the guards outside repeating the order and then the sudden sound of rushing feet. There is a knock on his door, and then the young officer that just left steps back inside.
"Assemble four squads of eight soldiers each. Night vision goggles, heavy weapons. You are to lead one squad, get Manny and Carla to lead the other two, I'll take the forth."
"Um, uh, sir! Where are we going?" The lieutenant asks. Just moments ago, his commander looked like hell, now he looks like he's getting ready to wrestle a bear.
"Right here!" Derek says, his finger touching the map in the middle of all the recent activity. "Sky Net has got something there it doesn't want found. So I want to find it. Grab your rifle Lieutenant. We're going rabbit hunting." Derek finishes with a growl, as he grabs his personal rifle from its place.
The lieutenant glances at the map and then quickly follows.
# # #
The first thing John and Allison did, was to make a bed from some cases for Kyle to rest on in the underground hideaway. They then carried Kyle down the steps, carefully and laid him on the make-shift bed.
"How bad is he?" John asks. Kyle had been switching in and out of consciousness and groaning with every move they made.
"The bullets that went through his hip and leg were thru-n-thru, the third bullet is lodged in his right arm. He was lucky none had hit a major artery or he would have bled out." Allison said looking over her patient.
"Will he be okay by himself? Cos I'm going to need your help to prepare for that machine out there."
Allison looks at John, worried. "He'll have to be, because if we don't stop that machine, we're all dead anyway, aren't we?"
"We'll get through this." John says trying to comfort her the best he an under the circumstances. Truth be told, his heart is racing, the adrenalin pumping through his system like crazy.
"Have you got a plan?"
"Yes." John says firmly. "I want to capture that machine and remove its chip."
Alison's face changes from one of worry to surprise and then a big smile plays across her face looking triumphant for its arrival on the face where it looks best.
"What do you need me to do?" Allison asks, still smiling.
John quickly explains, and then they both get to work.
Allison drives the van to a location behind a small dune to hide it. When she closes the door, some sand slides down revealing a black truck under the sand. She'll tell John about it later, she thinks. Right now its more important to prepare for that terminator that's chasing us.
John pulls out a roll of steel mesh used to provide extra traction to vehicles on steep hills, soft earth, etc. His mom had brought it in after one day when their vehicle got stuck. Only problem being, if they used it, it meant someone had to walk back and put it away and close the hatch.
John carries it to the steps just as Allison arrived. Telling her quickly what he needed her to do, he goes to work. While Allison unrolls the mesh and buries it in the sand leading up to the hatch, John primes the generator and fills the fuel tank from one of the drums of fuel.
Kyle wakens in time to see John go scurrying out the hatch with a roll of cable and a metal rod. He looks around, but can't see much in the dark with the bright desert light coming through the hatch.
John attaches one wire from the cable to the metal mesh. The other wire he leaves long and attaches it to a metal rod that was a diagonal brace from one of the shelf units in the hideaway. He buries the cable but leaves the rod and the extra length of cable behind some brush.
John and Allison go back inside the hideaway to find Kyle awake.
"Hey. How are you feelin?" John asks, pleased to see him conscious.
"Tired I guess. Where are we?"
"You're about twelve feet below ground." John answers. "This is the desert hideaway where my mom hid weapons."
"The weapons?"
"They're here Kyle." John says, then takes a flashlight and shines it into the gloom. Rack after rack of automatic weapons, boxes of ammunition, grenade launchers, and all manner of heavy caliber machine guns are revealed.
Kyle looks about in wonder. Throughout the war, neither he nor Derek have ever seen so many weapons together in one place.
Allison places a comforting hand on Kyle's shoulder. "You should rest. We've still got some more work to do."
She gives him a drink of water from a canteen, then lends John a hand carrying some cases up from the hideaway. They place a small stack to the left of the bunker and another small stack to the right, next to the brush. Behind each stack, they hollow out a space in the sand for more room and to provide more cover. John and Allison select from the cache automatic assault rifles for both spots.
Allison surveys the work they have done. Earlier, she had swept away the tire tracks of the van so that they disappeared before they got to the hatch. She also removed any sign of where she hid it.
"You know John, just because we set a trap for the terminator that is out there, it doesn't mean it will come right to this spot, following our tracks."
John frowns. "What do you propose?"
"I can lead it here." She answers. John looks shocked but waits and listens. "I go out to where we turned off the dry wash. I can use the rock there for cover until it gets close. I reveal myself. It will chase me."
John shakes his head. "It's too dangerous for you. It could kill you and I need you here."
"The whole situation is dangerous. Is it any safer for you handling a live cable from the generator?" She places her hand on her hips. "I can do this John. I'm fast. I'm the fastest runner in the camps." She says earnestly.
John sees the eagerness and honesty in her expression. He knows she is right, just because the tracks lead here, doesn't mean the machine will follow them exactly.
"All right. Do what you said you would do. When you run towards us, you run straight for the hatch, but don't go in. Leap over it, go around it, whatever you have to do, and get behind the stack of boxes on the right. I'll be behind the other one."
Allison turns to leave.
"Allison wait!"
"What?" She asks looking over her shoulder.
"Be careful." John says sounding worried.
"You too." She says quickly and heads for the dry wash.
Without watching her walk away, John goes down the steps into the hideaway to check on and speak with Kyle.
"Hey Kyle, how are you holding up?" John asks, trying to sound cheerful.
"I'm okay now that I've been resting. What have you two been up to?"
"We've been laying in an ambush for our metal friend out there."
"Is there something I can do to help?" Kyle says sounding more friendly toward John than anytime before.
John grins, there is something he'd like Kyle to do.
"With that bullet in your arm, can you still handle a weapon?"
"Yeah, I think so." He winces a bit as he tries to move his bandaged arm.
John pulls out an M79 grenade launcher from a container. "Can you handle this?"
"Just try and stop me." He flashes a crooked smile and then asks. "What's your plan?"
"The idea is to lead the metal straight here. You'll be down here, with this. As soon as you see it standing at the top of the steps fire the weapon. You will only have one chance. The grenade may or may not damage it, but the explosion should throw him backwards onto the metal mesh outside in the sand. It is electrically charged. However, he won't be electrocuted until I complete the link. As soon as I see it get hit, I'll take off running towards it and make the link. Allison will be covering me with an automatic rifle and another grenade launcher."
"That sounds pretty good, but why not just take it out with explosives?"
"Two reasons. One, the proximity of these weapons and ammunition, we may all go up in the explosion; And two, if I can shock it then I can remove the chip and hopefully reprogram it."
"Now just how the hell, are you going to do that Connor?" Kyle asks with disbelief.
"I did it to the other one." John pulls the chip from his pocket and shows it to him.
Kyle grins. Damn, the kid lobotomized a triple-8. Shit. Isn't there anything this kid can't do? He shakes his head and says, "You know I think my brother was right, you are going to be famous. But how are you going to make sure you lead the terminator to where you want?"
John looks down at his feet. "There is something I need to tell you. Allison has offered to act as bait and lead it here."
The look Kyle gives John is something fierce. His voice registers as almost a deep growl. "Connor, you better make damn sure you know what you are doing. If anything happens to Allison, you'd better pray to God that metal takes you down, or I will."
John has a feeling Kyle would keep his word. Inwardly he was praying it would work or they would all perish.
# # #
In a massive factory, smoke belches, flames shoot up into the cavernous interior lighting up machines constructing something new, something huge, something that has never walked the earth before.
Robotic arms move in lowering a section in to place. Welding arc lamps come on as they weld the section into place. Once welded in place, another set of arms swing another piece into place and complete a similar task.
But for the lights from the flames and the sparks from welding, the place is dark. Any human working there would not be able to see a thing, but no human works here. The noise is loud from the constant hum of machinery. Large overhead cranes move just under the roof carrying parts. Like micro stars, small lights on the underside of the crane light up the work being done below.
A large object, the size of a VW Bus, is lowered until it reaches the lower mid section of the machine below. Hatches slide open and the nuclear generator is inserted. Power and control linkages are instantly made. The hatch slides shut, locking in place. Lights and sensors come on automatically on the creatures head. Tactical display comes up on its HUD and sensory data is fed to it. A quick scan reveals none of the targets it's been programmed with. Data feeds into it from Sky Net Central, updating its computer with new mission parameters.
The crane moves out and another rolls into place. It lowers something far more insidious than a small nuclear generator. The machine is now armed with a plasma cannon.
# # #
The sun is closer to the horizon. John licks his lips wondering how close that machine is. He doesn't bother to entertain the thought that it might call off its pursuit. Machines never stop. John feels certain it won't be much longer before it arrives.
Kyle is down below, ready to flip the switch to the electric as soon as he sees Allison clears the hatch. Beside him on his makeshift bed, lays the grenade launcher, already loaded. He can't wait to fire on that metal bastard. It's cost him his command and would have killed him but for John's stubbornness.
Allison is waiting by the edge of the dry wash, using the standing rock as a shield from the sun. The bright light makes it hard to see, but that shouldn't be a problem. The naked metal of the terminator should reflect light giving away its position.
She moves around the rock, staying low and trying to stay in its shadow. Her eyes never leaving the tracks they left on the dry wash, nor the surrounding desert.
John's position is right out in the sun. The sweat is just pouring off of him. He doesn't know if it's from the heat or from worry about Allison. She offered to lead it to the trap, as the machine could figure out where they had gone and possibly come at them unawares. Damn dangerous, but very brave of her.
He mops the sweat from his brow. John knows that giving the machine a target to pursue would guarantee they could lead it where they wanted it to go. Allison claimed to be able to outrun it, but this would put her in more danger than any of them.
Allison scans the desert from her position next to the standing rock. She is trying to put herself in the machine's position. If the machines were out here, then they must have scanned the area and know all the possible and actual roads in the desert.
If she were pursuing herself and the others, she would pick a direction to come from other than what they took to get here. John indicated there was more than one route to the hideaway. There could be many roads intersecting the dry wash.
Allison decides to change her position, to move further from the dry wash to observe both approaches, from both up and down river. She gets up from the shadow in which she was crouched in and walks around the rock to head back up the dirt track. As she rounds the rock, she encounters the machine.
John dries his sweaty palms on his shirt. He is just raising the canteen to his mouth to take a swallow of water when he hears Allison yell, followed by gunfire.
Neither the terminator nor Allison expected to encounter the other. As soon as the machine sees Allison, it begins scanning her. It only takes a second, but that is enough time for Allison to make her move.
She pulls her knife from its sheath and with lightning speed, jams it into the gun's mechanism, snapping off the point, rendering the gun useless. The machine drops the gun, grabbing Allison by the front of her jacket and throws her. With a yell of surprise, she sails twenty feet landing in the soft sand of the dirt track.
The machine marches towards her, limping slightly. She raises her M-16 and fires several rounds at its head. Then she gets up and runs like hell for the hideaway.
After hearing Allison's yell and the gunfire, John had to fight hard to keep from blowing his cover. His heart is pounding in his chest. He waits anxiously and then he sees Allison running towards him flat out and just fifty yards behind her is the Terminator that they hit on the road.
Allison runs right up to the hatch and in an amazing leap clears it, and rolls across the ground. As soon as she comes to a stop, she dives into the hollow behind the cases and grabs one of her weapons. At the same moment, the lights came on in the hideaway.
John stays out of sight ready to move. Inwardly he is relieved that Allison is okay. The terminator slows to a walk as it gets closer. John's throat goes dry. As the terminator walks toward the hatch, John grabs the rod. He can feel a slight tingle as the current travels through him to reach the ground.
Kyle had been waiting anxiously down below. He had also heard Allison yell. Unlike John, he had actually moved in fear for her safety, the pain from his wounds forcing him back down.
He looks up in time to see Allison fly over the hatch opening. He reaches over, flipping the switch sending power out from the generator.
Kyle grabs the grenade launcher with his good arm and tries to aim, using his injured arm to support the gun. The launcher was shaking in his grip, and he was fighting to hold it steady when the terminator came into view. Seeing the machine focuses his mind, the launcher steadies, and he pulls the trigger.
John sees the explosion and watches as the terminator is flung back away from the hatch landing on its back on the wire mesh. The moment he saw the machine lift off up the ground, John ran forward. Leaping into the air, he comes down, jamming the rod into its body at the moment it hit the ground and the wire mesh.
Allison watches as John leaps, shoving the metal pole into the terminators body. There is a huge burst of sparks and she watches as John is flung off into the scrub.
From John's perspective, he briefly saw some sparks, and then everything went black. John didn't hear Allison screaming his name or hear the automatic gunfire. He never even felt himself fly through the air and land in the brush. For John, the world had suddenly grown very dark and very quiet.
# # #
Derek and his team run through the tunnels to reach a location as close to the area on the map as he can get without being observed. The Lieutenant, who saw him previously, could only wonder at the man's stamina as he leads them through the tunnels after drinking an entire tin of home made hooch. Half a tin of the paint stripper puts most men under the table, and this guy is running a damn marathon.
Reaching a ladder, Derek climbs up it and lifts the old manhole cover slowly. Derek takes his time scanning the area around the manhole. You can never tell when some machine may get the notion to watch one of the many exits used by the resistance. Derek feels secure they don't know about this one, but they are venturing very close to Sky Net's recent activity, so you never know.
Feeling secure, Derek pushes the manhole cover back, sliding it along the ground, and scrambles up onto the surface. Staying down low, he turns in a full circle, his finger resting on the trigger. He sees nothing and nothing fires on him.
"Squad One, get up here." Derek orders.
The men and women quickly scramble up and take positions similar to their leaders. Scanning the broken buildings and burnt out cars for any sign of a machine presence.
Derek lowers his rifle and leans over the gaping hole. "The coast is clear. All of you, get up here, now!"
It takes several minutes for his remaining platoon to join him on the surface. Sliding the manhole cover back in place, he gives the order and they all scurry to an almost standing building for shelter from the ever observant machines.
"This is what we are going to do." Derek says his eyes scanning the faces in the room. "Sky Net has something out here. Something it doesn't want us to find."
"Do you know what that could be sir?" One of the soldiers ask.
"Not a clue. So keep your eyes open for anything. And do not let yourselves be seen."
"This going to be a grid search pattern. Lieutenant, you and Manny take two squads and head east. After you go about a mile, drop off one squad that will move south. The other will continue heading east for another mile before they too, turn south. I will lead one squad from this point heading south. Carol will go one mile west before turning south with her squad. Any questions?"
"If we find something, how do we get in touch with the others?" Someone asks.
"Each squad will leave one person here. If your squad encounters something that is definitely worthy of attention, send someone back here, the others will go search out their comrades and relay the information."
Derek looks at the hastily assembled team. "Are all of you clear on what we are doing?"
"Yes sir!"
"Good. Move out!"
# # #
Allison watches John with a mixture of pride and concern as he rushes at the machine to complete the electrical current.
He jams the rod into its body. There is a spout of sparks and then an electrical arc jumps from the linkage through John, whose feet are still on the ground. With the sound of an exploding transformer, John is flung up and out into the scrub.
"Jooohhhnn!" Allison screams and rushes forward.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Kyle yells from below.
"Kill the power! Kill the power!" Allison yells.
She reaches the machine twitching on the ground as electricity courses through it. The sparking comes to as stop.
She walks up to it, her feet on the wire mesh. Placing the muzzle of her weapon against the chip port, she fires her gun until the chip and port is completely obliterated.
Allison then rushes to John's side. Kyle still yelling for answers from the hideaway.
She pulls John from the scrub and checks his vitals quickly. He's not breathing. There's no pulse.
"Noooo!" She yells and begins dragging John's limp body to the hideaway.
"What's going on out there?" Kyle yells.
Allison comes down the steps, half dragging and half carrying John's body. Her arms are wrapped around his chest, his arms and head just hanging limp. Tears are running down her face.
"I need your help Kyle." She says placing John's body on the floor. "His heart has stopped and he's not breathing." She says through quiet sobs.
"You'll have to breathe for him while I do CPR. Can you do that?"
Kyle nods his head emphatically and crawls off his bed to help her. The tears in her eyes say it all. She's made her decision.
Kyle tilts John's head back and begins performing mouth-to-mouth while Allison begins chest compressions.
"1, 2, 3, 4 5." Allison counts off her chest compressions and then Kyle breathes into John's lungs. They do this over and over until suddenly John lets out a groan.
With fresh tears of relief coursing down Allison's face, she checks John's breathing and pulse.
"So, how is he?" Kyle asks.
"He's alive, but unconscious." She says, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Does he mean that much to you?" Kyle asks, with a saddened face.
Allison looks at him nodding her head, her face a mixture of worry, concern and relief.
"All right. I'll keep an eye on him. Looks like you'll be pulling guard duty until we are both on our feet."
"Thank you Kyle." She says, getting up and grabbing her rifle from where she hastily set it when she laid John on the ground.
"For what?" Kyle asks.
She places a sisterly kiss on his cheek. "For understanding." She helps him onto his bed made from weapon cases.
"You call me if he wakes." She says, her face laced with worry.
"Sure." He replies.
Allison goes to the top of the steps and sits with her back to Kyle. Against her wishes, she finds herself crying more tears of relief that John is alive. She never expected to feel this way, but then . . . why shouldn't she?
# # #
Hours drift by. The scream of jet engines fill the evening sky as Hunter Killers attack human resistance forces on the ground.
Huge Ogres and Centaurs crawl through the rubble of a million cities around the world, crushing the bones, the dead, and the rubble under their treads with equal regard for all. Killing in mass or individually any human that ventures outside.
On every continent men and women fight for their survival. Some are lucky and still manage a meager living growing grain, fruit, vegetable or cattle for those who fight for them all. Some use their skills in engineering, manufacturing, to build and maintain weapons for human resistance. Wherever they are, word gets out and trade is arranged. Shipments are made, some over land and some over or under the seas.
Unfortunately there are those who take advantage of the situation. Wicked men and women who steal, kill, rape, murder and plunder for what they need to survive. How much stronger would the resistance be if these people would turn from their wicked ways and help their fellow humans to fight? But no matter the situation, there are always those who look out for themselves only. The war against the machines is no different.
Men and women fight on every continent, in every city to take back what is theirs. Some fight as they've known no other way of life since the bombs fell. Some fight as they remember the world as it was before the machines took over and they want it back. The green fields, the little villages, or big cities filled with people. Shopping malls. Weekdays of school or work and weekends with the family. For them, fighting for the world and the people they love is what drives them to win.
The remnants of the US Military have fought long and hard to reclaim their country from the computer system that has taken over the world. And quietly, word spreads among the military, a message of hope.
"Hope is on the horizon. The time has come to take the fight to the machines. Someday soon, a new voice will be heard and the fight will change. No longer will we fight to survive, but we will fight to win. Some of you have asked me to lead. That's not my job. I have only prepared the way. Prepared the way for hope."
Some shake their heads in disbelief. Others cling to it in hopes the word is true and others are yet still unconvinced or indifferent to the words of hope. But for one individual, who has remained vigilant throughout waiting for him to appear, the words of hope from The Prophet makes him cheer.
# # #
John opens his eyes to see darkness. His first thought is that the sun had set. Then he realizes there aren't any stars. The next thing he notices, his head is hurting.
He groans. "Uuuhhhggggg."
"Hey Allison! He's waking up!" Kyle shouts. His words feel like a spike being driven through John's head.
I must be in the hideaway, he thinks.
A moment later Allison is kneeling beside him a few tears on her cheeks. "I was so worried. I thought we were going to lose you."
"What happened?" John asks in a low voice, hoping the others will take the hint.
"The electrical current knocked you out. Your heart had stopped. We managed to resuscitate you with CPR."
"What happened to the machine?" John asks.
"It's destroyed." She says. Allison knows that John wanted to try and capture it, but there wasn't time, not if she was to save his life.
"What?" John asks with surprise.
"The electrical shock threw you into the scrub brush. I thought you were dead." She wipes her eyes and continues speaking. "The machine was laying there twitching and moving from the electricity going through it. I shouted at Kyle to cut the power. I fired repeatedly into its head with my automatic rifle until I destroyed its chip."
"But you're okay?" John asks, focusing his eyes on the young woman. Allison being alive and unhurt is more important than any machine.
"I'm okay now John. I thought you had died." And with that she buries her face in his chest and cries.
John tries to comfort her the best he can, stroking her hair softly as he speaks. "That's all right. We're okay now."
Kyle clears his throat and speaks up, "We'll stay here overnight and head out tomorrow morning. I'll take first watch."
And with that, he drags himself to the hatch opening where he can keep watch. He shouldn't have done it, because of his injuries, but Kyle's only thought was to give John and Allison some time to be alone for a few minutes. Allison's made her choice and well, he has to admit, that kid has got more nerve and balls than he's seen in many a day. Both her and Derek saw something in Connor that he didn't or maybe even still doesn't see. Whatever it is the kid's got, he can't begrudge him or her any longer.
Kyle sits down with a groan facing the open hatch above. "Hey Connor." Kyle says over his shoulder.
"Yeah." John says glancing at him
"Your one hell of a soldier kid." Kyle looks back at him and nods his head in approval.
John smiles his thanks at him, and lays his head back down.
From the Journal of John Connor
I don't think Kyle was angry with me any more, and for once, I didn't mind being called kid. I don't know what it was that set him off against me, but it felt good to be in his good graces for a change. Maybe he and Allison talked while I was out of it. Should I ask? Probably best if I don't.
It felt kind of strange but pleasant with Allison by my side laying on the floor of the hideaway. I wish things could be different. Her liking me really left me feeling confused. I wished Cameron was here, but I was here because of her and for her. Allison laying beside me with her head on my chest didn't make me feel any better about that, but her presence was comforting.
In moments, John finds himself falling back to sleep. Allison continues to lay beside him, her head on his chest listening to his heart beat. She was so scared when he almost died. She should have done more to protect him. But what more could she have done? But it's okay now. John's alive. Her fire of hope has been rekindled.
# # #
Eight people sit under a ledge of concrete from a partially collapsed building. Hunter Killer's fly overhead, the vibration of their engines making the buildings shake around them.
"Looks like we're stuck here for the night sir." A female soldier says to Derek.
"So it seems." Derek squints, thinking. "This shelter is no good. We're protected from being observed from overhead, but there is nothing to keep us being seen at ground level."
An HK screams overhead drowning out the answer of the soldier.
"What was that?" Derek asks.
"I don't think we've got much of a choice sir." She replies, gesturing around them at the devastation.
"No. We don't. Let's just hope the other squads are having better luck. Cos it looks like we're sitting tight while the HK's are flying."
"There is one good thing about the HK's being here sir."
"What's that?" Derek asks.
"It confirms your theory that Sky Net has something here it doesn't want us finding."
Derek glances at another HK flying past a few blocks away. She's right.
2027, Day 15
John wakes to see a patch of bluish black sky through the hatch. Just a few stars are visible in the growing light. The sun will be rising soon, and with it, the heat.
Allison is still beside him, her head nestled on his shoulder, and her arm across his chest. If it were any other time, he would have lain there enjoying the moment, but he knows they have to make a move. They have to load the van with weapons, followed by a long trip.
He gently shakes Allison. She groans and stretches and makes as if to go back to sleep. John gently shakes her again.
"Good Morning sleepy head." He says in hopes of waking her.
"Oh John, is it morning all ready?" Allison mumbles as she wipes the sleep from her eyes.
"Yeah we need to get up. We've got a lot to do today."
"All right." She then stands up and proceeds to stretch cat-like. It sent a shiver of arousal through John, but he buries it deep as this wasn't the time or place for such things. He wonders briefly if she did that on purpose, but before he could decide she was thrusting her hand out to give him a hand off the floor.
"How do you feel this morning?" Allison asks, looking him over.
"Speaking for someone who was just electrocuted," John grins "I feel shocked."
Allison groans then chuckles at John's attempt at humor to lighten the moment.
It was then that they noticed Kyle. He had fallen asleep on the steps into the hideaway. He never bothered to wake either of them up to relieve him at watch.
Feeling a little guilty for not waking themselves to relieve him, they approached Kyle to wake him. They hate to disturb him but they can't get out with him on the steps.
Allison wakes Kyle gently and they both give him a hand outside. John helps him to a spot behind some scrub where he can relieve himself. Then while he waits, John does the same. Allison goes off to another location to take care of her needs.
While she has some privacy, Allison pulls off her shirt and jacket to check for any injuries from where the machine threw her. She is relieved to find nothing more than some mild abrasions.
Allison pulled her clothes back on and straightens them out the best she can. She is finding it impossible to look her best under these circumstances, but any little bit helps. Hopefully she will have time to get cleaned up a little when they stop to refill the canteens at the well.
John and Allison proceed to clean up the area around the hatch. John takes a moment to observe the terminator. There is a hole big enough to put his fist into where its chip once resided.
John looks at Allison and says, "Remind me never to make you angry."
She laughs and then they drag the endoskeleton into the desert and bury it in the soft sand.
John is a little surprised to find the mesh, cables, and rod are blackened by the electrical current. He rolls them all up and sets them aside. John check the connections he made at the generator and finds he had accidentally connected one of the wires to the wrong post. The generator has a two phase 240VAC output. When he made the connection, he accidentally connected the leads to both 120VAC outputs rather than just one output and a ground. When he made the link to the machine, both 120VAC currents went through him to the ground. He cursed himself for being a fool and not taking the time to double check his work despite the need to save time.
"Hey John." Kyle shouts. "This ground is kind of soft. I don't think we'll be able to load as much into the van as it can carry without getting stuck."
"I know, and the mesh isn't long enough to reach the dry wash. Hang on a moment."
John runs down the steps. They had hooked the lights up to the generator and the interior was well lit. John walks over to a work bench setup to repair and clean weapons and takes a clipboard out of a file drawer.
He runs back outside and hands it to Kyle.
"What's this?" Kyle asked.
"It's the inventory list my mom had kept of the weapons she kept stocked. You tell me what's on the list that you know Derek needs the most, and we'll take that. Next time out we can either have more gas and ferry loads between here and the rest stop or else have more than one vehicle."
Kyle flips through the list, noting all items they need on a scrap piece of paper.
"Your mom must have been quite the woman." He says writing out a list.
"If you only knew." John replies. Kyle gives him a questioning look, but John just grins.
Kyle hands John the list. He goes down inside to find those items required while Allison fetches the van. John finds the first few items and drags them to the steps. He looks up to see the van backing up to the hatch.
John grabs a case of C4. He adds some extra detonators and remote switches, not knowing what they would eventually be used for. But he takes enough to take down a good sized building. John carries to the steps and is surprised to see that Allison had managed to drag the case of RPG's and the case of launchers up the steps that he had previously brought to the steps.
Wow! She may be lean but she is strong, he thinks.
"That dune I parked the van behind isn't natural." She says to John after he puts the case in the van.
"What is it?" John asks.
"It's an old black truck." She answers. "There must have been a sandstorm sometime ago. You can see all the loose sand about, but just a few inches down the ground is hard. The vehicle must have acted as a windbreak and all of the sand piled up against it. Eventually some seeds took root adding to the disguise."
"I'll check it out. Can you get those other cases up here?"
"Sure." She answers with a smile.
John jogs over to the dune and notices that it does look out-of-place, not natural to the landscape.
He walks around to the other side of the dune, and sure enough there is a truck there. John goes forward and peers through the window. It is dark inside, so he pulls his flashlight from his pocket and shines it inside.
He is shocked to see the mummified remains of a body, slumped over the steering wheel. He moves the light along the body, its arm still outstretched on the steering column. Then he sees the keyring.
He begins smashing the flashlight against the window, but unlike in the movies, it doesn't do a thing. Yelling he tries pulling on the door handle, but it won't open.
With a loud incoherent yell, he takes his rifle and smashes the butt of it against the window. The glass shatters. He leans inside and pulls out the keys. They are his mom's.
Crying he sinks to the ground, his back to the vehicle.
# # #
"All right guys." Derek is talking to his troops after they reassembled near the manhole where they came out. "I know the previous twelve hours didn't produce positive results, but last nights activity does confirm for me that there is something here."
The people listen aptly, some showing some signs of being tired.
Derek points to a rough checkerboard grid he had scratched into the dirt on the floor. "Last night, we were here and observed several HK's flying on a northwesterly to southeasterly direction and back, for the most part. Did anyone observe something similar?"
"Sir." A man almost Derek's age holds his hand up. "We were about five miles North-northeast of your position. We could see the HK's disappear behind a ridge and reappear."
"Show me exactly on the map." Derek says and hands the stick to him.
"Running parallel to the mountains are a range of hills." He draws a line across the grid. "We would see the HK's disappear and reappear in a valley here." He then places an X on the map.
Derek looks at the hand drawn map. "Well looks like we know where Sky Net is hiding it. Now we just need to find out what it is."
"Grab your gear people. We're heading out." Derek pats the man on the shoulder. "Good job Manny."
Derek grabs some people at random out of the group. "You stay here and watch our six. If we have to exit in a hurry, I don't want to come back to find this place swarming with metal."
# # #
Kyle and Allison look up as they hear John cry out followed by the unmistakable sound of breaking glass.
"Wait here." Allison says rushing off, her rifle ready.
"Where am I going to go?" Kyle says sarcastically.
"Noooooo." John cries "Noooooo."
He can't believe it. John clutches the key ring in his hand. He leans against the vehicle, tears streaming down his face. His system flushed with anger and grief.
John can't believe his mother came out here to the desert, only to die here.
Allison approaches quickly, but seeing John isn't in any immediate danger, she slings her rifle back on her shoulder.
"What's wrong?" She asks.
John struggles to come up with the words. How can he explain, but the grief he feels, she could see it on his face and there is no hiding that.
"This vehicle was my mom's." John says.
"But what is it doing here? You said you were ambushed just this side of the border and all were killed."
"I only thought all were killed." John covers his lie quickly. "But this is her car. This is her key ring. I made it for her in shop class for Mother's Day. See here. Our initials, S C and J C, intertwined."
"Okay, this might be her car but it doesn't mean she drove it here."
"No one knew about this place but me and her. The only other ones who knew are dead. If her car is here that means she's here and she's dead! There is a corpse behind the wheel."
John continues to stare at the key ring in his hand.
Allison peers inside the vehicle.
"How tall was your mom?" She asks, observing the mummified remains.
"Huh, What?"
"How tall was your mom?"
"About 5 feet 6 inches. Why?"
"Because this body is at least 6 feet 2 inches and the hips are too narrow to be a woman's."
John gets up and looks back inside. She is right.
"The body isn't hers." John says feeling elated.
"Take this." John hands her his rifle and scrambles inside to check out the interior. The back of the truck is empty.
So if she brought anything she must have unloaded it first. Or else, she came to pick something up and didn't get the chance. Her back pack isn't here. When coming out here she never travels without it. Which means she left by other means. The answer must be in the hideaway.
Excited, John climbs back out through the window and runs back to the hideaway. Allison not too far behind still carrying his rifle.
"Where are you going?" She calls after him.
"What's up Connor?" Kyle said as he runs past and down into the hideaway.
John can hear their voices faintly outside, while he begins searching.
"What's up with Connor?"
"He's found his mom's truck. There was a body inside, but it wasn't his mom's."
"So what is he doing now?"
"I guess he's looking for some clue as to what happened to her." Allison says, waiting outside.
Allison was right. John was searching for some clue. Torn between hope of finding something and not finding anything. Fearing that his mom's last days had ended here.
John was using his flashlight, having turned off the generator early to conserve its fuel. He was making his way back through the shelf units looking for something out-of-place. It wasn't until he got to the very back when he found it.
There were two bags on the floor. One had a tag marked Derek and the other had one marked John. A quick check showed that it held some clothing. Ripping the tag off, John hides it behind some boxes,not wanting any questions as to how a bag with Derek's name on it got to be in the hideaway.
John rips open his bag to find his clothes, some of his computer parts, and nestled between two sweatshirts is his laptop.
"Thank you mom." John says.
If his computer still worked, he could use it to reprogram the chips from the terminators. He takes if and all of the electronic bits and wraps it up in some sweatshirts and stuffs them in a shoulder bag.
When he set his flashlight down to put the items in the bag, that's when he saw the large bundle wrapped in plastic on the bottom shelf, roughly the size of a human.
With shaking hands, John reaches out and brushes the dust off of it. Unsuccessfully, he tries to shift it, but it is heavy. He can't see through the plastic, but it looks like a body.
Could someone have killed my mom and hid her body down here? John thought. He knew he couldn't leave this place without checking.
John repositions his flashlight on a box, and pulling out his knife, he carefully slits open the plastic near what could be a persons head.
He flips back the first layer of plastic and an envelope falls out. John picks it up. The first thing he notices, is that it has yellowed with age. The second thing he sees, his name is written on it in his mom's handwriting.
With shaking hands, John opens it. Inside he finds a letter and a photograph, from his mom.
Dear John,
I worry about you. You are my son. I will always worry about you.
You have an important job to do now. Please, don't worry about me.
I am giving you something you left behind. It is safer with you than with me.
I know you will take care of it. Your gift has been very helpful.
Thank you for the warning about the cops making a security sweep at 10:15 PM.
I got out of there just in time.
Love always,
Mom
John didn't know what she meant by a gift he had given her, nor the warning. John looks at the photograph. It is the one taken of her on her first trip to Mexico when she was pregnant with John. It was the only photograph she had of herself. She looked very pretty, yet sad in the photograph.
If his mom had written him a note and put it inside the bundle, then it can't be his mom's body. Could it be? She mentioned giving him something that he had left behind. That he could take care of it.
Nerving himself up, he grabs his flashlight and leans in for a closer look. Swallowing nervously, he pulls back that last layer of plastic.
John's heart skips a beat as his eyes look upon the last thing he had expected. Cameron! He couldn't believe it! The flesh and hair on her head was completely restored! She looked just like she did on that first day he met her.
"Oh Cameron. Why did you do it? Why did you give up your chip? I could have fixed you. I know I could have." I didn't realize I was going to speak or what I was saying until the words left me.
"I'm sorry I didn't believe you. You lied to me so often. How could I believe that you loved me. By the time I learned, it was too late. You had willingly sacrificed yourself to rescue my mom, when we should have left as mom told us. I love you Cameron. I'll try to get your chip back I promise."
Tears were running down his face as he kissed Cameron's cheek.
"I love you Cameron." He says, wiping the tears from my face. Then he pulls the plastic closed around her and reseals it the best he can.
# # #
Deep in the mountains, in an ancient cold war bunker, two women are talking. One in her mid fifties, the other in her mid twenties.
"We'll need to leave soon. Resources are getting low." The older woman tells her younger friend.
"I know." She answers, placing a comforting arm around her. "Where do you want to go?"
"South. In four weeks time. We'll start heading south, keeping to the old hiking trails."
"What about your radio messages?"
"No more. I've said all that I can. We just have to wait, but we'll take the radio with us." She replies sitting on her bunk. "Let everyone know we'll be leaving soon. One bag each. We'll start by sending small groups south tonight to Escondido. From there, it's just a short trip into Mexico."
"What are you going to do right now?" The girl asks the older woman.
"I'm going to rest. Wake me when the patrol returns."
She rolls over and goes to sleep. The younger woman doesn't have the heart to tell her the patrol returned half an hour ago.
This war against the machines is hard on everyone, especially on the woman who raised her.
# # #
John grabs his bag and gets the hell out of the hideaway.
He climbs the steps to the surface to find that Allison had finished loading the truck all on her own. John feels indebted to her for that. He should have helped.
They are both looking at him with some concern. Allison is standing with her gun in her hands and Kyle sitting in the shade of the van checking off items on his list.
"Have we got everything?" John manages to croak.
"Yeah." Kyle looks at him with a penetrating stare. "Are you okay Connor?"
"I'll be fine." John answers.
"Allison said your mom might have been here." Kyle asks questioningly.
"Uh, yeah. She'd been here, probably some time ago. She left me a few items."
"So its possible she survived the attack on you and your family when crossing the border."
"I . . . I guess so." John stammers, remembering the lie he told about his origins.
"If it's any help, there are other resistance bases out there. She could have gone to anyone of them. In fact there's one in the Sierra's that Derek and I have heard rumors about for like ten years. She could be with them."
"Kyle, those are just rumors." Allison says. "Besides, the Sierras are too far away from here. My guess would be Yuma or San Diego. There are old military bases there which have become bases for resistance groups. Either of them could have had a patrol out this way and picked up John's mother."
"Yeah, whatever." John says turning his back on them. He knows they are trying to help, but his mom wasn't here just a few days ago, she was here sometime after he left her, eighteen years ago.
Quickly wiping the tear stains off his face, John throws the bundle of wire mesh below and closes the hatch. He pushes the sand back over it and walks back to the van.
Allison and John helped Kyle into the back, where he has the pleasure of riding on top of the crates. Their bags providing him some needed cushioning from the rough ride.
"Allison, can you drive? I need some time to think." John asks her.
"Sure." She says, and takes his hand briefly giving it a gentle squeeze.
They climb up into the van, and drive off. Kyle lays down in back and holds onto the crates to keep himself from moving about. Allison sensing John's mood remains quiet. Letting him think through whatever is troubling him. John rides silently in deep thought.
Allison could see that John was still upset. She could only imagine what it is that he is thinking about. Best to let him work it out on his own for now. There will be plenty of time for talking later.
For his part, John was grateful for the silence, giving him time to think. He couldn't tell Allison about her double in the hideaway. She didn't think she'd take it all that well. Allison told him that she loved him, which left him confused, upset.
He kept turning over recent events in his head trying to come to a decision.
Mom hid Cameron's body in the only place where I would find it. Now all I needed was her chip, and I could have Cameron back. But that still required me finding John Henry and getting back her chip. An impossible situation, made worse, by the fact that I've got this beautiful girl, the very image of Cameron who likes me, who really likes me. Damn!
Allison is a nice girl. Her toughness and determination reminds me of mom. She's got a gentle nature that kind of reminds me of Cameron's quiet personality, but Allison's personality is so outgoing and friendly. There was never two people more alike and yet so different.
I told Allison that I still had feelings for someone I had lost, and that I didn't think I could love her in the way she loved me. She accepted that. I must admit that I do like her a lot, but was that because of who she is, or because she looks like Cameron?
The best thing and right thing to do, is finish my mission to fix Cameron and if something more than a friendship forms between me and Allison, then I will just have to face the consequences. I won't go out of my way to avoid it, but I won't encourage it either. If it happens, it happens.
John was still troubled by the time Allison drove into the rest stop. Not wasting any time, she backs the van into the bay where they had found the van.
John quickly jumps out and closes the doors to the garage, while Allison helps Kyle out of the van.
"We should minimize our visibility and stay indoors as much as possible." Kyle says.
"What about the bodies of Mike, Lewis and Billy?" John asks.
"As soon as it's dark, you two will have to go out and collect them and bury them with the others."
Allison and John pull a couple of cases out of the van to make another makeshift bed for Kyle. John goes to fetch the bucket of water from the well and returns to help Allison clean his wounds again and apply fresh bandages.
They let him rest quietly while Allison and John take turns refilling the canteens and standing guard.
After they finished filling the canteens, they take refuge from the heat in the service station. Allison had remained very quiet, hardly saying anything but for when they cleaned Kyle's wounds. John can tell Allison wants to talk to him, so he decides to speak first to avoid any awkward questions.
"I found a letter from my mom, in the hideaway." He says to her.
Allison comes closer. They are standing by a tool bench. Behind it there is a window that offers a clear view of the grounds in front of the service station.
"What does it say?" She asks, both curious and concerned.
"Here, you can read it." John says and pulls the envelope out of his jacket pocket.
Allison takes the letter out and reads it. "It seems she loves you very much."
"She sacrificed a lot to raise me." John answers truthfully.
"It's clear she expects you to move on with your life, and not worry about her." She says trying to gauge John's feelings.
"You see this." John pulls the key ring from his pocket. "When I gave it to her, she cried. I seldom saw her cry. I told her that it symbolized that no matter where our lives took us we'd always be connected."
"You know, maybe that's why she left her key ring, so that when you found it you would remember what you told her." Allison says placing her hand gently on his. "Is this her, in the photograph?"
"Yeah."
"You've got her eyes."
"That's what she says." John smiles weakly.
They stand there quietly for several minutes just enjoying each other's company. John felt better after talking about his mom and wished that he could tell Allison the whole story. The true story.
Maybe I will have to someday, he thinks, but for now she must believe the lie.
"I appreciate you coming over and talking to me about my mom. I'll come to terms with it in time. I don't know if she's dead or not, but she did make it to the desert hideaway and left me that message."
Allison puts one arm around John's shoulder.
"You are a good friend Allison."
"If we are going to be good friends, then you should call me Ally. All my closest friends do." She says, her eyes twinkling while she smiles at him.
"Thanks Ally. I think you are the best friend I could have right now." John replies
She gives his shoulders a light squeeze."
"Why don't you get some rest." John says, "I'll take this watch. I'd never sleep now anyways."
"Okay." She gives him a quick peck on the cheek and goes check on Kyle before lying down.
John stands alone with his thoughts listening to the quiet snores of Kyle. What should I do about Cameron's body back at the hideaway? Why did she give up her chip? Where is John Henry?
His hand rests on his pocket, where he had placed the chip from the Triple-8. All I need is her chip and I can have her back again. But I just know it won't be that simple. There is still the question of Catherine Weaver. Where did she disappear to? She said I would need John Henry to save the world. But what is his task?
John knew that if he ever ran into Weaver again, there were a lot of questions to ask her.
He takes a swig of water and repositions himself for a better view of the yard. They aren't out of danger and he knows he can't get lax in his duty to protect Kyle and Allison.
John keeps his eyes open for any trouble, but he finds himself getting tired of looking at the same expanse of desert scrub and empty road. It doesn't help that his mind keeps slipping back to Cameron's body and the letter from his mother.
John stands there for hours thinking of what he can do. The time for waking Allison for her turn at watch slipping past. But his mind has no answers, only questions. What happened to his mother? How did her truck end up at the hideaway? And if she drove it there, then what happened to her afterwards?
With a groan of despair, he looks down at the table, closing his eyes and running his hands through his hair. When he opens his eyes, they fall upon a small chain necklace hanging on a hook. He takes the chain down and slips his mom's key ring on it.
Taking one more look at it, John whispers. "You'll be with me always, Mom."
After wiping moisture from his eyes, he places the necklace over his head and tucks the key ring under his shirt.
Allison had looked over at John when he groaned. She hadn't slept at all. Too concerned for Kyle's injuries and John's emotional well being.
After a moment or two, Allison joins John.
"You didn't wake me." She says.
"I needed time to think." John says, a light frown creasing his face.
She nods her head. "It will be dark soon."
"Yeah, I know. The shovels are where we left them." John answers automatically. There are still the bodies of Mike, Lewis and Bill that need to be buried.
Sensing what must be on John's mind, Allison puts an arm around him. "You know. Whatever ghosts are haunting you, whatever memories from the past are troubling your mind. You aren't alone." She says, resting her head on his shoulder. "We are all haunted in some way of a life we have left behind."
"Thanks Ally." He places an arm around her waist. "I know. Judgment Day has changed everything and has affected everyone."
She smiles and feels good that she was able to say the right words to help John.
They stand together in silence like that through most of the night keeping an eye out for trouble which never comes. The only trouble that night is in John's heart and mind.
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